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☆ Meet David Sacks, the friend of Elon Musk who could play kingmaker for Ron DeSantis
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Brian Schwartz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Ron DeSantis — including hosting the candidate's kickoff event on Twitter — demonstrate how Sacks is working to become a GOP kingmaker. A DeSantis campaign spokesman did not return a request for comment before publication. Sacks, according to Puck, serves as one of the group's directors. Kevin McGrann, a lobbyist at government relations juggernaut Forbes Tate Partners, is also linked to Bay Strategies, according to Hall. And Sacks said during a recent episode that he plans to ask the DeSantis campaign for the Florida governor to agree to an interview.

Persons: David Sacks, Paul Chinn, Caroline Wren, Wren, Donald Trump's, Jan, president's, Sacks, George Soros, Puck, Ron DeSantis, Peter Thiel, Ro Khanna, didn't, Joe Biden, Thiel, Elon Musk, –, Joe Lonsdale's, Julie Samuels, Samuels, DeSantis, I've, Trump, Stewart Hall, Jill Kendrick, Hall, Sen, Richard Shelby, Kendrick, Kevin McGrann, juggernaut Forbes, McGrann, John Boehner, OpenSecrets, Musk, Bari Weiss, isn't, Peter, Jason Calacanis, David Friedberg, Chamath, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Kennedy, Biden, Nikki Haley, Calacanis Organizations: TechCrunch, Calif, San Francisco Chronicle, Hearst Newspapers, Getty Images Venture, Trump, U.S . Capitol, Republicans, Commission, Florida Gov, Twitter, GOP, PayPal, CNBC, Democratic, Microsoft, DeSantis, Purple Good Government PAC, FEC, Ron DeSantis PAC, PAC, Republican Party, Purple Good Government, Stewart, Public, Crossroads, Altria Group, Boeing, General Electric, Hearst Corp, Washington , D.C, Forbes Tate Partners, juggernaut Forbes Tate Partners, Forbes Tate, Association of Independent Mortgage Experts, United Wholesale Mortgage, SpaceX, Republican, YouTube, Biden, CNN Locations: San Francisco, Florida, Silicon, Trump, DeSantis, Puck, Washington ,, Ohio

☆ Biden withdraws nomination of official to head US auto safety agency
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, May 30 (Reuters) - The White House said on Tuesday that President Joe Biden is withdrawing the nomination of the acting head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to take the top job on a permanent basis. Ann Carlson, the agency's chief counsel, was named acting head of NHTSA in September and formally nominated for the top position in March. They told Carlson the standards were "consistent with your long career as an environmentalist without traffic safety experience." Jonathan Adkins, head of the nonprofit Governors Highway Safety Association representing state and territorial highway safety offices, said the group was deeply disappointed in the withdrawal of Carlson's nomination. During the Trump administration no nominee was ever confirmed to head NHTSA and there was no nominee for much of the four-year period.

Persons: Joe Biden, Ann Carlson, Pete Buttigieg, Carlson, Buttigieg, Jonathan Adkins, GHSA, Biden, Adkins, Steven Cliff, Cliff, Trump, David Shepardson, Chris Reese, Matthew Lewis Organizations: National, Traffic Safety Administration, White, NHTSA, Tesla Inc, . Transportation, Republicans, Senate, Committee, Highway Safety Association, Biden Administration, Twitter, Thomson Locations: U.S, Washington

☆ Contributions to College Savings Plans Pick Up as Inflation Eases
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Contributions to 529 college savings programs fell late last year and early this year, according to industry data, as consumers saved less overall and battled high inflation. The state-sponsored savings accounts, named for a section of the tax code, can be used to pay for education expenses, primarily college costs. Still, that was an improvement over the fourth quarter of 2022, when net inflows were $1.5 billion. And those fourth-quarter inflows were significantly lower than the more than $4 billion in the same period of 2021. The drop in contributions was a result of not only reduced overall savings and high inflation but also the postpandemic reopening of the economy, which released pent-up demand for spending, Paul Curley, director of savings research at ISS, said in an email.

☆ Expect Interest Rates on Federal Student Loans to Rise
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Interest rates on new federal student loans are expected to exceed 5 percent for the first time in five years, adding to the pressure on families already struggling to pay for college. Rates for undergraduate student loans for the coming academic year are expected to rise to nearly 5.50 percent, from 4.99 percent. Rates on other types of federal education loans will probably rise as well. Rates stay fixed for the life of a federal student loan, but new loans are priced each July, based on the 10-year Treasury bond auction in May. The rates are influenced by the Federal Reserve, which has been aggressively raising interest rates in an attempt to cool inflation.

☆ More Options to Pay for Medical Care, but Some May Be Costly
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

There is a market for alternative financing because even people with health insurance can have trouble paying for care. The average annual deductible — the amount patients are responsible for before insurance pays — is almost $1,800 for an individual with job-based health insurance, according to the nonprofit health care research group KFF. Medical financing, once an option mainly for care that wasn’t covered by insurance, like dental or hearing services, is now available for a variety of treatments, including checkups and emergency room visits, the consumer bureau found. Some of the cards and financing options can only be used for specific treatments, like cosmetic surgery or infertility care, while others leave it to the provider’s discretion. The loans may be convenient, particularly for patients with smaller balances that can be paid off relatively quickly.

☆ How to Deal With Rising Auto Insurance Rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The federation supports eliminating the use of credit scoring in insurance rating, saying it especially harms lower-income customers and people who live in minority neighborhoods. (At least three states — California, Hawaii and Massachusetts — bar the use of credit scoring in setting these premiums, and a few others limit its use.) Insurers defend giving better rates to drivers with good credit, saying it makes sense because those customers are less likely to file insurance claims. “The vast majority of customers get a better rate because we’re using credit scoring,” Mr. Passmore said. While many people “would rather get a root canal,” he said, getting auto insurance quotes isn’t difficult.

☆ Drag queens and the long, vibrant history of drag in the US
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( Scottie Andrew | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

Barbara Alper/Getty ImagesDrag has become increasingly visible in recent years through mainstream shows like “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and popular public events such as drag brunches, drag bingo and drag queen story hours, in which drag performers read children’s books to young audiences, often at libraries. Some trans drag queens who received hormone injections were “strongly deplored by stage impersonators who (said) that the whole point of female impersonation depends on maleness,” Newton wrote. But “Drag Race” has also skewed viewers’ definition of drag – no drag kings have ever competed on the series, Testa noted, and the judges have long imposed somewhat traditional beauty standards upon contestants. Pickle reads from a book during the Drag Queen Story Hour program at a Los Angeles library in 2019. These lawmakers falsely claim that drag performers “groom” or sexualize children, of which there is also no evidence.

☆ Forgot to File Your 2019 Taxes? You Still Can if You Want Your Refund.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

But another deadline looms for people who may be sitting on refunds because they have yet to file 2019 tax returns that were due in the early days of the pandemic. If they don’t file by the final cutoff of July 17, the U.S. Treasury keeps the money. Almost 1.5 million people have unclaimed federal refunds for tax year 2019, when the typical refund amount was nearly $900, the Internal Revenue Service said this month. While a deadline in July may sound like plenty of time, it can take a while to gather documents from previous tax years. “We want taxpayers to claim these refunds,” Daniel Werfel, the I.R.S.

☆ First Republic handed out billions in ultra-low-rate mortgages to the wealthy. It backfired horribly.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Matt Turner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The bank won wealthy clients with the offer of jumbo mortgage loans that required no principal payments for a decade. First Republic first moved into focus back in the March banking crisis that claimed Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, and Silvergate. Like SVB and Signature, a large percentage of First Republic deposits were not insured by the FDIC, making it especially susceptible to deposit flight. Wealthy clients can easily move their deposits away from First Republic while keeping their mortgage with the firm, which creates a liquidity challenge. First Republic is now backtracking from this strategy, saying it will focus on writing loans that are guaranteed by Fannie and Freddie.

☆ Rates on C.D.s Are Soaring, but the High Rates May Not Last
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

You want to be able to withdraw the cash quickly if you need it, without worrying about paying a penalty. You may be better off getting a slightly lower rate in a high-yield savings account, with fewer restrictions on withdrawals. If you have a large expense coming at a known date in the future, however — say, a college tuition payment — a longer-term C.D. The paltry interest rates of recent years punished retirees, she said, so higher C.D. rates of 3 to 5 percent offer welcome relief: “We’re in this golden moment.”But given concerns about the economy and uncertainty about whether the Federal Reserve will continue raising rates, it’s unclear how long banks will continue to pay the high rates.

☆ A Federal Tool Could Soon Make It Easier to Compare Credit Cards
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Ann Carrns | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

If a card’s rate depends on the applicant’s credit score — as most do — banks must report the lowest and highest rates charged, as well as the median A.P.R. (Credit scores are three-digit numbers that summarize your credit history; higher is better.) Now, the 25 biggest card issuers have to answer questions about all of their credit cards, not just their most popular offerings. The bureau is seeking more information about each card — asking, for instance, if it is a “secured” credit card, which requires a security deposit to establish a credit limit and is often used by people with limited credit histories or low credit scores. More than a dozen commercial websites already offer credit card comparison tools.

March 21 (Reuters) - Virginia sheriff deputies and medical staffers wrestled with a handcuffed Irvo Otieno, a 28-year-old Black man, for several minutes at a state mental hospital before he died, video surveillance shows. Police have arrested and charged three former employees of the mental health hospital and seven sheriffs deputies of Henrico County, Virginia, with second-degree murder in Otieno's death. Most of the deputies and hospital employees involved in the case are also Black. The video, a download link of which was made available in court documents, shows about six officers carrying Otieno into a room. At times as many as 10 deputies and hospital workers held him down while his legs were shackled and his arms were held behind his back.

☆ Ted Cruz's publisher shaved off his mullet on the cover of his new book about 'cultural Marxism'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ted Cruz's infamous mullet was edited out of a photo on the cover of his new book by the publisher. The Texas Republican announced last week that he's writing his third book, titled "Unwoke: How to Defeat Cultural Marxism in America." A person familiar with the matter told Insider that the decision to edit Cruz's mullet out of the picture was made by his publisher, the conservative outfit Regnery Publishing, and not the senator himself. "Is the routine touching up of a photo for a book cover considered newsworthy?" Cruz later began sporting a mullet fade as the Senate began debating impeachment charges against former President Donald Trump for incitement of an insurrection, prompting the Houston Chronicle to ask "What the hell is going on with Ted Cruz's hair?"

☆ Biden to nominate official to head U.S. auto safety agency
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - The White House said on Monday that President Joe Biden plans to nominate the acting head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to serve in the top job. She has overseen safety probes into Tesla (TSLA.O) and efforts to shrink traffic deaths and significantly boost vehicle fuel economy requirements. U.S. traffic deaths have risen sharply since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The agency is "investing a lot of resources" in the Tesla probe, Carlson said in January, declining to commit to a timeframe for resolving the probe. In June, NHTSA upgraded its defect probe into 830,000 Tesla vehicles with driver assistance system Autopilot and involving crashes with parked emergency vehicles.

The automaker said in a filing it "has received requests from the DOJ for documents related to Tesla’s Autopilot and FSD features." Reuters reported in October Tesla is under criminal investigation over claims that the company's electric vehicles could drive themselves. Acting National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) chief Ann Carlson said this month the agency is "working really fast" on the Tesla Autopilot investigation it opened in August 2021 that she termed "very extensive." In June, NHTSA upgraded to an engineering analysis its defect probe into 830,000 Tesla vehicles with Autopilot, a step that was necessary before the agency could demand a recall. The Wall Street Journal reported in October that the Securities and Exchange Commission is conducting a civil investigation into Tesla's Autopilot statements, citing sources.

☆ U.S. hits Volvo Group North America with $130 mln penalty over delayed recalls
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said Volvo Group agreed to a three-year consent order that includes one of the largest-ever penalties for violations under the recall law. Volvo Group North America agreed to oversight by an independent third-party auditor and will meet regularly with NHTSA to ensure it addresses any potential safety issues, the agency said. Volvo Group North America is the parent company to Mack Trucks, Nova Bus, Prevost Car (US), VNA Holding and Volvo Group Canada. Volvo Group must pay $65 million within 60 days and $45 million is due if it fails to comply with the agreement. Volvo Group is a separate entity from Volvo Cars.

☆ Testing group says Tesla Autopilot slips in driver assistance ratings
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Tesla's (TSLA.O) advanced driver assistance system Autopilot fell in a ranking of 12 major systems, Consumer Reports said Wednesday. Tesla, which was second in Consumer Reports ratings in 2020 behind Super Cruise, fell to seventh, the group said. "After all this time, Autopilot still doesn’t allow collaborative steering and doesn’t have an effective driver monitoring system," said Consumer Reports Auto Testing director Jake Fisher in a statement. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is investigating 830,000 Tesla vehicles with Autopilot after a series of crashes with parked emergency vehicles. NHTSA is reviewing whether Tesla vehicles adequately ensure drivers are paying attention.

☆ U.S. NTSB chair raises safety concerns about heavy electric vehicles
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - U.S. National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy on Wednesday raised concerns about the increased risk of severe injury and death from heavier electric vehicles on U.S. roads. The heavier weight "has a significant impact on safety for all road users," she said Wednesday in a speech. All GM vehicles are engineered to meet or exceed all applicable motor vehicle safety standards." Acting NHTSA Administrator Ann Carlson told reporters Monday that the agency was studying the impact of vehicle size on roadway safety. Carlson said the agency was "very concerned" about the "degree to which heavier vehicles contribute to greater fatality rates."

☆ U.S. agency plans to propose new fuel economy standards in April
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) plans to propose new fuel economy standards for the 2027 model year and beyond in April which could dramatically reshape new cars on America's roads. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has said it plans to introduce companion stringent vehicle greenhouse gas emissions standards from 2027 through at least the 2030 model year by March. In March 2020, Trump's Republican administration rolled back then-President Barack Obama's standards to only 1.5% annual increases in efficiency through 2026. In March, NHTSA reinstated a sharp increase in penalties for automakers whose vehicles do not meet Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) requirements for model years 2019 and beyond. The company then known as Fiat Chrysler paid $152.3 million in total CAFE fines for 2016 and 2017 model years.

☆ 'Extensive' Tesla Autopilot probe proceeding 'really fast' -U.S. official
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

In June, NHTSA upgraded to an engineering analysis its defect probe into 830,000 Tesla vehicles with driver assistance system Autopilot and involving crashes with parked emergency vehicles. NHTSA is reviewing whether Tesla vehicles adequately ensure drivers are paying attention. Tesla sells the $15,000 FSD software as an add-on which enables its vehicles to change lanes and park autonomously. That complements its standard "Autopilot" feature, which enables cars to steer, accelerate and brake within their lanes without driver intervention. Last month, NHTSA said it had opened two new special investigations into crashes involving Tesla vehicles where advanced driver assistance systems are suspected to have been in use.

☆ TikTok videos show exasperated Target shoppers battling carts that lock in place — and it shows how anti-theft measures make the shopping experience worse
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Nearly 2 million shopping carts are stolen each year, costing retailers an estimated $800 million. Videos of shoppers battling anti-theft devices on carts in a Target parking lot have gone viral on TikTok. A TikToker going by the name Taylor Ann cheerfully narrates in a video of the moment, which has amassed over 4.4 million views on TikTok. Taylor Ann acknowledges the technology has been around for years, but it can still come as a surprise when it arrives at your store. The Food Marketing Institute meanwhile estimates that 2 million shopping carts are stolen each year, costing retailers an upwards of $800 million globally.

☆ Black homeowners pushed out of one Baltimore block show how Wall Street banks failed to lend money they had promised, a Bloomberg investigation shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Alcynna Lloyd | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Banks promised to invest in Black communities after they were hit by the 2008-2009 financial crisis. The block stands as a glaring reminder of the broken promises made by some of Wall Street's biggest banks to support America's Black homeowners, a recent Bloomberg investigation shows. As of October 2021, according to the US Census Bureau, 45% of Black Americans owned homes, which is nearly 30 points below the rate of white Americans: 74.6%. On Walbrook Avenue, the absence of large lenders has left many locals without a lifeline. After the 2008-2009 financial crisis, several financial institutions made pledges to invest billions of dollars to support Black homeownership.

☆ More than half of people involved in road accidents had drugs or alcohol in their system, study says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Jen Christensen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —More than 55% of people involved in serious or fatal road accidents tested positive for drugs or alcohol, according to a new study. Alcohol and drugs can impair a person’s reaction time, thinking and physical ability to navigate the road. The study found that a quarter of serious or fatal accidents involved someone who tested positive for some form of weed, and nearly a quarter more had alcohol in their system. About 11% of people tested positive for some form of stimulant, like cocaine or methamphetamines, and 9% had opioids in their system. In 32% of the fatal accidents and 18% of the ones with serious injuries, there were two or more drugs in the system of someone involved.

☆ 6 Uber and Lyft drivers share their wildest holiday work tales, from drunk passengers to extreme tips
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Jenny Powers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Christmas can be a busy season for Uber and Lyft drivers taking passengers to their families' homes. Shelly Castle, 43, a Lyft driver in Houston, Texas: 'They wound up inviting me in and treating me to breakfast'Shelly Castle. Jonathan Gaurano, 29, an Uber driver in Los Angeles, California: 'I hatched a plan and set out to create an epic compilation video'Jonathan Gaurano. While this wasn't the first video I'd created incorporating Uber passengers, it was certainly my most popular. Bunny Rivera, 35, an Uber driver in Washington, DC: 'They refused to not give up and began chanting'Bunny Rivera and her son.

☆ More than 180,000 people overdosed on opioids and survived in the past year, new White House dashboard shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Jacqueline Howard | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

This first-of-its-kind dashboard was developed to track nonfatal opioid overdoses, which have become a growing public health concern as the US struggles with a decades-long opioid epidemic. It will “empower local communities” to tailor their opioid overdose responses and track their progress, Gupta said. “We know that there are significantly more nonfatal overdoses than fatal ones, of which there are over 100,000 a year. Across the United States, the powerful synthetic opioid fentanyl has become the most commonly used drug involved in drug overdoses. In 2020, a report from the CDC found that opioids have “substantial involvement” in nonfatal overdoses, including those involving other types of drugs, and these types of nonfatal overdoses are on the rise.

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