National news in review

While we were all on summer vacation, many important national events took place that The Leader hasn’t addressed yet. To recap on the summer’s news, here are five national events that have garnered attention over the past few months, according to newsletters from The New York Times.

Maui Wildfires

The fire that swept through the town of Lahaina on Aug. 8 was the deadliest in the U.S. since 1918, and Maui officials are still working to identify who survived and who has been lost.

As of Sept. 8, the number of people missing has dropped to 66 and the official death toll is listed as 115.

Hurricane Idalia

While hurricane seasons typically hit their peak in September, this hurricane season struck suddenly in mid-August. 

Hurricane Idalia formed on Aug. 29 and struck the southeastern U.S. at a Category 3 level. It caused a dangerous storm surge, flooding, and wind damage. 

At this point, it’s unclear how the rest of this year’s hurricane season will play out. El Niño, a climate phenomenon that produces mighty winds that can break storms, may prevent hurricanes from forming. 

But at the same time, warming ocean temperatures have the potential to stir up hurricanes and block El Niño’s hurricane-calming effects. 

Trump indicted and surrendered to Atlanta jail

Former President Donald J. Trump surrendered to Fulton County Jail on account of him and his allies being accused of interfering with his 2020 election loss in Georgia. This was his fourth criminal arrest of the year. 

He was fingerprinted, photographed, and released on bond. Shortly after, he posted his mugshot on X, formerly known as Twitter, which went viral across social media platforms.

The Supreme Court rejected affirmative action and student loan forgiveness, and they backed a web designer who was opposed to creating websites for same-sex marriages this summer.

The Supreme Court rejected two education initiatives this summer – affirmative action and student loan forgiveness. 

Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. claimed affirmative action can’t work hand-in-hand with the equal protection clause.

“Both programs lack sufficiently focused and measurable objectives warranting the use of race, unavoidably employ race in a negative manner, involve racial stereotyping and lack meaningful end points,” Roberts said.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor disagreed, saying affirmative action is a crucial part of countering systemic racial discrimination.

“The court subverts the constitutional guarantee of equal protection by further entrenching racial inequality in education, the very foundation of our democratic government and pluralistic society,” Sotomayor said.

The Supreme Court rejected loan forgiveness because they thought it interfered with executive powers. 

For those who have loans, the Education Department finalized a system that could decrease payments, potentially cutting many loan borrowers’ monthly bills in half.

Additionally, the Biden administration is providing an “on-ramp” for students and their families; missed monthly bills won’t be considered delinquent from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30, 2024. 

The Supreme Court also supported a web designer who claimed she had a First Amendment right to refuse to design websites for same-sex marriages. It’s unclear whether this explanation will apply to other services.

COVID-19 cases rising

Waste water monitoring from Biobot Analytics suggests an increase in COVID-19 infections in the West and Northeast of the U.S. Also, COVID-19-related hospitalizations rose in a two-week period ending Aug. 12, according to the CDC. 

In addition, experts warn that COVID-19 could spread more in the fall and winter months.