VOL. 45 | NO. 15 | Friday, April 9, 2021
RICHARD COURTNEY: REALTY CHECK
Paul Cook entered the real estate business in 1972 and quickly established himself as a man with a keen intellect and the eye of a visionary entrepreneur. Over time, his reputation as a builder was as sound as the foundations of his homes.
REAL ESTATE
McLEAN, Va. (AP) — Mortgage rates fell for the first time in more than two months as buyers continue to be stifled by high prices and limited supply.
NEWSMAKERS
Cleo D. Rucker has been promoted to the new position of chief human resources officer for Vanderbilt University.
BRIEFS
The Nashville Entrepreneur Center, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs and business leaders, has announced Amazon as a new supporting partner.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
Edmunds’ test team recently published the results of its real-world range testing for electric vehicles. Notably, every Tesla the team tested in 2020 came up short of matching the EPA’s range estimate. Almost all other EVs Edmunds tested met or exceeded those estimates.
PERSONAL FINANCE
The U.S. suicide rate has risen dramatically in recent years, and certified money coach Tammy Lally of Washington, D.C., is convinced money shame is a contributing factor.
CAREER CORNER
How relieved are you that spring is here? After months of snow storms paired with a long global pandemic, seeing flowers and clear skies brings much-needed hope.
MILLENNIAL MONEY
Picture cruising your car deep into 2021 and never glancing in the rearview mirror. Vaccines, travel and a hope of normalcy are finally on the horizon.
MUSIC INDUSTRY
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Luke Bryan says he's tested positive for COVID-19, which sidelined him from the season's first live "American Idol" episode on ABC.
SPORTS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee State announced Monday coach Rod Reed's contract will not be renewed after 11 seasons running the Tigers' football program with former NFL running back Eddie George reportedly poised to replace him.
NASHVILLE SC
NASHVILLE (AP) — Nashville has extended coach Gary Smith's contract through the 2023 season after leading the club to the playoffs in its inaugural season.
PREDATORS
NASHVILLE (AP) — Ryan Johansen was the lone scorer in the shootout, leading the Nashville Predators to a 3-2 victory over the Dallas Stars on Sunday night.
NEW YORK (AP) — Nashville Predators forward Michael McCarron was suspended two games Sunday for an illegal check to the head of Tampa Bay's Yanni Gourde.
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — The Tennessee State Library and Archives will host a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of its new 165,000 square foot building.
EDUCATION
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee labor officials are continuing to offer free online courses to help people without work during the COVID-19 pandemic advance their skills.
AUTO INDUSTRY
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two big South Korean electric vehicle battery makers said Sunday they have settled a long-running trade dispute that will allow one company to move ahead with plans to manufacture batteries in Georgia. President Joe Biden called it "a win for American workers and the American auto industry."
TECHNOLOGY
Microsoft, on an accelerated growth push, is buying speech recognition company Nuance in a deal worth about $16 billion.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
Dozens of Americans are rolling up their sleeves for a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine -- this time, shots tweaked to guard against a worrisome mutated version of the virus.
Uber is offering sign-up bonuses and other incentives for drivers as it faces record demand for rides and meal delivery.
NEW YORK (AP) — Although weddings and other big celebrations are going back on the calendar in the U.S., business owners who make those events happen expect a slow recovery from the impact of COVID-19.
BOSTON (AP) — U.S. colleges hoping for a return to normalcy next fall are weighing how far they should go in urging students to get the COVID-19 vaccine, including whether they should — or legally can — require it.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Stocks ended just below the latest record highs they hit last week as technology companies slipped.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden used a virtual meeting with corporate leaders about a global shortage of semiconductors to push Monday for his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, telling them that the U.S. should be the world's computer chip leader.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government's budget deficit surged to an all-time high of $1.7 trillion for the first six months of this budget year, nearly double the previous record, as another round of economic-support checks added billions of dollars to spending last month.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy is poised for an extended period of strong growth and hiring, the chair of the Federal Reserve said in an interview broadcast Sunday, though the coronavirus still poses some risk.
WASHINGTON (AP) — For more than a half-century, the voice emerging from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's monolithic, Beaux Arts-styled building near the White House was predictable: It was the embodiment of American business and, more specifically, a shared set of interests with the Republican Party.
More than a hundred top executives and corporate leaders gathered online this weekend to discuss their response to restrictive voting laws under consideration in several states and already enacted in Georgia, according to a statement from organizers of the meeting.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden White House is amplifying the push for its $2.3 trillion infrastructure package with the release of state-by-state breakdowns that show the dire shape of roads, bridges, the power grid and housing affordability.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jay Copan doesn't hide his disregard for the modern Republican Party.
WASHINGTON (AP) — From a secure room in the Capitol on Jan. 6, as rioters pummeled police and vandalized the building, Vice President Mike Pence tried to assert control. In an urgent phone call to the acting defense secretary, he issued a startling demand.
FRIDAY, APRIL 9
NASHVILLE AREA
NASHVILLE (AP) — Nashville's top health officials on Friday tweaked the city's mask mandate to exclude requiring face coverings in outdoor spaces.
PREDATORS
DETROIT (AP) — Viktor Arvidsson scored three times to lead the surging Nashville Predators in a 7-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night.
STATEWIDE
NASHVILLE (AP) — In his first week, Tennessee's freshman U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty watched in horror as the Capitol riots unfolded around him and decided to back down from his plans to oppose the electoral college results that affirmed President Joe Biden's win despite then-President Donald Trump's weekslong push to block the certification.
COURTS
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has ordered a study on overhauling the Supreme Court, creating a bipartisan commission Friday that will spend the next six months examining the politically incendiary issues of expanding the court and instituting term limits for justices, among other issues.
DALLAS (AP) — Wayne LaPierre flies exclusively on private jets, he sailed around the Bahamas for "security" and he never sends emails or texts in the course of his work running the nation's most politically influential gun-rights group.
REAL ESTATE
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nathan Long and Lili Chin have struck out so far in their four-month search to find an affordable home in the Los Angeles area — a cold streak that threatens to mess up their anniversary plans.
MEDIA
Facebook is showing different job ads to women and men in a way that might run afoul of anti-discrimination laws, according to a new study.
TRANSPORTATION
Airlines pulled dozens of Boeing Max 737s out of service for inspections after the aircraft maker told them about a possible electrical problem, the latest setback for plane.
RELIGION
GREENSBURG, Pa. (AP) — The nuns' daily email update was overtaken by news of infections. Ambulances blared into the driveways of their convents. Prayers for the sick went unanswered, prayers for the dead grew monotonous and, their cloistered world suddenly caving in, some of the sisters' thoughts were halting.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is proposing a major expansion of the government's role in long-term care, but questions are being raised over his using the low-income Medicaid program and piggybacking the whole idea on an infrastructure bill.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington will rush federal resources to support vaccinations, testing and therapeutics, but not vaccines, to Michigan in an effort to control the state's worst-in-the-nation COVID-19 transmission rate, the White House said Friday.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Hospitals in Turkey and Poland are filling up fast. Pakistan is restricting domestic travel to bring a surge in coronavirus infections under control. Even Thailand, which has weathered the coronavirus pandemic far better than many nations, is now struggling to contain a new COVID-19 surge.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Wall Street capped another week of gains with more milestones Friday, as strength in technology and health care stocks helped push the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average to all-time highs.
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — The coronavirus outbreak sent profits plunging at Atlantic City's casinos by more than 80% last year, according to figures released Friday by New Jersey gambling regulators.
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — Wholesale prices jumped again in March pushed by another big increase in energy prices, the government reported Friday.
Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama handed the online retail giant a decisive victory when they voted against forming a union and cut off a path that labor activists had hoped would lead to similar efforts throughout the company and beyond.
BEIJING (AP) — China's government on Friday criticized the Biden administration's curbs on access to U.S. technology for its supercomputer developers and said sanctions "only strengthen China's determination" to invent its own.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Ethics Committee has opened an investigation of Rep. Matt Gaetz, citing reports of sexual and other misconduct by the Florida Republican.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden released a $1.5 trillion wish list for the federal budget on Friday, asking for an 8.4% increase in agency operating budgets with substantial gains for Democratic priorities like education, health care, housing and environmental protection.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Rep. Matt Gaetz is retaining two prominent New York attorneys as he faces a Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations involving underage girls.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is giving himself lots of latitude when he defines infrastructure for the purpose of spending money on it. It's not just steel, but home health care workers. Not just excavating dirt, but building "dignity."
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats in Congress are trying to pass the first major gun control legislation in more than two decades with the support of President Joe Biden, who said Thursday that it is "long past time" to do so. But they are confronting a potentially insurmountable question over what rules should govern private sales and transfers, including those between friends and extended family, as they seek Republican votes.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The mere whiff of a scandal once unraveled political careers with stunning speed. Not anymore.
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. intelligence officials are painting a dark picture of the world's future, writing in a report released Thursday that the coronavirus pandemic has deepened economic inequality, strained government resources and fanned nationalist sentiments.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Nearly 150 groups are calling on the Senate to eliminate the filibuster, saying it is a Jim Crow-era relic that can be used to block an upcoming voting rights bill and other priorities, and should be relegated to the "dustbin of history."
THURSDAY, APRIL 8
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee has become the latest state to soon allow most adults 21 and older to carry handguns without first clearing a background check and training after Gov. Bill Lee on Thursday signed the measure into law.
COURTS
DALLAS (AP) — Wayne LaPierre, the embattled leader of the National Rifle Association, said Wednesday that he put the powerful gun-rights group into bankruptcy without first informing most of its board members and top officials.
DALLAS (AP) — After school shootings that left dozens dead in recent years, National Rifle Association leader Wayne LaPierre said the resulting outrage put him in such danger that he sought shelter aboard a borrowed 108-foot (32.92-meter) yacht.
SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — A former Southern California man was charged Wednesday with running a "boiler room" scheme that bilked more than 100 investors out of $14 million.
MEDIA
NEW YORK (AP) — Netflix further beefed up its film catalog on Thursday in a multi-year deal that will make it the new streaming home to Sony Pictures' top releases in the U.S.
AUTO INDUSTRY
DETROIT (AP) — The global shortage of semiconductors has forced General Motors to further cut production at six North American factories as chip supplies seem to be growing tighter.
TRANSPORTATION
Americans are traveling in the greatest numbers in more than a year, and soon they will have two new leisure-oriented airlines to consider for those trips.
REAL ESTATE
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The distribution of COVID-19 vaccines is fueling optimism that Americans will increasingly return to the ways they used to shop, travel and work before the pandemic.
VIRUS OUTBREAK
Nations around the world set new records Thursday for COVID-19 deaths and new coronavirus infections, and the disease surged even in some countries that have kept the virus in check. In the United States, Michigan has averaged more than 7,000 new cases a day.
MIAMI (AP) — The state of Florida has filed a lawsuit against the federal government to demand cruise ships be allowed to start sailing immediately, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Thursday.
Are some COVID-19 vaccines more effective than others? It's hard to tell since they weren't directly compared in studies. But experts say the vaccines are alike on what matters most: preventing hospitalizations and deaths.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia on Thursday become the latest country to restrict use of the AstraZeneca vaccine by recommending that it not be given to people under age 50.
LONDON — Britain's COVID-19 vaccination program is beginning to break the link between infection and serious illness or death, according to the latest results from an ongoing study of the pandemic in England.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Technology companies led stocks to more gains on Wall Street Thursday, nudging the S&P 500 to an all-time high for the third time this week.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The International Monetary Fund on Thursday authorized a $650 billion expansion of the 190-nation lending institution's resources with the aim of providing more support for vulnerable countries as they battle the coronavirus pandemic.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy, boosted by quickening vaccinations and signs of rapid hiring, is headed toward a strong recovery, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Thursday.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week to 744,000, signaling that many employers are still cutting jobs even as more people are vaccinated against COVID-19, consumers gain confidence and the government distributes aid throughout the economy.
Vote counting in the union push at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, is about to begin, but hundreds of contested ballots could muddy the outcome if it's a close race.
Amazon is known for quick delivery. But finding out whether Amazon warehouse workers voted for or against unionizing is going to take some more time.
NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Without coming right out and saying it, President Joe Biden seems ready to let lapse a May 1 deadline for completing a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Orderly withdrawals take time, and Biden is running out of it.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden, in his first gun control measures since taking office, announced a half-dozen executive actions Thursday aimed at addressing a proliferation of gun violence across the nation that he called an "epidemic and an international embarrassment."