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Amid a lobbying blitz and a flood of campaign cash, senators inserted language into this week’s emergency spending bill that eliminates rules designed to prevent food contamination and foodborne illnesses at farms and restaurants, according to legislative text reviewed by The Lever. The bill would also limit the development of rules to regulate ultra-processed foods, despite such foods being derided by the “Make America Healthy Again Movement,” championed by President Donald Trump’s Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Last year saw a doubling of Americans who were hospitalized or killed by contaminated food outbreaks, according to data compiled by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. In all, there are now “10 million cases of foodborne illnesses annually in the United States (and) these illnesses result in about 53,300 hospitalizations and over 900 deaths,” according to a recent report by the Government Accountability Office. Despite that, the new funding bill blocks federal rules designed to trace sources of outbreaks, and to prevent contamination of produce. One provision in the legislation states that no funds “may be used to administer or enforce the ‘Requirements for Additional Traceability Records for Certain Foods,’ published on Nov. 21, 2022.” Originally proposed by the first Trump administration during the pandemic when COVID-19 posed severe risks of contaminating food systems, the Food and Drug Administration’s traceability rule aimed to establish new record-keeping standards for companies to track their food products across the supply chain. Those records could help regulators identify the point of origin in the event of a major disease outbreak or food contamination event. The rule applied to produce, seafood, and certain dairy products, such as cheese, and exempted small businesses from the rule.

The record showed that during Smith's investigation, his office sought limited phone toll data from eight senators and a member of the House in the days surrounding the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol.

While such records would not involve the content of any phone calls or messages, multiple Republicans on the committee incorrectly claimed at the hearing the next day that Smith had "tapped" their phones or "spied" on them.

"The subpoena's limited temporal range is consistent with a focused effort to confirm or refute reports by multiple news outlets that during and after the January 6 riots at the Capitol, President Trump and his surrogates attempted to call Senators to urge them to delay certification of the 2020 election results," Breuer and Koski wrote. "In fact, by the time Mr. Smith's team conducted the toll records analysis, it had been reported that President Trump and Rudy Giuliani tried calling Senators for such a purpose, with one Senator releasing a voicemail from Mr. Giuliani."

Since breaking the ceasefire agreement in March of 2025, the Israeli military has taken control of more than 75 percent of Gaza, trapping more than 2 million people into smaller and smaller areas of the decimated territory. There, the Israeli government is enforcing a policy of total starvation, barring even baby formula from entering Gaza. Hundreds have already starved to death. Massacres of Palestinians waiting for food aid have become a daily occurrence; the Israeli military has now killed over a thousand people at U.S.-backed food distribution sites.

WHY DIVEST

RISKS TO WASHINGTONIANS

Reducing exposure to companies that are complicit in these atrocities is not just a moral decision; it is also a financial decision. The fiduciary duty to steward pension funds should look at the risks for the funds over the next fifty years at at a minimum. The short term return on weapons and other companies who are complicit in genocide does not outweigh the serious risks involved in this long term investment. The WSIB is taking a major risk that could result in future losses.

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Walmart did announce a 25% reduction. It is offering this year’s basket for under $40, down from last year’s price of around $55.

But aside from the fact that any one company’s holiday promotion is not a good measure of the state of US inflation, the price of Walmart’s Thanksgiving basket is an especially poor proxy – because the composition of the basket changes every Thanksgiving.

Real-world usability will also hinge on emergency communications partners — if a local 911 or 112 center doesn’t have the necessary systems in place, the app won’t be able to complete video handoff even if the phone could otherwise do so.

That’s where ecosystem partnerships come into play. Numerous US and international agencies rely on vendor platforms like those provided by RapidSOS and other NG911 players to obtain advanced mobile location and additional data. Integrating Google’s live video into those workflows would turn the feature into a practical tool that works across thousands of public safety answering points, not just in isolated pilots.

Remember Alfred Nobel, later of Nobel Prize fame, who – reportedly – read his own obituary that was mistakenly printed when his brother died and a newspaper got mixed up. He was horrified at what he read and realized he should change his behavior. Don’t count on a newsroom mix-up: Decide what you would like your obituary to say and live the life to deserve it. Greatness does not come about through accumulating great amounts of money, great amounts of publicity or great power in government. When you help someone in any of thousands of ways, you help the world. Kindness is costless but also priceless. Whether you are religious or not, it’s hard to beat The Golden Rule as a guide to behavior. I write this as one who has been thoughtless countless times and made many mistakes but also became very lucky in learning from some wonderful friends how to behave better (still a long way from perfect, however). Keep in mind that the cleaning lady is as much a human being as the Chairman.


I wish all who read this a very happy Thanksgiving. Yes, even the jerks; it’s never too late to change. Remember to thank America for maximizing your opportunities. But it is – inevitably – capricious and sometimes venal in distributing its rewards.