Wednesday morning news - May 4, 2022

For WORLD Radio, I'm Kent Covington. 

Fallout continues over leaked Supreme Court draft Roe ruling » The fallout continues in Washington after someone leaked a draft of a Supreme Court ruling that would overturn Roe v. Wade.

Chief Justice John Roberts confirmed the authenticity of that document on Tuesday. He called the leak “egregious” and has launched a probe into the matter.

Republicans, like Ohio lawmaker Matt Dolan, say the person responsible must be held accountable.

DOLAN: I am really concerned about the leak. And I hope the DOJ and the FBI take it seriously, find the leaker, and prosecute them.

Justice Roberts said the document is real, but the ruling is not final.

Democrats are decrying the potential decision as an injustice. President Biden says he wants Congress to codify the 1973 Roe decision in law.

And Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer declared on Tuesday…

SCHUMER: The Supreme Court is poised to inflict the greatest restriction of rights in the past 50 years.

But most Republicans say it would, in fact, be the greatest restoration of rights in a half-century, the right to life itself for millions of unborn children, at least in many states.

Overturning the Roe v. Wade decision would return authority over abortion law to the states.

Russian forces storm steel mill in Mariupol » Russian forces Tuesday began storming the steel mill containing the last pocket of resistance in Mariupol.

Russian forces backed by tanks began invading the sprawling plant, which includes a maze of tunnels and bunkers spread out over 4 square miles.

That marks a shift away from Vladimir Putin’s stated strategy of starving out the remaining troops.

The renewed attacks came just as scores of civilians evacuated from the bombed-out plant reached relative safety. One of the evacuees described the terror she experienced.

AUDIO: You can’t imagine how scary it is when you sit in the shelter of a wet and damp basement, which is bouncing, shaking. When we were able to go outside, I saw the sun for the second time in two months. When you go out, you see craters 49 feet in diameter.

The Red Cross helped coordinate the evacuation of more than a hundred women, children, and elderly Ukrainians.

Slovakia, Hungary won’t back EU sanctions on Russian energy » Slovakia and Hungary say they cannot support sanctions against Russian energy. WORLD’s Josh Schumacher reports.

JOSH SCHUMACHER, REPORTER: The two Eastern European countries said they’re too reliant on Russian supplies to back proposed EU sanctions. They said they have no immediate energy alternatives.

The European Commission has drafted new proposals for sanctions. The plan could phase in an embargo on Russian oil.

Slovak Economy Minister Richard Sulik said switching from Russian crude to another kind of oil means changing technology. And that would take several years.

The 27 member countries are expected to huddle over the new sanctions starting today, but it could be several days before the measures take effect.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the commission wants to hit more banks, target those accused of spreading disinformation about the war and “tackle oil imports.”

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Josh Schumacher.

Top Pentagon officials pitch defense budget raise to lawmakers » Meantime on Capitol Hill, top Pentagon officials said they’ve learned a lot about the Russian military’s shortfalls over the past two months. But Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mark Milley and Defense Secretary Lloyed Austin warned that Moscow is learning from its mistakes.

They said Russia remains a global threat. But they reminded lawmakers that Russia is not the only threat.

MILLEY: We are now facing two global powers, China and Russia, each with significant military capabilities, both who intend to fundamentally change the current rules-based order.

Milley and Austin pitched the Defense Department’s $761 billion dollar budget proposal to a Senate subcommittee on Tuesday. It would raise defense spending by almost 5 percent over the current year.

Austin said the budget request includes upgrades on land, sea, and air, and…

AUSTIN: The department's pacing challenge remains countering aggression and bullying from China. So this budget invests some $6 billion dollars in the Pacific deterrence initiative.

The budget also includes a roughly four-and-a-half percent pay raise for military and civilian personnel.

Employers post record 11.5 million job openings in March » Employers posted a record 11.5 million job openings in March. WORLD’s Anna Johansen Brown has more.

ANNA JOHANSEN BROWN, REPORTER: U.S. employers are now posting two job openings for every person who is unemployed.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released the data on Tuesday, further highlighting a tight labor market.

A record 4.5 million Americans quit their jobs in March. That’s a sign that many are confident they can find better pay or working conditions elsewhere. That’s a trend that has also added to spiraling inflation.

Employers have added an average of more than 540,000 jobs a month for the past year.

The Labor Department is expected to report on Friday, an unprecedented 12th straight month that new hires have topped 400,000.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Anna Johansen Brown.

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

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.