The Full Belmonte, 5/23/2023
Incandescent materials, ash and smoke spew from Popocatépetl volcano, which is about 45 miles southeast of Mexico City.
Mexico volcano
“Millions of people in Mexico have been warned to prepare for a possible evacuation due to increased activity from Popocatépetl, the country's most dangerous active volcano. Ash spewing from the volcano has delayed flights in Mexico City and led authorities to close schools in dozens of municipalities. Some 25 million people live in a 60-mile radius of the volcano, which is about 45 miles southeast of Mexico City. The US Embassy in Mexico issued a warning over the weekend saying the volcano ‘has exhibited increased activity since May 15, registering hundreds of tremors and ash exhalations.’ The volcano had been dormant for decades until it erupted in 1994. Since then, its rumblings have become a part of daily life for residents.” [CNN]
A woman walks on the ash-covered streets from the Popocatepetl volcano in Santiago Xalitzintla, Mexico, Monday, May 22, 2023.
Marco Ugarte, AP
Debt ceiling
President Joe Biden meets with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of Calif., Monday, May 22, 2023, in Washington.
Alex Brandon, AP
“Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reinforced her warning to Congress Monday that it has only a little time left to address the debt ceiling before the nation defaults on its obligations. It is ‘highly likely’ that the agency will not be able to pay all of its bills in full and on time as soon as June 1, Yellen wrote in a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Several analyses back up Yellen's forecast that the so-called X-date could arrive in early June, though they think it could occur later than June 1. If the US defaults on its debt, millions of jobs would be impacted, the cost of borrowing money would skyrocket and government benefits that many people rely on wouldn't be sent on time. However, investors hungry for an opportunity to buy low and sell high, say the default might not be total doomsday.” [CNN]
Trump
“E. Jean Carroll has asked a judge to amend her initial defamation case against former President Donald Trump following comments he made during a CNN town hall. Earlier this month, a Manhattan federal jury found that Trump sexually abused Carroll in a luxury department store dressing room in the mid-1990s and awarded her $5 million for battery and defamation. The jury sided with Carroll who alleged Trump defamed her when he denied her claim, said she wasn't his type and suggested she made up the story. She is now seeking additional punitive damages after Trump repeated his defamatory statements at a CNN town hall and called Carroll a ‘whack job.’ Trump has denied all claims brought against him by Carroll and appealed the jury's judgment.” [CNN]
U.S. lawmakers pass more pro-gun bills than safety measures
Data: Giffords Center, Axios research. Chart: Erin Davis/Axios Visuals
“State legislators have passed more laws expanding gun access than gun-control measures in the year since the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, Axios' Russell Contreras and Erin Davis write from Giffords Center data.
Tomorrow marks one year since a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers in a fourth-grade classroom at Robb Elementary School.
By the numbers: More than 1,700 gun-related bills have been introduced in state legislatures since the Uvalde shooting. 93 were signed into law.
Of those, 56% expanded access to firearms — or benefited the firearms industry by, for example, allowing manufacturing in the state, or protecting manufacturers from liability suits, the Axios review found.
Arkansas passed seven such laws — the most of any state.
44% of the bills passed restricted access to firearms or supported victims and potential victims in gun-related cases.
Between the lines: In 14 of the 17 states that only enacted bills loosening gun restrictions, Republicans control both chambers of the legislature and the governor's office.
The other three states — Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina — have GOP-controlled legislatures but Democratic governors.
Zoom in: The Axios review found that some bills aimed at protecting gun access that passed were so-called ‘financial privacy’ bills.
Those measures made it harder to track gun sales by barring merchants from using gun-specific codes in credit card billing.
Other successful bills from highly rated-NRA legislators prevented government entities from patronizing businesses that boycott the firearms industry.
Some bills made state government funds divest of any ESG funds.
In a rare move, Republicans and Democrats came together in New Mexico recently with a measure that made it a felony to purchase a firearm for someone who is prohibited from possessing one. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) signed the measure last month.” [Axios]
Scoop: Youngkin reconsiders
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., on May 1. Photo: David McNew/Getty Images
“As Axios' Juliegrace Brufke and I alerted you last night, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is reconsidering a bid for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, after earlier taking himself out of the race.
Why it matters: Youngkin, 56 — who beat former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) for the Old Dominion governor’s mansion in 2021 — is a leading potential future face of the Republican Party. He’s Christian and conservative — but not as Trumpy as many of the GOP’s current stars.
What's happening: Youngkin told Richmond reporters in April that he was focused on this fall’s Virginia legislative races. But that has changed amid a rocky few months for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who is expected to announce his presidential candidacy tomorrow.
Some powerful GOP donors, who won't support Trump but are beginning to be concerned about DeSantis, are encouraging Youngkin to jump into the 2024 field.
‘He's reconsidering,’ a top source close to Youngkin told Axios. ‘He'd be in his own lane: He's not never-Trump, and he's not Trump-light.’
Youngkin faces high-stakes state legislative races on Nov. 7. So an announcement about a presidential race is likely to wait until right after that, Republican sources said.
A senior Youngkin aide told Axios: ‘If the guy flips any seats at all, it's proof that his political machine is ready to go.’” [Axios]
LGBTQ rights
“More than 130 bills have been introduced nationwide this legislative session that target LGBTQ rights — especially health care for transgender patients, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. On Monday, Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, a Republican, banned gender-affirming care for people under 19 years old. Gender-affirming care is a type of medical care that helps a person transition from their assigned gender — the one the person was designated at birth — to their affirmed gender — the gender by which one wants to be known. The action in Nebraska this week comes after more than a dozen other states have moved to restrict gender-affirming care this year. The bill also bans most abortions in the state after 12 weeks with limited exceptions.” [CNN]
TikTok
“TikTok is suing Montana over a bill that would ban the app in the state starting early next year. The company alleges that the ban violates the US Constitution, including the First Amendment, as well as other federal laws. The company also claims concerns that the Chinese government could access the data of US TikTok users are ‘unfounded.’ The bill was signed by Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte last week and would impose a fine of $10,000 per day on TikTok or app stores for making the app available to personal devices in the state starting on January 1, 2024. TikTok is seeking for the court to invalidate and permanently enjoin the state from enforcing the ban. ‘We believe our legal challenge will prevail based on an exceedingly strong set of precedents and facts,’ a spokesperson for the app said in a statement.” [CNN]
“The Lefortovsky District Court of Moscow on Tuesday extended the pre-trial detention of American journalist Evan Gershkovich for three months to August 30, Russian state agency RIA Novosti reported citing the court.
Gershkovich, who has been designated as wrongfully detained by the US State Department, appeared in court in April to ask that his pre-trial detention be under house arrest rather than in jail. That appeal was denied, and he is being held at Moscow’s notorious Lefortovo Prison.” [CNN]
Florida restaurant sues DeSantis over drag show restrictions
“May 22 (Reuters) - A Florida restaurant that puts on what it calls family-friendly drag performances sued Governor Ron DeSantis and the state of Florida on Monday to halt enforcement of a new law banning minors from attending such shows.
Hamburger Mary's, an Orlando bar and restaurant that presents drag show performances, comedy sketches and dancing, filed the suit in federal court in response to the law, which the Republican governor signed last week.
Senate Bill 1438 allows the state to fine or revoke the liquor license of an establishment that admits minors to a performance that ‘simulates nudity, sexual conduct or specific sexual activities.’
DeSantis' office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
‘This bill has nothing to do with children, and everything to do with the continued oppression of the LGBTQ+ community,’ the owners of Hamburger Mary's wrote on Facebook.
The Facebook post offered a broader critique of DeSantis' policies to eliminate books and public school courses that refer to LGBTQ themes or the U.S. history of racial oppression, asking, ‘When does it stop?’
DeSantis, who is expected to announce he is seeking the Republican nomination for president this week, has pursued policies in Florida that restrict LGBTQ rights.
He signed the "Protection of Children" bill the same day he also signed bills to ban gender-affirming care for transgender youth and requires transgender people to use bathrooms corresponding to their sex at birth.
The lawsuit asks the court to block the law, saying it violates the constitutional right to free speech guaranteed by the First Amendment.
‘It prohibits protected speech based on the identity of the speaker,’ the lawsuit said.
The law erroneously targets drag shows as deviant when they have become ‘part of mainstream culture,’ it said. ‘It is a form of family entertainment, enjoyed by all.’” [Reuters]
Biden nominates Lt. Gen. Timothy Haugh to lead NSA, Cyber Command
“President Joe Biden has nominated U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Timothy Haugh, the no. 2 at U.S. Cyber Command, to serve as the new head of both U.S. Cyber Command and the National Security Agency, according to an Air Force notice sent out on Monday.”
Read more at POLITICO
Brazil Declares Animal Health Emergency Over Avian Flu Cases
“A six-month animal health emergency was declared in Brazil on Monday after the country’s first detection of avian flu in wild birds. Seven cases of the highly infectious virus were reported in the southeastern state of Espírito Santo with another found in the neighboring state of Rio de Janeiro. The nationwide 180-day emergency declaration allows health officials to more easily introduce new measures to prevent the spread of the H5N1 virus across Brazil—the world’s largest exporter of chicken meat. The world has been gripped by the worst known outbreak of avian flu since October 2021, with more deaths recorded than in any previous outbreaks. It’s unclear why this time has been so much worse, with the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) saying the crisis has had ‘devastating impacts on animal health and welfare.’” Read it at BBC
Prince Harry Loses Legal Battle Over Police Protection
“A court in London dealt Prince Harry a blow on Tuesday by ruling he cannot challenge a decision denying him the chance to pay for police protection while in England. The High Court in London ruled that he cannot seek a judicial review of an earlier decision stripping him of the right to police protection. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle lost the police security normally afforded to royals after stepping down from their roles in 2020. After that, Harry and his lawyers had argued that the decision ignored provisions allowing for ‘special police services’ to be provided in exchange for private payment. But lawyers for the Home Office countered that it was unreasonable to claim that a ‘wealthy person should be permitted to ‘buy’ protective security.’ The legal setback comes after reps for Harry and Meghan said the pair was involved in a ‘near catastrophic’ car chase with paparazzi in New York City last week, a claim that was called into question by some witnesses.” Read it at BBC
Three held in Spain over Vinicius Jr racial abuse during match
By Robert Plummer
BBC News
“Police in Spain have detained three people in connection with racist abuse directed at the Real Madrid footballer, Vinicius Jr, during a match on Sunday.
The three are aged between 18 and 21, the police said in a message on Twitter.
The Brazil international has been subjected to such abuse numerous times this season.
The latest incident, during an away match at Valencia, has sparked outrage in both Spain and Brazil.
The game was paused in the second half as an incensed Vinicius reported opposition fans to the referee.
Following the match, in which the 22-year-old was later sent off for violent conduct, he said: ‘La Liga belongs to racists.’
La Liga president Javier Tebas responded on Twitter by saying Vinicius twice did not turn up for a meeting to discuss what it ‘can do in cases of racism’, adding: ‘Before you criticise and slander La Liga, you need to inform yourself properly.’
But football federation chief Luis Rubiales said Spanish football had ‘a serious problem that also stains an entire team, an entire fan base, an entire club, an entire country’.
Spanish prosecutors will now decide whether to pursue a criminal investigation.
The Brazilian government said the incident was ‘yet another inadmissible episode’.
It has requested urgent meetings with Spanish ministers, prosecutors and the football federation.
Earlier, Spanish police detained four people suspected of hanging an effigy of Vinicius from a bridge in Madrid in January.
The figure appeared ahead of a match between Real and their rivals in the capital, Atletico.
It was hung by its neck under a banner saying: ‘Madrid hates Real’.” [BBC]
“Two places — Bakhmut and Belgorod — sum up the state of Russia’s war in Ukraine after almost 500 days of fighting.
Russia said it has finally taken Bakhmut, though Ukraine continued to dispute the claim and said its forces were also advancing around the outer edges of the eastern Ukrainian city that’s been devastated by months of intense warfare.
US President Joe Biden told reporters at the Group of Seven summit that Russia has suffered more than 100,000 dead and wounded in the battle for Bakhmut, a staggering cost to take a city with a population of about 70,000 before the war.
With Ukraine preparing its long-awaited counteroffensive aimed at seizing back occupied territory, the scale of the Russian casualties underlines the sense of foreboding expressed by many nationalist military bloggers about the prospects for Moscow of avoiding defeat.
In Russia’s Belgorod region, meanwhile, security forces are spending a second day battling an incursion from Ukraine that has brought the war onto President Vladimir Putin’s home territory.
Russian volunteer militias said they carried out the attack, claiming on social media that they were seeking to ‘liberate’ territory from the Kremlin’s control.
This wasn’t how the war was meant to go for Russia. While Putin’s dream of a swift victory within days has long faded in the face of Ukrainian resistance, Russians are now being presented with growing evidence that he can’t keep them safe at home either.
The incursion into Belgorod took the shine off any sense of victory in Bakhmut for many Russian commentators shocked by the attack.
With a hot summer of fighting surely ahead, the risk for Putin is that the public mood in Russia turns even more sour about prospects for the war as a sense of insecurity grows.
Soldiers of the “Freedom of Russia” Legion volunteer militia in Irpin, Ukraine, in 2022. Photographer: Sergei Chuzavkov/AFP/Getty Images
“Ukraine can’t win the war against Russia, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, widely perceived to be the closest European Union nation to the Kremlin, said in an interview with Bloomberg Editor in Chief John Micklethwait. The war can only be stopped when Russia clinches an agreement with the US, Orban said. He added that he hopes Donald Trump will win reelection next year.” [Bloomberg]
WATCH: Prime Minister Viktor Orban says Hungary is not part of the “mainstream” European Union approach to Ukraine. Sourced: Bloomberg
“Moscow is threatening to upend defense and energy deals with governments including India’s unless they help block expected moves aimed at turning Russia into a financial pariah state over its invasion. Documents seen by Bloomberg and accounts by officials in NATO countries offer a rare insight into how Russia is targeting commercial partners ahead of a June meeting of the global watchdog against money-laundering, Alberto Nardelli and Sudhi Ranjan Sen report.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin kicked off a two-day visit to China, as Moscow seeks to deepen trade ties with Beijing amid growing international isolation over its war in Ukraine.
The US says it suspects Russian mercenary firm Wagner Group is trying to ship weapons to fighters in Ukraine through the West African nation of Mali.” [Bloomberg]
“After beating his leftist opponents in Sunday’s election, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis appears set for a victory in a second ballot expected on June 25 that should deliver an absolute majority with a mandate to pursue his economic reform program. That prospect sets Greece apart from some of its neighbors that’ve seen allegiances fragment during a decade that’s included a financial crisis, a global pandemic and the return of war in Europe.” [Bloomberg]
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis celebrates with supporters of the New Democracy Party after winning the Greek elections on May 21.Aris Oikonomou/SOOC/AFP via Getty Images
“Imran Khan won bail in multiple cases from an anti-terrorism court in Islamabad, a temporary respite that may help calm supporters of Pakistan’s former prime minister and cool tensions with the military and the government. He still faces dozens of other charges, including graft, hiding assets and insulting a female judge — all of which he’s denied.” [Bloomberg]
“The US has no plans to lift sanctions on Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu, a State Department spokesman said, apparently backtracking on comments Biden made at the G-7 summit.” [Bloomberg]
“Thailand’s pro-democracy parties omitted an amendment to a law forbidding royal insults in a common platform to form a government after winning the election.” [Bloomberg]
“Thousands of expatriate Indians thronged to Australia’s largest entertainment and sporting arena in Sydney to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his first visit in nine years.” [Bloomberg]
“South Africa’s biggest opposition party is lobbying US lawmakers in a bid to preserve the country’s duty-free access to the world’s biggest economy amid the two nations’ spat over Russia’s war. [Bloomberg]
“Bullets and arrows flew last June as 500 Maasai clashed with police, military and park rangers in the most severe eruption of violence over a decision to reserve grazing land for wildlife, safari tourism and, with the right license, hunting. Paul Tullis writes that the village of Ololosokwan near the famous Serengeti National Park is the center of long-simmering conflict involving cattle herders, the Tanzanian government and a company called Otterlo Business that the United Nations says operates hunting trips for royals from the United Arab Emirates.” [Bloomberg]
The Tanzania-Kenya border. Photographer: Adriane Ohanesian for Bloomberg Businessweek
May 23, 2023
With Ron DeSantis set to declare his candidacy this week, I asked my colleague Astead Herndon, who has been covering the campaign for “The Run-Up,” the Times politics podcast, to break down the state of the Republican primary race in today’s newsletter. — David Leonhardt
Good morning. The challenges that Ron DeSantis faces in any presidential run go beyond Donald Trump.
Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida in New Hampshire on Friday.Sophie Park for The New York Times
A new narrative
“The political fortunes of Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis have reversed over the past six months. After his re-election as Florida’s governor, DeSantis looked like a strong potential presidential candidate while Trump grappled with legal and personal challenges. Now, Trump leads in opinion polling, DeSantis has struggled to solidify his star status and, in some corners, there’s a growing sense that Trump’s nomination for president is inevitable.
I would caution against that feeling, no matter how it looks for Trump at the moment. After months of reporting on the early stages of the 2024 presidential race, I’ve seen how narratives can miss important factors shaping the race. And that is how conventional wisdom starts to take shape in a way that’s divorced from evidence or data. (See: expectations of a Republican wave in last year’s midterm elections.)
DeSantis is expected to formally enter the race as soon as tomorrow. Here are two narratives about his candidacy that could use revising.
Narrative 1: DeSantis is toast.
Reality: There is an opening for a Trump alternative, whether it’s DeSantis or someone else.
Trump’s hold on the Republican electorate has always been tenuous. He has never won the majority of voters in a contested Republican primary. At the Republican National Committee’s winter meeting in California this year, one delegate told me that party insiders estimated that about 30 to 35 percent of Republican voters were unshakably with Trump, while another, smaller group was comfortable with him as the nominee while considering other options.
For other candidates, those numbers make up a road map to victory: Consolidate the majority of Republicans who would prefer a different nominee. This group includes factions like the Tea Party conservatives who backed Senator Ted Cruz of Texas in the 2016 primary and the business-focused moderates who backed candidates like Gov. John Kasich of Ohio in 2016.
Appealing to them is a difficult task. These groups have historically opposed Trump for different reasons and no candidate has successfully brought them together, but the conditions for an anti-Trump coalition are there.
One route for a candidate like DeSantis or Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, who joined the Republican field yesterday, is to win the nomination without crossing Trump. As my colleague Nate Cohn wrote, one strategy for defeating Trump could be to embody his political message without taking him on directly. For some Republicans, this is a welcome direction. My reporting made clear that given the criminal investigations Trump faces, some rivals have banked on him to implode on his own.
However, that strategy is passive, which could play into Trump’s hands. Outside the Manhattan courthouse on the day that Trump was arraigned on fraud charges related to his 2016 campaign, the conservative media provocateur Jack Posobiec said that people close to Trump’s campaign predicted that more indictments would embolden his candidacy, not imperil it. He said they believed Trump would have the opportunity to galvanize voters by painting law enforcement as politically motivated and out to stifle his candidacy.
Posobiec pointed to the news media attention, increased fund-raising and the bump in polling that Trump secured after his indictment.
Narrative 2: DeSantis’s biggest problem is Donald Trump.
Reality: Yes, but he has another problem to confront first.
DeSantis no longer scares away candidates who were once deferential to his status as the front-runner in the Trump-alternative sweepstakes. Last week, several Republican governors made notable moves: Doug Burgum of North Dakota — a former Microsoft executive — made overtures toward joining the 2024 field, and Glenn Youngkin of Virginia released an advertisement linking himself to Ronald Reagan. Gov. Chris Sununu of New Hampshire also said he was thinking about joining the race, days after a report that former Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey might join as well.
Those actions show a party unintimidated by DeSantis’s candidacy and are further evidence that his campaign’s first task is not to overtake Trump, but to persuade primary voters and opponents that he is the strongest rival to Trump. At the R.N.C. meeting, a Trump adviser told me that his campaign would love for the field to get to 10 candidates. ‘More is better for us,’ the adviser said, invoking the logic that several candidates polling in single digits would hurt DeSantis’s ability to put together a coalition.
DeSantis’s delicate task was on display two months ago, when he announced an isolationist view on the war in Ukraine, a clear play for Trump’s supporters. DeSantis’s statement drew backlash from commentators and Republican donors, and two other presidential hopefuls — former Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina and former Vice President Mike Pence — used it to attack him.
Such is the danger of DeSantis’s unique electoral position: As he enters the race as the established Trump alternative, he incurs the ire of other rivals seeking to elevate themselves.
When DeSantis announces his candidacy this week, he will be an underdog, but he is not a long shot. No one who has raised more than $110 million is.” [New York Times]
New surgeon general's warning for kids
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
“Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a warning today that social media poses a threat to kids' mental health, Tina Reed writes in Axios Vitals.
Why it matters: Murthy told Axios he's calling on policymakers, platforms and parents to create safer limits. He previously has said he believes age 13 is ‘too early’ for kids to join social media.
‘What kids are experiencing today on social media is unlike anything prior generations have had to contend with,’ the surgeon general told Axios.
‘People have compared themselves for millennia,’ he said. ‘But never to this degree, with the sheer overwhelming volume of content that's coming at our kids 24-7.’
The other side: Tech firms have offered tighter controls for kids and teens, rolled out new safety features and argued that parents have to play an active role in youths' social media use, Axios' Ashley Gold reported.
Close to home: Arkansas and Utah recently passed parental consent laws for social media. At least 10 others are considering them.” [Axios]
WhatsApp to allow users to edit messages within 15 minutes
By Annabelle Liang
Business reporter
“WhatsApp says it will allow users to edit messages, in a move that will see it match a feature offered by competitors like Telegram and Discord.
The firm says messages can be edited for up to 15 minutes after being sent.
The instant-messaging service is part of US technology giant Meta, which also owns Facebook and Instagram.
The feature will made be available to WhatsApp's 2 billion users in the coming weeks. It counts India as its largest market, with 487 million users….” Read more at BBC
Nuggets sweep LeBron James, Lakers, advance to first NBA Finals
“LeBron James had 40 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, including a playoff career-high for points in a half (31), but that wasn’t enough against the relentless ‒ and better ‒ Denver Nuggets. The top-seeded Nuggets eliminated the seventh-seeded Los Angeles Lakers with a 113-111 victory in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals Monday and made franchise history. Denver will play the winner of Miami-Boston in the Finals starting June 1.” Read more at USA Today
•Did LeBron James just play his last NBA game? Lakers star says: '‘I got to think about it.’ [USA Today]
•”NBA great Carmelo Anthony announces his retirement after 19-year career.” [USA Today]
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic drives to the basket against Lakers forward LeBron James in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals.
Gary A. Vasquez, USA TODAY Sports
Andrés opens food and climate center
Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Amanda Stronza/Getty Images
“José Andrés, celebrity chef and founder of World Central Kitchen, and George Washington University are launching a research institute focused on the intersection of food production and climate change.
Why it matters: The Global Food Institute (GFI), being announced today, identifies the warming planet as one of the greatest challenges facing the global food system, Axios' Ayurella Horn-Muller reports.
‘The world we live in today is confronted by a wide range of complex crises, and the global food system sits at the heart of each of them,’ Andrés tells Axios in a statement.” [Axios]
New Everest record
Kami Rita arrives in Kathmandu, Nepal, after scaling Everest in 2018. Photo: Niranjan Shrestha/AP
“Veteran Sherpa guide Kami Rita, 53, scaled Mount Everest today for the 28th time, beating his own record less than a week after setting it.
Why it matters: Two guides are competing with each other for the title of most climbs of the world's highest peak, AP reports.
Kami Rita, one of the greatest mountain guides, reached the 29,032-foot summit a day after fellow Sherpa guide Pasang Dawa matched his record of 27 trips.
With a few more days left in the spring climbing season, both guides were on the mountain helping their clients up the snowy peak.
Kami Rita first climbed Everest in 1994 and has been making the trip nearly every year since. He is one of many Sherpa guides whose expertise and skills are vital to the safety and success of foreign climbers.
His father was among the first Sherpa guides.” [Axios]
Actor Ray Stevenson, a Star Wars villain and Thor hero, has died.
Stevenson at the world premiere of “Thor: Ragnarok” in 2017. (Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
“How we’ll remember him: As Volstagg in Marvel’s Thor films and for roles in “RRR” and the TV series “Rome.” He’s also the antagonist in the upcoming Star Wars show “Ahsoka.”
What we know: The 58-year-old died Sunday in Italy, his representative said. Stevenson was reportedly shooting a movie there.”
Read this story at Washington Post
A guitar smashed by Kurt Cobain sold for nearly $600,000.
The guitar has been put back together but is no longer playable. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images)
“The story: The Nirvana frontman broke the Fender Stratocaster while performing during the band’s early 1990s “Nevermind” era. It was signed by the band members.
The sale: It went for seven times more money than expected at an auction in New York this weekend, showing Cobain’s lasting popularity nearly three decades after his death.”
Read this story at Washington Post
“Lives Lived: C. Boyden Gray was White House counsel under President George H.W. Bush and was said to be able to stroll into the Oval Office whenever he liked. He died at 80.” [New York Times]