NTD Newsroom Full Broadcast (April 3) 2024-04-03 19:03

President Biden touting lower prescription drug costs for Americans. We'll tell you which drugs are affected. The Republican National Committee says it raised millions in March for former President Trump's reelection campaign. How much they're reporting. A liberal political action committee dropping $57 million to help Joe Biden and the Democrats appeal to Latino voters. Red flag gun laws. A common-sense reaction to danger or a slippery slope watering down the right to bear arms. We'll hear from a pair of attorneys. Collapsed buildings and landslides in Taiwan. The island sees its biggest earthquake in 25 years. The latest on casualties. And privacy concerns arise over the new digital euro and how Europe's Central Bank will have access to users transactions. Welcome to NTD newsroom. I'm Stefania Cox. Lower prices for prescription drugs. That's what President Biden was touting during a White House press conference today. Biden says that Americans pay more for the same drugs than people in other countries. Because of all of you, our Inflation Reduction Act drug companies that raise prices more than inflation are going to pay back Medicare. The difference between what they charge and the inflation rate. This is based on the price of their drugs in 2021. That means consumers will pay less for prescription drugs and they'll save taxpayers money and discourage companies from hiking prices faster than inflation in the first place. But we want to do more. It's time that drug companies pay rebates when they increase prices faster than inflation, not just for seniors, but for every single American. Biden and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders worked together to pressure the makers of asthma inhalers to lower the cost from hundreds of dollars without insurance to just $35. Biden's remarks come as he begins to highlight his administration's legislative achievements ahead of the 2024 election. And a political action committee is planning to spend millions to help Democrats target Hispanic voters this election season. The liberal nonprofit Pac Somos Votantes will use the funds to expand Hispanic voter education. The Latino advocacy group that operates Somos PAC will spend 57 million dollars to try to help Biden and the Democrats win elections in eight key states. 33 million of that will be used for organizing Latino voters in support of Biden as well as Democratic House and Senate candidates. Particular focus will be on two battleground states, Arizona and Nevada. Biden won Nevada and flipped Arizona in the last election. The president of Somos Votantes, Melissa Morales, says Latinos are the biggest and fastest growing segment of the electorate, with more than 4 million new voters since the last presidential election. Republicans saw a boost in campaign donations in the month of March. The Republican National Committee announcing today that millions were raised by various groups in support of Trump's presidential election. The presumptive GOP nominee and their RNC said that they raised more than 65 million dollars in campaign donations last month. That's a significant increase from what the committee reported to the Federal Elections Commission last month. It had just over 11 million dollars cash on hand at the end of February. The statement says they ended March with a combined total of more than 90 million dollars from various fundraising committees. The RNC didn't disclose how the money was distributed to the various groups associated with the Trump campaign. And special counsel Jack Smith is pushing back on Judge Eileen Cannon and the classified documents case. The prosecutor rejects Cannon's request that he submit competing jury instructions that take into account arguments made by the Trump team. The defense attorneys have argued that Trump had broad authority to take classified documents when he left the White House, citing the Presidential Records Act. Smith wrote in part in his filing, quote, the court should be aware of the outset that Trump's entire effort to rely on the PRA is not based on any facts. It is, he says, a post hoc justification that was concocted more than a year after he left the White House. And let's go now to our legal correspondent for more on this. Arlene, this just came in last night. How much of this have you been able to read? Well, Steph, both sides submitted lengthy responses to the judge's request. Now, Smith is pushing back extra hard and flat out refusing to comply. Now, as you may recall, Judge Cannon had asked the attorneys to provide two separate jury instructions, which both include scenarios where the Presidential Records Act would be applied. Now, in one scenario, neither the jury nor the judge would be permitted to review the records because the act says the president has broad authority to take records with him when leaving office. In the other scenario, the jury would be permitted to separate separate presidential records from personal records using guidelines in the Presidential Records Act. And in that case, some of the classified documents could be deemed presidential, supporting the argument that Trump held them unlawfully. But Smith is rejecting both scenarios and flat out tells the judge that this act should not play a role at trial at all and strongly stating that the alleged activities that the former president has been charged for occurred after he left office. Now, the concern here for Smith is that his entire case could be turned upside down and become almost null and void. He warned the judge that if she decides to allow the Presidential Records Act to be considered in this case, he will immediately appeal. Steph. All right, Arlene Richards. Thank you. A new video shows immigrants cutting Texas's razor wire at the border before entering the country illegally. This has a new report says illegal immigrants in New York City receive more compensation than veterans with disabilities. MTV's Arian Pasdar has the details. Video shows immigrants cutting through a fence to cross the border into Texas. A few managed to get through before Texas National Guard officers showed up at the scene. Back up. The officers then sent them back to a dry riverbed. The National Guard later repaired the fence at the spot where illegal immigrants have damaged it. This comes as a new bright part report shows that Border Patrol apprehended just under 140,000 migrants in March. That's basically unchanged from the 140,600 in February. These numbers only apply to Border Patrol apprehensions. Other agencies made additional arrests. Lastly, Newsweek reports that in New York City, illegal immigrants receive more compensation than veterans. A family of four immigrants reportedly receives double than that of a family of four, which includes a veteran who receives disability compensation. $700 for the veteran family and $1,400 for the immigrant family. Arian Pasdar, NTD News. So-called red flag gun laws have been much discussed topic in the news recently. The laws allow someone with close ties to a gun owner to ask the courts to take their firearms away. A New York court recently upheld the state's version of such laws. NTD's Daniel Monahan speaks with two attorneys for analysis. Supporters of red flag gun laws say they can save lives by preventing unstable individuals from killing themselves or others. Attorney Drew Stevenson says there are often many warning signs before someone commits a mass shooting. I know people are very sensitive about guns, but it's not all that different from if you get pulled over while you're intoxicated that they impound your car, right? And so we're essentially impounding the guns. Stevenson says in most cases, it is law enforcement close family members or healthcare providers who can inform the court about the danger. Someone with a gun may pose and so it's not just anyone. It's not like somebody can just call in a prank call and and have someone's guns get taken away. There has to be some evidence and it has to come through one of those groups and then has to go before a judge. Stevenson acknowledges that there's always a risk that those who enforce laws may abuse their power, but says that's what lawsuits and internal affairs reviews are for. It's not a blank check for a cop to just go around harassing people and taking their guns away. It's not even necessarily the same as a search warrant. They're going to be have a very specific order from a judge. New York Attorney Peter Tillum disagrees. He feels red flag gun laws are ripe for abuse. So you're talking about people who have clean records and now we're authorizing the police to break down their door and take away their guns. If there's an allegation by anyone, even an ex, a disgruntled ex, then the police have every incentive to try to take your guns away. The attorney says fair hearings are hard to imagine. Once a police officer comes to a judge and says this person is a danger to themselves or others. The judge is in a pretty tough position not to take away the guns and then the person goes out and does something. It would be the judge's picture on the front page of the paper. Tillum says red flag gun laws virtually eliminate the physician patient privilege explaining once an allegation is made under such laws. The judge is authorized to get all the person's medical records. The attorney cautions against the slippery slope of people exchanging their constitutional rights under the banner of safety. I think that what it comes down to is are you more scared of what the government can do? Or are you more scared of what maybe a lone mentally ill person can do? Attorney Drew Stevenson is skeptical of slippery slope arguments about gun control. He says society and police can't ignore people who have been talking about doing a mass shooting or giving off other warning signs. We can't have like live in a society where we can't function safely just because of something that might happen someday many years from now if a whole bunch of other things happen between now and then and that's the slippery slope fallacy. The Biden administration recently announced a new national office to help states implement red flag laws. The office is called the Federal Extreme Risk Protection Order Resource Center, Daniel Monahan and TD News. More than 275,000 homes and businesses across several states were without power last night that includes in West Virginia, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. A powerful system of thunderstorms brought damaging winds dangerous hail and tornadoes to parts of the Ohio Valley. The damaging storms brought flooding downed trees, power outages and road blockages across West Virginia. At least 13 homes were damaged and some residents were injured. 14 tornadoes were confirmed yesterday across Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, Alabama and Tennessee. This possible tornado in Tennessee was caught on camera. Damaged telephone poles from storm battered buildings show the storm's ferocity. Cell phone video shows a University of Kentucky student being knocked over by high winds. The University canceled classes due to the powerful gusts. Storms will continue bringing threats of twisters, strong winds and large hail into the region this morning before shifting to the East Coast. In breaking news, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is grounded in Paris. His aircraft had a mechanical issue. A State Department spokesperson says Blinken and his delegation made the drive from Paris to Brussels to meet with NATO Alliance foreign ministers. Bloomberg reported that the U.S. Air Force jet is an older model of a Boeing 737 that was modified for official government use. The State Department did not mention the model of the airplane. On a previous trip to Europe in January, Blinken was briefly stranded in the Swiss resort town of Davos due to an issue with his plane. Multiple media reports at the time said the plane was also a Boeing 737. And a 7.4 magnitude earthquake hit Taiwan earlier this morning, leaving at least nine people dead and more than 900 injured. That number may rise as the rescue operation unfolds. The quake is the strongest to rattle the island in 25 years. Take a look. Eyewitness video captured the moment a powerful earthquake hit Taiwan on Wednesday, the strongest tremor to rock the island in at least 25 years. It left several people dead and injured hundreds more with local TV stations airing footage of a building half collapsed in the eastern area of Hualien. Firefighters rushed to rescue people from the damaged building. The quake struck just offshore from Hualien around 8 a.m. as people were going to work and school. It also triggered huge landslides and sparked a tsunami warning briefly for the island as well as southern Japan and the Philippines. Taiwan authorities said they registered more than 25 aftershocks with witnesses saying tremors could still be felt in Taipei later in the day. Residents in the northern capital city described the moment the quake hit. It was shaking very violently. All the motorcycles outside our house toppled over. So I quickly switched off the gas in the electrical source and opened the main door. It was shaking like this quite strongly. Maybe an earthquake hasn't happened in a long time. So it felt really terrifying. The Taipei City government said it had not received any reports of major damage and the city's Metro was up and running soon after the tremor. Electricity operator Tai Power said some 87,000 households in Taiwan were without power as of early afternoon. It also said that the quake did not affect the country's two nuclear power stations. Taiwan's high-speed rail operator said no damage or injuries were reported on its trains, but noted that service would be delayed while it carried out inspections. It's the biggest earthquake to hit the island since 1999, according to the government-backed Central News Agency, when a 7.6 magnitude tremor killed around 2,400 people. When we come back, EU citizens will soon have access to the digital euro, a new currency controlled by the EU Central Bank. Why some are concerned about surveillance. The U.S. approves an 8th commercial scale offshore wind project, bringing electricity to power more than 900,000 homes. That and more after the break. I've never seen a production any better than this anywhere. Breathtaking. It is absolutely stunning. I feel better about the world. I feel uplifted. Invigorating. It was encouraging, gave me hope. This has just been therapy for the soul. It's a must see. Must see. Make sure you see it. Coming to Lincoln Center, NJPAC, State Theater, Purchase, and stampfordgenuine.com. Millions of children are fighting to survive due to inequality, conflict, poverty, and the climate crisis. Save the Children is working alongside communities to provide a better life for children. And there's a way you can help. Please call or go online to give just $10 a month, only 33 cents a day. We urgently need 1,000 new monthly donors in the next 30 days to help the children we support around the world. 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When you sign up, you'll explore some of life's most important questions, gain a greater appreciation for how the Bible confronts pain and hardship with redemption and hope. Sign up for the Genesis story free of charge at LearnFromHillsdale.org. In a few months, EU citizens will have the chance to test a new digital currency called the digital euro. It will be controlled by the European Central Bank as a way to offer more payment options. However, the Central Bank will be able to monitor all transactions using that currency. NTD's France correspondent, David Vivas, speaks with an economic think tank president who argues that this monitoring will seriously hinder citizens' freedom. Brussels is finalizing the last details of a bill that will allow the use of the digital euro in the eurozone. This digital currency is presented by the Commission as a means to make people's lives easier by providing a universally accepted digital payment method throughout the euro area for payments in shops, online, or from person to person. The digital euro would be an electronic form of cash for the digitalized world. The Commission says it is designed to provide a superior level of privacy to other digital payment methods as it will enable the identification of the payer and the payee by the Central Bank. However, this is where the controversy stands. Skeptics are voicing concerns about the potential risks of intruding on people's privacy. According to economic think tank president, Charles Gave, this might be used to monitor people. The Central Bank will have a direct access to your account and in this way the Central Bank will know exactly where you go, what you buy, who you have lunch with. Also, it's a surveillance tool, but an unheard of one. So I think cash is the best way to stay free. The European Central Bank has ruled that the digital euro should be experimented with over a three-year period before being fully implemented. It remains to be seen how EU citizens will react to the digital currency. While some EU countries are slowly transitioning to an all-digital option regarding transactions, such as Sweden where only 2% of transactions are done in cash, other countries aren't willing to give up notes and coins, Gave says. Incidentally, the Italian Prime Minister has said that she would never bank cash and that she's going to allow people to use it more and more. So at least she saw the danger. The next step to title people monitoring would be something like the COVID phone application we used to have to track who got COVID. The EU Parliament will vote on April 22nd on the bill in order to initiate the project. David Vives, NTD News, Paris. And the Biden administration is backing off on refilling America's emergency oil stockpile. The Energy Department says the administration will no longer buy up to 3 million barrels of crude for a reserve site in Louisiana. The department says the shift comes amid rising prices at the gas pump. According to AAA, the national average has climbed by 20 cents over the past month to $3.55. Prices have climbed over fears the war in the Middle East could escalate and disrupt oil supplies. The Union, representing nearly 5,000 commercial airline pilots, starts negotiations with JetBlue on pay and working conditions. The company's CEO pledged last month to return the airline to profitability. Pilots across North America are pressing for better pay and benefits buoyed by a short shortage of aviators amid a boom in air travel. Earlier this year, Southwest Airlines pilots approved a new labor agreement offering a near 50% pay raise over a five-year period. One step closer to achieving the Biden administration's climate agenda and more cracks showing in China's property sector. Here's NTD's Don Ma with today's business brief. Thank you very much, Steph. First off, seems like we're one step closer to President Biden's clean energy agenda. The U.S. just approved a new wind project. The Department of Interior has signed off on the New England Wind Project. And this is the country's eighth commercial-scale offshore wind project. It's going to be off the coast of Massachusetts and will bring online enough electricity apparently to power more than 900,000 homes. The department says this is going to help lower consumer costs, combat climate change and create jobs. The project will bring the U.S. one-third of the way to President Joe Biden's wind capacity goal and is key part of his climate change agenda. In all, the department has approved more than 10 gigawatts of clean energy offshore projects. That's enough to power nearly 4 million homes, according to official data. And now let's move on to some China-related news. China's EV maker BYD, a major player here. No longer the top dog in the electric vehicle market. So BYD took the title of the world's biggest EV seller last year. But now it is returning the crown back to Tesla. China's largest EV maker reported a 43% drop in the first quarter of the year. Filings show BYD sold about 300,000 EVs. Now compare that to the 526,000 it sold three months prior. And that was when it surpassed Tesla in sales. Both companies are expecting a slowdown in EV sales growth in China this year. And they are in the middle of a brutal price war. BYD has slashed starting prices on the latest versions of its vehicles by as much as 20%. And sources say that BYD has set a target this year to sell 3.6 million vehicles. Besides that, we could be seeing yet another crack in China's crumbling real estate sector. Several of the country's well-known developers have been suspended from trading in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. That's because they failed to publish their annual results from last year by the March 31st deadline. Some companies reported that they were struggling to sort their finances and others said their account audits were delayed. One analyst said that auditors have become more stringent when preparing results for Chinese developers looking for hidden debts that are being disguised. Meanwhile, shares for state-backed developer China Vanka, who is still trading on the exchange, hit a record low. This came after a disappointing earnings report for last year with a 50% drop in core profit. That's all from me and back to you, Steph. Thank you, Don. And thank you for watching NTD Newsroom. I'm Stephania Cox. We'll have more stories from the U.S. and around the world. Join Tiffany Meyer for the NTD Evening News at 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 Pacific.