Artificial Intelligence

The American Prospect - Most people involved in artificial intelligence can agree on one thing: AI is coming for your job.  Anthropic’s CEO predicts Great Depression levels of unemployment in the next five years. Bill Gates says that within ten years humans won’t be needed “for most things.” Corporate leaders say AI-driven layoffs are already starting, with Intuit firing thousands just this week, citing AI.

Businesses justify their huge investments in AI by committing to spending less on labor, and AI firms sell their products promising to help them do it. Regardless of whether AI is yet good enough to replace workers, their plan is clear: lay off millions of workers, justified by AI.

One entity seems totally unaware: the United States government. The only major AI proposal advanced this Congress was a failed effort to prevent states from regulating the industry.

The path we are on is clear: AI will make a small number of investors and executives even richer, while it eliminates jobs for millions of Americans—and the government does nothing about it.

... An AI tax should target the companies that stand to make billions of dollars by laying people off. 

ICE

Congressional Insider, New Jersey Anti-ICE protests at Delaney Hall in Newark turned violent, with assaults on federal officers and clashes stretching over multiple nights.

• A conservative journalist, Cameron Higby, says protesters swarmed, assaulted, and robbed him while he filmed — a pattern seen at other ICE facilities.
• Evidence confirms a volatile, sometimes lawless protest environment, but public records on the specific Higby attack remain incomplete.
• Both left and right see a justice system that cannot keep order or tell the full truth, deepening distrust in institutions and media narratives.

Canada more fair to gay and transgender folk

Congressional Insider -   Government of Canada policy openly states that people facing persecution because of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or sex characteristics can seek refugee protection through its in-country asylum program or resettlement channels. Canada’s rules instruct its refugee board to apply specific guidance for these claims, recognizing the extra barriers people face when they do not fit social norms. That is a stark contrast with a U.S. system where backlogs and shifting rules leave many feeling the door is effectively closed...

Canadian immigration and refugee lawyers report a “noticeable increase” in transgender Americans looking for ways to leave the United States and seek refuge in Canada as political hostility rises. A peer-reviewed study of asylum migration found that Trump-era immigration policies were a major driver of people heading north, even if they do not fully explain every case. At the same time, Canada’s own data and caps show that the government’s dedicated LGBT resettlement scheme is still numerically small, suggesting a growing trickle, not yet a wave.

Immigration

The Hill -  A federal judge on Friday vacated a series of Trump policies enacted in the wake of a deadly attack on National Guard members, forcing immigration agencies to again process immigration applications from citizens of nearly 40 countries.

In the days surrounding last Thanksgiving, President Trump barred the processing of any immigration application for those from 39 travel ban countries, halting the ability to get green cards and leading to widespread cancellation of naturalization ceremonies. 

He also put a stop to the processing of asylum claims from any country and ordered a review of all immigration benefits bestowed to those from the 39 travel ban countries under President Biden.

Rhode Island-based U.S. District Court Judge John McConnell found all of the actions were unlawful.  “More than six months ago, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) enacted a series of policies that threw the lives of countless immigrants living in the United States into indeterminate legal limbo,” McConnell wrote in the 135-page ruling.

“USCIS’s hold on adjudications cannot be attributed to anything that these individuals did wrong; rather, it arises solely by the happenstance of their birth.”

The ruling is a major victory for immigrants and their advocates, who had seen processing come to an abrupt halt — a pause that threatened to push some legal immigrants on time-limited visas to overstay the bounds of their status.

The Guardian -   Detainees at Florida’s notorious “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration jail said guards were denying them food and fresh water on Thursday until they signed documents presented to them in English that they did not understand.

In an audio recording of a telephone call to an immigration advocacy group heard by the Guardian, more than half a dozen detainees alleged that the water given to them over the last three days was “rotten” and containing mosquito larvae, in an apparent attempt to pressure them to sign.

.....“They took all the water, and they don’t want to give us water,” one detainee said in the call to a representative of the Workers Circle, an advocacy group that has acted as a liaison between detainees and their families. “They haven’t given us lunch, and they are mistreating us here. Right now, at this very moment, half past one in the afternoon, we haven’t had lunch here in Alcatraz, and they wanted to make us sign a paper in English that we don’t know what that paper says.

House passes bill cutting food aid for pregnant women, children

Under the legislation, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children — more commonly known as WIC — would lose $141 million in funding for fruit and vegetable benefits for the nearly 5.4 million children and pregnant and postpartum women enrolled, according to an estimate from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The Senate has yet to consider the legislation

Middle East

Shortlysts  - Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a new ceasefire deal, which was reached after a fourth round of U.S.-mediated talks in Washington. The new ceasefire is contingent on the ‘evacuation of all Hezbollah operatives’ from an area between the Israeli border and the Litani river, about nineteen miles to the north, which is currently occupied by Israeli ground forces.

A spokesman for Hezbollah said the group has rejected the new ceasefire agreement, calling it ‘humiliating’ for Lebanon and the Lebanese people. The U.S. and Israel said the new deal is contingent on a cessation of hostilities by Hezbollah.

Ukraine

The House passed a bill that would provide aid to Ukraine, with 18 Republicans joining Democrats in another rebuke of Trump’s foreign policy.

Anti-weaponization fund

Roll Call -   The Senate passed a nearly $70 billion reconciliation bill for immigration enforcement early Friday morning after rejecting repeated attempts by members of both parties to prohibit or restrict a Justice Department “anti-weaponization” fund.  On a mostly party-line vote of 52-47, the Senate sent to the House a bill designed to fund immigration agencies for the rest of President Donald Trump’s term without new restrictions on federal immigration agents sought by Democrats. Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski was the sole Republican to join all Democrats in opposition.

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White House ballroom

The Hill -   The Trump administration on Friday is set to make its case before a federal appeals court on why it believes it has authority to build the White House ballroom without further approval from Congress.   The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has agreed to allow construction to proceed until it rules on whether the project can proceed. That decision will determine next steps for the project, which President Trump has been pressing for weeks. 

The legal battle has unfolded in the aftermath of shootings at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and one just outside the White House. The Justice Department has described both as attempts on Trump’s life, telling judges that it heightens the need for the ballroom, which Trump has described as having military-grade security.

“The Ballroom is on time, under budget, and free to the American taxpayer, while benefiting future Presidents by serving as a ‘safe haven’ from attackers such as the two recent would-be assassins,” the Justice Department wrote in court filings last weekend. 

The hearing also comes as the project faces congressional pushback. Six GOP senators voted with Democrats on Thursday in support of a proposal that would explicitly block the project. 

Black voters

NY Times -   Millions of Americans .... live in states where Republicans are drawing maps that dilute the power of Black voters, and those who share their interests. Just on Tuesday, the Supreme Court allowed Alabama to eliminate one of only two Black-majority districts. By the fall elections, and almost certainly by the next presidential election, new maps will be in place.

The Supreme Court decision in April severely weakened the Voting Rights Act by allowing political parties to gerrymander voting districts for partisan advantage, no matter the effect on Black voters. The effort to destroy Black political power in the South is among the greatest betrayals of Black Americans, and those who have voted alongside them, by the federal government in living memory. It will have far-reaching consequences for all Americans, and for our democracy. Despite this, the work of mobilizing a response is largely falling to Black people.

The ultrarich keep losing Democratic primaries

MS NOW -  Tom Steyer ran for governor of California as a climate crusader endorsed by Bernie Sanders’ political organization, Our Revolution. He also spent at least $216 million of his own money on the race — and in the end, that was the only thing voters seemed to remember. With nearly 58% of the vote counted, he is running third. 

For generations, a personal fortune was among the surest assets in American politics — the thing that bought name recognition, blanketed the airwaves and cleared a primary field. This year, for Democratic candidates across the country, it is starting to look like a liability. 

The timing is unkind to the ultrawealthy. In a March YouGov survey, 77% of adults said the wealthy have too much political power, and 52% said the government should try to reduce the share of wealth held by billionaires. More than half of adults told a May Politico poll that cost of living is the “worst they can remember.” Against that backdrop, self-funding candidates — once a recruiter’s dream — have become a harder sell. 

Steyer, who made his money founding and running a hedge fund, found that out the hard way. In California’s liberal electorate, his wealth became the case against him. His advertising blitz provoked attacks: Xavier Becerra’s campaign posted videos telling voters they “have the power to put an end to the Tom Steyer ads.” With a one-time billionaire tax set to appear on the November ballot, the idea of electing one of the ultrawealthy at the same moment proved too much for some. “In the end, I didn’t want to vote for a billionaire,” one voter, a 22-year-old UC San Diego student, told The New York Times plainly. 

Workers

NY Times - The economy added 172,000 last month, more than economists had expected, while the unemployment rate stayed at 4.3 percent.The robust reading follows other data suggesting that labor demand has found its footing after a year of trade policy swings, immigration enforcement disruption and an exodus from the federal government. With revisions, March and April added 93,000 more jobs than previously reported.

Average hourly earnings grew 3.4 percent from a year earlier, the slowest rate since August 2021. That’s now substantially behind the rate of inflation, although it may reflect the composition of job growth, as more lower-wage jobs have been added in recent months.

The economy added 172,000 last month, more than economists had expected, while the unemployment rate stayed at 4.3 percent.Leisure boom: Growth was led last month by leisure and hospitality, which packed on 70,000 jobs. Some of that may have been early hiring for the World Cup as cities across the country prepared for an influx of tourists. Health care, which has been the steady fuel of job growth over the past several years, added another 35,000 positions.

The federal government was about level, after having lost about 350,000 jobs since peaking toward the end of 2024. But local government surged, adding 55,000 jobs in May, mostly outside education.

The Platner problem

Sam Smith - When I first heard Graham Platner willingly describe some of his past sins from which he had morally matured, I tried to recall, in my seven decades of covering news, when some other politician had been as decently public about their wrong doings. I have still failed to come up with an answer.

Now Platner is being accused of further sins which he denies. Was he unique but not unique enough?

Well, in the first place, you vote practically for candidates based not primarily on their personal behavior but on their political action.  

Secondly, if we knew as much about all members of Congress as we now have heard allegedly about Platner he would be far less newsworthy.

Which is why this Maine voter plans to stick with Platner despite his alleged misdoings. His victory would be a tribute to his open recovery from some past wrongs and a role model for others.

Hmm ...

Republicans Against Trump - Trump compared the UFC cage on the White House South Lawn to the Eiffel Tower and said he might keep it there permanently: “We're building something in front of the White House that's quite attractive to a lot of people.... And I'm looking at it, and maybe we'll never ever take it down."

Health

Study Finds -   Americans born after 1970 are already dying at higher rates from heart disease, cancer, and external causes than people born before them were dying at the same ages, a pattern researchers call alarming given how many years these cohorts still have ahead. A separate nationwide deterioration in death rates began around 2010 and hit nearly every living adult at once, driven mainly by stalling progress against cardiovascular disease after decades of improvement.

Americans born in the 1950s marked the generational turning point: cohorts born before them tended to show steadily improving survival, while every generation since has fared progressively worse across most major causes of death.

Researchers warn that if current trends continue as post-1970 cohorts age further, the United States could face an unprecedented long-running stagnation, or even a sustained decline, in overall life expectancy.

The Guardian -  Three scientific papers that raised questions about vaccine safety and were used by the Trump administration to justify controversial changes to US vaccine policies have over the last two months been removed, retracted or placed under investigation by the journals that published them.

Axios - Democratic states are pushing back on the Trump administration's rules for new Medicaid work requirements, warning that a chaotic rollout in the coming months could lead to even more people losing their coverage.

The first-ever work requirements in last year's Republican tax-and-spending bill were already controversial — but now there are new clashes over the way the administration wants to implement them.

Six Democratic governors led by Oregon's Tina Kotek last week called on the administration to "stop forcing states into an unworkable rollout" of the requirements by a Jan. 1 deadline.

They asked for an extension, citing what they called shifting guidance from the federal government.

Instead, the administration on Monday released a rule that imposed a stricter-than-expected approach to granting exemptions from the work requirements.

Among other things, people with cancer or HIV may not qualify for a "medically frail" exemption — unless the condition significantly impairs the ability to work.

Without an exemption, people ages 19 to 64 would have to work or participate in 80 hours of community engagement per month to keep their Medicaid coverage.  MORE

Housing prices drop

Newsweek -   After years of relentless price growth, U.S. home asking prices are now falling at their fastest pace in nearly a decade according to new data from a real estate listings website.  High mortgage rates, stretched affordability, and geopolitical uncertainty tied to the Iran war continue to weigh on demand.

The sustained cooling marks a clear shift in the U.S. housing market: after the pandemic-era boom pushed prices to record highs, buyers are stepping back, forcing sellers to cut expectations.

Realtor.com said the national median listing price has been falling for seven consecutive months now, as mortgage rates remain high and rising inflation fuels Americans’ fear over what could come next.

In May, the median listing price fell 2.4 percent year-over-year to $429,500—the steepest annual decline in data going back to 2017.

Return of the Dixiecrat South

The American Prospect  - It has been just one month since the 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court effectively nullified Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA), making it lawful for states to draw congressional districts that systematically dilute the votes of Black and Latino Americans. Within hours, Southern states responded. Florida legislators passed a GOP gerrymander the day the decision was announced. Alabama moved to eliminate majority-minority districts even after primary-election votes had been cast, though an appellate court has temporarily blocked the state from proceeding. (UPDATE: The Supreme Court waved the gerrymandered map through last night.) In Tennessee, the district representing Memphis—majority-Black—was cracked into three, all now majority-white, all expected to turn red. By 2028, South Carolina will likely gerrymander out of existence the district that has elected the state’s only Black congressman, civil rights icon James Clyburn

Donald Trump

Time -    President Donald Trump accused California Democrats of “cheating” and “trying to steal” the elections from Republican candidates as the state continues to count votes in what may be a days or weeks-long process.  “They are trying to steal the Governor of California primary and the Mayor of Los Angeles primary away from two great Republican candidates,” he claimed. “Here we go with the very late and massive numbers of mail-in ballots.”  In a follow-up Truth Social post, he claimed there was “big cheating” by the Democrats, querying: “Votes are all tied up. May not be in for weeks. Under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles. Why the vote counting delay?” 

Andy Borowitz: This version works for me

Trump regime

The Hill -   he Trump Administration has proposed what could be the biggest overhaul in years of how the federal government distributes billions of dollars in grants, requiring senior appointees to conduct “pre-issuance reviews” that critics say pave the way for political interference in what should be independent research funding.  The proposal, which was more than 400 pages long and was published in the Federal Register Friday, by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) calls for the review of awards on several grounds, including whether they “demonstrably advance the President's policy priorities.” 

Agencies would also have broad authority to terminate awards if they decide that a grant no longer aligns with government goals or interests, similar to “termination for convenience” provisions in federal contracts.

MS NOW -   When Markwayne Mullin appeared before Congress Tuesday for the first time as homeland security secretary, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., asked a question Mullin should have had no trouble answering: Will the Department of Homeland Security follow federal court orders?

Mullin couldn’t give Murphy a straight answer (nor could he provide one to similar questions from Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., on Wednesday). The secretary repeatedly evaded questions, refused to commit to complying with the law and suggested DHS would abide by some court orders and ignore others supposedly based on “political opinion, not just the rule of law.”

While the administration has regularly described its immigration policies as upholding the rule of law, its actions tell a different story.

But that’s not how the rule of law works. This principle — that the government is constrained by legal rules promulgated publicly and enforced consistently — is foundational to American democracy. It is a key reason we have a government “of laws, and not of men,” as John Adams wrote 250 years ago.

Murphy’s question didn’t come out of nowhere. Earlier this year, a Republican-appointed judge found that Immigration and Customs Enforcement violated at least 96 federal court orders in Minnesota alone in less than a month.

Federal workers

NPR - Trump issued an executive order yesterday that transforms around 8,000 federal workers into at-will employees. This move will allow the government to fire them without providing a reason. It’s the latest move in efforts Trump began in his first term to strip a vast number of federal employees of their civil service protections, which are designed to shield their work from political interference. These protections are designed to shield their work from political interference. Most of the 8,000 affected people are at the highest level of the civil service, GS-15. The Trump administration characterizes these roles as carrying significant influence over policy. They include leaders of policy offices, senior public affairs officers and heads of regional offices.

Climate change

The Guardian -   Humanity can raise living standards, reduce inequality and keep global heating within a 2C rise, according to a sweeping vision for planetary survival.

The report by the World Inequality Lab (WIL) aims to be the most comprehensive attempt yet to navigate the polycrisis that is pushing the world toward climate breakdown, political extremism and ever greater economic and social tension.

It offers a set of bold policy proposals, including hefty wealth taxes on billionaires, sharp reductions in working hours, a change in diets and a shift of investment from materially intense sectors, such as industry and mining, to education and health.

If these and other measures are taken, the report says, the incomes of 89% of the world’s population would double by 2100 and global heating would be kept below 2C above the preindustrial average.

Elections

The Guardian -   The California governor’s race remained unsettled Thursday, as state election officials continued to sift through uncounted primary ballots – a process that could take days or even weeks as voters eagerly await the results.  Polls indicated that British-born conservative pundit Steve Hilton was narrowly leading the race, followed by former US human services and health secretary Xavier Becerra. Billionaire Tom Steyer trailed behind the pair. Under California’s primary system, the top two vote-getters will advance to the general election.

The question of which two will face off in November may be unanswered for weeks, according to election officials. Per state law, California counties must finish counting ballots by 15 June, but certain ballots are exempt from that deadline. For example, mail-in ballots postmarked by election day and received by 9 June are valid and can be processed beyond the deadline..

Middle East

The Guardian -    The Israeli defence minister, Israel Katz, said the military will continue its ground operations in southern Lebanon, hours after Israel and Lebanon agreed to implement a US-backed ceasefire to end hostilities. Katz said the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will not withdraw from southern Lebanon, including Beaufort Castle, and the hundreds of thousands of people forced to flee their homes will not be able to return.

“The IDF will, at this stage, continue its fire and ground operations, remain in the security zone in Lebanon up to the yellow line – including in the Beaufort area – and without the return of the population, while continuing to dismantle terrorist infrastructure on the ground,” he said in a statement.

He added that the IDF retained the “freedom of action, with American backing, to strike in Beirut in response to fire on Israeli communities and territory”. The IDF also issued a warning this morning saying fighting will continue in southern Lebanon as it urged people to “refrain from heading south of the Zahrani River”.

The Guardian - Israel and Lebanon have agreed to implement a ceasefire to end hostilities, the Trump administration has announced – but it comes with caveats. Not only is the deal contingent on a complete cessation of fire from the Iran-aligned Hezbollah armed group, and on the evacuation of all its fighters from the area south of the Litani River, but Hezbollah has not been part of the talks.

The Lebanese government has been negotiating with Israel without Hezbollah as part of its effort to reassert the government’s control over the country and disarm the armed group. And, despite the joint commitment to a ceasefire, Israel carried out drone strikes in the Nabatieh area of southern Lebanon on Thursday morning.

NBC News -The House’s vote to pass a Democratic-led measure to end President Donald Trump’s war with Iran was a rare rebuke that some Republicans fear will weaken the U.S.’s attempts to secure a nuclear deal. “They just want a stupid political vote, which is what this is,” said Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, a Republican. He called the action “a total BS vote.” 

The Iran war powers resolution passed 215-208, with four Republicans joining all Democrats in voting yes. The resolution directs Trump to remove U.S. armed forces from hostilities with Iran, unless Congress votes to declare war or authorizes using military force against it. It would not force the president to end the conflict, however, making the resolution a symbolic expression of disapproval with the war. 

The House vote comes after Republicans rejected three other attempts to pass a war powers resolution this year. Last month, the resolution was abruptly pulled from the floor when it appeared too many Republicans were absent to defeat it. The vote also gives momentum to the Senate’s version of the war powers resolution.

Iran traded more strikes with the U.S. amid a fragile ceasefire and stalled peace talks.  Israel’s military will continue to carry out operations in Lebanon for the time being and will not be withdrawing from the country, Defense Minister Israel Katz said Thursday, despite the announcement of a new ceasefire.

Farming

Bloomberg - The deadly new world screwworm was confirmed in the US for the first time in nearly a decade, posing the latest threat to a cattle herd already at its lowest level in 75 years. The USDA is taking measures to contain the parasite and said there’s no reason to believe it will gain a foothold, but the news comes at a dire time for the industry that’s already sent sent beef prices climbing to a record high. Here’s why authorities are worried.

Polls

Newsweek - The Marquette poll places Trump’s overall job approval at 38 percent approve to 62 percent disapprove, giving a net approval rating (those who approve minus those who disapprove) of -24, while the Harvard CAPS survey shows approval at 43 percent and disapproval at 53 percent (-10 net).

The Guardian -  About 65% of US adults believe same-sex marriage should be legal, down slightly from 71% in 2022 and 2023.  Most of the change is due to dropping acceptance among Republicans. In the new survey, which was conducted in May, only 37% of Republicans say same-sex marriage should be legally valid, while 35% say gay and lesbian relations are “morally acceptable”.

War on protest

Mother Jones -   On a Wednesday afternoon last June, Bajun Mavalwalla II, Jac Archer, and Justice Forral gathered with hundreds of others to protest outside an ICE office in Spokane, Washington. Word had spread on social media that two young Venezuelan immigrants—both of whom came to the United States legally—had been detained at a routine ICE check-in. 

Mavalwalla, Archer, and Forral—now known as the “Spokane Three”—were charged in July with “conspiracy to impede or injure” officers of the law for participating in that protest, in which people attempted to block an ICE vehicle from exiting the field office.

All three were found guilty on Wednesday of “conspiracy to impede or injure an officer” or “aiding and abetting another to conspire,” felony convictions with the potential for significant prison time. It’s a significant defeat for protesters following Trump administration prosecutors’ repeated failures to convict people who attend anti-ICE rallies. 

Videos from the day show brief scuffles—protesters and ICE agents pushing each other—but no evidence of serious injury to anyone. “None of the protesters were hurt. Fortunately, none of the law enforcement officers were hurt either,” Richard Barker, then the acting US Attorney for eastern Washington, told PBS in March. Yet local police arrested more than 30 people on the scene.

Health

Health.com -  New research suggests that both too little and too much sleep may be linked to accelerated biological aging.  However, biological aging was lowest among people who slept within an optimal range. Regularly sleeping more than eight hours a night could suggest an underlying health condition... Researchers pinpointed 6.4 hours to 7.8 hours of sleep per night as the range associated with slower rates of biological aging. That’s a measure of the body’s age at the cellular level, and it usually gives a more complete picture of health than your actual age.

5 takeaways on Trump’s divisive Medicaid work requirements

Voting

NBC News - The Supreme Court allowed Alabama to use a congressional map that eliminates one of two majority-Black districts in the state in a win for Republicans.  The justices split 6-3 on ideological lines with conservatives in the majority. A lower court had found that the map, which was enacted in 2023 but has never been used, intentionally discriminated against Black voters in violation of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment.

Car loan debt

WalletHub has released its updated report on the States Where People Overspend the Most on Car Loans, shedding light on where financial strain is most evident. To determine these rankings, WalletHub compared median car-loan debt to residents’ income across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
 

Highest % of Income Spent

Lowest % of Income Spent

1. Mississippi (44.60%)	42. Washington (25.82%)
2. New Mexico (43.60%)	43. Michigan (25.23%)
3. Arkansas (43.17%)	44. Minnesota (25.17%)
4. Louisiana (42.30%)	45. New Hampshire (23.91%)
5. Oklahoma (41.75%)	46. Rhode Island (23.57%)
6. West Virginia (40.57%)	47. New York (23.57%)
7. Texas (40.27%)	48. Connecticut (21.91%)
8. Alabama (40.24%)	49. New Jersey (21.71%)
9. Tennessee (38.39%)	50. Massachusetts (19.85%)
10. Nevada (38.27%)	51. District of Columbia (17.02%)

For the full report and to see where your state ranks