Hard Numbers: Trump’s independent voters, Supreme Court's refusal to hear protest case, Singapore’s new PM, Samsung’s new chipmaking hub, Tesla’s layoffs, Beijing’s half marathon scandal
36: A recent poll found that 36% of voters registered as independent would be “less likely to support [Donald] Trump” if he’s convicted on any of the 34 felony charges in the so-called hush money case now underway in New York City.
3: On Monday, the Supreme Court announced that it will not hear a case from the Fifth Circuit Court that effectively eliminated the right to protest in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. This leaves the lower court's decision – which ruled that a protest organizer faces potentially ruinous financial consequences if a single attendee at a mass protest commits an illegal act – in place, jeopardizing the First Amendment right to protest in these three southern US states.
20: After nearly 20 years in power, Lee Hsien Loong, son of Singapore’s founding father Lee Kuan Yew, will step down on May 15 as prime minister. Deputy PM and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong, Lee’s heir apparent for the past two years, will take the job. After almost six decades of political dominance by the People’s Action Party, Singapore may have its first genuinely competitive elections as early as later this year as the party becomes less popular.
6.4 billion: To boost US domestic production of semiconductors, the Biden administration will give up to $6.4 billion in grants to Samsung, one of the world’s largest chipmakers, to finance a new manufacturing hub and expand an existing site in Texas.
10: On Monday, electric vehicle maker Tesla announced plans to lay off more than 10% of its workforce (about 14,000 people) to cut costs, and a longtime senior executive announced his resignation. Meanwhile, EV makers in Asia and Europe have been producing a growing number of new models.
3: Organizers of the Beijing half marathon are investigating video footage shared online that appears to show three East African runners allowing a Chinese competitor to win the race. It’s not clear why the two Kenyans and one Ethiopian might have done this.