Thursday morning news: March 14, 2024

TikTok vote » The Chinese owners of the social media app TikTok may soon have a choice to make: Sell the app or face a possible nationwide ban in the United States.

AUDIO: The yeas are 352. The nays are 65. The bill is passed.

The House overwhelmingly passing a bill Wednesday, a bill that would force TikTok to separate from its Chinese parent company ByteDance.

Authorities have warned that TikTok poses a national security risk.

One lawmaker described it as a Chinese spy balloon you carry around in your pocket. Intel officials are also concerned that China could use the app for influence or propaganda campaigns.

The ball is now in the Senate’s court. GOP Sen. Marsha Blackburn:

BLACKBURN: The Chinese Communist Party wants to own the virtual you of 170-million American users. People are waking up.

Both the top Republican and the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee fully support this bill.

TikTok is already banned on U.S. government devices.

We’ll have more on the legislative push later in the program.

Georgia RICO charges » A judge in Georgia has dismissed six counts in an indictment accusing Donald Trump and others of election interference.

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee said prosecutors in the RICO case failed to specify what parts of the U.S. and Georgia state constitutions would have been violated.

Trump attorney Alina Habba:

HABBA: It goes to the sloppiness of, frankly, the prosecutors down there. We know that that's the case, and more importantly, that this should not have been brought in general.

Trump still faces ten counts in the case, including several conspiracy charges.

AI: EU regs / State Department warning » The European Union is set to install new guardrails for the artificial intelligence industry in Europe after a vote in Parliament Wednesday.

AUDIO: Vote is closed and it is adopted. Congratulations on this seminal work.

That puts Europe on track to enact the world’s first major set of AI regulations later this year.

The AI Act could serve as a global signpost for other governments grappling with how to regulate a technology that could grow more like a wildfire than like tech advances of the past.

Romanian lawmaker Dragos Tudorache helped to craft the legislation. He said this is only the beginning.

TUDORACHE: Because AI is going to have an impact that we can’t only measure through this AI act. It’s going to have an impact on the education systems.

He said the act is aimed at striking the delicate balance between supporting innovation while guarding against the potential dangers of AI.

The EU’s approval of the AI Act comes as a new report commissioned by the US State Department … warns that artificial intelligence could pose a, quote, extinction-level threat to the human species. The report called for national and international regulations.

Putin nuclear remarks » The White House is condemning recent remarks by Vladimir Putin who again raised the specter of nuclear war.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre:

PIERRE: Russia’s nuclear rhetoric has been reckless and irresponsible throughout this conflict. It is Russia that brutally invaded Ukraine without provocation.

In a new interview on Russian state television, Putin again warned the West that Moscow is ready to use nuclear weapons if its sovereignty is threatened. But it’s unclear how Putin would define that.

The Kremlin has claimed Ukrainian land occupied by Moscow’s forces as sovereign Russian territory.

Putin this week also expressed confidence that Russia would achieve its goals in Ukraine and held the door open for talks.

Israel responds to Borrell accusation » Israel is blasting what it says was a false and inflammatory accusation by the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. He asserted that Israel is using starvation as a weapon of war in Gaza:

BORRELL: And when we condemn this happening in Ukraine, we have to use the same words for what’s happening in Gaza.

And he said Israel is blocking relief supplies entering Gaza by truck.

Israeli government spokeswoman Tal Heinrich shot back:

HEINRICH: It’s a false, outrageous accusation. It’s an outrageous comparison. There is no restriction on the amount of food and water that are allowed to be delivered into the Gaza strip.

She added that "six humanitarian aid trucks just entered the northern Gaza Strip in a convoy from the World Food Program.”

Biden campaigning in Wisconsin » President Biden is hitting the campaign trail in states expected to decide the outcome of this year’s election.

BIDEN: Hello Milwaukee!

The president stumping in Wisconsin just hours after once again clinching the Democratic nomination. He touted projects planned or in the works as part of the bipartisan infrastructure bill.

BIDEN: I’m here to announce a first of its kind investment: $3.3 billion dollars in 132 projects in 42 states.

Donald Trump also locked up his party’s nomination after gathering more delegates this week.

Recent national polls give Trump a 2-point lead over the incumbent.

In Wisconsin, Trump now holds a one-point lead, but is ahead in every other major swing state by at least three-and-a-half points right now except for Pennsylvania. Polls there suggest a virtual tie at the moment.

Speaker on expanding House majority » Meantime, Speaker Mike Johnson says he’s confident that the GOP will expand its House majority in November. He said House Republicans are:

JOHNSON: Now in place to pick up four seats in North Carolina. We believe we can pick up seats in California and Texas and other places.

But based on current data, The University of Virginia’s Center for Politics projects the margin in the House to remain slim. It lists 212 seats as likely or leaning Republican versus 206 seats leaning toward Democrats.

I’m Kent Covington.

Straight ahead: Arguments for and against banning TikTok. Plus, a family in Alabama navigates legal issues with IVF.

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