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148 Democrats back noncitizen voting in DC as GOP raises alarm about foreign agents

Politics 3 Mins Read

The majority of House Democrats voted in favor of allowing non-citizens to participate in Washington, D.C. elections on Tuesday.

The House of Representatives passed a bill led by Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, to prohibit non-U.S. citizens from voting in elections in the nation’s capital.

It passed 266 to 148, with 56 Democrats joining Republicans in passing the measure. One Democrat voted ‘present,’ while 148 voted against the bill.

‘I believe strongly in not having federal overreach, but we have jurisdiction, Congress has jurisdiction over Washington, District of Columbia…and we don’t like to utilize our jurisdiction and our authority, but in this case, they’ve gone too far,’ Pfluger told Fox News Digital in an interview before the vote.

D.C.’s progressive city council passed the Local Resident Voting Rights Amendment Act in 2022, granting non-U.S. citizens the ability to vote in local elections if they’ve lived in the district for at least 30 days.

Noncitizens can also hold local elected office in the D.C. government.

The local measure has been a frequent target of GOP attacks, with Republican national security hawks raising alarms about the possibility of hostile foreign agents participating in D.C. elections.

But progressive Democrats like Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., who spoke out against the bill on Tuesday afternoon, have dismissed that as an implausible scenario. 

‘Republicans claim that Congress has a constitutional duty to legislate on local D.C. matters, but this is historically and legally incorrect. Republicans legislate on local D.C. matters only when they think they can score political points, such as by demonizing immigrants,’ Frost said during debate on the House floor.

‘They only bring it up to the floor when they think they can score political points, taking away the democratic rights of people here in D.C. and home rule.’

Frost also argued that it was ‘highly unlikely’ foreign officials would vote in those elections, claiming they would have to ‘renounce their right to vote in their home country’ and because ‘D.C. has no authority in federal matters.’

But Pfluger, who spoke with Fox News Digital before the vote, was optimistic that it would get at least some Democratic support.

He noted that 52 Democrats voted for the bill when it passed the House in the previous Congress. It was never taken up in the formerly Democrat-controlled Senate, however.

‘It’s hard to go back to your district as a Democrat and say, yeah, I want foreign agents to be able to vote in our elections – ‘Oh yeah, it’s not federal elections,’ some may say. But it has an impact on the way the city is run,’ Pfluger said.

‘This could be Russian embassy personnel, they could be Chinese embassy personnel – a number of folks. It’s just wrong. It goes against the fabric of our society,’ he added.

Another bill receiving a vote on Tuesday is legislation that would grant D.C. police the ability to negotiate punishments via collective bargaining, and would help shield the capital’s police force from at least some liability by installing a statute of limitations against the Metropolitan Police Department. 

That legislation was introduced by New York Republican Rep. Andrew Garbarino.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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Politics

Trump administration prevails as appeals court pauses lower court decision blocking contested tariffs

Politics 3 Mins Read

President Trump’s tariffs will remain in effect for now after a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday to pause a lower court decision that had blocked them. 

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit granted the stay and scheduled an expedited review of the case, which centers on whether Trump exceeded his authority under federal law.

The case involves challenges from five small businesses and a coalition of states who argue that President Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose tariffs was unlawful. 

The U.S. Court of International Trade sided with the plaintiffs earlier this year, issuing an order to block the tariffs. That decision is now on hold pending further review.

The Federal Circuit found that both sides raised substantial arguments and that a stay was appropriate under the legal standards used to evaluate such motions. 

The court’s brief order noted that the stay was necessary to preserve the status quo while the appeal proceeds. The case will now be heard by the full bench of active judges in an en banc session, a rare move reserved for matters of exceptional legal significance.

Oral arguments are scheduled for July 31 at 10:00 a.m. in Courtroom 201 at the Federal Circuit courthouse in Washington, D.C.

The Liberty Justice Center, which represents the five businesses, criticized the court’s decision to allow the tariffs to remain temporarily but welcomed the accelerated review.

‘We’re disappointed the federal circuit allowed the unlawful tariffs to remain in place temporarily,’ said Jeffrey Schwab, Senior Counsel and Director of Litigation at the Liberty Justice Center. 

‘It’s important to note that every court to rule on the merits so far has found these tariffs unlawful, and we have faith that this court will likewise see what is plain as day: that IEEPA does not allow the president to impose whatever tax he wants whenever he wants. We are glad the federal circuit recognized the importance of this case, and agreed to hear it before the full court on an expedited schedule.’

The full opinion can be read here.

White House spokesman Kush Desai defended the Trump administration’s executive powers in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying it welcomed the US Circuit Court of Appeals’ stay order.

‘The Trump administration is legally using the powers granted to the executive branch by the Constitution and Congress to address our country’s national emergencies of persistent goods trade deficits and drug trafficking. The US Circuit Court of Appeals’ stay order is a welcome development, and we look forward to ultimately prevailing in court,’ Desai said.
 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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Politics

Republican senator teams up with Democrat to push $15 per hour minimum wage plus annual inflation increases

Politics 2 Mins Read

Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Peter Welch, D-Vt., are pushing legislation that would hike the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour and provide for annual increases to account for inflation.

The proposal would implement a dramatic increase from the current $7.25 per hour federal minimum wage, which has been in place for more than 15 years.

‘For decades, working Americans have seen their wages flatline. One major culprit of this is the failure of the federal minimum wage to keep up with the economic reality facing hardworking Americans every day. This bipartisan legislation would ensure that workers across America benefit from higher wages,’ Hawley said, according to press releases from both lawmakers.

The purchasing power of the U.S. dollar has eroded significantly over the years due to inflation.

Under the proposed legislation, the yearly increases to the initial $15 per hour federal minimum wage would be based on ‘the percentage increase, if any, in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (or a successor index), as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ and would be ’rounded to the nearest multiple of $0.05, if the amount … is not a multiple of $0.05.’

‘We’re in the midst of a severe affordability crisis, with families in red and blue states alike struggling to afford necessities like housing and groceries. A stagnant federal minimum wage only adds fuel to the fire. Every hardworking American deserves a living wage that helps put a roof over their head and food on the table–$7.25 an hour doesn’t even come close,’ Welch said, according to the releases.

‘Times have changed, and working families deserve a wage that reflects today’s financial reality. I’m proud to lead this bipartisan effort to raise the minimum wage nationwide to help more folks make ends meet,’ the senator added. 

In post on X, conservative commentator Dana Loesch decried the idea of raising the federal minimum wage, pushing back against Hawley’s advocacy for the policy.

‘This is a horrible, progressive idea,’ Loesch asserted in the tweet.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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Business

‘He’s like Iron Man’: Jensen Huang lit up London Tech Week — and we were in the room

Business 4 Mins Read

LONDON — Wherever Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang goes, excitement follows — this time, all the way to London Tech Week.

The Nvidia boss — whom Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives dubs the “godfather of AI” — is more like a rockstar these days, given his wide-spanning effect on the AI industry.

“The amount of infrastructure required for AI wouldn’t be possible without that man,” one attendee at London Tech Week said.

“He’s like Iron Man,” the attendee added, referencing the popular Marvel superhero who is a tech billionaire inventor under the name of Tony Stark.

The lines to get into the Olympia auditorium were already building around 40 minutes before Jensen was set to take the stage alongside U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Not everyone managed to get in — but there were helpfully screens around the venue where people could catch a glimpse of Huang’s talk.

The Nvidia CEO gave his continued bullish assessment of artificial intelligence, calling it an “incredible technology” and saying it should be seen as infrastructure, just like electricity.

There weren’t any multi-billion-dollar investments touted at London Tech Week. But the biggest win for Starmer and the U.K. by far was Huang’s lavish praise for the country.

Wearing his trademark leather jacket, Huang called the U.K. the “envy of the world” that is in the midst of a “Goldilocks circumstance,” boasting a vibrant venture capital ecosystem, as well as budding AI entrepreneurs from leading firms including Google DeepMind, Synthesia, Wayve and ElevenLabs.

Speaking alongside Huang, Starmer spoke in an animated manner as he touted Nvidia’s investments in the U.K. Earlier in the day, the U.S. chipmaker announced a new “U.K. sovereign AI industry forum,” as well as commitments from cloud vendors Nscale and Nebius to deploy new facilities containing thousands of its Blackwell GPU chips.

Starmer spoke at length about AI’s promise and the ways in which it could ease the burdens faced by the U.K.’s public sector institutions, from hospitals to schools.

Huang added that the U.K. is “such a great place to invest,” noting that Nvidia plans to partner with the country to upskill tech workers and build out domestic AI infrastructure.

“Infrastructure enables more research — more research, more breakthroughs, more companies,” the Nvidia chief said. “That flywheel will start taking off. It’s already quite large, but we’re just going to get that flywheel going.”

Starmer thanked Huang for his point, commenting that “the confidence it gives when you explain it that way is huge.”

“From our point of view, we’re really pleased to be seen that way,” the U.K. leader said.

The pair shook hands at the end.

Altogether, there was a lot of energy in the room. Huang said he was “excited” for London Tech Week, and he was met with a round of applause from the audience.

Huang has become the CEO everyone wants to be seen with. Nvidia has positioned itself as central to the AI revolution, which many commentators say is in the early innings.

Nvidia wants that revolution to be built on its chips. And for countries like the U.K., these moments provide a chance for the country to tout its investment potential and for its leader to publicly share a stage with the man seen as powering the AI push.

London was Huang’s first stop in a broader European tour.

The Nvidia boss will travel to Paris later this week, where the chipmaker will host its GTC conference. Politicians including President Emmanuel Macron, who has driven France’s ambition to become a European AI hub, will also likely want some face time with Huang.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

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Business

Chipotle to launch Adobo Ranch dip after sluggish start to the year

Business 2 Mins Read

Chipotle Mexican Grill is hoping that Americans’ love for ranch will boost its sales.

On June 17, the burrito chain is launching Adobo Ranch, a spicier take on the iconic condiment that has transcended salads to adorn pizza, chicken wings and chips. The menu item is Chipotle’s first new dip since queso blanco, which launched in 2020.

The debut comes as Chipotle tries to recover from a rough start to the year. In the first quarter, the company reported its first same-store sales decline since 2020. Executives cited a pullback from consumers who had become more concerned about the economy.

The company also lowered the top end of its outlook for full-year same-store sales growth and said traffic wouldn’t grow until the second half of the year.

Shares of Chipotle have fallen 12% this year, dragging its market cap down to $71 billion.

But Adobo Ranch could help to boost the company’s sales if it draws cautious diners back to the chain’s restaurants.

The dipping sauce is made with adobo peppers, sour cream and herbs and spices, according to the company. Adding Adobo Ranch to an order will cost an extra 75 cents.

Ranch outsells ketchup, although NIQ retail sales data shows that mayo still holds the top spot as the favorite condiment of U.S. consumers.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

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Business

Walmart is using its own fintech firm to provide credit cards after dumping Capital One

Business 3 Mins Read

Walmart’s majority-owned fintech startup OnePay said Monday it was launching a pair of credit cards with a bank partner for customers of the world’s biggest retailer.

OnePay is partnering with Synchrony, a major behind-the-scenes player in retail cards, which will issue the cards and handle underwriting decisions starting in the fall, the companies said.

OnePay, which was created by Walmart in 2021 with venture firm Ribbit Capital, will handle the customer experience for the card program through its mobile app.

Walmart had leaned on Capital One as the exclusive provider of its credit cards since 2018, but sued the bank in 2023 so that it could exit the relationship years ahead of schedule. At the time, Capital One accused Walmart of seeking to end its partnership so that it could move transactions to OnePay.

The Walmart card program had 10 million customers and roughly $8.5 billion in loans outstanding last year, when the partnership with Capital One ended, according to Fitch Ratings.

For Walmart and its fintech firm, the arrangement shows that, in seeking to quickly scale up in financial services, OnePay is opting to partner with established players rather than going it alone.

In March, OnePay announced that it was tapping Swedish fintech firm Klarna to handle buy now, pay later loans at the retailer, even after testing its own installment loan program.

In its quest to become a one-stop shop for Americans underserved by traditional banks, OnePay has methodically built out its offerings, which now include debit cards, high-yield savings accounts and a digital wallet with peer-to-peer payments.

OnePay is rolling out two options: a general purpose credit card that can be used anywhere Mastercard is accepted and a store card that will only allow Walmart purchases.

Customers whose credit profiles don’t allow them to qualify for the general purpose card will be offered the store card, according to a person with knowledge of the program.

OnePay hasn’t yet disclosed the rewards expected for making purchases with the cards. The Synchrony partnership was reported earlier by Bloomberg.

“Our goal with this credit card program is to deliver an experience for consumers that’s transparent, rewarding, and easy to use,” OnePay CEO Omer Ismail said in the Monday release.

“We’re excited to be partnering with Synchrony to launch a program at Walmart that checks each of those boxes and will help serve millions of people,” Ismail said.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

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Stock

The Best Five Sectors, #22

Stock 5 Mins Read

Sector Rotation: A Week of Stability Amidst Market Dynamics

Last week presented an intriguing scenario in our sector rotation portfolio.

For the first time in recent memory, we witnessed complete stability across all sector positions — no changes whatsoever in the rankings.

  1. (1) Industrials – (XLI)
  2. (2) Utilities – (XLU)
  3. (3) Consumer Staples – (XLP)
  4. (4) Communication Services – (XLC)
  5. (5) Financials – (XLF)
  6. (6) Technology – (XLK)
  7. (7) Real-Estate – (XLRE)
  8. (8) Materials – (XLB)
  9. (9) Consumer Discretionary – (XLY)
  10. (10) Healthcare – (XLV)
  11. (11) Energy – (XLE)

Weekly RRG: Steady as She Goes

The weekly Relative Rotation Graph (RRG) continues to paint a picture of gradual shifts. Utilities and Consumer Staples, while still occupying high RS ratio levels, are moving lower on the chart. Utilities clings to the leading quadrant, but Consumer Staples has just crossed into weakening territory.

Financials and Communication Services remain in the weakening quadrant, but their RS momentum levels have stabilized. Communication Services shows a slight uptick, while Financials maintains a negative heading — albeit well above the 100 mark.

Industrials, our current star performer, continues its reign in the leading quadrant. It’s gaining ground on the RS-ratio axis while experiencing a minor dip in RS momentum. All in all, the weekly picture remains essentially unchanged from last week.

Daily RRG

Shifting our focus to the daily RRG, we start to see more nuanced movements:

  • Staples and Utilities are rotating within the improving quadrant, losing ground on the RS momentum axis without gaining in RS ratio. This suggests further weakening on the weekly chart is likely.
  • Financials have made their way into the improving quadrant — a positive development that builds on last week’s progress.
  • Communication Services is practically aligned with the benchmark (SPY), showing little distinctive movement.
  • Industrials continues deeper into the weakening quadrant, but — and this is crucial — its RRG velocity (the distance between tail nodes) is very low. This keeps the door open for a potential curl back up before hitting the lagging quadrant, which would reinforce its strong position.

Industrials: Breaking New Ground

The price chart for Industrials is confirming its current strength with a break above overhead resistance. This breakthrough is likely to unlock more upside potential, keeping the sector firmly at the top of our list. The relative performance continues to reflect this positive momentum.

Utilities: Struggling at Resistance

Once again, Utilities tested its overhead resistance (between 83 and 84) but failed to break higher. Prices retreated into the range by week’s end. This setback is causing relative strength to drop back into its sideways trading range, with RRG lines rolling over. The sector needs a swift improvement in both price and relative strength to maintain its recent strong position.

Consumer Staples: Déjà Vu

Consumer Staples finds itself in a similar boat to Utilities. Another attempt to break overhead resistance around 83.5 was met with a pullback. This pattern has been repeating for weeks, and it’s taking its toll on the raw relative strength line.

While the RS ratio remains high — a legacy of strength since the year’s start — the rapid loss of relative momentum is causing the RS ratio to roll over. Like Utilities, consumer staples need a quick price improvement to maintain its top-five position.

Communication Services: Closing In

Communication Services had a strong week, closing near the range’s high end and approaching its previous peak just above 105. This improvement has kept the raw relative strength line against SPY within its rising channel. Continued strength, especially if XLC breaks above 105, should keep relative strength in an uptrend and likely cause the RRG lines to curl back up soon.

Financials: Battling Resistance

Financials continue to struggle with an old rising support line, now acting as resistance near the 52 area where the previous high is located. This price stagnation has caused the raw RS line to break its rising support, leading the RRG lines to roll over. The RS momentum line has already dropped below 100, and the RS ratio is starting to move lower.

We’ve seen the daily tail for XLF pick up slightly — this acceleration needs to continue in the coming weeks for XLF to maintain its top-five position.

Portfolio Performance

Due to the positions of Consumer Staples and Utilities, our top five remains defensively positioned. This has caused our underperformance versus SPY to widen slightly — we’re now just over 6% behind since the start of the year.

Is this ideal? Of course not. But here’s the thing — trend-following systems need time to play out. The worst thing you can do is abandon a strategy just because it’s going against you for a few months. (And let’s be honest, it’s only been since May — so two months.)

I will stay the course, maintain discipline, and continue to track this portfolio based on our established metrics. It’ll be interesting to see how long it takes for this strategy to come back on top and start outperforming SPY again. Patience is key in these situations.

#StayAlert and have a great week. –Julius

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Stock

A Few Charts Worth Watching This Week

Stock 5 Mins Read

There are a few very different setups unfolding this week that are worth a closer look: two software-related names that are struggling to reclaim their winning ways, plus one lovable and reliable stock wagging its tail in the spotlight. 

Let’s break it down.

Adobe (ADBE): Mind the Gaps

Adobe Systems, Inc. (ADBE) has been a heartbreaker for investors over the last several years. ADBE stock has traded lower after six of its last seven quarterly reports. That includes consecutive losses of nearly -14%. So what should investors be watching this time around?

Coming into Thursday’s release, shares are lower by 6.4% for the year and have just made back their losses from last quarter. Overall, shares remain -35% from all-time highs set back in January 2024.

Investors will be looking for progress on the AI monetization front. Is annual recurring revenue from Adobe’s Firefly and Acrobat products showing a strong growth projection? And, perhaps more importantly, what’s the guidance going to look like? Last quarter, Adobe issued conservative guidance, and shareholders were punished as a result. Will forward-looking guidance meet investor expectations?

Technically, ADBE shares are trying to find that bottom (see chart below). Progress has been made, as the stock is taking minor steps to climb back from the morass.

FIGURE 1. DAILY CHART OF ADBE STOCK. The stock is trading between the 100- and 200-day moving averages. The stock price could gain momentum and move higher or lower after earnings.Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

On the chart, we’re seeing the following signs:

  • Shares have broken their intermediate downtrend.
  • Shares have recaptured the 50-day moving average.
  • Shares have almost filled the downward gap caused by last quarter’s results.
  • Shares have recaptured the 100-day moving average and held for now.

That said, there’s still work to be done, and knowing how this stock gaps in earnings means a move may be coming.

Let’s examine those last three gaps. Each one has been negative, and each time, price action continued in the trend’s direction for several weeks before making a bottom and rallying back. The same thing happened on the last gap up, as momentum in the direction of the gap continued for weeks. Point being, it’s a good idea to watch those gaps. 

ADBE is in a “no man’s land” between key moving averages. The longer-term trend remains down, and it may take a huge report to stay above the 200-day moving average on a rally. It’s one to avoid for now, but the short-term play after earnings may be to go with the momentum of any gap.

Chewy (CHWY): Any New Tricks in Store?

Chewy Inc. (CHWY), the online retailer of pet food and pet-related products, broke out to new highs just last week ahead of this week’s earnings. Shares have been on a roll since their April 7 low, gaining over 60% in that time (see chart below).

FIGURE 2. DAILY CHART OF CHWY STOCK. The stock price has been in beast mode since early April, up more than 60%. With the stock in overbought territory, it could pull back to $44 or $40. Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

Technically, the stock broke out of a textbook rounded bottom base and zoomed to its anticipated upside target of $50. CHWY shares seem overextended as they have been overbought for weeks (Relative Strength Index > 80). The stock price could roll over even on good news, given its recent run. Long-term investors may want to stay in the name and sit on gains.

For those begging for a pullback, there are nice levels of support at $44 and ultimately at $40 if earnings bite investors. This should be a good opportunity to consider this name for your portfolio as the long-term technicals look great, and the company is known for its loyal user base.

Oracle (ORCL): Time to Flip the Script?

Oracle Corp. (ORCL) will report earnings on Wednesday, looking to snap a two-quarter losing streak. Shares of the software giant have rallied nicely off their lows, but are still -13% from their December peak. Investors would like to see its cloud revenue growth continue to expand thanks to agreements with OpenAI, Meta, and Nvidia.

The one concern is the continued capital spending necessary to power the data centers required to meet AI demand. Are the company’s recent capital expenditures putting pressure on margins and impacting ORCL stock’s bottom line? 

Technically, shares have been on a nice run, eclipsing key levels to get back on track. Longer-term, the stock price started the week above its downtrend line, with respect to annual highs.

FIGURE 3. DAILY CHART OF ORCL STOCK. From a technical perspective, the stock price has broken above a long-term downtrend. Will upside momentum continue after earnings? Keep an eye on this stock.Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

The rally looks similar to many other technology names that are trying to get back to their old highs. The good news is that, given the change in trajectory, even weakness looks to have a soft landing spot and good entry point from a risk/reward perspective.

The stock reminds me of the S&P 500 ($SPX) a little bit — struggling to get to new highs and losing a bit of momentum. A pullback to its 200-day moving average around $163 would be a natural retracement — a flag if you will — and a good entry point on any drawdown after positive news.

If any signs of strength emerge, look for shares to run into the $190s before stalling again.

The Bottom Line

We have three different stories unfolding:

  • ADBE’s stock needs to clear earnings hurdles and reclaim trust.
  • CHWY’s stock is on fire, but might need to cool down.
  • ORCL’s stock is rebuilding momentum, and has potential upside if cloud numbers impress.

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