UK airports get more time to put in new scanners that will allow more liquids and packed laptops

( ) -q-26- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “homemade liquid bombs.”

The British government will grant extensions to several large U.K. airports unable to meet the June 1 deadline to fully install new scanning technology.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. The British government says it will grant an extension of up to a year.

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VERBATIM: The new scanners will allow passengers to take 70 ounces of liquid in their hand luggage — rather than the current paltry 3.5 ounces. New rules will also mean laptops and tablets won’t need to be taken out of bags — saving even more time. The restrictions were introduced around the world in 2006 following a foiled terror plot to blow up planes flying from London to the U.S. with homemade liquid bombs.

Tech companies want to build artificial general intelligence. But who decides when AGI is attained?

( 9a ) -v-36- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “std.”

There’s a race underway to build artificial general intelligence. Correspondent Jeremy House reports.

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VERBATIM: It’s a futuristic vision of machines that are broadly as smart as humans or at least can do many things as well as people can. Achieving such a concept is the driving mission of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and a priority for elite research wings of tech giants Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft. It’s also a cause for concern for the world’s governments. Leading AI scientists published research in the journal Science warning that unchecked AI agents with “long-term planning” skills could pose an existential risk to humanity.

Green Doubles Down On Threat To Seek Ouster Of House Speaker

Schumer Expected To Quickly Dismiss Mayorkas Impeachment Charges

Senator Warren To Oppose New F15’s To Israel

Applications for jobless benefits rise, but layoffs remain historically low

The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits rose last week. The Labor Department says filings for unemployment claims for the week ending March 30 climbed by 9,000 to 221,000 from the previous week’s 212,000. In total, 1.79 million Americans were collecting jobless benefits during the week that ended March 23, a decline of 19,000 from the previous week. Despite the increase in filings, layoffs remain at historically low levels as the labor market continues to move along despite elevated interest rates.

Lawsuit challenges $1 billion in federal funding to sustain California’s last nuclear power plant

( ) -q-27- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “ward off blackouts.”

An environmental group is challenging the U.S. Energy Department’s decision to award over $1 billion to help keep California’s last nuclear power plant running beyond 2025.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting.

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VERBATIM: A lawsuit filed by Friends of the Earth in federal court in Los Angeles opens another battlefront in the fight over the future of Diablo Canyon’s twin reactors. The group says awarding the money to Pacific Gas & Electric was based on an analysis that fails to recognize potential safety risks. A deal to shutter the plant was voided after Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom stepped in, saying power from the nuclear plant is needed to ward off blackouts.

Southeast Asian countries consider ways to boost ‘green financing’ as region chokes on smog

( ) -q-25- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “tinder-dry conditions.”

Senior finance and central bank officials from Southeast Asia and major economies are holding a high-level meeting in Laos.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Laos and other countries in Southeast Asia have committed to seeking more sustainable ways to feed their people and power their economies. The question is where the money will come from to do that.

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VERBATIM: They are discussing ways to help the region build resilience against shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic and natural disasters brought on by climate change. The need for faster progress was dramatically apparent as the city and surrounding region were engulfed in heavy smoke from fires. Some of those fires were set to clear forests for crops, some ignited by record high temperatures and tinder-dry conditions.

Senator Cruz Says Dems Have “Put A Bullseye” On Texas

Wisconsin Sen. Johnson Rules Out Role In Potential Trump Administration

Senator Cotton Warns Against U.S. Intervention In Haiti

How to protect yourself from common scams this tax season

( ) -q-25- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “you don’t recognize.”

Scammers look for ways to trick people into giving them money year-round, but tax season can be particularly fraught.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting.

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VERBATIM: One of the most common tax scams is identity theft. Taxpayers usually know their identity has been stolen when they try to file their tax returns and the IRS says they’ve already done so. This usually means someone else filed in their name to try to get a refund. There are ways you can protect yourself, including setting up an identify protection pin with the IRS and not answering calls from numbers you don’t recognize.

Biden administration approves nation’s 8th large offshore wind project

( ) -q-24- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “megawatts of electricity.”

The Biden administration approved a new wind project off the Massachusetts coast.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind is another 2,600-megawatt project, to be built east of Virginia Beach, Virginia. The last operating coal-fired power plant in Massachusetts, Brayton Point, at 1,600 megawatts, closed in 2017.

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VERBATIM: The project is expected to be large enough to provide more electricity than the state’s former coal-fired generating station. Avangrid’s New England Wind is the United States’ eighth large offshore wind project to be greenlit. The project, to be built in two phases, was approved for up to 129 turbines capable of generating up to 2,600 megawatts of electricity.

Inflation has slid again in Europe

( ) -q-22- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “of two-percent inflation.”

Inflation has fallen again in Europe, to 2.4% in March.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Analysts say the decline keeps the ECB on track for an interest rate cut in June. The pressure is on to reduce borrowing costs because the economy is failing to grow.

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VERBATIM: It’s welcome news for consumers since spikes in food prices have eased. The annual figure for the 20 countries that use the euro currency has come in below what financial markets expected and marks a decline from 2.6% in February. The figures mean the European Central Bank is getting closer to achieving its goal of 2% inflation.

CDC Reports Sharp Rise In MPOX Cases in 2024

Trump Takes Aim At Critic GOP Senator Bill Cassidy

McConnell Says Will Serve Out Full Term Though 2027

House Conservatives Propose Renaming Dulles International After Trump

Freight railroads must keep 2-person crews under new federal rule

( ) -q-22- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “to ground-based jobs.”

Major freight railroads will have to maintain two-person crews in most circumstances under a new federal rule.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. The rule comes amid an intense focus on railroad safety following the fiery February 2023 derailment in eastern Ohio.

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VERBATIM: The Transportation Department’s Federal Railroad Administration released the details of the rule the agency has been working on for the past two years. Rail unions have long opposed one-person crews because of a combination of safety and job concerns. Railroads have sought the discretion to operate trains with only one person and move conductors to ground-based jobs.

College newspaper sweeps up 2 struggling weekly publications

( ) -q-22- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “towns more news.”

Student journalists across the United States have done their bit to cover small town news for years, but a college paper in Iowa is taking a bigger swing at it.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Campus papers in other American communities are also being distributed more widely to help fill the gap left by disappearing newspapers.

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VERBATIM: The Daily Iowan of the University of Iowa just bought two struggling weekly papers for an undisclosed price. It’s a deal believed to be the first of its kind. The students are already redoing the newspaper websites and soon plan to add interns to help write stories. The young journalists will get real-world experience while bringing the towns more news.

Israel clears way to expel Al Jazeera

( ) -q-26- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “war in Gaza.”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to shut down Al Jazeera’s operations in Israel.

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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. The broadcaster condemned Netanyahu’s incitement claim as a “dangerous ludicrous lie.” Al Jazeera said it holds Netanyahu responsible for the safety of its staff and offices and would continue what it described as its bold and professional coverage.

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VERBATIM: Nethanyahu calls Al Jazeera a “terror channel” that spreads incitement. His accusation came after Israel’s parliament passed a law clearing the way for the closure. Netanyahu’s pledge escalates Israel’s long-running feud against Al Jazeera. But it also threatens to heighten tensions with Qatar, which owns the channel, at a time when the Doha government is playing a key role in mediation efforts to halt the war in Gaza.

Speaker Says Ukraine Aid Bill Will Include New “Innovations”.

New $20 minimum wage for fast food workers takes effect in California

California’s new minimum wage law for fast food workers is now in effect. Most of California’s fast food workers are set to be paid at least 20 dollars per hour. The increase has been cheered by workers and labor unions who say it will provide a livable wage. But some business owners say it will cause them to raise their prices or lay off workers in a state already known for its high cost of living.

First thought to be a prank, Gmail turns 20

It’s been 20 years since Google launched Gmail. On April 1st, 2004, Google announced a free email service boasting 1 gigabyte of storage per account. At the time, that was a huge amount of email capacity and many people thought Gmail was the latest prank from Google’s co-founders. But the April Fool’s Day announcement was no joke. Gmail revolutionized email and today there are an estimated 1.8 billion active accounts.