The Joe Cunningham Show airs 3-4 p.m. every weekday on NewsTalk 96.5 KPEL. The daily show notes offer you a look into the topics of the day and the links to the top stories and Joe's own writings on the state of politics in Louisiana and around the country. Follow Joe on Twitter at @JoePCunningham and Like the Joe Cunningham Show on Facebook. You can also subscribe to the Joe Cuningham Show podcast on AppleSpotifyStitcher, or Amazon.

Unofficially Officially A Recession

The top economic news today is what everyone was expecting: The U.S. economy shrank almost a full percentage point in the second quarter. Usually, that means we've hit a recession. Joe Biden, however, insists we have not.

“Our job market remains historically strong, with unemployment at 3.6% and more than 1 million jobs created in the second quarter alone,” Biden added, saying his “economic plan is focused on bringing inflation down.”

Meanwhile, inflation reached a 40-year high during the Biden administration, lowering real wages. Gas prices also reached record-breaking heights this summer, with the national average hitting $5 a gallon.

The Biden administration, including Biden’s national economic council director Brian Deese and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, have repeatedly denied the traditional definition of a recession, claiming it’s not the “technical” definition.

As I've said on the show a few times now, it doesn't matter whether or not the White House says we're in a recession. Polling consistently shows most Americans believe we're in one, and no amount of wishcasting is going to change that belief's impact on the midterm elections.

Related: More House seats shift to Republicans.

The Media Fears Irrelevancy, Attacks The Republicans Ignoring Them

My latest at RedState follows up on a story I've been telling y'all about lately. Republicans are ignoring the media, not letting them into events, not letting them get exclusive interviews, etc. And the media is now fighting back.

"...look at what the writer is saying: We can do our jobs without you speaking to us, and we will continue digging for stuff you don’t want us to ask you about. They can write the same garbage they were writing before without talking to Republicans.

The official GOP response to this column should be “Don’t threaten us with a good time.”

If you don’t let us into your press events, we’ll give you bad coverage is one hell of a response to the GOP shutting out the media because they routinely give bad (and dishonest) coverage. It’s almost like they actually want to be shut out so that it gives them license to really embrace their resistance literotica.

The media should not be rewarded with access until they learn to actually be journalists again. End of story.

RNC To Trump: If You Announce Presidential Run, We'll Stop Giving You Money

Under the guise of "neutrality," the Republican National Committee has told former President Donald Trump that if he announces a run for President anytime soon, they'll stop paying his legal bills. Which is a pretty big deal.

Republican leaders who worry that Donald Trump could hurt their midterm chances by announcing a presidential run too soon are hoping he'll be dissuaded from doing so by the prospect of losing hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal payments, according to an RNC official.

Since October 2021, the Republican National Committee has paid nearly $2 million to law firms representing Trump as part of his defense against personal litigation and government investigations.

But an RNC official told ABC News that as soon as Trump would announce he is running for president, the payments would stop because the party has a "neutrality policy" that prohibits it from taking sides in the presidential primary.

Trump will, of course, not be happy about this. The question is how much Trump has learned over the last few years. Will he call the RNC's bluff and do it anyway? Or will cooler heads prevail?

Headlines Of The Day

  • Watch: How New Media Is Winning and How You Can Get Involved (RedState)
  • Manchin says he ‘never walked away’ as Democrats push spending deal (Washington Post)
  • Hunter Biden had a high-end income and lavish lifestyle. But he struggled with tax issues for years (CNN)
  • Former Republicans and Democrats form new third U.S. political party (Reuters)
  • Saudi Arabia Is Building A City That Is 100 Miles Long And Only 650 Feet Wide And It'll Blow Your Mind (Barstool)

Tweet Of The Day

Okay, I'm cheating here. This is my tweet. And it's a few days old. BUT... help out some local teachers, would you?

8 Things You Touch All Day That Need To Be Sanitized

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