(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Overnight News Digest: Haaland sets 20-year ban on mineral leases in Superior National Forest [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-01-26 Biden halts new mining near Minnesota’s Boundary Waters for 20 years Duluth News Tribune The Biden administration will ban new mining on federal land within the same watershed as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for the next 20 years. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland signed a public land order Thursday preventing new mineral leases on 225,500 acres of the Superior National Forest in Northeastern Minnesota. Mining is already banned in the BWCAW, but there has long been concern that copper-nickel mines, if built in the Rainy River Watershed surrounding the wilderness area, would send toxic runoff into the downstream BWCAW. The move comes after the Forest Service released a study in June that said hardrock mining within the watershed would pose an environmental risk to the BWCAW. Biden Restores Vital Protections for Alaska's Tongass National Forest Gutted by Trump Common Dreams "This is great news for the forest, the salmon, the wildlife, and the people who depend on intact ecosystems to support their ways of life and livelihoods," said one advocate. Indigenous and green groups on Wednesday applauded the Biden administration for reinstating protections for millions of acres of wilderness in Alaska's Tongass National Forest that were lifted during a Trump-era regulatory rollback spree. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced Wednesday that it has finalized protections for the Tongass National Forest by restoring "longstanding roadless protections to 9.37 million acres of roadless areas that support the ecological, economic, and cultural values of Southeastern Alaska." The FBI Hacked and Infiltrated a Ransomware Gang for Months Before Dismantling It Gizmodo In one of the FBI’s most sophisticated cybercrime operations to date, agents infiltrated and spent approximately six months embedded in a prominent ransomware gang’s network, Justice Department officials announced Thursday. That gang, known as Hive, was disrupted earlier this week when agents seized its server infrastructure and also took down its website. Speaking Thursday, Attorney General Merrick Garland characterized Hive as “an international ransomware network responsible for extorting and attempting to extort hundreds of millions of dollars from victims in the United States and around the world.” A Ransomware-as-a-Service provider, Hive’s business model has been to license its malware to “affiliate” hackers—contract cybercriminals, essentially—that would carry out attacks on targets and share profits from successful extortions with the gang. Biden blasts House GOP for trying to ‘destroy’ economy over debt ceiling The Washington Post President Biden sharply rebuked House Republicans on Thursday for trying to slash seniors’ retirement benefits and hold hostage the nation’s finances, stressing that the new majority’s agenda — and its staunch demands for spending cuts — threatened to plunge the United States into an economic crisis. On a day when the administration received a burst of positive news, with the nation’s economic growth exceeding expectations last quarter, Biden took to a union facility in Springfield, Va., to highlight the political stakes: Pointing to the country’s recent turnaround, the president stressed a need to battle back GOP lawmakers “who are trying to destroy this progress.” “This nation has gone through too much. We’ve come too far to let that happen,” Biden said, promising to “veto everything” Republicans try to send to his desk. Biden considering a trip to Europe in show of support for Ukraine after one year of war NBC News President Biden is considering a trip to Europe next month to coincide with the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to three administration officials and a person familiar with the discussions. Multiple locations are under consideration, including Poland, two of the sources said. The White House is exploring ways Biden might mark the one-year milestone in the Ukraine war, the sources said. The goal, they said, is for Biden to use the moment to draw attention to Ukraine’s resilience against Russia‘s brutal military campaign and to reaffirm U.S. solidarity with the Ukrainian people as the conflict enters a new phase. U.S. to send Ukraine more advanced Abrams tanks — but no secret armor Politico The U.S. is planning to send Kyiv the Abrams main battle tank in its more advanced M1A2 configuration, rather than the older A1 version that the military has in storage, according to three people with knowledge of the deliberations. But the 31 tanks slated for Ukraine will not include the secret armor mix that makes the Army’s newest version so lethal, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive conversations. The A2 version has more sophisticated optics and controls than the older A1 version, which the Army intends to retire in the next few years. Outwardly similar to the A1, the A2 has a redesigned commander’s weapon station with improved optics for targeting, and an independent thermal viewer that allows the commander to independently scan for targets in all weather and battlefield conditions. Ukraine wakes up to deadly attacks after securing battle tanks Al Jazeera Eleven people were killed across Ukraine as Russia pummelled the country with a wave of missile and drone attacks, according to Ukraine’s emergency services. Thursday’s rush-hour assault came a day after Kyiv secured the battle tanks it has long called for from Germany and the United States, a development Russia warned was a “dangerous” escalation. Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, said a missile killed a 55-year-old man, the first death from an attack in the capital since New Year’s Eve, while two people were injured. Over the course of the day, the official death toll rose to at least 11 people; the attack spanned 11 regions and damaged 35 buildings. US targets Chinese firm for helping Russia’s Wagner group in Ukraine South China Morning Post The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on a Chinese company for allegedly providing satellite imagery in Ukraine to help Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, which has come under growing US pressure. The Treasury Department and State Department announced a slew of actions as they formally designated the Wagner group as a transnational criminal organisation, a move previewed last week by the White House. The new sanctions “will further impede the Kremlin’s ability to arm its war-machine that is engaged in a war of aggression against Ukraine, and which has caused unconscionable death and destruction,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement. A Russian graveyard reveals Wagner’s prisoner army Reuters Late last summer, a plot of land on the edge of a small farming community in southern Russia began to fill with scores of newly dug graves of fighters killed in Ukraine. The resting places were adorned with simple wooden crosses and brightly coloured wreaths that bore the insignia of Russia’s Wagner Group - a feared and secretive private army. There were around 200 graves at the site on the outskirts of Bakinskaya village in Krasnodar region when Reuters visited in late January. The news agency matched the names of at least 39 of the dead here and at three other nearby cemeteries to Russian court records, publicly available databases and social media accounts. Reuters also spoke to family, friends and lawyers of some of the dead. Many of the men buried at Bakinskaya were convicts who were recruited by Wagner last year after its founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, promised a pardon if prisoners survived six months at the front, this reporting showed. They included a contract killer, murderers, career criminals and people with alcohol problems. U.S. military operation kills ISIS leader in Somalia UPI American forces killed a senior leader of the Islamic State during a special operation in Somalia Wednesday night, which also saw several other members of the group killed. A statement issued Thursday by the Department of Defense confirmed the death of Bilal al Sudani and "of a number of ISIS members." Officials did not elaborate on the specifics of the operation, other than to say it took place in a mountainous region of northern Somalia. Chevron’s Buyback Plan Draws Biden’s Ire as Pump Prices Climb Bloomberg Law Tensions between President Joe Biden and the oil industry are intensifying, stoked by Chevron Corp.’s decision to repurchase $75 billion of shares and boost dividend payouts instead of plowing that money into new drilling. The renewed acrimony comes as big oil companies are set to report almost $200 billion in collective earnings and alongside climbing gasoline prices that are exacerbating economic pain for consumers already suffering from high inflation. Chevron is set to report a record $37 billion profit for 2022, more than double its return in the previous year, according to analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Meanwhile, Exxon Mobil Corp. is expected to post a gain of $57.6 billion, and refiner Valero Energy Corp. on Thursday reported record annual earnings, while distributing to shareholders nearly half of its $13.8 billion in cash generated by operating activities. The White House excoriated Chevron’s buyback announcement on Wednesday, suggesting the oil company should be steering more of its profits toward boosting its output instead of rewarding shareholders. Chevron’s buyback package is so large it could fund more than four years of drilling and other projects at the company’s present pace of expenditures. Meet the top House recipients of oil and gas money ClimateWire The oil and gas industry donated millions of dollars to members of the House in the last election cycle. Now, many of the top recipients are well-positioned to advance its interests. Two of them — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) — serve in leadership positions. Several more have been assigned to House committees where they will wield outsize influence over energy and climate policy. Of the top 10 recipients of oil and gas money in the 2022 election cycle, eight are Republican, according to data from OpenSecrets, which tracks political spending. The contributions include donations of more than $200 from individuals, as well as money from political action committees that represent energy companies and organizations, including the American Petroleum Institute, Chevron Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp. and Koch Industries Inc… Amanda Eversole, API's executive vice president and chief advocacy officer, said the powerful lobbying group backs candidates who can further its causes. Biden administration threatens veto of GOP bill restricting strategic oil reserve releases The Hill The Biden administration is threatening to veto Republican-led legislation that would restrict the release of oil from the country’s emergency reserve. “If Congress were to pass H.R. 21, the president would veto it. He will not allow the American people to suffer because of the backwards agenda that House Republicans are advancing,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told reporters during a White House press briefing. The legislation would require the federal government to develop a plan to increase the percentage of federal lands leased for new oil and gas production in order to withdraw oil from the strategic reserve. It includes an exception for “severe energy supply” interruptions. NPR News The U.S. Secret Service has released a first-of-its-kind report that analyzes 173 mass attacks that took place in the country from 2016-2020. It's the first time the agency has put together trends collected from five years of data; the report examines everything from when in the year the attacks took place, to behavioral changes exhibited in the attackers. The report, which comes from the agency's National Threat Assessment Center, looked at attacks that harmed at least three individuals, not including the attacker. The report comes just days after two shootings in California in Monterey Park and Half Moon Bay killed a total of 18 people. So far in 2023, there have been 39 mass shootings. Coffins sell out as China’s rural Covid losses mount BBC News In Xinzhou region of northern Shanxi province the coffin makers have been busy. We watched the skilled craftsmen as they carved elaborate decorations into the freshly-cut wood. Over recent months, they say, they haven't had time to stop. […] Some 80% of the population - more than a billion people - have been infected since China scrapped restrictions in December, according to leading epidemiologist Wu Zunyou. Last weekend China reported 13,000 Covid-related deaths in less than a week, adding to the 60,000 deaths it has counted since December. But these deaths have been in hospitals. In rural areas there are only sparse medical facilities and those who die at home are mostly not being counted. There is not even an official estimate for the number of village deaths. But the BBC found evidence the death toll is mounting. COVID-19 deaths in the US continue to be undercounted, research shows, despite claims of ‘overcounts’ The Conversation Since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared in March 2020, a recurring topic of debate has been whether official COVID-19 death statistics in the U.S. accurately capture the fatalities associated with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Some politicians and a few public health practitioners have argued that COVID-19 deaths are overcounted. For instance, a January 2023 opinion piece in The Washington Post claims that COVID-19 death tallies include not only those who died from COVID-19 but those who died from other causes but happened to have COVID-19. Most scientists, however, have suggested that COVID-19 death tallies represent underestimates because they fail to capture COVID-19 deaths that were misclassified to other causes of death. FDA vaccine panel to consider annual COVID shots USA Today The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday is asking an expert advisory panel to consider how often people should be boosted against COVID-19 and what those boosters should look like. The Biden administration has already recommended that healthy young people get annual COVID-19 boosters, just as they get an annual flu shot. The FDA is looking for the experts' take on that recommendation, as well as providing twice-annual boosters for people who are immune-compromised or over a certain age to increase their chances of avoiding a potentially dangerous infection. Court ruling blocks minimum wage hike for Michigan workers next month The Detroit News A Michigan Court of Appeals panel ruled Thursday that the Legislature's effort in 2018 to adopt and amend ballot initiatives in the same session was legal, blocking a hike in the state's minimum wage from going into effect next month. The three-judge panel's unanimous ruling overturns a lower court's decision, which would have allowed the state's minimum wage to jump from $10.10 per hour to $13.03 per hour on Feb. 19. Tipped workers were going to see their hourly minimum jump from $3.75 to $11.73 per hour under a 2018 voter-initiated law that the Legislature amended after adopting. The appeals court ruled a Republican-controlled Legislature had the constitutional power to change minimum wage and paid sick time laws that had been initiated by citizens through a petition process. Ending homelessness in King County will cost billions, regional authority says The Seattle Times What would it take to end homelessness in King County? More than Seattle and county budgets have ever allocated. And more than double what Gov. Jay Inslee has proposed to address homelessness throughout the entire state. The King County Regional Homelessness Authority estimates it would take more than $8 billion in capital costs, up to $3.5 billion in annual operating costs and tens of thousands more units of housing. Local officials say that these numbers, released this week in the authority’s proposed five-year plan, are likely not far off — but are also likely beyond what they are able to fund. AmazonSmile’s end is alarming, say nonprofits that benefited AP News Amazon’s surprise decision to shut down its AmazonSmile donation program has left thousands of its nonprofit beneficiaries disappointed and concerned about finding ways to replace the funding. The e-commerce giant had launched AmazonSmile in 2013, contributing 0.5% of every purchase made by participating customers to the charity of their choosing. As of 2022, the company said it has donated $449 million to various charities. Before it ends the program next month, Amazon says, it will provide a final donation to each of the 1 million-plus nonprofits that used AmazonSmile, equivalent to 25% of what the charity received from the program in 2022. Researchers look a dinosaur in its remarkably preserved face Ars Technica [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/1/26/2149431/-Overnight-News-Digest-Haaland-sets-20-year-ban-on-mineral-leases-in-Superior-National-Forest Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/