New book on Biden by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson reports a ‘cover-up’ about his decline
The day after Donald Trump won the 2024 election, CNN anchor Jake Tapper and Axios correspondent Alex Thompson decided to co-author a book about what had led the Democratic party to defeat, with a focus on former President Joe Biden. The deeply sourced reporters found what they call a “cover-up” of the former president’s “serious decline.” The resulting book, titled “Original Sin: President Biden’s Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again,” is coming out on May 20.
Tropicana is in big financial trouble
Florida has been blasted with stronger hurricanes than ever before. A prolific disease carried by insects continues to devastate orange groves. And, on top of all that, consumers are watching their sugar intake. It’s adding up to a disaster for Tropicana orange juice. Tropicana, founded in 1947 by an immigrant from Sicily who developed a process for freezing concentrated orange juice, is in financial distress and could be headed for bankruptcy.
Thousands of University of California workers go on strike alleging unfair bargaining tactics
Tens of thousands of University of California physician assistants, optometrists, and other health care and custodial workers went on strike Wednesday over alleged unfair labor practices and staffing shortages. The strikes by two unions representing nearly 60,000 health care and service workers are separate and come after the unions and 10-campus university system failed to reach a new contract.
Nvidia doubled profits in 2024. And its outlook is rosy despite AI jitters
Nvidia exceeded Wall Street’s expectations as it closed out 2024, achieving stunning sales and profit growth — and much of Silicon Valley is likely breathing a sigh of relief at what the results say about the artificial intelligence industry. The chipmaking giant’s shares dipped just over 1% in after-hours trading Wednesday, immediately after the company released its earnings report for the quarter ended in January and its full 2025 fiscal year. However, shares quickly turned positive, gaining 2.7% within half an hour of the report’s release.
Jeff Bezos announces ‘significant shift’ coming to the Washington Post. A key editor is leaving because of it
Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos on Wednesday announced a “significant shift” to the publisher’s opinion page that led David Shipley, the paper’s editorial page editor, to leave the paper. The changes upended precedent and rattled a media company that has already been shaken by years of turmoil and leadership turnover. As part of the overhaul, the Post will publish daily opinion stories on two editorial “pillars”: personal liberties and free markets, Bezos teased in an X post on Wednesday morning after announcing the change in a company-wide email. The Post’s opinion section will cover other subjects, too, Bezos wrote, but “viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others.”
Their Colorado community burned to the ground three years ago. Now they’re helping victims of LA wildfires
A day before New Year’s Eve 2021, the wind-driven Marshall Fire quickly tore through neighborhoods and cul-de-sacs in a quiet suburban community northwest of Denver, Colorado. Melanie Glover was stuck in traffic at the time the fire was raging, her husband and children trapped in their burning home. Glover sat helpless in the car on the phone with her family as they made desperate attempts to put out the flames before narrowly escaping.
Trump White House’s new press policy: Threats, revenge and MAGA media favoritism
This week is a troubling turning point in the already-tense dynamic between the Trump White House and the press corps. At the White House, and at key agencies like the Defense Department, the plan is obvious: Punish traditional journalists who ask tough questions and promote a parallel universe of pro-Trump media outlets.
Amazon’s Alexa is getting a major upgrade for the AI chatbot era
Alexa+, Amazon’s revamped version of Alexa was unveiled Wednesday, bringing the popular voice assistant into the artificial intelligence era. The new Alexa is more conversational, can incorporate a user’s personal preferences into answers, and can handle certain tasks on someone’s behalf, like booking concert tickets, Amazon says. The service costs $19.99 per month but will be free for Amazon Prime members, with early access coming next month.
Trump lashes out at the Wall Street Journal after repeated attacks on tariffs
President Donald Trump and the Wall Street Journal’s opinion section are fighting over tariff policy – again. Trump railed against a Wednesday editorial in the Journal that said, with some evidence, that auto-heavy Michigan would be hurt by tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico that Trump is once again threatening to impose.
Stock market today: Wall Street holds steadier but still falls following last week’s tumble
U.S. stocks drifted lower on Monday to compound their sharp losses from last week. The S&P 500 dipped 0.5% after flipping between small gains and losses several times through the day. The relatively modest moves followed its 1.7% tumble on Friday, which came after several weaker-than-expected reports on the U.S. economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 33 points, or 0.1%, while the Nasdaq composite fell 1.2%.