Who’s got child care on their mind…The Commerce Dept. Yesterday, the department announced any company that wants federal funding to build a semiconductor plan needs to provide affordable child care. Last year, President Biden signed a $280 billion package to pour federal dollars into manufacturing and researching semiconductors. During the pandemic, there was a shortage of semiconductors — which are essential to manufacturing cars, smartphones, and laptops. It was also a move to ramp up competition with China. Now, the Biden admin says companies who want a piece of the $39 billion pie to fund new plants need to provide child care for facility and construction workers. A record number of parents reported having to miss work because of child care. Where officials opened up an investigation…Iran. Since November, hundreds of Iranian school girls have been poisoned in a wave of attacks. Some of the victims reportedly smelled tangerines or chlorine before suffering from things like nausea, heart palpitations, or headaches. Officials apparently didn’t take the poisoning claims seriously, but about 30 schools in at least three cities have been targeted. The string of attacks comes months after Iranians protested the country's lack of women’s rights. Now, the prosecutor general has opened a criminal investigation. Gov officials say it’s possible these attacks are “deliberate.” Meanwhile, some parents have pulled their kids out of school amid concerns they could become ill. What people are monitoring…Greece. Last night, a train carrying about 350 passengers collided head-on with a freight train in northern Greece. At least 36 people died and more than 80 others were injured. The train had been traveling from Athens to the northern city of Thessaloniki. Multiple train cars derailed, with others catching on fire. Rescue operations are underway and the death toll is expected to rise. It’s unclear what led to the collision. The incident is Greece's deadliest train crash in recent years. What's sending out alerts…Nissan. The company is recalling more than 700,000 Rogue and Rogue Sport SUVs after a defect in the keys had cars turn off when driven. Owners who drive Rogue Sport models between 2017 to 2022 and Rogue models from 2014 to 2020 are advised not to attach accessories to their car's key fob. While everyone's sending well wishes to Savannah Guthrie...People are still looking for Hoda Kotb. Who hasn’t grown up…Peter Pan. |