Daily Briefing: Earth is hot
Nicole FallertAn uninterrupted run of all-time temperature records starting in June 2023 is unusual and worrying. Testimony detailing Hunter Biden's personal life is expected to continue. Thursday marks the 80th anniversary of the historic D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
🙋🏼♀️ I'm Nicole Fallert, Daily Briefing author. Don't let these scams ruin your summer.
Earth marks 12 straight months of record heat
May 2024 was the twelfth straight month of record-warm temperatures for the planet, European scientists announced Wednesday. The new milestone is even more worrisome than the one reached in January, which marked 2023 as the hottest year on record. That meant the calendar year was the hottest overall, with many – but not all – months setting records. Now every month for a year straight has been the hottest ever recorded.
Republicans won't protect your condom
Democrats forced a Senate vote on whether to begin work on legislation to codify the right to contraception Wednesday that was doomed to fail without Republican support. The Right to Contraception Act, introduced by Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., sought to codify people's right to use and protect health care providers' right to distribute contraceptives of all kinds. The vote forced senators in the chamber to take a clear side on an issue that's known to mobilize voters nationwide. Read more
More news to know now
- A grandmother's 80-year-old diary documents the opening of D-Day.
- Trump will speak with voters on Thursday, a week after a New York jury found him guilty of 34 felony counts.
- Israel confirmed it backed a cease-fire plan, U.S. says. But fighting won't stop yet.
- The crewed Boeing Starliner finally launched from Florida.
- Wanna play? Try today’s USA TODAY Crossword. Our expert, Sally, breaks it down.
What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.
Hunter Biden's ex-wife, former girlfriend testify
The personal tone of testimony in Hunter Biden's felony gun trial is expected to continue Thursday when prosecutors call Hallie Biden, Hunter Biden's former lover and his brother's widow, who they said will testify about Hunter Biden's and her own drug use around the time he purchased a gun.
- Both his ex-wife and former girlfriend told a jury in Wilmington federal court on Wednesday about his struggles with crack cocaine addiction.
- “He wrote 'no'”: A gun shop employee testified he watched as Hunter Biden wrote where the form asks if he was an unlawful user of or addicted to controlled substances.
- The trial is a Biden family affair: It's been a full-court press of Biden family members in the front row over the first three days of the trial. That includes first lady Jill Biden, who's shown up each day.
Bird flu strain's first human fatality
A Mexico resident died in what officials say is the world's first death from a bird flu strain not previously detected in humans, the World Health Organization said. The individual had no prior exposure to poultry or other animals and the victim's source of exposure to the virus is unknown, WHO said. In Mexico, cases of the A(H5N2) strain of bird flu have been detected in poultry. The H5N2 strain differs from the other avian influenza cases that have caused a multi-state outbreak in cattle in the U.S. since late last year. WHO officials said the current risk to the general population is low based on available information. Read more
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- Sparks' Cameron Brink shot down a brewing WNBA rookies vs veterans narrative.
- X now allows consensual adult nudity on its platform.
Amanda Knox won't return to jail
An Italian court found American Amanda Knox guilty of slander on Wednesday and handed her a three-year jail sentence in a case related to the murder in 2007 of her British roommate. The sentence will have no practical impact as it is covered by the time Knox, now 36, spent in jail before her conviction for the killing of British student Meredith Kercher in Perugia, Italy, was annulled in 2015. Read more
Photo of the day: 80 years since D-Day changed the world
D-Day – the largest land, sea and air invasion ever attempted – still resonates today. With the bold invasion of Nazi-held Europe on June 6, 1944, the Allied forces began turning the tide in World War II. The success of the invasion came at the cost of more 10,000 Allied troops killed, wounded or missing. Read more
Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com.