News Wrap: Hunter Biden pleads not guilty to federal gun charges

Geoff Bennett:

The research could lead to breakthroughs in a wide variety of fields, from medical diagnostics to developing electronics.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments today on whether the funding of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is unconstitutional. The agency receives funds directly from the Federal Reserve, instead of appropriations by Congress. A lower court found the arrangement interferes with congressional supervision.

A New Jersey appeals court has tossed out a verdict of $222 million against Johnson & Johnson over claims that its talc powder products cause cancer. The panel said a lower court should have barred some of the expert testimony heard at trial. Johnson & Johnson is facing more than 38,000 related lawsuits.

And on Wall Street, stocks plunged after strong data on job openings reinforced fears that the economy is still too hot for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 431 points, well over 1 percent, to close near 33000. The Nasdaq fell 1.9 percent. The S&P 500 dropped nearly 1.4 percent.

Still to come on the “NewsHour”: the role California’s newest senator could play in Congress; despite sanctions, a U.S.-based company sold machinery that Russia is using in its war against Ukraine. And author Steve Inskeep discusses his new book on how Abraham Lincoln succeeded in a divided United States.