Oil prices surge after Middle East attacks; Trump downplays need for AI guardrails

Before we get started this morning, a quick programming note. We've got some exciting

changes coming to Unbiased Updates. A new anchor joins us later this week

and we're getting the studio ready for their debut. So things may look a little different

around here this morning, but we'll still have all the news you count on. For now, here are today's Unbiased Updates. Oil prices surging again this morning

A key Saudi pipeline attacked as shipping through Hormuz remains nearly frozen

how high crude is climbing. Plus a warning from the people building AI

slow it down. Why President Trump says the U.S. can't afford to

And those $5,000 checks, Trump says they're happening 100%. But there's one big hurdle in his way

The stories that matter, clear and credible from across the country to around the world

These are your unbiased updates from Straight Arrow. Oil prices are surging again this morning. Renewed fighting in the Middle East is putting even more pressure on global energy supplies

Brent crude the global benchmark traded above $108 a barrel with the U.S. benchmark around $103

The latest jump comes after attacks forced Saudi Arabia to shut down its key east-west oil pipeline

an important alternative with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz already severely disrupted

Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have launched new attacks on Saudi Arabia and seized territory

along another critical Red Sea shipping route. Gas prices also remain high, with diesel at a record $6.23 a gallon today, according to AAA

But President Trump says the Middle East isn't responsible for the diesel shortage

Mr. Zelensky has to do one thing. He has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia

Let him go after targets, but not diesel fuel, because he's causing a shortage of diesel fuel

This isn't done by the Middle East. This is done by what's happening with Russia and Ukraine

Meanwhile, a diplomatic effort to ease pressure on another key shipping route is now on hold

A planned meeting between Iran and Gulf states over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been postponed

with Iran saying Saudi Arabia requested the delay. No new date has been announced

For the first time, we're hearing from one of the two U.S. Air Force officers shot down over Iran in April

The weapons systems officer identified only by his call sign Bravo told CBS 60 Minutes about the moment their F was hit forcing him and his pilot to eject over the mountains of Iran

That day was just another day in the war for us until the moment where we got hit by an Iranian weapon

I think the best way I've been able to describe that moment was getting hit by a freight train

We do all we can to try to save the aircraft. It was evident that that wasn't possible

And soon thereafter, we ejected and found ourselves floating over the heart of Iran

So within seconds, you're ejecting. That's how quick the decision is. It is. I will be thankful to my dying day for my pilot and crewmate, Alpha, for saving our lives and ejecting us

Bravo's parachute was damaged and he hit the ground with a broken back, arm and shoulder

He landed about five miles from his pilot Alpha, who was rescued by American forces about six hours after the crash

Military experts estimate Bravo plummeted to the ground at between 70 and 100 miles per hour and called his survival a modern day miracle

But even with broken bones in three places, Bravo kept moving, hiking and climbing a 7,000-foot ridgeline

That's him you can see here, alone behind enemy lines, evading capture without food or water for two days

Two elite Air Force pararescue operators finally reached him, ending one of the most complex and risky search and rescue operations in U.S. military history

There's a growing call from some of the biggest names in artificial intelligence to slow things down

But President Trump isn't convinced. Asked about it Sunday in Ireland, Trump said the U.S. is leading China in AI and he doesn't want to give up that advantage

Well, I say this, look, we're leading China in AI. We're the most sophisticated country in the world

And frankly, I want to keep it that way because whoever wins AI wins. And we can put guardrails, we can do this and that

But I think you have a lot of negative voices that are bringing it up that shouldn't be bringing it up

And they're bringing up things that won't happen. Those comments came a day after Anthropic CEO Dario Amadei called for new limits on how quickly AI models become more powerful

On Saturday he wrote we must slow the pace at which we improve the capabilities of AI models Progress will still seem fast and we must make wise use of the time we gain

And two of his biggest rivals quickly agreed. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said his company also plans

to use independent safety evaluators. Elon Musk's response was much shorter. Quote

Dario is right. The debate is also moving directly into midterm politics

Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed told CBS Face the Nation Sunday that AI development is outpacing safety and called for public oversight

There are things that we should not be using AI to do, and we collectively have to decide that we need public oversight so that all of this technology is not being created for the interest of a few against the well-being of a many

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro also weighed in Sunday, calling the warnings from AI leaders a bright, flashing red light

writing that it's, quote, long past time for our federal government to step up

take this seriously and put up some guardrails. That follows a push from former President Barack

Obama, who urged Democratic leaders last week to develop a clear AI agenda focused on safety

and the economic impact. President Trump is doubling down on his promise to send $5,000

checks to American adults if Republicans keep control of Congress in November

He first made that promise at the Republican Midterm Convention in Dallas last week

And on Sunday, before leaving Ireland, Trump insisted those checks will happen

And now they say, oh, the $5,000. The $5,000 is going to happen 100%

And the reason is because our country is staking in billions and billions of dollars

And it's going to happen because the people deserve it because they were treated so badly by the Democrats and by Biden

But there's a big step between that promise and sending out money

House Speaker Mike Johnson says the plan would need congressional approval, something Trump has said he doesn't think is necessary

Johnson was asked Sunday whether he would commit to delivering the checks

Like every idea that the president comes up with, he's a great idea generator

We're going to process that in Congress and figure it all out. I commit that Congress will work through it and find consensus on that like I have to do everything else

And there's already some Republican pushback. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said last week that if the government has surplus revenue, it should cut taxes and return that money to people

Saying quote what I don think you want to do is borrow another trillion and a half dollars and then just try to flood that into the economy because that will lead to more inflation That will lead to more debt and more inflation All of this comes with Trump approval rating down from earlier this

year. An AP Nork poll from July found just 33 percent of U.S. adults approve of the job he's

doing, down from 42 percent when he took office. A second judge has now blocked the U.S. Postal

service from implementing President Trump's executive order limiting mail voting. The ruling

comes as the Trump administration is already asking the Supreme Court to allow the new rules

to take effect. Late Sunday night, U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols, a Trump appointee, said without

an injunction blocking the order, quote, there is an increased risk that a significant number of

otherwise appropriate absentee or mail-in ballots will ultimately not be counted in the upcoming

elections. Trump's order requires all ballot envelope designs to be pre-approved by the

Postal Service. States would also have to upload the names of people receiving mail ballots to an

online portal, which still isn't up and running. Election officials say at this point it's impossible

to implement the changes before November's midterms. And the clock is already running

Mail ballots are being sent out in at least three states, Alabama, North Carolina, and Wisconsin

with more states set to start sending theirs this week. Finally this morning, the wait continues for an American men's U.S. Open champion

Germany's Alexander Zarev beat Ben Shelton in four sets Sunday to win the men's title in New York, 6-3, 7-6, 5-7, 6-2

It's Zarev's second Grand Slam title after winning the French Open earlier this year

Shelton was playing in his first Grand Slam final, trying to become the first American man to win the U.S. Open since Andy Roddick in 2003

He also became the first black American man to reach the U.S. Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972

The 23-year-old dropped the first two sets then fought back to take the third

but Zarev took control again in the fourth, closing out the match and extending the American men's title drought for at least another year

Unbiased Updates is the fastest, fairest few minutes of news. watch us anytime at san.com or on our app, or join our growing audience on Spotify or your

favorite podcast platform. For all of us at Straight Arrow, I'm Simone Del Rosario. Have a great day