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March’s Job Growth Crushed Expectations |
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Friday, April 4, 2025 |
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Craig Bannister-Blog (Apr 4, 2025)
While analysts were looking for 135,000 jobs to be added in March, total seasonally-adjusted nonfarm payroll grew by 228,000 – higher than both the past year’s 158,000 monthly average and the 200,000 benchmark considered “average.”
While analysts were looking for 135,000 jobs to be added in March, total seasonally-adjusted nonfarm payroll grew by 228,000—higher than both the past year’s 158,000 monthly average and the 200,000 benchmark considered “average.” Among the major industry sectors, private sector job growth exceeded expectations. Compared to February, notable changes in employment include:
The growth in health care was in line with its 52,000 monthly average over the past year. Workers returning from a strike contributed to the job gain in food and beverage retailer employment. Federal government employees on paid leave or receiving ongoing severance pay are counted as employed in the establishment survey. As a result, the decline in federal government employment (-4,000) was far less than February’s loss (-11,000), despite the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) moves that reduced the size of the federal government. Still, the nation’s reliance on government for job growth has significantly decreased, the White House said in a statement reacting to Friday’s BLS report: “Under Biden, government and government-adjacent employment accounted for nearly three-fourths of new employment. Under President Trump, that number dropped to just42%in March.” While March’s 4.2% unemployment rate inched up a tenth of a point from February’s 4.1% level, the unemployment rate has remained in a narrow range of 4.0% to 4.2% since May 2024 (4.0%). The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for January was revised down by 14,000, from +125,000 to +111,000, and the change for February was revised down by 34,000, from +151,000 to +117,000. Together, employment in January and February combined is 48,000 lower than previously reported.
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Antonino Cambria (Apr 4, 2025)
Tennessee and Oklahoma had their federal funding frozen under the Biden administration after they refused to require their healthcare facilities to provide referrals for abortions.
The Trump administration is set to restore millions in Title X “family planning” healthcare funds to Tennessee and Oklahoma, according to a Hill report. The Biden administration had frozen both states’ funding after they refused to require their healthcare facilities to provide referrals for abortions. “The last administration not only weaponized the federal government by withholding Title X family planning funding to punish pro-life states but also funneled billions of dollars to their political backers at Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion business, which takes the lives of nearly 400,000 babies a year,” Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America president Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a statement after the news. “We are happy President Trump is righting this backwards policy and hopeful about seeing Big Abortion defunded this year. Abortion is not family planning and the multi-billion-dollar abortion industry, led by Planned Parenthood, does not deserve a dime from taxpayers,” she added. READ: Trump’s top 10 pro-life actions according to the president himself In 2019, during Trump’s first administration, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued the Protect Life Rule, which barred healthcare facilities that commit or refer women for abortions from receiving Title X funding. In 2021, Biden’s HHS rescinded that rule and resumed disbursing Title X funds to abortion facilities. In April 2023, Tennessee became the first state to lose its Title X funding from Biden’s HHS. They cited the state’s failure to require counseling on “infant care, foster care, adoption, or pregnancy termination, which are all required to be provided upon request” as the reasons for stripping the funding and gave the $7 million in funds to Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi instead. READ: Tennessee bill takes aim at preventing abortion pills from entering state through the mail Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti responded by suing Biden’s HHS for the funds. In September 2024, the US 6th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Biden administration could cut off Tennessee’s funding, determining that the state could not “dictate” federal grant eligibility… Continue reading Here.
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Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell (Apr 4, 2025)
“I guess there’s two sides to address … I’m going to let the Speaker make the decision, but I like the idea of being able to, if you’re having a baby, I think you should be able to call in and vote…” -President Donald Trump
“I don’t know why it’s controversial,” the president told reporters on Air Force One on Thursday. Luna left the conservative Freedom Caucus over other members’ opposition to the bill she co-sponsored with Rep. Brittany Pettersen, D-CO, that would allow moms and dads in Congress to vote by proxy for 12 weeks after the birth of a baby. Trump said he spoke to Luna on Wednesday about the bill.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-LA, declined to put the bill on the floor Tuesday, but Luna joined with more than 200 Democrats and nine other Republicans to use a discharge petition to circumvent leadership and force a vote. That temporarily blocks Republicans from bringing up other House business, forcing Johnson to cancel votes for the rest of the week. Johnson thinks allowing proxy voting “would do great violence to the institution to reopen Pandora’s box,” he said before the vote, contending that proxy voting is unconstitutional and a slippery slope. “If you allow it for some situations, you’re ultimately going to have to allow it for all,” Johnson said. “And I think that destroys the deliberative nature of the body.” Press secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Daily Signal at Tuesday’s press conference that she had not spoken to the president about his thoughts on the proxy voting bill. Some conservatives say parents like Luna and Pettersen should be willing to sacrifice their careers in Congress for their families. “If you are unable to fulfill the duties required of a member of Congress because you are a parent of a small child, feel free to resign. Many have before,” Evita Duffy-Alfonso, daughter of Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, wrote on X. Duffy-Alfonso cited her father stepping down from Congress after her younger sister was born with Down syndrome and two holes in her heart. “Proxy voting is unconstitutional and will be abused and expanded,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, wrote on X. “Show up for work, or don’t run for Congress.” Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell is the White House Correspondent for “The Daily Signal.”
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“I’m going to let the speaker make the decision, but I like the idea of being able to, if you’re having a baby, I think you should be able to call in and vote,” the president said. “I’m in favor of that, but I understand some people aren’t involved in the issue, but I did, I spoke to Anna yesterday. She and some people feel strongly about it, and I would agree with them.” (Screengrab image: via X)|
Jim Hᴏft (Apr 4, 2025)
Schwab’s announcement follows months of internal chaos, scandal, and growing global backlash against his Orwellian vision.
Klaus Schwab, the unelected mastermind behind the World Economic Forum (WEF) and its dystopian dreams of centralized control, is preparing to step down as chair of the board of trustees, according to the Financial Times. … …Schwab announced he would be officially stepping down as executive chairman and transitioning to non-executive chairman. After five decades of steering the WEF into a playground for elites, Schwab’s exit signals what could be the long-overdue unraveling of a technocratic agenda that aimed to dictate how the rest of us live, eat, travel, and think. Schwab’s announcement follows months of internal chaos, scandal, and growing global backlash against his Orwellian vision… Read this article in its entirety Here.
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Catherine Salgado (Apr 4, 2025)
“I know he can help. I’m here because of Trump. I’m here because of him. I think he’s the only one who can stop this war again. He has to convince Netanyahu, to convince Hamas, I think he can do it.” -Yarden Bibas
Bibas described the demonic heartlessness of his Hamas captors, who told him while he was on live film that they’d viciously massacred his wife Shiri and two children, Baby Kfir and toddler Ariel. Bibas hopes that Donald Trump, who has highlighted the plight of Israeli hostages and proposed deporting millions of jihad-loving “Palestinians” from Gaza, will hear his message and achieve a peace deal. Bibas told CBS’s Lesley Stahl how his family “were murdered in cold blood. Bare hands. They [Hamas] used to tell me, ‘It doesn’t matter. You’ll get a new wife, new kids. Better wife, better kids.'” This seems to reflect the disturbing reality highlighted by Hamas co-founder’s son, Mosab Hassan Yousef, who said that Hamas terrorists are happy to sacrifice even their own children to the cause, as they have no value for individual human life. Whether murdering Israeli babies or training their own sons to be cannon fodder, Hamas jihadis have no conscience and laugh at the anguish of those who do. Yarden credits Trump with bringing pressure to bear to achieve his release and hopes the same miracle can happen to the remaining 50-plus hostages: “I know he can help. I’m here because of Trump. I’m here because of him. I think he’s the only one who can stop this war again. He has to convince Netanyahu, to convince Hamas, I think he can do it.”… Continue reading, and watch the videos Here.
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James Lasher (Apr 4, 2025)
…The discovery turned out to be a 3,800-year-old scarab amulet from the Middle Bronze Age—right near the ancient town of Azekah in the Judaean Foothills, a place mentioned in 1 Samuel 17:1 where David faced Goliath.
That’s exactly what happened last month when 3-year-old Ziv Nitzan was out on a family walk and stumbled across a piece of Biblical history. “We were walking along the path, and then Ziv bent down—and out of all the stones around her, she picked up this particular stone,” said her sister, Omer Nitzan. “When she rubbed it and removed the sand from it, we saw something was different about it.” As reported by Fox News, the discovery turned out to be a 3,800-year-old scarab amulet from the Middle Bronze Age—right near the ancient town of Azekah in the Judaean Foothills, a place mentioned in 1 Samuel 17:1 where David faced Goliath. The artifact was immediately turned over to the Israel Antiquities Authority, which confirmed the find and awarded young Ziv a certificate of appreciation. The scarab is shaped like a dung beetle, a sacred symbol in ancient Egyptian culture. According to the IAA, “It was a symbol of new life, because of the dung ball it created and then laid its eggs into it, from which new life would hatch.” The Egyptian word for scarab even comes from the verb meaning “to come into being” or “to be created.” These amulets were used as seals or symbols of religious belief and status, as explained by Dr. Daphna Ben-Tor. Tel Aviv University professor Oded Lipschits, who has led excavations at Tel Azekah for 15 years, called the city “one of the most important cities in the Judean Lowlands” during the Bronze Ages. He added, “The scarab found by Ziv joins a long list of Egyptian and Canaanite finds discovered here, which attest to the close ties and cultural influences between Canaan and Egypt during that period.” In honor of Passover, IAA Director Eli Escuido announced the artifact will be displayed at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel, where the public can view it alongside other significant Egyptian and Canaanite items. “Thanks to her, everyone will be able to see it and enjoy it,” he said. It’s incredible, every time archaeologists search the soil, they uncover more evidence that affirms the truth of the Bible. History and archaeology continue to echo the pages of Scripture, reminding us that the stories passed down for generations are far more than myth—they’re the very foundation of truth. James Lasher is staff writer for Charisma Media.
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Andrea Margolis (Apr 4, 2025)
[FoxNews.com] Proof of an ancient garden, consistent with Biblical Scripture, has emerged at the holiest site in Christianity—and an archaeologist says “many surprises” from the site are in the works. Archaeologists excavating the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the ancient church in Jerusalem situated where Jesus Christ was crucified and buried, recently found evidence of ancient olive trees and grapevines. The specimens date back roughly 2,000 years. The discovery echoes the New Testament verse John 19:41, “Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid.”… Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here Click Here to read and view images.
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(Image: Pixabay)|
Talia Wise (Apr 4, 2025)
“This tragedy has shaken me, family, and friends to the core. I trust God will bring us through the tuff times ahead. I appreciate everyone who has reached out. He passed away in his brother’s arms. He wasn’t alone at least. I can’t describe the range of emotions I am feeling. I pray God will guide our paths moving forward.” -Jeff Metcalf, Austin’s father
Jeff Metcalf of Frisco, Texas, is the single father of twin boys, Hunter and Austin. Austin Metcalf reportedly got into a confrontation with 17-year-old Karmelo Anthony at Kuykendall Stadium, according to local authorities. Jeff Metcalf told NBC5 his son was stabbed in the heart by the other student after telling him he was in the wrong seat [in the stadium]. The dad said his son did not know the other student, but his twin brother Hunter witnessed the entire incident and tried to stop the bleeding after Austin got stabbed with a knife. “They were twins, identical twins, and his brother was holding on to him, trying to make it stop bleeding, and he died in his brother’s arms,” Metcalf said. “I rushed up there and I saw him on the gurney and I could tell—they said he wasn’t breathing. I could see all the blood, and I saw where the wound was, and I was very concerned, so I had to find his brother, and we rushed to the hospital.” Metcalf says his son was the MVP of his football team and had been planning to go to college after graduating in 2026. “He was on the right track. He was loved by many. He was a leader,” he said. The dad paid further tribute to his son writing on Facebook, “This tragedy has shaken me, family, and friends to the core. I trust God will bring us through the tuff times ahead. I appreciate everyone who has reached out. He passed away in his brother’s arms. He wasn’t alone at least. I can’t describe the range of emotions I am feeling. I pray God will guide our paths moving forward.” Metcalf told NBC5 he is not passing judgment on Anthony. “I’m not trying to judge, but what kind of parents did this child have? What was he taught? He brought a knife to a track meet and he murdered my son by stabbing him in the heart. The guy was in the wrong place and they asked him to move and he bowed up. This is murder,” he said. The grieving father says he is choosing to forgive while putting his faith in God to get through this. “I have already forgiven him … God takes care of things. God takes care of me. God’s going to take care of my family,” he told the outlet. “That’s for my peace … not his.” Police have charged Anthony with first-degree murder, with no bond set, Newsweek reports. Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here Jeff Metcalf created a GoFundMe campaign to assist his family… Talia Wise has served as a multi-media producer for CBNNews.com, CBN Newswatch, The Prayer Link, and CBN News social media outlets.
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Adam B. Coleman (Apr 4, 2025)
[TheFederalist.com] …As a child, I had no say about my loneliness. My father abandoned me and left me to figure out the world alone. As a result, throughout most of my life, I felt rejected. That feeling of rejection was an unpleasant yet familiar emotion that latched onto me from childhood and followed me into adulthood. … It took time to reconcile my previously held skepticism of God’s existence. I had translated my suffering as being a punishment rather than something of purpose. My suffering became much easier to bear when I thought about how Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins… Click Here to read.
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(Image: Unsplash-Krunal Mistry)
