Northwest heat wave builds, records fall
PORTLAND, Ore. — Intense. Prolonged. Record-breaking. Unprecedented. Abnormal. Dangerous.
That’s how the National Weather Service described the historic heat wave hitting the Pacific Northwest, pushing daytime temperatures into the triple digits, disrupting Olympic qualifying events and breaking all-time high temperature records in places unaccustomed to such extreme heat.
Portland, Oregon, reached 112 degrees Fahrenheit Sunday, breaking the all-time temperature record of 108 F, which was set just a day earlier.
In Eugene, Oregon, the U.S. track and field trials were halted Sunday afternoon and fans were asked to evacuate the stadium due to extreme heat. The National Weather Service said it hit 110 F in Eugene, breaking the all-time record of 108 F.
Oregon’s Capital city, Salem, also recorded the highest temperature in its history on Sunday: 112 F, breaking the old mark by 4 degrees.
Infrastructure deal back on track after walk-back
WASHINGTON — A bipartisan deal to invest nearly $1 trillion in the nation’s infrastructure appeared to be back on track Sunday after a stark walk-back by President Joe Biden to his earlier insistence that the bill be coupled with an even larger Democrat-backed measure in order to earn his signature.
Republican senators who brokered the agreement with the White House and Democrats to fund badly needed investments in roads, bridges, water and broadband internet indicated they were satisfied with Biden’s comments that he was dropping the both-or-nothing approach. In a statement issued Saturday after 48 hours of behind-the-scenes maneuvering by the White House to salvage the deal, Biden said it was not his “intent” to suggest he was issuing a veto threat on the bill.
That proved to be enough for some wavering Republicans, who have privately and not-so-privately registered their displeasure at the linkage.
“Over the weeks and weeks in negotiations with Democrats and with the White House on an infrastructure bill, the president’s other agenda was never linked to the infrastructure effort,” Utah Republican Sen. Mitt Romney said on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday. He said that if Biden had not put out the statement, “I think it would have been very, very hard for Republicans to say, yes, we support this.”
“We’re not going to sign up for a multitrillion-dollar spending spree,” he added, referencing the larger Democratic bill.
U.S. airstrikes target Iran-backed militias in Syria, Iraq
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military, under the direction of President Joe Biden, conducted airstrikes Sunday against what it said were “facilities used by Iran-backed militia groups” near the border between Iraq and Syria.
Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said the militias were using the facilities to launch unmanned aerial vehicle attacks against U.S. troops in Iraq.
Kirby said the U.S. military targeted three operational and weapons storage facilities — two in Syria and one in Iraq.
He described the airstrikes as “defensive,” saying they were launched in response to an “ongoing series of attacks by Iran-backed groups targeting U.S. interests in Iraq.”
“The United States took necessary, appropriate, and deliberate action designed to limit the risk of escalation — but also to send a clear and unambiguous deterrent message,” Kirby said.
With virtual and in-person events, NYC commemorates Pride
NEW YORK — New York City’s annual LGBTQ Pride parade was held virtually for the second year in a row Sunday due to the pandemic, but that didn’t stop thousands from marching, celebrating and making their presence felt at a series of events around the city.
The main New York City Pride parade, which usually draws throngs of participants and spectators, was presented as a television broadcast special, since now-lifted pandemic restrictions were still in effect at the time it was being planned.
In a pre-recorded video aired during the event, actor Wilson Cruz, one of the parade’s grand marshals, said, “Pride for me is about how we work in earnest to truly include all of us across the spectrum of identities in our struggle for freedom and liberation.”
On a day marked with high temperatures and brilliant sunshine, throngs gathered around the city, at PrideFest, a street fair with vendors, food and entertainment in Manhattan; at Herald Square where a dance party was planned, and at Washington Square Park, where videos posted online showed a raucous party in progress. Fireworks, music and food were prepared for Pier 45 in Hudson River Park.
Five who died in hot air balloon crash identified
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Authorities on Sunday released the names of the pilot and two couples who died after a hot air balloon they were riding in struck a power line and crashed onto a busy street in Albuquerque.
New Mexico State Police on Sunday identified the pilot as 62-year-old Nicholas Meleski and the four passengers as Susan Montoya, 65; John Montoya, 61; Mary Martinez, 59; and Martin Martinez, 62. The ages of the Martinez couple were reversed when authorities released their identities Saturday.
All were Albuquerque residents.
State Police said John Montoya died at a hospital from his injuries while the other victims were declared dead at the crash scene Saturday.
By wire sources