2 Chinese Nationals Charged With Visa Fraud, Smuggling ‘Agroterrorism Weapon' Into US
Two Chinese nationals, including one who works at the University of Michigan, were charged on June 2 with visa fraud, conspiracy, making false statements, and smuggling a pathogen into the United States.
This comes amid the Trump administration's announcement of 'aggressively'
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UPI
7 minutes ago
- UPI
Interior Department approves modifying federal coal mining project in Montana
The Department of the Interior Friday announced approval of a mining plan modification for Bull Mountains coal mine in Montana. It authorizes Signal Peak Energy LLC to mine roughly 22.8 million tons of federal coal. Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum (pictured in April) touted it as an example of "energy leadership." File Photo by Ken Cedeno/UPI | License Photo June 6 (UPI) -- The Department of the Interior on Friday announced approval of a mining plan modification for Bull Mountains coal mine in Montana. It authorizes Signal Peak Energy LLC to mine roughly 22.8 million tons of federal coal. It also permits the company to mine 34.5 million tons of adjacent non-federal coal. The mine is in Musselshell and Yellowstone counties and exports coal to Japan and South Korea. "By unlocking access to coal in America, we are not only fueling jobs here at home, but we are also standing shoulder-to-shoulder with our allies abroad," Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement. The Trump administration policy of increasing fossil fuel production stands in stark contrast to Biden administration policies. In October 2024 the Biden administration announced $428 million in funding for 14 federal energy projects in small towns historically known for coal production. The Trump administration is in the process of attempting to undo that clean energy approach while doubling down on coal, oil and gas production. For the Bulls Mountain coal mine, the Interior Department said Friday it is using emergency permitting procedures to disregard normal environmental review. The Interior Department said in an April statement that the procedures reduce what would normally be "a multi-year review process down to just 28 days at most." The department asserts that the procedures using the radically shortened review process still upholds environmental standards. "The Bull Mountains project is proof that we can meet urgent energy needs, work with local communities and uphold strong environmental standards," Acting Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management Adam Suess in a statement. The Interior Department said it is using "alternative arrangements" for compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act, the 1969 law requiring federal agencies to assess potential environmental effects of their decisions. According to the Interior Department, "These alternative arrangements apply both to actions not likely to have significant environmental impacts and to actions likely to have significant environmental impacts." The Trump administration is using a so-called national energy emergency declared by President Donald Trump on Jan. 20 to avoid fully complying with full environmental regulations agencies would normally have to follow. Under the alternative arrangements, companies would notify the department they want those alternative arrangements. The official responsible for reviewing the application would then "prepare a focused, concise, and timely environmental impact statement addressing the purpose and need for the proposed action, alternatives, and a brief description of environmental effects." According to the Interior Department, the Bull Mountains project is expected to generate "over $1 billion in combined local, state and county economic benefits, including wages, taxes and business activity."
New York Times
9 minutes ago
- New York Times
Overlooked No More: Hong Yen Chang, Lawyer Who Challenged a Racist System
This article is part of Overlooked, a series of obituaries about remarkable people whose deaths, beginning in 1851, went unreported in The Times. Before Hong Yen Chang graduated from Columbia Law School in New York, he was breaking barriers just by being there. Before he became the first Chinese person allowed to practice law in the United States, he had to wrangle with New York's judiciary for permission. Before he could protect Chinese immigrants in court, he studied tirelessly to master a legal system that was not inclined to welcome him. Essentially, Chang realized that before he could help anyone else, he had to help himself. Chang was born on Dec. 20, 1859 (some records say 1860), in what was then called Heungshan, a prosperous district in Southern China connected to the Portuguese port of Macau. His father, Shing Tung Chang, was a merchant who died when Hong Yen was a child; his mother was Yee Shee. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Senate Republicans revise ban on state AI regulations in bid to preserve controversial provision
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans have made changes to their party's sweeping tax bill in hopes of preserving a new policy that would prevent states from regulating artificial intelligence for a decade. In legislative text unveiled Thursday night, Senate Republicans proposed denying states federal funding for broadband projects if they regulate AI. That's a change from a provision in the House-passed version of the tax overhaul that simply banned any current or future AI regulations by the states for 10 years. 'These provisions fulfill the mandate given to President Trump and Congressional Republicans by the voters: to unleash America's full economic potential and keep her safe from enemies,' Sen. Ted Cruz, chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, said in a statement announcing the changes. The proposed ban has angered state lawmakers in Democratic and Republican-led states and alarmed some digital safety advocates concerned about how AI will develop as the technology rapidly advances. But leading AI executives, including OpenAI's Sam Altman, have made the case to senators that a 'patchwork' of state AI regulations would cripple innovation. Some House Republicans are also uneasy with the provision. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., came out against the AI regulatory moratorium in the House bill after voting for it. She said she had not read that section of the bill. 'We should be reducing federal power and preserving state power. Not the other way around,' Greene wrote on social media. Senate Republicans made their change in an attempt to follow the special process being used to pass the tax bill with a simple majority vote. To comply with those rules, any provision needs to deal primarily with the federal budget and not government policy. Republican leaders argue, essentially, that by setting conditions for states to receive certain federal appropriations — in this instance, funding for broadband internet infrastructure — they would meet the Senate's standard for using a majority vote. Cruz told reporters Thursday that he will make his case next week to Senate parliamentarian on why the revised ban satisfies the rules. The parliamentarian is the chamber's advisor on its proper rules and procedures. While the parliamentarian's ruling are not binding, senators of both parties have adhered to their findings in the past. Senators generally argue that Congress should take the lead on regulating AI but so far the two parties have been unable to broker a deal that is acceptable to Republicans' and Democrats' divergent concerns. The GOP legislation also includes significant changes to how the federal government auctions commercial spectrum ranges. Those new provisions expand the range of spectrum available for commercial use, an issue that has divided lawmakers over how to balance questions of national security alongside providing telecommunications firms access to more frequencies for commercial wireless use. Senators are aiming to pass the tax package, which extends the 2017 rate cuts and other breaks from President Donald Trump's first term along with new tax breaks and steep cuts to social programs, later this month. Matt Brown, The Associated Press Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
