Thursday, May 5 top stories
It is Thursday, May 5. Here are today’s top stories.
Companies vow to help workers with abortion access
Multiple companies in the U.S. have vowed to help their employees who may need access to abortion by paying for travel expenses if they live in a state that has restrictions on abortion.
The Supreme Court may overturn Roe v. Wade according to a leaked draft opinion. This would take away the constitutional right to abortion and allow individual states to impose a ban.
Some of the companies who have promised support are Apple, Amazon, Levi Strauss & Co., Salesforce, Yelp, and Citigroup.
CBS News said 13 states have “trigger laws” that would immediately restrict abortion if Roe v. Wade is overturned. They are Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming.
CNN said a total of 26 states may ban or restrict abortions. So people who live in these states would have to travel to a legal state, which is why the aforementioned companies are offering to cover travel expenses.
In separate but related news, Canada’s Minister of Public Safety said he wants to make it clear that Americans can come to Canada to have access to abortion.
WHO says 15 million died due to pandemic
The World Health Organization said its new estimates of the death toll associated directly or indirectly with the Covid-19 pandemic between January 2020 to December 2021 was “approximately 14.9 million.”
WHO said the almost 15 million deaths includes “excess mortality,” which is the “difference between the number of deaths that have occurred and the number that would be expected in the absence of the pandemic based on data from earlier years.”
There are just over 5 million coronavirus deaths that are officially reported. The WHO believes many countries undercounted their numbers.
The excess deaths includes those who died from not receiving healthcare due to overwhelmed hospitals or clinics.
Three updates on war in Ukraine
Here are three updates on the war in Ukraine.
The New York Times reported that the U.S. has “provided intelligence about Russian units that has allowed Ukrainians to target and kill many of the Russian generals who have died in action in the Ukraine war.” About 12 Russian generals were killed.
At the Azovstal steel plant in southeastern Ukraine, an Ukrainian military leader said there is a “bloody combat” going on. There is supposed to be a pause in fighting during the daytime to allow civilians to evacuate, but the Ukrainian military leader said Russian troops did not honor that truce.
The office of the Prime Minister of Israel said Putin has apologized for a comment that a top Russian official made a few days ago about Adolf Hitler having “Jewish blood.” The official said this to justify calling Ukraine’s president, who is Jewish, a Nazi. When this remark was made, Israeli officials were angered and condemned it as antisemitic lies. The Israeli PM’s office said they accepted Putin’s apology.
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Manhunt still on for Alabama jail official and inmate
The manhunt for an Alabama prison official, Vicky White, and an inmate she is accused of helping to escape, Casey White, is now in its seventh day. Casey is charged with murder.
Surveillance videos show Vicky casually allowing Casey into her law enforcement vehicle last week. Vicky had told others that she was taking Casey to a mental health appointment, but that appointment never existed.
A county sheriff said the pair had a relationship of some kind for at least two years. Vicky sold her home less than two weeks before the escape, so she may have a lot of cash on hand. Law enforcement are warning that the pair should be considered armed and dangerous.
Wildfire in New Mexico
There is a huge wildfire in northern New Mexico that has torched over 160,000 acres. The fire’s name is the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak fire.
The New York Times said many of who fled the megafire are “descendants of Hispanic settlers who arrived in New Mexico long before the United States came into existence. They intermarried with Native Americans” and developed farming strategies and a culture.
The fire has not killed anyone, but it has destroyed at least 172 homes. The fire is only 20% contained and experts warn that it could spread in the next few days because of dry weather. There are over 12 other wildfires in the American Southwest.
Karine Jean-Pierre to make history
President Biden announced that Karine Jean-Pierre will become the new White House press secretary after Jen Psaki leaves in the next few weeks. Jean-Pierre would be the first Black person in that role. She is also openly lesbian so that will also be a historic first.
Psaki is expected to depart on May 13 and will take a job with MSNBC.
Biden said she has “the experience, talent and integrity needed for this difficult job.”
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.axios.com/2022/05/05/abortion-travel-benefit-uber-apple-amazon-lyft
https://globalnews.ca/news/8808959/americans-travelling-to-canada-for-abortions/
https://www.bbc.com/news/health-61327778
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/04/us/politics/russia-generals-killed-ukraine.html
https://www.axios.com/2022/05/05/putin-apologizes-hitler-jewish-blood-israel
https://www.foxnews.com/us/alabama-corrections-vicky-white-planned-escape-body-language-expert
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/05/us/new-mexico-wildfires.html
https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/05/politics/jen-psaki-karine-jean-pierre/index.html