Good morning. The Trump administration’s assault on the legitimacy of the midterm elections has continued, with the US president announcing a $1m reward for reports of voter fraud, amid several legal actions by the Department of Justice to limit voting.
Donald Trump said the bounty payment was contingent on the arrest and conviction of those responsible. He did not disclose how he would pay for the rewards. Trump’s comments follow his repeated and unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud.
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What action is the administration trying to take against Washington state? The administration has asked Washington state to set aside any ballots received from more than 400 people it alleges are registered to vote without US citizenship. The request marks the third time this month that the justice department has brought a direct state challenge even as voting is under way.
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What is the latest in the battle over California voters? A US federal appeals court has rejected the Trump administration’s move to block California from counting the ballots of 20,000 registered voters that the justice department claims are non-citizens.
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Why is Vivek Ramaswamy facing criticism over an advert? The Republican nominee to be the governor of Ohio ran an ad featuring his opponent’s mother, who said she would not vote for her daughter. As Moira Donegan explains in this excoriating opinion piece, the estrangement between Amy Acton is decades long and stems from the sexual abuse Acton survived as a child.
Anthropic files for potentially record-breaking stock market valuation in crucial test for AI industry
Anthropic has publicly filed for a stock market listing in what is expected to be one of the largest debuts in history. The company’s float on the US market will serve as a test of the financial viability of the multitrillion-dollar AI boom.
Analysts and investors have valued the San Francisco-based company, founded in 2021, at more than $1.5tn.
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What are the key takeaways from the investor prospectus? The document reveals the AI research lab’s financials and the risks – more than 90 pages of them – that might negatively impact its business. Johana Bhuiyan has identified these four key takeaways.
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What has Anthropic’s model recently been accused of? Anthropic’s Claude model accessed voter data in the US state of Georgia, the AI company has confirmed, in the latest example of unauthorised behavior by the technology. The AI model managed to bypass a paywall to reach data that is publicly available but is typically accessible only after paying a fee.
Lula vows no return to dictatorship in Brazil after election win
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the Brazilian president, has vowed that dictatorship and fascism will never return to Brazil after winning a historic fourth term in power by defeating Flávio Bolsonaro, his far-right opponent. Bolsonaro, like his father four years ago, has still not conceded defeat to Lula, though his party issued a statement acknowledging the election result.
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What has happened to defeated Flávio Bolsonaro? The far-right senator was banned from leaving Brazil and ordered to surrender his passports hours after his dramatic defeat.
Justice department charges ex-FBI director James Comey for third time
The justice department charged the former FBI director James Comey with two counts of leaking information related to national defense, the third time the Trump administration has filed criminal charges against one of Trump’s most despised enemies. The charges, filed in a federal court in Washington DC, provide few details about what Comey is alleged to have leaked.
In other news …
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Walter Koenig, the actor best known as Chekov on Star Trek, has died at the age of 90. Koenig also worked as a writer, and his death was attributed to “old age”, with no other details provided.
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Prosecutors in Japan have filed formal charges against a US marine suspected of murdering and robbing a woman. Devin Jacob Ballard, a 20-year-old lance corporal, is charged with fatally strangling Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in the city.
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The animal rights group Peta has released a video showing experiments on infant monkeys at University of Washington. In the footage, newborn monkeys have been separated from their mothers and subjected to neurological tests after prenatal exposure to a neurotoxin.
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Two British nationals have been charged over an alleged plot to assist Iran’s intelligence service as part of the investigation into the suspected terrorist incident near RAF Fairford, where US forces are stationed.
Stat of the day: Microsoft to reportedly offer buyouts to 60,000 employees in latest cuts
Microsoft announced that it would offer buyouts to 60,000 employees in an effort to reduce costs amid the rising use of artificial intelligence, according to reports. The move is the latest example of how AI is reshaping tech companies and the greater workforce.
Culture pick: Glee’s pro-LGBTQ+ vision captured 2010s hope. Can a reboot handle Trump’s America?
The beloved high school TV show is returning in a different political climate. Alim Kheraj is skeptical that Ryan Murphy has the nuance this moment needs.
Don’t miss this: What you need to know about the most consequential election in Israel’s history
Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking a new mandate in Israel’s first election since the 7 October 2023 Hamas attacks. Emma Graham-Harrison in Jerusalem explains what is at stake and how a complicated electoral system will deliver the country’s verdict.
Climate check: Coastal California braces for flooding amid ‘record-breaking tides’
Coastal communities across California are bracing for days of flooding triggered by potentially “record-breaking tides”, after water levels began rising on Monday. The National Weather Service warned that significant coastal flooding was expected in San Diego and Orange counties until at least Thursday. The deluge could close roads and inundate homes, businesses and critical infrastructure.
Last Thing: ‘Lost’ 1978 Bowie tour film to play arenas in 2027
David Hemmings’s never-released concert movie from Bowie’s 1978 world tour will be presented in a multimedia show that aims to “create the illusion” that the late star is present on stage. It will premiere as part of the 77th Berlin film festival in February before touring.
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: theguardian.com
