Sven Piper/iStock Editorial via Getty Images
SpaceX (SPCX) will account for a larger weighting of the Nasdaq 100 (NDX) when the quarterly rebalance of the index takes effect next week, Bloomberg reported on Saturday, confirming provisional data published by the index provider last week.
According to
WASHINGTON — A nonprofit run by Black federal lawmakers launched a multimillion-dollar effort Tuesday to engage lower-propensity voters in key districts in the midterm elections, following years of dissatisfaction over traditional efforts to reach such voters.
The Congressional Black Caucus Institute’s “SO VOTE” campaign will seek to register and mobilize young voters, as well as voters in majority-Black and rural communities, across the South, Midwest and West. The campaign involves partnerships with dozens of local organizations, the institute said, with in-person and online outreach to voters often sidestepped by major political campaigns.
“For decades, as far as I can remember, there are those of us who have always complained about the fact that neither party spends the significant and requisite time with Black and brown and poor and rural communities,” said Marcia Fudge, a former Democratic congresswoman from Ohio who served as the secretary of Housing and Urban Development during the Biden administration.
“So we finally decided to take it upon ourselves to do something that we didn’t think anybody else in the industry was doing,” said Fudge, who is spearheading the new effort alongside former Black Caucus colleagues.
Voter engagement efforts will cover outreach across Georgia and Mississippi, as well as target voters in 16 congressional districts that are likely to determine control of the House.
Instead of traditional television advertising, the campaign will convene local civic groups and houses of worship, as well as fraternities and sororities. The effort will also use some now-widespread techniques in political campaigns, such as geotargeting online ads and partnerships with local content creators for audiences who mainly receive their news online.
While the voter engagement efforts are officially nonpartisan, the Black Caucus’ targeted races are in many regions where Black voter turnout could prove key to whether a Democratic candidate prevails in closely divided House districts. Cedric Richmond, a former Louisiana Democratic congressman who served as a senior adviser to President Joe Biden, said the effort would focus on repeatedly engaging voters in rural communities who feel alienated from Democratic campaigns.
“If you’re not happy with the way things are going, then voting is part of the solution, but it takes constant communication,” Richmond said.
The Black Caucus’ institute has raised about $1 million for the campaign, primarily from individual donors, and plans to spend at least $4.5 million in the midterm election cycle.
The new outreach effort follows years of disappointment and frustration among some in the Black Caucus at the broader Democratic Party’s efforts to court Black, rural and younger voters.
Rep. Jim Clyburn, an influential South Carolina Democrat who decried the lackluster voter turnout in the 2024 election, said the campaign “allows us to put to practice that which we have been proposing, and we have never had the resources to do it. But this year we do.”
The effort is also a response to Republican-led redistricting efforts in multiple states, said Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Mississippi Democrat.
“These Southern states are trying to minimize Black political participation and ultimately Black political strength,” he said. “So what we have to do is take that low-propensity voter and elevate their participation so they become an additional voice to be reckoned with.”
Brown writes for the Associated Press.
“No more imported rice” sign at a recent protest. (Archive)
Caracas, September 14, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – The US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service announced a package of measures to boost US agricultural exports to Venezuela amid growing concerns about the South American country’s national production.
According to the USDA, the plan will facilitate Venezuelan corporations’ purchase of US food products and agricultural commodities through government-backed credit and will include the delivery of food assistance and training for Venezuelan technicians.
“The Trump administration is committed to Venezuela’s economic prosperity, and USDA is leveraging its export financing, market development programs, technical scholarships, and food assistance initiatives to address this situation,” said Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Luke J. Lindberg.
Lindberg added that he “looks forward to positioning US agriculture to help meet needs and build lasting trade relationships.” The US official visited Venezuela as part of an official delegation in early July.
Washington’s credit program for food exports will be provided through the reactivation of the GSM-102 guarantee program. The mechanism offers guarantees to exporters that reduce the risk for financial institutions backing the transactions in case importers fail to meet their commitments.
The Agriculture Department also announced that it will lift restrictions to allow foreign banks to back Venezuela-related transactions.
A USDA report had already estimated that Venezuela would need to import 1.5 million metric tons of wheat during the 2026-2027 marketing year. Corn and soybeans are likewise identified as key staples to be exported to the Caribbean nation. The latest initiative
The Trump administration also lifted restrictions under its Feed the Future Agricultural Resilience Mission Initiative and plans to include Venezuela in a regional agribusiness trade mission scheduled for early 2027.
A bigger influx of US farm products will place an additional strain on Venezuelan food production, with local campesinos increasingly protesting against imports from agribusiness corporations that seek to drive crop prices down.
On September 9, rice growers from Guárico and nearby states organized a “tractorazo,” blocking a major highway in Calabozo with trucks and tractors to demand that the government halt the entry of imported rice during the domestic harvest season and ensure that agroindustrial companies adhere to established prices.
Protesters complained that imports from countries where food production is subsidized, including the US, create unfair competition and risk driving Venezuelan campesinos bankrupt. The latest mobilization was sparked by the reported arrival of a shipment of 355 thousand tons of rice, more than half of the Venezuelan production in 2025.
Rural organizations have likewise denounced the exoneration of tariffs and import taxes as another factor putting national production at a disadvantage. Venezuelan authorities, including the National Assembly and the Agriculture Ministry, have vowed to review the import issue but have offered no measures to date.
In the Calabozo protest, producers denounced that imported rice had saturated silos and storage facilities during the 2025-2026 winter-summer crop cycle, forcing them to sell below production cost or lose their crops altogether. Demonstrators demanded a $0.25-per-kilogram subsidy from the state to compensate for the losses incurred and vowed to take the protests to Caracas if they receive no response from authorities.
The September 9 “tractorazo” was the latest in a series of mobilizations in recent months in Venezuela’s main agricultural states. Rice growers have complained about high fuel and input costs and urged the government to establish and enforce fair crop prices.
According to agriculture lobby FEDEAGRO, more than 2.2 million metric tons of white corn, yellow corn, and rice have entered the country so far in 2026, more than triple the recent combined high of 709,000 metric tons in 2023.
“We cannot continue depending on a neighbor’s pantry. That is a failure. In Venezuela, we have the land, a committed agricultural sector, and people investing in farming, but excessive imports place us at a dramatic disadvantage,” stressed FEDEAGRO President Osman Quero.
Quero stressed that foreign producers have access to credit programs, fuel and fertilizer subsidies, and better infrastructure, while Venezuelan farmers face inflation and a lack of financing programs.
Edited by Ricardo Vaz in Lisbon, Portugal.
COPENHAGEN: EU chief Ursula von der Leyen heads to Greenland on Sunday for a two-day visit aimed at reaffirming the bloc’s support for the Danish autonomous territory coveted by US President Donald Trump.
On Monday, she is due to sign a joint declaration between the European Union and Greenland.
“Greenland is becoming increasingly important to the EU as a gateway to the Arctic and because of its geopolitical location, critical raw materials and role in Arctic security,” Marc Jacobsen, a researcher at the Royal Danish Defence College, told AFP.
Trump was adamant earlier this year about Washington’s need to control the vast Arctic island for reasons of national security, though he ultimately ruled out annexing it by force.
A Danish-Greenlandic-US working group has since met regularly to find an agreement on cooperation going forward.
Following Trump’s threats, European countries broadly backed Denmark and Greenland, and in January von der Leyen vowed “massive” EU investment in Greenland to step up security in the Arctic.
Greenland is not a member of the bloc though Denmark is.
Brussels has also proposed doubling direct EU aid to Greenland to 530 million euros ($616 million) under the bloc’s next budget for the 2028-2034 period.
According to the Financial Times, von der Leyen is expected to propose an additional 200 million euros in support during her visit on Sunday and Monday.
Her visit coincides with the start of NATO’s Arctic Shield military exercise, bringing together soldiers from 10 countries.
Mikaa Blugeon-Mered, a geopolitics researcher at the University of Quebec, called the timing a “not insignificant coincidence”.
The Trump administration has repeatedly accused Denmark of neglecting Greenland and Arctic security.
Copenhagen has since reinvested in the region, as has NATO, which launched its Arctic Sentry mission at the start of the year.
“The EU cannot provide Greenland with a military security guarantee in the way NATO can, but it can provide something politically important: a clear signal that Greenland is not standing alone,” Jacobsen said.
Pressure
The message is all the more important as the US has kept up pressure on Greenland — though Trump has been less vocal since a May visit by his special envoy Jeff Landry.
“We’ve been getting ‘postcards’ from Trump or those close to him about Greenland every month, showing that they haven’t forgotten,” noted Blugeon-Mered.
One such image Trump posted on Truth Social in May showed him peering over the island, with the headline “Hello, Greenland!”.
In August, media reports of an American oil company’s preparatory operations in a remote region of eastern Greenland rekindled concerns on the island.
The project, run by a Texas-based company with licenses granted before a 2021 moratorium on oil and gas exploration and extraction, has left locals and authorities uneasy.
Authorities have yet to grant the company approval for exploratory drilling, citing procedural reasons.
Greenland is also struggling to develop its mining industry, which could help it fund its independence from Denmark.
In this area, Greenlandic and European interests are “highly complementary”, Jacobsen said.
“Greenland needs investment, infrastructure and markets if it is to realise its mining ambitions, while the EU is looking for more secure and diversified access to critical raw materials,” he said.
But turning Greenland’s geological potential into reality is proving more difficult than expected.
Some 135 mining permits are held by more than 60 companies, but only two mines are currently in operation.
“The question is whether the current geopolitical momentum will ultimately be a game-changer,” Jacobsen said.
Blugeon-Mered said von der Leyen’s visit to Greenland — her second in two years — was a strong signal that European investment is long-term.
The EU chief is scheduled to hold talks during her visit with Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, and the head of government of Denmark’s other self-governing territory, the Faroe Islands.
Costa Rican President Laura Fernandez said US ground operations could boost national security, but stressed no plans are currently in place and any deployment would require legislative approval.
Published On 5 Sep 20265 Sep 2026
Share
The change came into force on July 8(Image: Akabei via Getty Images)
Heathrow has issued a summer travel update telling families they can now benefit from a major change to Britain’s airport border controls.
The airport said: “Get ready for easier arrivals for families. Children aged 8 and 9 will now be able to use the eGates. They will need to have an eligible passport and be travelling with an adult”. The change could prove a welcome boost for parents returning to Britain from their summer holidays – potentially cutting the time they spend queuing at passport control.
Children aged eight and nine can use UK eGates, bringing them into line with older children who are already eligible to use the automated border gates.
But there is an important catch. The youngsters must have an eligible passport, be travelling with an adult and, under the Government’s rules, be at least 120cm (3ft 11in) tall.
The change came into force on July 8, just as the summer holiday travel season was getting into full swing. And the Government estimates that up to 1.5 million more children could become eligible to use eGates over the next year.
For parents facing the prospect of tired youngsters after a long flight, the prospect of avoiding a lengthy passport-control queue could be particularly welcome. Heathrow has urged passengers travelling with younger children to check airport signage or speak to staff if they are unsure which lane they should use.
The expanded eGate access applies to eight and nine-year-olds who meet the requirements.
They must:
The Government says the change covers more than 290 eGates across the UK and at so-called juxtaposed ports, where British border checks are carried out in Europe. Millions of passengers already use eGates each year.
The Government says using one typically takes only a few minutes – and increasing the number of people who can use them should also help reduce queues for passengers who still need to go through staffed passport control.
The move was announced by the Home Office in May as part of a wider programme to transform the UK’s border system. Migration and Citizenship Minister Mike Tapp said: “Travel with young children can be stressful for parents.”
He said expanding eGate access would allow more families to have a “swifter and smoother journey home” while keeping Britain’s borders secure.
Border Force Director General Phil Douglas said eGates were an “essential part” of keeping the border secure.
He said the expansion would deliver safe and smooth journeys while freeing officers to concentrate on intercepting people who pose a threat to the UK.
Karen Dee, chief executive of AirportsUK, welcomed the change, saying it would give more families the opportunity to use the technology and could reduce waiting times.
The change comes alongside the Government’s wider push to modernise Britain’s borders. The Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme has also been introduced for eligible travellers, with almost 25 million ETAs issued, according to Government figures.
The longer-term ambition is for a more “contactless” border, with facial comparison technology being used to verify travellers’ identities.