Biden's lead among women is narrower than Trump's among men
President Joe Biden's path to victory depends almost entirely on strong support from women. But his current approval rating among women is the weakest lead a Democrat has had since 2004. Biden's lead among women has fallen to about 8 percentage points since the 2020 election, down from about 13 percentage points among women four years ago, according to an average of more than 30 polls conducted in the past six months and compiled by The New York Times. And since the 2020 election, former President Donald Trump's support among men has recovered to the double-digit lead he had in 2016.
Kennedy disqualified from CNN debate
According to the outlet, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. did not qualify for CNN's June 27 presidential debate by the network's Thursday deadline. This is a major blow to his candidacy as an independent presidential candidate, who will miss out on a coveted national stage alongside President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. In a statement Thursday, Kennedy called being excluded from the debate “undemocratic, un-American and cowardly.” Qualifying for the CNN debate, one of two scheduled presidential debates before Election Day, would have been a big prize for the Kennedy campaign. Not since Ross Perot in 1992 has a third party or independent presidential candidate appeared on the national debate stage.
Floods hit New Mexico as storms quell wildfires
In southern New Mexico, two wildfires continued to burn Thursday despite heavy rainfall the day before, leaving firefighters in the mountains around the village of Ruidoso to deal with a mix of raging flames and rising floodwaters. The fast-spreading fires have killed two people, burned hundreds of homes and forced thousands to evacuate. More rain was expected Thursday night, helping to contain the fires but also bringing a new danger: flash flooding from overflowing streams. Much of the land around Ruidoso was already inundated by rain or damaged by fire, making the flooding even worse.
Nearly 100 million people under temperature warning as heatwave continues
Nearly 100 million people across the United States spent the first day of summer Thursday in temperatures exceeding 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Meteorologists warned that a high pressure system that has swept across the U.S. for the past four days will linger in many places through the weekend. The heat has shattered temperature records and altered daily routines from river valleys in the Midwest to the pine forests of New England, with roughly one-third of Americans under a heat watch, warning or watch on Thursday, according to the National Integrated Heatstroke Information System.
European sanctions target Russian liquefied natural gas for first time
The European Union (EU) has agreed to a new set of economic sanctions against Russian individuals and companies, the Belgian government announced on Thursday. Notably, the measures include measures aimed at squeezing Russia's profits from liquefied natural gas sales to EU member states. Most EU countries stopped importing natural gas arriving from Russia by pipeline after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. However, the EU has refrained from imposing formal sanctions on Russian natural gas imports, and many EU countries are instead buying LNG from Russia that arrives by ship. The latest measures also include measures targeting Russian LNG imports that pass through EU ports on their way to other countries.
Mortgage rates remain high and new home construction slows
In the United States, new home construction fell short of expectations in May as homebuilders pulled back on new housing projects, mainly in response to high interest rates. New home construction, or housing starts, fell 5.5% last month to an annual rate of 1.28 million, government data released Thursday, signaling further cracks in an already shaky housing market. Building permits fell 3.8%, suggesting less future construction. The slump comes as average interest rates on 30-year mortgages, the most popular type of mortgage in the United States, hit their highest levels in decades, though rates edged down slightly this week to 6.87%, Freddie Mac reported Thursday.
TikTok clarifies past efforts to address U.S. concerns
TikTok detailed on Thursday why it believes new federal legislation that could lead to a ban of the popular video app in January is unconstitutional, calling the law an “extraordinary restriction on speech.” The company said Congress did not consider the law — which would force TikTok's Chinese owners to either sell the popular social media app or face being banned in the U.S. — with enough scrutiny and care. TikTok filed its argument with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, and filed a lawsuit in May seeking to block the law.
IRS extends freeze on pandemic-era tax credits amid widespread fraud
The IRS is expanding efforts to crack down on fraud in pandemic-era tax credit programs after an internal analysis found the majority of the backlogged claims were improper. The agency announced Thursday it was extending a freeze on new claims for the Employee Retention Tax Credit program, which allows businesses to collect up to $26,000 per employee. The original program, which was expanded in 2021, was projected to cost the federal government $55 billion over 10 years. But through September, the IRS had received nearly 4 million claims and paid out $230 billion in employee retention refunds.
Dutch leader set to become NATO secretary-general
Mark Rutte, the outgoing Dutch prime minister who has led more than $3 billion in Dutch military aid to Ukraine since 2022, got the final confirmation he needed to become NATO's next secretary-general on Thursday. After Romanian President Klaus Iohannis withdrew his candidacy for the post on Thursday, it became all but certain that the 57-year-old Rutte will be formally elected to a four-year term at the helm of the Atlantic alliance, which could happen as early as next week, before NATO's high-level summit in Washington in July. Rutte would become the fourth Dutch official to become NATO's top diplomat.
Stonehenge is doused in orange powder in climate change protests
Two environmental activists have been arrested in the UK for spraying stones at Stonehenge with orange powder, which they say they were trying to draw attention to the environmental impact of fossil fuels. The attack on the prehistoric site took place on Wednesday as the stones drew attention as people in the Northern Hemisphere celebrated the arrival of the summer solstice. No damage was done to the stones, said Nick Merriman, CEO of English Heritage, the charity that manages Stonehenge. The protesters face charges of criminal damage to property for obstructing lawful conduct and damaging an ancient monument.
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