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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — As state treasurer, Vivek Malek pushed Missouri's main retirement system to pull its investments from Chinese companies, making Missouri among the first nationally to do so. Now Malek is touting the Chinese divestment as he seeks reelection in an August 6 Republican primary against challengers who also are denouncing financial connections to China. The Missouri treasurer's race highlights a new facet of opposition to China, which has been cast as a top threat to the U.S. by many candidates seeking election this year. Indiana and Florida also have restricted their public pension funds from investing in certain Chinese companies. Similar legislation targeting public investments in foreign adversaries was vetoed in Arizona and proposed in Illinois and Oklahoma. China ranks as the world's second-largest economy behind the U.S. Between 2018 and 2022, U.S. public pension and university endowments invested about $146 billion in China, according to an analysis by Future Union, a nonprofit pro-democracy group led by venture capitalist Andrew King. The report said more than four-fifths of U.S. states have at least one public pension fund investing in China and Hong Kong. "Frankly, there should be shame — more shame than there is — for continuing to have those investments at this point in time," said King, who asserts that China has used intellectual property from U.S. companies to make similar products that undercut market prices. "You're talking a considerable amount of money that frankly is competing against the U.S. technology and innovation ecosystem," King said. But some investment officials and economists have raised concerns that the emerging patchwork of state divestment policies could weaken investment returns for retirees. "Most of these policies are unwise and would make U.S. citizens poorer," said Ben Powell, an economics professor who is executive director of the Free Market Institute at Texas Tech University. The National Association of State Retirement Administrators opposes state-mandated divestments, saying such orders should come only from the federal government against specific companies based on U.S. security or humanitarian interests. The U.S. Treasury Department recently proposed a rule prohibiting American investors from funding artificial intelligence systems in China that could have military uses, such as weapons targeting. In May, President Joe Biden blocked a Chinese-backed cryptocurrency mining firm from owning land near a Wyoming nuclear missile base, calling it a "national security risk." Yet this isn't the first time that states have blacklisted particular investments. Numerous states, cities and universities divested from South Africa because of apartheid before the U.S. Congress eventually took action. Some states also have divested from tobacco companies because of health concerns. Most recently, some states announced a divestment from Russia because of its war against Ukraine. But that has been difficult to carry out for some public pension fund administrators. The quest to halt investments in Chinese companies comes as a growing number of states also have targeted Chinese ownership of U.S. land. Two dozen states now have laws restricting foreign ownership of agricultural land, according to the National Agricultural Law Center at the University of Arkansas. Some laws apply more broadly, such as one facing a legal challenge in Florida that bars Chinese citizens from buying property within 16 kilometers of military installations and critical infrastructure. State pension divestment policies are "part of a broader march toward more confrontation between China and the United States," said Clark Packard, a research fellow for trade policy studies at the libertarian Cato Institute. But "it makes it more challenging for the federal government to manage the overall relationship if we've got to deal with a scattershot policy at the state level." Indiana last year became the first to enact a law requiring the state's public pension system to gradually divest from certain Chinese companies. As of March 31, 2023, the system had about $1.2 billion invested in Chinese entities with $486 million subject to the divestment requirement. A year later, its investment exposure in China had fallen to $314 million with just $700,000 still subject to divestment, the Indiana Public Retirement System said. Missouri State Treasurer Malek tried last November to get fellow trustees of the Missouri State Employees' Retirement System to divest from Chinese companies. After defeat, he tried again in December and won approval for a plan requiring divestment over a 12-month period. Officials at the retirement system did not respond to repeated questions from The Associated Press about the status of that divestment. In recent weeks, Malek has highlighted the Chinese divestment in campaign ads, asserting that fentanyl from China "is drugging our kids" and vowing: "As long as I'm treasurer, they won't get money from us. Not one penny." Two of Malek's main challengers in the Republican primary — state Rep. Cody Smith and state Sen. Andrew Koenig — also support divestment from China. Koenig said China is becoming less stable and "a more risky place to have money invested." "In China, the line between public and private is much more blurry than it is in America," Smith said. "So I don't think we can fully know that if we are investing in Chinese companies that we are not also aiding an enemy of the United States."  A law signed earlier this year by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis requires a state board overseeing the retirement system to develop a plan by September 1 to divest from companies owned by China. The oversight board had announced in March 2022 that it would stop making new Chinese investments. As of May, it still had about $277 million invested in Chinese-owned entities, including banks, energy firms and alcohol companies, according to an analysis by Florida legislative staff. Florida law already prohibits investment in certain companies tied to Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Venezuela, or those engaged in an economic boycott against Israel. In April, Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed a bill that would have required divestment from companies in countries determined by the federal government to be foreign adversaries. That list includes China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia and Venezuela. Hobbs said in a letter to lawmakers that the measure "would be detrimental to the economic growth Arizona is experiencing as well as the State's investment portfolio." 

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HONG KONG — A Hong Kong court dismissed on Thursday a bid by the legal team for jailed democrat Jimmy Lai to end his national security trial, saying prosecutors appeared to have sufficient evidence to support all three charges against him. Lai, 76, the founder of now-shuttered pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, has pleaded not guilty to two charges of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and a lesser charge of conspiracy to publish seditious material. "Having considered all the submissions we ruled that the first defendant (Lai) has a case to answer on all the charges," said Judge Esther Toh, one of a panel of three national security judges hearing the case. Beijing imposed the security law on Hong Kong in 2020 after months of pro-democracy protests in the Asian financial hub. The trial will resume on November 20. Lai has elected to give evidence in court. If convicted, he could face a life sentence. It was the 92nd day of a high-profile trial begun on December 18 that had initially been expected to last 80 days. Defense lawyers led by Robert Pang had sought to end the proceedings and seek Lai's acquittal on the ground that there was no case to answer, contending the prosecution's evidence was insufficient. Pang said an agreement before the national security law would not automatically make it illegal, although the law invalidated earlier legal agreements. Although there could be evidence of agreement to publish certain articles or work with some organizations, Pang said, there was no evidence of such agreements made after the law was promulgated. "Whatever was agreed previously, when calling for sanctions was perfectly lawful, was not agreed subsequently," Pang added. In response to the prosecution's accusation that Lai used the Apple Daily as a platform to conspire, Pang said that newspapers could have a spectrum of differing views, adding "That's a very strange allegation." Pang said freedom of the press was guaranteed by Hong Kong's mini-constitution, the Basic Law, and the bill of rights ordinance. Several witnesses mentioned that Apple Daily consulted lawyers on avoiding breaches of the national security law, Pang said, which was "positive evidence" that the agreement was to comply with the law. The prosecution wrapped up its case in June, having called eight witnesses, among them five defendants who had earlier pleaded guilty. A British citizen, Lai has been held in solitary confinement for more than three years since December 2020. He is now serving sentence of five years and nine months after being convicted of violating a lease contract for the paper's headquarters. Britain and the United States have urged Lai's immediate release, calling the case politically motivated. Hong Kong officials have said Lai will get a fair trial. Both the Chinese and Hong Kong governments said the national security law restored stability in the former British colony. Western governments have voiced concern that the law is part of Beijing's effort to end dissent and freedoms guaranteed to Hong Kong when Britain handed it to China in 1997.

seoul, south korea — North Korea has sent about 500 balloons laden with trash into South Korea's air space over the past 24 hours, officials in the South said on Thursday, disrupting flights and igniting a fire on the roof of a residential building.  The balloons are part of an ongoing propaganda campaign by Pyongyang against North Korean defectors and activists in the South, who regularly send balloons carrying items such as anti-Pyongyang leaflets medicine, money and USB sticks loaded with K-pop videos and dramas. A suspected balloon suspended take-offs and landings at Seoul's Gimpo Airport on Wednesday evening for two hours, an official at the Korea Airports Corporation said. Balloons have affected traffic at South Korea's main international airport, Incheon, several times in recent weeks. In Gyeonggi, a province near Seoul, a balloon caught fire on top of a residential building. Fire fighters extinguished the blaze, an official at the Gyeonggi Northern Fire and Disaster Headquarters said. South Korea's military said some trash balloons were equipped with timed poppers that could cause fires. "A timer is attached to the trash balloons, which has the effect of popping the balloons and spreading the trash after a certain period of time has passed," Lee Sung-jun, a spokesperson for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a briefing. Lee said 480 balloons had landed mostly carrying paper and plastic trash in South Korea as of Thursday. On Wednesday, North Korean balloons had landed in the vicinity of the heavily guarded presidential office in Seoul. 

U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday explained to American citizens and to the world why he decided not to stand for reelection in the 2024 presidential race. Biden, speaking from the Oval Office, also outlined what urgent challenges he sees as the nation careens toward a November vote. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports.

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WASHINGTON — Retired Army Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, who was chief of staff on former President Donald Trump’s national security council, spoke with VOA about his vision for ending the war in Ukraine. Kellogg says he is not a formal adviser to the former president and has not presented his plan to Trump, but it is one of the options that he could consider if he is elected in November. Kellogg also served as the national security adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence in the Trump administration. He now co-chairs the Center on American Security at America First Policy Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan group. The Ukraine strategy was published back in May by AFPI as part of their An America First Approach to U.S. National Security, edited by Fred Fleitz, who also served as chief of staff at the National Security Council during Trump's presidency and co-wrote with Kellogg the chapter on the Russia-Ukraine war. It suggests that the U.S. should begin a formal policy "to seek a cease-fire and negotiated settlement of the Ukraine conflict." The U.S. would continue to arm Ukraine to deter Russia from attacking during or after a deal is reached, but under the condition that Kyiv agrees to enter into peace talks with Russia. To persuade Russia to participate in the negotiations, the U.S. and other NATO partners would delay Ukraine's membership in the alliance for an extended period in exchange for a "comprehensive and verifiable deal with security guarantees." They write that Ukraine will not be asked to give up its ambition to regain all land seized by Russia, but Kyiv should agree to use diplomatic means only and realize that it might take a long time to regain all the territories. The strategy proposes to use the partial lifting of sanctions on Russia to encourage the Kremlin to take steps toward peace and establish levies on Russian energy imports to fund Ukraine's reconstruction. The interview with Kellogg, recorded on July 18 at the Republican convention in Milwaukee, has been edited for brevity and clarity. VOA: Can you tell a little bit about the plan? I think it's the most detailed paper coming publicly from Republican and Republican-affiliated groups. Retired Army Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg: We've said very clearly in our paper that Ukraine has fought valiantly. They are very well led. We think the Russians did clearly an unwarranted invasion of a sovereign state and this must be addressed. President Trump, to his credit, said in the very first debate when he was asked by one of the commentators, Dana Bash, do the Russians basically get to keep the territories? He said no, not at all. He said not once, he did it twice. So, there's a negotiation, you are going to figure out what your starting points are going to be. You want to make sure that Ukrainians are not put at the position when they're operating from weaknesses, but from strength. So, the question is how do you do that? And how you put all the pieces and parts in place? Nobody is ever saying that: "Oh, we just have to make Ukrainians to give up land and give it to Russia." Look when you look at your losses, the losses in Ukraine alone, depending on who you talk to, you're talking between 100,000 and 130,000 deaths. That's enormous because when I look at [Russia’s losses] they have had three times that. The United States of America lost 60,000 in the Vietnam war. That was a 20-year war we went away from. The Russians, then the Soviets, lost 15,000 in Afghanistan and walked away from it. If the Ukrainians say no and the Russians say no, then they can do it in a different way. But I think you started to ask yourself questions is this what's best for Ukraine as a nation? I don't care about Russia. I care about Ukraine. Let’s say a year and a half ago the Russians turn their heels and if the West had provided the equipment that [Ukrainian] President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy asked for, then you probably could have finished the job. You could have gotten into the Sea of Azov through Kherson, splitting them in half, and that is what you wanted to do. So, I blame this administration and the West to a degree for not supporting Ukraine when they should have. VOA: The Biden administration is saying that they want to put Ukraine in the position of strength before it can negotiate with Russia. You are suggesting pretty much the same, right? Kellogg: No, that’s a false statement. Have the United States given Ukraine a support of F-16s? No. Did we provide long-range fires early for the Ukrainians to shoot in Russians? No. Did we provide permission for them to shoot deep into Russia? No. Did the United States provide them the armored capabilities they needed? We gave 31 tanks. Thirty-one tanks is not even a battalion in the United States army. So, they talk about it, but it didn't really happen. VOA: Ukrainian officials might be cautious about entering into the negotiations with Russians because it might send a signal to their partners that they don't need military aid anymore. Kellogg: You have to give more arms to them because you can't trust the Russians. You just have to do it, and the question is, do you do this before Europe tires, Americans tire, Ukrainians tire? Two and a half years -- that's a long war and the destruction is enormous. Sometimes you have to look at what we call in America the long game. And that is security guarantees, financial support and military support. We have to bring that to the American people, you know, President Biden has only talked to American people one time. You got to talk to them a lot. President Biden has only talked to [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin one time. When I was with President Trump, he was talking to him 17 different times. It doesn’t mean he likes him. But you have to talk to your adversary. VOA: Why would Russians want to negotiate? Kellogg: You need to give them reasons to negotiate. You can give an extreme reason and say, OK, you've got to get back all the land from Ukraine. Maybe, short-term you tell Ukraine, we're not going to support you coming to NATO, but we give you a bilateral security agreement. VOA: The U.S. and Ukraine have just signed a security agreement. Kellogg: That was not a defense agreement. A defense agreement should be ratified by the Senate. What you have to do is to come up with a peace agreement like we've done with Korea, we did years ago with Taiwan. VOA: But what is the contingency plan if Russia doesn’t abide by the agreement. Kellogg: That is part of negotiation. That's where both sides draw the red lines. That's where both sides make the determination: this is what we're going to do or not do. VOA: Ukraine already tried that signing the Minsk agreements with Russia. Kellogg: Minsk agreements worked very well, didn't they? They're lousy. They didn't do anything because nobody trusted anybody, and nobody worked together. You had Minsk 1, failed; Minsk 2, failed. Budapest memorandum, failed. So, you have to have some kind of degree of confidence and security. VOA: One of the reasons why the negotiations in Istanbul broke down was that Russians demanded Ukraine’s demilitarization, a smaller army. Kellogg: Yes. And this is an unacceptable demand. And you don't walk into negotiating with unacceptable demands. But you have to have an ability, we call it an interlocutor. An interlocutor is somebody who can sit down and actually negotiate with both parties. It can be Trump, President Trump believes he can do it, but you also have to look at who else is out there. President [Recep Tayyip] Erdogan of Turkey, do you think he could do it? No, he's not going to do it. [Chancellor Olaf] Scholz from Germany, you think he will do it? No, he is not going to do it. [President Emmanuel] Macron from France, he tried but hasn't done it. Well, now they had a change in government in Britain. So that's gone away. You know, I don't know maybe [Klaus] Iohannis, [the president] of Romania. Maybe he could do it, but you have to have somebody that both sides could talk to. President Trump is talking to both parties. And President Biden is not. Now the option is quite clear: If Ukraine doesn't want to negotiate, fine, but then accept the fact that you can have enormous losses in your cities and accept the fact that you will have your children killed, accept the fact that you don't have 130,000 dead, you will have 230,000–250,000. Demographically, what does that do to the country? You have to accept the fact that maybe the threat will remain on Kyiv, you have to accept the fact that Kharkiv will have more damage or do you want to say this is time maybe we take a pause and figure out how to push the Russians out of there so that they don't get territorial gain. And how do you have a long-term peace agreement? Let's use NATO as an example. NATO has already said they're not going to support Ukraine going into NATO until the war is over. That's the reality and that's where you need somebody to stand as a negotiator and say no, this is where we want to go. The size of this war is not appreciated in the West. That is the largest war in Europe since World War II, it is between the two largest countries in Europe. The losses have been horrific. It is too great of a country, and I've been there. I have been to Izyum, I've been to Kharkiv and I've seen what Russians did to it. There's no love for Russians. There's a support for sovereignty. Figure out a way does not mean we say give up land. VOA: The other reason why the negotiations in Istanbul broke down is because it became known what happened in Bucha. It means that if Ukraine allows Russia to continue occupying any of its lands, it condemns the people who live there. ... Kellogg: Who is saying to give up land? VOA: Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance alluded to that. Kellogg: J.D. Vance was just nominated as the vice president last night. Until that, he was just a senator, one of 100. Yeah, you can say a lot of things in the Senate. When you speak for an administration, things change. 

VIENTIANE, Laos — Southeast Asian foreign ministers and top diplomats from key partners including the United States and China were gathering in the Laotian capital on Thursday for the start of three days of talks expected to focus on the increasingly violent civil war in Myanmar, tensions in the South China Sea and other regional issues. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi are expected to hold one-on-one talks on the sidelines of the meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Vientiane, which come as both Beijing and Washington are looking to expand their influence in the region. Lao Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith thanked ASEAN members and partners for their "unwavering collective effort" that has led to its past achievements and emphasized the importance of the bloc's continuous work to promote peace and stability. "In light of the rapid and complex geopolitical and geoeconomic changes, we need to further enhance ASEAN centrality and unity so as to promote the relevance and resilience of ASEAN, aiming at addressing emerging challenges and seizing opportunity in the future," he said in the opening statement. For the ASEAN nations — Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Brunei and Laos — the violence in Myanmar is at the top of the agenda as the bloc struggles to implement its "five-point consensus" for peace. The plan calls for the immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar, a dialogue among all concerned parties, mediation by an ASEAN special envoy, provision of humanitarian aid through ASEAN channels, and a visit to Myanmar by the special envoy to meet all concerned parties. The military leadership in Myanmar has so far ignored the plan and has raised questions about the bloc's efficiency and credibility to mediate for peace. Broader talks, including diplomats from elsewhere in the region including Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, are expected to focus on issues including the economy, security, climate and energy. Regional issues, including Cambodia's decision to build a canal off the Mekong River that Vietnam, which is downstream, worries could have ecological and security implications, as well as massive dam building projects in Laos further upstream could also feature in the meetings. In Myanmar, the army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021 and suppressed widespread nonviolent protests that sought a return to democratic rule, leading to increasing violence and a humanitarian crisis. In an effort to put pressure on Myanmar, ASEAN has prohibited it from sending any political representatives to top-level meetings, and it has sent bureaucrats instead. Aung Kyaw Moe, the permanent secretary of Myanmar's Foreign Ministry, represents the country in this week's meetings, which run through Saturday. More than 5,400 people have been killed in the fighting in Myanmar and the military government has arrested more than 27,000 since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. In addition, there are now more than 3 million displaced people in the country, with the numbers growing daily as fighting intensifies between the military and Myanmar's multiple ethnic militias as well as the so-called people's defense forces of military opponents. As the needs of civilians grow, discussions on humanitarian assistance to Myanmar will also be a focus of the ASEAN talks, Bolbongse Vangphaen, head of the Thai Foreign Ministry's department for ASEAN, told reporters ahead of the meetings. Thailand, which shares a long border with Myanmar, has already been heavily involved in providing humanitarian assistance, and Bolbongse said the country is ready to support the next phase of delivery being planned by the ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management. He did not say when or where the aid delivery would be. Thailand initiated its first delivery of aid to Myanmar in March from the northern province of Tak. It was said to be distributed in Kayin state to approximately 20,000 out of millions of people displaced by fighting. Landlocked Laos is the bloc's poorest nation and one of its smallest, and many have expressed skepticism about how much it can accomplish while the crises mount. But it is also the first ASEAN chair that shares a border with Myanmar. Laos has already sent a special envoy to Myanmar for meetings with the head of the ruling military council and other top officials in an attempt to make progress on the peace plan. ASEAN also has introduced a mechanism of trilateral informal consultation among its current, past, and future chairs, specifically for ensuring continuity in its response to the situation in Myanmar. The troika met for the first time on Wednesday, attended by Laos, Indonesia and Malaysia. Indonesia Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said Wednesday after the meeting that she raised concerns about increasing numbers of cross-border crimes and refugees that resulted from a crisis in Myanmar. She said she urged ASEAN to "promote trust and confidence building through a balanced and low-key approach" to foster an inclusive dialogue among all relevant stakeholders in Myanmar. "The worsening conditions in Myanmar have a direct impact on efforts to maintain peace and stability in the region," she said. Dulyapak Preecharush, a professor of Southeast Asia Studies at Bangkok's Thammasat University, said ASEAN is not the only stakeholder when it comes to Myanmar, with China and India also major players — and both attending the ASEAN meetings. Progress on Myanmar "needs to start with countries that share borders with Myanmar, such as China, India and Thailand, to find a joint consensus to address the problems" before expanding to other countries, he said. In other issues, ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei are locked in maritime disputes with China over its claims of sovereignty over virtually all of the South China Sea, one of the world's most crucial waterways for shipping. Indonesia has also expressed concern about what it sees as Beijing's encroachment on its exclusive economic zone. An estimated $5 trillion in international trade passes through the South China Sea each year. China has been increasingly involved in direct confrontations, most notably with the Philippines and Vietnam. This year, tensions between the Philippines and China have escalated, with Chinese coast guard and other forces using powerful water cannons and dangerous blocking maneuvers to prevent food and other supplies from reaching Filipino navy personnel. The Philippines, a treaty partner with the U.S., has been critical of other ASEAN countries for not doing more to get China to back away from its increasingly assertive approach. China and the Philippines said Sunday they have reached a deal that they hope will end the confrontations, aiming to establish a mutually acceptable arrangement at the disputed area without conceding either side's territorial claims. The rare deal could spark hope that similar arrangements could be forged by Beijing with other countries to avoid clashes while thorny territorial issues remain unresolved. ASEAN has been working with China to produce a South China Sea code of conduct, which is expected to be part of the talks in Vientiane.

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Protesters gathered outside the Watergate hotel in Washington on Tuesday to call for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he addressed the U.S. Congress. U.S. President Joe Biden said in a landmark Oval Office speech on Wednesday that he dropped out of the 2024 election to protect democracy by passing the torch to a new generation of leaders. And a Taylor Swift museum exhibit!

Israel’s West Bank settlement policy is coming under growing international criticism. The International Court of Justice ruled last week that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank is illegal, yet Israel continues expanding its settlements. Linda Gradstein reports from the West Bank. Camera: Ricki Rosen.

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washington — After three days of silence over his stunning decision to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race, U.S. President Joe Biden took to prime time television Tuesday to give Americans, and the world, an explanation in a speech that was at times hopeful, at times determined, and at times wistful.  Biden spoke of his five decades in public office, touted his presidential record of domestic and political achievements – but then called for energetic new leadership to face tomorrow’s challenges.   "I revere this office,” said Biden, his hands resting on the glossy, hulking Resolute Desk, the gold-brocade drapes of the Oval Office framing his sloping shoulders. “But I love my country more.” “Nothing – nothing – can come in the way of saving our democracy,” he said. “That includes personal ambition. So, I decided the best way forward is to pass the torch to a new generation. It’s the best way to unite our nation. You know, there is a time and a place for long years of experience in public life. There's also a time and a place for new voices. Fresh voices. Yes, younger voices. And that time and place is now.” Biden also thanked Vice President Kamala Harris, who has taken to the campaign trail with his endorsement and enough delegate pledges to net the nomination. He described her as "experienced," "tough," and "capable" but added: “the choice is up to you.” He did not name-check his Republican opponent in the race. But analysts say Biden’s stark warnings all point to one man.  “He talked about polarization,” said Jennifer Mercieca, a professor of communication and journalism at Texas A&M University. “He talked about violence and political violence. Those are all things that harken back to Donald Trump and his presidency. He talked about the threats facing the nation when he first took office, January 2021. And so that was certainly about Donald Trump. But yeah, this wasn't a place for him to talk about Donald Trump. It wasn't a place for him to give a campaign speech.” Biden’s job now, he said, will focus on domestic challenges like civil rights and voter freedom, gun safety reforms, the quest to end cancer and Supreme Court reform. He also cited the various challenges the U.S. faces abroad, with wars raging in Gaza and Ukraine and China becoming more emboldened in the Indo-Pacific.  It’s those foreign fires, analysts say, that are likely to concern voters who were already worried about Biden’s future.  “That's really the concern I think people will have, which is: How does a lame duck president deal with foreign policy crises?” said Thomas Schwartz, a history professor at Vanderbilt University. That question may be answered as soon as Thursday, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the White House in what administration officials told reporters Wednesday is an attempt to stitch up the first phase of a longer cease-fire deal that will end the brutal nine-month conflict in Gaza.   In a sign that foreign leaders may be hedging their bets in this electric American election cycle, the Israeli leader is also holding two other meetings while in the U.S., with Harris and Trump.  But for the final act of this presidency, Joe Biden remains the protagonist on America’s biggest stage. The ending, analysts say, is a classic.   “What has stopped Joe Biden is the thing that has stopped every human being since the beginning of time, and that is, we age,” said Jim Kessler, executive vice president for policy at the policy and research firm Third Way. “And it got to the point where I feel he could do the job, but he couldn't convince the American people that he could do the job.”   But this could also be a triumphant moment for the 81-year-old president, who was widely thanked by Democrats for making the decision to step aside.  ”In some ways,” Kessler said, “he's like an athlete that is going to make the Hall of Fame and is retiring and gets the cheers from the crowds, finally, for a long, 50-year, tremendous career.” Biden clearly understood that this address would be a dramatic peak. So, he used his final words to break the fourth wall, with a message as old as America: “The great thing about America,” he said, “is here, kings and dictators do not rule, the people do. History is in your hands. The power is in your hands. The idea of America lies in your hands.” Kim Lewis contributed from Washington.

In an effort to prevent drownings and give kids a chance to learn how to play safely in water, Rising Tide Effect teaches youth how to swim in a pool as well as an ocean. June Hsu and Rendy Wicaksana report.

BILLINGS, Montana — A surprise eruption of steam in a Yellowstone National Park geyser basin that sent people scrambling for safety as basketball-sized rocks flew overhead has highlighted a little-known hazard that scientists hope to be able to predict someday. The hydrothermal explosion on Tuesday in Biscuit Basin caused no injuries as dozens of people fled down the boardwalk before the wooden walkway was destroyed. The blast sent rocks, steam, water and dirt high into the air, according to a witness and a scientist who reviewed video footage of the event. It came in a park teeming with geysers, hot springs and other hydrothermal features that attracts millions of tourists annually. Some, like the famous Old Faithful, erupt like clockwork and are well understood by the scientists who monitor the park's seismic activity. But the type of explosion that happened this week is less common and understood, and potentially more hazardous given that it occurs without warning. "This drives home that even small events — and this one in the scheme of things was relatively small, if dramatic — can be really hazardous," said Michael Poland, lead scientist at the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. "We've gotten pretty good at being able to understand the signs that a volcano is waking up and may erupt. We don't have that knowledge base for hydrothermal systems like the one in Yellowstone." Monitoring system Poland and other scientists are trying to change that with a fledgling monitoring system that was recently installed in another Yellowstone geyser basin. It measures seismic activity, deformations in the Earth's surface and low-frequency acoustic energy that could signal an eruption. The hydrothermal explosions are believed to result from clogged passageways in the extensive natural plumbing network under Yellowstone, Poland said. A clog could cause the heated, pressurized water to turn into steam instantly and explode. Tuesday's explosion came with little warning. Witness Vlada March, who captured widely circulated video of the explosion, said steam started rising in the Biscuit Basin "and within seconds, it became this huge thing. ... It just exploded and became like a black cloud that covered the sun." March's tour guide, Isaac Fisher, told The Associated Press that he heard a hiss coming from Cliff Pool and told his group it was unusual. It looked like a geyser erupting 60 to 70 feet (18 to 21 meters) into the air for a few seconds and then, "Ba-boom!" he said. "You felt the shock wave hit your chest and vibrate the bones in your chest," he said. "The explosion was so significant, you felt your feet shaking. You felt the boardwalk shake and you felt everything shaking." He estimated the whole event lasted about 25 seconds as the debris plume climbed to about 100 meters (328 feet) into the air. "I cannot believe nobody got hurt," Fisher said. "There were rocks whizzing over our heads that were the size of basketballs." March's mother, who was closest to the eruption, pulled her hoodie over her head and face and wasn't injured, Fisher said. Some of the rocks hurled into the air measured about a meter (3.3 feet) across, said Poland. Slumbering volcano Yellowstone encompasses the caldera of a huge, slumbering volcano that shows no sign of erupting anytime soon but provides the heat for the national park's famous geysers, hot springs, mud pots and various other hydrothermal features. While far less common than geyser eruptions, hydrothermal explosions happen often enough in Yellowstone to be studied — and to be a safety concern. Scientists don't know if they'll be able to devise a way to predict the blasts, Poland said. For a geologist, seeing one in person is a payday. That's what happened in 2009, when Montana Tech geology professor Mike Stickney and several other geologists were nearby when one happened close to the scene of Tuesday's blast in the Biscuit Basin. "It was very sudden and without any detectable warning, just standing on the boardwalk there. It was just was one 'whoosh' and it was done. No one saw it coming," Stickney said. Though it didn't register on a sensitive seismometer at Old Faithful a couple miles (3.2 kilometers) away, he estimated the recent explosion was 10 times bigger. In May, after scientists found a crater a few feet (1-2 meters) wide in the Norris Geyser Basin 18 miles (29 kilometers) north of Biscuit Basin, they consulted acoustic and seismic data from the basin's new monitoring system and determined a hydrothermal explosion happened April 15, just a few days before roads opened for spring tourist season. The data included no obvious precursors, however, that could potentially be used to develop a warning system. Long-term study of where hydrothermal explosions and other ground disruptions can happen in Yellowstone is a focus of University of Wyoming geology professor Ken Sims, who has used ground-penetrating radar and other techniques to identify problem areas. The information is critical to building roads and bridges in Yellowstone, he said. "Whenever you build in a super active system like that, you have to pay attention to what's going on," Sims said. A detection system takes time and money to develop, with monitoring stations that can cost roughly $30,000 each. Yet even if explosions such as the recent one in Yellowstone could be predicted, there's no feasible way to prevent them, said Poland. "One of the things people ask me occasionally is, 'How do you stop a volcano from erupting?' You don't. You get out of the way," Poland said. "For any of this activity, you don't want to be there when it happens." 

LOS ANGELES — Fires burning in California, Oregon, Arizona, Washington and other western states, as well as Canada, have filled the skies in regions of the western U.S. with smoke and haze, forcing some affected areas to declare air quality alerts or advisories. As of Wednesday morning, there were 79 large active wildfires across the country being managed that have burned 1,431,460 acres (579,292 hectares), according to the National Interagency Fire Center. Evacuation orders are in effect for 15 fires in the Northwest, where fires continue to show active to extreme behavior. Communities near several fires in California, the Northern Rockies and the Great Basin are also under evacuation orders. Where are the big fires? Oregon has 31 large active fires that have burned 791,653 acres (320,371 hectares). The Durkee Fire, the largest active blaze in the U.S., was burning near the Oregon-Idaho border and was 0% contained as of Wednesday morning and had burned nearly 400 square miles (1,036 square kilometers). The Cow Valley, Falls and Lone Rock fires, the next largest, have collectively seared some 404,404 acres (163,657 hectares). There are 12 active large wildfires in both California and Arizona. In the Golden State, the Lake Fire in Santa Barbara has scorched 38,664 acres (15,647 hectares) and was 90% contained; the 2024 SQF Lightning Complex in Tulare has burned 31,309 acres (12,670 hectares) and was 7% contained; and the Shelly Fire in Siskiyou County that's charred 15,656 acres (6,336 hectares) was 62% contained. Hot, dry and windy conditions have increase fire activity in some areas, including the Hill Fire in northern California. The Black Fire east of Phoenix is the largest in Arizona, followed by the Romero Fire west of Dudleyville. The Pioneer Fire in Washington is the largest in the state at 30,667 acres (12,410.5 hectares). In Montana, the Deadman Fire in Rosebud County grew to 19,982 acres (8,086 hectares) and was 95% contained. In Canada, there are about 430 active wildfires in British Columbia and 177 in neighboring Alberta, including two that led to the evacuation of up to 25,000 visitors and residents of Canadian Rockies' largest national park. Fuels and fire behavior advisories were in effect for California, Nevada, Southeast and Central Oregon, Southern Idaho and the Utah and Arizona Strip. What areas are under air quality alerts? Unhealthy air pollution from wildfires have triggered air quality alerts and advisories in regions of the western U.S. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued air quality alerts for the eastern counties of Harney, Malheur, Grant, Baker and Morrow until further notice. Unhealthy air was reported in cities of Bend and La Pine today and forecaster for tomorrow, with smoke expected to continue degrading air quality in La Pine after Thursday. Smoke from the Durkee Fire was choking the air in Boise, Idaho and beyond. An air quality warning was in effect for the entire region on Wednesday. In Idaho, air quality advisories were sent out to the central counties of Ada, Canyon, Gem, Owyhee, Payette and Washington. In north central Washington, the Colville Reservation, all of Chelan County, plus the Methow Valley down to Brewster in Okanogan County were under air quality alerts until further notice. And in Canada, authorities issued an air quality advisory for Calgary, Alberta due to the wildfire smoke. The government agency called it high risk and said children and the elderly should avoid outdoor physical exertion. How do I stay safe from wildfire smoke? Wildfire smoke can cause unhealthy air quality in areas many miles away from fires. To stay safe, the South Coast Air Quality Management District recommends people start by learning about air quality conditions and forecasts in their area. Those with an air conditioning system should change filters often, with high-efficiency filters labeled "MERV13" or higher being the most effective at removing smoke particles. Portable HEPA air purifiers also help. To limit exposure to unhealthy air quality, people should stay indoors with windows and doors closed. Avoid heavy exertion outdoors, using fans or swamp coolers that take air from outside, all wood-burning appliances, and lighting candles and incense. If you need to be outside in smoky conditions, a respirator mask such as an N-95 or P-100 can offer some protection. Lastly, know your risks. Some people, such as children and those with heart or lung issues, can be more sensitive to moderate to unhealthy air quality.

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WASHINGTON — Democratic National Convention delegates can make Vice President Kamala Harris their presidential nominee — and even start approving her yet-to be-named running mate — in online voting beginning next week, as the party races to coalesce around a new top of its ticket heading into November. The convention's rules committee on Wednesday passed a proposal where delegates from around the country will be able to vote on potential presidential nominees to replace President Joe Biden, who abandoned his reelection bid last weekend. But Harris is the only major Democrat to announce publicly that she's seeking the nomination, meaning she'll almost-certainly be approved in a single round of virtual balloting beginning August 1 — some 18 days before the party's convention opens in Chicago. Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison referenced the unprecedented shakeup in the presidential race left by Biden's bowing out, telling a virtual meeting of the convention's rulemaking arm, "In the darkness of night, we see our brightest stars." The plan was approved after more than 90 minutes of online discussion that featured little objection. The final vote to pass the full set of convention's rules was 157-3. They require Harris, and any other potential Democrat willing to challenge her, to submit 300 electronic signatures from convention delegates, not more than 50 of whom can be from the same state, by the evening of July 30. If multiple candidates qualify, it could spark multiple rounds of voting over several days. But, if Harris is the only candidate, voting would begin August 1. Delegates voting "uncommitted," or for another candidate who hasn't qualified under the rules, will have their choices converted simply to "present." Delegates will receive ballots via secure email. The process will be designed not only to formally nominate Harris, but to eventually do the same for her vice presidential selection prior to August 7 — giving her a tight window to pick a running mate. Who she might choose is unclear. Early favorites include Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, but potentially half a dozen other candidates are being considered. Biden dropped out of the race last weekend and endorsed Harris, and hundreds of Democratic members of Congress and governors, as well as leading labor unions and activist organizations have since backed her to replace him. An Associated Press survey of delegates to the convention also revealed that the vice president has the support of well more than the 1,976 delegates she'll need to win on a first ballot. That doesn't automatically make her the nominee, though, and the party is pushing ahead with the virtual voting process because it says it can't wait until the convention starts to formally choose its nominee. It blames a deadline to appear on the Ohio ballot stating that candidates must be selected by August 7. Ohio state lawmakers there have since changed that, but the modification doesn't take effect until September 1 — and DNC attorneys warn that waiting until after the initial deadline to determine a presidential nominee could prompt legal challenges. "Our party remains steadfast to an open, fair and transparent nominating process," said Minyon Moore, chair of the Democratic convention. "We will do this right."

ST. LOUIS, missouri — The Missouri Supreme Court has blocked the immediate release of a man whose murder conviction was overturned — just as the man was about to walk free. A St. Louis Circuit Court judge had ordered Christopher Dunn to be released by 6 p.m. CDT Wednesday and threatened the prison warden with contempt if Dunn remained imprisoned. But the attorney general has been fighting his release. Corrections Department spokeswoman Karen Pojmann said Dunn was signing paperwork to be released when the Missouri Supreme Court issued a stay, blocking his freedom. His wife was en route to pick him up. St. Louis Circuit Judge Jason Sengheiser's decision to release Dunn came after he overturned Dunn's murder conviction Monday, citing evidence of "actual innocence" in the 1990 killing. He ordered Dunn's immediate release then, but Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey appealed, and the state Department of Corrections declined to release him. St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore filed a motion Wednesday urging the judge to immediately order Dunn's freedom. "The attorney general cannot unilaterally decide to ignore this court's order," Gore wrote. A court filing said an attorney for the Department of Corrections told a lawyer in Gore's office that Bailey advised the agency not to release Dunn until the appeal played out. When told it was improper to ignore a court order, the Department of Corrections attorney "responded that the attorney general's office is legal counsel to the DOC and the DOC would be following the advice of counsel." On Wednesday, Sengheiser said the prison in Licking had until 6 p.m. CDT to release Dunn, or he would hold an order for the warden to be held in contempt of court. "Barring a new court order that supersedes the current court order, Mr. Dunn will be released before 6 p.m.," Missouri Corrections Department spokeswoman Karen Pojmann said in an email to The Associated Press, later texting that she expected him to be released in about an hour. "It shouldn't be this hard," said Dunn's attorney, Tricia Rojo Bushnell, the executive director of the Midwest Innocence Project. 'Over the moon' Dunn's wife told the AP she couldn't believe the news. "I'm over the moon," Kira Dunn said as she headed to the prison. "We're so grateful to the judge. We're so grateful that he didn't allow his ruling to be disrespected that way and he put his foot down and said, 'You will respect the rule of law and you will respect a court order.' " She said her husband looks forward to being freed after decades of longing to embrace his family for as long as he wants and having "a say in his own life." "He wants to just feel free ground against his feet. He wants to walk barefoot. He wants to open and close doors as he chooses. He wants to select the temperature of his shower. He wants to go out in the middle of the night and look at the stars and just sit there. And, he wants to sleep in a real bed," she said. Dunn's situation is similar to what happened to Sandra Hemme. The 64-year-old woman spent 43 years in prison for the fatal stabbing of a woman in St. Joseph in 1980. A judge on June 14 cited evidence of "actual innocence" and overturned her conviction. She had been the longest-held wrongly incarcerated woman known in the U.S., according to the National Innocence Project, which worked to free Hemme. But appeals by Bailey — all the way up to the Missouri Supreme Court — kept Hemme imprisoned at the Chillicothe Correctional Center. During a court hearing Friday, Judge Ryan Horsman said that if Hemme wasn't released within hours, Bailey himself would have to appear in court with contempt of court on the table. She was released later that day. Judicial scolding The judge also scolded Bailey's office for calling the Chillicothe warden and telling prison officials not to release Hemme after he ordered her to be freed on her own recognizance. Dunn was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1990 shooting of Ricco Rogers, 15. Gore's office examined the case and filed a motion in February seeking to vacate the guilty verdict. After weighing the case for nearly two months, Sengheiser issued a ruling that cited "a clear and convincing showing of 'actual innocence' that undermines the basis for Dunn's convictions, because in light of new evidence, no juror, acting reasonably, would have voted to find Dunn guilty of these crimes beyond a reasonable doubt." Lawyers for Bailey's office said at the hearing that initial testimony from two boys at the scene who identified Dunn as the shooter was correct, even though they recanted as adults. A Missouri law adopted in 2021 lets prosecutors request hearings when they see evidence of a wrongful conviction. Although Bailey's office is not required to oppose such efforts, he also did so at a hearing for Lamar Johnson, who spent 28 years in prison for murder. Another St. Louis judge ruled in February 2023 that Johnson was wrongfully convicted, and he was freed. Another hearing begins August 21 for death row inmate Marcellus Williams. Bailey's office is opposing the challenge to Williams' conviction, too. Timing is of the essence: Williams is scheduled to be executed September 24. St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell filed a motion in January to vacate the conviction of Williams for the fatal stabbing of Lisha Gayle in 1998. Bell's motion said three experts determined that Williams' DNA was not on the handle of the butcher knife used in the killing. Steven Puro, professor emeritus of political science at St. Louis University, said Bailey is in a highly competitive race for the attorney general position, with the primary quickly approaching on August 6. "Bailey is trying to show that he is 'tough on crime,' which is a very important Republican conservative position. Clearly, he's angering members of the judicial system that he will have to argue before in the future. But he's making the strategic notion that he needs to get his name before the voters and try to use that to win the primary election." 'Court has to be obeyed' Michael Wolff, a former Missouri Supreme Court judge and chief justice, concurred with Puro's observation, saying the handling of the case appears to be influenced by politics, also noting that the primary is quickly approaching. "Does August 6 have anything to do with it?" he asked. "If there's a finding of actual innocence and there's no case left, then that's all," Wolff said. "Then it seems to me that it's just whatever he believes and whatever his political instincts tell him to do. But one of the things is that no matter what your beliefs are, if a court orders something to happen, it's not your purview to say no. The court has to be obeyed."