News Wrap: Biden calls for higher tariffs on Chinese metal products

In our news wrap Wednesday, President Biden is calling for sharply higher tariffs on Chinese metal products, the Navy flew a patrol aircraft over the Taiwan Strait a day after U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs held talks for the first time since 2022 and the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees says Israeli forces abused some of its staff and other people held in Gaza.

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  • Geoff Bennett:

    In the day's other headlines: President Biden is calling for sharply higher tariffs on Chinese metal products.

    During a campaign stop in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he proposed tripling tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum. The president says he's trying to protect American manufacturers from a flood of cheap imports.

    Joe Biden , President of the United States: The prices are unfairly low because China's steel companies don't need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government has subsidized them so heavily. They're not competing.

    They're cheating. They're cheating. And we have seen the damage here in America.

  • Geoff Bennett:

    The president also said today that U.S. Steel should remain a — quote — "totally American company." The Japanese firm Nippon Steel has bid more than $14 billion for the manufacturer in a deal the president has opposed.

    Meantime, the Navy flew a patrol aircraft over the Taiwan Strait just a day after U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs held talks for the first time since 2022. China claims it has jurisdiction over the strait, which runs west of Taiwan. The U.S. says it's an international waterway. The American fleet said the mission — quote — "demonstrates the United States' commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific." China scrambled fighter jets to monitor the U.S. plane's passage.

    The Biden administration is reimposing sanctions on Venezuela's oil sector. The U.S. had granted Nicolas Maduro's government relief from such measures back in October after it agreed to hold free and fair elections this year. But, today, the U.S. State Department criticized Maduro, saying his government had — quote — "harassed and intimidated political opponents and unjustly detained numerous political actors and members of civil society." Presidential elections are scheduled for July 28.

    Dubai is drying out after the heaviest rainfall the United Arab Emirates has ever recorded. Streets today were still flooded after more than a year's worth of rain fell on the desert nation in just 24 hours. Flights were grounded at Dubai International Airport. That's the world's busiest. Passengers filmed their tarmac completely swamped by the deluge.

    The United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees says Israeli forces abused some of its staff and other people held in Gaza. In a report out today, UNRWA provided detailed accounts of detainees being beaten, attacked by dogs and deprived of food and water. The State Department called for answers at a press briefing today.

  • Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy State Department Spokesperson:

    We're deeply concerned by these reports and we will continue to press and engage directly with our Israeli partners on the need for a full investigation into these allegations and accountability for any perpetrators.

  • Geoff Bennett:

    Israel's military has long maintained that it acts in accordance with international law. It did not respond to a request for comment on these claims.

    Myanmar's former leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been moved from prison to house arrest. The country's military government cited health reasons for the transfer of the 78-year-old as the country endures a severe heat wave. Suu Kyi is serving a 27-year sentence for a variety of criminal convictions. Her supporters say the charges were made up.

    The Justice Department has agreed to pay $100 million to dozens of Larry Nassar's victims. The settlement was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. It's meant to address the FBI's failure to take accusations of sexual abuse against the former Team USA gymnastics doctor seriously. The total amount paid out from the scandal now tops $1 billion.

    Actor Hugh Grant says he's received an enormous sum from a British tabloid to settle a lawsuit over illegal spying. The actor has accused The Sun newspaper of tapping his phone and breaking into his home. Grant appeared at London's High Court last year and made a long-running legal battle over hacking claims against Rupert Murdoch's media empire. The Sun's parent company had denied any wrongdoing.

    Eli Lilly says its weight loss drug Zepbound may help patients with sleep apnea. The pharmaceutical giant cited two studies that showed the drug cut irregular breathing episodes by up to 63 percent. Sleep apnea affects some 20 million Americans. The trial adds to growing evidence that popular drugs like Zepbound, along with Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, have medical benefits beyond their primary purposes.

    On Wall Street today, stocks slipped across the board. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 45 points to close at 37753. The Nasdaq dropped for the fourth straight session, losing 181 points. The S&P 500 slid 29 points.

    And former U.S. Senator and Florida Governor Bob Graham has died. The Miami native came to national attention as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee following the September 11 terrorist attacks. Graham was an early critic of the war in Iraq that followed. He served three terms in the Senate and made an unsuccessful bid for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. Bob Graham was 87 years old.

    Still to come on the NewsHour: the president of Columbia University is grilled by the House committee investigating rising antisemitism on college campuses; our one-on-one with Iraq's prime minister on his country's partnership with the U.S. and escalating tensions in the Middle East; and a whistle-blower testifies that he warned Boeing about safety issues in the assembly of the 787 Dreamliner jet.

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