Monday, July 11 top stories
It is Monday, July 11. Thank you to Callie Frye for covering the past several days’ top stories. Ready for today’s top stories?
Elon Musk wants to abandon Twitter deal
Elon Musk is now trying to abandon his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter.
In April, Musk said he wanted to buy the company to make it private and defend “free speech.” In the weeks that followed, there were fights between Musk and Twitter over the amount of fake, “bot” accounts it had. Musk said it was more than 20%, while Twitter said it was less than 5%.
Now Musk wants to walk away — presumably because of the fake accounts issue — but Twitter’s officials said they would not allow Musk to walk away and said it would fight in court to get Musk to buy the company for the $44 billion agreement.
CNBC explained that Twitter shares have significantly declined ever since Musk declared he would buy the company at $54.20 a share. Twitter stocks are currently at about $36.00 a share.
Back then when Musk was high on buying Twitter, he said he would restore Donald Trump’s banned account and that he would vote Republican for the first time. On Saturday Trump, during a rally in Alaska, said Musk previously told him that he voted for him, a Republican. Trump said, “he’s another b——— artist.”
Floating abortion clinic in Gulf
A doctor in California has proposed an abortion clinic to be placed on a ship in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico to provide access to abortion for people who live in southern states that ban abortions.
The doctor, Dr. Meg Autry, said the ship would offer “first trimester surgical abortions, contraception and other care…”
AP News explained that the ship would be in federal waters and out of reach of state laws.
Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas have abortion bans currently in effect. Florida prohibits abortions after 15 weeks with some exceptions.
Poll shows most Democrats don’t want Biden in 2024
A New York Times/Siena College poll shows that 64% of Democratic voters do not want to see President Joe Biden run for re-election in 2024. Biden currently has a 33% approval rating from a poll of voters nationwide.
The biggest concerns are the U.S. economy, inflation, and a feeling that the U.S. is moving in the wrong direction.
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Sri Lanka protests
Tens of thousands of protesters in Sri Lanka stormed the president’s official residence to demand his resignation after months of anger over the country’s economic crisis.
News videos and images showed protesters inside of the house and swimming in its pool. There were over 100,000 protesters outside of the house.
The president, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, fled the area and later said he would resign. His private home was set on fire.
The prime minister, a different person, also said he would resign once all parties agree on forming a new government.
CNN said Sri Lanka is “suffering its worst financial crisis in recent history, leaving millions struggling to buy food, medicine and fuel.”
Russian rocket kills 24 in Ukraine
On Saturday, a Russian rocket struck an apartment in the eastern Ukrainian city of Chasiv Yar, killing at least 24 people. There are videos showing first responders rescuing a man from the rubble and carrying away the dead in body bags. In the same city, a railway station was shelled, causing it to burn up in flames.
In Kharkiv, Ukrainians say they are facing Russian shelling that makes it very dangerous to go outdoors.
The Ukrainian government said Russian forces have launched a wave of attacks on various cities in the east of the country and that it looks like they are preparing to intensify their attacks.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy said Russia should be deemed a “terrorist state.”
Woman hid mother’s body in freezer to keep collecting disability benefits
Local news in Florida reported that a 64-year-old woman was arrested for allegedly putting her 93-year-old deceased mother inside a large freezer and leaving it there so she could collect her disability benefits.
The daughter’s name is Michele Hoskins. Her mother’s name was Marie.
Police said Michele admitted that she found her mother deceased in her bedroom and then bought a deep freezer for the purpose of concealing her death.
Investigators said the mother, Marie, died from natural causes and was dead for about two weeks before she was placed inside the freezer. Police found a soiled mattress in the backyard that was hidden by thick brush and covered with cut palm tree branches.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.axios.com/2022/07/08/elon-musk-twitter-deal-terminating
https://www.axios.com/2022/05/17/elon-musk-twitter-timeline
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/11/8-ways-the-elon-musk-twitter-saga-could-end.html
https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/09/asia/sri-lanka-protest-president-saturday-intl-hnk/index.html
https://www.axios.com/2022/07/09/sri-lanka-protests-rajapaksa-resign-economic-crisis
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/11/us/politics/biden-approval-polling-2024.html
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/11/live-updates-latest-russia-news-and-the-war-in-ukraine.html
https://www.wpbf.com/article/woman-arrested-for-hiding-mothers-dead-body-in-freezer/40559570