Tuesday Afternoon Breaking News Updates with Ben - 5/12/26
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
You're watching Ben on Breaking News. I'm Ben Mycelis, and this is your Breaking News. Before we went live, we learned that the Pentagon is considering a new mission, a new invasion of Iran. They're calling it Operation Sledgehammer. They believe that the ceasefire is likely going to collapse. I don't even think the ceasefire is even real right now.
What is the Pentagon's new mission regarding Iran?
And when the war resumes, which I believe is likely going to take place, as soon as Donald Trump's trip to China, which is sure to be an absolute disaster. When that is done, then there will be Operation Sledgehammer, and then this will be yet another catastrophic invasion of Iran. NBC reports that the US military presence in the region is also now larger than even at the start of the war. with an additional carrier strike group and re-armed assets. Now, this news of Operation Sledgehammer comes at a time where we got perhaps one of the most disastrous economic reports in recent history. We learned earlier today inflation surging. year over year to 3.8%, its highest level since May of 2023. Donald Trump promised that he was going to bring inflation down, that he was going to bring energy prices down.
Under former President Biden, was coming very close to hit that 2% Fed target. Yes, inflation was high during the first half of former President Biden's term as he was dealing with the catastrophic mess that the arsonist Donald Trump left him when Donald Trump left the country in complete and utter shambles. But the American people forgot about that. They forgot about how Donald Trump said, like a miracle, COVID's gonna go away. It's never going to hit our shores. But former President Biden handed Donald Trump an economy That was the envy of the world. And like Donald Trump's past failed businesses, what did Donald Trump do? He wrecked it. And now we got this inflation report, 3.8%. But when you dig in on this report also, the data is worse than that because inflation is exceeding wage growth right now, meaning any year over year wage growth, which is about a 3%.
What is the significance of Trump's trip to China?
3.6% that's eclipsed by the 3.8% inflation. So that's one of the reasons also Americans feel that, look, I can't afford anything at all because inflation is rising quicker than wage growth. Also, when you get into the specific, uh, sectors, sectoral inflation, like when you look at energy inflation, when you look at food inflation, when you look at housing inflation, when you look at all these categories, the stuff that impacts the American people the most, that's where inflation is at its highest. So energy commodity inflation. up 29.2%.
What are the implications of Operation Sledgehammer?
Gasoline inflation up 28.4%. Airfare up 20%. Energy inflation up 17.9%. Electricity inflation up 6.1%. Fruits and vegetable inflation 6.1%. Hospital services up 5.5%. Motor vehicle repairs 5.1%. Apparel inflation, 4.2%. And also cumulative inflation since 2020 is up about 29.2%. And so something that would have cost you $100 back in 2020 now costs you $129.
How does the U.S. military presence in the region compare historically?
Extrapolate that, $1,000. What would that cost you? $100,000. What would that cost you? $10,000. What would that cost you today? It is unaffordable. But folks, you didn't need this report to tell you this because if we go out or even go online and say, whoa, or stay in our homes and go, holy crap, I know you may have the same reaction that I do when I get that energy bill. When I get some of these bills, I go, that's... I go, that's got to be wrong. That's got to be incorrect.
What are the current tensions between the U.S. and Iran?
How could that possibly be? No, that's what's going on. So we all knew this. But Donald Trump and MAGA, they want to flood the zone and say, we're in a golden age and everything is amazing and people are doing great. We've never been richer. We've never been wealthier. Their euphemism is the K-shaped economy. They call it K-shaped. which basically means most Americans, if you draw a K and you have a horizontal line, 99% of Americans live in the recession, great recession, depression area, right? That's where most Americans are. And above the horizontal line in the K, the rich get richer and have never been richer and wealthier right now while everybody else is getting absolutely screwed.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:00–0:24
2
What is the Pentagon's new mission regarding Iran?
0:24–2:17
3
What is the significance of Trump's trip to China?
2:17–3:00
4
What are the implications of Operation Sledgehammer?
3:00–3:37
5
How does the U.S. military presence in the region compare historically?
3:37–4:13
6
What are the current tensions between the U.S. and Iran?
4:13–5:03
7
How is the current inflation rate impacting Americans?
5:03–5:53
8
How does Donald Trump's economic policy affect inflation?
5:53–59:55