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☆ U.S. House passes Republican bill tightening border security
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Richard Cowan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday approved Republican legislation intended to stop immigrants and illegal drugs crossing the nation's southwestern border with Mexico, leaving it to the Senate to attempt a broader, bipartisan immigration bill. It also would resume construction of a wall along the border and expand federal law enforcement efforts. The House voted 219-213 to pass the bill, with no Democrats in favor and one Republican opposed. Officials at the southwestern border were seeing large influxes of immigrants in the final days of Title 42 expiration. House Republican leaders at the last minute had to modify provisions of their bill for the U.S. agriculture industry to comply with "E-Verify" requirements for confirming U.S. employment eligibility.

May 10 (Reuters) - Republican vulnerabilities on abortion policy are on display in Ohio, with the party playing defense against a surge in abortion rights activism that could help President Joe Biden and his Democratic Party in next year's elections. Abortion rights advocates have racked up electoral victories, lifting Democrats along the way, since the Supreme Court struck down the national right to abortion last year. Ohio Republicans passed a six-week state abortion ban in 2019, but that law is blocked while litigation proceeds. In Republican-leaning Kentucky, abortion rights activists are already knocking on doors ahead of November's gubernatorial election, when Democrat Andy Beshear is seeking another term. Senate President Matt Huffman has made clear the measure is aimed at the abortion rights amendment.

☆ Biden's approval rating at 40%, Americans concerned about immigration: Reuters/Ipsos poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Jason Lange | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, May 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden's public approval was at 40% in recent days, close to the lowest level of his presidency, with Americans unhappy about his handling of immigration and inflation, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll showed. The Reuters/Ipsos poll found 54% of respondents - including 77% of Republicans and 34% of Democrats - were against raising the number of immigrants allowed into the country every year. read moreThe president is seeking re-election next year and immigration is primed to be an important issue in the contest. Fifty-four percent of respondents in the Reuters/Ipsos poll said they were opposed to raising the debt ceiling, including 59% of respondents who don't have a college degree. The Reuters/Ipsos poll gathered responses from 1,022 U.S. adults, using a nationally representative sample.

People around the 51-year-old former governor of South Carolina, the daughter of two Indian immigrants, say her willingness to discuss the topic represents a calculated risk while other candidates dodge it. They say it is in part a deliberate bid to seize some attention away from front-runners Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Supporters, donors and some party stalwarts praised Haley for her speech addressing an issue that divides the party. Roberts said she hoped New Hampshire's Republican governor, Chris Sununu, a self-described supporter of abortion rights, jumps into the race. Governor DeSantis, Trump's closest rival who is expected to announce a run within weeks, signed a ban on abortions after six weeks in Florida last month.

So far this year, super PACs have spent more than $12 million, about three times as much as four years earlier, according to public disclosures. The outlays suggest an aggressive cycle ahead for spending by super PACs, who helped drive about $1 billion in independent spending in the 2020 presidential contest. TRANSFERS QUESTIONEDRegistered as a super PAC, MAGA Inc is allowed to raise and spend unlimited sums supporting candidates as long as it doesn't coordinate spending with their campaigns. Steven Cheung, a Trump campaign spokesman, dismissed the Campaign Legal Center's arguments, calling the organization "a Democrat group." Campaign finance law specialists say they fear DeSantis could emulate Trump by transferring some of those funds into a federally registered super PAC to support his expected presidential campaign.

☆ Canada's Justin Trudeau may be struggling but he still commands his party
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Steve Scherer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

OTTAWA, May 4 (Reuters) - Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will kick off what is likely to be the last Liberal Party convention before the next election on Thursday, and though fatigue with his government has deepened there is little question that he is fully in command of his party. Though some cabinet members and former central banker Mark Carney appear to have ambitions to lead the party after Trudeau, no one has come out publicly against him. "Trudeau is the party brand, for better or worse," said Shachi Kurl, president of Angus Reid research group. Conservatives would win 35% of the vote compared to 29% for the Liberals, according to the Angus Reid poll. But in Montreal, the Liberals lead 38% to 15%, and in the suburbs of Toronto the Liberals are ahead 40% to 34%, Angus Reid said.

But as Republican presidential hopefuls including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former President Donald Trump crisscross the country, they have instead focused on hot-button issues like immigration and transgender participation in youth sports. A broad majority of voters in both parties believe the debt ceiling presents a good opportunity to debate public policy priorities, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in March. Still, it is unclear how much Republican primary voters know about the debt limit debate - or even care - campaign aides and strategists said. Of nine attendees interviewed by Reuters at the town hall meeting held by Haley, none mentioned the debt ceiling as one of their top concerns. Others have addressed the debt ceiling in the past, but only in general terms.

☆ Ron DeSantis is polling at RFK Jr.'s level
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Harry Enten | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Ron DeSantis has spent the past few months running to the right ahead of his expected entry into the 2024 Republican presidential primary campaign. So far at least, those efforts have not paid off in Republican primary polling, with DeSantis falling further behind the current front-runner, former President Donald Trump. Early polling problemsThe Fox poll is not alone in showing DeSantis floundering. Candidates polling the way DeSantis is now have gone on to win about 20% of the time. Moderates and liberals made up about 30% of potential Republican primary voters in the Quinnipiac poll.

☆ Biden takes his re-election pitch to financial backers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden made his pitch for re-election on Friday night to a small group that may prove essential to his candidacy: the wealthy. Biden may need to raise and spend more than $1 billion to run a competitive campaign in 2024, allies believe. A Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday showed that a majority of registered voters do not want either Biden or Trump, 76, to run again. Instead, Biden has mostly filled his days with traditional Oval Office duties, including hosting South Korean leader Yoon Suk Yeol for a state visit. On Saturday, Biden is due to deliver light-hearted remarks at the annual White House Correspondents' Association Dinner.

☆ King Charles' rating dips, but half of Britons still happy
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, April 28 (Reuters) - King Charles' approval rating has dipped since he took the throne but nearly half of Britons still think he is doing a good job, according to a poll released a week before his coronation, while his daughter-in-law Kate is the most liked royal. The Ipsos poll released on Friday found 49% of the public believed Charles, who will be formally crowned on May 6, was doing a good job versus 9% thinking otherwise. "With less than two weeks until the coronation, King Charles may be happy to know that half of Britons think he is already doing a good job, numbers recent prime ministers would envy," said Kelly Beaver, chief executive of Ipsos UK and Ireland. A separate Ipsos survey also found 57% were satisfied with how Charles was doing his job, down 8 percentage points from when a similar poll was carried out in May last year. Among the least favourite members were Prince Harry and his wife Meghan, and the king's second wife Camilla, now the Queen Consort, the pollster said.

☆ Supreme Court's Alito says abortion leak meant to intimidate court, Wall Street Journal reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( John Kruzel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstWASHINGTON, April 28 (Reuters) - U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito believes the leak last May of a draft opinion that ended the nationwide right to abortion was meant to "intimidate" the court into changing its decision, the conservative justice told the Wall Street Journal. "It was a part of an effort to prevent the Dobbs draft ... from becoming the decision of the court," Alito said in an interview published by the newspaper on Friday, referring to the decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. Alito, who wrote the Dobbs decision, said that he thought he knew who leaked the decision to the Politico news outlet, but did not provide evidence to support that claim. A narrow majority of Americans - 56% - view the U.S. Supreme Court unfavorably, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll this month. Partisanship colors that view, with 72% of Democratic respondents to the poll viewing the court unfavorably and 65% viewing of Republicans seeing it favorably.

☆ UK PM Sunak faces first test of comeback credentials in local polls
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Alistair Smout | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

With voters going through a cost-of-living crisis and inflation stubbornly high at about 10%, local council votes in much of England on May 4 give Labour an opportunity to prove their electoral credentials. Swindon has returned lawmakers representing the winning party at every national election since 1983, making it a bellwether and a key target for Labour, who chose the town for the launch of their local election campaign. "Whilst Sunak's personal poll ratings aren't great, they're not toxic in the way that his predecessors have been," he said. David Renard, the Conservative leader of Swindon Borough Council, said the national picture might hinder his attempts to focus the campaign on more local issues. In its town centre, many voters expressed unhappiness with the Conservatives but some had a degree of sympathy for Sunak personally.

☆ 5 reasons fighting Disney is a political winner for DeSantis — and 6 reasons it could hurt his shot at the presidency
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Kimberly Leonard | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

It does a ton of business in China, which many GOP voters view as a threat to the US. DeSantis already ran on being anti-Disney — and wonTaryn Fenske, DeSantis' communications director, has described the Disney fight as being "the will of Florida voters." And they might not vote for DeSantis if they think the Disney fight is a killer in a general election. Families often work hard and save for years to take their children to Disney World. If DeSantis can't bring a resolution to the Disney fight, can he handle the job of president?

☆ Virginia Governor Youngkin 'humbled' by talk of possible presidential run
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Tim Kelly | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, April 27 (Reuters) - Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin did not rule out a run for president in 2024, saying on Thursday that he was "humbled" by the question of whether he would seek the Republican nomination. Youngkin was in Japan as part of an Asian trip, including stops in Taiwan and South Korea, to promote his state. In Tokyo, he met Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who on Monday sat down with would-be presidential candidate Florida's Governor Ron DeSantis. Biden, 80, on Tuesday said he will seek re-election in 2024 in a contest that could once again pit him against leading Republican candidate former President Donald Trump. In a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday, 44% of Democrats said Biden was too old to run.

☆ Dutch celebrate King's Day as confidence in monarchy diminishes
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands pose with their daughters, Princess Ariane and Princess Catharina-Amalia, during King's Day (Koningsdag) in Rotterdam, Netherlands, April 27, 2023. REUTERS/Piroschka van de WouwROTTERDAM, April 27 (Reuters) - Millions of Dutch revellers took to the streets on Thursday to celebrate King's Day festivities, dressing in orange and enjoying open-air markets - even as trust in the man at the centre of the nationwide party sinks to a low ebb. These numbers had held firm at around 75% until the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The historic centres of Amsterdam, Utrecht and The Hague have been filled with thousands of people since late on Wednesday as King's Eve parties kicked off the festivities. Reporting by Bart Meijer; Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Florida lawmakers passed legislation that ended Disney's virtual autonomy in central Florida where the Disney World theme parks attract millions of visitors each year. "Disney now is forced to defend itself against a State weaponizing its power to inflict political punishment," the company said. DeSantis has argued that Disney, which employs roughly 75,000 people in Florida, had been enjoying unfair advantages for decades. Carlos Curbelo, a former U.S. Republican congressman from Miami, said DeSantis' attacks on Disney "made sense for a time." Florida's new oversight body on Wednesday said Disney's plans for potential expansion of Disney World did not comply with state law, and declared that agreement void.

[1/2] Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks at the 2023 NHGOP Amos Tuck Dinner in Manchester, New Hampshire, U.S., April 14, 2023. REUTERS/Brian SnyderApril 26 (Reuters) - In his face-off with Walt Disney Co (DIS.N), Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has frequently adopted the pose of a swaggering gunfighter out of the Wild West. “There’s a new sheriff in town,” DeSantis boasts to conservative audiences nationwide as he prepares to launch his 2024 presidential bid. But as his clash with Disney escalates, so does the political risk for DeSantis and his nascent campaign. Billionaire Ken Griffin of Citadel Securities last year remarked that DeSantis’ actions amounted to “retaliation against corporate America.”“The war with Disney made some sense for a time in the context of Governor DeSantis’ presidential aspirations.

Florida lawmakers passed legislation that ended Disney's virtual autonomy in central Florida where the Disney World theme parks are located and attract millions of visitors each year. In the action filed in federal court in Tallahassee, Disney said it had no choice but to take legal action. DeSantis has argued that Disney, which employs roughly 75,000 people in the Florida, had been operating with unfair advantages for decades. Carlos Curbelo, a former U.S. Republican congressman from Miami, said DeSantis' attacks on Disney "made sense for a time." Florida's new oversight board on Wednesday said Disney's plans for potential expansion of Disney World did not comply with state law, and declared that agreement void.

☆ DeSantis could win Republican votes with Disney clash -Reuters/Ipsos poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Independents were evenly divided in the Reuters/Ipsos poll. Polling shows DeSantis trailing former President Donald Trump among Republican voters. DeSantis has argued that his actions against Disney were rightfully rolling back special treatment for the company. Some 64% of Republicans in the Reuters/Ipsos poll agreed, with 37% of them siding with the vast majority of Democrats, who said DeSantis was punishing Disney for exercising free speech. The new Reuters/Ipsos poll gathered responses from 1,005 adults across the United States, including 450 self-described Democrats and 366 Republicans.

☆ Explainer: How did the battle between Ron DeSantis and Disney escalate?
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

April 26 (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co (DIS.N) sued Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis on Wednesday, asking a federal court to overturn state efforts to exert greater control over the Walt Disney World theme parks. DeSantis responded by urging the legislature to abolish a special district that gave Disney virtual autonomy over the development of its theme parks in central Florida. The Florida State legislature created the Reedy Creek Improvement District in 1967 to promote the development of Walt Disney World on a 38.5-square miles of land. HOW DO VOTERS FEEL ABOUT THE DESANTIS VS. DISNEY BATTLE? Forty-four percent of Republican respondents in an April Reuters/Ipsos poll said they had a more favorable view of DeSantis because of the fight with Disney.

April 26 (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co (DIS.N) sued Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis on Wednesday, asking a court to overturn state efforts to control the Walt Disney World theme parks and intensifying a battle between a global entertainment giant and a potential White House contender. A DeSantis spokesman called Disney's action "an unfortunate example of their hope to undermine the will of Florida voters." Disney also argues it was denied its First Amendment rights to free speech. State Republicans last year targeted Disney after it publicly clashed with DeSantis. But before the takeover by DeSantis' appointees, Disney pushed through changes to the special tax district agreement that limit the board's action for decades.

☆ Man vs. Mouse: Ron DeSantis Finds Taking On Disney Is a Dicey Business
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Charles Homans | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

In Florida, Disney has proved a wily political foil for Mr. DeSantis. After the company criticized a Republican bill in the State Legislature limiting schools’ instruction on gender and sexuality last year, Mr. DeSantis tried to strip Disney of the unusual self-governance arrangement it has enjoyed for decades in the state. This month, the governor escalated the dispute by threatening a list of possible punishments. Its chief executive, Robert A. Iger, has criticized Mr. DeSantis’s actions as “anti-business” and “anti-Florida.”Polls suggest Mr. DeSantis’s political success in the debate may hinge on whether he’s viewed as a populist reining in big business or a culture warrior. A Harvard-Harris poll this month found a majority of registered voters nationwide — and a vast majority of Republicans — siding with Mr. DeSantis in the showdown.

☆ Electric Cars: What It Takes to Convince People to Ditch Gasoline
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Men make up most early adopters of electric cars, while women account for most EV skeptics. Here is who they are and what they're looking for. The adopters' top three prioritized vehicle features include addressing concerns about CO2 emissions and air pollution, vehicles that are unique, and a vehicle that keeps its value. They're also the most flexible of buyers regarding the range they're looking for in an EV. Given that, "I think we'll potentially start to see a shift in terms of what the range of features within electric vehicles is."

If he wins, he will face off against Biden again in the November 2024 election. The poll showed that a majority of registered voters don't want either Biden or Trump to run again. U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks at North America's Building Trades Unions Legislative Conference at the Washington Hilton, in Washington, April 25, 2023. Biden ran a mostly virtual campaign to defeat Trump in the 2020 election as COVID raged. After losing to Biden in 2020, Trump refused to concede defeat, falsely claiming that there had been widespread electoral fraud.

☆ Voters say neither Biden nor Trump should run in 2024 - Reuters/Ipsos
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Jason Lange | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Just 41% of poll respondents - including 74% of Democrats and 10% of Republicans - approved of his performance as president. Sixty-one percent of registered Democrats in the poll said he was too old to work in government. By comparison, only 35% of registered Republicans said Trump, 76, was too old. In a hypothetical one-on-one contest, Biden led Trump 43% to 38% among registered voters, a lead for the Democrat that was just outside the poll's 4 percentage point credibility interval for registered voters. The Reuters/Ipsos poll gathered responses from 1,005 adults across the United States, including 445 self-described Democrats and 361 Republicans.

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