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☆ Thailand's Move Forward confident of more support to form government
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Chayut Setboonsarng | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Move Forward Party leader, Pita Limjaroenrat speaks to the media following a meeting with coalition partners in Bangkok, Thailand, May 18, 2023. REUTERS/Athit PerawongmethaBANGKOK, May 18 (Reuters) - The leader of the progressive Move Forward Party that secured a stunning victory in Thailand's election this week said on Thursday he was confident of building more support and being able form a stable and balanced government. Move Forward has campaigned on changing the lese-majeste law, under which at least 200 people have been charged in the past few years, many from a youth-led protest movement. The law prescribes jail terms of up to 15 years for each perceived offence, with some given sentences of several decades. Reporting by Chayut Setboonsarng and Panarat Thepgumpanat, Writing by Martin PettyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/5] Move Forward Party leader, Pita Limjaroenrat speaks to the media following a meeting with coalition partners in Bangkok, Thailand, May 18, 2023. Move Forward, which won most seats after it capitalised on its groundswell of youth support, has an alliance of eight parties worth about 313 of the 500 lower house seats but no guarantees it can form a coalition government. "There is a committee and negotiation team in place to find out what I further need, the seats I need, so there is stability and no loss of balance in governing," Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat told a press conference. Move Forward won massive youth support with a lively campaign and sophisticated use of social media, but its anti-establishment stance on some issues, including over business monopolies, could complicate its bid to rule. It is far from certain that the new alliance would become Thailand's next government, despite a decisive opposition victory.

☆ Thailand's opposition parties meet for coalition talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BANGKOK, May 17 (Reuters) - Thailand's opposition parties, which trounced their military-allied rivals in this week's election, met for coalition talks on Wednesday as the liberal Move Forward Party, which won the most votes, looks to form a government. Move Forward leader Pita Limjaroenrat was seen greeting senior officials from five other parties at a Bangkok restaurant before ushering them upstairs for closed-door talks. Pita earlier this week said that together with five other opposition parties, his coalition will be able control about 310 seats in the 500-member House of Representatives. The parties Pita has approached are Pheu Thai, Thai Sang Thai, Prachachart, Seri Ruam Thai and Fair parties. On Wednesday, some Thais questioned the senate's role in electing a prime minister, asking 'why do we need a senate' on social media like Twitter.

☆ U.S. is striving to be on the forefront of A.I. regulation and transparency: Builder.ai CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | 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 EmailU.S. is striving to be on the forefront of A.I. regulation and transparency: Builder.ai CEOBuilder.ai CEO Sachin Dev Duggal is joined by CNBC's Julia Boorstin and Steve Kovach on 'The Exchange' to discuss today's Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on A.I., the Senate's plans to regulate A.I., and the challenge of developing safeguards against A.I..

Move Forward's main coalition partner would be the Pheu Thai party, backed by the billionaire Shinawatra family that was - until now - the main challenger of the conservative, military-backed royalist establishment that has held power for the last decade. Pheu Thai, which won the last five general elections but got pushed out of power each time, secured 141 seats, according to the latest projections, only 10 fewer than Move Forward. "There are many obstacles that Move Forward and Pheu Thai have to overcome." Full-time politics came in 2019, when Pita entered parliament with 80 other members of the Future Forward Party. To become prime minister, Pita must also navigate the upper house.

☆ ChatGPT creator Sam Altman reflects on the Senate's A.I. regulatory hearing
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | 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 EmailChatGPT creator Sam Altman reflects on the Senate's A.I. regulatory hearingChatGPT creator Sam Altman remarks on the The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing about the "Oversight of A.I. : Rules for Artificial Intelligence.”

☆ Political analysts, business groups react to Thailand election results
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

THITINAN PONGSUDHIRAK, CHULALONGKORN UNIVERSITY"The top two parties will be Pheu Thai and Move Forward. "Pheu Thai fought the wrong war, the populism war that it already won. That's the new battleground in Thai politics. KEN MATHIS LOHATEPANONT, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN"Since 2001, Pheu Thai has won the largest number of seats at every election comfortably. After two decades, this certainty of Thai politics has been overturned.

This time, Pheu Thai is polling strongly along with the progressive, youth-oriented, Move Forward party. 'LOOKING FOR A DEAL'But bringing her father home may ultimately be the deciding factor for Pheu Thai, and that would force it into a deal with the establishment. "Post election, Pheu Thai will be biding its time and looking for a deal. That's why I think the likelihood of Pheu Thai going with Move Forward is very slim." He said he could envision a deal that allowed Thaksin to return in exchange for minimal jail time and a promise not to run for office.

☆ Buffalo Starbucks workers helped spark the chain's labor union movement. Now, one of the stores has filed to decertify its union.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Workers at a Buffalo Starbucks store have filed a petition to decertify their union. The store, located in downtown Buffalo, New York, would remove Workers United as its representative in negotiations with Starbucks, Bloomberg Law reported. It was among the first Starbucks stores in the country where employees voted to have union representation. A spokesperson for Workers United told TV station WGRZ that Starbucks had launched an "illegal union-busting campaign" at the store. According to Workers United, about 300 Starbucks stores around the US have voted to unionize.

☆ Dianne Feinstein set to return to Senate after nearly 3-month absence
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Garrett Haake | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA), who announced she will not be seeking re-election, leaves the Senate floor after a vote on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., February 14, 2023. WASHINGTON — California Sen. Dianne Feinstein is returning to the Senate after a nearly three-month absence due to health problems, according to a spokesperson for the senator. With Democrats holding just a single-seat advantage in the Senate, Feinstein's absence complicated her party's efforts to confirm some of President Joe Biden's nominees. Feinstein later disputed that her absence had in any way limited the number of nominees advanced by the committee. "I'm confident that when I return to the Senate, we will be able to move the remaining qualified nominees out of committee quickly and to the Senate floor for a vote."

☆ Kyrsten Sinema, eyeing GOP voters, knocks 'both political parties' when asked about election deniers in Arizona
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

In 2024, Sinema would likely need support from conservative voters who doubt the 2020 election. "Well, we're currently living in a climate where it's okay to say things that aren't true," Sinema said. "What I think we're facing in our country today is this situation where people don't know what's true and what's not true," said Sinema. Sinema again blamed "the two political parties" for becoming "more extreme." Lake says she's "seriously considering" a Senate campaign, and Sheriff Mark Lamb, already running in the GOP primary, has also cast doubt on the validity of the 2020 election.

☆ DeSantis collects wins as Florida Legislature caps whirlwind session, teeing up possible White House bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks during a conference titled "Celebrate the Faces of Israel" at Jerusalem's Museum of Tolerance, on April 27, 2023. Measures like the restrictive abortion law DeSantis signed could help him in a GOP primary, but may reduce his appeal in a general election. Lawmakers have also passed multiple measures that could help clear DeSantis' path to the White House, if and when he decides to run. "The entire session was focused on Governor DeSantis' run for president," said Jim Clark, a University of Central Florida senior lecturer and political commentator, in an interview. On top of those issues, DeSantis in March waded into the "school choice" debate by signing a bill expanding Florida's school voucher system.

☆ Sen. Sherrod Brown received an extra property tax credit and racked up penalties for late payments
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Henry J. Gomez | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, for years claimed an owner-occupancy tax credit at two properties, public records show — a potential violation of the state's rules governing such incentives. Responding to questions from NBC News, Brown and Schultz this week paid a $390 penalty stemming from their most recent late payment. Brown will no longer accept the owner-occupancy credit on the Columbus property, according to his campaign. Franklin County tax records available online show no late payments or penalties for Brown's Columbus condo — purchased in 2014 — over the last four years. Ohio schools are heavily reliant on property tax revenue, and late payments affect their accounting.

☆ Canadian Senate passes bill to compel local content on streaming giants
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Ismail Shakil | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

OTTAWA, April 27 (Reuters) - Canada's Senate on Thursday passed the government's online streaming legislation after a 10-month debate over a law that will force firms like Netflix (NFLX.O) and Alphabet Inc-owned (GOOGL.O) YouTube to offer more Canadian content. Bill C-11, or the Online Streaming Act, cleared the unelected upper chamber of the Canadian parliament with 52 votes to 16 and one abstention. The government says the legislation will ensure that online streaming services promote Canadian music and stories, and support Canadian jobs. YouTube has said it does not oppose the bill in its entirety, but has raised concerns over its impact to user-generated content. The video platform says the law would force it to recommend Canadian content on its homepage, rather than videos tailored to a user's specific interests.

☆ A new bill in Florida would allow citizens to sue for damage to or removal of Confederate statues
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A new bill in Florida would allow citizens to sue for damage to or removal of historical monuments. The bill doesn't mention Confederate statues, but opponents say it is a response to it. The newly-elected state senator, endorsed by Ron DeSantis during his 2022 campaign, previously served on the Florida Southwestern State College Board of Trustees. Before being elected, the state senator had been investigated for battery but was cleared by prosecutors in August. Over the past few years, a national movement to remove Confederate statues took hold in the US, with proponents of these removals pointing to the statues' ties to slavery.

☆ GOP debt ceiling bill faces its first test as analysts warn U.S. faces default risk as early as June
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Christina Wilkie | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., walks out with House Republicans to speak about the passage of H.R. Goldman Sachs analysts wrote that their "base case remains for the debt limit deadline to fall in late July," as long as tax receipts only fall by 30%. This is the projected date the Treasury Department will exhaust the emergency measures it is taking to prevent a federal debt default. Instead, it is intended to serve as McCarthy's opening salvo in his looming negotiation with Biden over the debt limit and federal spending. Over the weekend, Emmer said that while the final bill might not be perfect, the alternative for a Republican House member would be worse.

☆ GOP Gov. Jim Justice set to launch bid for Joe Manchin's Senate seat in West Virginia this week
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

West Virginia Governor Jim Justice (R) and US Senator Joe Manchin (L), Democrat of West Virginia, attend a roundtable discussion on the opioid epidemic with local and state officials at the Cabell-Huntington Health Department in Huntington, West Virginia, July 8, 2019. West Virginia offers the GOP perhaps its best chance to flip a Democratic seat next year. Justice's team believes a Senate bid by the governor could make Manchin less likely to seek reelection, the GOP source told CNBC last month. Former President Donald Trump, who is deeply popular in West Virginia, backed Mooney in his most recent House election. Justice is set to announce his Senate bid at his own resort, furthering intermingling the governor's business and politics.

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan bill to authorize the U.S. Mint to alter the metal content of coins in order to save taxpayers money will be reintroduced on Thursday, the two senators sponsoring the bill told CNBC exclusively. Officially titled the Coin Metal Modification Authorization and Cost Savings Act, the legislation was originally introduced in both the House and Senate in 2020. The bill passed the House that year with overwhelming bipartisan support. "I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support our bipartisan bill." "This commonsense, bipartisan effort will modify the composition of certain coins to reduce costs while allowing for a seamless transition into circulation," Ernst said.

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) waves to reporters as he arrives at the U.S. Capitol on April 17, 2023 in Washington, DC. WASHINGTON — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic Sen. John Fetterman both returned to the Capitol on Monday after significant medical absences, leaving only one senator, Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, still away with no firm return date. Fetterman, a 53-year-old from Pennsylvania, stepped away from the Senate in February to seek inpatient treatment for clinical depression at Water Reed Army Medical Center. "I want everyone to know that depression is treatable, and treatment works," Fetterman said in a statement after return home from the hospital. The return of both Fetterman and McConnell this week after the Senate's Easter recess has served to highlight the one senator who has not returned from their prolonged medical absence: the California lawmaker Feinstein, an 89-year-old who last voted in the Senate in early February.

☆ Debt ceiling fight shows stakes of Feinstein's Senate absence, Klobuchar says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( Katharine Jackson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 16 (Reuters) - The standoff over raising the U.S. federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling illustrates the stakes of U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein's lengthy absence from Washington, fellow Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar said on Sunday. We have things like the debt ceiling coming up," Klobuchar said in an interview on ABC's "This Week" program. President Joe Biden's Democrats insist on a "clean" debt ceiling bill unaccompanied by cuts. "I have a lot of respect for Senator Feinstein, but she's missed 75% of votes this year.

☆ Private school vouchers are shaping up to be huge part of the 2024 election as GOP candidates work to 'one up' each other on the issue
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

The GOP movement toward "school choice" is gaining momentum in many states. GOP presidential candidates have promised to send more public money to private schools. While battles over how classrooms should teach about race and LGBTQ topics have fired up the GOP base, the expansion of school vouchers is taking hold in red states. Spar said vouchers amounted to "using taxpayer money to go to private schools and home schools with practically no accountability." As Congress then turned its attention toward COVID pandemic relief, at least one bill that didn't pass had funding for private schools and homeschooling.

☆ Florida to allow death penalty with 8-4 jury vote instead of unanimously
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

If the Republican governor signs the bill into law, Florida prosecutors trying capital felony cases would need to convince only two-thirds of the 12-member jury that someone who is convicted deserves the death penalty, rather than a unanimous decision by a jury. It would have no effect on the requirement for a jury's unanimous vote to convict a defendant. Three jurors voted to spare Cruz, and by default his sentence was life in prison without the possibility of parole, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. If the bill becomes law, Florida would join Alabama as the only states where a unanimous jury decision is not required, the center noted. In 2017, Florida passed a law that required death penalties to be imposed only after a unanimous recommendation by a jury.

☆ Florida House passes six-week abortion ban backed by DeSantis
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The Florida House of Representatives on Thursday passed legislation that would ban most abortions after six weeks, when many women don't know they are pregnant. The bill would only take effect if the state's existing 15-week ban is upheld in an ongoing legal challenge that is before the state Supreme Court. "Today we stand for life, we stand with mothers, and we stand with Florida families," said Persons-Mulicka. A recent survey suggests the six-week abortion ban isn't popular among Florida residents. The Biden administration will ask the Supreme Court to intervene, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Thursday.

☆ Ron DeSantis and the Florida GOP want to make it harder for public-sector unions to collect dues — with exceptions for police and firemen
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( Ethan Dodd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Florida senate passed a bill that would make it harder for public sector unions to collect dues and recertify. While it will impact Democratic-leaning teachers' unions, along with most other public-sector unions, Republican-supporting police and firefighters' unions will be exempt. By making it harder for public employees to pay their union dues, the law makes it harder for teachers' unions to reach the new 60% threshold and recertify. "The governor's staff apparently called around to see the membership of public unions, specifically teachers," Spar said. Of the 100 local teachers unions Spar represents, 70-75 of those locals would need to hold an election to recertify, he said.

☆ AOC says 'a lot' of House Dems would cast 'disingenuous' yes votes for Medicare for All if it came to floor because they 'know that it's going to a graveyard' in the Senate
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez argued some Democrats don't sincerely support Medicare for All. She said the Senate's 60-vote filibuster lets them to rhetorically support it but not fight for it. She argued dismantling the filibuster is the "precursor" to passing progressive priorities. The most recent House version of the bill, introduced in 2021, garnered 123 co-sponsorships — more than half of the House Democratic Caucus at the time. Filibuster frustrationsThe filibuster stymied Democrats during the first two years of the Biden administration when they held slim majorities in both the House and Senate.

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