In a move that has left Democratic gubernatorial hopefuls fuming, Colorado Governor Jared Polis commuted the sentence of Tina Peters, a Trump ally who backed the former president's false claims about the 2020 election. Polis stated the punishment was too long, a decision that has sparked a flurry of condemnations from those vying to replace him.
Meanwhile, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has thrown cold water on hopes for a quick resolution to Nvidia's chip export woes. Speaking to Bloomberg on Friday, Greer said US export controls on semiconductor chips were not a major topic of discussion with Chinese officials in Beijing, suggesting a breakthrough on selling Nvidia's advanced H200 chips to China remains about as likely as a peaceful family dinner during the holidays.
"This was not a major topic of discussion at the bilateral meeting. We did not talk about chip export controls at the meeting," Greer said, effectively confirming that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's last-minute invitation to Donald Trump's Beijing trip this week yielded about as much progress as a snowball's chance in a server room.
On a more positive note, Greer emphasized the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open, declaring: "First of all, it’s really important for China to have the strait of Hormuz open - no tolling, no military control. That was clear from the meeting, so we welcome that." As for Chinese involvement with Iran, Greer offered a diplomatic shrug: "Our view is the Chinese are being very pragmatic - they don’t want to be on the wrong side of this. They want to see peace in that area, President Trump wants to see peace in that area, so we have a lot of confidence that they will do what they can to limit any kind of material support for Iran."