Hey there, from CNN, I'm David Rind with the five things you need to know for Thursday, April 30th.
Mr. President, regarding Iran, how long are you prepared to maintain the blockade?
Could that go several more months?
Well, the blockade is genius.
That was President Donald Trump yesterday talking about his current strategy in dealing with Iran.
Now they have to cry uncle.
That's all they have to do, just say, we give up.
But there's no sign Iran is willing to give up, despite the major economic pain being inflicted by the US naval blockade of Iranian ports.
So today, a source familiar with the matter tells CNN that Trump is going to be briefed by Pentagon officials about updated military options for Iran.
Now, Trump is regularly updated about military plans, but it's clear he's keeping his options open.
CNN global affairs analyst, Karim Sajjepour, says Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz continues to spike gas prices in the US up to 430 a gallon on average today, according to AAA.
But what's happening inside Iran is even worse.
This is an economy which is really suffering.
70% inflation among the highest in the world and reports of malnourishment.
So right now it's a policy of mutual strangulation to see who runs out of oxygen first.
The difference is very stark in that President Trump needs the American economy to thrive.
This is a regime which only needs to survive.
And so we've seen in the past, they're willing to inflict enormous hardship on their own people.
They're willing to kill thousands of their own people to stay in power.
So their pain threshold is very high.
More news coming up, including midterm madness.
And it's not even May.
Stick around.
You survived the Miami weekend, nailed the speech and maxed out your credit card in the name of friendship.
Now you've got one hangover, four pastel dresses, and zero reasons to wear them again.
Sell them on Depop, just snap a few photos, and we'll take care of the rest.
And you at least get some of your dignity money back.
Someone on Depop wants what you've got.
Start selling now.
Depop where taste recognizes taste.
The Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge hit its highest level in nearly three years.
New data shows the personal consumption expenditures price index rose to 35 in March, up from 28 in February, its fastest annual pace since May 2023.
All those numbers and percentages means that inflation is heating up again and it could push the Fed to keep interest rates higher for longer, making borrowing more expensive and financial conditions tighter.
At the same time, the US economy started the year on stronger footing than expected.
Gross domestic product grew at a 2 annual rate in the first quarter, but that momentum is now facing pressure.
Rising gas prices and costs tied to the ongoing war with Iran are weighing on that growth.
Economists say the longer the conflict drags on, the more strain it can put on the economy and the more cautious the Fed may be about cutting interest rates.
Got some big news this morning in a closely watched midterm race.
Maine Governor Janet Mills says she is suspending her Democratic primary campaign for Senate.
In a statement, she said she was lacking the financial resources to mount a winning campaign.
Mills is very popular in the state and establishment.
Democrats, like Senator Chuck Schumer, had hoped she could unseat incumbent Republican Susan Collins.
But Mills has been lagging way behind in the polls behind progressive oyster farmer Graham Platner.
Plattner, for his part, has had to respond to a ton of reporting on his past online posts and a tattoo that resembled Nazi imagery.
He said he regretted getting it and had it covered.
For the first election cycle in years, US military and intelligence officials have not yet activated a specialized team dedicated to detecting and stopping foreign threats to elections.
That's according to comments from those agencies to Congress and CNN, and it's raising concerns among some lawmakers and former officials who have served on the team.
The election security group has been used in every general and midterm election since the 2020 election.
It's overseen efforts to counter threats like Russian propaganda targeting US voters in 2024 and Iranian hacking attempts during the 2020 election.
The group is normally activated by this point in the election cycle.
CNN repeatedly asked Cyber Command and the NSA whether the ESG has been activated.
Both organizations responded with a statement that did not answer the question.
Cyber Command said it, quote, regularly targets actions by malicious foreign cyber actors.
And an NSA spokesperson says the agency has identified an election lead that will represent the agency in broader intelligence efforts to counter election security threats.
One more break.
When we come back, it's a win for the Afghan women's soccer team.
Before even setting foot on the pitch,
Stick around.
Whatever your thing.
It could be anything.
Canva helps you make that thing a thing.
Canva is a simple online tool thing.
It's a way to design with our magic AI tool things.
You can social media your thing, generate images or videos of your thing, make decks for presentations to show your thing.
Whatever needs to be done for your thing, Canva can make it an even better and bigger thing.
Canva, the thing that makes anything a thing.
It means everything as the result of years of struggle and sacrifices.
For the first time in nearly five years, the Afghan women's soccer players will be allowed to officially compete for their own country.
The move bypasses the Taliban, which has refused to acknowledge the women's program from playing since 2021.
CNN has reached out to Taliban-led Afghan government for comment.
Here's what the decision means to the team's vice captain and goalie, Fatima Yousafi.
And it means the results of not giving up.
For me, it's not just about football.
It's about being seen, being heard, and finally being recognized.
Change is coming too late for Afghanistan to qualify for the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil, but the team could now try to qualify for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
That's all we've got for now.
Next update comes your way later today.
I'll talk to you later.
What do we know about how much AI is contributing to energy consumption, energy demand right now?
And how does that compare with other industries?
The best resource for that is the International Energy Agency, which is sort of the global energy think tank that collects data on all of this.
And what they predict is that about 8 of the additional electricity that we're going to need by 2030 that will be for data centers.
The other 92% is for other things, industry electrification, electric vehicles, solar.
And AI is really only driving part of that increase in demand.
Listen to CNN's Terms of Service wherever you get your podcasts.
