Donald Trump accused Joe Biden on Thursday of doing a “poor job” on the US economy and of presiding over a disastrous rise in inflation — reflecting how rising prices and the cost of living have become key issues ahead of November’s presidential election.
“He has not done a good job. He’s done a poor job,” Trump said during CNN’s head-to-head debate with Biden in Atlanta, Georgia. “And inflation is killing our country. It is absolutely killing us.
“I gave him a country with essentially no inflation. It was perfect. It was so good, all he had to do is leave it alone.” he added. “He destroyed it”
In response to Trump’s attacks on his record, Biden said Trump had “absolutely decimated” the US economy when he was president.
“There was no inflation when I became president. You know why? The economy was flat on its back,” he said, adding that his administration had helped create “millions” of new jobs, including in minority communities.
Americans have named inflation or the cost of living as “the most important financial problem facing their family,” in each of the last three years, according to a recent poll from the Washington-based firm Gallup.
Perhaps more worryingly for Biden, 46 percent of adults in the United States said they have “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of confidence in Trump to do or recommend the right thing for the economy, while just 38 percent said the same thing about the current president, according to another Gallup poll.
– Surge in inflation –
While it is true that US consumer inflation jumped sharply after Biden took office, hitting a multi-decade high in 2022, the rise was largely fueled by a post-pandemic supply crunch and by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In response, the US Federal Reserve hiked its key lending rate from almost zero to a two-decade high of between 5.25 and 5.50 percent — where it has remained for the past year.
Higher interest rates cool down the economy by raising borrowing costs for consumers and businesses, indirectly impacting everything from mortgage rates to auto loans.
Inflation has eased sharply since the Fed started hiking rates, but remains stuck stubbornly above its long-term target of two percent — keeping the US central bank on pause as it waits for more positive data.
Because inflation has remained high for a number of years, consumer prices have now risen by around 20 percent since January 2021, when Biden took office, according to the Labor Department’s consumer price index (CPI) inflation calculator.
In contrast, consumer prices rose by less than six percent during the same timeframe under Trump.
Although Congress has given the Fed the mandate to tackle inflation on its own, it is still a difficult topic for Biden, who has looked to talk up his economic record ahead of November’s election.
– ‘Inflationary’ policies –
The Fed expects inflation will continue to ease this year and next, before hitting its long-term target of two percent in 2026.
But the path to two percent will likely depend on who becomes president in November — and which parties will control the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Trump has suggested that, if he wins the election, he will look to extend a series of tax cuts made under his leadership, severely restrict immigration, deport some foreign-born illegal immigrants and slap tariffs on all US imports.
These policies would all “likely be inflationary,” by putting up prices, placing upward pressure on wages and boosting adding to the nation’s debt, JP Morgan economists wrote in a recent note to clients.
As things stand, Republican control of the House, Senate and the White House is not the most likely scenario come November, Oxford Economics lead US economist Bernard Yaros wrote in a recent note to clients.
“If Biden is reelected but presides over a divided government, the upside risk potential to the economy from fiscal policy is limited,” he said.
“If Trump returns to the White House with a divided government, he will have a tougher time enacting his fiscal agenda,” he added.
America got its first look at President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in a head-to-head matchup in a closely divided election in a contest between two of the most unpopular presidents in history.
Topics covered in the roughly 90-minute debate hit on all the main issues for most voters: the economy, immigration, the future of American democracy and several other issues like an increase in drug overdoses and the cost of childcare. It was also deeply personal for both men, who frequently attacked each other’s character and competency to be president.
Voters won't get another chance to see them together again until September when the next debate is scheduled.
Highlights from the first debate:
TRUMP AND BIDEN SPAR OVER HANDLING OF ECONOMY
The state of the economy and inflation are the leading issue for most voters preparing to cast a ballot in November and is often the biggest factor for independents to decide who to vote for.
Both men painted a vastly different picture of each other’s stewardship of the economy, with Biden saying he inherited an economy “on its back” and accusing Trump of rewarding the wealthy with his signature tax cuts. Trump charged Biden with causing inflation that at one point reached 9% before cooling off considerably over the last year and said he had oversaw the creation of the “greatest economy in the world.”
“We had the greatest economy in the history of our country. And we have never done so well. Every everybody was amazed by it. Other countries were copying us,” Trump said. “The only jobs he created are for illegal immigrants and bounceback jobs that bounced back from the COVID. He has not done a good job. He's done a poor job and inflation is killing our country. It is absolutely killing us.”
That was a vastly different interpretation than the one Biden gave, which was that he led America back from an economy left in shambles due to Trump’s mismanagement of the pandemic.
“We had an economy that was in freefall — the pandemic was so badly handled. Many people were dying. All he said was ‘it's not that serious, just inject a little bleach into your arm, you’ll be alright,” Biden said. “The economy collapsed, there were no jobs. Unemployment rate rose to 15%. It was terrible, and so what we had to do was try to put things back together again.”
President Joe Biden, right, and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump stand during a presidential debate hosted by CNN, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
IMMIGRATION AND THE SOUTHERN BORDER
Trump focused on Biden’s handling of immigration and the southern border throughout the debate, pivoting from questions about many different unrelated issues to the perceived failings of the Biden administration at the U.S.-Mexico border. He also tried to tie illegal border crossings to crime, a line of attack that he and other Republicans frequently make to argue against Biden’s immigration policies.
“He decided to open up our border, open up our country to people that are from prisons, people that are from mental institutions, insane asylum, terrorists,” Trump said without offering evidence.
Biden appeared to become frustrated with Trump’s frequent pivots and misleading statements about immigration, calling him a liar and blaming him for tanking a bipartisan Senate deal meant to address some of the issues at the border.
“Everything he says is a lie. Every single one,” Biden said.
ADDRESSING AGE CONCERNS
The 81-year-old Biden and 78-year-old Trump were both asked by moderators what they would say to voters who are concerned about their advanced age and ability to lead the country heading into November. Whoever wins the election will set the mark for the oldest president in American history.
Age is of particular concern for Biden’s campaign, as voters have regularly told pollsters they have concerns about his ability to lead the country through another four years. Trump has had his own troubles mixing up names and meandering during speeches but does not face the same skepticism from the public.
Biden deflected the question, referencing that he was one of the youngest people to be elected to the Senate before pivoting to talking about his achievements during his first term in office. Trump noted that he had passed a cognitive test and challenged Biden to take one.
The conversation then devolved into a debate over who is the better golfer and discussing their physical attributes.
Biden’s campaign had sought to put some of those concerns to rest with a strong debate performance with several months to go before Election Day, but Biden’s performance has done the opposite for even some of his strongest supporters.
This combination of photos shows Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, left, and President Joe Biden during a presidential debate hosted by CNN, Thursday, June 27, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
BIDEN TARGETS TRUMP’S PERSONAL, LEGAL TROUBLES
Biden was sharply critical of Trump at numerous points throughout the debate, listing off his legal troubles and describing what he sees as flaws in his character that make him unfit to be the next president.
"How many billions of dollars do you owe on civil penalties for for molesting a woman in public, for doing a whole range of things — of having sex with a porn star on the night, while your wife is pregnant — What are you talking about?" he said after noting that Trump is now a convicted felon.
Trump baselessly accused Biden of being a criminal and also claimed the president is ordering the several prosecutions of him because he is a political opponent. Trump has frequently leaned on claims of a “weaponized” justice system being targeted against him for Biden’s benefit since making history as the first former president to be indicted on criminal charges.
“You have the morals of an alley cat,” Biden said.
“I didn’t have sex with a porn star,” Trump responded.
BIDEN GIVES UNEVEN PERFORMANCE
While the age concerns were directly addressed by the moderators, it was also being closely watched by millions of Americans who are hesitant to support Biden over the issue. His voice was scratchy during the debate and there were several moments where he appeared to lose his train of thought or struggle to clearly lay out a case on several of the issues.
He particularly struggled in the beginning of the debate when arguing about the economy and inflation with Trump.
Biden drifted from an answer on tax policy to health policy, at one point using the word “COVID,” and then saying, “excuse me, with, dealing with,” before trailing off again.
“Look, we finally beat Medicare,” Biden said while giving an answer on tax and health policies.
“That’s right, he did beat Medicaid, he beat it to death. And he’s destroying Medicare," Trump said.
Trump has frequently played up attacks on Biden’s mental fitness and age and continued to do so on stage.
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President Bola Tinubu has approved the National Construction and Household Support Programme during the National Economic Council meeting on Thursday in Abuja.
According to a statement issued by the presidential spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, the programme is aimed at boosting agricultural productivity, strengthening the economy, and providing immediate economic relief for Nigerian households.
Ngelale added that the programme, which was supported by the NEC, includes financial allocations and infrastructure projects across all geo-political zones in the country.
He added that a key component of the programme is the approval of the N50,000 uplift grant to be distributed to 100,000 families per state for three months.
Ngelale revealed that another N155 billion was earmarked for the purchase and distribution of assorted foodstuff across the nation to address concerns about food security and affordability.
He disclosed that the programme will also cater to infrastructure projects, including the Sokoto-Badagry Highway, which will traverse seven states and is considered key for agricultural sustainability. He added that the states along this axis form the food belt of the nation.
Other infrastructure initiatives include the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and the Trans-Saharan Highway. Tinubu also approved full counterpart financing for the Port Harcourt-Maiduguri Railway and the Ibadan-Abuja segment of the Lagos-Kano Standard-Gauge Railway.
In addition to the projects, Ngelale said the NEC approved the allocation of N10 billion to each state and the Federal Capital Territory for the procurement of buses and implementation of the Compressed natural gas uplift programme.
According to the presidential spokesman, provisions were also made for labour unions and civil society organizations.
During the NEC meeting, Tinubu urged state governors to collaborate in meeting the needs of citizens and boosting food production in the country.
He said, “Our states must work together to deliver on the critical reforms required of us to meet the needs of our people. Time is humanity’s most precious asset. You can never have enough of it. It is getting late.
“We are ready and able to support you in the form of the mechanization of your agricultural processes and the provision of high-quality seedlings.
“We are prepared to provide solar-powered irrigation facilities to support our farmers across seasons, but we must now produce. We must produce the food our people eat, and it will require coordination and intentionality between members of the National Economic Council (NEC).
[Vanguard]
Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation and aerospace development, says some private jet owners use their aircraft for money laundering and drug trafficking.
Keyamo spoke on Thursday, during the inauguration of a ministerial task force committee on illegal private chartered operations and related matters in Abuja.
The minister said he had set a five-point agenda that would guide him and his team in discharging the mandate of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu when he assumed office.
He said the five-point agenda encapsulates safety, infrastructure, support for local operators, human capacity development and revenue generation.
Accordingly, he said the ministry has identified issues within the aviation industry “that we must tackle headlong”.
“It has come to my attention, through a series of disturbing reports, that the practice of illegal charter operations is thriving within the aviation industry, thereby undermining the efforts of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and other regulatory bodies,” he said.
“These illicit activities have not only resulted in significant financial losses to the Federal Government but have also raised security and safety concerns as the operations of private aircraft owners have remained largely unchecked and unregulated.”
This, Keyamo said, has also resulted in using private aircraft for other illegal activities.
“Last week, the National Security Adviser wrote to us, alerting us of the spike in money laundering, drug trafficking and other illegal activities through the use of private aircraft in the country,” the minister said.
“It appears that Private Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF) operators have become increasingly emboldened, continuing their illegal operations with the assistance of Air Operator Certificate (AOC) holders who collect tolls and list these illegal charters under their AOCs.
“We have received alarming reports that some crew members have not attended mandatory simulator trainings for nearly three years and are flying with fraudulently-obtained renewed licenses.
“Many of these individuals are operating planes registered under PNCF but are conducting illegal charter operations with impunity.
KEYAMO CONSTITUTES COMMITTEE
To combat the illegal operators, the minister announced the immediate composition of a ministerial task force on illegal private charter operations and related matters.
He said some of the responsibilities of the task force include taking “inventory of all permit for non-commercial flights (PNCF) holders and air operator certificate (AOC) holders, to determine why the practice of illegal charters by PNCF holders persists in the country despite regulatory controls”.
The task force, according to the minister, was also created to “call in all professional licenses of pilots and crew in the country and determine their authenticity and validity, and to recommend to the Minister any additional measures to be taken by regulatory agencies to stem this ugly tide”.
He said the committee is expected to recommend appropriate penalties to be imposed by the regulatory agencies on defaulters and additional measures to monitor private aircraft operations in Nigeria.
The minister added that the members of the task force have been carefully selected from within the aviation industry and are people of high repute and integrity.
He named Ado Sanusi as chairman of the committee, Roland Iyayi, as vice-chairman, and acting director of air transport, aviation ministry as secretary.
Other members of the committee, he said, include Theresa Babayo, director of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA); Olayinka Oyesola, commander of the presidential air fleet; Daniel Quansah; Patrick Ogunlowo; and Obafemi Bajomo, Keyamo’s special assistant (SA).
Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial hub, has been ranked as the 170th world’s most liveable city, with Vienna (Austria) named the world’s liveable city for the third time in a row, according to a new survey published Thursday.
In the survey, the Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU), a sister organization of The Economist, ranked 173 cities around the world on some significant factors, including health care, education, stability, infrastructure, and environment.
In the list, Lagos, with a 42.2 per cent index score, ranked ahead of Algeria’s Algiers (42.0), Tripoli (40.1), and Damascus (30.7).
Vienna topped the rankings for 2024 due to its winning combination of stability, healthcare, education, and reliable infrastructure. The report noted that “the city received perfect scores of 100 for stability, healthcare, education, and infrastructure, but has room for improvement in culture and environment.”
Copenhagen (Denmark), Zurich (Switzerland), Melbourne (Australia), Calgary (Canada), Geneva (Switzerland), Sydney (Australia), Vancouver (Canada), Osaka (Japan), and Auckland (New Zealand) complete the top 10.
The report also ranked Western Europe as the most liveable region. “Western Europe remains the most liveable region, but has seen a decline in stability scores amid increasing instances of protests…. on a variety of issues,” said a statement from the EIU.
Those issues included the rise of far-right extremism, EU agricultural policy, and anti-immigration, EIU said in a press release.
Also, overall global liveability increased by just 0.06 points over the past year, compared with 2.84 in the 12 months to June 2023.
But the “improvement is only marginal, held back by geopolitical conflicts, civil unrest, and a housing crisis across many of the cities” amid inflation.
Tel Aviv (Israel) was the biggest mover down the ranking, tumbling from 92nd to 112th as its scores for stability, culture and environment, and infrastructure deteriorated.
On the other hand, Hong Kong (Hong Kong) was the biggest mover up the ranking, moving to 50 in the world.
Mikah Suleiman, the abducted parish priest of St. Raymond Catholic Church in Damba, Gusau, Zamfara state, has pleaded for help to regain freedom.
In a 51-second video clip trending on social media, Suleiman, dressed in a blue T-shirt with boxer shorts, is seen sitting on the ground while calling for help.
Suleiman was kidnapped by bandits in the early hours of June 22 at the rectory located within the church premises in Gusau, the state capital.
The priest said he was the only one being held captive by the bandits.
“I am pleading for help to be freed from this place. They (bandits) told me that they don’t keep people here for long. People don’t stay for up to a week,” he said.
“They told me that killing a person is not difficult for them. They said they are just helping me by keeping me; please, I am asking for help.
“Please save my life in the name of God. Look at my head; look at my legs. I was tied to a robe, and I am the only one in this place.
“Normally, if they kidnap somebody, they don’t waste time.
“If ransom is not paid immediately, they kill the person. Please, for God’s sake, help me.”
A few seconds to the end of the video, a stick from one of the bandits standing off the camera was seen touching his head.
Labaran Maku, a former minister of information, says President Bola Tinubu should make decisions that will give Nigerians respite from the economic hardship.
Maku spoke in Abuja on Thursday after he was conferred with an honorary fellow of the Nigeria Institute of Public Relations (NIPR).
The former minister said monetary policies are crucial to the development of the country’s economy.
“I will particularly call on him to do everything possible to review and bring to fruition economic policies that will bring some level of respite to the people of Nigeria,” he said.
“I believe that you have to manage the policies of a developing nation to bring about development, and managing the policies calls for special attention to monetary policies. It is very important for the country.
“If the value of the naira continues to go down, the consequences will be that nobody will produce in Nigeria.
“We are a capital goods importing country, and whatever you want to do for the country, you must have imported machinery. We don’t produce machinery.
“If the value of the naira is up, a lot of companies will be in Nigeria, and I believe a lot are doing so. The president needs to look critically at those policies.
“I believe he has the experience and strength to pull Nigerians together by managing politics and the economy.
“I believe that under the current dispensation, we are looking forward to the proper management of the economy of this country.
“We need this. I was the Minister of Information, and I knew how difficult things could be.”
Emmanuel Osodeke, president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), says governors are establishing state universities they cannot fund.
Speaking during ‘The Morning Brief’, a Channels Television programme on Thursday, Osodeke said most governors duplicate universities in their states to get a “piece of the pie” from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund).
“Any governor today establishing a university is eyeing TETFund as a source of funding,” the ASUU president said.
“TETFund was created as an intervention fund, not the major funding. The universities belong to the federal government, and the government is supposed to fund them, while states are supposed to fund their own.”
“It is an intervention fund, but there are people who want to have access to that money from the political circle, from the bureaucratic circle, at all costs. We are struggling with that.”
The ASUU president said a structure should be created to carry stakeholders along on how the fund is allocated and spent to enhance transparency.
“There should be a stakeholders’ meeting to assess what you want to do with the funds,” he added.
“You see today where somebody comes from the TETFund and says, ‘I have a project for you, and I am going to be the contractor. We want an open project.
“Every university council should be allowed to run their projects with the stakeholders involved.”
Time and again, he reached for his handkerchief, dabbing a face that glistened under the hot TV lights.
Richard Nixon would walk away from the first televised United States presidential debate in 1960 facing a barrage of criticisms: His performance was too shifty, too sweaty. After that race, he and other presidential candidates would refuse to take part in another debate for the next 16 years.
But in the 1980s, an organisation was created to push Republicans and Democrats to participate: the Commission on Presidential Debates. It would orchestrate the debates for the next three decades.
That streak ended this year, when the candidates took matters into their own hands. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump bypassed the commission for the first time in its history, negotiating instead with TV networks to host the debates.
On Thursday night, as the two candidates square off, viewers may not notice a major difference in format. But behind the scenes, experts say there has been a power shift — away from outside management and towards candidate control.
A history of shifting control
The televised debates, however, have changed hands several times over their decades-long history.
In 1960, when Nixon participated in the first televised debates with John F Kennedy — the eventual winner of that year’s race — the TV studios were in charge, and there was no audience.
“It started off with the television networks,” explained Alan Schroeder, professor emeritus of journalism at Northeastern University and the author of a book on the history of presidential debates. “They took turns airing the debates, and that’s the only time that ever was done that way.”
After 1960, though, public debates came to a stop. Only in 1976 did they start up again, largely under the auspices of the League of Women Voters, a nonprofit that emerged out of the women’s suffrage movement.
“But they had difficulty negotiating with the candidates,” Schroeder said. “The candidates made a lot of demands and made it very difficult for the sponsors to get their work done.”
That left an opening for a new entity to emerge. In 1987, the two major political parties in the US — the Democrats and Republicans — announced the joint creation of the Commission on Presidential Debates.
It was envisioned as a bipartisan body to host the debates. But even then, critics questioned whether the shift would place more power in the hands of major-party candidates.
“I think they’re trying to steal the debates from the American voters,” Nancy Neuman, then-president of the League of Women Voters, told the New York Times after the announcement.
The commission also marked a switch from nonpartisan to bipartisan leadership, spurring fears that third-party candidates would be excluded from the debates.
“It seized control of the presidential debates precisely because the League was independent, precisely because this women’s organisation had the guts to stand up to the candidates that the major parties had nominated,” George Farah, the author of No Debate: How the Republican and Democratic Parties Secretly Control the Presidential Debates, told The Guardian in 2012.
How Trump changed the game
But the commission has historically positioned itself as a proxy for the American people.
In an interview last month with The Daily Show, commission co-founder and co-chair Frank Fahrenkopf argued the group’s role was to be “down the middle for the public”.
That characterisation has likewise been challenged, particularly as an unconventional new candidate started to reshape the political sphere: Trump.
The power shift began in 2016, when then-candidates Trump and Hillary Clinton went head to head. Their first match-up was the most-watched debate in the event’s history, drawing 84 million viewers.
But Trump denounced the debates as “biased” and suggested he might skip them in the future.
He reiterated those criticisms again in 2020, when he faced re-election as the incumbent president. The first debate that year was chaotic. Trump repeatedly interrupted candidate Joe Biden, leading the Democrat to remark, “Will you shut up, man?”
“Four years ago, these debates were a disaster,” said Elaine Kamarck, senior fellow in the governance studies programme at the Brookings Institution. She described the 2020 debates as a turning point — and as an “embarrassment”.
“It was out of control. The format was out of control,” Kamarck said. “The commission really couldn’t keep control of this any more.”
This election cycle threatened to be a repeat: Trump and Biden are expected to be their party’s respective nominees once more, and last November, the commission released its usual schedule of debate dates.
But then the campaigns started to push for more control. Trump’s team, in particular, called the commission’s timeline “unacceptable”. It argued that the debates should happen before the early voting period begins in September.
“The Presidential Debate Commission’s schedule does not begin until after millions of Americans will have already cast their ballots,” Trump’s campaign said in a statement.
It also warned, “We are committed to making this happen with or without the Presidential Debate Commission.”
Debating ‘on their own terms’
Ultimately, in May, Biden announced he had accepted an invitation to debate from the news network CNN — and he challenged Trump to do the same. Trump agreed. The commission was cut out of the process entirely.
But Kamarck said the public back-and-forth was the result of behind-the-scenes negotiations by the rival campaigns. Biden’s team, for instance, requested that third-party candidates be excluded and that no audience be involved.
“The two political campaigns have negotiated among themselves and presented the debate format to the TV stations,” Kamarck said. “CNN didn’t start this — they just ended up with it.”
Kamarck emphasised that Trump’s opposition to the originally scheduled debates was likely a deciding factor.
“This was mostly Trump,” Kamarck explained. “At first, he wasn’t going to debate, and then, I think he realised that the election was a little too close not to debate. And because he is a narcissist, he decides, ‘Well, once they see me, they’re going to love me.’”
Still, participating in the debates comes with risks. Unlike rallies, ads or social media posts, debates are not something candidates can choreograph, Schroeder pointed out.
“It’s something totally out of their control. So I think campaigns and candidates have always thought that they would prefer either not to do debates, period, or to do them on their own terms,” he said.
Schroeder added that the candidates may perceive — rightly or wrongly — that there’s an advantage to dealing with TV networks, as opposed to the Commission on Presidential Debates.
“They wanted to be able to cut their own deals, make their own determination about things like format and who asks the questions,” he said. “My guess is, they’re probably making life difficult for CNN.”
What does the change mean for voters?
On Thursday night, CNN’s debate will not feature an in-studio audience, and the candidates’ microphones will be cut off when it is not their turn to speak — conditions both campaigns agreed upon in advance.
But Kamarck noted that the commission had also chosen to mute the candidates’ mics during the second debate of 2020. Not much, she said, will be noticeably different.
“Your average voter is not going to know the difference about something that was negotiated by the commission versus between the candidates,” she said.
But the changes could still have an effect on audience perception, as Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, explained. She participated in a “debate reform working group” that offered recommendations to both campaigns.
Her group suggested that a live studio audience should not be part of the debate structure: Audience reactions, after all, can prejudice the response of viewers at home.
Previously, the financial model for the Commission on Presidential Debates was one reason that a live audience was invited to the debates, according to Jamieson. Universities would bid to host the debates, and major financial sponsors and donors could gain access to seats in the audience.
“The process by which the commission organised the debates and financed them was setting in place a problem, because the audience could not be relied on to be silent throughout the debate,” Jamieson said.
“The additional problem is, you saw the candidates trying to game the system by putting people in the audience who might embarrass the opposing candidate.”
CNN’s financial model, by contrast, does not rely on donations. As a for-profit company, it instead relies on advertising and subscriptions.
“The debates have never been looked at as a way to make money, and unfortunately, this is a big money-making opportunity for CNN,” Schroeder said. “I’m sure they’ll be charging well beyond their normal rates for advertising, because the audience will be much, much larger. So I think that’s problematic.”
The same would be true for any broadcaster, he added. “These are businesses, these are organisations that make money. And I think that their goal is not necessarily enlightening voters — it’s to have a good TV show. That’s a big difference.”
Though the debates are returning to the hands of TV networks, Schroeder notes the media environment has completely changed since 1960. Social media has increased the pressure candidates face.
“Now, you’re getting real-time reactions, and people are reacting to the debate as it’s happening and posting their reactions,” he said.
“Now, you’ve got millions of eyes on them waiting for a misstep, mistake or error or insult, or some moment that can light up social media and that can drive the news coverage.”
But Jamieson is optimistic about the changes behind the scenes.
“They’re returning to the traditional and studio format that started [televised] presidential debates in 1960,” Jamieson said. “It worked well in 1960. It should work well again.”
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A suspect, Raman Akande, arrested in connection with the death of a commercial sex worker in the Ifo area of Ogun State, has narrated how he and two others allegedly killed the victim for ritual purposes.
Akande, in a confession video made at the police station, and obtained by PUNCH Metro from a source who pleaded anonymity on Wednesday, disclosed that he participated in the killing of the commercial sex worker after one person identified as Ifa promised him a reward of N100,000.
He said following the agreement with Ifa, he went and engaged the services of the victim with an agreement to pay her N3,000 if she slept at his place overnight, which the victim obliged.
Akande narrated in Yoruba (now translated) that after she had gone with him to his home, he engaged the services of one of his friends identified as Ijebu in carrying out the killing.
He narrated further, “It was Ijebu who hit her with a wood on the head, and she collapsed. After she collapsed, I dragged her inside. I was the one who held her legs while Ijebu held her hands before Ifa slaughtered her.
“After Ifa had slaughtered her, he used a calabash to collect her blood. I agreed to participate in the process because Ifa promised to pay me N100,000.
“The lady is not my girlfriend but a commercial sex worker that I have always engaged her services in the past. I usually paid her N1,000 before, but I promised to pay her N3,000 when I went to pick her up.”
Efforts to get the reaction of the Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Omolola Odutola, proved abortive as she had yet to respond to messages and calls made to her line as of the time of filing this report.
Meanwhile, a senior police officer privy to the incident but not authorised to speak with the media confirmed the arrest to our correspondent in a telephone conversation on Wednesday.
The senior officer also disclosed that the suspect had been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department.
“He was arrested in Ifo, and he has been transferred to the state CID for further action,” the police officer said.
PUNCH Metro reported on Tuesday that a man, Lekan Akinyemi, was arrested by operatives of the Ogun State Police Command for allegedly exhuming and beheading a corpse for ritual purposes in the Itoko area of the state.
The state’s PPRO, Odutola, in a telephone conversation with our correspondent, had disclosed that the suspect was arrested on Monday after a resident had alerted the police to suspicious activities around his father’s grave.
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The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has approved the disbursement of student loans to successful applicants from selected tertiary institutions.
In a statement published on its official X handle (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, the directive was given following NELFUND inaugural board meeting in Abuja on Wednesday, chaired by its chairman, Jim Ovia.
The statement, signed by NELFUND Head of Media and Public Relations, Nasir Ayitogo, said the meeting marked a significant milestone in the organisation’s commitment to empowering tertiary students through financial support.
It said, “Under the leadership of the Board Chairman, Mr. Jim Ovia, top in agenda was the approval for disbursement of student loan to successful applicants.
“This decision underscores President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s dedication to providing timely and essential financial assistance to students in need, enabling them to pursue their educational goals without undue financial stress.
“By approving the immediate disbursement of the loans, NELFUND is taking a critical step in fulfilling its mission to support education and empower the next generation of leaders.”
The inaugural meeting also set the stage for future initiatives, aimed at enhancing educational opportunities, and providing comprehensive support to students across various disciplines.
Also present at the meeting were the management of the Fund led by its Managing Director/CEO, Akintunde Sawyerr, and representatives of member organisations.
LEADERSHIP reports that NELFUND announced a 14-day postponement of the application process for students of state-owned institutions due to low data submissions.
Ayitogo, on Tuesday, said the decision was necessitated by the failure of several state-owned institutions to upload the required student data and fee information to the NELFUND Student Verification System (SVS).
To date, it said only a limited number of state-owned institutions have completed the data submission process. These include 20 state-owned universities out of 48, 12 state-owned colleges of education out of 54, and two state-owned polytechnics out of 49.
He said, “While we acknowledge the efforts of these institutions, the failure to submit data from the remaining state institutions poses significant challenges to ensuring a seamless and accurate verification process for student loan applicants.”
The application window, initially set to open on June 25, 2024, will now commence on July 10, 2024, according to Ayitogo.
[Leadership]
Brazil legend, Ronaldo Nazario says he has quit watching football, insisting the round-leather game is boring and is not worth his time.
The former Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and AC Milan star said this after Brazil’s disappointing 0-0 draw against Costa Rica to open their Copa America campaign.
Despite Dorival Junior’s side staggering 19 shots throughout the game, they could only manage a measly four on target as they never got into any kind of flow or rhythm.
Brazil sits in second place in their group which is led by Colombia following their 2-1 win over Paraguay.
Brazil will next be in action on Saturday against Paraguay but their legend seems to have seen it all.
Ronaldo had earlier claimed he is unlikely to be supporting the Brazil squad at the Copa America because he finds it ‘too boring.’
“I think I love tennis more now than football. I cannot watch football matches. I think it’s too boring,” ‘R9’ said at the Mouratoglou Annual Charity Gala.
“I can stay for 5 hours watching tennis.”
The next tennis tournament is the Wembley Open which comes up on July 1st.
[DailyPost]
Australia has unveiled plans to implement revisions to visa conditions for skilled workers visa holders, offering a six-month renewal window aimed at enhancing labour market mobility and addressing unfair labour practices.
These changes, effective from July 1, 2024, will impact visa conditions 8107, 8607, and 8608, according to the Australian Department of Home Affairs
The revised conditions apply to holders of the Temporary Work (Skilled) visa (subclass 457), Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482), and Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (provisional) visa (subclass 494).
The new regulations grant these visa holders up to 180 days at a time, with a cumulative maximum of 365 days during their visa period, to secure new sponsorship, apply for a new visa, or arrange to leave the country if they cease employment with their sponsoring employer.
During this grace period, skilled workers visa holders in Australia are permitted to work for other employers, even in occupations not listed in their most recent sponsorship nomination.
This provision allows them to sustain themselves while seeking new sponsorship or making other arrangements.
Australian authorities emphasized that the new regulations aim to support the integration and contribution of skilled migrants to the workforce, providing greater job security and flexibility.
“The changes apply to existing visa holders, as well as those granted a visa on or after 1 July 2024. Any periods a visa holder stopped working for their sponsor before 1 July 2024 will not count towards the new time periods outlined above,” the Australian authorities stated.
By implementing these measures, the government hopes to make Australia a more attractive destination for global talent, ensuring skilled migrants can continue to contribute to the economy while enjoying improved job security and flexibility.
The former Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of Konga, one of Nigeria’s e-commerce giants, Mr Nick Imudia, has allegedly committed suicide in his home.
According to reports, Imudia, who was until his death, the CEO of D.light, a leading innovator in the distribution and financing of residential solar energy solutions and transformational household products, killed himself on the night of Tuesday, June 25, by jumping from the balcony of his Lekki, Lagos apartment.
The report said: “Before making the jump, he had called his US-based brother to give him instructions on how to distribute his wealth should anything happen to him.
“He also called his young daughter from a previous relationship and told her he would always be there for her and that all she needed to do was to look in the sky and he would see her.
“His friends, family and associates are in shock as to why he would commit suicide.
No one is sure why he took his own life.
“From the Ika South local government area of Delta State, Nick was previously married to the mother of his young daughter who was also from the same local government with him. The marriage ended due to irreconcilable differences.”
Before Konga, Nick had stints with TCL/Alcatel as a regional director and Microsoft Device and Services as the GM/MD for West and Central Africa.