McAllen

HUD Secretary Ben Carson stumped during congressional hearing

The HUD secretary faced a tough hearing before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday.

Trump officials to Congress: Goal is deterring Iran, not war

WASHINGTON (AP) — Tamping down talk of war, top Trump administration officials told Congress on Tuesday that recent actions by the U.S. deterred attacks on American forces. But some lawmakers remained deeply skeptical of the White House approach in the Middle East.

Mississippi judge who blocked 15-week abortion ban hears arguments on fetal heartbeat law

Mississippi's fetal heartbeat law which bans abortions after approximately six weeks could be blocked or upheld by Judge Carlton Reeves.

Ocasio-Cortez says it is time to open impeachment inquiry against Trump

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has so far resisted calls for Democrats to launch impeachment proceedings, instead backing continued investigations of Trump and his administration by numerous congressional panels instead. "I think it’s time for us to, at the very least, open an impeachment inquiry ... we’ve been given no choice I think, in this scenario," Ocasio-Cortez said outside the House of Representatives. The report by Special Counsel Robert Mueller stopped short of declaring that the president obstructed justice, but it also did not exonerate him.

Is It Cheaper To Buy A 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback From Britain?

This immaculate 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback is estimated to sell at British auction for $95K. It’s hard not to whisper Steve McQueen’s name when presented with a Ford Mustang 390 GT Fastback, even if it isn't a 1968 model. The American classifieds may provide evidence of eye-watering sums being traded for healthy Fastback specimens, but it’s not always the case in Great Britain.

70 million in the path of life-threatening storms

There have been 18 reported tornadoes in four states causing severe damage and mass flooding.

Marlen Ochoa-Lopez: Mother and daughter 'distracted pregnant murder victim with photo album' before strangling her

The pregnant 19-year-old who was murdered in Chicago was allegedly distracted by a mother and daughter with a photo album before being killed, according to court documents.The details surrounding the murder were made public by prosecutors as they sought to convince a judge not to release suspects Clarisa Figueroa, 46, and Desiree Figueroa, 24, who have been accused of executing a plot to kill Marlen Ochoa-Lopez in her ninth month of pregnancy.They reportedly lured the victim into their home by offering free baby clothes and a stroller, which they posted about online. Recently released details indicate the pair first tried to kill her by strangling her with a cord from behind.Prosecutors say that Ochoa-Lopez was able to get her fingers between the cord and her neck when the elder Figueroa first attempted to kill her. The alleged murderer then called for her daughter’s help, before then continuing to strangle Ochoa-Lopez for four to five minutes.The elder Figueroa then called emergency services, and said that the child she had just delivered was not breathing. The child is now reportedly in poor health, ad with “zero brain activity”.Police did not connect the murders until May, when they were made aware of Facebook communications between Ochoa-Lopez and the women.

Researchers say a tiny planet slammed into the Moon a long time ago

Earth's Moon only ever shows us one face. It's locked into its current orientation, with a permanent nearside and farside, but it wasn't until the Apollo missions that scientists were able to see just how different the two sides really are. The nearside, with its sea of dark gray basins standing in contrast to the brilliant white powder that covers the rest of its face, varies dramatically from the farside, which is marked with countless smaller craters in a more uniform distribution.The debate over how the Moon's split personalities developed has raged for decades, but new research seems to indicate that one of the possible explanations does indeed hold water. The theory, that Earth's Moon was struck by a tiny dwarf planet long ago, is the subject of a new research paper published in Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets.Using computer models to simulate what may have happened to the Moon's surface long ago, researchers suggest the most likely scenario seems to be the collision between the Moon and a very large body. The impact of a dwarf planet as large as 480 miles across would have struck what we see today as the Moon's nearside at a speed of 14,000 miles per hour.This theory stands in contrast to other proposed explanations, including the theory that Earth may have once had not one Moon, but two. The two-moon theory suggests that Earth's moon duo may have at one point collided and merged, leaving the Moon as we see it today looking oddly unsymmetrical.The dwarf planet collision scenario assumes that whatever the body that struck the Moon was, it was in its own path around the Sun and just happened to be in the right place at the right time to strike Earth's natural satellite. This, the researchers say, would also explain why the crust on the farside of the Moon is different than that of its nearside."We demonstrate that a large body slowly impacting the nearside of the Moon can reproduce the observed crustal thickness asymmetry and form both the farside highlands and the nearside lowlands," the paper explains. "Additionally, the model shows that the resulting impact ejecta would cover the primordial anorthositic crust to form a two‐layer crust on the farside, as observed."

China's Navy Is Growing So Fast Its Running Out of Names For Its Warships

China’s navy has a new problem: not enough names for its rapidly growing fleet of warships.“China is running out of provincial capitals to name new destroyers, and it might have to turn to other big domestic cities, which reflects the country's rapid naval development in recent years,” according to Chinese newspaper Global Times.The People’s Liberation Army Navy recently named its first Type 055 destroyer the Nanchang, which is the capital city of East China's Jiangxi Province.One of the three other Type 055 destroyers will be named Lhasa, the capital of Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, according to Chinese media. That just leaves Nanning and Taipei as the names of provincial capitals for destroyers (Taipei is Taiwan’s capital, though Taiwan has not yet declared independence as a separate nation from China).Which means non-capital cities will have to bequeath their names to Chinese destroyers. The latest destroyer is named Qiqihar, which is a non-capital city in in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province. A few ships have been named after major cities, such as the Shenzen, a Type 051 destroyer.“Chinese destroyers and frigates should be named after big and medium Chinese cities, according to the naval vessels naming regulation,” Global Times said. “This means naming of destroyers does not necessarily have to use provincial capitals, as it was a non-binding tradition.”

US lawmakers clash on Iran intelligence before briefing

US lawmakers clashed Monday over intelligence on Iran, with an ally of President Donald Trump accusing Tehran of provocations that could draw a military response, ahead of a classified briefing on the tensions. Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan and General Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, will head Tuesday to the US Capitol to apprise lawmakers from both chambers on the latest developments, an administration official said. Senior officials already briefed a key group of eight lawmakers on Thursday but Democrats, who control the House of Representatives, called for a wider meeting with all elected lawmakers.

Rex Tillerson Secretly Meets With House Foreign Affairs Committee to Talk Trump

Jonathan Ernst/ReutersFormer secretary of state Rex Tillerson spoke with the leaders of the House Foreign Affairs committee on Tuesday in a lengthy session that, an aide said, touched on his time working in the Trump administration, the frictions he had with the president’s son-in-law, and efforts to tackle issues like Russian interference in the 2016 election.Tillerson’s appearance, first reported by The Daily Beast, took place as virtually every other Trumpworld luminary has been stonewalling congressional oversight efforts. At the same time the former secretary of state was speaking before lawmakers, former White House counsel Don McGahn was ignoring a subpoena to testify in front of the House Judiciary Committee. Tillerson’s arrival at the Capitol was handled with extreme secrecy. No media advisories or press releases were sent out announcing his appearance. And he took a little-noticed route into the building in order to avoid being seen by members of the media. Tillerson reached out to the committee and expressed a willingness to meet, a committee aide said. In a more than six-hour meeting, he told members and staffers that the Trump administration actively avoided confronting Russia about allegations of interference in the election in an effort to develop a solid relationship with the Kremlin, a committee aide told The Daily Beast. Tillerson also told members and aides that he had tried to establish a formal and disciplined interagency process at the State Department whereby the president could receive informed briefings on sensitive foreign policy matters, the aide said. That effort never manifested, Tillerson told the committee, in part because of the president’s management style, but also because of interference from other aides.Tillerson told the committee that the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, at times impeded his ability to communicate effectively and introduce to President Trump policy proposals developed by State Department experts on major foreign affairs matters across the globe, not just in the Middle East. Kushner, a White House adviser, has publicly focused much of his international efforts on the Middle East and is set to unveil a Middle East peace plan in the coming weeks.Tillerson had a notoriously prickly relationship with the president, reportedly calling him a “moron” in private. But he was present during critical moments of the administration, including Trump’s private 2017 meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hamburg, Germany. Since leaving his post, Tillerson has rarely made public appearances, save for speaking at a panel in Houston in December. During that appearance, he said there was “no question” Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election. “So often, the president would say, ‘Here’s what I want to do and here’s how I want to do it,’ and I would have to say to him, ‘Mr. President I understand what you want to do but you can’t do it that way. It violates the law,’” Tillerson said.Tillerson’s interview by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel (D-NY) and ranking member Michael McCaul (R-TX)  comes a month after special counsel Robert Mueller published his report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Since then, top Democrats on the Hill have demanded that Attorney General Bill Barr and Mueller answer questions related to the report and its publication. Barr has declined to testify before the House, citing the insistence of the committee that staff lawyers be allowed to conduct some of the questioning. Mueller is reportedly in negotiations to testify, though the Department of Justice had previously not agreed on a date for him to do so. On Tuesday, CNN reported that Mueller’s team had expressed reluctance about the possibility of a testimony taking place in public for fear that it would appear political. This story has been updated with additional reporting.Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

New Feature on 2020 Chevrolet and GMC Models Won't Let Car Move Till Driver Fastens Seatbelt

The new tech is called Buckle to Drive, and it rolls out on several Chevrolet and GMC models for 2020 as part of the Teen Driver package.

'Nowhere for the water to go': Tornadoes, floods hit central US day after 20 tornadoes

A tornado tore through a neighborhood near Tulsa International Airport on Tuesday as a powerful storm triggered flash flooding and washed out roads across parts of Oklahoma.

Alabama man in custody after allegedly killing police officer, injuring two others

Grady Wayne Wilkes, 29, was arrested Monday following a massive manhunt that involved multiple police agencies and aircrafts.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says she'd be 'hard pressed' to back Biden in primary

Bernie Sanders appears to be the favorite to secure Ocasio-Cortez’s prized endorsement in the Democratic presidential primaryCongresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez told the Guardian: ‘I’m not close to an endorsement announcement any time soon.’ Photograph: Joshua Roberts/ReutersAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the progressive US congresswoman and social media sensation, has said she would be “hard pressed” to endorse the frontrunner, Joe Biden, in the Democratic presidential primary.The statement is the latest sign of the left’s apathy towards the former vice-president, who has surged ahead of the Senator Bernie Sanders and other rivals in recent polls.Sanders, a self-declared democratic socialist, appears to be the favourite to secure 29-year-old Ocasio-Cortez’s prized endorsement but she said she was still some way off making a decision.“I’m not close to an endorsement announcement any time soon,” she told the Guardian on Tuesday. “I’m still trying to get a handle on my job. It seems like ages but I’m just five months in and we have quite some time. The debates are in the summer and our first primary election for the entire country isn’t until next year.” Asked if she would consider endorsing Biden, widely seen as a centrist, Ocasio-Cortez replied: “I’d be hard pressed to see that happen, to be honest, in a primary.”Biden, comfortably leading every opinion poll, came under fire last week when Reuters reported he was pursuing a “middle ground” approach to the climate crisis. He later distanced himself from the implication.Ocasio-Cortez criticised politicians seeking “a middle-of-the-road approach to save our lives”. Sanders, running second in most polls, tweeted that there was “no ‘middle ground’ when it comes to climate policy”.If and when Ocasio-Cortez does endorse a candidate, Sanders probably remains the favourite to secure her support. She was an organiser for his 2016 primary campaign against Hillary Clinton. The pair appeared at a rally in Washington last week to support the Green New Deal climate plan.In a short interview on Tuesday the congresswoman, who has more than 4 million Twitter followers, also reiterated her demand for Donald Trump’s impeachment. “I think that the grounds have been there for quite some time but the case is really getting to a larger point that we haven’t seen before,” she said.Democratic leaders are putting the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, under pressure to move ahead with the process. Ocasio-Cortez added: “I know that the conversation is really changing this week in the caucus and so we’ll see where the speaker lands.”

Could One of America's Allies Take Down the F-35 Program?

What does America need to save its troubled F-35 stealth fighter?Turkey, that’s what.Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan recently warned that the multinational F-35 program, of which Turkey is a member, would fail if Turkey were excluded. Turkey is facing sanctions, including being dropped from the F-35 program if it goes ahead with purchasing Russia’s S-400 anti-aircraft missile system, which has raised Washington’s fears that F-35 secrets might be leaked to Russia. The U.S. has stopped shipping equipment to Turkey for that nation’s planned purchase of 100 F-35s, while the first two aircraft officially delivered to Turkey are still in the United States.For its part, Ankara is adamant that it has a right to purchase both American stealth fighters and Russian anti-aircraft missiles, despite the fact that the S-400 is one of the most likely Russian weapons to be used against the F-35. “We were surely not going to remain silent against our right to self-defense being disregarded and attempts to hit us where it hurts,” Erdogan said at a Turkish defense trade show. “This is the kind of process that is behind the S-400 agreement we reached with Russia.”“Nowadays, we are being subject to a similar injustice - or rather an imposition - on the F-35s ... Let me be frank: An F-35 project from which Turkey is excluded is bound to collapse completely.”

Prosecutors: Agent called migrants savages before hitting 1

PHOENIX (AP) — A Border Patrol agent in Arizona sent texts calling immigrants "savages" and "subhuman" the month before using his patrol vehicle to knock over a Guatemalan man who was trying to flee, prosecutors say.

Commander in chief Donald Trump, threatening 'official end of Iran' is not the endgame America needs

Tweets like 'If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran' won't prepare Americans if saber rattling turns sobering reality: Our view

Secret Service Officers Are Being Sent to the Border

Jose Luiz Gonzalez/ReutersThe U.S. Secret Service is now participating in a not-so-secret undertaking: dealing with the influx of migrants at America’s southern border. According to a communication from the Department of Homeland Security’s headquarters reviewed by The Daily Beast, the small law enforcement agency has sent personnel to the border already and is looking to send more in the coming weeks. The move came in response to a directive then-DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen sent out earlier this spring asking each component of the department to find volunteers and dispatch them to the border. Even though it’s most closely associated with the White House, the Secret Service—along with a host of other entities and agencies—is a component of DHS. And as a result, it’s shipping people south. A DHS spokesperson did not dispute this reporting. “As we have consistently said, the Department is considering all options to address the humanitarian and security crisis at our southern border,” said the spokesperson. “We will continue to work with our workforce to find dynamic solutions and funding to address this very serious problem. As part of this effort, it is our responsibility to explore fiscal mechanisms that will ensure the safety and welfare of both our workforce and the migrant population, which is also reflected in the supplemental request submitted to Congress.”The Daily Beast reported last week that the arm of DHS that handles threats to America’s cybersecurity and critical infrastructure, called the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, has struggled to find enough volunteers to head to the border and fulfill DHS headquarters’ request. The agency works to secure election systems, schools, and places of worship—all of which face acute threats. Besides protecting the president, the first family, and other prominent government figures, the Secret Service also conducts criminal investigations. Its focuses include financial crimes and cybersecurity threats. The diversion of law enforcement and national security personnel to the border has concerned some congressional Democrats, who say it may be a misuse of limited government resources. But pushing back against the dramatic increase in people trying to enter the U.S. through the southern border has become has become a singular priority of President Trump. In both March and April, law enforcement officials apprehended more than 100,000 people trying to enter the U.S., according to DHS statistics. During the Obama administration, the agency was beset by scandal: Washington socialites slipped past agents and crashed the president’s first state dinner; a Secret Service agent told his counterparts to stand down after a man fired a gun at the White House, thinking the sound came from a car backfiring; an agent who traveled to Amsterdam with the president to protect him got drunk and passed out in a hallway; and more, as NBC News has detailed. Read more at The Daily Beast.Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast hereGet our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

InterDigital expects to be able to license 5G tech to Huawei, despite U.S. ban

InterDigital and Qualcomm are the two major American holders of patents for wireless networking technology, including the 5G networks rolling out this year in China. Last week, President Donald Trump issued an executive order restricting the ability of U.S. firms to sell technology to Huawei, though officials on Monday eased some of those restrictions for 90 days. InterDigital, which generates revenue by developing wireless technologies and then licensing out the patents, said it believes it can continue its efforts to strike a 5G deal with Huawei because export control laws do not cover patents, which are public records and therefore not confidential technology.

Ford to cut 7,000 jobs, 10% of global staff 

Ford plans to cut 7,000 jobs, or 10 percent of its global workforce, as part of a reorganization as it revamps its vehicle offerings, the company said Monday. The reorganization will involve some layoffs and reassignments and should be complete by the end of August, a Ford spokeswoman said. Ford has been phasing out most sedan models in the United States as more consumers have opted for pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles.

US weather service issues highest tornado warnings in two years

More than two million people in Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle are in harms way after the National Weather Service's Storm Prevention Centre announced a threat level-five warning - their highest - for violent tornadoes as well as warnings for significant hail and flooding lasting into Monday night.They've also designated the storm a 'Particularly Dangerous Situation' or PDS, their most dire classification. This is the first time in two years that the National Weather Service has issued such high warnings for a storm. According to the SPC, the probability of all three weather types is 95%. The only other storm to have had such high probabilities in the SPC's history, was an Alabama storm in 2011, the centre pointed out. Marble-sized hail has already been reported in Oklahoma and baseball sized hailstones are a possibility.In anticipation of the storm Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma, closed down schools for the day, while Tinker Air force Base evacuated some of its aircraft, CNN reported. Veteran storm chaser Mike Smith cautioned others against braving the storm. "To: StormChasers, I believe I am the only one of the original, 1972, chasers still chasing. But, I will not be out today. It is too dangerous. The tornadoes will be difficult to see and too dense & flooding could cut off escapes." he wrote in a tweet.The storm comes on the 6th anniversary of the 2013 Moore tornado that killed 24, including 9 children, in the town of Moore, Oklahoma.Over the weekend 52 other tornadoes hit seven states across the country.

Department of Public Health Investigating Hospital Involved in Marlen Ochoa-Lopez Case

The Illinois Department of Public Health announced Tuesday it is investigating Advocate Christ Medical Center and its role in the Marlen Ochoa-Lopez case.

DOD: Iranian Threats ‘Put on Hold’ Thanks to U.S.

The Department of Defense said Tuesday that potential threats from Iran have been "put on hold" thanks to precautionary measures taken by the U.S.“We have put on hold the potential for attacks on Americans,” Acting Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan said at the Pentagon.The U.S. deployed four B-52 bombers, Patriot air-defense missiles, and the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier-strike group to the Persian Gulf earlier this month amid fears that Iran was transporting short-range ballistic missiles in the region. Shanahan cited “indications of a credible threat by Iranian regime forces” in justifying the move.The State Department last week ordered all non-critical government employees to leave Iraq, saying the tensions with neighboring Iran could endanger Americans in the area. Additionally, a rocket was fired Sunday night which landed less than a mile from the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. No one claimed responsibility for the attack, and no casualties occurred."There haven't been any attacks on Americans," Shanahan confirmed. "That doesn't mean that the threats that we've previously identified have gone away. Our prudent response, I think, has given the Iranians time to recalculate. I think our response was a measure of our will and our resolve that we will protect our people and our interests in the region.""I just hope Iran is listening,” Shanahan added, vowing that any attack by Iran on U.S. assets "will be met obviously with great force."

Mountain region of Slovakia named best destination in Europe 2019: Lonely Planet

A wild, rugged, mountainous region of Slovakia dotted with plunging waterfalls and lakes and hiking trails has been named the top European destination of 2019 by the travel experts at Lonely Planet. 

New Jersey police punch restrained suspect in the face in video

New Jersey officers can be seen punching Cyprian Luke in the face while he is pinned to the ground. He was arrested on assault and other charges.

The Latest: Merkel, Macron and Putin discuss Iran situation

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Latest on developments in the Persian Gulf region and elsewhere in the Mideast amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and Iran (all times local):

Ukraine's Zelenskiy calls early elections as he disbands parliament in first act as president

Ukraine’s new president dismissed parliament and called a snap election just moments after being sworn into office on Monday. Volodymyr Zelensky, whose Servant of People party has no representation in the current parliament, also used his inaugural address to promise an end to the war in the east of the country and asked MPs to fire several key officials including the current defence minister.  “All my life I tried to do all I could so that Ukrainians laughed,” Mr Zelensky, a television comedian, told MPs during a ceremony in the parliament in Kiev. “Now I will do all I can so that Ukrainians at least do not cry any more.” Mr Zelensky, 41, won the presidency last month with a landslide run-off victory against incumbent Petro Poroshenko, who had been in power since 2014. He had no prior political experience, and he was mostly known for his role in a television comedy ‘Servant of the People’, in which he played a school teacher who accidentally becomes president of Ukraine after ranting against corruption. He named his party after the TV show.  Zelenskiy greets his supporters as he walks to take the oath of office ahead of his inauguration ceremony Credit:  REUTERS Critics say he has given few specific details about his plans for presidency and have questioned his links to Ihor Kolomoisky, a billionaire oligarch who had fallen out with the previous government.   On Monday he dispensed with the traditional motorcade and arrived at the parliament building on foot, he stopping to pose for selfies and high-five his cheering supporters who gathered outside. Inside, he delivered a punchy and at times confrontational speech in which he said his priority would be ending the war, which has claimed at least 13,000 lives since Russia sent troops across the border to support a separatist uprising in 2014.  "I'm ready to do everything so that our heroes don't die there," he said. "I'm ready to lose my popularly and, if necessary, I'm ready to lose my post so that we have peace," he said. He said he would begin by demanding Russia release Ukrainian prisoners.  When one MP heckled for switching from Ukrainian into Russian in an appeal to residents in the east, he snapped back: "Thank you for continuing to divide our people". He also spoke against a deep-rooted culture of corruption among the government officials, saying politicians themselves had created “the opportunities to bribe, steal and pluck the resources.” He suggested the MPs should lift their own right to immunity from prosecution and demanding the dismissal the defense minister, the head of the Security Service, and the prosecutor general.  The next elections for the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s single-house parliament, were scheduled to take place in October. Mr Zelensky said they would be brought forward to July.  The move appears designed to help his party win a majority of seats before the surge of popularity on which he rode to office dissipates.  In a symbolic move Volodymyr Groysman, the current prime minister, said he would resign Wednesday, inviting Mr Zelenskiy to take full responsibility for the country. If parliament accepts his resignation, he will remain as a caretaker prime minister until the snap election.  Russian media reported that no officials were invited to the ceremony from Moscow. The Kremlin said Vladimir Putin would not congratulate Mr Zelensky on his electoral victory until there was progress in ending the war.

Exclusive: Google suspends some business with Huawei after Trump blacklist - source

Holders of current Huawei smartphones with Google apps, however, will continue to be able to use and download app updates provided by Google, a Google spokesperson said, confirming earlier reporting by Reuters. "For users of our services, Google Play and the security protections from Google Play Protect will continue to function on existing Huawei devices," the spokesperson said, without giving further details. The suspension could hobble Huawei's smartphone business outside China as the tech giant will immediately lose access to updates to Google's Android operating system.

Boeing acknowledges flaw in 737 MAX simulator software

Boeing acknowledged Saturday it had to correct flaws in its 737 MAX flight simulator software used to train pilots, after two deadly crashes involving the aircraft that killed 346 people. "Boeing has made corrections to the 737 MAX simulator software and has provided additional information to device operators to ensure that the simulator experience is representative across different flight conditions," it said in a statement. Boeing's statement about the flight simulator marked a first acknowledgement of shortcoming since the two accidents led to the grounding of the top-selling 737 MAX plane.

Stocks Hit Record and Rupee Climbs as Exit Polls Herald Modi Win

Indian stocks zoomed to a record and the rupee and sovereign bonds climbed after exit polls signaled Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling coalition is poised to retain power. The S&P BSE Sensex rallied 3.8% to a new high, its second in over a month, as exit polls predicted a comfortable majority for the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies. A gauge of stock-market volatility slumped, the rupee rose the most since December and the yield on benchmark 2029 bonds slid eight basis points.

Abortion laws: What are the regulations in each US state?

There has been a recent uptick in legislative attempts to restrict abortion access in America, a medical practice which many consider a human right. Exemplified by increasing numbers of so-called 'heartbeat bills' and Alabama’s all-out ban designed to challenge Roe v Wade, there has been a turn in state initiatives towards restricting abortion access to “protect life”. In the wake of abortion rights being challenged by Republicans in America, The Independent has compiled a list detailing up to what point in a pregnancy selective abortion is available in all 50 US states and Washington DC. Despite these initiatives to restrict pregnancy termination, abortion currently remains legal in all 50 states until the point in pregnancy detailed below:Alabama: 20 weeksCurrent law: Allows for abortion up to 20 weeks in all cases, allows beyond 20 weeks for rape, incest, or health of the mother. Proposed changes: Governor Kay Ivey has signed the Human Life Protection Act aiming to criminalise abortion provision as a class A felony. The act fails to provide exceptions for rape and incest. Lawmakers hope it will end up in the Supreme Court. The HLPA has not criminalised abortion provision yet, it is slated to become enforceable law in six months. Until then, Alabama’s three abortion clinics will remain active.Alaska: No gestational limits on abortionArizona: Viability (A term used in United States constitutional law since Roe v Wade, referring to the potential of the foetus to survive outside the uterus after birth, natural or induced, when supported by up-to-date medicine)Current law: Allows for abortion up to the second trimester, without exceptions for rape or incest, but with exceptions for the physical health of the pregnant person. Selective abortion beyond the first trimester is a criminal act. Abortion seekers must attend a mandatory counselling session 24 hours before they are permitted to get an abortion.Proposed changes: State Representative Walter Blackman, in response to the Alabama abortion ban, suggested changing abortion policy in ‘increments’. Blackman suggested a mandatory 48 hour waiting period and parental notification for minors, and noted he’d consider exceptions for rape and incest in a ban.Arkansas: 20 weeksCalifornia: ViabilityColorado: No gestational limits on abortionConnecticut: ViabilityDelaware: ViabilityCurrent law: Selective abortion until viability, post-viability abortion in cases of foetal abnormalities and the health of the pregnant person. Parental notice mandatory if the abortion seeker is under 16 with no exceptions for rape, incest, or child abuse.Proposed changes: Republican state lawmakers have presented two bills, one banning abortions after 20 weeks, and another bill where physicians would be required to offer an abortion seeker the opportunity to see their ultrasound and hear a fetal heartbeat. These bills have yet to make it to a floor vote in the Democrat controlled house.Washington, DC: No gestational limits on abortionFlorida: 24 weeksCurrent law: Selective abortion until 24 weeks, abortion available in the third trimester with two physicians noting in writing that carrying or delivering the foetus will bring the pregnant person serious physical harm or risk their life. State mandated information must be provided to abortion seekers, 24 hour waiting period between information sessions and abortion provision. Parental notice to those under 18. Proposed changes: Republican state lawmakers introduced a foetal heartbeat bill in February but the bill failed. Representative Mike Hill plans to reintroduce the bill after removing exceptions for rape and incestGeorgia: 20 weeks (until July 10, 2019, then 6 weeks)Current law: Selective abortion up to 20 weeks, abortion after 20 weeks is a criminal act except for if performed for the health or life of the pregnant person. No exceptions are made in the case of rape or incest. There is a 24 hour waiting period between mandatory counseling and abortion provision, and a parent must be notified if the abortion seeker is under 18, with no exceptions for rape or incest.Proposed changes: Governor Brian Kemp, an anti-choice Republican, signed a heartbeat bill (six week abortion ban) into law, slated to take effect on July 10th, 2019. The ACLU has filed a lawsuit to block the law from being enforced.Hawaii: ViabilityIdaho: 20 weeksIllinois: ViabilityCurrent law: Selective abortion until viability, post-viability abortion to preserve the pregnant person’s health or life. For minors, parents must be notified of their child’s abortion 48 hours before the procedure, with exceptions for incest and abuse.Proposed changes: The Reproductive Health Act is heading to the state legislature to protect abortion choice. Heartbeat bill legislation is also headed to the capitol to be debated.Indiana: 20 weeks. Current law: Selective abortion until 20 weeks, post-viability abortion for the health and life of the pregnant person with two physicians attending. Mandated counseling 18 hours before abortion provision. For minors, a parent must offer written consent before abortion provision.Proposed changes: In January of 2019, Indiana banned dilation and evacuation abortion provision, a common method for second trimester abortions. No other proposed changes at this time.Iowa: 20 weeksCurrent law: Selective abortion until 20 weeks, post-viability abortion for the health and life of the pregnant person, no exceptions for rape or incest. Prior to the procedure, must be offered to view an ultrasound or hear a heartbeat. Parental notification for minors seeking abortion.Proposed changes: In spring of 2018, lawmakers passed a heartbeat bill, but the law was blocked permanently as it was unconstitutional. It is currently making its way through the courts.Kansas: 20 weeksKentucky: 20 weeks Current law: Selective abortion until 20 weeks or viability, post-viability abortion for the health and life of the pregnant person. Mandated counselling 24 hours before abortion provision. Written consent from one parent if the abortion seeker is a minor. Proposed changes: No proposed changes yet, but Governor Matt Bevin supports anti-abortion legislation.Louisiana: 20 weeks Current law: Selective abortion until 20 weeks or viability, post-viability abortion for the health and life of the pregnant person with two physicians in attendance. No exceptions for rape or incest. Mandated counselling 24 hours before abortion provision. Written consent from one parent if the abortion seeker is a minor.Proposed changes: There are two tentative laws restricting abortion: one which bans abortion in near entirety if Roe v Wade is overturned, and another that bans abortion at 15 weeks without reasonable exceptions that will go into effect if Mississippi’s similar ban is deemed constitutional. A 6 week heartbeat bill is heading to the Democratic governor who has vowed to sign the measure.Maine: ViabilityMaryland: ViabilityMassachusetts: 24 weeksMichigan: ViabilityCurrent Law: Selective abortion until viability, post-viability exceptions for the life and health of the pregnant person. Mandated counseling 24 hours before abortion provision. Consent from one parent if the abortion seeker is a minor.Proposed changes: In May of 2019, Michigan state lawmakers introduced a bill to ban dilation and evacuation abortion provision, a common method for second trimester abortions. No other proposed changes at this time.Minnesota: ViabilityMississippi: 20 weeksCurrent Law: Selective abortion until 20 weeks, post-20 week abortion for the life or health of the pregnant person with exceptions for rape or incest. Dilation and evacuation abortions, a common and safe method of second trimester abortion provision, are banned. Mandated counseling 24 hours before abortion provision. Consent in writing from both parents if the abortion seeker is a minor prior to abortion provision.Proposed changes: Mississippi governor Phil Bryant signed a six-week abortion bill into law in March with exceptions for the health and life of the pregnant person but none for rape or incest.Missouri: ViabilityCurrent Law: Selective abortion until viability, post-viability abortion for the health and life of the pregnant person with a second physician attending. Mandated counseling 72 hours before abortion provision. Consent from one parent if the abortion seeker is a minor.Proposed changes: Republican-lead state house and senate passed an 8-week abortion ban, which has yet to be signed into law, but Governor Mike Parson has indicated his support for the measure.Montana: ViabilityNebraska: 20 weeksNevada: 24 weeksNew Hampshire: No gestational limits on abortionNew Jersey: No gestational limits on abortionNew Mexico: No gestational limits on abortionNew York: 24 weeksNorth Carolina: 20 weeksNorth Dakota: 20 weeksOhio: 20 weeksCurrent law: Selective abortion until 20 weeks, post-20 week abortion for the life or health of the pregnant person if two physicians write that abortion is necessary. Dilation and evacuation abortions, a common and safe method of second trimester abortion provision, are banned. Mandated counselling 24 hours before abortion provision. Consent from one parent if the abortion seeker is a minor.Proposed changes: In April of 2019, Ohio governor Mike DeWine signed a foetal heartbeat bill limiting selective abortion to five weeks, or one week after a missed menstrual cycle, at which point many women do not realise they are pregnant. There are no exceptions for rape or incest.Oklahoma: 20 weeksOregon: No gestational limits on abortionPennsylvania: 24 weeksRhode Island: 24 weeksSouth Carolina: 20 weeksCurrent law: Selective abortion until 24 weeks, post-24 week abortion for the life or health of the pregnant person if two physicians certify in writing that abortion is necessary. Mandated counselling 24 hours before abortion provision. Consent from one parent if the abortion seeker is a minor.Proposed changes: A foetal heartbeat bill passed in the state house, but may not make it to the state senate until 2020.South Dakota: 20 weeksTennessee: ViabilityTexas: 20 weeksUtah: ViabilityVermont: No gestational limits on abortionVirginia: 27 weeksWashington: ViabilityWest Virginia: 20 weeksCurrent law: Selective abortion until 20 weeks, post-20 week abortion for the life or health of the pregnant person. Dilation and evacuation abortions, a common and safe method of second trimester abortion provision, are banned. Mandated counselling 24 hours before abortion provision. Notice of one parent if the abortion seeker is a minor.Proposed changes: A heartbeat bill was introduced in February with exceptions for rape and incest, but has yet to be voted on.Wisconsin: 20 weeksWyoming: Viability

Comrade Sanders Targets Charter Schools

Few things offend Bernie Sanders as much as people escaping from command-and-control government systems, even minority students whose parents are desperate to get their kids a decent education.The socialist wants to turn George Wallace on his head and not block black children from attending traditional public schools, but block them from exiting those schools for something better.  The New York Times wrote a long, devastating report the other day on the then-Burlington, Vt., mayor’s love affair with the Sandinistas in the 1980s. So many decades later, his reflex is the same: If the Sandinistas wouldn’t favor it, he’s not inclined to like it much either. That goes for charter schools that, yes, are publicly funded, but still too flexible and unregulated for refined socialist tastes. Over the weekend, Sanders unveiled his education plan. He wants to end for-profit charter schools (about 15 percent of all charters) and impose a moratorium on new public funding of charters, while taking steps to impose a one-size-fits-all regulatory regime on existing charters.Sanders thus seeks to kneecap what has been an astonishingly successful experiment in urban education because it doesn’t fit nicely within his ideological preconceptions.That Sanders says he wants to do this to advance the principle that “every human being has the fundamental right to a good education” is hilariously perverse. The comrades will have a good chuckle over that one.Charter schools aren’t the product of a libertarian conspiracy. They fall short of the vouchers favored by conservatives to allow parents to get access to private schools. Charters receive public money but have more leeway to develop policies outside the regulatory and union straitjacket of traditional public schools. Charters had bipartisan support before a Vermont socialist became one of the party’s thought leaders. Bill Clinton won the first-ever lifetime achievement award from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Promoting charters was a hallmark of Barack Obama’s education agenda and a signature of Cory Booker’s mayoralty in Newark, N.J.Not all charters are created equal. Some don’t serve their students well, especially online charter schools, and the performance of suburban and rural charter schools hasn’t been very impressive. It’s the charter schools in urban areas with the worst traditional public schools that have excelled. According to a well-regarded 2015 study by Stanford’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes, students in urban charter schools got the equivalent of 40 additional days of math instruction and 28 additional days of reading annually. The numbers for African-American students in poverty were even better. Charters in Newark and Boston have seen enormous academic gains.In New York City, the Success Academy founded by Eva Moskowitz — one of the foremost education reformers of our time — has eliminated racial and economic achievement gaps.It’s amazing what schools can do when they impose discipline, have the highest expectations, and focus with a laser intensity on instruction. Anyone interested in the education of minority students should seek to build on these oases of excellence, rather than cut them off. But the teachers unions hate charters, and they are a much more powerful potential cadre in the Sanders “revolution” than poor black kids. Sanders suggests that charter schools somehow increase segregation. This is nonsense, as Jonathan Chait of New York Magazine points out. Urban charter schools reflect the segregation of their neighborhoods where they are located — just like traditional public schools do.The polling shows that minority parents get what Sanders (and white progressives) refuses to understand. A solid majority of black and Hispanic Democrats have a favorable view of charters, while white Democrats have an unfavorable view by a 2-1 margin. It is doubtful how much of his anti-charter agenda Sanders would be able to enact if elected, since much of the action is at the state and local level. That he’s hostile to these schools should, regardless, redound to his shame. © 2019 by King Features Syndicate

Scouted: The Sleek, Black Stainless Steel Version of the 6QT Instant Pot LUX60 Is on Sale for $50

Right now, you can add the sleek, black stainless steel edition of the 6QT Instant Pot LUX60 to your kitchen while it’s on sale for $50. That’s a savings of 50% on a gadget that could easily replace half of the other things you use in your kitchen on a regular basis.What’s so great about this Instant Pot? I mean, just look at it. It’s like the original Instant Pot’s cool teen brother. It’s like the original Instant Pot got a makeover montage in an early-Aughts romcom. You get everything the Instant Pot has to offer, from the pressure cooker to the rice cooker to the steamer. It’s still the six-in-one gadget you love, just with a black stainless steel outside, and it’s on sale. If the original super shiny Instant Pot clashed with your aesthetic, this is the version for you. Want one that makes a bit more of a statement? You can get a red stainless steel version for $60.Scouted is internet shopping with a pulse. Follow us on Twitter and sign up for our newsletter for even more recommendations and exclusive content. Please note that if you buy something featured in one of our posts, The Daily Beast may collect a share of sales.Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

Trump to Pennsylvania voters: 'Biden deserted you'

President Trump had Joe Biden on the brain during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania Monday.

Iran Bluster Is about Red Lines, Not War

In the past week, American-Iranian tensions flared to heights not seen since the Reagan years, when U.S. and Iranian ships and planes faced off in the Persian Gulf. Not only have Iranian irregular forces apparently sabotaged four ships off the major Emirati port of Fujairah with either magnet bombs or underwater drones, but a subsequent drone attack on a Saudi pipeline amplified tensions to a new level.Even on the best of days in hyper-partisan Washington, there are enough polemics to go around. The fact that national security in general—and Iran policy in particular—have become political footballs only makes the problem worse. Never one to miss an opportunity to throw fuel on the rhetorical fire, President Donald Trump threatened via tweet, “If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran. Never threaten the United States again!”Happily, however, nothing in the American military posture makes it appear that war—or even a limited engagement—is imminent, let alone likely.Consider the U.S. Navy’s posture: The Trump administration has reportedly dispatched an aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf, but if a war against Iran really was on the table, then this would be the worst possible move.

Google’s Pixel 3a has a serious problem for some users, and there’s no fix in sight

Google has been making phones for quite a few years now, both during the Nexus era when other smartphone vendors designed its devices, and especially in the Pixel era where it creates its own hardware. But even so, its Pixel phones still come with flaws, and the Pixel 3a is no exception. Some users are already reporting a pretty serious issue -- the Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL have been shutting down randomly, and there doesn't appear to be a fix in sight.No smartphone is perfect, some will say, and many new models exhibit some problems after launch. But it's something that happens time and again with Pixel phones. Just last week, shortly after the Pixel 3a series went on sale, people who purchased first-gen Pixel phones that came with built-in microphone manufacturing defects learned they're entitled to up to $500 in compensation from Google.That doesn't mean the current Pixel 3a problem is as serious, but it's still not a good sign for a phone that Google pits against the iPhone, which is a silly comparison to make in the first place.Several users posted on Reddit their accounts of how it all went down. "I received my pixel 3a 3 days ago, and once a day it just turns off by itself, while I don't use it," wrote DeazyL.Realtimeanalytics, meanwhile, says the issue might have to do with Wi-Fi connectivity:> Whenever I connect to my work Wi-Fi and let the phone sit for ~10 minutes it will require a reboot. It will do the normal lock and then after some time just shutdown, requiring me to hold the power button for ~30 seconds to restart it. For the most part when I'm connected to my home Wi-Fi it will not duplicate this although it has crashed once or twice now at home in the 5 days I have had it. Leaving the phone with Wi-Fi off seems to prevent the crashing altogether.Placing the phone in Safe mode will not make the issue go away according to Ravoz, who has experienced the problem on both the Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL:> Several people, including myself, have been having random shutdowns with our new Pixel 3a's. It is happening with both models, the 3a as well as the XL.> > The phones just die, and require a hard reset of holding the power button down for like 30 seconds before they turn back on.> > I had 3 shutdowns yesterday, including overnight, causing me to miss my wake alarm. And another shutdown tonight. Today I used my phone in "Safe Mode" to eliminate any chance of a third party app causing it. Unfortunately, it did, so unless its an issue in the OS, it's hardware related.Google will surely identify and fix the problem. If you've been experiencing the same error, the only thing you can do about it is reboot the phone once it switches off. You can always ask for a replacement unit and hope for the best, but it's unclear if Google is swapping out affected units at this time.

If You Crash a Mercedes-Benz in the Future, It Could Deploy a Robot to Warn Other Drivers

This cute Roomba-like robot is designed to deploy from the back of a crashed vehicle to warn approaching traffic of danger.

Gov: Abortion ban shows Alabama values 'sanctity of life'

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama's governor said Monday the new abortion ban she recently signed into law reflects the high value residents place on the "sanctity of life," adding she doesn't expect any fallout from the controversial measure on tourism or business recruitment.

Airbus prepares counter-punch to new Boeing mid-sized jet

U.S. planemaker Boeing is studying whether to launch a 220-270-seat jet wedged between traditional twin-aisle models like the Airbus A330 or its own 787, and the industry's bread-and-butter single-aisle models like the A320/321 and Boeing 737. Airbus aims to defend that space with its own A330neo at the top end and the best-selling A321neo at the bottom - two models boasting new engines on older airframes. "Those programs are both so mature that it gives Airbus pricing flexibility to address this middle-of-the-market segment," sales chief Christian Scherer said.

DHS: 2018 saw increase in migrant naturalizations

Does this mean President Trump's immigration crackdown is working? Ron Meyer and Chuck Rocha weigh in.

New Quinnipiac poll shows Biden leading Dems, Trump not getting credit for the economy

According to the poll, 71% of the voters say that the economy is "good" or "excellent," but only 38% of voters approve of Trump.

Russian bombers, fighters intercepted off Alaska: US military

US fighters intercepted six Russian military aircraft in international airspace west of Alaska, and shadowed them until they exited the area, the North American Air Defense Command said Tuesday. The Russian aircraft included two Tu-95 strategic bombers, which were intercepted Monday by two F-22 fighters, the command said. A second group of two Tu-95 bombers and two Su-35 fighters were also intercepted by a pair of F-22 fighters, it said.

Boeing Had Big Plans to Build Its Very Own F-35 (And Flopped)

The fundamental issue with the Joint Strike Fighter was that is was always an overambitious program to replace multiple specialized types with one aircraft in the hope that it could perform every role equally well. The result is predictably a jack-of-all-trades but master of none.On October 26, 2001, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that Lockheed Martin’s X-35 had won the Joint Strike Fighter contest over Boeing’s X-32.(This first appeared in late 2015.)The win secured Lockheed’s future as the manufacturer for all of America’s fifth-generation fighter platforms. But Lockheed’s resultant F-35 has suffered myriad delay, technical glitches, unrecoverable technical shortfalls and massive cost overruns. Already the largest ever defense program with an estimated price tag of $233 billion in 2001 for a total of 2,866 aircraft, the F-35 program is now estimated to cost more than $391 billion for 2,457 jets, according to the Government Accountability Office.Moreover, while the short-takeoff vertical landing F-35B was originally projected to achieve initial operational capability with the U.S. Marines in 2010, it only reached that milestone in 2015—five years late. Meanwhile, the conventional F-35A and the F-35C carrier variant were both slated to achieve initial operational capability with Block 3 software in 2012—but that software block is now scheduled to be delivered for operational testing in 2017 at the earliest.

Bernie Sanders Launches a Deeply Misguided Attack on Charter Schools

One of the great benefits of living life well outside the Beltway is that it’s easy to take my eyes off the swamp, look to the states surrounding me, and see places where politics actually function as they’re supposed to. I can even, occasionally, see those issues on which Democrats and Republicans might work together, united in common purpose, for the common good.Exhibit A: the charter-school movement. It’s granted an invaluable degree of educational choice to families who long lacked the flexibility that prosperous suburban and upper-middle-class parents take for granted, and its extraordinary growth is a bipartisan achievement.There are times when it seems like everyone likes charter schools. The Trump Department of Education has issued hundreds of millions of dollars in charter-school grants. The Obama administration invested in charter schools. As Newark mayor, Democrat Cory Booker “bet big” on charter schools, and athletes and celebrities have personally invested in their success, often with outstanding results.Of course, not every charter school is good. Not every charter school is a success. But if there has ever existed anything like a broad point of left–right agreement in the American education debate, it’s that charters represent a vital piece of the educational puzzle, an option that can and does transform students’ lives.So why did Bernie Sanders announce last week that, if elected president, he would declare war on charter schools? His poorly named Thurgood Marshall Plan for Public Education (after all, urban, nonwhite students are among the prime beneficiaries of charter-school choice) would “ban for-profit charter schools,” and “halt the use of public funds to underwrite new charter schools” until they complied with a series of federal conditions that would change their governance and facilitate their unionization (many charter-school faculties aren’t unionized). In so doing, it would remove many of the distinctive qualities that helped make charter schools truly competitive with conventional public schools.It’s tempting to explain the plan as little more than coalition politics, Sanders’s effort to cozy up to the teachers’ unions at the expense of student welfare. But that’s unfair. I know enough people in the greater Bernie orbit to know that they sincerely believe a unionized public-school monopoly in K–12 education represents the best chance for new generations of kids. They believe that, properly funded and led, such a system would facilitate academic achievement and social cohesion.But here’s the core problem: The interest in a collective solution to a series of individual educational challenges understates the reality that choice, by itself, is a vital value in a child’s education. And the power of choice cannot be measured by test scores alone, even though the best charter schools yield spectacular results.I think about my own parenting experience. Like many millions of American families who take their power over their kids’ education for granted, we enjoy multiple privileges a poor family doesn’t. We have the job flexibility to live in any number of places, and we can afford housing in a good school district. If we lived in a county or town with a struggling school district, we could afford modest private-school tuition. And back when we lived in Center City, Philadelphia — at a time when we couldn’t easily move and couldn’t afford private school — we were fortunate enough to win a lottery to put our oldest child in an outstanding charter elementary school.With each of the choices we’ve made for our kids’ education over the years, test scores were among the least important factors we considered. We wanted to know the culture of the school and the character of the teachers. We wondered about athletic opportunities. We were concerned with peer and parental influence. The school was going to play a part in raising our children, and a slight percentage change in a math or language test score was meaningless compared to our concern with the growth and development of their personal characters.The Sanders approach wouldn’t take away choice from parents like us. We could still find private schools. We could still move to better school districts. We could still home school. Charter schools exist in the suburbs and in rural America, but they haven’t had the same impact there that they’ve had in American cities. We’d barely feel the effects of the Sanders policy; its brunt would instead be borne by America’s most vulnerable families. Sanders’s plan tells those families that he knows what’s best for them, that his partners in the unions know how to build the schools they need better than they do.This is anything but equity. It’s anything but fairness. One of the enduring challenges of American public life is the sad reality that children face fundamentally different educational opportunities through the accident of birth. The existence of choice itself is a luxury. It’s a thing of immense value, and many millions of parents can’t even comprehend a life where they don’t have the true, final word over their child’s education.I’m writing these words as I fly to give a series of speeches in Texas sponsored by the Texas Charter Schools Association and the National Review Institute. I’ve been writing and speaking about school choice for much of my adult life. I’ve been litigating on its behalf for just as long. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that the desire to choose what’s best for one’s own child crosses racial, religious, and partisan lines. It’s a broadly felt human need.Bernie Sanders makes his intentions crystal clear. In his plan, he writes, “We do not need two schools systems; we need to invest in our public schools system.” This is exactly wrong. One size does not fit all. Sanders looks at parents and declares that he knows best. Parents should look back at him and respond, quite simply: I know my child, and I want to shape his destiny. Your collective solutions cannot meet my family’s needs.Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article contained a reference to the success of LeBron James’s I Promise school in Akron, Ohio, as an example of celebrity support for charter schools. The I Promise School is not a charter but a nontraditional public school that operates within the Akron public-school system. We regret the error.