Debt ceiling:Â The Senate late last night approved legislation suspending the country’s debt ceiling for two years and making budget cuts that had been negotiated by President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Forty-six Democrats and 17 Republicans voted in favor of the legislation. Independent Bernie Sanders and Democrat Elizabeth Warren were among those voting against the legislation. The White House said that President Biden would address the nation about the agreement this evening at about 7 p.m.
Fort Bragg:Â The Department of Defense today changes the name of Fort Bragg in North Carolina to Fort Liberty. Fort Bragg was named for Confederate General Braxton Bragg. The Defense Department has embarked on a program to rename bases that honor the Confederacy. The program began after the killing of George Floyd in 2020.
Smoke from fires:Â A 25-mile stretch of the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey was shut down this morning because of smoke from wildfires. The New Jersey fires have added to smoke in the atmosphere being blown into the New York Metro area from wildfires in Canada.
Blinken visits Finland:Â Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a speech in Finland today that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been a failure. Blinken’s visit was designed in part to show solidarity between the U.S. and Finland, which recently joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
Strong employment numbers: Total U.S. nonfarm payroll employment increased by 339,000 in May, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.3% to 3.7%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in professional and business services, government, health care, construction, transportation and warehousing, and social assistance. In May, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 11 cents to $33.44. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 4.3%, according to the government’s statistics.
Trump Town Hall: At the beginning of last night’s pre-recorded Donald Trump Town Hall on the Fox News Channel, host Sean Hannity stated that he would not attempt to fact check or correct Trump even when Trump told an outright lie. During the program, Trump denied knowing anything about a tape recording in the possession of Special Counsel Jack Smith that reportedly has him admitting to having at least one classified document that he took when he left office and describing its contents to people who lacked proper security clearances.
