Bain Capital is in talks to buy PCI Pharma Services, people with knowledge of the matter said, in a deal that would rank among the year’s largest private equity takeovers.
The buyout firm is in discussions with PCI’s backers, Kohlberg & Co., Mubadala Investment Co. and Partners Group Holding AG, about a deal for a majority stake that could value the Philadelphia-based drug services provider at more than $10 billion, including debt, the people said.
For years, the media have used fake polls to manipulate public opinion and crush Trump’s momentum.
But Victor Davis Hanson just revealed that the polls are not only wrong—he showed they were rigged, by design.
Polling is now just a weapon, used to suppress Trump’s base and supercharge Democrat fundraising.
And once you hear the evidence, you’ll never trust another mainstream poll again.
Lately, the media’s been pushing a familiar narrative: Trump is tanking in the polls.
But Victor Davis Hanson says that story doesn’t hold up—and once you see what’s behind the numbers, it starts to look a lot more like propaganda than polling.
So where did it all come from?
“We’ve touched on polls before,” Hanson said, “but I don’t think I’ve seen anything quite as egregious in pollsters’ bias as recently when they… purportedly surveyed the first 100 days of Donald Trump and the public reaction.”
Headlines immediately screamed: Worst first 100 days in history.
Trump’s approval supposedly dropped from 52 to 41 percent.
But as Hanson pointed out, none of that lined up with reality.
“The economic news was pretty good,” he explained.
Trump has been racking up the wins:
“Job growth was just spectacular—over 170,000 jobs. Inflation was down. Energy prices were down. Corporate profits were up. There was a movement on the trade question. Ukraine, still—there was no bad news except the controversy and chaos of a counterrevolution.”
So why were the polls painting such a grim picture?
Hanson believes the goal wasn’t to reflect public opinion—it was to steer it.
“What were the pollsters trying to tell us,” he asked, “or were they trying to manipulate us? I think it’s the latter.”
He pointed to analysis from Larry Kudlow, who found that top polls—like those from The New York Times and The Washington Post—deliberately underrepresented Trump voters.
“They were deliberately not counting people who surveyed that they were Trump voters in 2024,” Hanson said.
“That was half the country.”
Even worse:
“They were only polling about a third,”
“Think of that. A third of the people that said they voted for Trump, they polled—not half. So of course the results were going to be disputed or suspect.”
And this isn’t the first time.
Hanson reminded us that pollsters have repeatedly missed the mark—in 2016, 2020, and again in 2024.
“They said they had learned their lessons. And they were way off in 2024.”
It all comes down to artificial leads.
Hanson doesn’t chalk this up to sloppy methods or innocent mistakes. He believes it’s deliberate.
“Liberal pollsters—and that’s the majority—believe that if they create artificial leads for their Democratic candidates, it creates greater fundraising and momentum.”
It’s a psychological game.
“Kind of the herd mentality,”
“‘Oh. Trump is down by six. I don’t want to vote for him then. He won’t win.’ That’s the type of thing that they want to create.”
One poll in particular stood out as the worst offender.
Hanson explained:
“The most egregious of all these polls was the NPR, PBS, Marist poll,” Hanson said.
“They have Donald Trump just very unpopular after 100 days.”
He reminded viewers that this same poll—funded by the now-defunded Corporation for Public Broadcasting—was the one that came out the night before the 2024 election.
It claimed Kamala Harris would win by four points.
“They said it was beyond the margin of error.”
“And one of the pollsters said it’s her race to lose.”
“She lost by a point and a half,”
“They were five and a half points off. Did they apologize? No.”
Even worse, he said, the Harris campaign knew the public polling was wrong.
“David Plouffe… just recently came out and said, ‘We had all these inside polls we never disclosed, but not one of them—not one of them—had Harris ever ahead of Trump.’”
And that’s because internal polls don’t lie.
“Nothing will get you fired and lose income quicker than to lie about a poll so that your candidate will be happy and rely on your false information.”
“They knew the whole time——that 15 of those 20 polls, 19 polls that all had Harris winning the election, they were all false.”
And here’s where it all comes together.
According to Hanson, the only polls that got it right were the ones with nothing to prove—just data to report.
“Mark Penn was very accurate,” he said.
“He’s a Democratic pollster. But especially the Rasmussen poll, Insider Advantage, and the Trafalgar poll—they joined together and they had a 100-day survey.”
“Rasmussen, each day of the 100-day period—had Trump ahead by anywhere from two to three points. And they were the most accurate.”
Yet the media ignored those numbers and declared Trump’s presidency a disaster.
“No—he’s polling very well.”
“Because the pollsters that indicate that people support him are the only pollsters that have any reputation after this decade-long polling disaster.”
In the end, Hanson said, the story wasn’t about public opinion at all. It was about power.
“They were effectively in league with the Democratic candidate to create momentum,” he said, “rather than adhere to a spirit of professionalism and honor.”
U.S. regulators said Friday that they would allow three new color additives made from natural sources
to be used in the nation's food supply.
It comes after health officials pledged a sweeping phase-out of petroleum-based dyes widely used in foods from cereals to sports drinks to boost health -- though action is still pending.
The FDA said it is granting petitions to allow galdieria extract blue, a blue color derived from algae; calcium phosphate, a white color derived from a naturally occurring mineral; and butterfly pea flower extract, a blue color made from dried flower petals.
The colors will be approved for use in a range of foods from fruit drinks and yogurt to pretzels, ready-to-eat chicken, and candies. The move "will expand the palette of available colors from natural sources for manufacturers to safely use in food," FDA officials said in a statement.
Health advocates have long called for the removal of artificial dyes from foods, citing mixed studies indicating the dyes can cause neurobehavioral problems for some children, including hyperactivity and attention issues. The FDA has maintained for decades that the approved dyes are safe and that "the totality of scientific evidence shows that most children have no adverse effects when consuming foods containing color additives."
The new color approvals include a 2021 petition from the French company Fermentalg to allow galdieria extract blue; a 2023 petition from Innophos of Cranbury, New Jersey, to allow calcium phosphate; and a 2024 petition from Sensient Colors of St. Louis, Missouri, to allow butterfly pea flower extract.
The approvals are set to be published in the Federal Register on May 12 and would take effect in June.
In April, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, MD, MPH, announced that they would take steps to eliminate synthetic food dyes in the U.S. food supply by the end of 2026, largely through voluntary efforts from the food industry. The officials also said they would revoke authorization for two little-used artificial dyes, Citrus Red No. 2 and Orange B, and accelerate the timeline to remove Red 3, a food color banned in January because of a link to cancer in laboratory rats.
The FDA plans to initiate the process to revoke those colors "within the coming months," a spokesperson for HHS said.
https://www.medpagetoday.com/publichealthpolicy/fdageneral/115521
The mayor of Newark was arrested Friday at an ICE detention facility in New Jersey where congressional leaders had scheduled an afternoon "oversight" visit.
A spokesperson confirmed Mayor Ras Baraka was taken into custody by federal police outside Delaney Hall in Newark. The spokesperson did not have additional details to provide.
Alina Habba, the interim U.S. attorney for the district of New Jersey, said Baraka "committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings from Homeland Security Investigations to remove himself from the ICE detention center."
"He has willingly chosen to disregard the law. That will not stand in this state. He has been taken into custody," a post on X read.
Baraka had visited the facility in recent days amid efforts to close the recently reopened prison. The mayor has made public claims that the detention center does not have the appropriate permits to operate.
Witnesses said the arrest came after Baraka attempted to join a scheduled tour of the facility with three members of New Jersey’s congressional delegation, Reps. Robert Menendez, LaMonica McIver, and Bonnie Watson Coleman.
"We’re at Delaney Hall, an ICE prison in Newark that opened without permission from the city & in violation of local ordinances," Rep. Coleman wrote in a post on X.
When federal officials blocked his entry, a heated argument broke out, according to Viri Martinez, an activist with the New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice. It continued even after Baraka returned to the public side of the gates.
“The agents started intimidating and putting their hands on the congresswomen. There was yelling and pushing,” Martinez said. “Then the officers swarmed Baraka. They threw one of the organizers to the ground. They put Baraka handcuffs and put him in an unmarked car.”
Baraka, a Democrat who is running to succeed term-limited Gov. Phil Murphy, has embraced the fight with the Trump administration over illegal immigration.
He has aggressively pushed back against the construction and opening of the 1,000-bed detention center, arguing that it should not be allowed to open because of building permit issues.
The two-story building next to a county prison operated as a halfway house before a February announcement from Immigration and Customs Enforcement that it and the GEO Group reached a $1 billion, 15-year deal for a detention center there.
Baraka sued GEO Group soon after the deal was announced.
https://www.nbcnewyork.com/new-jersey/newark-mayor-ras-baraka-arrested-ice/6258503/
The FDA approved
the first at-home test for cervical cancer screening in people at average risk ages 25 to 65, maker Teal Health announced on Friday.
The test is comprised of a wand with a sponge-like tip for collecting cells (Teal Wand) and does not require a speculum. Patients then ship their sample to a certified lab for processing.
FDA last year approved the first self-collection kit for detecting human papillomavirus (HPV) -- the virus that causes nearly all cervical cancers -- but only for use in healthcare settings. The new at-home device uses the same Roche testing system, cobas HPV, which is used for primary screening and co-testing and can detect cervical intraepithelial neoplasia of grade 2/3 or worse.
The SELF-CERV study supported the new approval and included more than 600 participants who self-collected a sample using the device. Then a clinician collected a sample via a speculum exam to compare sample results. Participants also completed feedback surveys on usability.
Overall, 98% of the women in the study successfully collected a valid sample and 93% said the device was easy to use. Nearly all (94%) said they would prefer self-collecting at home over in-person screening with a clinician if they knew the results would be just as accurate as their doctor, and 86% said they would be more likely to stay up to date with routine screening with an at-home test.
"Cervical cancer is largely preventable, yet screening rates in the U.S. continue to lag, and the FDA approval of this at-home Teal Wand self-collection device is a critical step forward. It offers an evidence-based way to expand access without compromising accuracy," said investigator Christine Conageski, MD, of the Complex Dysplasia Clinic at the University of Colorado, in a statement.
Teal Health also provides telehealth services for prescribing the screening kit, reviewing the test results with patients, and for follow-up needs.
"Access is only part of the solution. Comprehensive screening must go hand in hand with structured, reliable follow-up," Conageski said. "That's how we ensure this breakthrough truly closes the gap."
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recently announced plans to add self-collected HPV testing to its recommendations for cervical cancer screening. Experts have said that the trend toward self-collection and at-home collection can help patients feel more comfortable with HPV testing, potentially reducing barriers to receiving critical preventative care.
Shares of Insulet (PODD) surged 20% in Friday afternoon trading to pace the S&P 500, a day after the insulin pump maker reported stronger-than-anticipated quarterly results and lifted its full-year revenue outlook.
After the bell Thursday, Insulet posted first-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.02 on revenue that jumped 30% year-over-year on a constant-currency basis to $569 million. Analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha had anticipated $0.81 and $543.0 million, respectively, while the company had projected revenue to grow by 22% to 25%.
The Acton, Mass.-based firm raised its constant-currency 2025 revenue growth outlook to between 19% and 22% from 16% to 20%.
"Insulet is just getting started on an exciting journey to revolutionize diabetes management globally," new CEO Ashley McEvoy said.
Jefferies analysts lifted their price target on Insulet stock—which had been down close to 2% for this year entering Friday's session—to $360 from $350. "We are encouraged by PODD's execution and continue to view it as a top idea for '25 given a path to robust growth, driven by product differentiation and new indications," they wrote.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/insulet-stock-soars-lead-p-183715111.html
Iran has agreed to hold a fourth round of nuclear talks with the United States on Sunday in Oman, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Friday, adding that the negotiations were advancing.
U.S. President Donald Trump, who withdrew Washington from a 2015 deal between Tehran and world powers meant to curb its nuclear activity, has threatened to bomb Iran if no new deal is reached to resolve the long unresolved dispute.
Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, plans to attend the talks in Oman, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Western countries say Iran's nuclear programme, which Tehran accelerated after the U.S. walkout from the now moribund 2015 accord, is geared toward producing weapons, whereas Iran insists it is purely for civilian purposes.
"The negotiations are moving forward, and naturally, the further we go, the more consultations and reviews are needed," Araqchi said in remarks carried by Iranian state media.
"The delegations require more time to examine the issues that are raised. But what is important is that we are on a forward-moving path and gradually entering into the details."
Witkoff, in an interview with Breitbart News, said the Iranians had stated that they do not want a nuclear weapon and the United States will "take them at their word" on this point.
"If that’s how they feel, then their enrichment facilities have to be dismantled. They cannot have centrifuges. They have to downblend all of their fuel that they have there and send it to a faraway place — and they have to convert to a civil program if they want to run a civil program," he said.
The fourth round of indirect negotiations, initially scheduled for May 3 in Rome, was postponed, with mediator Oman citing "logistical reasons".
In a separate statement on Friday, Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi said that after "coordination with both Iran and the U.S.", the fourth round of negotiations was set to take place on Sunday in Muscat.
Araqchi said his planned visit to Qatar and Saudi Arabia on Saturday was in line with "continuous consultations" with neighbouring countries to "address their concerns and mutual interests" about the nuclear issue.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/iran-agrees-fourth-round-indirect-144658786.html
