Democrat Colin Allred is running again for US Senate in Texas

Democrat Colin Allred is running again for US Senate in Texas

DALLAS (AP) — Former Texas congressmanColin Allredlaunched another run for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday after the Democrat's challengeagainst Republican Sen. Ted Cruzlast year broke records for spending but did not deliver his party the breakthrough it has sought for decades in the state. This time, Allred is seeking the seat ofRepublican Sen. John Cornyn, who is facing a primary challenge from Texas Attorney GeneralKen Paxtonin what is likely to beone of the GOP's most contentious contestsin 2026. Allred's announcement comes just seven months after he lost by nearly 9 percentage points to Cruz. That race was one of the most expensive in the country last cycle, with Democrats spending more than $130 million trying to unseat Cruz. A former NFL linebacker and attorney, Allred is the first high-profile Democrat to declare himself a candidate in the race that Democrats see as their best shot next year at ending a 30-year drought in statewide elections in Texas. Another former Democratic congressman,Beto O'Rourke, who came within 3 percentage points of defeating Cruz in 2018, also hasn't ruled out a run. In a video announcing his candidacy, Allred took aim at both Cornyn and Paxton and cast himself as a fighter for those struggling to get ahead. "I get it. Real change might feel impossible," Allred said. "But I'm not giving up." Allred tried to position himself as a moderate in last year's race and made protecting abortion rights a centerpiece of his campaign. His supporters included Texas women who had serious pregnancy complications after thestate's abortion bantook effect. But his campaign drew criticism early on from some Democrats who grew restless with Allred's strategy of not packing his schedule with raucous rallies or investing more in smaller corners of Texas, including cities along the border with Mexico. In the end, Texas Democrats' streak of losses in statewide races continued while Republicanskept making gainsalong the predominately Hispanic border with Mexico, which had long been a Democratic stronghold. Allred played four seasons in the NFL, all with the Tennessee Titans, after being undrafted out of Baylor University. He entered Congress after flipping a Republican district in Dallas in 2018. Formerastronaut Terry Virtsalso entered the U.S. Senate race as a Democratic candidate. Looming over the GOP primary between Cornyn and Paxton is whether and whenPresident Donald Trumpwill make an endorsement. In April, Trump praised both candidates and said he would make a decision later.

byAllias Grif

in

July 01, 2025

Democrat Colin Allred is running again for US Senate in Texas

Democrat Colin Allred is running again for US Senate in Texas DALLAS (AP) — Former Texas congressmanColin Allredlaunched another run for the...

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Exclusive-USAID cancelled rape survivor kits for Congo as conflict erupted

Exclusive-USAID cancelled rape survivor kits for Congo as conflict erupted

By Jessica Donati and Sonia Rolley (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump's administration cancelled a major contract to supply emergency kits for rape survivors in Congo as violence surged in the east this year, leaving thousands without access to life-saving medication, the United Nations and aid groups said. The emergency kits include medication to prevent HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, as well as unwanted pregnancies. The decision to cancel the contract for around 100,000 post-rape kits has not been reported previously. The U.S. Agency for International Development contract was intended to resupply Congo's war-ravaged eastern provinces for the year, and left thousands of health centres without provisions when fighting was escalating. The State Department, which manages USAID, did not respond to repeated requests for comment by email and text message. Reuters spoke to officials at the United Nations and four other aid groups that treat rape survivors in eastern Congo for this story. A team also visited a site in South Kivu province to speak directly to healthcare workers and survivors. "When you look into the eyes of a rape victim, you get the impression that her gaze is dead," one health worker in Congo, who declined to be named for fear of reprisals, said. "You never forget standing in front of that person and telling them that you don't have any medicine, that you don't know how to help them, and asking them to leave." Rwanda-backed M23 rebels swept across the east of the country in January, seizing two major cities, in an escalation of a decades-long conflict. The UN has said that some 67,000 incidences of rape have been recorded since then with many more likely going unreported. Sexual violence as a weapon of war in the Congo has been documented by generations of UN experts and aid groups. PIPELINE DISRUPTED Trump ordered a 90-day pause on foreign aid after taking office in January and halted grants by USAID. USAID's contract with a supplier for the kits was in the pipeline when billionaire Elon Musk, who at the time was spearheading a department to improve U.S. government efficiency, said he was shuttering the agency in January. According to the UN and other aid organisations, USAID immediately cancelled the contract, which would have resupplied thousands of health centres by March. Reuters has agreed not to name the supplier to avoid compromising its sensitive operations in Congo. "When USAID decided to terminate the large funding they had for this American NGO, this American NGO immediately stopped all activities," said Noemi Dalmonte, the deputy representative in Kinshasa for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). "The pipeline got disrupted at a very unfortunate time." The post-rape kits come in a box containing HIV medication to prevent infection within 72 hours, antibiotics and testing for sexually transmitted diseases and emergency contraception. The supplies paid for by USAID were meant to reach over 2,000 facilities. "This kit is truly important to reassure the woman who has been really traumatized that she won't get AIDS, that she won't have an unwanted pregnancy, and that she won't contract venereal diseases," said Amadou Bocoum, the country director of CARE International. The UNFPA shared a document with Reuters that indicated that only seven out of 34 health zones in North Kivu have a minimal supply of post-rape kits left. Less than one-in-four survivors' needs are currently being met. Only 13% of survivors that request help receive medication to prevent HIV within the recommended 72-hour window. While the U.S. State Department has said it will continue to support life-saving programs worldwide, the contract to supply post-rape kits to survivors remains cancelled. Trump has said that the U.S. pays disproportionately for foreign aid and he wants other countries to shoulder more of the burden. The U.S. disbursed $65 billion in foreign assistance last year, nearly half of it via USAID, according to government data. The UNFPA and other aid organisations are trying to raise around $35 million to cover the loss of funding from the United States from donors such as the Gates Foundation and other Western nations. The consequences of the cancellation include survivor deaths, the spread of HIV, unwanted pregnancies, and unsafe abortions with high maternal-mortality risk, the UNFPA document said. (Additional reporting by Victoire Mukenge in Bukavu and Djaffar Al Kantaty in Goma; Editing by Sharon Singleton)

byAllias Grif

in

July 01, 2025

Exclusive-USAID cancelled rape survivor kits for Congo as conflict erupted

Exclusive-USAID cancelled rape survivor kits for Congo as conflict erupted By Jessica Donati and Sonia Rolley (Reuters) -U.S. President Dona...

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Xiaomi's YU7 car buyers face year-long wait for delivery, sparking complaints

Xiaomi's YU7 car buyers face year-long wait for delivery, sparking complaints

SHANGHAI (Reuters) -China's Xiaomi is telling customers of its new YU7 electric sports utility vehicle they will have to wait more than a year to receive their cars, sparking a fresh wave of complaints against the company. The smartphone turned EV maker said it received roughly 240,000 orders for the YU7 in the first 18 hours after the car went on sale on Thursday night, but only a small number of vehicles were available for immediate delivery. By Tuesday, the Xiaomi app showed purchasers were facing a wait of between 38 and 60 weeks, according to Reuters checks. Since Friday, more than 400 buyers have lodged complaints on Sina's Black Cat consumer complaint platform saying they were not made aware of the long wait and demanding a refund, according to a Reuters review of the records on the platform. Buyers had to make a non-refundable deposit of 5,000 yuan ($697.97) to place their order. They said the official app only showed the estimated waiting time for the car after the order had been confirmed. They also raised concerns about whether the longer wait would mean they would have to pay more because a tax exemption for EVs is set to expire at the end of this year. Xiaomi did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Its charismatic CEO Lei Jun said on his Weibo account, where he has 26.8 million followers, that he would answer some questions raised after the YU7 launch in a livestreaming event on Wednesday. Xiaomi made a huge splash in China's EV market with the launch of its first vehicle, the SU7 sedan, in March last year. While early buyers of the SU7 initially faced waits of up to 7 months it has outsold Tesla's Model 3 in China on a monthly basis since December. The company has been grappling with a consumer backlash since a fatal crash involving an SU7 in March. It has also faced complaints over the confusion surrounding vehicle delivery times, as well as optional features. The YU7 is Xiaomi's second model and priced from 253,500 yuan ($35,360), nearly 4% less than Tesla's Model Y, currently China's best-selling SUV. Lei has been open about how Xiaomi wants to challenge Tesla's Model Y for the top spot. Xiaomi has been ramping up output at its Beijing plant and plans new factories on two plots of land nearby. Monthly output has increased to 28,000 units in May from 4,000 units last March. ($1 = 7.1636 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Zhang Yan, Brenda Goh; Editing by Kate Mayberry)

byAllias Grif

in

July 01, 2025

Xiaomi's YU7 car buyers face year-long wait for delivery, sparking complaints

Xiaomi's YU7 car buyers face year-long wait for delivery, sparking complaints SHANGHAI (Reuters) -China's Xiaomi is telling customer...

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The suspension of Thailand's prime minister over a leaked phone call stirs familiar turmoil

The suspension of Thailand's prime minister over a leaked phone call stirs familiar turmoil

BANGKOK (AP) — The Constitutional Court's suspension ofThai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatrahas raised questions about whether her family's political comeback last year would end with another downfall. Paetongtarnwas the third prime ministerin her family, after her father, Thaksin Shinawatra, a telecom billionaire who has been one of Thailand's top political operators, and her aunt, Yingluck Shinawatra, who was the country's first female prime minister. Thaksin was ousted by a military coup in 2006 and Yingluck by a court ruling in 2014. Thaksin remained beloved after his ouster among voters who saw in him and his allies a government that looked after their interests. While campaigning in 2022, Paetongtarn acknowledged her family ties but insisted she was not her father's proxy. "It's not the shadow of my dad. I am my dad's daughter, always and forever, but I have my own decisions," she said. She also said she hoped her government would be able to "build opportunity and quality of life" and "make the country go forward." Paetongtarn was suspended Tuesday by the court pending an ethics investigation a leaked phone call with senior Cambodian leader Hun Sen that was perceived as damaging to Thailand's interests and image. Eroding trust capped by a diplomatic blunder Her critics have said Paetongtarn's government has achieved little.Marriage equalitybecame law but was initiated under her predecessor.Controls on cannabiswere retightened after public backlash over decriminalization, but the move and its enforcement were called rushed and confusing. Her critics also cited unsatisfactory outcomes in other Pheu Thai party policies, like unequal minimum wage increases, constant changes in acash handout programand the stalled andcontroversial legalization of casinos. They also noted the lack of progress in tariffs talks with the United States. But analysts see the leaked call followingborder tensions with Cambodiato be the most disastrous event by far. The outrage has centeredon Paetongtarn's commentsabout an outspoken Thai army commander and the perception that she was trying to appease Hun Sen. Paetongtarn apologized but also denied that she had damaged the country. She ignored calls for her to resign or dissolve Parliament to take responsibility, which critics saw as an attempt by the Pheu Thai party to cling to power. Napon Jatusripitak, a political science researcher at Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, said her response seemed "totally disconnected from political reality" and that the scandal has exposed "her leadership failures and fuels accusations that she prioritizes family interests over national welfare." Adoration for the Shinawatra cools Her father, Thaksin, is believed to be the key decision maker behind Pheu Thai, now led by Paetongtarn. Time and again, Thaksin-backed parties have prevailed in national elections but could not stay in office after legal rulings and destabilizing street protests engineered by Thaksin's die-hard foes. But in 2023, Thaksin alienated many of his old supporters with what looked like aself-serving dealwith his former conservative opponents. It allowed hisreturn from exileand his party to form the new government, while sidelining the progressiveMove Forward Party, which finished first in a national election but was seen by the conservative establishment as a greater threat. Now with the current crisis, things could drastically change for the Shinawatra family. "In light of the recent controversy, the Shinawatra spell has been broken. The only viable Shinawatra scion is now tainted," Napon said. "It would be an understatement to say that the Shinawatra name no longer guarantees electoral success." And not everything has been squared away with her family's enemies. Yingluck remains in exile, andlegal problems— arguably politically inspired — could send her to prison if she returns to Thailand. Thaksin also still facessome legal challenges. Thailand's royalist establishment has long been disturbed that Thaksin's populist policies appeared to threaten their status and that of the monarchy at the heart of Thai identity. Paetongtarn now alsofaces protestsby familiar faces from the same conservative, pro-royalist group that opposed her father. "History seems to be repeating itself in a way. Thailand seems trapped in a depressingly familiar cycle where Shinawatra-led governments come to power, only to face mounting pressure from traditional power centers, street protests, and extraparliamentary interventions that ultimately force them from office," Napon said. Paetongtarn, 38, is the youngest of Thaksin's three children. She was an executive in a hotel business run by her family before making her public entry into politics in 2021 when the Pheu Thai party named her to lead an advisory committee. She has two children with her husband, Pitaka Suksawat, who was a commercial pilot before he began working in one of the Shinawatras' real estate ventures.

byAllias Grif

in

July 01, 2025

The suspension of Thailand's prime minister over a leaked phone call stirs familiar turmoil

The suspension of Thailand's prime minister over a leaked phone call stirs familiar turmoil BANGKOK (AP) — The Constitutional Court'...

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Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect

Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa became the first stateto remove gender identityfrom its civil rights code under a law that took effect Tuesday, meaning transgender and nonbinary residents are no longer protected from discrimination in their job, housing and other aspects of life. The law also explicitly defines female and male based onreproductive organs at birthand removes the ability for people to change the sex designation on their birth certificate. An unprecedented take-back of legal rights after nearly two decades in Iowa code leaves transgender, nonbinary and potentially even intersex Iowans more vulnerable now than they werebefore. It's a governing doctrine now widely adopted byPresident Donald Trumpand Republican-led states despite themainstream medical viewthat sex and gender are better understood as a spectrum than as an either-or definition. When Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed Iowa's new law, she said the state's previous civil rights code "blurred the biological line between the sexes." "It's common sense to acknowledge the obvious biological differences between men and women. In fact, it's necessary to secure genuine equal protection for women and girls," she said in a video statement. Also taking effect Tuesday are provisions in the state's health and human services budget that say Medicaid recipients are no longer covered for gender-affirming surgery or hormone therapy. A national movement Iowa's state Capitol filled with protesters as the law went through the Republican-controlled Legislature and to Reynolds' desk in justone week in February. Iowa Republicans said laws passed in recent yearsto restrict transgender students' useof bathrooms and locker rooms,and their participation on sports teams, could not coexist with a civil rights code that includes gender identity protections. Abouttwo dozen other statesand the Trump administration have advanced restrictions on transgender people. Republicans say such laws andexecutive actionsprotect spaces for women, rejecting the idea that people can transition to another gender. Many face court challenges. About two-thirds of U.S. adultsbelieve that whether a person is a man or woman is determined by biological characteristics at birth, an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll conducted in May found. But there's less consensus on policies that target transgender and nonbinary people. Transgender people say those kinds of policies deny their existence and capitalize on prejudice for political gain. In a major setback for transgender rights nationwide, the U.S. Supreme Court last monthupheld Tennessee's banon puberty blockers and hormone treatments fortransgender minors. The court's conservative majority said it doesn't violate the Constitution's equal protection clause, which requires the government to treat similarly situated people the same. Not every state includes gender identity in their civil rights code, but Iowa was the first to remove nondiscrimination protections based on gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an LGBTQ+ rights think tank. Incidents of discrimination in Iowa, before and after July 1 Iowans will still have time to file a complaint with the state Office of Civil Rights about discrimination based on gender identity that occurred before the law took effect. State law requires a complaint to be submitted within 300 days after the most recent incident of alleged discrimination. That means people have until April 27 to file a complaint about discrimination based on gender identity, according to Kristen Stiffler, the office's executive director. Sixty-five such complaints were filed and accepted for investigation from July 2023 through the end of June 2024, according to Stiffler. Forty-three were filed and accepted from July 1, 2024, through June 19 of this year. Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, a Democrat and the state's first openly transgender lawmaker, fears the law will lead to an increase in discrimination for transgender Iowans. "Anytime someone has to check your ID and they see that the gender marker doesn't match the appearance, then that opens up hostility, discrimination as possibilities," Wichtendahl said, naming examples such as applying for a job, going through the airport, buying beer or getting pulled over in a traffic stop. "That instantly outs you. That instantly puts you on the spot." About half of U.S. states include gender identity in their civil rights code to protect against discrimination in housing and public places, such as stores or restaurants, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Some additional states do not explicitly protect against such discrimination, but it is included in legal interpretations of statutes. Five years ago,the U.S. Supreme Court ruledLGBTQ people are protected by a landmark federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in the workplace. But Iowa's Supreme Courthas expressly rejectedthe argument that discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on gender identity. Changing Iowa birth certificates before the law took effect The months between when the bill was signed into law and when it took effect gave transgender Iowans time to pursue amended birth certificates before that option was eliminated. Keenan Crow, with LGBTQ+ advocacy group One Iowa, said the group has long cosponsored legal clinics to assist with that process. "The last one that we had was by far the biggest," Crow said. Iowa's Department of Transportation still has a process by which people can change the gender designation on their license or identification card but has proposed administrative rules to eliminate that option. Wichtendahl also said she has talked to some families who are looking to move out of state as a result of the new law. "It's heartbreaking because this is people's lives we're talking about," Wichtendahl added. "These are families that have trans loved ones and it's keeping their loved ones away, it's putting their loved ones into uncertain future, putting their health and safety at risk."

byAllias Grif

in

June 30, 2025

Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect

Iowa's civil rights protections no longer include gender identity as new law takes effect DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa became the first ...

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