Senate Passes New Sanctions Against Iran Industries

Joe Biden campaigned on a pledge to “end” America’s gun violence epidemic. The racially-motivated shooting that killed 10 people and injured three at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York on Saturday highlights how far he and the country are from fulfilling that goal. Speaking in front of the Capitol Building on Sunday, Biden described the Buffalo shooter as being “armed with weapons of war and a hate-filled soul.” “We’re still gathering the facts, but already the Justice Department has stated publicly that it is investigating the matter as a hate crime, a racially motivated act of white supremacy and violent extremism,” Biden said.

Benny Kuriakose remembers when his father built the first house in his village in the southern Indian state of Kerala with a concrete roof. It was 1968, and the family was proud to use the material, he says, which was becoming a “status symbol” among villagers: the new home resembled the modern buildings cropping up in Indian cities, which in turn resembled those in images of Western cities. But inside, the house was sweltering.

(Washington, D. C.) — The Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Monday sided with Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas in his challenge to a provision of federal campaign finance law, in a ruling that a dissenting justice said runs the risk of causing “further disrepute” to American politics. The justices, in a 6-3 decision that divided the court along ideological lines, agreed that the somewhat obscure section of the law violates the Constitution.

In the spring of 2020, Idaho became the first state in the United States to ban transgender girls and women from participating in women’s sports. Two years later, fifteen states have enacted similar laws. Trans athletes—particularly trans girls—are now directly in the crosshairs of America’s raging culture wars, as bills targeting trans and gender-expansive young people proliferate across the country. But the reason for this explosion in sports bans isn’t a surge of trans student athletes dominating the playing field, political strategists and LGBTQ advocates say.

STOCKHOLM — Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson on Monday told her country’s parliament that she sees “a historic change in our country’s security policy line” as the country prepares to seek membership of NATO. “Sweden needs formal security guarantees that come with membership in NATO,” Andersson said during a parliamentary debate, adding that the country was acting together with neighboring Finland. The debate is expected to be a formality as there is a clear majority of lawmakers in favor joining NATO.

McDonald’s said Monday that it has started the process of selling its Russian business, which includes 850 restaurants that employ 62,000 people, making it the latest major Western corporation to exit Russia since it invaded Ukraine in February. The fast food giant pointed to the humanitarian crisis caused by the war, saying holding on to its business in Russia “is no longer tenable, nor is it consistent with McDonald’s values.” The Chicago-based company announced in early March that it was temporarily closing its stores in Russia but would continue to pay employees.