Nvidia CEO hails Trump’s plan to rescind some export curbs on AI chips to China
Reporting from Taipei, Taiwan
The head of American chipmaker Nvidia praised Trump’s move to modify U.S. curbs on the export of artificial intelligence chips to China, saying the Biden-era controls were a “failure” that had cost his and other U.S. companies billions of dollars in sales.
Under former President Joe Biden, the United States rolled out a three-tiered system of export curbs on advanced chips aimed at regulating the global diffusion of AI, blocking China entirely. While Biden said the curbs were necessary to slow China’s development of technology that could have military applications, critics said they could undermine U.S. tech leadership.
The Trump administration said last week that it plans to rescind some of those curbs and replace them with its own restrictions.
Nvidia’s billionaire chief executive, Jensen Huang, said his company controls 50% of the market in China today, compared with almost 95% at the start of the Biden administration in 2021.
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House committee continues marathon budget session
The House Rules Committee has moved to its final panel of key lawmakers testifying about the Republican budget bill.
The witnesses include the leaders of the committees on Agriculture, Education and the Workforce, Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce; they are some of the most important committees involved with the bill, with jurisdiction over the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (also known as food stamps), taxes and Medicaid.
The hearing will still likely last several more hours. There are now 537 amendments to the bill, not including a “manager’s amendment” that makes final changes negotiated by GOP leadership.
Democrats on the Rules Committee continue to complain about the 1 a.m. start time of the meeting, prompting Republicans to push back, with Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, saying “when you got a great product, you want to get after it and get it passed.”
Hegseth orders new review of U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered a “comprehensive review” of the U.S. military’s chaotic 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying it is needed to ensure accountability for what happened.
Trump has often criticized the Biden administration over the evacuation, during which 13 U.S. service members and more than 150 Afghans were killed in a bombing at the airport in Kabul. The Biden administration said the chaos was a result of troop reductions and a lack of planning by the first Trump administration after it struck a 2020 deal with the Taliban to withdraw U.S. forces.
The new review is “an important step toward regaining faith and trust with the American people and all those who wear the uniform and is prudent based on the number of casualties and equipment lost during the execution of this withdrawal operation,” Hegseth said in a memo yesterday.
The U.S. withdrawal has already been the subject of multiple reviews, including by the U.S. military, the State Department and House Republicans. Hegseth said the new review would be led by his chief spokesperson, Sean Parnell.
Democratic challenger defeats Pittsburgh mayor in a primary, after a clash over the party’s future
Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor defeated Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey in the city’s hotly contested Democratic mayoral primary, The Associated Press projected last night, after a race which garnered national attention as a notable proxy fight between progressives and center-left Democrats.
With more than 85% of the vote in, O’Connor led Gainey 54%-46% in the nominating contest.
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Gaetz flirts with a run for Florida governor, adding a bit of chaos to the race
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, a close ally of Trump, is still considering a run for governor of Florida — a twist that complicates a Republican primary that already has a Trump-endorsed candidate and, potentially, the current governor’s wife.
Trump has backed Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., for the 2026 race, and a Trump adviser said the endorsement of Donalds — and only Donalds — “is set” no matter what happens. But with Gaetz and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ wife, Casey DeSantis, in the wings, the field remains unsettled.
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After criticizing South Africa for months, Trump will meet with its president
Trump will host South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House today in an effort to improve relations between the two countries after months of tensions.
The United States admitted 59 white South Africans as refugees this month after they claimed they were fleeing violence and discrimination. Trump and top adviser Elon Musk, who was born in South Africa, have claimed the Afrikaners, white descendants of Dutch and French settlers, were targets of a “genocide.” South African leaders have fiercely disputed the claims.
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