ReportWire

Tag: biden

  • Pete Buttigieg Admits Biden Administration Should’ve Done More To Grow Autonomous Vehicles — Says DOGE-Like Department ‘Makes Tons Of Sense’

    Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below.

    Biden-era Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says that the Biden administration could’ve done more to drive growth in the adoption of autonomous vehicles in the U.S.

    “We’re at the point where at least some of these technologies, right now, already, are safer than human beings and that’s only gonna increase and improve,” Buttigieg said during an appearance on the All In Podcast on Thursday, adding that the technology had the potential to “save a huge number of lives.”

    Buttigieg also outlined the differences in safety regulations between aviation and road safety, noting that hundreds of people lose their lives on the road daily in car crashes driven by human drivers. “It’s enough to fill a 737 every day,” Buttigieg said. “Are there things we could, or should have done, to accelerate AV adoption? I think the answer is yes,” Buttigieg said.

    Trending: If there was a new fund backed by Jeff Bezos offering a 7-9% target yield with monthly dividends would you invest in it?

    Sharing his insight into the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Buttigieg said that it made “tons of sense” in theory. “I would love, in theory, a Department of Government Efficiency that was actually about government efficiency,” Buttigieg said.

    He added that an ideal DOGE could do a lot of good, but “the DOGE we got, sent an email to every air traffic controller in the country, during an air traffic controller shortage, and suggested they quit being an air traffic controller, and get something “more productive” to do in the private sector,” Buttigieg said, criticizing the Elon Musk-led department that was tasked with cutting down excess federal spending.

    See Also: Missed Nvidia and Tesla? RAD Intel Could Be the Next AI Powerhouse — Invest Now at Just $0.81 a Share

    Recently, Uber Technologies Inc. (NYSE:UBER) CEO Dara Khosrowshahi predicted that most vehicles would be autonomous in 20+ years, comparing driving to “horseback riding” in the future. He also added that human drivers would become less safe than robots as autonomous driving technologies evolve with time.

    Khosrowshahi’s comments come amid a partnership with chipmaker Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA), which would target deploying over 100,000 autonomous vehicles by 2027 on Uber’s platform. The vehicles would be powered by Nvidia’s autonomous driving stack, which includes both hardware and software capabilities.

    Meanwhile, Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA) is slated to begin production of the Cybercab as the EV giant posted multiple job listings on its official website detailing open positions at the company’s Gigafactory in Texas for the Cybercab’s production.

    The Cybercab could also feature a steering wheel and pedals like traditional vehicles, something which wasn’t initially in the plans for Tesla, following comments by Board Chair Robyn Denholm that the company could add them to the vehicle to comply with safety regulations.

    Elsewhere, Alphabet Inc.‘s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) autonomous vehicle arm Waymo CEO Tekedra Mawakana called for transparency in the autonomous vehicle sector, noting that companies that weren’t transparent were not doing enough to make roads safer.

    Photo courtesy: Rich Koele on Shutterstock.com

    Trending Now:

    Building a resilient portfolio means thinking beyond a single asset or market trend. Economic cycles shift, sectors rise and fall, and no one investment performs well in every environment. That’s why many investors look to diversify with platforms that provide access to real estate, fixed-income opportunities, professional financial guidance, precious metals, and even self-directed retirement accounts. By spreading exposure across multiple asset classes, it becomes easier to manage risk, capture steady returns, and create long-term wealth that isn’t tied to the fortunes of just one company or industry.

    Backed by Jeff Bezos, Arrived Homes makes real estate investing accessible with a low barrier to entry. Investors can buy fractional shares of single-family rentals and vacation homes starting with as little as $100. This allows everyday investors to diversify into real estate, collect rental income, and build long-term wealth without needing to manage properties directly.

    Vinovest lets investors diversify into fine wine — a historically stable, low-volatility asset class that has outperformed the S&P 500 over multiple decades. With professionally managed portfolios, secure storage, and insurance included, users can invest in wine without needing to be experts themselves. Minimums start at $1,000, and investors retain full ownership of their wine, which has the potential to appreciate in value as global demand grows.

    For those seeking fixed-income style returns without Wall Street complexity, Worthy Property Bonds offers SEC-qualified, interest-bearing bonds starting at just $10. Investors earn a fixed 7% annual return, with funds deployed to small U.S. businesses. The bonds are fully liquid, meaning you can cash out anytime, making them attractive for conservative investors looking for steady, passive income.

    Self-directed investors looking to take greater control of their retirement savings may consider IRA Financial. The platform enables you to use a self-directed IRA or Solo 401(k) to invest in alternative assets such as real estate, private equity, or even crypto. This flexibility empowers retirement savers to go beyond traditional stocks and bonds, building diversified portfolios that align with their long-term wealth strategies.

    Moomoo isn’t just for trading — it’s also one of the most attractive places to park cash. New users can earn a promotional 8.1% APY on uninvested cash, combining a 3.85% base rate with a 4.25% booster once activated. On top of that, eligible new users can also score up to $1,000 in free Nvidia stock—but the real draw here is the ability to earn bank-beating interest rates without having to move into riskier assets.

    SoFi gives members access to a wide range of professionally managed alternative funds, covering everything from commodities and private credit to venture capital, hedge funds, and real estate. These funds can provide broader diversification, help smooth out portfolio volatility, and potentially boost total returns over time. Many of the funds have relatively low minimums, making alternative investing accessible.

    Range Wealth Management takes a modern, subscription-based approach to financial planning. Instead of charging asset-based fees, the platform offers flat-fee tiers that provide unlimited access to fiduciary advisors along with AI-powered planning tools. Investors can link their accounts without moving assets, while higher-level plans unlock advanced support for taxes, real estate, and multi-generational wealth strategies. This model makes Range especially appealing to high-earning professionals who want holistic advice and predictable pricing.

    For investors concerned about inflation or seeking portfolio protection, American Hartford Gold provides a simple way to buy and hold physical gold and silver within an IRA or direct delivery. With a minimum investment of $10,000, the platform caters to those looking to preserve wealth through precious metals while maintaining the option to diversify retirement accounts. It’s a favored choice for conservative investors who want tangible assets that historically hold value during uncertain markets.

    This article Pete Buttigieg Admits Biden Administration Should’ve Done More To Grow Autonomous Vehicles — Says DOGE-Like Department ‘Makes Tons Of Sense’ originally appeared on Benzinga.com

    Source link

  • Evidence About Burning Mouth Syndrome And Cannabinoids

    Evidence About Burning Mouth Syndrome And Cannabinoids shows cannabis may ease pain through CBD’s nerve-calming effects.

    If you mouth on fire frequently?  There is evidence about Burning Mouth Syndrome and cannabinoids. It is a weird, stubborn condition: people feel a persistent burning, tingling or scalding pain in the mouth with little or no visible signs. For many sufferers, the pain is daily and annoying enough to wreck sleep, mood and social meals — so new options are getting attention, including cannabis-based therapies. But before you reach for an edible or CBD oil, here’s what the research actually shows.

    RELATED: 5 Ways Microdosing Cannabis Can Boost Work Performance

    Short version about help with Burning Mouth Syndrome (BMS). there is encouraging, early evidence cannabinoids — particularly CBD-dominant or topical cannabis extracts — might reduce neuropathic oral pain for some people. A small, open-label pilot found cannabis sativa oil reduced symptoms in people with primary BMS, suggesting a signal worth studying in larger trials. That study didn’t prove a cure, but it’s the kind of clinical pilot which pushes the field forward.

    Photo by LeslieLauren/Getty Images

    Why cannabinoids could plausibly help, BMS is often considered a neuropathic pain disorder (a problem with how nerves signal pain). Cannabinoids act on the endocannabinoid system, which plays a role in modulating pain, inflammation and stress — all relevant to BMS. Broader reviews of cannabinoids for chronic and neuropathic pain report moderate benefit in some neuropathic conditions, which supports the idea targeted cannabis-based treatments might be useful for mouth pain too.

    One attractive idea is using topical or intra-oral CBD formulations (drops, rinses, or oil applied to the mucosa) to get local effects without strong psychoactive side effects. Emerging reviews and early trials suggest intraoral CBD or cannabis-containing mouthwashes can reduce inflammation, pain, and even change oral microbiota in some small studies — but these findings are preliminary and product formulations vary widely. If dryness (xerostomia) is an issue — a common BMS complaint — be cautious: some cannabinoid products and delivery methods can affect salivation differently.

    RELATED: Boomer And Gen Z Consume Marijuana For Similar Reasons

    High-quality randomized controlled trials for cannabis specifically in BMS are still limited. Systematic reviews of BMS treatments note while several options can help some patients, consistent, large-scale evidence is lacking — and the same is true for cannabinoids in this specific condition. That means clinicians and patients must balance promising pilot data with uncertainty and potential side effects.

    A few practical takeaways

    • If considering cannabis for BMS, prioritize CBD-dominant or topical formulations and avoid high-dose THC until you know how you react.

    • Talk with your dentist/oral medicine specialist first — rule out nutritional deficiencies, meds, or infections mimicking BMS.

    • Expect a trial-and-error approach: some patients report meaningful relief; others don’t. A 2023 patient survey also found many people with neuropathic pain reported symptom improvement with cannabis, but self-report data has limits.

    Bottom line: cannabis is a promising avenue for some people with BMS, especially CBD/topical approaches, but evidence is early. If you’re curious, involve your clinician, start low, and track outcomes — the science is moving, but not finished.

    Amy Hansen

    Source link

  • ‘I ain’t got nothing from you’: Man lashes out at Donald Trump as he accuses him of giving away billions to Argentina | The Mary Sue

    It looks like Donald Trump’s loyal supporters are finally starting to see through their orange dictator’s lies. 

    In a recently trending TikTok video that was widely shared on social media sites like X (formerly Twitter), an elderly man was heard complaining about US President Donald Trump. The man was seen wearing a Trump MAGA hat and asking the president why he gave 40 billion dollars to his “buddy in Argentina.” This was in reference to recent reports that the Trump administration had given $20 billion to the Javier Milei government as a financial lifeline in the face of an escalating economic crisis. The man criticised Trump and his administration harshly while also pointing out that he had benefited from stimulus checks from Obama, Clinton, Biden, and George W. Bush. Bush, whereas Trump gave him nothing at all. The man began his speech by saying:

    “Mr Trump. I am your supporter (points towards his MAGA hat). But, I gotta ask you this question coz everybody’s asking it. What the fuck are you doing giving 40 billion dollars to your buddy in Argentina, and you haven’t even given the Americans any money yet?”

    He continued:

    “I got stimulus checks from Obama, and some from Clinton, and some from Biden, and I got two of them from Bush 43. I ain’t got nothing from you, and you are giving 40 billion dollars to Argentina because he is your friend? That sounds like bribery money to me.”

    The man’s remarks caused a huge social media uproar, with many people criticising the Trump administration’s action at a time when the United States is experiencing a shutdown and many workers are still on unpaid furlough, with some even facing the possibility of being fired in the coming weeks, as the Republicans have hinted. 

    As usual, some also jumped in to defend their leader, pointing out that the sum was intended to be a currency exchange that would eventually be advantageous to both sides. While that may be accurate, keep in mind that Trump stated that he would only give Argentina the money if Milei was able to hold onto power. This means that he would not assist if someone he dislikes took over, which tells me that there is some malice involved. Do you really think that anything Trump does is free from that?

    Have a tip we should know? [email protected]

    Image of Sanchari Ghosh

    Sanchari Ghosh

    Sanchari Ghosh is a political writer for The Mary Sue who enjoys keeping up with what’s going on in the world and sometimes reminding everyone what they should be talking about. She’s been around for a few years, but still gets excited whenever she disentangles a complicated story. When she’s not writing, she’s likely sleeping, eating, daydreaming, or just hanging out with friends. Politics is her passion, but so is an amazing nap.

    Sanchari Ghosh

    Source link

  • Biden starts radiation therapy for aggressive form of prostate cancer

    Shocking health announcement coming from the Biden family. Former President Joe Biden diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones. His personal office releasing this statement on Sunday saying Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for *** new finding of *** prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms. On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. By *** Gleason score of 9 with metastasis to the bone. While this represents *** more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone sensitive, which allows for effective management. The statement went on to say that the 82-year-old and his family are reviewing treatment options. The fact that we’re told that this is metastatic now, the 5 year survival rate on average is about 33%. So you know there are some people that do well and some people that don’t do well. The American Cancer Society estimates 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime. Because there’s such *** high volume, there’s *** lot of research dedicated to its treatment. Medical experts say cancer that has spread to *** patient’s bones can add further complications. Biden, as I said, has always lived his life. In the public eye and has always thought there was *** value in showing other people going through difficult times. His former Vice President Kamala Harris posting this on X. Joe is *** fighter, and I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience, and optimism that have always defined his life and leadership. We are hopeful for *** full and speedy recovery. I’m Jen Sullivan reporting.

    Former President Joe Biden has started radiation therapy as part of his treatment for prostate cancer, a spokesperson for the former president told CNN.Video above from May 2025: Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an “aggressive” form of prostate cancer”As part of a treatment plan for prostate cancer, President Biden is currently undergoing radiation therapy and hormone treatment,” the spokesperson said.The news was first reported by NBC News. A spokesperson for the former president, who turns 83 next month, did not give a timeline for the treatment.Biden’s personal office revealed in May that he had been diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer that had spread to his bones.”The expectation is we’re going to be able to beat this,” Biden told CNN in his first comments about the diagnosis two weeks after he received it. “It’s not in any organ, it’s in – my bones are strong, it hadn’t penetrated. So, I’m feeling good.”He added that he had started a pill regimen to treat the cancer.Last month, Biden had Mohs surgery, an operation used to remove skin cancer lesions. In that procedure, thin layers of skin are removed and examined under a microscope until the doctor sees no signs of skin cancer cells. It’s typically used to treat cancerous lesions that have returned after previous treatment, are fast-growing, or are in important areas like the face, hands or genitals.In 2023, while president, Biden had a lesion removed from his chest, which later tested positive for basal cell carcinoma. At the time, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who served as Biden’s physician in the White House, said “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed” and Biden would continue “dermatological surveillance.”Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer. It’s slow-growing and usually curable.

    Former President Joe Biden has started radiation therapy as part of his treatment for prostate cancer, a spokesperson for the former president told CNN.

    Video above from May 2025: Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an “aggressive” form of prostate cancer

    “As part of a treatment plan for prostate cancer, President Biden is currently undergoing radiation therapy and hormone treatment,” the spokesperson said.

    The news was first reported by NBC News. A spokesperson for the former president, who turns 83 next month, did not give a timeline for the treatment.

    Biden’s personal office revealed in May that he had been diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer that had spread to his bones.

    “The expectation is we’re going to be able to beat this,” Biden told CNN in his first comments about the diagnosis two weeks after he received it. “It’s not in any organ, it’s in – my bones are strong, it hadn’t penetrated. So, I’m feeling good.”

    He added that he had started a pill regimen to treat the cancer.

    Last month, Biden had Mohs surgery, an operation used to remove skin cancer lesions. In that procedure, thin layers of skin are removed and examined under a microscope until the doctor sees no signs of skin cancer cells. It’s typically used to treat cancerous lesions that have returned after previous treatment, are fast-growing, or are in important areas like the face, hands or genitals.

    In 2023, while president, Biden had a lesion removed from his chest, which later tested positive for basal cell carcinoma. At the time, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who served as Biden’s physician in the White House, said “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed” and Biden would continue “dermatological surveillance.”

    Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer. It’s slow-growing and usually curable.

    Source link

  • Biden starts radiation therapy for aggressive form of prostate cancer

    Shocking health announcement coming from the Biden family. Former President Joe Biden diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones. His personal office releasing this statement on Sunday saying Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for *** new finding of *** prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms. On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer. By *** Gleason score of 9 with metastasis to the bone. While this represents *** more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone sensitive, which allows for effective management. The statement went on to say that the 82-year-old and his family are reviewing treatment options. The fact that we’re told that this is metastatic now, the 5 year survival rate on average is about 33%. So you know there are some people that do well and some people that don’t do well. The American Cancer Society estimates 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime. Because there’s such *** high volume, there’s *** lot of research dedicated to its treatment. Medical experts say cancer that has spread to *** patient’s bones can add further complications. Biden, as I said, has always lived his life. In the public eye and has always thought there was *** value in showing other people going through difficult times. His former Vice President Kamala Harris posting this on X. Joe is *** fighter, and I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience, and optimism that have always defined his life and leadership. We are hopeful for *** full and speedy recovery. I’m Jen Sullivan reporting.

    Former President Joe Biden has started radiation therapy as part of his treatment for prostate cancer, a spokesperson for the former president told CNN.Video above from May 2025: Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an “aggressive” form of prostate cancer”As part of a treatment plan for prostate cancer, President Biden is currently undergoing radiation therapy and hormone treatment,” the spokesperson said.The news was first reported by NBC News. A spokesperson for the former president, who turns 83 next month, did not give a timeline for the treatment.Biden’s personal office revealed in May that he had been diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer that had spread to his bones.”The expectation is we’re going to be able to beat this,” Biden told CNN in his first comments about the diagnosis two weeks after he received it. “It’s not in any organ, it’s in – my bones are strong, it hadn’t penetrated. So, I’m feeling good.”He added that he had started a pill regimen to treat the cancer.Last month, Biden had Mohs surgery, an operation used to remove skin cancer lesions. In that procedure, thin layers of skin are removed and examined under a microscope until the doctor sees no signs of skin cancer cells. It’s typically used to treat cancerous lesions that have returned after previous treatment, are fast-growing, or are in important areas like the face, hands or genitals.In 2023, while president, Biden had a lesion removed from his chest, which later tested positive for basal cell carcinoma. At the time, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who served as Biden’s physician in the White House, said “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed” and Biden would continue “dermatological surveillance.”Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer. It’s slow-growing and usually curable.

    Former President Joe Biden has started radiation therapy as part of his treatment for prostate cancer, a spokesperson for the former president told CNN.

    Video above from May 2025: Former President Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an “aggressive” form of prostate cancer

    “As part of a treatment plan for prostate cancer, President Biden is currently undergoing radiation therapy and hormone treatment,” the spokesperson said.

    The news was first reported by NBC News. A spokesperson for the former president, who turns 83 next month, did not give a timeline for the treatment.

    Biden’s personal office revealed in May that he had been diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer that had spread to his bones.

    “The expectation is we’re going to be able to beat this,” Biden told CNN in his first comments about the diagnosis two weeks after he received it. “It’s not in any organ, it’s in – my bones are strong, it hadn’t penetrated. So, I’m feeling good.”

    He added that he had started a pill regimen to treat the cancer.

    Last month, Biden had Mohs surgery, an operation used to remove skin cancer lesions. In that procedure, thin layers of skin are removed and examined under a microscope until the doctor sees no signs of skin cancer cells. It’s typically used to treat cancerous lesions that have returned after previous treatment, are fast-growing, or are in important areas like the face, hands or genitals.

    In 2023, while president, Biden had a lesion removed from his chest, which later tested positive for basal cell carcinoma. At the time, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, who served as Biden’s physician in the White House, said “all cancerous tissue was successfully removed” and Biden would continue “dermatological surveillance.”

    Basal cell carcinoma is the most common type of skin cancer. It’s slow-growing and usually curable.

    Source link

  • Study Reveals Stance By Physicians And Public About Cannabis

    New research has been done on support for marijuana legalization – and it is surprising

    The numbers are in, and they tell a story America’s been building toward for decades. A new study reveals stance by physicians and the public about cannabis. The MRI-Simmons 2025 National Cannabis Study reveals use, interest, and acceptance are now part of everyday American life. What began as a counterculture experiment has matured into a mainstream market—and a movement reshaping everything from medicine to espresso martinis.

    RELATED: 5 Ways Microdosing Cannabis Can Boost Work Performance

    Once seen as taboo, cannabis is now embraced by a broad cross-section of the country. Millennials and Gen Z lead the charge, but even boomers are catching up. The study shows a steep climb in the number of Americans who say they’ve tried or regularly use cannabis products, with sharp rises in interest in CBD, microdosing, and low-dose edibles designed for relaxation and wellness.

    The shift in attitude coincides with a historic change in federal policy. After more than fifty years as a Schedule I drug—a category reserved for substances with “no accepted medical use”—cannabis is finally on track for rescheduling. Federal agencies under the Biden administration have proposed moving it to Schedule III, recognizing its legitimate medical potential and easing research and tax barriers.  The industry is waiting for the federal government to make a move as the have suggested.

    The decision is backed by a growing chorus in the medical community. The American Medical Association, American College of Physicians, and American Public Health Association all support more research access and medically guided legalization. For the first time, major medical institutions are signaling prohibition is outdated, unscientific, and harmful to patients.

    Polls now show nearly nine out of ten Americans support legal cannabis in some form. Even in conservative regions, medical use enjoys overwhelming approval. MRI-Simmons data finds public curiosity has evolved into cultural adoption—especially among wellness-oriented consumers who see cannabis as part of a balanced lifestyle rather than a rebellious act.

    The change is having ripple effects across industries, especially in alcohol. Beer sales have flattened as younger drinkers swap bar nights for low-dose cannabis drinks or CBD-infused mocktails. Wine and spirits are pivoting fast—introducing zero-proof lines and “cannabis-inspired” beverages to stay relevant. The alcohol industry, once a distant observer, is now studying the cannabis consumer closely.

    RELATED: Boomer And Gen Z Consume Marijuana For Similar Reasons

    As cannabis moves from stigmatized to standardized, the conversation has matured. It’s less about getting high and more about how people choose to relax, recover, and reconnect.

    The MRI-Simmons 2025 study doesn’t just track consumer data—it captures a cultural turning point. Cannabis is now part of the American mainstream, supported by science, normalized by policy, and embraced by the public.

    The only question left is how fast the rest of the system will catch up.

    Amy Hansen

    Source link

  • Supreme Court says again Trump may cancel temporary protections for Venezuelans granted under Biden

    The Supreme Court has ruled for a second time that the Trump administration may cancel the “temporary protected status” given to about 600,000 Venezuelans under the Biden administration.

    The move, advocates for the Venezuelans said, means thousands of lawfully present individuals could lose their jobs, be detained in immigration facilities and deported to a country that the U.S. government considers unsafe to visit.

    The high court granted an emergency appeal from Trump’s lawyers and set aside decisions of U.S. District Judge Edward Chen in San Francisco and the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

    “Although the posture of the case has changed, the parties’ legal arguments and relative harms generally have not. The same result that we reached in May is appropriate here,” the court said in an unsigned order.

    Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor said they would have denied the appeal.

    Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented. “I view today’s decision as yet another grave misuse of our emergency docket,” she wrote. “Because, respectfully, I cannot abide our repeated, gratuitous, and harmful interference with cases pending in the lower courts while lives hang in the balance, I dissent.”

    Last month, a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem had overstepped her legal authority by canceling the legal protection.

    Her decision “threw the future of these Venezuelan citizens into disarray and exposed them to substantial risk of wrongful removal, separation from their families and loss of employment,” the panel wrote.

    But Trump’s lawyers said the law bars judges from reviewing these decisions by U.S. immigration officials.

    Congress authorized this protected status for people who are already in the United States but cannot return home because their native countries are not safe.

    The Biden administration offered the protections to Venezuelans because of the political and economic collapse brought about by the authoritarian regime of Nicolás Maduro.

    Alejandro Mayorkas, the Homeland Security secretary under Biden, granted the protected status to groups of Venezuelans in 2021 and 2023, totaling about 607,000 people.

    Mayorkas extended it again in January, three days before Trump was sworn in. That same month, Noem decided to reverse the extension, which was set to expire for both groups of Venezuelans in October 2026.

    Shortly after, Noem announced the termination of protections for the 2023 group by April.

    In March, Chen issued an order temporarily pausing Noem’s repeal, which the Supreme Court set aside in May with only Jackson in dissent.

    The San Francisco judge then held a hearing on the issue and concluded Noem’s repeal violated the Administrative Procedure Act because it was arbitrary and and not justified.

    He said his earlier order imposing a temporary pause did not prevent him from ruling on the legality of the repeal, and the 9th Circuit agreed.

    The approximately 350,000 Venezuelans who had TPS through the 2023 designation saw their legal status restored. Many reapplied for work authorization, said Ahilan Arulanantham, co-director of the Center for Immigration Law and Policy at UCLA School of Law, and a counsel for the plaintiffs.

    In the meantime, Noem announced the cancellation of the 2021 designation, effective Nov. 7.

    Trump’s solicitor general, D. John Sauer, went back to the Supreme Court in September and urged the justices to set aside the second order from Chen.

    “This case is familiar to the Court and involves the increasingly familiar and untenable phenomenon of lower courts disregarding this Court’s orders on the emergency docket,” he said.

    The Supreme Court’s decision once again reverses the legal status of the 2023 group and cements the end of legal protections for the 2021 group next month.

    In a further complication, the Supreme Court’s previous decision said that anyone who had already received documents verifying their TPS status or employment authorization through next year is entitled to keep it.

    That, Arulanantham said, “creates another totally bizarre situation, where there are some people who will have TPS through October 2026 as they’re supposed to because the Supreme Court says if you already got a document it can’t be canceled. Which to me just underscores how arbitrary and irrational the whole situation is.”

    Advocates for the Venezuelans said the Trump administration has failed to show that their presence in the U.S. is an emergency requiring immediate court relief.

    In a brief filed Monday, attorneys for the National TPS Alliance argued the Supreme Court should deny the Trump administration’s request because Homeland Security officials acted outside the scope of their authority by revoking the TPS protections early.

    “Stripping the lawful immigration status of 600,000 people on 60 days’ notice is unprecedented,” Jessica Bansal, an attorney representing the Los Angeles-based National Day Laborer Organizing Network, wrote in a statement. “Doing it after promising an additional 18 months protection is illegal.”

    David G. Savage, Andrea Castillo

    Source link

  • Commentary: Did Kamala Harris just destroy her 2028 chances? Is Gavin Newsom glad she did?

    Democrats, despite their hypersensitive, bleeding-heart reputation, can be harsh. Ruthless, even.

    When it comes to picking their presidential nominee, it’s often one and done. Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis, Al Gore and John Kerry were embraced and then, after leading their party to disappointing defeat, cast off like so many wads of wet tissue.

    Compare that with Republicans, who not only believe in second chances but, more often than not, seem to prefer their presidential candidates recycled. Over the last half century, all but a few of the GOP’s nominees have had at least one failed White House bid on their resume.

    The roster of retreads includes the current occupant of the Oval Office, who is only the second president in U.S. history to regain the perch after losing it four years prior.

    Why the difference? It would take a psychologist or geneticist to determine if there’s something in the minds or molecular makeup of party faithful, which could explain their varied treatment of those humbled and vanquished.

    Regardless, it suggests the blowback facing Kamala Harris and the campaign diary she published last week is happening right on cue.

    And it doesn’t portend well for another try at the White House in 2028, should the former vice president and U.S. senator from California pursue that path.

    The criticism has come in assorted flavors.

    Joe Biden loyalists — many of whom were never great fans of Harris — have bristled at her relatively mild criticisms of the obviously aged and physically declining president. (She leaves it to her husband, former Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, to vent about the “impossible, s— jobs” Harris was given and, in spite of that, the failure of the president and first lady to defend Harris during her low points.)

    The notable lack of self-blame has rankled other Democrats. Aside from some couldas and shouldas, Harris largely ascribes her defeat to insufficient time to make her case to voters — just 107 days, the title of her book — which hardly sits well with those who feel Harris squandered the time she did have.

    More generally, some Democrats fault the former vice president for resurfacing, period, rather than slinking off and disappearing forever into some deep, dark hole. It’s a familiar gripe each time the party struggles to move past a presidential defeat; Hillary Clinton faced a similar backlash when she published her inside account after losing to Donald Trump in 2016.

    That critique assumes great masses of voters devour campaign memoirs with the same voracious appetite as those who surrender their Sundays to the Beltway chat shows, or mainline political news like a continuous IV drip.

    They do not.

    Let the record show Democrats won the White House in 2020 even though Clinton bobbed back up in 2017 and, for a short while, thwarted the party’s fervent desire to “turn the page.”

    But there are those avid consumers of campaigns and elections, and for the political fiends among us Harris offers plenty of fizz, much of it involving her party peers and prospective 2028 rivals.

    Pete Buttigieg, the meteoric star of the 2020 campaign, was her heartfelt choice for vice president, but Harris said she feared the combination of a Black woman and gay running mate would exceed the load-bearing capacity of the electorate. (News to me, Buttigieg said after Harris revealed her thinking, and an underestimation of the American people.)

    Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, the runner-up to Harris’ ultimate vice presidential pick, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, comes across as unseemly salivating and greedily lusting after the job. (He fired back by suggesting Harris has some splainin’ to do about what she knew of Biden’s infirmities and when she knew it.)

    Harris implies Govs. JB Pritzker and Gretchen Whitmer of Illinois and Michigan, respectively, were insufficiently gung-ho after Biden stepped aside and she became the Democratic nominee-in-waiting.

    But for California readers, the most toothsome morsel involves Harris’ longtime frenemy, Gov. Gavin Newsom.

    The two, who rose to political power in the early 2000s on parallel tracks in San Francisco, have long had a complicated relationship, mixing mutual aid with jealousy and jostling.

    In her book, Harris recounts the hours after Biden’s sudden withdrawal, when she began telephoning top Democrats around the country to lock in their support. In contrast to the enthusiasm many displayed, Newsom responded tersely with a text message: “Hiking. Will call back.”

    He never did, Harris noted, pointedly, though Newsom did issue a full-throated endorsement within hours, which the former vice president failed to mention.

    It’s small-bore stuff. But the fact Harris chose to include that anecdote speaks to the tetchiness underlying the warmth and fuzziness that California’s two most prominent Democrats put on public display.

    Will the two face off in 2028?

    Riding the promotional circuit, Harris has repeatedly sidestepped the inevitable questions about another presidential bid.

    “That’s not my focus right now,” she told Rachel Maddow, in a standard-issue non-denial denial. For his part, Newsom is obviously running, though he won’t say so.

    There would be something operatic, or at least soap-operatic, about the two longtime competitors openly vying for the country’s ultimate political prize — though it’s hard to see Democrats, with their persistent hunger for novelty, turning to Harris or her left-coast political doppelganger as their savior.

    Meantime, the two are back on parallel tracks, though seemingly headed in opposite directions.

    While Newsom is looking to build Democratic bridges, Harris is burning hers down.

    Mark Z. Barabak

    Source link

  • Trump urges Supreme Court to uphold his worldwide tariffs in a fast-track ruling

    President Trump has asked the Supreme Court for a fast-track ruling that he has broad power acting on his own to impose tariffs on products coming from countries around the world.

    Despite losing in the lower courts, Trump and his lawyers have reason to believe they can win in the Supreme Court. The six conservative justices believe in strong presidential power, particularly in the area of foreign policy and national security.

    In a three-page appeal filed Wednesday evening, they proposed the court decide by next Wednesday to grant review and to hear arguments in early November.

    They said the lower court setbacks, unless quickly reversed, “gravely undermine the President’s ability to conduct real-world diplomacy and his ability to protect the national security and economy of the United States.”

    They cited Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s warning about the potential for economic disruption if the court does not act soon.

    “Delaying a ruling until June 26 could result in a scenario in which $750 billion-$1 trillion have already been collected and unwinding them could cause significant disruption,” he wrote.

    Trump and his tariffs ran into three strong arguments in the lower courts.

    First, the Constitution says Congress, not the president, has the power “to lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises,” and a tariff is an import tax.

    Second, the 1977 emergency powers law that Trump relies on does not mention tariffs, taxes or duties, and no previous president has used it to impose tariffs.

    And third, the Supreme Court has frowned on recent presidents who relied on old laws to justify bold, new, costly regulations.

    So far, however, the so-called “major questions” doctrine has been used to restrict Democratic presidents, not Republicans.

    Three years ago, the court’s conservative majority struck down a major climate change regulation proposed by Presidents Obama and Biden that could have transformed the electric power industry on the grounds it was not clearly based on the Clean Air Act of the 1970s.

    Two years ago, the court in the same 6-3 vote struck down Biden’s plan to forgive hundreds of millions of dollars in student loans. Congress had said the Education Department may “waive or modify” monthly loan payments during a national emergency like the COVID-19 pandemic, but it did not say the loans may be forgiven, the court said. Its opinion noted the “staggering” cost could be more than $500 billion.

    The impact of Trump’s tariffs figures to be at least five times greater, a federal appeals court said last week in ruling them illegal.

    In a 7-4 vote, the federal circuit court cited all three arguments in ruling Trump had exceeded his legal authority.

    “We conclude Congress, in enacting the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, did not give the president wide-ranging authority to impose tariffs,” they said.

    But the outcome was not a total loss for Trump. The appellate judges put their decision on hold until the Supreme Court rules. That means Trump’s tariffs are likely to remain in effect for many months.

    Trump’s lawyers were heartened by the dissent written by Judge Richard Taranto and joined by three others.

    He argued that presidents are understood to have extra power when confronted with foreign threats to the nation’s security.

    Taranto called the 1977 law “an eyes-open congressional grant of broad emergency authority in this foreign-affairs realm” that said the president may “regulate” the “importation” of dangerous products including drugs coming into this country.

    Citing other laws from that era, he said Congress understood that tariffs and duties are a “common tool of import regulation.”

    David G. Savage

    Source link

  • Trump announces Space Command HQ will switch to Alabama from Colorado

    Donald Trump made his first public appearance in a week on Tuesday to announce that the US Space Command (Spacecom) headquarters, which is tasked with leading national security operations in space, would be in the Republican stronghold of Alabama.

    Flanked by Republican senators and members of Congress at a White House news conference, Trump said Huntsville, Alabama, would be the new location of the space command. The move reverses a Biden administration decision to put the facility at its current temporary headquarters in Democratic-leaning Colorado.

    “The US Space Command headquarters will move to the beautiful locale of a place called Huntsville, Alabama, forever to be known from this point forward as Rocket City,” Trump said. “We had a lot of competition but Alabama’s getting it.”

    The move would result in more than 30,000 new jobs and bring hundreds of billions of dollars to Alabama, a state which voted for Trump “by about 47 points”, the president said.

    “They fought harder for it than anyone else,” Trump claimed, before adding that Colorado’s decision to allow mail-in voting was “corrupt”.

    “The problem I have with Colorado, one of the big problems, [is that] they do mail-in voting,” he said. “So they have automatically crooked elections and we can’t have that. When a state is for mail-in voting, that means they want dishonest elections. So that played a big factor.”

    Huntsville is already home to the US Army Space and Missile Defense Command, Nasa’s Marshall Space Flight center and the 38,000-acre Redstone Arsenal. The city was identified by the US air force as its preferred site for Space Command in 2021 as it would be a cost-effective option. A report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) later found that the air force’s decision-making process had “significant shortfalls in its transparency and credibility”.

    Two years later, in 2023, Biden overturned those plans to relocate to Alabama. Instead, Biden chose to make the then temporary Colorado Springs location permanent, taking a recommendation from Gen James Dickinson, the former head of Space Command. Dickinson reportedly said relocating to Alabama could jeopardize military readiness as making the headquarters fully operational would take time.

    Related: Golden Dome missile defense program won’t be operational by end of Trump’s term

    “For FOUR YEARS, I have fought to get U.S. Space Command moved to its SELECTED home at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama,” Senator Tommy Tuberville wrote alongside a video statement after Trump’s announcement. “Thank you, President Trump and Secretary [Pete] Hegseth, for reversing Joe Biden’s political cronyism and restoring MERIT and INTEGRITY to this process.”

    Tuberville lambasted Biden’s 2023 decision to keep Spacecom in Colorado Springs in his video and said the former president let the “nation’s security [take] a backseat to politics” and “caved” to “woke politics” at the time. He then thanked Trump for “restoring merit and integrity” to space exploration and alleged the move would save taxpayers $480m.

    Trump’s announcement of a change of course followed days of fevered online speculation about his health, fueled by his absence from the public eye since last week.

    Asked if he was aware that there had been 1.3m social media engagements as of Saturday morning speculating on his possible “demise”, Trump countered that he had held several news conferences in the past week and pointed to some “pretty poignant” posts he had made on his Truth Social platform.

    “I did numerous news conferences, all successful. They went very well, like this is going very well. And then I didn’t do any for two days, and they said ‘there must be something wrong with him,’” he said.

    “Biden wouldn’t do them for months, you wouldn’t see him, and nobody ever said there was ever anything wrong with him – and we know he wasn’t in the greatest of shape. It’s all fake news.”

    Speculation about Trump’s health has recently intensified. Some of the fervor has been spurred by a White House disclosure that he was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a condition involving damage to the veins in the arms and legs. There has also been viral pictures showing Trump with swollen ankles and bruising on his hands.

    Elsewhere in his announcement, Trump indicated that he had decided to send armed troops into Chicago, allegedly to fight crime. Such a move is against the will of JB Pritzker, the governor of Illinois, and follows the recent controversial deployment of national guard forces in Washington on the same purported basis.

    “We’re going in,” he said, calling Chicago and Baltimore – another Democratic-run city – “hellholes”.

    He said the deployment of national guard troops in Washington DC had “served as a template,” adding: “I’m very proud of Washington. [It’s] a safe zone.”

    Source link

  • The Odds of Cannabis Rescheduling

    The Administration is hinting about being open to rescheduling – the betting markets aren’t

    Despite campaign promises, the current administration has made zero movement on cannabis rescheduling or any relief.  Leaders have even been known to say progress needs to be repealed, so they industry crossed their fingers and are holding their breath. But what are the odds of cannabis rescheduling?

    As Washington plays its long game on cannabis policy, anyone trying to place a bet — literal or figurative — needs to understand the levers which move markets. Rescheduling marijuana from Schedule I to III (or descheduling it altogether) is no single act of presidential will: it’s a legal, scientific and political sieve. Here are the key factors driving the “odds” markets and pundits watch.

    RELATED: GOP Senator Rides To The Rescue Of Hemp

    First, the administrative roadmap matters. The Biden administration asked HHS and the Attorney General to review marijuana’s classification; HHS recommended moving cannabis to Schedule III and the DOJ/DEA issued a formal notice of proposed rulemaking — steps which create a legal timetable and public record investors and bettors can price in.

    Photo by 2H Media via Unsplash

    Second, scientific and regulatory endorsements carry weight. HHS and FDA evaluations find “accepted medical use” or manageable public health risks make it easier legally to reclassify a drug — and they reduce political risk for a President who wants to claim an evidence-based approach. Administrative backing is why many analysts view rescheduling as procedurally plausible even if politically fraught.

    Third, the politics — both partisan and populist — shape the tail risk. Congressional pushback, pro- and anti-legalization lobbying, and changing agency leadership can slow or stall rescheduling even after agencies finish technical work. Recent reporting shows a robust anti-legalization counter-movement and procedural hurdles in agency hearings could delay outcomes. Those dynamics widen the odds range and lengthen timelines.

    Fourth, the legal process itself is a drag on quick outcomes. Rule-making, notice-and-comment periods, administrative hearings and possible judicial review create long windows where new information — court decisions, staffing changes, election results — can swing markets. Prediction markets typically discount long, legally complex outcomes because the information flow is slow and lumpy.

    Polymarket, one of the fastest-growing decentralized prediction markets, thrives on politically charged, binary-outcome questions — from election results to Supreme Court decisions. Cannabis rescheduling fits the bill: a concrete policy decision with a clear yes/no resolution and a definable deadline. Once the DEA sets a final action date, expect a market to open where traders can wager on whether rescheduling happens before the deadline. The volatility of political and legal developments would make it one of the more active contracts, with odds shifting on every new filing, leak, or press statement.

    RELATED: The Science Behind Cannabis And Happiness

    Finally, public opinion and electoral calculation matter. Broad public support for legalization gives political cover, especially when the change can be framed as criminal-justice reform or pro-small-business tax relief. But close or contentious state votes, and targeted anti-reform campaigns, can make lawmakers and presidents more cautious — and that caution is reflected in slimmer betting odds.

    What this means for would-be bettors: look for administrative milestones (HHS/FDA reports, Federal Register notices, DEA hearings) as the most reliable catalysts shifting probabilities. Prediction markets and bookies will move when those documents or hearing outcomes arrive — until then, odds will reflect process risk as much as policy intent.

    Anthony Washington

    Source link

  • Does Marijuana Have Any Sway In The Election

    Does Marijuana Have Any Sway In The Election

    Since 2016 cannabis has began slowly legalizing across Canada and the US. Recent research says almost 90% believe it should be legalized.  Additionally, California Sober has become a thing, beer sales have flattened and even AARP has joined esteemed medical organizations saying cannabis should be recognized for the health benefits. States are reaping huge tax revenue, but the industry is still struggling without some type of federal recognization. But does marijuana have any sway in the election?

    RELATED: Red States Lean Green This Election

    Top concerns of voters include the economy, healthcare, the Supreme Court and abortion, with over 60% of voters considering them very important. And although cannabis consumers use is generally seen more of a democrat habit than republicans, a number of repubicans are fans. Some larger influencers in the industry have been staunch supporter of the GOP nominee.  A recent poll found 42% of Republicans and GOP-leaning independent favor legalizing marijuana for both recreational and medical compared with 72% of Democrats.  Florida governor Ron DeSantis is struggling to prevent an expanded cannabis ballot initiative passing in Florida.  But do voters really consider marijuana when choosing?

    Photo by Lingbeek/Getty Images

    While the industry is full of bros who believe they have influence over the election and congress, the numbers don’t add up. It isn’t a make or break issue for most voters. Biden delayed any action on marijuana, despite his promise in 2020, until the last part of this term.  Because of this, even if he manages to push things through with the Drug Enforcement Administration, it will be 2025 before any help comes. The GOP nominee’s has come out in support of the Florida initiative against his old foe DeSantis, but leaders in his party are against any legal form of marijuana. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has made it very clear cannabis is a no go.

    A recent YouGov poll revealed , voters trust the Democratic nominee to handle cannabis laws (27 percent), compared to the GOP candidate (20 percent). But more Trump supporters say marijuana issues are important them (17 percent) than Harris supporters (11 percent).  It could mean older conservative believe the GOP will reverse marijuana trends.

    RELATED: Musk Supports DeSantis Blocking Marijuana Legalization

    The good news is alcohol is a major partner of cannabis having invested over $13 billion in the industry, and they have a longer term relationship with Congress.  Constellation, one of the largest players of spirits, wine and beer, made $22 billion in revenue last year compared to the $33 billon the entire marijuana raked in.

    Does the industry have a say in the election, absolutely via support, donation and campaigns.  But on average, marijuana is not a major issue for most voters.

    Terry Hacienda

    Source link

  • For Biden, a bittersweet moment as he casts a ballot he once wanted to be on

    For Biden, a bittersweet moment as he casts a ballot he once wanted to be on

    When President Joe Biden enters a voting booth in Delaware on Monday to cast his early ballot for Vice President Kamala Harris, the moment will be bittersweet.Biden, of course, once hoped to vote for himself, one last opportunity to check the box next to his own name after a half-century in the political arena.Instead, he is voting for his chosen successor – a moment of pride, to be sure, that is still coming earlier than he wanted it to.Instead of a big campaign event – as it would likely have been if he were still the candidate – his trip to a polling station in Delaware will be a low-key affair compared to the roiling presidential campaign that is unfolding without him.With eight days until Election Day, the president’s schedule this week doesn’t reflect a surrogate in high demand. After suggesting in September he would be on the road regularly for Harris in the final months, Biden has been largely absent from the campaign trail in the closing stretch.His union event in Pittsburgh over the weekend provided an outlet to attack Donald Trump and boost Harris – but the outing wasn’t heavily promoted by the Harris campaign, unlike higher-profile rallies with the Obamas.Biden has a few “campaign calls” scheduled this week, where he hopes to rally various groups telephonically behind Harris. He’ll attend a union event in Philadelphia on Friday, but it’s considered an official event rather than a Harris campaign rally.The rest of his week before the election, for now, is devoted to official tasks: receiving briefings on hurricane recovery, a Diwali reception in the East Room, remarks in Baltimore about infrastructure, trick-or-treating at the South Portico.Such is the existence of an unpopular incumbent on the way out. He joins a club that includes Bill Clinton and George W. Bush as presidents mostly kept off the campaign trail as their party looks to turn a page.After so much time in politics, Biden is fully aware of the delicate decisions that govern a campaign season. He has long said – usually as a joke – that he’s willing to campaign for or against his favored candidate, “whichever will help the most.”Still, that doesn’t make it any easier to watch as the party moves forward without him. Biden believes he could still be of use to Harris among the White, working-class voters in Blue Wall states where he retains sway.Nor is it lost on Biden — or anyone inside the White House – that he has a lot riding on the outcome. The result of next Tuesday’s election will either burnish his legacy or launch harsh recriminations that he stepped aside too late.Speaking at the get-out-the-vote event in Pittsburgh on Saturday, Biden seemed to acknowledge his time on the national stage was coming to an end.”We got a lot more work to do, Kamala and I,” he said, before quickly adjusting: “Kamala does.”

    When President Joe Biden enters a voting booth in Delaware on Monday to cast his early ballot for Vice President Kamala Harris, the moment will be bittersweet.

    Biden, of course, once hoped to vote for himself, one last opportunity to check the box next to his own name after a half-century in the political arena.

    Instead, he is voting for his chosen successor – a moment of pride, to be sure, that is still coming earlier than he wanted it to.

    Instead of a big campaign event – as it would likely have been if he were still the candidate – his trip to a polling station in Delaware will be a low-key affair compared to the roiling presidential campaign that is unfolding without him.

    With eight days until Election Day, the president’s schedule this week doesn’t reflect a surrogate in high demand. After suggesting in September he would be on the road regularly for Harris in the final months, Biden has been largely absent from the campaign trail in the closing stretch.

    His union event in Pittsburgh over the weekend provided an outlet to attack Donald Trump and boost Harris – but the outing wasn’t heavily promoted by the Harris campaign, unlike higher-profile rallies with the Obamas.

    Biden has a few “campaign calls” scheduled this week, where he hopes to rally various groups telephonically behind Harris. He’ll attend a union event in Philadelphia on Friday, but it’s considered an official event rather than a Harris campaign rally.

    The rest of his week before the election, for now, is devoted to official tasks: receiving briefings on hurricane recovery, a Diwali reception in the East Room, remarks in Baltimore about infrastructure, trick-or-treating at the South Portico.

    Such is the existence of an unpopular incumbent on the way out. He joins a club that includes Bill Clinton and George W. Bush as presidents mostly kept off the campaign trail as their party looks to turn a page.

    After so much time in politics, Biden is fully aware of the delicate decisions that govern a campaign season. He has long said – usually as a joke – that he’s willing to campaign for or against his favored candidate, “whichever will help the most.”

    Still, that doesn’t make it any easier to watch as the party moves forward without him. Biden believes he could still be of use to Harris among the White, working-class voters in Blue Wall states where he retains sway.

    Nor is it lost on Biden — or anyone inside the White House – that he has a lot riding on the outcome. The result of next Tuesday’s election will either burnish his legacy or launch harsh recriminations that he stepped aside too late.

    Speaking at the get-out-the-vote event in Pittsburgh on Saturday, Biden seemed to acknowledge his time on the national stage was coming to an end.

    “We got a lot more work to do, Kamala and I,” he said, before quickly adjusting: “Kamala does.”

    Source link

  • Kamala Harris’s Evolving Take On Legalizing Cannabis

    Kamala Harris’s Evolving Take On Legalizing Cannabis

    Presidential candidates relationship with the marijuana industry has involved – now she wants to deliver the winning goal.

    The cannabis industry has been nervously waiting for some federal action to let the industry move to the next level. While consumer use is growing and taking a bite out of the alcohol industry, federal resections have put a significant hold on the profitability and growth of cannabis. President’s Biden made a promise to support the industry in 2020, but waited until 2023 to make a move with no noticeable action taking place until 2025. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is making an announcement on rescheduling in the first part of December, after the election. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) has leaned in the DEA not to reschedule and made it clear he firmly opposes cannabis. This would go against all precedents as both the Food and Drug Administration and Health and Human Service has said it should be done.

    RELATED: Vaping Could Have This Effect On Men

    There will be a new president and a new set of rules in December, and the DEA will be watching the political winds. So what is Kamala’s Harris Take on legalizing cannabis? With almost 90% of the country believing it should be legalized in some forms and groups like the American Medical Association, AARP, and the American College of Physicians supporting it, it is not a hot pototo, except for a few in power.

    Photo by Alexander Sanchez/Getty Images

    The latest take is Harris proposed legalizing marijuana nationally for recreational use and ensuring Black entrepreneurs have access to the growing cannabis industry. She made the announcement while in California. She has become the first sitting vice president to encourage legalizing it and has become a public champion. This is more open and aggressive than the current Biden administration’s approach. During a wide-ranging conversation on the podcast “All the Smoke” with former NBA stars Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes, Harris expressed her belief that marijuana should be legalized.

    Harris stated, “I believe we have reached a moment where it is crucial to recognize that we need to legalize it and cease the criminalization of this activity.” She emphasized her conviction that individuals “should not face incarceration for using marijuana”

    RELATED: DeSantis Uses Hurricane To Damage Marijuana Initiative

    Harris has been critical of the current federal classification of marijuana. During a White House roundtable, she pointed out the absurdity of cannabis being considered as dangerous as heroin and more dangerous than fentanyl under current law. During her 2020 presidential campaign, she expressed support for marijuana legalization and admitted to having used it herself in the past. This shift from her earlier career as a prosecutor demonstrates a changing perspective on cannabis policy.

    The $23+ billion industry is full of mom and pop businesses. Democrats have been traditionally been more of ally to the industry. Republican blocked SAFE Banking for 7 times and then the GOP Speaker coup ended any chance for movement last year. Some marijuana industry leaders don’t have faith in Biden or Harris, but the congressional GOP has not be the support to cannabis and the other party.

    Terry Hacienda

    Source link

  • President Biden to visit Florida after Hurricane Milton on Sunday

    President Biden to visit Florida after Hurricane Milton on Sunday

    AND WE’VE GOT MORE FOR YOU TONIGHT. FIRST, WE BEGIN WITH PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN’S VISIT TO FLORIDA. COME TOMORROW. THE WHITE HOUSE SAYS THEY PLAN TO FLY TO TAMPA, TAKE AN AERIAL TOUR OF THE DAMAGE BEFORE SPEAKING IN SAINT PETE BEACH WH

    President Biden to visit Florida after Hurricane Milton on Sunday

    President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit Florida on Sunday to conduct an aerial tour of the areas impacted by Hurricane Milton and to receive a briefing from officials.Biden will land at Joint Base Andrews in Tampa and take an aerial tour of the affected areas while heading to St. Petersburg.Afterward, the president will receive an “operational briefing” from federal, state and local officials. Related: Video: Boat rescues family from severe flooding in Tampa after Hurricane MiltonBiden will later deliver remarks from St. Pete Beach before returning to Tampa. This comes after Biden approved a major disaster declaration for those affected by Hurricane Milton in Florida. The declaration will provide federal funding for multiple counties, including Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole, Sumter and Volusia.Read more: President Biden approves major disaster declaration for Florida following Hurricane MiltonWESH will stream the live new conference using the video player above. More: Tampa mayor says city ‘didn’t see expected storm surge’

    President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit Florida on Sunday to conduct an aerial tour of the areas impacted by Hurricane Milton and to receive a briefing from officials.

    Biden will land at Joint Base Andrews in Tampa and take an aerial tour of the affected areas while heading to St. Petersburg.

    Afterward, the president will receive an “operational briefing” from federal, state and local officials.

    Related: Video: Boat rescues family from severe flooding in Tampa after Hurricane Milton

    Biden will later deliver remarks from St. Pete Beach before returning to Tampa.

    This comes after Biden approved a major disaster declaration for those affected by Hurricane Milton in Florida.

    The declaration will provide federal funding for multiple counties, including Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole, Sumter and Volusia.

    Read more: President Biden approves major disaster declaration for Florida following Hurricane Milton

    WESH will stream the live new conference using the video player above.

    More: Tampa mayor says city ‘didn’t see expected storm surge’

    Source link

  • Biden and Harris to travel, survey Hurricane Helene damage

    Biden and Harris to travel, survey Hurricane Helene damage

    President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will visit hurricane-ravaged areas in the Southeast Wednesday to assess the damage and coordinate relief efforts and funding.Biden will travel to North and South Carolina, while Harris will head to Georgia.On Tuesday, Biden directed “every available resource” to rescue and recovery efforts and has committed to helping devastated communities, saying he is prepared to ask Congress for more emergency relief funding.”We have to jump-start this recovery process. People are scared to death. People wonder whether they’re going to make it. We still haven’t heard from a whole lot of people,” Biden said. “This is urgent. People have to know how to get the information they need. So, we’ll be there until this work is done.”Biden says he has been in constant contact with state and local officials and is urging people to apply for federal assistance, including basics like food and water and for funds to help with repairing homes.More than 4,500 federal workers, including 1,000 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, are deployed across the Southeast. Many are working to distribute millions of meals and water, thousands of tarps, and over a hundred generators, while rescue teams hope to help those who remain trapped.Biden and Harris emphasized the timing of their trips, saying they must ensure they do not detract from ongoing rescue and recovery.The White House suggested an earlier visit, like former President Donald Trump’s trip to Georgia on Monday, could take away from resources needed for hurricane victims.During that trip, Trump falsely accused Biden of “sleeping” at his beach house, ignoring the disaster and purposely neglecting Republican states and storm victims. He also falsely stated Biden did not respond to calls for help from Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.Kemp and Biden had already spoken a day earlier. Kemp and other Republican leaders also said their states were getting everything they need.Wednesday’s trip to Georgia may also present a political opportunity for Harris — a chance to show empathy in the midst of a humanitarian crisis as she campaigns for president.Harris says she also plans to visit North Carolina in the coming days.

    President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will visit hurricane-ravaged areas in the Southeast Wednesday to assess the damage and coordinate relief efforts and funding.

    Biden will travel to North and South Carolina, while Harris will head to Georgia.

    On Tuesday, Biden directed “every available resource” to rescue and recovery efforts and has committed to helping devastated communities, saying he is prepared to ask Congress for more emergency relief funding.

    “We have to jump-start this recovery process. People are scared to death. People wonder whether they’re going to make it. We still haven’t heard from a whole lot of people,” Biden said. “This is urgent. People have to know how to get the information they need. So, we’ll be there until this work is done.”

    Biden says he has been in constant contact with state and local officials and is urging people to apply for federal assistance, including basics like food and water and for funds to help with repairing homes.

    More than 4,500 federal workers, including 1,000 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, are deployed across the Southeast. Many are working to distribute millions of meals and water, thousands of tarps, and over a hundred generators, while rescue teams hope to help those who remain trapped.

    Biden and Harris emphasized the timing of their trips, saying they must ensure they do not detract from ongoing rescue and recovery.

    The White House suggested an earlier visit, like former President Donald Trump’s trip to Georgia on Monday, could take away from resources needed for hurricane victims.

    During that trip, Trump falsely accused Biden of “sleeping” at his beach house, ignoring the disaster and purposely neglecting Republican states and storm victims. He also falsely stated Biden did not respond to calls for help from Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.

    Kemp and Biden had already spoken a day earlier. Kemp and other Republican leaders also said their states were getting everything they need.

    Wednesday’s trip to Georgia may also present a political opportunity for Harris — a chance to show empathy in the midst of a humanitarian crisis as she campaigns for president.

    Harris says she also plans to visit North Carolina in the coming days.

    Source link

  • Biden tells U.N. General Assembly peace still possible in conflicts in Mideast and Ukraine

    Biden tells U.N. General Assembly peace still possible in conflicts in Mideast and Ukraine

    MIDTOWN EAST, Manhattan — President Joe Biden declared the U.S. must not retreat from the world, as he delivered his final address to the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday as Israel and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon edged toward all-out war and Israel’s bloody operation against Hamas in Gaza neared the one-year mark.

    Biden used his wide-ranging address to speak to a need to end the Middle East conflict and the 17-month-old civil war in Sudan and to highlight U.S. and Western allies’ support for Kyiv since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

    His appearance before the international body also offered Biden one of his last high-profile opportunities as president to make the case to keep up robust support for Ukraine, which could be in doubt if former President Donald Trump, who has scoffed at the cost of the war, defeats Vice President Kamala Harris in November. Still, Biden insisted that despite global conflicts, he remains hopeful for the future.

    CeFaan Kim reports the Lower East Side.

    “I’ve seen a remarkable sweep of history,” Biden said. “I know many look at the world today and see difficulties and react with despair but I do not.”

    “We are stronger than we think” when the world acts together, he added.

    Biden came to office promising to rejuvenate U.S. relations around the world and to extract the U.S. from “forever wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq that consumed American foreign policy over the last 20 years.

    “I was determined to end it, and I did,” Biden said of the Afghanistan exit, calling it a “hard decision but the right decision.” He acknowledged that it was “accompanied by tragedy” with the deaths of 13 American troops and hundreds of Afghans in a suicide bombing during the chaotic withdrawal.

    Biden in farewell U.N. address says peace still possible in conflicts in Mideast and Ukraine

    But his foreign policy legacy may ultimately be shaped by his administration’s response to two of the biggest conflicts in Europe and the Middle East since World War II.

    “There will always be forces that pull our countries apart,” Biden said, rejecting “a desire to retreat from the world and go it alone.” He said, “Our task, our test, is to make sure that the forces holding us together are stronger than the forces pulling us apart.”

    The Pentagon announced Monday that it was sending a small number of additional U.S. troops to the Middle East to supplement the roughly 40,000 already in the region. All the while, the White House insists Israel and Hezbollah still have time to step back and de-escalate.

    “Full scale war is not in anyone’s interest,” Biden said, and despite escalating violence, a diplomatic solution is the only path to peace.

    Biden had a hopeful outlook for the Middle East when he addressed the U.N. just a year ago. In that speech, Biden spoke of a “sustainable, integrated Middle East” coming into view.

    At the time, economic relations between Israel and some of its Arab neighbors were improving with implementation of the Abraham Accords that Israel signed with Bahrain, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates during the Trump administration.

    Biden’s team helped resolve a long-running Israel-Lebanon maritime dispute that had held back gas exploration in the region. And Israel-Saudi normalization talks were progressing, a game-changing alignment for the region if a deal could be landed.

    “I suffer from an oxymoron: Irish optimism,” Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when they met on the sidelines of last year’s U.N. gathering. He added, “If you and I, 10 years ago, were talking about normalization with Saudi Arabia … I think we’d look at each other like, ‘Who’s been drinking what?’”

    Eighteen days later, Biden’s Middle East hopes came crashing down. Hamas militants stormed into Israel killing 1,200, taking some 250 hostage, and spurring a bloody war that has killed more than 41,000 Palestinians in Gaza and led the region into a complicated downward spiral.

    Now, the conflict is threatening to metastasize into a multi-front war and leave a lasting scar on Biden’s presidential legacy.

    Israel and Hezbollah traded strikes again Tuesday as the death toll from a massive Israeli bombardment climbed to nearly 560 people and thousands fled from southern Lebanon. It’s the deadliest barrage since the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war.

    Israel has urged residents of southern Lebanon to evacuate from homes and other buildings where it claimed Hezbollah has stored weapons, saying the military would conduct “extensive strikes” against the militant group.

    Hezbollah, meanwhile, has launched dozens of rockets, missiles and drones into northern Israel in retaliation for strikes last week that killed a top commander and dozens of fighters. Dozens were also killed last week and hundreds more wounded after hundreds of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah militants exploded, a sophisticated attack that was widely believed to have been carried out by Israel.

    Israel’s leadership launched its counterattacks at a time of growing impatience with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah’s persistent launching of missiles and drones across the Israel-Lebanon border after Hamas started the war with its brazen attack on Oct. 7.

    Biden has seemed more subdued in recent days about the prospects of Israel and Hamas agreeing to a temporary cease-fire and hostage deal. But he insists that he hasn’t given up.

    Biden used his remarks to condemn the “horrors” of the Hamas attack on Oct. 7 and said hostages taken by the group are “are going through hell.” He added, “Innocent civilians in Gaza are also going through hell.” Biden also condemned settler violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank.

    Biden reiterated his call on the parties to agree to a cease-fire and hostage release deal, saying it’s time to “end this war” – even as hopes for such a deal are fading as the conflict drags on.

    Biden, in his address, called for the sustainment of Western support for Ukraine in its war with Russia. Biden helped galvanize an international coalition to back Ukraine with weapons and economic aid in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s February 2022 assault on Ukraine.

    “We cannot grow weary,” Biden said. “We cannot look away.”

    Biden has managed to keep up American support in the face of rising skepticism from some Republican lawmakers – and Trump – about the cost of the conflict.

    At the same time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is pressing Biden to loosen restrictions on the use of Western-supplied long-range missiles so that Ukrainian forces can hit deeper in Russia.

    So far Zelenskyy has not persuaded the Pentagon or White House to loosen those restrictions. The Defense Department has emphasized that Ukraine can already hit Moscow with Ukrainian-produced drones, and there is hesitation on the strategic implications of a U.S.-made missile potentially striking the Russian capital.

    Putin has warned that Russia would be “at war” with the United States and its NATO allies if they allow Ukraine to use the long-range weapons.

    Biden and Harris are scheduled to hold separate meetings with Zelenskyy in Washington on Thursday. Ukrainian officials were also trying to arrange a meeting for Zelenskyy with Trump this week.

    In Sudan, where a humanitarian disaster has been created by a brutal civil war, Biden said “the world needs to stop arming the generals” and to tell them to “stop tearing this country apart.”

    The entirety of Midtown East in Manhattan is expected to be snarled as numerous streets have been closed in anticipation of the week-long session.

    Several protests are slated to take place, which will add to the congestion and heightened security in the area of the United Nations.

    RELATED | NYC Gridlock Alert Days 2024 are back with the start of the U.N. General Assembly

    Heather O’Rourke has the latest on the UN General Assembly.

    Miller reported from Washington. AP writer Darlene Superville contributed to this report.

    ———-

    * Get Eyewitness News Delivered

    * More New York City news

    * Send us a news tip

    * Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts

    * Follow us on YouTube

    Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News

    Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.

    Copyright © 2024 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

    AP

    Source link

  • Middle East conflict edges closer to ‘open-ended battle’

    Middle East conflict edges closer to ‘open-ended battle’

    Escalating violence between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon is raising concerns of a broader conflict in the Middle East, with U.S. efforts to mediate a ceasefire in Gaza facing little to no progress.Overnight, Israel launched airstrikes in southern Lebanon, targeting what officials say were Hezbollah terrorists. The strikes come in response to over 100 rockets fired by Hezbollah over the weekend, following the death of one of its leaders and an attack through communications devices.One Hezbollah leader declared the attacks an “open-ended battle” as both sides spiral closer to an all-out war.”We did not want this war. We are not seeking war,” Israeli President Isaac Herzog said. “Hezbollah’s been attacking us on a daily basis, demolishing Israeli villages and towns. Basically leading to the eviction of 100,000 Israelis from their homes. Life has been shattered in our northern border.””We will take whatever action is necessary to restore security and to bring our people safe back to their homes,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address. “No country can accept the wanton rocketing of its cities. We can’t accept it either.”Meanwhile, U.S. mediators have been working alongside international negotiators to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza, but stalled progress and the escalating violence are threatening hope of bringing American hostages home.”We have not achieved any progress here in the last week to two weeks- not for lack of trying,” White House National Security Spokesperson John Kirby, said. “We will certainly keep up those conversations as best we can. And we’re talking to both sides here.”President Joe Biden acknowledged the latest surge of violence and expressed concern of spreading conflict.”We’re going to do everything we can to keep from a wider war from breaking out,” he said.There are other concerns that the same type of attacks on explosive communications devices used in Lebanon could happen in the U.S. Experts believe Israel infiltrated the international supply chain and placed the rigged devices in imports headed to Lebanon. According to the Associated Press, the complex operation likely took months to pull off but little evidence has emerged so far.The White House did not comment on whether it is taking steps to protect the U.S. supply chain as a result, offering instead that Biden wants the supply chain to be largely self-sufficient, with most goods originating from within the U.S.Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are scheduled to meet with leaders of the United Arab Emirates Monday before Biden travels to New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

    Escalating violence between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon is raising concerns of a broader conflict in the Middle East, with U.S. efforts to mediate a ceasefire in Gaza facing little to no progress.

    Overnight, Israel launched airstrikes in southern Lebanon, targeting what officials say were Hezbollah terrorists. The strikes come in response to over 100 rockets fired by Hezbollah over the weekend, following the death of one of its leaders and an attack through communications devices.

    One Hezbollah leader declared the attacks an “open-ended battle” as both sides spiral closer to an all-out war.

    “We did not want this war. We are not seeking war,” Israeli President Isaac Herzog said. “Hezbollah’s been attacking us on a daily basis, demolishing Israeli villages and towns. Basically leading to the eviction of 100,000 Israelis from their homes. Life has been shattered in our northern border.”

    “We will take whatever action is necessary to restore security and to bring our people safe back to their homes,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address. “No country can accept the wanton rocketing of its cities. We can’t accept it either.”

    Meanwhile, U.S. mediators have been working alongside international negotiators to secure a ceasefire deal in Gaza, but stalled progress and the escalating violence are threatening hope of bringing American hostages home.

    “We have not achieved any progress here in the last week to two weeks- not for lack of trying,” White House National Security Spokesperson John Kirby, said. “We will certainly keep up those conversations as best we can. And we’re talking to both sides here.”

    President Joe Biden acknowledged the latest surge of violence and expressed concern of spreading conflict.

    “We’re going to do everything we can to keep from a wider war from breaking out,” he said.

    There are other concerns that the same type of attacks on explosive communications devices used in Lebanon could happen in the U.S. Experts believe Israel infiltrated the international supply chain and placed the rigged devices in imports headed to Lebanon. According to the Associated Press, the complex operation likely took months to pull off but little evidence has emerged so far.

    The White House did not comment on whether it is taking steps to protect the U.S. supply chain as a result, offering instead that Biden wants the supply chain to be largely self-sufficient, with most goods originating from within the U.S.

    Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are scheduled to meet with leaders of the United Arab Emirates Monday before Biden travels to New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

    Source link

  • Step into the Oval Office: New DC exhibit offers life-sized presidential experience

    Step into the Oval Office: New DC exhibit offers life-sized presidential experience

    “The People’s House” opens Monday to the public in Washington D.C., offering visitors an immersive experience to a life-sized replica of the Oval Office. Curators say the exhibit gives people a chance to act as a sitting president or as a cabinet member.The experience also allows visitors to attend a cabinet meeting and vote on a course of action for the president. There are virtual recreations of other parts of the West Wing, such as the Cabinet Room where leaders advise the president. Innovative technology provides experiences of the State Floor, including the East, Green, Blue, and Red Rooms.The centerpiece of the experience is The Oval Office replica, complete with exact copies of President Joe Biden’s desk and armchairs, even down to the family Bible. The White House Historical Association says the decor will change with each sitting president.”When a family comes to Washington D.C. and they have a limited amount of time, we hope they have the opportunity to get a White House tour, but most won’t have that,” White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin said. “So, to learn about the presidency and the White House, you simply come across the street of the White House to 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue and we give you that experience to learn.”The White House Historical Association raised $60 million for the project and is trying to raise $50 million to keep it going. Timed tickets to “The People’s House” are free.

    “The People’s House” opens Monday to the public in Washington D.C., offering visitors an immersive experience to a life-sized replica of the Oval Office. Curators say the exhibit gives people a chance to act as a sitting president or as a cabinet member.

    The experience also allows visitors to attend a cabinet meeting and vote on a course of action for the president. There are virtual recreations of other parts of the West Wing, such as the Cabinet Room where leaders advise the president. Innovative technology provides experiences of the State Floor, including the East, Green, Blue, and Red Rooms.

    The centerpiece of the experience is The Oval Office replica, complete with exact copies of President Joe Biden’s desk and armchairs, even down to the family Bible. The White House Historical Association says the decor will change with each sitting president.

    “When a family comes to Washington D.C. and they have a limited amount of time, we hope they have the opportunity to get a White House tour, but most won’t have that,” White House Historical Association President Stewart McLaurin said. “So, to learn about the presidency and the White House, you simply come across the street of the White House to 1700 Pennsylvania Avenue and we give you that experience to learn.”

    The White House Historical Association raised $60 million for the project and is trying to raise $50 million to keep it going.

    Timed tickets to “The People’s House” are free.

    Source link

  • Consumer Use Sets Records On Cannabis!

    Consumer Use Sets Records On Cannabis!

    The speed of cannabis mainstreaming is setting records.

    Since the first state went legal in 2016, consumers have moved to legal marijuana. Now, with over 50% of the country having access to it, things are starting to change.  And consumer use sets records on cannabis as all ages are starting to consume and consume more.  States who have full legal cannabis are bringing in more revenue from marijuana than alcohol. All fueled by consumers.

    RELATED: Great Fall Whiskeys

    The newest record is Michigan, a solid mid-western state. In the first year of it being available to the public, the state had $1 billion in sales.  Now, the Great Lakes State sets record with $295+ million in monthly marijuana sales. And it isn’t what you think, while it is being used to relax, it is also being used for its medical benefits.  Boomers, the generation who helped promote the War on Drugs, has turned to it for the medical benefits of managing inflammation, chronic pain, insomnia, and more.  And their grandchildren in Gen z are using it to combat anxiety. There generation has the highest amount of any other generation.

    Photo by Hans via Pixabay

    The other record is cannabis is taking a bit out of beer. Beer sales are down, especially earlier in the week as people are turning to vaping and gummies for a quick, low calorie and dose to relax after a busy start to the week.  Year over year growth is strong.  In 2022, sales were $30 million and in 2024, it is on track to be $38 million. While beer sales still far outpace cannabis at $117 billion, sales dropped again in 2023 by 5.1%. Another reason big liquor companies are wading into the cannabis market.

    But the industry is still struggling and the Biden/Harris administration has failed to follow through on their 2020 promise to help the industry. Biden is one of the most seasoned policymakers in DC with 50 years of service, so it seems the failure of the DEA to make a move before the election could be planned. The DEA rescheduling move premiered at time to provide zero relief for the industry in 2024 as the DEA is not making an announcement until December.  Being post December, it could provide cover to the current administration to make make a move. Or if the GOP wins the presidency, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-KY) has made it clear he will move to reduce the industr

    Terry Hacienda

    Source link