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In what Sen. Ted Cruz referred to as a “Groundhog Day” Senate committee hearing Wednesday, billionaire Jared Isaacman saw bipartisan support for a second time as President Trump’s nominee to be the next NASA administrator.

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation held the confirmation hearing nearly eight months after Isaacman’s first appearance. In his first go-around, the committee voted to advance Isaacman’s nomination for a full Senate vote, which was in line to take place in May, but then Trump yanked the nomination.

At the time, Trump cited Isaacman’s past donations to Democratic politicians as the reason why, but Isaacman said he was more likely the victim of a degraded Trump-Elon Musk dynamic.

Musk and Isaacman had a close working relationship as SpaceX hosted Isaacman’s two trips to space on the Inspiration4 and Polaris Dawn missions, both of which launched from the Space Coast in SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.

Trump changed his mind and renominated Isaacman last month to become the 15th head of the agency. NASA has been run under interim leadership since former Sen. Bill Nelson stepped down at the end of the Biden administration. read more

By STAN CHOE, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose near their record levels on Wednesday as mixed data on the economy kept alive hopes that a cut to interest rates is coming soon.

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The S&P 500 gained 0.3% and pulled within 0.6% of its all-time high set in late October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 408 points, or 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite added 0.2%.

The biggest jump in the S&P 500 came from Microchip Technology, which leaped 12.2% after saying it expects sales and profit for the final months of the year to come in at the high end of the forecasted ranges it earlier gave. CEO Steve Sanghi said business is doing better than expected, and it’s reducing inventory levels. read more

Growing up, my parents taught me a basic concept around gifts: The more creativity you put into the gift, the more the recipient will appreciate it — regardless of the cost.

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I took the lesson to heart. As a child, I would hand out “experience” gifts — like an offer to spend quality time with someone or a voucher to do a chore. As I got older, I got more creative.

For my parents’ recent 50th wedding anniversary, I wrote them an original song to a Beatles tune and arranged for their nine grandchildren to sing it to them. They loved it so much they were crying happy tears — and it cost me only my time, not money. read more

Walt Disney World has rolled out timeframes for its theme park attractions in 2026, including the return of two popular Magic Kingdom rides and changes at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, including for Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster.

The list lacks specific opening dates; we’re in the more broad era where the company indicates what season to expect next experiences.

“As we continue development on long-term expansions, we’re excited to debut new revitalized experiences across the resort,” WDW President Jeff Vahle said via social media accounts Wednesday.

Disney says its Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin will reopen at Magic Kingdom sometime in spring after “full refurbishments.” The Frontierland coaster, which first opened in 1979, has been closed since early January. The loading area has been surrounded by construction walls for months, later joined by the former Rivers of America site.

Few details have been shared about possible changes to the ride, mostly focusing on the caverns with phosphorescent pools and a “menacing rumble from the deep” mentioned on the official Disney Parks Blog. read more

By SEJAL GOVINDARAO

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced Tuesday that Arizona is the latest state to sue Temu and its parent company PDD Holdings Inc. over allegations that the Chinese online retailer is stealing customers’ data.

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Mayes said the app deceives customers about the quality of its low-cost products and collects what she described as a shocking amount of sensitive data without the consent of users, including GPS locations and a list of other apps on users’ phones.

According to the lawsuit, prosecutors are concerned about Temu being subject to laws in China that require Chinese companies to hand over data requested by the government, and that its code is designed to evade security reviews. read more