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October 2: Christa Pike’s Execution Attempt and NSF Research Funding
Tennessee execution attempt
Christa Pike is unconscious and on a ventilator after what her attorneys describe as a failed execution attempt Wednesday night in Tennessee. Her lawyers say she is in critical condition and receiving life-saving care in hospital.
Amazon’s data centers
Amazon plans to spend $1 billion over five years on education, job training, infrastructure and sustainability projects in communities hosting its data centers. The announcement comes amid growing resident opposition over water use, electricity costs and air quality. Amazon disputes those concerns and says more than 100 proposed data center moratoriums are under consideration across the United States.
Security for British elected officials
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says she will update MPs on efforts to strengthen security for elected figures when Parliament returns. Her pledge follows charges against a man accused of plotting a terror attack against Reform UK leader Nigel Farage. Mahmood expressed sympathy for Farage and his family and said the case raises serious questions about protection for people in public life.
San Francisco’s empty home tax
A California appeals court has upheld a ruling blocking San Francisco’s tax on empty homes. The court found that Proposition M, approved by voters in 2022, conflicts with the state’s Ellis Act, which protects property owners’ right to withdraw units from the rental market. The judges did not address the owners’ constitutional claims because state law resolved the case. The city attorney’s office declined to say whether it would appeal to the state Supreme Court.
North Carolina’s Senate race
The Senate Leadership Fund has withdrawn advertising spending from Republican Michael Whatley’s Senate campaign in North Carolina, according to reports from Semafor, The New York Times and CNN. The fund, aligned with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, is redirecting money to other candidates amid worsening midterm polling for Republicans.
Federal research funding
The National Science Foundation withheld $1.4 billion that Congress intended for research over the past year, The New York Times reports. That represents about one-fifth of the agency’s primary research budget. The NSF is one of the largest sources of federal research funding.
UCLA admissions
The Justice Department has accused UCLA’s law school of illegally considering race in admissions. The university denies the allegations and says it is committed to complying with all admissions laws. The accusation follows a similar claim against UCLA’s medical school, as the Trump administration increases scrutiny of college admissions.
Venezuela lobbying case
Former Republican congressman David Rivera was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison over a secret $50 million lobbying campaign on Venezuela’s behalf during the first Trump administration, the Washington Sun reports. Jurors convicted him in May on all counts, including failing to register as a foreign agent and conspiracy to commit money laundering, for his work for Nicolás Maduro’s government. Rivera has been jailed since the verdict.
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