Nation & world news – at a glance – for Thursday, July 20, 2023

Wesleyan University ends

legacy admissions

Wesleyan University, a liberal arts college in Connecticut, is ending legacy admissions, which give a leg up to the children of alumni, just weeks after the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action. After the Supreme Court decision, legacy admissions came under heavy attack because the practice tends to favor white, wealthy applicants over Black, Hispanic, Asian American and Native American students. Some highly selective universities and colleges have dropped legacy admissions, including Amherst, Johns Hopkins and Carnegie Mellon. Others have been reluctant to give up the practice, arguing that it helps build a strong intergenerational community and encourages donations.

Insurers deny medical care

for the poor at high rates,

report says

Private health insurance companies paid by Medicaid denied millions of requests for care for low-income Americans with little oversight from federal and state authorities, according to a new report by U.S. investigators published Wednesday. Medicaid contracts with companies to reimburse hospitals and doctors for treatment and to manage an individual's medical care. The companies, including Aetna, Elevance Health, Molina Healthcare and UnitedHealthcare, operated some Medicaid plans that denied care under requests for prior authorization of services by rates greater than 25% in 2019, the report found. About 2.7 million people were enrolled in these plans at the time. Another 8.4 million were in plans with above-average denial rates from 15% to 25%.

Floods sweep

southwestern Kentucky

Strong thunderstorms and heavy rain caused significant flooding in southwestern Kentucky on Wednesday, breaking one daily rainfall record and prompting a scramble to rescue residents from rising waters. The 11.28 inches of rain that fell in Graves County broke a 24-hour rainfall record for Kentucky, the National Weather Service in Paducah said. The previous 24-hour record was 10.48 inches of rainfall in March 1997 in Louisville. There were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries, according to Trooper Sarah Burgess, a spokesperson for Kentucky State Police Post 1, which covers 11 counties in western Kentucky. About six water rescues were completed, said Sheriff Jon Hayden of Graves County.

Trump hush money case will remain in New York state court, judge rules

A judge on Wednesday denied former President Donald Trump's request to move the New York criminal case against him to federal court. Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg's prosecutors have charged Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, stemming from a hush money payment made to a porn star in 2016. Trump's lawyers had argued that the case should be heard in federal court because it related to conduct he engaged in while president. In his order, Judge Alvin Hellerstein said Trump's lawyers had failed to show that reimbursements made to Trump's former fixer, Michael Cohen, for the hush money payment were somehow related to the office of the presidency.

Police unable to verify Alabama woman's report of wandering child and abduction

Police in Alabama said Wednesday that they had found no evidence to substantiate a woman's report that she had been abducted and held for two days after she pulled over to help a toddler she had seen walking along the side of an interstate. Police said an investigation showed that Carlee Russell, 25, had searched online for information about Amber Alerts and the movie "Taken," which is about a kidnapping, before she called 911 Thursday night to report a toddler walking along the interstate in Hoover, Alabama. When police arrived, they found Russell's vehicle and some of her belongings but could not find her. Russell returned home on foot Saturday night, police said.

Russia hits grain ports

and threatens headed to Ukraine

As Russia resumes its blockade of ships carrying food from Ukraine, its military bombarded Odesa and an adjoining port late Tuesday and early Wednesday - specifically targeting the ability to export grain, Ukrainian officials said. Hours later, Russia's Ministry of Defense issued a warning to ship operators and other nations suggesting that any attempt to bypass the blockade might be seen as an act of war. Ukrainian officials accused Russia of using food as leverage in the war, in an attempt to extend Ukraine's pain to the rest of the globe.

Kissinger meets top officials in China and gets a warm greeting

Henry Kissinger, the 100-year-old former secretary of state who has pushed the United States to take a more conciliatory approach to China, has made a surprise visit to Beijing, meeting with China's top foreign policy official and its defense minister. The reception for Kissinger, who more than 50 years ago helped pave the way for diplomatic ties between the United States and China during President Richard Nixon's administration, was warmer than those for current U.S. officials who have visited Beijing recently to try and stabilize U.S.-China relations. A State Department spokesperson told reporters Tuesday that the Biden administration had known that Kissinger was planning to travel to China.

China's Xi rebuffs

Kerry's call for faster

climate action

Chinese leaders rebuffed attempts by John Kerry, President Joe Biden's climate envoy, to persuade them to commit to tougher climate action during three days of talks in Beijing, a response that suggested that tensions between the countries are making it difficult to work together on a crisis that threatens the planet. Kerry emerged late Wednesday from the lengthy negotiations in Beijing with no new agreements. In fact, the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, insisted in a speech that China would pursue its goals to phase out carbon dioxide pollution at its own pace and in its own way.

Morocco invites Netanyahu to visit, in a possible opening

to deeper ties

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Wednesday received an invitation from King Mohammed VI to visit Morocco, laying the ground for the first such high-level visit since the two countries normalized relations in late 2020 and heralding a possible deepening of diplomatic and security ties. The news was likely to give Netanyahu a boost even as the policies of his right-wing government have caused tension in the region. The exchange between the king and Netanyahu also appeared to signal an easing of recent tensions between Morocco and Israel. Morocco had postponed a diplomatic summit with Israel this summer.

Pentagon unveils $1.3 billion for Ukraine, bringing total new U.S. aid this week to $2.3 billion

The United States will send $1.3 billion in financial assistance to Ukraine in order to purchase a host of new military equipment and ammunition, the Pentagon said Wednesday. The new security support followed several U.S. announcements of humanitarian and other aid, and brought the total new U.S. commitment to Ukraine this week alone to $2.3 billion. The United States has invested more in Ukraine's defense and recovery than any other country, according to a tracker compiled by the Keil Institute in Germany. That data shows that total U.S. aid to Ukraine since shortly before the war had surpassed $70 billion by the end of May.

By wire sources