Biden improves ‘significantly,’ throat still sore from COVID
President Joe Biden’s physician, Dr. Kevin O’Connor, says Biden continues to “improve significantly” despite a lingering sore throat. Biden tested positive for the virus Thursday, and he’s been taking the antiviral drug Paxlovid. The White House COVID-19 coordinator says Biden is feeling “much, much better.” Dr. Ashisha Jha says, “Thank goodness our vaccines and therapeutics work well against it.” Officials have emphasized that Biden’s symptoms are mild because he received four vaccine doses and had started taking Paxlovid. O’Connor said Saturday the president likely became infected with a highly contagious variant, known as BA.5, that’s spreading throughout the country, and Jha said Sunday, “It is the BA.5 variant.”
Crews protect homes as California fire burns near Yosemite
A destructive wildfire near Yosemite National Park is burning out of control and has grown into one of California’s biggest blazes of the year. Thousands of residents were ordered to flee remote mountain communities. Some 2,000 firefighters are battling the Oak Fire, contending with steep terrain and hot weather. The blaze erupted Friday southwest of the park in Mariposa County. Cal Fire described “explosive fire behavior” on Saturday as flames made runs through bone-dry vegetation caused by the worst drought in decades. By Sunday the blaze had consumed more than 22 square miles of forest land. The cause is under investigation.
Semiconductor bill unites Sanders, the right — in opposition
A bill to boost semiconductor production in the United States has managed to do nearly the unthinkable — unite Sen. Bernie Sanders and the tea party. The bill making its way through the Senate is a top priority of the Biden administration. It would subsidize computer chip manufacturers through grants and tax breaks when they build or expand chip plants in the U.S. Supporters say the U.S. must join other nations courting the chip industry or risk losing a secure supply of semiconductors. But Sanders and a wide range of conservative lawmakers, think tanks and media outlets have a different take on the bill. They call the effort “corporate welfare.”
Pope lands in Canada, set for apologies to Indigenous groups
Pope Francis has landed in Canada, beginning a historic visit to apologize to Indigenous peoples for abuses by missionaries at residential schools. The trip is a key step in the Catholic Church’s efforts to reconcile with Indigenous communities and help them heal from generations of trauma. Francis kissed the hand of a residential school survivor as he was greeted at the Edmonton, Alberta airport by Indigenous representatives, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mary Simon, an Inuk who is Canada’s first Indigenous governor general. On Monday, the pope is meeting with school survivors in Maskwacis, where he is expected to deliver an apology. Indigenous groups are seeking more, though, including access to church archives to learn the fate of children who never returned home.
Congo to auction rainforest land to oil companies
Congo, home to one of the largest old-growth rainforests on Earth, is auctioning off vast amounts of land in a push to become “the new destination for oil investments,” part of a global shift as the world retreats on fighting climate change in a scramble for fossil fuels. The oil and gas blocks, which will be auctioned in late July, extend into Virunga National Park, the world’s most important gorilla sanctuary, as well as tropical peatlands that store vast amounts of carbon, keeping it out of the atmosphere and from contributing to global warming.
Russia says strike on Ukrainian port hit military targets
Russian defense officials insist that an airstrike on the Ukrainian port of Odesa hit only military targets. But the attack tested an agreement on resuming grain shipments that the two countries signed less than a day before the assault. Long-range missiles destroyed a docked Ukrainian warship and a warehouse holding Harpoon anti-ship missiles supplied by the U.S. That’s according to Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack “destroyed the very possibility” of dialogue with Russia. Under the grain-shipment agreement obtained by The Associated Press, both Kyiv and Moscow agreed not to target vessels and port facilities involved in the initiative.
At least 17 migrants die after boat capsizes Off Bahamas
At least 17 Haitians, including a child, died Sunday after their boat capsized off the Bahamas on its way to Florida, the latest tragedy amid a spike in the number of migrants trying to reach the United States by sea. Local authorities said they had rescued 25 passengers from the 30-foot speedboat, which overturned in rough seas about 7 miles from the Bahamas’ most populated island, New Providence, shortly after midnight Sunday. They said that up to 60 people had been in the boat and that the Bahamian and U.S. coast guards were searching for those missing.