Biden, Xi could meet in person, US official says
President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping could meet in person for the first time since Biden took office, a senior administration official says. The two leaders spent more than two hours on the phone Thursday amid rising tensions between their nations. Xi emphasized China’s claim over Taiwan, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs says “those who play with fire will perish by it.” For its part, the White House says Biden underscored U.S. opposition to “unilateral efforts to change the status quo or undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.” Relations between the two countries have been strained by talk of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s potential trip to the island, which has a democratic government.
2016 campaign looms large as Justice Department pursues Jan. 6 inquiry
As the Justice Department investigation into the attack on the Capitol grinds ever closer to former President Donald Trump, it has prompted persistent reminders of the backlash caused by inquiries into Trump and Hillary Rodham Clinton during the 2016 presidential campaign. Attorney General Merrick Garland is intent on avoiding even the slightest errors, which could taint the current investigation, provide Trump’s defenders with reasons to say the inquiry was driven by animus or undo his effort to rehabilitate the department’s reputation. Garland never seriously considered focusing on Trump from the outset, as investigators had done earlier with Trump and with Clinton during her email investigation, people close to him say.
Surprise deal would be most ambitious climate action undertaken by US
The $369 billion climate and tax package forged in a surprise deal by Senate Democrats would be the most ambitious action ever taken by the United States to try to stop the planet from catastrophically overheating. The agreement, which Senate Democrats announced late Wednesday and hope to pass as early as next week, shocked even some who had been involved in the sputtering negotiations over climate legislation during the past year. The announcement of a deal, after many activists had given up hope, almost instantly reset the role of the United States in the global effort to fight climate change.
Flooding in central Appalachia kills at least 8 in Kentucky
Heavy rains have caused flash flooding and mudslides as storms pound parts of central Appalachia. Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday at least eight people have died from flooding in Kentucky. He says property damage has been massive, with hundreds losing their homes. Water rescues continue across the region. In eastern Kentucky’s Perry County, the emergency management director calls the damage “catastrophic.” More than 30,000 customers are without power in parts of Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia. The city of Hazard, Kentucky is urging people to “pray for a break in the rain.”
Alaska formally recognizes Native tribes
Gov. Mike Dunleavy on Thursday signed a bill recognizing Alaska’s Native tribes, in a formal acknowledgment of tribes’ sovereignty by the state. The bill signing event was held at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in Anchorage, where a large and emotional crowd included tribal leaders, state lawmakers and candidates running for elected office. The measure passed the Legislature in May with bipartisan support. Alaska Federation of Natives President Julie Kitka said in a statement ahead of the bill signing that for the more than 220 federally recognized tribes in Alaska, the bill will mark “a step toward building a stronger relationship with our state government.”
Floyd family, others see inequality in penalties for ex-cops
Three former Minneapolis police officers went before a federal judge during the last week to be sentenced for violating George Floyd’s civil rights, and for each man, U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson handed out penalties well below what prosecutors sought and below federal guidelines. While Derek Chauvin got 21 years in federal prison, the other officers got sentences ranging from 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 years. For some Floyd family members and activists, the penalties were too small — and a bitter reminder of a justice system they say does not treat all people equally. Floyd’s uncle, Selwyn Jones, said the judicial system favored people who should be locked up forever.
US prisoner swap offer highlights uncomfortable choices
One is perhaps the world’s most notorious arms dealer. The other is a basketball player who got caught with a little hashish oil. By no measure are they comparable, yet the Biden administration has proposed trading convicted arms trafficker Viktor Bout for WNBA player Brittney Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan, who are both imprisoned in Russia. The disclosure of the negotiations raised obvious questions about what, if any, standards should apply when the United States agrees to trade prisoners, a conundrum that has challenged the nation’s leaders since its founding. Whether the swap would go through remained unclear.
Memphis woman cremated in Fiji, husband charged with murder
The family of a Tennessee woman who died on her honeymoon in Fiji decided to cremate her in the South Pacific nation because her body was badly damaged, a lawyer representing the family says. Christie Chen died around July 8th at the exclusive Turtle Island resort. Her husband Bradley Robert Dawson, 38, has been charged with her murder and made his first appearance at Fiji’s Lautoka High Court on Wednesday. The case has been adjourned until next month and Dawson, who remains in jail, has not yet entered a plea. If found guilty, he could face a sentence of life imprisonment.
England overhauls medical care for transgender youth
The National Health Service in England announced Thursday that it was shutting down the country’s only youth gender clinic in favor of a more distributed and comprehensive network of medical care for adolescents seeking hormones and other gender treatments. The overhaul of services for transgender young people in England is part of a notable shift in medical practice across some European countries with nationalized health care systems. Some doctors there are concerned about the increase in numbers as well as the dearth of data on long-term safety and outcomes of medical transitions.
Russia attacks Kyiv area for the first time in weeks
Russian forces launched missile strikes Thursday on the Kyiv area and the northern Chernihiv region for the first time in weeks, in what a Ukrainian official said was revenge for the fierce resistance the Kremlin has faced after it invaded its neighbor. The renewed strikes on the areas come a day after the leader of pro-Kremlin separatists in the east publicly called on the Russian forces to “liberate” a number of Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv and Chernihiv. Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials announced an operation to liberate an occupied region in the country’s south. Ukrainian media quoted the presidential adviser as saying that Ukraine’s operation to liberate the region of Kherson “has already begun.”
By wire sources