Top of the Fold

• Biden’s “Misery Index”: Since 1948, economists have used the so-called “Misery Index” as an indicator for how poorly the average American is fairing economically. The measurement is calculated by combining the unemployment rate and annual inflation rate. However, like Joe Biden has done with redefining recession, the government has long been playing semantics with both unemployment (headline unemployment versus actual unemployment) and inflation (the Consumer Price Index has been distorted to hide the true inflation rate). The point is that even the spiking headline Misery Index fails to account for the genuine level of growing misery under Biden’s presidency. For example, food costs, gas prices, and interest rates are all rising to the point of preventing many from being able to afford to purchase a home. Meanwhile, a completely out-of-touch administration is telling Americans this is the best economy in history. So as bad as Biden is doing on the official Misery Index, on the actual misery index he’s doing even worse.

• Democrats throw Biden overboard: The Democrats have been quietly wrestling with their Joe Biden problem. The man holds the record for lowest approval rating for any modern-era president. He effectively hangs like an albatross around the necks of Democrats, many of whom are almost literally running away from him. When Biden recently visited Ohio to stump for Democrats, Senate candidate Tim Ryan conspicuously did not appear with Joe, citing “scheduling conflicts.” In Georgia, Democrat Senator Raphael Warnock, who is in a tight race with Republican challenger Herschel Walker, likewise distanced himself from Biden by avoiding giving an answer to the president’s performance. In Pennsylvania, Democrat Senate candidate John Fetterman refused to answer if he would appear with Biden on stage before the election. Meanwhile, a couple of Democrat lawmakers have publicly told Biden not to seek reelection. Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) responded to a question as to whether Biden should run again by stating, “I don’t believe he’s running for reelection.” Congressman Jerry Nadler (D-NY) answered the same question by saying it’s “too early to say.” Recent polling shows that even a majority of Democrat voters don’t want Biden to run for reelection. The results of the midterms might prove to be the proverbial nail in the coffin.

• Team Biden boosts abortion: Today, Joe Biden plans to sign his second executive order related to abortion following the Supreme Court’s ruling on Dobbs that overturned Roe v. Wade. The order is a bit vague, as it simply directs Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to “consider” how to make sure woman have access to abortion. The order further instructs HHS to “accurately measure the impact” that lack of abortion access has on women’s health. But the Justice Department is also on the warpath against states with laws protecting the life of the preborn. Attorney General Merrick Garland has directed the DOJ to sue the state of Idaho over its strict abortion law. The law in question only allows for abortion when “necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman” according to a doctor’s “good faith medical judgement and based on the facts known to the physician at the time.” The DOJ is making the dubious claim that the law violates the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act by erroneously suggesting that it would prevent emergency rooms from performing abortions necessary for “stabilizing” the health of a “pregnant patient.” Citing the EMTLA is merely a red herring; the Idaho law does not preclude necessary emergency abortive procedures in order to save the life of the mother. Abortion on demand is what Biden and company are really after, and that is precisely what Idaho and other pro-life states are seeking to end.

Headlines

• What happened in House and Senate primaries in five states (Roll Call)

• Kansas votes to uphold constitutional right to abortion in first ballot measure since Dobbs (National Review) | Pro-lifers need not despair over Kansas abortion setback and here’s why (The Federalist)

• Senate passes burn pits legislation after partisan imbroglio (Fox News)

• Kamala Harris dives into ridiculous, offensive moments during climate speech (RedState) | Harris cites climate “crisis,” pushes $1B for floods, storms (AP)

• Democrats urge Supreme Court to uphold racist affirmative action in college admissions (The Hill)

• Economists question claim by Democrats that new tax-and-spend bill will cut inflation (Washington Times)

• MSNBC sounds alarm on Hispanics fleeing Democrat Party (Fox News)

• Cassidy Hutchinson reportedly worked for Trump nine weeks after he left office (The Federalist)

• New details on Paul Pelosi arrest reveal he allegedly had more than just alcohol in his system (RedState)

• Cash bonanza: Iran has made $44.7 billion in illegal oil sales since Biden took office (Free Beacon)

• “Surprising” list of America’s murder capitals (Washington Examiner)

• Job openings fall to 10.7 million, lowest since September (Bloomberg)

• Nuclear Regulatory Commission certifies first small modular reactor (Washington Examiner)

• Policy: Regulations can make cities hotter (City Journal)

• Satire: Monkeypox symbol added to pride flag (Babylon Bee)

For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit Headline Report.