May 11, 2026: All Newsclips

Lead Stories

White House distances itself from tighter AI regulation

Senior White House officials are trying to soothe industry concerns that the administration could require tech companies to submit their advanced artificial intelligence models for federal vetting before releasing them to the public. A day after one top White House economic adviser publicly confirmed that such a review was under discussion — likening it Wednesday to the Food and Drug Administration’s yearslong testing of prescription drugs — aides to President Donald Trump were sending a different message: Not so fast. “There’s one or two people who are very intent on government regulations, but they’re sort of the minority of the bunch,” said one senior White House official. This person, like others in this report, was granted anonymity to describe sensitive policy discussions.

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The back-and-forth messaging comes as tech industry officials anxiously await an executive order spelling out how the administration plans to prevent powerful new AI models from being misused to launch cyberattacks or even develop bioweapons. POLITICO reported Tuesday that the White House is eyeing a vetting system that could require AI giants such as OpenAI, Anthropic and Google to go through the government before releasing new models. While it is not immediately clear how onerous that oversight system would be, Kevin Hassett, the director of the White House National Economic Council, said in a Fox Business interview Wednesday that the administration was considering a pre-release safety testing regime akin to what the FDA does for drugs. “We’re studying possibly an executive order to give a clear roadmap to everybody about how this is gonna go, and how future AIs that also potentially create vulnerabilities should go through a process so that they’re released into the wild after they’ve been proven safe — just like an FDA drug,” Hassett said.

After Virginia redistricting map is tossed, Democrats search desperately for a response

Democrats are struggling to respond to a major redistricting setback in Virginia, with some party leaders discussing an audacious and possibly far-fetched idea for trying to restore a congressional map voided by the court but showing little indication they have a clear plan. During a private discussion on Saturday that included Democratic House members from Virginia and Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the minority leader, the lawmakers vented anger at their defeat at the Virginia Supreme Court, spoke about a collective determination to flip two or three Republican-held seats under the existing map and discussed a bank-shot proposal to redraw the congressional lines anyway, according to three people who participated in the call and two others who were briefed on it. They did not land on a specific course forward, and Mr. Jeffries and the other members of Congress agreed to consult with their lawyers about the most prudent way to proceed, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe a private talk.

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The conversation reflected the desperation and fury that have gripped the party after the state Supreme Court struck down a favorable map that had been ratified by voters. The most dramatic idea they discussed — which would involve an unusual gambit to replace the entire state Supreme Court, with a goal of reinstating their gerrymandered map — drew mixed reactions on the call, said the people, and it was not clear that it would even be viable, or palatable to Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Democrats in the Virginia General Assembly. After Democrats had fought Republicans to a rough draw last month in a nationwide gerrymandering war, a pair of recent court rulings quickly gave the G.O.P. the clear upper hand in the race to redraw maps ahead of the midterm elections. Facing stiff headwinds, including President Trump’s low approval ratings and high gas prices, Republicans are looking for every advantage they can find to defy the odds and hold on to their narrow majority. Any plans to enact a new congressional map for this year’s midterm elections would require action in the next few days. In a court filing last month, Steven Koski, the commissioner of the Virginia Department of Elections, said any changes to the maps after Tuesday, May 12, “will significantly increase the risk” of his agency being unable to properly prepare for the state’s scheduled Aug. 4 primary election. A spokesman for Mr. Jeffries declined to comment.

State Stories

Harris County treasurer arrested, charged with DWI in Galveston County weeks after burglary charge dismissed

Weeks after a grand jury declined to indict her on another criminal charge, Harris County Treasurer Carla Wyatt was arrested in Galveston County on Saturday for allegedly driving while intoxicated, jail records show. Wyatt, 56, was being held on a $3,000 cash bond in Galveston County late Saturday for the DWI charge. It’s the second time Wyatt has been accused of driving while intoxicated during her tenure as the Harris County treasurer after she was arrested in 2023 for allegedly having a blood-alcohol concentration of at least .15%, nearly twice the legal limit. That charge was dismissed in August last year after Wyatt completed a pretrial diversion program, court records show.

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She was arrested again in Harris County last December and accused of breaking into another person’s vehicle in a restaurant parking lot with intent to commit theft. Prosecutors said several people watched as Wyatt searched through items inside a vehicle that wasn't hers. Sign up for the Hello, Houston! daily newsletter to get local reports like this delivered directly to your inbox. A Harris County grand jury declined to indict her on the burglary charge in April. Her attorney in that case, Christopher Downey, said Wyatt received a medical consultation following her arrest for cerebrovascular disease and a mini-stroke, information that he said was presented to the grand jury. It’s not clear whether Wyatt’s recent medical history factored into the grand jurors’ decision to no-bill the county treasurer. Wyatt had begun treatment for anemia and made certain changes to her daily nutritional intake and work habits, Downey previously told Houston Public Media. Wyatt also is in the throes of a shakeup in the county treasurer’s office after county commissioners in February stripped the office of a key function and voted unanimously to pursue dissolving the office, which would require voter approval. The county treasurer, elected in 2022, is set to be on the ballot again in November after she did not have any challengers in the Democratic primary election in March. Marc Cowart won the Republican nomination for the seat. No defense attorneys for Wyatt were listed in online Galveston County court records as of late Saturday.

National Stories

Berlin sceptikal as Putin proposes Germany's ex-chancellor Schroeder as Ukraine mediator

Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed longtime ally and friend, former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, as mediator in the Ukraine war – an idea that has been met with scepticism in Berlin. Asked on Saturday who he would like to help restart talks with Europe, Putin said he would "personally" prefer Schroeder, who led Germany from 1998 to 2005. Schroeder, 82, has remained close to the Kremlin leader long after leaving office, standing apart from most Western leaders since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. German officials reacted cautiously, saying they had "taken note" of Putin's comments but viewed them as part of "a series of bogus offers" from Russia, government sources told AFP Sunday.

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One source said a real test of Moscow's intentions would be to extend the current three-day truce. Schroeder's stance has made him a controversial figure at home. He has never publicly condemned the invasion of Ukraine, costing him several privileges normally granted to former chancellors. He previously held key roles in Russian energy projects, including work on the Nord Stream gas pipelines and a seat on the board of Russian oil firm Rosneft, which he gave up in 2022. Some German politicians from Schroeder's own SPD party – a junior partner in Germany's coalition government – say this makes him unsuitable for any mediator role. Michael Roth, former SPD lawmaker and chair of the foreign affairs committee, said a mediator "cannot be Putin's buddy", in an interview with Tagesspiegel. He stressed that any mediator must above all be accepted by Ukraine. "Neither Moscow nor we can decide that on Kyiv's behalf."

Copyright May 11, 2026, Harvey Kronberg, www.quorumreport.com, All rights are reserved