PPI: Producer Price Index shows mixed results for April 2024.
NOT NEWS NEWS
Downtown Recovery: Cell phone data reveals downtown activity back to pre-pandemic levels after work hours.
Divorce Laws: Ben Carson calls for making divorce harder in new book.
Jan 6th Tapes: Released footage shows cops did not "open the doors" for Trump supporters.
Israeli Hostage: Released hostage describes scripted Hamas videos in TV interview.
Media Coverage: National TV news largely fails to cover Trump's scandalous Big Oil proposition.
EU AI Regulation: EU AI Act takes the right approach to AI regulation.
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NEWS NEWS
1.) Joe Biden adds new tariffs to Chinese EVs (100%), solar panels (50%) and semiconductors (50%)
[TS] …
[TS] I’ve covered this before, but if tariffs didn’t work under Trump, they’re not going to work under Biden.
Biden’s statement:
How does that square with Biden’s stance on tariffs when Trump was in office:
[TS] Also, what sort of signal does this send to climate/environment proponents? “Sure, we talk about the importance of climate change, but is it really that important?”
[RELATED] South Korean EVs are doing well in the US:
2.) Trump hush-money trial (Day 17th)
[TS] First off, one heck of a crowd in the morning!
Cohen's continued testimony:
Cohen testified he submitted fake invoices to cover up $130,000 hush-money payment to Stormy Daniels to protect Trump's election chances.
Cohen identified Trump as the driver of the payoff scheme.
Repayments began after a February 2017 Oval Office meeting with Trump and CFO Allen Weisselberg.
Monthly invoices for $35,000 were for hush-money reimbursements, not legal services.
Cohen admitted misleading investigators and lying to Congress to protect Trump.
One important moment:
After FBI’s Cohen raid, Trump called Cohen and said: “Don’t worry, I’m President of the United States. There’s nothing here. Everything’s going to be okay. Stay tough. You’re going to be okay.”
[TS] A POTUS assuring a target of a criminal investigation that he would use the power of the Presidency to protect him is a shocking revelation.
Cross-Examination: Defense attacked Cohen's credibility, highlighting his social media comments and desire to see Trump convicted.
The Fealty Tour continues
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and other GOP supporters (Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL), Byron Donalds (R-FL)) attended court to show support for Trump.
Also seems like a litmus test for VP considering we’ve seen: JD Vance, Tim Scott yesterday and now Vivek Ramaswamy, Gov. Doug Burgum (R-ND)
[TS] Again just to be clear we’re seeing Republican legislators come to the courthouse steps at the defendant’s behest to attack the court and the witnesses in an effort to evade the court’s gag order.
Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL): "This is weaponization against our president” [NOTE] Trump is not the president.
Gov. Burgum (R-ND) calls hush money trial a "sham trial" and a "scam trial.” Says on CNN he was in court today “completely as a volunteer.”
[TS] All dressing up as Trump too. C’mon…
[REMINDER] Doug Burgum last Jul 9th ’23 on Meet the Press:
CHUCK TODD: "Would you ever do business with Donald Trump?
GOV. BURGUM: "I – I don't think so."
TODD: "Why?"
BURGUM: "I just think that it’s important that you’re judged by the company you keep."
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA): “I’m working with Jim Jordan and James Comer on measures to rein in the abuses of Jack Smith.”
[TS] Because the speaker of the house serves at the pleasure of Donald Trump…
In the hallway, Trump referred to the politicians who come with him to court as his "surrogates."
“I do have a lot of surrogates and they are speaking very beautifully. They come from all over ... and they think this is the biggest scam they’ve ever seen," he said.
[REMINDER 2] The gag order prohibits Trump from making comments about jurors/witnesses and also from causing others to make them.
[RELATED] Aaron Rupar: Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) admits on Newsmax that "one of the reasons he went" to NYC yesterday was to "overcome this gag order."
[RELATED 2] Why hasn’t Allen Weisselberg testified? Recall in 2018 NYT: Allen Weisselberg, CFO of the Trump Organization, received immunity from federal prosecutors (ie Barr’s DOJ) for providing information/testifying about Michael Cohen’
3.) Jerusalem Post: IDF reveals Hamas terrorists use UN vehicles, UNRWA compound as cover in Rafah
Several terrorists and gunfire can be seen near UN vehicles and in the area of UNRWA's logistics warehouse compound in eastern Rafah, which is a central point for the distribution of UNRWA's aid.
4.) NYT: Russian Detains Senior General, Widening Military Purge
Russian FSB counterintelligence service has detained Lieutenant General Yury Kuznetsov, head of the Main Personnel Directorate of the Russian defense ministry - Russian media.
Previously, he headed the Eighth Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces for thirteen years (!). The directorate is responsible for the State Secret Protection Service.
Reportedly, he was detained in his own bed, the law enforcers were deliberately forceful and broke down the windows and doors in his residence.
Georgia's parliament has voted through a divisive "foreign agent" law that has sparked weeks of mass street protests.
However, the bill now faces a likely veto by Georgia's president, which the parliament in Tbilisi can override by holding an additional vote.
Critics say the bill - which they call the "Russia law" - could be used to threaten civil liberties.
[INFO]
What is the law?
The law would require media, nongovernmental organizations and other nonprofits to register as “pursuing the interests of a foreign power” if they receive more than 20% of funding from abroad.
The opposition denounces it as “the Russian law” because Moscow uses similar legislation to stigmatize independent news media and organizations critical of the Kremlin. Opposition lawmakers have accused the governing party of trying to drag Georgia into Russia's sphere of influence.
The latest Producer Price Index (PPI) report shows that PPI for final demand increased by 0.5% in April 2024 on a seasonally adjusted basis, and by 0.6% on an unadjusted basis. This indicates a year-over-year rise of 2.2% since April 2023. Key drivers included a 0.4% increase in goods, led by a significant 2.0% rise in energy prices, while food prices fell by 0.7%. Service prices rose by 0.6%, with notable gains in trade services (0.8%)
NOT NEWS NEWS
7.) U of Toronto School of Cities: Downtown activity is back … after working hours.
Cell phone data reveals there's a trend helping to revive downtowns = Crowds are back in the evenings and weekends.
Most cities are 100%+ recovered to 2019 levels after work hours and on weekends. During the typical work day, urban cores are ~60% to 70% recovered.
8.) NBC: Ben Carson calls for making divorce harder
Ben Carson is out with a new book in which he calls for an end to no-fault divorce laws in the United States.
9.) More Jan 6th tapes released courtesy of House R’s. Footage shows that cops did not “open the doors” to let Trump supporters in.
[TS] See for yourself:
10.) Haaretz: 'Everything Is Scripted' | Released Israeli Hostage Describes How Hamas Videos Were Made, in TV Interview.
“‘Everything is scripted,…I cried in the first one, so they told me, ‘Do it again, no crying,' Tal said. ‘For the next one, I was too relaxed, so they told me, 'More drama. You need to sound scared.'
11.) MEDIA MATTERS: National TV news, with the exception of MSNBC, failed to cover Trump's scandalous Big Oil proposition
Unfortunately, over a four-day period, TV news broadcast and cable networks — with the exception of MSNBC — did not cover Trump’s proposition to oil executives. From May 9 through May 12, MSNBC spent 48 minutes discussing Trump’s proposition to Big Oil, with nearly 40% of the coverage airing on Velshi.
[TS] Remarkable how little coverage this got. Imagine in the coming weeks if oil prices shoot up - will the media cover that? Of course. Will it be attributed to this? Probably not (granted, it would be difficult to prove it). Will they even mention it as a possibility? Probably not.
12.) SEMAFOR: The EU AI Act takes the right approach to AI regulation.
The EU AI Act provides a necessary framework for responsible AI development and deployment, focusing on regulating AI risk, ensuring accountability, and supporting open AI innovation. To accelerate AI adoption and reap its economic benefits, businesses and governments must prioritize responsible AI governance, provide model choice, embrace open AI, and invest in workforce upskilling and reskilling initiatives.
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