Biden’s candidacy faces new peril, including first Senate Democrat saying he should exit race
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s imperiled reelection campaign is hitting new trouble. Rather than urging him to stay in, House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday  “it’s up to the president to decide” if he should. Celebrity donor George Clooney said he should not run, and Democratic senators expressed fresh fear about his ability to beat Republican Donald Trump. Late Wednesday, Vermont Sen. Peter Welch called on Biden to withdraw, becoming the first Senate Democrat to do so. It all shows how unsettled the questions over Biden’s candidacy remain among Democrats, despite Biden’s insistence he is staying in the race. Pelosi has been widely watched for signals of how top Democrats are thinking about Biden’s candidacy.
The first lady is helping to salvage her husband’s campaign. Will it be enough?
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jill Biden is coming under the microscope as she tries to help her husband salvage his presidential campaign. She’s weathering blame for President Joe Biden’s political troubles that were sparked by his poor debate performance against Donald Trump, The first lady has taken on many roles since the late June debate. She’s been the supportive spouse at his side and his stand-in at campaign events. This week, she’s a hostess helping welcome NATO leaders to Washington for their annual summit. One of the first lady’s top aides, Elizabeth Alexander, says the criticism is unfounded and an example of the tightrope society forces high-profile women to walk.
NATO allies call China a ‘decisive enabler’ of Russia’s war in Ukraine
WASHINGTON (AP) — In their most serious rebuke against Beijing, NATO allies have called China a “decisive enabler” of Russia’s war against Ukraine and expressed concerns over China’s nuclear arsenal and its capabilities in space. The sternly worded final communiqué Wednesday makes clear that China is becoming a focus of the military alliance. It came as 32 NATO members gathered in Washington. The European and North American members and their partners in the Indo-Pacific increasingly see shared security concerns coming from Russia and its Asian supporters, especially China. In the communiqué, NATO member countries said China has become a war enabler through its “no-limits partnership” with Russia and its large-scale support for Russia’s defense industrial base.
Israeli military orders the evacuation of Gaza City, an early target of its war with Hamas
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli military has urged all Palestinians to leave Gaza City and head south. The evacuation orders issued Wednesday indicated that Israel was pressing ahead with a fresh offensive across the north, south and center of the embattled territory that has killed dozens of people over the past 48 hours. The stepped-up military activity came as U.S., Egyptian and Qatari mediators were meeting with Israeli officials in the Qatari capital, Doha, for talks seeking a long-elusive cease-fire deal with Gaza’s Hamas militant group. Israel informed people in Gaza of the evacuation order by dropping leaflets.
NBA agrees to terms on a record 11-year, $76 billion media rights deal, AP source says
The NBA has agreed to terms on its new media deal, an 11-year agreement worth $76 billion that assures player salaries will continue rising for the foreseeable future and one that will surely change how some viewers access the game for years to come. A person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press that the networks have the terms sheets, with the next step being for the league’s board of governors to approve the contracts. The deal sets NBA records for both its length and total value and goes into effect for the 2025-26 season.
Las Vegas hits record of fifth consecutive day of 115 degrees or greater as heat wave scorches US
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A prolonged heat wave has baked Las Vegas in its record fifth consecutive day of temperatures sizzling at 115 degrees or greater. The National Weather Service says the temperature climbed to 115 degrees Wednesday afternoon at Harry Reid International Airport. That broke the previous mark of four consecutive days. On Sunday, the heat wave set Las Vegas’ all-time temperature record of 120 degrees.  A meteorologist says Nevada’s largest city is experiencing the most extreme heat wave in the history of record-keeping since 1937. More than 142 million people around the U.S. are under heat alerts Wednesday, especially in Western states.
Pressure mounts on Houston power company to quickly restore service as city sweats after Beryl
HOUSTON (AP) — Houston’s primary utility company has come under mounting pressure over its response to Hurricane Beryl. Nearly 1.3 million homes and businesses in the area remained without power Wednesday, and residents continued to search for places to cool off, fuel up and find food. A CenterPoint Energy official defended the company’s response during a meeting with the Houston City Council. He noted that power had been restored to more than 1 million power customers since Monday. The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for the area and said conditions are potentially dangerous given the lack of power and air conditioning.
Astronauts confident Boeing space capsule can safely return them to Earth, despite failures
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Two astronauts who should have been back on Earth weeks ago say they’re confident that Boeing’s space capsule can return them safely. NASA test pilots Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams launched aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule early last month. Leaks and thruster failures almost derailed their arrival at the International Space Station, and has kept them there much longer than planned. In their first news conference from orbit Wednesday, the pair said they expect to return once thruster testing is complete here on Earth. They say they’re not complaining about getting extra time in orbit, and are enjoying helping the station crew.
Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial starts with witnesses recalling chaotic set shooting
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A defense attorney says that Alec Baldwin’s shooting of a cinematographer was “an unspeakable tragedy,” but that he “committed no crime, he was an actor, acting.” Baldwin’s attorney Alex Spiro gave the opening statement Wednesday at his involuntary manslaughter trial in New Mexico. Prosecutor Erlinda Ocampo Johnson told jurors Baldwin “violated the cardinal rules of firearm safety” in her opening. The trial will delve into the confluence of gun safety, high-wattage celebrity and a low-budget Western movie on a remote movie ranch. Baldwin was the lead actor and co-producer on “Rust.” He has pleaded not guilty and says he followed instructions in pointing the gun and didn’t pull the trigger.
Congress OKs bill overhauling oversight of troubled federal Bureau of Prisons
Congress has passed legislation overhauling oversight and bringing greater transparency to the crisis-plagued federal Bureau of Prisons, following reporting from The Associated Press that exposed systemic corruption in the federal prison system and increased congressional scrutiny. The bill, unanimously approved by the Senate on Wednesday, would force the Justice Department’s Inspector General to conduct comprehensive inspections of the prison agency’s 122 facilities, provide recommendations to fix problems, and assign each facility a risk score. The Federal Prison Oversight Act, which the House passed in May, now goes to President Joe Biden to be signed into law.
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