News Wrap: Trump announces 25% tariffs on cars and trucks from the European Union

In our Friday news cover, Trump says he will raise tariffs next week on cars and trucks from the European Union, the Pentagon says it has struck deals with seven major tech companies to use its artificial intelligence tools, a former Miami congressman with ties to Rubio is found guilty of secretly lobbying on behalf of Venezuela, and events are being held around the world to mark International Workers’ Day, also known as International Workers’ Day.

Amna Nawaz:

President Trump said he will raise tariffs next week to 25 percent on cars and trucks coming from the European Union, accusing the European Union of not adhering to their trade agreement.

The new tariffs come at a time when the global economy is already suffering from the Iran war. Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump did not explain how he would raise the tariffs or why he chose to do so now.

President Donald Trump:

We raised the tariffs because they were not adhering, as usual, to the agreement we reached. We have a trade agreement with the European Union. They were not committed to it.

Amna Nawaz:

Trump was referring to the agreement reached with the European Union last summer, which imposed 15 percent tariffs on most European goods. Then the Supreme Court ruled in February that much of his tariff agenda was illegal.

The Pentagon says it has struck deals with seven major technology companies to use their artificial intelligence tools within the department’s secret networks. They include SpaceX, OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Nvidia, some of which already had deals with the Department of Defense. Officials say the companies will allow the Pentagon to use their technology for any “lawful use.”

This criterion lies at the heart of the legal dispute regarding anthropics, which was not included in today’s announcement. The artificial intelligence startup has objected to the use of its technology in fully autonomous weapons and local surveillance.

In Florida, a former congressman from Miami with ties to Secretary of State Marco Rubio was convicted today of secret lobbying on behalf of Venezuela. The jury found David Rivera guilty of all charges, including failure to register as a foreign agent and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

The case centered on a $50 million pressure campaign to convince the first Trump administration to ease sanctions on the government of then-President Nicolas Maduro. Rubio himself testified, although he has not been accused of any wrongdoing. Rivera was taken into custody and faces approximately 10 years in prison.

In Texas, an investigation is underway into the causes of a small plane crash in the Hill Country region of the state, killing all five people on board. The Cessna plane went down shortly before midnight last night in Wimberley, Texas, about 40 miles southwest of Austin.

An air traffic controller noticed the plane moving erratically, and a nearby pilot said the plane had issued a distress signal before it crashed. The names of the people on board have not yet been released, but the local pickleball club says they were members who were traveling to a tournament.

In Washington state, police arrested a high school student suspected of wounding five people in a stabbing. The attack occurred yesterday at Voss High School in Tacoma, south of Seattle. A police spokesman said that first responders were called after reports of a fight between students. The campus was briefly closed and classes were canceled for the day.

Authorities say all of the victims are now in stable condition, as well as the suspect who was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

Events are held around the world on Labor Day, also known as International Workers’ Day, which honors the efforts of the global labor movement. In Madrid, activists chanted “Long live the working class” and organized a collective bargaining march in Seoul.

In Taksim Square in Istanbul, demonstrations turned into violence. Turkish police arrested hundreds of demonstrators amid the clashes. In many cases, the marches highlighted the ripple effects of the Iran war, such as rising energy costs and commodity prices, as this demonstrator in the Philippines explained.

Mary Ann Castillo, May First Movement (through translator):

At first, you may think there is no connection. But as we saw when war broke out in the Middle East, crude oil and gasoline prices rose. There is a domino effect. Prices are rising across the board.

Amna Nawaz:

Here in the United States, Labor Day is not a public holiday, as it is in many other parts of the world, but cities including New York and Chicago have seen marches and boycotts, where opposition to President Trump’s policies has been a common theme.

Stocks on Wall Street ended the day mixed after some strong corporate earnings. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell about 150 points. The Nasdaq rose more than 200 points, or nearly 1 percent. The S&P 500 finished the week at a new all-time high.

It is a lost and found case with a Hollywood ending. German airline Lufthansa apologized to a Russian director today for briefly losing his Oscar during a transatlantic flight. Pavel Talankin and his co-director David Borenstein won an Academy Award for their documentary “Mr. Nobody vs. Putin.”

Bornstein posted on social media yesterday that TSA agents in New York told Talankin that he couldn’t bring his Oscar on the plane because it could be considered a weapon. They sent it under the plane in a box instead. After international outcry, the airline said the statuette had been found and returned to its rightful owner.