ROME (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/pope-francis">Pope Francis</a>&nbsp;decided at the last minute to skip his homily during Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square, avoiding a strenuous speech at the start of a busy Holy Week that will test his increasingly frail health.

<a href="https://apnews.com/article/vatican-pope-autobiography-resignation-0cac91e2193178dd221f1ed751e45e36">Hobbled by bad knees and persistent respiratory problems</a>, Francis also didn’t participate in the procession of cardinals around the obelisk in the piazza at the start of the Mass. Instead, the 87-year-old pontiff blessed the palm fronds and olive branches carried by the faithful from the altar.

Francis had been expected to deliver a homily halfway through the service and a prepared text had been distributed to journalists. But when an aide presented Francis with his glasses to begin reading, the pope made clear he wouldn't deliver the remarks, leaving the crowd waiting in silence.

Vatican officials didn't immediately explain why. The Vatican press office later said the homily was replaced by “a moment of silence and prayer.”

Francis though did pronounce prayers throughout the service and offered a long appeal for peace at the end of the Mass. He said he was praying for the families of those killed in what he called an “inhuman” attack at a suburban Moscow concert hall and also asked for prayers for “the martyred Ukraine” and people of Gaza.

Vatican officials estimated some 60,000 people attended the Mass, held under a sunny, breezy spring sky. Francis spent several minutes greeting them from the popemobile, making several loops around the piazza at the end of the service.

Palm Sunday kicks off a busy week for Francis leading up to Easter Sunday when the faithful commemorate the resurrection of Christ. On Thursday, Francis is due to travel to a Rome women’s prison for the traditional washing of the feet ritual. On Friday he is scheduled to preside over the torchlit Way of the Cross procession at Rome’s Colosseum re-enacting Christ’s crucifixion.

The following day marks the Easter Vigil, during which Francis presides over a solemn nighttime service in the basilica, followed by Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square and his noontime blessing from the loggia above.

The Holy Week schedule is challenging for popes even under the best of circumstances. But that is especially true this year for Francis, who has been battling on and off all winter what he and the Vatican have described as a case of the flu, bronchitis or a cold. For the last several weeks he has occasionally&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/vatican-pope-francis-health-flu-gender-ideology-3b83706d19aa42b7998055f17f965927">asked an aide to read aloud</a>&nbsp;his speeches and catechism lessons to spare him the effort.

On Sunday, there was no substitute called in, and the homily was skipped. Vatican officials said the prepared text was to be considered as never having existed. Usually, the pope doesn't deliver a homily at Easter, but he traditionally offers reflections on Palm Sunday.

Even when he isn't sick, Francis often speaks in a whisper and seems to run out of breath easily. He had part of one lung removed when he was a young man because of a respiratory infection.

At this time last year, he was hospitalized for three days with an acute case of bronchitis, but then rallied to get through Holy Week. He has been hospitalized two other times during his pontificate for abdominal surgery, including one 10-day stay in 2021 to remove a part of his large intestine.

At the end of the Mass, Francis offered a long prayer for peace for all those suffering from war, and for the Lord to comfort the victims of the “vile terrorist attack” in Moscow.

“May he convert the hearts of those who protect, organize and carry out these inhuman acts that offend God, who commanded us not to kill," Francis said.

Without citing Moscow, Francis also asked the faithful not to forget Ukraine's suffering. He noted many Ukrainians are now without electricity as a result of “intense attacks on infrastructure, which not only bring death and suffering, but also the risk of a humanitarian catastrophe of even bigger dimensions.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/3/1711361555231.png" alt="Pope Francis celebrates the Palm Sunday mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)" />
 <figcaption>Pope Francis celebrates the Palm Sunday mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, March 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)</figcaption>
 </figure>ROME (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/pope-francis">Pope Francis</a>&nbsp;decided at the last minute to skip his homily during Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square, avoiding a strenuous speech at the start of a busy Holy Week that will test his increasingly frail health.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/vatican-pope-autobiography-resignation-0cac91e2193178dd221f1ed751e45e36">Hobbled by bad knees and persistent respiratory problems</a>, Francis also didn’t participate in the procession of cardinals around the obelisk in the piazza at the start of the Mass. Instead, the 87-year-old pontiff blessed the palm fronds and olive branches carried by the faithful from the altar.Francis had been expected to deliver a homily halfway through the service and a prepared text had been distributed to journalists. But when an aide presented Francis with his glasses to begin reading, the pope made clear he wouldn't deliver the remarks, leaving the crowd waiting in silence.Vatican officials didn't immediately explain why. The Vatican press office later said the homily was replaced by “a moment of silence and prayer.”Francis though did pronounce prayers throughout the service and offered a long appeal for peace at the end of the Mass. He said he was praying for the families of those killed in what he called an “inhuman” attack at a suburban Moscow concert hall and also asked for prayers for “the martyred Ukraine” and people of Gaza.Vatican officials estimated some 60,000 people attended the Mass, held under a sunny, breezy spring sky. Francis spent several minutes greeting them from the popemobile, making several loops around the piazza at the end of the service.Palm Sunday kicks off a busy week for Francis leading up to Easter Sunday when the faithful commemorate the resurrection of Christ. On Thursday, Francis is due to travel to a Rome women’s prison for the traditional washing of the feet ritual. On Friday he is scheduled to preside over the torchlit Way of the Cross procession at Rome’s Colosseum re-enacting Christ’s crucifixion.The following day marks the Easter Vigil, during which Francis presides over a solemn nighttime service in the basilica, followed by Easter Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Square and his noontime blessing from the loggia above.The Holy Week schedule is challenging for popes even under the best of circumstances. But that is especially true this year for Francis, who has been battling on and off all winter what he and the Vatican have described as a case of the flu, bronchitis or a cold. For the last several weeks he has occasionally&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/vatican-pope-francis-health-flu-gender-ideology-3b83706d19aa42b7998055f17f965927">asked an aide to read aloud</a>&nbsp;his speeches and catechism lessons to spare him the effort.On Sunday, there was no substitute called in, and the homily was skipped. Vatican officials said the prepared text was to be considered as never having existed. Usually, the pope doesn't deliver a homily at Easter, but he traditionally offers reflections on Palm Sunday.Even when he isn't sick, Francis often speaks in a whisper and seems to run out of breath easily. He had part of one lung removed when he was a young man because of a respiratory infection.At this time last year, he was hospitalized for three days with an acute case of bronchitis, but then rallied to get through Holy Week. He has been hospitalized two other times during his pontificate for abdominal surgery, including one 10-day stay in 2021 to remove a part of his large intestine.At the end of the Mass, Francis offered a long prayer for peace for all those suffering from war, and for the Lord to comfort the victims of the “vile terrorist attack” in Moscow.“May he convert the hearts of those who protect, organize and carry out these inhuman acts that offend God, who commanded us not to kill," Francis said.Without citing Moscow, Francis also asked the faithful not to forget Ukraine's suffering. He noted many Ukrainians are now without electricity as a result of “intense attacks on infrastructure, which not only bring death and suffering, but also the risk of a humanitarian catastrophe of even bigger dimensions.”

Pope Francis skips Palm Sunday homily at start of busy Holy Week

By RUDI KELLER,&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/">Missouri Independent</a>

The annual markets outlook from the Food &amp; Agricultural Policy Research Institute anticipates declining farm income, higher costs for producers

U.S. farm income is falling from record highs as low commodity prices, trade headwinds and higher costs squeeze profits, according to a&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://fapri.missouri.edu/publications/2024-us-agricultural-market-outlook/?utm_campaign=485145_FAPRI%20Baseline%20Report%20%28March%202024%29&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=Child%20account%20for%20The%20Curators%20of%20the%20University%20of%20Missouri&amp;dm_i=7JGU,AEC9,4NFRO6,1HPH8,1">new report from the University of Missouri</a>.

The 2024&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://fapri.missouri.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2024-Baseline-Outlook.pdf">U.S. Agricultural Market Outlook</a>&nbsp;report released Tuesday by the Food &amp; Agricultural Policy Research Institute, also known as FAPRI, is a 10-year projection of the agriculture economy. It examines production trends and pricing for commodity and specialty crops and livestock and discusses issues like interest rates, consumer prices and biofuel production that impact on farming as a whole.

For producers, the news isn’t especially welcome.

“We got lower commodity prices kind of across the board, except for cattle,” said Pat Westhoff, the agricultural economics professor who serves as the institute’s director.

The annual report is eagerly anticipated in the agriculture industry and its findings have extra significance this year as Congress tries to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4467907-farm-bill-tensions-conservation-fire-food-aid/">pass a farm bill</a>&nbsp;renewing producer support and food distribution programs.

Net farm income nationally is expected to be about $118.2 billion this year, down from a record of about $162 billion in 2022.

Westhoff said he briefed Congressional staff on the report Tuesday and the reaction was a classic glass half-empty, glass half-full split. Some saw the large decline in farm income as a problem, while others noted that income is expected to remain above the average from 2015 to 2019.

“People were using the same numbers and making the opposite arguments,” Westhoff said.

Missouri is second only to Texas in the number of farms, with 87,887 farms that sold $14.7 billion in agricultural products in 2022, up from $10.5 billion in 2017 according to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2022/Full_Report/Volume_1,_Chapter_2_US_State_Level/st99_2_001_001.pdf">the Census of Agriculture</a>. Missouri farms also received nearly $1 billion in government payments or other income.

With farm production expenses of $10.7 billion, Missouri farms had net cash income of $5 billion.

The 5,596 largest Missouri farms, with sales of $500,000 or more, sold more than $11.6 billion of products in 2022. The 67,400 Missouri farms with sales of less than $50,000 sold&nbsp;$685 million agricultural products.

Prices for grain and oil crops have fallen dramatically in the past year. Missouri farmers were receiving $14.90 a bushel for soybeans in January 2023, and $6.94 a bushel for corn. According to the monthly agricultural prices report from the National Agricultural Statistics Service, the price received for soybeans in January was $12.90 a bushel and for corn it was $4.79.

The issues facing farmers nationally, Westhoff said, are true in Missouri, where corn, soybeans and wheat are the major cash crops.&nbsp;

The FAPRI report projects the decline in commodity grain prices will slow, but continue.

Missouri farmers get a slightly better price than the national average for corn and soybeans because of proximity to large rivers and industries such as ethanol and biodiesel that buy commodities locally, Westhoff said.

“Where you have crushing facilities for soybeans matters tremendously,” Westhoff said. “Where you have ethanol plants matters as well.”

Missouri produced 264.9 million bushels of soybeans in 2023. A decline of $2 per bushel means the farmers producing those beans received more than $500 million less than they did for the same commodity the previous year.

The sharp decline in market prices for soybeans hasn’t been accompanied by a similar decline in prices for fertilizer, fuel and other supplies, said Casey Wasser, chief operating officer of Missouri Soybeans, the industry lobbying association.

“The input prices have not come down at all with the other prices,” Wasser said. “So that’s where that net farm income is going to hit producers pretty tight.”

Missouri has the nation’s sixth largest cattle herd. It also is home to the sixth largest number of hogs, and its farmers sold the seventh largest number of chickens for meat consumption and had the nation’s 12th largest flock of laying hens.

But Missouri is losing farmers – and farmland – faster than the national average.

The number of farms declined 7.8% since the 2017 farm census while nationally the number fell 6.9%. Nationally, 2.2% of farmland was converted to other uses between the surveys, while in Missouri the acreage in farming declined 2.7%.

The smallest producers are being squeezed the tightest, said Tim Gibbons of the Missouri Rural Crisis Center. In a telephone interview after he spent a day lobbying in Washington for changes in national farm programs, Gibbons said the issues facing farmers go well beyond commodity prices and interest rates.

Control of agriculture continues to be concentrated in large corporations, he said. Farm programs are designed to support cheap commodities and large producers, he said.

“What I’m hearing on the Hill is a joke relative to the situation that is farming in Missouri and in the United States right now,” Gibbons said.

Corporate-backed buyers are&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/01/01/boom-or-bubble-high-missouri-farmland-prices-encourage-investors-concern-farmers/">outbidding local residents</a>&nbsp;for farmland and the concentration in meatpacking means producers become dependent on contracts that can be canceled when profits narrow. The decision by Tyson Foods to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2024/03/11/tyson-to-close-perry-pork-plant-in-june/">close a plant in Perry, Iowa</a>, that employs 1,300 people will have a ripple effect on the farmers who raise hogs under contract, Gibbons said.

Missouri has lost more than 1,000 cattle producers a year over the past 25 years, a trend that accelerated to about 2,000 per year in the past five years, according to the farm census. The number of farms producing hogs has declined from 12,133 in 1992 to 2,184 in 2022.

“The policies that have been in recent past farm bills have been written by and for these multinational corporations and lobbyists that lobby for them,” Gibbons said. “We need a very different vision and a farm bill.”

The only area where prices are increasing in the past year are for cattle. That’s because the national herd is at its&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/03/19/droughts-complicated-by-climate-change-result-in-us-beef-herd-hitting-historic-low/">lowest number since the 1960s</a>, in large part due to pastureland drying up because of droughts starting in 2020.

“It’s causing liquidation and we’re not seeing rebuilding right now,” Gibbons said. “That connects with interest rates as well.”

Higher interest rates in the United States, which increase costs for farmers as they borrow to finance annual operations or add land and equipment, put farmers at a disadvantage internationally by making the dollar worth more in exchange, Westhoff said.

One indicator of the impact is that the U.S. has become a&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news/news-articles/the-us-agricultural-trade-deficit-could-reach-record-highs-for-2023-is-there-cause-for-concern/">net importer of food and agricultural products</a>, reversing decades of a surplus in the balance of farm trade.

“We are importing lots of value-added products that might otherwise be produced here and of course that has spillover effects,” Westhoff said.

The FAPRI report section on government aid to farmers notes that the cost of the two main programs intended to shore up prices –&nbsp; agricultural risk coverage, or ARC, and price loss coverage, or PLC fell below $1 billion because of recent high commodity prices.&nbsp;

At the same time, crop insurance payments in 2023 totaled $9.3 billion.

“We need to figure out a system of farmer-owned grain reserves and price floors and price ceilings to stop the volatility of the market, and keep that price floor at the cost of production,” Gibbons said.

Missouri Soybean is pushing for changes in federal farm support programs to reset the protected prices at a higher level, Wasser said. Prices on beans could fall another $2 per bushel and Missouri farmers wouldn’t qualify for payments to make up any of the difference, he said.

“We’re still not even close to a safety net, with inputs and $11 beans it’s tough for any farmer no matter what your size or your leverage to be making any profit on that,” Wasser said..

FAPRI’s job is to provide information, not advise on policy decisions, Westhoff said.

The difficulty of getting changes to the programs is cost, he said.

Some “would like to do some changes that would improve the safety net from the perspective of producers but those changes all cost money,” he said. “And unless you’re going to reduce that spending or reduce spending on conservation programs, there’s not any obvious way to put those pieces together.”

The decline in commodity prices should ease inflation in food costs and even reverse some recent increases, such as for eggs and pork, Westhoff said. Food purchased for consumption at home should not increase any faster than inflation generally, the report indicates.

But consumers shouldn’t expect everything in the supermarket to get cheaper, he said.

“For the most part, the share of those commodity prices that affect consumer food prices is pretty small,” Westhoff said. “Therefore even a significant decline in the farm level price doesn’t translate to any decline, or not a very big decline, in grocery store prices.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/2/1614189270972.jpeg" alt="Photo USDA" />
 <figcaption>Photo USDA</figcaption>
 </figure>By RUDI KELLER,&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/briefs/missouri-senate-committee-advances-bill-to-ban-texting-while-driving/">Missouri Independent</a><h2>The annual markets outlook from the Food &amp; Agricultural Policy Research Institute anticipates declining farm income, higher costs for producers</h2>U.S. farm income is falling from record highs as low commodity prices, trade headwinds and higher costs squeeze profits, according to a&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://fapri.missouri.edu/publications/2024-us-agricultural-market-outlook/?utm_campaign=485145_FAPRI%20Baseline%20Report%20%28March%202024%29&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=Child%20account%20for%20The%20Curators%20of%20the%20University%20of%20Missouri&amp;dm_i=7JGU,AEC9,4NFRO6,1HPH8,1">new report from the University of Missouri</a>.The 2024&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://fapri.missouri.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/2024-Baseline-Outlook.pdf">U.S. Agricultural Market Outlook</a>&nbsp;report released Tuesday by the Food &amp; Agricultural Policy Research Institute, also known as FAPRI, is a 10-year projection of the agriculture economy. It examines production trends and pricing for commodity and specialty crops and livestock and discusses issues like interest rates, consumer prices and biofuel production that impact on farming as a whole.For producers, the news isn’t especially welcome.“We got lower commodity prices kind of across the board, except for cattle,” said Pat Westhoff, the agricultural economics professor who serves as the institute’s director.The annual report is eagerly anticipated in the agriculture industry and its findings have extra significance this year as Congress tries to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4467907-farm-bill-tensions-conservation-fire-food-aid/">pass a farm bill</a>&nbsp;renewing producer support and food distribution programs.Net farm income nationally is expected to be about $118.2 billion this year, down from a record of about $162 billion in 2022.Westhoff said he briefed Congressional staff on the report Tuesday and the reaction was a classic glass half-empty, glass half-full split. Some saw the large decline in farm income as a problem, while others noted that income is expected to remain above the average from 2015 to 2019.“People were using the same numbers and making the opposite arguments,” Westhoff said.Missouri is second only to Texas in the number of farms, with 87,887 farms that sold $14.7 billion in agricultural products in 2022, up from $10.5 billion in 2017 according to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://www.nass.usda.gov/Publications/AgCensus/2022/Full_Report/Volume_1,_Chapter_2_US_State_Level/st99_2_001_001.pdf">the Census of Agriculture</a>. Missouri farms also received nearly $1 billion in government payments or other income.With farm production expenses of $10.7 billion, Missouri farms had net cash income of $5 billion.The 5,596 largest Missouri farms, with sales of $500,000 or more, sold more than $11.6 billion of products in 2022. The 67,400 Missouri farms with sales of less than $50,000 sold&nbsp;$685 million agricultural products.Prices for grain and oil crops have fallen dramatically in the past year. Missouri farmers were receiving $14.90 a bushel for soybeans in January 2023, and $6.94 a bushel for corn. According to the monthly agricultural prices report from the National Agricultural Statistics Service, the price received for soybeans in January was $12.90 a bushel and for corn it was $4.79.The issues facing farmers nationally, Westhoff said, are true in Missouri, where corn, soybeans and wheat are the major cash crops.&nbsp;The FAPRI report projects the decline in commodity grain prices will slow, but continue.Missouri farmers get a slightly better price than the national average for corn and soybeans because of proximity to large rivers and industries such as ethanol and biodiesel that buy commodities locally, Westhoff said.“Where you have crushing facilities for soybeans matters tremendously,” Westhoff said. “Where you have ethanol plants matters as well.”Missouri produced 264.9 million bushels of soybeans in 2023. A decline of $2 per bushel means the farmers producing those beans received more than $500 million less than they did for the same commodity the previous year.The sharp decline in market prices for soybeans hasn’t been accompanied by a similar decline in prices for fertilizer, fuel and other supplies, said Casey Wasser, chief operating officer of Missouri Soybeans, the industry lobbying association.“The input prices have not come down at all with the other prices,” Wasser said. “So that’s where that net farm income is going to hit producers pretty tight.”Missouri has the nation’s sixth largest cattle herd. It also is home to the sixth largest number of hogs, and its farmers sold the seventh largest number of chickens for meat consumption and had the nation’s 12th largest flock of laying hens.But Missouri is losing farmers – and farmland – faster than the national average.The number of farms declined 7.8% since the 2017 farm census while nationally the number fell 6.9%. Nationally, 2.2% of farmland was converted to other uses between the surveys, while in Missouri the acreage in farming declined 2.7%.The smallest producers are being squeezed the tightest, said Tim Gibbons of the Missouri Rural Crisis Center. In a telephone interview after he spent a day lobbying in Washington for changes in national farm programs, Gibbons said the issues facing farmers go well beyond commodity prices and interest rates.Control of agriculture continues to be concentrated in large corporations, he said. Farm programs are designed to support cheap commodities and large producers, he said.“What I’m hearing on the Hill is a joke relative to the situation that is farming in Missouri and in the United States right now,” Gibbons said.Corporate-backed buyers are&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/01/01/boom-or-bubble-high-missouri-farmland-prices-encourage-investors-concern-farmers/">outbidding local residents</a>&nbsp;for farmland and the concentration in meatpacking means producers become dependent on contracts that can be canceled when profits narrow. The decision by Tyson Foods to&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2024/03/11/tyson-to-close-perry-pork-plant-in-june/">close a plant in Perry, Iowa</a>, that employs 1,300 people will have a ripple effect on the farmers who raise hogs under contract, Gibbons said.Missouri has lost more than 1,000 cattle producers a year over the past 25 years, a trend that accelerated to about 2,000 per year in the past five years, according to the farm census. The number of farms producing hogs has declined from 12,133 in 1992 to 2,184 in 2022.“The policies that have been in recent past farm bills have been written by and for these multinational corporations and lobbyists that lobby for them,” Gibbons said. “We need a very different vision and a farm bill.”The only area where prices are increasing in the past year are for cattle. That’s because the national herd is at its&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://missouriindependent.com/2024/03/19/droughts-complicated-by-climate-change-result-in-us-beef-herd-hitting-historic-low/">lowest number since the 1960s</a>, in large part due to pastureland drying up because of droughts starting in 2020.Short supplies are pushing prices up.“It’s causing liquidation and we’re not seeing rebuilding right now,” Gibbons said. “That connects with interest rates as well.”Higher interest rates in the United States, which increase costs for farmers as they borrow to finance annual operations or add land and equipment, put farmers at a disadvantage internationally by making the dollar worth more in exchange, Westhoff said.One indicator of the impact is that the U.S. has become a&nbsp;<a target="_blank" href="https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news/news-articles/the-us-agricultural-trade-deficit-could-reach-record-highs-for-2023-is-there-cause-for-concern/">net importer of food and agricultural products</a>, reversing decades of a surplus in the balance of farm trade.“We are importing lots of value-added products that might otherwise be produced here and of course that has spillover effects,” Westhoff said.The FAPRI report section on government aid to farmers notes that the cost of the two main programs intended to shore up prices –&nbsp; agricultural risk coverage, or ARC, and price loss coverage, or PLC fell below $1 billion because of recent high commodity prices.&nbsp;At the same time, crop insurance payments in 2023 totaled $9.3 billion.“We need to figure out a system of farmer-owned grain reserves and price floors and price ceilings to stop the volatility of the market, and keep that price floor at the cost of production,” Gibbons said.Missouri Soybean is pushing for changes in federal farm support programs to reset the protected prices at a higher level, Wasser said. Prices on beans could fall another $2 per bushel and Missouri farmers wouldn’t qualify for payments to make up any of the difference, he said.“We’re still not even close to a safety net, with inputs and $11 beans it’s tough for any farmer no matter what your size or your leverage to be making any profit on that,” Wasser said..FAPRI’s job is to provide information, not advise on policy decisions, Westhoff said.The difficulty of getting changes to the programs is cost, he said.Some “would like to do some changes that would improve the safety net from the perspective of producers but those changes all cost money,” he said. “And unless you’re going to reduce that spending or reduce spending on conservation programs, there’s not any obvious way to put those pieces together.”The decline in commodity prices should ease inflation in food costs and even reverse some recent increases, such as for eggs and pork, Westhoff said. Food purchased for consumption at home should not increase any faster than inflation generally, the report indicates.But consumers shouldn’t expect everything in the supermarket to get cheaper, he said.“For the most part, the share of those commodity prices that affect consumer food prices is pretty small,” Westhoff said. “Therefore even a significant decline in the farm level price doesn’t translate to any decline, or not a very big decline, in grocery store prices.”

University  report warns falling prices could squeeze farmers

By JONATHAN J. COOPER&nbsp; &nbsp;Associated Press

The lack of excitement many Americans feel about a presidential rematch has heightened interest in alternatives to the major-party candidates, none more so than&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/politics/election-2024-0000018ca126d7a5a79da57ef5030000">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>, whose famous name has helped him build buzz for his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rfk-jr-presidential-campaign-independent-2024-30d940109c4956de9c81f332ec418463">independent bid</a>.

Kennedy is a huge longshot to win Electoral College votes, much less the presidency. But his campaign events have drawn large crowds of supporters and people interested in his message.

He plans to announce his vice presidential nominee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kennedy-rfk-running-mate-announcement-vp-3b53343f1be4567bcfba7fb1eab3f3e3">later this month</a>&nbsp;in Oakland, California, and is stoking expectations that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-kennedy-rfk-rodgers-ventura-453c6078714b867f5af736ee8f97d8fe">he might pick</a>&nbsp;New York Jets quarterback&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/aaron-rodgers">Aaron Rodgers</a>&nbsp;or former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura. His campaign manager said Saturday that Kennedy has made his choice but didn’t say whom he’s picked. She said he had also interviewed Nicole Shanahan, a California philanthropist who bankrolled a Super Bowl ad for Kennedy, and Mike Rowe, star of the television show “Dirty Jobs.”

Here is a look at his campaign and what he's stood for:

Kennedy, 70, is a member of perhaps the nation’s most famous political dynasty. His uncle was President John F. Kennedy. His father served as attorney general and a U.S. senator before seeking the Democratic nomination for president. Both were assassinated.

RFK Jr. built a reputation of his own as an activist, author and lawyer who fought for environmental causes such as clean water.

Along the way, his activism has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/how-rfk-jr-built-anti-vaccine-juggernaut-amid-covid-4997be1bcf591fe8b7f1f90d16c9321e">veered into conspiracies</a>&nbsp;and contradicted scientific consensus,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rfk-kennedy-election-vaccines-2ccde2df146f57b5e8c26e8494f0a16a">most infamously on vaccines</a>. Some members of his family have publicly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-kennedy-joe-biden-2024-democrat-super-bowl-e4dee4be456e643be11735c6e4029377">criticized his views</a>. Dozens of his family members posed with President Joe Biden at a St. Patrick's Day reception at the White House in a photo his sister Kerry Kennedy posted to social media.

Kennedy founded Waterkeeper Alliance, which works to secure clean water, and built a small anti-vaccine organization into Children’s Health Defense, a juggernaut in the movement that saw its reach grow rapidly during the pandemic.

Children's Health Defense has a lawsuit pending against a number of news organizations, among them The Associated Press, accusing them of violating antitrust laws by taking action to identify misinformation, including about COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines. Kennedy took leave from the group when he announced his run for president but is listed as one of its attorneys in the lawsuit.

What does Kennedy’s campaign look like?

Kennedy's need to collect thousands of signatures to get on the ballot has taken him to places that rarely see presidential candidates, including Hawaii, Wyoming and West Virginia.

At events in Phoenix and Las Vegas, hundreds of supporters queued up outside hours before he was scheduled to arrive. He attracts a legion of fans, many of whom have listened extensively to Kennedy's interviews on podcasts or YouTube videos.

In Nevada, massive graphics and photos were projected on three walls as upbeat music played. Drinks and merchandise were for sale.

Kennedy speaks in a quiet, strained voice, sometimes haltingly, the result of a neurological condition called&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/spasmodic-dysphonia#:~:text=Spasmodic%20dysphonia%20is%20a%20voice,able%20to%20talk%20at%20all.">spasmodic dysphonia</a>.

Kennedy frames himself as a truthteller with a track record of fighting for the middle class against powerful interests. He points to lawsuits he's won against corporate behemoths such as Monsanto and DuPont.

“I can fix this country,” he said in Las Vegas in February. “All these agencies that intimidate normal politicians, I’ve sued every one of them. ... When you sue these agencies, you get a Ph.D. in corporate capture and how to unravel it.” Corporate capture refers to private interests using their influence to control government decision-making, as when they help draft legislation.

Kennedy has been critical of U.S. support for Ukraine and supportive of Israel’s war against Hamas. He wants to reduce military and health care spending because of the impact on budget deficits, and combat rising housing costs so young people can afford to buy homes.

Kennedy has found a loyal following among people distrustful of institutions and those who believe the government has been captured by corporations, especially pharmaceutical companies.

He hasn't shied away from his controversial views on health care and vaccines. He wants to dismantle the public health bureaucracy, saying he'd immediately tell the National Institutes of Health to refocus research away from infectious diseases and vaccines and toward chronic diseases.

Kennedy&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rfk-kennedy-election-2024-president-campaign-621c9e9641381a1b2677df9de5a09731">insists he is not anti-vaccine</a>&nbsp;and claims he has never told the public to avoid vaccination. But he has repeatedly made his opposition to vaccines clear. He said on a podcast “there’s no vaccine that is safe and effective” and has urged people to resist CDC guidelines on when kids should get vaccinated.

While there are rare instances when people have severe reactions to vaccines, the billions of doses administered globally provide real-world evidence that they are safe. The World Health Organization says vaccines prevent as many as 5 million deaths each year.

The United States has a long history of rejecting independent or third-party presidential candidates. In fact, the last president to win without a party’s backing was George Washington, and he did it before there were political parties.

The last third-party candidate to make it to the White House was Abraham Lincoln with the newly formed Republican Party.

The last third-party candidate to pull more than single digits in the popular vote was Ross Perot, a businessman who won 19% in 1992 and 8% in 1996. But he won zero electoral votes.

And while the independent share of the electorate is growing, it is still dwarfed by voters who consistently support Republican or Democratic candidates, even if they identify as independent.

Kennedy’s case for optimism hinges on his relatively strong showing in a few national polls. Polls during the 2016 presidential campaign regularly put libertarian Gary Johnson’s support in the high single or low double digits, but he ultimately received only about 3% of the vote nationwide.

Horse-race polls are also notoriously unreliable this far out from an election, and many Americans don’t know who Kennedy is.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnorc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/February-2024-topline-Biden.pdf">A February AP-NORC poll</a>&nbsp;found, for instance, that 29% of Americans don’t know enough about Kennedy to have a view about him.

Some of the people who say they’d support him may also be reacting to his famous last name rather than his actual pitch as a candidate.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/25/politics/cnn-poll-democrats-2024/index.html">A CNN/SSRS poll</a>&nbsp;conducted last spring found that 20% of people who said they would consider supporting Kennedy for the Democratic nomination — for which he was running at the time — said that their support was related to his last name and Kennedy family connections. Only 12% said it was because of support for his views and policies.

But for any of that to matter, he has to get on the ballot.

Forget getting elected; merely running for president is an arduous process, especially for candidates like Kennedy who don’t belong to a party.

Every state has different rules, requiring an army of lawyers to make sure everything is done right. Most states require thousands of signatures.

A pro-Kennedy super PAC is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/dnc-fec-complaint-kenedy-trump-biden-09d42502ca757cd4656b4829c4b4c00d">helping pay</a>&nbsp;for Kennedy’s ballot access work in several states. His allies have created a political party to ease the process in some states by getting recognized as a party and making Kennedy its nominee.

He has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-kennedy-president-election-utah-ballot-863513ec2bf75d1efc9b202cb8ddcc4a">approved for the ballot in Utah</a>. His campaign and super PAC say he’s collected enough signatures to qualify in several other states, including the battlegrounds of Arizona, Georgia and Nevada, though election officials in those states have not yet affirmed his candidacy.

Kennedy has also said he’s talked with officials from the Libertarian Party, though it’s not clear what a tie-up between the two might look like.

Kennedy is looking to his family and his allies in the anti-vaccine world to staff his campaign, building a leadership team that is light on experience working in politics.

His campaign manager is Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, his daughter-in-law who served as a CIA officer and has not worked in politics before.

His communications director, Del Bigtree, is founder of the Informed Consent Action Network, an anti-vaccine group. He also produced “Vaxxed,” an anti-vaccine film that promoted the discredited idea that the vaccines cause autism.

Press secretary Stefanie Spear was an editor for the Children's Health Defense news website. Charles Eisenstein, a New Age author, is an adviser.

Kennedy also has staff and volunteers spread throughout states and focused on gathering signatures to get him on the ballot.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/1/1704300369387.png" alt="Robert F. Kennedy Jr- courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Robert F. Kennedy Jr- courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>By JONATHAN J. COOPER&nbsp; &nbsp;Associated PressThe lack of excitement many Americans feel about a presidential rematch has heightened interest in alternatives to the major-party candidates, none more so than&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/politics/election-2024-0000018ca126d7a5a79da57ef5030000">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>, whose famous name has helped him build buzz for his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rfk-jr-presidential-campaign-independent-2024-30d940109c4956de9c81f332ec418463">independent bid</a>.Kennedy is a huge longshot to win Electoral College votes, much less the presidency. But his campaign events have drawn large crowds of supporters and people interested in his message.He plans to announce his vice presidential nominee&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/kennedy-rfk-running-mate-announcement-vp-3b53343f1be4567bcfba7fb1eab3f3e3">later this month</a>&nbsp;in Oakland, California, and is stoking expectations that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-kennedy-rfk-rodgers-ventura-453c6078714b867f5af736ee8f97d8fe">he might pick</a>&nbsp;New York Jets quarterback&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/aaron-rodgers">Aaron Rodgers</a>&nbsp;or former Minnesota Gov. Jesse Ventura. His campaign manager said Saturday that Kennedy has made his choice but didn’t say whom he’s picked. She said he had also interviewed Nicole Shanahan, a California philanthropist who bankrolled a Super Bowl ad for Kennedy, and Mike Rowe, star of the television show “Dirty Jobs.”Here is a look at his campaign and what he's stood for:Who is RFK Jr?Kennedy, 70, is a member of perhaps the nation’s most famous political dynasty. His uncle was President John F. Kennedy. His father served as attorney general and a U.S. senator before seeking the Democratic nomination for president. Both were assassinated.RFK Jr. built a reputation of his own as an activist, author and lawyer who fought for environmental causes such as clean water.Along the way, his activism has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/how-rfk-jr-built-anti-vaccine-juggernaut-amid-covid-4997be1bcf591fe8b7f1f90d16c9321e">veered into conspiracies</a>&nbsp;and contradicted scientific consensus,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rfk-kennedy-election-vaccines-2ccde2df146f57b5e8c26e8494f0a16a">most infamously on vaccines</a>. Some members of his family have publicly&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-kennedy-joe-biden-2024-democrat-super-bowl-e4dee4be456e643be11735c6e4029377">criticized his views</a>. Dozens of his family members posed with President Joe Biden at a St. Patrick's Day reception at the White House in a photo his sister Kerry Kennedy posted to social media.Kennedy founded Waterkeeper Alliance, which works to secure clean water, and built a small anti-vaccine organization into Children’s Health Defense, a juggernaut in the movement that saw its reach grow rapidly during the pandemic.Children's Health Defense has a lawsuit pending against a number of news organizations, among them The Associated Press, accusing them of violating antitrust laws by taking action to identify misinformation, including about COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines. Kennedy took leave from the group when he announced his run for president but is listed as one of its attorneys in the lawsuit.He’s married to actress Cheryl Hines.What does Kennedy’s campaign look like?Kennedy's need to collect thousands of signatures to get on the ballot has taken him to places that rarely see presidential candidates, including Hawaii, Wyoming and West Virginia.At events in Phoenix and Las Vegas, hundreds of supporters queued up outside hours before he was scheduled to arrive. He attracts a legion of fans, many of whom have listened extensively to Kennedy's interviews on podcasts or YouTube videos.In Nevada, massive graphics and photos were projected on three walls as upbeat music played. Drinks and merchandise were for sale.Kennedy speaks in a quiet, strained voice, sometimes haltingly, the result of a neurological condition called&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/spasmodic-dysphonia#:~:text=Spasmodic%20dysphonia%20is%20a%20voice,able%20to%20talk%20at%20all.">spasmodic dysphonia</a>.What does he talk about?Kennedy frames himself as a truthteller with a track record of fighting for the middle class against powerful interests. He points to lawsuits he's won against corporate behemoths such as Monsanto and DuPont.“I can fix this country,” he said in Las Vegas in February. “All these agencies that intimidate normal politicians, I’ve sued every one of them. ... When you sue these agencies, you get a Ph.D. in corporate capture and how to unravel it.” Corporate capture refers to private interests using their influence to control government decision-making, as when they help draft legislation.Kennedy has been critical of U.S. support for Ukraine and supportive of Israel’s war against Hamas. He wants to reduce military and health care spending because of the impact on budget deficits, and combat rising housing costs so young people can afford to buy homes.Kennedy has found a loyal following among people distrustful of institutions and those who believe the government has been captured by corporations, especially pharmaceutical companies.He hasn't shied away from his controversial views on health care and vaccines. He wants to dismantle the public health bureaucracy, saying he'd immediately tell the National Institutes of Health to refocus research away from infectious diseases and vaccines and toward chronic diseases.Kennedy&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/rfk-kennedy-election-2024-president-campaign-621c9e9641381a1b2677df9de5a09731">insists he is not anti-vaccine</a>&nbsp;and claims he has never told the public to avoid vaccination. But he has repeatedly made his opposition to vaccines clear. He said on a podcast “there’s no vaccine that is safe and effective” and has urged people to resist CDC guidelines on when kids should get vaccinated.While there are rare instances when people have severe reactions to vaccines, the billions of doses administered globally provide real-world evidence that they are safe. The World Health Organization says vaccines prevent as many as 5 million deaths each year.Can he win?The United States has a long history of rejecting independent or third-party presidential candidates. In fact, the last president to win without a party’s backing was George Washington, and he did it before there were political parties.The last third-party candidate to make it to the White House was Abraham Lincoln with the newly formed Republican Party.The last third-party candidate to pull more than single digits in the popular vote was Ross Perot, a businessman who won 19% in 1992 and 8% in 1996. But he won zero electoral votes.And while the independent share of the electorate is growing, it is still dwarfed by voters who consistently support Republican or Democratic candidates, even if they identify as independent.In other words, the odds are long.Kennedy’s case for optimism hinges on his relatively strong showing in a few national polls. Polls during the 2016 presidential campaign regularly put libertarian Gary Johnson’s support in the high single or low double digits, but he ultimately received only about 3% of the vote nationwide.Horse-race polls are also notoriously unreliable this far out from an election, and many Americans don’t know who Kennedy is.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnorc.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/February-2024-topline-Biden.pdf">A February AP-NORC poll</a>&nbsp;found, for instance, that 29% of Americans don’t know enough about Kennedy to have a view about him.Some of the people who say they’d support him may also be reacting to his famous last name rather than his actual pitch as a candidate.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/25/politics/cnn-poll-democrats-2024/index.html">A CNN/SSRS poll</a>&nbsp;conducted last spring found that 20% of people who said they would consider supporting Kennedy for the Democratic nomination — for which he was running at the time — said that their support was related to his last name and Kennedy family connections. Only 12% said it was because of support for his views and policies.But for any of that to matter, he has to get on the ballot.How does he get on the ballot?Forget getting elected; merely running for president is an arduous process, especially for candidates like Kennedy who don’t belong to a party.Every state has different rules, requiring an army of lawyers to make sure everything is done right. Most states require thousands of signatures.A pro-Kennedy super PAC is&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/dnc-fec-complaint-kenedy-trump-biden-09d42502ca757cd4656b4829c4b4c00d">helping pay</a>&nbsp;for Kennedy’s ballot access work in several states. His allies have created a political party to ease the process in some states by getting recognized as a party and making Kennedy its nominee.He has been&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/robert-kennedy-president-election-utah-ballot-863513ec2bf75d1efc9b202cb8ddcc4a">approved for the ballot in Utah</a>. His campaign and super PAC say he’s collected enough signatures to qualify in several other states, including the battlegrounds of Arizona, Georgia and Nevada, though election officials in those states have not yet affirmed his candidacy.Kennedy has also said he’s talked with officials from the Libertarian Party, though it’s not clear what a tie-up between the two might look like.Who is working for him?Kennedy is looking to his family and his allies in the anti-vaccine world to staff his campaign, building a leadership team that is light on experience working in politics.His campaign manager is Amaryllis Fox Kennedy, his daughter-in-law who served as a CIA officer and has not worked in politics before.His communications director, Del Bigtree, is founder of the Informed Consent Action Network, an anti-vaccine group. He also produced “Vaxxed,” an anti-vaccine film that promoted the discredited idea that the vaccines cause autism.Press secretary Stefanie Spear was an editor for the Children's Health Defense news website. Charles Eisenstein, a New Age author, is an adviser.Kennedy also has staff and volunteers spread throughout states and focused on gathering signatures to get him on the ballot.

Who is Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and why is he running for president?

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two recent U.S. Supreme Court actions have opened the door to a new legal frontier in which local and state officials can be disqualified from office for life for engaging in “insurrection" or providing “aid and comfort” to enemies of the Constitution, based on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-2024-colorado-79373b5043976588b599fc00ede049e8">a post-Civil War era addition to</a>&nbsp;the nation's foundational legal document and how the courts interpret it.

The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;on Monday rejected an appeal from a former New Mexico county commissioner who was kicked out of office after he was convicted of trespassing during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The state judge who&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-mexico-government-and-politics-5e2fd96d5f698017b974f878398578c8">barred him from office</a>&nbsp;did so on the grounds that his actions violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which was added to the Constitution in 1868 to prevent Confederates from returning to government.

The move came on the heels of an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-insurrection-election-colorado-51e79c0f03013034c8a042cb278b6446">expedited high-court ruling</a>&nbsp;that Section 3 can't be used against federal officials or candidates until Congress writes a law outlining procedures to do so. That includes former President Donald Trump, the target of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-supreme-court-colorado-2b9d5b628cb2779fc84212cdc651e4e7">a national campaign</a>&nbsp;to end his bid to return to the White House via the 14th Amendment.

But the court's ruling in the Trump case explicitly said the provision could still be used against state and local officials.

Taken together, the actions herald a new legal landscape as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-2024-election-ballot-9c5f79203109ba221b35a48e708ad725">liberal groups</a>&nbsp;that pushed the issue of Trump's disqualification to the Supreme Court reboot efforts to target state and local officials linked to Jan. 6.

“This is a bit of returning to the course we expected to be following, which was holding individuals accountable, who are low-level officials, who still broke their oath by coming to D.C., engaging in insurrection,” said Stuart McPhail, an attorney with Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a left-leaning group whose lawsuit against Trump ended up at the Supreme Court.

Ron Fein, legal director of Free Speech For People, which brought several other actions seeking to disqualify Trump and Republican members of Congress for their role in the Capitol attack, wouldn't comment on his group's plans. But, he said, one legal fact remains clear.

“Section 3 continues to be a viable way of protecting against insurrectionists in state and local government,” Fein said.

CREW, which brought the lawsuit against Trump’s candidacy that landed at the Supreme Court, has identified state lawmakers it believes might be vulnerable to challenges under Section 3. It already has succeeded in one case, brought against the local official in New Mexico.

Otero County Commissioner&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-new-mexico-state-government-donald-trump-santa-fe-5a4bde1a89344a0eb11a0a1d58a2100d">Couy Griffin,</a>&nbsp;a founder of the promotional group Cowboys for Trump, is the only elected official thus far to be banned from office in connection with the Capitol attack, which disrupted Congress as it was trying to certify Joe Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-claims-biden-won-explained-bd53b14ce871412b462cb3fe2c563f18">2020 electoral victory</a>&nbsp;over Trump.

The lawsuit against him cited his violation of Section 3, which prohibits anyone who swore an oath to uphold the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against it or gave “aid and comfort” to its enemies, from holding future office.

McPhail says there is a new sense of urgency to take action under that clause against state or local officials linked to Jan. 6 — before they run for federal office and can’t be sidelined.

“It does create this incentive to bring cases from low-level officials now because then you can actually win them and get some kind of relief in judgments, whereas if you wait, you may have lost the opportunity,” he said.

Based on the Supreme Court's ruling in the Trump disqualification case, a state or local official removed under Section 3 could still hold federal office, all the way up to president, unless Congress acted.

Griffin said his disqualification was politically motivated. He and his defense attorney said Monday’s dismissal by the Supreme Court holds ominous implications, creating a pathway for partisan actors to harness Section 3 of the 14th Amendment in unpredictable ways in the future.

“All you have to do is go to a really friendly county, with a good friendly judge that’s politically on your side, and then you get rid of your opposition,” said Peter Ticktin, Griffin's attorney in the appeal to the Supreme Court.

Derek Muller, a Notre Dame law professor, said he wouldn't be surprised if Section 3 litigation eventually targets people for reasons well beyond Jan. 6.

“I don't know how widespread it's going to be,” he said. “I'm sure people are going to start thinking creatively about what it means — if you're supporting, Hamas, the Taliban, (Black Lives Matter).”

Muller added that the court system is well-equipped to sort out frivolous uses of Section 3, just as it does in other cases of ballot challenges: “In most of these cases, I think it won't pass the initial motion to dismiss.”

The bigger question, he said, is how do courts address issues that the Supreme Court dodged in its ruling on the Trump case: What constitutes an insurrection under Section 3? How do First Amendment rights and other constitutional guarantees interact with its provisions?

In Griffin's case, New Mexico Judge Francis Mathew found that Griffin aided an insurrection without engaging in violence, contributing to a delay in Congress’ certification of the presidential election.

He ruled that Griffin spread&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-michael-pence-electoral-college-elections-health-2d9bd47a8bd3561682ac46c6b3873a10">lies about the 2020 election being stolen</a>&nbsp;from Trump in a series of speeches during rallies held across the country, calling on crowds to go with him to Washington on Jan. 6 and join the “war” over the presidential election results.

“Knowledgeable 19th century Americans including Section 3’s framers would have regarded the events of Jan. 6, and the surrounding planning, mobilization and incitement, as an insurrection,” Mathew ruled. “Mr. Griffin also incited, encouraged, and helped normalize the violence on January 6.”

Griffin, a Republican, was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/capitol-siege-biden-new-mexico-riots-presidential-elections-7cf8b8a96a39bde8f6966e47cc37ff46">convicted separately</a>&nbsp;in federal court of entering a restricted area on the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6 and received a 14-day prison sentence. The sentence was offset by time served after his arrest in Washington, where he had returned to protest Biden’s 2021 inauguration. That conviction is under appeal, but is unlikely to influence enforcement of Griffin’s ban from office.

“Neither the courts nor Congress have ever required a criminal conviction for a person to be disqualified under Section 3,” Judge Mathew wrote.

CREW brought the case against Griffin partly because New Mexico is one of several states that allow any citizen to bring a private right of action to establish that an elected official is not qualified to hold office. In states that lack such provisions, attorneys note, those who want to remove people under Section 3 may have other paths, such as ballot challenges filed with the secretary of state or an election board.

“There is no one-size-fits-all solution for enforcing Section 3 in states,” McPhail said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/3/1710880938454.png" alt="FILE - A demonstrator holds a sign outside of the U.S. Supreme Court, Feb. 8, 2024, in Washington. A pair of recent U.S. Supreme Court actions has opened the door to a new legal frontier in which local and state officials can be disqualified from office for life for engaging in "insurrection" or providing "aid and comfort" to enemies of the Constitution, based on a post-Civil War-era provision of the nation's foundational legal document and how the courts interpret it. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)" />
 <figcaption>FILE - A demonstrator holds a sign outside of the U.S. Supreme Court, Feb. 8, 2024, in Washington. A pair of recent U.S. Supreme Court actions has opened the door to a new legal frontier in which local and state officials can be disqualified from office for life for engaging in "insurrection" or providing "aid and comfort" to enemies of the Constitution, based on a post-Civil War-era provision of the nation's foundational legal document and how the courts interpret it. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Two recent U.S. Supreme Court actions have opened the door to a new legal frontier in which local and state officials can be disqualified from office for life for engaging in “insurrection" or providing “aid and comfort” to enemies of the Constitution, based on&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-insurrection-14th-amendment-2024-colorado-79373b5043976588b599fc00ede049e8">a post-Civil War era addition to</a>&nbsp;the nation's foundational legal document and how the courts interpret it.The&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/us-supreme-court">Supreme Court</a>&nbsp;on Monday rejected an appeal from a former New Mexico county commissioner who was kicked out of office after he was convicted of trespassing during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The state judge who&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-mexico-government-and-politics-5e2fd96d5f698017b974f878398578c8">barred him from office</a>&nbsp;did so on the grounds that his actions violated Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which was added to the Constitution in 1868 to prevent Confederates from returning to government.The move came on the heels of an&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-trump-insurrection-election-colorado-51e79c0f03013034c8a042cb278b6446">expedited high-court ruling</a>&nbsp;that Section 3 can't be used against federal officials or candidates until Congress writes a law outlining procedures to do so. That includes former President Donald Trump, the target of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-supreme-court-colorado-2b9d5b628cb2779fc84212cdc651e4e7">a national campaign</a>&nbsp;to end his bid to return to the White House via the 14th Amendment.But the court's ruling in the Trump case explicitly said the provision could still be used against state and local officials.Taken together, the actions herald a new legal landscape as the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-14th-amendment-insurrection-2024-election-ballot-9c5f79203109ba221b35a48e708ad725">liberal groups</a>&nbsp;that pushed the issue of Trump's disqualification to the Supreme Court reboot efforts to target state and local officials linked to Jan. 6.“This is a bit of returning to the course we expected to be following, which was holding individuals accountable, who are low-level officials, who still broke their oath by coming to D.C., engaging in insurrection,” said Stuart McPhail, an attorney with Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a left-leaning group whose lawsuit against Trump ended up at the Supreme Court.Ron Fein, legal director of Free Speech For People, which brought several other actions seeking to disqualify Trump and Republican members of Congress for their role in the Capitol attack, wouldn't comment on his group's plans. But, he said, one legal fact remains clear.“Section 3 continues to be a viable way of protecting against insurrectionists in state and local government,” Fein said.CREW, which brought the lawsuit against Trump’s candidacy that landed at the Supreme Court, has identified state lawmakers it believes might be vulnerable to challenges under Section 3. It already has succeeded in one case, brought against the local official in New Mexico.Otero County Commissioner&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-new-mexico-state-government-donald-trump-santa-fe-5a4bde1a89344a0eb11a0a1d58a2100d">Couy Griffin,</a>&nbsp;a founder of the promotional group Cowboys for Trump, is the only elected official thus far to be banned from office in connection with the Capitol attack, which disrupted Congress as it was trying to certify Joe Biden’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-claims-biden-won-explained-bd53b14ce871412b462cb3fe2c563f18">2020 electoral victory</a>&nbsp;over Trump.The lawsuit against him cited his violation of Section 3, which prohibits anyone who swore an oath to uphold the Constitution and then “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” against it or gave “aid and comfort” to its enemies, from holding future office.McPhail says there is a new sense of urgency to take action under that clause against state or local officials linked to Jan. 6 — before they run for federal office and can’t be sidelined.“It does create this incentive to bring cases from low-level officials now because then you can actually win them and get some kind of relief in judgments, whereas if you wait, you may have lost the opportunity,” he said.Based on the Supreme Court's ruling in the Trump disqualification case, a state or local official removed under Section 3 could still hold federal office, all the way up to president, unless Congress acted.Griffin said his disqualification was politically motivated. He and his defense attorney said Monday’s dismissal by the Supreme Court holds ominous implications, creating a pathway for partisan actors to harness Section 3 of the 14th Amendment in unpredictable ways in the future.“All you have to do is go to a really friendly county, with a good friendly judge that’s politically on your side, and then you get rid of your opposition,” said Peter Ticktin, Griffin's attorney in the appeal to the Supreme Court.Derek Muller, a Notre Dame law professor, said he wouldn't be surprised if Section 3 litigation eventually targets people for reasons well beyond Jan. 6.“I don't know how widespread it's going to be,” he said. “I'm sure people are going to start thinking creatively about what it means — if you're supporting, Hamas, the Taliban, (Black Lives Matter).”Muller added that the court system is well-equipped to sort out frivolous uses of Section 3, just as it does in other cases of ballot challenges: “In most of these cases, I think it won't pass the initial motion to dismiss.”The bigger question, he said, is how do courts address issues that the Supreme Court dodged in its ruling on the Trump case: What constitutes an insurrection under Section 3? How do First Amendment rights and other constitutional guarantees interact with its provisions?In Griffin's case, New Mexico Judge Francis Mathew found that Griffin aided an insurrection without engaging in violence, contributing to a delay in Congress’ certification of the presidential election.He ruled that Griffin spread&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-michael-pence-electoral-college-elections-health-2d9bd47a8bd3561682ac46c6b3873a10">lies about the 2020 election being stolen</a>&nbsp;from Trump in a series of speeches during rallies held across the country, calling on crowds to go with him to Washington on Jan. 6 and join the “war” over the presidential election results.“Knowledgeable 19th century Americans including Section 3’s framers would have regarded the events of Jan. 6, and the surrounding planning, mobilization and incitement, as an insurrection,” Mathew ruled. “Mr. Griffin also incited, encouraged, and helped normalize the violence on January 6.”Griffin, a Republican, was&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/capitol-siege-biden-new-mexico-riots-presidential-elections-7cf8b8a96a39bde8f6966e47cc37ff46">convicted separately</a>&nbsp;in federal court of entering a restricted area on the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6 and received a 14-day prison sentence. The sentence was offset by time served after his arrest in Washington, where he had returned to protest Biden’s 2021 inauguration. That conviction is under appeal, but is unlikely to influence enforcement of Griffin’s ban from office.“Neither the courts nor Congress have ever required a criminal conviction for a person to be disqualified under Section 3,” Judge Mathew wrote.CREW brought the case against Griffin partly because New Mexico is one of several states that allow any citizen to bring a private right of action to establish that an elected official is not qualified to hold office. In states that lack such provisions, attorneys note, those who want to remove people under Section 3 may have other paths, such as ballot challenges filed with the secretary of state or an election board.“There is no one-size-fits-all solution for enforcing Section 3 in states,” McPhail said.___

Court opens new frontier for insurrection claims that could target state, local officials

JERUSALEM —Iranian-backed terrorist continue attacks in the Red Sea. On Saturday, the Houthis launched four anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBM) into the Red Sea in the vicinity of M/V Huang Pu, a Panamanian-flagged, Chinese-owned, Chinese-operated oil tanker, according to a statement from the U.S. Central Command.


At 4:25 p.m. (Sanaa time), a fifth ballistic missile was detected as fired toward M/V Huang Pu. The ship issued a distress call but did not request assistance. 

M/V Huang Pu suffered minimal damage, and a fire on board was extinguished within 30 minutes. No casualties were reported, and the vessel resumed its course. 

The Houthis attacked the MV Huang despite previously stating they would not attack Chinese vessels.


Between <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/1771726107168960751?t=410">6:50</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/1771726107168960751?t=590">9:50</a> a.m. (Sanaa time), U.S. forces, including USS Carney (DDG 64), engaged six Houthi unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) over the southern Red Sea. Five crashed into the Red Sea, and one flew inland into Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.


It was determined these UAVs presented an imminent threat to U.S., coalition, and merchant vessels in the region. These actions are taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S, coalition, and merchant vessels.

JERUSALEM —Iranian-backed terrorist continue attacks in the Red Sea. On Saturday, the Houthis launched four anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBM) into the Red Sea in the vicinity of M/V Huang Pu, a Panamanian-flagged, Chinese-owned, Chinese-operated oil tanker, according to a statement from the U.S. Central Command.
At 4:25 p.m. (Sanaa time), a fifth ballistic missile was detected as fired toward M/V Huang Pu. The ship issued a distress call but did not request assistance. M/V Huang Pu suffered minimal damage, and a fire on board was extinguished within 30 minutes. No casualties were reported, and the vessel resumed its course. The Houthis attacked the MV Huang despite previously stating they would not attack Chinese vessels.

Between <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/1771726107168960751?t=410">6:50</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/1771726107168960751?t=590">9:50</a> a.m. (Sanaa time), U.S. forces, including USS Carney (DDG 64), engaged six Houthi unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) over the southern Red Sea. Five crashed into the Red Sea, and one flew inland into Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

It was determined these UAVs presented an imminent threat to U.S., coalition, and merchant vessels in the region. These actions are taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for U.S, coalition, and merchant vessels.

Iran-backed terrorist missile strikes oil tanker in the Red Sea

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration announced new automobile emissions standards this week that officials called the most ambitious plan ever to cut planet-warming emissions from passenger vehicles.

The new rules relax initial tailpipe limits proposed last year but eventually get close to the same strict standards set out by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The rules come as sales of electric vehicles, which are needed to meet the standards,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/auto-sales-prices-chip-shortage-interest-rates-7e07b5d1b1362d1394514bfd0d6f4c0d">have begun to slow.</a>&nbsp;The auto industry cited lower sales growth in objecting to the EPA’s preferred standards unveiled last April as part of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-electric-vehicles-epa-tailpipe-emissions-climate-406d74e18459bc135f089c681ba9e224">its ambitious plan</a>&nbsp;to cut planet-warming emissions from passenger vehicles.

The EPA said that under its final rule, the industry could meet the limits if 56% of new vehicle sales are electric by 2032, along with at least 13% plug-in hybrids or other partially electric cars, as well as more efficient gasoline-powered cars that get more miles to the gallon.

That would be a huge increase over current EV sales, which rose to 7.6% of new vehicle sales last year, up from 5.8% in 2022.

The new standards will avoid more than 7 billion tons of planet-warming carbon emissions over the next three decades and provide nearly $100 billion in annual net benefits, the EPA said, including lower health care costs, fewer deaths and more than $60 billion in reduced annual costs for fuel, maintenance and repairs.

President Joe Biden, who has made fighting climate change&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-climate-health-tax-law-economy-inflation-f112d7c78abaa724d22964317d213deb">a hallmark of his presidency</a>, cited “historic progress” on his pledge that half of all new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. will be zero-emission by 2030.

“We’ll meet my goal for 2030 and race forward in the years ahead,'' Biden said in a statement Wednesday.

The EPA rule applies to model years 2027 to 2032 and will significantly reduce emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases, as well as other air pollution such as nitrogen oxides and particulate matter from new passenger cars, light trucks and pickups.

Transportation makes up the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and cars and trucks account for more than half of those emissions. The EPA said the new rule will help “tackle the climate crisis” while accelerating the adoption of cleaner vehicle technologies. The agency is finalizing the rule as sales of clean vehicles, including plug-in hybrid and fully electric vehicles, hit record highs last year.

The new rule slows implementation of stricter pollution standards from 2027 through 2029, after the auto industry called proposed benchmarks unworkable. The rule ramps up to nearly reach the level the EPA preferred by 2032.

“Let me be clear: Our final rule delivers the same, if not more, pollution reduction than we set out in our proposal,'' EPA Administrator Michael Regan told reporters. In addition to carbon pollution, the final standards also will reduce other serious air pollution that contributes to heart attacks, respiratory illnesses, aggravated asthma and decreased lung function, Regan said.

“Folks, these new standards are so important for public health, for American jobs, for our economy and for our planet,'' he said.

The standards are designed to be technology-neutral and performance-based, Regan said, giving car and truck manufacturers the flexibility to choose pollution-control technologies that are best suited for their customers while meeting environmental and public health goals.

The changes appear aimed at addressing strong industry and labor opposition to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-epa-auto-dealers-electric-vehicles-62c173d2be33e05e3405a489e5924e26">accelerated ramp-up of EVs,</a>&nbsp;along with public reluctance to fully embrace the new technology. There is also a legitimate threat of legal challenges before conservative courts.

The Supreme Court, with a 6-3 conservative majority, has increasingly reined in the powers of federal agencies, including the EPA, in recent years. The justices have restricted the EPA’s authority to fight air and water pollution — including a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-epa-ruling-2e893673819a1b6c6aa272a5e814f0b0">landmark 2022 ruling</a>&nbsp;that limited the EPA’s authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants that contribute to global warming.

At the same time, the Democratic president needs cooperation from the auto industry and political support from auto workers, a key political voting bloc.

“U.S. workers will lead the world on autos — making clean cars and trucks, each stamped ‘Made in America,’” Biden said Wednesday. “You have my word.''

The United Auto Workers union, which has endorsed Biden, said it supports rules that benefit workers and the environment, not just the industry. The new rule protects workers who build combustion engine vehicles “while providing a path forward for automakers to implement the full range of automotive technologies to reduce emissions,” the union said.

Generally, environmental groups have been optimistic about the new EPA plan, which is aimed at slashing emissions from a source that causes one-fifth of the nation’s carbon pollution.

David Cooke, senior vehicles analyst for the Union of Concerned Scientists, said the rule would significantly reduce vehicle pollution from current requirements. But the standards are weaker than those EPA proposed a year ago and make it unlikely that the U.S. will be able to meet its commitments under the 2015 Paris Climate Accord, which aims to keep global warming from increasing more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit)&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-science-business-scotland-europe-7b282af7df95b55dff2630e158631a73">since pre-industrial times</a>, he said.

Still, the new rules over time will prevent more carbon pollution “than the entire U.S. economy coughs up in a year,″ said Manish Bapna, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council. In the short term, the rules “will save drivers money at the pump and cut tailpipe pollution that endangers public health,″ he added.

“In the longer journey to confront the climate crisis, these standards take us in the right direction,″ he said.

But Dan Becker at the Center for Biological Diversity said he fears loopholes will let the industry continue to sell gas burners. He also is afraid the industry will get away with doing little during the first three years of the standards, which could be undone if former President Donald Trump is reelected.

“The bottom line is that the administration is caving to pressure from big oil, big auto and the dealers to stall progress on EVs and now allow more pollution from cars,” Becker said.

Republicans criticized the new standards, saying they essentially decide for the public which vehicles they should buy. “These regulations represent yet another step toward an unrealistic transition to electric vehicles that Americans do not want and cannot afford,” said West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, called the rule a “misguided electric vehicle mandate” that will force the U.S. to rely on China and other foes for critical minerals needed for batteries.

Regan said the government isn’t requiring people to buy EVs or any other technology, adding that there are “multiple pathways companies can choose to comply″ with the rule.

“We are staying well within the confines of the law and our statutory authority by not mandating a specific technology,'' he said.

The EPA could achieve its carbon pollution goals even if sales of battery electric vehicles are as low as 30% in 2032, as long as other standards are met, he said.

U.S. electric vehicle sales grew 47% last year to a record 1.19 million as EV market share rose to 7.6%. But EV sales growth slowed toward the end of the year. In December, they rose 34%.

The Alliance for Auto Innovation, a large industry trade group, praised the EPA’s slower implementation of the standards, saying the pace of the EV transition matters as the industry moves to produce more electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids to convert more traveling miles to electricity. The group had complained that the ramp-up to 67% initially proposed by the EPA was too fast for the industry to achieve. The proposal was faster than Biden’s goal of ensuring that EVs account for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-united-states-government-business-climate-and-environment-f145b24414ff245f491fd68257b3db60">half of new vehicles in the U.S. by 2030</a>.

“Moderating the pace of EV adoption was the right call because it prioritizes more reasonable electrification targets in the next few, very critical years of the transition,” said John Bozzella, the Alliance CEO.

The adjusted emissions targets will still be a stretch for the industry to achieve, Bozzella said, but they should give the market and parts supply chains a chance to catch up to higher EV sales. The plan also gives the industry more time to set up public charging stations, and it allows government tax incentives for EV manufacturing and for consumers to buy EVs to take hold, he said.

Toyota, the top seller of hybrid vehicles in the U.S., said it believes the fastest way to reduce carbon emissions quickly is to give consumers choices of battery electric vehicles and hybrids. The new EPA standards allow for more sales of plug-in hybrids and regular gas-electric hybrids to meet emissions limits.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/3/1710894346609.png" alt="File&nbsp;President Joe Biden speaks during a visit to the General Motors Factory ZERO electric vehicle assembly plant in Nov. 2021" />
 <figcaption>File&nbsp;President Joe Biden speaks during a visit to the General Motors Factory ZERO electric vehicle assembly plant in Nov. 2021</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration announced new automobile emissions standards this week that officials called the most ambitious plan ever to cut planet-warming emissions from passenger vehicles.The new rules relax initial tailpipe limits proposed last year but eventually get close to the same strict standards set out by the Environmental Protection Agency.The rules come as sales of electric vehicles, which are needed to meet the standards,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/auto-sales-prices-chip-shortage-interest-rates-7e07b5d1b1362d1394514bfd0d6f4c0d">have begun to slow.</a>&nbsp;The auto industry cited lower sales growth in objecting to the EPA’s preferred standards unveiled last April as part of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-electric-vehicles-epa-tailpipe-emissions-climate-406d74e18459bc135f089c681ba9e224">its ambitious plan</a>&nbsp;to cut planet-warming emissions from passenger vehicles.The EPA said that under its final rule, the industry could meet the limits if 56% of new vehicle sales are electric by 2032, along with at least 13% plug-in hybrids or other partially electric cars, as well as more efficient gasoline-powered cars that get more miles to the gallon.That would be a huge increase over current EV sales, which rose to 7.6% of new vehicle sales last year, up from 5.8% in 2022.The new standards will avoid more than 7 billion tons of planet-warming carbon emissions over the next three decades and provide nearly $100 billion in annual net benefits, the EPA said, including lower health care costs, fewer deaths and more than $60 billion in reduced annual costs for fuel, maintenance and repairs.President Joe Biden, who has made fighting climate change&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-climate-health-tax-law-economy-inflation-f112d7c78abaa724d22964317d213deb">a hallmark of his presidency</a>, cited “historic progress” on his pledge that half of all new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. will be zero-emission by 2030.“We’ll meet my goal for 2030 and race forward in the years ahead,'' Biden said in a statement Wednesday.WHAT IS EPA PROPOSING?The EPA rule applies to model years 2027 to 2032 and will significantly reduce emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases, as well as other air pollution such as nitrogen oxides and particulate matter from new passenger cars, light trucks and pickups.Transportation makes up the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and cars and trucks account for more than half of those emissions. The EPA said the new rule will help “tackle the climate crisis” while accelerating the adoption of cleaner vehicle technologies. The agency is finalizing the rule as sales of clean vehicles, including plug-in hybrid and fully electric vehicles, hit record highs last year.The new rule slows implementation of stricter pollution standards from 2027 through 2029, after the auto industry called proposed benchmarks unworkable. The rule ramps up to nearly reach the level the EPA preferred by 2032.“Let me be clear: Our final rule delivers the same, if not more, pollution reduction than we set out in our proposal,'' EPA Administrator Michael Regan told reporters. In addition to carbon pollution, the final standards also will reduce other serious air pollution that contributes to heart attacks, respiratory illnesses, aggravated asthma and decreased lung function, Regan said.“Folks, these new standards are so important for public health, for American jobs, for our economy and for our planet,'' he said.The standards are designed to be technology-neutral and performance-based, Regan said, giving car and truck manufacturers the flexibility to choose pollution-control technologies that are best suited for their customers while meeting environmental and public health goals.WHY DID EPA CHANGE THE PROPOSED RULE?The changes appear aimed at addressing strong industry and labor opposition to the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-epa-auto-dealers-electric-vehicles-62c173d2be33e05e3405a489e5924e26">accelerated ramp-up of EVs,</a>&nbsp;along with public reluctance to fully embrace the new technology. There is also a legitimate threat of legal challenges before conservative courts.The Supreme Court, with a 6-3 conservative majority, has increasingly reined in the powers of federal agencies, including the EPA, in recent years. The justices have restricted the EPA’s authority to fight air and water pollution — including a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-epa-ruling-2e893673819a1b6c6aa272a5e814f0b0">landmark 2022 ruling</a>&nbsp;that limited the EPA’s authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from power plants that contribute to global warming.At the same time, the Democratic president needs cooperation from the auto industry and political support from auto workers, a key political voting bloc.“U.S. workers will lead the world on autos — making clean cars and trucks, each stamped ‘Made in America,’” Biden said Wednesday. “You have my word.''The United Auto Workers union, which has endorsed Biden, said it supports rules that benefit workers and the environment, not just the industry. The new rule protects workers who build combustion engine vehicles “while providing a path forward for automakers to implement the full range of automotive technologies to reduce emissions,” the union said.HOW ARE THE NEW RULES BEING RECEIVED?Generally, environmental groups have been optimistic about the new EPA plan, which is aimed at slashing emissions from a source that causes one-fifth of the nation’s carbon pollution.David Cooke, senior vehicles analyst for the Union of Concerned Scientists, said the rule would significantly reduce vehicle pollution from current requirements. But the standards are weaker than those EPA proposed a year ago and make it unlikely that the U.S. will be able to meet its commitments under the 2015 Paris Climate Accord, which aims to keep global warming from increasing more than 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit)&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-science-business-scotland-europe-7b282af7df95b55dff2630e158631a73">since pre-industrial times</a>, he said.Still, the new rules over time will prevent more carbon pollution “than the entire U.S. economy coughs up in a year,″ said Manish Bapna, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council. In the short term, the rules “will save drivers money at the pump and cut tailpipe pollution that endangers public health,″ he added.“In the longer journey to confront the climate crisis, these standards take us in the right direction,″ he said.But Dan Becker at the Center for Biological Diversity said he fears loopholes will let the industry continue to sell gas burners. He also is afraid the industry will get away with doing little during the first three years of the standards, which could be undone if former President Donald Trump is reelected.“The bottom line is that the administration is caving to pressure from big oil, big auto and the dealers to stall progress on EVs and now allow more pollution from cars,” Becker said.WHAT DO REPUBLICANS SAY?Republicans criticized the new standards, saying they essentially decide for the public which vehicles they should buy. “These regulations represent yet another step toward an unrealistic transition to electric vehicles that Americans do not want and cannot afford,” said West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito.House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, called the rule a “misguided electric vehicle mandate” that will force the U.S. to rely on China and other foes for critical minerals needed for batteries.Regan said the government isn’t requiring people to buy EVs or any other technology, adding that there are “multiple pathways companies can choose to comply″ with the rule.“We are staying well within the confines of the law and our statutory authority by not mandating a specific technology,'' he said.The EPA could achieve its carbon pollution goals even if sales of battery electric vehicles are as low as 30% in 2032, as long as other standards are met, he said.U.S. electric vehicle sales grew 47% last year to a record 1.19 million as EV market share rose to 7.6%. But EV sales growth slowed toward the end of the year. In December, they rose 34%.WHAT DOES THE CAR INDUSTRY THINK?The Alliance for Auto Innovation, a large industry trade group, praised the EPA’s slower implementation of the standards, saying the pace of the EV transition matters as the industry moves to produce more electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids to convert more traveling miles to electricity. The group had complained that the ramp-up to 67% initially proposed by the EPA was too fast for the industry to achieve. The proposal was faster than Biden’s goal of ensuring that EVs account for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-united-states-government-business-climate-and-environment-f145b24414ff245f491fd68257b3db60">half of new vehicles in the U.S. by 2030</a>.“Moderating the pace of EV adoption was the right call because it prioritizes more reasonable electrification targets in the next few, very critical years of the transition,” said John Bozzella, the Alliance CEO.The adjusted emissions targets will still be a stretch for the industry to achieve, Bozzella said, but they should give the market and parts supply chains a chance to catch up to higher EV sales. The plan also gives the industry more time to set up public charging stations, and it allows government tax incentives for EV manufacturing and for consumers to buy EVs to take hold, he said.Toyota, the top seller of hybrid vehicles in the U.S., said it believes the fastest way to reduce carbon emissions quickly is to give consumers choices of battery electric vehicles and hybrids. The new EPA standards allow for more sales of plug-in hybrids and regular gas-electric hybrids to meet emissions limits.____

As electric vehicle sales slow, US relaxes plans for stricter auto emissions standards

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Education Department said it has discovered a calculation error in hundreds of thousands of student financial aid applications sent to colleges this month and will need to reprocess them — a blunder that follows a series of others and threatens&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fafsa-student-financial-aid-college-b8d126283a53598c24b9567ed97d9138">further delays to this year's college applications</a>.

A vendor working for the federal government incorrectly calculated a financial aid formula for more than 200,000 students, the department said Friday. The information was sent to colleges to help them&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/college-admissions">prepare financial aid packages</a>&nbsp;but now needs to be recalculated — even as the department works through a backlog of more than 4 million other financial aid applications.

A statement from the Education Department says the problem won't affect 1.3 million applications that were processed correctly and distributed to colleges this month. Officials said they have fixed the error and it “will not affect future records."

It's unlikely that many students, if any, received financial aid offers based on the incorrect information since the department only began sending records in the last two weeks. Once colleges receive that information, it usually takes several weeks to assemble financial aid packages.

Students applying for college have been left in limbo this year as they await the Education Department’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fafsa-financial-aid-college-education-faf16cf14fb69a20e373d3ada1b63dca">overhaul</a>&nbsp;of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The form, known as FAFSA, is used to determine eligibility for federal Pell Grants, and colleges and states use it to award their own financial aid to students.

The update was meant to simplify the form but took months longer than expected. It gives colleges less time to make financial aid offers to students, and it gives students less time to decide where to enroll.

“This is another unforced error that will likely cause more processing delays for students,” said Justin Draeger, president and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.

After so many delays, he added, “Every error adds up and will be felt acutely by every student who is counting on need-based financial aid to make their postsecondary dreams a reality.”

The latest misstep has to do with the Student Aid Index, a new formula used to determine students' level of financial need after they submit the FAFSA application. For some students, the department forgot to factor in certain financial assets including investments, savings and total cash, according to an agency memo sent to colleges on Friday.

It resulted in a lower Student Aid Index for those students — indicating they have more financial need than they do in reality.

While the department fixes those students' records, it's encouraging colleges to make their own calculations and craft “a tentative aid package."

Draeger pushed against that idea, saying colleges can only work with “valid and correct data.”

“It is not feasible or realistic to send out incorrect FAFSA data and ask thousands of schools to make real-time calculations and adjustments to the federal formula,” he said.

Advocates fear that the chaos of this year’s process could deter students from going to college at all, especially those for whom finances are a key part of the decision.

Senate Republicans are requesting a hearing with Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to discuss their “serious concerns” about the FAFSA rollout.

The notoriously time-consuming FAFSA form was targeted for an overhaul in 2020 through bipartisan legislation in Congress. The bill promised to simplify the form, going from 100 questions to fewer than 40, and it also changed the underlying formula for student aid, promising to expand it to more low-income students.

But the update has been marred by delays and technical glitches.

The form is typically available to fill out in October, but the Education Department didn’t have it ready until late December. Even then, the agency wasn’t ready to begin processing the forms and sending them to states and colleges, which only started this month.

Along the way, the department has scrambled to fix numerous bugs. Early on, the process failed to account for inflation properly. Another glitch blocked parents from filling out the form if they did not have a Social Security number. That meant many students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents but whose parents are not could not apply.

The department says those problems have been fixed, and it's now rushing to process millions of student applications and send them to colleges and states. The agency says it has processed 1.5 million applications out of about 6 million received so far.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/11/1700516528497.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Education Department said it has discovered a calculation error in hundreds of thousands of student financial aid applications sent to colleges this month and will need to reprocess them — a blunder that follows a series of others and threatens&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fafsa-student-financial-aid-college-b8d126283a53598c24b9567ed97d9138">further delays to this year's college applications</a>.A vendor working for the federal government incorrectly calculated a financial aid formula for more than 200,000 students, the department said Friday. The information was sent to colleges to help them&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/college-admissions">prepare financial aid packages</a>&nbsp;but now needs to be recalculated — even as the department works through a backlog of more than 4 million other financial aid applications.A statement from the Education Department says the problem won't affect 1.3 million applications that were processed correctly and distributed to colleges this month. Officials said they have fixed the error and it “will not affect future records."It's unlikely that many students, if any, received financial aid offers based on the incorrect information since the department only began sending records in the last two weeks. Once colleges receive that information, it usually takes several weeks to assemble financial aid packages.Students applying for college have been left in limbo this year as they await the Education Department’s&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/fafsa-financial-aid-college-education-faf16cf14fb69a20e373d3ada1b63dca">overhaul</a>&nbsp;of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. The form, known as FAFSA, is used to determine eligibility for federal Pell Grants, and colleges and states use it to award their own financial aid to students.The update was meant to simplify the form but took months longer than expected. It gives colleges less time to make financial aid offers to students, and it gives students less time to decide where to enroll.“This is another unforced error that will likely cause more processing delays for students,” said Justin Draeger, president and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.After so many delays, he added, “Every error adds up and will be felt acutely by every student who is counting on need-based financial aid to make their postsecondary dreams a reality.”The latest misstep has to do with the Student Aid Index, a new formula used to determine students' level of financial need after they submit the FAFSA application. For some students, the department forgot to factor in certain financial assets including investments, savings and total cash, according to an agency memo sent to colleges on Friday.It resulted in a lower Student Aid Index for those students — indicating they have more financial need than they do in reality.While the department fixes those students' records, it's encouraging colleges to make their own calculations and craft “a tentative aid package."Draeger pushed against that idea, saying colleges can only work with “valid and correct data.”“It is not feasible or realistic to send out incorrect FAFSA data and ask thousands of schools to make real-time calculations and adjustments to the federal formula,” he said.Advocates fear that the chaos of this year’s process could deter students from going to college at all, especially those for whom finances are a key part of the decision.Senate Republicans are requesting a hearing with Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to discuss their “serious concerns” about the FAFSA rollout.The notoriously time-consuming FAFSA form was targeted for an overhaul in 2020 through bipartisan legislation in Congress. The bill promised to simplify the form, going from 100 questions to fewer than 40, and it also changed the underlying formula for student aid, promising to expand it to more low-income students.But the update has been marred by delays and technical glitches.The form is typically available to fill out in October, but the Education Department didn’t have it ready until late December. Even then, the agency wasn’t ready to begin processing the forms and sending them to states and colleges, which only started this month.Along the way, the department has scrambled to fix numerous bugs. Early on, the process failed to account for inflation properly. Another glitch blocked parents from filling out the form if they did not have a Social Security number. That meant many students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents but whose parents are not could not apply.The department says those problems have been fixed, and it's now rushing to process millions of student applications and send them to colleges and states. The agency says it has processed 1.5 million applications out of about 6 million received so far.The department “will continue delivering large volumes” of records in the coming weeks, its statement said. "We remain focused on helping students and families through this process and supporting colleges produce aid offers as quickly as possible.”___