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NASA chief backs Trump's Space Force proposal
Whatever you think of Trump's proposed Space Force, it has at least one ally in its corner: recently-installed (and Trump-selected) NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine. In an interview with Axios, Bridenstine argued that space was becoming "more contested" and that the US had to be "willing to defend" space in order to maintain it. He argued that the Chinese and Russians were developing not only anti-satellite missiles, but co-orbital satellite weapons, jammers and other spaceborne threats. Allegedly, the Chinese see the US' lack of space weapons as an "Achilles' heel" it could exploit.
Contractor hoped to sell social media surveillance to oppressive regimes
Western companies are still interested in selling surveillance tools to governments that could easily abuse them. The Intercept claims to have leaked documents suggesting that Circinus, the defense contractor run by Trump fundraiser Elliott Broidy, planned to sell social media surveillance tools to governments still known for suppressing free speech, including Tunisia and the UAE. Circinus' tools harvest sites like Facebook and Twitter in a bid to find and identify "detractors" -- that is, political dissidents. While the software only sifts through public data, it's likely this information would be used to punish critics who could otherwise count on a degree of anonymity.
California Rep. requests 23andMe to help reunite children with families
California Representative Jackie Speier reportedly asked DNA-testing company 23andMe to help reunite children separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border due to Trump's 'zero tolerance' immigration policies. She told Buzzfeed that she was concerned with the lack of records for families that have been split up, but it was unclear if, or to what extent, the genetics company would get involved.
Just tweeting a story with WH advisor's number could get you blocked (updated)
White House adviser Stephen Miller is widely regarded as the person behind the Trump administration's zero tolerance immigration policy that has taken children away from parents accused of attempting to enter the country illegally. Earlier today, Gizmodo Media Group site Splinter wrote a story titled 'Here's Stephen Miller's Cell Phone Number, If You Need It' and tweeted out the digits from their official account for good measure. But it seems that those who are simply linking to that story (not repeating the number themselves) are getting temporarily blocked by Twitter, too.
Fundraiser to reunite immigrant families is largest in Facebook history
In the last six weeks, the Trump administration's strategy to separate children while criminally prosecuting parents for attempting to cross the southern US border illegally has led the government to take almost 2,000 youth from their families to camps and foster homes across the country. This has ignited a furor over the last week, and people have voted with their wallets. A Facebook fundraiser dedicated to reuniting these families is the largest in the social media platform's history and has raised $10.5 million to date since launching on June 16th.
Trump nominates Geoffrey Starks as FCC Commissioner
It's now clear who will (likely) take FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn's seat now that she's stepping down. President Trump has signaled his intent to nominate Geoffrey Starks to fulfill the remainder of a five-year Commissioner term that began on June 30th, 2017, when Clyburn's stint officially ended. The transition will take place if and when the Senate confirms his appointment, although there's a good chance of that happening when Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer has backed the nomination. Just how this will shape the FCC's decisions remains murky, though.
America can't solve its migrant labor crisis with automation
From the moment that Donald Trump set foot on the Trump Tower escalator, the promise of mass deportations for undocumented immigrants was a pillar of his presidential campaign. This is one promise that the current administration has managed to keep, with ICE enforcement efforts skyrocketing since Trump took office in January 2017. While the president's executive orders on immigration have played well with his political base, they've caused havoc with a number of US industries, from tourism to construction. But nowhere are the detrimental effects of these policies more clearly illustrated than in the agricultural sector. What's more, the current state of agricultural automation appears woefully unprepared to fully supplement the loss of migrant labor.
US will limit visas for Chinese tech students
The Trump adminstration's ever-growing trade fight with China is about to have a significant impact on Chinese students traveling abroad. After the State Department confirmed that it would shorten the length of some Chinese citizens' visas, the AP has learned that officials would limit visas to one year for any student studying in tech-related fields like aviation, high-tech manufacturing and robotics. While the exact aim isn't clear, those fields line up with the Made in China 2025 plan -- this would discourage students from earning degrees in the US solely to give China a technological edge.
White House moves forward with China tariffs, but offers few details
Trump had been threatening to get tough on trade since the campaign trail, and back in March, he introduced tariffs on up to $60 billion Chinese imports. The fees were intended to primarily punish the country for not cracking down on intellectual property theft from American companies. Today, the White House announced it's going through with a 25 percent tariff on $50 billion worth of goods, and will release a final list of covered items by June 15th.
Trump administration tells Congress it has deal to save ZTE
The US government should soon act on its promise to give ZTE another chance following its revived export ban. The New York Times has learned that the Trump administration has informed Congress of a Commerce Department deal that would let ZTE take American exports as long as it accepted new penalties. It would have to pay a "substantial" fine, shake up its management team and hire American compliance officers to keep it on the straight and narrow.
Federal judge rules that Trump can't block Twitter users
Ever since Donald Trump took office, there's been controversy around his Twitter addiction. Chief among the issues with president's use of Twitter is how he frequently blocks his critics. As an elected official, many have argued that his account represents official communication that should be free for anyone to see, and there have already been several lawsuits around his habit of blocking users. As of today, it looks like there's some legal weight behind that argument: a Federal judge just ruled that Trump should not be allowed to block users because it is a first amendment violation.
Whistleblower: Cambridge Analytica couldn’t work with Democrats
Although Cambridge Analytica (CA) is preparing to shut down, US Congress isn't done trying to get answers about the firm's tactics to harvest online user data for political research. Today, in the latest chapter of a matter that has affected up to 87 million Facebook users, the Senate Judiciary Committee is holding another hearing, titled "Cambridge Analytica and the Future of Data Privacy." One of the people testifying before the panel of senators is none other than whistleblower Christopher Wylie, the former director of research at CA who helped break the story earlier this year. In written testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Wylie said that what he bore witness to during his time at CA, between 2013 and 2014, should alarm everyone.
After Math: Well, that's one way to do it
It was a big week for interesting calls. Facebook is reportedly looking to hop on the cryptocurrency bandwagon, AT&T admitted that it hired Michael Cohen's firm for "insights" into the administration, and somehow enough folks watched the YouTube Karate Kid reboot to earn it a second season. Great job everybody?
AT&T CEO admits 'big mistake' in hiring Trump lawyer Michael Cohen
Today, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson admitted that hiring notorious Trump attorney Michael Cohen was a "big mistake," according to Reuters. The wording is from an internal employee memo that was sent this morning. Bob Quinn, AT&T's head lobbyist who oversaw Cohen's hiring, is retiring.
Trump administration takes a hands-off approach to AI
The Trump administration has a simple approach to regulating artificial intelligence: developers pretty much have free reign to experiment. At a meeting with representatives of 40 companies including Google, Facebook and Intel, White House science advisor Michael Kratsios said the administration will avoid AI regulations for the foreseeable future, Bloomberg reported.
NHTSA proposal would override California's tougher emissions rules
The Trump administration hasn't been shy about wanting to roll back emissions and fuel economy guidelines, but there's been a key obstacle to that: California. It has a waiver permitting it to apply tougher emissions standards, and that (combined with support from 12 other states) effectively dictates the rules for automakers across the US. Officials may soon force California to honor looser federal standards, however. The Wall Street Journal has learned of an NHTSA proposal that would not only freeze increases on fuel emissions standards between 2020 and 2026, but would include "scenarios" that would let it override or even eliminate California's authority to maintain its own increases.
Is Trump serious about legalizing weed?
No matter how many handy gadgets we recommend, the 4/20 holiday is legally tenuous for tokers in the 21 (mostly red) states that don't allow for recreational or medical marijuana use. But that could change with a word from the president. A week after promising Colorado's Republican senator that the feds would keep their hands off state-sanctioned marijuana operations, Trump has the opportunity to make good on his word. Will he?
Trump follows Amazon jabs by ordering US Postal Service review
President Trump recently tweeted that the US Postal Service's deal with Amazon was bad for taxpayers, but he has now taken his complaints beyond social media, the New York Times reported. The White House has convened a task force to examine the service's operations and "conduct a thorough evaluation of the operations and finances of the USPS," the order states.
Cambridge Analytica tries to shoot down Facebook data sharing claims
Cambridge Analytica is facing incredible pressure over the Facebook data sharing scandal -- and not surprisingly, it's determined to share its version of events before Mark Zuckerberg testifies in congressional hearings. The company has posted a "series of facts" that challenge some of the allegations made against the company. Not surprisingly, it started by insisting that it didn't do anything illegal: GSR "legally obtained" the data about Facebook users, and "did not illegally or inappropriately" scoop up and share data. Later on, it maintained that it "only collects data with informed consent."
Consumer tech lobbyist calls China tariffs a 'poison pill'
The White House might argue that its proposed tariffs on Chinese tech would punish the harvesting of American intellectual property while preserving the US economy, but don't tell that to the Consumer Technology Association's Gary Shapiro. The industry lobbying group CEO has issued a statement describing the tariffs and the likely Chinese response as a "poison pill" to production, the "innovation economy" and customers' wallets. Instead, he suggested that the US slap China-style requirements (not necessarily joint ventures) on foreign companies while pushing for greater transparency, competition and respect for patents.
