Today’s edition of quick hits.
* A heartbreaking updated death toll in Texas: “At least 95 people are dead across six counties today. In Kerr County, officials reported 75 deaths, including 48 adults and 27 children.”
* An ongoing threat: “With slow-moving and scattered thunderstorms, flood watches remain in effect today across central Texas until 7 p.m. local time, including over the Hill Country region that experienced flash flooding over the weekend.”
* NWS in the spotlight: “Fatal floods in Texas that left thousands scrambling for safety with little warning have sparked a fresh round of scrutiny of Trump administration cuts to the National Weather Service. … Within hours of the deluge early Friday, some Texas officials were critical of the NWS, saying forecasts underestimated the rainfall.”
* This offensive came on the heels of a Trump-Putin phone meeting: “Russia overnight launched its largest aerial assault on Ukraine’s capital since the start of the war … While the attacks primarily targeted Kyiv, across Ukraine at least 23 people were injured in the strikes, which involved about 540 drones and 11 missiles, according to the country’s military.”
* In related news: “Since President Trump returned to office in January, the United States has issued no new sanctions against Russia related to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In some cases, the administration has eased restrictions. And without new ones, analysts say, existing measures lose their force. The result has created an opening for new dummy companies to funnel funds and critical components to Russia, including computer chips and military equipment that would otherwise be cut off to the Kremlin, trade and corporate records show.”
* All is not well at the FDA: “Inspectors charged with safeguarding America’s drug supply say they are reeling from deep cuts at the Food and Drug Administration despite promises by the Trump administration to preserve the work of the agency’s investigative force.”
* On a related note: “The United States has reached its highest annual measles case tally in 33 years, hitting at least 1,277 confirmed cases across 38 states and the District of Columbia. The milestone marks a public health reversal in defeating a highly contagious, vaccine-preventable disease as the anti-vaccine movement gains strength.”
* And speaking of vaccines: “The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Physicians and other major national public health organizations filed a lawsuit Monday against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to defend science-based vaccine policy. The groups are suing Kennedy over his ‘arbitrary and capricious’ directive to change COVID vaccine recommendations for children and pregnant people.” * A probe worth watching: “Alina Habba, once President Donald Trump’s personal attorney and now the interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey, has quietly been under investigation by the state’s professional regulators for more than a year — putting her license to practice law at risk.” * Just in time: “Vacancies at the National Park Service have shot up since President Trump returned to the Oval Office and slashed the federal work force, leaving popular destinations across the country short-staffed during what is expected to be one of the service’s busiest seasons.” * I have a hunch this won’t be well received in some circles: “The Justice Department and FBI say they have found no evidence that Jeffrey Epstein kept a ‘client list,’ contradicting Attorney General Pam Bondi’s past suggestion that such a list from the convicted sex offender and financier existed.” See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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