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Welcome back. After Trump's appearance at the GOP convention in Texas yesterday, we’re unpacking his pledge of $5,000 to every US adult if the GOP wins the upcoming elections. Also in the news: Trump says oil prices likely won’t come down until after the midterms; a look at the New York City firehouse that was first to respond on 9/11; and the wild afterlife of Jack Kerouac’s 120-foot “On the Road” scroll.
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President Donald Trump speaks at the Republican convention, Wednesday, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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Trump, hoping to salvage midterms, promises to give every US adult $5,000 if GOP wins
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“It will be called the Trump Dividend,” President Donald Trump said during the GOP’s midterm convention in Dallas. He has discussed the possibility before but has never tied it to his party’s electoral fortunes. Read more.
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- Trump likened the payments to a corporation’s distributions to shareholders, citing “our tremendous strength and success economically." However, the dubious promise would likely cost more than $1 trillion and require congressional approval, and would further exacerbate the country’s nearly $1.8 trillion annual budget deficit and concerns about inflation.
Within an hour, Vice President JD Vance appeared to try to walk back Trump’s proposal — at least in part — by suggesting the dividend payments would not go to the wealthy. Vance suggested it could be paid for by U.S. tariff revenues, though the suggested payment dwarfs what the U.S. has taken in through the protectionist measures. The White House did not respond to a message seeking details.
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Trump says oil prices that spiked because of Iran war likely won’t come down until after midterms
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“Right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward,” President Donald Trump said in an exchange with reporters before traveling to Dallas. “I think it’s going to take a little bit longer than the midterm.” Read more.
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The comments were a striking acknowledgment from Trump about the conflict as his Republican administration faces mounting pressure to address high gas prices as the war in Iran grinds on with no conclusion in sight. Oil prices on Wednesday jumped more than 3%, pushing international Brent crude past the $100 threshold for the first time since July. Trump added that he believes Iran will finally relent after the pivotal elections are held in the U.S.
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A NYC firehouse was first to respond on 9/11. 25 years on, Sal Argano is the last still on staff
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Six members of the small Manhattan firehouse — nicknamed Ten House — were among the 343 New York City firefighters killed in the World Trade Center's collapse. New York City firefighter Sal Argano was on loan to another station that day. He got lucky. Read more.
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Almost 25 years later, Argano, now 65, is still on duty at the firehouse — the last of the firefighters assigned there in 2001 who still works there. Today, the crews at the firehouse respond to emergency calls but also serve as a de facto part of the 9/11 memorial, visited by crowds of tourists daily.
Robert Favata, who joined Ladder 10 in 2008, considers the approaching 25th anniversary as likely one of his last before retirement. He worries, though, if he’s done enough to keep the memories of Ten House alive. “When I got here, so many of the guys worked 9/11 and they told me their stories of that day,” Favata said, choking on tears. “I just hope I can give like a percentage of what they’ve told me to the younger guys.”
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Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" and its working manuscript, sits on display at the American Writers Museum in Chicago, 2017. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
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The Great American Manuscript
I enjoyed Jack Kerouac’s post-World War II era American classic “On the Road” and its wild Beat Generation energy when I read it earlier this year. But, at times, it was hard to follow, and read like an all-night coffee binge. I wasn’t surprised to learn that in a three-week frenzy, Kerouac hurried out a full-length, single-spaced manuscript, a first draft of the novel, that he taped together into a scroll some 120 feet long. Read our full American 250 Object report on how the scroll became a piece of literary history. For more stories in our 250 American Objects series read here.
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That's all for today. Know someone who would enjoy Morning Wire? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here. - Nadja
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