“A growing number of places and groups are considering vaccine or mask mandates as Covid-19 cases continue to rise. California will require all state employees and health care workers to provide proof of vaccination status or get regular testing. New York City has a similar plan for its entire municipal workforce, including police officers and teachers. More than 50 major medical and health groups have issued a joint statement calling for all health care employers to mandate employees be vaccinated. Is it legal for places to impose such requirements? In short, yes. Justice Department lawyers have determined federal law doesn't prohibit public agencies and private businesses from requiring Covid-19 vaccines. Experts say if vaccination rates remain stagnant, the US could see as many as 200,000 cases a day in the coming weeks.” Read more at CNN
“Remain in place: The United States has no plans to lift travel restrictions denying entry at this point given the rise of the Delta variant, according to the White House.” Read more at USA Today
“A new order from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs is in effect Tuesday, saying vaccines are mandatory for its health care workers because of concerns about the Delta variant. The requirement, announced Monday, made the federal agency the first to enlist such a mandate and came as coronavirus infections have more than doubled in the past month at VA medical facilities, a USA TODAY review found. The vaccine mandate came as the more infectious Delta variant continues its spread across the country, leading to spikes, outbreaks and the reinstatement of some COVID-19 restrictions in certain areas.” Read more at USA Today
“The House select committee charged with investigating the January 6 insurrection will hold its first public hearing today. The committee will hear testimony from four police officers who were on the front lines the day of the attack. This is the first big public step for the committee’s investigation, which has seen strong GOP pushback. Currently, Republican leaders are hoping to zero in on security failures from the day of the attack to take attention away from former President Donald Trump’s role. Only two Republicans, Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, are on the committee. Their fellow party members are trying to chip away at their credibility to zing them for participating and undermine the committee’s mission in general.” Read more at CNN
“Biden's infrastructure bill hits late roadblocks. Lawmakers had previously set Monday as a target for closing out their talks on a roughly $1 trillion agreement. Aides squabbled over funding for water infrastructure and how to apply a requirement that federal contractors pay their employees a locally prevailing wage, among other issues.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“Vatican tries cardinal in test of pope’s transparency drive. Cardinal Giovanni Becciu, once one of the most powerful men in the Vatican, went on trial this morning for embezzlement and other alleged crimes, the first time that a cardinal has gone on trial in the Vatican’s criminal court.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“TOKYO – Simone Biles pulled out of the Olympic team final on Tuesday, leaving the competition after struggling to land a vault.
USA Gymnastics spokeswoman Carol Fabrizio confirmed to USA TODAY Sports that Biles would not compete in the remaining events.
Biles left the competition floor moments after she struggled to land a vault that is second nature for her. On the team’s first event, she shockingly bailed on an Amanar – one of her more difficult vaults – and just barely landed a one-and-a-half.
A visibly upset Biles talked with one of her personal coaches, Cecile Landi, and the team doctor, Marcia Faustin. Though she put on her grips to prepare for uneven bars next, she left the competition floor.
When she returned, she took off her grips and put on her warm-ups.
It was unclear why Biles pulled out or if she was injured.
Her departure means the U.S. women will have to rely on their three remaining gymnasts – Grace McCallum, Jordan Chiles and Sunisa Lee.
In team finals, countries put up three gymnasts and count all three scores but have flexibility of who competes on each apparatus with four women on each team.” Read more at USA Today
“Naomi Osaka was knocked out of the women’s singles tennis at the Tokyo Olympics on Tuesday when she suffered a surprise defeat in the third round of competition to Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic.
Vondrousova, the 2019 French Open runner-up, is ranked no. 42 in the world. She beat Osaka, who is ranked no. 2, in just 1 hour and 8 minutes of play. That makes Vondrousova the first player to move through to the quarter-finals.
Vondrousova beat Osaka 6-1, 6-4 in the third round of competition at the Ariake Tennis Park. The roof was closed on Tuesday due to rain from the incoming Tropical Storm Nepartak.” Read more at Time
“President Joe Biden announced plans to formally conclude the US combat mission in Iraq by the end of the year, winding down another prolonged US military engagement. Unlike the troop withdrawal in Afghanistan, this decision was made with Iraq’s urging, and Biden made the announcement alongside Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. This agreement will also not result in a troop withdrawal. Rather, the US and Iraq are expected to announce the US mission will fully shift to an advisory role. Meanwhile, White House officials have told lawmakers they will need $1 billion in emergency funds as the US works to evacuate and accommodate Afghan translators and other personnel who worked for the US in Afghanistan, and are now trying to leave the country amid the last phases of troop withdrawal there.” Read more at CNN
“The first person to be tried under Hong Kong's controversial national security law faces life in prison after being found guilty of inciting secession and terrorism. This trial was seen as a litmus test for how the law will be implemented and interpreted in court, and the landmark ruling will likely have profound implications for the city's legal system. The 24-year-old was found guilty of terrorism for crashing his motorcycle into a group of police officers last year. He was also found guilty of a second charge, incitement to commit secession, for carrying a large black banner emblazoned with the popular anti-government protest slogan ‘Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times.’” Read more at CNN
“A cache of Internal Justice Ministry documents obtained exclusively by CNN reveal death threats and other roadblocks faced by those investigating the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moise earlier this month. Multiple Haitian officials have received death threats since their investigation began, documents show. Some of these officials have gone into hiding. Sources close to the investigation also describe unusual restrictions and difficulty accessing crime scenes. Potential key witnesses, like presidential guards who were present at the time of the assassination, were allowed to leave the scene without being interviewed. The inconsistencies raise several questions: Is there a motive behind these obstacles, or are they consequences of Haiti’s underfunded justice system? So far, there has been no public announcement of formal charges against any suspects in the case.” Read more at CNN
“More than a month after a horrifying condo building collapse in Surfside, Florida, authorities on Monday identified the last victim as 54-year-old Estelle Hedaya. Her younger brother, Ikey Hedaya, confirmed the news to The Associated Press and her family described the four-week wait to get the confirmation as torturous. A funeral was scheduled for Tuesday. A total of 98 people were killed June 24 when the 12-story Champlain Towers South condominium building crashed to the ground. Ninety-seven bodies were pulled from the debris and one person died at a hospital. County officials accounted for 242 people who had lived in the complex.” Read more at USA Today
A rose wilts at the memorial wall near the Champlain Towers South site on Tuesday, July 13, 2021. Amanda Inscore, The News-Press/USA TODAY Network
“News: Former GOP Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming died Monday after being injured in a bike accident last week. The four-term senator, who left office in January, was 77. Our friend Paul Kane of the Washington Post has a nice write-up of the always genial Enzi.” Read more at Punchbowl News
“NEW YORK — Thomas J. Barrack, a wealthy investor and ex-adviser to former president Donald Trump, pleaded not guilty to charges related to foreign lobbying at his first court appearance in New York since his arrest in California last week.
Barrack, 74, and his co-defendant Matthew Grimes, 27, were arraigned Monday in federal court in Brooklyn, where they are charged with failing to register as agents of a foreign government while covertly working on behalf of the United Arab Emirates.
Barrack, who is also accused of lying to the FBI, is free on a $250 million bond. He left the courthouse surrounded by a throng of reporters and photographers and got into a black SUV.” Read more at Washington Post
“More than 13 years after the life and finances of Britney Spears were put under the strict, court-approved control of her father, James P. Spears — and a month after Ms. Spears broke her public silence on the arrangement, calling it abusive and singling him out as its ultimate authority — a new lawyer for the singer has moved to have Mr. Spears removed from the unique conservatorship.
The detailed petition to oust the singer’s father from the complex legal setup was filed in Los Angeles probate court on Monday by Mathew S. Rosengart, a former federal prosecutor and high-powered Hollywood lawyer, who has worked with celebrities including Sean Penn, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Steven Spielberg.
The move, less than two weeks after Mr. Rosengart was approved as the singer’s lawyer, is framed as a first step in a broader strategy to examine the conservatorship, which the filing calls a ‘Kafkaesque nightmare’ for Ms. Spears.
Mr. Rosengart took over as Ms. Spears’s lawyer after Samuel D. Ingham III, the court-appointed lawyer who had represented her for the duration of the arrangement, resigned in light of the singer’s recent comments about her care. In 2008, at the outset of the conservatorship, Ms. Spears had been found to lack the mental capacity to hire her own counsel.” Read more at New York Times
“Former U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), 80, was assaulted and robbed of her iPhone yesterday while walking near her apartment in Oakland.” Read more at Axios
“38% — The share of "Jeopardy!" viewers who have watched the show at least three times a week this season, giving it the most loyal audience of any syndicated television series. Levar Burton, the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" actor and former host of "Reading Rainbow," has long said hosting the show was a dream job and was one of the potential successors after Alex Trebek's death. But the show's fans are divided over who they want.
$409 million — The revenue that the Big 12, the college athletics conference, generated last year, compared with $729 million for the Southeastern Conference. Big 12 powers Texas and Oklahoma said they'll be leaving the league and are reportedly planning to join the SEC.
4 pounds — The weight, in gummy bears, that U.S. air rifle Olympian Mary Tucker brought with her to the Tokyo Olympics, out of fear she wouldn't be able to find her favorite snack at the Games. Most in her sport avoid caffeine and sugar before it’s their turn to shoot to avoid jitters. Tucker, 20 years old, said she can't compete without being hyped up on candy or something else sweet.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“‘We are devastated and at a loss for words’: Mike Howe, the lead singer of the influential band Metal Church, has died at the age of 55.” Read more at USA Today
“Novels by Kazuo Ishiguro, Rachel Cusk and Richard Powers are among the 13 nominations for the Booker Prize. Here’s the list.” Read more at New York Times
“Starting what would be the most consequential reordering of college sports conferences in about a decade, the University of Oklahoma and the University of Texas told the Big 12 on Monday that they would leave the league in the coming years.
The formal notifications involved only media rights and were required under the Big 12’s bylaws, but they opened the way for the schools to move to the Southeastern Conference, which could swell into a 16-team league and sweep up far greater power, wealth and athletic prestige.
Oklahoma and Texas, on-field rivals but tethered to each other in this shift, said in a joint statement that they would not renew their existing television deals after they expire in 2025. The schools said they ‘intend to honor their existing grant of rights agreements,’ but lawyers and broader forces in college sports could ultimately let them exit those Big 12-connected contracts far sooner.
Media rights are by far the largest source of revenue for college leagues, and a decision to leave a conference’s signature deal is tantamount to exiting the conference itself.” Read more at New York Times
“Tanzania’s democracy. Tanzania’s opposition party leader Freeman Mbowe has been charged with ‘terrorism-related’ crimes, police said on Monday, raising fears that new President Samia Suluhu Hassan was following in the authoritarian footsteps of her predecessor John Magufuli. Mbowe and several Chadema party members had been arrested at a hotel, ostensibly for breaking COVID-19 restrictions. Mbowe and his colleagues were reportedly gathering at the hotel to discuss proposals for a new constitution.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Lebanon’s new prime minister. Najib Miqati, a billionaire businessman and former prime minister, was named Lebanon’s prime minister-designate after receiving a majority of votes in his favor from Lebanon’s parliament. Miqati must now form a government acceptable to President Michel Aoun, who disagreed with Saad Hariri’s attempts earlier in July. Miqati said that although he didn’t have a ‘magic wand and can’t perform miracles,’ that he would focus on implementing a French-backed economic plan to pull the country out of an economic crisis.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Global heating. ‘Record-shattering’ heatwaves, still relatively rare, will become more common in the coming years as the effects of climate change take hold, according to a new study from researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich. The research, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, projects that heatwaves that break temperature records by 5 degrees Celsius or more will become two to seven times more likely between now and 2050, and three to 21 times more likely from 2051-2080.
‘Many places have by far not seen anything close to what’s possible, even in present-day conditions, because only looking at the past record is really dangerous,’ said Erich Fischer, the study’s lead researcher.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“Nicaragua’s elections. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega criticized opposition politicians as instruments of ‘Yankee policy’ after police arrested Noel Vidaurre—the seventh opposition candidate to be detained ahead of presidential elections in November. In a speech on Sunday, Ortega said the United States—referred to as ‘the empire’—wished to undermine his bid for a fourth term. “The empire does not want elections in Nicaragua, the empire wants to boycott them, it wants to re-sow terrorism in our country,” Ortega said.
The United States has accused Ortega of undermining democracy by detaining his opponents, and imposed sanctions on a number of Nicaraguan officials, including Ortega’s daughter, in June.” Read more at Foreign Policy
“This summer's extreme weather is having ripple effects that could raise food prices in the U.S. and disrupt diets around the world, Axios' Andrew Freedman writes.
Sugar, pinto beans and flour prices are all trending up due to dry conditions in the West.
Coffee hit the highest prices seen in over six years due to ongoing frost and a historic drought during the Brazilian winter.
Drought in Canada and the Northwestern U.S. pushed spring wheat crops to the highest point in over eight years, Bloomberg reports.
Why it matters: Climate scientists and food supply experts, like those at the Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome, have long warned about the impact of human-caused global warming on prices, food shortages and hunger.
The latest: UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned today that climate change and conflict are "both consequences and drivers" of poverty, income inequality and food prices.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack urged calm in an interview with Bloomberg, saying the food inflation rate ‘is not that much higher ‘than normal and will settle.
Between the lines: As seen in the examples above, extreme weather does have a strong effect on food supplies, but not all of extreme weather can be traced to climate change, Axios' Bryan Walsh notes.
Plus, some food price increases can be attributed to the pandemic's economic disruption.” Read more at Axios
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