International
Biden tries to heal Democrats’ divide on his spending plans
AFP
US President Joe Biden was to meet Wednesday with the warring wings of his Democratic Party in an effort to save his troubled economic plans.
The White House said Biden would hold three meetings with two dozen members of Congress as he dives in to try and settle an internal party squabble threatening to sink his ambitious social spending and infrastructure agenda.
One meeting will feature the two most powerful Democrats, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Both are close Biden allies but are struggling to get their ranks in line behind the economic plans.
Biden was then scheduled to meet with a group of moderate Democrats, including senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, who have got cold feet about the huge price tag.
Pointedly, the president was then to meet separately with Congress members on the left of the party, such as Senator Bernie Sanders. There was apparently no plan to bring the two sides around the same table.
Biden and the leftist legislators back quick passage of a $3.5 trillion package addressing climate change, child care and education. The vast proposals would fundamentally improve the lives of ordinary Americans left behind in an increasingly unequal economy, Biden says.
However, Manchin is among those calling the price too high, instead backing something far less than half the total.
Republicans are in no mood to help on the social spending plan, although they could vote for a separate smaller bill funding transport and other traditional infrastructure.
With the Democrats having only a razor-thin majority in Congress, the disunity threatens to bring down the entire agenda, sucking the energy out of Biden’s presidency.
The clock is also running out as Congress simultaneously squabbles on a vote to increase the government’s borrowing limit, an impasse that could trigger a US debt default and deliver a bad shock to markets.
International
Police investigate deaths of Rob Reiner and wife as apparent homicide
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is investigating the deaths of Hollywood actor and filmmaker Rob Reinerand his wife as an “apparent homicide,” amid a wave of tributes to the director of classics such as When Harry Met Sally.
According to U.S. media reports on Sunday, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner were found dead at their Los Angeles mansion with what appeared to be stab wounds.
Several political figures shared messages of condolence following the reported deaths of the director of A Few Good Menand his wife.
While the LAPD did not officially confirm the identities of the victims, it stated that homicide detectives were dispatched to the Reiner residence.
“At this time, no additional details are available and the investigation into an apparent homicide is ongoing,” the Los Angeles Police Department said in a statement posted on social media.
LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton told reporters that no arrests have been made and that no individuals are currently being questioned as suspects.
“I’m not going to confirm whether anyone is being questioned at this moment or not. We are going to try to speak with as many family members as we can,” Hamilton said.
CNN reported that a family spokesperson confirmed the deaths of Reiner and his wife.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, former U.S. President Barack Obama, and former Vice President Kamala Harrisissued statements expressing their condolences.
International
U.S. and Mexico Reach Deal to Address Water Deficit Under 1944 Treaty
The United States and Mexico have reached an agreement to comply with current water obligations affecting U.S. farmers and ranchers and for Mexico to cover its water deficit to Texas under the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a statement.
The department уточified that the agreement applies to both the current cycle and the water deficit from the previous cycle.
On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump accused Mexico of failing to comply with the water-sharing treaty between the two countries, which requires the United States to deliver 1.85 billion cubic meters of water from the Colorado River, while Mexico must supply 432 million cubic meters from the Rio Grande.
Mexico is behind on its commitments. According to Washington, the country has accumulated a deficit of more than one billion cubic meters of water over the past five years.
“This violation is severely harming our beautiful crops and our livestock in Texas,” Trump wrote on Monday.
The Department of Agriculture said on Friday that Mexico had agreed to supply 250 million cubic meters of water starting next week and to work toward closing the shortfall.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, quoted in the statement, said Mexico delivered more water in a single year than it had over the previous four years combined.
Trump has said that if Mexico continues to fall short of its obligations, the United States reserves the right to impose 5% tariffs on imported Mexican products.
Mexico’s Deputy Foreign Minister for North America, Roberto Velasco, said that a severe drought in 2022 and 2023prevented the country from meeting its commitments.
International
Several people shot in attack on Brown University campus
Several people were shot on Saturday in an attack on the campus of Brown University, in the northeastern United States, local police reported.
“Shelter in place and avoid the area until further notice,” the Providence Police Department urged in a post on X. Brown University is located in Providence, the capital of the state of Rhode Island.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that he had been briefed on the situation and that the FBI was on the scene.
At 5:52 p.m. local time (11:52 p.m. GMT), Brown University said the situation was still “ongoing” and instructed students to remain sheltered until further notice.
After initially stating that the suspect had been taken into custody, Trump later posted a second message clarifying that local police had walked back that information. “The suspect has NOT been apprehended,” the U.S. president said.
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