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Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. The US Supreme Court has weakened the Voting Rights Act's protections against racial discrimination in redistricting. NPR's Hansi Lo Wang reports. The ruling comes out of a case about Louisiana's congressional map.
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The Supreme Court's conservative majority has ruled that a second majority black congressional district that a lower court had ordered Louisiana's legislature to draw to get in line with the Voting Rights act is unconstitutional. This high court ruling reinterprets long standing protections under the Voting Rights Act Section 2 that have helped make sure racial minority voters are not shut out during redistricting in places where voting is racially polarized. In the court's majority opinion, Justice Samuel Alito says that the focus of Section 2 must be banning intentional racial discrimination, which many legal experts say will be hard to prove in court. Many redistricting experts now expect Republican controlled state legislatures in the south to eliminate at least some Democratic represented House districts that were likely protected under the Voting Rights act, though the timing is unclear. On Z. Luong, NPR News, Former FBI
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Director James Comey has made a brief appearance in federal court on charges stemming from an Instagram post. NPR's Kerry Johnson reports. The Justice Department is prosecuting Comey for allegedly threatening the president.
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Comey did not enter a plea, but he previously declared he's innocent and has faith in the justice system. A magistrate judge released him without bond last year. The former FBI director posted and then deleted a photo from the beach of Shel spelling out the numbers 8647. 86 is slang for get rid of and 47 is a reference to the 47th President Donald Trump. Trump says Comey was calling for his assassination, but Comey said he didn't know those numbers were connected to violence. Political speech gets strong First Amendment protection. Even some conservative lawyers say they think this case will be dismissed. Carrie Johnson, NPR News.
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The Federal Reserve's opting to keep interest rates where they are, defying President Trump's pressure to lower them. As Fed Chair Jerome Powell explains that the economic outlook remains highly uncertain and the Middle east conflicts added to the uncertainty.
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In the near term, higher energy prices will push up overall inflation. Beyond that, the scope and duration of potential effects on the economy remain unclear, as does the future course of the conflict itself.
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Powell's term as fed chair expires May 15. But despite months of public attacks by the president, Powell disclosed today he still plans to remain on the board for a period of time to be determined. He raised concerns about what he called a series of illegal attacks on the Fed's independence. Pentagon Comptroller Jay Hurst tells lawmakers the cost of the US war with Iran is estimated to be $25 billion. This is the first public estimate provided by the Pentagon on the cost of the conflict. From Washington, this is NPR News. King Charles III and Queen Camilla have paid their respects to victims at the National 911 Memorial in New York City. They were accompanied by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who was elected less than two months after the terrorist attacks and chairs the board of the 911 Memorial and Museum. The British monarch's state visit to the US Is his first as king. New research suggests artificial intelligence may not be the cost saver that many companies expected. NPR's Windsor Johnson reports. The study found global spending is projected to reach about $6.3 trillion this year, driven in part by investment in AI.
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The study was conducted by Gartner, a firm that tracks global technology spending. Analyst Whit Andrews says while companies are using AI to improve efficiency, the financial picture is still unclear.
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What might be true is that a lot people have spent more on AI than they did on people, and that they're asking themselves what they might have gotten if that money had gone towards the towards people, but more thoughtful and deliberate mix.
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Andrew says some companies are seeing savings in specific tasks like generating content or testing software. But overall, he says, AI is often used more broadly, creating more output and driving new spending, making it difficult to compare directly to human labor. Windsor Johnston, NPR News.
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The Trump administration celebration of America's 250th anniversary will soon include commemorative passports bearing President Trump's image. That version's optional. The State Department says they will be available shortly before the 4th of July. It's NPR News.
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