Sending prayers: Gov. John Bel Edwards and other state officials are calling for prayers for former Gov. Kathleen Blanco, who has entered hospice care for incurable cancer. The 76-year-old Democrat served from 2004 to 2008 as Louisiana’s first and only female governor. She was diagnosed and treated for a rare eye cancer in 2011. It returned and spread to her liver in 2017. Read the full story. Â
Shifting gears: Electric scooters are overtaking station-based bicycles as the most popular form of shared transportation outside transit and cars in the U.S. Riders took 38.5 million trips on shared electric scooters in 2018, eclipsing the 36.5 million trips on shared, docked bicycles, according to a report released today by the National Association of City Transportation Officials. Read the full story. Â
Top down: The Federal Reserve says the economy was expanding at a “slight-to-moderate pace” in March and early April, with some regions seeing signs of strengthening after a winter slowdown. In its latest report on economic conditions around the country, the Fed says that the reports on manufacturing were favorable, although some business contracts noted uncertainty caused by tensions over President Donald Trump’s get-tough trade policies. Read the full story.
