Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Just as I was getting ready to publish this, there was a report about a mass shooting in Racine, Wisconsin. From the local newspaper: “Multiple people may have been shot Thursday afternoon in or near Graceland Cemetery near West Racine. Details are scarce so far. The public is being asked to avoid the area.”
* The latest from Tulsa: “A gunman who killed four people at a Tulsa hospital Wednesday targeted a doctor who had treated him and bought the AR-15-style rifle used in the shooting on the day of the attack, police said. Michael Louis was armed with a rifle, which he had purchased at 2 p.m. Wednesday, and a handgun when he went to St. Francis Hospital shortly before 5 p.m., officials said.”
* At the White House tonight: “President Joe Biden plans to deliver a major address Thursday evening from the White House urging Congress once again to pass stricter gun control legislation.”
* Let no one say Biden isn’t taking this seriously: “In a press statement released on Wednesday, President Joe Biden announced that United Airlines has donated planes for the cause and will be transporting approximately 3.7 million 8-ounce equivalents of Kendamil infant formula free of charge from Heathrow Airport in London to the U.S. beginning June 9.”
* Oil production: “The group of oil-producing nations known as OPEC Plus agreed on Thursday to a larger increase in supply than planned for July and August. The White House hailed the higher output as a diplomatic breakthrough after months of lobbying Middle East oil giants to raise production to ease price pressures. Administration officials said on Thursday that President Biden would visit Saudi Arabia, which effectively leads OPEC Plus, later this month.”
* In Yemen: “The United Nations said Thursday that Yemen’s warring parties have agreed to renew a nationwide truce for another two months. The development offered a glimmer of hope for the country, plagued by eight years of civil war — though significant obstacles remain to lasting peace.”
* I wonder what Trump would do with an announcement like this: “Ford Motor Co. plans to add 6,200 union manufacturing jobs and invest $3.7 billion into plants in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri, as it looks to expand vehicle production and prepare for coming labor talks.”
* Another upside to a strong economic recovery: “The financial outlook for Social Security and Medicare improved last year, thanks largely to a rapid economic recovery that drove tax revenues higher.” * In the not-too-distant past, this would’ve been tough to predict: “Seventy-one percent of Americans say they support legal same-sex marriage, which exceeds the previous high of 70% recorded in 2021 by one percentage point.” * Quite a breakthrough: “A 20-year-old woman who was born with a small and misshapen right ear has received a 3-D printed ear implant made from her own cells, the manufacturer announced on Thursday. Independent experts said that the transplant, part of the first clinical trial of a successful medical application of this technology, was a stunning advance in the field of tissue engineering.” 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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