Sep 28, 2018

Trump approves FBI investigation into Kavanaugh

President Trump has approved an FBI investigation into Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh that "must be limited in scope and completed in less than one week."

Why it matters: The results of an FBI investigation could sway the votes of uncommitted senators either way. Investigators will likely talk to Mark Judge, who has agreed to cooperate in an investigation "confidentially." The investigation could give those senators the evidence they need to confirm Kavanaugh or kill the nomination — or an inconclusive report could leave them right back where they started.

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Courtenay Brown

43 mins ago - Economy & Business

Unemployment rate falls to 13.3% in May

Data: Bureau of Labor Statistics; Chart: Axios Visuals

The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 13.3% in May, with 2.5 million jobs gained, the government said on Friday.

Why it matters: The far better-than-expected numbers show a surprising improvement in the job market, which has been devastated by the coronavirus pandemic.

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Dion Rabouin

1 hour ago - Economy & Business

The difficulty of calculating the real unemployment rate

Data: U.S. Department of Labor; Note: Initial traditional state claims from the weeks of May 23 and 30, continuing traditional claims from May 23. Initial PUA claims from May 16, 23, and 30, continuing PUA and other programs from May 16; Chart: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

The shocking May jobs report — with a decline in the unemployment rate to 13.3% and more than 2 million jobs added — destroyed expectations of a much worse economic picture.

Why it matters: Traditional economic reports have failed to keep up with the devastation of the coronavirus pandemic and have made it nearly impossible for researchers to determine the state of the U.S. labor market or the economy.

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Kendall Baker

2 hours ago - Sports

How coronavirus could reshuffle the sports calendar

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

The NBA's Board of Governors approved Thursday the league's 22-team plan to resume play at Walt Disney World — a plan that also includes tentative dates for both this season and next.

Why it matters: The league's proposed trip to Disney World not only impacts this season but could have a domino effect that impacts seasons in the future — and could permanently change what time of year the NBA plays its games.

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