Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Linda Kenyan.
Todd Blanche says he's deeply honored by the trust president Trump is placed in him to lead the Justice Department.
“NPR is Kerry Johnson reports on the debate that led to the narrow confirmation vote”
for Blanche to serve as a attorney general. Blanche worked over time to convince skeptical Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana to support his nomination.
The Senate ultimately confirmed Blanche as the nation's 88th Attorney General by a single
vote. Critics say Blanche presided over a DOJ that attacked the career workforce when after the president's political foes and botched the release of files connected to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. But Senator Cassidy and other suggest anyone Trump would hired replace Blanche could be less
qualified and less likely to push back on Trump's impulses. Larry Johnson and PR news. The vote to confirm Blanche for Attorney General was 50-49.
“A growing number of states are considering stricter rules for social media influencers”
who are paid to promote political candidates.
NPR as Windsor Johnston reports the issue is taking on new urgency as campaigns are
courting popular online creators in the lead up to the elections in the fall. Texas now requires online creators to disclose when they are paid to post political content and lawmakers in New York are considering a similar rule. California already requires disclosure and the bill before the state legislature would allow fines of up to $5,000 per violation.
The issue recently surfaced in Michigan where influencers on social media were reportedly offered money to promote Democratic primary Senate candidate Haley Stevens without clearly disclosing the payments. Stevens campaign denied any involvement. The controversy highlights the growing role of paid influencers as campaigns try to
reach voters ahead of the midterm elections.
Windsor Johnston and PR news, Washington. Water levels at Lake Meade have reached their lowest level on record. Tourists, Matthew Stubb and Jessica Torres were amazed when they came to see the nation's largest reservoir. "I wonder if you'll fully go like, I'm, you may go just fully to see people."
"That's wrong with you. That'll be a real big concern because there's a real dry area. And this dam was built for a reason for this vote for the water situation." Lake Meade is located on the Colorado River between Nevada and Arizona. It was formed in the mid-1930s when the Hoover Dam was constructed on the Colorado River.
“The lake supplies water to more than 20 million people and is one of the most important”
reservoirs on the vital waterway along with Lake Powell. Experts say they are also concerned that Lake Powell might also reach record low levels very soon. You're listening to NPR News. Much of Europe is bracing for yet another heat wave. Vicky Barker reports Europeans have been suffering through record-breaking hot summer.
Heat-health alerts have already taken effect in much of the UK where London is about to experience its fifth-heat wave of the season, all of Italy's major cities are under the highest level of heat alert and record heat's been reported in neighboring Austria. Several European countries have been experiencing temperatures above 104 Fahrenheit, prompting health warnings for millions of elderly or otherwise medically vulnerable people.
Planetologists say Europe, which lacks widespread air conditioning, is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, severely testing public health systems, power generation, transportation networks, and tourism infrastructure. For NPR News, I'm Vicky Barker, in London. A rare total solar eclipse is set to sweep over parts of Europe next week.
The event has expected to boost tourism in Spain where the path of total darkness will pass on Wednesday, parts of Greenland, Iceland, and Portugal will also experience the eclipse. A solar eclipse occurs when the moon moves between the sun and the earth, blocking the sun's light either partly or fully. Some safety-tip reminders if you're going to be in Europe, use solar filters and eclipse
glasses so that you do not look directly at the sun. I'm Lynda Kenyon, NPR News, in Washington. This week on the NPR Politics podcast, another progressive Democrat, Edges Out, and Establishment Candidate, Abdul Elsayed, one Michigan Senate primary campaigning on affordability, health care, and ending U.S. military aid to Israel.
Join us as we break down his victory and what it could signal for November's midterms on the NPR Politics podcast.
