WASHINGTON (AP) — Responding to President Donald Trump, Google says its search is not used to set a political agenda and the results are not biased toward any political ideology.
Google said Tuesday that when users search for content, “our goal is to make sure they receive the most relevant answers in a matter of seconds.”
The Mountain View, California-based tech company says it makes “hundreds of improvements” to its algorithms every year to ensure “high-quality content” is returned in response to users’ queries.
Adds Google: “We never rank search results to manipulate political sentiment.”
On Twitter on Tuesday, Trump accused Google — without evidence — of “suppressing” conservative voices and “hiding information” and good news.
PRIMARY RDP
McCain’s death shadows Republican primary in Arizona
PHOENIX (AP) — The death of six-term Sen. John McCain is shadowing the primary contest in Arizona to replace his seat-mate.
The race to succeed Sen. Jeff Flake lays bare the fissures in a Republican Party dramatically remade by President Donald Trump. The three Republicans running for Flake’s seat have embraced Trump and distanced themselves from McCain, a sign of how far the late senator’s status had fallen with conservatives who dominate Arizona’s GOP primaries.
The outcome of Tuesday’s primary will be closely watched by Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, who must name a replacement to fill McCain’s seat for the next two years. McCain died Saturday after a yearlong battle with brain cancer.
Florida is also holding a primary Tuesday while voters in Oklahoma participate in a runoff for governor.
GETTING BY-HARDSHIP
Despite strong economy, many Americans struggling to get by
Despite a strong economy, about 40 percent of American families struggled to meet at least one of their basic needs last year, including paying for food, health care, housing or utilities.
That’s according to an Urban Institute survey of nearly 7,600 adults. It found the difficulties were most prevalent among adults with lower incomes or health issues but also revealed people from all walks of like running into similar hardships.
The findings by the nonprofit research organization highlight the financial strains experienced by many Americans in an otherwise strong economy.
AP-US-SUPREME-COURT-KAVANAUGH-YALE-YEARS
At Yale, Kavanaugh stayed out of debates at a time of many
When Brett Kavanaugh was a student at Yale University in the 1980s, some of his classmates were protesting South Africa’s apartheid system, rallying for gay rights and backing dining hall workers in a labor dispute.
But people who knew Kavanaugh an undergraduate and law student at Yale say the future Supreme Court nominee seemed more interested in battles on the basketball court than politically charged debates.
Interviews with more than a dozen friends and acquaintances draw a portrait of a serious, but not showy student who loved sports.
Kavanaugh has said he realized he had different views than many classmates when he found himself siding with conservative former Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist during discussions at Yale Law School.
Classmates don’t recall Kavanaugh being outspoken about his views.
EDITOR’S NOTE _ One in a series of stories examining the nomination of federal appeals court Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court