Biden is coming to Mass. Here's why

Also: Heat wave broils the Boston area; Clark and Pressley arrested at Supreme Court protest [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  July 20, 2022 ☀️ Mostly sunny, with a high near 94. Good Morning Boston, Need some help beating this heat? Click through [our Instagram post of helpful home hacks and safety tips](. Stay hydrated out there! To the news: - President Joe Biden is coming to Massachusetts. Less than a week after the state [got a visit from his wife]( the president himself is slated to visit the closed Brayton Point power plant in Somerset today. He'll speak about his administration's strategy to combat climate change after legislative efforts were dealt another setback in Senate. - The speech comes after Democrats' efforts to pass climate legislation were [sidelined last week]( (and not for [the first time]( by centrist West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, who is holding out over wariness about high inflation. The slimmed-down bill [reportedly]( included about $300 million in climate provisions, such as clean energy tax breaks and incentives for electric car purchases. - In response, Biden [pledged last week]( to take "strong executive action to meet this moment." However, the Associated Press [reports]( that he won't go so far to declare the climate crisis a "national emergency," as [some fellow Democrats have pushed for (including Sen. Ed Markey]( who will be at Biden's speech today). Such a move would allow Biden to redirect spending toward renewable energy projects or even act to block fossil fuel projects. White House officials say it's still under consideration. - The backdrop: Biden's speech comes as a brutal heat wave sweeps [across Massachusetts]( [about a third of the U.S.]( and [Europe](. It's a phenomenon climate scientists say will only [become more common in the coming decades](. - There's also the literal backdrop — symbolic of Biden's push to shift toward renewables: Brayton Point was once one of the area's largest coal-burning power plants, but is [now being converted into an offshore wind manufacturing facility](. (Side note, the 2019[implosion of plant's cooling towers]( is mesmerizing to watch.) - Two police unions in Boston are [suing the city in attempt to roll back recently passed limits]( on the use of tear gas, rubber bullets and other less-than-lethal crowd control methods. Calling the new policies "irresponsible and poorly researched," the unions argue they would result in "escalation" and are asking a judge to invalidate them. - The new rules — passed last year under then-Acting Mayor Kim Janey after being vetoed by former Mayor Marty Walsh — do not forbid police from using measures like tear gas or rubber bullets. However, they require officers to get approval from an on-scene supervisor, who must personally witness violence or property destruction and issue at least two warnings beforehand. - The lawsuit is also challenging the legality of the city's new police oversight office, arguing that state law gives ultimate say over personnel decisions to the police commissioner. - Spiking temperatures this week also mean spiking energy demand, as New Englanders crank their air conditioners. However, WBUR's Miriam Wasser reports that the local electricity grid operator, ISO New England, says it should be able to deal with the surge. - The company's spokesperson Matt Kakley told Wasser that the increase we're seeing is pretty normal. Even if something unexpected happens, he said they have the tools to deal with it. P.S.— You know WBUR's Jack Lepiarz is skilled as a news anchor, but are you aware of his other talent? Watch him show it off during an impressive — and, for one judge, briefly terrifying — [debut on America's Got Talent last night](. (It was [a little terrifying for Jack]( too.) Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters [Follow](  Support the news  The Rundown [Greater Boston broils under first extended heat wave of 2022]( Tuesday marked the first day of scorching temperatures above 90 degrees in Greater Boston in what’s expected to be an extended heat wave through the weekend. [Read more.]( [Greater Boston broils under first extended heat wave of 2022]( Tuesday marked the first day of scorching temperatures above 90 degrees in Greater Boston in what’s expected to be an extended heat wave through the weekend. [Read more.]( [Reps. Clark, Pressley arrested outside Supreme Court at protest over abortion rights]( Reps. Katherine Clark, Ayanna Pressley and over a dozen other House Democrats were arrested Tuesday for blocking traffic at a protest outside the Supreme Court criticizing the ruling last month that ended the constitutional right to an abortion for Americans. [Read more.]( [Reps. Clark, Pressley arrested outside Supreme Court at protest over abortion rights]( Reps. Katherine Clark, Ayanna Pressley and over a dozen other House Democrats were arrested Tuesday for blocking traffic at a protest outside the Supreme Court criticizing the ruling last month that ended the constitutional right to an abortion for Americans. [Read more.]( [U.S. death toll from drug overdoses is rising fast among Black and Indigenous people]( Drug overdoses are killing more people than ever in the U.S., and a new CDC report finds growing racial disparities among those who have died — with the largest increase among Black Americans. [Read more.]( [U.S. death toll from drug overdoses is rising fast among Black and Indigenous people]( Drug overdoses are killing more people than ever in the U.S., and a new CDC report finds growing racial disparities among those who have died — with the largest increase among Black Americans. [Read more.]( [MBTA safety fixes imperiled by labor crunch]( MBTA officials want to hire roughly 2,000 workers over the next year, an ambitious effort with ramifications for the transit system's safety, service frequency and maintenance. [Read more.]( [MBTA safety fixes imperiled by labor crunch]( MBTA officials want to hire roughly 2,000 workers over the next year, an ambitious effort with ramifications for the transit system's safety, service frequency and maintenance. [Read more.]( [Corruption concerns involving Ukraine are revived as the war with Russia drags on]( Since the start of the war with Russia, the Biden administration has mostly ignored Ukraine’s corruption history. But questions about its suitability as a recipient of massive infusions of aid resurfaced this week, following the firings of several senior officials. [Read more.]( [Corruption concerns involving Ukraine are revived as the war with Russia drags on]( Since the start of the war with Russia, the Biden administration has mostly ignored Ukraine’s corruption history. But questions about its suitability as a recipient of massive infusions of aid resurfaced this week, following the firings of several senior officials. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - The monkeypox outbreak remains relatively small compared to COVID-19 — but continues to grow. Here's [what officials are doing at the national level to stop it](. Radio Boston also spoke to local leaders about [how Provincetown is incorporating lessons from both the HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 pandemics in its response](. - Twitter's lawsuit against Elon Musk — to force him to follow through on his deal to buy the social media company — is headed to court. A judge [decided Tuesday that the two sides will face off in a fast-tracked, five-day trial this October](. - Joelle Renstrom [writes in this commentary]( that the James Webb space telescope is revealing new details about the origins of celestial bodies, galactic landscapes — and life itself. - Attention gamers: Here are NPR's [picks for the best video games of 2022]( from long-awaited blockbusters to surprising breakout indies.  What We're Reading 📚 - They Had Miscarriages, and New Abortion Laws Obstructed Treatment ([The New York Times]( - Who Is the Secret Service Really Protecting? ([The Bulwark]( - Final DIY Project: Build Your Own Coffin ([The Wall Street Journal](  Life Advice [If your spending is eating your savings, you might be experiencing 'lifestyle creep']( Here are some simple tips for keeping your long-term financial goals on track, while fending off the subconscious urge to automatically spend more when your income increases. [Read more.]( [If your spending is eating your savings, you might be experiencing 'lifestyle creep']( Here are some simple tips for keeping your long-term financial goals on track, while fending off the subconscious urge to automatically spend more when your income increases. [Read more.]( Before you go: [A reminder I didn't think we needed...]( 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news   Want to change how you receive these emails? 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