Latest news

The election in the United States|The primaries

Biden got what he wanted in the South Carolina primary  

 

Joe Biden took home more than 95 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary in South Carolina last night - in the state where he won a key victory in the 2020 primary that was an injection in his journey to the White House.  

 

The president was primarily looking for two things in South Carolina: He wanted to prove that Democratic voters have low enthusiasm for him and to prove that black voters are on his side. He largely got what he wanted, writes Politico. 

 

"The people of South Carolina have spoken again and I have no doubt that you have set us on the path to another presidential victory - and making Donald Trump a loser - again," Biden wrote in a statement.

 

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The Republicans' new move: Skipping Ukraine in aid packages  

 

The historic preliminary agreement on US border rules with Mexico, which was recently concluded between the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate, is being defeated by Republican politicians in the other chamber of Congress. That's what The Hill writes.  

 

What makes the agreement extra interesting for the outside world is that it also contains large support packages for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. The politicians want to vote on it next week.  

 

But the proposal now on the table has no chance in the House of Representatives, says Republican Speaker Mike Johnson. Instead, he presents his own proposal that the House of Representatives will vote on next week: a pure aid package for Israel of 17.6 billion dollars. 

The White House condemns the development. 

 

"We strongly oppose this ploy that does nothing to secure the border, does nothing to help the people of Ukraine defend themselves against Putin's aggression, and denies humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians," they wrote in a statement. 

 

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The Israel-Hamas war|The ship attacks 

USA: Consequences await if the Houthi attacks continue  

 

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says Saturday's attacks against the Huthi rebels in Yemen send a clear message to the Iran-backed group, AP reports. 

 

- If their illegal attacks on international ships do not stop, it will lead to further consequences, he says in a statement. 

 

He also says that the United States and its allies will not hesitate when it comes to defending life. It was the United States and Great Britain that carried out Saturday's attacks with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands and New Zealand. 

 

- I am sure that these attacks weakened the capabilities of the Huthi rebels, says British Defense Minister Grant Shapps, according to Reuters.

  

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Economy  

Economists less popular than meteorologists - often get it wrong 

 

The pandemic, stoppages in supply chains, inflation crisis, the war in Ukraine and developments in the Middle East. These are some of the events of recent years that have completely caused economic forecasters to lose their footing, writes AFP.  

 

More and more people are now criticizing those who try to predict the future, ECB chief Christine Lagarde recently joined the chorus of complaints. She believes that economists rarely move outside their bubble and "just quote each other".  

 

Esther Duflo, who received the Economics Prize in memory of 

Alfred Nobel, tells the news agency that economists now have a jumbo ranking among the professional groups with the highest trust - and are slipping below meteorologists.  

 

According to economists AFP spoke to, forecasters' concerns are that they rely too much on history, instead of looking ahead, and that they "lack imagination".