French voters surge to polls in first round of high-stakes legislative elections; turnout at 59%
PARIS (AP) — French voters are surging to the polls for the first round of high-stakes legislative elections, with turnout an unusually high 59% and three hours to go before polls close Sunday. That’s 20 percentage points higher than turnout at the same time in the last first-round vote in 2022. President Emmanuel Macron called the surprise vote just three weeks ago after European elections showed a collapse in support for his centrist party and a sharp rise for the far-right National Rally. Two rounds of voting will determine who will be prime minister and which party controls France’s lower house of parliament.
After president’s debate debacle, Jill Biden delivering the message that they’re still all in
EAST HAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) — Jill Biden has been a near-constant presence at her husband’s side since his disastrous debate performance against Republican Donald Trump on Thursday night. The first lady has been delivering a spirited defense of her husband’s attributes and of his ability to serve for another four years. She’s also trying to signal that there is no stepping back from the president’s intent — their intent, really — for him to press forward with his campaign despite calls for him to step aside. Jill Biden has long been her husband’s chief confidant and public defender. But her role looms larger this year and some Trump supporters question whether she’s the one doing the steering these days.
A private call of top Democrats fuels more insider anger about Biden’s debate performance
NEW YORK (AP) — A sense of deep concern is growing among some Democratic officials that leaders inside Joe Biden’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee are not taking seriously enough the impact of the president’s troubling debate performance. DNC Chairman Jaime Harrison did not acknowledge Biden’s weak showing or the avalanche of criticism that followed during a Saturday afternoon call with dozens of DNC members from across the country. Instead, the chief Biden ally offered a rosy assessment of the president’s path forward. Participants described the call as a one-sided conversation that ignored pervasive fears among the committee’s rank and file about Biden’s ability to win in November. The chat function was disabled and there were no questions allowed during the call.
Hurricane Beryl forecast to become a Category 4 storm as it nears southeast Caribbean
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Beryl is forecast to strengthen into a powerful Category 4 storm as it approaches the southeast Caribbean. The region began shutting down Sunday amid urgent pleas from government officials for people to take shelter. Hurricane warnings are in effect for Barbados, St. Lucia, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The National Hurricane Center in Miami warned Beryl was “forecast to bring life-threatening winds and storm surge … as an extremely dangerous hurricane.” Beryl is located about 420 miles east-southeast of Barbados. It has maximum sustained winds of 115 mph and is moving west at 21 mph.
US and Europe warn Lebanon’s Hezbollah to ease strikes on Israel and back off from wider Mideast war
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S., European and Arab mediators are pressing to keep stepped-up cross-border attacks between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants from spiraling into a wider Middle East war that the world has feared for months. Hopes are lagging for a cease-fire in Israel’s conflict with Hamas in Gaza that would calm attacks by Hezbollah and other Iranian-allied militias. With that in mind, American and European diplomats are warning Hezbollah about taking on the military might of Israel. Escalating strikes between Israel and Hezbollah appeared to at least level off this past week. But a former U.S. diplomat in the Middle East says Israelis still seem to be arranging themselves for “an entirely different magnitude of conflict.”
American and British voters share deep roots. In 2024, they distrust their own leaders, too
DARTFORD, England (AP) — British and American voters are going to the polls the same year for the first time in more than three decades. Voters in both places tell The Associated Press they distrust the candidates and their governments. They say years of scandal, lies and misinformation have drained the optimism and excitement they might have felt. They don’t like the personal attacks that define the rematch between U.S. President Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump. In the U.K., the July 4 vote is more about an overwhelming appetite for change after 14 years under the Conservatives. July 4 provides an apt snapshot of one of the world’s biggest democracies and the country that gave rise to it, 250 years after they split.
Parties and protests mark the culmination of LGBTQ+ Pride month in NYC, San Francisco and beyond
NEW YORK (AP) — The monthlong celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride will reach its exuberant grand finale as multitudes of rainbow-laden revelers hit the streets for marquee parades in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and elsewhere across the globe. The wide-ranging festivities Sunday will function as both jubilant parties and political protests. This year, tensions over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza have colored the celebrations, exposing divisions within the community that is normally aligned on social issues. Pro-Palestinian activists have already disrupted several pride events held this month. A heavy security presence is expected as marchers take to the streets.
Canada airline WestJet cancels more than 400 flights after a surprise strike by mechanics union
TORONTO (AP) — Canada’s second largest airline, WestJet, has canceled more than 400 flights affecting almost 50,000 passengers after the union of maintenance workers announced it has gone on strike. The surprise strike affecting international and domestic flights is happening during the Canada Day long weekend. WestJet said it was “extremely outraged.” The strike came after the federal government issued a ministerial order for binding arbitration on Thursday. That followed two weeks of turbulent discussions with the union on a new deal.
Video shows NY officer fatally shooting 13-year-old on ground. Police say he pointed a replica gun
NEW YORK (AP) — Newly released video shows an officer in upstate New York fatally shooting a 13-year-old boy who had been tackled to the ground after he ran from police while pointing a replica handgun. The body camera video was released late Saturday by the Utica Police Department. The shooting happened Friday night after officers stopped two youths. Police say one youth ran and pointed what appeared to be a handgun at officers. The department says officers later recovered a replica handgun with a detachable magazine from the scene. The state attorney general will lead the investigation into the shooting and determine if it was justified.
For India’s garbage pickers, a miserable and dangerous job made worse by extreme heat
JAMMU, India (AP) — As many as 4 million people in India scratch out a living searching through landfills for anything they can sell. These waste pickers endure a miserable job that is growing more dangerous as climate change leads to rising heat. In the northern city of Jammu, this summer’s temperatures have regularly surpassed 43 degrees Celsius, or about 110 Fahrenheit. It’s not just the heat that’s dangerous. Summer means more landfill fires that release dangerous fumes from burning items like plastics. And even ordinary decomposition of garbage rises along with heat, increasing methane and carbon dioxide emissions. One garbage picker in Jammu, 65-year-old Usmaan Shekh, hopes to earn the equivalent of $4 a day. If he doesn’t work, his family doesn’t eat.
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