West Coast blizzard, border visit, and clear laptops.

Adam Rogers
March 01, 2024

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Big Stories

The West Coast is being blasted by a blizzard that began Thursday night and will last until Sunday.

Areas like Donner Pass and Lake Tahoe, California, could experience intense snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour and wind gusts of 50 to 100 mph for 72 consecutive hours.
Snowfall forecasts estimate accumulations ranging from 1 to 10 feet across various locations in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The storm has the potential to not only erase existing snowfall deficits but also set records as one of the largest snowstorms on record
While the West Coast prepares for cold and snowy conditions, the eastern parts of the country are experiencing record warmth. The trend of unusually hot weather is expected to continue into March, with temperatures climbing well above average in cities like Minneapolis, Chicago, and New York City.

Israeli troops fired upon a large crowd of Palestinians attempting to get aid from a convoy in Gaza City.

More than 100 people were killed in the chaos, bringing the death toll since the start of the Israel-Hamas war to more than 30,000. Arab nations swiftly condemned the violence, and US President Joe Biden expressed concern over its potential impact on cease-fire negotiations
The five-month conflict has left Gaza City devastated and isolated, with aid delivery delayed by logistical challenges, military restrictions, and widespread hunger affecting a quarter of the population. Some countries have resorted to air-dropping supplies because gangs and desperate Palestinians are attacking aid convoys.
The US, Egypt, and Qatar are trying to broker a cease-fire agreement before Ramadan, which begins March 10. However, negotiations are stalled as Israel and Hamas have conflicting demands.

President Biden and Donald Trump visited Texas on Thursday to talk with local officials about the border crisis.

Both Biden and Trump blamed each other for the state of the southern border, which has seen record levels of arrests and court case backlogs. Trump criticized Biden's policies for encouraging migration and pointed out recent crimes involving migrants, while Biden accused Trump of obstructing bipartisan border security legislation.
Trump's visit to Eagle Pass with Governor Abbott — an area experiencing a migrant surge — highlighted tensions between state officials and the Biden administration. In contrast, Biden's visit to Brownsville aimed to provide insight into the challenges of migration and enforcement efforts in the Rio Grande Valley Sector.
Biden didn’t announce any unilateral executive actions to address the border situation. Instead, he emphasized the need for bipartisan legislative solutions and urged House Republicans to reconsider the Senate-negotiated bipartisan border deal.

Alabama's House and Senate passed legislation providing legal protections to healthcare facilities offering in vitro fertilization (IVF) services. The House bill gives legal immunity to IVF providers retroactively. The Senate bill grants clinics offering IVF treatments similar protections. Both bills now advance to the other chamber. (More)

A recent study in The Lancet shows a doubling of obesity rates globally and in the US over the past three decades. With over 1 billion people now obese, this trend raises the risk of major health issues like high blood pressure, cancer, and diabetes. Obesity rates more than doubled among women and nearly tripled among men between 1990 and 2022. (More)

New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against beef producer JBS in state court, accusing them of deceiving the public regarding their pledge to reduce climate pollution. Prosecutors allege that JBS continued misleading marketing claims despite being told by a consumer watchdog group to cease advertising because the company didn’t have a strategy to achieve their climate target. (More)

Iowa women’s basketball star Caitlin Clark added another record to her resume: the most points by any major college women’s player ever. She passed Lynette Woodard on the all-time list with 3,650 points. She also declared for the WNBA draft. (More)

North Korea's first spy satellite, Malligyong-1, appears to be operational. Space experts confirmed changes in its orbit leading them to believe it’s being controlled. Pyongyang claims it photographed sensitive sites in South Korea and the US, but no images have been released. (More)

‘Iron Man’ jetsuits are now a thing.

Cannabis use is associated with a higher risk of heart attack and stroke.

Florida has the most lightning strikes of any state.

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