President Biden today hosted Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida, at the White House for a pomp-filled state visit. The two leaders announced plans for greater coordination and integration between their militaries, which Biden described as “the most significant upgrade of our alliance since it was first established.”
Later tonight, the Bidens are holding an official state dinner in honor of Kishida — something reserved for America’s closest allies — featuring a performance by Paul Simon.
The tightening of the U.S.-Japan relationship is an important part of the Biden administration’s efforts to counter China’s aggressive actions in the Indo-Pacific region. Aides said one of Biden’s goals is to create as much permanence in U.S. relationships in the region before a potential Donald Trump presidency could shake things up. Tomorrow, Biden and Kishida will meet with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of the Philippines.
Biden and Kishida today outlined the formation of a joint defense council that could support more exports of equipment produced in Japan, new cooperation on ventures in space and collaboration between research institutions. Biden announced that NASA’s Artemis program would take a Japanese astronaut to the moon, which would be a first for a non-American.
During the visit, Kishida made a point of reaffirming Japan’s “strong support for Ukraine” in its war against Russia, a key priority for Biden.
Inflation remained higher than expected
A closely watched measure of inflation was reported today at a level slightly higher than economists were expecting. The report was particularly worrying for Fed officials who have become concerned that their progress on lowering inflation might be stalling.
Through March, the Consumer Price Index climbed 3.8 percent on an annual basis after stripping out food and fuel prices, which economists do in order to get a better sense of the underlying trend. Counting food and fuel, the inflation measure climbed 3.5 percent — well below its 2022 peak, yet still above the Fed’s 2 percent target.
The stubbornness of inflation raised doubts among economists about when, and even whether, the Fed will be able to cut interest rates this year. It also put a dent in Biden’s plan to tout cooling inflation on the campaign trail.
Arizona Republicans halted efforts to repeal abortion ban
Just a day after the Arizona Supreme Court revived a 1864 law that bans nearly all abortions in the state, Democrats in the Legislature proposed bills this morning to immediately repeal it. Some Republicans, including Donald Trump, agreed that the ban went too far.
But state Republicans thwarted the repeal effort. In the State Senate, Republican leaders removed one of the bills from the day’s agenda. In the House, Republican leaders quickly put the House into recess before any vote could be held.
The U.S. sharply limited ‘forever chemicals’ in tap water
The head of the Environmental Protection Agency announced today that the U.S., for the first time, would require municipal water systems to remove six synthetic chemicals known collectively as PFAS. The chemicals, which have been linked to cancer and other health problems, are present in the tap water of hundreds of millions of Americans.
The E.P.A. set new near-zero limits on the chemicals, which are found in dental floss, firefighting foams and children’s toys. They are sometimes referred to as “forever chemicals” because they never fully degrade and can accumulate in the body and the environment.
Here’s what to know about them.
TV’s latest big-ticket video game adaptation
Amazon is betting a lot of money that an apocalyptic hellscape can be a whole lot of fun. Tonight, Prime Video will release all eight episodes of its latest no-expense-spared show, “Fallout,” based on the popular video game franchise of the same name. The show is premised on a nuclear-decimated version of the near future, but it takes a satirical, self-aware approach to the End Times.
Following the success of HBO’s “The Last of Us,” the creators of “Fallout” are hoping to break with a long history of failed video game adaptations. The show doesn’t require prior knowledge of the source material, but if you’re looking for the back story, we have it.
You, too, could grow one of these enchanting plants
Many plants can be trained to grow into distinct and whimsical shapes, or topiaries, as gardeners call them. But for your first try, Coleus is a good pick because it can be shaped into a finished design in just six to nine months.
We have a step-by-step guide for training a Coleus topiary, but it’s worth noting ahead of time that any topiary requires almost daily attention.
Smell like blood, sweat and floorboards
The perfume business has long been fueled by the notion that attractive, successful people ought to smell nice — perhaps like sandalwood, roses or freshly picked fruit. But a growing faction of fragrance enthusiasts are now more interested in smelling peculiar than pleasant.
That countermovement has led an increasing demand for scents that are bizarre, outlandish and even intentionally off-putting, like that of an old hotel, or of latex, gunpowder and biscuits. The reaction to one such scent, Sécrétions Magnifiques, caught the attention of one fragrance historian: “People scatter from it in terror. It’s beautiful.”
Have a distinct evening.
Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow. — Matthew
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