December 13 top stories
It is December 13. Here are today’s top stories.
Actor André Braugher dies at 61
Actor André Braugher, best known for his roles in television shows “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and “Homicide: Life on the Street,” passed away on Monday after a brief illness. It is unknown what the illness was. He was 61. Braugher won an Emmy in 1998 for lead actor in a drama series and won another Emmy in 2006 for a different role. There are many tributes on social media by fans of his role in “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”
Hunter Biden refuses House GOP subpoena
Hunter Biden, President Joe Biden’s son, refused to comply with a House subpoena to testify today behind closed doors as a part of an investigation into his overseas business deals and whether the president benefited from it.
USAToday explained that Hunter’s lawyer offered for him to testify at a public hearing but Republicans wanted a closed-door testimony.
Hunter, instead of going into the Capitol, gave a press conference outside of the building and criticized House Republicans for what he feels is a targeted campaign to hurt his father politically while he is running for a second term.
House Republicans can hold a vote to hold Hunter in contempt of Congress and recommend that he be prosecuted.
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U.S. votes against UN resolution demanding cease-fire in Gaza
The U.S. voted against a U.N. General Assembly resolution that demands an immediate cease-fire in Gaza.
The Washington Post explained that the resolution, introduced by Egypt, also called for the release of hostages. 153 countries voted in support of it while the U.S. and Israel were among the 10 countries that voted against it.
Egypt’s ambassador said the resolution was the only guarantee for saving innocent Palestinian civilians, of which over 18,000 have died over the past two months.
Israel’s ambassador said a cease-fire would mean the survival of Hamas.
The U.S. ambassador, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said the U.S. does agree with some parts of the resolution but criticized the resolution for failing to condemn the Hamas attack on October 7 that killed 1,200 people in Israel.
News related with abortion rights
Here are three news briefs related to abortion rights.
In Texas, a pregnant woman named Kate Cox, whose fetus has a serious condition with very low survival rates and sued to seek the right to obtain an abortion because she herself was experiencing serious health issues ended up leaving the state to get an abortion. Not long after that, the Texas Supreme Court rejected her lawsuit, saying her health situation didn’t pose a serious risk to the mother’s life.
In Kentucky, an unidentified pregnant woman who filed a lawsuit demanding the right to an abortion said she found out her embryo no longer has cardiac activity. The woman’s attorneys said they would continue the suit and encouraged other women to reach out if they are interested in joining a class-action lawsuit.
The third news is that the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to take up a case on whether people should have access to mifepristone, a pill that is typically used in medication abortions. A decision will probably come in summer 2024.
COP28 climate summit
CNBC explained that the COP28 climate summit in Dubai wrapped up with a deal from almost 200 countries that calls for a transition away from fossil fuels towards net-zero emissions in 2050.
The burning of fossil fuels, which includes coal, oil and gas, is the largest contributor to climate change.
Axios said it’s the first time the U.N. climate talks, which span three decades, have explicitly pressed for such a transition away from fossil fuels.
The deal, although historic, is non-binding and it’s not what climate activists wanted because it didn’t have a clear agreement to phase out fossil fuels.
That is all the top stories for today. See you tomorrow and stay with the light.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/kentucky-woman-abortion-suit-rcna129322
https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/12/13/tesla-autopilot-recall/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/12/13/un-vote-gaza-ceasefire-countries-against/
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/kentucky-woman-abortion-suit-rcna129322
https://apnews.com/article/abortion-texas-ban-7d865cdfd75bdc6b2f4186f4d1e6e8bd'
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/dec/13/abortion-pill-us-supreme-court-mifepristone