WhatsApp and other messaging apps oppose UK’s move on encryption

LONDON (Reuters) – WhatsApp and other messaging services have united to oppose Britain’s plan to force tech companies to break end-to-end encryption in private messages in its proposed internet safety legislation. Meta-owned WhatsApp, Signal and five other apps signed an open letter saying the law could give an “unelected official the power to weaken the…

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U.S. House Republicans tangle over debt limit, spending cut plans

By Richard Cowan WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday held a “robust” discussion over Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s plans for raising the federal debt limit and cutting future government spending, amid signs of discontent ranging from far-right to more moderate wings of the party. On Monday, McCarthy outlined a plan…

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Biden, facing roadblocks in Congress, signs executive order on childcare, eldercare

By Nandita Bose and Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden, facing congressional resistance to his “care economy” proposals, on Tuesday signed an executive order aimed at advancing free preschool and expanding affordable care for children, older Americans and those with disabilities. Biden signed the order, which includes over 50 specific actions, in the…

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Facing brutal climate math, US bets billions on direct air capture

By Susanna Twidale, Valerie Volcovici, Simon Jessop and Peter Henderson (Reuters) -The world is failing to cut carbon emissions fast enough to avoid disastrous climate change, a dawning truth that is giving life to a technology that for years has been marginal – pulling carbon dioxide from the air. Leading the charge, the U.S. government…

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US debt ceiling deadline could be sooner than anticipated, banks warn

By Davide Barbuscia NEW YORK (Reuters) -The U.S. government’s deadline to raise the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling could be sooner than expected, raising the prospect of a short-term debt limit extension, analysts said on Tuesday. Goldman Sachs analysts said weak tax collections so far in April indicate a higher probability that the so-called “X-date,” when…

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US government watchdog: health chief Becerra violated Hatch Act

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra violated the Hatch Act by expressing support for Democratic Senator Alex Padilla’s re-election at a public event last year, a U.S. government watchdog said on Tuesday. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel report cited Becerra’s comments that he intended to vote for Padilla while speaking…

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China ramps up construction on new Antarctic station – report

By Michael Martina WASHINGTON (Reuters) – China is increasing its Antarctic footprint according to new satellite imagery collected by a Washington-based think tank that shows construction has resumed for the first time since 2018 on the country’s fifth station in the southern polar region. Beijing has sought to develop new shipping routes in the Arctic…

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Republicans to block Feinstein substitute on Senate Judiciary – McConnell

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Senate Republicans will block Democrats’ plans to temporarily replace Senator Dianne Feinstein on the committee that approves federal judges, the chamber’s top Republican, Mitch McConnell, said on Tuesday. That would make it harder for Democrats to confirm President Joe Biden’s appointments to the federal judiciary until Feinstein, 89, returns to the…

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