May 30,2022

More than 10,000 pieces of new news a day. News update non-stop 24/7.  Japan PM Kishida's support hits highest ever as election nears -Nikkei.  Jobs report, GameStop earnings, home prices top week ahead.  AP News Summary at 1:27 a.m. EDT.  Video: Uvalde resident shouts at Biden and Abbott.  Ukraine, Russia battle in the east as Zelenskyy visits front.  How Biden, cops and advocates forged deal on police and race.  President Biden suggests razing Texas elementary school where 21 people were killed, state senator says.  Uvalde tells Biden to ‘do something’; he pledges ‘we will’.  How Biden, cops and advocates forged deal on police and race.  AP News in Brief at 12:09 a.m. EDT.  More than 10,000 pieces of new news a day. News update non-stop 24/7.  AP News Summary at 12:08 a.m. EDT.  Germany agrees $107 billion fund to modernize military in face of Russia threat.  Florida student, TEN, is arrested for 'threatening mass school shooting'.  In Raffensperger call, Trump hoped to disqualify Biden votes..  TX-Gov: Watch Gov. Greg Abbott (R) Greeted With A Lot Of Loud Boos At Uvalde Memorial Site.  Ukraine Invasion Day 96: no memorial day in sight.  SRSLY? Now Trump is Calling the January 6th Insurrection 'a Hoax...Just Like Russia Russia Russia'.  Kemp and Raffensperger: Since when is avoiding jail for election fraud a "moral" or "heroic" act?.  How to Defeat the Billionaire Class.  How To Save the Dems in the Midterm Elections.  
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Japan PM Kishida's support hits highest ever as election nears -Nikkei
       
Fumio Kishida, Japan's prime minister, speaks at a news conference following the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) leaders meeting at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo, Japan May 24, 2022. Kiyoshi Ota/Pool via REUTERS/File PhotoTOKYO, May 30 (Reuters) - Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida scored his highest approval ratings since taking office eight months ago in a weekend survey, the Nikkei daily reported, with critical upper house elections just weeks away. Support for Kishida and his cabinet climbed to 66%, a rise of 5 points from the previous April survey and the highest since he took office last October, according to a weekend survey by the Nikkei and TV Tokyo. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterA total of 61% of respondents said they "approved" of his talks with Biden. Kishida's support also rose in a survey last week by Fuji News network, hitting hit 68.9%, up 3 points from the previous month.
Jobs report, GameStop earnings, home prices top week ahead
       
Though the New York Stock Exchange will be closed Monday in observance of the Memorial Day holiday, investors will still have another jam-packed week of corporate earnings and key economic data related to housing, manufacturing and jobs. Ticker Security Last Change Change % I:DJI DOW JONES AVERAGES 33212.96 +575.77 +1.76% SP500 S&P 500 4158.24 +100.40 +2.47% I:COMP NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX 12131.131075 +390.48 +3.33%FOX Business takes a look at upcoming events likely to move financial markets in the coming days. Tuesday 5/31Kicking off the week for earnings will be HP, Salesforce and Victoria's Secret after the bell. Ticker Security Last Change Change % ABNB AIRBNB INC. 120.50 +6.20 +5.42%Also on Tuesday, Airbnb will end COVID-related refunds. CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESSFriday 6/3Finishing out the week will be the May jobs report and the ISM non-manufacturing PMI.
AP News Summary at 1:27 a.m. EDT
       
Uvalde tells Biden to 'do something'; he pledges 'we will'UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden grieved with the shattered community of Uvalde on Sunday. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it'll review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting. Ukraine, Russia battle in the east as Zelenskyy visits frontPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russian and Ukrainian troops are trading blows in fierce close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. The U.S. National Hurricane Center predicts it will make landfall as a powerful Category 3 hurricane Monday afternoon or evening. While no one seeking a policing overhaul thinks Biden's order goes far enough, many consider it an important step forward.
Video: Uvalde resident shouts at Biden and Abbott
       
Uvalde resident Ben Gonzales explains to CNN's Jim Acosta why he shouted at President Joe Biden and Texas Governor Greg Abbott during their visit to the city.
Ukraine, Russia battle in the east as Zelenskyy visits front
       
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine — Russia claimed to have overrun a key rail hub while its troops fought Ukrainian defenders in the streets of another city in eastern Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry said the railroad center Lyman had been “completely liberated’’ by a joint force of Russian soldiers and Kremlin-backed separatists. Pavlo Kyrylenko said Russian troops controlled most of it and were trying to press their offensive toward Bakhmut, another city in the region. Serhii Haidai reported that Ukrainian fighters repelled an assault on Sievierodonetsk but Russian troops still pushed to encircle them. Moscow and Kyiv have traded accusations over which side bears responsibility for keeping shipments tied up, with Russia saying Ukrainian sea mines prevented safe passage and Ukraine citing a Russian naval blockade.
How Biden, cops and advocates forged deal on police and race
       
Previous presidents, too, have attempted to make improvements to America’s law enforcement system, but Biden faced particular pressure to find the right balance. Not only did law enforcement groups dislike various parts of the draft, they felt like the administration hadn’t adequately listened to their perspective. Senior administration officials described a sort of shuttle diplomacy, and they met separately with civil rights advocates and law enforcement groups while trying to keep everyone on the same page. However, the executive order requires federal law enforcement officers to prioritize de-escalation and then intervention if they see another officer using excessive force. As an executive order, the new policies are limited to federal agencies.
President Biden suggests razing Texas elementary school where 21 people were killed, state senator says
       
President Biden told a local lawmaker while visiting Uvalde on Sunday that the federal government may provide resources to raze Robb Elementary School, where 19 children and two teachers were shot and killed earlier this week. We're going to look to raze that school, build a new one,'" state Sen. Roland Gutierrez, who represents Uvalde, told KSAT. TEXAS SCHOOL SHOOTING: LIVE UPDATESSandy Hook Elementary School, where a gunman shot and killed 26 people in 2012, was torn down and replaced by a new $50 million school on the same property in Newtown, Connecticut. UVALDE, TEXAS - MAY 26: A memorial is seen surrounding the Robb Elementary School sign following the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School on May 26, 2022 in Uvalde, Texas. The president visited a memorial outside of Robb Elementary School on Sunday before attending mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church then meeting with victims’ families and first responders.
Uvalde tells Biden to ‘do something’; he pledges ‘we will’
       
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden grieved with the shattered community of Uvalde on Sunday, mourning privately for three hours with anguished families of the 19 schoolchildren and two teachers killed by a gunman. After visiting the memorial, Biden attended Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where several victims’ families are members, and one of the families was in attendance. Biden later tweeted that he grieves, prays and stands with the people of Uvalde. The visit to Uvalde was Biden’s second trip in as many weeks to console a community in loss after a mass shooting. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby?
How Biden, cops and advocates forged deal on police and race
       
Previous presidents, too, have attempted to make improvements to America's law enforcement system, but Biden faced particular pressure to find the right balance. Not only did law enforcement groups dislike various parts of the draft, they felt like the administration hadn't adequately listened to their perspective. In addition to Rice’s team, Justice Department officials and the White House counsel’s office under Dana Remus worked through the details. Long days were fueled by Hershey's Kisses, M&Ms and whatever else that could be scrounged from White House desks. However, the executive order requires federal law enforcement officers to prioritize de-escalation and then intervention if they see another officer using excessive force.
AP News in Brief at 12:09 a.m. EDT
       
to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. In the east, Russian forces stormed Sievierodonetsk after trying unsuccessfully to encircle the strategic city, Ukrainian officials said. “Capturing Sievierodonetsk is a principal task for the occupation force,” Zelensky said, adding that the Russians don’t care about casualties. As China seeks big Pacific deal, many in Fiji see benefitsSUVA, Fiji (AP) — For Georgina Matilda, working for Chinese infrastructure company China Railway means that she can put food on the table for her children. Celtics reach NBA Finals, hold off Heat 100-96 in Game 7MIAMI (AP) — Not this time.
AP News Summary at 12:08 a.m. EDT
       
Uvalde tells Biden to 'do something'; he pledges 'we will'UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden grieved with the shattered community of Uvalde on Sunday. He mourned privately for three hours with anguished families left behind when a gunman killed 19 schoolchildren and two teachers. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it'll review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting. Ukraine, Russia battle in the east as Zelenskyy visits frontPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russian and Ukrainian troops are trading blows in fierce close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. As China seeks big Pacific deal, many in Fiji see benefitsSUVA, Fiji (AP) — For Georgina Matilda, working for Chinese infrastructure company China Railway means that she can put food on the table for her children.
Germany agrees $107 billion fund to modernize military in face of Russia threat
       
Germany’s government and conservative opposition have agreed to a deal that will release €100 billion ($107 billion) to modernize the army in the face of the Russian threat — a move that is likely to reverberate as far away as Japan. An agreement was reached late Sunday to create a special fund for military procurement that will also allow Berlin to meet NATO’s target of spending 2% of gross domestic product on defense. Three days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February, Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged a special budget of €100 billion to rearm the German military and modernize its outdated equipment over the next few years. The €100 billion will be paid into a special fund outside the national budget. The unexpected and dramatic rethink by Germany comes as leaders in Japan debate doubling their country’s defense budget to 2% of GDP, from an informal cap of around 1%.
Florida student, TEN, is arrested for 'threatening mass school shooting'
       
A 10-year-old in Florida was arrested Saturday after allegedly sending a text message threatening to shoot up his school. According to the Lee County Sheriff's Office, Marquez is a 5th grade student at Patriot Elementary School in Cape Coral, Florida. Amd on May 27, Sheriff Marceno appeared in an eight-minute long video in which he criticized federal aid for Ukraine. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said in 2020 that Lee County's crime rate dropped by 18.4% during his initial tenure between 2018 and 2020. Parents of the students at Robb Elementary School showed up at the school after hearing about the reports of a shooting while the massacre was continuing inside.
In Raffensperger call, Trump hoped to disqualify Biden votes.
       
On January 2, 2021, former president Donald J. Trump had an hour-long phone call with Georgia secretary of state, Brad Raffensperger. Among numerous headline grabbing quotes from the former president is this well-known doozy:“All I want to do is this. In this instance, Trump wants to find 11,780 of BIDEN’s votes to disqualify. During the call, Trump alternately pressures Raffensperger to add to his vote total or lower Biden’s vote total. This distinction between adding votes and disqualifying votes needs more traction in national reporting.
TX-Gov: Watch Gov. Greg Abbott (R) Greeted With A Lot Of Loud Boos At Uvalde Memorial Site
       
President Joe Biden was warmly greeted when he visited Uvalde Sunday, but Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott was loudly booed as he approached the makeshift memorial at the elementary school where 19 children and two teachers were killed last week in a mass shooting. Greg Abbott on Friday gave two different speeches about gun control that went on at the same time – with two vastly different messages. He instead held an in-person press conference in Uvalde and sent a pre-recorded message to the NRA audience. And there will be laws in multiple different subject areas," Abbott added during the Uvalde press conference.
Ukraine Invasion Day 96: no memorial day in sight
       
[4] Russian Telegram channels reported that Russian forces successfully seized Pasika on May 28, but ISW cannot independently confirm this claim. [5] Russian forces did not attempt to advance directly south of Izyum and are likely prioritizing an advance north of Lyman. [7] Russian forces from Izyum may join units in Lyman to conduct an offensive on Siversk or pursue a separate drive on Slovyansk. [9] Haidai stressed that Russian forces have not isolated the city, despite damaging a bridge along the Lysychansk-Severodonetsk road. [16] Russian forces will likely continue offensive operations on Bakhmut as well as the T1302 and T1303 highways to isolate Ukrainian forces in the Severodonetsk-Lysychansk area.
SRSLY? Now Trump is Calling the January 6th Insurrection 'a Hoax...Just Like Russia Russia Russia'
       
This one was in Wyoming where Trump is trying to oust Rep. Liz Cheney, a fellow Republican who he has declared insufficiently worshipful. In addition to his first impeachment, his second impeachment, his extortion of Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, the COVID-19 virus, the Mueller Report, climate change, the 2020 presidential election results, and his well-documented connections to Russia, Trump is now adding the January 6th insurrection. It’s another con job just like Russia Russia Russia. It’s another con job just like Russia Russia Russia pic.twitter.com/u8bJLBFXri — Acyn (@Acyn) May 28, 2022So now Trump wants his glassy-eyed disciples to believe that the riots on Capitol Hill that everyone saw on live television, never actually happened. RELATED: PolitiFact’s Lie of the Year: The January 6th Insurrection Disinformation By Trump and Fox NewsTrump may have a difficult time selling this notion that the insurrection was hoax to the populace at large.
Kemp and Raffensperger: Since when is avoiding jail for election fraud a "moral" or "heroic" act?
       
One of them is the elevation to near heroic status of Georgia Governor Brian Kemp and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger for simply following the law in 2020. So I am more than tired of hearing about how they did the “moral” or “ethical” thing by refusing to commit election fraud at Donald Trump’s request in November 2020. Again a no-brainer, because actual prosecutions for the actions Trump asked them to take are currently being pursued on the state and federal level. I’m not a criminal lawyer, but I have the feeling “finding 11,780 votes” is a least as serious a crime as presenting alternate electors. Remember: Young people are the Sleeping Giant Waiting to Save Democracy in the United States, just waiting to be unleashed.
How to Defeat the Billionaire Class
       
Reprinted from chrishedges.substack.comThere are ways to defeat the billionaire class and many of these tactics have been pioneered by Socialist City Councilwoman Kshama Sawant and the Socialist Alternative (SA) party in Seattle. She and the SA have adopted a series of unorthodox methods to fight the ruling oligarchs and, in that confrontation, exposed the Democratic Party leadership as craven tools of the billionaire class. The Democratic Party in Seattle is currently trying to gerrymander her district to separate her from working-class supporters. She is not interested in "cordial relationships" with big business, establishment politicians, the Democratic Party and business lobbyists. The self-identified progressives in the Democratic Party, she says, play "a role which is contrary to the interests of working people.
How To Save the Dems in the Midterm Elections
       
Most likely, the Democratic leadership already knows this, via polling they've commissioned. It is at least a little mysterious why pollsters have done a poll on the effect of such announcements on the 2022 and 2024 elections. This is exactly the reason why now we are staring into potential clobbering of the Democrats by the Republicans and by the right-wing in the midterm elections." I think declarations Biden, Harris and even Pelosi will make a big difference, maybe even shifts of a point or two in key races in Florida, Arizona, Pennsylvania and elsewhere. The Centrist Democratic leadership has been the biggest problem the Democratic party has had, and of course Joe Biden is at the top.
Biden hails Modi, the butcher of Gujarat, for India’s COVID policy of mass death
       
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci)By what metric he was measuring the “success” of India or, for that matter, its “democratic” character, Biden did not say. Indeed, of the total estimated global excess deaths from COVID-19 (14.9 million), India accounts for nearly one-third. Thus, according to Biden, the “success” of the Modi government consists in having overseen the most COVID-19 deaths of any country on the planet. As Biden noted in his remarks to Modi, the populations of China (1.4 billion) and India (1.38 billion) are comparable in size. At the same time, as the American financial oligarchy demands a COVID policy of endless mass infection and death, it hails the “success” of India as a model.
Fox News Anchor Pleads For Gun Control: 'Prayers Are Not Enough'
       
A Fox News anchor broke rank with many of her colleagues Sunday by openly calling for gun law reform in the wake of the Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde mass shootings. “As we’ve said before, prayers are not enough. AdvertisementThe Uvalde and Buffalo shooters used AR-15 style semiautomatic assault rifles they purchased legally when they turned 18. Many Fox News hosts and pundits have offered similar explanations for the crisis. None of them were gun control.
AP News in Brief at 11:04 p.m. EDT
       
to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. Ukraine's leader also made a rare frontline visit to Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city, to assess the strength of the national defense. In the east, Russian forces stormed Sievierodonetsk after trying unsuccessfully to encircle the strategic city, Ukrainian officials said. OSBI had earlier said two juveniles were injured in the shooting but said Sunday afternoon that only one juvenile was injured. Sweden's Ericsson gives Ganassi another Indy 500 victoryINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Marcus Ericsson, once a Formula One backmarker, is now an IndyCar frontrunner.
AP News Summary at 11:57 p.m. EDT
       
Uvalde tells Biden to 'do something'; he pledges 'we will'UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden grieved with the shattered community of Uvalde on Sunday. He mourned privately for three hours with anguished families left behind when a gunman killed 19 schoolchildren and two teachers. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it'll review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting. Ukraine, Russia battle in the east as Zelenskyy visits frontPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russian and Ukrainian troops are trading blows in fierce close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. Sunday's march was a show of force that risked setting off a new wave of violence in the tense city.
Monday morning UK news briefing: Today's top headlines from The Telegraph
       
Welcome to your early morning news briefing from The Telegraph - a round-up of the top stories we are covering today. To receive twice-daily briefings by email, sign up to our Front Page newsletter for free. UK opens door to world’s top graduatesGraduates from the world’s top universities, including Harvard and Yale, will be eligible for visas to work in Britain under a new post-Brexit immigration drive to “put ability and talent first”. Jubilee ‘killjoys’ warn against unauthorised street partiesThe public was warned on Sunday night against hosting unauthorised Platinum Jubilee street celebrations in a crackdown by "party killjoys". Up to 15 million people are planning to celebrate the Queen’s 70-year reign with neighbours, dwarfing the turnout for any previous royal event.
New bid to spin Hunter Biden’s laptop
       
Kevin Morris’ map of thoughts about Biden’s laptop that he has shared with confidants. A third laptop belonging to Hunter was stolen by Russian drug dealers in August 2018, during a bender in Las Vegas, according to Hunter, who recorded himself telling the tale in a video on the Mac Isaac laptop. In other words, these videos are unique to the Mac Isaac laptop, confirming that it is not a clone of the earlier Ablow laptop. The publication date of the column corroborates the time stamp of the video, created 23 days after Hunter left his second laptop with Ablow. He even flew to Serbia with a film crew in November and infiltrated the set of “My Son Hunter,” an upcoming movie about Hunter’s ­laptop.
Shares in Bubs Australia jump on exports to United States, Biden tweet
       
Naval Academy graduation and commissioning ceremony in Annapolis(Reuters) - Shares in Bubs Australia surged on Monday after U.S. health authorities approved imports of its infant formula to help address a severe shortage and U.S. President Joe Biden tweeted "the good news". Bubs plans to ship at least 1.25 million cans of its baby formula and has 500,000 tins ready for immediate export. It shares were up 40% or 19 cents at A$0.68 in early afternoon trade, valuing the company at A$417 million ($300 million). The U.S. baby formula crisis was triggered when Abbott Laboratories in February recalled dozens of products after customers complained of infants contracting bacterial infections. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said on May 19 Abbott was on track to reopen its key baby formula plant in Michigan within one or two weeks.
Heartbroken Texas town begs Biden to 'do something' after school massacre
       
Desperate pleas for a stop to the gun massacres plaguing the United States rang out Sunday during U.S. President Joe Biden’s visit to Uvalde, where he prayed for the 19 children and two teachers slain by a teen gunman in the small Texas town. “Do something!” rang out shouts from a crowd in the street as Biden left Sacred Heart Church where he attended mass with mourning relatives.
President Biden suggests razing Texas elementary school where 21 people were killed, state senator says
       
President Biden told a local lawmaker while visiting Uvalde on Sunday that the federal government may provide resources to raze Robb Elementary School, where 19 children and two teachers were shot and killed earlier this week. We're going to look to raze that school, build a new one,'" state Sen. Roland Gutierrez, who represents Uvalde, told KSAT. TEXAS SCHOOL SHOOTING: LIVE UPDATESSandy Hook Elementary School, where a gunman shot and killed 26 people in 2012, was torn down and replaced by a new $50 million school on the same property in Newtown, Connecticut. It is a must," Gutierrez told KSAT. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPThe president visited a memorial outside of Robb Elementary School on Sunday before attending mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church then meeting with victims’ families and first responders.
Bidens visit memorial to school shooting victims in Uvalde, Texas
       
The pair on Sunday laid white roses outside the site of the country’s deadliest school shooting in a decade. The first lady lingered, touching photos of the young victims at makeshift shrines. [Upsound – choir singing]The Bidens are set to meet victims’ families, survivors and first responders in a town grappling with unbearable grief. Mourners - from adults to the very young – continued to visit a memorial in the town square, comforting each other and leaving gifts reflecting the age of the victims, mostly nine- and ten-year-olds. During their visit, the Bidens also attended mass with a crowd chanting “do something” as the president left the church.
AP News in Brief at 9:04 p.m. EDT
       
Department spokesman Anthony Coley said the review would be conducted in a fair, impartial and independent manner and the findings would be made public. Ukraine's leader also made a rare frontline visit to Kharkiv, the country’s second-largest city, to assess the strength of the national defense. In the east, Russian forces stormed Sievierodonetsk after trying unsuccessfully to encircle the strategic city, Ukrainian officials said. “Capturing Sievierodonetsk is a principal task for the occupation force,” Zelensky said, adding that the Russians don’t care about casualties. Sweden's Ericsson gives Ganassi another Indy 500 victoryINDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Marcus Ericsson, once a Formula One backmarker, is now an IndyCar frontrunner.
Christian Nationalism On The Rise In Some GOP Campaigns
       
Carolyn Kaster via Associated PressBut scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. “There’s no room for compromise, so that is the threat to democracy.”In the book, Whitehead and co-author Samuel Perry measured rates of Christian nationalism by drawing on a 2017 Baylor University survey. Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy, and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. “I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
Ukraine suffers on battlefield while pleading for U.S. arms
       
Europe Ukraine suffers on battlefield while pleading for U.S. arms ‘They’re just raining down metal on us,’ said a soldier fresh from the front line where Russia is advancing Loading... Members of a Ukrainian battalion of young soldiers as they return to their base near Kramatorsk, Ukraine, on May 28. Nearby, bloodied cots sat propped against a tent and other wounded soldiers lingered about, their faces grim, their heads, arms or legs bandaged as the sound of outgoing artillery boomed across the sky. The Washington Post is withholding the name and precise location of the hospital out of concerns from staff members that it could be targeted by Russian forces. Now, he said, “Ukrainian soldiers are pulling back.”He was at the hospital to be treated for a fracture in his leg and a wounded arm. Ukrainian officials believe that any concessions to satisfy Putin now will only lead to Russia regrouping and launching a far more vicious war against Ukraine in the future.
Brian Mast calls out Biden's foreign policy on Taiwan: It is 'just uncertainty'
       
Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., critiqued President Biden’s foreign policy in regard to Taiwan on "Sunday Night in America." Host Trey Gowdy asked him specifically on Biden’s recent comments stating that the U.S. would get involved militarily to defend Taiwan should China invade. Because the White House was later forced to walk back those comments, Mast reprimanded Biden’s foreign policy as "just uncertainty." He also warned voters have become more concerned on foreign policy issues such as Ukraine and the southern border as inflation continues to hamper Americans. GOLD STAR PARENTS LAUNCH OPERATION 300 IN HONOR OF SON WHOSE LIFE WAS LOST IN AFGHANISTAN"When they’re looking at foreign policy, they’re looking at what’s going on in Ukraine but when they think foreign policy right now they’re thinking southern border.
Biden grieves with Texas town after shooting
       
STORY: It was a somber moment for U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden outside the Texas elementary school where 19 children and two teachers were killed by a gunman. The pair on Sunday laid white roses outside the site of the country’s deadliest school shooting in a decade. The first lady lingered, touching photos of the young victims at makeshift shrines. [Upsound – choir singing]The Bidens are set to meet victims’ families, survivors and first responders in a town grappling with unbearable grief. During their visit, the Bidens also attended mass with a crowd chanting “do something” as the president left the church.
For one Uvalde couple, a very welcome presidential landing right across the street
       
“Really, really glad.”“This is history for us,” Agnes Quintanilla said. Less than half an hour before the shooting, Agnes Quintanilla was with her daughter and granddaughter at Robb Elementary School, she said, for an awards ceremony in which her granddaughter was receiving an arts award. Before they even got home, the teacher was calling them, warning of a man outside with a gun, Agnes Quintanilla said. “Welcome President Biden,” read another, attached to a traffic cone at the end of their driveway. All their Republican friends in town might look askance at their enthusiasm, Agnes Quintanilla said, but that won’t bother her much.
Photos from President Biden visits memorial of Texas shooting massacre
       
President Joe Biden grieved with the shattered community of Uvalde on Sunday, mourning privately for three hours with anguished families of the 19 schoolchildren and two teachers killed by a gunman. Faced with chants of “do something” as he departed a church service, Biden pledged: “We will.”At Robb Elementary School, Biden visited a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed — and first lady Jill Biden added a bouquet of white flowers to those already placed in front of the school sign. The couple then viewed individual altars erected in memory of each student, the first lady touching the children’s photos as they moved along the row. After visiting the memorial, Biden attended Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where several victims’ families are members, and one of the families was in attendance. Click here if you’re unable to view the photos on your mobile device.
Biden pledges action after Uvalde visit; Justice Department launches police response review: Live updates
       
"To everyone impacted by the horrific elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: We grieve with you. Amid the visit, the Justice Department announced it would launch a review of law enforcement's response to the mass shooting. Mike Palacios, 38, who lives down the road from Robb Elementary School, held a sign of all the victims’ names for drivers passing by. – Rafael CarranzaJustice Department to review responseWASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced Sunday that it is reviewing the delayed police response to the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead in one of the worst campus attacks in U.S. history. Sutton, a professional school portrait photographer, has taken photos of every child killed at Robb Elementary School on Tuesday, along with the two teachers.
S. Koreans to vote this week in local elections, parliamentary by-elections
       
Voters mark ballots at polling booths at a voting center in Ulsan last Friday, the first day of two-day early voting for the June 1 local elections and parliamentary by-elections. (Yonhap)South Koreans will vote this week in local elections and parliamentary elections amid expectations that the results will boost or weaken the mandate of the new government of President Yoon Suk-yeol. Turnout of the advance voting came to 20.62 percent, the highest for any local elections, the NEC said. It expects final turnout for Wednesday's elections to surpass 60.2 percent logged in the 2018 local elections. The liberal party hopes to repeat the success of the 2018 local elections when it scored a landslide victory.
Georgia voters have gone to the polls 50 times in the last 7 years, and they're caught between relishing and regretting their role as the newest battleground swing state
       
Since 2016, Georgians have had to weigh in on 50 elections, including 20 runoff elections, 16 special elections, 10 primary elections, and 4 general elections. "It's never gonna end," Augusta, Georgia, resident James Carroll, 30, said of the intense scrutiny Georgia has undergone the past few years. Alpharetta, Georgia resident Eamon Keegan, 36, said that, for better or for worse, his home has become a "perpetual swing state." "Campaigns are going to be a full-time thing now," Keegan, who told Insider he works as a political consultant, predicted. Yard signs for candidates running in Georgia's primary election on May 24, 2022, fill up a neighborhood park in Atlanta, Georgia.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Loudly Booed At Uvalde Memorial Site
       
Greg Abbott as he arrives while President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden to pay their respects at a makeshift memorial outside of Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. CHANDAN KHANNA via Getty ImagesPresident Joe Biden was warmly greeted when he visited Uvalde Sunday, but Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott was loudly booed as he approached the makeshift memorial at the elementary school where 19 children and two teachers were killed last week in a mass shooting. #Happeningnow Crowd Boos Texas Gov Greg Abbott as he arrives at the memorial outside of Uvalde Elementary School.#Uvalde #Texas pic.twitter.com/QWDOfXcvEw — Oliya Scootercaster (@ScooterCasterNY) May 29, 2022Greg Abbott gets booed by crowd and shouted at that we need change in our gun policies. ??pic.twitter.com/M6OiTek0ac — Dan ?? (@HStarshot) May 29, 2022Greg Abbott rightfully booed arriving at the Robb Elementary School memorial in #Uvalde.
Gov. Abbott falsely claims background checks would not have prevented Sutherland Springs shooting
       
On November 5, 2017, a gunman stormed the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs — killing 26 people and wounding 22 others. In a response to a question about background checks at a Friday press conference, Abbott said he believed background checks wouldn't have prevented Sutherland Springs from happening. “Look at what happened in the shooting at Sutherland Springs. A lawyer for the Sutherland Spring victims said Abbott’s characterization that the events of Sutherland Springs prove background checks are not a viable solution is misleading. Moments after hearing Abbott's take on Sutherland Springs, Alsaffar was inundated with calls asking him to correct the record.
New Mexico wildfire scar burn has forest officials worried
       
(Eddie Moore/The Albuquerque Journal via AP)SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — As more than 3,000 firefighters in northern New Mexico continued to battle the nation’s largest active wildfire Sunday, federal forest officials worried about future flash floods, landslides and destructive ash from the burn scar. The 7-week-old fire, the largest in New Mexico history, remained 50% contained after charring 492 square miles (1,274 square kilometers) in rugged terrain east of Santa Fe. A Forest Service Burned Area Emergency Response team has started publishing data from its post-fire assessments. Micah Kiesow, team leader and a soil and watershed program manager with the Santa Fe National Forest, said steep mountain slopes had acted like a sponge before the fire. In Colorado, air tankers and helicopters were helping fight a new wildfire burning in the southern part of the state Sunday, the U.S. Forest Service said.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Loudly Booed At Uvalde Memorial Site
       
Greg Abbott as he arrives while President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden to pay their respects at a makeshift memorial outside of Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. Greg Abbott as he arrives while President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden to pay their respects at a makeshift memorial outside of Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. Greg Abbott was loudly booed as he approached the makeshift memorial at the elementary school where 19 children and two teachers were killed last week in a mass shooting. #Happeningnow Crowd Boos Texas Gov Greg Abbott as he arrives at the memorial outside of Uvalde Elementary School.#Uvalde#Texaspic.twitter.com/QWDOfXcvEw — Oliya Scootercaster (@ScooterCasterNY) May 29, 2022Greg Abbott gets booed by crowd and shouted at that we need change in our gun policies. ??pic.twitter.com/M6OiTek0ac — Dan ?? (@HStarshot) May 29, 2022Greg Abbott rightfully booed arriving at the Robb Elementary School memorial in #Uvalde.
Flowers, tears as Bidens stop at Uvalde memorial
       
ReutersUVALDE, Texas (Reuters) -President Joe Biden tried to comfort families in the south Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday after the nation's deadliest school shooting in a decade as federal officials announced they would review local law enforcement's slow response to the attack. Anger has mounted over the decision by law enforcement agencies in Uvalde to allow the shooter to remain in a classroom for nearly an hour while officers waited in the hallway and children inside the room made panicked 911 calls for help. The president and first lady Jill Biden wiped away tears as they visited memorials at the Robb Elementary School where the gunman killed 19 students and two teachers, laying white roses and paying respects to makeshift shrines to the victims.
AP News Summary at 7:59 p.m. EDT
       
Uvalde tells Biden to 'do something'; he pledges 'we will'UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden grieved with the shattered community of Uvalde on Sunday. He mourned privately for three hours with anguished families left behind when a gunman killed 19 schoolchildren and two teachers. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it'll review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting. Ukraine, Russia battle in the east as Zelenskyy visits frontPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russian and Ukrainian troops are trading blows in fierce close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. A business idea was born, and her home now doubles as a workshop where she and her daughter produce dolls.
Uvalde tells Biden to ‘do something’; he pledges ‘we will’
       
UVALDE, Texas — President Biden sought Sunday to comfort a city grieving the killings of 19 elementary school pupils and two teachers at the hands of a lone gunman. At Robb Elementary School, Biden stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed — and the first lady added a bouquet of white flowers to a pile in front of the school sign. “Evil came to that elementary school classroom in Texas, to that grocery store in New York, to far too many places where innocents have died,” Biden said Saturday in a commencement address at the University of Delaware. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.”After visiting the memorial, Biden attended Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where some victims’ families worship. Mckinzie Hinojosa, whose cousin Eliahana Torres was killed Tuesday, said she respected Biden’s decision to mourn with the people of Uvalde but wanted more.
AP News in Brief at 6:04 p.m. EDT
       
Uvalde tells Biden to 'do something'; he pledges 'we will'UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden sought Sunday to comfort a city grieving the killings of 19 elementary school pupils and two teachers at the hands of a lone gunman. At Robb Elementary School, Biden stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed — and the first lady added a bouquet of white flowers to a pile in front of the school sign. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. “Capturing Sievierodonetsk is a principal task for the occupation force,” Zelensky said, adding that the Russians don’t care about casualties. The Mexican got one final look for the lead that Ericsson defended and O'Ward knew not to force the issue.
Selena Gomez looks comfy in baggy sweats and sweater as she spends Memorial Day weekend in Malibu
       
The actress looked much younger than her 29 years when she was spotted going to the grocery store with friends in Malibu. 'Bringing attention to mental health through media or just by talking about your journeys can help,' she advised. President Biden explained that a goal of his administration was to make mental health care more accessible, via the hiring of more school counselors and psychologists. The Fundamentals of Caring actress' Rare Beauty brand provides funds to organizations offering mental health services and education to young people. Those seeking help are encouraged to call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services free, 24 hour hotline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
Planned burn by US Forest Service caused largest wildfire in New Mexico history
       
The Forest Service has not yet released detailed planning documents for the original planned burns that might indicate whether fire protocols were followed. Fire was reported again in the same vicinity April 9 and escaped control 10 days later amid dry, hot and windy conditions, Forest Service investigators found. Michelle Lujan Grisham in a statement called the investigation results a "first step toward the federal government taking full responsibility" for the New Mexico wildfire. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore last week announced a 90-day pause and review of protocols for planned fires that limit the buildup of flammable vegetation. Forest managers cut back trees and gather debris into mounds, preferring to burn forest fuels in the winter when planned burns are easier to control.
What Makes Katt Williams Great? It’s Not the Jokes, It’s the Performance
       
He pokes fun at Anthony Fauci and makes some half-baked jokes about Adam and Eve being incestuous. Williams has said he stopped performing in clubs and instead develops jokes in front of thousands of people. But whereas there are many comics who can write a tight joke, there’s only one Katt Williams. He tosses ideas out and then, through force of charisma and performance chops, makes them amusing in a way no one else could. Donald Glover clearly saw this when he cast Williams in a dramatic role in “Atlanta,” for which he won an Emmy.
Abortion-Communion controversy: Pope Francis elevates bishop who defended serving pro-choice politicians
       
In naming McElroy, Francis passed over Cordileone, who holds a higher rank. McElroy, one of 21 new cardinals Pope Francis announced Sunday, will be installed Aug. 27 at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, the diocese of San Diego announced. The San Francisco archbishop had previously written to Pelosi, "You are not to present yourself for Holy Communion and, should you do so, you are not to be admitted to Holy Communion." Despite Cordileone's clear declaration, Pelosi received Holy Communion at the 9 a.m. Mass at Holy Trinity in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., last Sunday. The editorial board blasted the archbishop for "punishing" Pelosi, instead of "right-wing politicians" who "[vote] against health care or funding for the poor."
Harvard University student newspaper survey of graduates finds very few lean conservative
       
A Harvard University student newspaper survey of graduating students found that only 6.4% of the people who responded have a conservative-leaning after attending the private Ivy League institution. It found that 4% of graduates from the class of 2022 lean conservative, and 2.4% lean "very conservative." 1.4% of the graduating students surveyed identify as apolitical, according to the student newspaper. 51.8% of graduating students surveyed have a favorable view of President Biden, compared to 30.1% who hold an unfavorable view. It found that 54.1% of graduating students surveyed support "defunding or abolishing ICE," and just 15.3% support "Elon Musk's bid to buy Twitter."
Trump's Primary Losses Puncture His Invincibility
       
Brian Kemp in the GOP gubernatorial primary, at a Bikers for Trump rally prior to Election Day, in Plainville, Ga., May 20, 2022. But there has been a less visible sign of slippage: Trump’s vaunted digital fundraising machine has begun to slow. Those close to Trump — and even Republicans who aren’t — caution against misreading the significance of primary losses in which he was not on the ballot. “The resounding message from the Republican voters in Georgia is: Quit talking about 2020,” Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Republican minority leader, told Politico. “And make the fall election about the future and about the Biden administration.”In interviews with Republican voters at Kemp events, few had become anti-Trump.
Lawmakers work holiday weekend on limited gun-control proposals
       
“No one law is going to save everybody,” Sen. Chris Murphy said on CBS. Some Republicans are indicating interest in emerging with legislation, spurred by the shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday that left 19 children and two teachers dead. Democrats have repeatedly tried and failed to enact new gun-control measures — such as universal background checks and an assault weapons ban — in the decade since a gunman killed 26 people, most of them first-graders, at the Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut. Multiple proposals have been blocked due to opposition from Republicans and a handful of moderate Democrats. The Bidens visited a memorial to those who were slain at Robb Elementary School and attended Mass at a Catholic church.
Ukraine suffers on battlefield while pleading for US arms
       
DONETSK OBLAST, Ukraine — The ambulances hurtled into the parking lot one after the other, each carrying wounded troops directly from the nearby front line. The Washington Post is withholding the name and precise location of the hospital out of concerns from staff that it could be targeted by Russian forces. They were gearing up to provide additional support for the soldiers battling the Russians head-on, preparing for a worst-case scenario in which Russian forces continue or accelerate their current advance. Ukraine officials believe that any concessions to satisfy Putin now will only lead to Russia regrouping and launching a far more vicious war against Ukraine in the future. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Zelenskyy, told The Post that the Ukraine government refuses any plan other than a military loss for Russia on the battlefield.
Uvalde tells Biden to ‘do something’; he pledges ‘we will’
       
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visit a memorial at Robb Elementary School to pay their respects to the victims of the mass shooting, Sunday, May 29, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visit a memorial at Robb Elementary School to pay their respects to the victims of the mass shooting, Sunday, May 29, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. Biden tweeted during the visit that he grieves, prays and stands with the people of Uvalde. The visit to Uvalde was Biden’s second trip in as many weeks to console a community in loss after a mass shooting. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting
Matthew McConaughey Visits Hometown of Uvalde, Texas Following Mass Shooting Massacre
       
In the wake of the sickening school shooting in Uvalde, Texas last week, many Hollywood celebrities voiced their rage and disgust on social media. But when Oscar-winning actor Matthew McConaughey penned a message urging people to “re-evalute, and renegotiate our wants from our needs” regarding gun rights, it was notable for a few reasons. Most germane to the current tragedy, however, is the fact McConaughey was born in Uvalde, Texas, and lived there until he was approximately 11-years-old. (Indeed, his mother was a kindergarten teacher in Uvalde, at school just four minutes down the road from Robb Elementary.) Gonzales also shared that he was welcoming President Joe Biden to the area, with the across-the-aisle hashtag #UnitedForUvalde.
President Biden Pays Tribute To Victims Of School Mass Shooting In Uvalde, Texas—The Second Massacre In Two Weeks
       
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden faced yet another grieving community affected by a mass shooting—this time at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. The last funeral from that shooting was on Saturday, with Vice President Kamala Harris and the First Gentlemen in attendance. Before attending Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, the Bidens visited the memorial outside Robb Elementary School, consisting of 21 white crosses for each shooting victim. Mckinzie Hinojosa, whose cousin Eliahana Torres was killed Tuesday, said she respected Biden’s decision to mourn with the people of Uvalde. A mass shooting happens.
President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden Visit Texas to Honor Victims of the Uvalde Shooting
       
Today, President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden visited the town of Uvalde in Texas to pay their respects to the 19 children and two adults killed in a mass shooting at Robb Elementary School on Tuesday. The Bidens arrived on Air Force One to an airfield in San Antonio, where they greeted Texas governor Greg Abbott on the tarmac in a meeting that has already drawn opprobrium online. After the presidential convoy made its journey to Uvalde, Abbott was greeted with a chorus of boos. The first port of call for the presidential couple, however, was a makeshift memorial outside of the school, near the site visited by Meghan Markle earlier this week. The Bidens placed a bouquet in front of the memorial before pausing at a series of photos of the victims and embracing the school’s principal, Mandy Gutierrez.
See President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visit grief-stricken Uvalde community Sunday
       
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visited the grief-stricken community in Uvalde, Texas, Sunday morning to pay their respects to the 19 children and two teachers who died Tuesday in a massacre at Robb Elementary School. Survivors, families of the victims and first responders will also be paid a visit by the nation’s comforter-in-chief. Biden went to Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Uvalde to attend a church service. Jill Biden wept while she touched each photo and the president also touched some of the photos. REMEMBERING THEIR FACES:Uvalde school photographers' pictures bring children and tragedy into full focusTIMELINE:How Texas elementary school shooting, deadliest since Sandy Hook, unfolded
Opinion | How the U.N. became a tool of China’s genocide denial propaganda
       
Her trip ended up helping China deny its genocide against Uyghur Muslims and other repressive policies, harming the cause of human rights accountability in the process. As Human Rights Watch U.N. director Louis Charbonneau rightly observed, she grotesquely praised China’s “tremendous achievements” in human rights by pointing to poverty alleviation — which is exactly how Beijing defines human rights these days. The United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which Bachelet is supposed to be following, calls for a higher standard. Meanwhile, Bachelet’s long-awaited report on China’s human rights abuses in Xinjiang is still missing in action. She has undermined her credibility and the overall credibility of the U.N. system on human rights.
Biden in Texas: ‘We will’ do something
       
As Biden departed Mass at a Catholic church, the crowd outside chanted, “Do something!” The president, entering his limousine, responded, “We will.”Earlier as Texas Gov. Greg Abbott joined Biden and the first lady at the memorial outside the elementary school, a man could be heard loudly pleading, “We need help!”At the memorial outside Robb Elementary School, 21 white crosses bore the victims’ names. The Bidens walked along the memorial, where white flowers surrounded photos of those lost in the shooting. Biden was scheduled to meet behind closed doors with first responders in Uvalde. Biden offered no remarks to the press during his stops.
Ghost Army soldiers, whose main weapon was deception, remembered at Huntington ceremony
       
About 80 years later, members of the Ghost Army were remembered at a ceremony in Huntington Veterans Plaza Sunday, where veterans, officials and families honored three soldiers from Long Island who were a part of the unit. In the crowd or more than 100 people was Cynthia Sourbeck, whose father, Robert Petrucci, was one of the Ghost soldiers. “Families in [this] country are indebted to their service.”Earlier this year, President Joe Biden signed a bill that grants the Congressional Gold Medal to the Ghost Army members to recognize their service. At that time, Nick Leo, 99, of Brentwood, was one of the 10 known surviving members of the Ghost Army. “Anytime there's a conflict, he would always just say it's so stupid,” Mike Petrucci said.
After Texas shooting, schools in Connecticut and around US boost security
       
In the aftermath of the elementary school massacre in Uvalde, Texas, schools around the U.S. have brought in additional security staff and restricted visitors as they deal with a new rash of copycat threats. For some families and educators it all has added to uneasiness in the wake of the deadliest school shooting since the 2012 attack at Sandy Hook Elementary School. He grew up in Colorado, not far from where two Columbine High School students shot and killed 12 classmates and a teacher in 1999. The El Paso Independent School District has already encountered some reported threats that turned out to be false. FILE - Flowers and candles are placed around crosses at a memorial outside Robb Elementary School to honor the victims killed in this week's school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, Saturday, May 28, 2022.
Uvalde tells Biden to 'do something'; he pledges 'we will'
       
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden sought Sunday to comfort a city grieving the killings of 19 elementary school pupils and two teachers at the hands of a lone gunman. Mckinzie Hinojosa, whose cousin Eliahana Torres was killed Tuesday, said she respected Biden’s decision to mourn with the people of Uvalde. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? As president, Biden has tried to address gun violence through executive orders. More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting
AP News Summary at 5:55 p.m. EDT
       
Biden replied with, “we will.” The president and first lady Jill Biden traveled to the grieving Texas city on Sunday to offer comfort after last week's shooting. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it'll review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting. Ukraine, Russia battle in the east as Zelenskyy visits frontPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russian and Ukrainian troops are trading blows in fierce close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaignsPITTSBURGH (AP) — A movement known as Christian nationalism is making its presence known in many Republican primary races this year. Colombians choose a new president amid general discontentBOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombians are emerging from the pandemic to find increasing inequality, inflation and violence.
Critics Call Biden’s $10,000 Student Debt Forgiveness Plan “Woefully Inadequate”
       
The Biden administration will cancel up to $10,000 in student loan debt per borrower, according to sources with knowledge of the White House’s as-yet unannounced plans. While any amount of student debt forgiveness would be beneficial to a certain degree, experts have noted that the $10,000 amount will do very little to address the magnitude of the crisis. Borrowers who earn incomes higher than $150,000 (or $300,000 for married couples filing their taxes jointly) would not be eligible for the student loan forgiveness, for example. President Joe Biden intended to announce his student debt forgiveness plan earlier this week, but postponed his announcement due to the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. A more expansive forgiveness plan would result in better outcomes for a higher number of borrowers, particularly people of color, who disproportionately carry the burden of student debt.
362 School Counselors on the Pandemic’s Effect on Children: ‘Anxiety Is Filling Our Kids’
       
Wells High School, Portland, Ore. ‘The foundational skills for learning need to be retaught.’ Tierney Langdon, Grace Snell Middle School, Loganville, Ga. 362 School Counselors on the Pandemic’s Effect on Children: ‘Anxiety Is Filling Our Kids’ In a Times survey, counselors said students are behind in their abilities to learn, cope and relate. Jennifer Schlatter, an elementary school counselor in Brighton, Colo., said: “Anxiety is filling our kids right now. I can’t handle this by myself.”Virginia DeLong, who works with high school students in Norwich, Conn., said: “It’s just nonstop putting out fires with kids. In the last two decades, the role of school counselor has changed, from mostly providing academic guidance to teaching social-emotional learning to the whole school. “The smallest things will trigger an extreme emotional response that is disproportionate with the trigger,” said Stephanie Coombs, an elementary school counselor in Wagener, S.C.
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Arrive in Uvalde to Pay Respects to Victims of Mass Shooting
       
- Biden is heading to Uvalde, Texas to pay his respects following a school shooting. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden greet Mandy Gutierrez, the Priciple of Robb Elementary School, as he and First Lady Jill Biden pay their in Uvalde, Texas on May 29, 2022. - Biden is heading to Uvalde, Texas to pay his respects following a school shooting. US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden attend Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Uvalde, Texas on May 29, 2022. - The President and First Lady are in Uvalde to pay their respects following a school shooting.
Letters to the Editor — May 30, 2022
       
It took less than 24 hours for gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke to make a total ass of himself in Texas (“Beto points trigger finger at GOP pols,” May 26). Bodies were not even cold yet, and this moron storms a televised news conference to make a political statement promoting his run for governor. We always knew that this moron from Texas was interested more in himself than in the people of Texas and all other states as well. It showed a total lack of respect for the families of all the individuals who died that day. More and more people are seeing this phony “concern” for exactly what it is — opportunistic grandstanding to gin voters up.
Gov. Greg Abbott heckled at memorial for victims of Texas school shooting
       
Greg Abbott was heckled by mourners Sunday during a visit to the Texas school where 19 children and two teachers were killed. Greg Abbott visits a memorial at Robb Elementary School. “If they couldn’t save those kids, why would I rely on them to protect my granddaughter?” she said.? ?“I don’t know what we’ll do with [granddaughter] Scarlett, home-school, maybe.”?People yell at Texas Gov. Greg Abbott as he arrives with President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden to pay their respects at a makeshift memorial. Abbott as he arrives at the memorial outside Robb Elementary School.
Uvalde tells President Biden to ‘do something’; he pledges ‘we will’
       
By ZEKE MILLER and ELLIOT SPAGAT Associated PressUVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden sought Sunday to comfort a city grieving the killings of 19 elementary school pupils and two teachers at the hands of a lone gunman. Faced with chants of “do something” as he departed a church service to meet privately with the families, Biden responded: “We will.”
Uvalde tells Biden to ‘do something’; he pledges ‘we will’
       
At Robb Elementary School, Biden stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed — and the first lady added a bouquet of white flowers to a pile in front of the school sign. Mckinzie Hinojosa, whose cousin Eliahana Torres was killed Tuesday, said she respected Biden’s decision to mourn with the people of Uvalde. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? As president, Biden has tried to address gun violence through executive orders. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting
As Joe Biden wipes away the tears, crowds urge him to ‘do something’ after Texas shootings
       
A violinist and pianist played Ave Maria and other hymns, before the service started and the Bidens touched the hands of members of the congregation. “Our hearts are broken,” Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller said as he invited children attending the service to come to the front of the church. On Sunday, 1,720 miles away in Uvalde, the president was once again trying to provide solace to another grieving community. On Friday, Steven McCraw, head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said the decision - based on the belief that Ramos had barricaded himself in the classroom - was wrong. Mr Arredondo, the local police chief since 2020, had completed an active shooter training course as recently as December.
Solid gold jeweled Tabernacle worth $2 MILLION is stolen from Manhattan Catholic church
       
Thieves stole a jewel-encrusted solid gold tabernacle worth $2 million from a Brooklyn church - and also beheaded one of its marble angel statues. The New York Police Department (NYPD) said an unknown number of thieves stole a tabernacle between Thursday night and Saturday from St. Augustine's Roman Catholic Church on 6 Avenue in Brooklyn, New York. The brazen thieves reported cut a giant hold into the tabernacle with unknown equipment and extracted an 18-karat gold tabernacle with jewels from its casing. The gold and jeweled tabernacle (pictured) was stolen from a Brooklyn church between Thursday night and Saturday. Two men appear to investigate after thieves stole a sacred tabernacle from St. Augustine's Roman Catholic Church in Brooklyn, NYAn exterior view of St. Augustine's Roman Catholic Church in Brooklyn, NY
Opinion | The C.E.O. of Condé Nast: ‘This Is No Longer a Magazine Company’
       
The diversity and inclusivity council, one of their first recommendations — I was very pleased to see because I had done this at prior companies I run — was to start publishing our stats, which I really, really believe in. And we’ve made really, really good progress on that. So we’re not in a position where we feel like we have to strong arm these issues because we created a center of excellence that’s really, really good. roger lynchI wouldn’t say that because we have brands that these platforms really, really want. kara swisherIt’s a bit screwed up how much money platforms make from your content, right, and now they’re competitors making content, right?
Biden missing in action as Iranians protest regime and declare 'America is not the enemy'
       
Police fired tear gas into the air to disperse the angry crowd of hundreds near the building site, online video analyzed Saturday shows. Videos shared online showed a massive crowd near the Metropol Building on Friday night, with lights shining on its facade. In a second video, demonstrators at street level are seen chanting: "Our enemy is here; they lie that it is America!" The United States government—both under Democratic and Republican administrations—has recognized Iran’s regime as the world’s worst state sponsor of terrorism. Iranians in Khuzestan, Esfahan and Tehran reported significant, serious disruptions to internet access, including blockages when trying to upload images of protests to social media.
Opinion: The bad news about the economy
       
We can expect a slowing US and world economy however as the Federal Reserve raises interest rates in order to reduce the inflation rate and as other disruptions hit the world economy. The Federal Reserve issued more dollars between December 2019 and December 2022 ($3 trillion) than in the preceding 23 years. The monetary base (currency plus bank reserves) soared as the Federal Reserve bought up vast quantities of Treasury bills and bonds used to finance Covid-19-related budget deficits. Because of the huge increase in the money supply in recent years, the Federal Reserve does not have any sure fix on stopping the inflation. Yes, we need sizable government investments and social services in order to transform our economy to be more fair, productive, and environmentally sustainable.
ABC, NBC, CNN guests weigh in on whether Congress will finally act on gun control: 'A different moment'
       
Media pundits debated on Sunday whether Congress will actually act and come together on a gun bill following the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting. She said that Sen. McConnell, R-Ky., doesn't often engage publicly about what he asks of his members, making this more significant. DEMOCRATS PLEDGE TO PRESS GUN CONTROL TO FOREFRONT OF 2022 MIDTERM ELECTIONSPhilips noted McConnell is a "steadfast opponent to anything that resembles gun control." At the beginning of ABC's "This Week," Jonathan Karl asked if Congress "will finally act" after "decades of doing nothing." "I met with Sen. Cornyn this morning.
Justice Department to review police response to Texas school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. Department spokesman Anthony Coley said the review would be conducted in a fair, impartial and independent manner and the findings would be made public. It was not immediately clear how the review would be conducted, whether law enforcement officials could be compelled to cooperate in the review and when it might be completed. Such a review is somewhat rare and most after-action reports that come after a mass shooting are generally compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting.
President Biden and first lady attend Sunday Mass alongside families of shooting victims and survivors in Uvalde, Texas
       
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden offered comfort Sunday to a city gripped by grief and anger as they paid respects at a memorial to 19 students and two teachers slain during a mass shooting at a Texas elementary school. First lady Jill Biden placed flowers outside Robb Elementary School on Sunday. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.”After visiting the memorial, Biden arrived for Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where some of the families of those who were killed worship. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun-control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? The president and the first lady at the memorial at Robb Elementary School.
Republican politicians all over the country have repeated the Great Replacement theory
       
Kent is not the only Republicanto repeat the central themes of the racist and antisemitic Great Replacement theory. Members of Congress repeat theorySitting members of Congress whose seats are up for grabs in the November midterms have repeated the Great Replacement theory during this campaign season. Then they call you a racist and a bigot.”State politicians push Great ReplacementAt the state level, politicians have pushed the Great Replacement. People who have retired from politics also have stayed in the limelight using their media appearances to repeat the Great Replacement theory. We believe in the Constitution.”This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Republicans nationwide have repeated the Great Replacement theory
Justice Dept. to review response to Texas school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. It was not immediately clear how the review would be conducted, whether law enforcement officials could be compelled to cooperate in the review and when it might be completed. Such a review is somewhat rare and most after-action reports that come after a mass shooting are generally compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings
Justice Dept. makes decision to review response to Texas school shooting
       
Police walk near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)Police responding to Tuesday's school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, waited before killing the assailant, believing he was barricaded in a classroom. (AP Graphic)Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw speaks during a press conference held outside Robb Elementary School on Friday, May 27, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. It was not immediately clear how the review would be conducted, whether law enforcement officials could be compelled to cooperate in the review and when it might be completed. ———More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings
Senate Democrats express cautious hope about new gun reforms
       
Senate Democrats on Sunday urged Republicans to join them on comprehensive federal gun reform after mass shootings at a Texas grade school and a Buffalo supermarket but acknowledged the path to significant change will be difficult. On CNN’s “State of the Union," Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he would encourage Republicans to have the “political courage” to support reform. An 18-year-old man armed with an assault rifle fatally shot 19 students in a fourth grade class and two teachers. Authorities said the gunman had recently purchased the weapon used in the attack at a gun shop on his 18th birthday. In the wake of the latest massacre, a bipartisan group of senators convened this week to discuss potential gun safety legislation.
Justice Dept. to review response to Texas school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. It was not immediately clear how the review would be conducted, whether law enforcement officials could be compelled to cooperate in the review and when it might be completed. Such a review is somewhat rare and most after-action reports that come after a mass shooting are generally compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings
Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shooting
       
Updated 4 timesUVALDE, Texas — President Joe Biden sought Sunday to comfort a city grieving the killings of 19 elementary school pupils and two teachers at the hands of a lone gunman. At Robb Elementary School, Biden stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed — and the first lady added a bouquet of white flowers to a pile in front of the school sign. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? As president, Biden has tried to address gun violence through executive orders. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting
AP News Summary at 3:42 p.m. EDT
       
Russians storm city, shell east Ukraine as Zelenskyy visitsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it'll review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting. Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are in Uvalde, Texas, trying to offer comfort to a city gripped by grief and anger after a school shooting. After arriving at the school, the president stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed. No Democratic governors told the AP they supported arming teachers, but Republican governors backed a wide array of potential school security steps.
‘Do something!’: Biden visits Uvalde after mass shooting as onlookers urge him to take action
       
Joe Biden on Sunday visited Uvalde, Texas, seeking to comfort a community devastated by the latest American mass shooting, which claimed the lives of 19 elementary school children and two teachers. Onlookers cheered Biden but also called out to the Democratic president and visiting Texas Republican governor Greg Abbott about taking action to make America safer for their children. 0 Biden laments 'fear' and 'violence' ahead of visit to Uvalde – videoThe Texas visit came as senators in Washington DC, offered cautious optimism over a legislative deal on a package of small-scale gun safety measures. “I think there is something dying inside the soul of this country when we refuse to act at a national level, shooting after shooting,” Murphy told CBS News. On Sunday, Texas Republican congressman Dan Crenshaw knocked down new restrictions when interviewed on CNN.
What if the Wind and Sunshine Really Belonged to All of Us?
       
Some on the left have already suggested something slightly different from what Biden has offered: nationalizing wind farms, solar farms, transmission infrastructure, and even the whole fossil fuel sector (in order to retire it). Private wind rights, in short, tilt the energy transition toward elites—and give everyone else a reason not to support it. A legislature only has to “sever” wind rights from land rights. Why should wind rights and land rights belong together in any case? Wind rights could rest with the town, the county—or with an entirely new unit bounded by the viewshed, which might help smooth the path for offshore wind farms.
Today, Colombia Votes on a Shift to the Left
       
Ask anyone in Latin America and they’ll tell you: Colombian politics skew hard toward the right. Colombia’s hard-right turn is associated with one name in particular: former president Álvaro Uribe and his political movement, uribismo. And yet Colombia’s corrupt and servile political oligarchy stands in stark contrast to the courage of the Colombian people themselves. The Fog of War Colombian and international media have played a leading role in portraying the Colombian people as politically conservative. And even as both doctrines have waned, their lingering effects continue to damage the exercise of left-wing politics, freedom of thought, and social movements in Colombia.
The Justice Department Will Review The Response To The Uvalde School Shooting After Police Admitted They Made Mistakes
       
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden visited the site of Wednesday's school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, on Sunday, as federal officials announced they had opened an investigation into how police responded to the attack. The Department of Justice said their "fair, transparent, and independent" critical incident review had been launched at the request of Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin and would culminate in a report to be published with any findings. As they moved from picture to picture at a makeshift memorial site, the first lady touched the faces of each child and patted at her tears. Greg Abbott — who has been criticized for his defense of the state's gun laws — received some jeers as he appeared. As the governor arrived at the school, one man in the crowd shouted, "We need help!"
Biden's muscular China policy improves on his predecessors - The Washington Post
       
The result has been a sea change in China policy, as he and Secretary of State Antony Blinken made clear during the president’s trip to Asia. Blinken later recited the traditional formula on U.S. policy toward Taiwan: “The United States remains committed to our one-China policy,” he said. It also elevated the “Quad” — an informal group of nations that includes Australia, India, Japan and the United States — and enhanced the ASEAN alliance. Beyond national security, the administration has maximized the United States’ leverage by acting in concert with allies on climate change and trade. The administration seems determined to pursue a policy that is more robust, realistic and diplomatically adept than its predecessors.
Opinion | I’m from Uvalde. I’m not surprised this happened.
       
First, you would be challenged to find a more heavily armed place in the United States than Uvalde. AdvertisementIn Uvalde, simply put, everything north of Highway 90 is primarily White Republican, and everything south is mostly Hispanic Democrat. About 1 in 3 Uvalde children live in poverty. President Biden and the first lady visited Uvalde on Sunday to offer comfort to the families of victims at Robb. Uvalde, the state of Texas and the United States of America failed the children and teachers who died there.
Bidens pay respects in Uvalde after mass school shooting
       
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! President Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrived Sunday afternoon in Uvalde, Texas, where they visited a memorial for the victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting before attending mass at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church. DOJ TO INVESTIGATE POLICE RESPONSE TO UVALDE SHOOTING"Our hearts are broken," Garcia-Siller said. After mass, the Bidens are then scheduled to meet with the families of victims and survivors of the shooting at the Uvalde County Event Center. The Bidens’ visit to Uvalde comes after a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School.
Rep. Donalds on inflation: Biden is 'selling us out to the Chinese
       
Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., argued on Sunday that President Biden’s economic plans are "disastrous" for America and "empower China." Speaking during an exclusive interview on "Sunday Morning Futures," Donalds argued that Biden is "selling us out to the Chinese." The Florida congressman made the arguments as inflation sits near 40-year highs and as gas prices hit a fresh record on Sunday. Donalds argued that one reason food prices have been soaring is ‘because fertilizer is a derivative of oil production." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP"It is going to hurt us on the world stage, not help us," Donalds argued.
Breaking International News & Views
       
GalleryPresident Joe Biden tried to comfort families in the south Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday after the nation's deadliest school shooting in a decade as federal officials announced they would review local law enforcement's slow response to the attack.
Wyoming GOP chair, who was on restricted Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, speaks at Trump rally
       
WASHINGTON — The head of the Wyoming Republican Party, who was on restricted Capitol grounds during the U.S. Capitol riot, delivered a speech at the former president's rally on Saturday. Eathorne had pushed for Cheney to be censured after she voted to impeach Trump in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack. NBC News has reached out to the Wyoming Republican Party for comment. Thousands of Trump supporters, like Eathorne, entered the restricted grounds of the Capitol on Jan. 6, but only a handful of defendants have been charged with misdemeanor offenses for their presence. Eathrone had a "short, questionable career as a Worland police officer" and "served as a parole officer in south Texas" before becoming the head of the Wyoming Republican party, the Casper Star-Tribune reported.
Justice Department to Review Police Response to Texas School Shooting
       
The Justice Department will review the police response to last week’s deadly shooting at a Texas elementary school amid a renewed national debate on gun violence and calls for restrictions on gun ownership. The review was requested by Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin, the announcement from the Justice Department said. Democrats want stricter ownership rules and background checks, and this latest school shooting has brought back calls for a ban on assualt weapons. “These are serious negotiations,” he said, and lawmakers will continue to meet through early next week to find common ground. “Certainly many more Republicans are willing to talk right now than were willing to talk after Sandy Hook,” he added, in reference to the 2012 school shooting in Connecticut that resulted in the death of 20 children and six adults.
President and first lady visit site of last week’s mass school shooting in Texas
       
UVALDE, Texas — President Biden arrived Sunday at the site of the nation’s latest mass shooting, an elementary school festooned with flowers and photographs of the young victims, as the Department of Justice said it would investigate how law enforcement responded to the incident. Biden’s visit comes as the nation is grappling with tragedy of 19 children and two teachers who were killed in Tuesday’s attack at Robb Elementary School. The attack was carried out by an 18-year-old who was shot to death, but only after a lengthy delay by the police that has provoked community outrage.
Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shooting
       
By ZEKE MILLER and ELLIOT SPAGATUVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden offered comfort Sunday to a city gripped by grief and anger as they paid respects at a memorial to 19 students and two teachers slain during a mass shooting at a Texas elementary school. Outside Robb Elementary School, Biden stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed — and the first lady added a bouquet of white flowers to a pile in front of the school sign. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? As president, Biden has tried to chip away at gun violence through executive orders. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting
AP News Summary at 2:43 p.m. EDT
       
Russians storm city, shell east Ukraine as Zelenskyy visitsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it'll review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting. Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are in Uvalde, Texas, trying to offer comfort to a city gripped by grief and anger after a school shooting. No Democratic governors told the AP they supported arming teachers, but Republican governors backed a wide array of potential school security steps. San Diego Bishop McElroy named by Pope Francis as a cardinalBishop Robert McElroy of San Diego is one of 21 new cardinals named by Pope Francis.
Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden offered comfort Sunday to a city gripped by grief and anger as they paid respects at a memorial to 19 students and two teachers slain during a mass shooting at a Texas elementary school. Outside Robb Elementary School, Biden stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses — one for each of those killed — and the first lady added a bouquet of white flowers to a pile in front of the school sign. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? As president, Biden has tried to chip away at gun violence through executive orders. More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting
New Mexico wildfire scar burn has forest officials worried
       
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — As more than 3,000 firefighters in northern New Mexico continued to battle the nation’s largest active wildfire Sunday, federal forest officials worried about future flash floods, landslides and destructive ash from the burn scar. The 7-week-old fire, the largest in New Mexico history, remained 50% contained after charring 492 square miles (1,274 square kilometers) in rugged terrain east of Santa Fe. One of the fires was previously traced to April 6, when a planned burn set by U.S. Forest Service firefighters to clear out small trees and brush was declared out of control. A Forest Service Burned Area Emergency Response team has started publishing data from its post-fire assessments. Flooding presents another problem for communities near burn scars with ash flowing into rivers and streams, according to Kiesow.
Mo Brooks unloads after Fox News host says there’s no evidence of 2020 election fraud
       
Republican Congressman Mo Brooks was sent into a conniption by a Fox News host who insisted accurately that there was no evidence the 2020 election was stolen from Donald Trump. Mr Brooks replied that between last September and the unendorsement, he and Mr Trump had many conversations that revolved around the idea that the ex-president could be reinstated in office and the 2020 election rescinded. “And I can understand him wanting to do that, OK?” Mr Brooks said. The film has been promoted by Mr Trump himself and various others, buthasalsobeenroundlydebunked. “There are some people who are despondent about the voter fraud and election theft in 2020,” he said at the event last year.
Gas hits ANOTHER all time high as gallon cost rockets to $4.61
       
Gas prices in the US soared to record heights again Sunday, reaching an all-time high of $4.61 per gallon. Gas prices in the US soared to record heights again Sunday, reaching an all-time high of $4.61 per gallonThe number is more than 50 percent higher than the cost of a gallon a year ago. 'The concern is high prices that are keeping people a little closer.' 'Skyrocketing prices, Biden's gas hike, and the deteriorating economy are on the ballot in November, and voters know Biden and Democrats are to blame.' The unexpected persistence of high inflation has caused the Fed to embark on what may become its fastest series of interest rate increases in 33 years.
West Virginia woman praised for using pistol to shoot dead gunman with AR-15
       
A woman, who has not yet been identified, shot him deadA West Virginia woman is being hailed a hero for using her legally-owned pistol to shoot and kill a criminal armed with an AR-15 after he opened fire at a graduation party last week. At a press conference on Thursday, Charleston Chief of Detectives Tony Hazelett praised the woman as a hero. This is the apartment complex in West Virginia where the gunman opened fire at a graduation party at 10.45pm on Wednesday night. Butler, the man with the AR-15 in the West Virginia shooting, has an extensive criminal history, according to local reports. The woman who shot him dead is not facing any charges.
California makes misguided plea for feds to keep state’s last nuclear power plant alive
       
Gavin Newsom’s administration is making a misguided plea for the U.S. Department of Energy to change the requirements of a federal fund so the aging, dangerous Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant can keep operating. The plant is currently ineligible for the funds because California fully regulates utility power generation, and the money is available only for states with deregulated energy markets. “Clinging to nuclear energy as a source of electricity as renewables like solar and wind grow by the day is not a sound, safe, forward-looking energy policy. In a 2018 deal struck between Pacific Gas & Electric, which owns the nuclear power plant, labor unions, environmental groups and others, the utility agreed to shutter the two reactor units at Diablo Canyon in 2024 and 2025. Here’s why keeping Diablo Canyon operating is concerning:It will be costly From 2011 to 2017, maintenance costs increased $110 million dollars .
New Zealand's Jacinda Ardern to meet with Biden, discuss combating online radicalization
       
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who successfully oversaw the implementation of gun control measures in her own country, will meet with President Biden on Tuesday at the White House to discuss a range of issues, including countering "radicalization to violence both off and online." They will also discuss the need for "countering terrorism and radicalization to violence both off and online," Jean-Pierre said. During an appearance on CBS' "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" last week, Ardern explained how New Zealand enacted swift gun control reforms following the Christchurch mosque attacks. And so then it was incumbent on us as politicians to respond to that," she explained on the show. Ardern touched on the topic during her Harvard commencement address last week, while also discussing the dangers of disinformation and online radicalization.
Blinken says China hid evidence of ‘genocide’ during U.N. official’s Xinjiang visit
       
Mr. Blinken expressed particular unease over the situation in China’s northwestern Xinjiang province, where he said “genocide and crimes against humanity are ongoing” and suggested Ms. Bachelet and her team were blocked from carrying out a full assessment in the province. U.S. officials and human rights activists also warned ahead of the trip that Chinese authorities would attempt to control what Ms. Bachelet and her team saw on the ground. China’s ruling Communist Party, which vehemently denies all reports of human rights violations and genocide in Xinjiang, has described the camps as vocational training and education centers to combat extremism, and says they have been closed. In a statement over the weekend on Ms. Bachelet’s visit, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu, accused some Western countries of fabricating lies about Xinjiang under the guise of human rights. “The Chinese side pointed out that essentially, Xinjiang is not at all a human rights issue, but a major issue concerning upholding national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity,” it said.
Justice Dept. to review response to Texas school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. It was not immediately clear how the review would be conducted, whether law enforcement officials could be compelled to cooperate in the review and when it might be completed. Such a review is somewhat rare and most after-action reports that come after a mass shooting are generally compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings
Flowers, tears as Bidens stop at Uvalde memorial
       
Flowers, tears as Bidens stop at Uvalde memorialPresident Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden offered comfort Sunday to a city gripped by grief and anger as they paid respects at a memorial to 19 students and two teachers slain during a mass shooting at a Texas elementary school.
Breaking International News & Views
       
GalleryPresident Joe Biden on Sunday sought to comfort families in the Texas town of Uvalde following the nation's deadliest school shooting in a decade as federal officials announced they would review law enforcement's slow response.
Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shooting
       
A mass shooting happens. We need to do something about it.”The Bidens’ visit comes amid mounting scrutiny of the police response to the shooting. We’ve done it before.”Hours after the shooting, Biden had delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? As president, Biden has tried to chip away at gun violence through executive orders. He faces few new options now, but executive action might be the best the president can do, given Washington’s sharp divisions on gun control legislation.
The Justice Department says it will review the police response in Uvalde
       
The Justice Department says it will review the police response in UvaldeEnlarge this image toggle caption Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty ImagesThe Justice Department will conduct a review of the police response to the shooting in Uvalde, Texas, at the request of the city's mayor, Don McLaughlin. The Office of Community Oriented Policing will conduct the review and publish a report with its findings after the review concludes, the department said. President Biden is visiting UvaldeThe Justice Department's announcement came as President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden arrived in Uvalde to pay their respects to the victims of the attack. Prospects for federal legislation appear dimAs the president traveled to Uvalde, Democrats in Congress continued to push on Sunday for federal gun control legislation, despite an uncertain path forward. Bob Spitzer, author of The Politics of Gun Control, told NPR that despite the renewed negotiations, the chances of a bipartisan deal on gun legislation remain small.
Bidens visit memorial outside of Robb Elementary School to honor shooting victims
       
President Biden and first lady Jill Biden laid flowers at memorial outside of Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in honor of the 19 students and two teachers killed in a mass shooting. Abbott arrived at the memorial, crowds of people called for action saying, "our children need to go to school in peace. "May 29, 2022
US review traces massive New Mexico fire to planned burns
       
Story continuesThe Forest Service has not yet released detailed planning documents for the original planned burns that might indicate whether fire protocols were followed. The intentionally set blazes, known as prescribed burns, are aimed at limiting the accumulation of timber and underbrush that, if left unattended, can fuel extremely hot and destructive wildfires. Prescribed burns often are used in wildland areas that are too vast to thin by hand or machine. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore last week announced a 90-day pause and review of protocols for planned fires that limit the buildup of flammable vegetation. Forest managers cut back trees and gather debris into mounds, preferring to burn forest fuels in the winter when planned burns are easier to control.
Justice Dept. to review response to Texas school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. It was not immediately clear how the review would be conducted, whether law enforcement officials could be compelled to cooperate in the review and when it might be completed. Such a review is somewhat rare and most after-action reports that come after a mass shooting are generally compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings
Justice Department to review police response to Texas school shooting
       
The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 students and two teachers dead. The review comes amid mounting pressure and questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information about what happened in the shooting last Tuesday at Robb Elementary School and how police responded. Justice Department spokesman Anthony Coley said the review would be conducted in a fair, impartial and independent manner and that the findings would be made public. Such a review is somewhat rare, and most after-action reports that come after a mass shooting are generally compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. President Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting.
Bidens visit memorial outside school in Uvalde, Texas; DOJ will review law enforcement response: Live updates
       
The review comes amid mounting pressure and questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information about what happened in the shooting Tuesday at Robb Elementary School and how police responded. Cranshaw also said that he would not support a red flag law in Texas, adding that "what we are essentially trying to do with a red flag law is enforce the law before the law has been broken." – Candy WoodallBROKEN HEARTS:In Uvalde, Biden will walk into a mix of grief, anger, political attacks and broken heartsWhat is Biden's schedule in Uvalde? Shortly after arriving, they will pay their respects to the children and teachers who died in Tuesday's shooting at Robb Elementary School. Sutton, a professional school portrait photographer, has taken photos of every child killed at Robb Elementary School on Tuesday, along with the two teachers.
Justice Dept. to review response to Texas school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas — The Justice Department said Sunday it will review the law enforcement response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back prompted by questions about the shifting and at times contradictory information from authorities that have enraged a community in shock and sorrow. Department spokesman Anthony Coley said the review would be conducted in a fair, impartial and independent manner and the findings would be made public. It was not immediately clear how the review would be conducted, whether law enforcement officials could be compelled to cooperate in the review and when it might be completed. Such a review is somewhat rare and most after-action reports that come after a mass shooting are generally compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting.
AP News Summary at 1:32 p.m. EDT
       
Russians storm city, shell east Ukraine as Zelenskyy visitsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. to review response to Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — The Justice Department says it will review the law enforcement response to the shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 students and two teachers dead. Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shootingUVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are in Uvalde, Texas, trying to offer comfort to a city gripped by grief and anger after a school shooting. No Democratic governors told the AP they supported arming teachers, but Republican governors backed a wide array of potential school security steps. San Diego Bishop McElroy named by Pope Francis as a cardinalBishop Robert McElroy of San Diego is one of 21 new cardinals named by Pope Francis.
Biden visits memorial to victims of Texas school shooting
       
Zeke Miller and Elliot SpagatAssociated PressUvalde, Texas – President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden offered comfort Sunday to a city gripped by grief and anger as they paid respects at a memorial to 19 students and two teachers slain during a mass shooting at a Texas elementary school. Outside Robb Elementary School, Biden stopped at a memorial of 21 white crosses – one for each of those killed – and the first lady added a bouquet of white flowers to a pile in front of the school sign. “Evil came to that elementary school classroom in Texas, to that grocery store in New York, to far too many places where innocents have died,” Biden said Saturday in a commencement address at the University of Delaware. Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? As president, Biden has tried to chip away at gun violence through executive orders.
Texas school shooting: US Justice Department announces review into police response
       
The US Justice Department has said it will review law enforcement's response to the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that killed 19 children and two teachers, amid growing anger over why police failed to swiftly confront the gunman. It came as US President Joe Biden arrived in Uvalde to console residents mourning those who were gunned down at the elementary school. Mr Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visited a memorial outside the school and attended a Catholic Mass, as well as met with first responders and mourning relatives of the dead.
Biden visits Uvalde as DoJ launches investigation into police response to school shooting
       
Texas Republican governor Greg Abbott was also in Uvalde on Sunday and has talked about greater security for schools, not about restrictions on guns. They were due to join mourners after the service and, later, first responders and, despite years of intransigence on Capitol Hill, there was tentative hope for bipartisan talks leading to new gun legislation being passed, at least on a small scale. “I think there is something dying inside the soul of this country when we refuse to act at a national level shooting after shooting,” Murphy told CBS News. Following the mass killing in Uvalde, the New York Times contacted all 50 Republican senators to gauge their position on gun reform. Crenshaw, a former US Navy SEAL, also claimed AR-15-style assault rifles are “more self-defense weapons” than a tool of war.
Biden arrives in Uvalde after worst US school shooting in a decade
       
US President Joe Biden pays respect at a makeshift memorial outside of Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 29, 2022President Joe Biden landed in the Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday to comfort families ripped apart by the worst U.S. school shooting in a decade as the public demands answers about why local police failed to act swiftly. Official accounts of how police responded to the shooting have flip-flopped wildly, with calls mounting for an independent probe. Biden, a Democrat, has repeatedly called for major changes to America's gun laws but has been powerless to stop mass shootings or convince Republicans that stricter controls could stem the carnage. The Uvalde shooting has once again put gun control at the top of the nation's agenda, months ahead of the November midterm elections, with supporters of stronger gun laws arguing that the latest bloodshed represents a tipping point. Ramos, a high school dropout, had no criminal record and no history of mental illness but did post threatening messages on social media ahead of the shooting.
Sunday Good News ? WineRev! ? 2 Polls: WWtW? ... AND ... Sunday Good News Roundup without a Poll?
       
Good morning 2thanks! The maps indicate the approximate locations of members of the Good News Roundup community in 2019 and 2021. Tech Talk for KosacksLoad-More Workaround (Revisions of 3/15/2022 in bold): On a desktop or laptop, to banish the Daily Kos Load More buttons, click this link , which opens the main Daily Kos page and shuts off the Load More buttons at the same time. On a desktop or laptop, to banish the Daily Kos Load More buttons, which opens the main Daily Kos page and shuts off the Load More buttons at the same time. After a long day, Gnusies meet in the evening shade and continue sharing Good News, good community, and good actions.
Nuclear attack on Ukraine unlikely, but Mitt Romney says U.S. should be prepared anyway
       
In the early ‘70s, however, Pentagon advisers began publicly worrying over the “threat” posed by Soviet civil defense measures. Serving on the committee with people who really knew what they were talking about wasn’t the first time I had thought seriously about nuclear war. At school, we had little idea what a nuclear war might entail since we’d been raised with “duck-and-cover” as our safeguard in case of attack. The potential of nuclear war had had a greater impact on popular perceptions by 1982. ••••••••••Below is a scanned version of the Boulder County Nuclear War Education Booklet (1982).
The Texas School Massacre Means Nothing to the Gun Lobby
       
The calls for action are backed up by polls that show again that a majority of Americans back comprehensive gun control legislation. In fact, in the last couple of years polls show that support for tougher gun laws have dropped. There hasn't been much movement in the states either to get tougher gun control laws. In his address following the Texas massacre, Biden demanded "When in God's name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby"? Sadly, even the monstrous Texas massacre won't make Congress grow the legs to do that.
Infant formula crisis highlights breastfeeding barriers in Southern states
       
Despite efforts in recent weeks by the federal government to address the ongoing infant formula shortage, parents are still struggling to find formula. The Food and Drug Administration announced this week that nearly two million cans of infant formula from a United Kingdom-based company would arrive in the United States in the coming days. Earlier this month, producers of infant formula were allowed to speed up the manufacturing process, and the Biden administration called on state attorney generals to crack down on price gouging of formula, according to a White House statement. Those barriers are particularly high in the Black community and in Southern states, where breastfeeding rates are lower. There's also a geographic disparity, as Southern states overall have a lower rate of breastfeeding than the nation as a whole.
Want to Win a Union at Work? Here’s What the Amazon Labor Union Can Teach Us.
       
Once the two friends, Chris Smalls and Derrick Palmer, had the signatures they needed, they had to win the vote. But the hidden story of the largest single workplace union election victory in the country since 2008 is the overlooked, and underutilized, methods and tools ALU organizers deployed, far beyond free marijuana and TikTok trolling. They followed the nearly two dozen anti-union consultants around the facility, passing out disclosure forms showing their $3,200/day rates for “union avoidance” work. For example, one leader with the African Community Alliance of Staten Island used his connection with local soccer teams to encourage players who work for Amazon to support the union. The ALU shows that it’s still possible to win historic union elections, even under current federal rules.
Infant Formula Crisis Highlights Breastfeeding Barriers in Southern States
       
Despite efforts in recent weeks by the federal government to address the ongoing infant formula shortage, parents are still struggling to find formula. The Food and Drug Administration announced this week that nearly two million cans of infant formula from a United Kingdom-based company would arrive in the United States in the coming days. Earlier this month, producers of infant formula were allowed to speed up the manufacturing process, and the Biden administration called on state attorney generals to crack down on price gouging of formula, according to a White House statement. Those barriers are particularly high in the Black community and in Southern states, where breastfeeding rates are lower. There’s also a geographic disparity, as Southern states overall have a lower rate of breastfeeding than the nation as a whole.
Biden visits Uvalde, a city in mourning
       
— President Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrived in this small city of 16,000 on Sunday, as immense grief weighed on the residents, families and officials trying to come to terms with another senseless mass shooting in America. The Bidens carried a bouquet of white roses, which the first lady laid on the ground near white crosses representing each of the victims. AdvertisementThe Bidens plan to spend most of the afternoon meeting with victims’ families and survivors, and meet separately with first responders later in the day, the White House said. The first viewing and prayer services will be for 10-year-old Amerie Jo Garza on Monday, ahead of her funeral on Tuesday. Services for the other 20 victims will be held in a steady stream at least until June 8.
U.S. EPA approves emergency fuel waiver in Texas after refinery outage
       
REUTERS/Mike Segar/File PhotoMay 29 (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an emergency air-quality waiver through June 6 to boost supplies of gasoline in East Texas after production was cut at a regional refinery. The Biden administration has released emergency oil stocks and is considering lifting smog rules nationwide to combat rising fuel prices. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the state's air-pollution regulator, requested the waiver because supplies in 34 counties were hurt by an outage at Delek U.S. Holdings' oil refinery in Tyler, Texas, the EPA said. Its small Tyler refinery processes about 75,000 barrels per day of crude oil into gasoline, diesel and propane, according to its website. The price of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in Tyler, Texas, was $4.26 on Sunday, up from $2.77 a year ago.
Biden grieves with Texas town after latest U.S. school shooting
       
By Jarrett Renshaw and Gabriella BorterUVALDE, Texas (Reuters) -President Joe Biden landed in the Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday to comfort families ripped apart by the worst U.S. school shooting in a decade as the public demands answers about why local police failed to act swiftly. Biden, a Democrat, has repeatedly called for major changes to America's gun laws but has been powerless to stop mass shootings or convince Republicans that stricter controls could stem the carnage. The Uvalde shooting has once again put gun control at the top of the nation's agenda, months ahead of the November midterm elections, with supporters of stronger gun laws arguing that the latest bloodshed represents a tipping point. Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, denied that newly enacted Texas gun laws, including a controversial measure removing licensing requirements for carrying a concealed weapon, were relevant to Tuesday's bloodshed and instead also pointed to mental illness. (Reporting by Jarrett Renshaw, Gabriella Borter and Brad Brooks in Uvalde, Texas; additional reporting by Heather Timmons in Washington; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Kieran Murray and Lisa Shumaker)
Texas authorities present timeline of Uvalde shooting
       
ReutersUVALDE, Texas (Reuters) -President Joe Biden landed in the Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday to comfort families ripped apart by the worst U.S. school shooting in a decade as the public demands answers about why local police failed to act swiftly. There was mounting anger over the decision by local law enforcement agencies in Uvalde to allow the shooter to remain in a classroom for nearly an hour while officers waited in the hallway and children inside the room made panicked 911 calls for help. Biden will meet with victims' families, survivors and first responders, attend a church service and visit a memorial erected at the Robb Elementary School where the gunman killed 19 students and two teachers.
Biden visits Uvalde elementary school after shooting
       
President Biden traveled to Uvalde, Texas, on Sunday to help console the community as it grieves from, and seeks to comprehend, last week's massacre at Robb Elementary School . President Biden and first kady Jill Biden pay their respects at the makeshift memorial outside of Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden greet Texas Gov. Greg Abbott as they arrive at Garner Field in Uvalde, Texas. “Where in God’s name is our backbone?” Biden said Tuesday after the Uvalde shooting.
Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaigns
       
Video: Religious extremists mix Trump worship with Christian nationalismBut scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. “There’s no room for compromise, so that is the threat to democracy.”In the book, Whitehead and co-author Samuel Perry measured rates of Christian nationalism by drawing on a 2017 Baylor University survey. Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy, and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. “I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
AP News Summary at 12:07 p.m. EDT
       
Russians storm city, shell east Ukraine as Zelenskyy visitsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. No Democratic governors told the AP they supported arming teachers, but Republican governors backed a wide array of potential school security steps. San Diego Bishop McElroy named by Pope Francis as a cardinalBishop Robert McElroy of San Diego is one of 21 new cardinals named by Pope Francis. A business idea was born, and her home now doubles as a workshop where she and her daughter produce dolls. The path it took to get there serves either as a blueprint or a cautionary tale for Western water planners.
Biden arrives in Uvalde after Texas school shooting massacre
       
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrived in Uvalde, Texas before noon on Sunday where they will visit the scene of a deadly shooting that left nearly two dozen elementary school students dead last week. The president’s journey to the small Texas town is not his first to the site of tragedy. In 2013, a few months after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School, the then-vice president gave remarks at a convention to address gun violence near the site of the Newtown, Connecticut attack. Mr Biden is expected to meet with families of shooting victims on Sunday as well as local community leaders. Photos showed the first couple at an expansive makeshift memorial set up for victims at the scene.
Texas school shooting: US President Joe Biden to meet victims' families as he visits scene
       
US President Joe Biden is visiting the scene of country's largest school shooting in a decade to meet and comfort victims' families. The president and First Lady Jill Biden will visit a memorial at the school in Uvalde, Texas, attend a church service and also meet with survivors and first responders. It comes as investigators seek to determine how critical mistakes were made in the response to the shooting that killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School. The Texas visit is Mr Biden's third trip as president to a mass shooting site. Earlier this month, he visited Buffalo, New York, after a shooting that left 10 black people dead at a supermarket.
Memorial Day cookouts are costing $80 a house as meat prices surge 20%
       
Americans are forking out more cash to pay for their Memorial Day cookouts as meat prices surge, with the cost of ground beef and chicken breasts hitting record highs. This means the average American could be looking to spend more than $76 on their Memorial Day spread, DailyMail.com analysts determined. Soaring cookout prices reflect the overall increase in food prices, fueled by the pandemic and increased rate of inflation. The average American could be looking to spend more than $76 on their Memorial Day spread, DailyMail.com analysts determined. 'I'm guessing it will still be anywhere from five to 10 percent higher than Memorial Day last year.'
How ‘alternative facts’ threaten US democracy
       
We don’t trust unions. We don’t trust newspapers. You name it, we don’t trust it,” he says. “Trump tells people: ‘Don’t trust institutions of higher learning, don’t trust universities, don’t trust professors, don’t trust scientists,’” says civic studies professor Schaffner. Social media and an alternative realityIncreasingly, social media provides a vehicle for them to create those alternative realities.
'Going to be watching': Hurricane Agatha expected to hit Mexico on Monday. Is it a threat to the US?
       
Agatha, the first named storm of the eastern Pacific season, became a hurricane Sunday morning and was "rapidly intensifying," the National Hurricane Center said. It's "way too early to tell what, if anything," Hurricane Agatha means for the U.S., meteorologist Craig Setzer wrote on Twitter on Saturday. "A turn toward the northeast is expected later today, with a slow motion toward the northeast continuing through Monday night," the National Hurricane Center said. The National Hurricane Center warns Agatha is expected to produce heavy rains over portions of southern Mexico by late Sunday into Tuesday night, and hurricane conditions are expected Monday. He added: "Given the climate crisis ... we expect another tough hurricane season.
Biden to grieve with Texas town after nation's latest school shooting
       
President Joe Biden flew to the Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday to comfort families ripped apart by the worst U.S. school shooting in a decade as the public demands answers about why local police failed to act swiftly. "Too much violence, too much fear, too much grief," Biden told graduates in a commencement speech on Saturday at the University of Delaware. The Uvalde shooting has once again put gun control at the top of the nation's agenda, months ahead of the November midterm elections, with supporters of stronger gun laws arguing that the latest bloodshed represents a tipping point. The country is desperately asking for a leader to stop the slaughter from gun violence," said Igor Volsky, executive director of Guns Down America. Volsky urged Biden to enlist a senior official to tackle the country's gun problem and pressure Congress to pass meaningful gun reform, saying Biden had promised to be a deal maker and to tackle gun violence.
WNBA star Liz Cambage accused of directing racial slur at Nigerian players before Tokyo Olympics: Report
       
WNBA star Liz Cambage is accused of directing a racial slur toward members of the Nigerian national team during a scrimmage before last year's Tokyo Olympics, according to a report. And go back to where you came from," a Nigerian player told the Telegraph. Cambage, whose father is Nigerian, apologized to the African team after the incident, which reportedly wasn't well received by the players. So, before then, it was like she was one of us," another Nigerian player added. The comments by Nigerian players came after Cambage took aim at the Australian women's national basketball team earlier this month.
Breaking International News & Views
       
GalleryPresident Joe Biden landed in the Texas town of Uvalde on Sunday to comfort families ripped apart by the worst U.S. school shooting in a decade as the public demands answers about why local police failed to act swiftly.
Biden, first lady arrive in San Antonio, will meet with families of Uvalde school shooting victims
       
President Biden and first lady Jill Biden have arrived in San Antonio, Texas, amid their journey to Uvalde following the Robb Elementary School shooting. Biden is expected to meet with the families of the victims and speak with local officials and religious leaders in effort to show support for the community. May 29, 2022
POLITICO Playbook: Trump’s new obsession
       
POLITICO Playbook: Trump’s new obsession Presented byWith help from Garrett RossOn Saturday, former President Donald Trump meandered into issues far afield from the Wyoming race. It was ostensibly a speech in support of HARRIET HAGEMAN, his hand-picked candidate to take out Rep. LIZ CHENEY (R-Wyo.) Numerous non-Wyoming MAGA celebrities, such as Rep. LAUREN BOEBERT (R-Colo.), who appeared before Trump, repeatedly pronounced Hageman’s name incorrectly. Most recently, this trend was on display in DOUG MASTRIANO’s victory in the Pennsylvania GOP gubernatorial primary (though he rejects the label). Playbook couldn’t happen without our editor Mike Zapler, deputy editor Zack Stanton and producers Setota Hailemariam and Bethany Irvine.
Biden tells Delaware grads to step up, ‘now it’s your hour’
       
President Joe Biden delivers his keynote address to the University of Delaware Class of 2022 during its commencement ceremony in Newark, Del., Saturday, May 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)President Joe Biden delivers his keynote address to the University of Delaware Class of 2022 during its commencement ceremony in Newark, Del., Saturday, May 28, 2022. (AP) — President Joe Biden told graduates Saturday at his alma mater, the University of Delaware, that “now it’s your hour,” as he encouraged young people in the United States to help the country live up to its ideals. Speaking to more than 6,000 graduates, and with the nation mourning victims of two mass shootings in as many weeks. His sister, Valerie Biden Owens, and his wife, first lady Jill Biden, also graduated from the university.
Elon Musk praises unnamed woman who shot dead man who opened fire on party with an AR-15-style rifle
       
Maja Hitij/Getty ImagesElon Musk praised the woman who used a pistol to shoot a man who opened fire on a party. In response to a report on the incident, Musk tweeted: "Wow, good for her and saving those people!" On Wednesday, Musk said he supports gun ownership but wants "tight" background checks. Tesla CEO Elon Musk praised the unnamed West Virginia woman who used a pistol to shoot and kill a man who opened fire on a party. Story continuesMusk said he supports gun ownership as a "safeguard" against tyrannical government.
Ukrainian Presidential Office: Russians hysterical after US shipment of MLRS systems to Ukraine
       
But as soon as it became known that Ukraine would still receive MLRS with a normal range (100+ km), the Russians immediately fell into hysterical hysteria. For reference:M270 MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket System) is a multifunctional complex on a crawler chassis, which can be used as an MLRS [Multiple Launch Rocket System] and as OTRK [Operational-tactical missile system]. Story continuesHimars (High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System) is a similar multifunctional complex on a wheeled chassis. Background:In recent weeks, the Ukrainian military and political leadership has insisted on supplying the Ukrainian army with modern MLRS and Himars launchers, which can be used as multiple rocket launchers with a range greater than other systems in Ukraine's arsenal. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on 27 May that US authorities had not yet decided to hand over any such launchers to Ukraine.
Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaigns
       
AdvertisementBut scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. But “the hair on my neck goes up” when he hears the term “Christian nationalism,” he said. “I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy says there's 'serious' talks with Republicans on gun reform after Uvalde
       
Democrats and Republicans in the Senate have begun 'serious' negotiations on finding a bipartisan solution to rising gun violence, Senator Chris Murphy confirmed on Sunday. It married together changes to Florida's gun laws with some significant investments in mental health and school security,' Murphy said. Murphy said the final piece of legislation 'in the end, could have a significant downward pressure on gun violence in this country.' Meanwhile President Joe Biden is in Uvalde, Texas on Sunday to meet with families of victims and survivors of Tuesday's shooting. Dr. Jill Biden will pay their respects at a makeshift memorial outside of Robb Elementary School, where the slaughter took place.
Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaigns
       
But scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. “There’s no room for compromise, so that is the threat to democracy.”In the book, Whitehead and co-author Samuel Perry measured rates of Christian nationalism by drawing on a 2017 Baylor University survey. Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy, and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. “I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
‘This shouldn’t happen in Uvalde’: As Biden flies in, town takes stock
       
Uvalde’s residents, most of them Mexican American, have watched television news broadcasters describe their travails in French and Japanese and politicians resurrect familiar arguments about gun control. “This shouldn’t happen in Uvalde.”Long before Tuesday, reality interfered with some visions of Uvalde as a pastoral idyll. “This is a quiet little town,” he said on Friday night while paying his respects at a memorial on the town square. AdvertisementChavez, who suffers from diabetes and hypertension, sat in a chair on her front porch as her neighbors began to run toward Robb Elementary. Terrazas, a 70-year-old auto inspector, has spent her entire life in Uvalde and was accustomed to doing favors for people.
Who is running for governor of Arizona? These are the major candidates in the race
       
Democratic candidates also are focusing on similar issues, including expanding education, affordable healthcare and economic development. Her campaign website lists her key issues, including vaccines and COVID-19 mandates. Neely promises on his campaign website to represent everyone and states he is running for governor "to promote greater prosperity for all working Arizona families." Paola Tulliani-ZenBusiness owner Paola Tulliani-Zen is running for Arizona governor, describing herself as "the people's choice." He wants to transform Arizona's education system, ensure affordable health care, promote economic development and address border issues, according to his campaign website.
Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaigns
       
But scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. “There’s no room for compromise, so that is the threat to democracy.”In the book, Whitehead and co-author Samuel Perry measured rates of Christian nationalism by drawing on a 2017 Baylor University survey. Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy, and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. “I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
President Biden, first lady Jill Biden travel to Texas again to meet families affected by school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are hoping to console a city stricken by grief and anger when they meet with families affected by the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.”AdvertisementBiden was to visit the makeshift memorial outside Robb Elementary School before attending Mass at a local Catholic church. We need to do something about it.”The Bidens’ visit to Uvalde comes amid mounting scrutiny of the police response to the shooting. We’ve done it before.’’Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? AP video journalist Robert Bumsted in Uvalde, Texas, contributed to this report..
Biden called again to mourn with a city stricken by grief
       
UVALDE, Texas — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are hoping to console a city stricken by grief and anger when they meet with families affected by the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.”Biden was to visit the makeshift memorial outside Robb Elementary School before attending Mass at a local Catholic church. A mass shooting happens. We’ve done it before.’’Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? In the White House, Biden has tried to chip away at gun violence through executive orders.
President Biden, first lady Jill Biden travel to Texas again to meet families affected by school shooting
       
UVALDE, Texas — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are hoping to console a city stricken by grief and anger when they meet with families affected by the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.”AdvertisementBiden was to visit the makeshift memorial outside Robb Elementary School before attending Mass at a local Catholic church. We need to do something about it.”The Bidens’ visit to Uvalde comes amid mounting scrutiny of the police response to the shooting. We’ve done it before.’’Hours after the shooting, Biden delivered an impassioned plea for additional gun control legislation, asking: “When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? AP video journalist Robert Bumsted in Uvalde, Texas, contributed to this report..
'There's too much violence': Biden to meet with grieving families in Uvalde: Live updates
       
He and first lady Jill Biden also will visit a memorial site at Robb Elementary School, attend Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church and meet with first responders. REMEMBERING THEIR FACES:Uvalde school photographers' pictures bring children and tragedy into full focusTIMELINE:How Texas elementary school shooting, deadliest since Sandy Hook, unfoldedWhat is Biden's schedule in Uvalde? President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are scheduled to arrive in Uvalde at noon Eastern time. Shortly after arriving, they will pay their respects to the children and teachers who died in Tuesday's shooting at Robb Elementary School. Sutton, a professional school portrait photographer, has taken photos of every child killed at Robb Elementary School on Tuesday, along with the two teachers.
AP News Summary at 10:34 a.m. EDT
       
Russian troops storm city amid eastern Ukraine bombardmentsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. They reported that Russian forces were “storming” the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk on Sunday and that the fighting has knocked out power and cellphone service and terrorized civilians. Fighting has raged around the cities of Lysychansk and neighboring Sievierodonetsk, the last major cities under Ukrainian control in the Luhansk region. No Democratic governors told the AP they supported arming teachers, but Republican governors backed a wide array of potential school security steps. Israeli nationalists march through Palestinian thoroughfareJERUSALEM (AP) — Thousands of Israeli nationalists have begun parading through the heart of the main Palestinian thoroughfare in Jerusalem’s Old City.
Trump zeroes in on school security, mental health in campaign-style NRA speech
       
“Unlike some, I didn’t disappoint you by not showing up,” Trump said at the start of his remarks. "Teachers, parents, school officials, and community members need to be recognizing and addressing these alarm bells promptly and very, very aggressively," he continued. In calling for increased school security, Trump echoed other Republicans in suggesting schools must transition to having only a single point of entry, implement metal detectors and employ an armed security officer at all times. Trump also said teachers should be able to be armed on school property. "As the age old saying goes: The only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun," Trump said.
Biden, first lady to meet with grieving families of 21 killed in Texas shooting
       
President Biden and first lady Jill Biden will travel Sunday to Uvalde, Texas, to grieve with the families of the 21 victims of last week’s massacre at an elementary school, huddle with first responders and attend Mass at a Catholic church in the community. “Let’s be clear, evil came to that elementary school classroom in Texas and that grocery store in New York,” Biden said. “We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer,” President Biden said. The killers in Buffalo and Uvalde were both 18 and both used AR-15-style semi-automatic rifles to carry out their carnage. Biden, speaking at the White House on the evening of the Texas shooting, called for new gun laws.
Colombians vote for president in tense, potentially historic election
       
Placeholder while article actions loadBOGOTÁ, Colombia — Colombians head to the polls on Sunday to vote in the first round of an uncertain presidential election that could deliver a historic repudiation of the status quo. Concern is growing, meanwhile, that losing candidates will question the legitimacy of the election results. Colombia has seen increasing violence from armed criminal groups more than five years after it signed historic peace accords with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Election observers say it’s been the most volatile election cycle in a dozen years; they’ve recorded 581 acts of violence against political and social leaders in the pre-electoral period. And in Brazil, Latin America’s largest country, leftist former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva leads polls to unseat President Jair Bolsonaro in October.
Baby formula shortage not a problem in Mexico, parents say
       
Baby formula can be easily found south of the U.S. despite the shortage, parents in a Mexican border town told Fox News. As the United States deals with a baby formula shortage due to a recall and pandemic-related supply chain issues, some Americans told Fox News they're purchasing baby formula from Mexico. The shortage prompted President Biden to invoke the Defense Production Act to ensure manufacturers have the necessary supplies for baby formula production. Carla, the mother of a 2-year-old, told Fox News: "I don't know anyone who has problems finding" baby formula. AMID BABY FORMULA SHORTAGE, MOTHERS EXPRESS FEAR, ONE RECEIVING PRODUCT FROM MEXICOOne of the causes of the baby formula shortage in the U.S. was a recall of baby formula products by producer Abbot Nutrition.
Biden's low ratings aren't helping Tony Evers. But the governor is holding his own, for now.
       
But the gap between Evers’ and Biden’s approval ratings is significantly bigger than the gap between Walker’s and Trump’s in 2018. In other words, Evers is running further ahead of Biden’s low ratings than Walker ran ahead of Trump’s. Combining the last three polls by the Marquette University Law School (October 2021, and February and April 2022), Evers has a net approval rating of plus 5. The governor’s net approval is 30 points higher than Biden’s among voters under 30 and 22 points higher among voters 30-39. Evers’ net approval is 22 points higher than Biden’s with Republicans, 23 points higher with self-described conservatives and 25 points higher with voters who have a positive view of Donald Trump.
AP News Summary at 9:14 a.m. EDT
       
Russian troops storm city amid eastern Ukraine bombardmentsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. They reported that Russian forces were “storming” the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk on Sunday and that the fighting has knocked out power and cellphone service and terrorized civilians. Fighting has raged around the cities of Lysychansk and neighboring Sievierodonetsk, the last major cities under Ukrainian control in the Luhansk region. The path it took to get there serves either as a blueprint or a cautionary tale for Western water planners. The jubilee is also part of the effort to prepare the public for the day when Prince Charles takes the throne.
Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaigns
       
But scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. “There’s no room for compromise, so that is the threat to democracy.”In the book, Whitehead and co-author Samuel Perry measured rates of Christian nationalism by drawing on a 2017 Baylor University survey. Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy, and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. “I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
Christian nationalism on the rise in some GOP campaigns
       
But scholars generally define Christian nationalism as going beyond policy debates and championing a fusion of American and Christian values, symbols and identity. Researchers say Christian nationalism is often also associated with mistrust of immigrants and Muslims. “There’s no room for compromise, so that is the threat to democracy.”In the book, Whitehead and co-author Samuel Perry measured rates of Christian nationalism by drawing on a 2017 Baylor University survey. Christian nationalism is emerging alongside and in some cases overlapping with other right-wing movements, such as the conspiratorial QAnon, white supremacy, and denialism over COVID-19 and the 2020 election. “I see Christian nationalism as the gasping, dying breath of the older generation in America that is afraid that Christians are going to be replaced,” she said.
Gas hits ANOTHER all time high as gallon cost rockets to $4.61
       
Gas prices in the US soared to record heights again Sunday, reaching an all-time high of $4.61 per gallon. The rising costs have forced many families to leave the car at home during the long weekend, calling off trips so rising costs don't ensnare their inflation-affected wallets. Gas prices in the US soared to record heights again Sunday, reaching an all-time high of $4.61 per gallonThe number is more than 50 percent higher than the cost of a gallon a year ago. 'The concern is high prices that are keeping people a little closer.' At those levels, gas prices would surge past their inflation-adjusted high of $5.38, seen in June 2008, when gas prices hit $4.11, not adjusted for inflation, according to the Energy Information Administration.
Gas hits ANOTHER all time high as gallon cost rockets to $4.61
       
Gas prices in the US soared to record heights again Sunday, reaching an all-time high of $4.61 per gallon. The rising costs have forced many families to leave the car at home during the long weekend, calling off trips so rising costs don't ensnare their inflation-affected wallets. Gas prices in the US soared to record heights again Sunday, reaching an all-time high of $4.61 per gallonThe number is more than 50 percent higher than the cost of a gallon a year ago. 'The concern is high prices that are keeping people a little closer.' At those levels, gas prices would surge past their inflation-adjusted high of $5.38, seen in June 2008, when gas prices hit $4.11, not adjusted for inflation, according to the Energy Information Administration.
Washington state gas stations run out of fuel, prep for $10 a gallon
       
BusinessWashington state gas stations run out of fuel, prep for $10 a gallonGas stations in Washington state are resetting their price boards to accommodate double digits in preparation for fuel prices potentially reaching $10 a gallon, according to a report. The move comes as several gas stations in the Evergreen State ran out of fuel, the Post Millennial reported. A 76 spokesperson told the Post Millennial that the change did not necessarily mean the company was predicting gas prices would reach $10 a gallon. Gas stations in Washington state have adjusted their pumps to display double-digit gas prices, according to a report. Bloomberg via Getty ImagesMotorists in the Evergreen State are also reporting that some gas stations have run out of fuel.
Ukrainian Presidential Office: Russians hysterical after US shipment of MLRS systems to Ukraine
       
But as soon as it became known that Ukraine would still receive MLRS with a normal range (100+ km), the Russians immediately fell into hysterical hysteria. For reference:M270 MLRS (Multiple Launch Rocket System) is a multifunctional complex on a crawler chassis, which can be used as an MLRS [Multiple Launch Rocket System] and as OTRK [Operational-tactical missile system]. Himars (High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System) is a similar multifunctional complex on a wheeled chassis. Background:In recent weeks, the Ukrainian military and political leadership has insisted on supplying the Ukrainian army with modern MLRS and Himars launchers, which can be used as multiple rocket launchers with a range greater than other systems in Ukraine's arsenal. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said on 27 May that US authorities had not yet decided to hand over any such launchers to Ukraine.
2024 Watch: Trump takes a hit after Georgia defeats, but still the ‘800-pound gorilla’
       
Former President Donald Trump, at his rally this weekend in Wyoming, pushing back against those suggesting his political demise. KEMP'S LANDSLIDE PRIMARY VICTORY IN GEORGIA A SETBACK FOR TRUMPTrump spent the past year and a half crucifying Georgia Gov. And Trump backed GOP attorney general challenger John Gordon was demolished by incumbent Chris Carr. Trump stands head and shoulders ahead of the other potential 2024 GOP White House hopefuls in early public opinion polling. Looking ahead to 2024 and a potential Trump White House run, Erickson said the former president's serious setbacks in Georgia mean "that if he doesn’t have the clout now to do something like this, he’s not going to have the clout come 2024."
Sunday Crunch: Not out of the woods — Affording life — Getting out the grain
       
Lewis told Sky “there’s been a bit of misinformation out there about this.”Reshuffle coming? Tory MP Alicia Kearns tweeted: “Not one constituent, ever, has asked for this. SUNDAY MEDIA ROUNDAyesha Hazarika on Times Radio, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m: Tory MP Mike Wood; Labour MP Marsha de Cordova; SNP MP Carol Monaghan and commentator Rod Liddle. Westminster Hour, BBC Radio 4, 10 p.m.: Tory MP Claire Coutinho; Labour MP Emma Hardy; pollster James Johnson and POLITICO’s own Jack Blanchard. — LONDON: London Mayor Sadiq Khan to speak at the London Government Dinner.
How Karen Bass went from South L.A. activist to mayoral hopeful
       
For Roldan, South Los Angeles was a tough place at the time, and her counsel was critical in keeping him from getting lost at home or on its streets. Fortunately, he found the nonprofit Community Coalition in a storefront on South Vermont Avenue and its leader and minivan driver, Karen Bass. Bass, pictured in early 2000, founded the nonprofit Community Coalition in South L.A. in 1990. Enter email address Sign Me Up You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. Her car was nearly hit by a brick and she was heartbroken to see the destruction over the next three days spreading through South L.A. and beyond.
To deter China on Taiwan, Biden needs to reassure
       
Last week, in an unscripted moment, President Biden warned bluntly that if China invades Taiwan, the United States will come to the island’s defense. “We’ve made a commitment,” Biden told reporters at a news conference in Tokyo. AdvertisementWhat Biden did was to say openly what has been implicit for several years: The United States is willing to threaten force to deter China from invading Taiwan. However, it did not commit the United States to intervene militarily against a Chinese invasion; that was left ambiguous. Paradoxically, though, even as he strengthens deterrence, Biden needs to reassure China that the United States is not covertly encouraging Taiwan to declare independence.
Baby formula shortage hits Connecticut’s lower-income homes and families of color
       
In Connecticut, 88% of white parents start off breastfeeding their newborns, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For Black parents, that number is 84%, and for Hispanic parents, it’s 85%. AdvertisementThe disparities between Black and white parents are wider at the national level. Nationally, 85% of white parents start off breastfeeding, while 73% of Black parents do. Robyn Anderson, a pastor at Blackwell AME Zion Church in Hartford and co-founder of the Ministerial Health Fellowship, a health care advocacy network based in the state’s Black churches.
AP News Summary at 8:30 a.m. EDT
       
Russian troops storm city amid eastern Ukraine bombardmentsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city. They reported that Russian forces were “storming” the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk on Sunday and that the fighting has knocked out power and cellphone service and terrorized civilians. Fighting has raged around the cities of Lysychansk and neighboring Sievierodonetsk, the last major cities under Ukrainian control in the Luhansk region. After Texas shooting, schools around US boost securityU.S. schools have bolstered security in the aftermath of the horrific mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. The jubilee is also part of the effort to prepare the public for the day when Prince Charles takes the throne.
Jon Stewart slams Americans for tweeting about Memorial Day but not showing up for veterans over burn pits
       
Jon Stewart has slammed Americans for posting about Memorial Day on social media while failing to show up in support of veterans who are sick and dying from toxic exposure to burn pits. Mr Stewart urged Americans to pressure their senators to pass the comprehensive burn pits bill as he hit out at the tokenistic shows of support for US veterans over Memorial Day weekend. Speaking to The Independent at the Washington DC rally on Saturday, he said that he trusts that lawmakers will “do the right thing”. In April, the comprehensive burn pits bill passed the House with all Democrats and 34 Republicans voting in favour of its passage. A staggering 3.5m servicemembers and veterans are estimated to have been exposed to burn pits and airborne toxins while serving the US overseas, according to the Veterans Affairs.
Kamala Harris calls for ban on assault rifles at funeral for Buffalo shooting victim
       
AdvertisementUS Vice President Kamala Harris called for a ban on assault weapons as mourners laid to rest the last of 10 black people killed in a racist attack at a Buffalo supermarket on Saturday. Then, speaking to reporters afterwards, she said: 'We know what works on that,' she said, reiterating support for background checks and a ban on assault weapons. An assault weapon is a weapon of war with no place, no place in civil society.' Biden is expected to head to Texas for a visit this weekend with the families of victims of Tuesday’s school shooting. 'An assault weapon is a weapon of war with no place, no place in civil society.
Biden and First Lady Jill board Air Force One for Uvalde, Texas visit to grieve shooting victims
       
President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden boarded Air Force One early on Sunday morning for a somber visit to Uvalde, Texas, after 19 children and two teachers were shot dead inside an elementary school classroom there last week. He and Dr. Jill Biden will first visit the memorial site that was set up outside of the school to honor the victims. Much of the event after the first couple's memorial visit will be closed to press, apparently in a bid to offer privacy to those directly involved and still grappling with the fallout of the tragedy. 'Uvalde, Texas. He also remarked on the this month's mass shooting that killed 10 people in Buffalo, New York.
Biden heads to Uvalde to meet families of victims from devastating school shooting
       
Biden and first lady Jill Biden plan to visit Uvalde, Texas, where a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers last week. The White House said they would meet community and religious leaders along with family members of the young victims. It's a solemn task made more grueling by the serious failings of law enforcement who responded to Tuesday's shooting at Robb Elementary School. JUST WATCHED Acts of kindness lift up Uvalde community after mass shooting Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Acts of kindness lift up Uvalde community after mass shooting 03:35"I'll be heading to Uvalde, Texas, to speak to those families. For Biden, the trip represents a somber duty to join grieving families in their darkest moments.
Strange Bedfellows: Farmers and Big Greens square off against Biden and the GOP
       
In 2020, NRG Energy Inc. mothballed the last remaining project capturing carbon emissions from a U.S. coal-fired power plant. Congress has signed onto that deal, too, including funding in the $1 trillion infrastructure bill it passed in November to help finance large-capacity carbon pipeline projects. A second proposed pipeline, the Heartland Greenway by Navigator CO2 Ventures, would also run under the Stockdale property. He says climate mitigation is one of the main reasons the company wants to connect its plant to the Summit pipeline. The political establishment, Democratic and Republican, is interwoven with the Summit CCS pipeline project.
U.S. House loses more 'swing' in 2022
       
While not all 2022 congressional district maps are finalized, one outcome is not in dispute: only roughly 30 of 435 U.S. House seats will be considered traditional "swing seats" on the ballot this November. "These two things feed off of each other and compound to absolutely eviscerate the number of swing seats," Wasserman told NPR. With a growing baseline of safe Republican and Democratic seats, both parties find it hard to command a sustainable House majority. With fewer swing seats, the House is more vulnerable to whiplash between the two parties for control, says Stanford University Professor Morris Fiorina. Swing seats also evolve.
Biden called again to mourn with a city stricken by grief
       
(AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are hoping to console a city stricken by grief and anger when they meet with families affected by the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. Mckinzie Hinojosa, whose cousin Eliahana Torres was killed Tuesday, said she respected Biden’s decision to mourn with the people of Uvalde. A mass shooting happens. ADVERTISEMENTIn the White House, Biden has tried to chip away at gun violence through executive orders. AP video journalist Robert Bumsted in Uvalde, Texas, contributed to this report..___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting
Mitch McConnell Never Puts America First
       
At age 80, McConnell, dubbed “the old crow” by Donald Trump, is holding his own against the former president. “If Trump is the nominee, he will run on removing McConnell as leader, and that is a certainty,” says Kessler. [House Minority Leader] Kevin McCarthy came back aboard [after criticizing Trump for inciting the Jan. 6 insurrection] and Trump forgave him. There’s no going back for McConnell.”A new book, Betrayal: How Mitch McConnell and the Senate Republicans Abandoned America, describes key moments when McConnell put personal ambition and party over country to do the lasting damage that could yet be his undoing. But one thing’s for sure: When given the choice to do the right thing for the country or the advantageous thing for himself, the old crow puts America second.
AP News Summary at 6:29 a.m. EDT
       
Everyone in the predominantly Latino city of roughly 16,000 people seems to know someone whose life has been turned upside down. Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers are at the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Authorities acknowledged Friday that children and teachers repeatedly begged 911 operators for help while the police chief told more than a dozen officers to wait in a hallway at Robb Elementary School. TIMELINE: Texas elementary school shooting, minute by minuteIn the hours and days since the fatal shooting of 19 children and their two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, authorities have given varying accounts of what happened and how they responded. Russian troops storm city amid eastern Ukraine bombardmentsPOKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — Local officials say Russian and Ukrainian troops are engaging engaged in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city.
Inside a Dem Senator’s Plan to Install His Son in Congress
       
“People in Hudson County have become very cynical about how politics operate here,” warned Hector Oseguera, a lawyer based in Union City—the senator’s hometown—who challenged Sires in 2020. The scion attended the private Hudson School in Hoboken, where tuition and fees top $25,000 a year, more than half the average Hudson County resident’s annual income. The great irony, according to insiders, is that for all the exertions to secure Menendez Jr. the Sires seat, the family’s original plan was not for him to run for Congress at all. In late 2020, word surfaced that Menendez Jr. was preparing to run against Fulop. After all, when Menendez Sr. got appointed to the Senate to replace former Gov.
Allegations of industry influence rock mine safety commission
       
The “Network” consisted of “at least 70 independent individuals, including a large contingent outside of FMSHRC,” Rajkovich wrote in the memo. He characterized the people as trusted individuals who were familiar with industry players and could provide impartial advice. Rajkovich also wrote that he had contacted members of the “Network” individually without letting them know of each other’s work. The personnel memo does not spell out whether Lovell was part of Rajkovich’s “Network.” Lovell declined to offer a comment for this story. Rajkovich’s use of personal contacts outside the commission to help make personnel decisions is troubling, said Tom Stock, a retired long-time commission staffer who once served as the agency’s general counsel.
Opinion | What America Needs Is a Liberalism That Builds
       
Even so, the United States is notable for how much we spend and how little we get. Germany builds a kilometer of rail for $287 million. Union density is higher in all those countries than it is in the United States. A place to start is offered in another Niskanen paper, this one by Nicholas Bagley, a law professor at the University of Michigan. “Lawyers, not managers, have assumed primary responsibility for shaping administrative law in the United States,” Bagley writes.
362 School Counselors on the Pandemic’s Effect on Children: ‘Anxiety Is Filling Our Kids’
       
Wells High School, Portland, Ore. ‘The foundational skills for learning need to be retaught.’ Tierney Langdon, Grace Snell Middle School, Loganville, Ga. 362 School Counselors on the Pandemic’s Effect on Children: ‘Anxiety Is Filling Our Kids’ In a Times survey, counselors said students are behind in their abilities to learn, cope and relate. Jennifer Schlatter, an elementary school counselor in Brighton, Colo., said: “Anxiety is filling our kids right now. I can’t handle this by myself.”Virginia DeLong, who works with high school students in Norwich, Conn., said: “It’s just nonstop putting out fires with kids. In the last two decades, the role of school counselor has changed, from mostly providing academic guidance to teaching social-emotional learning to the whole school. “The smallest things will trigger an extreme emotional response that is disproportionate with the trigger,” said Stephanie Coombs, an elementary school counselor in Wagener, S.C.
Biden to seek to console Texas town devastated by mass shooting, police controversy
       
REUTERS/Marco BelloWILMINGTON, Del., May 29 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden on Sunday will seek to comfort a Texas town ripped apart by the largest U.S. school shooting in a decade amid lingering questions about whether law enforcement's failure to act swiftly contributed to the death toll. The Texas visit will be his third presidential trip to a mass shooting site, including earlier this month when he visited Buffalo, New York, after a shooting that left 10 Black people at a supermarket dead. "Too much violence, too much fear, too much grief," Biden told graduates in a commencement speech Saturday at the University of Delaware. White House aides and close allies say Biden is unlikely to wade into specific policy proposals to avoid disrupting delicate gun control negotiations in the Senate. Republican Texas Governor Gregg Abbott denied that newly enacted Texas gun laws, including a controversial measure removing licensing requirements for carrying a concealed weapon, had "any relevancy" to Tuesday's bloodshed.
President Biden, first lady heading to Texas to meet with Uvalde families
       
President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden are due to touch down Sunday morning in San Antonio en route to the Texas town of Uvalde to visit with the families of victims and survivors of last week’s mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. AdvertisementIt was unclear who else Biden might confer with in Uvalde, but local officials and religious leaders are expected to be among them. Becerra, who spent much of the past week praying with victims’ families in Uvalde, said he was drafting questions for the president — hoping to ask something that might help lead to lasting change. What will be the question that will really be that catalyst for change and transformation that we really need at this moment — that not only will Uvalde need, but that America needs?” Becerra said. “Of course it wasn’t the right decision,” Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw said.
MN tax breaks, who knows? But here comes the campaign rhetoric.
       
Minnesota politics now enters its next phase: the extended election season. Last week, lawmakers adjourned without finishing work that leaders of both parties had agreed to get done, including tax breaks and law enforcement investments. There’s more extra money pouring into state accounts — in excess of $9 billion — than the state has ever had before. Things looked up even further when key Democrats and Republicans reached a deal on the tax package. It included an end to the state income tax on Social Security payments that some Minnesotans currently pay.
Newly-arrived Ukrainians recount escaping war, finding haven in Chicago. ‘No child should have to live through this.’
       
Staff offer extra English classes after school, to give Ukrainian students additional help, she said. The school will also be hosting a special summer camp for Ukrainian students, with a focus on English language learning. A parent group assists arriving families with finding housing and furniture; students from Ukraine are also provided school supplies, she said. “No child should have to live through this.”AdvertisementReturn to UkraineTo help alleviate stress and anxiety, Kachala and Raczkiewycz have started painting. Despite the devastation of war, Kachala and Raczkiewycz said they believe their country will prevail.
Train to nowhere: can California’s high-speed rail project ever get back on track?
       
When completed, he promised, the high-speed line through the Central Valley would take 400,000 cars off the roads, clean up the air, and create new jobs. Many of the skeptics, including Friedman, are big-city Democrats, legislators one would usually expect to embrace public investment in high-speed rail. In this 2015 photo, a full-scale mock-up of the high-speed train at the Capitol in Sacramento. The rest will follow William C VantuonoThat’s still better than the rest of the country, where every last high-speed rail project proposed during the Obama era has been dropped, in large part because of furious resistance from Republican governors and legislators. When Newsom first announced he was paring back the California project, in 2019, it prompted the Trump administration to yank back nearly $1bn in federal funding.
Senator Ted Cruz Challenged By Gun Reform Activist At Restaurant: “Is That So Hard?”
       
Republican Texas Senator Ted Cruz was confronted by a local gun reform activist while dining at an upscale restaurant on Friday night following his speech at the National Rifle Association convention in Houston. In his speech before the NRA, Cruz blasted the slaughter at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 children and two teachers dead as “evil” while arguing against gun control. In a video shared on Twitter, Hernandez asked to take a picture with Cruz before challenging him on background checks following the mass shooting earlier in the week. When Cruz realized he had been duped, security came in to remove Hernandez, who yelled, “Nineteen children died! Ted Cruz, that’s on your hands!”Twitter content This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
America’s Elected Officials Don't Have an Answer For Gun Violence
       
How to describe the fresh, but familiar horror in Uvalde, Texas? How to index the names of the dead—19 school kids and two teachers, as of this writing—and of yet another mass killer, Salvador Ramos? Our leaders don’t seem to know; they, too, seemed to have more questions than answers. “Why do we keep letting this happen?” a rattled President Joe Biden asked in an address on the Robb Elementary School shooting Tuesday night. Is it to offer up “prayers” for round after round of victims, as Republicans—from state leaders like Texas Governor Greg Abbott to federal leaders like Texas Senator Ted Cruz—have done?
Texas school shooting reveals Democrats' weakness in Congress
       
There is a mindset on display here that runs to the core of the Democratic Party. While some lefty voices influenced it here and there, most of it came straight out of the Democratic Party policy establishment, which also designed the other pandemic relief packages. Obama was so desperate to get a big bipartisan bill passed that he was willing to trade devastating cuts to Social Security and Medicare for tiny tax increases on the rich. Obamacare eventually passed with zero Republican votes. The country needs a big, strong Republican Party.” She said it again recently: “I want the Republican Party to take back the party to where you were when you cared about a woman's right to choose, you cared about the environment.… This country needs a strong Republican Party.
Putin warns French, German leaders over arms supplies to Ukraine
       
Vladimir Putin tells France’s Macron and Germany’s Scholz that the continuing arms supplies to Ukraine are ‘dangerous’. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz against increased arms supplies to Ukraine, saying it could lead to further destabilisation. Putin told Macron and Scholz that continuing arms supplies to Ukraine was “dangerous”, and he warned “of the risks of further destabilisation of the situation and aggravation of the humanitarian crisis”, the Kremlin said. The European leaders also urged Putin to engage in serious and direct negotiations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to end the fighting, the spokesperson said. On May 11, the US House passed a $40bn aid package for Ukraine, that included $8.7bn to replenish US weaponry stocks sent to Ukraine.
Matthew McConaughey Meets with Victims' Families in His Hometown of Uvalde, Texas, After School Shooting
       
"Thank you Matthew for helping to heal our community," Rep. Tony Gonzales wrote on Twitter after Matthew McConaughey paid a visit following Tuesday's mass shootingMatthew McConaughey Meets with Victims' Families in His Hometown of Uvalde, Texas, After School ShootingMatthew McConaughey is doing what he can to help after this week's tragic school shooting that shook his hometown of Uvalde, Texas. His mother Kay McCabe taught at St. Philip's Episcopal School, about a mile away from Robb Elementary. A memorial is seen surrounding the Robb Elementary School sign following the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School Credit: Brandon Bell/Getty ImagesOn Wednesday, he signed an executive order on policing and public safety and pushed for "commonsense gun reforms." "It was a wrong decision. Uvalde, TX May 24, 2022 Shooting at Robb Elementary School kills 19 students and 2 teachers.
AOC’s New Fiancé Is Charmingly Normal
       
Here’s most of what we know: His name is Riley Roberts. We don’t know that much about Riley Roberts, and we don’t need to. What we do know about Roberts doesn’t fit the stereotype of a politician’s partner. We know he’s supportive and encouraging in private. Not Riley Roberts though.
Biden travels to Texas to meet with families of school shooting victims
       
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will travel to Uvalde, Texas, on Sunday to meet with families of victims of the mass shooting at an elementary school there this week. While there, Biden plans to speak with local officials and religious leaders, along with the victims’ families in an effort to show support for a community reeling from tragedy, the White House said. It will be Biden's second visit to the site of a mass shooting in as many weeks. Biden made a similar trip to Buffalo, New York, May 17 where he met with community leaders and victims’ families of a racially-motivated mass shooting at a grocery store in that city. Police there have faced criticism from both inside and outside the community for waiting about an hour before directly confronting the shooter.
The Donald and the Kremlin Don: how Trump’s toxic legacy helps Putin | Simon Tisdall
       
Even by Donald Trump’s chaotic standards, the “comprehensive peace agreement” for Afghanistan signed by the US in Doha in February 2020 was a huge own goal. In return for some mumbo-jumbo about al-Qaida, Trump pledged total, unconditional US and Nato withdrawal within 14 months. Trump hoped to benefit politically from “bringing the troops home”, even though the vast majority had already left. Today’s ongoing Afghan tragedy is but one aspect of Trump’s toxic legacy. Now Putin’s brutal imperialism threatens in turn to damage Trump’s arch-foe – Biden – by derailing his international and domestic priorities and, if Russia wins, discrediting American global leadership.
'We needed a plan, and the commander didn't have one', says Uvalde officer on school shooting failings
       
Joe Biden on Saturday lamented “too much violence, too much fear, too much grief” of the latest school shooting, as he prepared to visit the Texan city of Uvalde. The attack on Robb Elementary School that left 19 children and two teachers dead in a fourth grade classroom was the nation's deadliest school shooting in nearly a decade, and for three days police offered a confusing and sometimes contradictory timeline that drew public anger and frustration. Mr Biden and wife Jill’s visit to Uvalde on Sunday comes as the city, which sits halfway between San Antonio and the Mexican border, was reeling over the revelations that police gave numerous inaccurate accounts of their response to the mass shooting. “I am livid,” Texas governor, Greg Abbott, said as the inconsistencies began to emerge. “My expectation is that the law enforcement leaders leading the investigation … get to the bottom of every fact with absolute certainty,” Mr Abbott said, who described being “misled”.
Diplomats fear Russia may use Syrian aid as bargaining chip in Ukraine
       
Now, officials warn, Russia might try to shut it down or use it as a bargaining chip with world powers in another war, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) away in Ukraine. The U.N. Security Council, where Russia wields a powerful veto, will vote in July on whether to keep the aid route open. But the corridor already appears caught up in the fallout from the war in Ukraine and the competing interests of Russia and the United States. Russia is one of Assad’s benefactors in Syria’s civil war, which began in 2011, and the aid was largely going to rebel-occupied areas. The diplomats would not describe the signals in detail and said Moscow had stopped short of directly tying the corridor’s fate to the war in Ukraine.
'There's too much violence': President Biden to meet with grieving families in Uvalde: Updates
       
President Joe Biden on Sunday will bring his personal words of comfort and the condolences of the nation to the grieving families in Uvalde, Texas, amid ongoing questions about the police response to the horrific elementary school shooting. He and first lady Jill Biden also will visit a memorial site at Robb Elementary School, attend Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church and meet with first responders. The massacre was the deadliest school shooting since the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. "Let's be clear: Evil came to that elementary school classroom in Texas, to that grocery store in New York, to far too many places where innocents have died." NRA convention sparks protestsWhile Biden is in Texas, the National Rifle Association continues its annual convention in Houston.
AP News Summary at 3:07 a.m. EDT
       
Everyone in the predominantly Latino city of roughly 16,000 people seems to know someone whose life has been turned upside down. Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers are at the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Authorities acknowledged Friday that children and teachers repeatedly begged 911 operators for help while the police chief told more than a dozen officers to wait in a hallway at Robb Elementary School. TIMELINE: Texas elementary school shooting, minute by minuteIn the hours and days since the fatal shooting of 19 children and their two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, authorities have given varying accounts of what happened and how they responded. Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battleKRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russia claims to have overrun a key rail hub in Ukraine while its troops fight defenders in the streets of another eastern city.
Australian company to ship baby formula to shortage-hit US
       
An Australian company is planning to ship at least 1.25m cans of its baby formula to the US to help ease a nationwide shortage. President Joe Biden tweeted the “good news” at the weekend, saying the equivalent of 27.5m bottles of infant formula were on the way. In a statement on its website, Bubs Australia reassured Australian customers that its infant formula supply would not be affected. The company said the US Department of Health and Human Services had advised “they are evaluating options” for getting Bubs Infant Formula products to the US “as quickly as possible.”The importing of Bubs’ products follows the relaxation of some regulations this month to mitigate one of the biggest baby formula shortages in recent history. The FDA commissioner, Robert M Califf, said authorities were doing everything in their power to ensure there was adequate infant formula available across the country.
Trump’s ‘big lie’ hits cinemas: the film claiming to investigate voter fraud
       
Along with Bad Guys, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Everything Everywhere All at Once, there is the title 2000 Mules. Instead, Donald Trump’s “big lie” has arrived at a cinema near you. 2000 Mules claims to be an investigation of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Yet 2000 Mules has been released in more than 270 cinemas across the US with most distribution provided by Cinemark, the third biggest chain in the country. But the release of 2000 Mules is very modest compared to the typical Hollywood blockbuster.
U.S. Federal Reserve says its goal is ‘to get wages down’
       
“Employers are having difficulties filling job openings, and wages are rising at the fastest pace in many years,” Powell complained. Inflation-adjusted wages should have grown 2.1 percent over this period if pre-pandemic trends had continued, leaving real wages well below their pre-pandemic trend. “Inflation is basically the excuse that right-wing governments have for trying to lower wage levels by blaming the inflation on rising wages,” he said. Hudson’s boss was Paul Volcker, who would go on to serve as Federal Reserve chairman under U.S. presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. And our class interest is in increasing our power over wages, so we’ve got to keep wages down, even if it causes a recession.
Solid gold jeweled Tabernacle worth $2 MILLION is stolen from Manhattan Catholic church
       
Thieves stole a jewel-encrusted solid gold tabernacle worth $2 million from a Brooklyn church - and also beheaded one of its marble angel statues. The brazen thieves reported cut a giant hold into the tabernacle with unknown equipment and extracted an 18-karat gold tabernacle with jewels from its casing. The tabernacle - a large structure that holds the Eucharist in the form of a blessed host - sat under a domed archway inside the church. The gold and jeweled tabernacle (pictured) was stolen from a Brooklyn church between Thursday night and Saturday. The crime took place at St. Augustine's Roman Catholic Church (pictured) in Brooklyn
US imposes new trade curbs and sanctions on China over Uyghur rights
       
The United States on Thursday unleashed a volley of actions to censure China's treatment of the Uyghur minority, with lawmakers voting to curb trade and new sanctions slapped on the world's top consumer drone maker. Advertising Read moreThe United States has been ramping up pressure on China amid a crop of disputes, with President Joe Biden's administration a day earlier targeting producers of painkillers that have contributed to America's addiction crisis. The United States has described the campaign as genocide and, along with Australia, Britain and Canada, has planned a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Games next year over the issue. The United States had already restricted trade exports to the company, but the new Treasury Department sanctions will criminalize any US investment in it. "Unfortunately, the PRC is choosing to use these technologies to pursue control over its people and its repression of members of ethnic and religious minority groups," she added.
Opinion: The cost of Trump's chaos just keeps accumulating
       
His new paperback is " The Cost of Chaos: The Trump Administration and the World ", from which this essay is adapted. As it turned out, that was a fantasy that the Trump administration correctly called out. As a result, the Trump administration authorized at least double the number of US Navy ships transiting the South China Sea performing "freedom of navigation" exercises. JUST WATCHED 'Schizophrenic nature': Dr. Birx describes what it was like working in Trump's White House Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH 'Schizophrenic nature': Dr. Birx describes what it was like working in Trump's White House 03:44Trump also presided over the destruction of the ISIS geographical "caliphate" in Iraq and Syria. He and his wife, Melania Trump, were vaccinated at the White House during the closing days of his presidency.
Navajo sign water rights settlement with Utah and feds
       
Spencer J. Cox, left, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, middle, and Jonathan Nez, president of the Navajo Nation gather with local officials as they sign the agreement for the Navajo federal reserved water rights settlement Friday, May 27, 2022 in Monument Valley, Utah. The signing formalizes the Utah Navajo Water Rights Settlement, which became law in 2020 as part of President Joe Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure bill. One was the Navajo Nation had claims to the Colorado (River) that would impair Utah’s water rights,” U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney told The Salt Lake Tribune. The agreement also allows the Navajo to lease unused water to entities off the reservation and guarantees they won’t lose water rights not put to use. “The hard work, however, must continue until all homes across the Navajo Nation have clean water running in faucets for all Navajo families,” Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez told the newspaper.
Why the Texas school shooting won't stop the NRA convention
       
In 1999, on the heels of the Columbine, Colorado, school shooting that would mark the beginning of a new era, the National Rifle Association hesitated. "Our deepest sympathies are with the families and victims involved in this horrific and evil crime,” the NRA said in a Wednesday statement. Where are the calls for direct action against the NRA convention, protests outside the homes of senators who vote against gun safety? According to Open Secrets, gun rights groups spent roughly $15.8 million on lobbying in 2021 and, as of March 31, have spent another $2 million in 2022. During that same time, gun control groups spent less than a quarter of that amount.
Biden called again to mourn with a city stricken by grief
       
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are hoping to console a city stricken by grief and anger when they meet with families affected by the mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.”Biden was to visit the makeshift memorial outside Robb Elementary School before attending Mass at a local Catholic church. Mckinzie Hinojosa, whose cousin Eliahana Torres was killed Tuesday, said she respected Biden’s decision to mourn with the people of Uvalde. In the White House, Biden has tried to chip away at gun violence through executive orders. AP video journalist Robert Bumsted in Uvalde, Texas, contributed to this report.
AP News Summary at 12:05 a.m. EDT
       
Everyone in the predominantly Latino city of roughly 16,000 people seems to know someone whose life has been turned upside down. Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers are at the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Authorities acknowledged Friday that children and teachers repeatedly begged 911 operators for help while the police chief told more than a dozen officers to wait in a hallway at Robb Elementary School. TIMELINE: Texas elementary school shooting, minute by minuteIn the hours and days since the fatal shooting of 19 children and their two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, authorities have given varying accounts of what happened and how they responded. Now, Republicans are making similar points as the nation reels from the shooting that killed at least 19 children at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
WNBA players step up calls for Brittney Griner's release
       
WNBA players and their union leaders stepped up their calls for Brittney Griner’s release from prison in Russia on Saturday, the 100th day of the US basketball star’s detention. “Right now, on Day 100 of BG’s wrongful detainment, we are calling on everyone to use their platforms, no matter the size, to bring attention to her wrongful detainment, to get (Griner’s wife) Cherelle that meeting with President Biden and to get our sister home,” the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) said in a statement.
McCarthy tells Jan. 6 committee he’s unlikely to comply with subpoena
       
Berke goes on to request information from the committee, including a more specific list of the subjects and topics the committee intends to discuss with McCarthy, along with the legal rationale justifying the subpoena request. McCarthy’s counsel also asks whether the committee is adhering to the confines of the resolution that authorized the panel. “Chairman [Bennie G.] Thompson will formally respond to these Members in the days ahead.”The House committee is on track to begin the public hearings about the attack next month. The escalatory move by McCarthy means the panel will quickly have to decide next enforcement actions for noncompliant lawmakers. House Republicans are already laying the groundwork for a number of GOP-led investigations against the Biden administration and Democrats.
Democrats should bring back the 'Contract with America' for the 2022 Midterm Campaign
       
Joshua Roberts/AFP/Getty ImagesIn 1994, Republican New Gingrich came up with a campaign strategy called the 'Contract with America.' Three recent events have given Democrats an opportunity to submit their Contract with America. Democrats should bring these issues to the top of the agenda with a Contract with America just like Gingrich did. It can work for the DemocratsHere is my suggestion for a Contract with America that all Democrats, at every level, should run on. The Democrat's Contract with America would be in clear contrast to that proposal.
Overnight SCIENCE News: More monarchs, compelling cockroach sex, skydiving salamanders, and condors
       
https://t.co/tqCx6fFwTN — NYT Science (@NYTScience) May 28, 2022x Mysterious mounds in the southwest corner of the Amazon Basin were once the site of ancient urban settlements https://t.co/xpVYwtbLMe — nature (@Nature) May 28, 2022x YouTube Videodinos started off warm-blooded and evolved into cold bloodedness“...many dinosaurs as well as their winged relatives, the pterosaurs, were ancestrally warm-blooded. https://t.co/2FITgQDQnv — Science News (@ScienceNews) May 28, 2022x YouTube Videox Mercury may have been twice its current size, and ancient pieces of the planet may be hiding here on Earth. When Charlie’s quantum state was changed, Alice’s state also changed, meaning information ‘teleported’ across Bob without passing through it. There's a lot of thought and a lot of heart that goes with that name.”x PREY-GO-NEESH KEECH KE-ME’-YEHL – CONDORS HAVE COME HOME! At around 10:30am, 2 condors were successfully released in Yurok Country, where the birds have been absent since 1892.
Mass shootings are a symptom of the declining U.S. empire's fascist reaction
       
The mass shootings that this country has been reeling from are symptoms of the U.S. empire's decline. This is only natural, because the imperialist social order behind law enforcement is what's producing these shootings. At least one-third of mass shooters have been trained by the United States military. White supremacist mass shooters get radicalized by the propaganda channels that are made possible by the settler-colonial structure. Mass shootings in the U.S. far outpace those in other rich countries because the U.S. is not just an imperialist country, but the core imperialist country, the one with a military budget that dwarfs those of its allies.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
(AP Photo/Alexei Alexandrov)KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russia claimed to have overrun a key rail hub while its troops fought Ukrainian defenders in the streets of another city in eastern Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry said the railroad center Lyman had been “completely liberated” by a joint force of Russian soldiers and Kremlin-backed separatists. Pavlo Kyrylenko said Russian troops controlled most of it and were trying to press their offensive toward Bakhmut, another city in the region. Serhii Haidai reported that Ukrainian fighters repelled an assault on Sievierodonetsk but Russian troops still pushed to encircle them. Last week Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu announced that Russia would form new military units in the country’s west in response to Sweden and Finland’s bids to join NATO.
COMMENTARY: Primary turnout points to GOP wave in November
       
With primary elections completed in 13 states — five of them swing states — political consultant John Couvillon of JMC Analytics and Polling found a 38 percent increase in Republican primary turnout over the 2018 midterms. And Democratic turnout was down in seven states, while GOP participation was up across the board. Yet Democratic turnout was up by only 33,000 from 2018 while Republican turnout soared by 404,000. Neither party had a contested statewide primary in Indiana, yet Democratic turnout was down while GOP turnout was up by about 15 percent.”In Georgia, Republican turnout blew past Democrats on Tuesday. While Democratic turnout rose from 553,000 in 2018 to 714,000, GOP turnout soared from 607,000 to nearly 1.2 million.
Slow police response may have delayed treatment for injured students in Texas elementary school massacre: Live updates
       
Officials on Friday acknowledged a catastrophic failure by law enforcement to not immediately enter the classroom amid a gunman's massacre of 19 students and two teachers at a Texas elementary school this week. “Let's be clear: Evil came to that elementary school classroom in Texas. 12:19 p.m.: A call came in from a student who said they were in Room 111, who hung up after another student told the caller to do so. WARNING SIGNS TO LOOK FOR:Eight warnings behaviors of a potential mass shooterStudents who survived Texas school attack describe sceneA young survivor of the massacre at a Texas elementary school said she covered herself with a friend’s blood and pretended to be dead while she waited for help to arrive. Teacher tells story of her classroom's escapeAs gunfire echoed down the hallway from Nicole Ogburn's Robb Elementary School classroom, she and her 15 students hid behind a shelf and held hands.
VICTOR DAVIS HANSON: A cabinency of dunces
       
A second national discussion revolves around who actually is overseeing the current national catastrophe, given Biden’s frequent bewilderment and cognitive challenges. But one area of agreement is the sheer craziness of Biden’s Cabinet appointments, who have translated his incoherent ideology into catastrophic governance. More than 2 million foreign nationals have illegally crossed the southern border without audit — and without COVID vaccinations and tests during a pandemic. Haaland was unable to provide simple answers about when new leases will result in more supplies of oil and gas. Victor Davis Hanson is a distinguished fellow of the Center for American Greatness and a classicist and historian at Stanford’s Hoover Institution.
LETTER: Democrats love high gasoline prices
       
Forget that the average electric vehicle is much more expensive than the standard gas vehicle. What most people are not aware of are the costs to replace EV batteries. Replacement costs depend on the brand of vehicle and are reported to run between $8,000 and $20,000 — in some cases more. How many people will opt to spend $20,000 to keep a $10,000 car running? Maybe the Democrats will bring back the well-thought-out Obama era program, Cash for Clunkers.
Dems’ midterm prospects are bleak – but they could get worse
       
Democrats are widely expected to lose control of Congress in the midterm elections. Further, the vast majority of the public (80%) is dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country today. While some Democrats were optimistic that the news of Roe v. Wade being overturned would improve their political prospects by galvanizing their base, that seems unlikely. President Biden won the 2020 election by positioning himself as a steady-handed leader who could bring an end to the pandemic. Indeed, the Biden administration has frequently exhibited internal division and paralysis on immigration policy, which has angered Republicans and activists on the left alike.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine — Russia claimed to have overrun a key rail hub while its troops fought Ukrainian defenders in the streets of another city in eastern Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry said the railroad center Lyman had been “completely liberated” by a joint force of Russian soldiers and Kremlin-backed separatists. Pavlo Kyrylenko said Russian troops controlled most of it and were trying to press their offensive toward Bakhmut, another city in the region. Serhii Haidai reported that Ukrainian fighters repelled an assault on Sievierodonetsk but Russian troops still pushed to encircle them. Last week Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu announced that Russia would form new military units in the country’s west in response to Sweden and Finland’s bids to join NATO.
Insider: Conyers gets endorsements; DePerno courts House GOP; Johnson harangues circulator
       
U.S. House candidate John Conyers III will announce endorsements Tuesday by family members of Breonna Taylor and Jacob Blake Jr., both Black victims of shootings by White police officers in 2020. Conyers' late father, U.S. Rep. John Conyers Jr., represented much of the same territory in Congress for decades. Conyers' campaign said Breonna Taylor's aunt, Bianca Austin, and Jacob Blake Sr., father of Jacob Blake Jr., will attend an event Tuesday afternoon in Detroit to endorse Conyers. DePerno gets audience with House RepublicansMichigan House Republicans met with GOP attorney general candidate Matt DePerno in an off-site meeting Thursday after DePerno asked for some time with lawmakers. The meeting included the participation of Rep. Ryan Berman, the Commerce Township Republican who ran against DePerno for the GOP attorney general nomination.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
(AP Photo/Alexei Alexandrov)KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russia claimed to have overrun a key rail hub while its troops fought Ukrainian defenders in the streets of another city in eastern Ukraine. © Provided by Associated Press Debris hangs from a residential building heavily damaged in a Russian bombing in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, eastern Ukraine, Saturday, May 28, 2022. © Provided by Associated Press People fleeing Lysychansk sit on an evacuation train at the train station in Pokrovsk, eastern Ukraine, eastern Ukraine, Saturday, May 28, 2022. © Provided by Associated Press A Ukrainian serviceman walks past a gypsum manufacturing plant destroyed in a Russian bombing in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, eastern Ukraine, Saturday, May 28, 2022. Just south of Sievierodonetsk, Associated Press reporters saw older and ill civilians bundled into soft stretchers and slowly carried down apartment building stairs Friday in Bakhmut.
UAE dismantles plane of gunrunner Russia wants for Americans
       
The emirate of Umm al-Quwain plans a $675 million development on a island just across a lagoon from the deactivated airport where Bout's plane sits. “I had not realized that the plane was there to this day," said Stephen Braun, the co-author of a book on the gunrunner called “Merchant of Death." That's even with large green letters painted on the Ilyushin for the last 20-odd years as an aviatic billboard for another hotel. After convincing a pilot to fly the aircraft on just three of its four engines, the plane just barely made it into Umm al-Quwain. However in the years since, Russia has repeatedly floated his name in possible exchanges for American citizens held by Moscow.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
On Saturday, Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar disputed Moscow’s claim that Lyman had fallen, saying fighting there was still ongoing. Russia has intensified efforts to capture the cities of Sievierodonetsk and nearby Lysychansk, which are the last major areas under Ukrainian control in Luhansk. Moscow and Kyiv have traded accusations over which side bears responsibility for keeping shipments tied up, with Russia saying Ukrainian sea mines prevented safe passage and Ukraine citing a Russian naval blockade. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its navy successfully launched a new hypersonic missile from the Barents Sea that struck its target about 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) away. Last week Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu announced that Russia would form new military units in the country’s west in response to Sweden and Finland’s bids to join NATO.
Joe Biden tells students to be tolerant and see people who disagree with them as neighbors
       
President Joe Biden told the University of Delaware graduates to be tolerant and see people who disagree with them as neighbors rather than enemies. Biden told graduates to remember that 'democracy is a human enterprise.' 'Your generation is the most generous, the most tolerant, the least prejudiced, the best-educated generation this nation has ever known and that's a simple fact. It was his fifth commencement address at the university, where the school of public policy and administration bears his name. His sister, Valerie Biden Owens, and his wife, first lady Jill Biden, also graduated from the university.
Joe Biden’s loose lips could sink ships
       
They said the United States is still only committed to selling Taiwan military equipment to defend itself and claimed Biden was definitely not talking about “regime change” in Russia. CHINE NOUVELLE/SIPA/ShutterstockIn his book “The Sleepwalkers,” author Christopher Clark masterfully describes how World War I started despite no European leader wanting war or believing one would happen. Check out more newslettersAre we on the verge of sleepwalking into World War III? I mean, you know, they’re not bad folks.”Yet now we’re seemingly ready to go to war over Taiwan. So perhaps our China policy is to speak loudly and carry a small stick.
WNBA players step up calls for Griner's release
       
However, on May 3 the US State Department said it had determined that Russia had "wrongfully detained US citizen Brittney Griner." In the immediate aftermath of Griner's detention, the WNBA had commented little on the case hoping not to inflame the situation. Since the State Department's declaration that she was wrongfully detained, however, there have been more vocal calls for her release. Several WNBA and NBA players tweeted about Griner on Saturday. "Brittney Griner has been illegally detained in Russia since February 17th, 2022," wrote Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving.
BTS members depart for US to visit White House
       
BTS poses at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Sept. 20, 2021. (BigHit Music)Members of South Korean boy group BTS left for the United States on Sunday to visit the White House for a meeting with US President Joe Biden to discuss ways to deal with rising anti-Asian hate crimes. The White House has announced that BTS will meet with Biden on Tuesday to "discuss Asian inclusion and representation and to address anti-Asian hate crimes and discrimination, which have become more prominent issues in recent years." On Sunday, six members of the septet headed to the US as Jungkook left a day earlier. After arriving at Terminal 2 of Incheon International Airport around 9:30 a.m., they waved to fans and reporters before heading to board their flight.
Zelenskyy takes jab at Putin over G20 summit, hopes 'no occupiers' will be in attendance
       
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy took a jab at Russian President Vladimir Putin Friday and said he hopes "no occupiers" will attend the upcoming Group of 20 summit this year. PUTIN TO ATTEND G20 SUMMIT, INDONESIA SAYS; ZELENSKYY ALSO INVITED"We must prevent mass starvation, stop massacres and repressions, forever wean any state of the world from nuclear blackmail. I believe that only friend states, partner states will attend the summit, and there will be no occupiers," he said in an address to the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia. Widodo announced last month that he also invited Putin to the summit, given Russia’s usual standing as a G20 member, and claimed the Kremlin head had accepted. Russia’s war in Ukraine has lasted for more than three months, displacing millions, killing thousands and causing the greatest security threat to Europe since World War II.
Former House Speaker Paul Ryan Emerges To Bash 'Entertainer' Politicians
       
Former Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan emerged from self-imposed political exile to lash “entertainer” lawmakers. The measurement of success was policy and persuasion,” Ryan said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Thursday. Advertisement“You persuade your colleagues, your country, your constituents: ‘This is the right way to go, here’s the solution,’” he told host Rebecca Quick. The measurement of success was policy and persuasion," says Paul Ryan. Ryan said in an interview last year that it was “really clear” Trump lost the election, and that the election was in no way rigged.
Navajo sign water rights settlement with Utah and feds
       
The signing formalizes the Utah Navajo Water Rights Settlement, which became law in 2020 as part of President Joe Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure bill. One was the Navajo Nation had claims to the Colorado (River) that would impair Utah’s water rights,” U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney told The Salt Lake Tribune. The settlement recognizes the Navajo’s right to 81,500 acre-feet of Utah water and allows them to draw the water from aquifers, rivers or Lake Powell, if they choose. The agreement also allows the Navajo to lease unused water to entities off the reservation and guarantees they won’t lose water rights not put to use. “The hard work, however, must continue until all homes across the Navajo Nation have clean water running in faucets for all Navajo families,” Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez told the newspaper.
How to end the Ukraine war before Western allies give up
       
Morally, Vladimir Putin deserves to keep none of his territorial gains. Russian President Vladimir Putin cannot be trusted with ending his invasion on his own promise. Even temporary, internationally unrecognized territorial gains for Putin will be a bitter pill for Ukraine. (Indeed, the Ukraine war and its aftermath may well provoke a wholesale rethinking by the West of its entanglement with China, too). And the US and allies can, must, take real steps to make sure that any future Putin incursion would get stopped cold.
Ukraine war volunteers are coming home, reckoning with difficult fight
       
Many entered the fight after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky personally appealed to foreign volunteers to journey there and fight. On one mission, he said, he was unable get a lock on a Russian tank with a cold thermal signature. An American volunteer named Dakota fires a Javelin missile at a Russian tank east of Mykolaiv, Ukraine, in April. He recalled how, early in the war, he saw images of his hometown on fire and left to join the fight two days later. He’s mired in divorce proceedings, initiated before he left for Ukraine, and occasionally hears from friends who update him over text about their successful tank harvests.
AP News Summary at 7:21 p.m. EDT
       
Everyone in the predominantly Latino city of roughly 16,000 people seems to know someone whose life has been turned upside down. Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers are at the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Authorities acknowledged Friday that children and teachers repeatedly begged 911 operators for help while the police chief told more than a dozen officers to wait in a hallway at Robb Elementary School. TIMELINE: Texas elementary school shooting, minute by minuteIn the hours and days since the fatal shooting of 19 children and their two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, authorities have given varying accounts of what happened and how they responded. Now, Republicans are making similar points as the nation reels from the shooting that killed at least 19 children at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
Veteran U.S. judge joins calls for Supreme Court ethics code
       
Placeholder while article actions loadA prominent Republican-appointed federal judge on Thursday joined calls for Supreme Court justices to be subject to an ethics code, saying a failure by judges to police their own misconduct lessens Americans’ respect for the judiciary. “As a court system — federal, state and otherwise — we are under scrutiny and under attack. And because of that I think all judges should be subject to a code of ethics,” Walton said in his interview. AdvertisementWalton said he understood from Thursday’s conference, hosted by the National Judicial College, that the Supreme Court is considering such a code, “and I think that’s a good thing.”The Supreme Court did not respond to a request for comment. AdvertisementEarly this month, a deeply polarized Supreme Court vowed to launch a leak investigation after a draft opinion that would overturn the right to abortion established in Roe v. Wade sent shock waves through the national political landscape.
Biden's remarks about Taiwan prompt calls to revisit 'strategic ambiguity.' But it's a sound policy.
       
Strategic ambiguity is not merely designed to deter China, after all — though that is one key aim. To begin with the basics, strategic ambiguity tries to mitigate two potential pathways to war. Second, China might attack Taiwan to prevent the United States and Taiwan from becoming too closely allied. Those arrangements are consistent with strategic ambiguity, but recent hawkish rhetoric from many in the United States isn’t. In addition, the United States should work with Taiwan to counter looming unconventional threats to Taiwan, including Chinese threats to Taiwan’s cybersecurity.
L.A. County buys $750,000 worth of baby formula to distribute to families as shortage persists
       
Los Angeles County has purchased $750,000 worth of baby formula that it will soon start handing out at food distribution sites and through outreach programs for new mothers, officials said. The county purchased the formula to help feed babies as the nation grapples with a severe infant formula shortage, Supervisor Hilda L. Solis said in a news release. California As baby formula shortage worsens, families take desperate steps Low-income families are struggling to feed their infants amid the national shortage. Politics Biden invokes Defense Production Act to alleviate baby formula shortage President Biden has invoked the Defense Production Act to speed production of infant formula, and has authorized flights to import more from overseas. In addition, the county’s Department of Children and Family Services is purchasing $500,000 worth of infant formula that will be distributed to families served by the agency.
AP News Summary at 6:42 p.m. EDT
       
Everyone in the predominantly Latino city of roughly 16,000 people seems to know someone whose life has been turned upside down. Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers are at the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Authorities acknowledged Friday that children and teachers repeatedly begged 911 operators for help while the police chief told more than a dozen officers to wait in a hallway at Robb Elementary School. TIMELINE: Texas elementary school shooting, minute by minuteIn the hours and days since the fatal shooting of 19 children and their two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, authorities have given varying accounts of what happened and how they responded. Now, Republicans are making similar points as the nation reels from the shooting that killed at least 19 children at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
AP News in Brief at 6:04 p.m. EDT
       
By Friday, authorities acknowledged that students and teachers repeatedly begged 911 operators for help while the police chief told more than a dozen officers to wait in a hallway at Robb Elementary School. TIMELINESometime after 11 a.m. — Ramos shoots his grandmother in the face, according to Texas Public Safety Director Steve McCraw. Biden is expected to head to Texas for a visit this weekend with the families of victim's of Tuesday's school shooting. As US mourns shootings, NRA in turmoil but influence remainsHOUSTON (AP) — For a brief moment in 2012, it seemed like a national stalemate over guns was breaking. Adam Lanza, a 20-year-old gunman, had forced his way into a Connecticut elementary school and massacred 26 people, mostly children, with an AR-15-style rifle.
‘Too much fear, too much grief’: Biden to visit Uvalde amid scrutiny of police response to shooting
       
Joe Biden lamented “too much violence, too much fear, too much grief” after the latest US mass shooting as he prepared to visit Uvalde, where police face intensifying scrutiny for waiting outside the classroom where a teenage gunman with an assault rifle killed 19 children and two teachers. The US president and first lady, Jill Biden, plan to travel to the small southern Texas city on Sunday. An ambulance was standing by and a state trooper assisted members of the public who came to mourn. Biden spoke about the tragedy in Uvalde during a commencement speech he gave on Saturday morning at the University of Delaware, his alma mater. Too much violence, too much fear, too much grief,” said Biden and called the Uvalde and Buffalo mass shootings acts of “evil”.
VP Harris attends the funeral for shooting victim Ruth Whitfield
       
AdvertisementKamala Harris said America is experiencing an 'epidemic of hate' during her moving speech at the funeral of Ruth Whitfield, 86, the oldest victim of the Buffalo supermarket shooting on Saturday. VP Harris, who was invited to speak at the memorial by the Reverend Sharpton, spoke of her grief for the community in yet another 'senseless and horrific attack.' VP Kamala Harris speaking at the memorial service providing comfort to the Whitfield family and to those gathered to remember the loving 86-year-old mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and wifeVP Kamala Harris appearing solemn arriving at the memorial service of Ruth E. Whitfield. Whitfield had been shopping at the supermarket after visiting her husband in the nursing home, her family has said, WIVB News reported. Gendron had driven more than 200 miles to carry out his attack at Tops Family market, which he also livestreamed, police said, The New York Times reported.
Opinion: The Fed is determined to stop wages from rising
       
In the late 1970s, monetarists promised that if the Fed would focus only on controlling the supply of money, inflation could be tamed without increasing unemployment. But the Fed has periodically shadowboxed with “inflation expectations”—raising rates over time to “pre-empt” the invisible demons, and then congratulating itself when none appeared. Now, we are also seeing rising land prices (among other things), which feeds into (somewhat artificial) estimates of housing costs. Inflation rates are reported on a 12-month basis, so once any shock hits, it is guaranteed to generate headlines about “inflation” for 11 more months—a boon for the inflation hawks. Obviously, logically, inevitably, and despite all the crocodile tears about inflation harming ordinary Americans, the Fed is determined to stop rising wages.
Inside Mitch McConnell’s decades-long effort to block gun control
       
“If there’s any one individual in the United States to blame for our inability to put things in place to prevent gun violence, it’s Mitch McConnell,” said Peter Ambler, the executive director of Giffords, a group devoted to fighting gun violence. “McConnell knows where his members stand and makes the tough calls to protect their interests,” a senior Republican aide said, explaining McConnell’s overall motivations in addressing gun violence and gun legislation. Brown said that the staffer clearly seemed moved by Lewis, telling him that she held him in high esteem, and by the victims of gun violence, who recounted their stories one after another. The Senate Republican leader has spent his career working to delay, obstruct or prevent most major firearms restrictions from being approved by Congress. And McConnell is the head of the Republican Senate,” Feinblatt said.
Ukraine pleads for weapons as Russian onslaught threatens to turn the tide
       
Ukrainian officials say they urgently need advanced US-made mobile multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) to halt Russian advances in Luhansk and Donetsk. Moscow, keenly aware of the game-changing potential of the rocket systems, has already voiced strong objections. But doubts remain about which weapons systems will be provided, and the timing of the US move. Despite the delay, he insisted it was “not too late” to send new weapons to Ukraine. Military support can reduce over time and probably the economic support will become more important as the fighting gradually subsides.”
NRA members sound off on organization's future, calls for gun control amid Uvalde shooting
       
The annual convention came on the heels of the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday which left 19 children and two adults dead. "While I grieve with those families and the others who have lost children in school shootings, we have to have an honest conversation," Franklin added. BETO O'ROURKE, GUN-CONTROL ADVOCATES PROTEST OUTSIDE OF NRA CONVENTION: 'SHAME ON YOU'"There's a big hole in the school system," Mark said. She said it would send a strong message to those thinking of causing harm to school children for them not "to come in this school, that we're prepared for bad people." They're people who use their guns to help you in times needed most.
Guilty Plea In Plot To Firebomb California Democratic HQ
       
Ian Benjamin Rogers, 46, of Napa, pleaded guilty to conspiring to destroy a building by fire or explosives, possessing an explosive device and possessing a machine gun under a plea agreement that could bring him seven to nine years in federal prison. The pair “hoped their attacks would prompt a movement,” prosecutors said when they announced the charges in July. Copeland, 38, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and destruction of records. In a different message he said that after Democratic President Joe Biden was inaugurated, “we go to war.”Their first planned target was the John L. Burton Democratic Headquarters in Sacramento, prosecutors said. He was taken into custody then on state charges after the FBI said he sent text messages that agents perceived as threats against the unoccupied Governor’s Mansion and social media companies Facebook and Twitter.
Harris calls for unity as Buffalo lays the last shooting victim to rest
       
She attended the service at Mount Olive Baptist Church in Buffalo with second gentleman Doug Emhoff. "This is a moment that requires all good people, all God-loving people to stand up and say we will not stand for this. Enough is enough," said Harris, who wasn't scheduled to speak and came to the microphone at the urging of the Rev. Harris later told reporters the administration is not "sitting around waiting to figure out what the solution looks like" to the nation's gun violence problem. Whitfield was the mother of former Buffalo Fire Commissioner Garnell Whitfield.
'We received feedback': The commercialization of Juneteenth backfires for big brands
       
Large corporations that initially sought to cash in on Juneteenth-themed items ahead of the new federal holiday on are now walking back their commercialization efforts after backlash on social media. "Juneteenth holiday marks a celebration of freedom and independence," the company said in a statement. "However, we received feedback that a few items caused concern for some of our customers and we sincerely apologize. On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden signed a law that made Juneteenth a federal holiday. “Imagine how different the landscape would look if Juneteenth had been designated as a federal holiday after reparations had been paid,” he said.
Elon Musk Asks Jeff Bezos to Make an Important Choice
       
Elon Musk has advice for Jeff Bezos. Musk and Bezos also seem concerned about growing homelessness in big cities like San Francisco and Seattle. And Musk seems to need this rivalry, a healthy rivalry in the conquest of space with Bezos in particular. Starlink is well ahead of Project Kuiper currently, with more than 2,400 satellites already in orbit. Last month, NASA picked six satellite companies -- including Musk's SpaceX and Project Kuiper --- to develop space communication services in Earth orbit.
AP News Summary at 6:03 p.m. EDT
       
Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers are at the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Authorities acknowledged Friday that children and teachers repeatedly begged 911 operators for help while the police chief told more than a dozen officers to wait in a hallway at Robb Elementary School. TIMELINE: Texas elementary school shooting, minute by minuteIn the hours and days since the fatal shooting of 19 children and their two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, authorities have given varying accounts of what happened and how they responded. But Russia’s recent progress in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region could embolden Putin to keep pursuing his military goals in the country. Now, Republicans are making similar points as the nation reels from the shooting that killed at least 19 children at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
Russia and Turkey Scramble to Avoid Conflict. And What do U.S. Democratic Primaries Mean for Moscow?
       
This week on the podcast:— The leaders of Russia and Turkey meet in Moscow on Thursday in a bid to de-escalate fighting in Syria which has brought the two countries to the brink of direct military confrontation. Financial Times Bureau Chief Henry Foy joins us in the studio to discuss what is at stake for both countries. The episode was recorded and edited at CM Records Studio in central Moscow. Read More:Russia’s Syria gamble under pressure as Turkey attacks in IdlibHawks say Sanders will be weak on Russia. But Putin should fear a President Bernie
China, Russia veto U.S.-led push for North Korea sanctions
       
1/2Russia and China vetoed a U.S.-led resolution in the U.N. Security Council that sought to place additional sanctions on North Korea in the wake of its ballistic missile tests. However, Russia and China -- which wield veto power as permanent members -- blocked the resolution from passing, marking the first time the Security Council has been split on the issue since sanctions against North Korea began in 2006. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea. Ahead of the vote, Thomas-Greenfield said North Korea is "actively preparing to conduct a nuclear test." He also accused Washington of using the North Korea issue as "a chessman on the chessboard for their so-called Indo-Pacific strategy."
AP Top Stories May 28
       
AP Top Stories May 28Here are the top stories for Saturday, May 28th: Oldest Buffalo shooting victim laid to rest; Biden addresses Delaware graduates Protest at death of Black man held by police in Brazil; Football fans gather for Champions League final.
GOP Congressman, former NRA endorsee says he would support ban on assault weapons in aftermath of Buffalo, Uvalde
       
Jacobs made the remarks — a contradiction to the Republican party's staunch stance on gun laws — during a news conference on Friday. “If an assault weapons ban bill came to the floor that would ban something like an AR-15, I would vote for it,” he said, according to The Buffalo News. I think it’s perfectly reasonable that the age limit at least for these highly lethal, high-capacity semi automatic weapons should be 21," he said. The congressman reiterated his sentiments in an interview with The Buffalo News. Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday attended the funeral of Ruth Whitfield, who was killed in the Buffalo shooting, saying "enough is enough."
Kellyanne Conway says the 2020 Trump campaign's China-centric 'Beijing Biden' attacks were 'foolish'
       
President Joe Biden listens as he meets virtually with Chinese leader Xi Jinping from the Roosevelt Room of the White House on November 15, 2021. AP Photo/Susan Walsh, FileKellyanne Conway in her new book says the GOP's "Beijing Biden" attacks didn't connect with voters. Conway described Trump's 2020 presidential reelection effort as "more solipsistic than scrappy." While campaigning for reelection in Ohio weeks before the November general election, Trump warned that Biden's ascent to the White House would halt gains in the manufacturing sector. "Put simply, if Biden wins, China wins," Trump said at the time, per The Associated Press.
Forest Service finds it was responsible for largest fire in New Mexico history
       
The Forest Service says it was responsible for both the blazes that merged late last month and created the largest fire in New Mexico history. The Calf Canyon Fire then merged with the Hermits Peak Fire, which was also started by an escaped federal prescribed burn, to cause New Mexico’s biggest-ever fire. “The pain and suffering of New Mexicans caused by the actions of the U.S. Forest Service – an agency that is intended to be a steward of our lands – is unfathomable,” New Mexico Gov. The Forest Service said last week it would pause prescribed burns on National Forest System land for 90 days to reevaluate its policies. “The Santa Fe National Forest is 100 percent focused on suppressing these fires with the support of the Type 1 incident management teams who are fully prepared to manage complex, all-risk situations,” Santa Fe National Forest Supervisor Debbie Cress said in a Friday statement.
Howie Carr: Just another delirious day trip for Biden, unstuck in time again
       
He called Zoom “Joom.” He claimed he’s convinced “North Korea” to impose sanctions on Russia. In short, it was just another delirious day trip for Brandon away from the assisted-living facility at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. “I was appointed to the Academy in 1965.”For the record, in 1965 Biden was 22 years old. So I went to Delaware.”He was referring to two Heisman Trophy winners from Navy — Roger Staubach and Joe Bellino. North Korea didn’t know.
VP Harris tells Buffalo mourners: 'We will come together'
       
She attended the service at Mount Olive Baptist Church in Buffalo with second gentleman Doug Emhoff. “This is a moment that requires all good people, all God-loving people to stand up and say we will not stand for this. Enough is enough,” said Harris, who wasn’t scheduled to speak and came to the microphone at the urging of the Rev. Harris later told reporters the administration is not “sitting around waiting to figure out what the solution looks like” to the nation's gun violence problem. Whitfield was the mother of former Buffalo Fire Commissioner Garnell Whitfield.
AP News Summary at 4:49 p.m. EDT
       
Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers are at the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Weather's unwanted guest: Nasty La Nina keeps popping upLa Nina, the flip side of the better known El Nino weather condition, keeps popping up. La Nina is the natural but temporary cooling of parts of the Pacific that changes weather worldwide. For the U.S., La Nina is connected to more drought and fires out West, more Atlantic hurricanes and agricultural losses. In the late 20th century, La Nina hit 28% of the time.
As Biden administration leans toward $10,000 in student loan forgiveness, advocates push back
       
Student loan borrowers gather near The White House to tell President Biden to cancel student debt - all of it with no means-testing on May 12, 2020 in Washington, DC. More from Personal Finance:Free college is now a reality in nearly 30 states3 ways to avoid taking on too much student loan debtIs college really worth it? The Washington Post on Friday matched prior reporting that the $10,000 plan is the Biden administration's leading student debt cancellation plan in the final days of May. The White House denied to CNBC that it has any set plans to forgive student debt and said it has not made a final decision. Canceling $10,000 per borrower would cost around $321 billion and completely forgive the loans of about one-third of student loan borrowers.
Harris calls for assault weapons ban after back-to-back mass shootings
       
Washington (CNN) Vice President Kamala Harris called for an assault weapons ban Saturday, saying that in the wake of two back-to-back mass shootings such arms are "a weapon of war" with "no place in a civil society." It includes, let's have an assault weapons ban." An assault weapon is a weapon of war with no place, no place in a civil society." He said he needed to instead "convince Congress" to pass legislation like the 1994 assault weapons ban. Biden will visit Uvalde, Texas, on Sunday to meet the families of the children and teachers killed during the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School.
Chris Christie says Trump wants the GOP to be the 'party of me,' where 'everything has to be about him'
       
Chris Christie says that former President Trump wants the GOP to be the "party of me." Christie rejects such a development, arguing that the party must look to the future in order to win. He came to Georgia to campaign for Trump foe Brian Kemp, who easily won his GOP gubernatorial primary this week. "But more important than that, what we have to decide is: do we want to be the party of me or the party of us?" "The reason the Supreme Court is not taking this is not because of a lack of courage," Christie said at the time.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
Ukrainian servicemen walk past a building heavily damaged in a Russian bombing in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, eastern Ukraine, Saturday, May 28, 2022. Fighting has raged around Lysychansk and neighbouring Sievierodonetsk, the last major cities under Ukrainian control in Luhansk region. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)Ukrainian servicemen walk past a building heavily damaged in a Russian bombing in Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine, eastern Ukraine, Saturday, May 28, 2022. Fighting has raged around Lysychansk and neighbouring Sievierodonetsk, the last major cities under Ukrainian control in Luhansk region. Last week Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu announced that Russia would form new military units in the country’s west in response to Sweden and Finland’s bids to join NATO.
AP Top Stories May 28 P
       
AP Top Stories May 28 PHere are the top stories for Saturday, May 28th: Oldest Buffalo shooting victim laid to rest; Biden addresses Delaware graduates Protest at death of Black man held by police in Brazil; Football fans gather for Champions League final.
Biden tells Delaware graduates 'now it's your hour'
       
Biden tells Delaware graduates 'now it's your hour'President Joe Biden told graduates Saturday at his alma mater, the University of Delaware, that “now it's your hour,” as he encouraged young people in the United States to help the country live up to its ideals.
'This is no time to be on the sidelines,' Biden tells University of Delaware graduates
       
President Joe Biden delivered a commencement address at his alma mater, the University of Delaware, on Saturday. The president is scheduled to travel to Uvalde on Sunday, to meet with the families of victims of Tuesday's shooting. — On a Sunday afternoon in June 1965, research scientist Caryl Haskins addressed 1,038 University of Delaware graduates sitting in folding chairs on the campus mall. Among the graduates was Joseph R. Biden Jr., a history and political science major. Biden took the stage at Delaware Stadium south of the university's main campus to loud applause sporting his signature aviator sunglasses under sunny skies.
Opinion | Who Decides the Right Way to Protest?
       
archived recording 3 Demonstrations were largely peaceful across the United States overnight, as hundreds of thousands of Americans continue to protest the killing of George Floyd. archived recording 6 Justice! archived recording 6 Now! archived recording 6 Justice! archived recording 6 Now!
Inside Mitch McConnell’s decades-long effort to block gun control
       
“If there’s any one individual in the United States to blame for our inability to put things in place to prevent gun violence, it’s Mitch McConnell,” said Peter Ambler, the executive director of Giffords, a group devoted to fighting gun violence. “McConnell knows where his members stand and makes the tough calls to protect their interests,” a senior Republican aide said, explaining McConnell’s overall motivations in addressing gun violence and gun legislation. Brown said that the staffer clearly seemed moved by Lewis, telling him that she held him in high esteem, and by the victims of gun violence, who recounted their stories one after another. The Senate Republican leader has spent his career working to delay, obstruct or prevent most major firearms restrictions from being approved by Congress. And McConnell is the head of the Republican Senate,” Feinblatt said.
WNBA Players Ask for Signatures to Petition for Brittney Griner's Release
       
Christian Petersen/Getty ImagesThe WNBPA is asking for signatures on a change.org petition demanding the United States government do "whatever is necessary" to bring Phoenix Mercury center Brittany Griner home from Russia, where she has been detained since February. Russian officials detained Griner after allegedly finding vape cartridges with hashish oil in her luggage at a Moscow airport. The U.S. government has since stated that Griner is being "wrongfully detained." "There is one person that can go get her, and that's our president," Griner said on Good Morning America (h/t Mechelle Voepel of ESPN). Her detention was extended by a month in mid-May with a trial on drug possession charges scheduled for mid-June.
U.S. doctors reconsider Pfizer's Paxlovid for lower-risk COVID patients
       
Use of Pfizer's Paxlovid, authorized to treat newly infected, at-risk people in order to prevent severe illness, has soared as infections have risen. Biden administration officials have pushed for wide use of Paxlovid, which the government purchased and provides free. He said he is still recommending Paxlovid for people who have significant health conditions or are over age 75. "We have not seen any resistance emerge to date in patients treated with Paxlovid," a spokesperson said. The CDC also said it is unclear whether cases of rebound symptoms have anything to do with Paxlovid, or are simply part of the natural trajectory of COVID-19.
Making sense of a mass shooting in the middle of Texas gun country
       
Not even a mass shooting, Methvin and others said, is going to change that overnight. There are ways gun laws should be tightened, he added — though nobody should be coming to take away responsible gun owners’ firearms. At a vigil the night after the shooting, guns went entirely unmentioned. He said he was troubled to see President Biden and Texas Democrats blame the mass shooting on gun laws. He doesn’t hunt much anymore, preferring now to photograph “all of God’s creatures” that inhabit this patch of Texas instead.
AP News Summary at 3:33 p.m. EDT
       
Weather's unwanted guest: Nasty La Nina keeps popping upLa Nina, the flip side of the better known El Nino weather condition, keeps popping up. La Nina is the natural but temporary cooling of parts of the Pacific that changes weather worldwide. For the U.S., La Nina is connected to more drought and fires out West, more Atlantic hurricanes and agricultural losses. In the late 20th century, La Nina hit 28% of the time. Air travelers face cancellations over Memorial Day weekendNEW YORK (AP) — Airline travelers are not only facing sticker shock this Memorial Day weekend.
Jon Voight, Outspoken GOP Supporter, Calls For ‘Proper Qualifications for Gun Ownership’ After Uvalde Shooting
       
Actor Jon Voight, a vocal supporter of former president Donald J. Trump and the Republican party, has released a statement calling for stricter gun control laws in the United States. “There should be proper qualifications for gun ownership,” Voight said in a video released through his official Facebook page. One should only own a gun if they’re qualified and schooled.”Voight’s stance marks a striking divergence from the GOP platform’s typical stance on gun control. The incident is the second-deadliest shooting at an elementary, middle or high school in U.S. history, only behind the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012. And God will call on Jesus to pray for these families.”Currently, Uvalde marks the 27th school shooting with injuries or deaths this year, according to EducationWeek.
Kamala Harris calls for assault weapons ban: ‘We are not sitting around waiting’
       
Kamala Harris called for a ban on assault weapons in the US and the passage of much-delayed gun control legislation after speaking on Saturday at a funeral for the oldest victim of the Buffalo mass shooting earlier this month. After giving remarks at the service for Ruth Whitfield, the oldest person killed during the grocery store shooting two weeks ago, Harris called upon lawmakers to pass an assault weapons ban, while speaking with reporters. “We are not sitting around, waiting to figure out what the solution looks like,” said Harris. It includes – let’s have an assault weapons ban.”“An assault weapon is a weapon of war,” Harris added, “with no place in a civil society.”Harris also called for universal background checks on gun purchases, which is a law long blocked by Republicans in the US Senate. Citing the over 200 mass shootings that have already taken place this year, Harris urged legislators to take action.
Carolyn Bourdeaux’s Primary Loss Breaks Off a Third Member of the Gottheimer Gang
       
Last summer, a group of Democrats organized by New Jersey Rep. Josh Gottheimer derailed President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda by successfully decoupling it from a bipartisan infrastructure bill. The Unbreakable Nine’s numbers are now dwindling, and after Tuesday’s races, they may be down to just four or five. On Tuesday, Rep. Carolyn Bourdeaux lost to Rep. Lucy McBath in a member-on-member race Georgia prompted by redistricting. The Congressional Progressive Caucus managed to delay the vote, and on October 1, Pelosi met privately with her broader caucus. The former veterinarian had never intended to vote for a multitrillion-dollar reconciliation bill at all.
Amid boycotts, US scrambling to make Summit of the Americas a success
       
Several leaders are threatening to boycott the summit because the U.S. has decided to not invite the governments of Venezuela and Nicaragua. "Is it going to be the Summit of the Americas or the Summit of the Friends of America? "I will attend the summit only if all of the countries in the Americas are invited without exception," President Xiomara Castro tweeted Saturday. Biden administration officials have denied that was the case, but a senior Caribbean-nation official said they made a difference in getting 13 of the 14 island nations to RSVP yes, according to Reuters. Fifteen House Democrats, led by House Foreign Affairs Committee chair Gregory Meeks, wrote to Biden Thursday expressing "concern" about the decision.
Ukraine pleads for weapons as Russian onslaught threatens to turn the tide
       
Ukrainian officials say they urgently need advanced US-made mobile multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) to halt Russian advances in Luhansk and Donetsk. Moscow, keenly aware of the game-changing potential of the rocket systems, has already voiced strong objections. But doubts remain about which weapons systems will be provided, and the timing of the US move. Despite the delay, he insisted it was “not too late” to send new weapons to Ukraine. Military support can reduce over time and probably the economic support will become more important as the fighting gradually subsides.”
Majority Savers: Please Support Lauren Underwood!
       
Signature IssuesRep. Lauren Underwood is one of the most progressive members of the House of Representatives. That created an opening during the 2018 blue wave, which Lauren Underwood took advantage of and won. In Quarter 1 of 2022, Rep. Lauren Underwood raised a healthy $763k, which means she is expecting a heavily contested election once more. (2/2) pic.twitter.com/TlJYGymbDi — Rep. Lauren Underwood (@RepUnderwood) May 12, 2022If Facebook is more your style, go ahead and follow her at underwoodforcongress. Thank you for supporting Rep. Lauren Underwood by reading this article!
Can Biden Be the Churchill for this Midterm Battle Against Fascism?
       
American democracy is under assault from the Republican Party. This Republican Party getting control of the Congress, many observers believe, could be a death knell to American democracy itself. The President, with his bully pulpit, has an especially important role to play. The role the nation needs Biden to play is clear, but it is unclear how effective Biden can be in that kind of a role in this kind of a battle even if he wants to. But Biden, like anyone else, can only do his best.
The Manchin Spider Enigma
       
He is an enigma to me. That is not good but that does not explain his position against most of the Democratic agenda, including Roe, gun control, the filibuster, etc. Could he be a republican plant and like a spider, little by little has been creating a web to capture and destroy Biden and the Democratic Agenda? I wrote the statistics about religious democrats and Republicans backwards and also, I said that in my 70 years I had not met a religious democrat. And I met one religious democrat.
I am channeling my fury into action and you can too: Saturday's GNR
       
And to all of you who are NOT Senate Republicans, how about some good news to keep us energized? Dow Jones Rallies On Inflation DataThe Dow Jones Industrial Average rose as stocks rallied on encouraging inflation data. Core personal consumption expenditures — the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation indicator — rose 4.9% in April, slower than March's 5.2% increase. President Biden had hoped to make the announcement as soon as this weekend at the University of Delaware commencement, the people said, but that timing has changed after the massacre Tuesday in Texas. Every President Talks About Focusing on China—Biden’s Really Doing ItJoe Biden is committed to succeeding where his predecessors failed.
The NRA's thoughts & prayers have been answered: 'good woman with a gun' stops mass shooting
       
We don’t know yet. We don’t know why she had a pistol, if she was a guest at the party or just happened to be there by chance. We don’t know how much training she had, or how she feels about having had to use that gun to defend herself and others. We don’t know if that apartment complex had a crime problem and no confidence in the police. The gun lobby is going to be all over this as proof more guns everywhere is the solution to gun violence.
Science has answers to why conservatives fall so easily for COVID-19 and Russian propaganda
       
This is why fearmongering is used more often as a persuasion technique in right-wing media, and why conspiracies are more likely to take root in conservative thought. Glut of right-wing misinformationResearchers from The Ohio State University ran a study in 2021 on political views and media bias. He said invasion talk was “hysteria” and had a chyron under him that read: “NEWS OUTLETS ARE BEHAVING LIKE STATE MEDIA AND UNCRITICALLY PUSHING STATE DEPT PROPAGANDA.” The career diplomats at the State Department were lying. Right-wing media creates conspiracy theorists by trapping them in a vortex of fear. Fox News isn’t getting any better, as seen by their latest fearmongering on “great replacement theory.” It’s too bad right-wing media outlets don’t come with warning labels.
The student loan crisis was caused by a pile of problems. It requires more than one solution
       
If student loan repayment was easy to navigate, and if the terms were fair, then perhaps there wouldn't be a crisis. We need to get to a place where student loan payments don’t leave borrowers feeling trapped by their loans. Blanket forgiveness or targeted forgiveness are two options that would help correct the years of government inaction that led to the student loan debt crisis. Another important feature of the Australian student loan system is that student loans are interest-free. Student loan debt is forever.
Scott Ritter & Ray on Ukraine, Russia, China
       
Recent developments, including talks with Chinese officials, have fortified Scott's view that China remains extremely reluctant to go to war over Taiwan. Scott reiterated his longstanding view that Russian forces will prevail on the ground in Ukraine, adding that recently they have been performing in a very impressive, professional way. UPDATEIn this context, the trial-balloon-type media reports yesterday afternoon, after our interview, that the U.S. is preparing to send long-range rocket systems to Ukraine, takes on added importance. This is much farther than the systems currently in Ukraine's inventory, and could put Russia itself within range. This system has been sitting atop the long list of requests from Ukrainian officials, who say it is needed to curb advancing Russian forces in the Donbas.
Federal government sues Alaska over subsistence
       
Joaqlin EstusIndian Country TodayWhen fish numbers are low, who gets to continue to harvest fish in rural Alaska? The Biden administration filed suit on May 17 against the Alaska Department of Fish and Game over fish openings on the Kuskokwim River during fish shortages. This latest tussle was prompted by the state ignoring federal authority on the Kuskokwim river, which passes through the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. Subsistence is vitally important to those villages, as it is to the economy of all of rural Alaska. 2016 (Photo by Krista Langlois, courtesy of Kuskokwim River Inter-tribal Fish Commission)Refuge managers have been working closely with the Kuskokwim River Intertribal Fish Commission, which represents 33 tribes.
After Mass Shootings, Republicans Shield White Supremacists From Scrutiny
       
The bill would require federal agencies to document and report domestic terrorism threats, including white supremacists and neo-Nazis inside law enforcement agencies. Thanks to Trump and others on the far right, white supremacist ideologies such as “replacement theory” that motivated the Buffalo gunman are going mainstream among GOP voters. Like other Republicans, Roy argued the anti-terrorism bill would be used by the Biden administration to target right-wing activists. It’s no secret white supremacists and far right extremists have claimed far more lives with violent attacks in the U.S. than leftists. And Republicans rejected the focus on identifying white supremacists working in law enforcement.
Biden Administration Sues Alaska Over Opening of Fishing Areas Amid Shortages
       
When fish numbers are low, who gets to continue to harvest fish in rural Alaska? The Biden administration filed suit on May 17 against the Alaska Department of Fish and Game over fish openings on the Kuskokwim River during fish shortages. This latest tussle was prompted by the state ignoring federal authority on the Kuskokwim river, which passes through the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge. Subsistence is vitally important to those villages, as it is to the economy of all of rural Alaska. For instance, in Akiak, a village of 400 on the Kuskokwim River, a dozen eggs cost $6.65 at the Kokarmiut general store.
US aligns with European Union against the UK on Northern Ireland Protocol
       
The Biden administration has come out strongly against Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government in the deepening row between the UK and European Union over the Northern Ireland Protocol. It was ostensibly designed to prevent the return of a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, a European Union (EU) member state. Vehicles at the port of Larne, Northern Ireland, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2021. But there can be no connection between that and doing the right thing for Northern Ireland. The democratic and social aspirations of workers and youth in Northern Ireland, Catholic and Protestant, can only be realised through a politically conscious struggle for a united and socialist Ireland.
Wall Street-Funded Super PAC Plans to Spend $1 Million to Oust Tlaib in Primary
       
Politico reports Urban Empowerment Action PAC announced a new campaign to “elect solutions-oriented Democrats” to Congress. https://t.co/n7l23xLGqm — Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) May 27, 2022According to Politico, Sellers — the former South Carolina state lawmaker and failed lieutenant governor candidate who regularly appears on CNN as a political analyst — is fundraising for UEA PAC. That sweeping climate and social spending package has still not passed, in large part due to obstructionist right-wing members of Tlaib’s own party. “She represents all working-class people in her district and in her city.”Imagine spending $1 million to oust @RashidaTlaib instead of on organizing in Detroit to ensure Michigan goes blue. Shouldn’t you focus on holding the Dem majority?”This piece was reprinted by Truthout with permission or license.
Uvalde picks up pieces as shifting accounts of attack trouble officials
       
Muñoz criticized the Texas Department of Public Safety for its shifting accounts of what occurred at the school on Tuesday, but he cautioned against drawing too many conclusions. He said he spoke on Saturday with Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw, and that the two men cried together. He confirmed that officers waited for nearly an hour in a hallway outside the locked classroom, where authorities say Salvador Rolando Ramos was shooting children and killing their teachers. AdvertisementHere in Uvalde, a seemingly endless schedule of funerals has been released, beginning Tuesday and stretching for nearly two weeks. One of the first will be for Amerie Jo Garza, one of the 19 children killed.
Harris, at funeral for Buffalo shooting victim, says America experiencing 'epidemic of hate'
       
Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday spoke at the funeral of one of the 10 people killed by a gunman at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York – and said that the U.S. is experiencing an "epidemic of hate." Harris spoke at the funeral of Ruth Whitfield, who was one of the 10 killed when a gunman opened fire in a grocery store on May 14. Authorities have said that the gunman, who is White, chose the grocery store because it's in a predominantly Black neighborhood. "And I do believe that our nation right now is experiencing an epidemic of hate." Harris’ remarks comes as President Biden spoke at the University of Delaware and highlighted the shooting in Uvalde.
Ukrainians say they're badly outgunned by Russia in the battle for the Donbas
       
Wounded soldiers, many of them asleep, filled beds in crowded rooms. The facility is a primary treatment center for soldiers wounded on the northern Donbas front. Ukrainian soldiers say they don't have the right weaponsThe Donbas is an agricultural and industrial region. Traffic on the roads becomes almost exclusively Ukrainian military. The geography of the Donbas makes this an artillery war, and Ukrainian soldiers say right now they are badly outgunned.
More baby formula shipments arrive from overseas in an effort to ease the shortage
       
More baby formula shipments arrive from overseas in an effort to ease the shortageEnlarge this image toggle caption Jose Luis Magana/AP Jose Luis Magana/APThe U.S. will distribute another 1.25 million cans of baby formula in effort to replenish the country's dire supply in the coming weeks, the Food and Drug Administration says. That stock will bring the total imported supply of baby formula product to the equivalent of 30 million 8-ounce bottles, since the Biden administration began its effort to alleviate the national shortage. During the first week of May, the average out-of-stock rate for baby formula at retailers nationwide was 43%, according to data from Datasembly. "We will not rest until our shelves are replete with safe and nutritious infant formula." The imports are part of the Biden administration's program to expedite the delivery of infant formula from abroad to stores as the U.S. market faces a shortage.
Monkeypox symptoms and how to tell if you have it: what you need to know
       
Scattered outbreaks of monkeypox cases have been raising alarm, and there are plenty of questions about how people can protect themselves. What are the monkeypox symptoms to look out for? People who may have symptoms of monkeypox, or who reports contact with someone who has a confirmed or suspected case of monkeypox, should contact their healthcare provider. The U.S. has 1,000 doses of the Jynneos monkeypox vaccine in its national stockpile, and also has 100 million doses of the older smallpox vaccine, which could potentially be used. The original smallpox vaccine, ACAM2000, was shown to be about 85% effective in preventing monkeypox, although there were some serious side effects.
3rd Congressional District sees primaries on both sides
       
Randell Hynes and Susie Lee, Democratic candidates for Congressional District 1, 2022 primary. Clockwise from top left: April Becker, Clark Bossert, John Kovacs and Noah Malgeri, Republican candidates for Congressional District 3, 2022 primary. In the last Congress, the nonpartisan Lugar Center ranked Lee as the most bipartisan Nevada member of the House at No. With a background in solar energy, Hynes said he would push for continued development and installation of panels at residences and on public lands. In Nevada, Congressional District 3 has long been a “swing” district.
AP News Summary at 2:22 p.m. EDT
       
Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers moved swiftly to the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Weather's unwanted guest: Nasty La Nina keeps popping upLa Nina, the flip side of the better known El Nino weather condition, keeps popping up. La Nina is the natural but temporary cooling of parts of the Pacific that changes weather worldwide. For the U.S., La Nina is connected to more drought and fires out West, more Atlantic hurricanes and agricultural losses. In the late 20th century, La Nina hit 28% of the time.
In Uvalde, Biden will walk into a mix of grief, anger, political attacks and broken hearts
       
UVALDE, Texas – Again, for the second time in just two weeks, President Joe Biden will be the nation’s comforter-in-chief. But in Uvalde, Texas, where a teenage gunman slaughtered 19 children and two teachers on Tuesday, he will walk into a town not just in mourning, but a conservative area where many have already been angry with him over a range of issues.
Biden urges students to take up public service in college address
       
President Biden urged students at the University of Delaware not to lose hope in America and take up a life of public service. “We need all of you to get engaged in public life and the life of this nation,” Biden told graduates of the school in a commencement address. “There’s one message I hope you take from me today: This is no time to be on the sidelines. Biden also reflected on the shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde, Texas. REUTERS“Let’s be clear, evil came to that elementary school classroom in Texas and that grocery store in New York,” Biden said.
Opinion: School shootings could be prevented—3 essential reads on why we’ve suffered 137 of them just this year
       
As the graph below shows, the frequency of school shootings in the U.S. has increased dramatically over the past few years. School shootings are at a record highThe attack at Robb Elementary School was, according to the data, the 137th school shooting to take place in the U.S. so far this year. “ “School shootings are not inevitable. The two scholars contrast this local response to school shooting in the U.S. to the national legislative action taken in countries such as the U.K., Finland and Germany, concluding: “School shootings are not inevitable. The suspect in the Robb Elementary School reportedly bought his military-style rifles shortly after his 18th birthday.
WNBA players urge President Joe Biden to bring Brittney Griner home on 100th day of detainment
       
Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner has been wrongfully detained in Russia for 100 days. Prominent WNBA players and the WNBPA came together Saturday to urge those in power to get Griner back home. Story continuesSue Bird spoke about efforts to bring Griner home on J.J. Redick's podcast. Brittney Griner wrongfully detained in RussiaGriner has spent 100 days detained in Russia after the country allegedly found vape cartridges containing hashish oil in Griner's suitcase. President Biden and his staff declared Griner to be "wrongfully detained" May 3, prompting more action from those involved with the WNBA.
Elon Musk Asks Jeff Bezos to Choose Between Partying and Space
       
Musk and Bezos also seem concerned about growing homelessness in big cities like San Francisco and Seattle. And Musk seems to need this rivalry, a healthy rivalry in the conquest of space with Bezos in particular. But the advantage of this rivalry is positive for the conquest of space and Musk is aware of it. Starlink is well ahead of Project Kuiper currently, with more than 2,400 satellites already in orbit. Last month, NASA picked six satellite companies -- including Musk's SpaceX and Project Kuiper --- to develop space communication services in Earth orbit.
Progress to fight racism in Connecticut continues two years after the death of George Floyd; leaders and activists say we have a ways to go
       
Advertisement“The murder of George Floyd enlightened all of us into thinking more heavily, more deeply, more sincerely about the ways we are interacting with race,” says Mercy Quaye, founder and director of The Narrative Project. This is post uprising after the murder of George Floyd. The order comes on the second anniversary of George Floyd's death, and is focused on policing. “George Floyd’s death was not in vain,” Herrington says. “We will never lose the stain of what happened to George Floyd.
Justices to rule in gun case with US raw from mass shootings
       
Winkler predicted the recent shootings would not do anything to change the outcome in the guns case, where the court's conservative majority has been expected to strike down a New York gun law. "Pro-gun justices are pro-gun," he said, adding it is not likely that recent mass shootings have done anything to change that. The decisions in both the abortion and guns cases are expected to be released sometime in the next month before the justices take their summer break. The gun case the court is considering involves a New York law that makes it difficult for people to get a permit to carry a gun outside the home. No matter how the court decides the New York case, other gun rights disputes are already at or nearing the court.
AP News Summary at 1:05 p.m. EDT
       
Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers moved swiftly to the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Weather's unwanted guest: Nasty La Nina keeps popping upLa Nina, the flip side of the better known El Nino weather condition, keeps popping up. La Nina is the natural but temporary cooling of parts of the Pacific that changes weather worldwide. For the U.S., La Nina is connected to more drought and fires out West, more Atlantic hurricanes and agricultural losses. In the late 20th century, La Nina hit 28% of the time.
Biden Is Running Out of Options to Tame Soaring Gasoline Prices
       
(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden has vowed to do everything in his power to fight record-setting gasoline and diesel prices, but he’s up against a stark reality: There are few options for taming the surge. Americans have already begun paring their driving in the face of gasoline prices that have set near-daily records for the last two weeks, but no one should expect Biden to encourage more of that conservation. Expand Summertime Sales of Higher-Ethanol GasolineThe Biden administration has already moved to allow wider summer sales of E15 gasoline that contains 15% ethanol by waiving it from fuel-volatility restrictions. Lower Biofuel-Blending MandatesThe Biden administration is under pressure to lower biofuel-blending quotas and exempt some refineries from them altogether. Tap US Emergency Fuel StockpilesThe Biden administration is considering withdrawing supplies from emergency stockpiles of fuel, going beyond raw crude reserves.
Ukraine pleads for weapons as Russian onslaught threatens to turn the tide
       
Ukrainian officials say they urgently need advanced US-made mobile multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) to halt Russian advances in Luhansk and Donetsk. Moscow, keenly aware of the game-changing potential of the rocket systems, has already voiced strong objections. But doubts remain about which weapons systems will be provided, and the timing of the US move. Despite the delay, he insisted it was “not too late” to send new weapons to Ukraine. Military support can reduce over time and probably the economic support will become more important as the fighting gradually subsides.”
Biden, Wasserman Schultz Secure Funds to Start Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir Project
       
Last year, the President provided $350 million in Everglades restoration funding, following it up with $1.1 billion more in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. His overall funding and this move to expedite the EAA Reservoir proves that.”President Biden included $265 million to build the EAA Reservoir foundation in Fiscal Year 2022. “We extend our appreciation to U.S. Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz for her unwavering support of Everglades restoration,” said Eric Eikenberg, CEO, The Everglades Foundation. “The EAA Reservoir project is the most consequential project for connecting all areas of the Everglades. His overall funding and this move to expedite the EAA Reservoir proves that.”President Biden included $265 million to build the EAA Reservoir foundation in Fiscal Year 2022.
Russia's blockade of Ukraine ports is further complicating dire baby formula shortages in the US by preventing exports of key ingredient
       
Parents around the country are struggling to feed their children amid the baby formula shortage. Ukraine is the world's top exporter of sunflower oil, a common ingredient in baby formula. Ukraine is the world's top exporter of sunflower oil, a common ingredient in baby formula. Together, Ukraine and Russia export around 75% of the world's sunflower oil. The administration also launched Operation Fly Formula, a global effort to import formula into the US.
'We are cowards if we don't act': Texas, Buffalo shootings shadow hearing for Biden's ATF nominee
       
"Politics has absolutely no place in law enforcement," Dettelbach said. As a nominee for the ATF post, the former federal prosecutor said he would leave such legislative policy efforts to state and federal lawmakers to decide. As with all prior nominees to the post, Dettelbach faces stiff resistance from the powerful gun lobby, led by the National Rifle Association, which led the opposition to Biden's first ATF nominee, David Chipman. "I’m concerned this administration is responding to demands to focus on the ATF’s regulatory responsibilities at the expense of its law enforcement duties," Grassley said Wednesday. The 18-year-old accused attacker in the Buffalo assault allegedly chose the supermarket because it was frequented by area Black residents.
How Tim Scott rose from poverty to become our only black GOP senator
       
CHARLESTON, South Carolina — Tim Scott knows the hassle that comes with being both black and conservative. Recently “The View” host Sunny Hostin said that being a black Republican is an oxymoron, and Scott, who is the only black Republican in the US senate, just shook his head. Despite having risen to become the most prominent elected black Republican in the country, Tim Scott has never forgotten where he came from. While Scott may be the only black Republican senator, he’s quick to remind critics that the Democrats have just two black senators. As for being the only black Republican in the US Senate, Scott deadpans, “Let’s not forget that the Democrats only have two black senators.
Hate crime battle is persistent challenge for Biden's administration
       
The massacre sent a defiant message to a ceremony meant to highlight the Biden administration’s fight against racist violence. After citing successful prosecutions in hate crime cases, Garland announced “noncriminal tools” to help prevent them. Hate crimes reported against Black people jumped 43 percent to 2,755. Yet at the same time more than 60 jurisdictions with populations over 100,000 reported zero hate crimes, a circumstance ADL finds “simply not credible.”AdvertisementJake Hyman, an ADL associate director of communications, complained by email about “the persistent lack of complete and reliable data about hate crimes in this country. Garland’s toolbox to combat hate crimes does not include restraining inflammatory speech by elected officials.
Biden to University of Delaware grads, 'We can't outlaw tragedy, but we can make America safer'
       
President Biden gave a commencement address Saturday at his alma mater, University of Delaware, for their 2022 graduation ceremony. Speaking about recent struggles in the U.S., Biden highlighted the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers were shot and killed by a lone gunman. UVALDE, TEXAS SCHOOL SHOOTING: 19 CHILDREN, 2 TEACHERS KILLED, SUSPECTED SHOOTER DEAD"In the face of such destructive forces we have to stand stronger. We must stand stronger," Biden told the audience. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP"The progress in our country has always been met with ferocious pushback from the oldest and darkest forces in America always," Biden told the audience.
Biden to Delaware grads: 'Now it's your hour'
       
“There’s one message I hope you take from me today: This is no time to be on the sidelines,” he added. Biden, who graduated from the university in 1965 with a double major in history and political science, served as a senator in Delaware for more than 30 years before becoming vice president. It was his fifth commencement address at the university, where the school of public policy and administration bears his name. His sister, Valerie Biden Owens, and his wife, first lady Jill Biden, also graduated from the university. “It feels like coming home because this is home,” Biden said, reflecting that “Some of the best and most important years of my life were spent here.”
In Georgia, 2 Black candidates to compete for Senate seat
       
As she left an Atlanta polling site, Wyvonia Carter said her choice in what might be the most competitive Senate race this year was not particularly complicated. Black voters were crucial in helping Democrats secure those victories and will likely be decisive again this year. The issue is less about whether Walker will break the bond that Black voters have had with Democratic candidates. “In this race, Black Georgians will not have to contend with the race issue,” said Camilla Moore, chair of the Georgia Black Republican Council. More recently, South Carolina’s Tim Scott, the Senate’s only Black Republican, was unsuccessfully challenged in 2016 by Thomas Dixon, a North Charleston pastor.
John Legend wants to transform the criminal justice system, one DA at a time
       
He's also throwing his support behind a number of progressive prosecutors who are running on a promise to reform a criminal justice system that they say is outdated and that disproportionately punishes and over incarcerates people of color. Most progressive prosecutors, like the ones Legend is endorsing, support eliminating the death penalty, limiting prosecutions for low-level offenses and ending cash bail. In an interview with NPR's Juana Summers, Legend discusses progressive prosecutors, the criminal justice system and President Biden's approach to policing. Politically, many opponents of progressive prosecutors seek to draw a link between the policies of those prosecutors and rising crime rates. Focus on those areas, invest in those areas and not in a more punitive criminal legal system.
'We received feedback': The commercialization of Juneteenth backfires for big brands
       
Large corporations that initially sought to cash in on Juneteenth-themed items ahead of the new federal holiday on are now walking back their commercialization efforts after backlash on social media. "Juneteenth holiday marks a celebration of freedom and independence," the company said in a statement. "However, we received feedback that a few items caused concern for some of our customers and we sincerely apologize. On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden signed a law that made Juneteenth a federal holiday. “Imagine how different the landscape would look if Juneteenth had been designated as a federal holiday after reparations had been paid,” he said.
Biden tells Delaware grads to step up, 'now it's your hour'
       
(AP) — President Joe Biden told graduates Saturday at his alma mater, the University of Delaware, that “now it's your hour,” as he encouraged young people in the United States to help the country live up to its ideals. Speaking to more than 6,000 graduates, and with the nation mourning victims of two mass shootings in as many weeks. He bemoaned a “crisis of faith” in U.S. institutions and he pressed graduates to work to bind up the country's wounds. It was his fifth commencement address at the university, where the school of public policy and administration bears his name. His sister, Valerie Biden Owens, and his wife, first lady Jill Biden, also graduated from the university.
AP News Summary at 12:33 p.m. EDT
       
Police inaction moves to center of Uvalde shooting probeThe actions of a school district police chief and other law enforcement officers moved swiftly to the center of the investigation into this week’s shocking school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Weather's unwanted guest: Nasty La Nina keeps popping upLa Nina, the flip side of the better known El Nino weather condition, keeps popping up. La Nina is the natural but temporary cooling of parts of the Pacific that changes weather worldwide. For the U.S., La Nina is connected to more drought and fires out West, more Atlantic hurricanes and agricultural losses. In the late 20th century, La Nina hit 28% of the time.
Second man pleads guilty in plot to bomb Democrats’ California headquarters
       
A California man has pleaded guilty to multiple offences as part of a plot to blow up the state Democratic Party’s headquarters in Sacramento after Joe Biden’s inauguration in January 2021. Referring to the date of Mr Biden’s inauguration, Mr Rogers wrote: “After the 20th we go to war”. Mr Rogers’s plea agreement includes an admission that he planned to use the weapons “against the property of those whose political views differed from his, including the Democratic Headquarters building in Sacramento”. And on 5 January 2021, the night before the US Capitol was violently attacked by a mob of Trump supporters, devices were left outside the Republican and Democratic headquarters in Washington DC. While a suspect was filmed on CCTV placing the viable devices, the FBI still has not announced any progress in identifying them.
When is the US dropping pre-departure tests for vaccinated travellers?
       
Pressure is mounting on the US to lift all COVID travel restrictions, with hundreds of travel organisations issuing a fresh plea to the government on 5 May. When will the US drop its pre-departure testing rule? ASTA (American Society of Travel Agents) recently dubbed the pre-departure test “the single biggest barrier” to travel’s recovery. The American Society of Travel Agents recently dubbed the pre-departure test “the single biggest barrier” to travel’s recovery. “Further, since the federal government does not require negative tests for entry at our land-border ports of entry with Canada and Mexico, it no longer makes sense to keep a pre-departure Covid testing requirement in place for vaccinated international air travellers to the US,” the letter adds.
N.J. man found guilty of felony obstruction of Congress in Jan. 6 riot
       
Hale-Cusanelli, 32, of Colts Neck, N.J., worked as a security guard and lived on the Naval Weapons Station Earle there. The trial focused on Hale-Cusanelli’s actions on Jan. 6 and his comments afterward to a roommate and federal investigators. He and his lawyer, Jonathan Crisp, mostly did not challenge the four misdemeanor counts: entering a restricted building, disorderly conduct in a restricted area, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, and parading or demonstrating in a Capitol building. His text messages before and after Jan. 6, declaring that Joe Biden had not been legally elected, used the n-word. Of the 15 felony sentences, the average prison term handed down has been about 30.6 months, according to Washington Post records.
Trump is trapped in the past, and it’s hurting him with GOP voters
       
Placeholder while article actions loadDonald Trump is trapped in the past and losing his grip on the Republican Party. He remains the dominant force within the GOP, and his ideas are widely mimicked by many GOP elected officials and candidates. But the longer Trump clings to his big lie about 2020, the wearier many Republicans could become with the politics of the past. Trump prodded GOP leaders in the state assembly to launch something akin to the flawed review of the ballots in Arizona. AdvertisementA few days after the state GOP convention, divisions within the GOP over Trump’s lies surfaced again.
'It’s too much violence': Joe Biden addresses shootings in Buffalo and Texas during commencement speech
       
President Joe Biden called on Americans to "stand stronger" to make the nation safer while addressing the mass shootings in New York and Texas that killed 31 people combined. Biden made the remarks Saturday morning during a commencement speech at his alma mater, the University of Delaware. "And now, tomorrow I'll be heading to Uvalde, Texas to meet with each of those families," Biden said. ... We have to stand stronger, we must stand stronger. During their visit Sunday to Uvalde, they will speak with community and religious leaders as well as the families of victims.
As Colorado wildfire season heats up, low pay and slow reforms could spell staffing trouble for federal firefighting efforts
       
CPR News spoke to four U.S. Forest Service employees like Johnson who say low pay and other labor problems are the main reason for the staffing shortages. To slow turnover, President Joe Biden in 2021 announced one-time bonuses and raises to ensure federal firefighters made at least $15 an hour. The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management declined CPR News’ interview requests. Officials with the Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control did not respond to emailed questions about how the shortage of federal firefighters could affect the state’s firefighting response. Colorado’s wildfire season is now 78 days longer than it was in the 1970s, state fire experts say.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
It wasUkraine’s train system has ferried arms and evacuated citizens through Lyman, a key railway hub in the country’s east. Zelenskyy called the situation in the east “difficult” but expressed confidence his country would prevail with help from Western weapons and sanctions. She cried as she sat on a train bound for western Ukraine. A nearly three-month siege of Mariupol ended last week when Russia claimed complete control of the city. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday.
Will Connecticut offshore wind jobs be union jobs? Here’s what the US Energy secretary says.
       
NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) — The growing offshore wind industry is often touted as a boon for job creation, but who will do the work? Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm visited the New London State Pier facility last week to see how Orsted, energy provider Eversource and the state of Connecticut are transforming it into a hub for the offshore wind industry. It sets the terms and conditions for union workers to build offshore wind farms, with targets to ensure a diverse workforce. “We know it’s new and there’s a lot coming.”The first U.S. offshore wind farm began operating off Block Island, Rhode Island, in late 2016. Its transmission system will connect to the electric grid on Long Island, New York, making it the state’s first offshore wind farm and jumpstarting the offshore wind industry there.
Slow police response may have delayed treatment for injured students in Texas elementary school massacre: Live updates
       
Officials on Friday acknowledged a catastrophic failure by law enforcement to not immediately enter the classroom amid a gunman's massacre of 19 students and two teachers at a Texas elementary school this week. TIMELINE:How Texas elementary school shooting, deadliest since Sandy Hook, unfoldedFormer Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo told the LA Times that critically injured people should typically receive care within an hour before the risk of mortality increases. “Let's be clear: Evil came to that elementary school classroom in Texas. 12:19 p.m.: A call came in from a student who said they were in Room 111, who hung up after another student told the caller to do so. WARNING SIGNS TO LOOK FOR:Eight warnings behaviors of a potential mass shooterStudents who survived Texas school attack describe sceneA young survivor of the massacre at a Texas elementary school said she covered herself with a friend’s blood and pretended to be dead while she waited for help to arrive.
Joe Biden nominates 3 men to be U.S. marshals in Georgia
       
ATLANTA (AP) — President Joe Biden on Thursday nominated police chiefs in Savannah and Perry and a former DeKalb County sheriff to serve as U.S. marshals in Georgia's three federal court districts. Marshals Service in their districts, including protecting courts, transporting prisoners, pursuing fugitives and serving federal arrest warrants. Savannah Police Chief Roy Minter Jr., who has led that department since 2018, would be the marshal for the Southern District of Georgia. It includes 43 counties with courthouses in Savannah, Augusta, Brunswick, Dublin, Statesboro and Waycross. Perry Police Chief Steve Lynn would be the marshal for the Middle District of Georgia.
A Supreme Court justice’s solution to gun violence: Repeal Second Amendment
       
In a March 27, 2018, New York Times op-ed, Stevens praised the protesters and their call for stricter gun control laws. Urging a politically impossible effort just strengthens opponents of achievable reform.”Tribe expanded on his argument in a Washington Post op-ed, headlined “The Second Amendment isn’t the problem.” “The NRA’s strongest rallying cry has been: ‘They’re coming for our beloved Second Amendment,’” he wrote. Republican President Gerald Ford nominated Stevens to the court in 1975, at a time when Supreme Court nominations were not as politicized as they are today. And America is going to reel from one mass murder to another unless the Second Amendment is repealed or the Supreme Court drastically reduces its scope.”“As a starting point,” he added, “Democrats should drop the mealy-mouthed formulation, ‘Nobody supports the Second Amendment more than I do, but still. Just last month, President Biden declared, “I support the Second Amendment,” although he said that didn’t mean people could get any gun they wanted.
Kamala Harris to attend final funeral for Buffalo shooting victims
       
The last funeral for victims of a gunman’s racist attack on a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, two weeks ago will take place on Saturday afternoon as the oldest person to die in the mass shooting is laid to rest. The vice-president, Kamala Harris, and second gentleman, Doug Emhoff, will attend and the civil rights activist Al Sharpton is expected to deliver the eulogy at the service at Mount Olive Baptist church in Buffalo. She had been visiting her husband of 68 years in a nearby nursing home on that Saturday, 14 May. Whitfield was the mother of the former Buffalo fire commissioner Garnell Whitfield. After a long delay as law enforcement hesitated, the gunman was shot dead by a federal agent.
Bailout planned for British microchip giant as China deal comes under scrutiny
       
A US-backed consortium preparing to make an offer for Newport Wafer Fab has held talks with the £1bn Automotive Transformation Fund (ATF) about supporting high-tech research at the Newport Wafer Fab facility in South Wales. Nexperia, which is 100pc owned by the Chinese technology company Wingtech, acquired Newport Wafer Fab for £63m last year. The plant fell into financial trouble during the pandemic, allowing Netherlands-based Nexperia, which owned 14pc of Newport Wafer Fab, to exercise an option to buy it. One source said this could include former members of Newport Wafer Fab’s management team. Mr Constance declined to comment on any potential funding, but said the fund was interested in funding gallium nitride and silicon carbide projects.
California man pleads guilty to plotting to FIREBOMB Democratic HQ after Trump's election loss
       
A California man has pleaded guilty to plotting to firebomb Democratic headquarters following Donald Trump's election loss. On Friday, 46-year-old Napa resident Ian Benjamin Rogers pleaded guilty to conspiring to destroy a building by fire or explosives, possessing an explosive device and possessing a machine gun under a plea agreement. In a different message he said that after Democratic President Joe Biden was inaugurated, 'we go to war.' Their first planned target was the John L. Burton Democratic Headquarters in Sacramento, prosecutors said. The card says 'Trumps Everything' and has the number of '0045' repeated four times like a credit card number, a nod to Trump being the 45th president.
How Gen X Became the Trumpiest Generation
       
The popular image of Generation X has never quite fit in within any easy political framing. Now, though, there is no confusion: Generation X is safely Republican. In a poll released in late April by Marist/NPR that separated voters by generation, Generation X had the highest level of disapproval for Biden and were the generation most likely to say they would vote for a Republican candidate in the midterms if they were held that day. While voters have historically tended to be more conservative as they age, that has accelerated with Generation X. In fact, Tom Bonier, the CEO of TargetSmart, a Democratic data firm, told me that Generation X has now become the most conservative generation, surpassing the Boomers in their rightward tilt.
Kellyanne Conway says the 2020 Trump campaign's China-centric 'Beijing Biden' attacks were 'foolish'
       
Kellyanne Conway in her new book says the GOP's "Beijing Biden" attacks didn't connect with voters. Conway described Trump's 2020 presidential reelection effort as "more solipsistic than scrappy." Biden during his presidency has received pushback from China for his posture regarding Taiwan. While campaigning for reelection in Ohio weeks before the November general election, Trump warned that Biden's ascent to the White House would halt gains in the manufacturing sector. "Put simply, if Biden wins, China wins," Trump said at the time, per The Associated Press.
A Supreme Court justice’s solution to gun violence: Repeal Second Amendment
       
In a March 27, 2018, New York Times op-ed, Stevens praised the protesters and their call for stricter gun control laws. Urging a politically impossible effort just strengthens opponents of achievable reform.”Tribe expanded on his argument in a Washington Post op-ed, headlined “The Second Amendment isn’t the problem.” “The NRA’s strongest rallying cry has been: ‘They’re coming for our beloved Second Amendment,’” he wrote. “Not sensible gun control. And America is going to reel from one mass murder to another unless the Second Amendment is repealed or the Supreme Court drastically reduces its scope.”“As a starting point,” he added, “Democrats should drop the mealy-mouthed formulation, ‘Nobody supports the Second Amendment more than I do, but still. Just last month, President Biden declared, “I support the Second Amendment,” although he said that didn’t mean people could get any gun they wanted.
Weekly Roundup
       
Those higher interest rates are continuing to weigh on the weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index, with the latest data showing the unadjusted Purchase Index falling 16% year-over-year for the week ending May 20. This week the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gas in the U.S. reached $4.60 according to AAA. Looking at the IBB iShares biotech ETF (IBB) , the weekly chart shows these stocks are starting to recover. Viewed from a different perspective, 28%-30% of Cboe's revenue stream is from recurring non-transaction revenue that includes proprietary market data as well as access and capacity fees. Data Center revenue climbed 83% YoY to $3.75 billion while Gaming revenue rose 31% YoY to $3.62 billion.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Ukraine’s train system has ferried arms and evacuated citizens during the war, and controlling the city would give Russian troops another foothold for advancing on larger Ukrainian-held cities. During the 80-minute call, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron urged an immediate cease-fire and a withdrawal of Russian troops, according to the chancellor’s spokesperson. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday. ___Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
AdvertisementLyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Ukraine’s train system has ferried arms and evacuated citizens during the war, and controlling the city would give Russian troops another foothold for advancing on larger Ukrainian-held cities. AdvertisementDuring the 80-minute call, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron urged an immediate cease-fire and a withdrawal of Russian troops, according to the chancellor’s spokesperson. On Tuesday, Russian troops took over Svitlodarsk, a small municipality that hosts a thermal power station, while intensifying efforts to encircle and capture the larger city of Sievierodonetsk. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
AdvertisementLyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Ukraine’s train system has ferried arms and evacuated citizens during the war, and controlling the city would give Russian troops another foothold for advancing on larger Ukrainian-held cities. AdvertisementDuring the 80-minute call, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron urged an immediate cease-fire and a withdrawal of Russian troops, according to the chancellor’s spokesperson. On Tuesday, Russian troops took over Svitlodarsk, a small municipality that hosts a thermal power station, while intensifying efforts to encircle and capture the larger city of Sievierodonetsk. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
AdvertisementLyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Ukraine’s train system has ferried arms and evacuated citizens during the war, and controlling the city would give Russian troops another foothold for advancing on larger Ukrainian-held cities. AdvertisementDuring the 80-minute call, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron urged an immediate cease-fire and a withdrawal of Russian troops, according to the chancellor’s spokesperson. On Tuesday, Russian troops took over Svitlodarsk, a small municipality that hosts a thermal power station, while intensifying efforts to encircle and capture the larger city of Sievierodonetsk. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday.
Which president did the best job with inflation?
       
Buzz: “Which president did the best job with inflation?” It’s not a simple question to answer. ToplinePresident Joe Biden has seen inflation average 6.5% in the last 12 months vs. 1.3% in 2020 before he was elected. Global tensions and economic mismanagement meshed to create 10.2% average inflation — the highest in this post-WWII history. Inflation averaged 2.6% inflation — No. Inflation averaged 2.2% inflation — the third-lowest of the 10.
In Georgia, 2 Black candidates to compete for Senate seat
       
As she left an Atlanta polling site, Wyvonia Carter said her choice in what might be the most competitive Senate race this year was not particularly complicated. Black voters were crucial in helping Democrats secure those victories and will likely be decisive again this year. The issue is less about whether Walker will break the bond that Black voters have had with Democratic candidates. “In this race, Black Georgians will not have to contend with the race issue,” said Camilla Moore, chair of the Georgia Black Republican Council. More recently, South Carolina's Tim Scott, the Senate's only Black Republican, was unsuccessfully challenged in 2016 by Thomas Dixon, a North Charleston pastor.
The conspiracy theory convention
       
The conspiracy theory convention Presented byDonald Trump doubled down on gun rights at the NRA’s meeting Friday — at a politically precarious moment that gun rights supporters won’t forget. But in recent years, the explosion of conspiracy theories on the right have changed that expectation. Then, there’s the man who might challenge him for the presidency in 2024: former president DONALD TRUMP, who doubled down on gun rights at the NRA’s meeting Friday — at a politically precarious moment that gun rights supporters won’t forget. CNN “State of the Union”: Texas state Sen. Roland Gutierrez … Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) … Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) … Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.). MSNBC “The Sunday Show”: David Hogg … Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) … Michigan state Sen. Mallory McMorrow … Marc Morial … Robin DiAngelo … Tim Wise … Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.).
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Since failing to occupy Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, Russia has concentrated on seizing the last parts of the region not controlled by the separatists. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday. Moscow and Kyiv have traded blame over which is responsible for keeping shipments tied up, with Russia saying Ukrainian sea mines prevented safe passage.
Opinion: Inflation has been pummeling the middle class for decades, but the out-of-touch CPI masks this reality
       
Perhaps “fake” is too strong a term to describe the data-driven consumer price index (CPI), which serves as the U.S. government’s proxy for inflation. But the narrative the CPI has long burnished—namely that, since 2000, ordinary expenses have been fairly manageable amid rising wages—is entirely debunked by new research. But, as a study done by the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity (LISEP) reveals, that’s no longer true. So the CPI’s heavy weighting of those luxury goods divorces it from the inflationary reality it purports to track. Bad statistics have shrouded a worrisome economic reality that affects not only the poor and working class, but those earning median incomes as well.
Gas prices have hit record highs but don't expect Biden to lower them: 'They already used their biggest bullet'
       
President Biden; gas prices in San Francisco, California on May 20, 2022 Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Justin Sullivan/Getty ImagesPresident Biden is scrambling to lower gas prices ahead of the midterm elections, but he has few tools to do so. US gas prices have hit records, and the strategic petroleum release won't be able to bring them down. Gas prices have blown past record after record in recent weeks. "They already used their biggest bullet [with the strategic petroleum release]," Smith said. "Biden can't really control global oil prices even though they've given it their best shot with the strategic petroleum release," Smith said.
Essential California Week in Review: California vs. Texas on the issue of gun control
       
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. Newsletter The stories shaping California Get up to speed with our Essential California newsletter, sent six days a week. Here’s a look at the top stories of the last weekFoes of gun control quickly said after Tuesday’s school shooting in Texas that gun legislation wouldn’t stop such tragedies. Since then, California repeatedly has tightened its gun laws, while Florida and Texas have moved in the opposite direction. The DMV won’t say.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine — Russia asserted Saturday that its troops and separatist fighters had captured a key railway junction in eastern Ukraine, the second small city to fall to Moscow's forces this week as they fought to seize all of the country's contested Donbas region. Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday. Moscow and Kyiv have traded blame over which is responsible for keeping shipments tied up, with Russia saying Ukrainian sea mines prevented safe passage.
Guilty plea in plot to firebomb California Democratic HQ
       
Don ThompsonAssociated PressSacramento, Calif. – A California man pleaded guilty Friday to plotting to blow up the state Democratic Party’s headquarters in what prosecutors said was the first in a planned series of politically-motivated attacks after the defeat of former President Donald Trump. Ian Benjamin Rogers, 46, of Napa, pleaded guilty to conspiring to destroy a building by fire or explosives, possessing an explosive device and possessing a machine gun under a plea agreement that could bring him seven to nine years in federal prison. The pair “hoped their attacks would prompt a movement,” prosecutors said when they announced the charges in July. Copeland, 38, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and destruction of records. He was taken into custody then on state charges after the FBI said he sent text messages that agents perceived as threats against the unoccupied Governor’s Mansion and social media companies Facebook and Twitter.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday. Moscow and Kyiv have traded blame over which is responsible for keeping shipments tied up, with Russia saying Ukrainian sea mines prevented safe passage. ___Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Meet the Reclusive Software Billionaire Attacking Elon Musk
       
“Trillion-Dollar Ponzi Scheme.”“Deep Flaws.”“Unsafe.”The television ads for Dan O’Dowd, a software billionaire running as a Democrat for Senate in California, are not your typical campaign spots. “The software that drives cars that are going to have millions of people depending on it should be our best software, the most carefully designed and tested software,” he said. Musk enters the arenaFor Democrats, Elon Musk, Tesla’s founder, makes for an inviting political quarry. “We don’t make self-driving cars,” he said, adding that some car companies were using its software in certain low-level components. The post Meet the Reclusive Software Billionaire Attacking Elon Musk appeared first on New York Times.
Trump’s Primary Losses Puncture His Invincibility
       
But there has been a less visible sign of slippage: Mr. Trump’s vaunted digital fund-raising machine has begun to slow. Those close to Mr. Trump — and even Republicans who aren’t — caution against misreading the significance of primary losses in which he himself was not on the ballot. Most of Mr. Trump’s advisers believe he should wait until after the midterm elections to announce a candidacy. “He’s so polarizing,” Ms. Fickes said of Mr. Trump, “and that’s the problem.”Rachel Shorey contributed reporting. The post Trump’s Primary Losses Puncture His Invincibility appeared first on New York Times.
Jeff Bezos and girlfriend Lauren Sanchez look loved up as they attend commencement ceremony at MIT
       
AdvertisementBillionaire Jeff Bezos was spotted getting cozy with his girlfriend at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) commencement ceremony. Bezos and the TV personality took to a hotel room together just hours after his then-wife, Mackenzie Scott, left town. Preston, now 22, may have been a graduate at Friday's ceremony, however DailyMail.com was unable to confirm his enrollment at MIT. Billionaire Jeff Bezos was spotted getting cozy with his girlfriend TV personality Lauren Sanchez at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology commencement ceremony on FridayThe Amazon founder and TV personality Lauren Sanchez were smiling, laughing and shared a few cheek kisses while attending the festivitiesBezos smiles at Sanchez who appears to be laughing during the commencement festivitiesSporting formal attire, Bezos and Sanchez attended MIT's first in-person commencement ceremony in three years on Friday. Bezos, wearing a grey suit, purple tie and sunglasses, was seated next to his mistress-turned-girlfriend during the ceremony.
From a Gun-Free Bubble, NRA Demands ‘More Guns’ To Limit Mass Shootings
       
HOUSTON—The biggest names of the National Rifle Association’s annual gun show wouldn’t take the stage until mid-afternoon on Friday. Large poster boards warned attendees that firearms, ammunition, knives and “weapons of any kind” were prohibited inside the convention arena. The irony that a common-sense gun restriction was creating a firearms-free bubble inside the belly of the NRA convention was glaring, but attendees and speakers alike seemed blinded to it completely. The General Assembly arena was set up like a concert, with NRA VIPs crowding the stage in the pit. “Now is when we double down.”By the time the emotionally crippled former president took the stage, the staged attempts at grief were descending into farce.
Opinion | Let’s focus more on why people kill than what they use to do it
       
And those increasingly viewed as the moral leaders of our nation — professional athletes and coaches, entertainers and talk show hosts — chimed in to rip Republicans and insist on more gun legislation. AdvertisementBiden pondered why massacres are more prevalent in the United States than in other countries that also have “people who are lost” and suffer from mental illness. In fact, the notion that gun violence happens disproportionately here is misleading. Anyone who worries about gun violence in the United States should be equally concerned that we have the highest drug death rate in the world, since drugs and gun violence go hand in hand. Crafting new gun restrictions, difficult as that might be, is easier than delving into the truth that our gun violence problem has its roots in a people violence problem.
After Uvalde and Buffalo, even Republicans seem to know something has to change - The Washington Post
       
The dead bodies this time — from a grocery store and an elementary school — were mostly children and the elderly. Next: An 18-year-old killed 21 people, 19 children and two teachers, at an elementary school in Uvalde, Tex. AdvertisementIf my reading of social media is correct, public outrage seems finally to have reached a crescendo that might lead to change. One can stand the sight of only so many dead children. Since the first K-12 school mass shooting in Stockton, Calif., in 1989, we’ve had front-row seats to 13 more massacres.
Gas prices won't affect Memorial Day weekend travel plans, Americans say
       
Most Americans who spoke with Fox News said they wouldn't change their Memorial Day weekend plans despite record-high gas prices impacting their budgets. "We’re only going down for Memorial Day itself," she said of her planned visit to the Jersey Shore. "The rest of the weekend we're staying around because the gas prices are making us stay home." HIGH GAS PRICES WON'T DETER MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND TRAVEL, AAA EXEC SAYS"Spending extra money anywhere else is pretty much not gonna happen," Kathy continued. THIS IS HOW MUCH YOUR MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND ROAD TRIP WILL COST WITH RECORD HIGH GAS PRICESTravelers told Fox News they felt strain from high gas prices, but wouldn't let them ruin their plans.
President Joe Biden says young people need these 3 leadership skills to change the world
       
President Joe Biden sees a silver lining to that, especially for recent college graduates. "You faced added challenges to maintain a sense of mission and community and purpose when a global pandemic forced ... literally everything to change," Biden said. In addition to adaptability, Biden highlighted respect and inclusivity as important leadership traits for young people to lean into, arguing that they're especially valuable right now because the world is realigning. But the leadership skills they've already learned, even unknowingly, could give them a better capacity to ultimately change the world for the better in the coming years. "No generation of graduates gets to pick what world they're ... going to graduate into," Biden said.
NRA Speakers Unshaken On Gun Rights After School Massacre
       
(AP Photo/Michael Wyke) Michael Wyke via APThe meeting was the first for the troubled organization since 2019, following a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Once among the most powerful political organizations in the country, the NRA has seen its influence wane following a significant drop in political spending. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke) Michael Wyke via APTrump accused Democrats of trying to exploit the tragedy and demonizing gun owners. Outside the convention hall, protesters gathered in a park where police set up metal barriers — some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Samuel Thornburg, 43, a maintenance worker for Southwest Airlines in Houston who was attending the NRA meeting, said: “Guns are not evil.
Athens calls Iran’s seizure of two Greek oil tankers ‘piracy’
       
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said on Friday that Iranian forces "seized two Greek tankers for violations in Gulf waters," according to a statement quoted by Iranian state news agency IRNA. The Greek ministry called for the immediate release of the vessels and their crews, saying the “acts effectively amount to acts of piracy,” according to a statement. The ministry warned that the seizure would have “particularly negative consequences” in the bilateral relations between Greece and Iran and on Iran’s relations with the European Union. The two Greek tankers were seized on Friday. “A similar incident was reported on another Greek-flagged ship, carrying seven Greek citizens, off the Iranian coast,” the ministry added.
In Georgia, 2 Black candidates to compete for Senate seat
       
As she left an Atlanta polling site, Wyvonia Carter said her choice in what might be the most competitive Senate race this year was not particularly complicated. Black voters were crucial in helping Democrats secure those victories and will likely be decisive again this year. The issue is less about whether Walker will break the bond that Black voters have had with Democratic candidates. “In this race, Black Georgians will not have to contend with the race issue,” said Camilla Moore, chair of the Georgia Black Republican Council. More recently, South Carolina’s Tim Scott, the Senate’s only Black Republican, was unsuccessfully challenged in 2016 by Thomas Dixon, a North Charleston pastor.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated that the situation in the east was “difficult” but expressed confidence his country would prevail. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday. ___Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
(AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russia asserted Saturday that its troops and separatist fighters had captured a key railway junction in eastern Ukraine, the second small city to fall to Moscow’s forces this week as they fought to seize all of the country’s contested Donbas region. Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday. ___Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Monkeypox cases drove up stock prices for these companies on Monday
       
Growing concern about the emergence of monkeypox in Europe and the U.S. has sent shares soaring for several vaccine and drug companies. Inovio Pharmaceuticals Inc. INO, +13.71% , which recently scrapped plans for its COVID-19 vaccine and let go of its CEO. Back in 2010 the company said it had put an experimental smallpox vaccine in a preclinical study evaluating its efficacy against monkeypox. The company has a MVA vaccine for smallpox and monkeypox that is called Jynneos, Imvamune, or Imvanex. The U.S. has already stockpiled smallpox vaccines, which can protect against monkeypox, to vaccinate the entire population of the U.S., according to Raymond James analysts.
How does the big change coming to 401(k)s impact my retirement plans? Here's what you need to know about the accounts vs. Roth IRAs
       
Understanding 401(k) plansA 401(k) is a retirement savings vehicle that's offered by employers. How a Roth IRA is differentA Roth IRA individual retirement account is similar to a 401(k), though with the taxes flipped. Wealthy people have long used a loophole called the backdoor Roth IRA, contributing unlimited after-tax dollars into traditional IRAs or 401(k)s, then converting to a Roth IRA for tax-free withdrawals in retirement. Your expected retirement income tax bracket. And if you have more to invest, you could consider a backdoor Roth IRA conversion.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen battle in eastern Ukraine
       
Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Since failing to occupy Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, Russia has concentrated on seizing the last parts of the region not controlled by the separatists. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reiterated that the situation in the east was “difficult” but expressed confidence his country would prevail. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday.
Can Border Patrol’s pattern of mistreating migrants without recourse be reversed?
       
But within minutes, as the vehicle drove along a Nogales street, she heard sirens from a U.S. Border Patrol vehicle. In 2021, 23 people were killed in Border Patrol vehicle pursuits of migrants, including high-speed chases, up from two in 2019, according to ACLU data. “I returned to Mexico without making a statement.”Members of the Border Patrol Victims Network, a group that seeks an end to what it calls a “culture of violence and impunity” within the Border Patrol, during a demonstration in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, on June 24, 2020. A long fight for accountabilityAs recently as last November, CBP defended Border Patrol’s Critical Incident Teams that responded to García Alcántara’s shooting. In the meantime, she is still waiting to learn whether the Border Patrol agent who shot her received any discipline.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Since failing to occupy Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, Russia has concentrated on seizing the last parts of the region not controlled by the separatists. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday. Follow AP's coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
When I found out about the brain tumour that would kill me, I faced my worst fears – but I chose to take it on
       
I felt good, safe and happy in the company of these friends whom I never see enough. The tumour was about 3mm in diameter and situated near the surface of the brain. “The pathology report found that your tumour is a glioblastoma.”I knew it, I knew it, I knew it, I knew it. So, despite all the cutting-edge and eye-wateringly expensive treatment I’m receiving, courtesy of a good American healthcare plan and a wonderful team of doctors, I’m greedy for more. I have no problem talking about my disease and little problem talking about my life ending early because of it.
Meet the 25-year-old gun violence prevention advocate who could become the first Gen Z member of Congress
       
25-year-old Maxwell Alejandro Frost could become the first Gen Z member of Congress. A gun violence prevention advocate, he's running for Congress in Orlando with the backing of top progressives. "Just last week, I was at a vigil for the Buffalo shooting," Frost told Insider in a phone interview on Friday. In 2016, he survived a close brush with gun violence himself at a Halloween event in downtown Orlando when two men nearby got into a shooting match with one another. Now, he stands a very good chance of becoming Congress's newest, most prominent gun violence prevention advocate.
Matthew McConaughey: “We Must Do Better” After School Shooting in His Hometown of Uvalde
       
“Once again, we have tragically proven that we are failing to be responsible for the rights our freedoms grant us,” he began. “This is an epidemic we can control,” he wrote, “and whichever side of the aisle we may stand on, we all know we can do better. Texas Governor Greg Abbott identified the shooter as Salvador Ramos, an 18-year-old who lived in Uvalde. As a nation we have to ask, when in God's name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? When in God's name we will do what we all know in our gut needs to be done?”
“There Has to Be a Line”: Substack’s Founders Dive Headfirst Into the Culture Wars
       
One day last June, Patti Smith opened her laptop, typed a brief message to the thousands of readers of her Substack newsletter, and hit Send. Four months after discovering Anderson through her Substack, Smith stood onstage with him in the darkness of Glasgow’s Theatre Royal. More recently, the company has found itself on the front lines of the culture wars. In addition to her serialized memoir and other miscellaneous writings, Smith uses Substack for audio messages, poetry readings, and photography. “It wasn’t smooth sailing,” McKenzie told me.
Meghan Markle Pays Tribute To The Victims Of The Uvalde Shooting
       
Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, travelled to the town of Uvalde in Texas to pay tribute to the 19 children and two teachers killed during the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School this week. The attack was the deadliest shooting at an American school since Sandy Hook in 2012, marking a grim new chapter in the ongoing fight for stricter US gun control laws. (President Biden is expected to arrive in Uvalde, which sits 80 miles southwest of San Antonio, in the coming days.) According to The Telegraph, Markle also paid a quiet visit to the Herby Ham Activity Center to support a blood drive taking place there, providing snacks and drinks for donors. Whether all this can turn the dial towards action on a national level remains to be seen.
On the Anniversary of George Floyd’s Death, Biden Is Set to Sign an Order on Police Reform
       
On Wednesday, May 25, two years after the killing of unarmed Black father George Floyd by Minneapolis ex-policeman Derek Chauvin, President Joe Biden is expected to issue an executive order aimed at reforming police departments across the country. Relatives of Floyd and Taylor are expected to attend the signing ceremony, along with the families of others killed by police. As of now, there exists no national registry of police officers fired or resigned for misconduct. The legislation that Biden is expected to sign on Wednesday would correct that problem, along with restricting the transfer of most military equipment to police. The executive order would also require the activation of body-worn cameras during arrests and searches, ideally leading to increased transparency in police encounters with civilians.
Meghan Markle Pays Tribute to the Victims of the Uvalde Shooting
       
Earlier today, Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, traveled to the town of Uvalde in Texas to pay tribute to the 19 children and two teachers killed during the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School on Tuesday. The attack was the deadliest shooting at an American school since Sandy Hook in 2012, marking a grim new chapter in the ongoing fight for stricter U.S. gun control laws. (President Biden is expected to arrive in Uvalde, which sits 80 miles southwest of San Antonio, in the coming days.) According to The Telegraph, Markle also paid a quiet visit to the Herby Ham Activity Center to support a blood drive taking place there, providing snacks and drinks for donors. Whether all this can turn the dial towards action on a national level remains to be seen.
Anna Duggar: Is She Finally Considering Divorcing Josh?
       
It's been five months since Josh Duggar was convicted on child pornography charges. Of course, he's not the only one whose future is uncertain but decidedly bleak ...Josh's wife, Anna Duggar, gave birth to her seventh child just weeks before he was convicted. “Anna is a shell of a woman at the moment, but she is choosing to stay with Josh. So because of that they have told friends that they will financially support Anna and the kids." Anna and her children will presumably live on the Duggar family's property for the entirety of Josh's sentence.
Jenna Bush Hager - a former teacher - shares heartbreaking message about Texas shooting
       
Jenna Bush Hager - a former teacher - shares heartbreaking message about Texas shooting The Today star paid her respects in a heartfelt speechJenna Bush Hager was one of the many famous faces to share her outrage and horror following the Texas shooting on Tuesday. Loading the player...VIDEO: Jenna Bush Hager shares emotional message about working with Hoda Kotb"School should be the safest place in our country... Not all kids are safe at home. MORE: Hoda Kotb talks difficult career goodbyes with Today co-starMORE: Hoda Kotb shares fears about being an older mom: 'It's scary'Hoda Kotb - who began hosting the Fourth Hour alone - also opened up about the shooting, as she struggled to hold back tears. Jenna Bush Hager shared her heartbreak as a mom, former teacher and TexanThe teenage suspect had a handgun, an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and high-capacity magazines, according to investigators. MORE: Jenna Bush Hager reveals she's setting sail on adventure close to her heartMORE: Beloved star makes cheeky comment about Jenna Bush Hager replacing Kathie Lee GiffordMany public figures have spoken out on the senseless crime in the aftermath of the event.
Florida and America are ready for equality for all | Opinion
       
In Florida, where Republicans control both chambers and the governorship, we have garnered more GOP supporters for statewide LGBTQ protections than any other state. We also see extraordinary public support for LGBTQ protections reflected in local policies. Florida legislators can easily remedy this in the upcoming 2021 legislative session by passing the broadly supported, bipartisan Florida Competitive Workforce Act to establish statewide LGBTQ nondiscrimination protections. The Equality Act has already passed in the House with bipartisan support from Florida lawmakers, thanks to the leadership of Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart. Nadine Smith is the executive director of Equality Florida.
Should the federal government spend more money on conducting elections?
       
That’s often a tall order for small jurisdictions, where local election officials consistently report being cash-strapped. Many of the elections for which states and municipalities are responsible are federal, as in presidential and congressional; and those elections tend to attract larger voter turnouts. This became clear in 2016, when Russia interfered in the presidential election through server hacking, email phishing, and social media misinformation. The problem with that, the report explains, is there are likely many more local elections than federal ones on any given ballot, which would minimize the amount the federal government pays. Administrators would likely have to weigh races by importance, increasing the price tag for a presidential election, say, versus a local legislative election.
How several states are taking the lead on restoring overtime pay
       
After decades of decline in overtime pay, the Biden administration is considering action to sharply expand access in a time of high inflation. Many of the state’s workers became part of a strong middle class based on solid jobs with secure pensions, respectable salaries, and overtime pay for those who worked extra hours. The result: While most salaried workers were once eligible for overtime pay, today only a small fraction of them are. Lawmakers failed to update the state’s overtime wage threshold so that it kept pace with inflation, mirroring decades of federal inaction on that front. But the impact of the state’s overtime laws on its huge economy is difficult to assess.
JetBlue is staging a hostile takeover of Spirit. What would a merger mean for flight attendants?
       
This raises concerns about flight attendants being rerouted—or laid off. But seniority may also be protective, says John Samuelsen, president of the Transport Workers Union (TWU), the union representing JetBlue’s attendant workforce. JetBlue is represented by TWU, and Spirit by the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA). “We don’t take a position on a merger until or unless we determine whether it will work for flight attendants,” Nelson says. “Flight attendants are flight attendants,” she says.
Here's Why You Should Consider Enrolling in Autopay Before Student Loan Payments Resume
       
Because one thing is (almost) certain: student loan payments will eventually come back. Pros and cons of autopay for student loansAfter roughly two years in an automatic forbearance, it can be easy to fall out of the habit of making student loan payments every month. Your student loan payment will be withdrawn from your designated bank account, regardless of whether you have sufficient funds in there, warns Rebecca Safier, a certified student loan counselor and debt expert with Student Loan Hero. Don’t assume your student loan payments will resume on autopay when the emergency forbearance ends. Mayotte says that you should be able to see your due date by logging into your student loan account.
What Is Web3?
       
While it’s undeniable that energy, money, and talent are surging into Web3 projects, remaking the web is a major undertaking. “Web3 is the internet owned by the builders and users, orchestrated with tokens,” says Chris Dixon, a partner at the venture capital firm a16z and one of Web3’s foremost advocates and investors, borrowing the definition from Web3 adviser Packy McCormick. He and a16z started putting money into the space in 2013 and invested $2.2 billion in Web3 companies last year. On a more granular level, Molly White, a software engineer, created Web3 Is Going Just Great, where she tracks the many hacks, scams, and implosions in the Web3 world, underscoring the pitfalls of the unregulated, Wild West territory. “I don’t think we’re going to be able to call Web3 ‘Web3’ until after the crypto bust.
Millions of Borrowers Behind on Student Loan Payments Just Got a 'Fresh Start'
       
Millions of people who have fallen behind on their student loan payments just got some very welcome news. Before the pandemic, about 20% of all federal loan borrowers were in default. The department's decision to pull borrowers out of default is an important step toward fixing a broken student loan system, Abby Shafroth, interim director of the National Consumer Law Center's Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project, said in a written statement. "The Department must not squander this opportunity to fix the broken student loan system," Yu said in a statement. More from Money:Student Loan Pause Extension: Biden Confirms Payments Won't Resume Until SeptemberHow to Refinance Student LoansHow 2 Years Without Student Loan Bills Changed the Game for America's Borrowers
The Federal Reserve wants markets to fall – here’s what that means for investors
       
It’s this: the Federal Reserve and America’s other policy-making powers that be, actually want the stockmarket lower. It’s not that I’m treating what they say with a healthy dose of cynicism; I’ve reached unhealthy levels of cynicism. My default, so low is my trust, is now not only not to believe a word they say, it is to assume they are lying. Back in 2008, and for many years since, everyone in Policymakerland was worried about deflation, and every effort went into staving it off. But, no, in Policymakerland they are genuinely worried about inflation, and so asset prices are not going to be defended.
After lull, employers renew interest in helping workers repay student debt
       
Before the pandemic, student loan repayment benefits were becoming one of the most popular perks taking hold in corporate America. The percentage of employers offering student loan repayment assistance doubled to 8 percent between 2016 and 2019, according to the Society for Human Resource Management. Craig Copeland, a senior research associate at the Institute, said the two-year pause on federal student loan payments also placed employer-sponsored programs on the back burner. Google started a program in January that matches up to $2,500 in student loan payments a year for its employees. And that sunset is giving some companies pause about creating a student loan assistance program, Copeland said.
Russia claims it tested hypersonic Zircon cruise missile
       
Russia has successfully tested a hypersonic Zircon cruise missile, the country's Ministry of Defense said Saturday. Video shows the missile fired from the Barents Sea and striking a target in the White Sea with great precision. Russia recently completed test launches of the Sarmat – an intercontinental missile that can carry nuclear warheads, according to reports. While countries including the U.S., China, Israel, and others also boast extensive nuclear programs with evolving weaponry, Russia currently maintains the world's largest stockpile of nuclear warheads by sheer volume. The United Kingdom's Ministry of Defense reported Friday that Russia has recently begun deploying the 50-year-old tanks from deep storage.
Could abortion rights save Tom Malinowski's campaign?
       
There’s been plenty of talk about how backlash to the Supreme Court’s decision on abortion could give Democrats a much-needed midterm boost. Then-New Jersey Republican Senate candidate, Tom Kean Jr., speaks after conceding the race to incumbent Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) November 7, 2006 in Bridgewater, New Jersey. Jennifer Holdsworth Karp, a former political director for the New Jersey Democratic State Committee, agrees with Malinowski that abortion will be more of a motivator this year. New Jersey is one of several states that does not explicitly ban abortion at any stage. Asked if Kean is correct that he supports abortion access “right up until the moment of birth,” Malinowski called Kean’s attack disingenuous.
G-7 pledges put coal on notice, could boost climate aid
       
Ministers from the G-7 countries meeting in Berlin also announced a target to have a “highly decarbonized road sector by 2030,” meaning that electric vehicles would dominate new car sales by the end of the decade. The agreements, which will be put to leaders next month at the G-7 summit in Elmau, Germany, were largely welcomed by climate activists. In practice, this means countries need to phase out coal by 2030 at the latest,” said Luca Bergamaschi, director of Rome-based campaign group ECCO. G-7 members Britain, France and Italy have already set themselves deadlines to stop burning coal for electricity in the next few years. “Time is literally running out,” Habeck said, calling climate change “the challenge of our political generation.”___Follow all AP stories on climate change issues at https://apnews.com/hub/climate
As Biden fights inflation, economists warn his weapons for this battle look ‘extremely limited’
       
President Joe Biden says fighting high inflation is his “top domestic priority,” and his administration has touted the moves it’s making to help Americans with rising costs. Economists continue to warn, however, that every president — whether Democrat or Republican — lacks powerful weapons for battling high prices. They’re reiterating a view that they voiced three months ago, before Biden talked up his efforts to tackle inflation in his State of the Union speech. Analysts have been predicting defeats for Biden’s Democratic Party in November’s midterm elections if high prices persist. He said Monday that he was considering such a move, as U.S. inflation runs at its hottest pace in 40 years.
The red-hot U.S. housing market finally ‘offers hope’ for buyers and sellers, according to this real-estate economist
       
Nearly half (49%) of sellers said they plan to sell their home at $500,000 and below, with 15% of them aiming for $200,000 or less, according to a report released Tuesday by real-estate site Realtor.com. Roughly 29% of sellers are trading up, and 32% making a lateral price move. Mortgage rates jumped from just 2.75% in the fall for a 30-year fixed to more than 5.25% in mid-May. Low mortgage rates had made it easier for buyers to purchase a home despite record prices. “The distribution of sale prices points to an encouraging sign for many buyers who found last year’s housing market highly frustrating due to escalating prices,” the poll of more than 3,000 home buyers and sellers said.
As Uvalde parents seethe, recourse against police may be limited
       
The Texas Torts Claims Act grants permission to sue in certain limited circumstances, but according to legal experts interviewed, those wouldn’t apply in the Uvalde school shooting case. Protesters angry about gun violence demonstrated outside, including some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Maite Yuleana Rodriguez, a victim of the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, places flowers as she mourns at a makeshift memorial outside Uvalde County Courthouse in Uvalde, Texas, on Thursday. Mass shooting after mass shooting, more than 200 so far this year.
Russia takes small cities, aims to widen east Ukraine battle
       
Lyman, which had a population of about 20,000 before Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, serves as a regional railway hub. Since failing to occupy Kyiv, Ukraine's capital, Russia has concentrated on seizing the last parts of the region not controlled by the separatists. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated that the situation in the east was “difficult” but expressed confidence his country would prevail. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. Russian state news agency Tass reported that a vessel bound for the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don entered Mariupol’s seaport early Saturday.
Gun-right fights move to the states after little federal action
       
AdvertisementThe NRA has won the fight over gun rights in Washington -- for now. With a six-to-three conservative majority, it is expected to overturn or significantly weaken New York state's restrictions on carrying concealed handguns. That, in turn, is likely to spur liberal states to find new ways to limit the range of public places where firearms are permitted. Since then, legislatures in half the states have removed permitting requirements, mostly in recent years and involving concealed firearms. AdvertisementAnother important state-level trend involves preemption statutes, which prevent local governments from restricting gun ownership and possession more than the state does.
AP News in Brief at 6:04 a.m. EDT
       
And one by one, they insisted that further restricting access to firearms was not the answer to preventing future tragedies. Adam Lanza, a 20-year-old gunman, had forced his way into a Connecticut elementary school and massacred 26 people, mostly children, with an AR-15-style rifle. A gunman killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School on Tuesday. AP Week in Pictures: GlobalMay 21-27, 2022From a midshipman from Cameroon proudly being recognized by President Joe Biden during the U.S. The selection was curated by AP photo editor Pamela Hassell in New York.
Energy secretary: US offshore wind jobs should be union jobs
       
NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) — The growing offshore wind industry is often touted as a boon for job creation, but who will do the work? Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm visited the New London State Pier facility last week to see how Orsted, energy provider Eversource and the state of Connecticut are transforming it into a hub for the offshore wind industry. It sets the terms and conditions for union workers to build offshore wind farms, with targets to ensure a diverse workforce. “We know it’s new and there’s a lot coming.”The first U.S. offshore wind farm began operating off Block Island, Rhode Island, in late 2016. Its transmission system will connect to the electric grid on Long Island, New York, making it the state’s first offshore wind farm and jumpstarting the offshore wind industry there.
US Supreme Court allows Biden administration to continue estimating monetized damages of increasing greenhouse gases
       
The US Supreme Court in a one-sentence order Thursday denied an application by Louisiana and other Republican-led states to prevent President Joe Biden’s administration from continuing to take account of the “social costs” of increasing greenhouse gas emissions when federal agencies draft new regulations. The social costs, according to a January 2021 executive order that the 10 states sought to block, are “estimates of the monetized damages associated with incremental increases in greenhouse gas emissions.” The order:[D]irects all executive departments and agencies […] to immediately review and, as appropriate and consistent with applicable law, take action to address the promulgation of Federal regulations and other actions during the last 4 years that conflict with these important national objectives, and to immediately commence work to confront the climate crisis. The states argued the social costs of greenhouse gases through a regulatory cost/benefit analysis, referring to the Biden administration’s greenhouse gas estimates as “a power grab designed to manipulate America’s entire federal regulatory apparatus through speculative costs and benefits so that the Administration can impose its preferred policy outcomes on every sector of the American economy.”Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar’s response in opposition on behalf of the federal respondents, which asked the Supreme Court to deny vacating the stay by the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, stated that the lawsuit was premature and failed to establish its ability to succeed on the merits.
Energy secretary: US offshore wind jobs should be union jobs
       
(AP Photo/Jennifer McDermott)NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) — The growing offshore wind industry is often touted as a boon for job creation, but who will do the work? Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm visited the New London State Pier facility last week to see how Orsted, energy provider Eversource and the state of Connecticut are transforming it into a hub for the offshore wind industry. The “National Offshore Wind Agreement” covers contractors working on those projects and future ones, with no termination date on the project labor agreement. It sets the terms and conditions for union workers to build offshore wind farms, with targets to ensure a diverse workforce. Its transmission system will connect to the electric grid on Long Island, New York, making it the state’s first offshore wind farm and jumpstarting the offshore wind industry there.
Shouldn't Hillary Clinton Be Banned From Twitter Now?
       
Obviously this isn’t Watergate, Hillary Clinton was never president, and Sussmann’s trial doesn’t equate to prosecutions of people like Chuck Colson or Gordon Liddy. Worse, instead of petty “ratfucking” like Donald Segretti’s “Canuck letter,” the Clinton campaign created and fueled a successful, years-long campaign of official harassment and media fraud. Trump was bounced from Twitter for incitement, but Twitter has a policy against misinformation as well. The first time the Clinton campaign fed tales about Steele and his material to the press, via the September, 2016 Yahoo! The most dangerous variety, however, isn’t from random users in porn-like chats, but the kind exposed by the Clinton campaign.
Will the Coronavirus Pandemic Ever End?
       
Twenty-seven months into the COVID-19 pandemic, our defenses against the coronavirus seem at once stronger and more penetrable than ever. According to some estimates, the U.S. could see a hundred million coronavirus infections this fall and winter. A third of the population believes that the pandemic is over, including more than half of unvaccinated Americans and nearly six in ten Republicans. During the current surge, COVID deaths have been steady at around three hundred a day—still too many, but near pandemic lows—and hospitalizations have risen modestly. The first is a universal coronavirus vaccine.
What Is the Fall in the Stock Market Telling Us?
       
After staging a rally on Monday, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose two per cent, the stock market stalled on Tuesday. The news media is full of stories about a bear market, which is usually defined as a fall of twenty per cent or more, but what is happening needs to be put into perspective. The pandemic bubble may have burst, but stock prices are still at very high levels. “Most household balance sheets are strong and can provide some cushion for rising prices,” Rouse said. “I understand rising prices are painful.
Will an Emergency Law Used to Keep Out Migrants Become Permanent?
       
Even then, however, some were skeptical about the real purpose behind the use of Title 42. (There have been more than fifteen hundred attacks, including rapes and kidnappings, against asylum seekers waiting in Mexico under M.P.P. Under Title 42, most migrants don’t even have the opportunity to apply for asylum. Throughout the rest of Trump’s Presidency, other pandemic-inspired restrictions were lifted or adjusted, but Title 42 remained in place. has acknowledged that rapid expulsions under Title 42 have made it more difficult to gather intelligence about the groups.
On Guns, Biden’s Call for Action Is a Painful Reminder That He Cannot Make It Happen
       
For the part of the Presidency that requires national mourning, Biden’s tragic past as a husband and father has given him a lifetime of experience. Biden, rightly, called for action. Biden’s grief and outrage were real—and also just another awful part of business as usual for the American Presidency. was able to turn the shock over the mass shooting in Texas, his home state, into quick legislative action on guns. On Sunday, Biden will fly to Uvalde to mourn in person, and undoubtedly another sad, eloquent call to action will be made.
The Baby-Formula Blame Game
       
Then, in October, a former employee at the Sturgis plant sent a shocking whistle-blower report to senior officials at the F.D.A. It alleged that Abbott had falsified records, shipped untested and potentially contaminated formula, permitted lax cleaning practices, and concealed information from F.D.A. inspection of the Sturgis plant did not commence until January 31, 2022. Abbott denied that its products were to blame; strangely, part of the company’s defense has been that each baby consumed a different formula product from the Sturgis plant, and that they were sickened at different times. for a reopening of the Sturgis plant, tentatively slated for June 4th; from that point, it would take another four to eight weeks for formula produced there to hit store shelves.)
Biden Vows to Defend Taiwan, But China Has The Upper Hand - The New York Times
       
President Biden’s recent trip to Asia nearly went off without a hitch — until Taiwan came up. Mr. Biden was asked whether the United States would respond “militarily” if China sought to retake the self-ruled island by force. I have been involved in dozens of war games and tabletop exercises to see how a conflict would turn out. Simply put, the United States is outgunned. After a decades-long military modernization, China has the world’s largest navy and the United States could throw far fewer ships into a Taiwan conflict.
'She Was Trying to Call 911 and He Shot Her': Texas Shooting Victim Amerie Jo Garza, 10, Remembered As 'Hero'
       
'She Was Trying to Call 911 and He Shot Her': Texas Shooting Victim Amerie Jo Garza, 10, Remembered As 'Hero'A 4th grade student has been identified as one of the victims in the Robb Elementary School mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday. Amerie Jo Garza — a doting sister who family members are remembering as a hero — celebrated her 10th birthday just two weeks before she was fatally shot, her grandmother confirms to PEOPLE. "She was a hero trying to call 911, to save her and her friends," says the grieving grandmother. "My little love is now flying high with the angels above," Amerie's dad Angel Garza wrote on Facebook. I love you Amerie jo.
Donald Trump Will Headline NRA Event in Houston 3 Days After Texas School Shooting
       
"It is truly an honor to have President Trump address NRA members for the sixth time," NRA Executive Vice President & CEO Wayne LaPierre said in a statement. "That's why I will keep my longtime commitment to speak in Texas at the NRA Convention and deliver an important address to America. Texas Governor Greg Abbott Texas Gov. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas Credit: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/GettyThe Uvalde gunman died after the rampage, and it's believed that police killed him. "Aren't you slated to headline a speaking gig for the NRA in three days — in Houston, no less?"
Baby Formula Shortage Should End in Late July After 'Gradual Improvement,' FDA Commissioner Says
       
On Thursday, Califf testified before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee about the ongoing formula shortage, saying, "It's going to be gradual improvement up to probably somewhere around two months until the shelves are replete again," CNBC reports. He also discussed the reasonings behind the shortage, saying in part, "We knew that ceasing plant operations would create supply problems, but we had no choice given the insanitary conditions." Califf ended his opening statement by saying in part that the FDA "will not rest until our shelves are replete with safe and nutritious infant formula." of Baby Formula Lands in the U.S. from Europe as Operation Fly Formula Begins"We understand the situation is urgent — getting Sturgis up and running will help alleviate this shortage," the company added. As part of Operation Fly Formula, the first batch of formula imported from abroad arrived in the U.S. last weekend.
Brittney Griner’s Pretrial Detention in Russia Has Been Extended
       
MOSCOW (AP)—The lawyer for WNBA star Brittney Griner said Friday her pre-trial detention in Russia has been extended by one month. Griner’s lawyer Alexander Boikov told The Associated Press he believed the relatively short extension of the detention indicated the case would come to trial soon. The Biden administration says Griner, 31, is being wrongfully detained. The WNBA and U.S. officials have worked toward her release, without visible progress. More WNBA Coverage:
Brittney Griner Time Line: What Has Happened Since Being Detained
       
Brittney Griner is one of the WNBA’s brightest stars. Although it was not made public until several weeks later, Griner was detained for the vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage. Cathy Engelbert said hours before the start of the WNBA draft, “We continue to be working diligently on bringing Brittney Griner home. “The Department of State has determined that the Russian Federation has wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Brittney Griner,” a State Department official told ESPN in a statement. “Both the WNBA and its brother league, the NBA, we have a huge responsibility to Brittney Griner as one of our players.
Brittney Griner’s Wife Was Asked If She Thinks WNBA Star’s Release Is a ‘Top Priority’ for U.S.
       
For the first time since Brittney Griner was detained in Russia on Feb. 17, her wife spoke out publicly about the U.S government’s handling of the situation in an appearance on Good Morning America Wednesday. “I don’t know,” she responded when asked by GMA’s Robin Roberts if she felt that freeing Brittney was a top priority of the U.S. State Department. Cherelle Griner said she first heard of her wife’s detainment from Brittney herself, who sent a series of texts after being first stopped by Russian officials at the airport. This isn’t your fault.’”When asked how Griner is doing, Cherelle said she doesn’t really know because she isn’t able to speak with her wife directly. I’m like ‘I’m really never going to see her again.’”Griner was denied house arrest and her detention was extended for 30 days on May 13.
SI:AM | One of the Most Heartwarming Walk-Offs You’ll Ever See
       
Robin RobertsDizzy DeanHoyt WilhelmWarren SpahnYesterday’s SIQ: Which stadium hosted the first night game in major league history on May 24, 1935? The first night baseball game was played in 1880, one year after Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, but that game was played between amateur teams. MLB’s first night game was such a big deal that then President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent the signal (via telegram from Washington) to have the lights switched on. “Larry MacPhail almost single-handedly sold night baseball to Commissioner [Kenesaw Mountain] Landis,” former Reds announcer Red Barber told the Cincinnati Enquirer in 1985. “There is no chance of night baseball ever becoming popular in the bigger cities.
SBA Offers Last Call for a Key Covid-Era Small-Business Aid Program
       
The SBA is offering the opportunity to request more money before the program runs out, which is estimated to be in the next couple of months. The SBA has not recently given a statement as to how much money is left. While access to program funds overtly hinges on whether a business can show financial deficits related to the pandemic, in practice, that's a farce. New applications for the EIDL program are not being accepted but appeals and reconsiderations submitted before December 31, 2021, or within six months of being declined, will continue to be reviewed. So far, there have been over a billion dollars in EIDL funds seized, criminal charges filed against more than 1,000 defendants, and 240 civil investigations into pandemic loan fraud.
U.S. Black farmers lost $326 bln worth of land in 20th century -study
       
REUTERS/Jim YoungMay 2 (Reuters) - Black farmers in the United States lost roughly $326 billion worth of acreage during the 20th century, according to the first study to quantify the present-day value of that loss. Land loss is a contributor to the racial wealth gap in the United States and an issue that has marred the relationship between the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and minority farmers. The land loss was due to discriminatory USDA lending policies and forced sales of co-owned land called heirs' property, among other factors, the study said. In 1910, Black farmers owned more than 16 million acres of land, according to experts. The $326 billion figure is a conservative estimate, said the study authors, in part because it does not account for multiplier effects, like whether Black farmers could have used lost land as collateral to make other investments.
Demand Has Never Been Higher, but These Infant-Formula Startups Are Pausing New Orders
       
The shortage of powdered baby formulas in American stores has meant a surge in demand for Bobbie and ByHeart, two young, direct-to-consumer formula companies. As such, both startups have reacted by halting new customer orders entirely. It's a sensible decision, to be sure, but not one that is necessarily easy to convey to eager new customers. The company explained the decision on its website: "We are temporarily pausing taking orders from new families while we re-evaluate the pace at which we can accept new customers." House Democrats plan to convene a hearing on the formula shortage May 25.
Biden Has a Plan to Unite the Asia-Pacific on Supply Chain and Climate. Just Don't Expect It to Help Your Business
       
President Joe Biden just unveiled a plan to form a new alliance between the U.S. and countries in the Asia-Pacific region, offering a counterpoint to China's growing dominance there. But without also improving access to international markets among member countries, the scope--as well as the economic benefits--of the union may be limited. Along with Japan, a dozen other countries including India, Brunei, Australia, and Singapore are expected to sign on to the pact. Biden noted that other countries could join in the future should they agree to upholding the same standards. Instead, according to the framework, member countries can pick and choose which measures they want to sign on to.
How to Order Your Free At-Home Covid-19 Tests
       
This is usually within two to three days of the first test—most tests come with two tests per box for this reason. If you need a test ASAP, please check guide to 12 Good Rapid At-Home Covid-19 Tests and Where to Find Them. During the first round, many apartment dwellers found themselves unable to request tests because their multi-unit building was classified as a single residence. This should be resolved, but if you find this happening again, file a service request here. However, several members of the WIRED staff were unable to request tests using any of these methods.
Democrats Quietly Search for an Alternative to Biden in 2024
       
“And I say, ‘Well, he has!’ ”Relatively few people outside the White House totally buy it. “Is this a real question?” one disbelieving White House aide asked me on a recent evening when I brought up what might happen in 2024. This spring, when the Democratic National Committee’s finance council met quietly in Charleston and both Biden and Harris passed on attending, Buttigieg went. (A recent poll showed that New Jersey residents, who just barely reelected Murphy, think little of his White House prospects.) He joked about it at the recent White House Correspondents’ Dinner, and in 2019 he told voters it was a valid concern.
We Buy Baby Formula!
       
Another offers to pick up and “Pay Top Cash $$$” for baby formula of any kind. A year ago, the monopoly on baby formula belonged to the four major producers that sold more than 90 percent of formula purchased in the U.S.: Abbott, Mead Johnson Nutrition, Nestlé USA, and Perrigo. That all of these sellers are attempting to price gouge baby formula is somewhat at odds with the market’s attitude toward the necessary good. Given how essential baby formula is and how short-lived its demand (infants generally rely on formula for up to 12 months), websites like SellFormula.com launched years ago to encourage parents to trade in the products for cash. Instead of baby formula inside, there was flour.
The Supreme Court May Be About to Expand Gun Rights Even More
       
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on their case in November and is expected to hand down a decision in June. The plaintiffs say New York’s gun laws violate their Second Amendment rights. New York State currently has some of the strictest gun laws in the country, including regulating who can carry a gun. During oral arguments, it seemed pretty clear where the Supreme Court, which now has a conservative supermajority, stood on this issue. In every other country in the world, gun-violence incidents prompt lawmakers to drastically tighten gun laws.
President Mike Pence Would Be Worse Than Trump
       
But even the remote prospect of a President Mike Pence should be feared as much as any Trump redux, if not more so. What Trump ultimately did, in most circumstances, was what any Republican president in the late 2010s would have done. Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid would disappear unless Congress voted to reauthorize them. Democrats should ultimately hope Trump, and not Pence, claims the Republican nomination in 2024 because Trump is more beatable. If Mike Pence is campaigning against Biden, he will not make gaffes, slander allies, or take to social media to broadcast inanities.
2022 Midterms: A Guide to the Races Worth Watching
       
Primary Date: May 3The Republican Primary: J.D. The Democratic Primary: Congressman and former 2020 presidential candidate Tim Ryan easiy won the Democratic nomination. Primary Date: May 17The Republican Primary: Senator Pat Toomey’s retirement sparked a highly competitive, multi-candidate GOP primary to succeed him. Primary Date: June 28The Republican Primary: Oklahoma voters get to choose two Senate nominees this year. Primary Date: August 9The Republican Primary: Two-term incumbent Senator Ron Johnson is a conspiracy theory-spouting conservative who seems perpetually in political trouble.
Why We Keep Letting This Happen
       
Why do we keep letting this happen?”Biden’s plea speaks to his relative powerlessness here; the president of the United States can do many fantastic and world-historical things, but altering gun policy in a meaningful way is tragically not one of them. The United States of America, the world’s wealthiest nation, is addicted to gun violence. Democrat-run states and cities have tougher gun laws, and these do make a difference, especially when these states border each other. Plus, the National Rifle Association’s hold on the Republican Party is ironclad. Big-city Republicans, closely aligned with local police departments, are not in the streets calling for laxer gun laws.
Texas School Shooting: There Is A Future For Gun Control
       
But there is no more important moment this century than on December 21, 2012, when the National Rifle Association doubled down after 26 people, most of them children, were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, which remains the deadliest school shooting in the nation’s history. It catalyzed the gun lobby into action. The NRA even managed to cut off funding from the Centers for Disease Control to study gun violence. Michael Bloomberg, whose group Everytown for Gun Safety lobbies for stricter gun-safety measures, spent millions electing candidates who backed gun safety in 2018, after the Parkland school shooting, and kept on heavily spending in 2020. The gun lobby has also historically performed best at times when Democrats have been in power, making Clinton, Obama, and now Biden into convenient foils that animated their base.
Police Botched the Response to Texas School Shooting
       
People react outside the SSGT Willie de Leon Civic Center, where students had been transported from Robb Elementary School after a shooting in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, 2022. The gunman then drove to Robb Elementary School, where nearly 600 second-, third-, and fourth-graders were finishing their last week of classes. Sen. Murphy presses fellow senators in emotional speech after Texas elementary school shooting. pic.twitter.com/ts4VnbTJRH — MSNBC (@MSNBC) May 24, 2022Uvalde is the deadliest school shooting in Texas, surpassing the ten killed at a high school in Santa Fe in 2018. Biden addresses nation on Uvalde, Texas elementary school shooting: "To lose a child is like having a piece of your soul ripped away.
Biden Searches for the Political Sweet Spot on Student Loan Debt Relief
       
And he is reportedly on the brink of moving on one of the thornier issues out there: student-loan debt forgiveness. Biden has also been ambivalent as to whether he believes has the authority to forgive student loan indebtedness other than in limited areas. This latter issue obviously affects the net effect of his proposal on those saddled with debt and/or who won’t qualify for relief. The price tag for the level of debt relief Biden is proposing is around $230 billion. As the Post reports, the administration’s draft proposal is aimed at broad-based if limited relief:Most of the nation’s 41 million student borrowers stand to benefit.
Herschel Walker’s Response to the Uvalde Shooting Was Incoherent. So Is His Senate Bid
       
What we need to do is look into how we can stop those things … What about getting a department that’s looking at young men, that’s looking at young women, that’s looking at social media.”Herschel Walker's solution to school shootings involves "a department that can look at young men that's looking at women that's looking at social media." Here’s a brief list of the warning signs that Walker could be a disaster should he wind up in Congress. Walker’s most ridiculous lie, however, may be that Trump has never claimed the 2020 election was stolen. According to Herschel Walker, Trump has never said the election was stolen. “Herschel Walker is ignoring the Georgia voters and ignoring us,” Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black said during one of them in May.
Inside Taylor Hawkins’ Final Days as a Foo Fighter
       
Foo Fighters staged roughly 40 shows last year, and already had nearly 60 more on the books for 2022. Oliver Taylor Hawkins was born Feb. 17, 1972, the youngest of three siblings, in Fort Worth, Texas. “It was never my goal to sound like Dave,” Hawkins told Rolling Stone last year. “Foo Fighters is very much Dave’s band,” Hawkins said last year. Foo Fighters played more than 200 concerts between 2017 and 2021 and were a constant presence at awards shows and special events.
Trump Does a Little Dance at NRA Gun Celebration Days After Uvalde Massacre
       
The NRA played a recording of a bell clanging as the former president strained to pronounce the names of the victims. Trump echoed Republican lawmakers and conservative pundits by bashing Democrats for “virtue cycling” in the wake the massacre, blaming the shooting on everything but guns, and proposing a series of impractical solutions to the epidemic of mass shootings in America. Trump did propose ensuring classroom doors are lockable from the inside as a way to cut down on school shootings. “There is no sign more inviting to a mass killer than a sign that declares a gun free zone,” he said, to more applause. A speech where Trump read the names of the victims ends like this pic.twitter.com/fQZxrB9OiI — Acyn (@Acyn) May 27, 2022At least “Macho Man” wasn’t playing.
Our clinics meet mental health needs and lighten the load on police. Let's go nationwide.
       
Grant funding for behavioral health care makes no senseFor far too long, behavioral health care in our country has been funded through grants. Mental health during COVID-19 pandemicThe COVID-19 pandemic has taken a tremendous toll on Americans' mental health. The nationwide expansion of Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics isn’t the only bipartisan behavioral health win in the president’s budget. It would double funding for children’s mental health and behavioral health workforce development and provide more mental health care for veterans and seniors. This is an important moment to come together and finally treat health care above the neck the same as health care below the neck.
Biden's energy policies do nothing to increase supply as gas prices break records
       
THIS IS HOW MUCH YOUR MEMORIAL DAY ROAD TRIP WILL COST WITH RECORD HIGH GAS PRICESWhy are gas prices up? Democrats have run Washington for 16 months, yet they have done nothing to increase the supply of American energy. On Biden’s first day in office, he cancelled the Keystone pipeline, which would have lowered energy prices in this country. Democrats seem utterly oblivious to the pain and suffering that high gas prices are causing to families across the country. Last week I asked the Secretary of the Interior if she thought that gas prices were too high.
U.S. doctors reconsider Pfizer's Paxlovid for lower-risk COVID patients
       
Use of Pfizer's Paxlovid, authorized to treat newly infected, at-risk people in order to prevent severe illness, has soared as infections have risen. Biden administration officials have pushed for wide use of Paxlovid, which the government purchased and provides free. He said he is still recommending Paxlovid for people who have significant health conditions or are over age 75. "We have not seen any resistance emerge to date in patients treated with Paxlovid," a spokesperson said. The CDC also said it is unclear whether cases of rebound symptoms have anything to do with Paxlovid, or are simply part of the natural trajectory of COVID-19.
Even a recession wouldn't cure inflation, former Obama adviser says
       
There’s increasing talk that the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes will cause a U.S. recession next year, but even a recession induced by the central bank might not be enough to tamp down inflation. Furman also said markets may be unrealistic in expecting inflation to settle at a normal rate after one bad spell. While he says a recession is possible, Furman said he expects above-trend jobs growth and below-trend economic growth as productivity normalizes. One is that inflation will remain high, and the second is that it is really impacting working Americans. “I don’t think there’s a great message.
Fed will succeed in bringing inflation down over next couple of years, Bernanke says
       
Former Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said Monday that he thinks the Fed will be successful in containing inflation. The Fed will be helped by “contained inflation expectations” — which means the public doesn’t think the high inflation over the past year will continue indefinitely, Bernanke said. Another difference from the high inflation era is that former Fed chair Arthur Burns didn’t think that the Fed was an effective tool in fighting inflation, Bernanke said. In contrast, today’s Fed has “30-plus years of low inflation, political support, and a leadership that is willing to say the Fed must take the lead in reducing inflation,” Bernanke said. The former Fed chairman said that the unemployment rate was likely to rise as a result of the Powell Fed’s actions.
U.S. doctors reconsider Pfizer's Paxlovid for lower-risk COVID patients
       
Use of Pfizer's Paxlovid, authorized to treat newly infected, at-risk people in order to prevent severe illness, has soared as infections have risen. Biden administration officials have pushed for wide use of Paxlovid, which the government purchased and provides free. He said he is still recommending Paxlovid for people who have significant health conditions or are over age 75. "We have not seen any resistance emerge to date in patients treated with Paxlovid," a spokesperson said. The CDC also said it is unclear whether cases of rebound symptoms have anything to do with Paxlovid, or are simply part of the natural trajectory of COVID-19.
Uvalde wasn't 'unimaginable.' In this country, it was predictable
       
By the time you read this, will another “unimaginable” mass shooting be the object of our outrage? A mass shooting is an “unimaginable” tragedy, perhaps, only because there’s no need to imagine them happening. Speaking of “unimaginable,” I wrote an op-ed piece taking issue with that word being thrown around by people empowered to do something about gun violence in this country. AdvertisementNational suicide plays out one murderous mass shooting at a time. After all, today’s college graduates might get relief, but what about next year’s grads, and those in the years and decades to come?” L.A. Times
Biden Close to Canceling $10k Student Debt, but It'll Take Time to Carry Out
       
US President Joe Biden is nearing a decision to wipe $10,000 in student loan debt per borrower. NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty ImagesThe Biden administration is on the verge of providing student debt relief to most borrowers. On the campaign trail, President Joe Biden promised federal borrowers with student debt he would approve $10,000 in relief. One potential problem involves targeting debt relief based on a borrower's income. Republicans are pummeling Democrats for inching towards debt relief, calling it a bailout for the urban professionals that make up a growing part of their constituency.
Bidens to visit Uvalde, NRA convention, Indianapolis 500: 5 things to know this weekend
       
The White House said the Bidens would "grieve with the community that lost 21 lives in the horrific" shooting. Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the president would meet with the community and religious leaders and victims' families. Biden called on lawmakers to "stand up to the gun lobby" in remarks Tuesday following the shooting. As Texas grieves, NRA convention continues in HoustonThe National Rifle Association continues its annual convention this weekend in Houston, days after a school shooting across the state in Uvalde, Texas, left 19 children and 2 adults dead. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden traveled to Buffalo to visit with families and lay flowers at a memorial on May 17.
US issues new sanctions against North Korea after missile tests
       
The U.S. targeted two Russian banks Friday as part of new sanctions over alleged support for North Korea and its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The sanctions come after what the U.S. says were three new ballistic missile launches by North Korea on Tuesday, including one intercontinental ballistic missile. The new sanctions also target a Belarus-based North Korea man who the United States says was helping generate funding for the missile launches, and a trading company. NORTH KOREA LAUNCHES 3 TEST MISSILES AS BIDEN LEAVES ASIABIDEN, SOUTH KOREA TO COORDINATE ON NORTH KOREA NUCLEAR THREAT RESPONSEOn Thursday, China and Russia vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution sponsored by the United States that would have imposed tough new sanctions on North Korea for its spate of intercontinental ballistic missile launches that can be used to deliver nuclear weapons. Thursday's vote represented the first serious division among the five veto-wielding permanent members of the U.N.’s most powerful body on a North Korea sanctions resolution.
Rep. Madison Cawthorn discloses 2021 'Let's Go Brandon' cryptocurrency purchase days after ethics probe announced
       
Rep. Madison Cawthorn on Friday belatedly disclosed suspected cryptocurrency transactions that earlier this month led the House Ethics Committee to open an investigation into the North Carolina Republican's possible promotion of an asset he secretly owned. Cawthorn, 26, revealed Friday that he bought between $100,000 and $250,000 worth of "Let's Go Brandon" cryptocurrency on Dec. 21. The same filing Friday disclosed that the first-term congressman sold between $100,000 and $250,000 of the "Let's Go Brandon" coin on Dec. 31. That sale potentially recouped at least what he had paid for the virtual currency before its dollar price exploded. The value of the Let's Go Brandon coin collapsed in early January after NASCAR rejected its sponsorship deal with the driver Brandon Brown.
NRA speakers unshaken on gun rights after school massacre
       
Once among the most powerful political organizations in the country, the NRA has seen its influence wane following a significant drop in political spending. According to a district safety plan, Uvalde schools have a wide range of safety measures in place. Kristi Noem, another potential presidential contender, said calls to further restrict gun access are “all about control and it is garbage. Outside the convention hall, protesters gathered in a park where police set up metal barriers — some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Samuel Thornburg, 43, a maintenance worker for Southwest Airlines in Houston who was attending the NRA meeting, said: “Guns are not evil.
Kyiv fears 'Mariupol repeat' as Russian forces escalate Donbas attacks
       
The advance of Russian forces in eastern Ukraine's industrial Donbas region raised fears that cities in the region would undergo the same horrors inflicted on the people of Mariupol in the weeks before it fell. Authorities say 1,500 people in Sievierodonetsk have already died since the Russian invasion began three months ago. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. About 12,000 to 13,000 remain in the city, Striuk said, huddled in shelters and largely cut off from the rest of Ukraine. In Russia's Far East, a legislative deputy offered a rare display of opposition to the war, demanding the end of the invasion and the withdrawal of Russian troops.
Belabored: What’s Up With Inflation, with J.W. Mason
       
Belabored: What’s Up With Inflation, with J.W. Mason Belabored: What’s Up With Inflation, with J.W. Mason Economist J.W. Mason joins the podcast to talk about inflation and how to organize around price increases. Chairman of the US Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, announced new measures to contain inflation earlier this week in D.C. (Jim Watson / AFP)Subscribe to the Belabored RSS feed here.
Insecurity Policy
       
Insecurity Policy Insecurity Policy American rhetoric during the first Cold War relied on an idealized image of U.S. institutions. If we were to reduce the first Cold War to its core features, they could be these:1. There are unmistakable similarities between global affairs in 2022 and those of the Cold War. Still, the differences are significant enough that we should not assume that a new Cold War would be just like the last one. He is the author of Neither Peace nor Freedom: The Cultural Cold War in Latin America.
The Authoritarian Danger at Home
       
The Authoritarian Danger at Home The Authoritarian Danger at Home Anti-China politics are providing cover for xenophobic and anti-democratic forces in the United States. In justifying the need for “strategic competition” with China, both Democrats and Republicans rely on the argument that China is an authoritarian threat to democracy that must be stopped. These trends make it easier to inflate narratives of foreign and domestic threats and increase the appeal of authoritarian visions of national unity. For Democrats, the embrace of anti-China politics represents an adaptation to political weakness in a climate of rising nationalism that provides the authoritarian right with a path to power. He is a leading progressive strategist regarding the U.S.–China relationship and the rise of Sinophobia in the United States.
Left Internationalism in the Heart of Empire
       
Left Internationalism in the Heart of Empire Left Internationalism in the Heart of Empire American leftists need an internationalist vision that universally and effectively joins anti-imperial and anti-authoritarian ethics. Instead, developments from the U.S. troop withdrawal in Afghanistan to the Russian invasion of Ukraine have placed left foreign policy voices on the defensive. This alternative internationalism, unlike liberal internationalism, sees the American security state as a roadblock to the global common good, and thus in need of fundamental transformation. A number of these actors emerged in the context of American foreign policy choices, even if those effects were unintended. All of this suggests that left foreign policy involves creating the conditions for the meaningful dispersion of actual power.
Where Are All the “Pro-Worker” Republicans Now?
       
Over the past few years, a small but highly-visible band of Republicans have publicly declared their intention to transform the GOP into a ?“worker’s party.” Sens. This reticence is particularly notable from Rubio, who already supported one Amazon union drive. The conservative case against organized laborAmong the modern Republican Party, labor unions are particularly despised. Despite these clear benefits for workers, so-called ?“pro-worker” Republicans aren’t coming anywhere close to declaring their support for this year’s union activism. This would also counter the GOP’s attempt to rebrand itself as a working class party.
No Half Measures, We Need Biden to Cancel All Student Loan Debt
       
The student loan payment moratorium has enabled myself and my family to stay afloat during turbulent and unpredictable times. We would be even better served by full cancellation of student loan debt. Since the beginning of the student loan moratorium, which began after the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, student loan payments have been extended six times, with this last extension shifting the restart from May 1 to August 31. If you carry student loan debt, are you happy that your payments haven’t restarted? The material benefits of this pause to student loan payments are not something to be taken lightly.
Most Price Increases from Inflation Have Gone to Corporate Profits
       
I have to admit that I previously understated the persistence of the price increases that started showing up last fall. Most of these price increases have gone to profits, not to labor. All this takes more time to explain than sensationalist stories about gas prices. There is clearly need for more social spending to help those being hit the hardest by such price increases. The economy’s inflation problem is being misdiagnosed and mistreated.
Buffalo Starbucks Workers Waited 6 Months Before the NLRB Finally Filed a Complaint Against the Company
       
But the action came six months after Buffalo workers filed their first charge against the company — far longer than the two to three months it took regional labor boards elsewhere to address allegations against Starbucks. It’s also the result of the scale of Starbucks’ alleged anti-union campaign in Buffalo: regional investigators had to evaluate hundreds of allegations against the company. With the groundbreaking success of Starbucks Workers United and the Amazon Labor Union (ALU), the NLRB’s reaction time has started to see more scrutiny. The Buffalo complaint compiles 29 filings workers submitted from nearly 20 stores in the region. Several of the fired workers described how the scale and pressure of the alleged anti-union campaign backfired to help them organize their coworkers.
Progressives Need to Resist the Domestic “War on Terror”
       
The post-9/11 “war on terror” was a disaster for Muslims and immigrant communities in the United States. The bill creates domestic terrorism offices within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Justice Department, and the FBI. The heads of all three agencies must regularly issue a joint report on domestic terrorism threats, incidents, and arrests and prosecutions. The bill also requires that they review and investigate hate crime charges with an eye on redefining or connecting them to domestic terror incidents. Still a Bad Idea Joe Biden’s fledgling domestic war on terror has proven a tricky matter for left-wing lawmakers to navigate.
Joe Biden Has Botched the Summit of the Americas
       
But Haiti has not been blacklisted from the Americas summit. Nor, of course, has Colombia, one of the United States’ closest allies, despite its historical and ongoing abysmal human rights record. What this episode has illustrated, however, is that many Latin American leaders are increasingly discouraged by the Biden administration. This diplomatic spat also demonstrates once again that when Latin American countries make collective demands, they can make very concrete gains. Beyond the issue of who attends the Summit of the Americas and who doesn’t, the Biden administration may find that Latin America’s latest realignment with the United States is already on the wane.
The Ukraine Aid Bill Is a Massive Windfall for US Military Contractors
       
Last Saturday, Joe Biden signed a bill that provides $40.1 billion in emergency funding for Ukraine, including $24.6 billion for military programs and $15.5 billion for nonmilitary ones. While it’s difficult to tell how much of the $40.1 billion Ukraine aid bill will end up as direct aid to Ukraine, it is clear that private contractors will receive a significant amount to provide the weapons and military-related services whether they’re for Ukraine or another country “impacted by the situation in Ukraine,” as the bill puts it. The legislation, according to my estimates, will produce at least $17.3 billion in revenue for US military contractors — more than the total amount of nonmilitary funding ($15.5 billion). On a fundamental level, this bill is a massive redistribution of wealth from the public coffers to the pockets of private military contractors. Moreover, the emergency funding for the US pandemic response that Biden originally requested was stripped from the bill.
Biden Is Aiming to Destroy a Historic Climate Change Lawsuit
       
Any day now, a federal circuit court is expected to deliver a ruling that would allow a historic climate change lawsuit to proceed to trial. But the Juliana case stands out even among climate litigation: It has faced six rulings on the shadow docket — more than any other federal lawsuit. For example, President Ronald Reagan’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued two reports on global warming caused by burning fossil fuels. That report attributed most of the warming to burning fossil fuels and suggested ending coal use by the year 2000. “Until Biden, every Democratic administration — not to mention the Republican ones — was enthusiastic about fossil fuels,” Speth told us.
When Jeff Bezos Tweets, He Wants His Journalists and Joe Biden to Listen
       
Billionaire Washington Post owner and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has started using Twitter to amplify his political ideology, slam the Joe Biden administration, and promote a pundit on his payroll who echoes his views. One other thing missing from Bezos’s inflation declarations: any calls for the government to reduce the largesse it is sending to his own business empire. However, Bloomberg News reported in 2015: Every two weeks, Jeff Bezos holds an hourlong conference call with executives at The Washington Post. “The Washington Post has an incredible role to play in this democracy.” But even if Bezos is not making day-to-day editorial decisions, that’s besides the point. He doesn’t need to order his paid pundits to write the op-eds he wants because they already know what he wants.
Big Pharma Is Pressuring Joe Manchin to Oppose Drug Pricing Reforms
       
Now, with Manchin signaling he could support a new compromise budget bill that includes drug pricing reforms, Big Pharma isn’t taking any chances — and so it has started ramping up advertising pressure in his state. The statement was significant, because Manchin has long asserted that he supports some measures to reduce medicine prices. The Alliance for Patient Access website makes clear the organization is funded by the pharmaceutical industry. “Treatments have come a long way, so the possibility of living without migraine gives me hope,” Katie says in the ad. Innovation in medicine needs to keep going so that I keep having hope.
Starbucks Is the Country’s Worst Labor Law Violator. Joe Biden Should Rein It In.
       
Starbucks is violating the law with a frequency and intensity that makes it stand out from more prosaic labor law violators. US employers are charged with violating federal labor law in 41.5 percent of union election cases. But despite its long attempt to associate its brand name with progressive values, Starbucks is violating the law with a frequency and intensity that makes it stand out from more prosaic labor law violators. CEO Howard Schultz and other top managers have misleadingly claimed that the law prevents it from unilaterally changing conditions for union workers. Pro-union workers have repeatedly criticized the NLRB for acting too slowly to rein in Starbucks’s widespread lawlessness.
The Summit of the Americas Is an Instrument of US Hegemony in Latin America
       
On May 5, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) announced that if any American country were excluded from the summit, its fourteen member nations would likely not attend. “The Summit of the Americas is not a meeting of the United States, so it cannot decide who is invited and who is not,” the ambassador for Antigua and Barbuda to the United States, Sir Ronald Sanders, said pointedly. There isn’t a country in Latin America and the Caribbean that has not suffered, in one form or another, from US-sponsored plots, coups, embargos, and interventions. A Grotesque Joke The United States’ self-appointed authority to certify democracies is, to put it mildly, pretty rich. When the FTAA finally foundered among international protests, the work of social movements, and the opposition of pink-tide governments, the Summit of the Americas was stripped of its original raison d’être.
The War on My Homeland Offers a Real Chance to Save the Planet
       
The import of all fossil fuels from Russia must be banned, as must any investment in Russia. We need to phase out all fossil fuels globally if we are to stop the existential threat to our planet. And it will further embolden the tyrants who draw their power from fossil fuels. It is moving far more quickly to mobilize oil and gas reserves worldwide than it is to ban Russian fossil fuels outright. Equation Campaign is a 10-year initiative funding movements on the ground to keep fossil fuels in the ground.
The Fight for Abortion After “Roe” Falls
       
Planned Parenthood’s single ad campaign—albeit one focused on states where access is in jeopardy—cost far more than the entire annual budget of many abortion rights groups. March 10, 2022 Author pageYet in response to the crisis surrounding abortion access, some national groups appear to be retreating from state fights. Meanwhile, national abortion rights groups have tended to prioritize national organizing and efforts to fight against restrictions in the federal courts. The anti-abortion movement has systematically cut public funding of abortion, leaving the abortion rights movement heavily reliant on sympathetic private donors. In Washington state, abortion is protected under state law, but a large number of Catholic hospitals refuse to provide reproductive health care.
Another Terrible Choice for Biden’s “Disinformation Board”
       
Subscribe to The Nation Subscribe now for as little as $2 a month! For more from The Nation, check out our latest issueSubscribe to The Nation Subscribe now for as little as $2 a month! Last week, the Department of Homeland Security announced that it was temporarily deactivating its Disinformation Governance Board, a “working group” ostensibly designed to help the government develop strategies to combat fake news. Presumably, a former government official trading in on his experience in order to lucratively sway national security policy is the type of action the DHS disinformation board might be looking to prevent. The disinformation board was already raising hackles with its Orwellian undertone.
The meatpacking industry’s conspiracy to keep plants open during COVID-19
       
Would Sullivan like to discuss the possibility of getting President Donald Trump to sign an executive order to keep meatpacking plants open? The effect that the meatpacking plant outbreaks had on the early spread of COVID-19 is staggering. ProPublica and other news outlets tracked cases and deaths involving meatpacking workers. In the days leading up to the executive order, meatpacking industry representatives were in constant communication with the White House and USDA, the subcommittee records show. Thousands of meatpacking workers would continue to crowd into processing plants, risking contracting the virus and bringing it home to their families.
OSHA inspects less than one-half of 1% of firms yearly
       
As a result, OSHA cited firms only 300 times from late 2017 through Sept. 30, 2019, for failing to file the summary reports and cited firms 110 times from then through April 15, 2022. The agency also had an uneven performance in issuing an emergency temporary standard (ETS) to force firms to protect workers against the virus. The first loss was when the Republican Trump administration’s OSHA opposed an NNU-AFL-CIO suit to force OSHA to issue an ETS covering health care workers. In late 2021, Democratic President Joe Biden’s OSHA issued an ETS covering all firms nationwide with 100 workers or more. OSHA is now working on an overall standard to order all firms to protect workers against all air-borne respiratory diseases, agency Administrator Douglas Parker testified.
Canceling student debt would cost less than Trump’s tax cuts for the rich
       
American University student Magnolia Mead puts up posters near the White House promoting student loan debt forgiveness, Friday, April 29, 2022, in Washington. Like 45 million other Americans who did the same, I owe student loan debt. My loan is just a tiny fraction of the national student loan debt. Even writing off every penny of student debt would cost less than Trump’s tax cuts for corporations and the rich. And, importantly, student debt forgiveness has broad public support, including among people without a college degree and without student loan debt, as well as young people.
Never-ending plans to expand NATO threaten world peace
       
Observer Research FoundationIn 2012, then President Barak Obama announced the so-called “Pivot to East Asia.” The United States started to focus less on the Middle East and more on East Asia. It was designed to be the NATO of East Asia. However, the United States, as part of its increasingly confrontational and militaristic foreign policy, seems to have a different path in mind. As part of this expansion, the United States has repeatedly lobbied Vietnam to allow the U.S. military to build a naval base on Vietnamese territory. This military agreement between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States was a major and drastic step to militarize the region.
U.S. war against Russia threatens world peace
       
| Olivier Matthys / APThe U.S. has become more open about its intent to use the war in Ukraine as part of a long-term war against Russia, a war aimed at significantly weakening that country. The actions taken to prepare for a long-term war against Russia coincide with the total jettisoning of peace talks. The talks between Ukraine and Russia were essentially shut down, as the U.S. promised the weapons Ukraine said it needed to win the war outright. As the war continues, the danger of more escalation increases, with the ultimate horror of nuclear war becoming more and more possible. Democracy and just about everything else can be lost if the U.S. doesn’t stop conducting its long-term war against Russia.
Children, teachers shot dead in Texas at yet another mass shooting
       
“Why are we willing to live with this carnage?” an upset Biden, a longtime senatorial crusader for gun control, asked. All of those groups denounced the murders, mourned the victims and recommitted themselves to the gun control cause. “Gun violence is a cancer, and it’s one that none of us should tolerate for one single moment longer. That’s the part that’s so frustrating.”Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who has made gun control a crusade ever since Newtown, is still trying to talk ten of the Senate’s 50 Republicans into backing gun control legislation. Pro-gun GOP Sen. Ted Cruz reiterated his stand after the Uvalde massacre, but withdrew from a speaking commitment to the NRA.
AFL-CIO’s President Shuler offers aid to Buffalo after racist shooting
       
A makeshift memorial near the scene of the shooting at Tops Supermarket, Buffalo, N.Y., May 19, 2022. Matt Rourke/APBUFFALO —Even before Democratic President Joe Biden came to Buffalo to talk privately with families of victims of the racist shooting there, AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler stepped forward to offer them, and the traumatized city organized labor’s aid. Peyton Gendron, 18, drove three hours from the Binghamton area to the Jefferson Avenue Tops Supermarket in a predominantly Black neighborhood. DeJesus told WNYLaborToday.com the day after the shooting that United Food and Commercial Workers District 1 Director Mark Manna informed him no Tops workers, whom the union represents, were killed. Manna told DeJesus “some” had been injured.
In surprise move, Supreme Court backs Biden on a climate issue
       
Supreme Court | J. Scott Applewhite/APThe Supreme Court will not end the ability of the Biden administration to factor in the social impacts of climate change. The current amount is $51 per ton of greenhouse gases spewed into the atmosphere, but people in the Biden administration want it to be raised as much as four times that amount. That decision blocked rules, blocked environmental reviews, and caused enormous headaches for the Biden administration. Louisiana appealed to the Supreme Court for help, describing the Biden rule as making “a power grab designed to manipulate America’s entire federal regulatory apparatus.” The Biden administration resisted, arguing that the states lack standing and that the challenge was premature. In a brief order issued on Thursday, the Supreme Court sided with the Biden administration, rejecting – without explanation – Louisiana’s emergency motion; there were no noted dissents.
Amid some environmental wins, climate change burns on
       
The White House announced May 5 that Jalonne White-Newsome would become the new Director of Environmental Justice. A strong sign of Biden’s prioritization of the fight against climate change, White-Newsome will help strengthen and continue the administration’s commitment to expediting the federal government’s abilities to pursue environmental justice. It was lauded by environmental groups as the “holy grail” of environmental justice bills. “This problem of inequitable citing is one of the main issues that started the environmental justice movement in the first place,” said Sonal Jessel, director of policy for We Act for Environmental Justice. Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research reported it endured record deforestation during the first three months of 2022.
Workers at call centers serving Medicare stage two-day strike
       
Those are just some of the ways the 10,000 workers toiling at call centers from coast to coast are exploited by their federal contractor, Maximus. The federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services hired Maximus. It has more call center workers than CMMS has staffers (6,100), who are regular full-time federal employees—and who get paid more than $15 hourly. Actual picket lines went up at the two largest call centers, Bogalusa and Hattiesburg.. The Maximus workers also drew supportive videos from Sens.
Reseal the Deal with Iran
       
It could be make or break time for the Iran nuclear deal. The Biden administration’s talks with Iran to revive the deal have since progressed impressively, but now they have stalled again. While Iran has gradually enriched uranium to higher levels since Trump abrogated the deal, it has made no attempt to acquire nuclear weapons. To repeat, Iran has, to date, not moved toward acquiring nuclear weapons. A separate agreement between Iran and the UN’'s nuclear watchdog agency, allowing UN inspection of Iran’s nuclear sites, is scheduled to expire around June 6.
Don’t Let the Republicans Hijack the Border
       
× Expand Pastor Lorenzo Ortiz Haitian asylum seekers gather in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, on May 1 for reopening of border. With the border closed to many, some asylum seekers have taken more dangerous routes to the United States, crossing on desert terrain and sometimes trying to scale Trump’s thirty-foot border wall. It is a process that has resulted in deportations without giving asylum seekers a fair shake. Contrary to the Republican narrative, asylum seekers are not let loose. If they pass an initial screening, asylum seekers must be granted an opportunity to have a full airing of their claim.
Russia’s Nuclear Threat Endangers Us All
       
But we also have to consider how Russia is perceiving the war and to what extent it would view defeat as an existential threat. Any potential of something as devastating as nuclear war should be cause enough for alarm. We are all familiar with the immediate devastation that nuclear weapons could do to the cities they target and the radiation clouds that would spread further afield. A 2007 study suggests global nuclear winter effects could be triggered by as few as 100 low-yield nuclear weapons. It feels as if there is little we can do about the nuclear threat prompted by the invasion of Ukraine, but that’s not true.
The Other Americans: Mexican President Visits Central America to Talk Migration
       
× Expand Creative Commons Mexican President Andrés Manuel López ObradorMexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador recently visited four countries in Central America, plus Cuba, to discuss migration and development with various heads of state in the region. “These projects will not deter migration,” Roldán says. Migrants now face more challenges crossing through the country in their hopes of reaching the United States. “Authorities carry out this extortion of migrants,” Roldán says. In Mexico, new measures place migrants in an increased state of danger as well, as they seek to head north to the United States.
The Federal Government Can End the Affordable Housing Shortage in Five Years
       
According to some estimates, there is a national shortage of approximately seven million affordable homes for low-income households. But several portions of Biden’s housing legislative package remain tied up in a divided Congress. On one hand, the Federal Housing Administration, which insured mortgages, told banks in its underwriting manual that the agency would not insure mortgage loans to borrowers of color, which effectively prevented homeowners of color from moving into majority-white neighborhoods. “Clearly, the federal government can make policies that dramatically transform housing access,” Kwak tells The Progressive. “Biden’s plan rewards communities that step away from this kind of legacy.”
How the War in Ukraine Could Slow Texas’ Energy Transition
       
The state also has the most new renewable energy capacity commissioned or under construction. Jim Krane, an energy research fellow at Houston’s Rice University, studies oil-producing countries and the geopolitics of the energy transition. These days, Krane has turned his attention to the war in Ukraine and its fallout on international energy markets. Texas Observer: Before Russia invaded Ukraine, where was the Texas energy industry headed? And there is that risk—that it’s not Europe that’s going to embargo Russia, it’s Russia that’s going to embargo Europe.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is fracturing the delicate peace in the Arctic
       
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is rippling throughout the world, and some of the strongest waves are crashing in the far north. In 1996, Arctic nations founded the Arctic Council. Until Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, it was composed of eight states: Canada, Denmark (via Greenland), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States. Sweden and Finland are also considering joining NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, as a result of Russia’s invasion. “The moment Finland and Sweden join NATO, I just don’t ever see the Russians coming back to the Arctic Council,” Huebert said.
How sanctions became Biden’s weapon of choice against Russia
       
A small group of experts, mostly lawyers and some economists, have crafted Biden’s Russia sanctions, which have now gone further and are more sweeping than any previous administration’s. Biden’s sanctions team are technocrats who’ve been profiled in the press and praised for their quick, multilateral approach. In the worst-case scenario, the West’s Russia sanctions could contribute to widespread unrest. How Biden’s sanctions team thinksEven sanctions experts recognize that sanctions are overused. Another former Treasury official told me it read exactly like the think tank reports that Biden’s sanctions team had written during the Trump years.
The abortion provider that Republicans are struggling to stop
       
So Gomperts launched a new nonprofit organization based in Austria — Aid Access — with the goal of providing affordable and accessible abortion services to people in the US. How Aid Access worksThe Aid Access model goes like this: If you need an abortion, you fill out an online consultation form. Legal threats against Aid Access without the constitutional protection of Roe might make things even more complicated. Anti-abortion activists and lawmakers have been ramping up their efforts to crack down on abortion pills, an unsurprising development given that medication abortion accounted for 54 percent of all US abortions in 2020. It’s hard to know what abortion access in the US will look like in a year, or five.
Was Russia’s decision to cut off natural gas exports a mistake?
       
Last week, Russia announced it would cut off natural gas deliveries to Poland and Bulgaria after both countries refused to comply with its request to perform export payments in rubles, Russia’s national currency. Russia has largely been able to maintain diplomatic relationships in the Asia-Pacific region with China and India, its biggest partners, despite Western sanctions. But its decision to cut off energy exports has strengthened Europe’s alliance with the US, particularly as Europe continues deliberations over added sanctions against Russia. The Kremlin defended the move as a necessary measure to protect Russia’s financial reserves following heavy sanctions. “Full European energy sanctions would really hurt [Russia’s] economy and hurt their ability to wage war because they will run out of money.
How we got here: Roe v. Wade from 1973 to today
       
Share All sharing options for: How we got here: Roe v. Wade from 1973 to todayIn 1976, just a few years after the Supreme Court handed down its opinion in Roe v. Wade, most Americans thought abortion should be legal in at least some circumstances. One major reason is a deliberate, decades-long campaign on the right to overturn Roe v. Wade. If the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, as it appears set to do based on the draft opinion that leaked Monday night, it will toss out nearly 50 years of jurisprudence along with it. 1973: Roe v. Wade is decided. The opinion, if it holds, would overturn Roe v. Wade, leaving abortion rights up to the states, unless Congress steps in and passes a national policy.
Abortion has been treated as a fringe issue by Democrats for decades. This is the result.
       
For decades, abortion has been treated as a fringe issue in American politics. The moment abortion rights supporters have been dreading — and abortion opponents have been eagerly awaiting — for the past 40 years has finally arrived. This situation — states pitted against each other over a major civil rights issue — has frightening parallels in American history. Democratic politicians generally supported abortion rights, but did not always push back vociferously on restrictions. In America, there has been “a lingering disregard for the equality and the personhood of women,” especially Black and brown women, Goodwin said.
Three unlikely but not totally impossible paths toward restoring Roe’s protections
       
The more a party wins, the better the odds an unexpected Supreme Court vacancy will arise while they’re in power. This could be an abortion-specific law codifying Roe’s protections (though that would have to survive this Supreme Court). They could at the very least reverse any Democratic law establishing abortion protections, and at most try to ban abortion nationwide. But in the long term, that’s what would be needed to entrench abortion protections nationally. If a public opinion shift doesn’t happen, Roe protections, even if they are restored, would never truly be safe.
The first spot in the Democrats’ presidential nominating calendar is up for grabs
       
Democrats may finally knock the Iowa caucuses out of their prized first position in the presidential nominating process, in what could be that calendar’s biggest shakeup in decades. And the existing early states — Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina — had to reapply, arguing why they deserve their spots. A new Midwestern state could be added to the mix, as could a fifth early state, and the order could be changed. So choices about the early states and their sequence made now could help determine the identity of future presidents. But if that changes on either side, things will get very interesting very quickly, with the early states playing a starring role.
Can we stop the next pandemic by seeking out deadly viruses in the wild?
       
Can we stop the next pandemic by seeking out deadly viruses in the wild? Share All sharing options for: Can we stop the next pandemic by seeking out deadly viruses in the wild? And in the years since Predict launched, the conversation on the value of viral discovery has shifted toward even greater pessimism. Could viral discovery risk causing the pandemics it’s meant to stop? Sure, terrorists could build a pandemic virus identified through Deep Vzn, but couldn’t they also build smallpox or the 1918 flu?
The US just deepened its commitment to Ukraine by $40 billion
       
The Senate voted 86 to 11 to pass a $40 billion Ukraine aid package Thursday in the latest bipartisan signal of Washington’s deepening commitment to Ukraine’s grinding war against Russia. This latest legislation comes in addition to the $13.6 billion in emergency assistance for Ukraine that Congress approved in March, bringing the total of the United States’ Ukraine aid to a historic $53 billion since the start of the war. How this big Ukraine aid package came to be — and what’s in itThe Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2022, as it’s officially known, sets aside approximately $40 billion in emergency funding for military, economic, and humanitarian assistance to Kyiv, NATO allies, and partners supporting Ukraine. That money is on top of $3.8 billion in weapons that the US has delivered to Ukraine since February. This Ukraine aid package, however, also puts about $9 billion toward replenishing US weapons stockpiles.
Title 42, the controversial Trump-era border policy, explained
       
The decision will set the Biden administration back by months in its efforts to end Title 42. But under Title 42, migrants are returned to Mexico within a matter of hours and without any such opportunity. How ending Title 42 became a fight among DemocratsRepublicans have been gearing up for a fight over the policy even before the Biden administration announced that it would end Title 42. Progressives, on the other hand, have been calling on Biden to end Title 42 since shortly after he took office. Democratic convulsions over Title 42 show that the party’s consensus on immigration policy is tenuous at best.
How bitcoin detectives at the IRS and FBI are catching crypto crimes
       
He’s now the head of investigations at a private crypto intelligence firm called TRM Labs, which, among other things, focuses on detecting illicit crypto transactions. Chainalysis, a crypto research firm, found that crypto crime transactions reached an all-time high last year. Crypto transactions are all publicly recorded, which means that identifying the wallets criminals use to store their digital currency is relatively simple. Federal agencies like the IRS, the FBI, and the State Department have spent millions of dollars on contracts with private crypto intelligence firms. After all, as long as there’s crypto flowing through our financial system, there will be people determined to use it in less-than-legal ways.
The Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act, explained
       
As the average consumer bears the brunt of rising gas prices, big oil and gas companies have continued to rake in historic profits. The Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act is meant to help alleviate rising gas prices; the national average gas price reached $4.45 per gallon last week — a record high for the US. “I’m a proud capitalist, and what we’re experiencing with fuel prices is the result of a broken market,” said Rep. Katie Porter, a California Democrat and one of the original co-sponsors of the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act. “The Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act would not fix high gasoline prices at the pump, and has the potential to exacerbate the supply shortage our country is facing, leading to even worse outcomes,” Fletcher wrote in a statement. The Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act is comprised of a few main components: Firstly, the legislation would allow the president to declare an energy emergency effective for up to 30 days, though that declaration could be renewed.
The progressive push to oust the last anti-abortion House Democrat, explained
       
Cuellar, a nine-term Congressman and longtime fixture in his South Texas district, is now the last standing House Democrat who has taken anti-abortion stances. The outcome of the race could offer an early indication of how much the issue of abortion rights energizes Democratic voters. “My sense is that it is pretty close,” says Matt Angle, a Texas Democratic strategist who’s not affiliated with either campaign. According to an April 2022 University of Texas poll, Texas voters are split on the subject, with a plurality who identify as pro-abortion. In addition to abortion rights, Cisneros has sought to draw contrasts with Cuellar on issues like immigration, climate change, and corporate donations.
Why Biden’s off-the-cuff comment about defending Taiwan matters
       
US policy toward Taiwan has been one of “strategic ambiguity” for four decades — supporting Taiwan’s independence without quite saying so. How dangerous is Biden’s Taiwan comment? The diplomatic gymnastics of the “One China” policy may seem absurd. But Asia experts say that the “One China” policy remains the best approach to East Asia. “The ‘One China’ policy is a terrible interim solution, and it’s the best we got,” he told me.
What we know about the Uvalde elementary school massacre
       
Share All sharing options for: What we know about the Uvalde elementary school massacreEditor’s note, May 26, 3 pm: This article is no longer being updated. For Vox’s latest coverage of the Uvalde shooting, see our storystream. It’s the deadliest US school shooting in years: In 2018, 17 were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida; in 2012, a shooter at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut killed 26 people. It marks the 27th school shooting this year alone; in addition to the deaths reported in Uvalde, 25 people have been killed in school shootings since January. But the Uvalde school shooting is the worst in Texas since 2018, when a student at Santa Fe High School near Houston shot and killed 10 people and wounded another 13.
America’s unique, enduring gun problem, explained
       
Gun control opponents, including virtually every Republican, have typically framed the gun violence epidemic in the US as a symptom of a broader mental health crisis. Researchers have found a clear link between gun ownership in the US and gun violence, and some argue that it’s causal. And states with weaker gun laws have higher rates of gun-related homicides and suicides, according to a January study by the gun control advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety. There’s still a pervasive idea, pushed by gun manufacturers and gun rights organizations like the National Rifle Association, that further arming America is the answer to preventing gun violence — the “good guy with a gun” theory. The Bipartisan Background Checks Act would require background checks for all gun sales and close loopholes that currently exist for gun shows and online sales.
Jacinda Ardern talks to Stephen Colbert about gun control in New Zealand
       
In the aftermath of the Robb Elementary School shooting on Tuesday which left 19 children and two teachers dead, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern spoke to Stephen Colbert about gun control — and the measures her own government took following the 2019 Christchurch massacre which saw 51 people killed. "Then I think about what happened to us and all I can reflect is, we are a very pragmatic people. When we saw something like that happen everyone said 'never again', so then it was incumbent on us as politicians to respond to that. Ardern went on to explain how the government introduced a buy back scheme to collect and destroy as many guns as possible. Following the shooting on Tuesday, President Biden has called on the government to "do what needs to be done" and stand up to the gun lobby, while people like NBA coach Steve Kerr have made powerful speeches about gun control.
As we deal with the tragic mass shooting in Texas, here's how to help
       
It marks the 213th mass shooting in the country this year, according to data tracking tool Gun Violence Archive . Consider donating directly to the Uvalde community and regional gun reform activists, in addition to sending money to national organizations. The organization advocates for an intersectional look at gun violence that acknowledges the specific impact gun violence has on Black and Brown communities. But gun reform activists still see effective gun legislation as a vital way to make national-level change. Get out on the ground to advocate for reform, donate your time or money, and demand more from representatives.
Building the “Big Lie”: Inside the Creation of Trump’s Stolen Election Myth
       
Numerous polls show that over two-thirds of Republicans doubt the legitimacy of the 2020 election. Our examination of their actions from the 2020 election to the present day reveals a pattern. In the weeks after the election, Maras presented herself to Byrne as knowledgeable about election fraud. “This leads to voter or election fraud.” Allied Security, it said, had discovered enough proof of election fraud to decertify the results in Antrim. The final proof of election fraud, which he was supposed to deliver last minute, was no longer going to arrive.
Advisers Rebuke FEMA for Racial Disparities in Disaster Aid
       
Chauncia Willis, CEO of the Institute for Diversity and Inclusion in Emergency Management, said the 52-page report should push FEMA to take equity seriously. ‘Paradigm shift’The new report, released late last year, systematically criticizes FEMA disaster programs for being designed in a way that benefits affluent people and communities. Federal law generally requires states to pay 25% of disaster recovery costs in order to receive FEMA reimbursement for the remaining 75%. The advisory council’s 35 members are appointed by the FEMA administrator and include emergency managers, health practitioners, disaster consultants, budget experts and municipal officials. The chairman, W. Nim Kidd, is head of the Texas Division of Emergency Management.
Katrina Survivors Were Told They Could Use Grant Money to Rebuild. Now They’re Being Sued for It.
       
To her relief, she said, a Road Home representative told her she could use the elevation grant to instead pay for repairs. State officials told the news organizations no homeowners have identified who told them they could use the money for repairs. Wallace and Kristy Styron received a $30,000 elevation grant even though their home was already above the required height. A document outlining the benefits Styron qualified for, dated Dec. 2, 2006, says he was not eligible for an elevation grant. The news organizations reviewed a sample of 200 of the more than 1,600 elevation grant lawsuits filed over properties in the city.
Reality Check: Seven Times Texas Leaders Misled the Public About Operation Lone Star
       
The measures are the latest examples of how Abbott and other state officials have used incomplete and sometimes misleading statements when promoting the purpose and effectiveness of Operation Lone Star. The news organizations found that misdemeanor trespassing charges made up about 40% of Operation Lone Star’s arrests from July through February. Spending on Border SecurityLast year, Texas lawmakers tripled the amount the state spends on border security, with the bulk of the budget going to Operation Lone Star. El Paso County accounted for all but 12 pounds of the fentanyl captured as part of Operation Lone Star. Immigrant ApprehensionsA year into Operation Lone Star, Abbott touted a reduction in immigrant apprehensions during an interview with the conservative news site Breitbart.
Recent Data Show Dominant Meat Processing Companies Are Taking Advantage of Market Power to Raise Prices and Grow Profit Margins
       
But for some price increases affecting Americans, there’s another culprit: dominant corporations in uncompetitive markets taking advantage of their market power to raise prices while increasing their own profit margins. Meat prices are a good example. In September, we explained that meat prices are the biggest contributor to the rising cost of groceries, in part because just a few large corporations dominate meat processing. If rising input costs were driving rising meat prices, those profit margins would be roughly flat, because higher prices would be offset by the higher costs. Instead, we’re seeing the dominant meat processors use their market power to extract bigger and bigger profit margins for themselves.
Transcripts
       
Return to Transcripts main pageState of the UnionInterview With U.S. Based on the track record of the state of Mississippi, why should any of these girls or moms believe you? REEVES: Well, that's going to be the law because, in 2007, the Mississippi legislature passed it. (CROSSTALK)JONAH GOLDBERG, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: There's no reason -- I just think that -- I mean, with all due respect, I just think that's just a nonstarter. And I think that's interesting.
What Happens When COVID-19 Emergency Declarations End? Implications for Coverage, Costs, and Access
       
People with private insurance who receive COVID-19 vaccines, including booster doses, from out-of-network providers could incur out-of-pocket costs when the § 319 PHE ends. Millions of people could lose Medicaid coverage and/or potentially face higher costs for Medicaid coverage when the § 319 PHE ends. End of § 319 PHE Hospitals will no longer receive the 20% payment increase for discharges of patients diagnosed with COVID-19 when the § 319 PHE expires. No later than the end of§ 319 PHE Medicare beneficiaries will again need to satisfy the 3-day prior hospitalization requirement in order to have Medicare coverage of SNF stays when the § 319 PHE expires. End of § 319 PHE Part D plans will no longer be required to issue extended supplies for all Part D drugs they cover after the § 319 PHE ends.
State politics hamstring EPA’s pursuit of polluters
       
But one decision EPA enforcement agents will have to make will be particularly important: how much authority to delegate to the states. They say state environmental departments are underfunded and lack necessary resources to aggressively pursue environmental criminals. "To the extent there is an increase in federal enforcement — which we all expect — I would not expect state enforcement is going to decrease as a result," he said. "I think it’s too early to know what [the Biden administration] is going to do," she said. The region does not have a strong local environmental enforcement presence, and environmentalists on and off the island have petitioned the Biden EPA to revoke a federal permit.
AP FACT CHECK: Wisconsin election probe ignores some facts
       
But many of Michael Gableman’s claims have already been dismissed by courts or rejected by the state’s bipartisan election commission. Here’s a look at some of the claims from his presentation to lawmakers on Tuesday and in the report:GABLEMAN: “Wisconsin election officials’ widespread use of absentee ballot drop boxes violated Wisconsin law.”THE FACTS: Wisconsin law is silent on absentee ballot boxes. The bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission before the 2020 election provided guidance to local election clerks who run elections, telling them that ballot boxes can be put wherever they want. The commission voted 5-1 in two follow-up votes extending the order through the November 2020 election before rescinding it in March 2021. Under Wisconsin law, only a judge can declare someone as incompetent to vote.
Wisconsin Is Ground Zero for the MAGA Effort to Steal the Next Election
       
She started recording a video of her husband, a junior member of the Wisconsin state Assembly, receiving praise from the 45th president of the United States. There are at least 21 candidates for secretary of state across the nation who have challenged the 2020 election result. Nowhere is this crusade to subvert the 2020 election result more on display than in Wisconsin. Last fall, the Republican campaign to challenge the integrity of the 2020 election turned to a new target: the Wisconsin Elections Commission. As the nonpartisan chief of the Wisconsin Elections Commission, Wolfe implements the guidance of six board members and ensures the agency runs smoothly.
Murray, Inslee Detail Salmon Recovery Process That Could Include Snake River Dam Removal
       
Removing or altering the four dams to help salmon migration on the Lower Snake must be approved by Congress. These types of studies are needed prior to removing or altering the four dams on the Lower Snake, Murray and Inslee said. Conservation groups that have advocated for dam removal said they looked forward to the discussions about removing the four Lower Snake River dams. However, proponents of keeping the dams in place said Murray and Inslee shouldn’t solely focus on the Lower Snake River to help Northwest salmon populations. “The Lower Snake River is part of a larger hydropower, irrigation and transportation system that provides direct benefits to Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and beyond,” Clemans said in a statement.
A who's who guide to the Republican review of Wisconsin's 2020 presidential election
       
MADISON – The Republican review of Wisconsin’s election is being conducted by those who appear to have already made up their minds. Last year, he served as a Republican election observer in Green Bay and raised complaints about how the election was conducted there. Before he worked for Gableman, Wait helped lead a group of private individuals who conducted their own review of the election. Steven Page to work on the election review. Brandtjen was among a group of four Wisconsin Republican legislators to tour Arizona's controversial review of ballots in Maricopa County.
The NRA has weakened. But gun rights drive the GOP more than ever.
       
(Video: Hadley Green/The Washington Post, Photo: Joshua Lott/The Washington Post)For GOP voters and lawmakers, gun rights have become a central culture-war issue animating their movement. “The NRA is a convenient foil for the left, but the NRA is not the be-all, end-all.”AdvertisementThe NRA says it has more than 5 million members but hasn’t released specific figures over time. Now, many of the most vocal gun rights voters are turning to activists like Brown and Hammond, who fault the NRA for negotiating in the past on some legislation. State and local lawmakers on both sides of the aisle commented on the events surrounding a mass school shooting in Uvalde, Tex. “The NRA is the soft line in the gun lobby.”The NRA has also responded to the pressure to take harder stances.
The Plot to Keep Meatpacking Plants Open During COVID-19
       
The Plot to Keep Meatpacking Plants Open During COVID-19 Newly released documents reveal that the meatpacking industry’s callousness toward the health of its workers and its influence over the Trump administration were far greater than previously known. Series: On the Line How the Meatpacking Industry Became a Hotbed of COVID-19ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Would Sullivan like to discuss the possibility of getting President Donald Trump to sign an executive order to keep meatpacking plants open? The effect that the meatpacking plant outbreaks had on the early spread of COVID-19 is staggering. Thousands of meatpacking workers would continue to crowd into processing plants, risking contracting the virus and bringing it home to their families.
The Hypnotherapist and Failed Politician Who Helped Fuel the Never-Ending Hunt for Election Fraud in Wisconsin
       
In Wisconsin, Stone has finally been embraced politically, by activists and politicians who, like him, didn’t approve of the so-called “Zuckerbucks” or of big-city Democratic mayors. He filed a complaint with the Wisconsin Elections Commission back in August of 2020, well before the election. On Aug. 28, 2020, he fired off a 27-page complaint to the Wisconsin Elections Commission, which included 167 exhibits. Stone saw the supposed Obama network’s fingerprints on the 2020 election grants offered by the Center for Tech and Civic Life. Now that he’s left a mark as a political activist in Wisconsin, Stone is back on the campaign trail.
Inside the Government Fiasco That Nearly Closed the U.S. Air System
       
The agency, however, would make no such provisions for another group warning of far graver consequences: the U.S. aviation industry. The FAA’s passivity was particularly striking given the mounting concern in the aviation industry. “We expect the aviation industry to ... take appropriate action, if necessary, to ensure protection of such devices.”The aviation companies didn’t see it that way. The wireless companies agreed to another two-week delay and to establish temporary modest 5G-free buffer zones around 50 airports for six months. “The wireless companies have made it very clear they’re not going to agree to an open-ended situation,” he said.
BTS Is Going To The White House
       
Last year, two weeks after the Atlanta spa shooting, BTS released a statement speaking out against the rising wave of anti-Asian violence, recalling their own experiences with racism in the West. “We have endured expletives without reason and were mocked for the way we looked,” they wrote on Twitter. “We cannot put into words the pain of becoming the subject of hatred and violence for such a reason. A string of shootings at Asian-owned businesses in Dallas were believed to be hate crimes connected to one suspect. According to the White House, BTS and Biden will discuss “the importance of diversity and inclusion” as well as BTS’ role as youth ambassadors “who spread a message of hope and positivity across the world."
Here's What Congress Failed To Do After Sandy Hook And How It’s Shaping Up To Be The Same After The Uvalde Shooting
       
Sandy Hook was not the tipping point that gun control advocates had prayed it would be. “I am sick and tired of it,” President Joe Biden said after the Uvalde shooting. (In the case of Sandy Hook, the weapons used had been legally purchased by the shooter’s mother, who was killed with these guns before the school attack.) “The idea that an 18-year-old kid can walk into a gun store and buy two assault weapons is just wrong,” Biden said. It’s just sick.”After Sandy Hook, then-president Barack Obama put his deputy, Biden, in charge of spearheading what they might do to reform gun laws, both through executive actions and in Congress.
Michigan’s Governor Is “Going To Fight Like Hell” To Protect Abortion Access
       
Michigan women have had these protected rights for 49 years — my whole lifetime, essentially. And the rights of Michigan women shouldn’t be determined by the leadership in 83 different counties. Has the Michigan Supreme Court officially accepted the case? We’re waiting to hear from the Supreme Court, and in the interim, there are additional briefs being filed by a variety of stakeholder groups. All I know is that I’ve got a job to do here in Michigan, and I’m going to fight like hell to protect women’s rights in Michigan.
BTS Is Visiting The White House To Discuss Anti-Asian Hate Crimes
       
On May 26, it was announced that BTS will visit the White House to speak with President Joe Biden about anti-Asian hate crimes, as part of the administration’s celebration of Asian-American and Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander Heritage Month. The members of BTS, including Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook, are just the latest stars to visit the White House during Biden’s administration in an attempt to promote specific causes close to their hearts. In May 2021, Olivia Rodrigo spoke at the White House to promote COVID-19 vaccinations to youths, and the Jonas Brothers followed suit in December, even recording a hilarious TikTok with Biden. But these experiences were enough to make us feel powerless and chip away our self-esteem.”As touted in the press release, Biden responded to the surge of anti-Asian hate crimes by signing the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law in May 2021, which established a position in the Justice Department solely focused on anti-Asian hate crimes and allowed resources to be allocated to enhance state and local reporting of crimes. Hopefully BTS’ influence will enable the Biden administration do even more work to combat anti-Asian hatred.
Weekend reads: Retailers follow Snap's warning, but some the buck bad trend
       
Another good sign for stocks: Strong insider buying suggests a 15% rally in the S&P 500 from hereAlso read: Both stock-market bulls and bears claim today’s margin debt supports their view. What you need to knowDividend stocks are shining in 2022 — here’s a look aheadDividend stocks been healthy this year as the broad market has fallen. FactSetThe chart above shows total returns this year for the SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF SPYD, +1.42% (which tracks a group of 80 stocks in the S&P 500 with the highest dividend yields) and the SPDR S&P 500 ETF SPY, +2.45% . Here’s a list of 15 stocks in the S&P 500 High Yield Index that are expected to raise their dividends the most through 2024. Former Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said this week that he expects the central bank to succeed in reducing inflation.
Are Russian stocks worthless? Here's one key indicator that shouldn't be ignored
       
These losses haven’t deterred distressed investors in the U.S. and Europe, many of whom have been gobbling up Russian stocks and Russian ADRs. Yet, by at least one important measure of credit risk, an argument could be made that Russian stocks are essentially worthless — at least, according to a group of analysts from MSCI. In a recent research note entitled “Are Russian Stocks Worthless?”, a handful of researchers from the global index manager looked at the spread between Russian corporate credit-default swaps and Russian equities. “A basic explanation for the disconnect is that investors trading on one market are not trading on the other. Most foreigners are unable to trade Russian stocks, and CDS are only accessible to institutional investors,” MSCI said.
High court ruling in NY concealed carry case could loosen gun laws
       
The Supreme Court’s ruling in the case, New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. New York State Police Superintendent Kevin Bruen, will come at a fraught time. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, in a statement to Newsday urged the Supreme Court justices to allow states to determine their gun laws. Two upstate New York gun owners sued the state because they could not get concealed carry licenses, based on the discretion of local authorities. The Supreme Court took the case. However the Supreme Court finally rules, Aborn said, “New York should do everything it possibly can do to restrict carrying, consistent with the opinion.
Mass shootings spur calls to crack down on online hate, violence
       
WASHINGTON — The mass shootings at a Texas elementary school and a Buffalo supermarket this month have intensified calls from U.S. lawmakers for social media platforms to crack down on violent imagery and hate speech that proliferate online. Immediately after the Buffalo shooting, Democratic lawmakers called on social media companies to do more to regulate racist and incendiary content. He said addressing online radicalization was critical to tackling the number of mass shootings in the U.S.Get the Breaking News newsletter! But watchdog groups say the social media giants are sometimes slow to identify and take down such content. Weich said “any solution must start with better investment in this area.”The Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit has worked with lawmakers in the U.S. and abroad on legislation to address online hate speech.
The Pentagon Is Protecting and Funding the Same Gun Makers Democrats Want to Regulate
       
The military that Biden oversees is reliant on a weapons industry that overlaps with the domestic gun industry and, in some cases, these industries are one and the same — a reality put horrifically on display in Uvalde. And there are signs that the U.S. military’s heavy reliance on the arms industry has, in the past, played a role in hedging against measures that target the domestic gun industry. The law, which was signed by President George W. Bush, was actively supported by the gun industry. Unlike the tobacco and car industries, where lawsuits have helped improve safety protections, the gun industry is untouchable by most liability lawsuits. The National Rifle Association, which is an advocacy and lobbying organization for the gun industry, has also supported efforts to roll back protections for civilians globally.
Guilty plea in plot to firebomb California Democratic headquarters
       
A California man pleaded guilty Friday to plotting to blow up the state Democratic Party’s headquarters in what prosecutors said was the first in a planned series of politically-motivated attacks after the defeat of former President Donald Trump. Ian Benjamin Rogers, 46, of Napa, pleaded guilty to conspiring to destroy a building by fire or explosives, possessing an explosive device and possessing a machine gun under a plea agreement that could bring him seven to nine years in federal prison. Copeland, 38, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and destruction of records. In a different message he said that after Democratic President Joe Biden was inaugurated, “we go to war.”Their first planned target was the John L. Burton Democratic Headquarters in Sacramento, prosecutors said. Five improvised explosive devices that federal agents said they seized from the Napa home of Ian Benjamin Rogers.
U.S. Supreme Court rebuffs Republican-led states on greenhouse gas policy
       
The Supreme Court left in place a lower court's decision in favor of the Biden administration. Louisiana was one of 10 Republican-led states that challenged the Biden administration's move, which revived and updated a cost estimate that the administration of Democratic former President Barack Obama had implemented. The "social cost of greenhouse gases" estimate is used in rule-making processes and permitting decisions to approximate economic damages associated with a rise in greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels. The states sued, saying the new administration broke the law by changing the value without giving the public the opportunity to weigh in. The Biden administration countered that the number is merely used to help draft regulations and that the states could not show they have been harmed by it.
Justices won't block Biden policy on 'social cost of carbon'
       
The approach uses the “social cost of carbon” to calculate future climate damages to justify tougher restrictions for fossil fuels, transportation and other industries. The federal appeals court in New Orleans put the order on hold and Louisiana led nine states in asking the high court to in to intervene. The justices' refusal to do so allows the administration to use an interim standard of $51 in damages per ton of carbon dioxide emitted while it works to update and possibly increase the cost per ton. The $51 figure was used by the Obama administration before the Trump administration cut it to $7. By itself, the estimate does not impose any new requirements, but it could be used to justify tougher rules.
Supreme Court won’t block Biden rule on societal cost of greenhouse gases
       
The Supreme Court refused Thursday to block a Biden administration rule for figuring the costs of greenhouse gas pollution when the government makes decisions affecting the environment. The loss for the states gives the Biden administration a boost in the president’s efforts to include an evaluation of the risks of global warming in the federal government’s decisions. They sued in federal court in Louisiana, and in February U.S. District Judge James D. Cain Jr. temporarily blocked the use of the cost estimates. The states then asked the Supreme Court to lift the stay and let the judge’s ruling take effect. But the Biden administration said the states were acting prematurely, rushing to court before they knew what kind of effect the cost estimates will have.
Exclusive-U.S. and Ukraine discuss danger of escalation as new arms extend Kyiv's reach
       
The Pentagon's announcement last week that Denmark will provide Ukraine with Harpoon anti-ship missiles would further extend Kyiv's reach. Russian officials have repeatedly accused the Ukrainian military carrying out cross-border attacks, including on a fuel depot in the city of Belgorod. The first U.S. official said Ukraine had plenty of targets to hit inside Ukraine, and that was the goal of obtaining longer-range weaponry from Western allies. Douglas Lute, a former U.S. ambassador to NATO and retired Army lieutenant general, agreed Ukraine has enough Russian targets inside Ukraine to worry about. But he acknowledged the risk for escalation and political division inside NATO should Ukraine strike deep inside Russia.
Titus battles Democrat, Republicans in newly redrawn 1st District
       
Rep. Dina Titus faces a Democratic primary in the 1st Congressional District, with eight Republicans vying for the chance to challenge her in November. Dina Titus, left, and Amy Vilela, Democratic candidates in Congressional District 1 race in 2022 primary. Clockwise from upper left: Jane Adams, David Brog, Cresent Hardy, Mark Robertson, Carolina Serrano, and Cynthia Steel, Republican candidates for Congressional District 1 race, 2022 primary. “I’ve used my voice to provide resources for those who need it most,” Titus said in an interview. Titus was the first Democrat in early nominating states to endorse Joe Biden for the White House.
Graham: Pols would rather fight than fix America's problems
       
Watching the heart-wrenching scene of sobbing parents mourning school children lost to senseless violence, Americans are asking ourselves once again: “Why can’t we fix America’s gun violence problem?”As an angry parent, fed-up political junkie and sick-and-tired citizen, I’ll tell you why:Because we can’t fix anything. It was far more important for our elites to virtue signal than problem solve. Is the border problem difficult to solve? But compared to fixing gun violence, it’s middle school math. What can we do about gun violence?
The ‘straight, white, Christian, suburban mom’ taking on Republicans at their own game
       
Mallory McMorrow remembers the sting of being slandered by a colleague for wanting to “groom” and “sexualize” young children. She also offered a blueprint for how Democrats can combat Republicans intent on making education a wedge issue. I want every child in this state to feel seen, heard, and supported, not marginalised and targeted because they are not straight, white and Christian. But some hailed McMorrow for showing how to take on Republicans at their own game. We can strongly point out Republicans are not offering any policy ideas and take the debate to that place.
‘We have to act’: can Biden cut through the gridlock on gun control?
       
He entered the White House with a sweeping plan to address gun violence, but too-narrow margins in Congress to see them enacted. “We’re always looking to do more,” the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said on Thursday. “But right now we need the help of Congress.”Encouraged by the White House, Democrats have thrown themselves into the gun control debate anew. Years later, when Biden was vice-president, Barack Obama tasked him with the mission of developing a fresh wave of gun control measures in response to Sandy Hook. Matt Bennett, a vice-president of the Democratic thinktank Third Way, who worked with Biden’s team on gun control legislation after Sandy Hook, said Biden knows his options are limited without Congress.
Video: Russian TV: US will cross 'a red line' by sending more weapons
       
Video: Putin's propagandists warn Biden that sending long-range rocket artillery to Ukraine would cross a 'red line' that could provoke a 'very harsh response' from RussiaA Russian TV presenter tells their viewers the United States will be 'clearly crossing a red line' if the decision to send long-range rocket artillery to Ukraine goes ahead, and that it will be 'an attempt to...
PLATELL'S PEOPLE: Sorry Harry and Meghan, you are NOT welcome at the Queen's Jubilee
       
But inevitably the pictures of Meghan laying flowers at the memorial of the Texas school massacre went round the world. AMANDA PLATELL: Women are judgmental in a way men rarely areAll very moving — and perhaps consoling for many of those poor, grieving parents. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, places flowers as she mourns at a makeshift memorial outside Uvalde County Courthouse in Uvalde, TexasI believe I speak for many when I say: Harry and Meghan, you are not welcome. Given that kind of form, I shudder to think what Megs might have dreamed up to grab the Jubilee limelight. I believe I speak for many when I say: Harry and Meghan, you are not welcome.
Ukraine news – live: Russia has depleted its modernised equipment, military analyst says
       
LIVE – Updated at 08:06Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov has said Russia’s aggressive push in Donbas and other parts of Ukraine could backfire as it has depleted its modernised equipment. He urged Mr Grossi to back Kyiv’s demands for the immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from the nuclear power plant. Russia ‘has run out of modernised equipment,’ military analyst says 05:30 , Vishwam Sankaran 05:30 , Vishwam Sankaran Russia’s aggressive push in Donbas and other parts of Ukraine could backfire, says Ukrainian military analyst Oleh Zhdanov. — Lesia Vasylenko (@lesiavasylenko) May 27, 2022 “The Russians will not be able to capture Luhansk region in the coming days as analysts have predicted. The family was walking outside when the Russian forces struck the city, killing the infant and the father, the governor added.
May 2022 – Consortium News
       
As the war becomes less popular and it takes its toll, an electoral disaster looms ahead in 2022 and 2024 for Biden and the Democratic Party, for which the Times serves as a mouthpiece, writes John Walsh. Read more ?
Caitlin Johnstone: TV War Games Over Taiwan
       
NBC openly teamed up with a Pentagon-funded think tank to begin normalizing the idea of a U.S. hot war with China. NBC’s Meet the Press just aired an absolutely freakish segment in which the influential narrative management firm Center for a New American Security (CNAS) ran war games simulating a direct U.S. hot war with China. “The war in Ukraine could end up being bad for the pivot in the short-term, but good in the long-term,” Fontaine said. But it happens all the time in the mass media anyway, because the mass media exist to circulate propaganda, not journalism. Caitlin Johnstone is a rogue journalist, poet, and utopia prepper who publishes regularly at Medium.
Craig Murray: Turkey, NATO & Peace in Ukraine
       
UPDATE: NATO member Turkey on Wednesday blocked an effort to fast-track Finland and Sweden’s membership in the military alliance. By Craig MurrayCraigMurray.org.ukI am in Turkey because, if there is to be movement in ending the war in Ukraine, it will happen here. Turkey retains the prestige of chosen venue and perhaps broker for continuing diplomatic contact between Russia and Ukraine. It is also worth bearing in mind that Turkey is a far more serious military power than Finland and Sweden combined. This of course relates to the permanent tension between NATO members Turkey and Greece.
WATCH: West’s Free Speech Threatened by Ukraine War
       
I have written in CN that the Russian invasion was illegal in that it violated the U.N. Charter. Provoking him to invade Ukraine has allowed the U.S. to launch its economic, information and proxy war through massive weapons transfers. All these causes of the war are left out of Western media reporting on Ukraine. It was of no interest.”Omitting key causes of the Russian invasion paints a totally different picture of what’s happening. We cannot put up with censorship of the press, no matter what we think of the war in Ukraine.
Cuba Reacts to Biden’s Easing of Sanctions
       
Havana said Biden’s were a step in the right direction, but of “very limited scope.”By Peoples DispatchThe government of U.S. President Joe Biden announced Monday the easing of some of the sanctions imposed on Cuba by former President Donald Trump. Despite the shortcomings, the MINREX stated that “this is a limited step in the right direction, a response to the denunciations made by the Cuban people and government. It is also a response to the claims made by the U.S. society and the Cubans residing in that country. The blockade has inflicted serious economic and social losses on Cuba, and has severely affected the development of the country and its people. Meanwhile, the humanitarian damage, suffering and resource shortages inflicted upon Cuban families by the blockade are immeasurable.
US Risks Sinking Americas’ Summit
       
Biden should invite all the heads of state in the region to the Americas’ Summit to foster better dialogue and a brighter future for the hemisphere, writes Medea Benjamin. But rather than bringing the Western Hemisphere together, the Biden administration seems intent on pulling it apart by threatening to exclude three nations that are certainly part of the Americas. For months, the Biden administration has been hinting that these governments would be excluded. The Biden administration has put itself in a bind. He should invite all the nations of the Americas to the Summit.
Caitlin Johnstone: Bush’s Freudian Confession on Iraq
       
In their less-guarded moments, even the worst empire managers know deep down what is true and let it slip out. During a speech in Dallas at Southern Methodist University’s George W. Bush Presidential Center on Wednesday, the man himself, George W. Bush, did a great thing. After correcting himself with a nervous chuckle, Bush broke the tension in the empire-loyal crowd with the words, “Iraq too. As comedian John Fugelsang put it, “George W. Bush didn’t do a Freudian slip. Caitlin Johnstone is a rogue journalist, poet, and utopia prepper who publishes regularly at Medium.
Pressure Mounts on Patel Over Assange Decision
       
The British home secretary is under pressure as she’s about to decide whether to extradite WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange. Press freedom and human rights organizations, a Nobel laureate, the Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner, journalists and Assange supporters have appealed to Patel to let Assange go. “I join the growing collective concern about the violations of the human, civil and political rights of Mr. Julian Assange,” the Argentine wrote. Julian Assange's wife collected the Gunther Wallraff prize on behalf of her husband in Germany on Thursday. The assurances of fair treatment offered by the USA in Julian Assange’s case are deeply flawed and could be revoked at any time.
Biden’s Vow of US Military Response Over Taiwan
       
By Kenny StancilCommon DreamsCritics of U.S. imperialism sounded the alarm Monday after President Joe Biden said that he would use military force in response to a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. “Are you willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if it comes to that?”“Yes,” Biden responded tersely. ‘He reiterated our One China Policy and our commitment to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. “How many more times will this happen?”It is truly dangerous for the president to keep misstating U.S. policy toward Taiwan. Two months later, Mr. Biden was asked during a televised town hall if the United States would protect Taiwan from attack.
Caitlin Johnstone: They Fear Information, Not Disinformation
       
All the safeguards being setting up now to manipulate information online are not there to eliminate lies, they’re there to eliminate truth. They’re not worried about disinformation, they’re worried about information. They’re worried about journalists using the unprecedented information-sharing power of the internet to reveal inconvenient facts about the largest and most murderous power structure on earth. They’re worried about people finding out that they’ve been lied to their entire lives about their world, their nation and their government. All the safeguards they’re setting up now to manipulate the flow of information online are not there to eliminate lies, they’re there to eliminate truth.
New Australian PM Squandering Leverage on Assange
       
UPDATE: The new Australian PM met Joe Biden Tuesday with no sign he raised Julian Assange, while committing Australia to U.S. security policy in the Pacific, reports Joe Lauria. At the opening of their meeting Biden launched a charm offensive that Albanese ate up. The Melbourne daily The Age reported:“The way Joe Biden greeted Anthony Albanese on Tuesday suggested the US president and Australian prime minister will get along just fine. But there has been no movement on Assange after Albanese gave Biden and Johnson what they wanted. At his bilateral with Biden Albanese may have had one piece of leverage left.
Nuland-Pyatt Tape Removed From YouTube After 8 Years
       
By Joe LauriaSpecial to Consortium NewsThe smoking gun proving U.S. involvement in the 2014 coup in Kiev has been removed from YouTube after eight years. Consortium News is republishing the transcript here, lest it be removed from the internet as well:Warning: This transcript contains swearing. I just think Klitsch going in… he’s going to be at that level working for Yatseniuk, it’s just not going to work. Nuland: OK. He’s now gotten both Serry and [UN Secretary General] Ban Ki-moon to agree that Serry could come in Monday or Tuesday. CORRECTION: This article previously said the removed video was the most watched version of the leaked call.
Chris Hedges: No Way Out But War
       
The permanent war economy, implanted since the end of World War II, has destroyed the private economy, bankrupted the nation, and squandered trillions of dollars of taxpayer money. There were three restraints to the avarice and bloodlust of the permanent war economy that no longer exist. The second restraint was an independent media and academia, including journalists such as I.F Stone and Neil Sheehan along with scholars such as Seymour Melman, author of The Permanent War Economy and Pentagon Capitalism: The Political Economy of War. None of these opposition forces, which did not reverse the permanent war economy but curbed its excesses, now exist. Running Out of TroopsA key component to the sustenance of the permanent war state was the creation of the All-Volunteer Force.
And Then There Was No Empire
       
It does not exist as an empire but only as benevolence, with its mission to spread human rights and sustainable development across the world. It is from the standpoint of the victims of empire that clarity comes. The Organization of American States (OAS) was formed in Bogotá, Colombia, in 1948 by the United States and its allies. In 2010, the poet Derek Walcott (1930–2017) published “The Lost Empire,” a celebration of the Caribbean and of his own island, Saint Lucia, in particular as British imperialism retreated. Years later, reflecting on the jubilation of the retreat of British rule, Walcott wrote:And then there was no more Empire all of a sudden.
The New York Times’ Shift on Victory in Ukraine
       
By John WalshAntiwar.comOn May 11 The New York Times ran an article documenting that all was not going well for the U.S. in Ukraine, and a companion opinion piece hinting that a shift in direction might be in order. The voice of his masters was telling him that he and Ukraine will have to make some sacrifices for the U.S. to save face. After seven years of slaughter in the Donbas and three months of warfare in southern Ukraine, has the Times editorial board suddenly had a rush of compassion for all the victims of the war and the destruction of Ukraine and changed its opinion? Given the record of the Times over the decades, it would seem that other factors are at work. But will the neocons in charge give up and move in a reasonable and peaceful direction as the Times editorial demands?
Socialist Politics are More Necessary Than Ever ? Current Affairs
       
Smith begins his argument by attacking eminent linguist and foreign policy analyst Noam Chomsky over comments Chomsky recently made about the war in Ukraine on the Current Affairs podcast. Many people on Twitter got upset about Chomsky’s comments, to the point where his Current Affairs interview was even a “trending topic” on the platform. The late Michael Brooks was also an intelligent and valuable commentator on foreign affairs whose insight is much missed.) Zbignew Brzezinski said that while the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime was in power, the U.S. “encouraged the Chinese to support Pol Pot” and “winked, semi-publicly” at Chinese and Thai aid to the Khmer Rouge. Henry Kissinger said when the Khmer Rouge came to power “we will be friends with them.
If We Want the Supreme Court to Stop Legislating, We Need Real Legislators to Do Their Jobs ? Current Affairs
       
If you have a problem with the Supreme Court having an anti-majoritarian bias, you have to change the court. So, what would the world look like with a diminished Supreme Court? But in practice, there are but a small minority of cases in which the Supreme Court has protected the rights of vulnerable groups. They’ve been delegating lawmaking to the court while using Supreme Court appointments as a cudgel to ensure voters continue to “Vote Blue No Matter Who” even though the party rarely accomplishes anything. Nancy Pelosi’s daughter Christine Pelosi spent the night of the leak last week blaming the left for the erosion of abortion rights.
Is The U.S. Actually Trying to Help Ukraine? ? Current Affairs
       
As Noam Chomsky pointed out in a recent interview with Current Affairs, in the 1980s the United States funded Islamist mujahideen fighters in Afghanistan in part to bleed and weaken the Soviet Union. You might assume that what’s good for us and what’s good for Ukraine coincide, but that’s not necessarily the case. It would not just be morally wrong for the United States to decline to facilitate a diplomatic settlement, thereby prolonging Ukrainian suffering, in order to weaken Russia. Second, Ukraine promises neutrality and becomes an independent buffer state between NATO and Russia. Image: Joe Biden signs the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022 (Associated Press)
Right-Wing Elitism is Even Uglier than Liberal Elitism ? Current Affairs
       
The Republican Party, on the other hand, is for salt-of-the-earth “real American” truck-driving rural types. So-called “right-wing populism” seeks to use this framing to foment a revolt against Cosmopolitan Liberal Elites or Globalists. If and when fascism does finally come to America, it will almost certainly come with an impeccable Ivy League pedigree. Of course, the Democratic Party senators are a bunch of lawyers and career politicians, too. Probably a slightly higher percentage of them went to Ivy League schools.
A Brief History of the Bourgeois Safari ? Current Affairs
       
Dlamini, author of Safari Nation: A Social History of the Kruger National Park, the cover of which features the newspaper image of Mandela. According to Gardner, a typical 21-day hunting safari in Tanzania, which offers seventy species to hunt, cost $50-150,000 in 2010. This cannot be made up by bourgeois tourism,4 particularly when safari companies and lodges tend to be foreign-owned or otherwise white-owned businesses. Safari ecotourism and trophy hunting, we’re told, will fund conservation for humanity and development for people in Africa in general. (The pastoralist Maasai in Tanzania were not destroying their land before the hunting and safari companies came to cash in on their resources.
U.S. Policymaking on Sex and Reproduction is Based on Damaging Conservative Assumptions ? Current Affairs
       
But we can’t talk about it.’A look at how sex education has unfolded under Democratic administrations is informative. Premarital sex is “nearly universal among Americans.” So there is a great need for adolescent sex education in the population. Yet sex education varies widely by state in terms of content and whether it’s mandated, with recent surveys indicating that only about half of teenagers receive formal sex education that meets federal government standards. Sex Ed and Abortion as Bargaining ChipsBy the early 2000s, research started to show that abstinence-only sex education was not effective. His 2021 bill included comprehensive sex education and an end to “harmful” abstinence-only education programs.
How the War in Ukraine Can Be Ended ? Current Affairs
       
He’s also a contributor to The Guardian (here is his most recent column) and The Nation, where he has written analyses of the war in Ukraine. He recently came on the Current Affairs podcast to talk with editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson about the current state of the war in Ukraine and what is left out of mainstream discourse about the war. From the beginning, people were warning that [expanding NATO to Ukraine] would lead to war. RobinsonWhat about the argument that the U.S. was never actually going to let Ukraine into NATO, and Putin must have known that? If there’s a threat to Poland now, it comes out of the war in Ukraine and Western supply lines to Ukraine running across Poland.
The Left Is Losing Because We’re Not Confrontational Enough ? Current Affairs
       
The electoral left is losing because it is pursuing the hopeless strategy of confining itself to indoor, backroom deal negotiations while remaining friendly and accommodating to the Democratic establishment in public. Rather, a large part of the reason is that politicians are human beings, and human beings are prone to social pressure. We will only win with grassroots social movements and organized labor working alongside our allies in office to mobilize their base. They must be willing to have an “open clash,” in Sawant’s words, with the Democratic establishment. We have masses of people on our side, we have politicians in power, and we have social movement organizations.
Make Billionaires Republicans Again ? Current Affairs
       
If the Democrats are to survive, they need a politics that drives billionaires scurrying back to the Republican Party. An important measure of whether the Democratic Party is doing anything right is whether billionaires hate it. If the Democratic Party is to have a future as a party for working people, billionaires like Elon Musk must be driven from it. The more this politics succeeds, the more the Republican party will be the natural home for Big Business. Let us hope that we can sufficiently alarm the rest of Musk’s fellow billionaires, and finally force the Democratic Party to take on the 1%.
Destroying All the Arguments Against Cancelling Student Debt ? Current Affairs
       
Student debt lingers for decades; some people with student loans are now having their Social Security checks garnished. Once upon a time, the federal government considered options for financing college through scholarships rather than student loan debt. It does not, however, deal much with some of the arguments that cancelling student debt is “bad politics.” It is frequently claimed that Democrats will be giving a “handout to the rich” by cancelling student debt. One Twitter commenter, arguing against student debt cancellation, said: “The question I always come down to is why student loan debt must be cancelled and yet nobody’s talking about medical debt, credit card debt, mortgage debt, etc. For more deconstruction of all the bad arguments against cancelling student debt, and explanations of how to reform higher education financing, see these previous Current Affairs articles:
The Idiotic Logic That Will Lead To Nuclear War ? Current Affairs
       
Senator Mitt Romney has an op-ed in the New York Times arguing that we must prepare for Vladimir Putin to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Romney says that there are those who think we should avoid taking actions that would make Russia more likely to use nuclear weapons. In his interview, Anatol Lieven pointed out that once upon a time, statesmen were very, very concerned by the prospect for nuclear war and understood that it had to be avoided. (America should “show it can win a nuclear war,” says a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed.) World War I showed that world leaders who think themselves perfectly reasonable can in fact lead millions to their deaths in total needless catastrophes.
Congressional Progressives Need To Do Better on Foreign Policy—But That Doesn’t Mean Republicans Are Doves ? Current Affairs
       
When Congress voted to spend tens of billions of dollars on military aid to Ukraine, all six members of “the Squad” voted “yes.” So did the rest of the Progressive Caucus. Does this mean, then, that Republicans are now the real anti-war voices in Congress, as some have suggested? No serious person could deny that the United States would have far more leverage with Russia in such negotiations than any other country. For example, all of the most hardcore MAGA “populists” in Congress voted against capping the price of insulin. It is outrageous that the United States is fighting direct and proxy wars around the world instead of redirecting those resources to helping people meet their basic needs.
Morning Digest: Old tea party star ousts Idaho attorney general for refusing to litigate Big Lie
       
As a consequence, the GOP's map, which targets Democratic Rep. Sharice Davids by splitting up the Kansas City area and making her 3rd District redder, will take effect. Gavin Newsom taking 40% as state Sen. Brian Dahle, who has the state GOP's backing, and businessman Ronald Anderson tie for second place at 7% each. Eric Greitens is a serious contender in the August Republican primary, but they diverge on whether he has a notable lead or is in third place. ? RI-Gov: A new Fleming & Associates poll of the September Democratic primary for Roger Williams University and WPRI finds Gov. Tuesday's Republican primary marked the third electoral failure for former Rep. Renee Ellmers, who took fifth place with just 9%.
Los Angeles Mayor’s Race: Karen Bass Headlines Katie McGrath-J.J. Abrams Bad Robot Event, Jeffrey Katzenberg-Backed Committee Makes Ad Buy For Anti-Rick Caruso Spot — Update
       
Last week, Jeffrey Katzenberg donated $600,000 to an independent committee that is backing Bass. Other recent contributions directly to Bass’ campaign came from Marti Noxon, Octavia Spencer and Jennifer Garner. The Los Angeles Times reported in late April that Caruso had spent more than $23 million, compared to $800,000 for Bass. Among the Hollywood figures backing Caruso are Netflix’s Ted Sarandos and UTA’s Jay Sures. Los Angeles City Councilman Joe Buscaino dropped out last week and endorsed Caruso, while Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer exited the race on Tuesday and threw his backing to Bass.
Morning Digest: Georgia GOP's new gerrymander pits two Democratic incumbents against one another
       
The map would place Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur, the longest-serving woman in House history, at serious risk. ? NY-Gov: Data for Progress' new Democratic primary survey for consultant Neal Kwatra, who Politico says is working for an unidentified donor, finds Gov. Dan McKee edging her out just 26-24 in the Democratic primary, with Treasurer Seth Magaziner at 16% and no one else hitting double digits. ? TX-Gov: UT Tyler's newest survey of the March Republican primary for The Dallas Morning News shows Gov. The main event in this constituency is the June Democratic primary between Reps. Sean Casten and Marie Newman.
Morning Digest: Michigan GOP nominates Big Lie boosters for secretary of state and attorney general
       
To that end, state Rep. Ryan Berman, who took third place in the race for attorney general, said he'll continue his campaign in the hopes of achieving a different result at the end of the summer. Brian Kemp ahead of the May 24 Republican primary. Also in the running for Republicans are 2018 Senate candidate Kevin Nicholson and state Rep. Timothy Ramthun. ? NC-01: Retiring Democratic Rep. G.K. Butterfield has endorsed state Sen. Don Davis in the May 17 primary to succeed him. ? OR-06: CHC BOLD PAC, which is the Congressional Hispanic Caucus' campaign arm, says it is spending $1 million on an ad backing state Rep. Andrea Salinas in next month's Democratic primary.
Morning Digest: The last Republican in statewide office on the West Coast just said she'd resign
       
Wyman that year faced a serious challenge from Democratic state Rep. Gael Tarleton, who argued that Wyman hadn’t done enough to oppose voter suppression; Tarleton also hammered the incumbent for testifying against H.R. 1, the landmark measure House Democrats passed in 2019 to expand voting rights and end gerrymandering. Ned Lamont leading former state House Minority Leader Themis Klarides 52-32 and businessman Bob Stefanowski 52-36. However, even if Republicans are successful, Whitmer would be able to donate any excess funds to the state Democratic Party, which could use them to support her re-election bid. Lewis was appointed in 2017 to a seat in the state House, and he currently chairs the chamber’s House Democratic Caucus.
As filing ends, campaigning shifts into a higher gear
       
EVERETT — A politically diverse corps of candidates emerged Friday as the filing period for local, state and federal offices closed. Voters will be filling 20 seats in the state Legislature — 16 House and four Senate — that represent portions of Snohomish County. There’s also contests for Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney, Snohomish County Public Utilities District commissioner, and 10 judicial seats in county District and Superior courts. An intriguing legislative fight is developing in the 39th Legislative District in the central and east parts of the county. Meanwhile, one of the newest members of the county’s state legislative contingent appears on course to win re-election without a ballot fight.
Morning Digest: Join us tonight to find out if the GOP's worst candidates win big primaries
       
And in Idaho, GOP Rep. Mike Simpson faces an expensive rematch with an opponent he beat eight years ago. Fetterman, who is the frontrunner in Tuesday's Democratic primary for Senate, continued, "The good news is I'm feeling much better, and the doctors tell me I didn't suffer any cognitive damage. Self-funding state Rep. Shri Thanedar grabs third with 12%, while Michigan Civil Rights Commissioner Portia Roberson and Detroit School Board member Sherry Gay-Dagnogo are just behind with 9% apiece. ? MN-01: ??Former Hormel CEO Jeff Ettinger won the state party endorsement over the weekend ahead of next week's special Democratic primary. Schultz will go up against former state Rep. Dennis Smith, who skipped the gathering he denounced as "a game for insiders."
Minnesota Republicans want to anoint their candidates this weekend. Here's why it might not work out
       
(And unlike in some other states, winning at a convention doesn't grant ballot access; all candidates must either gather signatures or pay a filing fee.) State party chair David Hann is pushing to use electronic voting, arguing that it’s safe and fast. But the GOP endorsement is a precious prize worth staying up past bedtime to snag. The contest to face Democratic Attorney General Keith Ellison, meanwhile, is another multi-way race, though one of the candidates is skipping the convention altogether. The state Democratic Party, known as the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, holds its convention May 20-22, though none of the party’s four statewide incumbents face any serious intra-party opposition.
Morning Digest: Days after praising Idaho's governor, Trump backs his far-right primary foe
       
Redistricting? AK Redistricting: Alaska's redistricting commission agreed on a new state Senate map on Tuesday, with the board's three Republican appointees voting in favor and its two independent members against. Republican Rep. Scott Franklin, who represents the current 15th, would instead find himself in the redder 28th District. ? NH-Sen: WMUR reports that wealthy businessman Bill Binnie, who took a distant third in the 2010 Senate Republican primary, is interested in another try, but there's no word from Binnie himself. Governors? AR-Gov: Former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders lost her last notable Republican primary foe on Tuesday night when Attorney General Leslie Rutledge announced that she was switching to the race for lieutenant governor. ? IL-17: Two new Democrats announced campaigns for Illinois' revamped 17th Congressional District on Wednesday, former state Rep. Litesa Wallace and former TV meteorologist Eric Sorensen.
Parker to Challenge Incumbent Bowman in Newly Drawn 16th Congressional District
       
Rye resident and current Westchester County Legislator Catherine Parker will challenge incumbent Congressman Jamaal Bowman in the upcoming Democratic primary in the newly drawn 16th Congressional District (NY-16). Parker ran for Congress in the 17th Congressional District in the wake of Nita Lowey’s retirement. Until last Friday, Rye was set to become part of NY-03, a Congressional district that mostly encompassed Long Island as well as parts of Queens and the Bronx. The new NY-16 spans Westchester County and has just under 800,000 people. The Congressional primary vote is Tuesday, August 23rd.
Morning Digest: The ugliest GOP primary might just be in Alabama's race for governor
       
? NC-Sen: Cheri Beasley is spending six figures on her first TV spot for the May 17 Democratic primary, where she faces little opposition. Hoeven briefly faced a primary challenge from state Rep. Rick Becker, but Becker dropped out last month after he failed to win the state party endorsement. ? MD-Gov: Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich has endorsed former U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez ahead of the crowded July Democratic primary for governor. Meanwhile, former U.S. Education Secretary John King has launched his first ads in the Democratic primary, which the campaign says is backed by a six-figure buy. ? NY-04: Former Hempstead Supervisor Laura Gillen has publicized an Impact Research internal that gives her a 40-11 lead over Nassau County Legislator Carrié Solages in the June Democratic primary.
Morning Digest: New York's House map got a total reset. Here's what changed and who's running where
       
That sends it from 56-42 Biden to 53-45 Biden, in an area where the GOP also retains downballot strength. For a breakdown showing how much of each old district makes up each new district and vice-versa, check out our redistribution tables. ? NY-17: Republican Assemblyman Mike Lawler said on Saturday that he'd run against Democratic Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney. ? NY-23, NY-24: Republican Rep. Chris Jacobs, who represents the old 27th, says he'll run for the new 23rd, while Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney, who represents the old 22nd, says she'll run for the new 24th. ? OR-06: The Associated Press has called the 6th District Republican primary for businessman Mike Erickson, who was the GOP's 5th District nominee back in 2008.
Morning Digest: Our new data shows why GOP is unlikely to regain CO's Senate after losing it in 2018
       
GOP Rep. Scott Tipton's 3rd District moved from 52-40 Trump to 50-46 Stapleton, and it could be a potential Democratic target this fall. Senate? AL-Sen: Just how dire does Alabama's July 14 GOP primary look for former Attorney General Jeff Sessions? The Senate Democratic primary, which we recently took a look at in greater detail, is a duel between incumbent Ed Markey and Rep. Joe Kennedy III. ? NY-17: Westchester County Legislator Catherine Parker, who dropped out of the June 23 Democratic primary last month, has endorsed attorney Mondaire Jones. David Ige over Hanabusa during the 2018 Democratic primary, a contest Hanabusa ended up losing.
Jeremy Munson could be the next Republican congressman from Minnesota’s 1st District. Why are so many Republicans trying to stop that from happening?
       
The “New House Republicans,” aren’t a bloc within the larger 59-member House GOP caucus. While individual legislators can work together, House Republicans don’t coordinate on votes or strategy with New House GOPers or share resources. Since the break, the impact of the New House Republicans has been minimal, though that’s largely because the House has a DFL majority. “We don’t have to deal with the pressures from the establishment,” Munson said of New House Republicans. Jennifer Carnahan, former state GOP chair who resigned after a scandal-plagued tenure, has touted internal polling showing her in front.
Broward lawmaker Anika Omphroy running for Congress
       
State Rep. Anika Omphroy, a Central Broward Democrat, is running for Congress. Omphroy announced her intentions via a banner on her campaign website: “Anika Omphroy Congress.”AdvertisementShe hasn’t issued a formal announcement, but rumors about her plans have been circulating for weeks. AdvertisementAlso running in the Aug. 23 Democratic primary is former Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness, who lost a special primary election last year to Cherfilus-McCormick by five votes. The incumbent, then-state Rep. Barrington Russell, failed to file his paperwork by the deadline, and Omphroy was elected without opposition. [ RELATED: Omphroy fails to disclose how she spent $47,994 in campaign cash.
In the absence of legislating, politics turns into spectacle and stunts
       
… NBC News’ Benjy Sarlin details how gun laws have changed since Newtown. More than 100: The number of GOP campaign ads have featured guns, per a New York Times analysis. A 6-3 conservative Supreme Court is likely to go further in striking down state gun restrictions. ET Wednesday, Pennsylvania’s acting secretary of state announced it was officially time for a recount in Pennsylvania’s GOP Senate primary. And complicating things even more are the 860 GOP ballots received by election officials that are undated.
Morning Digest: Primary season marches on with another big night across the South
       
Meanwhile, a new East Carolina University poll finds GOP Rep. Ted Budd holding a 47-39 lead over Beasley after the two won their respective parties' primaries last week. ? OH-Sen: Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan has debuted his first ad following his primary win earlier this month, and it continues his focus on bringing well-paying blue collar jobs to Ohio. ? WI-Gov: Republicans at the state GOP convention on Saturday opted not to endorse a candidate after former Lt. Gov. Reed may be delaying transmission of such a letter for the same reason Democratic Rep. Antonio Delgado has likewise not yet vacated his seat—see our NY-19 item just above. Rather than rely on a traditional state-run primary, Republicans used a party-run "firehouse primary" that saw a total turnout of about 15,000 voters.
New US Senate poll shows Beasley closing the gap on Budd in NC
       
Republican Ted Budd is leading democrat Cheri Beasley by less than two percentage points. The Civitas Poll conducted in partnership with the conservative John Locke Foundation is the first poll conducted after the May 17th primary. Among those polled, 43.6 percent said they would vote for Rep. Budd while 41.8 percent said they would vote for Cheri Beasley. But Donald Bryson, president of the John Locke Foundation said this will likely give Beasley and democrats more confidence. “If I’m Ted Budd, I’m scratching my head wondering why I’m up higher in other polls and not in this one.
A major Democratic group is taking sides in a House primary, and everyone is furious
       
Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, who hasn't backed anyone in the race, piled on as well, calling HMP's actions "flat-out wrong." "House Majority PAC is dedicated to doing whatever it takes to secure a Democratic House majority in 2022, and we believe supporting Carrick Flynn is a step towards accomplishing that goal," said communications director CJ Warnke in a statement. Incidentally, the CEO of the crypto exchange Bankman-Fried founded, Ryan Salame, just this week announced the formation of a similar super PAC aimed at Republicans.) Why go through HMP, then, unless this is a play for winning influence within a major arm of the Democratic Party? Instead, says Robertson, Flynn will "stand up to the Trump Republicans" while tackling climate change and prescription drug costs.
Opinion | The Slaughter in Buffalo Hasn’t Quieted the Great Replacement Caucus
       
But the shooting in Buffalo is only the latest in a series of mass shootings inspired by this particular racist conspiracy theory. And abroad, there was the shooting in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019 where a gunman attacked a mosque, killing 51 people. The Republican politicians and conservative media personalities who traffic in this rhetoric did not create the idea of the “great replacement,” but they have adopted it. They have chosen to swim in the same ideological waters as the people responsible for these shootings and have chosen to amplify the “great replacement” theory to the world even as it poisoned minds and produced violence. Six or seven years ago, Vance and Stefanik were critics of Donald Trump and the movement that put him in office.
Tucker Carlson plays dumb on ‘replacement theory’ — then espouses it
       
Last weekend, an 18-year-old man apparently convinced of the “great replacement theory” allegedly went to a supermarket in a predominantly Black neighborhood of Buffalo and shot 10 people to death. Immediately afterward, remarkably, Carlson tried to pretend that he was unfamiliar with this “great replacement theory” thing in the first place. “You’ve heard a lot about the great replacement theory recently,” Carlson said. The theory, Carlson said, was “everywhere in the last two days and we’re still not sure exactly what it is.”And then he articulated exactly what it is. Carlson knows what “great replacement theory” is.
Texans can now openly carry guns in public without a permit or training. Police say the new law makes it harder to do their jobs
       
Gun shop owner Jesus "Chuy" Aguirre, left, attends to customer Angel Zacarias on Thursday at Chuy's Gun Shop in El Paso, Texas, as anticipation builds regarding the new Texas gun law. A small group of anti-government pro-gun demonstrators gather outside the Texas State Capitol on January 17, 2021 in Austin. Open carry makes job more dangerous for law enforcement, officials sayEarlier this year, Texas law enforcement officials held a news conference in Austin to oppose the so-called "constitutional carry" legislation. "One of the reasons that open carry is so dangerous is because it's so difficult to enforce," Karwoski said. Volunteers with Moms Demand Action have helped dozens of corporations ban open carry in stores since 2013 and they will continue their work with Texas' new permitless carry law, she added.
Midterm elections are tough for the party in power, but 2022 is no ordinary year
       
It’s well-known mantra that the party in the White House always struggles in midterm elections, as lofty expectations give way to the grinding ineffectiveness of the American legislative process, suppressing majority support, while the out-party is energized with desires of revenge. Indeed, the out-party typically gains over 30 House seats in the first midterm of a new presidency. Is 2022 more like 2002, or like any other normal midterm? Abortion will play a particularly outsized role, not just as motivation in its own right, but as proof that holding the White House doesn’t mean we and the Democrats are actually in power. If being out of power gooses turnout, we have a legitimate claim to that crown.
Ukraine update: Ukraine is not interested in compromise or concessions, nor should it be
       
French President Emmanuel Macron warned Ukraine and Europe against “giv[ing] in to the temptation” to humiliate Russia. pic.twitter.com/VObQekw1ZU — Ukraine War Map (@War_Mapper) May 23, 2022Ukraine’s General Staff acknowledged the stalemate by claiming that Russia was “creating conditions” for resuming their offensive. That’s also what Ukraine said about Russian forces stuck outside of Kyiv, Russian forces stuck in the Izyum salient, Russian forces down in Kherson, etc. There’s no way Russian forces have the juice to challenge the bigger and better-defended strongholds at Slovyansk and Kramatorsk. And then he’ll demand negotiations to cement that new status quo, much like 2014 cemented Crimea and the separatist Donbas regions as Russian territory.
Majority Savers: Please Support Jared Golden!
       
This is only intended to give you a glimpse into why he has the right background for Maine’s 2nd District. It means that nearly every time Rep. Jared Golden votes against the Democratic priorities, he has permission from Speaker Pelosi to do so. At the same time, Maine’s 2nd district has only thrown out an incumbent one time since 1916. Maine’s 2nd district is the largest in geography east of the Mississippi River, covering roughly 27,000 square miles in area. In Quarter 1, Rep. Jared Golden raised around $632k for his re-election bid, which will go far in the rural 2nd district of Maine.
The truth about student loan debt: forgiving it all is regressive
       
First let's get one thing out of the way: Joe Biden never promised he would or could eliminate all student loan debt all by himself. President Biden can forgive some debt using government funds that have already been appropriated. That is why blanket loan forgiveness is incredibly regressive and bad policy. Blanket loan forgiveness, far from contributing to the cause of equity, would harm it. Blanket loan forgiveness is such a bad policy that some people are wondering if it was deliberately proposed by accelerationist lefties as a way to harm Democrats as the midterms approach:https://twitter.com/DMC0821/status/1530289260556955650?
Morning Digest: Georgia incumbents fend off Trump's Big Lie slate in Tuesday Republican primaries
       
? FL-10: The crypto-aligned Protect Our Future PAC says it will spend $1 million for progressive activist Maxwell Alejandro Frost ahead of the Democratic primary in August. ? NY-12: A spokesperson for nonprofit founder Rana Abdelhamid says she's considering whether to continue in the Democratic primary after court-ordered redistricting significantly scrambled the lines here. The GOP side also includes evangelical author Heidi St. John, who has brought in a notable amount of money, and state Rep. Vicki Kraft, who hasn't. The GOP field also includes businessman Jerrod Sessler, who has self-financed most of his campaign, and underfunded state Rep. Brad Klippert. The GOP side includes two election conspiracy theorists, including former state Sen. Mark Miloscia, a one-time Democratic state representative who recently resigned as head of a social conservative organization.
Morning Digest: GOP Senate primary in Pennsylvania heads to overtime with mandatory recount
       
? NY-16: Westchester County Legislator Catherine Parker announced this week that she'd challenge Rep. Jamaal Bowman in the August Democratic primary. State election authorities, meanwhile, say they’ve finally received Reed’s letter of resignation. The eventual nominee will go up against Democratic Rep. Sanford Bishop in a southwestern Georgia seat that Biden would have carried 55-44. ? TX-30: State Rep. Jasmine Crockett defeated party operative Jane Hope Hamilton 61-39 in the Democratic runoff for this safely blue Dallas seat. ? TX-AG: Scandal-ridden Attorney General Ken Paxton turned back Land Commissioner George P. Bush 68-32 in the Republican runoff.
Earth Matters: Pollution's toll on people of color; climate inaction could cost $178 trillion
       
Unless serious action is soon taken, impacts of the climate crisis could cost $178 trillion over the next half century. On the other hand, as Kate Yoder writes at the online environmental publication Grist:For perspective, roughly $500 trillion of wealth exists on Earth today. The Deloitte report is based on an average global temperature increase over preindustrial times of 3 degrees Celsius (5.4 degrees Fahrenheit). Russia’s war is no excuse for G7 ministers to duck their climate responsibilities by Claire Fyson at Climate Home News. “People displaced by climate change must show they face violence or persecution in their home countries to enter the U.S. legally.
Nicolle Wallace Brutally Fact Checks TX Gov. Abbott: We Are Not Gonna Let Him Gaslight Anybody Today
       
This time by Roland Gutierrez, the Texas State Senator whose district includes Uvalde, TX. Abbott doesn't think should be illegal, without a background check that Gov. Abbott doesn't think is necessary. Abbott's solution for making sure that the slaughter at Uvalde doesn't happen again is mental health services. And, again, he slashed $211 million from the state's mental health services.
Senate Democrats call out 'stark inconsistencies' in treatment of Ukrainian and Afghan refugees
       
Senators say the requirement for Afghan refugees “seems especially unnecessary given the well-documented and widespread life-threatening conditions in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover.”Lawmakers also note the Biden administration’s United for Ukraine program, which speeds processing for refugees with relatives already in the U.S. They say that under that program, Ukrainian applicants pay no $575 parole application fee. While the Biden administration said last summer that it would be waiving work permit fees for some Afghan refugees, it appears they do have to pay the parole application fee. While the Biden administration was internally warned that Haitian deportations under Stephen Miller’s anti-asylum Title 42 policy could violate law, they continued into the thousands. He said he just hoped the same consideration is extended to Black asylum-seekers who are also fleeing for their lives.
Cheers and Jeers: Rum and Coke FRIDAY!
       
—Jimmy FallonAnd now, our feature presentation…-Cheers and Jeers for Friday, May 27, 2022Note: We wish you a safe and hammock-filled holiday weekend. » New details show President Trump approved of the hanging of his own vice president on January 6th. As our endorphins go wild over the prospect that our first warm-weather holiday weekend (and the unofficial start of summer) is upon us, the Newburyport (Mass.) It is OK to mark Memorial Day with a cook out or if so inclined, to spend the day at a shopping plaza. On Monday my partner Michael (aka "Common Sense Mainer" here at DK) and I will be memorializing something else in addition to Memorial Day.
Tomgram: Michael Klare, Saying Goodbye to Planet Earth?
       
Sadly, all of this (and so much more) is just the beginning on a planet that's overheating all too quickly. Worse yet, as TomDispatch regular Michael Klare, author of All Hell Breaking Loose: The Pentagon's Perspective on Climate Change, makes clear today, the war in Ukraine is the last thing on Earth (so to speak) that we need right now. And yet even those manifestations of the war's "collateral damage" don't come close to encompassing what could be the greatest casualty of all: planet Earth itself. If asked, Biden, Putin, Xi, and high-ranking officials everywhere would undoubtedly insist that addressing climate change remains an important concern. But let's face it, their number-one priority is now to mobilize their societies for a long-term struggle against their geopolitical rivals.
Tomgram: William Hartung, Armed Hypocrisy
       
Raytheon is, of course, anything but the only major arms manufacturer reaping financial and reputational benefits from the war in Ukraine. Earlier this month, President Biden singled out Lockheed Martin for special praise when he toured the Alabama facility where it produces those Javelin missiles. On Mother's Day, for instance, Lockheed Martin CEO James Taiclet was featured on CBS's Face the Nation. More than half of that package will go for military purposes, which means the outlook for firms like Raytheon and Lockheed Martin couldn't be brighter. Putting that nightmarish possibility aside, there's another question that comes to mind (mine, anyway): Does arming Ukraine really make Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, and their cohorts "defenders of democracy"?
The Cult of Z...
       
Z at 17Once upon a time in spacethere was a happy little dancing manwith a moony smile upon his faceand a pencil stash, moved with pizzashacross the floor of the celestial seaHe dreamed of passing his TEFLand moving to a kibbutz (wouldn't you?) amidst a green Gaza olive orchardtaken from a semi semite named Fahqbut Da says no and he can't gobut his head kept on swimming thoughand he became a moonwalking crotch-clutchingUkraine vaudeville star in black leather pantsmoving on stage like pockets full of antsover-engaged charlie chaplin leggy showgirl actionand looking on, playing doctor, one thinks: ritalinis in orderII. Z Dances with the StarsDon't dance so close to mewas not the young but older Z's mottoballs had dropped, hair was hadthere was nothing to stop class-clown's progressbut the full moon itself on Broadwayand the reluctant nyets of inward glances of desirewhen you think of how Yeltsinstepped like a dancing bear next doorfor the Yankee Doodle Dandy elementsoused and slurring and gaily patrioticyou shake the egg noggin and sighbut Zlod when he trods among the starslike Legs Diamond to a full houseconjures up gardens of earthly delightsin Jew heaven, and, Jesus,there is only Jew heavenwhen you think about itIII. Z's OligarchSomewhere along the line Z broke badand his zigs zagged and zags ziggedand his dancing pinstripe suit introjected itselfand he started doing taxi driver moons in the glassyou talkin' to me? and he'd pull a Marxist mirror scenecircling around the other side to see himselfas the other half sees himand there he wasin the nude of his beingseeing the Pimp, Ihorthe Jewish Thor cellphone in handpulling a pallet of cash out of his pockettelling twinkle toes to runfor office with that mighty orificebut first the warm up tour on TVas Servant of the PeopleIV.
And Then There Was No More Empire All of a Sudden
       
It does not exist as an empire but only as benevolence, with its mission to spread human rights and sustainable development across the world. It is from the standpoint of the victims of empire that clarity comes. What is the Organisation of American States? The Organisation of American States (OAS) was formed in Bogota', Colombia in 1948 by the United States and its allies. Each of these platforms have faced threats from the United States.
Meanwhile, back in Washington, and Somalia, and Syria, and Kenya, and...
       
First, there was the announcement that President Biden would be sending troops back to Somalia. Al Shabab, ("the youth"), a fundamentalist Islamic group thought to have 5,000-10,000 members, has been fighting for control of Somalia since the 2000s. The reason we can be waging war in Somalia? Well, it's not something much discussed, since the fact that we bomb Somalia is not much discussed in the first place. And why are U.S. military forces currently at war in Syria?
Are Biden's Troubles of His Own Making?
       
Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Mr. Biden announced its reincarnation as the new Inter Pacific Economic Federation ( IPEF). All of which is the least of Mr. Biden's headaches. He might well call it a move aimed at slaughtering young Russian boys, when he himself is asking for peace talks. Since 2014 about one million refugees have left the country as a result of wars in the Donbas.
The Billionaire Bombardment of Democracy
       
Isn't it time Biden and the Democrats came out clearly against the billionaires abusing their wealth and power by suppressing the wages of average working people and flooding our democracy with their money? As I noted last week, another billionaire, Peter Thiel, has donated at least as much to Trump-endorsed Republicans in senate primaries. This billionaire bombardment gives Biden and the Democrats an opportunity to tell America whose side they're on and whose side they're not on, in effect, to declare class war on the class warriors. Meanwhile, not even the Republicans' billionaire backers can disguise the total absence of a Republican agenda to help average working people. Isn't it time Biden and the Democrats came out clearly against the billionaires abusing their wealth and power by suppressing the wages of average working people and flooding our democracy with their money?
The fire that Wynn Bruce lit
       
On Earth Day 2022, Wynn Alan Bruce, a 50-year-old practicing Buddhist from Boulder, Colorado, self-immolated on the steps of the United States Supreme Court. “Ours is an oil and gas tribe, and our people have an average life expectancy of only 48 years old,” Big Wind says. “They were building this thing right in front of our face,” Big Wind said. “This is one of the largest sacrifices that you can make,” they said about Wynn Bruce. Wynn Bruce will serve as a reminder that this situation is fatal for all of us.
The Chris Hedges Report: Disaster patriarchy and the global war on women
       
Chris Hedges interviews writers, intellectuals, and dissidents, many banished from the mainstream, in his half-hour show, The Chris Hedges Report. It’s going to keep going one right after another right after another right. Chris Hedges: I want to talk about what you write about in The Guardian, the COVID crisis being manipulated and used by patriarchy. Chris Hedges: You write about women farm workers as well, pesticides, poisoning, sexual abuse, heat stress issues. Chris Hedges: I did a book on the Christian right American fascist, The Christian Right and the War on America.
The Chris Hedges Report: How to defeat the billionaire class
       
Instead of depending on the Democratic Party establishment, Sawant says the only way to make advances in the class war is through class struggle and mobilizing ordinary people. Chris Hedges interviews writers, intellectuals, and dissidents, many banished from the mainstream, in his half-hour show, The Chris Hedges Report. Chris Hedges: Can you talk about the role of the Democratic Party, especially during your efforts to raise the minimum wage, to protect people from evictions, to increase taxes on large corporations such as Amazon? Chris Hedges: Yet, the rhetoric of the Democratic Party is aligned with your campaign. Chris Hedges: The Democratic Party for a long time has essentially attempted to replace a political agenda with woke soundbites.
The Chris Hedges Report: Ukraine and the resurgence of American militarism
       
Chris Hedges interviews writers, intellectuals, and dissidents, many banished from the mainstream, in his half-hour show, The Chris Hedges Report. Chris Hedges: Let’s talk about the Russian military. It’s more about a conviction of history having chosen the United States uniquely to preside over the future of humankind. And what I have observed is this: staggering incompetence on the part of the Russian military. And they will have international consequences with a resurgent militarism by the United States.
Biden Embraces Some Harm Reduction Policies — But Doubles Down on Drug War
       
Rates of fatal drug overdose increased under former President Trump before reaching a record high during the pandemic, which isolated drug users from harm reduction services and social supports. Harm reduction is proven to save lives, but backlash from tough-on-crime politicians has prevented the federal government from supporting syringe exchanges and other harm reduction programs for years. Biden’s recent budget request includes $355 million in additional funding for the Drug Enforcement Administration. Biden’s recent budget request includes $355 million in additional funding for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the law enforcement agency charged with waging the drug war that already enjoys a $3.28 billion budget. Heller said the administration’s turn toward harm reduction is a “step in the right direction” but more needs to be done.
California Schools Try to Outrace Covid Outbreaks
       
But even with covid cases rising as schools head into the final stretch of the academic year, most California districts have not moved toward reinstating mask mandates. Up and down California, school administrators are running out the clock, hoping to outrace the outbreaks. District administrators, he said, are working in classrooms to cover the shifts. Very few of California’s more than 1,000 school districts have joined the Berkeley system in making such a decision. This story was produced by KHN, which publishes California Healthline, an editorially independent service of the California Health Care Foundation.
Biden Is Breaking His Climate Promises. What Are the Consequences?
       
Although the war in Ukraine has put climate action on the back burner for many policy makers, the global climate crisis is spinning out of control. The administration’s excuse here is that, in the immediate, Biden has had to focus on pushing down energy prices and overall inflation. Within this context, any measure now to push fossil fuel prices back down would be moving us in the wrong direction, since lower fossil fuel prices will encourage greater fossil fuel consumption. The government could then set fossil fuel energy prices to reflect the needs of both consumers and the imperatives of the clean energy transition. There is no viable economic case in support of nuclear energy as an alternative to building a new global energy system.
Former White House Aide Says Trump Approved of Mob Chanting “Hang Mike Pence”
       
Former President Donald Trump expressed approval when a mob of his loyalists shouted “Hang Mike Pence” during the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol building, a former White House aide has said. Trump also allegedly expressed dismay when Pence was escorted to safety during the Capitol breach, Hutchinson added. “If Mike Pence does the right thing, we win the election,” Trump said to the crowd of his loyalists. A spokesperson for Trump has denied the allegations that he was joyful when his supporters called for Mike Pence to be hanged. Stephanie Grisham, who previously served as Trump’s White House press secretary, was in the White House during the Capitol attack.
As COVID Outbreaks Hit California Schools, Most Aren’t Reinstating Mask Mandates
       
But even with covid cases rising as schools head into the final stretch of the academic year, most California districts have not moved toward reinstating mask mandates. Up and down California, school administrators are running out the clock, hoping to outrace the outbreaks. District administrators, he said, are working in classrooms to cover the shifts. Very few of California’s more than 1,000 school districts have joined the Berkeley system in making such a decision. Schools in Davis, in Yolo County, have not reinstated mask requirements despite rising cases, in large part because the county health director decoupled mandates from test positivity rates.
Critics Call Biden’s $10,000 Student Debt Forgiveness Plan “Woefully Inadequate”
       
The Biden administration will cancel up to $10,000 in student loan debt per borrower, according to sources with knowledge of the White House’s as-yet unannounced plans. While any amount of student debt forgiveness would be beneficial to a certain degree, experts have noted that the $10,000 amount will do very little to address the magnitude of the crisis. Borrowers who earn incomes higher than $150,000 (or $300,000 for married couples filing their taxes jointly) would not be eligible for the student loan forgiveness, for example. President Joe Biden intended to announce his student debt forgiveness plan earlier this week, but postponed his announcement due to the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. A more expansive forgiveness plan would result in better outcomes for a higher number of borrowers, particularly people of color, who disproportionately carry the burden of student debt.
The mass shooting in Buffalo, New York: A political crime
       
It is necessary to state bluntly: The mass shooting on Sunday was a political crime. It was carried out by a racist and anti-Semite on the basis of a definite, fascist political ideology. The conceptions of “Replacement Theory” are expounded in different forms at Republican Party conferences and by fascistic media personalities. The Republican Party is acquiring the characteristics of an American fascist party. This will open up immense possibilities for the struggle against imperialist war, social inequality and fascism in the United States and internationally.
January 6 Select Committee subpoenas 5 of Trump’s congressional co-conspirators
       
On Thursday, the House Select Committee charged with investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on Congress announced new subpoenas targeting five of Trump’s congressional co-conspirators, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Notably, the committee did not subpoena Texas Congressman Ronnie Jackson, who has refused to comply with an April request for an interview. Documents released by the committee last month showed that far-right Oath Keepers militia members bent on kidnapping or killing Trump’s political enemies sought to protect the Republican legislator, who had served previously as Trump’s White House doctor. Less than a day after the subpoenas were issued, Republican lawmakers are almost uniformly threatening retribution against their Democratic “colleagues” for having the temerity to subpoena Trump’s congressional accomplices. The document shows that immediately following Trump’s defeat on November 3, 2020, Rhodes and his Oath Keepers were activated in service of the coup plot.
Trump headlines fascist CPAC Hungary conference
       
On May 18-19 in Budapest, Hungary, the US-based Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) hosted an international event that was live-streamed globally on the internet. Socialism and even communism if you look at it really deeply.”President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally for Senate Republican candidates in Valdosta, Ga. Dec. 5, 2020. Bayer is a long-time political ally of Orban and one of the co-founders of the Fidesz party, which Orban currently leads. In 2016, Orban signed off on awarding Bayer the Knight’s Cross, one of the highest honorifics handed out by the Hungarian state. The mutual admiration between the authoritarian leader of Hungary and the bow tie-wearing fascist was on display at CPAC Hungary, with Orban praising Carlson by name.
January 6 Select Committee requests to interview Republican lawmaker who provided “tour” of Capitol grounds day before coup
       
Loudermilk was one of 138 House Republicans to vote against certifying the election of Joe Biden even after the attack on the Capitol. At one point Loudermilk texted Meadows: “They have breached the Capitol.” Meadows responded telling Loudermilk that “POTUS [Trump] is engaging,” to which Loudermilk replied, “Thanks. In one interview last year, Loudermilk claimed in bald-faced lie that Trump “didn’t have anything to do with January 6. However, so far only Bannon has been arraigned, with his trial set to begin in the late summer. The January 6 Select Committee, which has held one public hearing since its inception last year, currently has plans for multiple “prime-time” public hearings beginning on June 9, 2022.
Primary elections in five US states show intensifying political tensions
       
Democratic and Republican primary elections held across five states demonstrated the mounting crisis of the capitalist two-party system. He called a state Senate hearing after the election where Trump lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Jenna Ellis argued for overturning the vote. Mehmet Oz, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, speaks at a primary night election gathering in Newtown, Pa., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. There were no suggestions that mail-in ballots were illegitimate or even suspect in the Republican primary, although that claim will certainly be raised in the general election. In Pennsylvania, Senate candidate Mehmet Oz got 31 percent and the result was a virtual tie.
In Buffalo, Biden covers up role of Republican Party in promoting fascist “Replacement Theory”
       
Over the previous two days, scores of articles appeared in the establishment press documenting statements by Republican officials and pro-Trump media commentators promoting the “Replacement Theory” ravings of the Buffalo gunman, Payton Gendron. President Joe Biden speaks at the Delavan Grider Community Center in Buffalo, N.Y., Tuesday, May 17, 2022, following Saturday's shooting at a supermarket. His immediate response to the January 6 coup was to call for a “strong” Republican Party and appeal for “unity.” This remains the policy today. It seeks to protect the Republican Party for fear of a breakdown of the two-party system that has served to defend the interests of the ruling class. This is all the more critical under conditions where the Democratic Party has become the preeminent war party of the US imperialism.
Biden’s trip to Asia prepares for military confrontation with China
       
From the outset of the Ukraine war, the Biden administration has made not the slightest pretense of enlisting Beijing as a mediator in negotiations to end the conflict. Both South Korea and Japan are longstanding US military allies and house vital American bases that are integral to the Pentagon war planning. While the supposed North Korean threat is the pretext, the consolidation and boosting of these alliances is directed against China. When China responded by increasing its air activity near Taiwan, Washington accused China of preparing to invade. A US war with China would be a disaster for the working class in Asia and internationally.
Biden sends US troops back into Somalia
       
The Biden administration has ordered the redeployment of 450 US soldiers to Somalia at the request of the Pentagon. The United States has been militarily involved in Somalia since 1992 when it sent troops ostensibly to protect United Nations aid workers. Up to $700 billion in maritime shipping passes by Somalia every year, encompassing nearly all trade between Europe and Asia. Mohamud is a member of the Hawiye, one of the five largest and most politically influential clans in Somalia. Despite claiming to be defending democracy in Ukraine, the United States is not concerned with democracy in Somalia as long as its leaders are beholden to its imperialist aims.
Australian government, Labor wash their hands of Assange amid imminent extradition threat
       
Assange has four weeks to make representations to Patel before she signs off on the extradition on May 18. The complicit reaction to the court ruling comes amid a conspiracy of silence in the official campaign for the Australian election, to be held on May 21, just three days after Patel’s ruling is brought down. Suggesting otherwise serves only to direct the growing numbers of working people who support the WikiLeaks founder behind his deadliest enemies. And Labor, under Albanese’s leadership, scuttled a Greens bid for an Australian Senate inquiry into the response of Australian governments to his persecution. Wong’s declaration that Labor would not free Assange, has more to do with the present situation than the Wikileaks editor’s past revelations.
11 die, dozens rescued from capsized migrant boat off coast of Puerto Rico
       
The passengers had been spotted in the water and did not appear to be wearing life jackets, the Coast Guard reported. The Coast Guard increased the total number of survivors to 38 in a Friday update. 'We always look for the possibility of finding survivors,' said Coast Guard spokesman Ricardo Castrodad, adding that crews worked through the night. Earlier this month, CBP detained 60 Haitian migrants that the agency said had traveled through southwest Puerto Rico. On May 4, another 59 Haitian migrants were detained in northwest Puerto Rico.
Bolsonaro advances coup plots with Brazilian military’s support
       
The incumbent far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, is systematically advancing his campaign for an electoral coup should he be defeated at the polls, with the increasingly direct collaboration of the military’s top brass. Silveira’s crimes were pardoned by President Bolsonaro, in an unprecedented act by the current political regime. Bolsonaro personally visited a demonstration held in Brasilia and appeared by video at one in São Paulo. The political crisis facing Brazil today is undeniably the gravest since 1964, the year of the CIA-backed military coup that ousted the elected president, João Goulart. Trump’s electoral coup serves as an open model for Bolsonaro in Brazil.
Bernie Sanders speaks at “Unity Fest” rally in Richmond, Virginia: A trap for Starbucks workers
       
[Credit: Battle Creek Shopper News, Facebook]Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders spoke at Unity Fest, an event on Sunday, April 24, which was organized to celebrate the successful unionization vote at five Starbucks locations in Richmond, Virginia, by Starbucks United. Lynn Fox, the president of Workers United, the parent organization of Starbucks United was also present. Starbucks United, which was formed last December with the vote in Buffalo, New York, is an affiliate of Workers United. As for Workers United, workers at Amcor were outraged when the union unilaterally imposed a contract, which workers voted down twice last July in Illinois. Workers need organizations to fight back, but they will not find it in Workers United and the official trade unions.
Democrats duck any real fight on abortion rights
       
But despite rhetorical pledges to “fight,” the Democratic Party will do nothing to actually oppose the attack on women’s democratic rights. At least two Democrats, Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Robert Casey of Pennsylvania, oppose abortion rights, and there may be others. President Joe Biden declined last week to answer a question about whether he would support ending the filibuster in order to pass legislation maintaining abortion rights. The Women’s March and the major abortion rights groups have called four regional marches for next Saturday, May 14. The defense of abortion rights, and all democratic rights, can go forward only through the political mobilization of the working class, independently of the Democrats and capitalist politics as a whole, on the basis of a socialist program.
Fascist militia leader Stewart Rhodes sought Trump’s approval on January 6 for more violent attacks
       
Wilson, “a county leader for the North Carolina chapter of the Oath Keepers,” claims that he was present while Rhodes made the phone call to the close contact of Trump’s. In addition to working closely with admitted FBI informant and Proud Boy leader Henry “Enrique” Tarrio, Stone frequently employed Oath Keeper militia members as “body guards,” including the aforementioned Joshua James. In their letter requesting Jackson’s voluntary testimony, which he has since rejected, the committee revealed text messages that were exchanged between Oath Keepers during the attack on the Capitol. Ronnie Jackson—on the move,” an unidentified Oath Keeper wrote during the attack. He has critical data to protect.”The fascist Rhodes responded, “Give him my cell.”
Democrats attempt to channel abortion rights protests into a blind alley
       
Thousands of demonstrators in over 300 cities marched Saturday in support of the basic democratic right of women to obtain an abortion. Abortion rights demonstrators walk past a puddle during their march from the National Mall to the Supreme Court of the United States in Washington, Saturday, May 14, 2022. If they truly regarded abortion rights as a life-and-death matter, the Democrats could eliminate the anti-democratic filibuster rule and pass legislation tomorrow guaranteeing a woman’s right to choose. Speakers at the rallies refused to draw the connection between the attack on abortion rights and the broader attack on the democratic rights of the entire population, including the Republicans’ failed coup of January 6. At the rally in Nashville, Tennessee, on Saturday roughly a dozen members of the neo-Nazi America First group heckled abortion rights demonstrators.
Senate Democrats hold phony vote on abortion rights legislation
       
There are few political events more predictable—and more pointless—than a phony debate in the United States Senate. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y. [Credit: AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin]So it was with Wednesday’s debate over the Women’s Health Protection Act of 2022. This was legislation introduced by Senate Democrats so they could posture as defenders of abortion rights while actually doing nothing to safeguard the right to abortion that the Supreme Court is about to eviscerate by reversing its landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. The younger Casey voted to bring the legislation to the floor, although he would likely have voted against final passage. This outrageous action would be in defiance of public opinion, with polls showing two-thirds of the American people oppose reversing Roe v. Wade.
Israel’s anti-Palestinian provocations threaten stability of Israel, Gaza, West Bank and Jordan
       
The mosque compound, holy to Jews and Muslims, has been occupied illegally along with the West Bank, Gaza and Syria’s Golan Heights since the 1967 Arab Israeli war. The previous Friday, Israel stormed the mosque compound, injuring more than 150 worshippers. Security forces fired tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades to disperse angry crowds protesting the march, injuring 79 Palestinians. As well as attacks in East Jerusalem and Gaza, Israel’s security forces have also continued their raids on towns and cities across the West Bank, arresting and shooting Palestinians. This week, two young Palestinians died from wounds sustained earlier when Israel’s security forces invaded the Jenin area.
Israel assassinates veteran Al Jazeera reporter in West Bank
       
Israeli snipers shot and killed Shireen Abu Akleh, a 51-year-old Palestinian reporter for Al Jazeera Arabic, who was covering the raids by Israeli security forces in the West Bank city of Jenin. He said there was no firing at Israeli forces by Palestinians, nor could he see any Palestinian fighters or even civilians in the area. “We were four journalists, we were all wearing vests, all wearing helmets,” Hanaysha told Al Jazeera. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists’ database, 24 journalists have been killed in Israel and the Palestinian territories since 1992. Last year, police briefly detained Givara Budeiri, another Al Jazeera reporter, during a protest in Jerusalem.
New York Times indicates divisions over the course of NATO-Russia war
       
The New York Times editorial titled “The War in Ukraine is Getting Complicated, and America Isn’t Ready” indicates serious divisions within and between the White House and intelligence agencies over the course of NATO’s war against Russia. Second, the disastrous international and domestic economic consequences of the war are becoming increasingly evident. Inflation is spiraling out of control, the financial markets are being hard hit and a major recession appears to be unavoidable. Third, and most important, the social and economic crisis, accelerated by the war, is fueling the growth of class struggle. The pursuit of this goal will not be ended, except by the development of a mass anti-war and socialist movement led by the working class.
Virginia Thomas, wife of Supreme Court justice, pressured Arizona state legislators to overturn 2020 popular vote
       
Notably, Shawnna Bolick is married to Clint Bolick, who is currently an associate justice of the Arizona Supreme Court and research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution. Clint has described the Supreme Court justice in previous interviews as his “mentor.” Justice Thomas also serves as godfather to Clint’s second son. In December 2020, Virginia Thomas continued to try to pressure Arizona lawmakers into rejecting the popular vote. Following Trump’s defeat, the group played a prominent role in amplifying Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was rigged. Those texts were revealed earlier this year, following an admission from Virginia Thomas that she was in Washington D.C. at the Ellipse on January 6, 2021.
Senate passes $28 million bill that does not resolve US baby formula supply crisis
       
People wait in line during a baby formula drive to help with the baby formula shortage Saturday, May 14, 2022, in Houston [AP Photo/David J. Phillip]The Access to Baby Formula Act, which was first approved by the House on Wednesday, purports to ensure that families receiving government assistance benefits can continue to purchase baby formula during the shortage. The bill allows the Agriculture Department to waive the requirement that those using the federal program Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) must purchase only one brand of baby formula. The $28 million bill also provides emergency funding to increase the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspection staff, increase resources for personnel working on formula issues, stop fraudulent baby formula from entering the US marketplace and improve data collection on the formula market. The US baby formula market is dominated by four monopolies that provide 90 percent of the available products: Abbott Nutrition, Mead Johnson Nutrition, Nestle USA and Perrio Company. A measure of how much opposition exists within the US ruling establishment to any measures whatsoever to deal with the baby formula crisis was demonstrated in the House vote on the emergency legislation.
Fed monetary tightening hits Wall Street
       
The Wall St. street sign is framed by the American flags flying outside the New York Stock exchange, Friday, Jan. 14, 2022, in the Financial District. It was the worst month since October 2008 amid the global financial crisis, and took its fall for the year to 21 percent. The chief reason for the market decline is the inflation surge—the largest in four decades—which is pushing central banks to tighten monetary policy. The renminbi selloff accelerated after President Xi Jinping announced increased infrastructure spending to try to mitigate the economic effects of lockdowns in Shanghai and other major cities. The tightening of monetary policy by the Fed is having major international ramifications because it effectively sets monetary policy for the rest of the world.
US Federal Reserve raises rates, outlines class war policy against workers
       
With everything going up except workers’ real wages, families are increasingly using credit cards to pay for groceries and other necessities. But this nirvana for the American ruling class coincided with a four-decade decline in the real wages of workers. For private-sector workers, wages and salaries were up 5.0 percent over the same 12-month period. But in real terms (adjusted for inflation), wages of private industry workers declined 3.3 percent from March 2021 to March 2022. The ruling elite is preparing to use mass unemployment as a hammer to beat back workers’ wage demands.
May Day 2022: Lessons of the French election between Macron and Le Pen
       
This is the report delivered by Alex Lantier to the 2022 International May Day Online Rally held on May 1. A class gulf separates the attitude of workers toward the war from that of the ruling class in France. But the brutal NATO offensive against Russia, and the threat of a nuclear escalation, worry the vast majority of the French population. Macron is aligned completely with Washington and NATO, who openly state their aim is to “break the back” of Russia. Under the cover of Macron’s “liberal” imagery, the French capitalist class is following a far-right foreign policy.
The NATO-Russia war and the tasks of the international working class
       
The world stands on the precipice of a nuclear world war that threatens the extinction of life on this planet. This is a well-known tactic of propaganda, which in its modern form is the product of World War I. Therefore, the central task is the mobilization of the international working class against the imperialist drive to war. The strength of the working class must be mobilized to bring about the end of the war in Ukraine. The international working class must declare war on imperialist war.
May Day 2022: The revolutionary role of the American working class
       
What has always distinguished the Trotskyist movement was not only its understanding of the central role of American imperialism, but of the enormous social and political power that is the American working class. In the course of its conflict with Russia, the American ruling class has begun to speak of the wealth of the Russian oligarchs. For nearly half a century, the American ruling class waged one-sided class warfare. There is in the American working class a deep hostility and anger toward the entire political establishment. The American working class has a long and proud tradition of class struggle.
May Day 2022: Australian ruling class promotes anti-China campaign
       
Much has changed since we last celebrated the international day of the working class a year ago. As is the case internationally, it is the working class in this country who are most affected by the virus. In conclusion, on this May Day we particularly emphasize the international unity of the working class. We especially reach out to the Chinese working class, the largest on earth. It is in unity with all sections of the working class that we must organize and fight for a socialist future.
Workers speak on Australian election: “It doesn’t matter who gets in, the whole system is broken”
       
It doesn’t matter who gets in, the whole system is broken. And the fact that they’re refusing to spend on the people is rough, because some people really need it,” he said. Why do they keep causing war?”JamalThe SEP spoke with two sisters Marwa and Rashida, of Lebanese migrant parents. They don’t really care about the little guys just trying to get a living. Referring to the rising war dangers, Marwa said, “American imperialism definitely benefits from war and won’t stop this because it’s getting rich from it.
Australian election result shows mass hostility to Labor and the Liberal-Nationals
       
Millions of people expressed their hostility to the traditional parties of capitalist rule, Labor and the Liberal-National Coalition. Whatever the outcome, Albanese’s declarations that he is “getting on with the job” cannot paper over the immense crisis revealed in the election result. Labor won less than a third of the vote—the lowest result for an incoming government since World War II. Prior to the election, the Coalition government was in disarray, with factional conflicts erupting into open public warfare. The corporate media responded nervously to the election result, with many comments warning of an existential crisis of the existing political set-up.
Vote 1 for Socialist Equality Party candidates in the Australian election!
       
SEP candidates Peter Byrne and Oscar Grenfell distribute election statements to workers during the 2022 election campaign. The SEP is the only party standing in this election opposing the US-led war drive. American imperialism has goaded the Russian capitalist regime of Vladimir Putin into a reactionary invasion of Ukraine that only serves to divide the Ukrainian and Russian working class. Our campaign has advanced key demands around which the working class can fight for its pressing needs. But the working class, the source of all wealth in society, must decide what is affordable and what is not.”This points to what is necessary: Nationalise the banks, finance houses and major corporations under the democratic control of the working class.
Australia’s still-minority Labor government rushes to commit to war and austerity
       
Votes are still being counted from Saturday’s crisis-wracked Australian election, and it remains unclear whether the Labor Party can even form a majority government. At a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo, President Joe Biden declared “yes,” when asked if Washington would intervene militarily against any Chinese attempt to take Taiwan by force. During the flight to Japan, Albanese had a phone call with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to underscore that pledge. That highlights the reality that war abroad means class war at home to extract the required sacrifices from workers. Similarly, Albanese defended Labor’s commitment to deliver the huge income tax cuts that it helped the Coalition government legislate.
Australian Labor government already functioning as US attack dog in the Pacific
       
In the days since the Australian federal election, the incoming Labor government has been on a foreign policy whirlwind. Albanese and Wong stressed that the Labor government would collaborate as closely as possible with the Biden administration in the region. The “rules” are those being laid down by the US and its deputy sheriffs in the region, Australia and New Zealand. The Australian press has obtained a copy of a five-year cooperation agreement that Wang is offering to ten Pacific countries. Despite its declarations of a “Pacific focus,” Labor has pledged only half a billion dollars over four years for the entire region.
Russian DJ and performer Nina Kraviz banned from three music festivals
       
In another deplorable, anti-democratic action by the cultural establishment in the US and Europe, three music festivals have excluded Russian DJ and performer Nina Kraviz from their events this summer. The Movement Music Festival came under the direct pressure from a group calling itself “Ukrainians of Metro Detroit,” which organized a petition on Change.org. The petition demands that Kraviz “speak out for the victims of this war given your platform and millions of fans. So I don’t think it is right to talk about what’s happening on social media. Responses on social media have been generally hostile to the actions taken against Kraviz.
Trump rebuffed in Georgia Republican primary elections
       
The fifth state, Minnesota, held a primary election in only a single congressional district, to choose nominees to fill the vacancy created by the death of Republican Rep. Jim Hagedorn. The most publicized rebuff to this effort came in Georgia, where Republican Governor Brian Kemp and Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger turned back challengers endorsed by Trump. Kemp defeated former US Sen. David Perdue in a landslide, winning 74 percent of the Republican primary vote compared to 22 percent for Perdue. The Republican Governors Association pumped $5 million into the Kemp campaign, while Trump directed $2.64 million from his own political action committee (PAC) to Perdue, his sole substantial donation to any Republican primary candidate. In Arkansas, Trump’s former press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders won the Republican primary for governor easily.
FDA Commissioner says unsanitary conditions at Abbott Labs Michigan baby formula factory were “shocking”
       
The FDA found five different strains of Cronobacter, bacteria that can cause dangerous blood infections, at the Michigan facility. Beginning in September 2021, four infants who consumed the powdered formula produced by the Abbott factory became sick and were hospitalized with Cronobacter infections. The focus remained on the baby formula factory which was closed by Abbott Labs in February following a “voluntary recall” of its Similac, Alimentum and EleCare products from store shelves. The shutdown of production at the Sturgis facility immediately exacerbated the baby food supply shortage that had been underway since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Meanwhile, the reality facing working class families across the country trying to find baby formula continues to worsen, especially in poorer areas of the US.
Biden marks two year anniversary of police murder of George Floyd by signing pro-cop executive order
       
Pittsburgh rally to protest the death of George Floyd. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)Since the murder of Floyd, police have continued to kill at a steady pace. The site found that there were only 15 days in 2021 when police did not kill someone, and only 18 in 2020. Prior to signing the executive order, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris gave speeches presenting it as a meaningful step towards “accountability” and a way to “build trust” between bourgeois cops and the working class. Justin Feldman, Sofia Ruskin, Brent Coull and Nancy Kreiger found that “[o]verall, police-related death rates were highest in neighborhoods with the greatest concentrations of low-income residents...”Biden’s executive order, ostensibly aimed at “reforming” the police, will do nothing of the sort.
US government awards $10 billion NSA cloud contract to Amazon
       
After months of evaluation, the National Security Agency of the United States decided in April to award a $10 billion cloud computing contract to Amazon Web Services (AWS), over an outcry from rival tech giant Microsoft. Known as “Wild and Stormy,” the contract is not the same as the much reported and similarly priced $10 billion Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI) cloud contract from the Department of Defense that was also the subject of competing bids from AWS and Microsoft. Although the NSA originally awarded the Wild and Stormy cloud contract to AWS in the summer of 2021, a challenge from Microsoft led the Government Accountability Office to direct the agency last October to reevaluate contract proposals from both bidders. Reporting on the Wild and Stormy contract has largely been limited to government and tech-focused publications, but some commentators in and around the Democratic Party have expressed anxiety over the award. Other commentators have pointed to the Biden administration’s alleged “hypocrisy” in awarding the NSA cloud contract to Amazon despite the White House’s previous pledges that it would prioritize contractors that allow their employees to join unions.
“The lives of working class Americans are expendable to the ruling class”—US workers speak on Texas school massacre
       
This can’t be legislated by the oligarchs from the outside, it has to be changed by the working class from the inside.”Elizabeth, an RN in Los Angeles County, California, said, “As a working class registered nurse, I have come to realize that the lives of working class Americans are expendable to the ruling class. “Uvalde is a rural community with a population of approximately 15,000 working class people with many living below the poverty. I see it as a mirror of the violence that capitalism commits against the working class here and internationally. I believe we must unite with our international working class brothers and sisters and fight for a socialist revolution! Just one day after the school shooting a student was arrested at a Texas high school with a pistol and a rifle in his car at the school.
Biden’s summits in South Korea and Japan strengthen anti-China alliances
       
Holding summits with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Saturday and Monday respectively, Biden’s goal has been to prepare allies for stepping up Washington’s confrontation with China. Though Biden’s joint statement with Yoon did not explicitly mention China, the target was clear. Biden and Kishida were far less restrained, however, criticizing Beijing over territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas and hypocritically expressing concerns over “human rights” in Hong Kong and Xinjiang. For more than a decade now, bilateral relations between South Korea and Japan have been bitter, with Seoul exploiting anti-Japanese sentiment to distract from deteriorating domestic conditions and Tokyo’s remilitarization also raising concerns. Biden stated that 13 nations would initially take part in the plan, including both Japan and South Korea.
US arms Taiwan to prepare a Ukraine-style quagmire for China
       
US President Biden’s trip to Asia has brought the mounting tensions with China over Taiwan into sharp focus. The corollary was “strategic ambiguity”—refusing to categorically commit to siding with Taiwan in a war with China. That policy was aimed not only at warding off aggression by China, but also at blocking provocative actions by Taiwan. Now having transformed Ukraine into a military quagmire to weaken and destabilise Russia, US imperialism is deliberately setting and baiting a similar trap for China in Taiwan. Buoyed by “success” in Ukraine, US plans for a protracted military conflict on Taiwan against the Chinese military are being rapidly advanced.
The failed COVID-19 pandemic policies: An interview with Arijit Chakravarty of Fractal Therapeutics
       
Long COVID and “endemicity”The other important aspect of the Fortune article was the discussion on Long COVID. Let’s say your risk of getting Long COVID each time you get COVID is 10 percent, to be conservative. What we realized was that the risk of Long COVID is low on any given go-around of COVID. Whatever’s happened with Long COVID until now doesn’t tell you what’s going to happen with Long COVID going forward. In other words, the Long COVID we have seen so far, the rate of production of Long COVID we have seen up to this point in the pandemic, could be a lot lower than the rate of Long COVID we will see based on the current strategy [moving forward].
COVID rips through US schools during sixth surge
       
Total daily COVID cases throughout the US have reached over 100,000 per day and total COVID deaths have surpassed one million. A significant minority of severe COVID cases result in chronic decline of cognitive function equivalent to 10 IQ points or early-stage dementia. As of Wednesday, the city’s Department of Education was tracking 2,083 current COVID cases across New York City public schools, 74 percent of which are student infections. In Pittsburgh public schools, three schools announced they will being closing due to infection rates higher than 5 percent. “The cases are accumulating quickly and we are only seeing maybe 10 to 30 percent of all positive cases via symptomatic testing.
The global monkeypox outbreak and its implications
       
On May 19, 2022, Portugal released the first partial sequence of the monkeypox virus from an infected patient, followed by Belgium the next day releasing the full sequence. This could take some time to establish, given the monkeypox has a large complex genome.”The monkeypox virus genome is 200,000 DNA letters long compared to SARS-Cov-2’s 30,000 RNA letters. I just don’t think it rises to the level of the kind of concern that existed with COVID-19, and the smallpox vaccine works for it. But there is a possibility now this has gotten into the community, if in fact it’s more pervasive than what we’re measuring right now, that becomes hard to snuff out.”Yet, few have asked what the implications of the current outbreak of monkeypox virus are. Not only are new pathogens jumping from animals to humans more often, but an increasing number are linked to the changes in the global and local environments.”The sudden appearance of a monkeypox global outbreak is an objective verification of these concerns.
Keeping schools open during the pandemic is causing a mental health crisis for US teachers
       
The continuing uncontrolled pandemic is having a devastating impact on the mental health of teachers in the US. According to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), there are almost 7 percent fewer K-12 public school teachers now than at the start of the pandemic. (AP Photo/Steve Karnowski)The pandemic only accelerated the long-standing trend of declining public school employment. Many teachers are leaving the profession because of incredible workloads, only exacerbated by the pandemic, causing unsustainable stress and burnout. Twenty-five percent of teachers reported symptoms of depression, compared with 10 percent for the adult population as a whole.
Powerful strike movement emerges in the United States
       
A series of powerful strikes and social protests have broken out across the United States against intolerable social conditions and breathtaking levels of social inequality. Roughly 5,000 nurses at Stanford Hospital in California went on strike earlier in May demanding significant wage increases and adequate staffing levels. Nearly 3,500 aluminum workers at Arconic in Iowa, Indiana, New York and Tennessee voted unanimously for strike action last week. In addition, 400 mental health nurses in Iowa and Minnesota are scheduled to carry out a one-day strike on May 24. The nurses unions have done nothing to address staffing issues anywhere.
Alaska pilots overwhelmingly vote to authorize strike
       
Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-900ER at San Diego International AirportAlaska Airlines pilots voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) union reported on Wednesday. ALPA, which covers more than 3,000 pilots at Alaska Air Group Inc., said 99 percent of ballots cast supported strike action. The strike vote demonstrates the expanding opposition across the airline industry, where pilots are demanding higher pay and relief from “fatiguing” schedules. The Alaska pilots strike is the latest indication of a renewed class struggle in the United States on a scale not seen in decades, driven by intolerable working conditions and runaway inflation. Alaska pilots must be prepared to take the initiative into their own hands to prevent similar sabotage of their struggle.
Iraqi refugee speaks of Washington’s proxy war against Russia and the destruction of her home country by US imperialism
       
Out of concern for the security of family members living in the Middle East, she asked that we use a pseudonym. The propaganda is being used to push the largest corporate enterprises to place sanctions and holds on their businesses in Russia. There are over 50,000 people in Baghdad living under bridges. Imperialist propaganda: The wars in Iraq and UkraineBG: Getting back to the present war, the question of US imperialist propaganda. The war impacts the generations of your family, my family, our families, us being the working class people.
Who is responsible for starvation and rising food prices?
       
Heads nodded gravely when she urged the audience to provide “the World Food Program with the supplies it badly needs” to alleviate the threat of mass starvation. Oxfam reported that one new billionaire “has been minted on average every 30 hours during the pandemic,” including 62 individuals who made their money profiting off of rising food prices in the agribusiness industry. As for the present rise in food prices, the US government and its imperialist allies are primarily responsible. The same report explains that if the war continues, global food prices will rise 45 percent this year, an unprecedented increase. David Beasley, the director of the World Food Program, recently warned, “We are already seeing riots and protesting taking place as we speak—Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Pakistan, Peru.
Beyond the official clichés: The Texas school shooting reveals the advanced sickness of American society
       
Biden briefly referred to the fact “these kinds of mass shootings rarely happen anywhere else in the world.” People in other countries, he said, “have mental health problems. Mass shootings and other forms of anti-social violence are endemic to American society. The specific evolution of American society over the past number of decades needs to be considered. A gaping, ever-enlarging political, moral and cultural vacuum occupies the center of American society. The socialist movement of the working class, based on an understanding of social life and its laws, and its potential, drives away despair and inspires hope.
The Uvalde massacre and the tragedy of school shootings in America
       
The massacre at Robb Elementary was the 19th school shooting so far this year. There have been 213 mass shootings where four or more people were killed or injured. Columbine now ranks as only the sixth deadliest school shooting in American history. The growing phenomenon of school shootings and mass shootings in general is a symptom of the advanced decay and breakdown of American society. An average of three people are killed every day by the police, adding up to more than 1,000 deaths every year, far above the total from school shootings in even the deadliest years.
The international significance of Australia’s crisis election
       
And the working class is passing through immense social experiences that are undeniably connected to international developments and that directly parallel the plight of workers all over the globe. Desperate efforts are being undertaken to paper over the chasm between the working class and the political establishment. And just three days after the election, Labor presided over the “turn back” of a boat of Sri Lankan refugees, illegally violating the right to seek asylum. This program will produce mass opposition, which has already been foreshadowed in the election result. The SEP advanced a socialist program of action for the working class to fight war, austerity, the “live with the virus” offensive and the cost-of-living crisis.
As it escalates war against Russia, Biden administration threatens war against China
       
Even as the United States was escalating its war with Russia, Biden openly threatened to go to war with China, the world’s most populous country and its second-largest economy. Now, a war with Russia has already broken out, and Biden’s comments make it clear that the administration is systematically preparing for a war with China. These conflicts threaten to escalate into a world war, waged between nuclear-armed powers, threatening Europe, Asia, North America and, indeed, the whole of human civilization with destruction. The Biden administration’s war plans express the relentless drive by US imperialism to reverse its relative economic decline through military means. This global movement of the working class provides the social base for the struggle to avert a new world war and stop the catastrophe threatening mankind.
What is behind the International Socialist League’s support for the US/NATO war drive against Russia?
       
Over the past months, the ISL has issued statements with titles such as “No to Russian imperialist aggression against Ukraine! In his complete and open break with the Fourth International’s perspectives, James exclaimed: “Orthodox Trotskyism can find no objective necessity for an imperialist war between Stalinist Russia and American imperialism. The narrative of the Morenoites and other pseudo-left groups of an “imperialist Russia” waging an unprovoked expansionist war, on the other hand, lacks any historical or materialist basis. This position is an integral part of a single program for the Ukrainian and international working class based on a world socialist revolutionary strategy. This means building ICFI sections in Ukraine, Russia, and all over the world.
Vote NO on Chevron/USW sellout tentative agreement! Rally the tens of thousands of oil workers to join Richmond, California refinery strikers!
       
Striking Chevron workers (USW L.5)Only the most deceitful economist could claim “there is no money” to address striking workers’ needs. By agreeing to this TA, the United Steel Workers is just confirming what thousands of oil workers across the country are beginning to realize: they are not on the side of oil workers. Richmond workers and refinery workers across the country are not alone. Oil refinery workers as a whole must fight for a reopening of the national oil contract free from the bullying and intimidation of the USW. Rally the tens of thousands of oil workers to join Richmond, California refinery strikers!
Mack Trucks workers vote out UAW leadership at local in Pennsylvania, one year after union betrayal of Volvo Trucks strike
       
Mack Trucks workers can contact the Mack Workers Rank-and-File Committee by texting 717-739-9517 or emailing MackWRFC@gmail.com. Mack Truck Macungie PlantIn local elections last Thursday, workers voted to throw out the majority of the leadership of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 677. It comprises 2,234 Mack workers, 145 Americold workers, 118 Mack Reman workers and 96 First Student bus charter workers eligible to vote for the president. The Mack Workers Rank-and-File Committee stands with workers from New River Valley Volvo workers in Virginia to Motherson Automotive Technologies and Engineering plant in India. Mack Trucks workers can contact the Mack Workers Rank-and-File Committee by texting 717-739-9517 or emailing MackWRFC@gmail.com.
Australia’s crisis election: The way forward for the working class
       
The Socialist Equality Party (SEP) will be discussing the election outcome and the way forward for the working class at an online public meeting Sunday, June 12 at 2 p.m. (AEST). The 2022 election produced the lowest combined vote in history for the Labor Party and the Liberal-National Coalition, at around 68.5 percent of primary votes. The working class is passing through immense social experiences that are connected to international developments and that directly parallel the plight of workers all over the globe. This emerging movement requires a new leadership in the working class. This was central to the SEP election campaign.
As Russia war rages on, US secretary of state declares China the “most serious long-term challenge”
       
“Even as President Putin’s war continues, we will remain focused on the most serious long-term challenge to the international order—and that’s posed by the People’s Republic of China,” Blinken said. Blinken continued, “Now, China is a global power with extraordinary reach, influence, and ambition. Blinken delivered blood-curdling threats, followed immediately by a declaration that the United States is not threatening anyone. The US is funneling weapons to Taiwan, seeking to turn the island into a front-line war zone against China, similarly to the way Ukraine is being used in the war against Russia. Blinken’s warmongering against China comes as the United States is intensifying its own involvement in the Ukraine war.
Australia’s Labor government demands “sacrifices” from workers
       
All this while it still remains unclear whether Labor will secure the 76 seats in the House of Representatives it needs to form a majority. Labor and the Coalition alike painted a phoney picture of a more prosperous or “better” future, coming just around the corner. But productivity growth over the past five years was only 0.9 percent. This bargaining system has been a central mechanism since the 1990s for straitjacketing workers in anti-strike laws policed by the unions. The SEP’s election statement advanced a socialist program of action for workers to fight the intensifying assault on their basic social and democratic rights.
The US baby formula crisis and capitalism’s indifference to the lives of children
       
The baby formula crisis that is threatening the lives of infants across the US deepened this week as the out-of-stock rate for baby formula on store shelves surged to 70 percent for the week ending May 22. In February, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) forced Abbott Labs to recall products and shut down the Sturgis facility. This agreement guarantees that Abbott Labs will not be prosecuted or held responsible for the bacterial contamination of its baby formula products, in exchange for restarting its manufacturing operations at the Sturgis plant. This fact was confirmed in the recent comment by President Biden’s Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg who washed his hands of the crisis, saying, “The government does not make baby formula, nor should it. Baby formula production and distribution—and other essential products and services required to sustain the lives of millions and billions of people on the earth—must be taken out of the hands of the financial parasites who own them.
In wake of Texas school shooting, Trump glorifies police and vigilante violence at NRA convention
       
The audience, packed with active and retired police and military personnel, responded with roars of approval and chants for Trump in 2024. Across from the George R. Brown Convention Center, the site of the NRA meeting, some 1,000 protesters demonstrated to demand gun control measures. Anger over the endless wave of school shootings is very real, with students walking out at a number of schools across the US. Friday’s protest outside the NRA convention was addressed by Texas Representative Sheila Jackson Lee and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke. Even this token measure is unlikely to survive opposition from Trump and the Republican Party.
Canadian imperialism’s fascist friends—Part 5: Mobilize the working class against the US-NATO war with Russia and fascist reaction!
       
The first part introduced Canadian imperialism’s long-standing alliance with far-right Ukrainian nationalism. Part four traced how the Canadian state provided refuge to the Nazis’ OUN accomplices and incubated and promoted far-right Ukrainian nationalism. With virtually each passing day Washington, with the enthusiastic backing of the Trudeau Liberal government and the entire Canadian political establishment, announces further arms shipments to Ukraine and expanded war aims. They provided the Nazi’s OUN collaborators refuge, assisted them in whitewashing their crimes and promoted far-right Ukrainian nationalism as an instrument of Canadian imperialist foreign and domestic policy. She is also playing an important role in imperialist war councils and, according to all reports, in shaping the actions of the Ukrainian government.
Critical resources, imperialism and the war against Russia
       
Critical minerals and the growth of the productive forcesThe United States and its imperialist allies are in a scramble for so-called critical minerals and metals. The United States, China and critical mineralsAmong the fifty critical minerals cited by the US government, what is remarkable is that barely any of them are primarily produced within the United States. Below is detailed several major critical minerals, their use, and the role of Russia in their production and reserves. Amidst the incredible development of advance electronics and renewable energy technologies, critical minerals are expected to boom in the coming decades. Amid the enduring need for oil and natural gas, as well as the rapidly growing need for critical minerals, Russia is seen as a vital landmass with a vast array of riches.
AP Week in Pictures: Global
       
A midshipman from Cameroon is recognized by President Joe Biden during the U.S. Naval Academy's graduation and commissioning ceremony at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md., Friday, May 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)A midshipman from Cameroon is recognized by President Joe Biden during the U.S. Naval Academy's graduation and commissioning ceremony at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md., Friday, May 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)May 21-27, 2022From a midshipman from Cameroon proudly being recognized by President Joe Biden during the U.S.
The NRA Show Goes On
       
ReutersWASHINGTON (Reuters) -Gun safety advocates are pushing U.S. President Joe Biden to take stronger measures on his own to curb gun violence after the Texas elementary school shooting, but the White House is putting responsibility on Congress to pass laws that would have more impact. The White House has spoken with gun safety groups since Tuesday's rampage in Uvalde, Texas, in which 19 elementary school students and two teachers were killed - the deadliest school shooting in nearly a decade - activists said. The groups are urging Biden to make an emergency declaration on gun violence, name a gun violence czar, advocate lifting the Senate filibuster if necessary and issue an executive order on background checks for firearms purchases if lawmakers do not pass legislation tightening loopholes in current law.
Georgia investigation into Trump's efforts to overturn 2020 election ramps up
       
“Based on her pugnacity, it looks like it’s full steam ahead,” said one lawyer representing a client who has been contacted by Willis’s team of investigators and prosecutors. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in Glennville, Ga., on April 14. Story continues“The process of hearing from witnesses is starting June 1,” said Jeff DiSantis, a spokesman for Willis. As a result, Raffensperger will now be among the lead witnesses next week while multiple Georgia state officials — including Gov. A grand jury subpoena relating to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' investigation into former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia.
Trump has only one thing left
       
Candidates have to do one thing to win Trump's endorsementThe notable thing about the evolution of Trumpism is it’s only about one thing these days: Trump’s 2020 election lies. It’s the main thing Trump talks about now, and candidates must support the fantasy that Trump won in 2020 to earn Trump’s endorsement. Kemp stomped Perdue by 52 points, suggesting the vast majority of Georgia Republicans don’t believe Perdue, or don’t care. If Trump’s candidates largely sweep in 2022, that could clear the way for a Trump presidential campaign in 2024. Trump has a pathological aversion to losing, which is where his 2020 election lies came from, and voters may finally be saying, enough of that.
Revived rouble may be Putin's latest economic blunder
       
Joe Biden quipped that the “unprecedented” force of Western sanctions against Russia had reduced the rouble “to rubble”. An initial salvo against Moscow over the invasion of Ukraine devastated Russia’s currency, which plunged to as low as half its pre-war value within days. But as the White House gloated of the economic destruction that depreciation could unleash, the rouble was staging a comeback. The increases didn’t stop there: the rouble has continued to soar, and now, three months after Putin first unleashed his forces against Ukraine, is roughly a quarter stronger. “A lot of Russians gauge the state of the economy by the rouble rate,” says an economist at a major European bank.
US, S. Korea working to find right strategy for dealing with N. Korea: US official
       
(Yonhap)The United States and South Korea are working to find the "right mix" of tools to address the North Korean issue, a senior White House official said Thursday. Biden made a three-day visit to South Korea from Friday (Seoul time) to become the first foreign leader to hold a summit with Yoon less than a fortnight since the new South Korean leader took office. Biden's first trip to Asia, that also took him to Japan, followed a series of missile tests by North Korea. Biden reaffirmed the US' commitment to provide a strong extended deterrence to South Korea in the summit with his South Korean counterpart. North Korea has conducted 17 rounds of missile tests so far this year.
Republican primaries offer look into future of Trumpism without Trump
       
The former US president suffered some humiliation on Tuesday when four candidates he handpicked in Georgia lost Republican primary elections in a landslide. The hard-right, nativist-populist strain of Republican politics predates Trump and will surely survive him. Attorney general Chris Carr and insurance commissioner John King, both opposed by Trump, prevailed in their primaries too. Trump continues to raise vast sums of money and command loyalty from most Republicans in Congress as well as from the Republican National Committee. This is Trump’s party and everything that’s happened this primary season just continues to reflect that … Wake me up when an anti-Trump Republican wins a primary.
Trump at NRA meeting: 'Evil' like Texas massacre a reason to arm, not disarm
       
Crowds listen as Former US President Donald Trump speaks during the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual convention in Houston, Texas, US May 27, 2022. Former US president Donald Trump rejected calls for tightened gun controls Friday following the Texas school massacre, saying decent Americans should be allowed the firearms they need to defend themselves against "evil." Advertising Read more"The existence of evil in our world is not a reason to disarm law-abiding citizens... Trump's remarks came as he headlined an NRA event in Houston, three days after a gun massacre at a Texas elementary school reignited the tinderbox debate about US gun control. They include a racist massacre at a supermarket in a Black neighborhood of Buffalo, New York, just 10 days before the Texas killings.
Will Texas pick a progressive or anti-abortion Democrat in heated runoff?
       
Two nearly identical text boxes appear on the respective campaign websites for Henry Cuellar and Jessica Cisneros, the Democrats locked in a heated primary runoff to represent south Texas in Congress. Cisneros, in turn, blasts Cuellar for opposing “women’s right to choose” amid a nationwide crackdown on reproductive care. “If Cuellar wins, this is a story of how the Democratic machine and the old system is still strong in the district. Cuellar and Cisneros – both Mexican American lawyers from Laredo – represent two radically different visions of what south Texas is and could be. The House majority whip, Jim Clyburn, with Cuellar at a campaign event in San Antonio on 4 May.
Rep. Kurt Schrader loses primary in Oregon’s 5th District
       
Placeholder while article actions loadMore than a week after voters went to the polls, Rep. Kurt Schrader fell to Jamie McLeod-Skinner in the Democratic primary for Oregon’s 5th Congressional District. McLeod-Skinner, a lawyer and natural-resource consultant, will face Republican Lori Chavez-DeRemer in the general election, according to the Associated Press. “This is a David-and-Goliath moment,” said Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party to which McLeod-Skinner belongs. “In his service in the Congress, Congressman Kurt Schrader has been a valued and independent voice. “We felt that McLeod-Skinner would have the best chance of energizing voters and of advancing Democrats’ agenda in D.C.,” he said.
NRA speakers unshaken on gun rights after school massacre
       
Once among the most powerful political organizations in the country, the NRA has seen its influence wane following a significant drop in political spending. According to a district safety plan, Uvalde schools have a wide range of safety measures in place. Outside the convention hall, protesters gathered in a park where police set up metal barriers — some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Samuel Thornburg, 43, a maintenance worker for Southwest Airlines in Houston who was attending the NRA meeting, said: “Guns are not evil. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings .
Live Updates: Russians Air Misgivings About the War
       
Kevin Roberts, the president of the Heritage Foundation, pushed back against the $40 billion military and humanitarian aid bill for Ukraine. In a move that seized the attention of conservatives across Washington, Jessica Anderson, the executive director of Heritage’s lobbying operation, released a searing statement — its headline blaring “Ukraine Aid Package Puts America Last” — that framed the measure as reckless and ill-considered. In the months leading up to the vote on the Ukraine aid bill, Heritage’s policy experts argued in favor of an aggressive American role in the conflict, including huge amounts of aid. And if that’s the case, are you still a public policy organization that’s putting out cutting-edge research? “What I’ve found frustrating in the last couple of weeks among all the commentary,” Mr. Roberts said in the interview with Mr. Hawley, “is that somehow we’re being disingenuous by saying, ‘Why can’t we build the wall at the Southern border?
What Happened on Day 93 of the War in Ukraine
       
“Pursuing the war beyond that point would not be about the freedom of Ukraine, but a new war against Russia itself,’’ Mr. Kissinger concluded. Credit... Fabrice Coffrini/Agence France-Presse — Getty ImagesIn the end, American officials say, the hard choices will have to be made by Mr. Zelensky and his government. The first is that Ukraine must emerge as a vibrant, democratic state — exactly what Mr. Putin was seeking to crush. “That’s called World War III,” Mr. Biden has said repeatedly. Estonia’s prime minister, Kaja Kallas, and Poland’s prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, speak of him as a war criminal, as Mr. Biden did.
Texas lawmaker calls out Chuck Schumer for blocking 'bipartisan' school safety bill
       
Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, said Democrats are politicizing gun safety and advocated for school resource officers on Friday's "The Ingraham Angle" in the aftermath of the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. If you look at all the policies that have been thrown out there — you look at the ones that work, without a doubt, having school resource officers on campus works. And he's talking about how in his years, his career he spent with all these bills on gun control and on gun safety. This problem has gotten worse. And we're sitting here now having to deal with him talk to us and taking solutions off the table.
Biden's Treasury Department renews Chevron's oil license to operate in Venezuela
       
The U.S. Treasury Department renewed a license Friday for Chevron to operate its oil production in Venezuela, a country sanctioned by the U.S., potentially setting up a broader license agreement later in the year. Under the current license, Chevron is allowed to continue to maintain its staff and operation infrastructure as well as payments on third-party invoices, local taxes and utility services. The license allows Chevron to conduct "transactions and activities necessary for safety or the preservation of assets in Venezuela," according to the report. A positive outcome of these meetings could result in restoring oil transactions between the U.S. and Venezuela. Chevron's new license extends its current agreement through the end of November.
NRA stance: Speakers unshaken on gun rights after school massacre
       
And one by one, they insisted that further restricting access to firearms was not the answer to preventing future tragedies. According to a district safety plan, Uvalde schools have a wide range of safety measures in place. Kristi Noem, another potential presidential contender, said calls to further restrict gun access are “all about control and it is garbage. Outside the convention hall, protesters gathered in a park where police set up metal barriers — some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Samuel Thornburg, 43, a maintenance worker for Southwest Airlines in Houston who was attending the NRA meeting, said: “Guns are not evil.
Greg Gutfeld: The media doesn't know when to quit
       
And like Brian Stelter at a pie eating contest, they never seem to know when to quit. GREG GUTFELD: THE LEFT WANTS YOU 'ANGRY, DESPERATE AND CONFUSED'It's natural after a tragedy, I suppose, to report and report. GREG GUTFELD: BIDEN TAKES EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO DIVIDE AMERICAWe play Monday morning quarterback Monday through Friday and then some. I mean, I'm a powerful cog in this machine we call the media, but I don't have that kind of influence. The media almost turns the story into a late-night infomercial, telling young, mentally unstable men who might be watching that, you too could be a household name.
Emmanuel Macron: The movie (president)
       
“To Moscow … I think it’s the moment,” French President Emmanuel Macron replies, with a devastating eyebrow raise. The premise of “5 ans à l’Elysée” is given away by its title. The movie has no voiceover, features no interviews and only gives crumbs of context by playing soundbites from newscasters. There’s social drama as Macron looks up at balconies where working-class tenants ask him to do more for young people. It makes 5 ans a unique piece of filmmaking, a propaganda movie without any real purpose, except to pay homage to cinéma-vérité and YouTube vlogging.
2 “Strong Buy” Dividend Stocks With at Least 9% Dividend Yield
       
And that will naturally draw them toward high-yield dividend stocks. A key factor will be finding dividend stocks that yield higher than inflation, to guarantee a real return. We’ve used the TipRanks database to pull up the details on just such stocks, seen as Strong Buy choices on the Street with dividend yields of 9% or better. These numbers supported both an increase in the regular share quarterly dividend, from 36 cents to 40 cents, and a special dividend of 15 cents. (See TRIN stock forecast on TipRanks)To find good ideas for dividend stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
Biden energy policies promoting more 'inefficient technologies': Flynn
       
Fox Business contributor Phil Flynn said that this is the first time we're going to more inefficient technologies to replacing technologies that don't work," arguing that this is "bad economics" on Friday's "Hannity." Phil Flynn: Listen, this is the first time in the history of the world in economics that usually when we have technology, we usually replace an older technology with the better technology. This is the first time ever we're going to more inefficient technologies and replacing technologies that don't work. This is bad economics. And at the end of the day, the Biden administration is paying the price for it with their poll numbers.
LETTER: Letter writer says Joe Biden isn’t to blame
       
President Joe Biden waves from the top of the steps of Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Friday, Feb. 19, 2021. She tells us nothing that has gone wrong over the past two years is President Joe Biden’s fault. Has she forgotten when all things wrong were President Donald Trump’s fault? Remember when Mr. Biden told us “the buck stops here,” no more excuses? Mr. Biden continues to tear this country apart, as our Southern border is destroyed and he continues to divide us by race and gender.
LETTER: Biden administration should back off energy producers
       
(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)Inflation will not be brought under control until the Biden administration ends its war against oil companies. We must increase the production of fossil fuels in America. The world will not end in 2030 if we don’t stop using fossil fuels. Electric vehicles rely on fossil fuels to charge their batteries. It is time to bring them under control and halt this hyper-inflationary environment that they created with their regressive policies.
NRA speakers unshaken on gun rights after school massacre
       
Once among the most powerful political organizations in the country, the NRA has seen its influence wane following a significant drop in political spending. According to a district safety plan, Uvalde schools have a wide range of safety measures in place. Outside the convention hall, protesters gathered in a park where police set up metal barriers — some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Samuel Thornburg, 43, a maintenance worker for Southwest Airlines in Houston who was attending the NRA meeting, said: “Guns are not evil. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings.
Biden says Putin trying to ‘wipe out’ Ukrainian culture, as prospect of retreat looms in east
       
Joe Biden has accused Vladimir Putin of trying to “wipe out” Ukraine’s culture but suggested the plan had at least partially backfired by spurring the expansion of Nato in Europe. Russian troops advanced after piercing Ukrainian lines last week in the city of Popasna, south of Sievierodonetsk. Russia’s eastern gains follow a Ukrainian counter-offensive that pushed Moscow’s forces back from Ukraine’s second city Kharkiv in May. But Ukrainian forces have been unable to attack Russian supply lines to the Donbas. He said the Ukrainian Orthodox church was in “a very difficult position and under pressure from many directions: from the authorities, from schemers, from nationalistic-minded people ... and the media”.
Trump says Texas school shooting was 'savage and barbaric' but criticises those pushing for stricter gun laws
       
Donald Trump has described the most recent US school shooting as a "savage and barbaric atrocity" but has criticised those who have called for stricter gun laws. The former US president was a guest speaker at the convention in Houston of the National Rifle Association, a gun rights group. The convention was taking place just a few days after 19 children and two teachers were shot dead at a primary school in the city of Uvalde, Texas. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player 3:33 Texas: Could more have been done? He said: "As the age-old saying goes, the only way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.
Tony Evers: Ron Johnson's comments linking 'wokeness' to school shootings are 'breathtaking'
       
In the interview, Johnson said the solution lies in teaching “values” in schools instead of “wokeness” and critical race theory. His comments came days after a gunman in Texas killed 21 people, almost all of whom were elementary school students. Elections panelEvers also said he was disappointed to see Knudson’s abrupt resignation from the state Elections Commission earlier this week. “I can’t think of anybody less capable and less prepared to sit on the Wisconsin Elections Commission than (Gableman),” Evers said. Wisconsin State Journal reporter Alexander Shur contributed to this report.
UAE dismantles plane of gunrunner Russia wants for Americans
       
An abandoned plane, Ilyushin Il-76, once tied to arms smuggler Viktor Bout, is being dismantled at the old airfield of Umm al-Quwain, United Arab Emirates, Friday, May 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)An abandoned plane, Ilyushin Il-76, once tied to arms smuggler Viktor Bout, is being dismantled at the old airfield of Umm al-Quwain, United Arab Emirates, Friday, May 27, 2022. The emirate of Umm al-Quwain plans a $675 million development on a island just across a lagoon from the deactivated airport where Bout’s plane sits. After convincing a pilot to fly the aircraft on just three of its four engines, the plane just barely made it into Umm al-Quwain. However in the years since, Russia has repeatedly floated his name in possible exchanges for American citizens held by Moscow.
Brittney Griner's detention in Russia reaches 100 days, WNBA commissioner says 'we're working on it'
       
Gabby HajdukIndianapolis StarSaturday marks 100 days since WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner was detained in Russia. CHERELLE GRINER:Griner's wife pleads with president to help bring her home'NOT THE SAME':Phoenix Mercury, fans feel Brittney Griner's absence"So we're working on it. Those are the people we're talking to every day," Engelbert said. Eric Holcomb and spoke about Griner’s detainment with the attendees. Tomorrow is the 100th day and that's kind of sobering right, the 100th day that Brittney will be detained in Russia."
Daily Beast releases apology to Hunter Biden’s laptop repairman
       
The Daily Beast has issued an apology to the Delaware computer repairman who acquired Hunter Biden’s laptop for wrongly claiming in a past story that the computer was “stolen.”The apology to John Paul Mac Isaac appeared in a Wednesday editor’s note attached to a story the Daily Beast published in Dec. 2020 alleging the laptop was pilfered, Fox News reported. “An earlier version of this story mistakenly referred to Hunter Biden’s laptop as ‘stolen.’ We have removed that word, and we apologize to Mr. Mac Isaac for the error,” the editor’s note reads. Isaac, 45, was left with the infamous laptop after Hunter Biden abandoned it at his shop in 2019. John Paul Mac Isaac, 45, was left with the infamous laptop after Hunter Biden abandoned it at his shop in 2019. Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty ImagesDisturbing images such as this one were found on Hunter Biden’s laptop, which was abandoned at a repair shop.
Biden prepares asylum overhaul at border, but court challenges loom
       
Choose your plan ArrowRight Biden officials say the changes are expected to reduce court backlogs and make it easier for authorities to deport those who don’t qualify for protection. Biden officials describe the “Asylum Officer Rule” as their most significant border policy initiative to date, with the ability to streamline a system with a backlog of nearly 400,000 pending cases. Biden’s other recent border policy initiatives have hit snags in federal courts. Immigrant advocates have long opposed the Title 42 order, describing it as a Trump-era enforcement tool enacted under the guise of public health. AdvertisementSummerhays’s ruling focused primarily on the migration-related implications of lifting Title 42, not the public health rationale.
Whistleblower report on baby formula didn’t reach top FDA food safety official
       
How does this happen?” Yiannas, who previously ran the food safety program for Walmart, the nation’s largest grocer, told The Washington Post. (Video: Blair Guild/The Washington Post)Neither of the FDA’s food policy divisions has to report to Yiannas, and neither do the agency’s food safety inspectors. Before Califf was appointed, food safety problems were reported directly to Principal Deputy Commissioner Janet Woodcock, another physician who was acting commissioner when the whistleblower complaint arrived. When FDA inspectors ultimately returned to the plant in 2021, they documented a host of new food safety problems at the Abbott plant. “This really hit me between the eyes,” said Phyllis Entis, a food safety microbiologist of 50 years who reviewed the inspection reports.
At Justice Dept., police reform means partnership as much as punishment
       
Choose your plan ArrowRight King’s case spurred Congress to grant the Justice Department landmark powers to investigate police departments that show a pattern of misconduct. “Together,” she said, “we’re going to tackle the most pressing issues.”Gupta was urging police to seek help from a new Justice Department resource center. A big piece of the answer, Justice officials say, is convincing police to take ownership of the push for change. Some police leaders expressed relief that the Justice Department has been less heavy-handed than they expected when Biden took office. At the request of Columbus officials, the Justice Department is conducting a review of the city’s police policies.
Mike Pompeo endorses Nevada candidate David Brog in bid for U.S. Congress
       
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo endorsed David Brog, who is running in Nevada's 1st Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Nevada deserves a fighter who knows how to defeat these dangerous ideas," Pompeo said in a statement released by Brog's campaign. POMPEO EXPLAINS WHY HE WOULD WELCOME TRUMP'S RETURN TO TWITTER"Secretary Pompeo made the world a safer place by understanding that American strength deters aggression — and our weakness invites it. I look forward to working with Secretary Pompeo to restore American strength and American leadership at home and abroad," Brog, an attorney and political writer, said. The Nevada Senate revised its four congressional districts' boundaries in November, making the once-solidly blue 1st Congressional District a bit more competitive.
Tucker Carlson: Elizabeth Warren wants control over gasoline
       
It never changes, but Elizabeth Warren wants the opposite. What Elizabeth Warren wants instead is control over gasoline and over everything else, and this bill will give it to her. Elizabeth Warren. Elizabeth Warren. Any business with gross annual revenues over 100 grand a year, that means pretty much everybody in the country, must now obey Elizabeth Warren.
Daily Beast issues apology to laptop repairman amid lawsuit after claiming Hunter Biden's laptop was 'stolen'
       
The Daily Beast issued an apology to the laptop repairman who first obtained Hunter Biden's computer after the liberal blog erroneously alleged the device was "stolen." HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP REPAIRMAN SUES SCHIFF, CNN POLITICO, DAILY BEAST"An earlier version of this story mistakenly referred to Hunter Biden's laptop as ‘stolen.’ We have removed that word, and we apologize to Mr. Mac Isaac for the error," the Beast wrote. It is unclear if the apology is tied to any resolution to Mac Isaac's suit against the Daily Beast. A spokesperson for the Daily Beast did not directly respond to Fox News' inquiry regarding the status of its legal battle. The Times reported that while Hunter Biden has "paid off a significant tax liability," a federal grand jury has subpoenaed witnesses and documents regarding his foreign business dealings.
Stephen Miller warns of 'irrevocable' damage if Republicans don't take back Congress in midterm elections
       
Former Trump adviser Stephen Miller said President Biden does not have the "presence of mind" to control his own government on Friday's "Jesse Watters Primetime." He called for a "thunderous repudiation" in the November midterm elections to thwart "permanent and irrevocable" damage. STEPHEN MILLER: It's been the most disastrous first half of a presidency that I think has occurred in American history. And so there needs to be a thunderous repudiation, a historic repudiation in November. He doesn't have the presence of mind to control his own government, even if he wanted to.
US, Asian Allies Say Path to Talks With North Korea Still Open
       
(Bloomberg) -- A path to “serious and sustained dialogue” with North Korea remains open, according to a joint statement by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin issued by the State Department on Friday. Most Read from BloombergThe officials expressed “deep concern” about North Korea’s launch of a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile and two shorter-range ballistic missiles on the heels of US President Joe Biden’s visit to the region. They urged North Korea to stop violating international law and return to talks, and reaffirmed their commitment to work more closely with the international community to that end. The joint statement also noted the nations’ concern over the “grave hardship” North Korea’s people are facing due to the Covid-19 outbreak, and their hope that North Korea will accept outside offers of aid. Read More: Biden Says North Korea Hasn’t Responded to Offer of Covid HelpMost Read from Bloomberg Businessweek©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
Republican Texas gov Abbott to address NRA meet via video - NBC News
       
(Reuters) - Texas' Republican Governor Greg Abbott will not attend in person the National Rifle Association's (NRA) annual meeting starting on Friday, days after the elementary school shooting in Uvalde in which 19 children and two teachers were killed, NBC News reported. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and former President Donald Trump are scheduled to address the gun-rights group. Abbott will now address the group with recorded video remarks and will make a return trip to Uvalde, NBC News said on Thursday, citing a statement from his spokesman. Abbott, who is seeking re-election in November, has said that stringent gun laws do not prevent violence, citing states such as New York, and that policymakers should instead focus on mental health treatment and prevention. Both the NRA and Abbott's office did not respond to requests for comment outside regular business hours.
Trump Does a Little Dance at NRA Gun Celebration Days After Uvalde Massacre
       
The NRA played a recording of a bell clanging as the former president strained to pronounce the names of the victims. More from Rolling StoneTrump echoed Republican lawmakers and conservative pundits by bashing Democrats for “virtue cycling” in the wake the massacre, blaming the shooting on everything but guns, and proposing a series of impractical solutions to the epidemic of mass shootings in America. Trump did propose ensuring classroom doors are lockable from the inside as a way to cut down on school shootings. “There is no sign more inviting to a mass killer than a sign that declares a gun free zone,” he said, to more applause. A speech where Trump read the names of the victims ends like this pic.twitter.com/fQZxrB9OiI — Acyn (@Acyn) May 27, 2022At least “Macho Man” wasn’t playing.
This week in Bidenomics: Debt bomb
       
The federal budget deficit will drop from $2.8 trillion in 2021 to around $1 trillion this year, and to a bit less in 2023. Net interest payments in 2021 were $352 billion, or a manageable 5.2% of all outlays. By 2032, CBO expects net interest payments to triple to $1.2 trillion, which would be 13.4% of all outlays. Could we really spend more on interest payments than we do on the Pentagon every year? And the higher interest rates go, the sooner federal interest payments will gobble up taxpayer funding.
Biden says Putin trying to 'wipe out' Ukrainian culture; Zelenskyy speaks to Stanford grads: Live updates
       
Russian forces have made slow but persistent advances as they bombarded and sought to encircle both Lysychansk and Sievierodonetsk. ?Italian Premier Mario Draghi has discussed the emerging food crisis in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Blinken made the remarks during a joint news conference with Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto at the State Department. “Not only is he trying to take over all of Ukraine,” Biden said of Russian President Vladimir Putin. If you really care for Ukraine, weapons, weapons and weapons again,” the minister stressed.
Ukraine fears repeat of Mariupol horrors elsewhere in Donbas
       
KRAMATORSK, Ukraine (AP) — Moscow-backed separatists pounded eastern Ukraine’s industrial Donbas region Friday, claiming to capture a railway hub, as Ukrainian officials pleaded for the sophisticated Western weapons they say they need to stop the onslaught. The advance of Russian forces raised fears that cities in the region would undergo the same horrors inflicted on the people of the port city Mariupol in the weeks before it fell. Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. This story has been edited to correct that 1,500 people have died in Sievierodonetsk alone, not the Donbas region as a whole. Follow AP's coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
Russia-Ukraine war: what we know on day 94 of the invasion
       
The besieged Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk appears to be almost completely surrounded by attacking Russian forces. “The Russians are pounding residential neighbourhoods relentlessly,” the governor of Ukraine’s eastern region of Luhansk, Serhiy Haidai, wrote in a Telegram post on Friday. The Luhansk governor has said Ukrainian forces may be forced to retreat from the zone to avoid being captured. In a short video address, he said Russian forces are concentrated in the coastal region of Ukraine and using “maximum artillery” reserves. The Austrian chancellor, Karl Nehammer, has stated that Vladimir Putin is “prepared to discuss a prisoner swap with Ukraine”, after holding talks with the Russian president.
Biden's diplomatic brinkmanship on Taiwan's 'strategic ambiguity'
       
Amid the international upheaval over the Russian invasion of Ukraine, U.S. President Joe Biden reassured America’s allies and friends in the Indo-Pacific that its priorities and foreign policy remain unchanged. That said, while basically trying to maintain “strategic ambiguity” over a Taiwan contingency, Biden made remarks that rendered the policy a little less ambiguous and which did not go over as well as he may have hoped.
Ukraine fears repeat of Mariupol horrors elsewhere in Donbas
       
Before the war, Sievierodonetsk was home to around 100,000 people. About 12,000 to 13,000 remain in the city, Striuk said, huddled in shelters and largely cut off from the rest of Ukraine. Andrea Rosa in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Andrew Katell in New York and AP journalists around the world contributed. ___This story has been edited to correct that 1,500 people have died in Sievierodonetsk alone, not the Donbas region as a whole. ___Follow AP’s coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
NRA speakers unshaken on gun rights after school massacre
       
Once among the most powerful political organizations in the country, the NRA has seen its influence wane following a significant drop in political spending. According to a district safety plan, Uvalde schools have a wide range of safety measures in place. Outside the convention hall, protesters gathered in a park where police set up metal barriers — some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Samuel Thornburg, 43, a maintenance worker for Southwest Airlines in Houston who was attending the NRA meeting, said: “Guns are not evil. ___More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings.
Summer travel kicks off with record gas prices
       
Copyright © 2022 Albuquerque JournalIt’s a Memorial Day weekend to remember as vacationers kick off the summer driving season with the highest holiday gas prices ever recorded. “I’ve got three kids who I work to provide for, but, with gas prices going up so much, it’s getting really difficult,” Bazan said while filling her Kia Soul at $4.11 a gallon. We’re limiting ourselves on everything.”With Memorial Day considered the unofficial start to summer, Americans are still poised for a busy travel weekend, despite gas prices. Robert Mosby said he cancelled plans to drive to Texas over the weekend because of gas prices. “I’m surprised at how fast gas prices have spiked,” Gurule said while pumping gas at Sam’s Club near Renaissance NE in Central Albuquerque.
US review traces massive New Mexico fire to prescribed burns
       
The Forest Service has not yet released detailed planning documents for the original prescribed burns that might indicate whether fire protocols were followed. Prescribed fires are aimed at limiting the accumulation of timber and underbrush that, if left unattended, can fuel extremely hot and destructive wildfires. Prescribed burns often are used in wildland areas that are too vast to thin by hand or machine. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore last week announced a 90-day pause and review of protocols for prescribed fires that limit the buildup of flammable vegetation. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues.
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EVA RUSSO/TIMES-DISPATCH Eva Russo Lyquisha Stringfield feeds her five-month-old daughter London Salaam at her home in Stony Creek, Va. on Wednesday, May 18, 2022. EVA RUSSO/TIMES-DISPATCH Eva Russo Lyquisha Stringfield feeds her five-month-old London Salaam at her home in Stony Creek, Va. on Wednesday, May 18, 2022. EVA RUSSO/TIMES-DISPATCH Eva Russo Patrina Thompson with her six-month-old son Khalil at their Chesterfield home on Saturday, May 21, 2022. EVA RUSSO/TIMES-DISPATCH Eva Russo Patrina Thompson with her six-month-old son Khalil at their Chesterfield home on Saturday, May 21, 2022. EVA RUSSO/TIMES-DISPATCH Eva Russo/times-dispatch Chesterfield County residents Patrina and Terrell Thompson have to feed son Khalil a specific formula because of allergies.
NRA speakers unshaken on gun rights after school massacre
       
Once among the most powerful political organizations in the country, the NRA has seen its influence wane following a significant drop in political spending. According to a district safety plan, Uvalde schools have a wide range of safety measures in place. Outside the convention hall, protesters gathered in a park where police set up metal barriers — some holding crosses with photos of the Uvalde shooting victims. Samuel Thornburg, 43, a maintenance worker for Southwest Airlines in Houston who was attending the NRA meeting, said: “Guns are not evil. More on the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas: https://apnews.com/hub/school-shootings.
Guilty plea in plot to firebomb California Democratic HQ
       
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A California man pleaded guilty Friday to plotting to blow up the state Democratic Party’s headquarters in what prosecutors said was the first in a planned series of politically-motivated attacks after the defeat of former President Donald Trump. Ian Benjamin Rogers, 46, of Napa, pleaded guilty to conspiring to destroy a building by fire or explosives, possessing an explosive device and possessing a machine gun under a plea agreement that could bring him seven to nine years in federal prison. The pair “hoped their attacks would prompt a movement,” prosecutors said when they announced the charges in July. Copeland, 38, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy and destruction of records. He was taken into custody then on state charges after the FBI said he sent text messages that agents perceived as threats against the unoccupied Governor’s Mansion and social media companies Facebook and Twitter.
Biden renews sanctions license for Chevron in Venezuela
       
MIAMI (AP) — The Biden administration has renewed a license partially exempting Chevron from sanctions on Venezuela so it can keep operating in the oil-rich, socialist-run nation. Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine and ensuing international sanctions targeting Russia's oil industry have led the Biden administration to reconsider longstanding policies isolating two other oil powers: Venezuela and Iran. Their carrot: the possible lifting of crippling oil sanctions imposed in 2019 after Maduro breezed into a second term following elections considered undemocratic by the U.S. and dozens of allies. Venezuela sits atop the world's largest oil reserves but due to mismanagement, and more recently U.S. sanctions, production has been declining steadily from the 3.5 million barrels per day when Hugo Chávez took power in 1999. Chevron, which has been operating in Venezuela since the 1920s, had been pushing for an expanded license that would allow it to resume exports and stem the growing influence of oil companies from China, Russia, Iran and other U.S. adversaries.
Navajo sign water rights settlement with Utah and feds
       
The signing formalizes the Utah Navajo Water Rights Settlement, which became law in 2020 as part of President Joe Biden's bipartisan infrastructure bill. “The other concern we had was about half the Navajo Nation residents (in