Today is Wednesday, June 14, 2023. Let's get caught up.
Here are today's top stories, celebrity birthdays and a look back at this date in history:
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MORNING LISTEN
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TOP STORIES
This morning's top headlines: Wednesday, June 14
The Golden Knights delivered their city a true Vegas-style party from dazzling passes to a Mark Stone hat trick to all-out goal celebrations. The Knights captured the young organization’s first Stanley Cup with a 9-3 romp Tuesday over the beaten up and exhausted Florida Panthers. Coach Bruce Cassidy started five of the original Vegas players known as the Misfits and put the sixth on the second shift. Cassidy sounded confident the day before the game that his team would play well, and it certainly did. Vegas blew open a one-goal game in the second period to lead 6-1.
Donald Trump’s four years in the White House were punctuated by the spectacle and attempts at showmanship he cultivated from years as a tabloid fixture and reality star. Trump’s history-making appearance Tuesday as a criminal defendant in a Florida federal court was no different. The former commander in chief, accused of being careless with some of the country’s most sensitive secrets and obstructing authorities as they tried to recover the documents, pleaded not guilty to 37 charges. But Trump, who is seeking a return to the White House in 2024, treated the day like a campaign event, even as he faces serious threats to his political ambitions and his freedom.
A federal judge has temporarily blocked Microsoft’s planned $69 billion purchase of video game company Activision Blizzard. The ruling gives more time for an antitrust review of the deal. U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley in San Francisco ruled Tuesday in support of a temporary restraining order sought by the Federal Trade Commission that will stop Microsoft from closing the deal. The commission has sought both a restraining order and injunction to stop Microsoft’s acquisition of the California company behind hit games such as Call of Duty, World of Warcraft and Candy Crush Saga.
The first-grade teacher who was shot by her 6-year-old student in Virginia no longer works for the school system that employed her. Newport News Public Schools said Tuesday that Abby Zwerner resigned. Her separation became official Monday. Zwerner's departure comes more than two months after she sued the district for $40 million and accused school officials of gross negligence. Zwerner suffered serious injuries from the shooting and has endured multiple surgeries. Jeffrey Breit is an attorney for Zwerner. He told WAVY-TV on Tuesday that Zwerner was fired. The school system refutes that claim. It released previous emails in which Zwerner declared her intent to resign.
Authorities say at least 32 people have died after a fishing boat carrying dozens of migrants capsized and sank off the southern coast of Greece. A large search and rescue operation is underway. Authorities said 104 people have been rescued so far following the incident early Wednesday some 75 kilometers (46 miles) southwest of Greece’s southern Peloponnese region. The Greek coast guard says it's unclear how many passengers might remain missing at sea after the 32 bodies were recovered. The Italy-bound boat is believed to have sailed from the Tobruk area in eastern Libya. The Italian coast guard first alerted Greek authorities and Frontex about the approaching vessel on Tuesday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested that he could order his troops to try to seize more land in Ukraine to protect bordering Russian territory. The threat made Tuesday carries questionable credibility because the Kremlin lacks full control over areas it already annexed. In some of his most detailed remarks about the war in months, the Russian leader also asserted that Ukrainian forces had suffered “catastrophic” losses in a new counteroffensive. He said he was not contemplating a new troop mobilization, as many Russians have feared. But he did not rule out another troop call-up later.
Aid agencies will struggle to draw the world’s attention back to Syria at an annual donor conference hosted by the European Union in Brussels for humanitarian aid to Syrians. Funding from the two-day conference that starts on Wednesday will also go toward providing aid to some 5.7 million Syrian refugees living in neighboring countries, particularly Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. Syrians on both sides of the front lines have struggled to cope with dwindling aid in recent years, as donors rushed to support over 5 million Ukrainian refugees and over 7 million internally displaced in the conflict-hit European country.
Vietnam has released a long-anticipated energy plan meant to take the country through the next decade and help meet soaring demand while reducing carbon emissions. Experts say the plan will aid the country's transition toward renewable energy and provides more clarity for businesses looking to invest in Vietnam’s energy market. But they also warn continued reliance on fossil fuels, creaky infrastructure and problems in financing could make it hard for Vietnam to meet its ambitious climate goals. The new plan calls for no new coal-fired power plants to be built after 2030. But total generation capacity from coal power will still rise by 2030.
Belarus' authoritarian leader says his country has already received some of Russia's tactical nuclear weapons, emphasizing that he wouldn't hesitate to order their use in the event of an aggression against his country. Earlier this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the planned deployment of the short-range nuclear weapons to Moscow’s neighbor and ally Belarus, in a move widely seen as a warning to the West. Putin has stressed that Russia will retain control of the weapons, but Tuesday's statement by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko contradicted him. Speaking on Russian state TV, Lukashenko claimed some of those weapons had already arrived in Belarus even though Putin said they would be deployed next month.
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IMAGE OF THE DAY
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TODAY IN HISTORY
In 1993, President Bill Clinton nominated Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, and more events that happened on this …
In 1987, the Los Angeles Lakers win their 10th NBA championship with a 106-93 victory over the Boston Celtics in Game 6 at the Forum. See more…
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