PARIS (AP) — A Paris court on Friday rejected a government request to suspend Chinese fast-fashion platform Shein in France after authorities found illegal weapons and child-like sex dolls for sale on the fast-fashion giant’s website.
Shein welcomed the decision, saying it remains committed to strengthening its control processes in cooperation with French authorities.
“Our priority remains protecting French consumers and ensuring compliance with local laws and regulations,” the company said in an emailed statement to The Associated Press.
The controversy dates to early November, when France’s consumer watchdog and Finance Ministry moved toward suspending Shein’s online marketplace after authorities said they had found childlike sex dolls and prohibited “Class A” weapons listed for sale, even as the company opened its first permanent store in Paris.
French authorities gave Shein hours to remove the items. The company responded by banning the products and largely shutting down third-party marketplace listings in France.
French officials have also asked the European Commission to examine how illegal products were able to appear on the platform under EU rules governing large online intermediaries.
French authorities were not immediately available for comment.
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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — To tax tips or not? That is a question that will confront lawmakers in states across the U.S. as they convene for work next year.
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President Donald Trump’s administration is urging states to follow its lead by enacting a slew of new tax breaks for individuals and businesses, including deductions for tips and overtime wages, automobile loans and business equipment.
In some states, the new federal tax breaks will automatically apply to state income taxes unless legislatures opt out. But in many other states, where tax laws are written differently, the new tax breaks won’t appear on state tax forms unless legislatures opt in.
In states that don’t conform to the federal tax changes, workers who receive tips or overtime — for example — will pay no federal tax on those earnings but could still owe state taxes on them.
States that embrace all of Trump’s tax cuts could provide hundreds of millions of dollars of annual savings to certain residents and businesses. But that could financially strain states, which are being hit with higher costs because of new Medicaid and SNAP food aid requirements that also are included in the big bill Trump signed.
Most states begin their annual legislative sessions in January. To retroactively change tax breaks for 2025, lawmakers would need to act quickly so tax forms could updated before people begin filing them. States also could apply the changes to their 2026 taxes, a decision requiring less haste.
So far, only a few states have taken votes on whether to adopt the tax breaks.
“States in general are approaching this skeptically,” said Carl Davis, research director at the nonprofit Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy.
Trump’s treasury presses states to `immediately conform’
A bill Trump signed on July 4 contains about $4.5 trillion of federal tax cuts over 10 years.
It creates temporary tax deductions for tips, overtime and loan interest on new vehicles assembled in the U.S. It boosts a tax deduction for older adults. And it temporarily raises cap on state and local tax deductions from $10,000 to $40,000, among other things. The law also provides numerous tax breaks to businesses, including the ability to immediately write off 100% of the cost of equipment and research.
Forty-one states levy individual income taxes on wages and salaries. Forty-four states charge corporate income taxes.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this month called on those states “to immediately conform” to the federal tax cuts and accused some Democratic-led states that haven’t done so of engaging in “political obstructionism.” Though Bessent didn’t mention it, many Republican-led states also have not decided whether to implement the tax deductions.
“By denying their residents access to these important tax cuts, these governors and legislators are forcing hardworking Americans to shoulder higher state tax burdens, robbing them of the relief they deserve and exacerbating the financial squeeze on low- and middle-income households,” Bessent said.
But some tax analysts contend there’s more for states to consider. The tax break on tips, for example, could apply to nearly 70 occupation fields under a proposed rule from the Internal Revenue Service. But that would still exclude numerous low-wage workers, said Jared Walczak, vice president of state projects at the nonprofit Tax Foundation.
“Lawmakers need to consider whether these are worth the cost,” Walczak said.
Only a few states offer tax breaks for tips and overtime
Because of the way state tax laws are written, the federal tax breaks for tips and overtime wages would have carried over to just seven states — Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon and South Carolina. But Colorado opted out of the state tax break for overtime shortly before the federal law was enacted.
Michigan this fall became first — and, so far, only — state to opt into the tax breaks for tips and overtime wages, effective in 2026. The overtime tax exemption is projected to cost the state nearly $113 million and the tips tax break about $45 million during its current budget year, according to the state treasury department.
Michigan lawmakers offset that by decoupling from five federal corporate tax changes the state’s treasury estimated would have reduced Michigan tax revenues by $540 million this budget year.
Republican state Rep. Ann Bollin, chair of the Michigan House Appropriations Committee, said the state could not afford to embrace all the tax cuts while still investing in better roads, public safety and education.
“The best path forward is to have more money in people’s pockets and have less regulation — and this kind of moved in that direction,” she said.
Arizona could be among the next states to act. Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs has called upon lawmakers to adopt the tax breaks for tips, overtime, seniors and vehicle loans, and follow the federal government by also increasing the state’s standard deduction for individual income taxpayers. Republican state House leaders said they stand ready to pass the tax cuts when their session begins Jan. 12.
Several states have rejected corporate tax breaks
In addition to Michigan, lawmakers in Delaware, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island have passed measures to block some or all of the corporate tax cuts from taking effect in their states.
A new Illinois law decoupling from a portion of the corporate tax changes could save the state nearly $250 million, said Democratic state Sen. Elgie Sims, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He said that could help ensure continued funding for schools, health care and vital services.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, an outspoken Democratic opponent of Trump, also cited budget concerns for rejecting the corporate tax cut provision. He said states already stand to lose money because of other provisions in Trump’s big bill, such as a requirement to cover more of the costs of running the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
“The decoupling is an effort to try to hold back the onslaught from the federal government to make sure that we can support programs like the one we’re announcing today,” Pritzker told reporters at a December event publicizing a grant to address homelessness in central Illinois.
Associated Press writer John O’Connor in Springfield, Illinois, contributed to this report.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The livestream of a YouTube content creator talking about investments mysteriously appeared to take over a White House website, raising questions about whether the site was hacked.
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The livestream appeared for at least eight minutes late Thursday on whitehouse.gov/live, where the White House usually streams live video of the president speaking.
It’s unclear if the website was breached or the video was linked accidentally by someone in the government. The White House said in a statement that it was “aware and looking into what happened.”
The video that appeared on the government-run website featured some of a more than two-hour livestream from Matt Farley, who posts as @RealMattMoney, as he answered financial questions.
Farley said in an email to The Associated Press on Friday that he had no idea what happened.
“If I had known my stream was going to go super public like that I would be dressed a bit nicer and had a few more pointed topics! And it likely wouldn’t have been about personal finance,” Farley wrote.
President Donald Trump’s administration and campaign have had a series of digital security breaches and challenges over the last year.
In May, government officials began investigating after elected officials, business executives and other prominent figures received text messages and phone calls from someone impersonating Susie Wiles, the Republican president’s chief of staff.
PHOENIX (AP) — Camdyn Glover used to be a quiet conservative. She worried what her teachers would think or if she would lose friends over her convictions. But she said something changed when Charlie Kirk was assassinated in September, and she started crying in her classroom at Indiana University while other students cheered and clapped.
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“We can’t be silenced,” Glover decided.
Now she’s visiting Phoenix with her parents and brothers for this year’s Turning Point USA conference, the first to take place since Kirk’s death. Although the organization became a political phenomenon with its masculine appeals to college men, it’s also been expanding outreach to young women like Glover. The shift is poised to accelerate now that Turning Point is led by Erika Kirk, Charlie’s widow, who has embraced her new role at the helm of a conservative juggernaut with chapters across the country.
If successful, the organization that helped return President Donald Trump to the White House could narrow a gender divide that has been a persistent challenge for Republicans. Turning Point offers a blend of traditional values, such as encouraging women to prioritize marriage over careers, and health trends pushed by online influencers.
Glover, 18, said discovering Turning Point in high school gave her an appreciation for dialogue when she felt like an outcast for her beliefs, such as being anti-abortion. At her first conference, she feels like she’s found a political and cultural home for herself.
“They want to promote a strong independent woman who does hold these values and can go stand up for herself,” she said. “But it’s also OK to do it in heels, put some makeup on, wear a dress.”
‘If Erika can do it, I can do it’
One of Glover’s classmates, Stella Ross, said she stumbled upon Charlie Kirk on TikTok in the months before the last presidential election.
She already felt like her perspectives were being treated differently on campus and thought she was receiving unfairly low grades in her political science classes. A devout Catholic, Ross said she was inspired by how Charlie Kirk wasn’t afraid to weave his evangelical faith into his political arguments.
She also noticed how many women posted comments of appreciation on Erika Kirk’s videos, and she joined Indiana University’s Turning Point chapter in the same month that Trump won his comeback campaign.
“I was like, wow, if Erika can do it, I can do it,” Ross said.
Ross has career aspirations of her own — she interns with Indiana’s Republican Party and aspires to be a press secretary for a governor or president. But she hopes to have flexibility in her job to be fully present with her children and believes that a traditional nuclear structure — man, woman and their children — is “God’s plan.”
When she thinks of Erika Kirk, “it’s really cool to see that she can live out that balance and it makes me feel like that could be a more realistic future for me because I’m seeing it firsthand.”
A new messenger
Erika Kirk often appeared alongside with her husband at Turning Point events. A former beauty pageant winner who has worked as a model, actress and casting director, she also founded a Christian clothing line and a ministry that teaches about the Bible.
Erika Kirk speaks during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest 2025, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
In a recent interview with The New York Times, she said she had fully bought into “boss babe” culture before Charlie showed her a “healthier” perspective on life. Now she leads the multimillion-dollar organization, which she said at a memorial for her husband would be made “10 times greater through the power of his memory.”
The political gap between young men and women has been growing for years, according to a recent Gallup analysis. Not only have women under 30 become more likely to identify as ideologically liberal, they’ve also embraced liberal views on issues such as abortion, the environment and gun laws.
The schism was clearly apparent in the last presidential election, where 57% of male voters under 30 supported Trump, compared to only 41% of women under 30, according to AP VoteCast.
Turning Point has been working to change that, hosting events like the Young Women’s Leadership Summit and urging attendees to embrace traditional family values and gender roles.
Charlie Kirk said earlier this year that if a young woman’s priority is to find a husband, she should go to college for a “MRS degree.” Matthew Boedy, a professor of rhetoric at University of North Georgia, said Erika Kirk could be a more effective messenger because she was focused on her career before meeting her husband.
“I do think her story resonates more because she tried it out and can tell them it is not for them,” he said.
Some conservative women are turned off by this approach. Raquel Debono, an influencer who lives in New York City, described the event as a “Stepford wives conference,” featuring women in pink floral dresses.
An attendee prays during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest 2025, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
Attendees listen during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest 2025, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
Attendees listen during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest 2025, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
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An attendee prays during Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest 2025, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
She said Turning Point’s emphasis on being traditional wives “leaves out a lot of women who work,” she said, “and I think they’re going to lose all those voters, honestly, in the next election cycle if they keep it up.”
Debono founded her own organization, Make America Hot Again, where she throws parties intended to make voters feel welcomed into the conservative movement and allow them to get to know people who share their politics.
‘Big time’ growth for some chapters
Aubree Hudson had been president of Turning Point’s chapter at Brigham Young University for only two weeks when she visited nearby Utah Valley University for an event with Charlie Kirk.
She said she was standing only about six feet away when he was fatally shot. She ran to find her husband, who was at the back of the crowd, and they fled to her car.
Hudson, 22, is from a rural farm town in southwestern Colorado. Her conservative convictions are rooted in her family’s faith and patriotism. A copy of the U.S. Constitution hangs in her parents’ home, and her father taught her to value God, family and country, in that order. Her mother stayed at home, telling her children that “you guys are my career.”
Since Kirk’s assassination, Hudson said the number of people — particularly women — getting involved with the organization jumped “big time.”
Emma Paskett, 18, is one of them. She was planning to attend the Utah Valley University event after one of her classes, but Kirk was shot before she made it there.
Although she wasn’t very familiar with Turning Point before that point, Paskett said she started watching videos of Kirk later that night.
Paskett considers Erika Kirk to be a “one in a million” role model, and her role as a leader was a driving factor in signing up.
“That’s exactly what I want to be like,” she said.
Associated Press writer Amelia Thomson-DeVeaux contributed to this report from Washington.
