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☆ Is electric vehicle ownership bipartisan?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Alex | Leeds Matthews | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

The data doesn’t include each voter with an electric vehicle, but it does offer some insight into political attitudes among consumers. Currently, the most widely available electric vehicles options are luxury brands, while mainstream consumers have more limited options. “We’re also seeing that things are really changing over time… That speaks to the fact that the economic and pollution benefits of electric vehicles don’t obey political boundaries.”Still, public opinion research suggests interest in electric vehicles has some partisan roots, even if the landscape may be changing. A 2023 Gallup poll found that 71% of Republicans would not consider buying an electric vehicle, compared with 17% of Democrats. More than one-third of electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles were registered in California, according to data from the US Department of Energy in 2022.

Persons: ”, David Kieve, Donald Trump, “, Stewart Stropp, Brett Williams, ” Williams, “ We’re, Kentucky —, Joe Biden, Williams, ” Kieve, Biden Organizations: Environmental Defense Fund, Republicans, Environmental Defense, Gallup, JD, Center for Sustainable Energy, Pew, Republican, Trump, US Department of Energy, EDF Locations: California, North Dakota, Kentucky

☆ Trump says US should no longer provide foreign aid unless it’s structured as a loan
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Kate Sullivan | Shania Shelton | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The day before the Senate is set to begin voting on a $95.3 billion foreign aid package that would provide for Israel and Ukraine, former President Donald Trump on Saturday said the US should stop providing foreign aid unless it is structured as a loan. Trump’s comments come after he launched a torrent of attacks on a $118 billion bipartisan border deal and foreign aid package that Senate Republicans ended up blocking Wednesday. The former president’s comments Saturday suggest the new foreign aid package, on which the Senate is slated to begin procedural votes Sunday, will end up similarly torpedoed. Trump celebrated the failure of the $118 billion bipartisan border deal and foreign aid package at a rally on Saturday. The $95.3 billion foreign aid package the Senate is currently working to pass was advanced on Thursday on a tally of 67 to 32.

Persons: Donald Trump, “, ” Trump, — James Lankford of, Joe, Republican Sen, Rand Paul, Kentucky —, ” Paul, CNN’s Manu Raju, Mike Johnson Organizations: CNN, UNITED STATES, Republicans, Trump, Israel, West Bank, White House, Republican, Senate, Russia Locations: Israel, Ukraine, — James Lankford of Oklahoma, Conway , South Carolina, Russia, Gaza, Trump

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A 21-year-old Black man has filed a lawsuit accusing officers in the embattled police department of Kentucky's largest city of wrongful arrest and excessive force. The suit asserts that officers had “no reasonable suspicion or probable cause” to make the arrest in connection with the stolen vehicle and a stolen gun found nearby. “LMPD is committed to providing fair, equitable, and constitutional police services to the people of Louisville,” the statement said. The Justice Department report said the Louisville police department “discriminates against Black people in its enforcement activities,” uses excessive force and conducts searches based on invalid warrants. A consent decree between the Justice Department and Louisville Police, which would allow a federal judge to oversee policing reforms, has not been finalized.

Persons: Jahmael Benedict, “ LMPD, Benedict, Breonna Taylor, “ Organizations: Louisville Metro Police Department, Jefferson Circuit, Louisville Metro Police, U.S . Justice Department, The, Justice Department, Louisville Police Locations: LOUISVILLE, Ky, Kentucky's, Kentucky, Louisville

☆ Core Scientific returns to Nasdaq as Wall Street shows renewed love for bitcoin mining
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Just over a year after the crypto winter sent bitcoin miner Core Scientific spiraling into bankruptcy, the Texas-based company is back on the Nasdaq. Even in bankruptcy, Core invested in developing its infrastructure. The public markets have been going big in mining since bitcoin started rebounding. Bitcoin miners have pared back gains in the last few weeks as the price of bitcoin has fallen, and in April, a market-moving event dubbed the "halving" will cut the prize that miners receive in half. "We recommend achieving Bitcoin exposure via Bitcoin miners."

Persons: bitcoin, Adam Sullivan, Core, noteholders, Sullivan, Blockchain, CleanSpark, it's, Bernstein Organizations: Nasdaq, Trading, CNBC, Marathon, Research, Lightning Locations: Texas, U.S, — Texas, North Dakota, North Carolina Georgia, Kentucky, bitcoin

They used to take advantage of a grain elevator in Mayfield, Kentucky — a massive facility that bought and stored millions of bushels of grain from farmers. “The swings in the weather events that we have ... that’s kind of scary,” he said, especially for those with smaller farms. Human-caused climate change is only anticipated to amplify the number and intensity of those extreme events, from flash droughts to increased rainfall. Although he took some losses, he says that he and other farmers are used to dealing with uncooperative weather. On smaller farms, if farmers are forced to put everything in a low-lying area that floods, an entire crop can be affected, Schmitz said.

Persons: — Justin Ralph, he's, They're, you’ve, Ralph, Keith Lowry, Lowry, What’s, ”, Miranda Rudolph, Hans Schmitz, Jed Clark, Schmitz, Adam Kough, Murray, Kough, Joshua Bickel, ___ Read, Melina Walling Organizations: ” Farmers, University of, Farmers, Associated Press, AP Locations: MAYFIELD, Ky, Mayfield , Kentucky, Southern, Mayfield, Graves County, Kentucky, Indiana, ___

☆ Republicans still don't know how to talk about abortion
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The 2023 elections show Republicans still don't know how to talk about abortion. (Never mind the fact that abortion rights advocates have now won seven times when abortion has explicitly been on the ballot.) "If pro-life Republicans want to actually save lives, they have to learn to LISTEN TO WOMEN and talk about abortion AND contraception." As Vance described, many Republicans abandoned their decades-long commitment to traditional exceptions to abortion bans in the cases of rape, incest, or the mother's health. "As much as I'm pro-life, I don't judge anyone for being pro-choice, and I don't want them to judge me for being pro-life," Haley said.

Persons: GOP hasn't, —, Glenn Youngkin's, Nancy Mace, Sen, J.D, Vance, Republican Sen, Rick Santorum, Joe Biden, Andy Beshear, you've, Ron DeSantis, You've, they've, DeSantis, Nikki Haley, Haley Organizations: GOP, Service, Virginia Gov, Republican, Republicans, Ohio Republicans, Kentucky Gov, Politico, UN, Senate, America Locations: Ohio, Ohio , Michigan , Kansas, Kentucky, Carolina, Idaho, Arizona and Missouri, Florida, Iowa

☆ A Case Study in Abortion Politics
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( David Leonhardt | More About David Leonhardt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Many Democrats have come to believe that abortion access is the solution to their political problems. This week’s election results — with Ohio guaranteeing abortion access in a landslide and Democrats winning in both Virginia and Kentucky — support this notion. Widespread abortion access is clearly popular, even in many red states. What’s less clear is how much abortion politics affect general elections between a Democrat and a Republican. Ohio, the center of the abortion fight in this year’s election, offers a useful case study.

Persons: Roe, Wade Organizations: Democrat, Republican, Democratic Party Locations: Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky

☆ GM and Ford will answer to Wall Street and the UAW with third-quarter earnings this week
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-22 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

General Motors and Ford Motor report third-quarter earnings and future guidance this week amid ongoing strikes and contract negotiations with the United Auto Workers union. Patrick T. Fallon | AFP | Getty ImagesThe UAW has consistently used earnings reports and commentary from executives, including GM CEO Mary Barra and Ford CEO Jim Farley, to promote its efforts and collective bargaining. "If GM, Ford and Stellantis are still very profitable for the third quarter, [UAW's] going to claim that, 'They're being too cheap in bargaining, and they should give us more.'" GM has said the work stoppage cost it roughly $200 million in lost production in September. UAW impactJPMorgan estimates strike costs amounted to $145 million at Ford and $191 million at GM in terms of earnings before interest and taxes during the third quarter.

Persons: Jim Farley, Ford, Mary Barra, Patrick T, Fallon, Wheaton, Ford —, Shawn Fain, Wolfe, Rod Lache, Lache, EVs Organizations: General Motors Reuters, General Motors DETROIT, Motors, Ford Motor, United Auto Workers, GM, Ford, LSEG, UAW, Stellantis, Local, Chrysler Corporate, Division, AFP, Getty, Worker Institute, Cornell University, Ford Expedition, Lincoln, Detroit, Detroit automakers Locations: Ontario , California, Kentucky

Some of their sharpest exchanges during the televised debate, however, came when asked to lay out their stands on abortion. Their remarks, which took place about three weeks before the Nov. 7 election, came against the backdrop of Kentucky's current abortion law, which bans the procedure except when carried out to save a pregnant woman’s life or to prevent a disabling injury. Cameron went on the attack by pointing to Beshear’s opposition to abortion restrictions passed by the state’s GOP-dominated legislature. Beshear also made another pitch for his plan for state-funded pre-K for every 4-year-old in Kentucky. Beshear criticized Cameron for supporting a Republican-backed measure to award tax credits for donations supporting private school tuition.

Persons: Andy Beshear, Daniel Cameron, Beshear, Roe, Wade, —, Cameron, Andy Beshear’s, ” Beshear, ” Cameron, he's, Cameron’s, Ford, ” Ford, Joe Biden's, “ Organizations: Republican, Northern Kentucky University, autoworkers, Plant, U.S, Supreme, GOP, Kentucky Supreme, United Auto Workers, Detroit, UAW, Ford, SK Innovation, Democratic, Washington , D.C Locations: Kentucky, Highland Heights , Kentucky, Louisville, Kentucky's, South Korea, Glendale, Beshear, Washington ,

☆ Toyota, LG Energy Solution sign $3 billion battery supply deal in U.S. EV push
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The deal will support Toyota's expanding battery EV line-up, which includes a new model that will be assembled at a manufacturing plant in Kentucky — its largest globally — starting in 2025. LG Energy Solution also supplies other automotive giants such as America's General Motors , South Korea's Hyundai, and Japan's Honda . Less than five months ago, LG Energy Solution said it will build a $4.3 billion EV battery plant in the U.S. with Hyundai, in a bid to leverage tax credits. LG Energy Solution will invest about 4 trillion Korean won ($3 billion) "to establish new production lines for battery cells and modules exclusively for Toyota, with completion slated for 2025." Chinese competitionLG Energy Solution is currently the world's third-largest EV battery producer after Chinese EV player BYD, according to data from South Korean energy market research firm SNE Research.

Persons: Youngsoo Kwon, Kwon, Toyota's, Japan's Organizations: Korea's LG Energy, Toyota, LG Energy, CNBC, America's, Motors, Hyundai, Japan's Honda, U.S, Lexus, LG, EV, BYD, SNE Research Locations: U.S, Kentucky, Toyota's Tokyo

☆ Mitch McConnell was heckled with chants of 'retire' at the annual Fancy Farm picnic in Kentucky days after he froze during a Capitol Hill press conference
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Mitch McConnell was heckled at the annual Fancy Farm picnic in Kentucky this past weekend. Booing is not unusual at Fancy Farm, but McConnell spoke after a much publicized health scare. The veteran GOP leader has committed to serving in his leadership role through the 2024 elections. And the reception is definitely not unusual at the Fancy Farm picnic, where Democrats and Republicans have their most fervent supporters cheer and boo candidates from opposing parties during the oft-raucous event. But during McConnell's speech at Fancy Farm, he went into attack mode against Democratic Gov.

Persons: Mitch McConnell, McConnell, jeers, Andy Beshear, who's, Daniel Cameron, haven't, Joe Biden —, Sen, Dianne Feinstein —, Biden, Gray Organizations: GOP, Service, Republicans, Republican, Hill, Senate, Democratic Gov, Republican Party, Democratic, Beshear, Bluegrass State, California Democrat Locations: Kentucky, Wall, Silicon, Georgia, Frankfort, …, California, Insider's

☆ If Mitch McConnell steps down, Kentucky Republicans made sure years ago it won't be a Democrat who replaces him
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Rebecca Cohen | Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

On Wednesday, McConnell froze at a press conference, raising questions about his ability to lead. But if he steps down, the Democratic governor in Kentucky will have to keep the Senate seat red. On Wednesday, McConnell froze and stopped talking mid-sentence during a press conference, raising questions about the 81-year-old senator's health. Other senators pulled the silent McConnell aside as the press conference continued. But the state's Republican-run legislature overrode Beshear's veto — with McConnell strongly backing the effort, according to the Courier Journal.

Persons: McConnell, Mitch McConnell, —, Andy Beshear, Beshear Organizations: Democratic, Kentucky Republicans, Republican, Service, Kentucky Republican, NBC, Louisville Courier, Courier Locations: Kentucky, Wall, Silicon, That's

☆ The US wants to cut carbon emissions from power plants. Here are the 15 states where coal is king.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Biden administration proposed steep pollution cuts by coal- and gas-fired power plants. Most US electricity comes from fossil fuels — the sector creates 25% of the nation's emissions. Coal is the most polluting fossil fuel, and plants have been closing over the past decade. Most of the country's more than 3,400 fossil-fuel power plants would have to nearly eliminate their planet-warming greenhouse-gas emissions by 2040 under a proposal announced by the Environmental Protection Agency last week. Coal plants could also opt to shut down in the first half of the 2030s to avoid meeting most or even all pollution caps.

Persons: Biden, it's Organizations: Service, Environmental, Agency, EPA, Biden, US Energy Information Administration, West Virginia —, Missouri —, Wyoming, Kentucky —, Utah —, Indiana —, Dakota —, Nebraska —, Montana —, Wisconsin —, Colorado —, Mexico —, Arkansas —, Michigan —, Minnesota — Locations: Mexico

☆ Republicans want to push Manchin out of a reelection bid because they think he's the last Democrat who can win in deep red West Virginia: 'You can't say that it's impossible for him to win'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Republicans are looking to nudge Joe Manchin out of a Senate reelection bid in 2024. Still, Republican leaders aren't dismissing Manchin, as he has withstood the GOP lean of the state. And the state Senate and state House of Delegates, which had robust Democratic majorities just over a decade ago, now have GOP supermajorities. But if Manchin does run, Republicans should expect a tenacious campaigner who has shown that he won't be outworked. "He has that Clinton-esque ability to make everybody feel like he's your friend and he's listening to you and he's concerned about you," Hickey told Politico.

☆ Opinion: A rookie officer ran toward semi-automatic gunfire. It was his job
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Michael Fanone | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The job carries unavoidable risks, but to the extent that we can keep them safe we owe them that much. Too many times toward the end of my career I heard politicians, media pundits and even executives in my own department prioritize optics over officer safety. In fact, every single firearms transfer in this country should begin with a background check. As I thought about Officer Wilt, I recalled my own experiences as a rookie cop working in the inner city. This is the job, and this is what is asked of these officers.

☆ How to decode a package shipping label, from the jumbled letters to the sea of barcodes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Emma Cosgrove | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Here's how to break down what's on most e-commerce package labels. What can a package label tell you? A package label can tell you a lot about where the package has been, how far it traveled, and even what's inside. The recipient and the destination address is in the middle, return address at the top left. Next to the return address is usually the weight of the package — a good thing to check on big items before lifting.

☆ Rolling back laws that set minimum wages for construction workers meant pay shrunk, jobs got more dangerous, and workers had to rely more on public assistance
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A new study looks at the impact of rolling back prevailing wage laws on wages and workers. Prevailing wage laws set pay standards for government contract workers, particularly construction workers. Researchers Frank Manzo, Robert Bruno, and Larissa Petrucci examine the impact of repealing prevailing wage laws — laws that essentially set minimum wages for construction workers on government contracts. Historically, prevailing wage laws have helped plug labor shortages, and contractors could have trouble competing with higher-paying competitors across the country. Indiana, West Virginia, Kentucky, Arkansas, Wisconsin, and Michigan all repealed their prevailing wage laws between 2015 and 2018.

☆ Package theft is now a felony in 8 states and counting as lawmakers crack down on 'porch piracy'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Emma Cosgrove | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Package theft is a staple of the e-commerce age, and is more common in some states than others. And even if they had logged the theft with police, the crime of package theft is filed and charged differently depending on the location. Oklahoma — Package theft can be charged as a felony if the perpetrator is convicted of three instances within 60 days. There isn't much of a correlation between the states cracking down on package theft and the places that experience it. Only one of the top 10 metro areas experiencing the most package theft is in a state where porch piracy is a felony.

☆ Fraudsters used a fake-name generating website to steal $250 million meant for hungry children, Justice Department alleges
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

According to prosecutors, the accused exploited the federal Child Nutrition Program, which provides free or low-cost meals to impoverished children. Feeding Our Future, in turn, collected $18 million in administrative fees for disbursing that money, according to the indictment. In 2019, it dispersed $3.4 million in federal aid, according to prosecutors, rising to nearly $200 million in 2021. Those involved in the scheme, prosecutors claim, spent proceeds on travel, luxury vehicles, and property in Minnesota, Ohio, and Kentucky — as well as real estate in Turkey and Kenya. A search warrant, executed in January, accused Bock of accepting a $310,000 payment from one client, Sahan Journal reported.

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