Heat wave persists; Biden, Trump prep for first debate; Donald Sutherland passes

On this version of Hot off the Wire:

The heat wave that has moved across the nation this week is expected to continue through the weekend.

The cybersecurity firm Kaspersky has denied it is a security threat after the U.S. Commerce Department banned the use of its software in the United States. The Moscow-based company, whose CEO is Russian, said in a statement that the Commerce Department’s decision, announced Thursday, would not affect its ability to sell and promote its cyber security products and training in the U.S. Kaspersky said the government had based its decision on the “geopolitical climate and theoretical concerns” rather than independently verifying if there was a risk.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has failed to qualify for next week’s debate in Atlanta. Host network CNN said Thursday the independent presidential candidate fell short of benchmarks both for state ballot qualification and polling. The missed markers mean the June 27 showdown will be solely between President Joe Biden and Donald Trump.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has established a corridor for the delivery of aid into southern Gaza but a declared ‘tactical pause’ in its war with Hamas has brought little relief to desperate Palestinians. The United Nations and international aid organizations say a persistent breakdown in law and order has rendered the aid route unusable.

MORRILTON, Ark. (AP) — An Alabama man wanted in connection with homicides in Oklahoma and Alabama has been apprehended in Arkansas. Arkansas State Police say 50-year-old Stacy Lee Drake was taken into custody Thursday around 10 a.m. in a wooded area in Morrilton, Arkansas.

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Sutherland has died at 88. Sutherland’s agents say he died in Miami on Thursday after a long illness. The Canadian actor’s career stretched from “M.A.S.H” to “JFK” to “The Hunger Games.” He was known for offbeat characters and epitomized the unpredictable, antiestablishment cinema of the 1970s. But over the decades, Sutherland shifted into a career as a respected character actor. He said he found more challenge in those roles. He never stopped working, ultimately appearing in nearly 200 films and series. He received an honorary Oscar in 2017.

• Trump dwarfs Biden in latest fundraising numbers in show of political force after felony convictions.
• Appeals court panel refuses to delay Trump ally Steve Bannon’s 4-month contempt prison sentence.
• Supreme Court upholds a tax on foreign income over a business-backed challenge.
• Average long-term US mortgage rate falls again, easing to lowest level since early April.
• US jobless claims fall to 238,000 from 10-month high, remain low by historical standards.
• Border Patrol reports arrests are down 25% since Biden announced new asylum restrictions.
• Rapper Travis Scott arrested after Miami Beach police say he drunkenly yelled at people on a yacht.
• Roller coaster strikes and critically injures man in restricted area of Ohio theme park.
• NCAA presents options to expand March Madness tournaments from current 68 teams, AP source says.
• Major League Baseball highlights the Thursday sports schedule, the Lakers have their next head coach, the Bulls and Thunder pull off a trade, the WNBA features two games, and the LPGA and PGA tours complete first round play.
• Russia obliterates front-line Ukraine towns by retrofitting bombs and expanding its air base network.
• South Korea summons Russian ambassador as tensions rise with North Korea.
• Stonehenge not visibly damaged by protest paint. It’s clean and ready to rock the solstice.

Host Terry Lipshetz is managing editor of the national newsroom for Lee Enterprises. Besides producing the daily Hot off the Wire news podcast, Terry conducts periodic interviews for this Behind the Headlines program, co-hosts the Streamed & Screened movies and television program and is the former producer of Across the Sky, a podcast dedicated to weather and climate.