Wednesday, August 3rd, 2022
Pelosi’s High-Risk Trip, Veterans Healthcare Boost & Blockbuster MLB Deal
All the news you need in about 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Rothys.com/newsworthy and Zocdoc.com/newsworthy
Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want reading about the latest happenings…
Pelosi in Taiwan
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi decided to visit Taiwan, along with other lawmakers. She made the trip even though she faced warnings from the Chinese government and concerns from the U.S. military. Pelosi said the trip is important because it acknowledges that “the freedoms of Taiwan and all democracies must be protected.” Taiwan is a self-governed island, but China sees it as being under its control. After Pelosi landed, China’s government said it will launch “targeted military operations” in response. Still, Pelosi is keeping her schedule. This morning, she met with Taiwan’s president.
Read More: Speaker Pelosi, NY Times, AP, Fox News, Reuters, Insider
Biden Admin Sues Idaho
For the first time since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the federal government decided to challenge a state’s abortion law in court. The U.S. Justice Department sued Idaho over its abortion ban that’s set to take effect later this month. Even though Idaho’s ban includes an exception to prevent the death of a pregnant woman, it doesn’t include an exception when the woman's health is in serious jeopardy. The DOJ says that’s the problem. However, Idaho is expected to fight this. The state’s governor says the Biden administration is “overreaching” since the Supreme Court left decisions up to the states.
Read More: DOJ, ABC News, WSJ, WaPo, Reuters
KS Voters Back Keeping Abortion Rights
Voters in Kansas decided to protect the right to get an abortion in their state. They voted against adding an amendment to the state constitution that would have let their state lawmakers tighten abortion restrictions or ban the procedure altogether. This was the first time voters have been able to weigh in since the Supreme Court ruling. Similar decisions will be on the ballots this fall in Kentucky and perhaps other states.
Read More: Reuters, NPR, AP, Fox News
GA Embryos as Dependents
People in Georgia can now claim embryos as dependents on their state taxes. This comes after Georgia banned abortions once doctors could detect a heartbeat. Now, an embryo or fetus with a heartbeat will count as a human in other ways, too. People who claim them on their tax returns can get $3,000 for each one.
Read More: Georgia DOR, NBC News, Fox News, Axios, NPR
Congress Passes Veterans Healthcare Bill
It’s the largest healthcare expansion for veterans in decades. Congress passed a bill to enhance healthcare and disability benefits for millions of post-9/11 veterans exposed to toxic burn pits overseas. It would also cover veterans of other eras, like those who were exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam. Overall, the bill adds two dozen health conditions and diseases the VA automatically considers to be related to military service. The bill has been closely-watched. Veterans groups and activists had been camping out on the steps of Capitol Hill, demanding Congress take action. President Biden says he looks forward to signing the bill into law.
Read More: White House, AP, ABC News, WSJ, Insider
Job Openings Drop
The Labor Department’s latest data shows employers posted 10.7 million job openings at the end of June. That’s the lowest number in nine months. Retail jobs made up most of the decline. Still, analysts say the labor market is still strong by most measures. Even with this latest drop, there were twice as many job openings as unemployed workers in June. On top of that, layoffs are still close to a record low.
Read More: BLS, WSJ, CNBC, NY Times, Fox Business
Solar Storm to Hit Earth
Today, a solar storm is expected to hit Earth. It’s happening because of high-speed winds from a hole in the sun’s atmosphere. Solar material is headed toward Earth’s magnetic field and trickling down near the poles. Today, that sun debris is expected to form light displays in the skies over Canada and Alaska called auroras. They might be seen as far south as Michigan and Maine. The storm isn’t dangerous since it is considered weak. Scientists say there might be some minor fluctuations in power grids, and it could impact some satellite functions, but there shouldn’t be a huge disruption.
Read More: NASA, Weather Channel, LiveScience, UPI
Airfares Lower This Month
If you’re looking to travel, this month or next may be the best time to buy your plane ticket. New data from the travel site Hopper found the average price for a round-trip ticket within the U.S. will drop below $300 in August and stay fairly low in September, too. That’s compared to a peak of $410 for a round-trip ticket in May. There are a couple of reasons for the dip. For example, fuel prices are down, and demand is slowing. Airfare is expected to spike again in October and November as people begin to book holiday travel.
Read More: Hopper, USA Today, Fox Business, WaPo
Crypto Firm Loses Nearly $200M in Hack
Hackers swiped nearly $200 million in cryptocurrency from a startup called Nomad. It lets users transfer tokens online from one network to another. These types of tools have become a target of cyberattacks in recent years. Experts say they’re complex, which can lead to errors and leave them vulnerable. Nomad has acknowledged the attack on its Twitter and says it’s working to recover funds and make technical fixes. However, it’s not clear how quickly users may get reimbursed, if at all.
Read More: PeckShield, Nomad, Bloomberg, CNBC, TechCrunch, Engadget
Crypto Ponzi Scheme
The federal government charged 11 people for an alleged cryptocurrency pyramid and Ponzi scheme. The SEC says the group Forsage raised more than $300 million from investors around the world for what was said to be a decentralized “smart contract” platform. However, the SEC says the main way for investors to make money was to recruit others into the operation, not by selling a product or service. Multiple media outlets say they tried to reach out to people with Forsage, but they haven’t heard back.
Read More: SEC, CNBC, MarketWatch, Reuters, Axios
Samsung Self-Repair Kits
Samsung launched a new fix-it-yourself repair service for its Galaxy devices. The company is partnering with iFixit to send customers their parts and tools with step-by-step instructions on how to fix things like screens, shattered glass, or charging ports. Samsung says it will charge you the same amount it does other repair providers. That could range anywhere from $67 to $230, depending on what needs to be repaired. For now, the self-repair service is only available for certain models, not newer devices.
Read More: Samsung, Gizmodo, The Verge, TechCrunch, CNET
MLB Trade Deadline
Last night was the trade deadline for Major League Baseball. On deadline day, the San Diego Padres. They got Juan Soto in what’s considered one of the biggest blockbuster deals in trade deadline history. Soto is a two-time all-star and one of the best hitters in the game. The Washington Nationals traded him and first baseman Josh Bell for a package of other players. That wasn’t the only big trade. The Cardinals and Yankees also swapped big leaguers: Harrison Bader in exchange for Jordan Montgomery. That’s just to name a couple of the most talked-about trades of the week.
Read More: CBS Sports, USA Today, ESPN, AP, NY Post, Fox News
Work Wednesday: Job Switchers Earn More
Switching jobs seems to be paying off. A new Pew Research Center report found most people who changed employers between April of last year to March of this year got a raise, more than their co-workers who stayed put. Specifically, 60% of people made more money switching jobs, compared to 47% of people who made more by staying at the same jobs. When you look at how much of a pay increase people got, the raises tended to be much bigger for the job switchers.
Read More: Pew Research, Axios, WSJ, MarketWatch