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Monday, June 7, 2021

Wake-Up Call: Veep Harris Makes First Foreign Trip

Vice President Kamala Harris arrived in Guatemala yesterday in her first foreign trip since taking office, during which she will also go to Mexico. President Biden has put Harris in charge of addressing the root cause of the spike in people from Central America trying to cross into the U.S. at the Mexican border. Harris' aides say corruption will be a central topic of her meetings with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei today and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador Tuesday, and she's also looking to get commitments from them for more cooperation on border security and economic investment. 
 
Harris' plane had to return some 30 minutes after taking off from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland because of a landing gear problem. She got on another plane and arrived in Guatemala City late Sunday.

➤DEM. SEN. MANCHIN WILL OPPOSE HIS PARTY'S PROPOSED ELECTION LAW OVERHAUL: Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia said yesterday that he'll vote against the proposal from his own party to overhaul of U.S. election law that Democrats say is crucial to protect voting rights. With the Senate evenly divided 50-50 between the parties, Manchin's opposition almost certainly dooms the measure. In an op-ed in his state's Charleston Gazette-Mail newspaper, Manchin wrote, "Voting and election reform that is done in a partisan manner will all but ensure partisan divisions continue to deepen." 


Manchin appeared on both Fox News Sunday and CBS' Face the Nation yesterday morning, saying he also opposes the legislation because he believes it's too broad. The legislation would restrict partisan gerrymandering of congressional districts, remove impediments to voting by requiring things like 15 days of early voting and no-excuse absentee voting, and bring transparency to campaign financing. Democrats have presented it as pushing back against stricter voting laws that continue to be passed in many Republican-led states since last November's election, which former President Donald Trump’s falsely claimed was stolen via election fraud.

➤NETANYAHU, SET TO BE UNSEATED, ALLEGES 'GREATEST ELECTION FRAUD' IN HISTORY OF DEMOCRACY: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is set to be unseated after 12 years in power by a newly-formed coalition government, charged Sunday that it was the result of, quote, "the greatest election fraud" in the history of democracy, and said he and other members of his Likud party, quote, "will vehemently oppose the establishment of this dangerous government of fraud and surrender." Nationalist leader Naftali Bennett, who's set to become the new prime minister after reaching the coalition deal with opposition leader Yair Lapid, called on Netanyahu not to leave what he called "scorched earth" behind and accept that, quote, "people are allowed to establish a government -- even if you don't head it." Netanyahu's accusation came one day after Israel's domestic security chief publicly warned about the possibility of political violence. A date has not yet been set for a vote in parliament to approve the new government.



➤ANOTHER MASS SHOOTING IN MIAMI LEAVES AT LEAST THREE DEAD: At least three people were killed and six others wounded in a shooting at a graduation party early Sunday morning (in the latest recent mass shooting in Miami. Miami-Dade police Director Alfredo Ramirez told reporters the party had just ended at a strip mall parking lot around 2 a.m. when one or more vehicles pulled up and opened fire. Ramirez said two men also died when their car crashed into a wall while fleeing from the scene. He said at least one gun was in the car, but the connection to the shooting was unclear. This Miami shooting comes after another over Memorial Day weekend outside a banquet hall that left three people dead and 20 wounded. Ramirez said, "This violence has to stop. This is extremely frustrating. Every weekend, it’s the same thing."

➤AT LEAST 35 KILLED IN COLLISION OF TWO TRAINS IN PAKISTAN: At least 35 people were killed and dozens injured when two express trains collided in Pakistan early Monday. A local police chief in Sindh province said between 15 and 20 passengers are still trapped in the wreckage and authorities were trying to get heavy machinery to rescue the people, who are crying for help. A Millat Express train reportedly derailed, and the Sir Syed Express train hit it soon after. It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the derailment. About 1,100 passengers in all were on the two trains.

➤SUPREME COURT ASKED TO TAKE-UP MILITARY DRAFT:  The Supreme Court could disclose as early as today whether it will hear a case over whether only men being required to register for the military draft when they turn 18 amounts to sex discrimination. 

Among those opposed to the male-only requirement are women's groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union's Women's Rights Project, whose director, Ria Tabacco Mar, said it imposes a, quote, "serious burden on men that's not being imposed on women" But she also said, "It’s also sending a tremendously harmful message that women are less fit than men to serve their country in this particular way and conversely that men are less fit than women to stay home as caregivers in the event of an armed conflict." There hasn't actually been a draft since the Vietnam War, but it's still a felony not to register, and men who don't can face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, and can lose eligibility for students loans and civil service jobs. The National Coalition for Men and two individual men are challenging the law. The high court upheld the men-only registration in 1981, with late Justice William Rehnquist saying registration was mean to prepare for a draft, and since women couldn't serve in combat, the law wasn't discriminatory. But the ban on women serving in combat has since been lifted, in 2013. If the Supreme Court were to agree to hear the case and found the male-only draft is discriminatory, it would be up to Congress to then act, either by passing legislation requiring everyone to register or determining registration is no longer necessary.

➤D-DAY ANNIVERSARY MARKED FOR SECOND YEAR WITH SMALLER NUMBERS: The D-Day anniversary was marked in Normandy, France, yesterday for a second year with smaller numbers of people than usual due to the pandemic, with veterans and families of fallen soldiers from other nations unable to make the trip due to travel restrictions. The only surviving D-Day veteran there was Charles Shay, a Penobscot Native American who now lives in Normandy. There were several events held for the 77th anniversary of the landing of more than 150,000 Allied soldiers on the Normandy beaches in 1944, including the inauguration of a new British monument that pays tribute to those under British command who died on D-Day and during the Battle of Normandy.

➤LAST OF SOVIET SOLDIERS WHO LIBERATED AUSCHWITZ DIES AT 98: David Dushman, the last remaining Soviet soldier involved in the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp in January 1945 during World War Two, died on Saturday. He was 98. Dushman had fought in the battles of Stanlingrad and Kursk earlier in the war, and survived being seriously wounded three times. After the war, Dushman helped train the Soviet Union’s women’s national fencing team for four decades, and later in life, he would visit schools to tell students about the war and the Holocaust.
 

➤STEFANIK, WHO REPLACED CHENEY AS THIRD IN HOUSE LEADERSHIP, ANNOUNCES PREGNANCY: Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, who recently replaced ousted Rep. Liz Cheney as the third-ranking Republican in the party's House leadership, announced over the weekend that she's pregnant with her first child. The 36-year-old posted on Twitter and Instagram Saturday (June 5th), "We are absolutely overjoyed to announce that our small family of 2 will soon be 3! We’re excited to share that we are expecting a baby this fall & we cannot wait to meet our precious bundle of joy." The post included a photo of Stefanik and her husband, Matthew Manda, with their hands on her baby bump. Cheney was removed from her leadership post for repeatedly pushing back against Trump's false claims that the election was stolen. She also voted in favor of his impeachment after the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol.

➤OLDEST MALE CHIMPANZEE IN U.S. DIES AT SAN FRANCISCO ZOO AT 63: The oldest male chimpanzee in the U.S. died Saturday (June 5th) at age 63 at the San Francisco Zoo & Gardens. Cobby was brought to the zoo in the 1960s after having been a head-reared performing chimpanzee. Tanya M. Peterson, executive director of the San Francisco Zoological Society, said, "Cobby was part of San Francisco. He touched so many lives, and people have so many memories of him. He is irreplaceable, and our hearts are broken." The average life expectancy of a chimp in the wild is 33 years, and it's between 50 and 60 years for those under human care, according to the zoo.

➤IF YOUR WORK CLOTHES DON’T FIT AFTER A YEAR OF THE PANDEMIC, YOU’RE NOT ALONE:  Lots of people experienced physical changes to their body over the pandemic—so if you have to head back to the office and your work clothing no longer fits you—you’re not alone. According to the Psychological Association’s latest “Stress in America” report, more than 42 percent of surveyed adults said they gained more weight than they intended to over the past 12 months, gaining an average of 29 pounds. Personal stylist Melicia Marx says as people get called back to the office she’s hearing new and longtime clients say they’re concerned about fitting into their old clothes. Marx says, “As it is, heading back to the office can feel like going from zero to 100 with little support. When you feel critical of your body, that just adds to that stress. It can make folks dread going back to work rather than seeing the positive aspects like reuniting with co-workers in real life, visiting a favorite lunch spot or meeting friends for happy hour.” She also says she likes to remind her clients of one of her favorite style mantras: You don’t need to change your body, you just need to change your clothes. The experts say if you’re purchasing new clothing be sure to take your measurements first, and compare them to the size charts for each brand you’re buying from, as size measurements vary across brands.

➤iPHONE USERS SAY APPLE’S NEW IOS 14.6 UPDATE IS RUINING THEIR BATTERY LIFE: iPhone users who have installed Apple’s newest software update, iOS 14.6, are complaining that it’s draining their entire battery within hours. Apple’s online Community Forum has many people posting complaints about the update, which was released on May 24th. One person with an iPhone 7 wrote, “The situation is so bad that I can not work with the iPhone 7 for 2 hours and it runs out of charge.” Those with newer models of the iPhone made similar complaints. There’s been no word from Apple on the issue, and the company is rumored to be “readying a major revamp of its mobile software” for iOS 15, which would be released in time for Apple’s next flagship iPhone.

🏀CLIPPERS DEFEAT MAVERICKS IN GAME 7, ADVANCE TO ROUND 2: The Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Dallas Mavericks 126-111 in Game 7 of their first-round NBA playoff series yesterday to advance. They'll play the Utah Jazz in Round Two. Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 28 points, adding 10 rebounds and nine assists to fall just short of a triple-double. Luka Doncic had 46 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds for the Mavericks, ending what had been a stellar series for him, but it wasn't enough to get the win.

NBA PLAYOFFS: Results from playoff games yesterday:
  • First-Round: L.A Clippers 126, Dallas Mavericks 111 - Los Angeles wins 4 games to 3
  • Second-Round: Atlanta Hawks 128, Philadelphia 76ers 124 - Atlanta leads 1 game to 0
🏒NHL PLAYOFFS: Results from second-round games yesterday:
  • Montreal Canadiens 5, Winnipeg Jets 1 - Montreal leads series 3 games to 0
  • Vegas Golden Knights 5, Colorado Avalanche 1 - Series tied at 2-2
🎾SERENA WILLIAMS LOSES IN FOURTH ROUND AT FRENCH OPEN, FEDERER WITHDRAWS: Serena Williams lost in the fourth round at the French Open yesterday, falling in straight sets, 6-3, 7-5, to 21st-seeded Elena Rybakina. Meanwhile, Roger Federer withdrew from the tournament after a long third-round win the day before that ended at 1 a.m. on Sunday. Federer said he needed to let his body recover ahead of Wimbledon, which begins on June 28th. Among the men's winners in the fourth round yesterday were Number Two seed Daniil Medvedev, Number Five Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Number Six Alexander Zverev.
 

🏌SASO WINS U.S. WOMEN'S OPEN: Yuka Saso of the Philippines won the U.S. Women's Open Sunday on the third playoff hole against Japan's Nasa Hataoka at the Lake Course at the Olympic Club in San Francisco. The 19-year-old, who is turning 20 in two weeks, became just the second teenager to win the tournament. It's her first major victory, and she's the first golfer from the Philippines to win a major.
 

➤BILES WINS SEVENTH U.S. GYMNASTICS TITLE: Olympic champion Simone Biles won a record seventh U.S. gymnastics title last night, beating the second-place finisher, Sunisa Lee, by nearly five points. Biles' good friend and teammate, Jordan Chiles, finished third. The Olympic trials are being held later this month in St. Louis, with Biles aiming to make it to Tokyo and repeat as Olympic champion. The Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to begin on July 23rd.

⚾LA RUSSA MOVES INTO SECOND ON MLB MANAGER CAREER WINS LIST: Chicago's Tony La Russa moved into second place on MLB's career manager win list yesterday with a 3-0 White Sox victory over the Detroit Tigers. With career win 2,764, La Russa passed John McGraw into into sole possession of second place. The 76-year-old Hall of Famer's job with Chicago is his first as manager since 2011, when he led the St. Louis Cardinals to the World Series championship. Connie Mack is in first place with 3,731 wins.
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