Good Thursday morning. Friday is right around the corner.
I was in Central New York yesterday just as the air quality climbed to “hazardous” status due to the ongoing wildfires in Canada. Side from being downright unnerving to walk around in a smoky and smelly haze, it was also uncomfortable.
(I didn’t happen to have any N95 and KN95 masks left over from my pandemic days on hand; I used to have a stock of them in the car, but am not entirely sure where they got themselves off to).
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced in a tweet last night that the state would begin distributing N95 masks today to residents and state facilities struggling to cope with dangerous air quality. Hochul added that MTA buses and trains “already have high-quality air filtration” and “are safe ways to get around the city.”
The smoke forced the cancellation of three big theater productions, “Hamilton,” “Camelot” and a free Shakespeare in the Park production of “Hamlet,” as well as games hosted by the Yankees and the Liberty of the W.N.B.A.
I am lucky to have a health set of lungs – no asthma or other breathing problems – and I found it difficult to breathe. I can only imagine what it must be like for those who struggle to get sufficient oxygen on a daily basis.
Of course, we were not alone in our experience in CNY. All across the US, millions are being impacted by the smoke generated by the historic number of wildfires burning in Canada. The situation is particularly bad in New York, though, where the FAA even had to issue a ground stop for flights headed to LaGuardia due to the smokey conditions.
This situation is expected to last for some time. You can get up to date information about the air quality in your specific neck of the woods by visiting AirNow.gov.
If this lasts a long time – and it’s looking to linger for at least a few more days yet – it’s going to put a damper on my weekend plans, which included some outdoor time to make up for all the car time. Riding inside just isn’t the same. I can go for hours outside and barely notice.
But every minute on the trainer or Peloton seems to be multiplied by a factor of x, which varies depending on how I’m feeling that day and how much sleep I’ve gotten and how much coffee I have consumed.
Speaking of which, I am embarrassed to admit that I have developed a strong affinity for oat milk, which isn’t a milk at all but rather an overpriced extract of oatmeal.
I understand that there are people who HAVE to opt for dairy substitutes because of intolerance to lactose, which, by the way, happens to be very prevalent amongst my people (Jews, but the Ashkenazim, in particular).
I am, thankfully, not one of these people, but I prefer to limit my dairy consumption to yogurt (usually Greek), cottage cheese (yup, I’m in the big fan camp), and cheese, as opposed to drinking it or putting it in my coffee.
I have also developed a truly embarrassing love of Only 8, which, which it does contain whey (of the Grade A Kosher variety, reportedly), is probably terrible for you and also a little on the difficult side to find. (Thank you, The Snowman, for being a reliable source of feeding my newfound addiction).
Before I start running out of room here, it’s National Dairy Month, which started in the 1930s and National Milk Month as a way to stabilize the dairy industry in a time of surplus.
You may or may not be a fan of dairy – or a regular consumer – but it’s indisputable that dairy is big business here in New York. We’re actually the nation’s fifth largest producer of milk and the largest producer of yogurt and cottage cheese.
So if you are able, perhaps make a point of supporting the dairy industry this month? Upstate is known for its summer ice cream stand tradition, after all.
Unfortunately, it’s not really ice cream weather, unless you’re one of those people who happens to like iced everything all year round, and if so, I do not understand you. Anyway, more rain showers are on tap this morning, becoming less likely as the day progresses. Temperatures will be in the low 60s. Let’s hold out hope regarding the weekend. Thus far, it’s not looking great.
In the headlines…
President Joe Biden has vetoed a measure that would have overturned his student debt relief plan, leaving the fate of the program in the hands of the Supreme Court.
“Congressional Republicans led an effort to pass a bill blocking my Administration’s plan to provide up to $20,000 in student debt relief to working and middle class Americans,” Biden said in a tweet. “I won’t back down on helping hardworking folks.”
“It is a shame for working families across the country that lawmakers continue to pursue this unprecedented attempt to deny critical relief to millions of their own constituents,” Biden said in a statement when announcing his veto.
The legislation was introduced as a joint resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act, which allowed for the expedited consideration in the Senate leading to simple majority passage.
House Oversight Chairman James Comer is scrapping his plans to hold FBI Director Christopher Wray in contempt of Congress after the two sides reached an agreement over an FBI document that includes an unverified allegation about Biden.
The compromise reached late yesterday calls for all members of the committee to be able to review the document, called an FD-1023, and two other documents mentioned in it. Comer canceled the contempt vote.
Release of the document in question, FBI officials have warned, would jeopardize the safety of the confidential human source who received the unverified tip.
Biden has invited thousands of LGBTQ+ individuals to celebrate Pride Month in a show of support at a time when the community feels under attack like never before and the White House has little recourse to beat back a flood state-level legislation against them.
The White House announced that Biden and first lady Jill Biden will be hosting a Juneteenth concert on the South Lawn on June 13.
Former Vice President Mike Pence announced his presidential campaign in Iowa with a repudiation Trump, portraying his former boss as unfit for the presidency and going further than ever before in condemning his character and values.
Pence said he would not bring back the Trump administration’s family separation policy at the southern border if he’s elected, and has “no interest” in pardoning those who have been convicted for their participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
Republican North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum former software executive and billionaire, announced he would run for president on his economic record, entering an increasingly crowded race as the stolid candidate of business and technology.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said he was “wrong” about Trump, whom he twice supported and advised ahead of the 2020 election.
Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida defended his state’s sending three dozen Latin American migrants to Sacramento on recent charter flights from the border, saying California had “incentivized” illegal immigration and ought to pay the costs.
Federal prosecutors have informed the legal team for Trump that he is a target of their investigation into his handling of classified documents after he left office, according to two people familiar with the matter.
That notification is the clearest signal yet that special counsel Jack Smith is on the verge of a charging decision in his probe of the former president.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social, his social media platform, said: “No one has told me I’m being indicted, and I shouldn’t be because I’ve done NOTHING wrong.”
New requirements for transparency in prescription drug pricing are heading to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s desk after the measure was granted final approval this week in the state Legislature.
Hochul expressed her sympathy for the mothers who are holding a hunger strike to protest the Assembly’s inaction on Sammy’s Law — but she declined to condemn Speaker Carl Heastie, who has refused to bring the bill to the floor for a vote.
Hochul has appointed a wealthy 91-year-old campaign donor to the City University of New York’s board of trustees amid outcries over hate speech and a machete-wielding professor.
Hochul announced 15 appointments and reappointments to the New York State Court of Claims, including the first openly transgender judge in the country’s history.
The appointment of Seth Marnin to oversee Court of Claims cases in New York City adds to the historical firsts in the state court system by Hochul, who successfully nominated Rowan Wilson as New York’s first black chief judge earlier this year.
The state attorney general’s office reported this week that its Health Care Bureau’s “Helpline” recovered more than $1.5 million in restitution and savings for New Yorkers last year.
Albany Democrats could still greenlight legislation to add the “Tappan Zee” moniker to the Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, a compromise proposal after previous efforts to entirely nix the late governor’s name failed.
During her most extensive comments on the issue with reporters, Hochul said there is still no deal with the Legislature to move forward on Clean Slate Act, even after the bill was amended earlier this week.
New York City sued more than 30 mostly upstate municipalities and local leaders, alleging they “have sought to wall off their borders” through emergency orders that obstruct the city’s efforts to relocate migrants.
The city’s suit names Rockland and Orange counties, in addition to 31 other counties and one town, that recently issued migrant-related emergency orders after Adams announced his administration will begin busing migrants to private hotels in their areas.
New York City is poised to receive more than $100 million in new federal funding to help manage the surge of migrants.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency infusion is comparatively small for the city, which predicts it will have spent more than $4 billion handling the migrant crisis by June, as asylum seekers spill into New York from southern states.
Adams’ latest financial disclosure reveals he still co-owns a one-bedroom Brooklyn apartment he claimed during the 2021 campaign to have gifted to a friend — adding more intrigue to questions swirling around his real estate holdings.
A spokesman for the mayor said that the process that was underway last June for the mayor to transfer the apartment to a former girlfriend is still underway.
Adams is endorsing Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz in her bid for a second term.
Adams faced heat from public school parents and political critics who accused him of dragging his feet on mobilizing a government response to the hazardous plumes of smoke that have enveloped the city.
Adams and Mets owner Steve Cohen huddled with a Queens lawmaker to hash out differences about a project to build a soccer stadium and housing complex in Willets Points near Citi Field, while Cohen eyes a separate bid for a casino next to the ballpark.
The City Council intends to pass a bill that would create the nation’s first city “health care accountability office” to analyze hospital costs and to provide information about prices online.
A fight is brewing over buses in the Bronx, as the city Department of Transportation appears set to abandon plans to make Fordham Road bus-only.
After the pandemic boom in pet adoption gave way to pet abandonment, locals in Brooklyn are trying a controversial approach to feral cat population control.
The rate at which old fossil fuel plants are being replaced by green energy such as wind and solar is leading to “declining reliability’’ of the power grid, according to the agency that operates the 24/7 sale of electricity from power plants to the grid.
The Red Envelope Gentlemen’s Cabaret, a strip club that took over a Central Avenue building that for many years had been DiCarlo’s Gentlemen’s Club, has closed after a little more than six months in business.
More than a half-century after it opened its doors in what was then a bustling stretch of downtown Albany, and seven years after relocating to suburbia, Amore Clothing will close at the end of June.
Chris Licht, the former television producer who oversaw a brief and chaotic run as the chairman of CNN, is out at the network.
David Zaslav, the CEO of CNN parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, confirmed the leadership change during the network’s editorial call yesterday morning.
Insiders say the out-the-door exec had meetings on his calendar for yesterday, which — as of Tuesday night — he was expecting to attend.
The Los Angeles Times is cutting more than 10 percent of its newsroom jobs, its executive editor, Kevin Merida, said.
Pope Francis was recovering from intestinal surgery, after a three-hour procedure to treat a hernia that had “no complications,” the Vatican said. It is the second time he has been hospitalized in a little over two months, raising new concerns about his health.
