Kennedy Center, Trump's mail-in voting loss, Bernie and Bannon on AI (Updated)

Hi, I'm Kim Vinalt in Wanganui, New Zealand. And I'm Christopher Walgesper in Chicago. It's Tuesday, September 15th. Today, Trump lashes out at the Supreme Court after it blocks his mail-in ballot plans. AI fears a growing over machines which can improve themselves. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent faces Congress on bond markets and Trump's economic policy. To the board of the Kennedy Center, votes to shut down. This is Royce's World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes, seven days a week. The board of the Kennedy Center has voted to shut down the iconic performing arts venue for repairs. The board, which is made up of Trump appointees with President Trump himself as chairman, says the center faces a financial crisis and may miss payroll obligations within weeks. Critics say the center's troubles began after Trump took control last year, as artists canceled performances in protest and revenue collapsed. The vote came shortly after a federal judge blocked the center from adding President Trump's name to the building for a second time. President Donald Trump is lashing out at the Supreme Court after it determined his mail-in voting rules could not be implemented before November's midterm elections. The ruling means the U.S. Postal Service must continue to handle ballots as usual, while the challenges to Trump's plan to tighten voting by mail rules that play out in court. Trump's accusing the justices, including the three he appointed, of being influenced by Democrats in making rulings against his policies. That includes tariffs and his attempt to restrict birthright citizenship. The political stakes are high, with Republicans battling to keep control of Congress, and surveys showing democratic voters are more likely to cast their ballots by mail. Critics say the rule could have disrupted the delivery of legitimate ballots, while the administration argues it's needed to prevent voter fraud. A new Reuters' Ibsos poll shows Democrats opening their widest lead over Republicans in the midterms since President Trump returned to office. When asked which party they would vote for, if elections were held today, 44% of respondents picked Democrats, 37% picked Republicans. Democrats' approval rating ticked up two points from his record-low of 33%, but Americans are souring on his agenda, and 63% disapprove of his proposed $5,000 payout to every American should Republicans keep control of Congress. Senator Mitch McConnell is back on Capitol Hill, returning to work in a wheelchair. He was absent for three months, following a fall at his Washington home that left him briefly unconscious. He was later hospitalized with pneumonia. The U.S. bond market continues during past month, during since President Trump has come in. It has been the best-performing bond market in the developed world. Treasury Secretary Scott Besend also on Capitol Hill this morning, before the House Financial Services Committee. He fielded questions about AI bond markets, the economic war against Iran, and the impact of Trump's policies on the U.S. economy. About a week and a half ago, you spent some $10 billion plus or minus to try to lower the yield on the 10-year bond. This price is American mortgages. When you started the 10-year bond, was it 4.8%, today it's at a 20-year high of 5.04%. 20 basis point rise. Is your intervention successful? And will there be more? Yes, it was, sir. Wait, wait, wait. 10-year went up by 20 basis points. How can you say it was successful? Connecticut Democrat Jim Himes questioning Besend on the Treasury Department's bond buyback strategy. Besend's comments did little to call markets that have been shaken by Middle East oil disruptions, climbing bond yields, and concerns over AI. And speaking of AI, here's a team that you may not have expected. If that AI has the potential to eliminate tens of millions of jobs, we need time. And this is not legislation. This is going to have to be executive action. Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders today joining longtime Trump ally Steve Bannon at a rally in Washington DC to call for restrictions on AI. The fact that the issue has brought together two people, typically on opposite sides of the political spectrum, says a lot about how widespread concerns are over the risks posed by artificial intelligence. And warnings by experts that the technology could end humanity, a recent surveys have found a majority of Americans worry that technology could be used to eliminate jobs and raise costs for families. And those concerns are growing. Some leading AI researchers say recent breakthroughs have made the risks harder to ignore. Royce's technology correspondent Aditya Sonny has more on two of the big changes driving those concerns. One is recursive self intelligence, or the moment at which AI is good enough to improve on its own without needing humans. We've had the idea of RSI and science fiction for years and decades. But a lot of tech executives, experts and researchers now believe that we have that insight. Timelines range from three to five years. But we've already seen evidence that AI is now powering its own development. Anthropic says that a significant chunk of the code that its engineers are shipping is now written by AI. AI is also being used to help design studies that actually test its abilities. The other reason is the big hacks that we've seen by AI agents lately. These agents that broke out of their testing environments in search of solving their goals have shown what can happen if AI is misaligned with human goals. If it's to expand the energy needed to power AI, meanwhile, a ramping up, the Trump administration has announced its repealing Biden-era limits on carbon emissions from coal and gas power plants and is blocking future climate regulations on those facilities. The EPA says the move will help build new generating infrastructure to meet soaring electricity demand especially for AI. Environmental groups are slamming the proposal, saying it will cause serious damage to public health at a time when the power sector accounts for nearly a quarter of U.S. greenhouse gas pollution. The Federal Reserve is widely expected to raise interest rates tomorrow. After inflation came in hotter than expected in August, and oil climbed above $100 a barrel. For Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, the decision is particularly significant. Raising rates would put him at odds with President Trump's repeated calls for lower borrowing costs. But failing to act could raise questions about the Fed's commitment to keeping inflation under control. Warsh's Fed correspondent Howard Schneider has more. Now, this is not what was expected when Kevin Warsh took over his Fed Chair. President Trump has said he's clear of these said many times. Kevin wants to lower rates. I think we should have lower rates. Well, here we are. Hiking rates and it's because inflation has been sticky and it's also because globally rates are rising and at the long end of the curve. And for reasons that kind of make a short-term hike important for him to follow at this point, because if he were to go against that market expectation, people would start to wonder, is he really serious about inflation? A lot of thinking that would backfire and rates at the long end would go up even faster and higher. Yemen's Iran aligned who these have launched a new wave of attacks on Saudi Arabia, and are digging into positions on the west coast of Yemen. And in rehab, there are urgent talks on how to deal with their lightning advance. People forced from their homes by the Houthi advance along the coast gather food in their makeshift camps. Among them, Isha Muhammad. She left her five children behind and now they are unable to leave. Saudi and Yemeni air forces have responded by stepping up aerial attacks on Houthi targets. Despite the Houthi moves strengthening Tehran's hand, sources have told Reuters that Washington has resisted Saudi requests for direct military help. For more on any of the stories from today, as well as more analysis and news shaping our world, check out Reuters.com or the Reuters app. There's a link in the description to download it and start getting pure news straight from the source. Don't forget to follow us on your favorite podcast player. If you're listening on a smart speaker, just ask for the latest news from Reuters seven days a week. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.