Another mass shooting in America, this time at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan.

Law enforcement there is being praised for its rapid response that may have saved lives.

Responding to a mass shooting is a reality for law enforcement agencies. There have been more than 320 this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. And in each case, seconds can mean the difference between life and death.

Gene Petrino is a retired SWAT commander. He says law enforcement response protocol changed after the 1999 Columbine High School shooting.

"Back then, it was believed that we would wait until tactical teams could be in place," Petrino said. "We've gone to a new method where essentially the first officer on scene is going in."

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According to an FBI report, last year law enforcement responded to active shooting incidents at schools in under two minutes.

Better technology like GPS has helped with that.

"Very typically departments will have tracking devices on their squad cars. They know exactly where the squad cars are at and then they'll have a computer aided dispatch that will help pull up maps to help officers get to the scene more quickly," said Peter Blair, who prepares first responders for situations like an active shooter at the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center.

He says that even as response times improves, any delay can be deadly.

"With firearms, there are a lot of casualties that can be created very quickly. And so even a small delay can create many more casualties," Blair said.

Inflation continues to tick up, and new federal data shows a growing number of people are out of work.

That combination is causing concern about the potential for stagflation.

"Stagflation is when the economy is weakening, weakening labor market, weakening GDP, but also we're seeing rising prices," said Bankrate financial analyst Stephen Kates.

Consumer prices were up 2.9% in August compared to a year ago, rising at their fastest pace since January.

Meanwhile, separate federal data showed 263,000 people submitted jobless claims last week, the most since October of 2021.

Those conditions point to stagflation, but a milder version than what Americans saw a half century ago, says Kates.

"You could call that stagflation, but it is a far cry from the stagflation that is sort of built into the history books from the 70s and 80s," Kates said.

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The dual data indicates a challenging environment for consumers, who now face higher prices with weaker employment prospects.

"Stagflation is really a one-two punch for consumers<" said economics professor Abby Hall. "And we can think about this as like a gut punch and then taking one right to the chin."

Hall says the data is also a potential headache for the Federal Reserve, which would typically raise interest rates to curb inflation, but lower interest rates to help support a weakening jobs market.

"The Fed has a really difficult task of trying to balance these two," Hall said. "And when you have an occasion where both are rising, the policy prescription is really unclear."

The Federal Reserve will meet next week and announce its interest rate decision on Wednesday.

A single bullet killed conservative activist Charlie Kirk on Wednesday and pierced the collective conscience of Americans amid an ongoing era of political violence.

"It makes you wonder what is going on in our country. That this kind of violence is so prevalent," said Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME).

"We just cannot be a country that turns to violence when we disagree with people," said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).

But more and more, that's been the case in the United States.

Last year, two assassination attempts targeted then-candidate President Trump.

In April, Pennsylvania's Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro's house was set on fire during the Jewish holiday of Passover.

In June, a gunman assassinated Democratic Minnesota state Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, and shot and injured another state lawmaker.

RELATED STORY | Graphic video of Kirk shooting was everywhere online despite efforts to stop spread

Researchers say the rise in political violence is driven in part by polarization.

"When you get a lot of people who think alike talking to one another, they become more extreme," said Professor Clark McCauley.

McCauley says some fringe actors feel a moral pull to act on behalf of a cause.

"It's the moral judgment that makes it possible. The enemy, the threat is not just wrong, they're a little less than human," McCauley said.

The new reality is changing how politicians are thinking about public events.

"We've got to protect people who run for public office, or no one will," said U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).

"An open-door event like those are very hard to defend. A lot of vulnerabilities," Gene Petrino, a retired SWAT commander, told Scripps News.

He expects the Kirk assassination will change how law enforcement secures political events.

"I think overall we're gonna see a reduction and I think we're also gonna see additional security measures as we move forward," Petrino said.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved new COVID-19 shots for this fall, but only for a limited number of Americans.

Under the FDA's new guidance, the vaccine is approved for all adults 65 and older, but only for younger adults and kids with at least one medical condition that puts them at risk for severe illness from COVID.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., said on social media the new vaccines "are available for all patients who choose them after consulting with their doctors."

But many health experts say the change is in line with Kennedy's history of vaccine skepticism and will make it harder for some people to get a COVID shot.

"The FDA guidance will limit accessibility of the vaccine to individuals because it puts additional hurdles in place for otherwise healthy individuals to get the vaccine," said virologist Andy Pekosz.

Pekosz says the move could mean fewer people get the vaccine.

"This makes things much more complicated and when things get complicated, we see vaccine uptake go down."

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A CDC advisory panel that will meet in September still needs to vote to recommend the vaccine.

Kennedy fired all of the panel's members and appointed new ones earlier this year.

The panel's decision could determine if insurers will cover the COVID-19 vaccine for people outside of the recommended groups, according to Dr. Evan Nadler.

"If you're outside those age groups right now, it's unclear whether your insurance company will pay for that shot," Nadler said.

If insurers don't cover the vaccines, some patients could end up paying more than $140 out of pocket.

America's immigrant population is declining for the first time in decades.

A new Pew Research Center analysis of census data found about 1.5 million immigrants have left the U.S. this year.

The data doesn't say exactly who is leaving, but the report notes the drop is likely driven by a fall in the number of unauthorized immigrants amid the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.

The White House tells Scripps News the data shows President Trump is "Delivering on his promise" to carry out mass deportation.

"Fewer immigrants means more job opportunities, higher wages, better benefits, better job security," said Kevin Lynn, with the Institute for Sound Public Policy, which opposes increased immigration.

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But some economists worry a declining immigrant population could have a negative economic impact.

"Immigrants are generally good for the economy," said economics professor Tarek Hassan.

Hassan has researched how immigration impacts the labor market.

"When you deport a large number of people, they essentially take the jobs that they had with them," Hassan said.

Immigrants generated $1.7 trillion in spending in 2023, according to the American Immigration Council, and made up nearly one fifth of the total U.S. workforce.

Hassan also says the administration's posture on foreign-born students could hamper economic growth in the future.

"The best and brightest that we attract to this country are also an engine for growth," Hassan said.

"Losing those people will lose us innovation patents, will lose as research, and will lose us productivity growth in the next five years."

The Trump administration expanded tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Monday.

The move adds a 5% tariff rate on more than 400 goods with steel and aluminum components.

This follows President Trump's announcement from May, doubling tariffs on those imported metals in an effort to protect domestic producers.

"We're going to bring it from 25% to 50%, the tariffs on steel into the United States of America," President Trump said at the time.

The expanded tariffs impact wires and cables, and other parts used in home appliances, electronics and cars.

"Anything that takes a big amount of those raw materials as inputs, so cars, refrigerators, toaster ovens, soda cans, are certainly going to be affected," said Columbia University Business School professor Rita McGrath. "And where the average consumer is going to see that is just increasing prices for a lot of these goods."

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The tariffs could also impact the price you pay for groceries.

Robert Budway is the former president of the Can Manufacturers Institute. He predicts higher prices for consumers after the initial announcement of 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum.

"For can makers, we pass the costs of the tariff onto our customers who are the food processors, and then they pass the cost on to the consumer eventually," Budway said. "So, it's going to mean higher can food prices across the board for American consumers."

Those previous tariffs appear to already be impacting producers.

The price of domestic steel mill products was up nearly 9% in July from a year ago, and aluminum was up more than 13%, according to the latest producer price index report released last week.