Good morning, dear readers, and welcome. Today is February 15, 2026, which Alexa tells me is “Singles Awareness Day.” Ummm… okay. Now, we know, I guess.
399 BC: Philosopher Socrates is sentenced to death by the city of Athens for corrupting the minds of the youth and for impiety.
1493: Christopher Columbus writes the first account of his voyage to the Americas in a letter to his patron Luis de Santángel, Treasurer of Aragon, who then publishes it.
1768: The first mustard manufactured in America is advertised in Philadelphia.
1799: The first U.S. printed ballots are authorized in Pennsylvania.
1870: Ground is broken for the Northern Pacific Railway near Duluth, Minnesota.
1922: Guglielmo Marconi begins regular broadcasting transmissions from Essex.
1941: Duke Ellington and his Orchestra first record “Take the 'A' Train.”
1944: 891 British bombers attack Berlin in the largest raid by the RAF against the city.
1950: Walt Disney’s animated film Cinderella premieres.
1964: The Beatles' album Meet the Beatles! goes #1 and stays #1 for 11 weeks.
1965: The Red Maple Leaf Flag becomes the official flag of Canada.
Birthdays today: Galileo Galilei, inventor Cyrus McCormick, Susan B. Anthony, actor John Barrymore, Erector Set inventor Alfred Carlton Gilbert, American composer Harold Arlen (Over the Rainbow; It’s Only a Paper Moon; Stormy Weather), Cesar Romero, Allan Arbus (played Sydney Freedman on MASH*), Harvey Korman, record producer Glyn Johns, Matt Groening, producer Hugh Padgham, and Chris Farley.
* * *
During the 2024 campaign, the Democrats were all upset with Donald Trump’s economic plan. They had 16 Nobel economists warning that Trump would cause an inflation crisis. From CNN back then:
Inflation remains public enemy No. 1 in today’s economy. Americans are fed up with the cost of living and former President Donald Trump says he will help.
Yet 16 Nobel Prize-winning economists are warning that Trump’s proposals wouldn’t just fail to fix inflation — they would make matters worse.
“We the undersigned are deeply concerned about the risks of a second Trump administration for the US economy,” the economists wrote in the Tuesday letter, which was first reported by Axios.
The letter, organized by famed economist Joseph Stiglitz, argued there are valid reasons to worry the Trump agenda will “reignite” inflation.
In particular, the economists point to Trump’s “fiscally irresponsible budgets” and nonpartisan research from the likes of the Peterson Institute, Oxford Economics and Allianz that finds the Trump agenda — if successfully enacted — would increase inflation.
Well, gang, it’s been over a year now that Trump’s been running things, and as usual, the Democrat Party’s gloom-and-doom scenarios have not even come close to being true. Not that they’ll admit that, mind you… and so, this piece this morning is to lay out the facts.
Inflation during the Biden years rose to over 9%, mostly due to massive government spending on things like healthcare fraud, railroads to nowhere, welfare and free hotel rooms, free healthcare for illegals, and infrastructure for electric cars that never materialized because nobody wanted those cars.
Under Trump’s direction the situation has turned around. Year-over-year inflation fell to 2.4% in January — and inflation is now at the lowest level since May. Core inflation — the best measure of inflation — dropped to its lowest level in nearly five years.
There's good news on the wage front as well. Real year-average hourly earnings for all private-sector workers (the only real measure of an economy being the private sector) rose in January, up 1.2% over the past year. For middle- and lower-wage workers, gains were even stronger at 1.5%. In President Trump’s first year back in office, real earnings for all private-sector workers have outpaced inflation by nearly $1,400 — earning back some of the nearly $3,000 they lost under Biden.
Prices are also falling. Gas prices are still coming down. Beef, eggs, and coffee prices all declined in January — clear signs of relief from President Trump’s pro-growth, anti-inflation agenda and concerted effort to address prices in key areas. Energy prices dropped 1.5% and gasoline prices fell 3.2% last month. Used vehicle prices decreased 1.8% in January. Prescription drug prices held steady in January and are down over the past year. Those are the facts that Trump’s detractors will be trying to shield you from.
So much for the “experts” and the reliability of their advice. The claim was that if we didn’t elect Democrats, economic disaster was sure to happen.
We are fortunate that the expert advice was never heeded; otherwise, we wouldn’t have seen the economy bounce back as it has. This recovery has occurred on the principle that this administration is removing government obstacles from the path of the people.
The most notable example at the moment is the ending of the Obama-era “Endangerment Finding,” which had accumulated nearly a trillion and a half dollars in unnecessary regulatory roadblocks and mandates on transportation manufacturers.
Ford Motor Company spokesman Dave Tovar:
We appreciate the work of President Trump and Administrator Zeldin to address the imbalance between current emissions standards and customer choice. Ford has consistently advocated for a single, stable national standard that aligns with customer choice, the market, societal benefit, and American job growth.
Stellantis welcomes today’s decision, because it enables us to continue offering Americans a broad range of cars, trucks and SUVs — including BEVs, REEVs, hybrids and efficient internal combustion engines — that they want, need and can afford. We remain supportive of a rational, achievable approach on fuel economy standards that preserves our customers’ freedom of choice.
Well, yeah. Obama’s weaponized EPA nearly bankrupted the auto industry. Ford and Chrysler almost went under making cars that the people didn’t want to buy. I’ve been saying since 2009 that the American people didn’t want electric go-carts. Finally, we have a White House that’s willing to listen to what the people want and voted for, and that is willing to operate in the realm of reality, not ideology. The response has been overwhelmingly positive.
CO2 Coalition Executive Director Gregory Wrightstone:
“The repeal of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Endangerment Finding by Administrator Lee Zeldin is cause for celebration. The basis of this wrongheaded climate regulation put ideology ahead of science. The rule has been an impediment to economic growth, a cause of rising energy costs and a destroyer of many thousands of jobs at power plants, coal mines and manufacturing facilities. Since the 2009 enactment of the Endangerment Finding, its scientific underpinnings have been found to be even weaker than previously believed and contradicted by empirical data, peer-reviewed studies and research.”
The job situation is looking brighter than it has in years, and wildly outperforming expert expectations.
Nonfarm employment rose by 130,000 jobs in January, while revised data show total nonfarm employment increased by 181,000 jobs in 2025. Average hourly earnings rose by 0.4%, and aggregate private-sector earnings rose by 0.8% (up 4.8% year-on-year). The unemployment rate fell to 4.3% in January (4.283% unrounded), and the broader U-6 measure declined to 8.0%.
In my experience, elections are seldom won or lost on ideology. Rather, they are fought on kitchen-table issues: the cost of things, the wages we make, and whether government initiatives are keeping us from doing what we need to do. Clearly, the midterms are in focus now… and the Democrats have nowhere to hide on these kitchen-table issues.
Years ago, we were told by Democrat gadfly James Carville, “It’s the economy, Stupid.” Which in turn is exactly why the left is focused on desperate searches for evidence on Tramp/Epstein and ICE. They know they've got nothing else to go with, even though it hasn't been working for them. I believe we are going to see a clear demonstration of this come November. And it doesn’t bode well for the Democrat party, for the foreseeable future.
Thought of the Day: "The optimist proclaims that we live in the best of all possible worlds, and the pessimist fears this is true." — James Branch Cabell
Take care of yourself. Nobody else will do it like you will. See you tomorrow.
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