Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Ukraine’s Russian targets: “Dramatic video Thursday showed a Ukrainian drone attack on a military airfield in southern Russia, as Kyiv launches an expanding wave of strikes deep inside its neighbor’s territory.”
* Difficult diplomacy: “President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday as the United States presses Israel and Hamas to agree to a ‘bridging proposal’ that could lead to a cease-fire in the war in Gaza.”
* Elsewhere in the Middle East: “The Pentagon on Thursday blasted Houthi rebels for striking an oil tanker and creating an ‘environmental disaster’ in the Red Sea after the merchant vessel was lit ablaze with a million barrels of crude oil on board. Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters the Houthis striking the merchant vessel Sounion on Wednesday was threatening a ‘catastrophe’ in Yemen’s backyard.”
* SCOTUS news: “The Supreme Court on Thursday partly granted a request from the Republican National Committee to make Arizona enforce measures requiring people to show proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote. In what is likely to be one of many election-related disputes to come before the court ahead of the November election, the justices allowed for one of three provisions of the state law to be enforced.”
* Democracy could be in better shape in Arkansas: “The Arkansas Supreme Court blocked an abortion-rights initiative from appearing on the state’s ballot this fall, upholding a July decision by the secretary of state to reject the measure for not following rules related to paid signature gatherers.” * One of Trump’s many legal dilemmas: “New York state lawyers urged an appeals court late Wednesday to uphold Donald Trump’s nearly $500 million civil fraud judgment, arguing there’s ‘overwhelming evidence’ to support a judge’s finding that the former president lied for years about his wealth as he built his real estate empire.” * Vaccine news: “The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved the new Covid vaccine from Pfizer and Moderna. It’s the third time the vaccines have been updated to match circulating strains since the original series. The shots should be available within days. The agency hasn’t yet approved a third vaccine, from drugmaker Novavax.” 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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