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☆ Academic on U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's Middle East visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailLloyd Austin's Middle East visit: Deescalating West Bank tensions high on the agenda, says academicDalia Dassa Kaye of UCLA's Burkle Center for International Relations discusses U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's trip to the Middle East and says "the Russia angle and the China angle will be a bit of an uphill battle."

☆ High home prices, mortgage rates make it tough to be a first-time homebuyer now. Here's why location matters
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A new Bankrate ranking found the Austin, Texas, metro area is the best for first-time home purchasers. Prospective buyers looking to secure the purchase of their first home this spring will still face a difficult market. A new Bankrate ranking found the Austin, Texas, metro area is the best for first-time purchasers, while the worst is Washington, D.C. Austin's high ranking was "surprising," given that affordability dragged down its score, noted Jeff Ostrowski, analyst at Bankrate. "Affordability is a challenge in Austin, but it's not as challenging as in a lot of the California markets or in places where wages just haven't kept up with home prices," Ostrowski said.

☆ Mike Pence, possible Trump 2024 challenger, slams 'apologists for Putin' in the GOP
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Former Vice President Mike Pence, a possible 2024 Republican presidential candidate, denounced his own party's "apologists" for Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday while delivering a full-throated call for the U.S. to ramp up its support for Ukraine. "While some in my party have taken a somewhat different view, let me be clear: There can be no room in the leadership of the Republican Party for apologists for Putin," Pence said. Pence has openly said he's considering a run for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, potentially pitting him directly against Trump. Pence has said Trump was "wrong" to believe he could have reversed the election outcome by rejecting key Electoral College votes for Biden. In a CNBC interview on Wednesday, Pence said he believes there will be "better choices" than Trump in 2024.

☆ A 27-year-old real-estate investor who rehabbed 7 Austin properties last year is now targeting San Antonio, where homes can cost less than $100,000. Here are 3 reasons it's the next big investor hot s
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Aj Latrace | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

San Antonio. You can buy homes for relatively cheap"A lot of people have overlooked San Antonio," Crenshaw said. January data from Redfin pegs the median home price in San Antonio at $255,000, which is less than half of Austin's $530,000. San Antonio — the fastest-growing large city in the nation between 2020 and 2021, gaining nearly 14,000 people, per census data — remains attractive to newcomers. Relocators get affordability in San Antonio, Crenshaw said, without sacrificing exciting nightlife and other big-city attractions such as museums and professional sports teams like the NBA's Spurs.

☆ Elon Musk plans to build hundreds of homes for workers in Texas on streets including Boring Boulevard
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The Boring Company is working with a construction company to build housing near Austin, Texas. County documents show the subdivision has streets named Boring Boulevard, Cutterhead Crossing, Waterjet Way, and Porpoise Place. The land is owned by Gappes Bass LLC, a company affiliated with The Boring Company, according to online records. Adam Pashaian, a corporate controller for the Boring Company, is also registered as an agent for Gapped Bass. The Boring Company, Lennar, and Bastrop County didn't respond to requests for comment from Insider, made outside normal working hours.

WASHINGTON, Feb 7 (Reuters) - China declined a request for a phone call between U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe after Washington brought down a Chinese spy balloon, a Pentagon spokesperson said on Tuesday. The Pentagon submitted the request for a secure call on Saturday after the balloon came down, Brigadier General Pat Ryder said in a statement. "Unfortunately, the PRC (China) has declined our request. China has said it was a weather balloon that had blown off course into U.S. airspace and accused the United States of overreacting. Relations between China and the United States have been tense, with friction between the world's two largest economies over everything from Taiwan and China's human rights record to its military activity in the South China Sea.

[1/2] The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina, U.S. February 4, 2023. REUTERS/Randall HillWASHINGTON, Feb 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. military said on Sunday it is searching for remnants of the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon it shot down the previous day, in a dramatic spy saga that has further strained American-Chinese relations. A successful recovery could potentially give the United States insight into China's spying capabilities, though U.S. officials have downplayed the balloon's impact on national security. Democrats said Biden's decision to wait to shoot down the balloon until it had passed over the United States protected civilians from debris crashing to Earth. The Pentagon will brief senators on the balloon and Chinese surveillance on Feb. 15, Schumer said.

☆ Republicans criticize Biden for waiting to shoot down Chinese balloon
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/3] The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina, U.S. February 4, 2023. Schumer said downing the balloon into the ocean likely enables U.S. intelligence officials to examine its remnants. The Pentagon will brief senators on the balloon and Chinese surveillance on Feb. 15, Schumer said. Trump on Sunday disputed Austin's statement that Chinese government surveillance balloons had transited the continental United States briefly three times during his presidency. Speaking on Fox News Channel's "Sunday Morning Futures" show, Trump's former director of national intelligence John Ratcliffe also denied such balloon incidents.

☆ Suspected Chinese spy balloon found over northern U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Courtney Kube | Carol E. Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The Pentagon would not confirm that the balloon in the photo was the surveillance balloon. The U.S. military has been monitoring a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that has been hovering over the northern U.S. for the past few days, and military and defense leaders have discussed shooting it out of the sky, according to two U.S. officials and a senior defense official. "The United States government has detected and is tracking a high-altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now," Pentagon spokesperson Brig. A senior defense official said the balloon is still over the U.S. but declined to say where it is now. Pentagon leaders presented the options to President Joe Biden on Wednesday.

☆ U.S., Philippines agree to larger American military presence
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin (R) walks past military guards at Camp Aguinaldo on Feb. 2, 2023 in Quezon City, Manila, Philippines. Austin is visiting Manila for meetings with Philippine officials in an effort to boost bilateral ties between the two countries. The agreement was reached as U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was in the country for talks about deploying U.S. forces and weapons in more Philippine military camps. American forces were granted access to five Philippine military camps, where they could rotate indefinitely under the 2014 EDCA defense pact. In October, the U.S. sought access for a larger number of its forces and weapons in an additional five military camps, mostly in the north.

☆ Austin's Manila visit to bring deal on expanded base access - Philippines official
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( David Brunnstrom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON/MANILA, Feb 1 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's visit to the Philippines this week is expected to bring an announcement of expanded U.S. access to military bases in the country, a senior Philippines official said on Wednesday. "There's a push for another four or five of these EDCA sites," the a senior Philippines official said. The Philippines official said increased U.S. access needed to benefit both countries. "The deal with Russia was very attractive because for a certain budget we were able to get something like 16 of these heavy-lift helicopters," the official said. He said the U.S. and Philippine marines were pursuing similar capabilities with ground-based rockets, with Manila's particular interest being to protect its South China Sea claims.

☆ The US's powerful Abrams tanks are heading to Ukraine, but generals disagree over how hard it'll be to use them on the battlefield
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Sebastien Roblin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

The US has pledged to send Abrams tanks to Ukraine, joining a bevy of Western-made tanks. Here comes the M1 Abrams for UkraineA M1A2 Abrams tank fires at a target during an exercise. The same day, word spread that US President Joe Biden would announce he was sending 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. But Hertling disagreed that withholding the M1 Abrams was a "political decision" and didn't find the examples of non-US Abrams operators persuasive. M1 Abrams: training and sustainmentAn M1A2 Abrams drives into the woods during an exercise in Hohenfels, Germany.

The U.S. Pentagon presented its best arguments, publicly and privately, against sending Abrams - its most advanced battle tanks - to Ukraine. The reversal ended a rare public division in the alliance that Washington officials feared Moscow could exploit. TANK DELIVERIES LIKELY MONTHS AWAYIn Washington, senior U.S. officials had privately expressed consternation at Germany's attempts to tie the Abrams tanks to delivery of the Leopards. He also discussed the issue in multiple phone conversations with Biden this month, senior Biden administration officials said. But at one point during Austin's trip, Washington asked Berlin to stop publicly tying Germany's approval of the Leopard tanks to the Biden administration sending Abrams tanks.

☆ Russia is expanding its nuclear arsenal, U.S. defense secretary says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Idrees Ali | Thomson Reuters | National Security Correspondent Focusing On The Pentagon In Washington D.C. Reports On U.S. Military Activity | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb., Dec 9 (Reuters) - Russia is expanding and modernizing its nuclear arsenal, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Friday at a time when Russian President Vladimir Putin, faced with setbacks in Ukraine, has repeatedly suggested he could use nuclear weapons. Russia has the largest stockpile of nuclear weapons in the world, with close to 6,000 warheads, according to experts. Together, Russia and the United States together hold around 90% of the world's nuclear warheads - enough to destroy the planet many times over. "Russia is also modernizing and expanding its nuclear arsenal," Austin said at a ceremony for the incoming commander of U.S. Strategic Command, which oversees the United States nuclear arsenal. The United States has warned Russia over the consequences of any use of nuclear weapons.

☆ U.S. says Russia's war in Ukraine offers preview to potential global tyranny
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 19 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said failure to help Ukraine secure its own future could lead to a "world of tyranny and turmoil," in a speech on Saturday that sought to lay out the stakes in the war for the international community. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin speaks during a news briefing after participating a virtual Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, U.S., November 16, 2022. REUTERS/Tom BrennerAustin's remarks, delivered at a security forum in Canada, were some of his most powerful to date on Russia's nearly nine-month-old invasion. And they could well conclude that getting nuclear weapons would give them a hunting license of their own. And that could drive a dangerous spiral of nuclear proliferation," Austin said.

☆ U.S. says Russia's Ukraine invasion offered preview to potential global tyranny
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-19 | by ( Phil Stewart | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nov 19 (Reuters) - Russia's invasion of Ukraine has offered a preview of "a possible world of tyranny and turmoil," U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Saturday in a speech to a security forum in Canada. Moscow hopes to exhaust Ukraine's missile defenses, and buy time to reset its forces, Pentagon officials say. The United States and its allies have helped provide arms, intelligence and training to Ukrainian forces, while stopping short of directly intervening in a war against nuclear-armed Russia. And they could well conclude that getting nuclear weapons would give them a hunting license of their own," Austin said. Austin said the United States was drawing on the lessons of Ukraine to "bolster the self-defense capabilities of our Indo-Pacific partners."

☆ Billionaires like Elon Musk want to save civilization by having tons of genetically superior kids. Inside the movement to take 'control of human evolution.'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Julia Black | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +40 min

"We are the Underground Railroad of 'Gattaca' babies and people who want to do genetic stuff with their kids," Malcolm told me. Ellison, meanwhile, who has two children in their 30s, has reportedly resumed having kids — with his 31-year-old girlfriend. "The person of this subculture really sees the pathway to immortality as being through having children," Simone said. The person of this subculture really sees the pathway to immortality as being through having children. Before she met Malcolm, Simone was convinced she wanted to live her life single and child-free.

☆ US Secret Service protection would follow Donald Trump to the slammer if he ever ended up there, former agents say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Robin Bravender | Dave Levinthal | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

"If Donald Trump gets sent to prison, what's the role of the Secret Service in that case?" Federal law entitles Trump and all other ex-presidents to Secret Service protections for life — although it didn't always. "Geez, the fact that we're thinking about him going to jail kind of scares me," said the former Secret Service official. While former presidents are entitled to Secret Service protection, they can opt to decline it — just as Nixon did after leaving office. They did so under the Clinton administration, when a law was passed that would afford ex-presidents 10 years of Secret Service security, rather than lifetime protections.

☆ Housing affordability is so bad that it's the only thing liberal and conservative voters can agree on
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

On Tuesday, millions of voters nationwide casted ballots in favor of affordable housing measures. "It's especially heartening to see many ballot measures that support affordable housing pass this year with a clear majority of votes." Austinites aren't the only voters desperate for affordable housing. Kansas City voters gave the green light to a $50 million affordable housing bond that will create 2,000 units in the city. This year, lawmakers brought forward proposed affordable housing bonds via Measure U in Oakland, Measure L in Berkeley and Measure ULA in Los Angeles.

☆ Austin, Texas locals have been priced out by wealthy out-of-state tech workers. Now the government is stepping in.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A new $350 million housing bond is intended to help Austinites struggling with the high cost of living. The tax-supported housing bond, named Proposition A — which will cost the typical homeowner an additional $45 a year in property taxes — is the city's largest housing bond to date. According to Austin eligibility guidelines, families earning 80% or less of the area median income are considered low-income. However, in 2023 most of the fund has nearly dried up — at a time in which the city's cost of living has risen to astronomical levels. "This is the third housing bond that this city has passed in the last eight years, 10 years," Adler told KXAN News.

Austin's remarks coincided with a Russian-installed official in Kherson region saying Moscow was likely to pull its troops from the west bank of the Dnipro River, signaling a significant retreat, if confirmed. Ukraine said it was still fighting in the area and was wary of the occupying Russian forces setting a trap. The region's capital and river port Kherson is the only big city Russia has captured intact since its invasion began on Feb. 24. Russia has fought for months to hang on to the pocket of land it holds on the west bank at the mouth of the Dnipro river that bisects Ukraine. Ukraine has targeted the main river crossings for months, making it difficult for Russia to supply its huge force on the west bank.

The drills have presented a potential challenge to the United States and its allies. Putin has muddied the waters about his intentions after threatening to use nuclear weapons to defend Russia in its unraveling invasion of Ukraine. "We haven't seen anything to cause us to believe, at this point, that is some kind of cover activity," Austin said. Austin said declined to outline the kinds of potential responses that the United States and its allies would consider if Moscow took such a step. "I don't think this sends any message to Putin," Austin said.

☆ These 15 people are shaping the office of the future, designing meeting pods, hologram calls, and buildings that actually make workers healthier
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +27 min

These 15 power players are just a handful of the people designing workplaces to balance productivity, interaction, and employee well-being through indoor-air-quality monitoring systems, building amenities, holographic meeting spaces, and more. AftershipCities like Austin, Texas; Nashville, Tennessee; and Raleigh, North Carolina, began offering business-relocation incentives during the pandemic to boost their workforces and help increase occupancy in office buildings. Room's office suite includes a phone booth, a meeting room, an open meeting room, and a focus room. Room also makes a soundproof meeting room that fits two people, a more open meeting booth, and a focus room designed for quiet concentration. "The future of office work needs to be guided by a new, genuine form of flexibility in which the work, not the workers themselves, become even more malleable," Petersen writes.

☆ Exclusive emails show Austin officials bragging about its lack of oversight of a new self-driving delivery service from Ford and Argo AI
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Caroline Haskins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Several cities launched an autonomous vehicle delivery service for Walmart orders with Ford vehicles using Argo AI's self-driving car technology. In 2016, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey announced Uber's self-driving car pilot by proclaiming that Arizona "welcomes Uber self-driving cars" while states with regulatory laws do not. Part of the companies' motivation for the self-driving car delivery service is the drive to meet Walmart's consumer demands for "next-day or same-day delivery." Argo AI was founded in 2016 by two former engineers from Google and Uber's self-driving car programs, respectively. Argo AI hired more than 1,700 people in 6 years but laid off many of its recruiters in July.

☆ Leclerc to drop 10 places on U.S. GP starting grid
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AUSTIN, Texas, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Ferrari's Charles Leclerc will take a 10-place grid drop for Sunday's U.S. Grand Prix due to engine and turbocharger changes, dealing a blow to his team's hopes of denying Red Bull the Formula One constructors' title for another week. Ferrari need to score 19 points more than Red Bull at Austin's Circuit of the Americas to keep the constructors' title battle alive until next weekend's race in Mexico City. Leclerc is battling Red Bull's Sergio Perez for second place overall and is one point behind the Mexican, who incurred a five-place grid drop on Friday. The sport's governing FIA said Leclerc had triggered the drop by taking a sixth internal combustion engine and turbocharger for final practice. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Ken FerrisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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