Chapter 1: What changes are happening with medical marijuana regulations?
Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Libby Casey. The Trump administration is easing rules on medical marijuana after years of discussion about changing its classification. NPR's Bill Chappell says it's potentially a game-changer for the medical marijuana industry.
It could be huge. Cannabis firms that have been registering in medical marijuana programs would get a huge tax relief. And in the past, most financial institutions just haven't, have refused to provide even basic banking services to state-authorized marijuana businesses because of potential liability. And companies have largely been operating in cash.
Marijuana has been a Schedule I drug for decades under strict control, alongside heroin and LSD. But now medical marijuana will be moved to Schedule III, which includes some prescription painkillers. Israel and Lebanon are set to hold a second round of talks in Washington this afternoon. A 10-day ceasefire that pauses fighting between Israel and Hezbollah appears to be holding.
NPR's Kat Lonsdorf reports from southern Lebanon.
Looking south from a hill atop the village of Majdalzoun, you can see an Israeli flag waving in the wind over the neighboring Lebanese village. Israel is still occupying a large swath of land in Lebanon's south, including dozens of towns and villages. Hezbollah spokesperson Salman Harb tells NPR that the Iran-backed group does not agree with direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon.
But if the result of the negotiations is that Israel will withdraw from the Lebanese land, Harb says, then we're fine with that. But on the other hand, he says, if the land remains occupied, it's our right to resist that occupation. Kat Lonsdorff, NPR News, Majdal Zoon, in southern Lebanon.
The latest campaign finance reports show Democratic enthusiasm in key House and Senate races, but national Republican groups have far more in the bank to potentially spend down the road. NPR's Stephen Fowler reports on the midterm fundraising landscape.
Democratic Senate candidates like Georgia Senator John Ossoff, former North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, and James Tallarico vying for a Texas seat reported raising tens of millions of dollars in the first three months of the year. This as the party seeks to regain control of both chambers of Congress in November.
At the same time, national Republican groups have hundreds of millions more in the bank they can use to defend important seats. Only a handful of the more than 470 House and Senate seats on the ballot are viewed as competitive. Stephen Fowler, NPR News.
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Chapter 2: What is the current status of Israel and Lebanon's negotiations?
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