Politics

The North Dakota Monitor reports: North Dakota is poised to be the first state in the nation to implement a law that provides legal protections for pesticide manufacturers — an issue that has been debated in legislatures across the country in the face of large payouts to cancer victims. Gov. Kelly Armstrong on Wednesday signed House Bill 1318 that specifies …

Axios reports: California’s economy has surpassed Japan’s, state Gov. Gavin Newsom announced, as he warned of potential impacts in the Golden State from President Trump’s sweeping tariffs. “CA just became the 4th largest economy in the WORLD,” Newsom said on X Thursday, after his office announced data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. …

Chicago’s NBC affiliate reports: And the race is officially on. One day after longtime Sen. Dick Durbin announced he would retire and not seek reelection, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, launched her bid for his seat. She is the first contender to enter what Democrats here are expecting to be a jam-packed field for a senatorial seat that hasn’t been …

Politico reports: Democrats may get a second shot at running a party convert for Florida governor in their ongoing effort to claw back the state’s battleground status. Former Republican Rep. David Jolly, who has made a national name for himself as a vocal opponent of President Donald Trump, took a step Thursday toward a possible run for governor of Florida …

The New York Times reports: Senator Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Senate Democrat for two decades and a leading liberal voice on Capitol Hill, will not seek re-election next year, closing out a 44-year congressional career focused on immigration, the federal justice system and anti-smoking initiatives. The decision to be announced on Wednesday by Mr. Durbin, 80, …

Ars Technica reports: In a Black Mirror-esque turn, some cash-strapped actors who didn’t fully understand the consequences are regretting selling their likenesses to be used in AI videos that they consider embarrassing, damaging, or harmful. Among them is a 29-year-old New York-based actor, Adam Coy, who licensed rights to his face and voice to a company called MCM for one …

Politico reports: Rep. Haley Stevens is making her long-awaited Senate bid in Michigan official with a nod to her first car. “I’m running for Senate because just like that day I got these keys to that old Cutlass, we have the power to chart our own path. I’m proud of Michigan and I’ll never get tired of saying it. It …

CTV News reports: The Liberals have an eight-point advantage over the Conservatives on Day 30 of the 36-day federal election campaign. A three-day rolling sample by Nanos Research conducted on April 17, 19 and 20 has the Liberals at 44 per cent over the Conservatives, who are at 36 per cent nationally. The New Democratic Party is at 11 per …

The Associated Press reports: Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele proposed carrying out a prisoner swap with Venezuela on Sunday, suggesting he would exchange Venezuelan deportees from the United States his government has kept imprisoned for what he called “political prisoners” in Venezuela. In a post on X, directed at President Nicolás Maduro, Bukele listed off a number of family members of …

Axios reports: After House Republicans refused to allow Democrats to organize official congressional delegations to El Salvador, four of them are traveling to the Central American nation anyway, Axios has learned. The lawmakers’ offices said they will meet with officials at the U.S. embassy there to advocate for the release of Kilmar Armando Ábrego García and receive classified briefings. Reps. …

Los Angeles’s ABC affiliate reports: A Southern California mayor facing a recall effort is coming under fire after his suggestion to ending his city’s homelessness issue was “giving them all the fentanyl they want.” The comments were made by longtime Lancaster Mayor Rex Parris during a city council meeting on Feb. 25. The comments have surfaced in recent days since …

The Hill reports: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who finished in second place to President Trump in the 2016 Republican presidential primary, has distinguished himself from MAGA World by declaring his skepticism of long-term tariffs, remaining a hawk on Russia and coming out against proposals to tax the rich. By calling out tariffs as “taxes on American consumers” and sticking to …

CNN reports: Sen. Chris Van Hollen said he met with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man wrongfully deported to El Salvador, Thursday night. “I said my main goal of this trip was to meet with Kilmar. Tonight I had that chance,” the Maryland Democrat said in a post on X, sharing a photo of the two seated together at a …

Florida Politics reports: A Zoom meeting held by First Lady Casey DeSantis’ embattled Hope Florida was interrupted as the public bombarded the Board with a Nazi flag, racial slurs and pornography. The Hope Florida Foundation struggled to control the meeting and apparently didn’t have security measures in place to prevent trolls from sharing inappropriate content. “It looks like some of …

The Associated Press reports: Tim Myers, a Grammy-nominated former bassist for international hitmakers OneRepublic, announced Thursday he will challenge Rep. Ken Calvert in the battleground 41st District in Riverside County that stretches from the L.A. suburbs to the resort haven of Palm Springs. “Ken Calvert has been in Washington for 30 years,” Myers says in a video announcing his campaign. …

Florida Politics reports: Members of the House and Senate are getting behind an effort to restrict oil drilling and exploration near the Florida coast. In the House, Representatives unanimously backed that chamber’s bill on the full floor, prompting cheers and applause from lawmakers. The House measure (HB 1143), sponsored Rep. Jason Shoaf, a St. Joe Republican whose House District 7 …

The Denver Post reports: The head of the Libertarian Party of Colorado repeatedly used anti-gay slurs last week in an exchange with a person who criticized the party’s social media presence, according to copies of the messages reviewed by The Denver Post. The party’s chairwoman, Hannah Goodman, sent the slurs Friday after a commenter privately messaged the party’s Facebook account …

The News York Times reports: California’s governor and attorney general plan to sue President Trump on Wednesday to try to stop his flurry of tariffs, accusing the president of taking unlawful action to escalate a global trade war that has caused “immediate and irreparable harm” to the state’s economy. The lawsuit will be the largest legal challenge yet to Mr. …

The Hill reports: Democratic contender Nathan Sage, who’s the executive director of the Knoxville Chamber of Commerce, is launching a Senate bid to take on Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) next year in Iowa. Sage made that announcement official on Wednesday; in his campaign launch and an interview with The Hill ahead of his announcement, Sage emphasized fighting for the working …

From the government of Hong Kong: ​The Government of the United States (US) announced earlier that it would eliminate the duty-free de minimis treatment for postal items despatched from Hong Kong to the US and increase the tariffs for postal items containing goods to the US starting from May 2. The US is unreasonable, bullying and imposing tariffs abusively. Hongkong …