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☆ United Methodist Church embraces the LGBTQ after decades of division
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Chelsea Bailey | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Courtesy Neighborhood Church AtlantaA church at war with itselfThe United Methodist Church has been at war with itself for decades over its stance on homosexuality. In 2019, the United Methodist Church’s governing body opened a temporary window for congregations to petition to leave over the issue. Andy Oliver reacts after the United Methodist Church removes a rule forbidding "self-avowed practicing homosexuals" from being ordained or appointed as ministers. And yet you stay, and you fight because you know, a better church is possible.”A sign outside the Allendale United Methodist Church in St. Petersburg, Florida. Andy OliverThe Real Work BeginsThe United Methodist Church, is one of the largest mainline Protestant Christian denominations in the United States, according to the Pew Research Center.

Persons: Andi Woodworth, Woodworth, Anjie, ”, “, that’s, ” Woodworth, Anjie Woodworth, Rev, Kristin Stoneking, “ We’ve, “ There’s, ” Anjie, she’s, …, Andy Oliver, Chris Carlson, Robert “ BJ ” Jackson, Oliver, Jackson, Tim, Tim’s, he’s, ” Oliver, Jackson’s, ‘, BJ, – John Wesley –, Billy Hester, Hester, disaffiliate, ” CNN’s Justin Gamble Organizations: CNN, Neighborhood Church, United Methodist Church, Methodist, Church, United Methodist, Christian, “, Conference, Network, Allendale United Methodist Church, Pew Research Center, Asbury Memorial Church Locations: Atlanta , Georgia, Atlanta, Church Atlanta, Allendale, St . Petersburg , Florida, United States, Savannah , Georgia, Savannah

☆ Israel and Hamas Face Growing Pressure for a Cease-Fire Deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +4 min

Husam Badran, a senior Hamas official, said in a text message that the group’s representatives were arriving in Cairo “with great positivity” toward the proposed deal. “If there is no agreement, it will be because of Netanyahu alone,” he said, referring to Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister. Mr. Sinwar is one of the presumed architects of Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, which left 1,200 dead and roughly 250 taken hostage, according to Israeli officials. In Israel, Mr. Netanyahu faces substantial opposition within his own governing coalition to the proposed framework. Agreeing to the deal would be “humiliating surrender,” Bezalel Smotrich, the country’s finance minister, wrote on Facebook late last month.

Persons: Haitham Imad, United States —, Antony J, Blinken, ”, ” Mr, William J, Burns, Husam, Netanyahu, Benjamin Netanyahu, Yahya Sinwar, Sinwar, ” Bezalel Smotrich, Biden, “ Organizations: United, McCain Institute, Central Intelligence Agency, Qatari, Hamas, Hamas’s, Facebook, Biden Locations: Rafah, Gaza, Shutterstock, Cairo, Palestinian, Israel, Qatar, Egypt, United States, Arizona, Cairo “, Washington

☆ Sadiq Khan Heads for 3rd Term as London Mayor
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Sadiq Khan, the two-term center-left mayor of London, was poised on Saturday to become the first three-time winner of the job by a clearer margin than some of his supporters had predicted. Mr. Khan, from the main opposition Labour Party, was initially elected to the post in 2016, becoming London’s first Muslim mayor, and would now become the first politician to win three consecutive terms since the role was created in 2000. With the Labour Party well ahead in the opinion polls ahead of a looming general election, many analysts had expected Mr. Khan to cruise to a comfortable victory in a city that tends to lean to the left, but some saw the potential for an unexpectedly tight race against Susan Hall, representing Britain’s governing Conservative Party. That prospect quickly faded on Saturday, with Mr. Khan’s party declaring victory and the BBC forecasting him as the winner after results from half of London’s regions showed the mayor exceeding his performance in his last election, in 2021.

Persons: Sadiq Khan, Khan, London’s, Susan Hall, Khan’s Organizations: Labour Party, Conservative Party Locations: London

☆ Labour's Sadiq Khan wins re-election as London mayor
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan hopes to convince U.S. tech firms to invest more in London. Sadiq Khan was re-elected as London's mayor, final results showed on Saturday, helping to cement the Labour Party's commanding lead over the governing Conservatives in local elections ahead of Britain's national vote later this year. For Labour, London is the latest of a number of councils and mayoralties it has won in the local elections, which took place on Thursday, inflicting heavy losses on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's Conservatives. Opinion polls predict that Labour will win the next national election, propelling its leader Keir Starmer to power and ending 14 years of Conservative government in Britain. Khan, 53, who became the first Muslim mayor of the British capital in 2016, has pledged to build more social housing and work with a future national Labour government to boost police capacity.

Persons: London Sadiq Khan, Sadiq Khan, Rishi Sunak's, It's, Khan, Susan Hall, Keir Starmer, Rishi Sunak Organizations: U.S, Labour, Conservatives, Tory, Conservative, Labour Party, Labour government Locations: London, Britain

Brown’s agreement will let students make their case and then have the Brown Corporation, the university’s governing body, vote on the matter in October. But Dr. Paxson’s initial offer did not include bringing a divestment proposal to a vote. That came after two university negotiators and six students involved with the Brown Divest Coalition, one of the groups behind the movement, reached a deal on Tuesday, the university and several students said. The agreement immediately gave the university control of its facilities in time to allow students to finish classes and hold in-person graduation ceremonies and an alumni reunion this month. One donor, an investor who has made sizable contributions to the university and describes himself as a supporter of Israel, said members of the administration had assured him that Brown wouldn’t ultimately divest from Israel.

Persons: William A, Marc Rowan, Christina H, Paxson, Brown, Brown wouldn’t Organizations: Wall Street titans, Democratic Party, Republican, Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, Brown Corporation, Coalition Locations: Israel, Gaza

☆ Fed and ECB divergence on rate cuts could spell trouble for the euro, economist says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Sam Meredith | In Samuelmeredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The prospect of the European Central Bank diverging from the Federal Reserve on interest rate cuts is likely to be "particularly negative" for the 20-nation euro zone, according to one economist. The ECB appears on course to cut interest rates in June, barring any major surprises, and recent inflation data has since bolstered the case for an imminent reduction in borrowing costs. It leaves the ECB firmly on track to cut interest rates before the Fed. "The problem of cutting rates right now is that the ECB takes for granted the strength of the euro . Lacalle said a June rate cut from the ECB was not going to make German, French or Spanish businesses take more credit "because a small rate cut is not the driver of credit demand."

Persons: Christine Lagarde, Daniel Lacalle, Gestion, CNBC's, Lacalle Organizations: European Central Bank, ECB, Federal Reserve, CNBC Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, U.S

☆ Britain’s Conservatives suffer heavy losses in a sign that Rishi Sunak is in real trouble
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Britain’s governing Conservative Party suffered heavy losses in local elections, a sign that they could be in real trouble when the country holds a general election at some point later this year. It also means that if a general election were held tomorrow, the opposition Labour Party would almost certainly win power. What these results don’t tell us is when the general election will take place. Conservatives are divided on when they think Sunak should bite the ballot bullet. Others think Sunak should look toward the end of the year, as it allows the most time for things to improve.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Keir Starmer, Sunak, Rwanda –, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, Johnson, Truss Organizations: CNN, Conservative Party, Labour Party, Conservative, Labour, Reform, Conservatives Locations: Rwanda

☆ Patience wears thin at ABC News as frustrated staffers wonder when Disney will make leadership changes
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

After the meeting concluded, a person familiar with the situation told CNN that Godwin was simply at a prescheduled doctor’s appointment. Regardless, the rampant speculation her absence spurred spoke to the apprehension of staffers, who are thirsty for change and whose patience is wearing thin. Bob Iger is known to pay special attention to ABC News and OConnell wouldn’t have been appointed had Disney brass not felt it necessary. “She knew it was bad, but I don’t think she knew how bad it was,” a network insider told CNN. It’s now up to OConnell to dig ABC News out of the ditch and infuse it with its old swagger.

Persons: Kim Godwin, Godwin, Debra OConnell, Greg Doherty, Bob Iger, OConnell, Akin, Chris Licht’s, It’s Organizations: New York CNN, ABC, CNN, Disney, ABC News Locations: New York, Burbank

☆ Scotland’s Governing S.N.P. Looks to a Stalwart After Its Leader Quits
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Stephen Castle | More About Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Just days after Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, announced his resignation, one of his party’s most experienced politicians, John Swinney, emerged on Thursday as his likely successor after the most prominent potential challenger pulled out of the race. That crisis reached a new level of urgency this week when Mr. Yousaf terminated a coalition agreement with another party that campaigns for Scottish independence, the Scottish Greens, only to find himself facing two confidence votes he risked losing. On Monday, he said he would step down as soon as a replacement was chosen. For much of the past year, the S.N.P. has been enduring the fallout of a police investigation into the handling of funds it raised for a future referendum campaign.

Persons: Scotland’s, Humza Yousaf, John Swinney, Swinney, Mr, Nicola Sturgeon, Yousaf Organizations: Scottish National Party, Scottish, Scottish Greens

☆ U.K. Conservatives Hold Their Breath: How Bad Will Local Elections Be?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Mark Landler | More About Mark Landler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When voters in England and Wales go to the polls on Thursday to elect mayors and local council members, the outcome will inevitably be seen as a barometer for Britain’s coming general election. Given the sour public mood and the Conservative Party’s dire poll ratings, the storm clouds are already forming. The big question is not whether the governing Conservatives will lose seats — that is a foregone conclusion among pollsters — but whether the losses will exceed or fall short of expectations after 18 months in which the Tories have consistently trailed the opposition Labour Party by yawning margins. “If a party has been 20 points behind the opposition for 18 months, how much worse can it get?” said Tony Travers, a professor of politics at the London School of Economics. “The losses would have to be very, very bad for it to be viewed as a negative result for the Conservatives, and they are unlikely to be good enough for Labour for it to be viewed as a success.”

Persons: pollsters, ”, Tony Travers Organizations: Wales, Conservative, Conservatives, Tories, Labour Party, London School of Economics, Labour Locations: England

☆ Opinion | Israel and Saudi Arabia Are Trading Places
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-02 | by ( Thomas L. Friedman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

But the other part of the deal, which is seen as critical to winning support in Congress, is for Saudi Arabia to normalize relations with Israel. There are a lot of “ifs” and “provided thats” in this equation that seem most unlikely today. As a result, the U.S. and the Saudis are considering finalizing the deal and taking it to Congress with the stated proviso that Saudi Arabia will normalize relations with Israel the minute Israel has a government ready to meet the Saudi-U.S. terms. Hopefully, though, if there can be a permanent end of fighting and a return of all Israelis taken hostage, Israel will hold new elections. And then — maybe, just maybe — the choice on the table for Israelis will not be Bibi or no Bibi, but Bibi or a credible pathway to peace with Saudi Arabia and the Palestinians.

Persons: Biden, Israel, “, Netanyahu, Bibi Organizations: U.S, West Bank, Palestinian, Saudi, New York, Facebook Locations: U.S, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Taiwan, Israel, Gaza

Security forces clashed with protesters in Georgia’s capital on Wednesday night after the Eastern European nation’s Parliament advanced controversial new legislation that has ignited weeks of demonstrations. Since the governing party, Georgian Dream, pushed a bill through Parliament early last month that the pro-Western opposition believes could be used to crack down on dissent and hamper the country’s efforts to join the European Union, protesters have taken to the streets of the capital, Tbilisi, night after night. Their numbers swelled on Wednesday after Parliament approved the bill in the second of three required votes.

Organizations: European Union Locations: Georgian, Tbilisi

The American right’s growing embrace of Orbán builds upon millions of dollars that his government has spent on lobbying in the US, and new connections between Hungarian and American conservative think tanks. “Make America great again, make Europe great again!” Orbán declared in English, before continuing in Hungarian: “Go Donald Trump! Conservatives from around the US, Europe and beyond traveled to Budapest for the two-day event, which was organized by a Hungarian government-funded think tank. Two American nonprofits that are actively planning policies for a second Trump term have shown an interest in Hungary and Orbán’s model. But some of the American conservatives who flew into the country for CPAC seemed more focused on the optics of Budapest than on democratic rights.

Persons: crackdowns, “, Viktor Orbán, Orbán, Donald Trump’s, ” Orbán, Donald Trump !, ” Trump, ”, Trump, Steve Bannon, President Trump, Gladden Pappin, Szilard Koszticsak, White, ” Pappin, “ saviors, Bannon, Kari Lake, Mark Meadows, Andy Harris, Zoltan Mathe, Paul Gosar, Christopher Rufo, István, Ron DeSantis, Trumpists, Kim Lane Scheppele, Orbán’s, Zsuzsanna Szelényi, ” Szelényi, Márton Gulyás, influencers strode, Joey Mannarino, ” Kyung Lah, Anna, Maja Rappard, Casey Tolan, Curt Devine Organizations: Hungary CNN —, Republican, Conservative, Trump, European Union, Hungarian Institute of International Affairs, Conservative Political, “ Conservative, White House, ”, Republican Arizona, CNN, Department of Justice, Southern Poverty Law, Heritage Foundation, America, Policy Institute, Institute, Florida Gov, Princeton Locations: Budapest, Hungary, American, Europe, Lago, Dallas, America, Hungarian, Arizona, United States, Paul Gosar of Arizona, Florida, “ Hungary, marveled, New York, Washington

☆ Olga Fikotova Connolly, Olympian in a Cold War Romance, Dies at 91
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Frank Litsky | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Olga Fikotova Connolly, who won a gold medal in track and field for Czechoslovakia in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, watched Harold Connolly of the United States win one the next day, and, in March 1957, married him as the highlight of a storybook Cold War romance, died on April 12 in Costa Mesa, Calif. She was 91. She died in her son Jim’s home, where she had been receiving hospice care, Ms. Connolly-Freund said. The governing body European Athletics said Olga Connolly had been the last living female gold medalist from the Melbourne Games. Her competitive record as a discus thrower was exceptional: five Olympic Games (four representing the United States as an American citizen), five American championships and four American records. Harold Connolly, a hammer thrower from Massachusetts, competed in four Olympics.

Persons: Olga Fikotova Connolly, Harold Connolly, Merja Connolly, Freund, Jim’s, Connolly, Olga Connolly Organizations: Czechoslovakia, United States, Melbourne Games, Olympic Games Locations: Costa Mesa, Calif, United States, American, Massachusetts

☆ U.S. Congress members demand answers on Andretti's exclusion from Formula 1
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Sahil Kapur | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Twelve members of the U.S. Congress sent a letter to Formula 1 owner Liberty Media on Wednesday demanding answers for why it is excluding Andretti Global from the sport, giving the American team powerful new allies in its bid to enter F1. "Our team, Andretti Global, is part of every major racing discipline in the world. Last fall Formula 1's governing body, the FIA, accepted the racing team's push to join the grid, saying it met the criteria. Because we have an obligation to protect the American consumer, to protect American companies, and that is our first allegiance. The move marks an earthquake for F1 as Newey is widely regarded as the greatest car designer in the sport.

Persons: Mario Andretti, Andretti Cadillac, John James, Gregory Maffei, —, that's, Andretti, James, It's, Jim Jordan, Adrian Newey, Sebastian Vettel, Max Verstappen, Newey Organizations: Auto, U.S, Capitol, U.S . Congress, Liberty Media, Andretti Global, American, General Motors, Formula, Andretti, GM, Cadillac, Rep, FIA, Formula One Management, Miami, Prix, Las Vegas, Red Bull Racing, Red Bull, NBC News Locations: U.S, Michigan, America, Ohio, Austin

☆ Saúl ‘Canelo’ Álvarez: Mexican boxer puts undisputed world title on the line against compatriot Jaime Munguía
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Jonny Velasquez | Gonzalo Alvarado | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Álvarez is putting all four of his super middleweight belts on the line as he takes on Munguía. After the fight, Munguía said it would be an “honor” to fight his compatriot Álvarez, who is still one of the biggest names in boxing. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty ImagesThe Oscar De La Hoya factorFormer boxing great Oscar De La Hoya is Munguía’s promoter. “Let me give you exactly what happened, why he is so mad at me,” De La Hoya said. At age 20, the American became the youngest super middleweight title holder in the history of the sport.

Persons: Álvarez, Jaime Munguía, it’s, ” Álvarez, ”, Russian Dmitry Bivol, Julio César Chávez, “, Katelyn Mulcahy, John Ryder, Munguía, Charlo, Dmitry Bivol, Patrick T, Fallon, De, Oscar De La, Eddie Hearn, I’ve, Hearn, De La Hoya, FightHype, ” De, ” De La Hoya, Eddie Reynosa, Ryder, Hector Vivas, David Benavidez, Floyd Mayweather Jr, ” Mayweather Jr, Español Organizations: CNN, Cinco de Mayo, WBC, WBA, WBO, IBF, Beverly Hills Hotel, Getty, Briton, Mobile, Boxing YouTube, De La, De La Hoya, Munguía, boxing’s Locations: France, Puebla, Las Vegas, Russian, Beverly, Tijuana , Mexico, Las Vegas , Nevada, AFP, Hoya, De La Hoya, Oscar De La Hoya, ”, ” De La, American

☆ He Won by a Landslide. Why Is He Fighting for His Political Life?
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

The last time Ben Houchen ran to be mayor of Tees Valley, a struggling, deindustrialized region in northeastern England, he stormed to victory with almost 73 percent of the vote. Three years on, Mr. Houchen, a Conservative politician, faces a re-election contest in which even a narrow win would do. As voters in England prepare to vote in Thursday’s local and mayoral elections, the governing Conservatives, led by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, are trailing badly in the opinion polls to the opposition Labour Party ahead of a general election expected later this year. So Mr. Houchen has campaigned on his own achievements, relying on his personal brand as the poster boy for “leveling up” — the Conservatives’ flagship policy of bringing prosperity to disadvantaged regions of England.

Persons: Ben Houchen, Houchen, Rishi Sunak Organizations: Conservative, Conservatives, Labour Party, —, Conservatives ’ Locations: Tees Valley, England

☆ CNN Poll: Americans still broadly oppose overturning Roe; they’re less united on what abortion laws should look like
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Ariel Edwards-Levy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Roughly half of US adults, 49%, want to see federal politicians work to enshrine abortion access nationally, while 37% say abortion laws should be left to states, and 14% call for nationwide restrictions. The poll comes in the wake of two years of largely state-level skirmishes over abortion laws following the overturn of Roe – political fights with tangible consequences for residents’ access to abortion in those states. The share who view their state’s abortion laws as too restrictive rises to 43% in the states where abortion is currently legal with gestational limits of 6-18 weeks, and to 52% in the states where it is banned. Among those who disapprove of overturning Roe, about two-thirds (64%) in states with gestational limits and three-quarters (74%) in states where abortion is banned find their state’s laws too restrictive. The CNN poll was conducted by SSRS from April 18-23 among a random national sample of 1,212 adults drawn from a probability-based panel, including 967 registered voters.

Persons: Roe, Wade, Dobbs, shouldn’t, state’s, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Laws, they’d, Biden, aren’t, he’s, he’ll, Trump, SSRS, CNN’s Jennifer Agiesta, Ed Wu Organizations: CNN, SSRS, Jackson, Health Organization, White Evangelical, Arizona Supreme, Republican, GOP, Biden, Trump, Democratic, Surveys Locations: Arizona, Florida , Maryland, New York

☆ Joseph Stiglitz on why America's appetite for Trump endures
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( William Edwards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

If Trump is elected again, Stiglitz said, he could well pull support for Ukraine, sending grain prices soaring. For Stiglitz, the 2001 winner of the Nobel Prize in economics, America's appetite for Trump can be traced back a little more than four decades ago to the election of Ronald Reagan. "We've had 40 years of a neoliberal experiment: Strip away the regulations and lower the taxes — taxes are much lower than they used to be. But Komlos and Stiglitz don't place blame solely on Reagan for the growing economic inequality. Every European country that's had a wealth tax has walked away from it, by and large."

Persons: Donald Trump, Joseph Stiglitz, Trump, Stiglitz, Joe Biden, Ronald Reagan, —, that's, Reagan, We've, Dina Litovsky, Friedrich Hayek, Milton Friedman, That's, Stiglitz doesn't, John Komlos, Komlos, Joe, Bill Clinton, Clinton, Barack Obama, insurrectionists, Desmond Lachman, Carter, Douglas Holtz, Eakin, George W, John McCain's, Holtz, America Stiglitz, Hayek, Friedman, Claudia Sahm, you've, what's Organizations: Columbia Business School, Business, Capitol, Biden, Trump, :, Good Society, America's, Federal Reserve, Budget, Bank, University of Munich, Duke University, University of North, Democratic, North American Free Trade, World Trade Organization, American Enterprise Institute, Bush's, Economic Advisers Locations: Manhattan, Ukraine, Russia, China, Beijing, Taiwan, University of North Carolina, Spain, America

☆ She Accused a Rowing Legend of Abuse. Now He Is Being Erased From the Sport.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Juliet Macur | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A 16-month investigation made public on Tuesday determined that child sexual abuse accusations against Ted Nash, a two-time Olympic medalist and nine-time Olympic coach for the United States who had mythic status in his sport over decades, were credible and that his main accuser had no motive to lie about the abuse. She was 13 then and he was her 40-year-old running coach. The abuse, which lasted about a year, ended in 1973, said Ms. Fox, whose 2018 film “The Tale” depicted her memories of the abuse but did not name Mr. Nash. Jan Nash, his widow, did not immediately respond to voice messages and texts seeking comment. Last year, she told The New York Times that she was shocked and saddened by the accusations and said that “it’s just not fair” for Ms. Fox to name Ted now that he can’t defend himself.

Persons: Ted Nash, Shearman, Nash, Jennifer Fox, Fox, Jan Nash, Ted, can’t Organizations: United, Sterling, Rowing, New York Times Locations: United States, Manhattan

☆ Columbia protesters' demands have worked before. This time may be different.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Paul Squire | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Read previewThe unrest at Columbia University isn't showing signs of slowing down. In the 1980s, student protesters at Columbia took over the same building and called for divestment of the Ivy League school's investments over a different cause: South African apartheid. Student protesters at the 1985 demonstrations at Columbia University. Protesters there locked and chained the doors to Hamilton Hall — the same building now occupied by pro-Palestinian protesters — and demanded the school completely divest from South Africa. A more fraught situationOn its website, the Columbia University Apartheid Divest group likened itself to the protests from nearly 40 years ago.

Persons: —, It's, Lockheed Martin, Alex Kent, Joe Biden, Mike Johnson, she's, Barbara Alper, didn't, Ronald Reagan, Biden, Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu, Nemat, Shafik, Nicholas Dirks, Divesting, Christopher Marsicano, Al, Marsicano Organizations: Service, Columbia University, Columbia, Ivy League, Business, Lockheed, Boeing, NPR, Hamilton Hall, Getty, Columbia University Apartheid, White, Student, New York Times, Times, Coalition, Columbia Spectator, Spectator, The New York Times, Hamas, University, Socially, University of California, CNN, North Carolina's Davidson College Locations: Israel, Gaza, Columbia, divesting, Hamilton, South Africa, Vietnam, Rafah, Berkeley, Al Jazeera

☆ Biden replaces Obama-era infrastructure protections to defend against Chinese cyberthreats
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Biden's new policy is largely a rewrite of the Obama administration's rule to safeguard U.S. critical infrastructure called the Presidential Policy Directive, or PPD-21, which was published in 2013. The effort to redraft that Obama-era infrastructure policy began over a year ago, in part to modernize it and keep up with hackers who have benefited from over a decade of technological advancement. The Biden administration has warned China not to help Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, or else the U.S. would be ready to act with sanctions. "We're aware now of the serious Chinese threat to our critical infrastructure, specifically prepositioning to disrupt or destroy critical infrastructure in the event of a major crisis," a senior administration official said. "The presidential policy directive that was created in 2013 didn't mention anything about CISA's role because we weren't created yet," a senior administration official said.

Persons: Joe Biden, Obama, cyberattacks, Christopher Wray, congressmembers, Wray, Biden's, Biden Organizations: White, Washington , D.C, Directive, FBI, Taiwan, of Homeland Security, Infrastructure Security Agency Locations: Washington ,, China, Russia, Ukraine, U.S, Taiwan

☆ A Proposed Law Targeting ‘Foreign Interests’ in Georgia Riles the Opposition
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Ivan Nechepurenko | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For the past month, the Georgian capital of Tbilisi has been engulfed in turmoil. Protesters have taken to the streets of the city night after night. A fistfight broke out between legislators in the country’s Parliament. And over the weekend, there were clashes between police and protesters at a large demonstration in the center of the city. The government backed down on a previous attempt to pass the law last year after facing massive protests, but this time appears determined to push it through Parliament.

Persons: fistfight Organizations: European Union Locations: Tbilisi, country’s, Georgian

☆ Live updates: Pro-Palestinian university protests disrupt Columbia, UCLA, campuses across the US
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Elizabeth Wolfe | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

At Washington University , more than 80 people were arrested at the campus Saturday, the university said. About 100 people were arrested on Northeastern University's campus in Boston on Saturday morning as authorities broke up an unauthorized encampment. At Arizona State University , police arrested 72 people in connection to an encampment on campus, university officials said. , police arrested 72 people in connection to an encampment on campus, university officials said. The number of demonstrators on George Washington University's campus is dwindling, but another group has erected an encampment of about 20 tents on a nearby public street.

Persons: scuffles, Jill Stein, George Washington Organizations: University of California, Washington University, Green Party, Arizona State University Locations: Israel, Gaza, University of California Los Angeles, Northeastern University's, Boston

☆ EU investigates Meta over fears of election interference and foreign disinformation
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Officials said the investigation highlights apparent violations of Europe’s signature law governing online platforms, the Digital Services Act. They added that Meta’s tools for users to report illegal content don’t appear to align with the DSA’s requirements, either. The investigation comes after Meta submitted required materials to the European Commission last fall outlining how it manages perceived risks linked to its products. Without it, the European Commission said, users and researchers will have less visibility into what is happening on Meta services and could have a harder time detecting foreign election interference. “We look forward to continuing our cooperation with the European Commission and providing them with further details of this work.”

Persons: Meta, CrowdTangle, “, ” Organizations: CNN — European Union, European Commission, Officials, Digital Services, European, Facebook

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