news,english
Amna Nawaz:
In the day's other news: President Biden announced that the U.S. will send 20 million COVID-19 vaccines overseas by the end of June.
They will come from Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson stockpiles. That's in addition to the 60 million AstraZeneca doses Biden already pledged to send abroad by the same date. The president made that commitment at the White House today, but stopped short of saying which countries will receive the vaccine.
Pres. Joe Biden:
This will be more vaccines than any country has actually shared to date, five times more than any other country. We will share these vaccines in the service of ending the pandemic everywhere. And we will not use our vaccines to secure favors from other countries.
Amna Nawaz:
Meanwhile, concerns are mounting over the CDC's decision to relax masking guidance for fully vaccinated people. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said on "FOX News Sunday" that the decision was based on science and not on political pressure.
We will have more on this story later in the program.
In Western India, authorities tried to evacuate more than 200,000 people from the path of a powerful cyclone. The storm roared up the coast of Southern India and made landfall in the state of Gujarat with winds up to 103 miles an hour. About a dozen people have already been killed. Forecasters say it will be the most severe cyclone to hit the area in more than two decades.
Saloni Rai (through translator):
This cyclone is going to have extremely high wind speeds and extremely heavy rainfall. This storm is expected to damage all thatched roof buildings.
Amna Nawaz:
COVID-19 vaccination efforts in Gujarat were suspended for two days. Officials fear the cyclone will worsen the pandemic's already devastating impact there.
Back in this country, the Supreme Court today agreed to consider a Mississippi state law that bans abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Lower courts have blocked the measure as inconsistent with previous high court precedent. Oral arguments are expected to start this fall. We will discuss this case later in the program.
Telecom giant AT&T is merging its media business with Discovery to better compete with rival streaming services. The $43 billion deal will combine several businesses, including CNN, HBO, HGTV, and The Food Network. Analysts said the move will help the new company take on major competitors like Netflix, Amazon, and Disney+.
Evacuation orders are in place for about 1,000 Southern California residents as a wild file — fire, rather, burns out of control in Los Angeles county. One arson suspect was arrested. The blaze broke out late Friday in the Santa Monica Mountains, before rapidly scorching its way through dry vegetation in Topanga Canyon.
Fire officials said the drought fueled the fire.
Ralph Terrazas:
Our relative humidity was almost 60 percent. Our wind speed was below 10 miles per hour, but we still had active fire. That tells you that the drought, that the years of — that have gone by before the — since the last fire, sometimes as long as 75 years, have changed the equation.
Amna Nawaz:
There were no reports of injuries or structural damage.
Some 12,000 gas stations in the Southeastern U.S. are still without fuel tonight, after a cyberattack on the nation's largest gas pipeline. Colonial Pipeline resumed operations Saturday after a six-day shutdown. But the incident triggered widespread panic-buying, and, today, the price of gas hit a seven-year high.
Former Florida politician Joel Greenberg pleaded guilty to six charges in federal court today, including sex trafficking of a minor. As part of his plea deal filed on Friday, Greenberg agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in the federal probe of his former associate Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz. Federal authorities are investigating the congressman for possible sex trafficking of a minor. Gaetz denies any wrongdoing.
The governing body for horse racing in New York has temporarily suspended trainer Bob Baffert from entering horses at racetracks in the state. That includes next month's Belmont Stakes. His horse Medina Spirit tested positive for a banned steroid after winning the Kentucky Derby and is now under investigation. The horse came in third in Saturday's Preakness Stakes.
President Biden released his 2020 federal income tax return today. The president and first lady reported federal adjusted gross income of over $607,000. They paid more than $157,000 in federal income tax and donated over $30,000 to charity.
Former President Trump broke a longstanding tradition of presidents releasing their tax information.
The Treasury Department today said 39 million families will begin receiving monthly child tax credit payments beginning July 15. They're part of President Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID relief package.
And on Wall Street today, a lag in tech shares pushed stocks lower. The Dow Jones industrial average lost 54 points to close at 34328. The Nasdaq fell 51 points, and the S&P 500 slipped 10.
from:pbs