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Canada wildfires: Smoke reducing solar power and New England summer heat

NEW YORK, June 11 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — Solar power generation in the northeast United States is tumbling by more than 50% as a result of the smoke from eastern Canada wildfires. On Thursday ISO New England, the operator of the grid, said solar power generation in New England was 56% below last week during times of peak demand.

“In recent days, smoke from wildfires in Canada has traveled to New England, significantly lowering production from solar resources in the region compared to what ISO New England would expect absent the smoke,” pointed out the operator.

USA: SEC lawsuits against cryptocurrency companies raise questions about industry’s future

WASHINGTON (AP) — First came the crypto winter, then the alleged fraud wrought by FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, and now the lawsuits.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed lawsuits last week against the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges, Binance and Coinbase, deepening tensions between the government and a volatile industry that has been marred by scandals and market meltdowns.

USA: Trump allies cite Clinton email probe to attack classified records case. There are big differences

WASHINGTON (AP) — As former President Donald Trump prepares for a momentous court appearance Tuesday on charges related to the hoarding of top-secret documents, Republican allies are amplifying, without evidence, claims that he is the target of a political prosecution.

USA: Elevated section of heavily traveled I-95 collapses in Philadelphia

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — An elevated section of Interstate 95 collapsed early Sunday in Philadelphia after a vehicle caught fire, closing the main north-south highway on the East Coast and threatening to upend travel in parts of the densely populated Northeast, authorities said.

Transportation officials warned of extensive delays and street closures and urged drivers to avoid the area. Early reports indicated that the vehicle may have been a tanker truck, but officials could not immediately confirm that. The fire was reported to be under control.

USA: Elvis Presley’s cousin lifts Democrats’ hopes in Mississippi governor’s race

GRENADA, Miss. (AP) — Conservative Mississippi is tough territory for Democrats, but the party sees an unusual opportunity this year to unseat first-term Republican Gov. Tate Reeves. They’re pinning hopes in November on a candidate with a legendary last name who has used his own compelling story to highlight the economic plight of working families in a state that has long been one of the poorest in America.

USA: Youth environmentalists bring Montana climate case to trial after 12 years, seeking to set precedent

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Whether a constitutional right to a healthy, livable climate is protected by state law is at the center of a lawsuit going to trial Monday in Montana, where 16 young plaintiffs and their attorneys hope to set an important legal precedent.

It’s the first trial of its kind in the U.S., and legal scholars around the world are following its potential addition to the small number of rulings that have established a government duty to protect citizens from climate change.

USA: Alzheimer’s drug gets FDA panel’s backing, setting the stage for broader use

WASHINGTON (AP) — Health advisers on Friday unanimously backed the full approval of a closely watched Alzheimer’s drug, a key step toward opening insurance coverage to U.S. seniors with early stages of the brain-robbing disease.

The drug, Leqembi, received conditional approval from the Food and Drug Administration in January based on early results suggesting it could slow Alzheimer’s progression by several months. The FDA now is reviewing more definitive results to decide whether the drug should receive the agency’s full endorsement.

USA: As Biden visits renamed N.C. military base, DeSantis slams ‘political correctness run amok’

FORT LIBERTY, N.C. (AP) — President Joe Biden traveled to the recently renamed Fort Liberty in North Carolina on Friday to sign an executive order that aims to bolster job opportunities for military and veteran spouses whose careers are often disrupted by their loved ones’ deployments.

Less than 100 miles away at the state’s Republican Party convention, GOP presidential contender, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, vowed to restore the former name of the base that until last week was called Fort Bragg in honor of a Confederate general, if voters elect him president.

Trump’s GOP defenders in Congress leap into action on charges after months of preparation

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump’s indictment on charges of mishandling classified documents is set to play out in a federal court in Florida. But about a thousand miles away, part of Trump’s defense is well underway in a different venue — the halls of Congress, where Republicans have been preparing for months to wage an aggressive counter-offensive against the Justice Department.

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