88% of Children Covered by Mo. Payments05/18 06:06
88% of Children Covered by Mo. Payments05/18 06:06 The Treasury Department said Monday that 39 million families are set to receive monthly child payments beginning on July 15. WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Treasury Department said Monday that 39 million families are set to receive monthly child payments beginning on July 15. The payments are part of President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, which expanded the child tax credit for one year and made it possible to pre-pay the benefits on a monthly basis. Nearly 88% of children are set to receive the benefits without their parents needing to take any additional action. "This tax cut sends a clear and powerful message to American workers, working families with children: Help is here," Biden said in remarks at the White House. Qualified families will receive a payment of up to $300 per month for each child under 6 and up to $250 per month for children between the ages of 6 and 17. The child tax credit was previously capped at $2,000 and only paid out to families with income tax obligations after they filed with the IRS. But for this year, couples earning $150,000 or less can receive the full payments on the 15th of each month, in most cases by direct deposit. The benefits total $3,600 annually for children under 6 and $3,000 for those who are older. The IRS will determine eligibility based on the 2019 and 2020 tax years, but people will also be able to update their status through an online portal. The administration is also setting up another online portal for non-filers who might be eligible for the child tax credit. The president has proposed an extension of the increased child tax credit through 2025 as part of his $1.8 trillion families plan. Outside analysts estimate that the payments could essentially halve child poverty. The expanded credits could cost roughly $100 billion a year.
Biden Plan Picks Winners of Green Jobs 05/18 06:10
Biden Plan Picks Winners of Green Jobs 05/18 06:10 WASHINGTON (AP) -- In Georgia, school bus-maker Blue Bird has visions of going from selling a few hundred electric buses annually to 15,000. In Michigan, Ford plans to produce an all-electric version of its F-150 pickup truck. Both companies are looking to President Joe Biden's $2.3 trillion infrastructure proposal to help transform the automotive sector as electric vehicles shift from a luxury niche to mainstream America. The plan reflects an effort by Biden to accelerate certain sectors of the economy with the belief they'll become the engines for growth in the decades to come. "You need someone to give you a real jumpstart," Blue Bird CEO Phil Horlock said. "This is actually changing the landscape." Biden will visit Ford's electric vehicle plant in Dearborn, Michigan, on Tuesday, returning to an industrial state that contributed to his election victory and is the center of an auto sector that'll likely need some government help to move away from gas guzzlers. The Democratic president wants the government to accept the risk of investing in a series of industries such as electric vehicles and semiconductors that he believes will become the backbone of the U.S. economy. It's a sharp philosophical divide from Republican lawmakers who would rather the federal government focus more on the steel, concrete and asphalt of conventional infrastructure projects. "He has an industrial policy -- which we've always had but never admitted," said Brett Smith, director of technology at the Center for Automotive Research. "Our industrial policy had been that low-cost energy wins. He's shifting that to carbon-free energy is the industrial policy." Biden said in a speech last week that his proposed new tranche of government spending is required to keep the U.S. economy competitive and fair on top of the coronavirus relief that's already flowing. Besides infrastructure, Biden is asking for another $1.8 trillion -- putting the combined total spending at roughly $4 trillion -- to devote to education and families. Biden said his infrastructure plan is "an eight-year investment strategy to make sure working people of this country get to share in the benefits of a rising economy and to put us in a position to win the competition with China and the rest of the world for the 21st century." The infrastructure package would be paid for by higher corporate taxes. Leading business groups such as the Business Roundtable and U.S. Chamber of Commerce have opposed raising the corporate rate from 21% to 28%. But some of the companies that could benefit directly from the spending appear willing to make that trade, and that complicates the politics of the moment because there are clear winners and clear losers, such as the fossil fuel sector. Biden is openly saying government dollars should seed new opportunities for businesses. It's an effort to steer where private investors direct their money and a response to other nations like China that have backed favored industries such as electrical vehicles and semiconductors that could threaten America's own preeminence. A White House official said that some businesses briefed on the infrastructure proposal have also seen it as having the qualities of an industrial policy in which government works in concert with companies. One element of Biden's plan that draws companies' attention is the $50 billion proposed for the Commerce Department to monitor U.S. manufacturing capacity and fund investments to support production of critical goods. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to reveal internal discussions, said companies interpret it as a new way of thinking about supply chains when supplies of computer chips, lumber and other goods are squeezed. But the risks are that industrial policies can misspend dollars that would be better directed by the private sector. That can come at the expense of jobs as the initiatives often go through a political prism instead of an economic one. "The problem with industrial policy is that it quickly becomes highly political," said Thomas Duesterberg, a senior fellow at the conservative Hudson Institute. "The administration's focus on promoting green technology is important but will result in a substantial net loss of manufacturing jobs by reducing production of domestic oil and gas, and in turn chemicals, while subsidizing wind and solar products whose production is dominated by Chinese and European manufacturers." Some businesses insist the types of government investment in Biden's plan are necessary. The major hurdle for moving U.S. drivers away from internal combustion engines is the lack of charging stations. Biden proposes $174 billion for electric vehicles, including funds to construct 500,000 charging stations by 2030. Their presence would help to overcome drivers' fears of being stranded in a powerless car, one of the challenges confronting Ford and General Motors as they seek to go electric. The Center for Automotive Research's Smith stressed that automakers would like to command the same premium on their stock that Tesla -- a pioneer of electric vehicles -- enjoys. But doing so requires the government to shoulder some of the risk to transition to a new infrastructure for powering vehicles. "You don't sell the cars without the charging stations at this point," Smith said. "It makes or breaks the technology." Presidents have long relied on businesses to push their messages to voters. Biden's predecessors Donald Trump and Barack Obama touted an Intel chip factory in Arizona as proof of economic gains, yet the U.S. semiconductor industry declined relative to the rest of the world. Biden proposes a $50 billion investment in semiconductor manufacturing and research, one of the publicly bipartisan pieces of his infrastructure package. Intel's chief government affairs officer, Jeff Rittener, said the company supports the investment, though it still wants to know more details about the potential increases in corporate taxes. He warned that without the government investment the country would lose out to other global competitors on what has become a building block of the modern economy. "Only 12% of worldwide semiconductor manufacturing is done in the U.S., whereas if you go back a number of years it used to be greater than 35%," he said. "We anticipate, and studies have shown, that if nothing is done this percentage is going to drop further."
Biden Raises Cease-Fire With Netanyahu 05/18 06:11
Biden Raises Cease-Fire With Netanyahu 05/18 06:11 President Joe Biden expressed support for a cease-fire between Israel and Gaza's militant Hamas rulers in a call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but he stopped short of demanding an immediate stop to the eight days of Israeli airstrikes and Hamas rocket barrages that have killed more than 200 people, most of them Palestinian. (AP) -- President Joe Biden expressed support for a cease-fire between Israel and Gaza's militant Hamas rulers in a call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but he stopped short of demanding an immediate stop to the eight days of Israeli airstrikes and Hamas rocket barrages that have killed more than 200 people, most of them Palestinian. Biden's carefully worded statement, in a White House readout Monday of his second known call to Netanyahu in three days as the attacks pounded on, came with the administration under pressure to respond more forcefully despite its determination to wrench the U.S. foreign policy focus away from Middle East conflicts. Biden's comments on a cease-fire were open-ended and were similar to previous administration statements of support in principle for a cease-fire. That's in contrast to demands from dozens of Democratic lawmakers and others for an immediate halt by both sides. But the readout of the call to the Israeli leader showed increased White House concern about the air and rocket attacks --including Israeli airstrikes aimed at weakening Hamas -- while sticking to forceful support for Israel. The U.S. leader "encouraged Israel to make every effort to ensure the protection of innocent civilians," the White House said in its readout. An administration official familiar with the call said the decision to express support and not explicitly demand a cease-fire was intentional. While Biden and top aides are concerned about the mounting bloodshed and loss of innocent life, the decision not to demand an immediate halt to hostilities reflects White House determination to support Israel's right to defend itself from Hamas, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private deliberations. Meanwhile, European Union foreign ministers were meeting Tuesday to discuss how to use the 27-nation bloc's political clout to help diplomatic efforts to end the fighting between the Israeli armed forces and Palestinian militants. The EU has been united in its calls for a cease-fire and the need for a political solution to end the latest conflict, but the nations are divided over how best to help. Netanyahu told Israeli security officials late Monday that Israel would "continue to strike terror targets" in Gaza "as long as necessary in order to return calm and security to all Israeli citizens." As the worst Israeli-Palestinian fighting since 2014 raged, the Biden administration has limited its public criticisms to Hamas and has declined to send a top-level envoy to the region. It also had declined to press Israel publicly and directly to wind down its latest military operation in the Gaza Strip, a 6-mile-by-25-mile territory that is home to more than 2 million people. Cease-fire mediation by Egypt and others has shown no sign of progress. Separately, the United States, Israel's top ally, blocked for a third time Monday what would have been a unanimous statement by the 15-nation U.N. Security Council expressing "grave concern" over the intensifying Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the loss of civilian lives. The final U.S. rejection killed the Security Council statement, at least for now. White House press secretary Jen Psaki and national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the United States was focusing instead on "quiet, intensive diplomacy." Biden has been determined to wrench U.S. foreign policy away from Middle East and Central Asia conflicts, including withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan and ending support for a Saudi-led war in Yemen, to focus on other policy priorities. Internationally for the U.S., that means confronting climate change and dealing with the rise of China, among other objectives. That shift carries risks, including weathering flaring violence as the United States steps back from hotspots. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking in Denmark on the first stop of an unrelated tour of Nordic countries, said Monday the United States was ready to spring in to help if Israel and Hamas signal interest in ending hostilities -- but that the U.S. wasn't demanding that they do so. "Ultimately it is up to the parties to make clear that they want to pursue a cease-fire," Blinken said. He described U.S. contacts to support an end to the fighting, including the calls he was making midair between his Nordic stops. Blinken defended the U.S. handling of the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict as America works to push for climate-accord deals, withdraw troops from Afghanistan and turn U.S. attention to what Biden sees as the nation's most pressing foreign policy priorities. It's "a big world, and we do have responsibilities," he said. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Monday joined dozens of Democratic lawmakers -- and one Republican and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders -- in calling for the cease-fire by both sides. A prominent Democrat, Rep. Adam Schiff, the House intelligence committee chairman, pressed the U.S. over the weekend to get more involved. Progressive Democrats have been more outspoken in demanding pressure on Israel -- and Republicans and conservative Democrats comparatively quiet, for a politically fraught U.S. issue like support for Israel -- as the death toll has mounted. Rep. Cori Bush, a Missouri Democrat, linked Palestinian issues to those of Black Americans. "We oppose our money going to fund militarized policing, occupation, and systems of violent oppression and trauma," Bush tweeted. But Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., took the Senate floor on Monday to assail lawmakers for including Israel in their demands for a cease-fire. "To say that both sides, both sides need to de-escalate downplays the responsibility terrorists have for initiating the conflict in the first place and suggests Israelis are not entitled to defend themselves against ongoing rocket barrages," McConnell said. In a shot at Democrats, McConnell said, "The United States needs to stand foursquare behind our ally, and President Biden must remain strong against the growing voices within his own party that create false equivalence between terrorist aggressors and a responsible state defending itself." Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., led 19 Republican senators releasing a resolution supporting Israel's side of the fighting. They plan to try to introduce the legislation next week. Blinken also said Monday he had asked Israel for any evidence for its claim that Hamas was operating in a Gaza office building housing The Associated Press and Al Jazeera news bureaus that was destroyed in an Israeli airstrike over the weekend. But he said that he personally had "not seen any information provided."
SCOTUS Adds Abortion Fight to Midterms 05/18 06:13
SCOTUS Adds Abortion Fight to Midterms 05/18 06:13 WASHINGTON (AP) -- In agreeing to hear a potentially groundbreaking abortion case, the Supreme Court has energized activists on both sides of the long-running debate who are now girding to make abortion access a major issue in next year's midterm elections. For many evangelicals, the case could serve as a validation of more than four decades of persistent work and a sometimes awkward relationship with former President Donald Trump, whose three Supreme Court appointments sealed a 6-3 conservative majority. If those justices unite to uphold a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, it would mark a first step toward the possible demise of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which established a nationwide right to abortion at any point before a fetus can survive outside the womb, roughly 24 weeks. Abortion rights advocates, meanwhile, are urgently warning that the case is the biggest threat to decades of rulings that have consistently upheld, with some caveats, a woman's constitutional right to decide whether to end her pregnancy. Since the Roe decision, abortion has become a defining theme in American politics, emerging as the sole issue that some voters use to assess which candidates they'll support. The Mississippi case could emerge as another turning point -- with unpredictable results. Abortion opponents may become further emboldened if their long-desired goal moves closer to reality, while an unfavorable decision could spur supporters to intensify calls for dramatic changes to the judiciary. For now, both sides say they are fully engaged. "This is huge -- it's saying that for the first time in a long time that we have a pro-life majority on the Supreme Court," said Katherine Beck Johnson, a lawyer with the conservative Family Research Council. "It will encourage the voting base to get out and vote Republican." Jennifer Dalven, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Reproductive Freedom Project, said the high court's decision to hear the case was "really alarming." "For more than 40 years the Supreme Court has said states can't ban abortion prior to viability," Dalven said. "There is simply no way for the court to rule for Mississippi without gutting Roe v. Wade." The case probably will be argued in the fall, with a decision likely in the spring of 2022 during the campaign for congressional midterm elections. Many abortion-rights groups urged their supporters to start mobilizing now. "There's never been a more important time to elect Democratic pro-choice women to local and national office," said one of those groups, Emily's List. "If the Supreme Court strikes down Roe v. Wade, we'll need all the help we can get." Even if the court does not explicitly overrule Roe, a decision favorable to Mississippi could lay the groundwork for allowing more restrictions on abortion. Bills have been enacted in multiple Republican-governed states that would ban abortion as early as six weeks, and also in cases where a decision to abort was based solely on a diagnosis of Down syndrome. Nationwide polls have repeatedly shown that most Americans support the premise of Roe v. Wade. An April poll from the Pew Research Center found that 59% of Americans think abortion should be legal in most or all cases, while 39% think it should be illegal in most or all cases. Some abortion opponents, noting those surveys, are skeptical that the Supreme Court would fully overturn Roe. "The Supreme Court has never led public opinion but followed it when it comes to major issues like slavery, gay marriage and women's rights," said the Rev. Robert Jeffress, a Dallas megachurch pastor who has been a close ally of Trump. "As long as 70% of the American people oppose the overturn of Roe, it will never happen," he said. "Realistically, conservatives can hope that the court uses the Mississippi case to chip away at unrestricted abortion in our country." Charles Camosy, a professor of theological and social ethics at Fordham University, also acknowledged those poll findings. But he noted that the Gallup poll has repeatedly found that more than two-thirds of Americans say abortion should be illegal after the 12th week of pregnancy -- a time frame that is in force in several European countries. "I doubt the court's majority is willing to totally undo the legal right to abortion," he said. "More than likely is they will rule that a 15-week limitation does not pose an undue burden on a woman's right to abortion." White evangelicals, who remain among Trump's most loyal backers, had celebrated his overhaul of the federal courts and his reshaping of the Supreme Court as perhaps his greatest accomplishment. But there remains trepidation after the court surprised them by failing to rule their way in past cases. "Trying to predict what the Supreme Court is going to do on a state statute on abortion regulation is like trying to predict the path of a hurricane, only more difficult, because there are a lot of things at play," said Ralph Reed, chair of the Faith and Freedom Coalition and a longtime ally of Trump. Reed acknowledged that abortion is only a top issue for a small minority of voters but argued that in many competitive congressional and gubernatorial elections, "it could theoretically be the difference." "It's not necessarily the issue that ranks highest in terms of determining one's vote, but it still matters in terms of intensity and enthusiasm," he said. Among 2022 U.S. Senate races where the issue could be a key factor are those in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida. If the Mississippi ban is upheld, "pro-lifers would be energized," said Michael New, an abortion opponent who teaches social research at Catholic University of America. "It would show that the strategy of supporting pro-life candidates for the presidency resulted in a Supreme Court that was sympathetic to legal protections to preborn children," he said. "Pro-life state legislators in other states would likely pass similar 15-week abortion bans, confident that these bans would also be upheld." The Rev. Albert Mohler, president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said he was optimistic the Mississippi ban would be upheld, giving abortion-rights groups a chance to mobilize their supporters with warnings of Roe's demise while infusing abortion opponents with a new sense of optimism. "Pro-life voters are looking for progress," Mohler said. "What serves to deflate the vote of pro-life Americans is frustration at the impression of the lack of progress." Mallory Quigley of the Susan B. Anthony List, which seeks to elect anti-abortion candidates, predicted the issue would be a "huge motivator on both sides" going into the midterms. As far as Republicans, she said, "It's motivating to see how past electoral choices are impacting policy today and then moving forward, what more is to be done." Abortion-rights supporter Kelly Baden of Strategic Initiatives and Services, a strategy center for state legislators who champion progressive values, said the wave of anti-abortion legislation in Republican-led states "shows how much we've already lost and how dire our circumstances already are." "But we have the power to take it back," she said. "If and when the courts let us down, we can and must show up at the voting booth."
AZ GOP Fight Back on Election Fraud 05/18 06:14
AZ GOP Fight Back on Election Fraud 05/18 06:14 PHOENIX (AP) -- The top Republicans in Arizona's largest county gave an impassioned defense of their handling of the 2020 election Monday, calling on fellow members of the GOP and business leaders to speak out against an unprecedented partisan election audit. The GOP-dominated Maricopa County Board of Supervisors cast the audit as a sham that's spun out of the control of the state Senate leader who's ostensibly overseeing it. Board Chairman Jack Sellers said Senate President Karen Fann is making an "attempt at legitimatizing a grift disguised as an audit." After former President Donald Trump claimed without evidence that his loss was marred by fraud, Fann used the Senate's subpoena power to take possession of ballots and voting machines from Maricopa County, a longtime Republican stronghold that was won by Democrat Joe Biden last year. She turned all of it over to Cyber Ninjas, a small Florida-based cybersecurity firm owned by a Trump supporter who has promoted election conspiracies, to conduct an audit along with several subcontractors. Last week, Fann sent a letter to Sellers questioning records that document the chain of custody of the ballots and accusing county officials of deleting data. The county on Monday sent a 12-page response vehemently denying wrongdoing, explaining its processes and accusing Cyber Ninjas of incompetence. "They can't find the files because they don't know what they're doing," Sellers said during a public meeting held to refute Fann's allegations. "We wouldn't be asked to do this on-the-job training if qualified auditors had been hired to do this work." Fann did not immediately comment but sent a tweet saying the media was given the county's letter before she was. She has said the audit is an effort to address concerns raised by many Trump supporters who worry the election was not conducted fairly and to find out whether the Legislature should change election laws. Fann's accusations touched a nerve with county officials, who have grown increasingly exasperated with the audit. They said they won't appear in the Senate on Tuesday, as requested by Fann, to answer questions, and would not give in to Fann's demands for the county's internet routers, which county officials say would compromise sensitive data unrelated to elections. Fann has also demanded an administrative password for vote-counting machines, but county officials say those are maintained by the system's manufacturer, Dominion Voting Systems Inc., which says it will only give such access to certified election vendors. None of the firms involved in the audit is certified. On Monday, county Republicans threatened to sue if senators or auditors accuse them of breaking the law. And they implored elected officials who have doubts about the audit to stop keeping their criticisms to themselves. "Elected Republicans, I think, are afraid of the next election and they can't be," said Bill Gates, the vice chairman of the Board of Supervisors. "They've got to stand for what is right. Otherwise, why did they run for office in the first place?" Later, he lamented silence from business leaders and urged them to "contact those elected officials who they donate money to." "This is creating a black eye to Arizona and I would think that those business leaders would want this to stop," Gates said. County officials also highlighted the backlash they've experienced for speaking out, including death threats and protests at their homes. Promoted heavily in right-wing media, the audit has become a cause celebre among some of Trump's most loyal fans, who believe it will uncover evidence of the former president's claim that he was the rightful winner of the election. Trump sent a statement saying, in part, that "the entire Database of Maricopa County in Arizona has been DELETED! This is illegal and the Arizona State Senate, who is leading the Forensic Audit, is up in arms." Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer, one of the county's top election officials, on Saturday called the statement "unhinged" and called on other Republicans to stop the unfounded accusations. Richer was elected in the same election many in his party are now questioning, defeating an incumbent Democrat. As recorder, he oversees the voter registration database and the mail voting operation, including signature verification, while the county board oversees the team charged with election-day operations and counting ballots. On Monday, he said he hoped that he and other county officials were making it easier for others to speak out against the narrative of election fraud. "We're out here now. We've moved," Richer said. "I think you're going to see others joining. The water's warm. Come in."
Palestinians Go on Strike Amid Bombings05/18 06:18
Palestinians Go on Strike Amid Bombings05/18 06:18 GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) -- Palestinians across Israel and the occupied territories went on strike in a rare collective action against Israel's policies on Tuesday as Israeli strikes rained down on Gaza and militants fired dozens of rockets from the Hamas-ruled territory. With the war in Gaza showing no sign of abating and truce efforts apparently stalled, the general strike and expected protests could again widen the conflict after a spasm of communal violence in Israel and protests across the occupied West Bank last week. Tuesday's airstrikes toppled a six-story building that housed libraries and educational centers belonging to the Islamic University, leaving behind a massive mound of rebar and concrete slabs. Desks, office chairs, books and computer wires could be seen in the debris. Residents sifted through the rubble, searching for their belongings. Israel warned the building's residents ahead of time, sending them fleeing into the predawn darkness, and there were no reports of casualties. Israel said it was targeting militants, their tunnels and rocket launchers across the territory. "The whole street started running, then destruction, an earthquake," said Jamal Herzallah, a resident of the area. "This whole area was shaking." Heavy fighting broke out May 10 when Gaza's militant Hamas rulers fired long-range rockets toward Jerusalem in support of Palestinian protests against Israel's heavy-handed policing of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, a flashpoint site sacred to Jews and Muslims, and the threatened eviction of dozens of Palestinian families by Jewish settlers. At least 213 Palestinians have been killed in heavy airstrikes since, including 61 children and 36 women, with more than 1,440 people wounded, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not break the numbers down into fighters and civilians. As the fighting drags on, medical supplies, fuel and water are running low in Gaza. Ten people in Israel, including a 5-year-old boy and a soldier, have been killed in the ongoing rocket attacks launched from civilian areas in Gaza toward civilian areas in Israel. The fighting is the most intense since a 2014 war between Israel and Hamas, but efforts to halt it have so far stalled. Egyptian mediators are trying to negotiate a cease-fire, but the U.S. has stopped short of demanding an immediate stop to the hostilities and Israel has so far vowed to press on. With no end in sight to the fighting, Palestinians in Israel, east Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank observed a general strike on Tuesday. It was a rare show of unity among Palestinian citizens of Israel, who make up 20% of its population, and those in the territories Israel seized in 1967 that the Palestinians have long sought for a future state of their own. Life had already ground to a halt in Gaza when the fighting began. The strike was intended to protest the Gaza war and Israeli policies that many activists and some rights groups say constitute an overarching system of apartheid that denies Palestinians the rights afforded to Jews. Israel rejects that characterization, saying its citizens have equal rights. It blames the war on Hamas, the Islamic militant group that controls Gaza, and accuses it of inciting violence across the region. Leaders of the Palestinian community in Israel called the strike, which was embraced by the internationally-backed Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank, where ministries and schools were closed. Most businesses appeared to be observing the strike, and protests were expected. Muhammad Barakeh, one of the organizers of the strike, said Palestinians are expressing a "collective position" against Israel's "aggression" in Gaza and Jerusalem, as well as the "brutal repression" by police across Israel. The war has also seen an unusual outbreak of violence in Israel, with groups of Jewish and Palestinian citizens fighting in the streets and torching vehicles and buildings. In both Israel and the West Bank, Palestinian protesters have clashed with Israeli forces. The Israeli military said Tuesday it fired at 65 militant targets, including rocket launchers, a group of fighters and the homes of Hamas commanders that the army said were being used for military purposes. It said more than 60 fighter jets took part in the operation. The military said it also shot down a drone "approaching the Israeli border" in the northeast, far from the Gaza fighting. It did not say where the unmanned aircraft originated, but it's possible the drone came from Syria. The military said Palestinian militants fired 90 rockets, 20 of which fell short into Gaza. Israel says its missile defenses have intercepted about 90% of the rockets. Israel's strikes have brought down several buildings and caused widespread damage in the narrow coastal territory, which is home to more than 2 million Palestinians and has been under an Israeli-Egyptian blockade since Hamas seized power from rival Palestinian forces in 2007. The attacks have damaged at least 18 hospitals and clinics and entirely destroyed one health facility, the World Health Organization said in a new report. Nearly half of all essential drugs in the territory have run out. It said the bombing of key roads, including those leading to the main Shifa Hospital, has hindered the movement of ambulances and supply vehicles. Over 41,000 displaced Palestinians have sought refuge in U.N. schools in Gaza, which was already struggling to cope with a coronavirus outbreak. Gaza is also running low on fuel for its electricity supply and water. Israel has vowed to press on with its operations, and the United States signaled it would not pressure the two sides for a cease-fire even as President Joe Biden said he supported one. "We will continue to operate as long as necessary in order to return calm and security to all Israeli citizens," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after meeting with top security officials on Monday . The Biden administration has declined so far to publicly criticize Israel's part in the fighting or send a top-level envoy to the region. On Monday, the United States again blocked a proposed U.N. Security Council statement calling for an end to "the crisis related to Gaza" and the protection of civilians, especially children. Since the fighting began, the Israeli military has launched hundreds of airstrikes it says are targeting Hamas' militant infrastructure. Palestinian militants in Gaza have fired more than 3,400 rockets into Israel. Hamas and Islamic Jihad say at least 20 of their fighters have been killed, while Israel says the number is at least 160 and has released the names of and photos of more than two dozen militant commanders it says were "eliminated." Israel's airstrikes have leveled a number of Gaza City's tallest buildings, which Israel alleges contained Hamas military infrastructure. Among them was the building housing The Associated Press Gaza office and those of other media outlets. Netanyahu alleged that Hamas military intelligence was operating inside the building and said any evidence would be shared through intelligence channels. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he hasn't yet seen any evidence supporting that. AP President Gary Pruitt reiterated the organization's call for an independent investigation into the attack. "As we have said, we have no indication of a Hamas presence in the building, nor were we warned of any such possible presence before the airstrike," he said in a statement. "We do not know what the Israeli evidence shows, and we want to know."
House to Vote on New Security 05/18 06:20
House to Vote on New Security 05/18 06:20 The security spending bill would provide congressional offices with more money to combat those threats, including enhanced travel security, upgrades to home-district offices and better intelligence to track people down. The bill would also "harden" the complex by reinforcing doors and windows, adding security vestibules and cameras and providing dollars for removable fencing that could quickly be erected during a threatening situation while leaving the Capitol open to visitors. WASHINGTON (AP) -- Colorado Rep. Jason Crow, a former Army Ranger who served three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, says it took time for him to stop constantly scanning his environment for threats when he returned from war 15 years ago. But after the violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, he says he's picked the habit up again. Crow was trapped with several other members of Congress in the upper gallery of the U.S. House that day while a mob of President Donald Trump's supporters tried to beat down the doors to the chamber and stop the certification of President Joe Biden's victory. Crow says he never would have thought "in a million years" he'd be in that situation in the Capitol, but some of his old training has since kicked in, like looking in his rear-view mirror and assessing if people around him might be carrying a gun. Like almost every other member of Congress, his office has received threats against his life. "There's no doubt that members are on edge right now," Crow says, and the threats from outside "are unfortunately the reality of congressional life." Those threats have more than doubled this year, according to the U.S. Capitol Police, and many members of Congress say they fear for their personal safety more than they did before the siege. Several say they have boosted security measures to protect themselves and their families, money for which will be part of a broad $1.9 billion spending bill that the House will vote on this week, along with a separate measure that would create a bipartisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack. Democrats, in particular, say both bills are crucial to try to reconcile the trauma that many still feel. "This was an armed assault on our democracy, and I'm a witness -- I'm a victim and a witness to it," says New Hampshire Rep. Annie Kuster. She received treatment for post-traumatic stress after she was also trapped in the House gallery that day and heard rioters trying to break through the doors close to where she was hiding. Kuster says she thought she was going to die before officers cleared the hallways and hustled her and others out. "I think we need a full investigation with a Jan. 6th commission, and I believe that the Capitol Police who saved our lives that day deserve more support," she says. Democrats say a bipartisan commission investigating the attack, including what led to it, is more important than ever after some Republicans have recently started to downplay the severity of the insurrection, portraying the rioters who brutally beat officers with flagpoles and other weapons and broke into the Capitol through windows and doors as peaceful patriots. Many Republicans who initially condemned Trump for telling his supporters to "fight like hell" that day have increasingly stayed quiet on his repeated false claims that the election was stolen, even though that was rebuked by numerous courts, bipartisan election officials across the country and Trump's own attorney general. It's unclear how many in the GOP will vote for either bill. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., said at a hearing last week that a video feed of the rioters looked like they were on a "normal tourist visit." Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., said a woman who was shot and killed by police as she tried to break through a window adjacent to the House chamber was "executed," and he argued that the Justice Department is harassing those who have been arrested. Michigan Rep. Dan Kildee, a Democrat who also says he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after the attack, said those comments were "really hard to take" after witnessing the insurrection. He says he's received an increased number of threats since January, especially when he has spoken on TV about treatment he received in the aftermath. Some of the calls and messages are specific and credible threats, he says, while many others are "abusive, threatening type language." The security spending bill would provide congressional offices with more money to combat those threats, including enhanced travel security, upgrades to home-district offices and better intelligence to track people down. The bill would also "harden" the complex by reinforcing doors and windows, adding security vestibules and cameras and providing dollars for removable fencing that could quickly be erected during a threatening situation while leaving the Capitol open to visitors. Like many members, Republican Rep. Rodney Davis of Illinois says he feels as if the threats are more acute in his home district, where there is less security. On Capitol Hill, lawmakers are currently protected by a tall fence and National Guard troops who have been there since Jan. 6. Members are "as safe as ever" there, he says, but "it's those times when you're not in the Capitol, I think that's where the threats seem to emanate from the most." Davis knows that well, as one of several Republican members who was at a baseball practice four years ago in Alexandria, Virginia, when a gunman wounded Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., and four other people. And in 2019, an Illinois man was arrested for "threatening to blow my head off," as Davis puts it. Randall Tarr pleaded guilty to federal charges and was sentenced to probation. As the top Republican on the House Administration Committee, which oversees the Capitol Police, Davis has pushed for the force to be more aggressive in arresting those who threaten members and to reform the arcane command structure in Congress that forces the chief to ask for permission before making major decisions. The security spending bill would not do that, but it would boost Capitol Police training and pay for new equipment after the force was badly overrun on Jan. 6. In the meantime, members are upgrading their personal security. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., says he's started using his house alarm more often and has been more cautious in recent months. "I've definitely felt less secure since Jan. 6 than I did before," says Himes, who sits on the House intelligence committee. Some say it's easier not to know what's going on. Illinois Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat, said he's generally adopted a "don't ask, don't tell" policy with his staff on security matters since the insurrection, and he doesn't ask why when a police car sometimes shows up in front of his house to guard it. "I don't necessarily want to know the full story," says Krishnamoorthi, who has young children. "I just trust that law enforcement is doing their job." Kuster says she is feeling better these days after taking advantage of employee assistance resources in the Capitol. Still, she says her experience was "really, really difficult," especially because she received a death threat as soon as she arrived home to New Hampshire after the insurrection. Home was the one place "I can usually feel safe," she says. She said she regularly talks to and texts with her colleagues who have also had post-traumatic stress, and she says some of them are still hurting. "We need a security plan so that everyone can feel safe here," Kuster says. "I want the 'people's house' to be able to reopen."
Late Drop Leaves Stocks Lower Tuesday 05/18 16:05
Late Drop Leaves Stocks Lower Tuesday 05/18 16:05 Stocks closed lower on Wall Street Tuesday as a late-afternoon sell-off in technology companies helped nudge stock indexes into the red for the second straight day. (AP) -- Stocks closed lower on Wall Street Tuesday as a late-afternoon sell-off in technology companies helped nudge stock indexes into the red for the second straight day. The S&P 500 lost 0.9%, with most of the pullback coming in the last hour of trading. Apple, Facebook and Google's parent company all lost 1% or more as technology stocks fell broadly. While they powered the market rebound last year, tech stocks are up only 2.6% this year, the lowest gain among the S&P 500's 11 sectors. Banks, industrial and communication companies also helped drag the market lower, easily outweighing small gains by health care stocks, among others. Energy companies fell the most as the price of U.S. crude oil fell 1.2%. Treasury yields held steady. Investors continued to size up the latest batch of company earnings reports, including quarterly snapshots from Walmart and Home Depot. Wall Street is also weighing the possibility of more inflation later this year and economic recovery as the coronavirus pandemic eases. That balancing act has contributed to a market pullback this month. "Stocks appear to be in consolidation mode, digesting strong year-to-date gains on the heels of a superb first-quarter reporting period," said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management. "We view this pullback that we're experiencing over the last week or so as within the normal ebb and flow of a broad market that still has legs to trend higher." The S&P 500 lost 35.46 points to 4,127.83. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 267.13 points, or 0.8%, to 34,060.66. The tech-heavy Nasdaq dropped 75.41 points, or 0.6%, to 13,303.64. The Russell 2000 index of small company stocks gave up 16.24 points, or 0.7%, to 2,210.88. Each of the indexes had been up at some point in the early going. The broader market made solid gains early in the year as investors bet on an economic recovery fueled by widespread vaccinations. Expectations were high for corporate earnings and the latest round of results has been surprisingly good. Wall Street is now digesting that growth and shifting to a more cautious view. "Some sort of pause was always inevitable," said Ross Mayfield, investment strategist at Baird. "Eventually markets see a more challenging landscape ahead and general uncertainty." Investors have been worried about whether rising inflation will prove to be either temporary or whether it will endure. Prices are rising for everything from gasoline to food as the economy recovers from its more than year-long malaise. The fear is that the Federal Reserve will have to dial back the extensive support if inflation persists. That includes record-low interest rates and the monthly purchase of $120 billion in bonds meant to goose the job market and economy. For all the worries about inflation, many professional investors are echoing the Federal Reserve in saying that they expect rising prices to be "transitory." "I don't think we're entering a new period of structurally higher inflation, but at the same time its impossible to say it's not one of the main risks investors face," Mayfield said. Higher interest rates drag on most of the stock market, but they are particularly painful for stocks considered the most expensive and those bid up for profits expected far into the future. This mostly involves technology stocks, which rose sharply last year and are valued highly on the future profits those companies could bring in. Investors have been able to draw encouragement from company earnings reports, which have been surprisingly good. "By most metrics you're seeing company financials reflect an economy that's starting to open up and that's consistent with economic growth," Sandven said. Retailers are among the last companies to report first-quarter results, with several of them set to do so this week, including Target and Lowe's. On Tuesday, Walmart rose 2.2% after the giant retailer's results beat estimates as online shopping saw significant growth from a year ago, driven in part by Americans buying online in the pandemic. AT&T fell 5.8% for the biggest decline in the S&P 500 and continued a two-day slide after the company announced it would spin off its Warner media assets into a new company with Discovery Communications. AT&T only finished acquiring Warner, which includes HBO, CNN, DC Comics and other iconic properties, in 2018 and its new CEO is pulling an about-face on his predecessor's decisions.
