Finland’s center-right National Alliance party was on course to take power in Sunday’s general election, after voter concerns about the economic outlook disaffected Social Democratic incumbent Sanna Marin, a star of the European left.

With 99 percent of votes counted, the National Coalition Party (NCP) under the leadership of Petteri Orpo won 48 of Finland’s 200 parliamentary seats, relegating Marin’s party to third place with 43. The far-right Finns Party came second with 46 seats.

Marin’s defeat would be the latest blow to the European left, with Germany’s Olaf Scholz under pressure at home and Sweden’s Magdalena Andersen voted out in a general election last September. Denmark’s Mette Frederiksen won a second term last fall after a sharp shift to the political right.

Marin ran a traditionally left-leaning campaign ahead of Sunday’s vote, opposing public spending cuts proposed by the center-right and calling on Finns to support financial investments he said would lead to more employment and economic growth.

But ultimately, fears of rising public debt, deep anxiety in Finland, and NCP leader Orpo’s message of fiscal discipline to win voters to his side undermined Marin’s chances.

“It’s a big win,” Arbo told supporters as the vote count closed. “Our message has been received, the support is there, and Finns trust the National Alliance.”

Orbo is now set to have his first attempt at forming a government, and he may seek to include the anti-immigration Finns Party. He may try to strike a deal to co-govern with the Social Democrats, but that seems unlikely, experts say, after repeated clashes between the two over economic policy in recent months.

If Orbo fails to form a government, Marin may be given the chance to form a coalition. He has said he does not want to form a government with the Finns, a party he accuses of making openly racist statements.

The change in government is expected to have little impact on Finland’s security posture, with the NCP providing firm support for the country’s accession to NATO and military support for Ukraine.

A famous person

Marin, who took over as leader of the Social Democratic Party in 2019, is a popular figure both at home and abroad. His handling of the Covid pandemic was seen as effective and his initiative to support Finland’s entry into NATO was well received.

After he was filmed dancing and singing with friends at a party last summer, he has retained solid support among voters despite opposition claims that he lacks seriousness.

The Social Democrats’ 43 seats in parliament represented 3 more than in the previous election in 2019, and he tried to portray it as a victory of sorts.

“I am grateful that our support has increased and we are ready to receive more mandates,” Marin said after the results.

However, the NCP’s result increased by 10 seats, boosted by Orpo’s promise to impose financial discipline.

As Finland seeks to recover from the pandemic, debt-to-GDP ratio rose to 73 percent from 66 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, the most recent data showed.

Orpo suggested his focus would be to reverse the expected slowdown once the polls close.

“We are starting government negotiations with the economy as the main issue,” Orpo said.

Microsoft appears to be preparing new Xbox expandable storage options from other manufacturers. A new one Western Digital 1TB Expansion Card The Xbox Series S/X consoles were initially spotted at Best Buy, priced at $179.99. This is the first time we’ve seen Xbox expandable storage not made by Seagate.

Microsoft first introduced Xbox expandable storage cards with its Xbox Series S/X consoles nearly three years ago. There were 1TB cards Priced at $219.99 and manufactured exclusively by Seagate. Although we’ve seen 512GB and 2TB options appear from Seagate, similar storage for PS5 consoles has dropped significantly, but prices remain stubbornly high.

More manufacturers for Xbox expandable storage are in high demand and will help push prices in the right direction. Best Buy lists the Western Digital C50 1TB expansion card as low as $40 Like Seagate. At $179.99 it’s still a steep price for 1TB of storage, especially when you factor in the Samsung 980 Pro 1TB PCIe Gen4 drive. For $79.99 Right now.

Microsoft decided to go with proprietary storage for its Xbox Series X/S consoles, making installation more consumer-friendly. But pricing is affected by only one manufacturer. Sony opted for a standard M.2 SSD expandable storage slot instead, allowing PS5 owners to use a variety of drives on the market. You can also use slower PCIe Gen4 drives on the PS5.

It’s unclear when Western Digital’s new 1TB expansion card for Xbox will be available. Best Buy doesn’t have pre-order dates for the list, so we’ve reached out to both Western Digital and Microsoft for comment on the list.

game

Ryan Gaitos, Fox News

April 2, 2023 | 12:56 am

Logan Ball ziplined into his WrestleMania 39 match against Seth Rollins in one of his more interesting moves on Saturday night.

Paul will join With a Prime logo, it later turned out to be the boxer KSI, who was waiting for Rollins to join him in the ring at the start of the match.

Once the two opponents entered the squared circle, things kicked off and the YouTube star would entertain wrestling fans with his skills.

The moment that caught the eyes of wrestling fans was Paul and KSI setting up the announcers’ table and placing Rollins on it.

Paul went up to the top rope as KSI set up a moment made for social media.

However, at the last second, Rollins got up and put KSI through the table, milk frog splashing his companion through the table.

As the match moved forward, Paul did something amazing by setting Rollins on the floor near a turnbuckle and going back up to the top rope.

As Paul tries to go coast to coast, he is met with a superkick from Rollins.

Rollins then hit the Curb Stomp finishing maneuver and defeated Paul by pinfall.

The match seemed to end the feud between the WWE Superstars.

Paul admitted his contract expired after WrestleMania and called out Tyson Fury.

Roman Reigns vs. Sunday night. Rollins could be in line for the WWE Championship depending on the outcome of the Cody Rhodes match.

DALLAS – This is sports, so numbers matter.

They can be celebrated by winners and help tell the story. They may hunt down the losing side, but they still provide context. No. No. 2 Iowa also has a No. Friday night’s Final Four matchup between No. 1 seed South Carolina was significant. Like 77-73 – which shocked many as it favored Iowa. 41 – Number of points scored by Caitlin Clark. Or 49 — the number of rebounds the Gamecocks grabbed, even with two first-half fouls off their All-America post Alia Boston’s bench. Or 20 — the number of fouls called in South Carolina, depending on who you ask — and some of them (wanted or not) are whistles. Or 19,288 – the sellout crowd at American Airlines Arena for the final four games.

But the number that practitioners of film studies can’t pin down or extract from the box score will matter over the years. If TV viewership figures are released, they will break records. While it’s unclear exactly how many televisions tuned in Friday night, it’s safe to say that the Iowa-South Carolina Final Four will be the most-watched women’s basketball game of all time.

It was a good game because of the build-up and the hype, but it was a great game because it really lived up to the hype as the field of four women’s college basketball teams dwindled to two in Dallas.

It’s Caitlin Clark vs. Aaliyah Boston, former National Player of the Year vs. Current National Player of the Year. But the anticipation for this game was even higher. An offense that scored a generation against the greatest team defense in women’s college basketball history, a defense so good that South Carolina coach Don Staley unleashed five different plays on Clark in an attempt to slow down an unstoppable player. The game was delivered.

“I think tonight showed how much fun women’s basketball can be,” Clark said. “Two great teams that went at it. I’m sure a lot of people want it to be seven series. That’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Both Iowa and South Carolina have had their starting centers together over the last three seasons, creating a near-impossible streak and making these matchups very good, tight chess contests. There are going to be no surprises or changes that both teams haven’t seen or considered or looked for. Monica Sinano isn’t going to suddenly become a prolific dribbler, and Boston isn’t going to step outside the 3-point line to initiate shots.

Of course, for Staley, there will be other numbers that stick out. Three turnovers late by Gamecox could have allowed the game to go differently had they not happened. Three turnovers, if it had been two or one or zero, could have been the difference between South Carolina turning the tide and digging themselves a hole they couldn’t climb out of. That means Staley won’t be answering questions about next season just yet, as this season still has some left. That means she’s still thinking about chasing the perfect 38-0 season instead of finishing 36-1.

But for fans of the game, it was a display of great basketball players performing at the highest level for two Hall of Fame coaches. It put on one hell of a show for the 19,288 people in the arena and the millions at home.

“I hope they saw some individual performances that will bring them back. I hope they saw the grit of an undefeated team and I hope they want to learn more about not only us, but LSU and what Kim Mulkey has done this season and getting to the national championship game. . . . Virginia Tech and Kenny Brooks and him being in the Final Four for the first time. And then the whole tournament,” Staley said. “I hope they ask why we don’t have all the No. 1 seeds. They’ll find out that we’ve had some incredible, amazing games, and that’s not every No. 1 seed here.

On Sunday, for the third time in history, there were no No. 1 seeds at the Women’s National Championships. It doesn’t feature the must-have team (South Carolina) or the always-there team (UConn). It doesn’t have the game’s winningest coach (Stanford’s Tara Vanderveer) or other perennial powers.

Instead, on Sunday, one of the last two teams standing will win its first national title.

Iowa and LSU shine in different ways. The Hawkeyes have The Caitlin Clark Show, but the Tigers have The show Slice it any way you want, it’s still good for women’s basketball. When nearly 20,000 people fill the seats to watch LSU’s Angel Reese and Clark in Sunday’s title game, and millions more tune in to see what Kim Mulkey might wear, they’ll be counted as being there for 40 minutes of basketball.

As each team returns to a 0-0 record, this season’s stats will fall by the wayside. The ratings for Friday’s Iowa-South Carolina matchup illustrate the rapid growth and growing demand for women’s basketball nationally. But this game will be remembered as having innumerable advantages for the game.

(Top photo: Tom Pennington/Getty Images)

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Severe storms are marching through Middle Tennessee, prompting thunderstorm and tornado warnings.

Storms and tornadoes swept across West Tennessee Friday evening as part of a series of scattered storms across the Mississippi Valley.

High winds and possible tornadoes are expected to hit the Middle Tennessee area overnight and into early Saturday. A Tornado Watch has been issued for parts of Middle Tennessee and East Tennessee until 7 a.m. Saturday, April 1.

Counties covered by the watch include Cheatham, Davidson, Dixon, Hickman, Maury, Robertson, Rutherford, Williamson and Wilson.

Ben Hasty | Media News Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images

The Treasury Department on Friday proposed new rules for determining which EVs are eligible for tax breaks under new “critical minerals” and battery component requirements added in last year’s inflation-reduction law.

While the Treasury Department hasn’t yet said which vehicles qualify for the credits — that will happen on April 18 — we now know how the department plans to determine which EVs do and don’t make the cut.

New rules proposed by the Treasury Department on Friday explain how to determine which EVs meet requirements for critical minerals and battery components, each offering a $3,750 tax credit. An EV that qualifies under both — and meets other requirements — qualifies for the full $7,500 credit.

Note that automakers must do the math and tell the Internal Revenue Service which of their vehicles qualify.

The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden last August, offers federal tax credits of up to $7,500 to buyers of EVs who meet a list of new requirements:

• Vehicle price limits. Cars costing more than $55,000 and trucks, vans and SUVs costing more than $80,000 are not eligible for the tax credit.
• Made in North America. Only EVs that “undergo final assembly” in the United States, Canada or Mexico are eligible for the credit.
• BUYER’S INCOME LIMITS. You don’t qualify for the credit if you’re an individual with adjusted gross income of $150,000 or more, a head of household with income over $225,000, or a married couple filing jointly with income over $300,000.
• Important minerals. To qualify for the credit in 2023, at least 40% of the critical minerals — including lithium, nickel, manganese, graphite and cobalt — in vehicle batteries must have been mined, processed or recycled in the United States or a country. The United States has a free trade agreement. That percentage will increase to 50% in 2024, 60% in 2025, 70% in 2026, and 80% after 2026.
• Battery components. To qualify for the credit in 2023, at least 50% of the value of the components in an EV’s battery must be manufactured or assembled in North America. That percentage will increase to 60% in 2024 and 2025, 70% in 2026, 80% in 2027, and 90% in 2028.

All of these rules were originally expected to come into effect by early 2023. But in December, the Treasury Department said it needed until March to figure out how to implement the last two rules, which would not go into effect. Until it ends. (Meanwhile, the IRS used other rules to determine which vehicles qualified for tax credits.)

Important minerals rule

For critical minerals, the Treasury Department proposed a three-step process for determining eligibility:

• Find out where the important minerals in batteries come from.
• Find out which minerals qualify as critical minerals under the IRA.
• Calculate the percentage of minerals that qualify as critical minerals in an EV’s battery.

Additionally, EVs containing critical minerals sourced from a “foreign company of concern” will no longer qualify after 2025. (What does that mean? The Treasury Department said it will be clarified in the future.)

The Treasury Department’s proposed rules say the set of countries with eligible free trade agreements will change over time, but currently include Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Jordan, Korea, Mexico, and Morocco. , Nicaragua, Oman, Panama, Peru, Singapore and Japan.

Battery components rule

The Treasury Department proposed a four-step process for battery components:

• Find out which battery parts are manufactured or assembled in North America.
• Find the incremental value of each component.
• Determine the total value of all battery components.
• Do the math to figure out what percentage of the battery’s components are worth by value.

Additionally, starting in 2024, EVs that contain battery components from a concerned foreign company will not be eligible for the credit.

When will we know which EVs qualify?

EVs entering service on or after April 18 will be subject to requirements for critical minerals and battery components, the Treasury Department said. From that date, it will publish a list of eligible vehicles as determined by the automakers. FuelEconomy.gov.

But that may be a short list, at least for a while, as a lot of battery minerals and components now come from China.

New York (CNN) The Manhattan district attorney’s office has asked questions during grand jury proceedings about a hush-money scheme known as a “catch-and-kill” deal to cover up an alleged affair between the former president. Donald Trump and a former Playboy model before the 2016 presidential election, two people familiar with the matter said.

Prosecutors have asked at least one witness about a $150,000 payment to Karen McDougal, the publisher of the National Enquirer, to buy a story about an alleged affair with Trump, the people said. A grand jury is investigating Trump’s role in a $130,000 hush-payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels.

The witness was also asked about other stories bought by American Media Inc. — which publishes the Enquirer — and later killed. Trump has a history with longtime friend and former AMI president David Becker of buying negative stories and planting positive ones, the people said. Becker He testified Monday A second time before a Manhattan grand jury.

Trump has denied both claims.

It is not clear whether prosecutors consider the payment as part of its investigation or use it to establish a pattern of entering into such contracts.

The district attorney’s renewed interest in paying McDougal was first reported The Wall Street Journal.

Trump attorney Joe Tacobina declined to comment.

Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to two federal campaign finance charges related to paying McDougall and Daniels to silence their accusations before the election. AMI received a non-prosecution agreement for cooperating with federal prosecution. Becker testified and was granted immunity at the federal trial.

As part of a non-prosecution agreement, AMI admitted to paying $150,000 in cooperation with some members of Trump’s campaign to prevent claims about McDougal’s affair from becoming public. Becker met with Cohen “and at least one other member of the campaign” in August 2015, the agreement states.

The agreement said Cohen, Becker and “one or more members of the campaign” met in August 2015. At that meeting, Becker “offered to help counter negative stories about the presidential candidate’s relationships with women and, among other things, assisted the campaign in identifying such stories that could be bought and their publication avoided.”

After that meeting, AMI acknowledged that Becker agreed to “rate Cohen” for negative stories about Trump.

Trump has denied involvement in hush-money schemes and said Thursday that he “has done nothing wrong with campaign finance laws.”

In 2019, CNN reported that prosecutors subpoenaed the Trump Organization for information about Daniels and McDougall.

This story has been updated with additional details.

CNN’s Paula Reid contributed to this report.