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Today’s edition of quick hits.
* As you might’ve heard by now, there’s a new pope: “Habemus Papam! The world’s 1.4 billion Catholics have a new leader — Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, the first American-born pope. The 69-year-old is originally from Chicago and has chosen the papal name Leo XIV.”
* An intensifying crisis: “India and Pakistan appeared to be dangerously escalating their armed confrontation on Thursday, as both countries said that their military sites had come under attack, and heavy shelling and strikes were reported overnight on each side of their border.”
* An expensive military operation: “President Donald Trump’s fight against the Houthis never dealt a crippling blow to the militant group, but it has cost America more than $1 billion since March, including the thousands of bombs and missiles used in strikes, along with seven drones shot down and two fighter jets that sank, according to two U.S. officials briefed on the cost.”
* It’ll be interesting to see how Congress responds to this effort: “The FAA will embark on an ambitious three-year plan to modernize America’s air traffic control systems and phase out the ‘outdated technologies that are unable to meet’ modern demands, officials said Thursday.”
* All is not well at NIH: “The Trump administration terminated $1.81 billion in National Institutes of Health grants in less than 40 days, including $544 million in as-yet-unspent funds. That’s according to an analysis published Thursday in JAMA, which relies on data from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System.”
* Things aren’t great at CDC, either: “The Trump administration has terminated a federal advisory committee that issued guidance about preventing the spread of infections in health care facilities. The Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) crafted national standards for hand-washing, mask-wearing and isolating sick patients that most U.S. hospitals follow.”
* Things could be a lot better at NOAA, too: “Federal scientists will no longer update a list of weather disasters that cause billions of dollars in damage, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday. The list had been growing dramatically in recent years, a sign of both extreme weather and increasing development across the country.”
* Don’t be surprised if this bill returns to the floor for a second attempt next week: “A first-of-its-kind bill to regulate parts of the cryptocurrency industry stalled in the Senate on Thursday, after Democrats blocked it amid concerns in their party about how President Trump and his family are profiting from crypto. On a vote of 48 to 49, the measure failed to muster the 60 votes necessary to advance. It would have regulated so-called stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency tied to the value of an existing asset, often the U.S. dollar.”
See you tomorrow.