Headline News from The Associated Press
AP Headline News - May 03 2024 10:00 (EDT)
This is AP News. I'm Rita Falle. It's day 11 for Donald Trump's hush money trial in New York. We are winning this trial. We had a fair trial. If we had a fair judge, I don't think it would have been allowed this trial to take place. The AP's Donald Waterrun, whether we should expect him to testify in his own defense at some point. Thursday, before proceedings, he claimed he can't testify. I'm not allowed to testify because of an unconstitutional gag order. We're appealing the gag order. The gag order is to stop Trump from making certain comments outside the trial. I'm Donna Water. Employers pulled back on hiring in April. The AP's Sagar Magani with what that means. Monthly job growth had been averaging 276,000 this year. In April, employers added 175,000, a decent increase, but far fewer than predicted and the smallest gain since October. It's assigned persistently. High interest rates may finally be cooling the hiring pace. The unemployment rate ticked up to 3.9%. The strong job market has been one factor in keeping inflation above the federal reserve's 2% goal. The Fed and Jerome Powell for now have put off any interest rate cuts until they get more confidence inflation is sustainably easing. I don't know how long it'll take the economy's weighing on voters as November nears and many Americans blame President Biden for stubbornly high prices. Sagar Magani, Washington, torrential rain is pounding southeastern Texas, forcing schools to cancel classes and closing some highways around Houston. Some residents have been ordered to evacuate. Police moved in on a protest encampment at New York University this morning at the request of school officials. Officers also began clearing an encampment at the new school and Greenwich Village this morning. The price of gas is about $0.11 more than a month ago. This is AP News. Now to the IRS and its auditing. The IRS says that it's taken steps to address a wide disparity in audit rates between black taxpayers and other filers. A study from January 2023 involving university researchers and the Treasury Department found that IRS data-driven algorithms selected black taxpayers for auditing up to 4.7 times the rate of non-black taxpayers. Officials with the IRS said that discriminatory audits degrade trust in the tax system. Additionally, the IRS said that it plans to raise audit rates on companies with assets above $250 million to 22.6 percent in 2026. That's up from an 8.8 percent rate in the tax year 2019. Hi up in Joani, Washington. This morning China launched a lunar probe to land on the far side of the moon and return with samples that could provide insights. I'm Rita Foley, AP News. American giant makes great clothing, sweatshirts, jeans, and more right here in the U.S. Visit american-giant.com and get 20 percent off your first order with Code Staple 20. That's 20 percent off your first order at american-giant.com Code Staple 20.