Monday morning news - June 13, 2022

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kent Covington. 

House panel probing Capitol Riot readies for second public hearing » The cameras will be rolling again today on Capitol Hill as the House panel probing the Capitol riot holds another public hearing.

Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff said they’ll lay out evidence that incriminates allies of former President Trump.

SCHIFF: We will show the evidence that we have that members of Congress were seeking pardons. To me, I think that is some of the most compelling evidence of a consciousness of guilt.

During the first public hearing last week, Democrats and a handful of Republicans laid blame for the riot at the feet of Donald Trump.

But most Republicans say the special committee investigating the riot is highly partisan and the hearings are political theater. GOP Congressman Jim Jordan said Sunday that the panel is conveniently ignoring certain facts, including that, in his view, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi turned away help from the National Guard.

JORDAN: President Trump said if you need the National Guard there that day, they’re available. She didn’t take him up on that offer because, according to correspondence, according to testimony that we have received and media reports, I should say, the sergeant at arms says that the speaker's office didn’t like the optics of that.

Today’s hearing is expected to gavel in at 10 a.m. Eastern Time.

Senators agree on framework for gun & school safety legislation » A bipartisan group of senators struck a deal on Sunday announcing the framework for new gun and school safety legislation. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher has more.

JOSH SCHUMACHER, REPORTER: The proposal falls far short of the stricter gun controls that many Democrats have pushed for. Instead, this legislation would focus on areas of common ground.

The agreed upon measures would strengthen school safety and mental health programs.

And it would make the juvenile records of gun buyers under age 21 available when they undergo background checks. The suspects in recent mass shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde were both 18 years old.

The agreement would also offer money to states to implement “red flag” laws. Such laws make it easier to temporarily take guns from people considered potentially violent.

Twenty senators, including 10 Republicans, have released a statement calling for passage. That means the compromise likely has enough support to pass in the Senate.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

Roe v Wade decision could fall today » Today could be the day that U.S. Supreme Court reverses the Roe v. Wade decision.

The high court does not announce in advance which opinions it will release, but it is expected to announce new rulings today and on Wednesday.

The court has nearly 30 rulings to announce before its summer break. And among them could be a ruling striking down the 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationwide. That would return the issue to the states.

Security will be tight around the Supreme Court this week as authorities brace for potential violence.

Gas prices hit new record, topping $5 per gallon » Five dollars a gallon. That’s the new national average for regular unleaded — $5.01 to be exact—another record high for the United States.

But gas is even higher in Brooklyn where resident Katisha Thompson said she’s feeling the pinch.

THOMPSON: It’s a lot, especially when you’re trying to feed a family, and it’s not just gas, it’s groceries, it’s everything that’s going up.

She said she just paid almost $80 to fill up with 13 gallons of gas.

The national average has jumped 19 cents in just the past week, and it’s up almost $2 per gallon from this time last year.

The lowest average price in the country right now is in Georgia, $4.48 a gallon. California, as usual, is the highest—$6.43.

Box office: Jurassic World Dominion dominates » At the weekend box office, dinosaurs have not lost their allure.

TRAILER: Humans and dinosaurs can’t coexist.

Jurassic World Dominion took in an estimated $143 million domestically in its opening weekend.

The latest Jurassic movie kept Hollywood’s winning streak alive, following huge openings from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and Top Gun: Maverick. It took in another $50 million. That brings its domestic total to nearly $400 million.

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

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