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Republicans advance major rollbacks to Biden's clean energy policies

Republicans advance major rollbacks to Biden's clean energy policies

Yahoo15-05-2025

WASHINGTON — Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee advanced a measure to repeal a number of clean energy tax credits passed under the Biden administration to help pay for President Donald Trump's forthcoming tax package.
The committee voted along party lines to advance its portion of the budget framework on Wednesday afternoon, which includes measures seeking to secure Trump's campaign promises to make the country energy dominant. Most of the proposals sought to rescind funds from going toward programs passed under former President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and invest some of that money instead in oil and gas drilling.
'The 2024 election sent a clear signal that Americans are tired of an extreme left-wing agenda that favors wokeness over sensible policy and spurs price increases,' Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., wrote in an op-ed on Monday. 'This bill would claw back money headed for green boondoggles through 'environmental and climate justice block grants' and other spending mechanisms through the Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Department.'
The Energy and Commerce Committee has a wide jurisdiction over domestic policy, particularly relating to energy and public health. The energy and environment section of the budget framework encompassed much of the proposal passed on Wednesday, which will dictate much of how the Energy Department and Environmental Protection Agency operates.
The committee was tasked with finding at least $880 billion in spending cuts to help pay for the $4.5 trillion in tax cut extensions that Republicans hope to approve before the end of the year. With the repeal of IRA subsidies, the committee would secure $6.5 billion in savings, according to Guthrie.
The framework would claw back funds from key green energy programs such as the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, a $27 billion investment that incentivizes the use of clean energy technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the Methane Emissions Reduction Program, aimed at reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas industry.
The framework seeks to repeal portions of the Clean Air Act, which authorizes the EPA to establish national air quality standards and develop programs for states to maintain those levels.
Notably, the bill would aim to phase out several renewable energy tax credits over the next six years — a proposal that could be a sticking point for both clean energy friendly Republicans as well as conservatives who want the IRA to be repealed in full immediately upon passage.
A handful of Republicans have warned against repealing those green energy credits in full, warning it could cause a spike in utility costs nationwide. The proposed repeals would specifically target wind, solar, geothermal, hydropower, and biomass energy sources.
Included in those clawbacks is a measure to rescind electric vehicle tax credits, particularly credits tucked into the IRA that offered rewards to those who bought electric vehicles. The House Ways and Means Committee is also set to consider tax credit repeals of electric vehicles to accompany that proposal.
The clean energy rollbacks are part of Trump's larger reconciliation package that encompasses policies on energy, border and national defense, among other things. After the Energy and Commerce Committee portion advances the committee, it will then be compiled with other House committees to craft the final package.
GOP leaders hope to get the package finalized and passed through the House by the end of next week — an ambitious timeline as there are still some remaining disagreements Republicans must iron out.
Once the reconciliation package is through the House, it will then move to the Senate for consideration — where some Republicans are already wary about the green energy credits being repealed.
Also tucked into the budget portion passed on Wednesday were substantial cuts to Medicaid and other healthcare programs.
One of the most significant changes proposed in the framework is to implement new work requirements for Medicaid beneficiaries. The bill would require able-bodied adults without dependents to work at least 80 hours a month or complete some other activity such as community service.
The proposal to increase work requirements carves out some exceptions, such as for pregnant women, and would only apply to those who are between 19 and 64 years old. Individual states would be responsible for enforcing work hours.
If the proposed cuts are signed into law, preliminary estimates predict at least 8.6 million people would lose Medicaid coverage over the next decade, with savings reaching at least $715 billion by 2034, according to the Congressional Budget Office.
The legislation would also include new restrictions on how Medicaid funds can be used, including bans on gender transition procedures for children under 18 as well as prohibitions on coverage 'for individuals whose citizenship, nationality, or immigration status has not been verified.'

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How viral images are shaping views of L.A.'s immigration showdown
How viral images are shaping views of L.A.'s immigration showdown

Yahoo

time29 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

How viral images are shaping views of L.A.'s immigration showdown

As protesters and police officers clashed in the streets of Los Angeles, a parallel conflict raged on social media, as immigration advocates and President Donald Trump's allies raced to shape public opinion on the impacts of mass deportations on American life. The sprawling protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids were captured from all angles by cellphones and body cameras and streamed in real time, giving a visceral immediacy to a conflict that led to more than 50 arrests and orders from the Trump administration to deploy the National Guard. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. Amateur videographers and online creators shared some of the mayhem's most-talked-about videos and images, often devoid of context and aimed at different audiences. Clips showing officers firing less-lethal rounds at an Australian journalist or mounted police directing their horses to stride over a sitting man fueled outrage on one side, while those of self-driving Waymo cars on fire and protesters holding Mexican flags stoked the other. The protests have become the biggest spectacle yet of the months-long online war over deportations, as Trump allies work to convince Americans that the issue of undocumented immigration demands aggressive action. But immigrant families and advocates have also been winning attention, and seeking public support, through emotional clips of crying families grappling with removal orders, anti-ICE gatherings and young children in federal custody. The messaging war comes at a time of polarized public sentiment over Trump's immigration policies. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll in April found that roughly half the country believed Trump's deportations had gone too far, while the other half thought his actions were about right or hadn't gone far enough. 'To advance your side of the story, you need a piece of content that the algorithm likes. You need something that really grabs people's attention by the throat and doesn't let it go,' said Laura Edelson, an assistant professor at Northeastern University's Khoury College of Computer Sciences. 'If you're on the pro-ICE side of this, you need to find visual images of these protests that look really scary, look really dangerous because that's what's going to draw human attention,' she added. But if 'you don't think that ICE should be taking moms away from their families and kids, you're going to have a video that starts with a crying child's face.' A White House official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal plans, said Trump's digital strategists were following the president's lead by spotlighting images of destruction while insisting that he would always intervene in moments of unrest. The White House, which has said the ICE deportations are necessary to solve a national crisis, on Sunday posted an Instagram photo of Trump and a warning that looters and rioters would be given 'no mercy.' 'We're obviously following the president's direction. He is driving the message through his posts and his comments to the press,' the official said. 'We are definitely playing offense here. We are once again boxing the Democrats into the corner of defending criminal illegal aliens.' The unrest and its online propagation also heightened activity around projects like People Over Papers, a crowdsourced map for tracking the locations of ICE officers. Reports flooded in as the clashes continued, said Celeste, a project organizer in L.A. who spoke on the condition that her last name not be used for fear of government retribution. 'I haven't slept all weekend,' she said. She added, however, that she worried violent imagery from the ground could hurt the protesters' cause. She said she planned to start making Spanish-language videos for her 51,000 TikTok followers, explaining to skeptics that the violence isn't reflective of the protests, which she sees as necessary to counter ICE's agenda. The L.A. unrest followed weeks of online skirmishes over deportations, some of which have been touched off by the White House's strategy to lean into policy fights with bold and aggressive messaging. The White House last month posted a video that it said showed an 'EPIC takedown of 5 illegal aliens' outside a home improvement store and included an ICE hotline to solicit more tips. The clip, recorded by ICE agents' cameras, was liked 68,000 times but also drew criticism from commenters, who called it 'disturbing' and said this 'isn't a reality show.' After a similar ICE raid on Saturday outside a Home Depot in Paramount, a predominantly Latino suburb of L.A., witnesses sent out alerts on social media, and protesters raced to the scene. Within hours, the Trump administration called for the deployment of 2,000 National Guard troops to neutralize the unrest. On his Truth Social account a week earlier, Trump celebrated the Supreme Court clearing the way for the removal of some immigrants' legal protections by posting a photo of a jet-filled sky with the phrase, 'Let the Deportations Begin!' The White House has also posted stylized mug shots of unnamed immigrants it said were charged with heinous crimes. 'I love this version of the white house,' one commenter said, with a cry-laugh emoji. 'It feels like a movie every day with President Trump.' During the protests, the administration has worked with new-media figures and online influencers to promote its political points. Phil McGraw, the TV personality known as Dr. Phil who now runs the conservative media network Merit Street, posted an exclusive interview with border czar Tom Homan and embedded with ICE officers last week during L.A. raids, as the company's spokesperson first told CNN. Some top administration officials have worked to frame the protests in militaristic terms, with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller on Saturday sharing a video of the protest and calling it 'an insurrection against the laws and sovereignty of the United States.' Others, like Vice President JD Vance, have treated it as a chance for dark jokes. When posters on X said Vance could do the 'funniest thing ever' by deporting Derek Guy, a prominent menswear commentator who discussed how his family had been undocumented after fleeing Vietnam, the vice president on Monday posted a brief clip of Jack Nicholson nodding with a sinister grin. Some far-right influencers urged their followers to identify people caught on camera during the civil unrest. In one X post with more than 29,000 likes, the account End Wokeness shared a video of masked figures throwing rocks at police from an overpass and said, 'These are insurrectionists trying to kill cops. Make them famous.' In more left-leaning online spaces, some posters watching from the sidelines offered advice on how protesters could best position their cause to the rest of the world. On the r/ICE_raids subreddit, some posters urged L.A. protesters to stop carrying non-American flags. It's 'adding ammo to ICE's justification,' one poster said, attaching a screenshot of a Homeland Security post showing masked protesters with Mexican flags. Many accounts, knowingly or unknowingly, shared images that warped the reality of what was happening on the ground. An X account with 388,000 followers called US Homeland Security News, which is not affiliated with DHS but paid for one of X's 'verified' blue check marks, posted a photo of bricks that it said had been ordered to be 'used by Democrat militants against ICE agents and staff!! It's Civil War!!' The photo actually originated on the website of a Malaysian construction-supply company. The post has nevertheless been viewed more than 800,000 times. On Sunday night, California Gov. Gavin Newsom's X account tried to combat some of the misinformation directly, saying a viral video post being passed around as evidence of the day's chaos was actually five years old. Even before the L.A. protests, the increased attention on ICE activity had driven a rush of online organizing and real-world information gathering, with some people opposed to mass deportations tracking the movements of ICE officers with plans to foil or disrupt raids. In one viral TikTok post last week, a Minneapolis protester marching in a crowd outside the site of a rumored ICE raid said he had learned of it from Reddit, where a photo had been posted of Homeland Security Investigations officers outside a Mexican restaurant. The local sheriff's office later told news crews that the operation was not an immigration-enforcement case and that no arrests had been made. Some online creators treated the L.A. clashes as a prized opportunity for viral content. On Reddit, accounts with names like LiveNews_24H posted 'crazy footage' compilations of the unrest and said it looked like a 'war zone.' On YouTube, Damon Heller, who comments on police helicopter footage and scanner calls under the name Smoke N' Scan, streamed the clashes on Sunday for nearly 12 hours. Jeremy Lee Quinn, a photographer who shares protest footage to his social media followers, posted to Instagram on Saturday a video of protesters cheering from a bridge as officers tried to extinguish a burning police vehicle. Quinn, who also documented Black Lives Matter marches and the U.S. Capitol riots, said viewers on the left and right treat viral videos like weapons in their arsenal. Far-left viewers might take away from the videos ideas for militant tactics to use in future protests, he said, while far-right viewers will promote the videos to suggest the other side craves more violent crime. Either way, his material gets seen - including through reposts by groups such as the LibsOfReddit subreddit, which shares screenshots mocking liberal views on undocumented immigrants and transgender people. 'You end up with a far-right ecosystem that thrives on these viral moments,' Quinn said. As short-form video and social media platforms increasingly become many Americans' news sources of choice, experts worry they could also amp up the fear and outrage engendered by polarizing events. The fragmentation of social media and the attention-chasing machinery of its recommendation algorithms helps ensure that 'there are a lot of people talking past each other,' said Northeastern's Edelson, not seeing one another's content or 'even aware of the facts that are relevant to the other side.' Darrell West, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank, said videos can play a uniquely forceful role in shaping people's reactions to current events because they 'encapsulate the emotion of the moment.' 'There's a heavy dose of misinformation,' he added. 'And, you know, people just end up getting angrier and angrier.' 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Donald Trump is front and center for Army's big DC birthday parade
Donald Trump is front and center for Army's big DC birthday parade

USA Today

time33 minutes ago

  • USA Today

Donald Trump is front and center for Army's big DC birthday parade

Donald Trump is front and center for Army's big DC birthday parade Trump is poised to be president during the 250th anniversary of the nation's founding, the FIFA World Cup in 2026 and the LA Summer Olympics in 2028. Show Caption Hide Caption Military equipment headed to DC ahead of Trump's birthday parade Battle tanks, fighting vehicles and infantry carriers departed Texas for D.C. for President Trump's military parade. The June 14 parade reflects the president's vision of his role and of the nation's power. Some predict an inspiring moment of patriotism; others see an alarming echo of authoritarianism. WASHINGTON − Donald Trump loves a parade. Also palace-in-the-sky planes, gold decor in the Oval Office, the adulation of huge rallies, the company of kings (British, Saudi), and the general aura that surrounds power, wealth and royalty. The president's determination to stage a procession of America's troops and its military hardware, with 28 Abrams tanks thundering up Constitution Avenue in the nation's capital and 50 military helicopters thumping overhead, reflects his vision of his role and the nation he leads. Asserting sweeping and sometimes unprecedented powers for the presidency, he is commanding a go-it-alone United States, ready and willing to flex its muscle in the world. The last big national event, Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, was a demonstration of tradition and shared powers: The incoming president stood on the Capitol steps, the chief justice gave the oath, members of Congress and former presidents witnessed the peaceful transition of authority. Five months later, the celebration on June 14 marking the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army will put Trump alone front and center. Also: The parade just happens to be taking place on his 79th birthday. Trump is the happy beneficiary of the calendar. He is poised to be president not only during the 250th anniversary of the nation's founding but also the FIFA World Cup in 2026 (co-hosted with Canada and Mexico) and the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028. The confluence of events is no coincidence, he suggests. "I have everything," he boasted at a Memorial Day event at Arlington Cemetery. "Amazing the way things work out. God did that." The good fortune of Trump's 2020 defeat Whether or not it was a case of divine intervention, Trump's electoral defeat in 2020 has, with the benefit of hindsight, turned out to be serendipitous for him. The four-year interregnum not only put him in a position to preside during historic and high-profile celebrations, but it also gave him a Democratic predecessor as a whipping boy when things go wrong. It also provided the opportunity for him to solidify control of the Republican Party and for supporters to create ambitious blueprints like Project 2025 to tap when he landed a second term. It even opened the door for the parade he had set his heart on when he watched French tanks roll down the Champs-Élysées in Paris on Bastille Day in 2017. "One of the greatest parades I've ever seen," he marveled, telling French President Emmanuel Macron he wanted to "top" it. During Trump's first term, though, the Pentagon resisted. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, a retired Marine Corps four-star general, objected to the idea as a politicization of the military. In 2020, when Trump pushed again despite concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, Mattis' successor, Mark Esper, arranged instead for an array of warplanes to fly down the East Coast in an "air parade." Now, Pete Hegseth, a Trump loyalist and former Fox News host, is leading the Defense Department. The Army's plans for a low-key birthday celebration of festivals, fun runs and a commemorative stamp have now been dramatically expanded to include what the White House might call a big, beautiful parade. The sight of more than 100 combat vehicles on the ground and dozens of vintage and modern warplanes in the air should be staggering. The troops plus 34 horses, two mules, a dog named Doc Holliday and some of the vehicles will start at the Pentagon in Virginia, cross Arlington Memorial Bridge, then head to the parade route along the National Mall, joined there by the tanks. Trump will be watching from a reviewing stand just south of the White House that is now being constructed for the occasion. Paratroopers from the Army's Golden Knights are set to parachute in, land on the Eclipse and present Trump with an American flag. The president will then preside over the enlistment and reenlistment of 250 soldiers. There will be fireworks. Is it inspiring or alarming? The United States has staged military parades before, of course. At the end of the Civil War, the bloodiest conflict in American history, the Grand Review of the Armies lasted two days and featured 145,000 soldiers from the victorious Union forces marching through Washington and sometimes breaking into song. President Andrew Johnson, who had been sworn in after Abraham Lincoln's assassination a month earlier, presided. During the Cold War, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a retired five-star general and hero of World War II, had troops, tanks and warplanes in his inaugural parade. His successor, John F. Kennedy, included troops in his inaugural parade in 1961. The last major military parade in the capital was in 1991 to mark the end of the first Gulf War, when George H.W. Bush was president. But there is not much precedent in the United States for such a massive military parade in peacetime. Like many things involving Trump, reactions clash between those who predict a stirring moment of patriotism and those who see it as an alarming echo of authoritarianism. The ritualized display of armaments and troops is more routine in places like Russia, China and North Korea, where strongmen show their force to their own citizens and the world. In the USA, liberal and pro-democracy groups have declared a "No Kings" day of protests on June 14, with anti-Trump demonstrations planned in more than 1,500 communities across the country. Trump has never been shy about demanding attention and claiming credit for his presidential record, putting himself in the top rank of the 45 men who have held the job. In his State of the Union address in March, he said that "many" believed he had just recorded the most successful first month of any presidency − with George Washington in second place. Last month, on the facade of the Agriculture Department that faces the Mall, a huge banner of Trump's face was draped between the columns alongside one of Lincoln. By the way, that's the building where thousands of the troops who will be marching in the parade will bivouac, sleeping on cots and bringing their own sleeping bags. Agriculture employees have been directed to work from home for the first three weeks of the month to clear the way for them. $45 million? 'Peanuts,' Trump says The parade's price tag? The Army has estimated the cost at $30 million to $45 million, in addition to the promise to help the D.C. government deal with the aftermath. Huge steel plates are being embedded at some intersections to protect the asphalt, but at 140,000 pounds each, the Abrams battle tanks are expected to, well, leave an impression. That could add as much as an estimated $16 million. "Peanuts," Trump said of the cost on NBC's "Meet the Press" last month, "compared to the value of doing it."

McDonald's Shares Slump as GLP-1 Risks Spur Rare Sell Rating
McDonald's Shares Slump as GLP-1 Risks Spur Rare Sell Rating

Yahoo

time35 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

McDonald's Shares Slump as GLP-1 Risks Spur Rare Sell Rating

(Bloomberg) -- McDonald's Corp. shares slumped on Tuesday after Redburn Atlantic gave the burger chain its sole sell rating, saying shifting consumer patterns due to weight-loss drugs and inflation are cause for concern. Trump Said He Fired the National Portrait Gallery Director. She's Still There. NYC Mayoral Candidates All Agree on Building More Housing. But Where? Senator Calls for Closing Troubled ICE Detention Facility in New Mexico California Pitches Emergency Loans for LA, Local Transit Systems Shares of McDonald's fell as much as 1.7% in Tuesday trading on the downgrade, a two-notch cut from Redburn's previous buy rating. Redburn held a buy rating on the stock since initiating coverage in 2023. As more Americans turn to GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic to lose weight, McDonald's could see as much as a $428 million annual impact to revenue, representing about 1% of system sales, Redburn Atlantic analysts Chris Luyckx and Edward Lewis wrote. 'A 1% drag today could easily build to 10% or more over time, particularly for brands skewed toward lower-income consumers or group occasions.' The analysts also cut McDonald's price target to a Street-low $260, implying a nearly 15% decline from where the stock closed on Monday. Shares have declined for seven straight days, on track for their longest losing streak in nearly 12 years, after closing just below a record high in mid-May. Redburn's lowered recommendation was just the latest downgrade for the fast-food giant, which was recently knocked down to hold-equivalent ratings at Morgan Stanley, Loop Capital and Erste Group. Analysts remain largely split on the stock, with 22 buy-equivalent ratings, 18 hold-equivalent ratings and an average price target of $332, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. McDonald's US same-stores sales fell 3.6% in the first-quarter of this year, marking the largest decline since 2020 when people were stuck at home during the pandemic. Fast-food restaurants like McDonald's have also seen a decline in traffic in 40 of the past 43 months, according to the analysts. In addition to the McDonald's call, Redburn also launched coverage of Domino's Pizza Inc. with a sell rating, while starting Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. as a new neutral. YUM! Brands, Inc., which owns popular brands KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, was raised to buy from neutral given the stock's 'reasonable' valuation. Despite the slump, McDonald's has increased its average transaction amount through pricing, but lower-income consumers are now opting to eat more at home as the price difference between home and restaurant food increases, according to the report. 'While the brand has historically benefited from consumer trade-down during periods of pressure, recent years of outsized menu pricing have created value-perception challenges, contributing to persistent traffic softness,' the analysts wrote. Still, McDonald's shares have risen 3.8% so far this year, but without improved value proposition and menu innovation, continued growth may not be sustainable, the analysts added. --With assistance from Peyton Forte. (Updates shares, adds additional details from research note.) New Grads Join Worst Entry-Level Job Market in Years The SEC Pinned Its Hack on a Few Hapless Day Traders. The Full Story Is Far More Troubling What America's Pizza Economy Is Telling Us About the Real One Cavs Owner Dan Gilbert Wants to Donate His Billions—and Walk Again American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. 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

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