NEWS - MONDAY, AUGUST 17, 2026 - NEWS
The current approach — an economic choke hold on Iran — is being led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. LA Times
VOA VIEW: Trump must not hold back.
Outgoing firebrand Rep. Nancy Mace used her new YouTube talk show to debut spicy tattoos on both arms — as she went sleeveless in public for the first time in months. New York Post
“I don’t know what we would do without them." New York Post
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The administration is veering wildly in its response to the national security implications of A.I. as China, America’s main technological and military rival, charges ahead. New York Times
VOA VIEW: The US must stay ahead of China.
A string of primary wins by progressive candidates has revealed the strength of a high-energy insurgent movement but also its possible limitations. New York Times
VOA VIEW: Dems are losing their party.
An El Niño weather pattern is expected to limit activity into the fall, providing a stabilizing force. New York Times
A shooting at a U.S. Consulate has thrust a neighborhood with a troubled past into the center of an emerging criminal phenomenon: young guns for hire as gig workers in the underworld economy. New York Times
VOA VIEW: A dangerous time.
A Nevada man pleaded guilty to purchasing 140 firearms for drug trafficking organizations in Mexico, as well as laundering the proceeds and employing illegal immigrants, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). OANN
One person was killed, and four others were injured in a shooting at a park in Lexington, Kentucky, according to local authorities. OANN
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President Donald Trump renewed his push for Congress to pass the Sunshine Protection Act, a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent, after the House approved it, sending it to the Senate. OANN
VOA VIEW: It must go forward.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has accused Iran of attacking another vessel belonging to its state oil company, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), as it attempted to travel through the Strait of Hormuz, marking the third such incident in a week. OANN
VOA VIEW: Iran must be eradicated as a source of evil.
Hurricane Lala weakened back down to a tropical storm without making landfall in Hawaii, though conditions continued to worsen on the Big Island, leaving hundreds of thousands of households without power and one person dead. OANN
The first full year of President Trump's crime crackdown in the District saw federal law enforcement agencies make thousands of arrests. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: Dems are making matters worse.
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The DNC on Saturday voted to approve dueling resolutions affecting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: The DNC is causing evil.
Democrats are doubling down on their fight to convince Americans that their transgender policies should return. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: Dems are hurting the nation,
The U.S. Army temporarily halted all Apache helicopter training missions Friday after a fatal crash in Texas earlier this week killed two soldiers. Washington Times
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A federal judge says Idaho can't prosecute doctors who perform abortions to protect a pregnant person's health or prevent self-harm. Washington Times
VOA VIEW: The federal judge is pushing its authority.
Bedbugs are sometimes called the vampires of the insect world - hiding during the day and coming out at night to feast on human blood. Generations of children have been told: "Sleep tight. Don't let the bedbugs bite." Washington Times
Five people were injured in the shooting involving multiple suspects. One person is currently listed in critical condition, the university said. CBS
Hurricane Lala is forecast to bring heavy rain and life-threatening flooding to Hawaii this weekend. CBS
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett urged residents along the White River to evacuate on Saturday. CBS
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An air traffic controller's quick thinking helped avert a dangerous situation when two jets, one landing in Phoenix and the other simultaneously taking off, shared the same flight number and radio frequency. CBS
The 14oz soup kits were distributed at Walmart stores in 29 states between June 30 and July 7, according to the FDA. CBS
Dr. Steven Milner, a well-respected Oregon veterinarian, was accused of stalking and disguising himself before murdering Kenny Fandrich — the husband of a former employee. Security cameras played a key role in how detectives pieced the case together. CBS
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The OCC conditionally approved World Liberty Trust Co.’s national trust bank charter. That would allow the Trump family-backed firm to issue stablecoins. CNBC
Because families struggle to pay for school, many students and their parents increasingly depend on federal and private aid to help foot the bill. CNBC
Producers of the iconic French fizz face a challenge to preserve its taste profile while they also battle tariff complications and fewer drinkers. CNBC
The CFTC is reviewing prediction betting platforms' so-called mention markets. CNBC
A U.S. appeals court has ruled in favor of Gilead Sciences against companies known as alternative funding programs that import medicines from overseas. CNBC
Luis Alberto Osorio admitted to buying 140 firearms including military-style rifles for violent Mexican drug-trafficking organizations in a straw purchase scheme. FOX News
Delta Air Lines Flight 81 declared an emergency for an overweight landing at Heathrow after a lavatory issue forced the Paris-to-Seattle diversion. FOX News
Larry Montes is facing multiple charges after allegedly striking a congregant and headbutting a security team member during Shabbat services at Central Synagogue in New York City. FOX News
A gunman opened fire on passing cars in Houston, wounding a woman and her daughter before three officers and a state trooper shot the suspect. FOX News
Tyler Muehl admitted to kicking a sea lion in La Jolla while referring to himself as UFC fighter Max Holloway. He faces up to a year in prison. FOX News
President Donald Trump said he wants the Strait of Hormuz to become U.S. territory. Iranian officials called the remarks "fanciful delusions" UPI
VOA VIEW: Time will tell.
Two Israeli strikes hit Lebanon and killed 11 people early Saturday, the Lebanese health ministry said, then struck another site killing more. UPI
An executive was sentenced to 20 years in prison for running what authorities described as "likely the largest Ponzi scheme in Georgia history." UPI
Lawrence Mayor Brian DePena, 61, was charged with wire fraud and money laundering over $1.5 million in COVID loans for small businesses. UPI
The USS Abraham Lincoln will be ending its record-breaking, 266-day deployment amid concerns over the mental health of its crew, Navy officials said. UPI
The Food and Drug Administration said it is inspecting a Mexican production facility as part of its probe into the widespread cyclosporiasis oubreak. UPI
Artworks by Henri Mattise, Paul Cezanne and Pierre-August Renoir stolen in two separate cases have been recovered in Brazil and Italy. UPI
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When it comes to personal finance, artificial intelligence gives advice that can be inaccurate or demographically biased, and can range widely depending on the particular program that consumers use, according to a new academic research study. Don't count on AI financial advice.
The research — which studied seven “widely available” generative AI platforms — found “significant variation” in how GenAI answered prompts about emergency savings, asset allocation and withdrawals from a retirement portfolio. Researchers examined free-access versions of ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, DeepSeek, Gemini, Meta AI and Perplexity.
“GenAI-driven responses may sound confident but can still be incomplete, misleading, or incorrect,” according to the paper, published last month in the Journal of Financial Planning and authored by finance professors at the University of Georgia and University of Rome Tor Vergata in Italy. Its “suboptimal” or biased outputs raise questions “about the consistency and fairness of GenAI-driven recommendations,” according to authors Swarn Chatterjee, Brenda Cude and Gianni Nicolini.
The findings come as a large share of Americans are turning to AI to help manage their money. Two out of three Americans — 66% — who have used GenAI said they’ve leveraged it for financial advice, according to an Intuit Credit Karma survey published in September. The share is higher for Gen Z and millennials, at 82% for each cohort.
Experts said that AI is generally good at providing high-level overviews of financial topics: For example, why it’s important to diversify investments, or why exchange-traded funds may be better than mutual funds in some cases but not others. However, it has limitations that mean users shouldn’t trust its output blindly, they said.
