The Biden and Trump campaigns are marking the two-year anniversary of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. And more than one thousand people are dead while making the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia amid dangerous high temperatures. These stories and more highlight The Morning Rundown for Monday, June 24, 2024.
Biden, Trump campaigns mark 2nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade being overturned
Monday, June 24, marks the second anniversary of the Supreme Court overturning the Roe v. Wade decision, ending the constitutional legal right to an abortion. Since that ruling, many states have taken a stance on the issue.
More than 20 states have restricted abortions while over 20 others have expanded access to abortion.
Now, just days away from the first presidential debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, both campaigns are making clear where they stand on the matter.
The Biden campaign is hosting more than 50 events to mark the second anniversary of the Dobbs decision, where the president and his supporters will speak out against the court’s ruling.
Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to participate in two campaign events Monday — one in Arizona and one in Maryland — while second gentleman Doug Emhoff will be part of a rally in Michigan.
Harris has been on the road since January on her “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour in response to the high court’s ruling.
The campaign said the vice president on Monday, June 24, will “remind voters that Donald Trump is responsible for overturning Roe and the chaos that has followed.”
In an interview that on MSNBC, Harris spoke about freedom.
“Every person of whatever gender should understand that, if such a fundamental freedom such as the right to make decisions about your own body can be taken, be aware of what other freedoms may be at stake,” the vice president said.
Former President Trump, meanwhile, spoke on the topic during his keynote address at the Faith and Freedom Coalition’s conference in Washington on June 22. He thanked his nominees to the Supreme Court for showing “wisdom” and “courage” on their decision two years ago.
Trump reiterated his stance that the issue should be left for the states to decide.
“And we did something that was amazing,” Trump said. “The big problem was it was caught up in the federal government. But the people will decide and that’s the way it should be. The people are now deciding, and some states are a little bit more conservative, and some states are much more liberal.”
Also Monday, a three-day hearing continues in Florida as the federal judge presiding over Trump’s classified documents case will hear arguments on whether the former president should be barred from making public comments that prosecutors say pose a threat to FBI agents working the investigation.
Netanyahu says “intense fighting” in Gaza will soon end
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says “intense fighting” in Gaza could soon come to an end, but the war is far from over. In his first interview with Israeli media since the war with Hamas started on Oct. 7, Netanyahu said Sunday, June 23, he’s ready to make “a partial deal” with Hamas to return some hostages still being held captive in Gaza, but the war will not be over until Hamas is eliminated.
He also said that once the intense fighting in Gaza winds down, Israel will be able to focus more on its northern border with Lebanon, where fighting with the Iran-backed group Hezbollah is escalating.
Netanyahu’s interview came just as eight people were killed Sunday in an Israeli airstrike on a “training college” in Gaza City being used to distribute aid. It was formerly the headquarters for a United Nations agency.
The Israeli military said the site has been used by Hamas and Islamic jihad militants and precautionary measures were taken before the strike to reduce the risk of harming civilians.
Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant arrived in Washington Sunday, June 23, for meetings with officials as Netanyahu appeared to double down on recent claims the U.S. is withholding weapons meant to be delivered to Israel.
“Since the beginning of the war, the U.S. has supplied us with very important support both in spirit and materially, with defensive and offensive means,” Netanyahu said. “But since about four months ago, there has been a dramatic decline in arms supplies from the U.S. to Israel. Over long weeks we have turned to our American friends with a request to speed up deliveries. We did it time and again, we did it with higher officials and other ranking officials and I would like to emphasize — we did it behind closed doors. We got various explanations but one thing we did not get: the basic state of affairs did not change. Some items came dripping in, but the great mass of arms was left behind.”
The Biden administration has denied Netanyahu’s claims.
In May, the administration did pause a shipment of bombs over concerns about their impact if used in densely populated areas of Gaza, but Israel was still due to get billions of dollars’ worth of U.S. weaponry.
At least 19 killed in attacks on places of worship in Russia
A synagogue, an Orthodox church and police checkpoints were targeted by gunmen in a coordinated series of attacks in Russia’s southernmost Dagestan province on Sunday night. At least 15 police officers were killed, as well as four civilians, including an Orthodox priest.
Local officials said at least six “militants” were also killed following the attacks.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks yet, but they come three months after an ISIS affiliate said it carried out an attack at a music hall in Moscow that left more than 140 people dead.
Meanwhile, Russia is blaming the U.S. for a deadly Ukrainian strike on a strategic port in occupied Crimea on Sunday. The strike left at least four people dead and more than 150 injured in one of the biggest attacks on the Russian-annexed peninsula in recent months.
Russian officials say Ukraine used weapons provided by the U.S. to carry out the strike.
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and considers it part of the country, though it remains internationally recognized as Ukrainian territory.
1,300 people die during Hajj pilgrimage amid high temps
People are experiencing extreme weather across the globe — including dangerous heat, which is taking a major toll in the Middle East at a time millions are visiting for a sacred religious journey for Muslims known as “Hajj pilgrimage.” More than 1,000 people have died during this year’s pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia as temperatures reached 120 degrees.
Saudi officials said 83% of those who died were “unauthorized pilgrims” who walked long distances without adequate shelter. Egypt revoked the licenses of 16 travel agencies accused of helping the unauthorized visitors.
Among the 1.8 million people who were authorized was a couple from Maryland, who reportedly died on the journey from heat stroke. Their daughter told CNN her parents had saved up their life savings to make the pilgrimage.
In the U.S., a heat dome is impacting 100 million people across 27 states — with high temperature alerts from Los Angeles to New York City.
Washington D.C. and Baltimore hit the 100-degree mark this past weekend for the first time in over a decade.
Meanwhile, severe flooding from heavy rainfall is the concern in the upper Midwest, with Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, R, declaring a disaster emergency for over 20 counties. More than 300 water rescues have been reported and nearly 2,000 properties damaged. Reynolds said “the devastation is severe and widespread.”
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, R, also declared a statewide emergency and confirmed one person was killed in the floods. Noem said the worst of the flooding is expected to come Monday, June 24, and Tuesday, June 25.
Apple first company accused of breaking new European tech law
European Union regulators are accusing Apple of breaking new rules on digital competition by preventing app developers from pointing users to cheaper options than Apple’s app store. The European Commission said preliminary findings of its investigation show Apple breached the Digital Markets Act (DMA) — a law passed in 2022 that took effect in March.
Apple is the first company to be charged for violating the DMA.
Apple now has a chance to respond to the findings, which the commission will assess. It must make a final decision on Apple’s compliance by March 2025.
Apple could face fines worth up to 10% of its global revenue.
Climate activists spray smoke, powder at PGA tournament
Climate activists previously spray painted Taylor Swift’s private jets and Stonehenge to protest the use of fossil fuels. Now, another group of protesters set out to get their message heard by disrupting a golf tournament.
Climate activists stormed the 18th green at the PGA Tour’s Traveler Championship in Connecticut on Sunday.
The six protesters sprayed smoke and powder on the course — one of them wearing a shirt with the words: “No golf on a dead planet.”
The interruption led to the finish being delayed for about five minutes. Police were able to tackle the protesters and take them into custody.
The tournament then continued and No. 1 ranked golfer Scottie Scheffler won in a sudden death playoff for his sixth victory of the year.
