5 things to know for July 26: Jan. 6, Abortion, Covid-19, Ukraine, Marriage equality

Indiana lawmakers reconvened on Monday to consider more restrictions on abortion, the first state to hold a special session with the goal of potentially curtailing abortion rights since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Indiana’s Senate Republicans, who have control of the state’s legislature, said they hope to have a final vote on the abortion ban by Friday. If passed, the bill would go into effect on September 1. Although many states nationwide are examining their laws after Roe v. Wade’s reversal, particular attention has been paid to Indiana after a 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio crossed state lines to get an abortion. Separately, medical students at the University of Michigan are receiving attention on social media for walking out of their induction ceremony to protest a keynote speaker with anti-abortion views.

Since testing positive for Covid-19 last week, President Joe Biden said he is “feeling great” as his symptoms begin to wane. On Monday, Biden’s physician said his symptoms had “almost completely resolved” after five days with the illness. “So far, everything’s good,” Biden said, adding that he’s been participating in various tests every evening, checking “everything, from the temperature to the oxygen in my blood, to my pulse.” The White House has sought to underscore that Biden’s symptoms have been mild because he is vaccinated and boosted, and he began a course of the antiviral Paxlovid as soon as he tested positive. Separately, two key moderate senators — Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska — said they have tested positive for Covid-19.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia is waging an “overt gas war” against Europe, after announcing it would further reduce gas flows through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline — a vital artery linking Russia’s vast gas reserves to Europe. European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson called the move a “politically motivated step” with “no technical reason” behind it. On the ground, Russian forces have made small advances in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine amid intense shelling along the front line. And in Russia, WNBA star Brittney Griner made a brief court appearance in Moscow today as her defense team presented evidence. Griner, who was arrested at a Russian airport in February for carrying cannabis oil in her luggage, will be cross-examined as part of her drug trial on Wednesday, her lawyers said.

Democrats are reacting with immense scrutiny to Republicans’ opposition to codifying same-sex marriage, with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg becoming the latest Democrat to chime in on the hot button issue. Buttigieg, who is gay, recently reacted to comments from Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, who said it’s a “stupid waste of time” to vote on a bill that protects same-sex marriage. “If [Rubio’s] got time to fight against Disney, I don’t know why he wouldn’t have time to help safeguard marriages like mine.” While the Democrat-led House of Representatives last Tuesday voted to pass a bill that would enshrine protections for same-sex marriage into federal law, it still remains unclear whether the bill can pass the Senate. And in an interesting turn of events, Republican congressman Glenn Thompson attended his gay son’s wedding last week, three days after opposing the bill in the US House that would protect same-sex marriage. 

A pastor known for wearing designer outfits and jewelry was robbed during a livestreamed sermon. Watch the scary moment here.

Disney+ just got a little more adult. The kid-centered approach has worked so far, but the streaming service is now delivering content for all ages to compete with Netflix and other rivals.

After postponing her shows due to Covid-19, our soul sister Adele is returning to Vegas! Who else is ready to belt out every single song in the audience?

It’s the end of an ice-cream era. The beloved Klondike product, packaged ice cream in a taco-shaped cone, has been discontinued.

Hello, frequent shoppers. A growing number of big retailers are getting stuck with too many clothes and big-ticket items sitting on their shelves. You know what that means… price cuts.

Paul Sorvino, a veteran actor whose roles ranged from the mob boss in “Goodfellas” to an early stint on the long-running cop drama “Law & Order,” died on Monday of natural causes, according to his publicist. He was 83. “Our hearts are broken, there will never be another Paul Sorvino,” his wife Dee Dee Sorvino said.

That’s about how many acres the ferocious Oak Fire has burned outside California’s Yosemite Park as of this morning, state fire officials said. “The fire behavior that we’re seeing on this incident is really unprecedented,” Cal Fire Battalion Chief Jon Heggie said on Monday. The fire has forced the evacuations of at least 3,000 people and has destroyed at least 55 structures, Cal Fire officials said.

— Pope Francis, apologizing to the Indigenous people of Canada on Monday for decades of abuse that occurred at residential schools, many of which were run by the Catholic Church. The Pope is currently on a weeklong trip to Canada — which he has called a “penitential pilgrimage” — to recognize the damage done to Indigenous children who were taken from their families, banned from using their native language, forced to abandon their culture and in many cases abused physically, sexually, and emotionally. 

Watch this woman courageously stick her hand inside sharks’ mouths to remove hooks. (Click here to view)