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Shumita Basu, Narrating: Good morning! It's Wednesday, May 18. I'm Shumita Basu, This is "Apple News Today." Each morning, hear about some of the most fascinating stories in the news, and how the world's best journalists are covering them.
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We've got results this morning from one of the biggest days on the primary calendar so far with Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Idaho, Oregon and Kentucky at the polls yesterday. But if you're looking for big, clear takeaways on what these races say about the parties, the country and Trump's influence, "Vox" says, good luck. The results are a mixed picture.
As for Trump, some of his candidates won, some of them lost. One big loser was North Carolina Congressman Madison Cawthorn. That race seemed to be less about Trump and more about a series of scandals and controversial comments that turned off establishment Republicans. Cawthorn conceded losing to State Senator Chuck Edwards. Ted Budd won the Republican senate primary with Trump's backing. He'll face Cheri Beasley, who's hoping to be North Carolina's first Black senator.
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Cheri Beasley: North Carolina, this is our moment.
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State Senator Doug Mastriano will be the GOP nominee for governor in Pennsylvania. He's backed Trump's false claims of a stolen election.
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Doug Mastriano: Take a couple days off and then the great adventure continues until ultimate victory on November 8th when we turn the Pennsylvania Keystone State around and put it back in the hands of the people. Thank you, and God bless you guys.
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Unsurprisingly, John Fetterman won his bid to be Pennsylvania's Democratic Senate nominee, though he didn't speak at his victory party because he was recovering from a stroke and surgery. "Vox" describes him as an untraditional candidate to win a swing-state senate seat. He ran on progressive points but avoided the label, and he has support cutting across rural and urban areas.
We don't yet know the results of the GOP senate contest in Pennsylvania. TV doctor Mehmet Oz and former hedge fund CEO David McCormick are in a tight race that's too close to call as of this morning. You can find more election analysis on the Apple News app.
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One week ago today, Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was shot and killed in the West Bank. She was wearing a vest that was marked "Press." She was a veteran correspondent for "Al Jazeera," who covered the region for decades. In the days since her death, this has evolved beyond just the story of a respected reporter killed while doing her job. "Al Jazeera" has accused Israel of intentionally targeting her. Her niece, Lina Abu Akleh, spoke to "CBS News."
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Lina Abu Akleh: It's important to have accountability to show that Israel cannot get away with another crime.
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Palestinian and Israeli authorities are conducting separate investigations. Israel has said Palestinian authorities have made it difficult to fully investigate. Asaf Zamir, Consul General of Israel in New York, talked with Brian Stelter on "CNN."
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Asaf Zamir: She was an excellent journalist. It's a tragedy. But everyone thinks it's a tragedy. I think that we need to do everything in our power to make sure that these things don't happen again, but we can't do that alone, which is why we've been calling from our side, and we've been doing it responsibly. We believe in taking responsibility. We said we don't know who it is.
Brian Stelter: Right.
Zamir: Uh, the Palians didn't say that. We said we don't know how she died. The Palestinians haven't said that yet. We're looking for joint investigation with another third party. Anything to make sure we understand what the truth is. To make sure this doesn't happen again.
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Israel initially suggested Palestinian weapons may have killed her, but officials have since said they could not rule out that Israeli gunfire killed her while she was reporting. The U.S. State Department has condemned Abu Akleh's killing and called for a full investigation. The Committee to Protect Journalists counts 19 journalists killed in Israeli and Palestinian territory since 1992.
"The Washington Post" had reporters on the ground at her funeral in Jerusalem. They describe Israeli riot police storming a group of mourners as they attempted to carry the coffin and using stun grenades and batons. The reporters said they did not see mourners threatening police. The images from the funeral sparked further global outrage. Stelter pressed Zamir about those scenes.
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Brian Stelter: What about the funeral on Friday? Israeli police beating mourners with batons. Was that a conflict zone?
Asaf Zamir: In a way, yes. First of all, let me say this, the pictures are horrible. The pictures are horrible. I'm not going to defend the pictures, and we are conducting an investigation. And by the way, in the series of things that we do to try to manage this situation, mistakes happen. We're not perfect.
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Shireen Abu Akleh's death is also a personal story of a life cut short too soon. If you want to know more about who she was as a journalist and as a friend, we recommend reading this piece in "CNN" by Dalia Hatuqa. It's available on the Apple News app.
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Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell says the central bank is working hard to combat inflation. Here's what he said at "The Wall Street Journal's Future of Everything Festival."
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Jerome Powell: We have to get inflation down to two percent. We've gotta restore our definition of price stability, and we will do that.
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There are several ways to measure inflation. The consumer price index shows it's over eight percent nationally, but in some places it's much higher. The worst is Midland, Texas, with inflation near 10 percent. Bloomberg sent a reporter to see what the place can tell us about the national picture.
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Katia Dmitrieva: I was surprised. thought I would be in town, I could grab some tacos. I ended up paying more than eight dollars per taco, which to me was wild. As someone living in D.C., I would expect to see those prices maybe more so here.
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Economics reporter Katia Dmitrieva found that the kind of inflation we're seeing now is something different, with a lot of factors beyond the power of politicians or central bankers. Blunt policy tools, like raising interest rates, don't change some of the key factors that are driving prices, like supply-chain issues, lockdowns in China and the war in Ukraine. All of those things have impact that trickle down and are felt by people all over. In Midland, Texas, they're turning to food banks because groceries are too expensive.
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Katia Dmitrieva: The line was over 400 cars long, and that was the highest number of cars in line getting food than at any time since the pandemic.
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She spoke with one couple who was waiting in line with their gas light on empty. They told her the only food they could afford at the grocery store was beans and eggs. She also spoke with a woman named Melinda Hernandez. She's 52 years old and she lost her job in March. Now, she's working two jobs but making less than she did before.
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Katia Dmitrieva: It's the kind of everyday decisions that people have to make as a result of inflation that you don't hear about every day but that are the most painful. So, for her, she wants to have a graduation party for her 19-year-old son, and she probably can't. She has four dollars in her bank account.
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We heard a hopeful tone from Powell just a minute ago. But Dmitrieva says, her trip to Texas shows the limits of what Washington can do.
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Katia Dmitrieva: Everyone I spoke with made that point. You know, there's a disconnect between Midland and D.C. You have the federal reserve here talking about moving interest rates, and you have everyday people and businesses in Midland saying, "Well, how's that gonna help us?" And it's not clear that it will.
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I don't care what you say, baseball is one of our more boring sports. It is so slow, and it takes so long. But the "L.A. Times" has been following this one collegiate summer league team that's throwing out the old rulebook and putting some good, goofy fun into the game. Here's their first base coach Maceo Harrison.
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Maceo Harrison: It's okay to be different, you know? We're standing out in our way but still playing authentic, original baseball. But just giving that entertainment factor. We keep everybody watching the game and interested in the game.
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The team's name is the Savannah Bananas. They've drawn huge crowds on a tour of the South and Midwest. And they've come up with their own rules for faster, more fun play. No bunts, no visits to the mound. That first-base coach is a trained hip hop dancer who's got everyone on the field hitting their choreography. Now, before you dismiss this as viral, "TikTok" bait, the team's got a point to make about the major leagues. In the last pre-COVID season, MLB's attendance was down 14 percent from its peak. Games were dragging on longer. And fans were just kinda running out of steam after the fifth inning or so.
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The Savannah Bananas say they're on a mission to save baseball from its old ways and make the game more engaging to watch. And the "Times" reports, they've got the MLB's attention. One league official said, "There's definitely something special going on in Savannah." You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And when you're in the app, keep listening to hear narrated articles from our News+ partners. We'll talk with you again tomorrow.
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