Tuesday morning news - July 12, 2022

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kristen Flavin.

1. Biden White House gun law event »

SOUND: [Hail to the Chief NATS]

President Biden stepped to a podium on the South Lawn of the White House on Monday in front of rows of folding chairs.

BIDEN: Good morning everyone.

Facing a crowd of lawmakers, community leaders and those affected by gun violence, Biden celebrated a new bipartisan gun safety law.

BIDEN: We can't just stand by. We can't let it happen any longer. With rights come responsibilities. Because of your work, your advocacy, your courage, lives will be saved today and tomorrow because of this.

The new law funds mental health and school safety programs and expands background checks for gunbuyers under the age of 21. It also provides funds for so-called “red flag” laws, which allow police to remove guns from potentially violent people.

The White House ceremony came one week after the country’s most recent mass shooting at a July 4th parade near Chicago.

2. Blinken pays Abe condolences in Japan » In Japan on Monday, Secretary of State Tony Blinken delivered the condolences of the U.S. government, days after a gunman assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

BLINKEN: We simply want them to know that we deeply feel their loss on a personal level as well.

Blinken said the United States and Japan are more than just allies, they are friends and that Abe played no small part in that friendship.

BLINKEN: In his time in office, Prime Minister Abe did more than anyone to elevate the relationship between the United States and Japan to new heights.

Abe’s Liberal Democratic Party has vowed to use its victory in Sunday’s parliamentary election to achieve Abe’s unfinished goals. Those include strengthening the military and revising the country’s pacifist constitution.

3. French birth control drug » Birth Control pills might soon be sold over the counter without a prescription at a pharmacy near you. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher reports.

JOSH SCHUMACHER, REPORTER: A French pharmaceutical company is asking the FDA to approve its application to sell birth control without a prescription in the United States.

HRA Pharma says the timing of its application has nothing to do with the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson decision.

The company presented years of research to make the case that women can assess the risks for themselves and don’t need physician to prescribe the pills.

Last year, the FDA loosened restrictions on abortion pills. And in 2006, the agency approved the “Plan B” pill, which can act as an abortifacient. Abortion rights advocates are pressing for contraceptives—and, eventually, abortion pills—to be sold over the counter.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

4. Yosemite wildfire » A wildfire is inching closer to the thousand year old sequoias in Yosemite National Park.

The flames blanket more than three-and-a-half miles, and firefighters have it 25 percent contained. Cal Fire spokesman Marc Peebles told reporters,

Peebles: Fighting fires in those conditions and steep rugged terrain is difficult and it’s very labor intensive and so firefighters are doing that, but it’s not a fast process.

The southern portion of the park is closed to visitors. Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire.

5. UK prime minister contenders lineup to replace Johnson » In the UK, contenders are lining up to replace outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

At a conservative gathering on Monday, former health secretary Sajid Javid vowed to bring integrity to the office.

JAVID: The British people are looking for competence in our leaders. And if they can’t find it in our party, they’ll tell us using the most powerful language in any democracy, the vote.

And Attorney General Suella Braverman told fellow conservatives...

BRAVERMAN: We need a pro-family, pro-community agenda if we are to help people cope with the crisis that we face.

Party officials set out rules to narrow the crowded field of almost a dozen candidates to just two contenders by next week. The final pair will be put to a ballot of party members across the country. Under Britain’s parliamentary system, the new Conservative leader will automatically become prime minister without the need for a general election.

6. Fast-track Russian citizenship » Vladimir Putin is speeding up the application process for all Ukrainian citizens to become Russian citizens. WORLD’s Mary Muncy has that story.

MARY MUNCY, REPORTER: Before Monday, only Ukrainians in the country’s eastern and southern regions could fast-track their passports. Now, everyone, including non-residents, have access to the program.

Ukraine’s government warns that this may give Russia an excuse for its attacks claiming they are an attempt to protect Russian citizens within Ukraine.

Meanwhile, in eastern Ukraine, rescuers are still searching for survivors in the rubble of an apartment building destroyed by a Russian rocket. At least 30 people died in that attack in the city of Chasiv Yar over the weekend.

And on Monday, Russian missiles killed at least six people in a residential neighborhood in Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Mary Muncy.

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

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