Former president and current frontrunner for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said that he would kill the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework if he were president, according to a report from Reuters. Trump told voters in Iowa on Nov. 18 that he would "knock out" IPEF, and called the agreement "TPP Two," referring to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, from which he withdrew the U.S. as one of his first acts after taking office in January 2017 (see 1701230041). According to Reuters, Trump said that the "Biden plan for 'TPP Two'" would be "dead on day one." He also said IPEF is worse than TPP, saying it threatens to "pulverize farmers and manufacturers" and send more jobs to Asia.

An academic and journalists from England and Foreign Policy magazine agreed that President Joe Biden got more out of the meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping than Xi did.

The National Marine Fisheries Service is postponing by an additional two years an upcoming requirement that foreign countries and fisheries be found comparable in marine mammal protections for their fish and fish products to be eligible for import into the U.S., the agency said in a notice released Nov. 16. The extension until Dec. 31, 2025, gives NMFS "additional time to complete its assessment" of the 134 country applications for comparability findings the agency has received, covering over 2,500 foreign fisheries.

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission recommended that Congress evaluate the national security threat posed by the import of Chinese-made electronics products, and then, "to eliminate or mitigate risks identified in the threat matrix evaluation, Congress should consider the use of all trade tools, including tariffs."

The Fish and Wildlife Service is removing the island bedstraw (Galium buxifolium) and Santa Cruz Island dudleya (Dudleya nesiotica), two plant species found in the Channel Islands National Park off the coast of California, from the Endangered Species List, it said in a final rule published Nov. 7. An FWS review indicated that “threats to island bedstraw and Santa Cruz Island dudleya have been eliminated or reduced to the point that these species have recovered and no longer meet the definition of an endangered or threatened species," the agency said. The delisting takes effect Dec. 7.

The Fish and Wildlife Service is reinstating Endangered Species Act protections for the gray wolf (Canis lupus) in response to a court order that went into effect in February 2022. The agency said that the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California vacated a 2020 FWS final rule delisting the gray wolf, and while several appeals are pending, the FWS must implement the district court’s order until those appeals are resolved.

The Drug Enforcement Administration proposed 2024 quotas for the manufacture and import of controlled substances listed in Schedules I and II of the Controlled Substances Act. Controlled substances not listed in the table included in DEA's notice will have a quota of zero. The notice, published Nov. 2, also proposes 2022 quotas for the Schedule I chemicals ephedrine, phenylpropanolamine and pseudoephedrine. Comments are due Dec. 4.

The DEA is finalizing its modification of its listing of 4-anilinopiperidine as a List I chemical under the Controlled Substances Act so that it includes halides of 4-anilinopiperidine, the agency said in a final rule that takes effect Nov. 30. Persons manufacturing, distributing, importing, or exporting halides of 4-anilinopiperidine or a chemical mixture containing halides of 4-anilinopiperidine must apply to handle List 1 chemicals by Nov. 30 if they are not already registered.

The Drug Enforcement Administration is placing the newly approved drug zuranolone in Schedule IV of the Controlled Substances Act, it said in an interim final rule. Effective Oct. 31, zuranolone, which was granted FDA approval in May, is subject to new registration, labeling, record-keeping, and import and export requirements. DEA is accepting comments on the rule until Nov. 30.

The Drug Enforcement Administration plans to temporarily add two synthetic benzimidazole-opioid substances -- N-desethyl isotonitazene and etonitazepipne -- to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, it said in a notice of intent published Oct. 25. Once the temporary scheduling order is published, which is set for on or after Nov. 24, it will be in effect for up to three years, the DEA said.