Archive by Author

Equilibrium/Sustainability — Wolf relatives breeding themselves into climate 'trap'

Scientists have identified the first predators ever seen changing their reproductive strategy due to climate change: Distant relatives of the wolf, called African wild dogs.   

But their shift in reproduction — giving birth in cooler, winter temperatures — may actually be backfiring, as their young pups struggle to contend with the heat of worsening summers, according to a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“It is an unfortunate ‘out of the frying pan, into the fire’ situation,” Briana Abrahms of University of Washington said in a statement.

“African wild dogs shifted birthing dates later in order to keep pace with optimal cool temperatures,” Abrahms said, adding this adaptation forced newborn pups to spend their first weeks in burrows rendered ever warmer by climate change.

This “ultimately lowered survival,” Abrahms added.

In attempting to adapt to climate change, top predators like African wild dogs might “trap” themselves in a behavioral dead end, according to the study.

Welcome to Equilibrium, a newsletter that tracks the growing global battle over the future of sustainability.

Today we’ll start with a series of floods that ravaged the Southwest this weekend and find out what American physicians are describing as an emerging public health threat.

We’ll also see why the EU is expediting a switch to Ukrainian gas and why Ecuador is shaking up the finance world. 

Floods follow fires in Southwest 

Monsoon rains in northern New Mexico and Arizona over the weekend triggered floods and landslides on steep fire-scarred slopes, leading to wrecked houses, totaled cars and disrupted infrastructure. 

And with monsoons expected for much of the summer, more damage is coming, Phoenix-based ABC 15 reported. 

Tallying the damage: The weekend storms hit particularly hard in cities like Flagstaff in northern Arizona, Phoenix-based television station KPNX reported. 

• Several homes were also destroyed in Roswell, N.M., according to Nexstar affiliate KRQE.
• Nearly 5,000 homes in Arizona also lost power and parts of transcontinental Route 66 were closed, local news station FOX10 reported.

Water risk: Heavy rains also put heavy strain on the region’s water supplies, Todd Gartner of the World Resources Institute told Equilibrium. 

• “A lot of that soil ends up in our creeks, rivers, streams — where it can dramatically increase the costs of treatment for the municipal water utilities,” Gartner said. 
• He noted that the added strain from the higher levels of sediment would wear out equipment faster than usual.

A LONG WAR AGAINST LANDSLIDES  

The flood damage comes as the flip side of years of destructive fires have scourged the region’s mountain forests.  

• The region has faced nearly a decade of severe wildfires — most recently in June’s Pipeline and Hayward fires, CNN reported.
• Recent fires have destroyed trees whose roots would otherwise keep hillsides stable, according to an information sheet from the National Weather Service.
• One Flagstaff resident ended up with a driveway, first floor and backyard full of “liquified mud and ash,” KPNX reported. 

The man, who lives between three burn scars, said he has no flood insurance because providers “didn’t really think that this is a flood zone,” he told KPNX. 

Bracing for impact: The constant threat of landslides has forced many in Flagstaff to live with permanent fortifications against mud and flood, according to KPNX.

• These include the sandbags and trenches that have protected some neighborhoods for years, according to KPNX. 
• “It absolutely sucks, and the only thing we can do is help each other,” another resident told the outlet.

Physicians: Food insecurity a threat to public health

Insufficient access to nutrition is threatening American public health and exacerbating food insecurity and social issues, the American College of Physicians declared on Monday. 

More needs to be done: With about 10 percent of the U.S. population suffering from food insecurity, more needs to be done to address the source of the problem and prioritize resources for public health, the organization argued in a new position paper.

Public health imperative: Achieving these goals requires training medical professionals to better account for social drivers of health — such as access to food — that are happening beyond their office doors, according to the paper, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. 

“Strengthening access to good nutrition is a public health imperative,” Ryan Mire, president of the American College of Physicians, said in a video statement accompanying the paper. 

“We know that food insecurity is associated with worse mental and physical health,” added Mire, whose organization, which represents U.S. internists, is the largest medical-specialty group in the country.  

What can be done? The position paper provided several specific recommendations:  

• Officials must make food insecurity a policy and funding priority.  
• Lawmakers must improve the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) to better serve the needs of food insecure individuals. 
• The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services must develop, test and support innovative models that incorporate benefits related to food insecurity.  
• Medical professionals should initiate plans to help mitigate food insecurity issues experienced by their patients.   

What types of plans? In addition to screening patients for food insecurity, some such efforts could include incorporating the concept into medical education curricula, as well as establishing tools for referring patients to public resources, the authors explained.   

But this can’t be a solo effort. “Physicians cannot do this alone. These efforts need to be supported by governments, payers and other stakeholders,” Mire said. 

To read the full story, please click here.

EU may swap Russian for Ukrainian gas  

As the European Union scrambles to ensure a stable electricity supply this winter, the bloc is turning to what The Wall Street Journal described as “an unlikely source for help” — the war-torn nation of Ukraine.  

Significant reductions in Russian gas supplies following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine earlier this year have left EU nations seeking alternative resources to heat their buildings and generate electricity.

What’s the status now? At the moment, Ukraine’s electricity sales to Europe are limited to only to Poland and Moldova, but the country is expected to begin selling to Slovakia and Hungary soon, Reuters reported.  

Ukraine generates its electricity from a mix of coal, natural gas, petroleum, nuclear and renewable sources, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.  

The EU and Ukraine linked their electricity grids in mid-March in response to Russia’s invasion, which enabled Ukraine to receive emergency power if necessary, Reuters reported.

Pushing plans forward: Europe’s ongoing electricity struggle has prompted the bloc, together with Kyiv and American diplomats, to accelerate plans to fully connect to Ukraine’s electricity grid, according to the Journal.

Electricity to spare: While Ukraine experienced widespread blackouts as Russia attacked its infrastructure in earlier days of the war, now the country has electricity to spare after millions of its residents left, the Journal reported.  

“We have a surplus of power, and neighboring countries—they all have deficits,” Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, of electricity transmission operator NPC Ukrenergo, told the Journal. 

Years in the making: Ukrenergo had long been trying to unplug from the Belarusian and Russian power grids and connect to the EU’s system — ultimately signing a deal in 2017 that positioned them to do so by 2023, according to the Journal.  

But now, Ukrenergo and its Polish counterpart are aiming to finish the work in months — with U.S. diplomats facilitating talks between EU officials and power companies, the Journal reported. 

Conflict heats up over drilling in Amazon rain forest

Ecuador’s plans to finance its economy with a flush of oil revenues from new petroleum exploration in the Amazon has capsized against a wave of indigenous protests — threatening more disruption to world oil markets. 

• The U.S. imported about 4.5 million barrels of crude oil from Ecuador in March 2022, the last month for which the U.S. Energy Information Agency has data. 
• The crisis has put the South American country at the center of a growing fight in the global finance community over whether to finance extraction of the considerable oil reserves beneath the world’s largest rainforest  

Opposition shuts oil down: Two weeks of strikes, roadblocks, protests and destruction of oil equipment by a coalition of Indigenous nations from across the Amazon have brought Ecuador’s oil industry to its knees, Bloomberg reported. 

• Production will halt completely by Tuesday if the protests continue, the country’s energy ministry announced Sunday on Twitter. 
• Ecuador’s Amazon wells have historically produced about 500,000 barrels per day, according to Reuters.  
• That’s about as much as Alaska produces, according to a forecast from
  Gov. Mike Dunleavy (R-Alaska). 

Provoking a reaction: The protests began after Ecuador’s embattled President Guillermo Lasso pledged to double the country’s oil production to meet high prices, Reuters reported. 

The country planned to meet these production targets by selling off 3 million hectares (11,500 square miles) of oil leases in largely pristine rainforest, according to Reuters. 

• “Now that the global trend is to abandon fossil fuels, the time has come to extract every last drop of benefit from our oil,” Lasso said in a May speech, according to Ecuadorian news site Vistazo. 
• Most of Ecuador’s estimated 8.3 billion barrels of crude oil reserves are located in the Amazon, per the U.S. Energy Information Agency.  

Should the Amazon be off-limits to oil? The protests have heightened calls for an “Amazon exclusion policy” by some in the finance industry and among activist groups, Reuters reported. 

• These policies are based on the Arctic exclusion policies which some banks have adopted to protect northern ecosystems, per campaigners at U.S. nonprofit Stand.Earth. 
• In May, French bank BNP Paribas agreed to cut off financing for new oil and gas projects anywhere in the Amazon, according to Reuters.

Motor Monday 

Exxon CEO sees future for fossil fuels into the 2040s. Also, rising gas prices lead to electric vehicle price hikes, but iron-based batteries may help lower those costs. 

Every passenger car will be electric by 2040: ExxonMobil CEO 

• ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods predicted that by 2040, every new passenger car sold worldwide will be electric, CNBC reported. Last year, just 9 percent of cars sold were electric, including plug-in hybrids — up 109 percent from 2020, according to CNBC.    

Tesla, Ford, GM raise electric vehicle prices 

• As escalating gasoline prices prompt people to choose EVs, companies have begun to increase car prices, The Wall Street Journal reported. Tesla, Ford, GM, Rivian and Lucid have all raised prices on select models — a move that the Journal described as “capitalizing on strong consumer interest in EVs.”   

New battery relies on iron 

• Cheaper forms of batteries made from lithium-iron-phosphate have taken over in China’s car market and could open up new opportunities for inexpensive electric vehicles in the U.S., TechCrunch reported. The batteries come with longer ranges, a cheaper price tag — thanks to their simpler supply chain — and less risk of catching fire, according to the tech news site. 

Send us tips and feedback: Saul Elbein and Sharon Udasin. If you like this newsletter, please consider sharing it with a friend and subscribe here. See you tomorrow.

Source: TEST FEED1

Energy & Environment — Experts question effectiveness of gas tax break

Experts don’t have high hopes for a potential gas tax holiday’s benefit to consumers. 

Also, the Group of Seven is in talks for a Russian oil price cap, and the Biden administrationis taking new action on illegal fishing.  

This is Overnight Energy & Environment, your source for the latest news focused on energy, the environment and beyond. For The Hill, we’re Rachel Frazin and Zack Budryk. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. 

Experts see risk with little upside in gas tax break

Experts are warning that President Biden’s proposed gas tax holiday would do little to defray pain at the pump and actively take a toll on infrastructure and the environment. 

The 18-cent federal tax, which Biden has said should be suspended for three months amid steep gas prices, is “very little money” for individuals, said Beverly Moran, professor of law emerita at Vanderbilt Law School.   

• “It just doesn’t make any sense. If the government wants to do something to help people who are having problems with their, you know, the cost of gas, they can send out another check to people,” Moran told The Hill in an interview.
• “They aren’t even considering how they’re going to stop companies from just eating up the difference … keeping the same price and just pocketing the tax.”  

Modeling by the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania indicates that a gas tax suspension from July to September would only mean a per capita spending reduction of $4.79 to $14.31, depending on location, but would reduce overall government revenues by about $6 billion. 

Meanwhile, in Congress: Progressive Democrats in Congress, meanwhile, are doubling down on their push for a windfall profits tax on oil companies which would be returned to consumers, arguing this would provide the greatest relief. 

“I think the gas tax is a smaller, somewhat half measure,” Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), the sponsor of one of two oil windfall profits tax bills, told The Hill. “Decreasing the amount of taxes that fossil fuel or fossil fuel companies have to pay doesn’t necessarily mean that that’s going to lower costs. And it doesn’t mean it’s going to lower costs as much as we need to lower costs.” 

Moran agreed that the idea would be more effective than a break in the gas tax. 

“Last time there was a windfall profits tax, it was [the presidency of] Richard Nixon, and that says a whole lot, that now Richard Nixon is a liberal in United States politics,” she said. “Yeah, there should be a windfall profits tax.” 

Read more about the drawbacks here. 

G-7 moves closer to backing price cap on Russian oil

The Group of Seven (G-7) countries are moving closer to endorsing a price cap on Russian oil — an untested plan that would seek to limit the Kremlin’s profits from selling the commodity worldwide.  

• The idea has been floated in recent weeks as the United States and its allies search for ways to further squeeze the Russian economy to punish President Vladimir Putin for the war in Ukraine. Energy exports are the leading source of revenue for the Russian economy.  
• The price cap has been a source of discussion during the G-7 summit in Germany over the past two days, where President Biden is huddling with counterparts from Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen first said last week that the U.S. was discussing the idea of a price cap with its allies.  

How close are we? A senior Biden administration official told reporters on Monday that the G-7 countries were in “final discussions” about an agreement on a global price cap for Russian oil.  

The official indicated that the G-7 leaders would endorse the idea and then direct their finance ministers to develop “mechanisms” for setting a global price cap for Russian oil shipments to nations outside of the U.S., Europe and the G-7. 

• Speaking to reporters later Monday, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan insisted that the G-7 members were united behind limiting Russian profits from energy. 
• “There is absolute consensus across the G-7 that the purpose of our energy sanctions on Russia should ultimately be to deny revenue to Russia while at the same time ensuring a stable global energy market,” Sullivan said on the sidelines of the G-7 summit.  

“There is also consensus emerging — although there continue to be discussions around it, so I don’t want to get ahead of the leaders on this — that the price cap is a serious method to achieve that outcome,” he said.  

Still, specifics for how the plan would work are currently unclear. Sullivan said that while there is agreement around the broad idea, countries are trying to work through the specifics of how it would be implemented.  

Read more about the talks here. 

Biden, NOAA address illegal fishing 

President Biden on Monday signed a national security memo aimed at addressing illegal fishing in international waters. 

• The memo seeks to increase international coordination to address labor issues in the fishing industry and remove labor abuses from the supply chain, according to a White House fact sheet.
• It also aims to restrict the market for the products of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and forced labor. 

During this week’s United Nations (U.N.) Ocean Conference, the Biden administration is also poised to announce an alliance with the United Kingdom and Canada to combat fishing that is illegal or goes unreported. 

In conjunction with the memo, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) on Monday issued a proposed rule to address forced labor and other labor rights issues in the seafood industry.  

Under the new rule, “we are making our definition of IUU fishing consistent with that of the [U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization],” a National Security Council official told reporters on a press call Monday. 

• This proposal will allow U.S. officials to craft definitions that incorporate both the use of forced labor and comparable fishing laws between the U.S. and other nations, an official said.
• Meanwhile, a U.S. interagency working group comprised of 21 federal agencies is currently finalizing a five-year plan to address IUU fishing, officials said on the call. 

Read more about the order here. 

Jane Fonda: Biden needs to ‘get better on climate’ 

Actress and activist Jane Fonda says that if President Biden wants to run for reelection in 2024, he needs to “get better” on the climate change issue.  

In an interview with The Washington Post published on Monday, Fonda told the newspaper that she is “sickened” about Biden issuing more permits for oil and gas drilling on public lands than his predecessor, former President Trump.  

• Fonda said that Biden promised while campaigning for the Oval Office that he would not do any drilling on public land.
• “I am sickened by that, especially since I believe he understands what’s at stake. He promised during his campaign that he would not allow any more drilling and fracking on public lands,” The 84-year-old actress told the Post. “So it’s very, very disappointing.”  

The “Grace and Frankie” actress also said that she believes Biden can be pressured into doing the right thing, saying how the upcoming midterm elections in November are “critical“ and noted that Biden has to be better on climate change if he wants to run for reelection. 

“But he’s better than what could be. And I believe he can be pressured to do what’s right. That’s why the midterm elections are so, so critical. We have to fight with everything we have to pressure him and to back climate champions,” Fonda added.

“And we have to make it very clear to Biden that if he intends to run again, he’s going to have to get better on climate.”  

Read more from The Hill’s Olafimihan Oshin. 

ON TAP TOMORROW

The House Appropriations Committee will mark up budget legislation for the Energy Department and other agencies. 

WHAT WE’RE READING

• Dems look to federal lands for red-state abortion access (E&E News) 
• The world pledged to cut methane. Emissions are rising instead, study finds. (The Washington Post) 
• Baltimore’s water system contains PFAS chemicals at levels above new EPA health advisory (The Baltimore Sun) 
• G7 leaders debate fossil fuel investments amid energy crisis –sources (Reuters) 
• Google’s Plan for 24/7 Carbon-Free Energy Ran Into Headwinds in 2021 (The Wall Street Journal) 

And finally, something offbeat and off-beat: Please don’t. 

That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Energy & Environment page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow.  

VIEW FULL VERSION HERE

Source: TEST FEED1

Ukrainians warn — and Russians boast — of eerily familiar famine blackmail

“All our hope is in the famine,” RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan recently explained, at the Saint Petersburg Economic Exchange. “The famine will start now, and they [the West] will lift the sanctions and be friends with us because they realize it is necessary.”

Although she is one of the Kremlin’s most reliable propagandists, Simonyan’s words cannot be dismissed as empty vindictiveness. She uttered these statements while sitting next to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who reportedly utilized his appearance at the forum to coordinate the messaging of Moscow’s most loyal information warriors.   

As figures like Gary Kasparov have noted, Putin often lies about what he has done — but can display a surprising degree of candor about his future plans. Simonyan’s words confirm a long-suspected pattern: Putin intends to starve the developing world until he receives sanctions relief for his genocidal war of expansion in Ukraine. 

In a tragic irony that parallels Russia’s ongoing devastation of primarily Russian-speaking Ukrainian regions, the Kremlin’s famine blackmail will primarily affect African and Middle Eastern regions most supportive or ambivalent to Russia’s war against Ukraine. 

Given numerous, widespread Soviet famines, those who have studied — or lived through — the region’s history are least surprised by the “hell on earth” unleashed by Russia’s blockade of agricultural goods in Ukrainian ports. But Putin is also not the first Moscow dictator aiming to use hunger as a weapon. This history can clarify the problems Western policymakers face — as well as potential solutions. 

In 1932, Joseph Stalin artificially engineered a devastating famine, the Holodomor (Ukrainian for “killing by hunger”) to punish successful Ukrainian rebellions against Soviet collectivization. Approximately 4 million Ukrainians perished in just over 18 months.

The Ukrainians pushing back tanks with their bare hands today have long understand the toll of their resistance, as Stalin succeeded in killing every eighth Ukrainian in their grandparents’ generation through this intentional genocide.

What should we learn from this history? First, Russia’s deliberate use of violence as a tool of control against civilians is linked to Ukrainian insistence that they cannot surrender or cede territory to Russia. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba articulated Ukraine’s position, saying even if the international community failed to “supply weapons, we’ll fight with spades. We’ll defend ourselves no matter what — because it’s a war for Ukraine’s existence.” These statements must be taken seriously from a nation that has declared its independence from Moscow five times over the twentieth century — and from a nation that has now shown it can inflict decisive victories and deep military punishments on the “second strongest army in the world.” 

Second, Putin — like Stalin — has again resurrected the specter of genocide on the European continent, with shared concern raised by academics, legal experts, civil society, and politicians in Ukraine and abroad. Stalin’s victim toll may ultimately remain higher in Ukraine, but Putin flagrantly demonstrates his regime’s dangerous willingness to spread willful, starvation-driven violence to new continents. Putin’s genocide in Ukraine and fascism at home must cause international leaders to face the reality that without their direct intervention to transport Ukraine’s blockaded goods, 49 million people at-risk for famine will not be shown mercy by Vladimir Putin. 

Yet historical comparisons also show good news: The Ukrainian state and people are no longer trapped behind Stalin’s iron curtain and have built a state that continues to function well under intense pressure. The European Union has awarded Ukraine EU candidacy status — a pathway to full membership. During the same week, the EU Ambassador to Ukraine praised Ukraine’s Parliament for three “groundbreaking” legislation packages on anti-corruption, protection of women and victims of domestic violence, and an EU-related framework for waste management. Since its democracy-oriented revolution in 2014, Ukraine has demonstrated that it can be a reliable and indispensable European military partner as the West faces turbulent decades on multiple continents ahead. 

Finally, the Soviet Union’s near-perfection of international information blockades is no match for the modern information age. Bipartisan American support for Ukraine continues to shatter expectations, as the truth of Ukraine’s fight for their families and freedoms resonate with our own national story. In fact, the story of the Holodomor might have been lost forever, until Ukrainian and Jewish Americans staged an 18,000 person-strong picket in front of the Soviet embassy in Washington, D.C.

Putin shouldn’t get away with his crimes — or be able to replicate Stalin’s. Western democracies need to step up now to fully support Ukraine’s independence, end Putin’s blockade and prevent a modern Holodomor on an international scale.

A Ukraine-Russia specialist, Kristina Hook is Assistant Professor of Conflict Management at Kennesaw State University’s School of Conflict Management, Peacebuilding, and Development and a former Fulbright scholar to Ukraine.

Source: TEST FEED1

Hillicon Valley — Traffickers target Ukrainian refugees online

The same social media groups and communication apps connecting Ukrainian refugees with shelter and information are being leveraged by bad actors to exploit and traffic women fleeing the country. Experts say companies can do more to push back.  

Meanwhile, former President Trump’s media and tech company is facing more legal scrutiny threatening to further delay the completion of a merger.  

This is Hillicon Valley, detailing all you need to know about tech and cyber news from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley. Send tips to The Hill’s Rebecca Klar, Chris Mills Rodrigo and Ines Kagubare. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.

Exploitation, trafficking concerns amplified

Bad actors are leveraging social media groups and communications apps to sexually exploit and traffic Ukrainians seeking shelter and information, amplifying concerns about those dangers in an already high-risk region. 

• As the war continues and millions of Ukrainians, especially women and children, transition to border nations, potential traffickers are using the same digital spaces where refugees are looking for assistance to spread misinformation or pose as well-meaning volunteers to house those fleeing the conflict.
• Experts say tech companies could be doing more to protect Ukrainians from those threats amid an apparent rise in demand for trafficking victims from the besieged country. 

“I find it really heartbreaking that at the moment when so many people are trying to protect vulnerable women and children, one of the first measurable reactions to the crisis was that men were going online in record breaking numbers trying to figure out how to sexually access those women,” said Val Richey, special representative and coordinator for combating trafficking in human beings at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). 

Data on upticks in human trafficking of Ukrainian women are only starting to emerge since Russia invaded four months ago. But a Thomson Reuters analysis found spikes across Europe for terms related to online demand for sex with Ukrainian women as news about the war spread across Europe.  

The analysis found a 200 percent increase in Google searches for “Ukrainian escorts” in the United Kingdom between Feb. 27 and March 5 compared to the prior six months. The term “Ukrainian porn” increased 600 percent in Spain and 130 percent in Poland over the same period.  

Read more here.

More legal trouble for Trump’s tech biz 

The firm that merged with former President Trump’s social media company received federal grand jury subpoenas last week, the company disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing Monday. 

• A grand jury in the Southern District of New York issued subpoenas to each member of the board of directors of the special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, that merged with the Trump Media and Technology Group.
• The latest subpoenas add to growing scrutiny of the deal. Federal regulators launched investigations into the merger between Trump’s company and Digital World Acquisition Corp, the SPAC, in December, just weeks after the merger was announced. 

The new subpoenas seek some of the same documents as federal regulators, as well as requests for communications with or about “multiple individuals,” and information about Rocket One Capital, a Miami-based venture capital firm, according to Monday’s filing. 

The investigation from the SEC and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is seeking information about events that took place before the public announcement. 

SPACs, also known as blank check companies, are formed to raise capital through an initial public offering for the purpose of acquiring or merging with a company. But they are not supposed to have an acquisition target in mind as they raise money from investors. 

Read more here.  

LITHUANIAN WEBSITES HIT BY RUSSIAN CYBERATTACKS

Several public and private sector websites in Lithuania were temporarily down on Monday following a cyberattack reportedly carried out by a Russian-backed hacking group. 

Lithuania’s acting director of the National Cyber Security Centre, Jonas Skardinskas, said the disruption was an ongoing distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack that targeted the country’s Secure National Data Transfer, as well as other governmental institutions and private companies. 

“It is highly probable that such or even more intense attacks will continue into the coming days, especially against the communications, energy and financial sectors,” Skardinskas said.  

A Russian-backed hacking group, known as Killnet, has claimed responsibility for the hack against Lithuania, according to multiple news reports 

Read more here. 

BITS & PIECES

An op-ed to chew on: It’s time to forge a transatlantic clean technology alliance 

Notable links from around the web: 

The #1 Period Tracker on the App Store Will Hand Over Data Without a Warrant (Motherboard / Samantha Cole) 

With clock ticking, battle over tech regulation intensifies (The Washington Post / Cat Zakrzewski, Will Oremus, Gerrit De Vynck and Cristiano Lima) 

The Biggest Privacy Risks In Post-Roe America (The Verge / Russell Brandom, Nicole Wetsman, Corin Faife, and Mary Beth Griggs) 

 Lighter click: Planetary conjunction

One more thing: Back at it 

The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol announced a last-minute hearing for Tuesday after previously saying it would pause its series of meetings until July. 

An advisory sent Monday said they would convene to “present recently obtained evidence” but provided no other details. 

The committee last week said they would pause their hearings for two weeks given a wealth of new evidence. 

“We’ve taken in some additional information that’s going to require additional work. So rather than present hearings that have not been the quality of the hearings in the past, we made a decision to just move into sometime in July,” Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) told reporters last Wednesday. 

Read more here. 

That’s it for today, thanks for reading. Check out The Hill’s Technology and Cybersecurity pages for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow.

VIEW FULL VERSION HERE

Source: TEST FEED1

On the Money — Biden’s plan to lift gas tax has limits, experts say

There is no panacea for high gas prices, though President Biden’s push to lift the gas tax may not do much. 

We’ll also look at a potential price cap on Russian oil and more legal trouble for former President Trump’s social media network. 

But first, a look at five under-the-radar 2024 potential Democratic presidential candidates. 

Welcome to On The Money, your nightly guide to everything affecting your bills, bank account and bottom line. For The Hill, we’re Sylvan Lane, Aris Folley and Karl Evers-Hillstrom. Someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here.

Experts see risk with little upside in gas tax break

Experts are warning that President Biden’s proposed gas tax holiday would do little to defray pain at the pump and actively take a toll on infrastructure and the environment. 

The 18-cent federal tax, which Biden has said should be suspended for three months amid steep gas prices, is “very little money” for individuals, said Beverly Moran, professor of law emerita at Vanderbilt Law School.   

“It just doesn’t make any sense. If the government wants to do something to help people who are having problems with their, you know, the cost of gas, they can send out another check to people,” Moran told The Hill in an interview. “They aren’t even considering how they’re going to stop companies from just eating up the difference … keeping the same price and just pocketing the tax.”  

The breakdown: Modeling by the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania indicates that a gas tax suspension from July to September would only mean a per capita spending reduction of $4.79 to $14.31, depending on location, but would reduce overall government revenues by about $6 billion. 

The Hill’s Zack Budryk has more here. 

OIL CHANGE 

G-7 moves closer to backing price cap on Russian oil 

The Group of Seven (G-7) countries are moving closer to endorsing a price cap on Russian oil — an untested plan that would seek to limit the Kremlin’s profits from selling the commodity worldwide.  

The idea has been floated in recent weeks as the United States and its allies search for ways to further squeeze the Russian economy to punish President Vladimir Putin for the war in Ukraine. Energy exports are the leading source of revenue for the Russian economy.  

The price cap has been a source of discussion during the G-7 summit in Germany over the past two days, where President Biden is huddling with counterparts from Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen first said last week that the U.S. was discussing the idea of a price cap with its allies.  

The Hill’s Morgan Chalfant and Rachel Frazin have the latest here. 

BAD VIBES 

Americans’ views of economy, finances worsen: poll 

Three-quarters of Americans rate the current condition of the economy as fairly bad or very bad, and a majority are concerned about their ability to afford day-to-day expenses, according to a new CBS News-YouGov poll. 

The proportion of Americans who view the state of the economy as fairly bad or worse has grown for each of the past two months, rising from 63 percent in April to 75 percent in the latest poll. 

• Republicans were more likely to have a negative view of the national economy, with just nine percent saying it is at least fairly good.  
• Thirty-six percent of Democrats and 20 percent of independents viewed the economy as at least fairly good. 

Here’s more from The Hill’s Zach Schonfeld. 

SPAC FLAK

Federal grand jury subpoenas firm that merged with Trump social network 

The firm that merged with former President Trump’s social media company received federal grand jury subpoenas last week, the company disclosed in a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing Monday. 

A grand jury in the Southern District of New York issued subpoenas to each member of the board of directors of the special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, that merged with the Trump Media and Technology Group.  

The latest subpoenas add to growing scrutiny of the deal. Federal regulators launched investigations into the merger between Trump’s company and Digital World Acquisition Corp, the SPAC, in December, just weeks after the merger was announced. 

The Hill’s Rebecca Klar explains here. 

Good to Know

President Biden on Monday signed a national security memo aimed at addressing illegal fishing in international waters. 

The memo seeks to increase international coordination to address labor issues in the fishing industry and remove labor abuses from the supply chain, according to a White House fact sheet. 

Here’s what else we have our eye on: 

• Inadequate access to nutrition has become a threat to public health in the U.S., amplifying existing food insecurity and social issues, the American College of Physicians declared on Monday. 
• Top Biden administration officials met with health insurance industry executives Monday to ensure that their plan members have access to contraceptive services at no cost.  

That’s it for today. Thanks for reading and check out The Hill’s Finance page for the latest news and coverage. We’ll see you tomorrow. 

VIEW FULL VERSION HERE

Source: TEST FEED1

House Oversight committee accuses Commanders' Snyder of evading subpoena

The House Oversight committee accused Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder on Monday of evading its efforts to secure his testimony after he refused service of its subpoena to appear this week.

Snyder declined to voluntarily testify at a committee hearing on alleged workplace misconduct last week, calling it a “politically charged show trial.”

House Oversight and Reform committee chairwoman Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) said at the hearing that she would to issue a subpoena for Snyder to testify.

A source close to the owner said Monday he was “unavailable” to testify before the committee during the time it proposed this week, and therefore his lawyer was “unavailable to accept service of the subpoena.”

A House Oversight committee spokesperson would not comment Monday on what dates were offered, but said it will not tolerate “​​attempts to evade service of a duly authorized subpoena or seek special treatment not afforded to other witnesses who testified in this matter.” 

“The Committee will not be deterred from obtaining Mr. Snyder’s testimony, and we remain committed to ensuring transparency about the toxic workplace culture at the Washington Commanders and the NFL’s inadequate response,” the spokesperson added in a statement to The Hill.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell testified before the House Oversight committee in the hearing last week, saying that the Commanders previously had an “unacceptable” work environment, but that changes have been implemented in recent years.

“To be clear — the workplace at the Commanders today bears no resemblance to the workplace that has been described to this committee,” he said.

The league fined Snyder and the Commanders $10 million last year for the violations, with Snyder being removed from day-to-day control of the team as well. 

The committee’s investigation into Washington, D.C.-based NFL franchise began after former Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden’s email chain with then-Commanders President Bruce Allen, which contained racist, homophobic and misogynistic language and was a part of the league’s initial probe of the team, was leaked to the public.

The NFL launched a second investigation into the team earlier this year after former cheerleader and team employee Tiffani Johnston testified at the roundtable hearing that Snyder sexually harassed her during a work-related dinner.

Maloney also sent out a 29-page memo to her committee members detailing how Snyder and his legal counsel attempted to discredit accusers and victims by conducting a “shadow investigation” that created a 100-slide dossier with emails, text messages, telephone records, and social media posts from those who have publicly accused the NFL franchise of harassment. 

Source: TEST FEED1

Pressure grows on Biden to take action on abortion ruling

Democrats are increasing pressure on President Biden to take executive action to protect abortion rights in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.  

Action from the president alone cannot reverse the slew of state bans going into effect after Friday’s ruling, but vocal Democrats say the urgency of the moment requires taking all action available to increase abortion access as much as possible.  

Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) led a group of 23 Senate Democrats calling on Biden to explore a range of executive actions, including allowing abortions to be performed on federal property and providing vouchers for women to travel out of state to get an abortion. 

“As extremist judges and Republican politicians intensify their efforts to strip Americans of their basic reproductive freedoms, you can demonstrate to the country and women everywhere that you will do everything in your power to fight back,” the senators wrote to Biden in a letter this month.  

The Congressional Black Caucus called on Biden to declare a public health emergency around abortion to “utilize additional flexibilities and deploy resources where necessary.” 

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), speaking at a protest on Friday, called it the “babiest of the babiest of the baby steps” for Biden to “open abortion clinics on federal lands in red states right now,” in addition to even more far-reaching steps like expanding the Supreme Court.  

The pressure is a test of how far Biden is willing to go on the issue as much of his party is outraged and demanding action. The president, a Catholic, has sometimes had a complicated history on abortion, for example reversing his support for the Hyde Amendment banning federal funding for abortion amid controversy in 2019 during the presidential primary.  

Biden’s response to the ruling so far has emphasized calling on the public to elect more Democrats in November so that Congress has the votes to codify Roe v. Wade into law, rather than executive action.  

Biden did allude to two actions his administration can take: protecting access to abortion pills and ensuring women are not blocked from traveling across state lines for abortions.  

But Lawrence Gostin, a health law professor at Georgetown University, said he was “underwhelmed” by the steps Biden has announced so far.  

Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland should more explicitly say they will challenge any state blocking access to abortion pills in court, Gostin said, citing the argument that federal approval of the pills from the Food and Drug Administration takes precedence over state restrictions.  

Asked about allowing abortions on federal lands, Vice President Kamala Harris told CNN’s Dana Bash on Monday “it’s not right now what we are discussing,” pivoting to the stakes in November’s election.  

“We have to also recognize, Dana, that we are 130-odd days away from an election which is going to include Senate races,” she said. “Part of the issue here is that the Court has acted, now Congress needs to act.” 

Asked on Saturday about Biden’s “seeming lack of urgency” on abortion rights, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre pushed back, saying there has been “a lot of urgency.” 

She pointed to Biden’s remarks on the importance of protection abortion pill access and the ability of women to travel out of state.  

She did not go into specifics on any further actions. “I know people are asking about executive actions,” she said. “The President is going to continue to find solutions. He’s going to continue to talk to leading groups. He’s going to continue to talk to legal experts on what he can do from his — you know, his own executive perch, if you will.” 

It is legally unclear whether allowing abortions to be provided on federal land would work, given the Hyde Amendment banning federal funds from being used for abortion, Gostin said, but he argued it is “worth a shot.” 

“The White House can’t be cautious,” he said. 

There is a risk of state prosecution of people involved, though, if a state outlawed abortion.  

Harris was more open when asked about vouchers or other forms of financial assistance for lower-income women seeking to travel out of state for an abortion.  

“We know that on this issue, women who have access to resources will probably be far less impacted by this decision than women who don’t have resources,” Harris said. “So this is something that we are looking at.” 

Declaring a public health emergency could help on the margins, for example freeing up some funding, said Neil Siegel, a Duke University law professor, but it cannot override state law.  

“I’m not aware of any power the president has to declare a public health emergency that would override or preempt state legislation restricting access to abortion,” he said. “A declaration of a public health emergency could empower the president to enhance access to care in states that permit it, and perhaps provide resources to pregnant people who want to travel interstate or receive abortion medication via the mail.” 

Some calls for action have not outlined specific steps.  

A group of 33 Senate Democrats over the weekend simply wrote to Biden: “Now is the time for bold action to protect the right to an abortion.” 

Source: TEST FEED1

GOP senator says Ukraine has 'demonstrated' it won't allow Russian occupation

Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said on Monday that Ukraine is prepared to expel all of Russia’s troops from the country but warned of a drawn-out conflict that will echo for generations. 

“I think the Ukrainians have demonstrated they are not going to allow this country to be occupied by the Russians, I truly believe that’s not going to happen,” Risch said in a call with reporters following a visit to Kyiv and surrounding suburbs. 

“There isn’t going to be a reconciliation council, or something when this is over,” the senator added. “The wounds are way too deep … It’s gonna go on for a long, long time.”

Risch affirmed the GOP backing of providing Ukraine with the military means to push back against the Russian assault despite opposition from some within his own party in the Senate. At least 11 Republican senators voted against a $40 billion aid package for Ukraine in May. 

“It is a real minority of people that are criticizing,” he said of the GOP detractors. 

“I would say to those that criticize, do you really want to do this? Ronald Reagan would be deeply disappointed. He’d hang his head in shame if he knew that we walked away from Ukrainians when we could help them and we have the ability to to help them,” Risch said. 

The senator met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, his trip into the city delayed after Russia launched missile strikes on the capital, with the impact by three rockets killing at least one person and wounding others.

“You can’t understand what the Russians are thinking and why they would drop three missiles where they did, I don’t know if they’re trying to terrorize,” Risch said.

The Idaho Republican said he’d like to see more High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) delivered to the Ukrainians beyond what the U.S. has already provided.

Risch didn’t comment on delivery of NASAMS — Norwegian made, long-range surface-to-air missile defense systems — but said those two systems are going to make a “significant difference,” in particular as Russia gains more control over territories in the east despite fierce push back from Ukrainian forces. 

“HIMARS, NASAMS, great, great weapons for what they need, none of that’s arrived yet,” Risch said. “I think when it does, it’s going to make a significant difference. The Ukrainians are incredibly good at using the materials that we give them. They’re skilled, they train easily, they train up quickly, and I’m just impressed with what they’re doing on the front.”

The senator spoke with reporters shortly after reports emerged that Russia allegedly struck a shopping mall in the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk on Monday. The Ukrainian defense ministry said that at least 10 civilians had been found dead, and 40 injured.

Reuters reported that Russian shelling against the northeastern city of Kharkiv on Monday killed five people and wounded 22 others, including five children.

Risch said he supports efforts in Congress to designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism — Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) introduced in May a resolution calling for the designation — and that he would support bill text that would recognize Russia’s war against Ukraine as genocide. 

“There is no question about it. If you could walk the streets of Irpin like I did, and the neighborhoods in Hostomel, and listen to the stories that those people told about what the Russian soldiers did — this is a genocide, and it needs to be recognized as such,” the senator said.

President Biden has called Russia’s atrocities in Ukraine acts of “genocide,” but the U.S. and other nations have yet to issue a formal declaration, which could trigger international intervention in a war where the administration has sought to keep out Americans forces and avoid direct conflict with Moscow. 

Source: TEST FEED1

Harris says administration isn’t discussing abortion services on federal land

Vice President Harris said that the Biden administration is not discussing providing abortion services on federal lands in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling that struck down Roe v. Wade.

“I mean, it’s not right now what we are discussing,” Harris said in an interview with CNN’s Dana Bash on Monday when asked if using federal lands is an option.

“But I will say that when I think about what is happening in terms of the states, we have to also recognize, Dana, that we are 130 odd days away from an election, which is going to include Senate races,” she said, turning attention to the upcoming midterm elections.

Harris was questioned on what executive powers President Biden has to act following the Supreme Court’s historic decision. Democrats, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), have called on the Biden administration to use federal land to create places where people can receive abortions in states that restrict them.

Harris said that at the moment, the White House is focused on ensuring people seeking abortions receive care where they can.

“I think that what is most important right now is that we ensure that the restrictions that the states are trying to put up that would prohibit a woman from exercising what we still maintain is her right, that we do everything we can to empower women to not only seek but to receive the care where it’s available,” Harris said.

The 5-4 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision by a majority of conservative justices struck down Roe v. Wade, overturning a nearly 50-year-old precedent that has ignited a political firestorm across the U.S. since it was made official by the court.

Biden in remarks on Friday vowed to do what he can with his executive authority, including by ensuring access to Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved contraception and medication to end early pregnancies and by protecting women who will now be required to travel to states where abortion rights are protected.

Harris pointed to those comments in discussing other potential actions by the administration to provide abortion access as trigger laws in more than one dozen states that will ban abortion are set to take effect following the Supreme Court ruling.

“The president rightly last week, when the decision came down, indicated quite unambiguously that we will do everything within our power — as an administration through the executive branch — to ensure that women have access to the medication they need, which has been, by the way, FDA-approved and they will have freedom of travel and that travel should be unrestricted,” Harris said.

“I’m sure that our Department of Justice is going to do that,” she added when asked if the administration would move on those actions through the courts if needed. 

Harris, who has been meeting with stakeholders on abortion rights in recent weeks, on Friday said the ruling spurred a “health care crisis” in the United States and warned that other rights were under threat. 

She also urged voters to elect more Democrats in order to codify the right to an abortion into law, as well as protect the rights to birth control, same-sex marriage and interracial marriage, echoing Biden’s remarks earlier that day.

Source: TEST FEED1