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Read previewLegal challenges by conservative lawmakers and activists against guaranteed basic income programs are heating up nationwide. Guaranteed basic income programs differ from their idealistic cousin — a universal basic income. AdvertisementWhile localized guaranteed basic income programs are tiny compared to a nationwide universal basic income, they are the subject of no less conservative opposition. Local politicians in places like South Dakota and Arizona have moved to block basic income programs for this reason alone. AdvertisementWhile these arguments appear to support giving basic income payments to a broader group of people, it's unlikely many conservatives would actually support a universal basic income.

Persons: —, Andrew Yang, Sam Altman, Republican Sen, John Wiik, Kathryn Blankenberg, Ken Paxton, Paxton, It's Organizations: Service, Business, Republican, Judicial Watch, American Civil Rights, Texas Locations: South Dakota, Arizona, Dakota, San Francisco, Texas, Houston, Harris County

☆ Venezuela’s 2024 Presidential Vote: What to Know
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Genevieve Glatsky | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For the past 25 years Venezuela’s government has been controlled by Chavismo, the socialist movement that began with the democratic election of Hugo Chávez in 1998 and has since grown more authoritarian. When Mr. Chávez died in 2013 his protégé Nicolás Maduro narrowly won the presidency. Venezuela’s economy imploded nearly a decade ago, prompting one of the world’s largest displacements in Latin American history. The flow of Venezuelans and other migrants to the United States has become a dominant theme in the U.S. presidential campaign. This is the first Venezuelan election in more than a decade in which an opposition candidate has a reasonable — if slim and improbable — chance at winning.

Persons: Hugo Chávez, Chávez, Nicolás Maduro Organizations: Chavismo, U.S Locations: United States

☆ A France in Shock Confronts the Violence in Its Midst
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Roger Cohen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

If France is a country of illusions — a beautiful and seductive land offering many of life’s greatest pleasures that sits atop and conceals a crime-ridden, drug-plagued world of violence — then the past week offered a rude awakening to this dual reality. The Olympic flame arrived on French soil last week in the ancient port city of Marseille as a joyous crowd thronged the beautiful harbor. The chatter was of peace ahead of the Games, which begin in July. But the flame also arrived in a city whose northern districts are the epicenter of the French drug trade, where 49 people were killed last year and 123 injured in drug-related shootings. This, just 85 miles from the capital, was a methodical execution in broad daylight on the main road from Paris to Normandy.

Persons: —, Mohamed Amra, Jérôme Durain, “, ” Organizations: Socialist Party Locations: France, Marseille, Paris, Normandy

☆ New Caledonia: Why this French island in the Pacific is roiled by violence over a vote held 10,000 miles away
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-15 | by ( Angus Watson | Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

France’s military has mobilized and flown in “four additional squadrons to restore order,” according to French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin. Macron will chair a defense and national security council on Wednesday, focusing on the violence, the presidential palace said. Others were equipped with larger rifles, firing bullets,” the French High commissioner to New Caledonia Louis Le Franc said. Theo Rouby/AFP/Getty ImagesFrench gendarme officers guard the entrance of the Vallee-du-Tir district, in Noumea, New Caledonia on May 14, 2024. FLNKS issued its own statement Wednesday both condemning the vote at the National Assembly and calling for an end to the violence.

Persons: Paris –, Gerald Darmanin, Emmanuel Macron, Macron, Charles Wea, Louis Mapou, New Caledonia Louis Le Franc, Franc, RNZ, Theo Rouby, unfreeze, Gabriel Attal, “, ” Attal, FLNKS, “ FLNKS Organizations: CNN, New, New Caledonian, New Caledonia Louis, Radio New, Getty, Colonial, Noumea Accord, National Assembly, French, Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Locations: New Caledonia, Noumea, South Pacific, Australia, Fiji, Vanuatu, , New Caledonia, Pacific, Caribbean, Indian, France, Paris, China, United States, Radio New Zealand, Noumea , New Caledonia, AFP, Tir, White, Covid, Kanak

☆ Catalonia: Spain’s socialists hail ‘new era’ as Catalan separatist support dims in elections
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Barcelona, Spain — Spain’s Socialists won the biggest share of the vote in Sunday’s Catalan elections, dealing a serious blow to more than a decade of separatist governance and the independence dreams still nursed by some in the wealthy northeastern region. Spain’s largest opposition party, the conservative People’s Party, also had a good night, seeing the biggest increase since the last vote in 2021 from three seats to 15 on Sunday. Socialist candidate Salvador Illa makes a toast with members of his team and party colleagues after the announcement of the results of the elections. Emilio Morenatti/APSpeaking as the voting count concluded, Illa hailed a “new era” for the region. Illa’s Socialists will also need to forge an agreement - most likely with the ERC - but separatist parties until now have rejected any suggestion of helping the national ruling party govern in Catalonia.

Persons: Spain —, Salvador Illa, Junts, Esquerra, Pedro Sanchez’s, Emilio Morenatti, Illa, Pere Aragones, Carles Puigdemont, Joan Esculies, ” Organizations: Spain — Spain’s Socialists, Socialists, People’s Party, Socialist, restive, ERC, CUP, Illa’s Socialists, AC Locations: Barcelona, Spain, Sunday’s, Catalonia, restive Catalonia, Junts

☆ Catalan separatists lose majority as Spain’s pro-union Socialists win regional elections
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-13 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

A pro-unity rally marches through Barcelona, Spain, on October 8, 2017, in response to last Sunday's disputed referendum on Catalan independence. This was the first time the Socialists led a Catalan election in both votes and seats won. Illa led Spain's response to the COVID-19 pandemic before Sánchez sent him back to Barcelona to lead his party. The Socialists are already in a coalition government in Madrid with the Sumar party, which now has six seats in the Catalan parliament. Separatists have held the regional government in Barcelona since 2012 and had won majorities in four consecutive regional elections.

Persons: Carles Puigdemont, Salvador Illa savored, Illa, Catalonia's, Sánchez, bode, Pedro Sánchez, Puigdemont, pardoning, Puigdemont's, Pere Aragonès, Vox Organizations: Socialist Party, Socialists, Sánchez's Socialists, Republican, Popular Party, Catalan Alliance Locations: Barcelona, Spain, Catalonia, Madrid, Catalan, France, Spain's, Spanish, Catalans

☆ Spain’s Socialists Win Catalan Vote Dominated by Amnesty for Separatists
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-12 | by ( Rachel Chaundler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Spain’s governing Socialist party emerged on Sunday as the winner of regional elections in Catalonia that had been widely seen as a litmus test for Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s polarizing amnesty measure for separatists. The Socialists are celebrating what they claim is a momentous victory, though they did not clinch enough seats to govern on their own. They most likely face weeks of bargaining, and possibly a repeat election if no agreement is reached. But for the first time in over a decade, they may be able to form a regional government led by an anti-independence party. On Sunday, his party got only 42, meaning he will have to seek support from the pro-independence party Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya (Catalan Republican Left) and the left-wing Comuns.

Persons: Pedro Sánchez’s, Salvador Illa, Illa, Esquerra Organizations: Socialist, Socialists, Catalans, Republican Left Locations: Catalonia, Barcelona

Washington CNN —President Joe Biden’s decision this week to make public his ultimatum that a major Israeli offensive in the city of Rafah would result in a shut-off of some US weapons did not come easily or lightly. Last week, Biden signed off on a pause of 3,500 bombs to Israel that administration officials feared would be dropped on Rafah. Aware or not of the president’s views, Israeli officials reacted with shock to the public announcement. Israeli officials also sought to downplay the significance of Biden’s announcement. It marked the clearest signal yet that six months into the war, Biden was starting to seriously consider conditioning US support for Israel.

Persons: Joe Biden’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden’s, Netanyahu, Biden, Still, CNN’s Erin Burnett, he’d, ” Biden, Burnett, wasn’t, “, Erin Burnett, ”, John Kirby, Kirby, Daniel Hagari, Israel, –, Jesus, Israel’s, ” Kirby, straightforwardly, pare, Donald Trump, Utah Sen, Mitt Romney, Mike Johnson, who’d, Pennsylvania Sen, John Fetterman, they’re, CNN’s Manu Raju, Sen, Jon Tester, Ben Cardin, “ I’m, I’ve, we’ve, ” Sen, Bernie Sanders Organizations: Washington CNN, Israel Defense Forces, White, National Security, CNN, Kitchen, Capitol, Israel, Biden’s CNN, GOP, Politico, Pennsylvania, Foreign Relations Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Israel, Wisconsin, I’m, Rafah Israel, “ Israel, Utah, Montana, Vermont

☆ Kim Ki Nam: North Korean propaganda chief who served all three leaders dies
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-08 | by ( Story Reuters | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Kim Ki Nam, one of the longest-serving North Korean officials who served all three generations of its leaders cementing their political legitimacy and heading the propaganda apparatus for the dynastic state, has died, official media said on Wednesday. North Korea leader Kim Jong Un visited the bier of Kim at 2 a.m. on Wednesday to pay tribute “with bitter grief over the loss of a veteran revolutionary who had remained boundlessly loyal” to the country until the very end, it said. Kim died on Tuesday at the age of 94, official KCNA news agency said. Kim exerted tremendous influence on policy and personnel and was a key architect of the ruling Workers’ Party’s political foundation, according to North Korea expert Michael Madden at the Stimson Center. He was particularly close to Kim Jong-il, the father of the current leader who died in 2011, and was believed to be his “drinking buddy,” Madden said citing sources.

Persons: CNN — Kim Ki Nam, Kim Jong Un, Kim, ”, “, ” KCNA, Kim Dae, Kim Il, Michael Madden, Kim Jong, ” Madden Organizations: CNN, North Korean, North, South, Stimson Locations: North Korea, Pyongyang, Korea

☆ This college town is experimenting with giving low-income entrepreneurs and gig workers $12,672, no strings attached
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Allie Kelly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Ann Arbor's program, called Guaranteed Income to Grow Ann Arbor, is giving low- and moderate-income residents $528 a month, no strings attached. Over 50 municipalities have tried the GBI model since 2019, offering low-income participants between $100 and $1,000 a month, no strings attached for one to five years. "This pilot will help us learn whether guaranteed income payments can be an effective way to help some entrepreneurs with their business efforts." Chicago announced in April that it restarted its previous GBI program that offered low-income residents $500 a month. A GBI program in Harris County, Texas is being challenged by Attorney General Ken Paxton, who called the program "unconstitutional."

Persons: —, Ann, Ann Arbor's, Monique Gonzalez, Ann Arbor, GBI, Ken Paxton Organizations: Service, Business, Local, Services, Denver, Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, University of Michigan, Chicago, Republican Locations: Ann Arbor , Michigan, Ann Arbor, San Antonio, Antonio's, Ann, Michigan, Atlanta, Denver, Flint, Harris County , Texas, Iowa , Arizona, South Dakota

☆ Bernie Sanders is running for reelection
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-06 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sen. Bernie Sanders is running for reelection in 2024. The 82-year-old is the last senator to announce his reelection plans this year. AdvertisementSen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, the longest-serving independent in American history, will seek a 4th term in the US Senate later this year. He is the last US senator whose term ends in 2024 to announce whether or not he would seek reelection. Sanders is immensely popular in Vermont and is all but guaranteed to be reelected in November.

Persons: Sen, Bernie Sanders, —, Bernie Sanders of, coy, Republican Sen, Chuck Grassley, Sanders, Hillary Clinton, Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, Joe Biden, Long, Biden's, That's, Sanders —, he's Organizations: Service, Democratic, Republican, Democratic Party, Health, Education, Labor, Pensions Locations: Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Iowa, Vermont, Alexandria, Gaza, Israel

☆ Turkey Halts Trade With Israel as Relations Deteriorate
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Gulsin Harman | Ben Hubbard | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +11 min

Peaceful protest is. Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations — none of this is a peaceful protest. Threatening people, intimidating people, instilling fear in people is not peaceful protest. “Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations — none of this is a peaceful protest. Peaceful protest is.”In calming some in his party, though, Mr. Biden took heat from others on the political left.

Persons: Biden, It’s, President Biden, ” Mr, “, Nemat Shafik, ”, Tim Scott, Donald J, Mr, Trump, Crooked Joe Biden, Newscum, Gavin Newsom, Israel, George Floyd, could’ve, Matt Duss, Bernie Sanders, Jonathan Wolfe, Ernesto Londoño, Bob Chiarito, Mike Baker Organizations: Jewish, White, Republican, National Guard, “, Police, University of California, Portland State University, University of Wisconsin, Fordham, Manhattan, University of Texas, Dartmouth College, Tulane University, New York Times, Brown University, Northwestern University, Columbia University, American Association of University, Hamilton, Republicans, Trump Locations: America, Palestinian, Gaza, “, Los Angeles, Oregon, Madison, Dallas, New Hampshire, New Orleans, Rhode Island, Illinois, Israel, Washington, South Carolina, U.C.L.A, California, North Carolina, Charlotte, Wilmington, Vermont, St, Paul, Minn, Wis, Seattle

☆ Bernie Sanders: From small-town mayor to godfather of the progressive left
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

He got his start in government as a small-town mayor, decades before his 2016 and 2020 campaigns. Here's everything to know about the Democratic socialist senator. AdvertisementBernie Sanders is known today as perhaps the most important leader on the American left. In 2020, Sanders ran again, ultimately coming in second to now-President Joe Biden in the primary. Who Sanders is today — and what he's fighting forSince his 2020 campaign, Sanders has assumed a more institutional role in the United States Senate.

Persons: Bernie Sanders, —, Long, Sanders, Chuck Schumer, Donna Light, Douglas Graham, Hillary Clinton, Alexandria Ocasio, Clinton, Joe Biden, Who Sanders, Biden's, — Sanders, He's, Republican Sen, Chuck Grassley, Becca Balint Organizations: Democratic, Service, Democratic Party leftward, James Madison High School, University of Chicago, Liberty Union, Burlington City Hall, Newsday, Getty, Congressional, Senate, Democratic Party, United States Senate, Health, Education, Labor, Pensions, Israel, New York Times, Republican Locations: Vermont, Soviet Union, Brooklyn , New York, Poland, Chicago, Burlington, Burlington —, Alexandria, Cortez, Iowa

☆ Middle East Crisis Blinken Is Set to Meet With Top Middle East Diplomats on War
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Edward Wong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +8 min

President Biden spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, three weeks after telling him that he could rethink U.S. support for Israel’s war in Gaza. An administration official said that about three-quarters of Mr. Biden’s nearly hourlong call to Mr. Netanyahu focused on the possible cease-fire and hostages deal. The two leaders also discussed hostage videos released by Hamas last week, including those showing two hostages with American citizenship. Israel, heeding pleas by Mr. Biden for restraint, fired back only a token counterattack, and both sides have indicated they want to avoid further escalation. With the immediate threat of a wider war seemingly fading, Mr. Biden and his team could shift their attention back to Gaza.

Persons: Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Antony J, Blinken, “ That’s, John F, Kirby, Biden’s, Netanyahu, Israel, Mr, Biden “, “, Bernie Sanders, ”, Yahya Sinwar, ” Edward Wong Organizations: Israel, Hamas, State Department, Mr, Economic, White, ABC, Biden, American, ”, CNN, “, U.S Locations: Gaza, Rafah, Washington, Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Jordan, Israel, ”, U.S, Vermont, “ State, Iran

☆ Pedro Sanchez: Spanish PM refuses to quit, vowing to fight ‘unfounded’ attack on his wife
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Al Goodman | Jack Guy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“I have decided to continue, with more force if possible, as the head of the Spanish government,” the 52-year-old prime minister said. Sanchez thanked his Spanish Socialist Party members for their support. Manos Limpias acknowledged on the same day that it had relied on press reports for its court complaint. Javier Soriano/AFP/Getty ImagesSanchez’ Socialist party performed strongly in recent regional elections in Spain’s northern Basque region. Sanchez became prime minister in 2018 after winning a no-confidence vote against the conservative Mariano Rajoy.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Begoña Gomez, Sanchez, Gomez, Manos Limpias, “, ”, it’s, Gomez “, Manos, General’s, Hazte, Javier Soriano, Mariano Rajoy, “ Pedro, –, we’ve, Español’s Pau Mosquera Organizations: CNN, Spanish, Spanish Socialist Party, Madrid, Superior Court of Justice, AFP, Getty, Socialist, Socialist Party, Español, Español’s Locations: Madrid, Spanish, Spain’s, Basque, Catalonia, Ukraine, Kyiv, Spain, ”

☆ Why a Brazilian UFC star is championing a dead Austrian economist
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-28 | by ( David Shortell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

In recent years, the free-market economist and the contrarian Austrian school he led midcentury have been turned into a hashtag deployed by tax-wary workers. Ludwig von Mises From Mises Institute“Ludwig von Mises is Latin America’s leading economist,” declared the headline of a Bloomberg opinion piece earlier this month by economist Tyler Cowen. His free-market policy prescriptions, framed by an economic thinking centered on human behavior and individual choice, were widely considered out of fashion at the time. “That is my jam!” Shapiro said of the Austrian school. “If you start to understand the concept of the Austrian economic school,” Moicano said in a recent YouTube video, “you’re going to understand that’s what I need: free market, liberties, and wealth, my brother.

Persons: Renato Moicano, “, Ludwig von Mises, ” Moicano, Mises, midcentury, influencers, “ Ludwig von Mises, ”, Tyler Cowen, Marx, Camila Rocha, Moicano, Jair Bolsonaro, Javier Milei, Fabrice Coffrini, Milei, “ Milei, Daniel Raisbeck, Raisbeck, Milton Friedman, ” Mises, El, Nayib Bukele, Amanda Andrade, Rhoades, Rocha, Ben Shapiro, ” Shapiro, It’s, “ you’re Organizations: CNN — Brazilian UFC, Austrian, Mises, “, Bloomberg, New York University, Brazilian Center of Analysis, UFC, Economic, Cato Institute, Argentina national, Salvador, Conservative Political, Conference, Mises Institute, Mises Institutes, Fox Business, YouTube Locations: Austrian, United States, South, Central America, American, El Salvador, Argentina, Brazil, Davos, AFP, Milei, Buenos Aires, Mises, National Harbor , Maryland, Washington, Latin America

☆ Pedro Sanchez: Spanish leader says he will ‘reflect’ on whether to remain prime minister, as court probes wife
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Al Goodman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Madrid CNN —Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced Wednesday that he was cancelling his public duties until next week to “reflect” on whether to continue leading the government, just hours after a Spanish court said it had opened a probe against his wife. In the surprise move, Sanchez said on X that he would announce his decision on whether to remain as prime minister next Monday, in an appearance before the news media. Sanchez said “I need to stop and reflect” about “if I should continue leading the government” or step down. Sanchez, head of Spain’s Socialist Party, leads a coalition government with a narrow parliamentary majority. And a poll predicts the Socialist Party will also fare better than conservatives and the far right in regional elections in Catalonia next month around Barcelona.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Sanchez, Begoña Gomez, “, Manos, ” Sanchez, Begoña Gomez “, Javier Maroto, Spain’s Organizations: Madrid CNN, Spanish, Wednesday, Madrid, Superior Court, Justice, Spain’s Socialist Party, Popular Party, Socialist Party, Vox Locations: Madrid, Basque, Catalonia, Barcelona

☆ How 2 participants in Houston's basic-income program plan to spend the $500 a month: 'When you live paycheck to paycheck, it's horrible'
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Allie Kelly | Noah Sheidlower | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

He knows the GBI money will help him breathe a little easier. Uplift Harris' program will begin payments in the meantime, according to the office of Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis. Uplift Harris participants hope the program will make them more financially stableGuaranteed basic income is an increasingly popular solution to combat poverty in US cities. GBI participants have previously told BI that they used the funds to secure housing and food, pay off debt, and afford school supplies for their children. Have you benefited from a guaranteed basic income program?

Persons: —, Delwin Sutton, doesn't, Sutton, Ken Paxton, Harris, Paxton, Rodney Ellis, Sutton doesn't, Dustin Palmer, We've, Palmer, Jay Carter, isn't, Carter, Still, Harris County Attorney Christian D, Menefee Organizations: Service, Business, Harvard, Yale, Texas Attorney, Services, American, Republican, Harris County Attorney, Austin, South Dakota Republicans, doesn't Locations: Houston, Harris, Harris County, GBI, Texas, Austin, San Antonio, El Paso County, The Arizona, South Dakota, Iowa

☆ China sees foreign threats ‘everywhere’ as powerful spy agency takes center stage
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +16 min

But among the crowds you and I together are protecting national security,” the narrator concludes. Chinese soldiers look at a poster promoting national security in the southwestern city of Beihai on National Security Education Day on April 15, 2024. CFOTO/Future Publishing/Getty ImagesAccording to the MSS, foreign spies are omnipresent and infiltrating everything – from mapping apps to weather stations. But China’s spy agency has gradually stepped out of the shadows as Xi makes national security a key priority. “Shenyin Special Investigation Squad” is a comic series based on real-life counterespionage operations, according to China's spy agency.

Persons: –, “, ”, Xi, Xuezhi Guo, Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Xi Jinping, Greg Baker, Mao Zedong, Greitens, Chen Yixin, Chen, “ Chen, ” Greitens, Xi –, denigrate, Bain, Alex Plavevski, Guo, influencers, China’s, can’t, James Zimmerman, Perkins Coie, Zimmerman, ” Zimmerman Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, National Security Education, “, Ministry of State Security, National Security, Publishing, CIA, National, Education, Capitol, Guilford College, Asia, University of Texas, Getty, Communist Party, FBI, National Security Propaganda, CCTV, Ministry of State, China’s National Security Commission, Group, China Development Forum, Perkins Coie LLP, ”, MSS Locations: China, Hong Kong, Beihai, British, American, Beijing, Austin, AFP, Zhejiang province, Shanghai, New York, overreaching

☆ Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov signals Putin's plan to seize Kharkiv and create a 'sanitary zone'
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

download the appSign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read previewForeign Minister Sergey Lavrov has strongly suggested that Russia intends to seize the city of Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine, making him the first senior Kremlin official to identify the city as a potential target outright. Moscow has already made it clear that it believes the only way to defend Russian territory is through such a buffer zone, which would put its settlements out of reach of Ukrainian fire. AdvertisementPutin has wanted to take Kharkiv since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. The city has symbolic as well as strategic value for the Russian president, as it has a majority Russian-speaking population and was the first capital of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.

Persons: —, Sergey Lavrov, Lavrov, Ukraine's, Vladimir Putin's, Dmitry Peskov, Oleksandr Syrskyi, Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy Organizations: Service, Kremlin, for, Business, Bloomberg, Kharkiv, Ukrainian Soviet, Komsomolskaya Pravda Locations: Russia, Kharkiv, Ukraine, Moscow, Ukrainian, Russian, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, Moskva

☆ Björn Höcke: Far-right German politician on trial accused of using banned Nazi slogans
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Lindsay Isaac | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —A far-right German politician has gone on trial accused of using banned Nazi slogans at two rallies dating back to 2021. Björn Höcke, leader of the regional branch of Alternative for Germany party (AfD) in the eastern state of Thuringia, is accused of ending a May 2021 election event in Merseburg by shouting the Socialist Nationalist slogan, “Everything for our homeland, everything for Saxony-Anhalt, everything for Germany,” according to the regional court of Halle. Prosecutors allege that although he was aware the slogan is banned in Germany, and despite already facing criminal charges related to the first instance, Höcke went on to use it a second time at an AfD event in December 2023. In that incident he allegedly shouted to the crowd: “Everything for” and incited the audience to reply “Germany.”Prosecutors also claim Höcke was aware of the phrase’s origins as the slogan for the Nazi paramilitary wing. Höcke, a former history teacher, intends to run as the lead candidate for the AfD in the upcoming state elections in Thuringia in September.

Persons: Björn Höcke, Höcke, ” Prosecutors, ”, Elon Musk, ” Hans, Christoph Berndt Organizations: CNN, Germany, Socialist Nationalist, Prosecutors, ”, Nazi Locations: Thuringia, Merseburg, Saxony, Anhalt, Germany, Halle, Brandenburg

☆ German Far-Right Leader Goes on Trial for Nazi Slogans
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-18 | by ( Erika Solomon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

One of Germany’s most prominent far-right leaders, Björn Höcke, stands trial on Thursday, facing charges of using banned Nazi slogans at political rallies. Using National Socialist slogans and symbols is a punishable crime in Germany, which, because of the legacy of Hitler’s rise to power, has a far more restrictive approach to free speech compared to democracies like the United States. Mr. Höcke heads the far-right Alternative for Germany, known by its German abbreviation, AfD, in the state of Thuringia. He is facing trial for using the slogan “Everything for Germany” at a speech in the eastern state of Saxony, where he is being put on trial. It was the slogan of the National Socialist paramilitary group, or Storm Troopers, and was engraved on their knives.

Persons: Björn, Höcke Organizations: Socialist, Germany ”, National Socialist, Storm Locations: Germany, United States, Thuringia, Saxony

☆ ‘Canceled’ for Protesting Cancel Culture, Europe’s Right-Wingers Rejoice
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-16 | by ( Andrew Higgins | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“This is what we are up against. We are up against a new form of communism,” declared Nigel Farage of Britain. Mr. Farage, a former member of the European Parliament and a champion of national sovereignty, who helped drive his country’s exit from the European Union, was getting ready to speak when the authorities arrived. “This is like the old Soviet Union. No alternative view allowed,” he said.

Persons: Viktor Orban of Hungary, Emir Kir, ”, Nigel Farage, Farage Organizations: Tuesday, Socialist Party, National Conservatism Conference, European Union Locations: Brussels, Europe, Britain, Soviet Union

☆ Texas AG sues county over Houston-area guaranteed income program giving participants $500 a month no strings attached
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-09 | by ( Noah Sheidlower | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewThe Texas Attorney General's office sued Harris County, which contains Houston, over its new guaranteed income pilot that would give nearly 2,000 residents $500 a month for 18 months with no strings attached. The state is seeking to block Harris County from giving its first payments to participants, which are slated to start in April. In response, Harris County Attorney Christian D. Menefee said that the lawsuit is "nothing more than another attack" on the county government. The Austin Guaranteed Income Pilot has distributed $1,000 a month to 135 low-income families, who reported using their money for housing, food, and other daily costs. Republican lawmakers are trying to ban guaranteed income programs in states such as Arizona, Iowa, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

Persons: —, Ken Paxton, Harris, Harris County Attorney Christian D, Menefee, Dustin Palmer, Paxton, Sen, Paul Bettencourt Organizations: Service, Texas, Business, American, Harris County Attorney, Republican, Austin Locations: Harris, Houston, Texas, Harris County, Austin, Arizona , Iowa, South Dakota, Wisconsin

☆ A Massachusetts city is giving families at risk of losing their homes $750 a month, no strings attached
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Allie Kelly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewA Massachusetts city is giving low-income families $750 a month, no strings attached. The guaranteed basic income program will focus on residents who are in danger of losing their homes. The Somerville GBI Pilot will serve about 200 low-income families currently experiencing housing insecurity. Related stories"My life was always just a couple hundred dollars short," a participant in San Antonio's income program told BI. St. Louis, Missouri recently distributed $500 monthly payments to low-income families, and Flint, Michigan is offering funds to new mothers.

Persons: —, Boston —, Somerville, Katjana Ballantyne, Ballantyne, Joe Biden's, hasn't, John Gillette Organizations: Service, Somerville, Business, Greater Boston Area, Boston, ARPA, The University of Massachusetts, Republican Locations: Massachusetts, —, Boston, San Antonio, Austin, Minneapolis, Durham , North Carolina, Denver, Antonio's, City, Somerville, Greater Boston, Arizona , South Dakota , Iowa, Texas, Arizona, Louis , Missouri, Flint , Michigan, Atlanta

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