Friday morning news: December 2, 2022

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kristen Flavin. 

Macron » French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting the U.S. for the first time in President Biden’s term.

Yesterday, Macron criticized Biden’s energy policy. He says the president’s Inflation Reduction Act focused on American technologies while taking away investments from Europe.

Biden said his policy could be tweaked to satisfy both parties.

President Biden.

BIDEN: Europe is back in business. And we're going to continue to create manufacturing jobs in America, but not at the expense of Europe.

The presidents also reaffirmed their commitment to supporting Ukraine.

President Macron.

MACRON: Let me tell you that we will never urge the Ukrainians to make a compromise which will not be acceptable for them.

Yesterday evening, Biden held his first state dinner at the White House to showcase the strength of U.S-French relations.

Senate rail strike » AUDIO: On this vote, the yeas are 80, the nays are 15 One senator responded present under the previous order requiring 60 votes for the passage of this joint resolution the joint resolution is passed.

The Senate passed a bill that binds railway workers to their jobs, preempting a looming strike. The House passed a version of the same bill yesterday.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer promised earlier to move the bill along as fast as he could.

SCHUMER: The responsible thing to do here is to move forward and do everything we can to include paid sick leave again we must keep working until the task is complete.

President Biden on Monday asked Congress to intervene to avert a rail strike, which could mean a shutdown of critical infrastructure right before the Christmas holidays.

Student loans » The Supreme Court will hear arguments about President Joe Biden’s student loan debt cancellation program early next year, but it also agreed to leave a block on the program in place.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said earlier this week Biden is going to continue to fight for borrowers.

JEAN-PIERRE: And let’s not forget 90% of them are making less than $75,000 a year that matters. That is a plan that is going to give people a little bit of breathing room.

Biden’s program seeks to cancel as much as $20,000 of student loan debt for individuals and households living under certain income thresholds.

Various groups have sued the administration, saying the plan exceeds the Executive Branch’s constitutional authority.

Trump Org trial » Arguments in the Trump Organization’s financial fraud trial in New York concluded yesterday with closing statements. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher has more.

JOSH SCHUMACHER, REPORTER: Prosecutors said the company fostered a culture of fraud and deception by lavishing perks on executives and lying about it.

Lawyers for the Trump Organization said former company finance chief Alan Weisselberg was the one who committed the fraud and the company cannot be blamed for his actions. Weisselberg was a key witness for the government.

Prosecutors say that Weisselberg wasn’t the only one engaging in criminal activities, nor was he only one benefiting from them.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s office brought the suit against the Trump Organization after a three-year investigation.

For WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

Volcano » AUDIO: [Lava]

That’s the sound of lava slowly approaching a major thoroughfare on Hawaii’s Big Island.

Scientist-in-charge at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory Ken Hon. Audio courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey.

HON: It's about 3.3 miles south of the highway at this point. And it has slowed considerably as we were forecasting as it reached the flat ground at the base of Mauna Loa. So it's in the saddle.

The world’s largest active volcano started spewing ash and debris on Sunday and has continued to erupt throughout the week.

Mauna Loa’s lava rivers could swallow the highway connecting the east and the west sides of the island as early as this weekend and there’s little authorities can do to stop the lava flow.

The volcano has slumbered for almost 40 years and authorities have said the mountain is long overdue to erupt.

Spain letter bombs » Police in Spain destroyed an explosive package delivered to the U.S. Embassy in Madrid today. A week ago, someone sent a package bomb to Spain’s Prime Minister. And yesterday, an envelope exploded at the Ukrainian embassy. It injured one person.

PEREZ: [...increased protection]

Spain’s top security official Rafael Perez, saying authorities have ordered increased security at consulates and other possible targets.

Authorities are in the early stages of an investigation, but they believe the envelopes originated from inside the country.

PEREZ: [...investigations underway]

Perez saying there that investigations are underway in other European countries that have provided assistance to Ukraine.

I’m Kristen Flavin. For more news, features, and analysis, visit us at wng.org. 

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