Inflation is expected to hit a nearly three-year high, surpassing wage growth. Trump says the Iran ceasefire is “on life support” after rejecting Tehran’s “unacceptable” peace proposal. And parents, educators and students are fed up with a learning software used by millions of students.
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Here’s what to know today.
Economists and analysts predict that inflation hit 3.8% in April, up 0.6% the previous month, according to a Dow Jones survey ahead of the release today of the latest Consumer Price Index. April’s inflation reading follows a 0.9% jump from February to March, which marked the largest month-to-month jump since 2022 and shows the effect the war in Iran is having on consumers in the U.S.
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If April’s numbers line up with experts’ predictions, inflation will have surpassed wage growth for the first time since 2023. Wage gains have been slowing over the past two years.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, is expected to jump 0.3%, economists predict.
Several analysts said they believe soaring gas prices in recent months haven’t hit consumers yet. It’ll take “at least a few more months” for rising energy costs to be reflected in the prices of core goods, a Citigroup economist said.
Why experts fear America’s affordability crisis will worsen.
Staff Pick: DACA recipients say monthslong renewal delays are putting their lives in limbo
Erika, an intensive care nurse who is seven months pregnant, reached out to our NBC News tipline about DACA recipients like her who are losing their ability to work legally because of unexpected delays in having their status renewed. I’ve been following DACA across multiple administrations, and this year, some recipients said that they were experiencing delays like never before. The consequences are dire, with some losing or at risk of losing their paychecks and potentially their health insurance.
I spoke to six DACA recipients affected by monthslong delays for this story — including the ICU nurse, a senior network engineer, and a three-time Emmy-winning news producer. They said they felt their lives were hanging in the balance: fears of having to sell their homes, going to food pantries because groceries were too expensive, living off savings and not knowing what to do if they can’t afford their medication.
— Daniella Silva, national reporter
Trump says Iran ceasefire is ‘on life support’
President Donald Trump said yesterday that the ceasefire with Iran is “unbelievably weak” after the two sides exchanged fire last weekend, with Trump labeling Iran’s peace proposal as “garbage.” Earlier yesterday, Tehran dismissed Washington’s own offer as “one-sided” and accused Trump of making “unreasonable,” “excessive demands.”
Trump claimed that Iranian leaders agreed to hand over their enriched uranium, “but they changed their mind because they didn’t put it in the paper” document, the president told reporters at the Oval Office. Trump also dismissed criticism that he does not have a clear path to end the conflict.
More on what Trump has said about a ceasefire and peace deal.
The rising price of oil provides a tense backdrop for Trump’s state visit this week to China, a major consumer of energy out of the Persian Gulf.
As the U.S. also struggles with rising gas prices, Trump said he would support suspending the federal gas tax. While a suspension would offer some relief, an NBC News analysis shows that gas prices would still be higher than they were at the start of the Iran war. See how your state’s gas prices stack up.
What to watch in today’s primaries
The drama is heating up in two congressional primary races in Nebraska, as Democrats try to win control of Congress in the general election. But the elections aren’t without some intraparty fighting.
In Nebraska’s battleground 2nd District, Omaha City Councilman Brinker Harding cleared the GOP primary field to replace retiring Rep. Don Bacon. But on the Democratic side, “the knives are out,” a nonpartisan political operative said, as local political organizer Denise Powell and state Sen. John Cavanaugh look to challenge Harding in the general election. Cavanaugh’s allies have accused Powell’s backers of trying to buy the election, while Powell has targeted Cavanaugh over his decision to run while occupying a key Democratic seat in the state’s majority-Republican legislature. There’s also some drama in the Senate race, with Democrats accusing one of its own candidates of being a Republican plant.
Meanwhile in West Virginia, GOP Sen. Shelley Moore Capito is touting Trump’s endorsement as she runs for her third term. She faces five other Republicans in the primary, while five Democratic candidates fight for a spot on the November ballot.
Read more about the races to watch.
More politics news:
- The Supreme Court temporarily extended full access to the abortion pill mifepristone while it weighs how to rule in a case that could limit the drug’s availability.
- Justices also sent litigation over Alabama’s Republican-drawn congressional map back to the lower court, a move that could speed up the state’s effort to use the new map in this year’s election.
- Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Democrats should not trust Marjorie Taylor Greene, a position that puts her at odds with some in her own party.
Learning software faces fury from parent, teachers and students
Katelynn Peterson, a math tutor in Anchorage, Alaska, calls the software “so boring and so monotonous.” Rhode Island school speech therapist Denise Champney calls it “incredibly infuriating.” Los Angeles eighth grader Ward Wooden said he’s “losing brain cells every time I do a lesson.”
They’re all complaining about i-Ready, which has quietly taken over America’s public school classrooms, reaching nearly 14 million students each year. The software offers personalized reading and math assessments, and it identifies struggling students so that they can get extra support long before they take standardized tests.
But i-Ready is facing mounting backlash, and the revolt is intensifying as parents question how much time children spend on screens at school. NBC News spoke to more than 40 school board members, administrators, teachers, parents, students, consultants and education policy researchers about their gripes.
The company has pushed back on criticisms and cited its financial success as proof that the software is working.
Read the full story here.
Read All About It
- In a crunch meeting with ministers inside No. 10 Downing St. today, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced down a growing mutiny within his Labour Party and vowed “to get on with governing.”
- At least three Americans are being closely watched for a possible hantavirus infection, while experts race to understand how the virus spread from human to human on the MV Hondius cruise ship.
- The mayor of a Southern California city will plead guilty to illegally acting as an agent of China, federal authorities said.
- A teen battling terminal cancer died just one day after being reunited with his parents in Mexico, following their release from U.S. immigration custody.
- For subscribers: Once a high school senior commits to a college, the cost of tuition might seem locked in. But that’s not always true. Here are ways to save thousands of dollars.
NBC Select: Online Shopping, Simplified
When it comes to worthwhile beauty products, NBC Select’s editors know best. Recently, we tested the best lip oils for hydrated, glossy lips and spoke with skincare experts to find drugstore eye creams that actually work (and don’t break the bank).
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