White House student loan forgiveness could cost about $400B
President Joe Biden’s plan to erase significant amounts of student loan debt for tens of millions of Americans could cost about $400 billion, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said in a report Monday, making it one of the costliest programs in the president’s agenda. The CBO said the price tag might go higher because of Biden’s decision to extend a pause on federal student loan repayments through the end of the year, which could cost some $20 billion. The report gauged the cost over a period of 30 years, though the bulk of economic effects would be felt over the next decade.
Florida urges some to begin evacuating as Hurricane Ian strengthens
As Hurricane Ian gathered strength and headed north toward Cuba and the United States, authorities in Florida urged residents Monday to begin evacuating some low-lying areas and to prepare for dangerous storm surges, flooding and damage this week. Ian is expected to become a major hurricane — meaning Category 3 or stronger, with winds of at least 111 mph — as soon as Monday night when it nears Cuba, forecasters said. On Tuesday, Ian is expected to move into the Gulf of Mexico, crawl west of the Florida Keys later Tuesday and then approach the west coast of Florida on Wednesday.
Monkeypox appears to recede, but risks and uncertainties linger
Nearly four months after the first report of monkeypox in the United States, the virus is showing signs of retreat, easing fears that it may spill over into populations of older adults, pregnant women and young children. Vaccine supply has improved, and federal health officials have begun clinical trials to better understand both the vaccine and the drug used to treat those who become infected. That’s the good news. But unhappily, case numbers are accelerating in a few states and jurisdictions, including Indiana, Virginia and Massachusetts. Black and Hispanic men make up nearly two-thirds of the infected, but only about one-fourth of those vaccinated so far.
Harrowing film tells of Las Vegas shooting and its aftermath
The harrowing new film “11 Minutes” gives a vivid picture of what it was like to go through the Las Vegas country music massacre five years ago, the worst mass shooting in modern U.S. history. It also tells the stories of humanity that night, and how people worked to recover both physically and emotionally. The film was initiated by Ashley Hoff, a woman in the documentary business who was standing four rows deep listening to Jason Aldean when the gunshots began on Oct. 1, 2017. The film, over three hours long and unspooling in four parts, debuts Tuesday on the Paramount+ streaming service.
Tense Japan holds funeral for assassinated ex-leader Abe
A tense Japan is holding a rare and controversial state funeral for assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, its longest-serving modern leader and one of the most divisive. Tokyo was under maximum security, with angry protests opposing the funeral planned. World leaders, including U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, are attending. Opponents of the state-sponsored funeral, which has its roots in prewar imperial ceremonies, say taxpayers’ money should be spent on more meaningful causes. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has been criticized for forcing through the costly event to honor his mentor, Abe, who was assassinated in July. There has also been a widening controversy about Abe’s and the governing party’s decades-long close ties with the ultra-conservative Unification Church.
Cuba approves same-sex marriage in historic vote
Cubans overwhelmingly approved a sweeping referendum that will allow same-sex couples to marry and adopt children, the national election commission said Monday, a resounding victory for advocates of LGBTQ rights in a country that once sent gay men to labor camps. About 67% of voters, nearly 4 million, voted in favor, according to the Cuban government. About 33%, or 2 million people, opposed the measure. President Miguel Díaz-Canel celebrated the passage of the 100-page referendum, saying in a statement that “love is now the law.” The referendum, which also expands protections for women, children and the elderly, had faced opposition from the Roman Catholic Church.
Russia gives citizenship to ex-NSA contractor Edward Snowden
Russian President Vladimir Putin has granted Russian citizenship to Edward Snowden, a former contractor with the U.S. National Security Agency. He has been living in Russia since 2013 to escape prosecution in the U.S. after leaking classified documents detailing government surveillance programs. He was granted permanent residency in 2020. Snowden has said he made the disclosures because he believed the U.S. intelligence community had gone too far and wrongly infringed on civil liberties. Snowden, 39, is considered by supporters to be a whistleblower who wanted to protect American civil liberties, He currently faces charges of unauthorized disclosure of U.S. national security and intelligence information that could result in decades in prison.
17 dead, 24 wounded in school shooting in Russia
Authorities say a gunman has killed 17 people and wounded 24 others in a school in central Russia. According to officials, 11 children were among those killed in the Monday morning shooting in School No. 88 in Izhevsk, a city 600 miles east of Moscow. The governor of the region said the gunman killed himself after the attack. Russia’s Investigative Committee identified the gunman as 34-year-old Artyom Kazantsev, a graduate of the school, and the governor said he was a patient at a psychiatric facility. He used two non-lethal handguns adapted to fire real bullets. An investigation has been launched on multiple murder charges.
By wire sources