Republicans' bid to stop state AI laws heads for a crucial vote
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Republicans' bid to stop state AI laws is headed for a crucial vote
A hotly contested, Republican-led bid to quash state AI regulations appears headed for a pivotal Senate vote after it cleared a major hurdle this week, albeit in narrowed form.
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Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
At odds over Trump's tax bill, some Senate Republicans turn on chamber's referee
By Bo Erickson and David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Struggling to agree on a path forward for President Donald Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending bill, some U.S. Senate Republicans on Thursday turned their anger on the referee charged with ensuring that lawmakers follow their own rules. That pushback came in response to Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough's ruling that some Medicaid policies Republicans are trying to include in the bill do not align with the special budget process the party is using to bypass the chamber's regular vote threshold, which requires 60 of the 100 senators to agree on legislation. "THE SENATE PARLIAMENTARIAN SHOULD BE FIRED ASAP,' Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville posted online, "This is a perfect example of why Americans hate THE SWAMP." Tuberville, a first-term senator who is running for Alabama governor, and Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas joined a vocal group of House of Representatives Republicans calling for the ouster of MacDonough, the first woman to hold this role since it was formalized in 1935. Theirs is a minority view. Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune for months has said his party will abide by the parliamentarian's guidance. MacDonough's office did not respond to a request for comment. This is not the first time members of the current Republican congressional majority have attempted to ignore Congress's nonpartisan arbiters. A growing number of Republican senators have ignored the cost estimates of the bill from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, which estimated a price tag with interest costs around $3 trillion. The bill's hefty cost has exposed divides within the party, with some hardline deficit hawks demanding deep cuts to social programs including Medicaid to try to limit the bill's cost, and others warning that those cuts could imperil their narrow majorities in the 2026 midterm elections. MacDonough, a former lawyer, joined the Senate parliamentarian's office in 1999, serving as the head parliamentarian for the last 13 years. MacDonough's critics have dismissed her as "unelected," but it was Congress more than 50 years ago that established the parliamentarian as the referee for the special process known as "budget reconciliation" that bypasses the normal Senate filibuster rule. BYPASSING THE PARTISAN DIVIDE Republicans are pursuing this route -- which they relied on to pass Trump's tax cuts in 2017 during his first term -- because of their narrow majorities in both chambers. Democrats also used the process to pass legislation under President Joe Biden. Some Republicans suggested that MacDonough's ruling had political motives, noting that she was appointed by a Democratic majority leader in 2012. In this position, the parliamentarian is not weighing the merits of the policies, but rather if they fit into the budget reconciliation rules and precedent. MacDonough in 2021 blocked Democratic efforts to pass minimum wage and immigration provisions in the special budget process. This is not the first time this year the parliamentarian has weighed in on the Republicans' tax and budget bill, but the Medicaid and healthcare provisions that she advised on Thursday were seen as opportunities for Republicans to save money in the package that is forecast to add to the nation's $36.2 trillion in debt. Other Senate Republicans are standing by the process and MacDonough. 'I consider the parliamentarian to be a straight shooter. So I don't think there's anything more than it not meeting the standard,' Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, told reporters. 'Nah, never overrule the parliamentarian," Senator John Kennedy, a Louisiana Republican, told reporters on Thursday. Senate Republicans are allowed to tweak these provisions to try to fit the specific budget process precedents and rules, or they could abandon these provisions entirely. Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, the budget committee's top Democrat, pledged his party will continue "to make the case against every provision in this Big, Beautiful Betrayal of a bill that violates Senate rules and hurts families and workers." Firing a Senate parliamentarian is not without precedent. In 2001 during President George W. Bush's administration, Senate Republican leaders with an evenly divided chamber dismissed the parliamentarian after rulings on the party's budget and tax legislation regarding natural disaster funding.
Motor Trend
25 minutes ago
- Motor Trend
The Joys and Woes of Charging Our 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV RS RWD
Daily driving an EV and relying exclusively on public charging is getting easier with each passing year. Not only has the number of stations continued to increase, but widespread Supercharger access is becoming a reality as automakers begin to offer North American Charging System (NACS) compatibility with their vehicles. The 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV RS RWD offers convenient charging via Tesla's Supercharger network, but faces challenges like awkward charge port placement and power-off alerts during charging. It's mostly stress-free, with good range and a useful app, despite needing improvements in charging speed. This summary was generated by AI using content from this MotorTrend article Read Next Such is the case with our yearlong review 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV, which arrived with a NACS adapter when we took delivery five months ago. Our SUV's ability to use Superchargers came in handy as early as our first road trip, when we drove from Los Angeles to East Tucson and back. Now that we've spent more time commuting, shopping, and transporting friends in the Blazer EV, we're happy to report that solely utilizing public charging has been a happy affair. Until it wasn't. The Pros One of the biggest advantages to driving the Blazer EV daily is that it can fast-charge with a Tesla Supercharger whenever we need to quickly juice up the battery. Hooked up to a Tesla V3 Supercharger, which dispenses a maximum of 250 kW, we come close to the Blazer EV's peak charge rate of 190 kW—that's better than vehicles like the Hyundai Ioniq 5, which plateaued at 126 kW using the latest 325-kW Tesla V4 Supercharger cabinet in our testing. During our most recent Supercharging session at Tesla's Culver City, California, location, the Blazer EV capped out at 181 kW before dropping off. Perhaps more impressively, we averaged over 100 kW of charging power from the Supercharger between the start at 21 percent until the battery hit the 65 percent mark. To our surprise, the Blazer was still accepting 88 kW when the battery was at an 80 percent state of charge. In total, charging from 21 to 91 percent took 47 minutes, longer than getting gas but swifter than using a lower-output Level 3 charger. What's more, there wasn't a line when we arrived at the Supercharger station in the middle of the day. We'll have to do a complete charging test for an apples-to-apples comparison with the Hyundai Ioniq 5, but our initial impressions have been positive. Level 3 fast charging isn't always the best way to put more electrons into our Blazer EV's battery, though. We've come to rely on Level 2 charging from the ChargePoint stations at MotorTrend 's office in El Segundo. When we pop into the building for a day of productivity, the Blazer EV sips electricity from a J-1772 plug. A typical eight-hour charge provides as much as 41.82 kW, which translates to 136 miles of range, just over 40 percent of its battery capacity. The charge would be even quicker with upgraded hardware; the Blazer EV is plumbed to accept up to 11.5 kW from a Level 2 charger, and our office Level 2s max out at just 6.1 kW. Going to the office once or twice a week gives me more than enough range to keep the Blazer EV on the road. Our car's EPA-rated range of 334 miles and real-world road trip range of 275 miles gives us the flexibility to add only as much charge as needed to get around. Beyond as-needed road trip charging at Level 3 stations and regularly scheduled stops at ChargePoint's Level 2 stalls, we've enjoyed using streetside charging whenever convenient. Flo, a charging network with curbside EV chargers, has continued to install units throughout the greater Los Angeles area. My gym, for example, has a Flo right around the corner. Whenever it's available, I hook up the Blazer EV and get some extra range while I work out. It's cheap, too, costing just $3.31 for my most recent session of an hour and 39 minutes. A short stint like that gets 11.6 kW of electricity and 33 miles of range, much more than I used getting to the gym. All the while, the myChevrolet app has been a useful tool for keeping track of the Blazer EV while it charges. The interface gives a readout of the vehicle's current state of charge and range in addition to providing an estimate of when the charge will complete. You can see your vehicle's location on the map, too, in case you left your car charging on the street and can't remember how to get back to it. We've finally had a chance to initiate charges on Tesla Supercharges with Chevy's app, as well. It essentially loads up a browser version of Tesla's own app within the myChevrolet interface, serving as convenient shortcut if you only want to use one app. Although having Tesla Supercharger access is an overall convenience, especially since they tend to have fewer lines than Electrify America fast chargers, Tesla's existing V3 cabinets have their disadvantages. These prior-generation Superchargers are the most common variant we've encountered with the Blazer EV throughout California and Arizona. Stations with V3s were designed exclusively with Tesla cars in mind, from the positioning of the cabinets, to the short length of the charging cables. Usually, they're placed side by side in banks of parking spots that run perpendicular to the curb so Teslas can back in to recharge. Unless I can find an end spot or get lucky with Superchargers that have been placed with a parking space in between cabinets, the Blazer EV almost always takes up two spots due to the positioning of the charging port between the front wheel and the driver's door. Newer V3 Superchargers are occasionally positioned beside a parallel parking spot, which I always choose over a perpendicular space, but these have been rare in my experience. Tesla owners must be used to seeing cars from other automakers parked haphazardly at Supercharger stations because no one has asked me to stop blocking a charging stall since the trip to Arizona four months ago. Still, the anxiety of being in that position is something I deal with every time I use one of Tesla's chargers. From an objective perspective, the Blazer EV has a slower average charge rate than rivals like the Hyundai Ioniq 5. Our 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV RS averaged 111 kW as it charged from 5 to 80 percent on a 350-kW Electrify America Level 3 charger. That pales in comparison to the 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5, which maintains an incredible average of 186 kW from 5 to 80 percent. Using a Tesla Supercharger, the Ioniq 5 still sustains 125 kW from 5 to 80 percent. In subsequent iterations of the Blazer EV, average charging speed is one of the most crucial areas Chevrolet can improve. Our final complaint is a bit more trivial. The Blazer EV threatens to power off unless you intervene when it's hooked up to a fast charger. During our most recent session at the Culver City Tesla Supercharger, the Blazer EV alerted us twice over 47 minutes that it would power off and disable the air conditioning unless we hit a button or the brake pedal to keep it running. I was using that time on the charger to get some work done on my laptop using the rather excellent Wi-Fi hot spot, so it was frustrating being interrupted when I wasn't planning to leave the car during the duration of the charge. Great to Charge With a Few Exceptions The 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV RS RWD has turned out to be one of the more stress-free EVs to charge in our long-term fleet, with Tesla's Supercharger network playing no small role in its ease of use. Our SUV's charging performance is serviceable, its driving range is excellent, and Chevy's supporting mobile app has proven to be very useful. Still, a few cumbersome design elements oversights—like the awkward charge port placement and the need to keep the car awake during longer sessions—remind us that EV refinement is still a moving target. Fortunately, the Blazer gets most of the fundamentals right. More on Our Long-Term 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV RS RWD: 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV Yearlong Review Arrival: Stress-Testing a MotorTrend SUV of the Year The Tesla Supercharging Network Isn't Ready for Our 2025 Chevrolet Blazer EV The Adrenaline Red Interior of the Chevy Blazer EV RS Gets Our Hearts Pumping
Politico
27 minutes ago
- Politico
Former Supreme Court Justice Kennedy says ‘democracy is at risk'
Former Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy warned Thursday that acrimonious political discourse and threats to judges are eroding the ability of the United States to serve as an example of democracy worldwide. 'Many in the rest of the world look to the United States to see what democracy is, to see what democracy ought to be,' Kennedy said during an online forum about threats to the rule of law. 'If they see a hostile, fractious discourse, if they see a discourse that uses identity politics rather than to talk about issues, democracy is at risk. Freedom is at risk.' Kennedy, who stepped down from the court in 2018, avoided specifics during his 10-minute speech as part of a series of presentations by current and former judges. However, the Reagan appointee's remarks appeared to be triggered at least in part by strident attacks President Donald Trump has mounted against judges, including some whom he appointed during his first term, who have ruled against the administration's policies on immigration, firings of federal workers and his implementation of broad-based tariffs. In March, Trump attacked U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg as a 'radical left lunatic' after he attempted to block the administration from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members under a wartime presidential power Trump invoked. Trump also called for Boasberg, an Obama appointee, to be impeached. Last month, Trump issued a social media post denouncing 'USA-hating' judges as 'monsters who want our country to go to hell.' The extreme rhetoric has come alongside a spike in threats against judges, although administration spokespeople have said the president opposes any threats and the Justice Department will prosecute them. 'Judges must have protection for themselves and their families,' Kennedy said. 'Our families are often included in threats.' Some other participants were more explicit in calling out Trump's salvos at the courts. While also not mentioning Trump by name, U.S. District Judge Esther Salas invoked the president's statements more directly, arguing they are akin to attacks on judges that have caused other countries to slide into authoritarianism. 'Judges are rogue. Sound familiar? Judges are corrupt. Sound familiar? Judges are monsters. … Judges hate America,' Salas said. 'We are seeing the spreading of disinformation coming from the top down.' Salas, whose son was killed and her husband wounded by a disgruntled litigant at their New Jersey home in 2020, said the U.S. Marshals Service has tracked more than 400 threats against judges so far this year. 'We're going to break records — and not in a good way,' said the judge, an Obama appointee. In his remarks Thursday, one day before his former Supreme Court colleagues are set to deliver their final rulings of the current term, Kennedy did offer some indirect praise for Trump. The retired justice repeatedly said he welcomed the ceasefire in fighting between Israel and Iran — a deal brokered by the White House. 'The world is celebrating what looks like, what we hope might be, peace for a period of time in the Middle East,' Kennedy said. 'Peace is what gives us the opportunity to make democracy stronger, to make freedom more attainable, to make freedom greater for ourselves and the rest of the world. We must always say no to tyranny and yes to truth.'
