Axios PM: Solar crackdown

Plus: MLK's "Embrace" | Friday, January 13, 2023

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Instagram   Axios PM By Mike Allen · Jan 13, 2023 Happy Friday afternoon. Today's PM — edited by Kate Nocera — is 547 words, a 2-min. read. Thanks to Sheryl Miller for the copy edit.     1 big thing: Grade-school gun checks Data: NCES; Chart: Tory Lysik/Axios Visuals The school district in Virginia where a first-grader shot his teacher will become one of the rare spots in the U.S. to have permanent metal detectors at elementary schools. Newport News School Board Chair Lisa Surles-Law said this week detectors would go into every school, starting at Richneck Elementary School, the site of the shooting, AP reports. Metal detectors in schools are still rare. But they've become more popular in public schools, especially in middle and high school, as threats of school shootings and violence have increased. Fewer than 2% of public elementary schools had "random metal detector checks" in the 2019-2020 school year, according to the National Center for Education statistics. Daily detector checks didn't even register in the data for primary schools. At a candlelight vigil, students show support for Abby Zwerner, the first-grade teacher shot by a 6-year-old student last week in Newport News, Va. Photo: John C. Clark/AP The debate over whether to submit grade school children to metal detector checks could heat up after the shooting. A 6-year-old boy brought a gun to school and shot his 25-year-old teacher, Abigail Zwerner, in the chest. She is reported to be in stable condition. Police described the shooting as "intentional." "This is a real game changer," Mo Canady, executive director of the National Association of School Resource Officers, told AP. "How do we begin to approach the idea of protecting students and staff from an armed 6-year-old?" The latest: School officials now believe at least one administrator knew the child may have had the gun in his backpack, WAVY-TV reported. The superintendent said the bag was searched and nothing was found.     2. Solar crackdown Data: U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. Chart: Tory Lysike/Axios A U.S. crackdown targeting Chinese manufacturers — including the seizure of $1.3 billion in imports — is crippling the American solar market and freezing its supply chain, reports Alan Neuhauser of Axios Pro: Climate Deals. The new forced-labor law passed last year — intended to punish China for its treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang province — has brought the flow of solar imports into the U.S. to a near standstill. Zoom in: The shrunken supply has jacked up costs — by 30% to 40% — and ground large-scale projects to a halt. Customs officials have confirmed to Axios that import detentions connected to the law surged 63% from October through early January of this year, with 2,600 seizures worth $806 million. Share this story ... Sign up for the Axios Pro: Climate deals newsletter.     A message from Instagram Explore 30+ Instagram tools helping teens have positive experiences     Teens' experiences on Instagram should be positive and supportive. That's why we have tools to help teens see less sensitive content and help them spend less time on our platform. Learn more about our tools and set them up with your teen today.     3. Catch up quick President Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the West Wing colonnade today. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images 🇯🇵 New announcements on deeper military cooperation between the U.S. and Japan could give the U.S. new tools to defend against a potential invasion of Taiwan, Axios World editor Dave Lawler writes. Go deeper. 💰 The government will hit its debt limit on Jan. 19 and initiate "extraordinary measures" to avoid default, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned today. Go deeper. 🏛️ The State of the Union address was set for Tuesday, Feb. 7.     4. Boston's MLK "Embrace" "Embrace," the new Martin Luther King Jr. memorial sculpture on Boston Common. Photo: Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe via Getty Images A 38,000-pound bronze sculpture honoring the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. made its public debut on Boston Common today ahead of Monday's holiday. King gave a speech there in 1965. The sculpture, designed by conceptual artist Hank Willis Thomas, depicts King's hug with his wife, Coretta Scott King, after he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. The couple met and went to school in Boston. Share this story.     A message from Instagram Set up supervision with your teen to help support them on Instagram     Parents have support when it comes to keeping their teens safe on Instagram. Here's how: Once supervision on Family Center is set up, parents can see who their teen follows, who follows them and any reports their teen shares. Set up Family Center today.   Are you a fan of this email format? Your essential communications — to staff, clients and other stakeholders — can have the same style. Axios HQ, a powerful platform, will help you do it.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. To stop receiving this newsletter, unsubscribe or manage your email preferences.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: