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☆ With or Without Tesla, More E.V. Chargers Are Coming
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Manuela Andreoni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Last week, Tesla laid off most of its electric car charging team, raising doubts about the feasibility of the Biden administration’s ambitious E.V. Though Tesla accounts for more than half of the fast E.V. chargers currently installed in the United States, and though it has continued to build them faster and cheaper than anyone else, the E.V. charging market may no longer need Tesla to lead it. The administration’s goal is to build a network of a half million fast and slow chargers in the country by 2030, more than double what the U.S. has today.

Persons: Tesla, Tesla’s, Biden Organizations: Biden Locations: United States

☆ TikTok sues to block prospective US app ban
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-07 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

If it loses, TikTok could be banned from US app stores unless its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, sells the app to a non-Chinese entity by mid-January 2025. But Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, an advocate for the TikTok legislation, said in remarks on the Senate floor in April that the briefings provided critical insight into the risk TikTok poses. US policymakers have described the law at issue as a forced divestiture of TikTok, not an outright app ban. Some US officials have been trying to ban TikTok from the United States since 2020, when former President Donald Trump moved to block the app by executive order. (Trump has since reversed his position, saying a TikTok ban would only help Meta, a company Trump blames for his 2020 election defeat.)

Persons: Washington CNN — TikTok, Joe Biden, TikTok, Bytedance, “, didn’t, Virginia Democratic Sen, Mark Warner, Warner, they’ve, They’ve, ”, Tuesday’s, ByteDance, TikTok’s, Berman, Evelyn Douek, Biden, Gautam Hans, Hans said, Jennifer Huddleston, Donald Trump, Trump, Douek, ” Douek Organizations: Washington CNN, Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, Justice Department, Oracle, Foreign Investment, Republican, Democrat, Virginia Democratic, Senate, Stanford University, Cornell University . Still, Apple, Google, Cato Institute, European Commission, Trump Locations: China, United States, TikTok, Israel, Ukraine, Montana, Canada, United Kingdom, India

☆ 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

☆ Biden signs foreign aid bill providing crucial military assistance to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Michael Williams | Arlette Saenz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington CNN —President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed into law an aid package providing crucial military assistance to Ukraine, capping months of negotiations and debate. The aid package, passed by the Senate late Tuesday evening and worth $95 billion in total, includes nearly $61 billion in aid to Ukraine, $26 billion for Israel and $8 billion for the Indo-Pacific. Hardline House conservatives opposed further US funding to Kyiv and threatened to oust Johnson over his handling of the negotiations. Conservatives in Congress have opposed additional assistance for what they view as an unwinnable war. Earlier this year, Biden signaled his intentions to make significant immigration-related concessions if Congress were to move forward with the aid bill.

Persons: Joe Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky, Mike Johnson, Johnson, Biden, Bill Burns, Donald Trump, Trump, Sen, Bernie Sanders, ” Sanders, Benjamin ] Organizations: Washington CNN, Senate, House Republican, Conservatives, Congress, CIA, Ukraine, Republicans Locations: Ukraine, Israel, United States, Kyiv, Europe, Russia, Gaza

☆ Middle East Crisis Israel Welcomes Senate Passage of Aid Bill
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Matt Surman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

An additional $2.4 billion is directed to U.S. military operations in the Middle East. Another $9 billion would go to “worldwide humanitarian aid,” including for civilians in Gaza. The package bars any of the funding from going to UNRWA, the main United Nations agency that provides aid to Palestinians in Gaza. The aid that is getting into Gaza is falling far short of the needs of its desperate population. Countries including the United States have tried to find air and sea routes to get more relief supplies in.

Persons: Israel Katz, “, Biden, Catie Edmondson, Robert Jimison Organizations: Wednesday, U.S . Senate, Ukraine, UNRWA, United Nations, United, Democrats, Democratic, U.S Locations: Israel, Gaza, United States, Rafah, U.S

☆ Rwanda bill: UK passes controversial bill to send asylum seekers to East Africa after two years of challenges
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The UK parliament has finally passed a contentious bill that will allow the government to send asylum seekers to Rwanda for their claims to be considered by the East African nation. In theory, the legislation will see some landing in the UK sent to Rwanda where their asylum claim will be considered. And it makes clear that the UK Parliament is sovereign, giving the government the power to reject interim blocking measures imposed by European courts,” he added. The European court has previously barred it from sending asylum seekers to Rwanda. To date, the Rwanda policy has cost the British government £220m ($274m), and that figure could rise to £600m after the first 300 people have been sent to East Africa.

Persons: Rishi Sunak’s, Sunak, ” Refoulement, Bill, James, Rwanda Bill, –, Rishi Sunak, Toby Melville, Nigel Farage – Organizations: CNN, East, of Human, European Convention of Human Rights, Commons, Sunak, University of Oxford, Conservative Party, Reform UK, Labour Party Locations: Rwanda, United Kingdom, France, ”, East Africa

I think providing aid to Ukraine right now is critically important,” the speaker added. House TVThe speaker’s embrace of Ukraine aid represents a remarkable evolution for Johnson, who voted against funding for the country as a rank-and-file member. Johnson drags his feetJohnson did not come to his decision on how to handle foreign aid quickly. “Slow,” New York Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said when asked how Johnson handled Ukraine aid. In recent weeks, allies counseled Johnson to keep the former president in the loop on his potential foreign aid plans.

Persons: Manu Raju ”, Johnson, Mike Johnson, Hakeem Jeffries, Jeffries, Taiwan –, Michael McCaul, “, ” Johnson, Derrick Van Orden, Matt Gaetz, ”, Johnson –, Kevin McCarthy, –, Joe Biden, Donald Trump’s, Mike Pompeo, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, Bill Burns, Marjorie Taylor Greene, ” Jeffries, Biden, Mitch McConnell, Gregory Meeks, Patrick McHenry of, Trump, Johnson’s, ” Trump, Eli Crane, McCarthy, Bob Good, Johnson “, Greene, Al Green, Van Orden, Gaetz, I’m, ” Van Orden, Chip Roy’s, Bob Good’s, Kent Nishimura, Paul Gosar, Johnson’s speakership, We’re, we’ve, Tom Cole of, ” Cole, “ There’s, Warren Davidson, CNN’s Haley Talbot, Morgan Rimmer Organizations: GOP, CNN, Democratic, Louisiana Republican, Foreign, ”, Florida Republican, Senate, Republican, Ukraine, CIA, Naval Academy, Israel, Internal Revenue Service, New York Rep, House Foreign Affairs, Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, Lago, Arizona, Democratic Rep, Navy, Navy Seals, Wisconsin Republican, Capitol, Democrats, Republicans, GOP Rep, ” Veteran GOP Locations: Iran, Israel, Ukraine, Washington, Louisiana, Taiwan, Florida, American, Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Patrick McHenry of North, Iranian, Virginia, Texas, Wisconsin, House, Arizona, Tom Cole of Oklahoma, Ohio

The clock ticks for TikTokThe push to either split TikTok from its Chinese owner, ByteDance, or ban it in the U.S. is gaining momentum thanks to a legislative maneuver by the House Speaker Mike Johnson. The bill’s progress comes as The Times reveals more details about the video platform’s origin story — and the central role played by the Chinese subsidiary of the trading firm of a Republican donor, Jeff Yass. Johnson has bundled the TikTok bill into a foreign aid package. The speaker said on Wednesday that he would put up for a vote this weekend a spending measure for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan that includes a modified version of the TikTok divestment legislation. The move may force the Senate’s hand: The House overwhelmingly passed the bill last month, but the Senate hasn’t been in a rush to take it up.

Persons: Mike Johnson, Jeff Yass, Johnson, hasn’t Organizations: Times Locations: U.S, Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan

☆ Google removes links to California news sites, citing proposed state law requiring payment to publishers
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( Eva Rothenberg | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Google is removing links to California news websites in reaction to proposed state legislation requiring big tech companies to pay news outlets for their content, the company announced Friday in a blog post. “It’s time they start paying market value for the journalism they are aggregating at no cost from local media.”Charles F. Champion, the president and CEO of the California News Publishers Association, said Google is suppressing California news. Google has not responded to CNN’s request for comment about the current state of talks with the Canadian government. The company had a similar reaction to a 2021 Australian law that would require platforms to compensate Australian news outlets for using their content. Google said at the time it would pay publishers through its Google News Showcase instead of paying them for links.

Persons: Tempore Mike McGuire, ”, Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, “, Charles F, we’ve, CJPA, Jaffer Zaidi Organizations: New, New York CNN, Google, California Journalism, Meta, California, Pro, Tempore, ”, California News Publishers Association, Global, Australian Competition, Consumer Commission Locations: New York, California, America, Canada, Australian, Australia

☆ US lawmakers unveil a plan to give all Americans a right to online privacy
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-08 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Washington CNN —Two leading US lawmakers have reached a bipartisan deal that could, for the first time, grant all Americans a basic right to digital privacy and create a national law regulating how companies can collect, share and use Americans’ online data. But it could also override some of the toughest state-based privacy laws in the nation, such as in California. And it would guarantee Americans the right to request copies of their data, to correct it or even to have it deleted from a company’s records. The draft legislation breaks a yearslong deadlock between Republicans and Democrats over the scope of any national privacy bill. It would preempt more than a dozen state privacy laws already on the books in states such as California, Texas and Virginia.

Persons: hoover, Washington Sen, Maria Cantwell, Cathy McMorris Rodgers, —, ’, Biden, we’ve, ”, McMorris Rodgers, Cantwell, Joe Biden’s Organizations: Washington CNN, General Data Protection, Republicans, Democratic, Senate, Committee, Washington Rep, Republican, House Energy, Commerce, Democrats Locations: United States, California, China, Russia, California , Texas, Virginia

☆ Biden administration points finger at Republicans for internet bill hikes
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“President [Joe] Biden has been calling on Congress to pass legislation that would extend the benefit through 2024. “But unfortunately, Republicans in Congress have failed to act.”Biden has called on Congress to approve $6 billion to continue the ACP. A bill introduced in January by a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House and Senate would authorize $7 billion. That legislation has 216 co-sponsors in the House, including 21 Republicans, and three in the Senate, including two Republicans. Administration officials declined to say whether Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris have personally discussed the ACP with congressional Republicans.

Persons: Biden, Joe, ”, ” Biden, Mike Johnson, Blair Levin, ” Levin, Republican Sens, J.D, Vance of Ohio, Kevin Cramer of North, Spokespeople, Johnson, Chuck Schumer didn’t, Kamala Harris, Jessica Rosenworcel, ” Rosenworcel, Rosenworcel, Sen, Maria Cantwell Organizations: CNN, Republicans, Program, Federal Communications Commission, GOP, Democratic, Congress, Republican, New, Research, Administration, ACP, Commerce, Science, Transportation Locations: Kevin Cramer of North Dakota

☆ Attention, New York Adulterers: Your Sin May Soon No Longer Be a Crime
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Erin Nolan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

In the halls of the New York State Capitol, with a budget deadline bearing down, it seems that all that anyone wants to talk about is adultery. An antiquated but seldom-enforced state law categorizes adultery as a crime, and past efforts to repeal it have gone nowhere. But that seems poised to change. The Assembly overwhelmingly voted in favor of a bill to repeal the adultery law last month, and a Senate committee last week moved a matching bill to the floor for a full vote that could come as soon as this week. The developments have attracted global attention, with the Assembly bill’s sponsor, Charles Lavine, a Democrat from Long Island, fielding interview requests from Europe to South America.

Persons: Charles Lavine Organizations: New York State Capitol, Assembly, Democrat Locations: Long, Europe, South America

Nigel was gay, Shelby said, but she never knew the impact that had on his life at school. ‘Solutions in search of a problem’HB130 – dubbed a “Don’t Say Gay” bill by critics – is one of the bills currently working through the state legislature. For Neil Rafferty, a husband, combat veteran and the only Alabama state lawmaker who identifies as gay, the changes could once again trigger unintended consequences for the state. After his death, Shelby started The Nigel Shelby Foundation to help youth who may not have a support system, provide scholarships for students and help families with LGBTQ children. Camika and Nigel Shelby Courtesy Shelby familyIn a letter to his mother before his death, Nigel asked her to forgive him and keep living, Shelby said.

Persons: Huntsville , Alabama CNN — Camika Shelby, “, ” Shelby, Nigel, Shelby, ”, Nigel Shelby, –, HB130, Neil Rafferty, ” Rafferty, Amelia Earhart, Rafferty, Neil Rafferty Devon Sayers, Mack Butler, ” Butler, AL.com, Butler, It’s, ” Adele Kimmel, Kimmel, ” Kimmel, Camika, ‘ Mama, there’s Organizations: International Association for Suicide Prevention, Befrienders, Huntsville , Alabama CNN, CNN, Huntsville City, of Education, Democrat, Republican, HB130, Public Religion Research, Public, Civil Rights, Human Rights, Nigel, Nigel Shelby Foundation Locations: Huntsville , Alabama, Huntsville, Alabama, Shelby, Florida

☆ Wyoming Bans Gender Transition Care for Minors
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-22 | by ( Amy Harmon | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Mark Gordon’s signature, Wyoming joins 23 other states that have passed partial or total bans on gender-affirming care in recent years. Wyoming’s bill, known as Senate File 99, was approved by lawmakers in both chambers earlier this month. Under the legislation, doctors, pharmacists and other health care providers who provide gender-affirming care could have their licenses suspended or revoked. As in other states, proponents of the measure have argued that the treatments in minors are relatively new, and that the long-term effects are not well studied. “I signed SF99 because I support the protections this bill includes for children,” Mr. Gordon said in a statement.

Persons: Mark Gordon’s, Anthony Bouchard, ’, Gordon, “, ” Mr, ’ ’ Sara Burlingame Organizations: Democratic Locations: Wyoming

☆ Emails show how a right-wing group steers GOP leaders on major policy issues
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Bob Ortega | Daniel Medina | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft speaks with reporters on Jan. 23 in Jefferson City, Missouri. In Wyoming, a GOP state senator forwarded an FGA draft bill to Secretary of State Chuck Gray that would prohibit sending out unsolicited absentee ballot request forms. Emails show the group strategized with the secretary of state’s office for weeks leading up to Ashcroft proposing his own such rule last January. FGA notches wins with weakened child labor lawsFGA’s lobbying group, The Opportunity Solutions Project, spearheads its efforts at the state level. Chip Somodevilla/Getty ImagesFGA also continues its push at the state level across the country to enact its policy priorities.

Persons: State Jay Ashcroft, “, Ashcroft, Kacen Bayless, FGA, –, Chuck Gray, ” Gray, Gray, ”, Joe Biden’s, Jay, Daniel Garrett, Garrett, “ It’s, Missouri’s, Scott Fitzpatrick, BlackRock, ” Fitzpatrick, Mark Felix, Fitzpatrick, ALEC, Andy Puzder, Carls Jr, ” Puzder, Kristina Shelton, Puzder, ” Kristina Shelton, they’ve, Tarren Bragdon, Rebecca Burkes, It’s, Tyson, ’, Bragdon, Sarah Bryner, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Paul Renner, Donald Trump, Chip Somodevilla, Shelton, ” Shelton Organizations: CNN, State, Republican, Foundation, Government, Missouri, Kansas City Star, Tribune, Service, GOP, Ashcroft, Conservative, Missouri Chamber of Commerce, National, University of Pennsylvania, Brookings Institution, Exxon, BlackRock, ” BlackRock, Energy, ExxonMobil, Washington Post, American Legislative Exchange Council, Heritage Foundation, Heritage, Boston, Wisconsin Democratic, FGA, Solutions, Tyson Foods Inc, George’s Inc, US Department of Labor, Solutions Project, Daily, The Heritage Foundation, Alliance, Trump, Florida Governor, Bragdon, Florida House, House, FBI, Justice Department, Department of Education, Center, Pleaides Locations: Missouri, Texas, Jefferson City , Missouri, Wyoming, Kansas , Indiana, BlackRock, Florida, ExxonMobil Baytown, Baytown , Texas, Washington, ” Wisconsin, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Iowa, Park City , Utah, DeSantis, Rome , Georgia

☆ TikTok Bill’s Progress Slows in the Senate
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( David Mccabe | Sapna Maheshwari | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

After a bill that would force TikTok’s Chinese parent company to sell the app or face a nationwide ban sailed through the House at breakneck speed this week, its progress has slowed in the Senate. Senators — some of whom have their own versions of bills targeting TikTok — will need to be convinced. And the process of taking the House bill and potentially rewriting it to suit the Senate could be time consuming. The legislation mandates that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, sell its stake in the app within six months or face a ban. He said that there could be adjustments made to the bill but that there was bipartisan support to wrest the app from Chinese ownership.

Persons: Chuck Schumer, —, TikTok, Richard Blumenthal Organizations: Democratic Locations: New York, Connecticut

☆ What China Is Saying About the TikTok Furor in Washington
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-15 | by ( Meaghan Tobin | Siyi Zhao | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

This is not the first time that China has seen a frenzy over TikTok consume Washington. In 2020, former President Donald J. Trump issued an executive order that would have forced TikTok’s Chinese owners to sell the popular app. Now, U.S. lawmakers are again attempting to force ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese owner, to give up control of the app. Instead, officials in Beijing have blasted the bill but largely reiterated common criticisms of U.S. policy as unfair to China. Mr. Trump, the expected Republican presidential nominee, has said he opposes the bill despite his 2020 executive order against TikTok.

Persons: Donald J, Trump, ByteDance Organizations: TikTok Locations: China, Washington, Beijing, Montana, U.S, United States

☆ Ghana: In deciding on anti-gay law, president is caught between a rock and a hard place
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( David Mckenzie | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Sam George, the driving force behind Ghana’s harsh anti-LGBTQ legislation, portrays himself as a guardian of gay Ghanaians. Making inequality legalWhatever its origins, the bill’s passage is terrible news for LGBTQ Ghanaians. “The sentiment and emotion we are expressing right now is sadness,” said Alex Kofi Donkor, the founder of LGBT+ Rights in Ghana, an advocacy group. On one side, you have politicians like George and a broadly conservative citizenry that will publicly goad the president to act. For Ghana’s president, navigating this intricate political landscape looks set to be a daunting – and unenviable – task.

Persons: Sam George, “, ”, It’s, ” George, George, Alex Kofi Donkor, Nana Akufo, it’s, Ghana’s Organizations: CNN, Rights, Ghana’s Ministry, Finance, Bank Financing, Monetary Fund, Bank, US State Department, Ministry of Finance Locations: Accra, Ghana, United States, Uganda, Ghanaian, “ Ghana, State

☆ I’m addicted to TikTok. What do I do now that the House has effectively voted to ban it?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The bill would prohibit TikTok from US app stores unless the social media platform is quickly spun off from ByteDance. Some TikTok users posted videos ahead of Wednesday’s vote showing them calling their representatives and threatening to vote for alternate candidates if they voted to pass the bill. “This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it’s a ban,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement following the Wednesday House vote. That may be even more true after Biden’s likely opponent in November, former President Donald Trump, said he opposed a TikTok ban, a reversal from his stance as president. App stores that violate the legislation could be fined based on the number of users of a banned app.

Persons: …, Princess, Wales, TikTokkers, ByteDance, Chuck Schumer, “, ”, Dick Durbin, Joe Biden, ” Durbin, Donald Trump, TikTok, Dan Ives Organizations: New, New York CNN, Foreign, House Energy, Commerce, Senate, Apple, Google Locations: New York, ByteDance, It’s, Montana, United States

☆ What Happens Next With TikTok?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( David Mccabe | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

What happens next with TikTok? Next, the bill is heading to a skeptical Senate, after which President Biden would need to sign it into law. What happens next in the legislative process? The bill needs to be approved by the Senate, which could also make changes to the text of the legislation. For example, because the bill’s text explicitly names TikTok and ByteDance, some are worried it could violate a part of the Constitution that bars Congress from targeting specific entities with legislation.

Persons: Biden, Chuck Schumer, hasn’t Organizations: Senate, Democratic Locations: New York

☆ Wait, is America actually banning TikTok now?
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( Brian Fung | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Washington CNN —House lawmakers are moving with dizzying speed with a plan that could ban TikTok from the United States. But could a TikTok ban really happen? A man walks past the headquarters of ByteDance, the parent company of video sharing app TikTok, in Beijing. They allege TikTok poses a national security threat because the Chinese government could use its intelligence laws against ByteDance, forcing it to hand over the data of US TikTok users. By that precedent, it would be unconstitutional for the government to ban TikTok even if it were blatantly a direct mouthpiece for the Chinese government, Jaffer said.

Persons: Joe Biden, Greg Baker, Biden, —, “, ” TikTok, Donald Trump, Trump, ByteDance, Mark Zuckerberg, TikTok, Mike Gallagher, Gallagher, ” Biden, Joint Base Andrews, it’s, Washington Sen, Maria Cantwell, ” Cantwell, ”, Jenna Leventoff, Ken White, Brown White, Osborn, White, It’s, Jameel Jaffer, Jaffer Organizations: Washington CNN —, White, Biden —, Apple, Google, House Energy, Commerce, Trump, Facebook, Republican, Biden, Wisconsin Republican, Joint Base, Senate, CNN, American Civil Liberties Union, Columbia University Locations: United States, China, ByteDance, Beijing, AFP, Iran, Russia, North Korea, Washington

☆ California Panera franchisee will raise minimum wage to $20 after political firestorm over minimum wage carveout
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Samantha Delouya | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Los Angeles CNN —A Panera Bread franchise owner in California said he will raise the minimum wage for his employees after accusations he benefited from ties to the state’s governor to avoid hiking pay. A new state minimum wage law exempts certain businesses that make and sell bread – a carveout that critics contended benefited Greg Flynn, a billionaire Panera franchise owner who attended high school with Democratic California Gov. On Tuesday, Flynn told CNN that he has decided to raise the minimum pre-tip wage at all of his Panera Bread locations to $20 per hour, regardless of whether his fast-casual bakeries are exempt from the new minimum wage law or not. “At Flynn Group, we are in the people business and believe our people are our most valuable assets,” Flynn said. However, Flynn said he never personally met with Newsom about the minimum wage bill, though he did meet with Newsom’s staff and a group of other restaurant owners to discuss it.

Persons: Greg Flynn, Gavin Newsom, Flynn, “, ” Flynn, Newsom, ”, Alex Stack Organizations: Los Angeles CNN, Democratic California Gov, CNN, Flynn Group Locations: California

☆ Why Panera is causing a stir in California politics
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Samantha Delouya | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

And Panera Bread has been caught in the middle. Newsom has also said that Panera may not be exempt from the new minimum wage law after all. Nevertheless, on Thursday, Republican lawmakers in California called on the state’s attorney general to investigate the minimum wage exemption. Flynn’s company operates more than just Panera Bread locations. Stack also said that Newsom’s legal team determined that the carve-out would likely not apply to most Panera Bread locations.

Persons: Gavin Newsom, Greg Flynn, Newsom’s, Newsom, Flynn, Panera, ”, Brian Jones, owner’s Newsom, Myung J, Chun, “, ” Flynn, Taco, –, Alex Stack, Stack Organizations: Los Angeles CNN, Democratic California Gov, Republican, Los Angeles Times, CNN, Flynn Group, Taco Bell Locations: California, Los Angeles , CA

☆ Senate Republicans Look Poised to Block Bill to Protect I.V.F. Treatment
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Kayla Guo | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Senate Republicans on Wednesday appeared ready to block a bill that would establish federal protections for in vitro fertilization and other fertility treatments in the wake of a ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court that frozen embryos should be considered children. Democrats orchestrated the action as they sought to highlight the hypocrisy of Republicans who have rushed to voice support for I.V.F. after the Alabama ruling, even though many of them have sponsored legislation that declares that life begins at the moment of fertilization. “If this is urgent and you care deeply about this as you say you do — like you’ve been saying in the last 72-plus hours since the Alabama Supreme Court ruling — then don’t object. Let this bill pass.” She argued that the bill’s protections were all the more essential since the decision by Alabama’s Republican-majority court.

Persons: Tammy Duckworth, ” Ms, Duckworth, you’ve, —, ” Organizations: Wednesday, Alabama Supreme, Republican, Alabama’s Republican Locations: Illinois, Alabama

☆ How the GOP’s rightward shift on immigration helps explain Trump’s primary success
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Ron Brownstein | Analysis Ronald Brownstein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

Amid widespread discontent over President Joe Biden’s management of the border, the overall electorate is moving rightward on immigration too, polls show. For now, there’s no question that hardening GOP attitudes on immigration have been critical to Trump’s strong performance through the early primaries. Then, 56% of GOP primary voters said undocumented immigrants should be offered legal status; in last month’s primary, 55% said they should be deported. Immigration ranked as the most important issue for most GOP primary voters in South Carolina, and finished close behind the economy in both Iowa and New Hampshire. McLaughlin said Trump’s dominance among the GOP primary voters most concerned about immigration encapsulates a broader reason for his early success: widespread satisfaction among Republicans about his record in office.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Joe Biden’s, Trump, What’s, “, Donald Trump, ”, Jim McLaughlin, Joe Biden, ’, Nikki Haley, Trump’s, Haley, Leah Askarinam, McLaughlin, Robert P, Jones, Charles Franklin, Adolf Hitler, ” Biden, Biden, Stephen Miller, Charlie Kirk, Miller, Dwight D, Eisenhower, Matt Barreto, Barreto, Democratic pollster, ” Barreto, Maria Cardona, Tom Suozzi, George Santos, Suozzi, Bill Clinton Organizations: CNN, GOP, Republican, Trump, Biden, Edison Research, Immigration, Former South Carolina Gov, Quinnipiac University, Survey, Religion Research Institute, Marquette Law School, Marquette, Gallup, Republicans, CBS, National Guard, Democratic, UCLA, New, Republican Rep, White, House Republicans Locations: Alabama, Mississippi, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Iowa, New York, Wisconsin, Mexico, United States, American, Trump, Marquette, America, Texas, Celinda, Arizona, Nevada, Mexico ”, week’s State, Brownsville

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