A halting Biden tries to confront Trump at debate but sparks Democratic anxiety about his candidacy
ATLANTA (AP) — A raspy and sometimes halting President Joe Biden repeatedly sought to confront Donald Trump in their first debate ahead of the November election. But Biden’s uneven performance crystallized the concerns of many Americans that at, age 81, he is too old to serve as president. It sparked a fresh round of calls for the Democrat to step aside. Meanwhile, the 78-year-old Trump’s rhetoric offered Americans an unwelcome reminder of the bombast he launched daily during his tumultuous four years in office, as he struggles to win over skeptical voters. He declined to clearly state he would accept the results of the November election.
Biden’s debate performance spurs Democratic panic about his ability to lead party against Trump
ATLANTA (AP) — Above all, Joe Biden’s allies have wanted him to demonstrate strength and energy on the debate stage this week to help put to rest questions about the 81-year-old Democrat’s physical and mental acuity. But on the biggest stage in U.S. politics on Thursday, Biden did not meet their modest expectations. And by the end of the 90-minute affair, the Democratic president’s allies panicked about his chances against 78-year-old Republican former President Donald Trump this fall. They cited a Biden debate performance punctuated by repeated stumbles, uncomfortable pauses, and a quiet speaking style that was often difficult to understand. Publicly and privately, Democrats question whether the party could or should replace Biden.
Supreme Court makes it harder to charge Capitol riot defendants with obstruction, charge Trump faces
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has made it harder to charge Capitol riot defendants with obstruction, a charge that also has been brought against former President Donald Trump. The justices ruled Friday the charge of obstructing an official proceeding must include proof that defendants tried to tamper with or destroy documents. Only some of the people who violently attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, fall into that category. The decision could fuel claims of political retribution by Trump and his Republican allies. Special counsel Jack Smith has said the charges faced by Trump would not be affected. The charge was enacted in 2002 in response to the financial scandal that brought down Enron Corp.
Supreme Court allows cities to enforce bans on homeless people sleeping outside
WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawyers representing cities are applauding a Supreme Court ruling that cities can enforce bans on homeless people sleeping outdoors in West Coast areas where shelter space is lacking. The Oregon case decided Friday is the most significant to come before the high court in decades on the issue and comes as a rising number of people in the U.S. are without a permanent place to live. The high court struck down a ruling by a San Francisco-based appeals court that found outdoor sleeping bans amount to cruel and unusual punishment. Leaders in the West had argued the lower court ruling made it harder for them to manage outdoor encampments encroaching on sidewalks and other public spaces.
The Supreme Court weakens federal regulators, overturning decades-old Chevron decision
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has upended a 40-year-old decision that made it easier for the federal government to regulate the environment, public health, workplace safety and consumer protections. The court Friday delivered a far-reaching and potentially lucrative victory to business interests, ruling in cases brought by fishermen in New Jersey and Rhode Island. The justices overturned the 1984 decision known as Chevron. Billions of dollars are potentially at stake in challenges that could be spawned by the ruling. The heart of the Chevron decision says federal agencies should be allowed to fill in the details when laws are ambiguous. Opponents of the decision argued it gave power that should be wielded by judges to government experts.
Shares of Trump Media & Technology rise following first presidential debate
Shares of Trump Media, the owner of social networking site Truth Social, are sharply higher at the opening bell after the first U.S. presidential debate, with some investors believing it could become a bigger mouthpiece for the former president if he is re-elected. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump clashed Thursday evening on topics including abortion, immigration and the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Biden’s performance was largely seen as uneven, particularly early on. Citi analysts said Friday there may be increased interest in Trump Media & Technology based on news headlines following the debate.
A decade after the Islamic State group declared a caliphate, it’s defeated but remains lethal
BAGHDAD (AP) — The Islamic State group declared its caliphate a decade ago. IS is now defeated but it still carries out deadly attacks around the world. The group that shocked the world with its brutality and once controlled parts of Iraq and Syria now relies mainly on sleeper cells. The loss of the last sliver of land they once controlled made them move to other parts of the world. They now operate mainly in Afghanistan and Africa. The 10th anniversary of the IS declaring a caliphate comes amid concerns that if the U.S. withdraws from Iraq and Syria the extremists will again try to launch a resurgence.
Iran votes in snap poll for new president after hard-liner’s death amid rising tensions in Mideast
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranians are voting in a snap election to replace the late hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi. The race’s sole reformist candidate vowed to seek “friendly relations” with the West in an effort to energize supporters in a vote beset by apathy. Voters face a choice Friday between hard-line candidates and the little-known Masoud Pezeshkian. As has been the case since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, women and those calling for radical change have been barred from running, while the vote itself will have no oversight from internationally recognized monitors. The voting comes as wider tensions have gripped the Middle East over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
Iowa’s Supreme Court tells lower court to let strict abortion law go into effect
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has reversed a lower court ruling that put a temporary block on the state’s strict abortion law, and is telling the lower court to let the law take effect. In Friday’s ruling, the high court told the lower court to dissolve the temporary injunction and continue with further proceedings. The new law bans most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant. Iowa joins more than a dozen other states with restrictive abortion laws following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022. Until the lower court follows through on the high court’s instruction, abortion remains legal in Iowa up to 20 weeks of pregnancy.
Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge shows price pressures easing further
WASHINGTON (AP) — A measure of prices that’s closely tracked by the Federal Reserve suggests that inflation pressures in the U.S. economy are continuing to ease. Consumer prices were flat from April to May, the mildest such performance in more than four years. Measured from a year earlier, prices rose 2.6% last month, slightly less than in April. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core inflation rose 0.1% from April to May, the smallest increase since the spring of 2020, when the pandemic shut down the economy. The latest figures will likely be welcomed by the Fed’s policymakers, who have said they need to feel confident inflation is slowing sustainably toward their 2% target before they’d start cutting interest rates.
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