U.S. economy expands at sluggish 1.5% pace in second quarter, but consumer spending stayed strong

function setButtonState(button, state) {
const hint = button.parentElement && button.parentElement.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-hint]’);
const followLabel = button.dataset.followLabel || ‘Follow’;
const followingLabel = button.dataset.followingLabel || ‘Following’;
const registerLabel = button.dataset.registerLabel || ‘Register to follow’;
const loadingLabel = button.dataset.loadingLabel || ‘Saving…’;
const pendingAuthLabel = button.dataset.pendingAuthLabel || ‘Loading…’;
button.classList.remove(‘is-following’, ‘is-loading’, ‘is-auth-required’);

if (state === ‘loading’) {
button.classList.add(‘is-loading’);
button.disabled = true;
button.textContent = loadingLabel;
if (hint) {
hint.textContent=”Updating your followed authors…”;
}
return;
}

if (state === ‘pending-auth’) {
button.classList.add(‘is-loading’);
button.disabled = true;
button.textContent = pendingAuthLabel;
if (hint) {
hint.textContent=”Checking your sign-in status…”;
}
return;
}

button.disabled = false;

if (state === ‘following’) {
button.classList.add(‘is-following’);
button.textContent = followingLabel;
if (hint) {
hint.textContent = followingLabel === ‘Unfollow’
? ‘Remove this writer from your followed list.’
: ‘Click again to unfollow.’;
}
return;
}

if (state === ‘signin’) {
button.classList.add(‘is-auth-required’);
button.textContent = registerLabel;
if (hint) {
hint.textContent=”Register to follow writers and manage your list.”;
}
return;
}

button.textContent = followLabel;
if (hint) {
hint.textContent=”Click to follow.”;
}
}

function renderWidgets(scope) {
const root = scope || document;
root.querySelectorAll(‘[data-author-follow-widget]’).forEach(function (widget) {
const button = widget.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-button]’);
if (!button) {
return;
}

const staffId = widget.dataset.staffId;
const hasToken = !!getBearerToken();

if (!isPianoIdentityReady() && !hasToken) {
setButtonState(button, ‘pending-auth’);
return;
}

if (!hasToken) {
setButtonState(button, ‘signin’);
return;
}

if (followedAuthorsMap.has(String(staffId))) {
setButtonState(button, ‘following’);
} else {
setButtonState(button, ‘follow’);
}
});
}

function renderManageList(container) {
if (!container) {
return;
}

const hasToken = !!getBearerToken();

if (!isPianoIdentityReady() && !hasToken) {
container.innerHTML = (
‘

Checking your account status…

‘
);
return;
}

if (!hasToken) {
container.innerHTML = (
‘

Sign in to load the authors you follow. ‘ +
‘Sign in

‘
);
return;
}

const followedAuthors = Array.from(followedAuthorsMap.values());
if (!followedAuthors.length) {
container.innerHTML = (
‘

You are not following any authors yet. ‘ +
‘Use the follow buttons on stories or staff pages to build your list.

‘
);
return;
}

container.innerHTML = followedAuthors
.map(function (author) {
return (
‘

‘
);
})
.join(”);

bindEvents(container);
renderWidgets(container);
}

async function refresh(scope, options) {
const forceFetch = !!(options && options.force);

if (!hasFollowWidgets(scope)) {
return;
}

// Wipe the cached map BEFORE the first render so a user-switch can’t
// momentarily display the previous user’s “Following” state.
discardCacheIfTokenChanged();

renderWidgets(scope);

const manageContainer = document.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-manage-list]’);
const managePreferencesContainer = document.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-manage-preferences]’);
const hasToken = !!getBearerToken();

if (!isPianoIdentityReady() && !hasToken) {
renderWidgets(scope);
renderManagePreferences(managePreferencesContainer);
renderManageList(manageContainer);
return;
}

if (!hasToken) {
renderManagePreferences(managePreferencesContainer);
renderManageList(manageContainer);
return;
}

try {
await loadFollowedAuthors(forceFetch);
renderWidgets(scope);
renderManagePreferences(managePreferencesContainer);
renderManageList(manageContainer);
} catch (error) {
console.warn(‘Unable to load followed authors.’, error);
if (error && error.code === ‘AUTH_REQUIRED’) {
renderWidgets(scope);
renderManagePreferences(managePreferencesContainer);
renderManageList(manageContainer);
}
}
}

function startLoginPoll() {
if (loginPoll) {
clearInterval(loginPoll);
}

let attempts = 0;
loginPoll = setInterval(function () {
attempts += 1;
if (getBearerToken() || isLoggedIn() || attempts > 25) {
clearInterval(loginPoll);
loginPoll = null;
refresh(document, { force: true });
}
}, 1000);
}

function stopPianoReadyPoll() {
if (pianoReadyPoll) {
clearInterval(pianoReadyPoll);
pianoReadyPoll = null;
}
}

function startPianoReadyPoll() {
stopPianoReadyPoll();

let attempts = 0;
pianoReadyPoll = setInterval(function () {
attempts += 1;
if (isPianoIdentityReady() || getBearerToken() || attempts > 40) {
stopPianoReadyPoll();
// Non-forced: if bindPianoInitRefresh already fetched, the TTL
// dedupes this call. If it lost the race, this call wins.
refresh(document);
}
}, 500);
}

function bindPianoInitRefresh() {
if (pianoInitBound) {
return;
}

pianoInitBound = whenPianoReady(function () {
// The Piano init callback is the canonical “identity is ready” signal;
// cancel the fallback poll so it can’t issue a redundant second fetch.
stopPianoReadyPoll();
refresh(document, { force: true });
});
}

async function handleWidgetClick(widget, button) {
const staffId = widget.dataset.staffId;

if (!getBearerToken()) {
setButtonState(button, isPianoIdentityReady() ? ‘signin’ : ‘pending-auth’);
if (typeof window.showPianoRegister === ‘function’) {
window.showPianoRegister();
startLoginPoll();
}
return;
}

// If the identity changed since the cache was last filled, drop the stale
// map before the follow/unfollow decision below — otherwise the click
// could issue the wrong action against the previous user’s state.
discardCacheIfTokenChanged();

setButtonState(button, ‘loading’);

try {
if (followedAuthorsMap.has(String(staffId))) {
await apiRequest(apiBaseUrl + “https://www.washingtontimes.com/” + staffId, { method: ‘DELETE’ });
followedAuthorsMap.delete(String(staffId));
removePushlyFollowedAuthorId(staffId);
} else {
const author = await apiRequest(apiBaseUrl + “https://www.washingtontimes.com/” + staffId, {
method: ‘PUT’,
body: JSON.stringify({
push_enabled: followDeliveryPreferences.push_enabled,
email_fallback_enabled: followDeliveryPreferences.email_fallback_enabled,
}),
});
followedAuthorsMap.set(String(staffId), author);
appendPushlyFollowedAuthorId(staffId);
}

saveStoredFollowDeliveryPreferences(
deriveFollowDeliveryPreferences(Array.from(followedAuthorsMap.values())),
);
syncPushlyFollowedAuthorsProfile();
renderManagePreferences(document.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-manage-preferences]’));
renderWidgets(document);
renderManageList(document.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-manage-list]’));
} catch (error) {
console.warn(‘Unable to update followed author.’, error);
if (error && error.code === ‘AUTH_REQUIRED’) {
setButtonState(button, ‘signin’);
}
renderWidgets(document);
}
}

function bindEvents(scope) {
const root = scope || document;
root.querySelectorAll(‘[data-author-follow-widget]’).forEach(function (widget) {
if (widget.dataset.followWidgetBound === ‘true’) {
return;
}
widget.dataset.followWidgetBound = ‘true’;

const button = widget.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-button]’);
if (!button) {
return;
}

button.addEventListener(‘click’, function () {
handleWidgetClick(widget, button);
});
});

root.querySelectorAll(‘[data-author-follow-manage-preferences]’).forEach(function (container) {
if (container.dataset.followGlobalPreferencesBound === ‘true’) {
return;
}
container.dataset.followGlobalPreferencesBound = ‘true’;

async function handlePreferenceChange() {
const pushInput = container.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-global-pref=”push”]’);
const emailInput = container.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-global-pref=”email”]’);
if (!pushInput || !emailInput) {
return;
}

const previousPreferences = {
push_enabled: followDeliveryPreferences.push_enabled,
email_fallback_enabled: followDeliveryPreferences.email_fallback_enabled,
};
const payload = {
push_enabled: !!pushInput.checked,
email_fallback_enabled: !!emailInput.checked,
};
// Drop a stale map if the identity changed before iterating — we
// don’t want to issue follow updates against the previous user’s
// authors with the current user’s bearer token.
discardCacheIfTokenChanged();
const followedAuthors = Array.from(followedAuthorsMap.values());

saveStoredFollowDeliveryPreferences(payload);
managePreferencesPending = true;
pushInput.disabled = true;
emailInput.disabled = true;

try {
await Promise.all(
followedAuthors.map(function (author) {
return updateFollowPreferences(author.id, payload);
}),
);
renderManagePreferences(container);
renderWidgets(document);
renderManageList(document.querySelector(‘[data-author-follow-manage-list]’));
} catch (error) {
console.warn(‘Unable to update author follow preferences.’, error);
saveStoredFollowDeliveryPreferences(previousPreferences);
pushInput.checked = previousPreferences.push_enabled;
emailInput.checked = previousPreferences.email_fallback_enabled;
} finally {
managePreferencesPending = false;
pushInput.disabled = false;
emailInput.disabled = false;
}
}

container.addEventListener(‘change’, function (event) {
const target = event.target;
if (!target || !target.matches(‘[data-author-follow-global-pref]’)) {
return;
}
handlePreferenceChange();
});
});
}

function init(scope) {
const root = scope || document;
if (!hasFollowWidgets(root)) {
return;
}
bindEvents(root);
renderWidgets(root);
bindPianoInitRefresh();
startPianoReadyPoll();
refresh(root);
}

window.WTAuthorFollow = {
init: init,
refresh: refresh,
};

document.addEventListener(‘DOMContentLoaded’, function () {
init(document);
});

window.addEventListener(‘focus’, function () {
if (hasFollowWidgets(document)) {
refresh(document);
}
});
document.addEventListener(‘visibilitychange’, function () {
if (!document.hidden && hasFollowWidgets(document)) {
refresh(document);
}
});
} else {
window.WTAuthorFollow.init(document);
}
})();

By Paul Wiseman

–

Associated Press
–

Wednesday, August 26, 2026

The U.S. economy grew at a sluggish 1.5% pace from April through June. But consumer spending stayed strong.

The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that growth in gross domestic product — the nation’s output of a goods and services — decelerated from a 2.1% pace from January through March. The second-quarter growth number was unchanged from the department’s first estimate.

Still, consumer spending — which accounts for about 70% of U.S. economic activity — increased at a healthy 3.4% annual clip, up from 0.5% in the January-March period.

The reason for the lackluster growth number was imports. They are subtracted from growth because GDP is only supposed to count domestic U.S. production. Imports rose at a 12.5% annual pace from April through June, partly due to a surge in shipments of computer chips and other products that support artificial intelligence investment, and sliced 1.64 percentage points off second-quarter growth.

But business investment was up, reflecting the AI boom.

The U.S. economy has proven surprisingly resilient in the face of fighting with Iran and the spike in energy prices it caused.

Wednesday’s report was the second of three Commerce Department looks at second-quarter GDP growth. The third and final report is due Sept. 30.

Copyright © 2026 The Washington Times, LLC.

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