Biden-Trump UAW trips - Canada parliament honors Nazi - Amazon's AI investment

Source: Bloomberg

1. Summary
   President Biden is expected to join striking UAW members on the picket line in Michigan on Tuesday. The visit would mark the first time a sitting president has visited a strike in at least 100 years. It will come one day before a similar trip by former President Trump. Trump's trip was announced first, and Trump accuses Biden of only visiting Michigan to compete with him. Trump won Michigan in 2016, but Biden won it in 2020.
   
   Trump will not join the picket line, but he will speak to hundreds of union members in Detroit. He is expected to focus on the Biden administration's push for electric vehicles, as some worry new EV factories will not employ as many workers as traditional plants. Other GOP presidential candidates have either said little about the strikes or have criticized the UAW.
   
   UAW President Shawn Fain has ruled out support for Trump, but under his leadership, the union has withheld its endorsement of Biden and rebuffed the White House's contract mediation offers.

   Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
   Democrats embrace Biden’s upcoming visit to Michigan UAW picket lines.
   Washington Post (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 74% • 6 min read
   

1. Different political viewpoint
   UAW strike: Where the 2024 candidates stand on the historic work stoppages.
   Washington Examiner (Right) • Factual Grade 66% • 5 min read

1. Selected long-read
   UAW strike: Bidenomics on the line.
   Slate (Left) • Factual Grade 76% • 6 min read

Source: South China Morning Post via Yahoo! News

1. Summary
   President Biden is hosting leaders from 18 Pacific island nations for a two-day summit. Biden started the Pacific Islands Forum by announcing formal US recognition of two new island nations, the Cook Islands and Niue. The US is also opening new embassies in the Solomon Islands and Tonga, and there are plans to establish an embassy in Vanuatu next year.
   
   Biden pledged to work with Congress to secure $200 million for the region, some of which will help build underseas cables. It follows an $800 million commitment announced at last year's summit. The US is trying to catch up with China's engagement of the nations. The islands have sizable maritime claims and have historically been used to project naval power.
   
   The prime minister of the Solomon Islands, who signed a security cooperation agreement with China last year, did not attend the summit. The island nation leaders say their priority is climate change, something Biden promised would be discussed at the summit. Some observers say the US has over-emphasized geopolitics in its outreach to the islands.

   Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
   Biden pledges more aid to Pacific islands to counter growing Chinese influence.
   The Guardian (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 74% • 4 min read
   

1. Different political viewpoint
   Pacific island leaders hope for more substance from US summit.
   Radio Free Asia (US State-affiliated Media) • Factual Grade 66% • 5 min read

1. Selected long-read
   The contradiction at the heart of U.S. policy toward the Pacific islands. (2022)
   Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (Center) • Factual Grade 74% • 5 min read

Source: Bloomberg

1. Summary
   The UK's Ministry of Defense agreed to temporarily put troops on standby to support London police's counterterrorism work after 100 of London's Metropolitan Police officers turned in their guns. The Met officers were protesting a murder charge filed against one of their colleagues.
   
   The anonymous officer was charged last week over a September 2022 shooting that killed an unarmed 24-year-old. The officer allegedly fired a single bullet through the windshield of the man's car. The protesting officers say the risk of criminal prosecution makes it difficult for them to perform their duties.
   
   2,595 of the Met's 34,000 officers are armed. About 0.05% of its armed operations involve officers opening fire. Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley welcomed a national review of armed policing, but called for officers to have greater legal protection. But Solicitor Harriet Wistrich, who represented the family of a man killed by police in 2005, said armed officers should not be above the same law that applies to everyone else.

   Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
   British troops offer to assist police after officers turn in weapons in protest.
   United Press International (Center) • Factual Grade 77% • 2 min read
   

1. Selected local viewpoint
   Metropolitan Police: MoD offers military support after armed officers turn in weapons.
   BBC (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 67% • 5 min read

1. Selected long-read
   How police compare in different democracies. (2022)
   Council on Foreign Relations (Moderate Right) • Factual Grade 75% • 10 min read

Source: Bloomberg

1. Summary
   On Monday Amazon announced it would invest up to $4 billion in the generative AI startup Anthropic. Anthropic is best known for its Claude chatbot, which it claims is a safer and more ethical alternative to other chatbots. The deal parallels Microsoft's $13 billion investment in OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT.
   
   Amazon will acquire a minority stake in Anthropic and the startup will incorporate Amazon's technology, including by using Amazon Web Services as a cloud computing provider and Amazon's custom chips. Some observers believe AWS, which has a 40% share of the cloud market, could help Amazon perform well in the AI race. Anthropic says its relationship with Google, which has a 10% stake in the startup, will continue.
   
   Meanwhile, OpenAI has announced that ChatGPT will get new features, including the ability to create responses based on user-submitted images and respond to voices. The bot is also getting a voice of its own, but will have just five voices, out of fear that it could be used to scam people.

   Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
   Amazon will invest up to $4 billion into OpenAI rival Anthropic.
   The Verge (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 77% • 2 min read
   

1. Different political viewpoint
   ChatGPT can now respond to your voice and analyze your photos.
   CNET (Center) • Factual Grade 74% • 2 min read

1. Selected long-read
   How Amazon is racing to catch up with Microsoft and Google in generative AI.
   CNBC (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 71% • 5 min read

Source: The Independent via Yahoo! News

1. Summary
   Calls have grown for the resignation of Anthony Rota, the Speaker of the House in the Canadian Parliament. Last week, at a parliamentary session attended by Ukraine's President Zelensky and Prime Minister Trudeau, Rota honored a man that has since been identified as a Nazi fighter.
   
   Rota, after comparing Zelensky to Winston Churchill, asked to recognize a WWII veteran "who fought for Ukrainian independence against the Russians and continues to support the troops today even at his age of 98." The assembly gave the man, Yaroslav Hunka, a standing ovation. Hunka served in the First Ukrainian Division, another name for the 14th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS, the Nazi Party's military wing.
   
   The voluntary unit was formed in 1943 and is accused of massacring hundreds of Polish villagers in 1944. After the war, thousands of the division's veterans resettled in the West. In blog posts from 2010 and 2011, Hunka called 1941 to 1943 the happiest years of his life. In 2021 Zelensky denounced a march honoring the unit in Kyiv. Rota has apologized.

   Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
   Zelenskyy joins Canadian Parliament’s ovation to 98-year-old veteran who fought with Nazis.
   The Forward (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 75% • 3 min read
   

1. Selected local viewpoint
   Speaker Anthony Rota facing growing calls to resign for honouring man who fought for Nazis.
   National Post (Moderate Right) • Factual Grade 63% • 4 min read

1. Selected long-read
   Whitewashing Nazis doesn’t help Ukraine. (2022)
   Jacobin (Left) • Factual Grade 69% • 15 min read