We’re back and we’re reading – everything from “The Washington Post” to the “The New York Times.” We’re trying to help you keep up with the rapid pace of politics and everyday news. Today, we’ve got updates on Biden’s presidential announcement, the historic North Korea-Russia summit and new details about the Sri Lankan Easter bombings.
Joe Biden announces bid for presidency
Joe Biden announced he’s running for president on social media today after months of speculation.
The former vice president and senator of Delaware is the 20th candidate to enter the democratic field so far.
According to the Washington Post, Biden is scheduled to appear on ABC’s “The View” Friday and hold a union-themed campaign event Monday in Pittsburgh.
This is Biden’s third presidential run.
Kim, Putin meet in Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un met today in Vladivostok, Russia. This marks Kim’s first trip abroad since meeting with President Trump in Vietnam in February, according to the New York Times.
This summit comes as Kim tries to gain international support for sanctions relief and gradual nuclear disarmament.
According to The Times, Putin said Russia and the United States have a common interest in preventing nuclear proliferation.
Texas executes white supremacist convicted of murder
James Byrd Jr. was murdered in 1998 after three men tied him to the back of a pick up truck and dragged him for three miles — a hate crime that prompted congress to pass federal hate crime legislation.
One of the three men convicted of Byrd’s murder, John William King, was executed by injection in a Texas prison Wednesday night, according to CNN. The other man was sentenced to death for the murder died by injection in 2011, and the other was sentenced to life in prison.
King had connections with the white supremacist group, Confederate Knights of America.
Congress passed The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009. The bill provides funding and assistance to state and local governments “to more effectively investigate and prosecute hate crimes,” according to the Department of Justice.
Sons and daughter-in-law of Sri Lankan spice tycoon were suicide bombers
The sons and daughter-in-law of one of Sri Lanka’s most successful spice traders have been identified as three of the suicide bombers that struck the country on Easter sunday, according to The Washington Post.
Two of his sons carried out bombings on Sunday morning, according to the Post, and his daughter-in-law detonated a bomb while police were entering the family’s residence Sunday afternoon.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the bombings that killed 359 people, including an 11-year-old boy from Washington D.C., according to CNN.
University of Texas coach pleads guilty in admissions scam
Former tennis coach at the University of Texas at Austin pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiracy to commit fraud, after accepting over $100,000 in bribes, according to CNN.
CNN reports that the former coach, Michael Center, conspired with Rick Singer, mastermind of the admissions scam nationwide, to designate a student as a tennis player in order to gain access to UT, even though the student was not a competitive tennis player.
The student was admitted to UT in 2015 and withdrew from the tennis team shortly after.
Report says millions of children miss measles vaccines
According to a United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) report, 169 million children have missed measles vaccines over the past eight years.
Measles, which is a highly contagious disease that can cause blindness, deafness or brain damage, has hit the highest number of cases on record since the disease was declared eradicated in 2000, according to CNN.
“The United States is seeing a resurgence of measles, a disease that had once been effectively eliminated from our country,” Alex Azar, the secretary of Health and Human Services, said in a statement released Wednesday evening.
That’s all we have for today. Check back tomorrow for more.
