It's Monday morning, what do we know?
The G7 meets amidst the ongoing war in Ukraine and the US reacts to the landmark Dobbs decision
What do we know in Ukraine?
Russia fired rockets on Kyiv for the first time in weeks, the strikes hit two buildings, killing one and injuring several others. The attacks were an apparent show of force by Putin as Western leaders met in Germany over the weekend. The Kremlin has launched similar attacks on Kyiv and Lviv when high ranking Western leaders have been near or in Ukraine
Leaders of the G7 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States) met in the Bavarian Alps (rough gig) over the weekend. Group of Seven leaders made a variety of announcements and pronouncements regarding Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, including a statement from Biden during his meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, where he said, “We have to stay together, because Putin has been counting on, from the beginning, that somehow NATO and the G-7 would splinter, but we haven’t and we’re not going to.”
The G7 also announced new bans on Russian imports, including gold (Russia’s largest export after energy) and a possible price cap on energy, designed to limit Russian oil and gas profits
The G7 leaders also took a moment to mock Putin’s ridiculously hyper-masculine, occasionally topless caricature of manhood, with Canada’s Justin Trudeau suggesting they should all take “a bare-chested horseback ride” to demonstrate their toughness
On Saturday, The New York Times ran a fascinating article on U.S. and allied logistical and intelligence support to Ukraine (complete with CIA agents and commandos) that is worth your time. You can read it here
What else do we know?
President Joe Biden signed the newly passed gun violence bill into law at the White House shortly before departing for the G7 in Germany. The bill is the first meaningful gun legislation in more than a decade
Abortion providers in states like Texas, Mississippi and West Virginia spent the weekend contacting women who were scheduled to come in for abortions in the coming weeks, notifying them their procedures have been canceled or postponed indefinitely
Elsewhere, women’s rights and pro-choice protests were held in cities across the country. Police fired tear gas at pro-choice and pro-life protestors at the Capitol in Phoenix, Arizona, when the situation grew chaotic enough that lawmakers were forced to hide in a basement. Meanwhile, in Greenville, South Carolina, video appears to show police using excessive force during a pro-choice protest
CBS and YouGov released a poll on Biden’s performance, Trump’s culpability for January 6th, immigration, abortion and a host of other issues facing the country at the moment. The results of the comprehensive poll can be found here
Exhibit 8,372,974 that irony and self-awareness are deceased
You’re pure genius! Thank you for your words.