Ethics reforms won’t come easy on Capitol Hill after misconduct scandals

2026-04-24T08:00:51.224Z / CNN

By Annie Grayer

4 hr ago
PUBLISHED Apr 24, 2026, 4:00 AM ET

The US Capitol building is seen on March 27.

Samuel Corum/Getty Images/File

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are scrambling to meet the moment as a wave of resignations and misconduct scandals rock Capitol Hill, sparking calls for accountability.

But even those with the best intentions are realizing that the road to reforming how Congress polices itself will be much longer and more complicated than many had hoped, frustrating those who want to see swift change. The stakes for members are high, as many fear the public’s dismal view of Congress will only worsen if there aren’t clear improvements.

Making changes to how the House Ethics Committee does its work is where most members want to start, but the panel, which leads investigations into lawmakers, is often viewed as something of a black box by nature of its work.

After sexual misconduct allegations against former Reps. Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales came to light through media reports and both members resigned before the panel could finish its own investigations, a number of lawmakers who do not serve on the panel believe it now has a lot to prove.

After the ethics committee spent years investigating Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, the Florida Democrat resigned this week just before the panel was set to meet to recommend punishment after finding her guilty of multiple ethics violations. Some members felt frustrated her resignation allowed her to evade an expected expulsion vote on the House floor, and feel that members should still be able to be held accountable by the chamber even if they move to resign.

“At a time when public confidence in Congress is at an all-time low, it is vitally important that the ethics committee investigates abuses of the public trust in a prompt, thorough and fair manner,” independent Rep. Kevin Kiley of California told CNN.

GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida has argued that the ethics committee moves too slowly and is not effective. “The bottom line is that a process that delays accountability to that extent does not deter misconduct, it enables it. Serious reform is long overdue,” the congresswoman wrote this week in a piece for The Spectator.

House Ethics Chairman Michael Guest defended the panel’s work in an interview with CNN, arguing that his committee is holding lawmakers accountable, but laid out three concrete changes he wants House Speaker Mike Johnson to make to speed up and simplify the process. All of the proposed changes would require bipartisan buy in to reform the House rules.

Rep. Michael Guest, center, attends a hearing of the House Ethics Committee on March 26.

Nathan Howard/Reuters

First up, Guest wants to add additional investigators to his committee so the panel can move faster and take on more work. He also wants to bring the Office of Congressional Conduct under his jurisdiction, which he argued would eliminate duplicative efforts.

Currently, a staffer complaint first goes to the Office of Congressional Conduct, an independent, non-partisan entity, and if that complaint involves a member, it will then be referred to the ethics panel, which then starts the investigative process over again. And Guest wants to consider expanding the committee’s jurisdiction so it can continue investigations after a member resigns or leaves Congress.

“I think we could simplify it. We could streamline the process and by streamlining the process, hopefully see that cases are moved through quicker. I think that’s the desire of everyone,” Guest, who wants to expedite the panel’s work without sacrificing necessary due process, told CNN.

Freshman Democratic Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, who serves on the ethics committee, said he does not see the point in expanding the panel’s jurisdiction to include when a lawmaker leaves Congress but wants the committee to be more willing to enforce its subpoenas by imposing criminal sanctions on witnesses who don’t immediately comply.

“There’s a lot I’d like to do to make the committee move faster and reformed. There’s a lot I want to do in Congress to change some of the rules and some of the laws to police us to make sure that we are an example for the American people, not an embarrassment,” he told CNN.

Earlier this week, Johnson said he would lead any effort to reform the current system as ideas come up.

“We are looking at every potential avenue to tighten up the rules and make sure that women have an avenue to report,” Johnson said at a press conference Tuesday. “We have a lot of mechanisms in place but we’re always open to making that safer and more secure. And I will lead that myself.”

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries met with Democrats on the House Ethics panel on Thursday amid the discussion of other possible changes, a source familiar with the meeting told CNN.

“Congress is not subject to really any kind of oversight that it does not control,” said Donald Sherman, president and CEO of the liberal-leaning watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. “They need to work harder as an institution to figure out a way to ensure that they are more responsive to building a safe, ethical and equitable workplace for the thousands of staffers that serve them and their constituents.”

The ethics committee announced an investigation into Swalwell after CNN and other outlets reported on allegations of sexual misconduct against him – allegations Swalwell has denied. And a former congressional staffer with knowledge of the House Ethics committee’s work told CNN that during their tenure on Capitol Hill no complaint was ever filed against Swalwell.

“It makes me think that people in the House don’t know they have the option to make a complaint about a member. Clearly the culture of people understanding what recourse they have with members or staff isn’t good enough. It failed incredibly,” the former staffer said.

‘It’s crazy some of the things that happen in this institution that would not be tolerated in any other workplace’

But before attempting to implement solutions, many members are finding that it’s hard to even know where to start.

Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington started researching how allegations get reported on Capitol Hill and was shocked, like many of her colleagues, to learn how complicated and convoluted the current process was.

There was an entire office that she didn’t even know existed that she quickly learned most of her staff considered their primary reporting outlet for any claim. She couldn’t believe the current rules allowed lawmakers to have relationships with staffers as long as they weren’t their own. Even members on the House Ethics Committee couldn’t unanimously tell her crucial specifics like at what point in the process the panel learns the identity of an accuser.

Jayapal is currently on a mission to build a chart of what each ethics-related office does and has jurisdiction over — a task she didn’t realize would take on a life of its own — to then present to House Democratic leadership about what tangible changes could be made.

“I’m still trying to untangle the web we’ve woven,” Jayapal told CNN. “I don’t think staff is clear either about what their rights are in each of these situations.”

Other lawmakers have already introduced their own bills, but their paths forward are unclear. Luna and Subramanyam introduced a bipartisan bill this week to prevent members of Congress from receiving pensions if they commit serious offenses.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna speak with members of the media in December 17, 2025.

Heather Diehl/Getty Images/File

Rep. Suhas Subramanyam during a March 2025 town hall in Warrenton, Virginia.

Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images/File

“We felt like it was common sense,” Subramanyam told CNN. “I didn’t even realize that you could continue to collect a pension after leaving this place if you had to resign or got expelled for those types of crimes.”

Democratic Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, who came to Congress following the resignation of her predecessor after it was revealed he used taxpayer dollars to settle a sexual harassment case, introduced a bill to reform and tighten up loopholes in legislation passed in 2018 during the #MeToo movement to address workplace harassment and discrimination on Capitol Hill..

“It’s crazy some of the things that happen in this institution that would not be tolerated in any other workplace in America,” Scanlon told CNN.

In an attempt to beat back the mounting criticism, the ethics committee released a rare statement this week imploring the Capitol Hill community to report any instance of sexual misconduct and outlined 28 sexual misconduct investigations the panel has conducted dating back to the 1970s. There have only been six expulsions in the history of the House of Representatives and lawmakers on the ethics committee say there should continue to be a high bar for the rare occurrence, emphasizing that individuals must be seen as innocent until proven guilty.

Members point to the panel’s investigation into former Rep. George Santos and his expulsion from the House not long after the panel released a scathing report, and its probe of former Rep. Matt Gaetz, which was cited in pushback to his nomination to be attorney general that he eventually withdrew, as two examples where the committee’s work translated into broader accountability.

Standing with Guest moments after Cherfilus-McCormick resigned, the top Democrat on the House ethics panel, Rep. Mark DeSaulnier, outlined the hard place the panel finds itself in.

“We both take a little umbrage to all the criticism the committee gets. The rules are designed by the House,” the California Democratic told reporters earlier this week. “If there are opportunities to make it better, I think we both agree that we are open to that. And clearly at least perspective from the public, there is a lack of trust in this institution and we’ve been working very hard to hold people accountable in both parties.”

Democratic Rep. Glenn Ivey, another member of the ethics panel, argued that as much as people want the committee to move faster, allegations like sexual misconduct cannot be rushed.

“There’s no panacea out there,” he told CNN. “Those things take time.”

Warsh’s quest for better inflation data is a well-worn, difficult pursuit for Fed

2026-04-24 10:02:32 UTC / Reuters

By Howard Schneider

April 24, 2026 10:02 AM UTC Updated 1 hour ago

Kevin Warsh, U.S. President Donald Trump’s nominee to be next chair of the Federal Reserve, testifies before a Senate Banking Committee confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 21, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

• Summary

• Fed has multiple ways to measure “underlying” inflation
• Warsh proposes reforms with no guarantee new frameworks will do better
• AI’s impact on productivity and inflation remains uncertain, Fed officials and Warsh agree

WASHINGTON, April 24 (Reuters) – Federal Reserve Chair nominee Kevin Warsh has called for a major rethink of how to measure inflation, but he may have less trouble finding new ideas at the central bank than in choosing from an expanding set of alternate models, measures and forecasts designed to understand how the price level is changing.

One month of recent ​data shows the dilemma.

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February inflation numbers under the key measure tracked by the Fed came in nearly a percentage point above the central bank’s 2% target. Separate calculations at the Dallas Federal Reserve, using a methodology ‌preferred by Warsh that discards outliers like the 384% annualized price jump for moving services or the 50% annualized crash for calculators and typewriters, suggested a close-to-target pace of just 2.3%.

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The Cleveland Fed’s Center for Inflation Research, meanwhile, focused on the median pace of price increases and found it close to the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ headline number, while a more complex statistical model created by the New York Fed suggested underlying trend inflation was getting even worse at 3.1%.

The idea that a “true” measure of underlying inflation is at hand and so far overlooked by the Fed, said Omair Sharif, president and founder of Inflation ​Insights, “sounded like somebody who has not been in the building for a while and has not looked at inflation research since he left the Fed” in 2011 after a term as governor.

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Sharif noted that the alternative measure Warsh said he favored ​at his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday, known as the trimmed mean, currently had the lowest inflation rate among the different common measurements – and was thus more compatible with the rate cuts ⁠expected by President Donald Trump — but also missed the broadening and acceleration of inflation in 2021, a key data lapse that more commonly used inflation statistics captured.

The trimmed mean measure maintained by the Dallas Fed, constructed by discarding items with outsized changes and averaging what ​remains, may be underestimating inflation in the current moment as well because of changes in the comparative “skew” between the fastest and slowest price changes.

The benefit of sticking with well-worn measures, like the personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy, or core PCE, “is ​that it is better known in the market and possibly easier to explain with limited reference to statistics,” Krishna Guha, vice chair of Evercore ISI, wrote in an analysis of Warsh’s comments about developing a new Fed inflation framework.

While core PCE is considered the better guide to trend inflation, the Fed uses headline PCE for its 2% target. Warsh did not explicitly suggest changes to that target but did say focus should be “left of the decimal point,” hinting at a tolerance for inflation some degree above the goal.

Shows alternative inflation measures

BREAKING THE MOLD

Warsh’s hearing highlighted a number of areas he feels are ripe for reform, but his ​determination to fight what he called “the tyranny of the status quo” doesn’t mean that “a new framework, new tools, and…new communications” will be easily developed or successful.

The Fed can be hard to change, with its Washington-based Board of Governors, an influential team of board economists, ​12 regional banks with their own staff and philosophies, and an array of former officials and staff often tapped to contribute to research or other debates. Current Chair Jerome Powell, for example, shares some of Warsh’s criticism of the Fed’s communications tools but was largely rebuffed by other policymakers ‌and staff when ⁠he suggested changes last year.

But neither is thinking fixed. When many mainstream economists argued in 2022, for example, that fast Fed rate hikes risked massive unemployment, research by Governor Christopher Waller and staff economist Andrew Figura showed why that was unlikely, and helped ease policymakers’ concerns about raising rates to control inflation.

The Fed even ditched the “status quo” altogether in 2020 with a new framework that showed it could adopt new ideas, and also showed the risks of doing so. That new framework was abandoned just last year for having downplayed inflation at precisely the wrong moment and delaying policymakers’ response.

Much like the Powell Fed bet it could improve economic outcomes by lifting subpar inflation to test the limit of maximum employment with lower rates, Warsh is betting he can test the borders of non-inflationary economic growth with ​lower rates on the grounds that artificial intelligence will improve ​productivity and thus ease the pressure to raise prices.

‘VENEER OF ⁠CREDIBILITY’

In his hearing Warsh hedged on the timing, leaving his short-term rates outlook up in the air.

But the direction was clear. AI could “increase the potential output of the economy,” Warsh said in response to questions from lawmakers concerned that misreading its impact could mean a policy mistake and higher inflation. “We don’t know that. We can’t bank on that, but considerable work needs to be done by the ​Federal Reserve in evaluating this productivity wave.”

Current officials have said much the same: AI will change things, but at a pace and degree that is far from certain and hard to build ​into current policy.

On inflation, Warsh will ⁠find plenty of work in progress to find better measurements, and no shortage of opinion about the best ways to distinguish one-off price changes from the steady upward drift that economists classify as “inflation.”

Teasing out the broad and persistent from the narrow and “transitory” is a well-recognized problem. Fed officials during the pandemic surge of inflation came up with an array of ways to slice available data to find a signal, and delved into alternative “big data” sets of the sort Warsh mentioned in his hearing.

Indeed, Sharif said, government agencies have already incorporated more actual price data from private ⁠sources into the ​indexes they produce, and suggested that if Warsh wanted a quick path to better inflation statistics it would be convincing Congress to boost funding and staff for ​projects already under way at places like the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“I think what he was going for was we need to understand the data collection for all types of prices. That is a laudable goal. It is what BLS has been doing for many years,” Sharif said. “But I don’t think you get to some ​big new trend you never thought of. What he should have said is what everyone says. We will look at a variety of things to get a handle on inflation.”

Reporting by Howard Schneider; Editing by Dan Burns and Andrea Ricci

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

日本靖国神社春季大祭结束 高市未参拜

2026年4月24日 18:52 / 联合早报

日本靖国神社春季大祭结束 高市未参拜

位于东京千代田区靖国神社供奉着二战甲级战犯，高市早苗并未在春季大祭期间前去参拜。 （法新社）

据日本媒体报道，日本首相高市早苗并未在靖国神社春季例行大祭期间前去参拜。

位于东京九段北的靖国神社春季例行大祭星期四（4月23日）晚间结束，高市早苗在此次大祭期间未参拜。高市在首日21日供奉了称为“真榊”的供品，22日自费献上“玉串料”（祭祀费）。

日本共同社引述分析说，高市可能是顾及双边关系趋冷的中国和关系持续改善的韩国。此次例行大祭期间，高市内阁的阁僚中经济财政担当相城内实进行参拜。

靖国神社内供奉着包括东条英机在内的14名二战甲级战犯。高市在担任阁僚期间也曾配合终战日和春秋例行大祭前往参拜，但在即将就任首相的去年10月秋季例行大祭时放弃了参拜。

位于东京千代田区靖国神社供奉着二战甲级战犯，高市早苗并未在春季大祭期间前去参拜。 （法新社）

据日本媒体报道，日本首相高市早苗并未在靖国神社春季例行大祭期间前去参拜。

位于东京九段北的靖国神社春季例行大祭星期四（4月23日）晚间结束，高市早苗在此次大祭期间未参拜。高市在首日21日供奉了称为“真榊”的供品，22日自费献上“玉串料”（祭祀费）。

日本共同社引述分析说，高市可能是顾及双边关系趋冷的中国和关系持续改善的韩国。此次例行大祭期间，高市内阁的阁僚中经济财政担当相城内实进行参拜。

靖国神社内供奉着包括东条英机在内的14名二战甲级战犯。高市在担任阁僚期间也曾配合终战日和春秋例行大祭前往参拜，但在即将就任首相的去年10月秋季例行大祭时放弃了参拜。

中东战事耗美军弹药库存　美前官员吁台强化自身战备

2026年4月24日 19:09 / 联合早报

美国国防部前官员胡振东（图）星期五（4月24日）在一场台北座谈会警告，美军在中东消耗的是美国本土战备库存，而这同样是未来印太战事后续增援所需来源，对台湾安全形成间接风险。 （缪宗翰摄）

美以伊战争持续消耗美军精准弹药，加上台湾军购特别条例持续搁置，引发美国内部对台湾防卫能力的讨论。美国前国防部官员胡振东星期五（4月24日）在台北一场座谈会警告，美军在中东消耗的是美国本土战备库存，而这同样是未来印太战事后续增援所需来源，对台湾安全形成间接风险。

台海安全议题近期同时受美国弹药供应链压力，以及台湾内部军购政治拉扯牵动。赖清德政府推动国防特别条例，希望以特别预算强化防空、反导、无人机等战力，但在野党要求厘清采购清单、交付期程与产业合作，朝野协商迟迟未能突破；另一方面，中东战事扩大后，美国是否有足够弹药同时支应欧洲、中东与印太需求，也成为华盛顿评估防卫台湾计划时必须面对的新变数。

《华尔街日报》星期四（23日）引述美国官员透露，自对伊朗开战以来，美军已发射超过1000枚长程战斧巡航导弹，并动用1500至2000枚关键防空导弹，包括萨德、爱国者与标准导弹拦截弹。完全补充相关库存可能需要长达六年，若北京短期内对台动武，恐影响美国防卫台湾的作战计划。

不过，美国印太司令部司令帕帕罗星期二（21日）在国会作证时表示，伊朗战争让美军获得宝贵实战经验，“目前为止，我看不到这对我们吓阻中国的能力造成任何实质成本”。

白宫新闻秘书莱维特也称，相关报道的整体前提错误，美军具备充足武器与弹药，可防卫本土并执行总统下令的军事行动。

然而，美国国防部前官员胡振东星期五在台北出席国策研究院座谈会发言时研判，伊朗战争虽属有限区域冲突，但华盛顿过去50天采取的部分决策与行动，已给美国应对另一场重大突发事态的能力带来风险。

胡振东在美国空军服役长达27年，担任过美国国防部中国大陆与台湾事务官员，也曾任职于美国在台协会及大型国防企业。

他特别点名AGM-158-ER增程型空对地距外导弹（JASSM-ER）与战斧导弹的消耗，指这类昂贵的长程匿踪导弹，更需要用于应对俄罗斯或中国等不同性质的对手。但美国今年仅采购396枚，却在四星期内使用超过1000枚；战斧导弹方面，今年也只采购150枚，却在伊朗战争最初30天使用850枚，约占库存四分之一。

胡振东认为，中国正利用伊朗消耗美国战备库存，并在停火期间通过巴基斯坦陆路及运-20运输机，向伊朗提供防空与反舰武器；美国必须避免落入这一陷阱。

不过，他研判美国印太司令与五角大厦参谋长联席会议，不会允许动用太平洋地区战备物资，因为中国仍是唯一能威胁美国国家生存的国家。但支援欧洲和中东需求的战备物资来自美国本土，而这也是印太地区一旦发生战争时，印太司令部后续增援所需的同一来源，因此会对台湾安全形成间接影响。

胡振东认为，台湾应建立能源韧性、降低对外部能源供应的依赖、增加能源储备，并认为近期检视重启核电厂是必要之举；同时也须增加弹药库存，并兴建强化弹药掩体，因为一旦战争爆发，弹药消耗速度可能超过预期。

在美国方面忧心中东战事影响对台军事协助的同时，台湾立法院朝野党团星期四历时三小时，协商卡关已久的国防特别条例草案，对采购项目、匡列金额等深水区课题仍无共识。

据台湾媒体报道，就在同一天，美国在台协会邀请多名在野党立委与美台军工产业座谈，讨论重点放在台湾无人机、AI与军工产业合作。

受邀的国民党立委徐巧芯星期五受访时说，美方过去可能较常直接与国防部或民进党沟通，现在也明白在野党力量重要， “在野党的重要性现在已经被高度重视且提升到较高的位阶”。

她并强调，会中没有讨论军购数字或立法院协商内容。

美俄的《新削减战略武器条约》已于今年2月5日到期失效，这引发了核军备竞赛将加速的担忧。图为2018年3月26日，一枚未携带弹头的“三叉”导弹，从美国海军俄亥俄级弹道导弹潜艇上在加州近海进行试射。 （路透社档案照片）

（日内瓦综合电）反核团体指出，金融机构正加大对核武器生产的投资，并警告在全球冲突日益增多之际，这一趋势可能进一步推高本已飙升的军费开支，助推新核军备竞赛。

美国和俄罗斯的《新削减战略武器条约》（New START）已在今年2月5日到期失效。专家一直警告，随着核武国家卷入欧洲、亚洲和中东冲突之际，而长期以来为裁军和防止核武器扩散所做的努力似乎正在瓦解，一场新的核军备竞赛正在酝酿之中。

在星期五（4月24日）发布的一份新报告中，诺贝尔和平奖得主“国际废除核武器运动”（ICAN）和另一个反核武组织PAX指出，越来越多金融机构正在对参与核武器生产的公司进行投资，帮助全球九个拥核国扩充和现代化它们的核武库。

根据这份年度报告，截至2025年9月，共有301家银行、养老基金、保险公司和其他金融机构对参与核武器生产的公司进行融资或投资。与去年同期相比，这一数字增长15%，扭转多年来的下滑趋势。

ICAN项目主管斯奈德在声明中指出：“多年来，试图从军备竞赛中获利的投资者数量首次出现上升趋势。”

也是报告共同作者的斯奈德警告，这是一种短期且高风险的策略，只会加剧危险的局势升级，而“要从中获利，就不可能不助长军备竞赛”。

拥核国对核武库进行现代化 推高核武器需求

根据报告，俄罗斯、美国、中国、法国、英国、巴基斯坦、印度、以色列和朝鲜这九个拥核国目前正在对它们的核武库进行现代化改造，当中还有许多在扩充规模，“从而推动了对这些武器的需求”。

报告列出25家参与核武器生产的公司，其中霍尼韦尔国际（Honeywell International）、通用动力（General Dynamics）和诺斯洛普·格鲁曼（Northrop Grumman）获利最多。其他主要生产商包括英国航空航天系统公司（BAE）、贝克特尔（Bechtel）和洛克希德·马丁（Lockheed Martin）。

不过报告也强调，一些金融机构已证明，放弃与核武器相关的投资仍可获得可观利润。

反核组织说，截至2025年底，明确避免投资核武公司的机构所管理的资产总规模已超过4万亿美元（约5.1万亿新元）。

金融机构加大核武投资 反核组织：或推高核军备竞赛

2026年4月24日 19:02 / 联合早报

美俄的《新削减战略武器条约》已于今年2月5日到期失效，这引发了核军备竞赛将加速的担忧。图为2018年3月26日，一枚未携带弹头的“三叉”导弹，从美国海军俄亥俄级弹道导弹潜艇上在加州近海进行试射。 （路透社档案照片）

（日内瓦综合电）反核团体指出，金融机构正加大对核武器生产的投资，并警告在全球冲突日益增多之际，这一趋势可能进一步推高本已飙升的军费开支，助推新核军备竞赛。

美国和俄罗斯的《新削减战略武器条约》（New START）已在今年2月5日到期失效。专家一直警告，随着核武国家卷入欧洲、亚洲和中东冲突之际，而长期以来为裁军和防止核武器扩散所做的努力似乎正在瓦解，一场新的核军备竞赛正在酝酿之中。

在星期五（4月24日）发布的一份新报告中，诺贝尔和平奖得主“国际废除核武器运动”（ICAN）和另一个反核武组织PAX指出，越来越多金融机构正在对参与核武器生产的公司进行投资，帮助全球九个拥核国扩充和现代化它们的核武库。

根据这份年度报告，截至2025年9月，共有301家银行、养老基金、保险公司和其他金融机构对参与核武器生产的公司进行融资或投资。与去年同期相比，这一数字增长15%，扭转多年来的下滑趋势。

ICAN项目主管斯奈德在声明中指出：“多年来，试图从军备竞赛中获利的投资者数量首次出现上升趋势。”

也是报告共同作者的斯奈德警告，这是一种短期且高风险的策略，只会加剧危险的局势升级，而“要从中获利，就不可能不助长军备竞赛”。

拥核国对核武库进行现代化 推高核武器需求

根据报告，俄罗斯、美国、中国、法国、英国、巴基斯坦、印度、以色列和朝鲜这九个拥核国目前正在对它们的核武库进行现代化改造，当中还有许多在扩充规模，“从而推动了对这些武器的需求”。

报告列出25家参与核武器生产的公司，其中霍尼韦尔国际（Honeywell International）、通用动力（General Dynamics）和诺斯洛普·格鲁曼（Northrop Grumman）获利最多。其他主要生产商包括英国航空航天系统公司（BAE）、贝克特尔（Bechtel）和洛克希德·马丁（Lockheed Martin）。

不过报告也强调，一些金融机构已证明，放弃与核武器相关的投资仍可获得可观利润。

反核组织说，截至2025年底，明确避免投资核武公司的机构所管理的资产总规模已超过4万亿美元（约5.1万亿新元）。

Josh Shapiro tests his clout in trying to flip US House seats in Pennsylvania

2026-04-24T09:00:51.329Z / CNN

By Arit John

2 hr ago

PUBLISHED Apr 24, 2026, 5:00 AM ET

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro speaks during a kickoff event for his own re-election campaign at The Alan Horwitz “Sixth Man” Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on January 8.

Hannah Beier/Reuters

If Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has his way, the Democratic path to winning back the US House will run through his state.

Shapiro has committed to helping Democrats flip four Republican-held seats. He’s endorsed in three of the districts, including one where his chosen candidate is locked in a competitive primary. And in a bid to rebuild Pennsylvania’s Democratic Party, Shapiro recruited an ally as state chairman and donated $925,000 from his campaign account this cycle, including $400,000 in April, according to his campaign.

Winning those seats while running up the score in his own reelection would bolster Shapiro’s political resume if he decides to run for president in 2028. But there is also some political risk for Shapiro, who is betting he can help Democrats oust longtime Republican incumbents and boost his pick in the 7th District.

“Josh is not someone who puts his name behind something without a lot of oomph … he’s not someone who is going to want to be embarrassed,” said one Pennsylvania Democratic strategist who asked to be anonymous to speak candidly.

The governor surprised some Democrats and frustrated others when he recruited and endorsed Bob Brooks, the president of the Pennsylvania Professional Fire Fighters Association, to take on Rep. Ryan Mackenzie.

Brooks supporters argue he’s better positioned to win over working-class voters in the district than the other three candidates in the race: former federal prosecutor Ryan Crosswell, former nonprofit executive and energy engineer Carol Obando-Derstine, and former Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure.

“I think the world of Josh Shapiro, and I think he’s a wonderful governor, and I just could not understand why he would want to involve himself in such a competitive primary,” said former Rep. Susan Wild, who recruited and is backing Obando-Derstine. “Invariably, you’re going to be pissing off several different candidates’ bases.”

The real challenge will come in November, when Democrats hope to defeat Republican Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Rob Bresnahan, Scott Perry, and Mackenzie.

Bresnahan and Mackenzie were elected in 2024 after defeating Democratic incumbents in close races. Fitzpatrick and Perry are longtime Democratic targets who have withstood past efforts to unseat them.

Democrats hope that the favorable midterm environment will help get their candidates over the edge in all four races. They also note that President Donald Trump won’t be on the ballot to help boost turnout. Instead, Shapiro — who won his 2022 race by 15 points — will be at the top of the ticket.

“Governor Shapiro is fighting to keep getting stuff done for our Commonwealth and to put a stop to Trump’s chaos, cruelty, and corruption that is harming Pennsylvania families,” Shapiro spokesperson Manuel Bonder said in a statement. “That means winning this November – and the Governor is going to keep showing up, delivering his message, and working to elect leaders up and down the ballot who will actually fight for Pennsylvanians and help put an end to Washington’s corruption and disastrous policies.”

A crowded primary in the Lehigh Valley

Democrats’ best pick-up opportunity in the state may be the 7th District. Mackenzie beat Wild in 2024 by just 1 percentage point. Wild, who flipped the district in 2018, chose not to run again.

Brooks, who has been endorsed by a broad range of state and national politicians, has made Shapiro’s support the centerpiece of his pitch to voters. His campaign website’s “red box” — where campaigns signal strategies to super PACs and outside groups — stresses that it is “most important that likely Democratic primary voters learn that Brooks is endorsed by Governor Josh Shapiro.” The governor held a fundraiser for Brooks last December and appeared prominently in the Brooks campaign’s first TV ad earlier this month.

Crosswell, the fundraising leader in the race, noted at a recent debate that he’s brought in more money than his opponents “without riding anyone’s coattails.”

Ryan Crosswell speaks during an interview with Reuters in New York on December 12, 2025.

Mike Segar/Reuters

Patty Carlis, a Democratic volunteer from Bethlehem who is leaning toward Crosswell, said she was put off by Brooks’ emphasis on his endorsements.

“I want to hear somebody tell me what they’re going to do as a congressperson, who they are as individuals, and what they see as the problems,” Carlis said.

She said she’s eager to support Shapiro’s re-election bid, but wished the governor “had more faith in the Democratic voters, that we will pick the person who is the best person to represent us” in the US House primary.

Shapiro said in a statement that Brooks has “always had my back” and he’s “proud to endorse him in this race and stand with him in the fight to make life more affordable.” The governor has said he got to know Brooks when the union leader lobbied state lawmakers to pass benefits for firefighters.

Some Brooks critics have pointed to his history of posting right-wing memes on social media. After a gunman killed 23 people in El Paso in 2019, Brooks posted a meme with an image of Clint Eastwood that said: “The problem is not guns. It’s hearts without God, homes without discipline, schools without prayer and courtrooms without justice.” The post, which was obtained by CNN and written about by local political blogs last year, included a logo associated with the Three Percenters, an anti-government extremist militia group.

In a statement to CNN, Brooks apologized for some of his past posts and asked voters in the district to judge him on his record of service. He said he’s been a Democrat throughout his adulthood.

“Politics is nasty – a bunch of DC insiders who don’t want more working people in office are selectively digging up years-old Facebook posts,” he said in the statement. “I’ve shared a few stupid things over the years, and for that I am sorry. I believe who I’ve fought for and my values have always been clear.”

Some Latino leaders also say Brooks hasn’t done enough to introduce himself to their community. The district is 23% Latino; Allentown, the largest city in Lehigh County, is about 56% Latino. Brooks’ allies, including Allentown’s first Latino mayor, Matt Tuerk, say that he’s been attending Latino events in the community.

Bob Brooks speaks alongside Gov. Josh Shapiro at the fire department in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, on April 18, 2025.

April Gamiz/The Morning Call/Tribune News Service/Getty Images

Victor Martinez, a radio station owner who lives in the district, wrote an opinion piece earlier this year arguing Shapiro had “sent the wrong message” and suggested the governor was motivated by a desire to win favor with the firefighters’ union. Shapiro’s office soon reached out, Martinez said, and the governor explained on air that his endorsement was “personal,” not political.

“The reason why I stepped up to support Bob is because I believe in him,” Shapiro said on Martinez’s show, “El Relajo de la Mañana.” “I know we may be on different sides of this, but I think we can both agree that whoever emerges from the primary, we’re going to be 100% in for them, and they have to beat Ryan Mackenzie.”

As far as the primary is concerned, the two have agreed to disagree.

“I think there’s a little bit of political gambling that the governor did, especially in a year that he’s running for reelection,” Martinez said. “But I appreciate him not being afraid and just saying, ‘Hey, if he loses, he loses. I think he’s going to win, and I’m all in.’”

Brooks supporters argue his profile as a working-class everyman who has been a firefighter, a bartender, and now runs a snow removal and lawn care business makes him the best positioned to reach the voters who narrowly handed the seat to Republicans last cycle.

“Bob has a really important skill in politics, which is turning a prospective weakness into a strength,” said state Rep. Mike Schlossberg, who has endorsed Brooks. “He spoke about the fact that he knows what it’s like, personally, to be behind in your mortgage and to have financial difficulties, and he can talk to those people with more credibility than I think anybody else in the field can.”

Going after four seats

The Cook Political Report has rated the 7th District a toss-up, along with the 8th District, where Bresnahan will likely face Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti, and the 10th District, where Perry is likely to face a rematch against former local news anchor Janelle Stelson.

The 1st District, where Democratic Bucks County Commissioner Bob Harvie is challenging Fitzpatrick, is rated likely Republican.

“I look at Fitzpatrick as probably the toughest to beat, but eventually you run out of luck,” said Mike Mikus, a Pennsylvania-based Democratic strategist. “You just can’t hold on anymore when you’re swimming against the tide.”

Republicans are optimistic they’ll hold at least some of the four seats.

“I would say good luck,” Chris Pack, a Republican strategist who runs a super PAC backing Fitzpatrick, said of Democrats’ odds in the four races.

Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick arrives at the US Capitol on December 10, 2025.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Fitzpatrick, a five-term incumbent and former FBI agent, kept his seat during the 2018 Democratic wave and in 2024, when former Vice President Kamala Harris carried his district even as Trump won statewide.

Democrats have pointed to their wins in 2025 in Bucks County, which encompasses most of the district. Harvie has argued he’s a stronger candidate than past challengers because he’s from the district and has been elected countywide in 2019 and 2023.

“I had somebody ask recently, ‘How am I going to get the people who vote for Fitzpatrick to vote for me?’” Harvie said. “And my answer was, ‘I already have.’”

Shapiro has endorsed Cognetti and Stelson and is expected to endorse Harvie soon, according to two sources familiar with the governor’s plans.

Rep. Chris DeLuzio, a Pennsylvania Democrat, praised the governor for leaning in on the races.

“Josh Shapiro has been a great partner for me and others who are trying to take back the House,” DeLuzio said. “I know, as does he, that the majority could run through Pennsylvania.”

As U.S. re-arms during Iran ceasefire, long-term concerns emerge about advanced munitions supplies

April 24, 2026 / 7:32 AM EDT / CBS News

Washington — Days after the United States opened its military campaign against Iran, President Trump sought to project confidence in the nation’s war footing, declaring that America possessed a “virtually unlimited supply” of key munitions and could fight wars “forever” using them.

The remark conveyed a familiar image of American military power, a projection of being technologically unmatched, logistically dominant and capable of sustaining operations indefinitely. But recent congressional testimony from Pentagon officials and an analysis of the U.S. arsenal point to a more constrained reality, where the U.S. advantage lies less in limitless supply than in highly advanced, but finite, systems.

Of particular concern are supplies of advanced long-range missiles capable of striking targets hundreds of miles away, as well as interceptor munitions used to defend U.S. forces against incoming attacks.

Mr. Trump’s announcement of an indefinite ceasefire extension with Iran earlier this week prolonged a window for the U.S. to re-arm assets in the Middle East with existing stocks after a five-week bombing campaign.

The president told reporters Thursday the U.S. isn’t under any pressure to wrap up the conflict, saying, “we’ve never had so much ammunition.”

Long-term supply questions remain.

This image provided by U.S. Central Command shows the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner firing a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile in support of Operation Epic Fury, on March 1, 2026. U.S. Navy via AP

The Center for Strategic and International Studies analyzed U.S. munitions stocks and concluded that the U.S. “may have expended more than half of the prewar inventory” of at least four key munitions, including Tomahawk missiles.

The report said the “United States has enough missiles to continue fighting this war under any plausible scenario. The risk — which will persist for many years — lies in future wars.”

Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, Adm. Samuel Paparo, the head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, said that scaling up output of high-end systems such as the Tomahawk cruise missile or AGM-158 JASSM, a stealthy long-range weapon, could take years for companies like Lockheed Martin and RTX’s Raytheon.

“I think it will take one to two years for them to scale,” said Paparo, whose responsibilities include preparing for any potential conflict in the Pacific region, including with China. “It won’t be soon enough. There are finite limits to the magazine, and I have all the faith in the world that they’re being employed judiciously.”

An infographic on military assets used in the early days of the U.S.’s conflict with Iran, as of March 2, 2026. Murat Usubali/Anadolu via Getty Images

Defense planners often draw a distinction between capability and capacity. While the United States retains extraordinary capabilities, the number of those weapons available and the ability to replace them are more limited.

For years, defense officials have warned that stockpiles of key munitions are under strain, particularly as the United States supports multiple operations at once. Air defense interceptors, for example, are in demand not only in the Middle East under U.S. Central Command, but also in Europe and the Indo-Pacific, where they are central to planning for a potential conflict with China.

Those overlapping requirements have forced difficult trade-offs. Weapons expended or deployed in one region are often drawn from the same inventories intended for another. Meanwhile, production cannot easily keep pace, and many advanced munitions rely on complex supply chains and specialized components.

When asked by Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut if Paparo agrees with his concern over the transfer of munitions and capabilities to the Middle East, the admiral underscored the realities that modern wars consume munitions in large volumes.

“I think we maintain deep magazines and there’s no walking away from the quantitative use of weapons. And our way forward is to supercharge our defense industrial base and equally important is to innovate with non-traditional primes,” said Paparo, referring to smaller companies, often tech startups such as Palmer Luckey’s Anduril, which makes lower-cost drone technology.

In early March, Mr. Trump held a White House meeting with executives from defense contractors whom he said agreed to increase production of “Exquisite Class Weaponry” fourfold.

In Pentagon shorthand, defense officials often use the term “exquisite” to describe a narrow class of weapons that sit at the very top of the military’s arsenal. The systems are defined not just by their precision and range, but by their complexity, cost and scarcity, such as the Tomahawk cruise missile or Patriot missile system.

“We want to reach, as rapidly as possible, the highest levels of quantity,” the president posted on social media.

Soldiers from the army 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade conduct a full Patriot missile system setup during field operations at Fort Cavazos, Texas, on Sept. 3, 2025. Capt. Russell Shirley-Jones

Since the White House meeting, the Defense Department has announced several “framework agreements” to boost production for Terminal High Altitude Air Defense (THAAD) systems to take down incoming missiles, critical components for munitions and more offensive Precision Strike Missiles.

“By empowering industry to invest in the factory floor, we are building a decisive and enduring advantage for our warfighters to outpace any potential adversary,” Michael Duffey, the under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said in a statement at the time.

The agreements are intended to give industry a demand signal that incentivizes them to make long-term investments.

The Pentagon’s budget request this year also asked for more than $70 billion to procure missiles and related equipment, a nearly threefold increase compared to last year.

President Trump gets out of the driver’s seat of Lockeed Martin Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) anti-ballistic missile defense system during a Made in America showcase on the South Lawn of the White House on July 15, 2019. Andrew Harnik / AP

Actual timelines for production could vary. CSIS, in its analysis of seven critical munitions, noted current production timelines show it takes several years to deliver the weapons to the military.

“Rebuilding to prewar levels…will take from one to four years as missiles in the pipeline are delivered,” the CSIS report said.

Mr. Trump said he would meet again with the defense companies in May.

Concerns about stockpiles are not new. They rose to the forefront after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, when it became clear that Ukraine’s allies in the U.S. and Europe were not producing fast enough.

But that was largely about artillery needed in the trench-like warfare seen in Ukraine, whereas now there are concerns about long-range missiles that could be crucial in a potential war against China.

“President Trump’s war of choice in Iran has resulted in significant military posture changes in the Indo-Pacific region and on the Korean Peninsula,” said Democratic Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island during a congressional hearing on Tuesday. “Over the past two months, President Trump has transferred out of your theaters to Central Command, including a carrier strike group, an amphibious ready group, various missile defense capabilities and other munitions.”

Asked about claims that THAAD missile systems, which are American-made anti-ballistic missile defense systems, were moved from the Korean Peninsula to the Middle East, Army Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, said that reporting was incorrect. But he added that they were sending forward munitions, underscoring how munitions intended for one region get shuffled to another.

“We’ve not moved any THAAD systems. So THAAD still remain on the peninsula currently. We’re sending munitions forward and those are sitting right now waiting to move,” said Brunson. “There was previous moves where radars were taken forward, this was in advance of Midnight Hammer [in June 2025 when U.S. bombed major nuclear facilities in Iran]. Some of those things have not come back yet.”

Ultimately, the stark reality is that even the world’s most powerful military has to operate within limits.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/us-forces-ready-restart-fighting-if-necessary-officials-say/

伊朗战事冲击亚洲聚酯供应链 或推高全球快时尚成本

2026年4月24日 19:12 / 联合早报

印度服装制造业者说，伊朗战争导致的能源危机大幅推高化学品和染料成本，波及整个服装供应链。图为印度苏拉特的宾达尔丝绸厂内，工人正在包装印花聚酯纤维布匹。 （路透社）

（苏拉特路透电）自伊朗战争爆发以来，飙升的化石燃料价格不断挤压印度和孟加拉国的聚酯纤维（polyester）供应和服装制造业，可能推高Zara和H&M等快时尚零售商的成本。

亚洲是服装供应链领的主导力量，但近来受中东战事冲击，印度、孟加拉和中国的聚酯纤维价格都在上涨，给生产商带来压力。

印度聚酯纱线生产巨头菲拉泰克斯（Filatex）的董事总经理巴格里亚说，由于中国供应商提价且中东供应中断，公司用于生产纱线的石油衍生原料——精对苯二甲酸（PTA）和单乙二醇（MEG）的采购成本已上涨近30%。

位于印度西部纺织业中心苏拉特的宾达尔丝绸厂（Bindal Silk Mills），向H&M、Zara母公司Inditex、塔吉特（Target）、沃尔玛和宜家等零售商提供染色和印花聚酯纤维面料，现在却难以满足全球订单需求。

苏拉特纺织商协会联合会主席哈基姆说，由于成本上涨，苏拉特的纺织印染厂现在被迫每周停工两天，此前仅为一天。“如果这种情况持续下去，原材料会出现短缺，工厂就不得不停产。”

由石油衍生品制成的聚酯纤维是纺织业的关键材料。霍尔木兹海峡封锁后，精炼石油产品供应紧缩，直接冲击供应链依赖聚酯纤维的零售商。

Zara和H&M等零售商已转而主要使用由废弃塑料瓶制成的再生聚酯纤维。这或能缓解部分由油价上涨带来的成本压力，但全球范围内，再生聚酯纤维仅占聚酯总产量的12%。

行业消息人士称，H&M预计，未来几周孟加拉供应商就会提价，不过目前还未发现生产出现重大中断或供应商因能源成本而要求调整订单的明显迹象。