Trump Blasts Judge and His Daughter After Gag Order

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NEW YORK — Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order ahead of his April 15 hush-money criminal trial, suggesting without evidence that the veteran jurist was kowtowing to his daughter’s interests as a Democratic political consultant. The former president objected in particular to what he said was her specious social media photo showing him behind bars.  Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, posted on social media that the gag order issued Tuesday was “illegal, un-American, unConstitutional.” He said Judge Juan M. Merchan was “wrongfully attempting to deprive me of my First Amendmentmore

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Chinese Leader to Dutch PM: Restricting Technology Access Won’t Stop China’s Advance

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BEIJING — Chinese leader Xi Jinping told visiting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday that attempts to restrict China’s access to technology will not stop the country’s advance.  The Netherlands imposed export licensing requirements in 2023 on the sale of machinery that can make advanced processor chips. The move came after the United States blocked Chinese access to advanced chips and the equipment to make them, citing security concerns, and urged its allies to follow suit.  An online report from state broadcaster CCTV did not mention the chip machinery, but quoted Xi as saying that the creation of scientific andmore

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Vietnamese Automaker VinFast to Start Selling EVs in Thailand

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Bangkok — Vietnamese automaker VinFast announced Tuesday that it plans to sell its electric vehicles in Thailand and said it had tied up with auto dealers to open showrooms in the country. VinFast, which only began exporting its EVs last year, faces stiff competition in Thailand from Chinese automakers like BYD. Tesla also recently entered the fray. All were displaying their latest models at the Bangkok International Motor Show. The Thai EV market is small but growing fast, buoyed by incentives and subsidies from the government. The country of more than 70 million plans to convert 30% of the 2.5 millionmore

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US Aims to Tap Domestic Lithium Supply Without Chinese Products

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washington — Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Energy announced a record conditional loan of $2.26 billion to tap the largest known lithium reserves in North America. The loan is an important step in an effort by the U.S. government to reduce reliance on China for the metal used to make batteries. Analysts, however, say that it may be too late to move away from reliance on China completely when it comes to metal processing and the production of batteries. The DOE’s Loan Programs Office (LPO) says the funds, if approved after review, will help the Lithium Americas Corp. constructmore

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Critics Slam Apple CEO Tim Cook for Laudatory Remarks in China

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 Washington — Tim Cook, CEO of the American technology giant Apple, is facing criticism at home over laudatory remarks he made about China during a recent visit to try to boost sagging iPhone sales in the lucrative market.  Cook was in Shanghai for the opening of China’s largest Apple retail store on Friday and met with Chinese political and business people. He praised China for being “so vibrant and so dynamic,” in remarks widely quoted by state media and Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying.    The new Apple store took seven years and cost over 80 million yuan (roughly $11.1 million)more

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US President Biden Wins Missouri Democratic Primary

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COLUMBIA, MISSOURI — U.S. President Joe Biden has won Missouri’s primary, the state Democratic Party announced.  Biden’s win was not in doubt; he has already beaten his major competitors. But the primary races are still closely watched by insiders for turnout and signs of protest voters.  Saturday’s primary was the Missouri Democratic Party’s first party-run presidential contest since a new law took effect in August 2022.  The party says about 20,000 voters participated.  Missouri Republicans opted to hold a caucus this year, which former President Donald Trump won.  Lawmakers have failed to reinstate the state-run primary despite calls to do somore

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Trump Faces Gag Order in New York Hush Money Criminal Case

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NEW YORK — Donald Trump on Tuesday was hit with a judge’s gag order sought by prosecutors in his upcoming criminal trial involving hush money paid to a porn star, restricting him from publicly commenting about witnesses and court staff.  Ahead of the former U.S. president’s trial, which is scheduled to begin April 15 in the New York state court, Justice Juan Merchan granted a request for the order made last month by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office.  The prosecution sought an order blocking Trump from “making or directing others to make” statements about witnesses concerning their role in themore

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LogOn: Robots Hand Write Letters for Humans

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Not long ago, people wrote letters by hand. But like many things eclipsed by modern technology, handwritten letters are less common than they used to be. Now, that technology has started writing those letters. VOA’s Julie Taboh introduces us to handwriting robots in this week’s episode of LogOn. …

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Florida’s Governor Signs One of Country’s Most Restrictive Social Media Bans for Minors

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TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Florida will have one of the country’s most restrictive social media bans for minors — if it withstands expected legal challenges — under a bill signed by Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Monday.  The bill will ban social media accounts for children under 14 and require parental permission for 15- and 16-year-olds. It was slightly watered down from a proposal DeSantis vetoed earlier this month, a week before the annual legislative session ended. The new law was Republican Speaker Paul Renner’s top legislative priority. It takes effect January 1.  “A child in their brain development doesn’t havemore

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US Vice President: Banning TikTok ‘Not at All the Goal’

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 Austin, Texas — U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said the Biden administration has no intention to ban TikTok, the popular short video application from Chinese company ByteDance.  Harris told ABC’s “This Week” program on Sunday that a ban was “not at all the goal or the purpose of this conversation.”    The White House urged the Senate last week to swiftly advance a bill that would force ByteDance to sell TikTok over privacy and national security concerns within six months or face a ban.   U.S. officials and lawmakers worry that the Chinese government could access American consumers’ data on the platform, whichmore

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TikTok Bill Faces Uncertain Fate in Senate

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WASHINGTON — The young voices in the messages left for North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis were laughing, but the words were ominous. “OK, listen, if you ban TikTok I will find you and shoot you,” one said, giggling and talking over other young voices in the background. “I’ll shoot you and find you and cut you into pieces.” Another threatened to kill Tillis, and then take their own life. Tillis’s office says it has received around 1,000 calls about TikTok since the House passed legislation this month that would ban the popular app if its China-based owner doesn’t sell its stake.more

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Biden, Trump Win Louisiana’s Presidential Primary

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washington — President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump won Louisiana’s primary on Saturday, collecting more delegates after they clinched their party nominations.  Biden also appeared in Missouri’s Democratic primary, with results not expected to be reported until next week.  None of the races were in suspense. Biden and Trump have beaten their major competitors. But the primary races are still closely watched by insiders for turnout and signs of protest voters.  For Biden, some liberals are registering their anger with Israel’s war against Hamas following the militant group’s October 7 attack. More than 30,000 people, two-thirds of them womenmore

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US Congress Averts Government Shutdown, Passing $1.2 Trillion Bill

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WASHINGTON — The U.S. Congress early Saturday overwhelmingly passed a $1.2 trillion budget bill, keeping the government funded through a fiscal year that began six months ago and sending it to President Joe Biden to sign into law and avert a partial shutdown. The vote on passage was 74-24. Key federal agencies including the departments of Homeland Security, Justice, State and Treasury, which houses the Internal Revenue Service, will remain funded through September 30 after the bill was passed in the Democratic-majority Senate. But the measure did not include funding for mostly military aid to Ukraine, Taiwan or Israel, which aremore

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At UN, Nations Cooperate Toward Safe, Trustworthy AI Systems

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United Nations — The U.N. General Assembly adopted by consensus Thursday a first-of-its-kind resolution addressing the potential of artificial intelligence to accelerate progress toward sustainable development, while emphasizing the need for safe, secure and trustworthy AI systems. The initiative, led by the United States, seeks to manage AI’s risks while utilizing its benefits. “Today as the U.N. and AI finally intersect, we have the opportunity and the responsibility to choose as one united global community to govern this technology rather than to let it govern us,” said U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield. “So let us reaffirm that AI will be created andmore

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Reddit, the Self-Anointed ‘Front Page of the Internet,’ Jumps 55% in Wall Street Debut

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NEW YORK — Reddit soared in its Wall Street debut as investors pushed the valued of the company close to $9 billion seconds after it began trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Reddit, which priced its IPO at $34 a share, debuted Thursday afternoon at $47 a share. The going price has climbed even higher since, with shares for the self-anointed “front page of the internet” soaring more than 55% as of around 1:20 p.m. ET. The IPO will test the quirky company’s ability to overcome a nearly 20-year history colored by uninterrupted losses, management turmoil and occasional user backlashesmore

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US Takes On Apple in Antitrust Lawsuit

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Washington — The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday sued Apple, the first major antitrust effort against the iPhone maker by the Biden administration, alleging it monopolized smartphone markets.   Apple joins a list of major tech companies sued by U.S. regulators, including Alphabet’s  Google, Meta Platforms and Amazon.com across the administrations of both former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden. “Consumers should not have to pay higher prices because companies violate the antitrust laws,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. “If left unchallenged, Apple will only continue to strengthen its smartphone monopoly.” The Justice Department alleges thatmore

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Biden Administration Unveils Strict Auto Standards to Speed Electric Shift 

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New York — President Joe Biden’s administration announced Wednesday revised pollution standards for cars and trucks meant to accelerate the U.S. auto industry’s shift to electric to mitigate climate change. The rules set ambitious emission reductions for 2032 but are moderated somewhat compared with preliminary standards unveiled last April. Following carmaker criticism, the final rules give manufacturers greater flexibility and ease the benchmarks in the first three years. Those shifts were criticized as a sop to corporations from at least one environmental group, even as the final rule won praise from other leading NGOs focused on climate change. The final rulesmore

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