USA Outlook, June 27 to July 1, 2022

USA OUTLOOK Weekly newsletter June 27 to July 1

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June 27, 2022

June 28, 2022

51 migrants die after trailer abandoned in San Antonio heat Desperate families of migrants from Mexico and Central America frantically sought word of their loved ones as authorities began the grim task Tuesday of identifying 51 people who died after being abandoned in a tractor-trailer without air conditioning in the sweltering Texas heat.

It was the deadliest tragedy to claim the lives of migrants smuggled across the border from Mexico.

The driver of the truck and two other people were arrested, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas told The Associated Press.

He said the truck had passed through a Border Patrol checkpoint northeast of Laredo, Texas, on Interstate 35. He did not know if migrants were inside the truck when it cleared the checkpoint.

Photo: cbs news

Investigators traced the truck’s registration to a residence in San Antonio and detained two men from Mexico for possession of weapons, according to criminal complaints filed by the U.S. attorney’s office.

Social Security’s cost-of-living bump could reach almost 11% Millions of U.S. seniors and others who receive Social Security benefits are on track for a big costof-living adjustment, or COLA, in early 2023 to catch up to the fiercest inflation in four decades.

One group now estimates that the boost could be as high as 10.8%.

By comparison, a Social Security official earlier this month said he expects a COLA bump of about 8%, based on the current inflationary trends.

But if inflation continues at its current pace — the cost of goods and services in May accelerated to 8.6% — seniors could receive a COLA hike of 10.8% in early 2023, according to the new analysis from the non-partisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. If inflation grinds to a halt over the final months of 2022, seniors would receive a COLA increase of 7.3%, the group predicted.

Photo: AP Photo / Eric Gay Fuente Source

Fuente Source

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/social-security-cola-increase-2023-11-percent/

https://apnews.com/article/politics-mexico-san-antonio-12d7431c008ea0123d fa9c271a27a3ca

June 28, 2022

June 30, 2022

How the Supreme Court ruling will gut the EPA’s ability to fight the climate crisis The Supreme Court on Thursday dealt a major blow to climate action by handcuffing the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate planet-warming emissions from the country’s power plants, just as scientists warn the world is running out of time to get the climate crisis under control.

It is a major loss for not only the Biden administration’s climate goals, but it also calls into question the future of federal-level climate action and puts even more pressure on Congress to act to reduce emissions.

Experts tell CNN it could set the US back years on its path to rein in the climate crisis and its deadly, costly impacts.

Photo: AP Photo / Charles Krupa

FDA advisers recommend strain update to Covid-19 boosters ahead of expected fall surge

The opinion makes it “more difficult to achieve larger-scale emissions reductions,” Andres Restrepo, senior attorney for the Sierra Club’s Environmental Law Program, told CNN. “To avoid the worst impacts of climate change we need to do a lot more and move a lot faster. That’s why today’s ruling is such a setback.”

The advisory committee signaled a preference for the strain composition to target the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants.

The FDA’s independent vaccine advisers voted 19-2 Tuesday to recommend the agency authorize Covid-19 booster formulations that target the Omicron variant, while acknowledging data gaps that persist on the shots’ efficacy over time.

The advisory committee signaled a preference for the strain composition to target the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants that currently account for more than half of all U.S. Covid infections, rather than deploying shots targeting the original Omicron variant that began circulating domestically in late 2021. Panel members also suggested they prefer a bivalent shot, or one formulated to target both Omicron and the novel coronavirus that emerged in late 2019.

Photo: Luke Sharrett | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Fuente Source

Fuente Source

https://www.politico.com/news/2022/06/28/fda-strain-update-covid-19boosters-00042943

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/06/30/politics/epa-supreme-court-ruling-effect/ index.html

June 30, 2022

Photo: AP / John Minchillo

Cities across the US are canceling or postponing July 4th fireworks shows due to supply-chain snags, labor shortages, and the risk of wildfires The 4th of July will be noticeably quieter in many cities and towns across the country this year.

That’s because fireworks — and the local workers who make fireworks shows happen — are in short supply due to a combination of supply-chain lags and pandemic-related job changes. Those issues, along with environmental risks, have led to many municipalities delaying their pyrotechnic displays by days or even months, or simply canceling them altogether.

In Phoenix, this year’s three major fireworks shows were canceled after the city’s contractor was unable to find fireworks for the event due to

“ongoing supply chain issues,” the city said in a post on its website. The same was true in Ottawa, Kansas, where the fireworks the city ordered are still stuck on a ship coming from China, The Wall Street Journal reports. Ottawa will now host its July 4th fireworks show a bit late — two months late, in fact.

Earlier this year, the American Pyrotechnics Association, a trade group for the fireworks industry, warned of a challenging fireworks season ahead. Raw-materials costs have jumped 20% and shipping costs have risen “dramatically” since 2019, from $8,000 to $10,000 per shipping container to $45,000 per container, the group said.

Fuente Source https://www.businessinsider.com/fireworks-shortage-july-4-wildfire-risk-labor-shortage-2022-6