海角大神

Two major earthquakes shook Venezuela Wednesday. They were among the strongest in the South American nation鈥檚 history. Acting President Delcy Rodr铆guez declared a state of emergency after 7.2 and 7.5 quakes hit in quick succession, toppling buildings, knocking out power in Caracas, and shuttering the main international airport. Over the past nearly six months, since the U.S. ousted authoritarian leader Nicol谩s Maduro in a military operation, Venezuelans have expressed feeling cautiously optimistic about the future of their country, especially following more than a decade of economic, political, and humanitarian crises.聽

The Pentagon asked Congress for $87.6 billion. The long-anticipated request asks for funding to replenish weapons and equipment that have been depleted by the Iran war, plus a few other nondefense priorities. Military leaders have warned they could start running out of money for some operations like training exercises this summer. Republicans are debating whether to try to pass this money as a standalone bill 鈥� and face significant Democratic opposition 鈥� or attach it to a broader reconciliation package on a tight timeline.

A federal judge tossed out immigration court arrests.聽The ruling in California on Tuesday vacated the Trump administration policy, which the judge called 鈥渁rbitrary and capricious.鈥� As the government scaled up detentions of immigrants for mass deportations last year, critics said courthouse arrests violated due process. Separately, the White House on Tuesday scored a victory in an appeals court in Washington, D.C., which allowed expanded use of fast-track deportations to resume.

Right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori is expected to become Peru鈥檚 next president.聽This was the closest election in recent Peruvian history, with Ms. Fujimori securing an 鈥渋nsurmountable lead鈥� of just over 43,000 votes late Tuesday night. This was her fourth time running for highest office, and the daughter of controversial former President Alberto Fujimori is expected to carry on the family legacy of iron-fisted security policies in the face of growing crime. Her rival, leftist congressman and former commerce minister Roberto S谩nchez, said he would refuse to recognize the results unless thousands of votes cast by Peruvians abroad were annulled, alleging irregularities with consulate counts.

President Donald Trump canceled his signing of a housing bill.聽The signing ceremony of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which passed the Senate and House this week with bipartisan support, had been scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. The bill streamlines the construction and permitting process to address the shortage of affordable housing, a major issue for voters. On social media, Mr. Trump said he would postpone signing it until Congress passes the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require proof of U.S. citizenship 鈥� such as a U.S. passport, birth certificate, or naturalization document聽鈥� to register to vote in federal elections. The president hasn鈥檛 had the near-unanimous support needed from Republican lawmakers to pass it.

Camp Mystic has filed for bankruptcy.聽The faith-based summer camp for girls has been the subject of lawsuits and a state investigation after 25 campers and two counselors died in flooding in Central Texas over the Fourth of July weekend last year. The Chapter 11 filing pauses lawsuits from the families of victims alleging gross negligence by the camp in preparing for the flood. Lawyers for victims鈥� families have said they will fight to keep the lawsuits going. The camp had sought to reopen this summer but chose not to after intense scrutiny from state lawmakers.

鈥撀烫ompiled by Monitor writers around the world

The Mississippi River聽still captures the imagination, though it is today meticulously managed聽to ensure the flow of a nation鈥檚 commerce. Changing conditions make that a constant effort, reflecting America's economic growth and transformation.

Since the 19th century, birthright citizenship has been the law of the land. But the U.S. is hardly unique. The legal principle still stands across most of the Americas.

Voters expressed their opposition to the construction of data centers in local elections across the United States. In the traditionally pro-business Republican Party, incumbents were ousted in primaries after supporting local data center projects.

Far-left wins in congressional primaries followed mayoral victories in major U.S. cities. Mainstream Democrats, struggling with voter dissatisfaction, are unhappy about the rising leftism.

With France sweltering under another heat wave, many 鈥� including the Monitor鈥檚 Paris correspondent 鈥� are wondering why the country hasn鈥檛 made more headway in responding to the deadly temperatures.

This annual festival in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has performers 鈥� and attendees 鈥� waltzing across language barriers and borders.聽The idea that dance is for everyone, regardless of ability, infuses the festival.

For the past couple of years, American politicians on the left and right have competed to define a political buzzword: affordability. Does it mean increasing individual resources to meet everyday costs? Or raising the output of goods and services to lower prices? Or both?

On Tuesday, Congress did the country a favor by passing a bill 鈥� in a rare case of broad bipartisanship 鈥� that helps give common meaning to the word. The measure puts a stamp of approval on an often unescapable law: that supply will rise to meet demand when free to do so.

The bill, which still awaits the president鈥檚 approval, mandates a range of initiatives aimed mainly at raising the nation鈥檚 housing stock. It would reduce production bottlenecks rather than raise subsidies for home purchases.

The number of parts in the legislation itself reflects how much lawmakers endorse a supply-positive approach. Through artful political compromise in Congress, the bill compiles nearly 50 initiatives from dozens of proposals offered by both sides of the aisle. It would, for example, greatly reduce the cost of factory-built homes, speed up environmental permitting, and provide federal incentives to reform restrictive local zoning laws.

鈥淚t鈥檚 reaffirming at a time of real polarization that you can still see Democrats and Republicans coming together ... and passing common-sense legislation that should be a help to most Americans,鈥� San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, the incoming president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, told The Boston Globe.

While the actual impact of the federal measure on local housing remains to be seen, Congress has nonetheless passed its largest housing bill in decades while also partly clarifying the public debate over affordability.

鈥淗ousing affordability starts with supply, and this bill makes meaningful progress toward building more homes and lowering costs for American families,鈥� said House Financial Services Committee Chair French Hill, a Republican from Arkansas. His point was endorsed by the panel鈥檚 ranking Democratic member, Maxine Waters of California.

With its focus on widening the pipeline for new homes, the bill represents a 鈥減aradigm shift in federal housing policy,鈥� Dennis Shea of the Bipartisan Policy Center told Bloomberg.

And, he added in speaking to The New York Times, that shift 鈥渨ould give members of Congress of both political parties an opportunity to talk about what they鈥檝e done, and what they鈥檙e trying to achieve.鈥�