National News - Page 181

Biden Faces Mounting Crises Amid Falling Approval Ratings

Analysis by Stephen Collinson There is no rest for an under-pressure White House this Labor Day as President Joe Biden tackles health, economic and legislative challenges that deepened on his watch and are beginning to erode his political standing. A worsening Covid-19 pandemic, with the added concern of the impact of the Delta variant on kids, the fallout from the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and new concerns over job growth are weighing on the administration after a tough summer. New complications over passing the President’s sweeping infrastructure and social program, and a shocking move by Texas to all but outlaw abortion are exacerbating an extraordinary menu of crises. On Afghanistan and

Biden to Visit Louisiana After Hurricane Ida Devastation

By Maegan Vazquez President Joe Biden is headed to Louisiana on Friday to survey damage from Hurricane Ida, after almost a week of the deadly storm ravaging the eastern half of the United States. The White House has said Biden would survey storm damage and meet with state and local officials. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Thursday that the President would travel to New Orleans and is expected to meet with Louisiana Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards, among other officials. Since the Category 4 Hurricane plowed through the Gulf Coast over the weekend, there have been at least five

Senate Passes Aid Bill for Americans Returning from Afghanistan

By Clare Foran and Ali Zaslav, The Senate on Tuesday approved a bill that would provide temporary assistance to American citizens who have returned from Afghanistan. The bill would set aside up to $10 million for each fiscal year during fiscal years 2021 and 2022 to provide emergency repatriation assistance to affected individuals. Vice President Kamala Harris came to the Senate to preside over the bill’s passage on Tuesday. The bill was approved by unanimous consent during the Senate’s August recess when the chamber came into session for a quick pro-forma session where no other business was conducted. The bill has

Black Homebuyers Struggle Amid Pandemic Housing Boom

By Chauncey Alcorn Everett Benyard thought he was finally in a strong enough financial position to purchase his first home earlier this year. He’d saved money by living with his parents for a time and secured a higher-paying job in 2020. But the 30-year-old San Diego corrections officer has struggled to compete in one of the country’s hottest real estate markets, where the median home price on single-family houses reached $860,000 in July, according to the California Association of Realtors. “I was just getting outbid, outbid big,” Benyard told CNN Business during a recent phone interview. “I went and saw many different places. … I would go

Fauci: Covid-19 Booster Shots May Become Standard Regimen

By Travis Caldwell, With the latest Covid-19 surge upending American life yet again, an official rollout of booster doses could begin within weeks pending FDA authorization. And it’s likely that three doses of the vaccine are needed for full protection, Dr. Anthony Fauci said. He cited two Israeli-based studies that showed a decrease in infections among people who got a third or booster shot. There was good reason to believe that a third dose “will actually be durable, and if it is durable, then you’re going to have very likely a three-dose regimen being the routine regimen,” Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy

Texas Abortion Ban, Voting Laws Impact Communities of Color

By Nicole Chavez, An abortion fund that helps hundreds of women in the southernmost region of Texas each year has stopped answering its hotline after one of the strictest bans in the nation went into effect this week. “Our very existence is a risk. The fact that we exist as an organization puts us at risk (of civil lawsuits),” said Zeana Zamora, executive director of Frontera Fund. The group helps people in the Rio Grande Valley — an impoverished region that is mostly Mexican American — access abortion care. The new abortion law along with laws concerning public education and proposed legislation restricting voting

Elijah McClain Case: Officers, Paramedics Indicted for Death

By Eric Levenson and Stella Chan, A Colorado grand jury indicted three police officers and two paramedics involved in the August 2019 death of Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old Black man who was stopped by police while walking home from a store, placed in a carotid hold and then injected with ketamine, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced Wednesday. Aurora Police officers Randy Roedema and Nathan Woodyard, former officer Jason Rosenblatt and Aurora Fire Rescue paramedics Jeremy Cooper and Peter Cichuniec were each indicted on charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide as part of a 32-count indictment. In addition, Roedema and

House Committee Debates Critical Race Theory in Military

By Sarah Fortinsky and Daniella Diaz, Members of the House Armed Services Committee forcefully debated the role of teaching critical race theory at military educational institutions for more than an hour late Wednesday night, with Democrats sharply pushing back against Republican efforts to include a ban on the concept as part of an annual defense spending bill. GOP lawmakers — including Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Banks of Indiana and Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee — backed amendments to the annual National Defense Authorization Act, a sweeping defense bill that authorizes spending levels and outlines priorities for the US military. Critical race theory recognizes

FDA Schedules September Meeting on COVID-19 Booster Shots

By Maggie Fox, The US Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday it has called a meeting of its vaccine advisers for September 17 to discuss booster doses of coronavirus vaccine. That’s three days before the September 20 target date to start offering booster doses announced by the White House last month. “The administration recently announced a plan to prepare for additional COVID-19 vaccine doses, or ‘boosters,’ this fall, and a key part of that plan is FDA completing an independent evaluation and determination of the safety and effectiveness of these additional vaccine doses,” Dr. Peter Marks, who heads FDA’s vaccine division, said in a

Ida’s Remnants Cause Deadly Flooding, Tornadoes in Northeast

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By Jennifer Gray, Brandon Miller and Taylor Ward, New York declared a state of emergency early Thursday morning as the Northeast region was slammed by torrential rain from the remnants of Ida, causing heavy flooding and reports of numerous water rescues. In New York City, a travel ban was implemented until 5 a.m., according to an emergency alert sent by Notify NYC. All non-emergency vehicles must stay off the road, the alert said. Almost all the city subway lines were suspended due to the flooding. The Metropolitan Transit Authority website said that only the “7” line and the Staten Island

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