Residents of the United Kingdom born after 2009 will be permanently barred from purchasing cigarettes under the government’s new Tobacco and Vapes Bill, a measure aimed at creating what officials call a “smoke‑free generation.” The legislation also tightens regulations on vaping, including banning the sale of vaping and nicotine products to those under age 18 and restricting advertising, in‑store displays, free distribution, and discounting. Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the bill, which is expected to receive royal assent next week, would reduce smoking rates and prevent young people from becoming addicted to nicotine, easing long‑term pressure on the National Health Service. “Children in the UK will be part of the first smoke‑free generation, protected from a lifetime of addiction and harm,” Streeting said. “Prevention is better than cure—this reform will save lives, ease pressure on the NHS, and build a healthier Britain.” The legislation builds on a law passed last year banning the sale of single‑use disposable vapes, citing concerns over youth use and environmental damage. Under the new bill, ministers will also gain expanded authority to regulate the flavors and packaging of tobacco, vaping, and nicotine products through secondary legislation.

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The American Medical Association Foundation website no longer includes listings for race-based scholarships after a medical watchdog suggested the foundation should lose its tax-exempt status for racial discrimination. Do No Harm, a watchdog group of doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals, aims to expose racial discrimination, transgender ideology, and other divisive practices in medicine. Do No Harm sent a letter to the IRS earlier this month, noting that multiple AMA Foundation scholarships explicitly state that only students of certain races qualify. Last week, the scholarships disappeared from the AMA Foundation’s website. “The AMA Foundation appears to have removed the discriminatory scholarships at the heart of our IRS complaint—a tacit admission that our concerns were warranted,” Dr. Kurt Miceli, a psychiatrist and chief medical officer at Do No Harm, told The Daily Signal. “However, we believe the government is still obligated to investigate to confirm that these programs have truly been eliminated and not simply rebranded and reconstituted,” Miceli added. The AMA did not respond to The Daily Signal’s request for comment by publication time. The Complaint Against the AMA The complaint asked the IRS to investigate the AMA Foundation over “invidious racial discrimination” in its Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship program. Three scholarship programs had been listed on the AMA Foundation website on Feb. 24, but no longer appeared on the site as of April 17, after Do No Harm’s letter. The listing for the Dr. Richard Allen Williams & Genita Evangelista Johnson/Association of Black Cardiologists Scholarship offered $5,000 to medical students interested in cardiology, but only if they are “African American/Black.” The Underrepresented in Medicine Scholarship offered $10,000 to winners, who must be “African American/Black, Latine/Hispanic or Indigenous (American Indian, Native Hawaiian, or Alaska Native).” The Patricia L. Austin Family Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship also offered $10,000, but stated that winners must be “of Eastern European descent.” Why It May Be Illegal “Each of these racist exclusions is repugnant to our civil rights laws and ‘the congressional intent underlying [federal law],’” the complaint stated. It cited Bob Jones University v. United States (1983), in which the Supreme Court ruled that the IRS had rightly revoked the 501(c)(3) status of Bob Jones University because it forbade interracial dating and marriage. The AMA Foundation’s racially discriminatory scholarships are “sufficient grounds for the IRS to revoke the AMA Foundation’s tax-exempt status under 26 U.S.C. §501(c)(3),” the complaint stated. It quoted the Bob Jones Supreme Court finding that “racially discriminatory” institutions “cannot be viewed as conferring a public benefit within the ‘charitable’ concept” of the common law. The complaint also cited Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023), in which the Supreme Court found that racial preferences in college admissions—often referred to as “affirmative action”—constituted racial discrimination in violation of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. If Supreme Court precedent were not enough, President Donald Trump’s “executive orders also leave the [IRS] with no discretion” on the matter, the complaint claimed. “The president has rescinded prior executive orders that agencies had invoked to justify race-based classifications in the name of ‘equity.’” Trump’s Jan. 20, 2025, order directed federal agencies to terminate “all discriminatory programs,” including those related to “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” as well as policies “allowing or encouraging” third parties “to engage in workforce balancing based on race.” Do No Harm asked the IRS to open an investigation unless the AMA Foundation altered its policies. Miceli praised the Trump administration’s efforts to remove politics from medicine, but argued that this represents an ongoing problem. “While the administration has made enormous progress in stamping out biased political ideologies in medicine, it is clear the AMA and other establishment medical organizations require continued scrutiny to ensure illegal and immoral racial discrimination is eradicated from the study and practice of medicine in America,” he concluded. AMA Foundation IRS ComplaintDownload

Morphing numerous bills into one giant legislative package is often a recipe for wasteful spending, but an anti-fraud measure from Senate DOGE Caucus Chairwoman Joni Ernst aims to save taxpayers $240 billion. In January, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., requested that Ernst, an Iowa Republican, draft a legislative package to prevent fraud cases similar to Minnesota’s $9 billion welfare scandal. This week, she released the Protecting American Taxpayers Act, which packages 17 anti-fraud bills introduced over the last year into one bill. Although overcoming a Democratic filibuster is a challenge to passing legislation, Ernst anticipates bipartisan support for her measure. “This is a package of a lot of different commonsense proposals,” Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, chairwoman of the Senate DOGE Caucus, told The Daily Signal. “Leader Thune wanted this package to include bills that had Democratic co-sponsors.” One specific bill included in the anti-fraud omnibus is legislation by Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., the ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, which strengthens whistleblower protections for government contractors. While the welfare fraud scandal in Minnesota and hospice fraud in California have gained significant attention, fraud has been a longstanding problem in federal programs, according to the Government Accountability Office. The federal government loses between $233 billion and $521 billion per year to fraud, according to a GAO analysis of budget years 2018 through 2022. The GAO also found that since 2003, improper payments have totaled about $2.8 trillion. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump launched a Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, chaired by Vice President JD Vance. The task force aims to work with every agency to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within federal benefit programs. Republicans sponsored Peters’ measure and the 16 other bills rolled into Ernst’s package. Several bills also gained Democratic co-sponsors, including Ernst’s legislation from last year to claw back unused federal spending for the COVID-19 pandemic, which had reached more than $65 billion. About $1.4 billion in federal money is stolen through fraud, Ernst said. “I started my elected political career as a county auditor, and it’s still amazing to me that the federal government can’t adhere to basic accounting practices that state and local governments do,” Ernst said. Ernst’s package includes her bill requiring tax dollars hidden in budget line items listed as “Other Transaction Agreements” to be fully disclosed. Another proposal would extend statutes of limitations for COVID fraud cases to ensure criminals are caught and held accountable. The package would further prevent anyone convicted of defrauding the Small Business Administration from getting future SBA loans. There are also national security-related proposals in the package that could save money. The bill includes a provision banning federal funds from going to countries under U.S. travel bans or arms embargoes. It also prohibits cash assistance to Afghanistan to prevent Taliban access. Another provision in the bill would require individuals who want to conduct international wire transfers to certify that they do not receive public assistance. On Thursday, Republican Sens. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, Roger Marshall of Kansas, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, John Cornyn of Texas, Jon Husted of Ohio, Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania, and James Lankford of Oklahoma issued statements in support of Ernst’s legislation. The White House Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, stopped making headlines after its efforts to trim the budget. But Ernst said the Senate DOGE Caucus is still very engaged in fighting waste, fraud, and abuse. She was also glad to see the White House take a whole-of-government approach to fighting fraud with the Vance-led task force. “We are thankful the vice president is the fraud czar,” Ernst said. She noted that, occasionally, the “star power” of Elon Musk or video footage from online figure Nick Shirley is needed to draw attention to the problem of fraud. “I’ve been working on fraud, waste, and abuse for 12 years since I was in the Senate. But sometimes we felt like we were spinning our wheels and the American people weren’t paying attention,” Ernst said. “Elon Musk gave star power to fighting waste, fraud, and abuse. Then Nick Shirley caught government waste on video, exposing what was happening to the American people.”

While Ohio has laws preventing municipalities from passing local gun control ordinances, Senate lawmakers say gun owners need further protection of their Second Amendment rights. State Sen. Terry Johnson, R-McDermott, introduced Senate Bill 278 last fall to let private citizens sue localities that pass gun control measures. The bill, which amends Section 9.68 of the Revised Code, allows individuals to sue for punitive or exemplary damages. “A person, group, or entity adversely affected by any manner of ordinance, rule, regulation, resolution, practice, or other action enacted or enforced by a political subdivision” can bring civil action against the political subdivision, the bill’s text states. Last week, the Ohio Senate passed Johnson’s bill by a 24-9 vote, sending the legislation on to the House. During a recent episode of “The President’s Podcast,” John Fortney, communication director for the Senate Republican Caucus, described the bill as one that goes after “an unconstitutional law by a municipality.” Fortney said he thought the Ohio Supreme Court already addressed the matter. Johnson, a guest on the program, said political subdivisions within the state are still enacting gun laws that are “contrary to the Ohio Constitution, the U.S. Constitution, and established state law.” In 2022, Johnson had helped make Ohio a “constitutional carry” state in which gun owners may carry weapons concealed without a permit. Ohio has another law that prevents local governments from enacting gun control ordinances. Johnson said SB 278 is now necessary to punish municipalities that ignore state law, and to help any person “that gets rung up by some silly little ordinance … and has to defend himself or herself in a court of law.” While Ohio law prohibits subdivisions from passing anti-gun ordinances, some municipalities ignore them, Johnson said. “A lot of places that are very liberal on gun laws and regulations and want to see a lot more [restrictions], and don’t really care about what happens to one’s rights, are passing these regulations and different silly things that are clearly unconstitutional,” Johnson said. Thus Senate Bill 278, which now has passed the full Senate. Johnson said his bill “hopefully will help localities like Columbus understand that they’re going to have to pay a cost for doing this.” Johnson said leaders of political subdivisions know they’re doing “something that’s blatantly illegal” by passing gun ordinances. They are even “happy to do it.” “Well, look at the harm you caused, and we’re going to prove that in the court of law and you’re going to pay for it,” he said. Fortney called it “amazing” that local governments keep pushing illegal city ordinances that show no regard for what the Ohio Revised Code says, much less the Second Amendment. The Legislature is on a break until May, with primary elections taking place on May 5. The House will take up the bill when it’s back in session. Senate President Rob McColley, a Republican and Vivek Ramaswamy’s pick for lieutenant governor, also has spoken about the importance of SB 278. “This is not a violation of home rule; home rule is still alive in the state of Ohio,” McColley told reporters. “In this case, offering more avenues for damages allows for a stronger deterrent,” McColley said. The Ramaswamy-McColley ticket for governor was endorsed last week by the Buckeye Firearms Association. On X, McColley posted clips and pictures of Ramaswamy speaking about that endorsement and promoting the Second Amendment. pic.twitter.com/gTu0CMgejy— Senator Rob McColley (@Rob_McColley) April 15, 2026

Congress is putting parties aside to extend the bipartisan protection and prevention of human trafficking in the United States. The Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act has been stalled in the House since February 2025. But Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., and Rep. Kwesi Mfume, D-Md., are now calling for more education to prevent human trafficking, increased funding to support victims, and stronger guardrails to combat trafficking abroad. “Survivors told us clearly that healing doesn’t end when someone exits a trafficking situation—it’s just the beginning,” Smith said at a press conference on Thursday. “They asked for safe housing, mental health support, education, and job training. We listened.” Smith announced that House leadership agreed to schedule the debate, and a vote, which is expected in two to three weeks. The wait time is based on other legislation already lined up, mainly FISA reauthorization. Happening Now: Reps. Chris Smith, R-N.J., and @RepKweisiMfume D-Md., hold press conference on preventing and protecting victims of human trafficking and expanding prosecution of criminals. pic.twitter.com/AvSvVlRiyC— Virginia Grace McKinnon (@virginiagmck) April 23, 2026 One key component Smith highlighted from this bill is the education element. “There will be targeted funding for grants to hire prevalent higher risk populations. … That’ll be done through a careful analysis, where those grants should go,” Smith told The Daily Signal. Smith highlighted the educational organizations he worked closely with on the legislation. 3Strands Global Foundation has digital training materials ready to send to schools for teachers to facilitate; Paving the Way Foundation does in-person training at schools by experts. “We need to get those into every elementary and secondary school,” Smith continued. “It’s all age appropriate, and it empowers the students as well as the teachers, the principals, the school boards, and the people. We need an all-out effort to not just mitigate, but to end this exploitation of our young people,” Smith said. EXCLUSIVE: @TimTebow to Expose Child Trafficking Crisis in Capitol Hill Testimony Tim Tebow, NCAA football legend, broadcaster, and philanthropist, will be on Capitol Hill Tuesday afternoon testifying in front of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and…— Virginia Grace McKinnon (@virginiagmck) March 3, 2026 The legislation will direct different programs across the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Justice, and Department of State to combat human trafficking and support victims. Kevin Malone, a senior advisor at HHS, claimed that the gap is not knowledge, but rather funding, and the $31 million this bill appropriates to HHS is not enough. “We need more money from Congress to fight for Americans, adults, and children,” Malone said. “We’re doing the best we can with what we’ve got, but Congress, wake up, you’re funding all these other things. Let’s fund the protection and the help for children.” Smith acknowledged that while the progress is undeniable, “the fight is far from over.” “Today’s trafficking networks are more sophisticated, more global, and more brazen than ever, exploiting women, men, and children.” Human trafficking is a devastating crime that enriches transnational criminal organizations and immoral, anti-American regimes. The Trafficking in Persons Report promotes accountability, protects American workers, and defends our communities. https://t.co/xUQceJf6F4— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) September 29, 2025 The legislation will also expand Megan’s Law, a federal and state law that requires sex offenders to register and notify the public. Under this new legislation, Megan’s Law would extend to foreign travel by requiring sex offenders’ passports to be stamped, allowing border control to identify them as such. Smith originally introduced and passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in 2000. Since then, 5,200 traffickers have been federally convicted, including Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice, under this legal framework.