(WASHINGTON) — In a lengthy letter to Democrats, President Joe Biden on Monday says it is time for the party to come together so they can have the best chance at beating Donald Trump.
“The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it’s time for it to end,” Biden says. “We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump.”
Biden, noting that House and Senate members are returning to Washington Monday, appears to be trying to head off a growing number of Democrats either saying he should step aside as the party’s presumptive nominee — or are continuing to question whether he needs to do so.
“Now that you have returned from the July 4th recess, I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump,” he writes.
“I have had extensive conversations with the leadership of the party, elected officials, rank and file members, and most importantly, Democratic voters over these past 10 days or so. I have heard the concerns that people have – their good faith fears and worries about what is at stake in this election. I am not blind to them. Believe me, I know better than anyone the responsibility and the burden the nominee of our party carries. I carried it in 2020 when the fate of our nation was at stake,” he says.
“I also know these concerns come from a place of real respect for my lifetime of public service and my record as President, and I have been moved by the expressions of affection for me from so many who have known me well and supported me over the course of my public life. I’ve been grateful for the rock-solid, steadfast support from so many elected Democrats in Congress and all across the country and taken great strength from the resolve and determination I’ve seen from so many voters and grassroots supporters even in the hardest of weeks,” he continues. “I can respond to all this by saying clearly and unequivocally: I wouldn’t be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024.”
Striking a defiant tone, he says, “We had a Democratic nomination process and the voters have spoken clearly and decisively. I received over 14 million votes, 87% of the votes cast across the entire nominating process. I have nearly 3,900 delegates, making me the presumptive nominee of our party by a wide margin. This was a process open to anyone who wanted to run. Only three people chose to challenge me,” he says. “The voters of the Democratic Party have voted. They have chosen me to be the nominee of the party. Do we now just say this process didn’t matter? That the voters don’t have a say?”
Biden adds, “I decline to do that. I feel a deep obligation to the faith and the trust the voters of the Democratic Party have placed in me to run this year. It was their decision to make. Not the press, not the pundits, not the big donors, not any selected group of individuals, no matter how well intentioned. The voters – and the voters alone – decide the nominee of the Democratic Party.vHow can we stand for democracy in our nation if we ignore it in our own party? I cannot do that.I will not do that.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(FORT WORTH, Texas) — The Boeing Company has agreed in principle to a deal with the Department of Justice that will include a guilty plea to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. related to the company allegedly misleading the Federal Aviation Administration during the evaluation of the 737 MAX, according to a court filing from the DOJ.
“We can confirm that we have reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department, subject to the memorialization and approval of specific terms,” Boeing said in a statement to ABC News early Monday morning.
In addition to the guilty plea, the agreement includes Boeing paying the maximum statutory fine and investing at least $455 million in its compliance and safety programs.
The deal is not yet final, and families of the victims of the MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 have expressed their intention to oppose this plea agreement. The families have asked for an opportunity to file their opposition with the court, according to a court filing in U.S. District Court in Fort Worth, Texas.
According to the DOJ’s court filing late Sunday night, the parties are “proceeding expeditiously to document and memorialize the terms and understandings into a written plea agreement and expect to file the agreement with the Court by no later than July 19, 2024.”
Some 189 people died when a Boeing 737 MAX 8 plunged into the Java Sea off Indonesia on Oct. 29, 2018. Black box data from the Lion Air jet revealed the pilots struggled to fight the plane’s malfunctioning safety system from takeoff to the moment it nose-dived into the water.
Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 — another Boeing 737 MAX 8 — crashed five months later near Addis Ababa airport six minutes after takeoff, killing all 157 people on board.
In a separate court filing late Sunday night, attorneys for families of victims of the two MAX crashes indicated that they intend to exercise their rights under the Crime Victims’ Rights Act to be heard in opposition to the proposed plea.
“The families intend to argue that the plea deal with Boeing unfairly makes concessions to Boeing that other criminal defendants would never receive and fails to hold Boeing accountable for the deaths of 346 persons. As a result, the generous plea agreement rests on deceptive and offensive premises,” the attorneys wrote.
“At the upcoming hearing regarding the plea, families intend to ask the Court to reject the plea,” the filing states.
The families have asked that the court not set a scheduling order for the hearing until at least July 12 to give them ample time to file a briefing with their reasons why the court should reject the plea.
A Ukrainian firefighter works to extinguish a fire in a residential building following a missile attack in Kyiv on July 8, 2024. — Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images
(LONDON) — At least 21 people were killed across Ukraine early on Monday, as Russia launched a barrage of more than 40 missiles in a “massive” attack, Ukrainian officials said.
Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv was damaged, along with residential areas and other infrastructure, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media.
It was not immediately clear whether there were casualties at the hospital, but children were believed to be stuck beneath the rubble, Zelenskyy said. Doctors, hospital staff and first responders were digging through the debris, he said. The hospital is among the most well respected children’s hospitals in Ukraine.
“And the entire world must use all its determination to finally put an end to the Russian strikes. Killing is what Putin brings,” Zelenskyy said. “Only together can we bring real peace and security.”
The attack, which is among the largest Russian strikes in months, comes a day before U.S. President Joe Biden begins a 3-day NATO summit in Washington, where the group is expected to discuss support for Ukraine.
The alliance is expected to make “significant” announcements about increased military and financial support for Ukraine, a senior White House official said last week.
Photos and videos shared Monday by Zelenskyy and those at the hospital appeared to show bloodied doctors carrying out children, a building in the hospital grounds reduced to rubble and the exterior of the main building blown out. One image appears to show young patients sitting on the street with their IVs after the explosion.
A doctor at the hospital told local media the missile destroyed a building where two operations were happening at the time.
The missiles targeted cities including Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, Zelesnkyy said. At least eight of the dead were in Kyiv, officials said.
At least 10 people were killed and several others injured Monday morning in Russian airstrikes on Kryvyi Rih, a city in central Ukraine and Zelenskyy’s hometown, officials said. Another three people were killed in Russian airstrikes on the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, officials said.
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti and Morgan Winsor contributed to this report.
Signage promoting Milwaukee as the 2024 host of the Republican National Convention inside the Fiserv Forum during the Republican National Convention (RNC) fall media walkthrough in Milwaukee, Wis., on Nov. 30, 2023. — Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE
(WASHINGTON) — The Republican National Committee is drafting a 2024 party platform that may usher in changes to the GOP’s positions on key issues like abortion, same-sex marriage and immigration — reforms that will likely reflect the beliefs of their leader: former President Donald Trump, platform committee members and Trump allies said.
In 2016, the Republican Party — on their way to nominating Trump for the first time — adopted a strict, conservative platform around issues of gender and sexual orientation against the efforts by some of the party’s more moderate faction to soften that language. An identical platform was approved in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic made it difficult for party committees to convene and adjust language. Trump, during that convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, was chosen as the party’s nominee for a second time.
A political party’s platform distinctly outlines its positions on foreign and domestic policies, but it is not binding and doesn’t directly impact the work of elected officials or candidates. That platform, which Trump ran on in 2016 and 2020, supports legislation that would impose a 20-week federal abortion ban. The Republican platform since the 1980s has articulated support for a constitutional amendment that would assert the sanctity and protection of human life, extending to unborn children.
Now, in 2024, the GOP will convene to write the first platform since the Dobbs decision overturned the constitutional right to an abortion over two years ago. The plank could play an outsized role in establishing the ideals of a party reinvented by the former president, who has been clear about his opposition to a federal ban and his preference for this issue to be left up to the states.
Trump’s position on reproductive rights has worried some anti-abortion activists and RNC members who have expressed concern that the call for a “right to life” amendment would be stripped from the platform this year.
The former president’s top advisers are planning to overhaul and reduce the platform so that it will be “in line” with the former president’s “vision for America’s future,” according to a memo sent to the party’s platform committee in June, that was obtained by ABC News.
“He won [2024 primary elections] in a historic fashion,” a senior Trump adviser told ABC News.
“He is the party. But it also reflects the will of voters,” the adviser added. “I anticipate some of that will be in the platform.”
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, one of the top contenders to be Trump’s running mate, on CNN Sunday, backed stripping the abortion ban from the GOP platform.
“Well, I think our platform has to reflect our nominee, and our nominee’s position actually happens to be one grounded in reality,” Rubio said. “The reality of it is the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. And what that basically means is that now it’s not states; it’s voters at individual states who will get to decide how and to what level they want to restrict abortion, if at all. Some states will have restrictions. Some states will not. And so, I hope that our platform will reflect our nominee.”
Draft language for a new platform has not yet been circulated to most platform committee members or general RNC members yet, according to several people familiar with the process, though a number of conversations and lobbying on the issues with Trump allies have been ongoing among leaders of key advocacy groups and with some individuals.
The platform committee began convening in Milwaukee on the evening of July 7 and has meetings scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, according to a schedule shared with ABC News. What the committee and full membership adopt will then be unveiled to the full RNC at their national convention beginning on July 15 in Milwaukee.
For weeks, some more socially conservative RNC members and leading anti-abortion groups have been vocal about any platform deliberations that might water down the party’s stance on abortion.
But those efforts reached a fever pitch this week. Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council, who sits on the RNC’s platform committee, has said he will lead an effort to put together a “minority report” on the platform should the committee soften abortion language — something he claims will happen.
The Family Research Council, in conjunction with dozens of other conservative groups, just launched a “Platform Integrity Project” which “seeks to work with the RNC and the Trump campaign for an open process that will help ensure the preservation of the GOP’s solidly conservative platform that contains longstanding pro-life, pro-family, and pro-Israel planks.”
“[The call for a right to life amendment] is not going to be in the draft platform,” Perkins said on Newsmax this week, noting that the softer language on reproductive rights might impact the 2024 election because he claimed most of the Republican base was staunchly anti-abortion.
“I think it’s going to — it’s going to dampen the enthusiasm. It’s not going to turn people to the other side. That’s not going to happen. But elections are driven by the energy and the enthusiasm – the intensity. This dampens the intensity. That’s the last thing we need,” he added.
Yet one source familiar with platform deliberations told ABC News that much of the alarm is overblown, furthering that some see any change as a complete reconfiguration of the party’s beliefs, which the source flatly denies.
The source says the RNC will use Trump’s recent language on abortion, which he repeated during last month’s debate, as their guide.
“My belief is the loud voices are few and will not be more than a squeaky wheel in the end. A vast majority,” the source said.
Other Republicans have expressed optimism that Trump’s stances could be reflected in the platform.
“President Trump was the first president who supported marriage equality when elected and has repeatedly stated that it’s a settled issue. Given polling of that issue of both Americans and Republicans, it is settled. I would hope any attempts to “define marriage” in the RNC Platform would go by the wayside in 2024 to make it current with the national sentiment…and the law,” said Charles Moran, a Trump delegate in 2016 and 2020 who is the president of the Log Cabin Republicans, a national conservative organization that supports gay and lesbian rights.
The current RNC platform says the party would “respect the authority of the states to decide such fundamental social questions” on issues like marriage, which is “between one man and one woman.”
Ahead of the platform deliberations, several RNC members have also raised concerns over the fact that these critical committee meetings will be closed to the press and non-committee members — a move they say will suppress the will of general party members so that Trump-aligned actors could institute changes without pushback.
Two emails sent by the RNC’s member services account and reviewed by ABC News outline the policy, which several party members said has not been a practice at former conventions.
“In years past, the place was crawling with lobbyists and special interest groups trying to get specific line items for their clients on platform,” a source familiar with the decision to close the meetings said to ABC News.
In opposition to this decision, Perkins circulated a letter (which ABC News has reviewed) addressed to RNC Chair Michael Whatley that calls upon party leadership to “lift this gag order and reinstate the normal procedure of allowing approved guests and media so that fellow conservatives can observe and participate in this important process.”
“A major issue is the fact that it appears that the RNC and the Trump campaign do not want to allow C-SPAN or anyone else to cover the committee hearings,” one member of another powerful committee — the rules committee — told ABC News.
“This would be a great mistake as being live on TV helps not only keep everyone accountable but it also helps keep people civil. Committee hearings behind closed doors will easily descend into accusations and name-calling. Many members of the committees will feel free behind closed doors to let their hair down and tell the Trump social liberal spokesmen to go to hell,” the member added.
–ABC News’ Brittany Shepherd and Hannah Demissie contributed to this report.
Tents sheltering displaced Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip are pictured on June 4, 2024 amid the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian territory between Israel and Hamas. (Photo by EYAD BABA/AFP via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — As the Israel-Hamas war continues, negotiations have stalled to secure the release of hostages taken by the terrorist organization, and Israeli forces continue to launch incursions in the southern Gazan town of Rafah ahead of a possible large-scale invasion.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jul 07, 5:07 PM American hurt by Hezbollah rocket fire: US Embassy
A U.S. citizen was injured Sunday by one of multiple rockets fired into Israel from Lebanon by the terrorist group Hezbollah, according to the U.S. embassy in Israel.
Embassy officials said they received information regarding the injured private U.S. citizen. The embassy confirmed the individual does not work for the U.S. government.
The embassy was working to gather more information on the injured person, officials said.
Further details about the incident were not immediately disclosed.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller
Jul 06, 6:26 PM IDF gives more details on strike on school
Israel Defense Forces released details about a strike on a school in Nuseirat refugee camp that Gaza officials said killed 16 and wounded at least 50.
The IDF claimed its intelligence found that the site allegedly “served as a hideout and operational infrastructure from which attacks against IDF troops operating in the Gaza Strip were directed and carried out.”
“Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken in order to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise aerial surveillance and additional intelligence,” the IDF said without disclosing what steps were taken.
-ABC News’ Dorit Long
Jul 06, 4:19 PM IDF admits it’ll be fighting Hamas insurgency in Gaza for 5 years
Israel is planning for a long insurgency against Hamas, saying it expects Hamas to still exist in five years, but it said the group is no longer capable of perpetrating an Oct. 7-style attack.
“Will you and me be talking five years from now about Hamas as a terror organization in Gaza? The answer is yes,” Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari told ABC News.
Hagari is the first Israeli official to publicly admit that the insurgency will be long and difficult, in stark contrast to the bombast of Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who continues to vow the quick destruction of Hamas.
Gaza, and even to some degree Hezbollah, are “perpetual wars” distracting Israel from what he called their main enemy, Iran, a senior Israeli official told ABC News.
-ABC News’ Matt Gutman
Jul 06, 4:21 PM EDT 16 killed in strike on Gaza school, police unit
Sixteen people were killed and 50 others injured in a strike on a school in Nuseirat refugee camp, in central Gaza, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. The school housed displaced people and had a mobile police unit inside it.
Israel has not yet commented on the strike, ABC News has asked the IDF for comment.
-ABC News’ Victoria Beaule
Jul 06, 10:40 AM EDT Israel conducts strikes in Lebanon overnight
The Israel Defence Forces said on Saturday that it struck “a number” of Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah responded with an aerial attack on what they said was a military position in the north on Saturday morning.
The IDF said the drone was intercepted and the remnants fell in an open area.
Jul 04, 2:37 PM EDT Netanyahu visits Air Force following strikes from Lebanon
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the operational headquarters of the Air Force Thursday following strikes from Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.
“In the midst of the difficult campaign against Lebanon, we established a principle — whoever hurts us will bleed on his head,” Netanyahu told the soldiers. “We put it into practice. We know the road is still long, but we are determined to restore security to the north and return the residents safely to their homes.”
Hezbollah militants said they fired more than 200 rockets toward Israel earlier Thursday. Fires broke out in several areas of northern Israel due to UAVs and shrapnel from interceptions of the projectiles falling in the area, the Israel Defense Forces said. No one was seriously injured.
One person was killed in Houla in Marjayoun after an Israeli drone attacked a house, the Lebanese national news agency NNA reported.
-ABC News’ Ghazi Balkiz and Jordana Miller
Jul, 04 1:15 PM EDT Biden and Harris speak with Netanyahu: White House
President Joe Biden spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, a White House official said.
Vice President Kamala Harris also joined the call, which wrapped early Thursday afternoon, the official said.
Even as Biden tries to stave off criticism for his debate performance in the U.S., he is also trying to tamp down the mounting conflict between Israel and Hezbollah on the border with Lebanon. Hundreds of rockets were fired into northern Israel on Thursday, though no one was injured.
Netanyahu’s office also announced Thursday that Israel had received Hamas’ latest cease-fire proposal from U.S., Qatari and Egyptian mediators, and was “examining” the proposal.
-ABC News’ Molly Nagle
Jul 04, 6:01 AM EDT Hezbollah fires 200 rockets, drones toward Israel
Hezbollah militants said they fired more than 200 rockets and drones toward Israel on Thursday.
Sirens and alerts began sounding throughout northern Israel early on Thursday, officials said.
As the sirens began “numerous projectiles and suspicious aerial targets crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory,” the Israel Defense Forces said.
Jul 03, 1:44 PM Israel assassinates highest ranking Hezbollah commander since Oct. 8
Israel assassinated the commander of Hezbollah’s Aziz Unit, based in southern Lebanon, Israel claimed and Hezbollah acknowledged.
Muhammad Ni’Mah Nasser is one of the most senior commanders killed since Hezbollah began firing at Israel in solidarity with Gaza on Oct. 8.
Hezbollah has responded with around 100 rockets in the last three hours, according to the IDF. No major damage has been reported.
Both sides have said they are ready for war and that they are ready to ink a peace deal brokered by U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein. A senior Hezbollah official said this week it can only sign the deal after Israel reaches a cease-fire with Hamas in Gaza.
-ABC News’ Matt Gutman
Jul 02, 4:34 PM European Gaza Hospital now empty following evacuation orders: WHO
All patients and medical staff have left European Gaza Hospital in southern Gaza, following evacuation orders from the Israel Defense Forces in Khan Younis, the World Health Organization said Tuesday.
The hospital, which had 320 patients, is “now completely empty,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.
“It is devastating to see the 650-bed-capacity hospital out of service at a time when access to health care is urgently needed,” he said in a statement while calling on the hospital to be made operational “immediately.”
Most patients were being referred to Nasser Medical Complex, which is now at full capacity and facing a shortage of medical supplies, the WHO said.
Jul 02, 4:16 PM Evacuation order is largest in Gaza since October: UN
The Israel Defense Forces’ evacuation order for a region in southern Gaza on Monday was the largest such order since October 2023, according to the United Nations.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East estimated that 250,000 people are impacted by the evacuation order in Khan Younis. The evacuation zone covers 117 square kilometers, according to U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.
Jul 01, 1:12 PM IDF orders evacuation of area in Khan Younis amid response to rocket attack
The Israel Defense Forces ordered hundreds of people in Khan Younis in southern Gaza to evacuate amid its response to a rocket attack, the military said.
The area for evacuation is near the European Hospital, according to a leaflet distributed in the region Monday.
“For your safety, you must evacuate immediately to the humanitarian zone,” the leaflet stated.
The IDF said the evacuation is in response to an earlier rocket attack that came from the area involving approximately 20 projectiles.
“A number of the projectiles were intercepted and some of the projectiles fell inside southern Israel. No injuries were reported,” the IDF said in a statement. “IDF Artillery is currently striking the sources of the fire.”
-ABC News’ Sami Zyara and Matt Gutman
Jun 29, 3:44 PM Hostage speaks 1st time since release
Noa Argamani, one of four hostages rescued during a deadly IDF raid on June 8, released a video thanking Israeli forces for rescuing her and calls for the release of the remaining hostages, including her boyfriend, in her first public remarks since she was released.
They were separated during the kidnapping, according to Argamani.
“I want to take this opportunity to remind everyone that there are still 120 hostages in Hamas captivity. Among them is Avinatan Or, my partner, from whom I was separated at the moment of abduction. Although I’m home now, we can’t forget about the hostages who are still in Hamas captivity, and we must do everything possible to bring them back home,” Argamani said.
-ABC News’ Victoria Beaule
Jun 28, 2:31 PM Military pier in Gaza to be taken offline again: US official
The U.S. military pier in Gaza will be taken offline again on Friday and moved to the Israeli port of Ashdod due to high seas, according to a U.S. official.
This is a precautionary move to protect the pier from breaking due to rough waves, the official said.
This is the third time the pier has had to be moved to Ashdod because of weather. The pier has been operational only about half of the time since it opened in mid-May.
“I don’t have a date of when the pier would be reinstalled,” Defense Department deputy spokesperson Sabrina Singh told reporters Friday, noting that Centcom will assess the sea conditions over the weekend.
As the pier was moved away Friday, two U.S. officials told ABC News that officials are considering not re-installing the pier until the humanitarian aid that it brought to Gaza gets distributed. More than 19 million pounds of aid has been delivered to Gaza via the pier but it’s now piling up at the staging point at the edge of the pier, Singh said.
Inspectors General at the Pentagon and the U.S. Agency for International Development announced Thursday that they’re launching reviews of the mission to deliver humanitarian aid into Gaza via the military’s temporary pier system.
-ABC News’ Anne Flaherty and Luis Martinez
Jun 28, 11:31 AM Israel, US discussing transfer of Patriot air defense batteries to Ukraine
Israel and the U.S. are discussing the transfer of Patriot air defense batteries to Ukraine, a source familiar with the matter told ABC News.
This agreement — not yet finalized, according to the source — would mark a shift in Israel’s public policy following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A key factor behind Israel’s willingness to discuss the transfer of Patriot air defense batteries is the tightening military alliance between Russia and Iran.
In April, Israel announced the decommissioning of U.S.-donated Patriot systems from its aerial defense array. Security sources previously said Patriot has been successfully replaced by the Israeli-made David’s Sling air and missile defense system.
(NEW YORK) — Hurricane Beryl strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall along the Gulf Coast of Texas early Monday morning.
The earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane in history, the storm killed at least seven people in the Windward Islands before skirting south of Jamaica, shutting down communications, stranding tourists and delivering storm surge and flooding rain to the island.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jul 08, 6:07 AM Almost 200,000 without power in Texas, PowerOutage.us says
More than 199,000 customers were without power across Texas early Monday, about an hour after Hurricane Beryl made landfall, according to PowerOutage.us.
Many of those outages were along the Gulf Coast, where the Category 1 hurricane made landfall, according to the tracking website.
About 21,000 customers were without power in Brazoria County, about 12,000 were without power in Matagorda County and about 5,000 were without power in Galveston County, the site said.
-ABC News’ Amanda M. Morris and Kevin Shalvey
Jul 08, 5:07 AM Beryl makes landfall in Texas
Hurricane Beryl made landfall at about 4 a.m. on Monday near Matagorda, Texas, the National Hurricane Center said.
The hurricane brought with it a “dangerous” storm surge and strong winds, officials said. Flash flooding was expected.
-ABC News’ Max Golembo
Jul 08, 2:40 AM Beryl expected to move inland over Texas, Arkansas
As Beryl heads toward the Gulf Coast as a Category 1 hurricane, the storm is forecast to make landfall in the next few hours before turning northeastward.
The storm’s expected to move farther inland over eastern Texas and Arkansas late Monday and Tuesday.
If Beryl makes landfall as a Category 1 storm, it would be the first landfalling hurricane in the lower 48 states since Hurricane Idalia made landfall on Keaton Beach, Florida, on Aug. 30 2023 as a Category 3 hurricane.
-ABC News’ Richard Von Ohlen
Jul 08, 2:26 AM Winds increase to 80 mph
Hurricane Beryl’s top sustained winds increased to 80 mph, as the storm moved toward the Texas coast.
The Category 1 hurricane was about 30 miles south-southwest of Matagorda at about 1 a.m. local time. It was about 95 miles from Corpus Christi.
The storm was moving north-northwest at about 10 mph, with a turn toward the north expected this morning.
Beryl’s center is expected during the next several hours to make landfall on the middle Texas coast.
-ABC News’ Richard Von Ohlen
Jul 08, 1:54 AM Rainbands move onto Texas coast
As Hurricane Beryl continued toward the Texas coast, radar indicated the heaviest rainbands along the eyewall have moved onto land.
The Category 1 hurricane had top sustained winds of about 75 mph just after midnight local time.
-ABC News’ Richard Von Ohlen
Jul 08, 12:39 AM Beryl becomes a hurricane again as it heads toward Texas
Beryl has become a Category 1 hurricane as it heads toward Texas, the National Hurricane Center announced just after midnight ET on Monday.
Hurricane Beryl’s maximum sustained winds have increased to 75 mph. The storm is expected to strengthen before it makes landfall on the Texas coast.
Currently, Beryl is about 65 miles from Matagorda, Texas and 105 miles from Corpus Christi.
Jul 07, 11:08 PM Beryl expected to become hurricane before reaching landfall overnight
Beryl remains a tropical storm with winds of 70 mph as of Sunday evening. However, the storm is expected to become a hurricane again before making landfall.
Currently Beryl is about 75 miles from Matagorda, Texas.
The storm is expected near Matagorda between 3 and 5 a.m. local time.
Jul 07, 8:10 PM Beryl’s winds reach 70 mph as it heads toward Texas coast
As Texans brace for hurricane conditions, officials said Beryl currently has 70 mph winds as it moves toward the coast.
By Sunday evening, the tropical storm was located 105 miles southeast of Matagorda, Texas, moving northwest at a rate of 12 mph.
Jul 07, 8:10 PM Officials urge Texans on the coast to evacuate
In a press conference Sunday, Texas Lt. Gov Dan Patrick urged people living on the state’s coast to evacuate before the storm hits.
“We don’t see many people leaving,” Patrick said. “You don’t want to be on the road tomorrow.”
Texas Division of Emergency Management officials said over 50 ambulances are on standby to assist with evacuating hospitals, nursing homes and assisted living facilities, if needed.
“This storm has already left nine deaths in its path through the Caribbean. We don’t want number 10 to be in Texas,” Patrick said.
Jul 07, 9:01 PM Beryl is closing in on Texas with up to 7 feet of storm surge forecast
The combination of storm surge and tide will cause normally dry areas near the Texas coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
Officials are forecasting up to 7 feet of storm surge, above normal tide levels for Matagorda Bay and Port O’Connor to San Luis Pass.
The possible storm surge is forecast to reach up to 6 feet in Galveston Bay, officials said.
Surge-related flooding depends on the relative timing of the surge and the tidal cycle, and can vary greatly over short distances, according to the NHC.
Jul 07, 1:40 PM Houston school campuses close as Beryl approaches
The Houston Independent School District announced Sunday that all its campuses will be closed as tropical storm Beryl bears down on the Texas coast and is expected to be a Category 1 hurricane when it makes landfall.
The school district sent out a message Sunday to students, staff and parents that it is canceling summer classes and activities, and closing all campuses and buildings on Monday and Tuesday.
Beryl was a tropical storm on Sunday in the Gulf of Mexico, but is expected to strengthen overnight and make landfall on the Texas Gulf Coast as a Category 1 hurricane early Monday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center.
-ABC News’ Gina Sunseri
Jul 07, 12:37 PM Beryl could be a Category 1 hurricane when it slams Texas: NHC
Beryl remains a tropical storm but was gaining strength over open warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico and is forecast to be a Category 1 hurricane by Sunday night and is expected to make landfall on the Texas coast early Monday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
In an update on Beryl’s path issued at 10 a.m. CT, the hurricane center said winds generated by Beryl had slightly increased to 65 mph.
“Beryl [is] becoming better organized and forecast to become a hurricane before landfall,” the hurricane center said in its latest update.
The storm is expected to make landfall on the middle Texas Coast near Matagorda Bay on Monday.
A Hurricane Warning has been issued for the Gulf Coast from Baffin Bay north to San Luis Pass. A Storm Surge Warning was also issued for the coast of Texas from High Island to Sabine Pass.
“Beryl is forecast to become a hurricane again later today. Continued strengthening is expected overnight before Beryl reaches the Texas coast,” according to the hurricane center’s statement.
The hurricane center warned that a few tornadoes could also occur along the middle and upper Texas Coast through Sunday night and across eastern Texas and western Louisiana on Monday.
In addition to storm surges of up to 6 feet, Beryl is expected to dump heavy rain on the Texas coastal cities.
“Heavy rainfall of 5 to 10 inches with localized amounts of 15 inches is expected across portions of the middle and upper Texas Gulf Coast and eastern Texas beginning today through Monday night,” the hurricane center said.
The White House said Sunday that President Joe Biden is monitoring Beryl as FEMA prepositions response teams.
“The President and his team continue to monitor Tropical Storm Beryl as it makes its way towards South Texas,” a White House official said. “We are in close contact with our state and local counterparts and FEMA has prepositioned response personnel, search and rescue teams, bottled water, meals, tarps and electric generators in case they are needed. On Sunday, FEMA activated its National Response Coordination Center (NRCC) to further support local response efforts.”
-ABC News’ Daniel Amarante
Jul 07, 6:20 AM Beryl to make landfall as hurricane Monday morning in Texas
Beryl remained early Sunday a tropical storm with winds of 60 mph.
The storm has been slow to strengthen over the past several hours, which is potentially good news for the residents of the Texas coast.
Even though strengthening is expected, each hour that this storm delays that intensification will help contribute to a weaker storm upon landfall.
A hurricane warning is in effect from Baffin Bay to San Luis Pass.
A storm surge warning is in effect for Corpus Christi Bay, Matagorda Bay, and Galveston Bay. During the peak of the storm on Monday morning, surge may reach 4 to 6 feet above normal tide in Mesquite Bay and Matagorda Bay.
There are also numerous other hurricane watches, tropical storm watches and warnings, and storm surge watches across the Texas coast.
Beryl is still forecast to make landfall near Matagorda Bay as a Category 1 Hurricane on Monday morning.
An island city on the Gulf Coast of Texas issued a voluntary evacuation of the island’s west end, Galveston officials said in a press release on Saturday.
While officials feel the chances of tides above five feet are currently very low, tides above that level could prevent travel on major roads and make it difficult for the city to respond to emergencies, the press release said.
Brian Maxwell, Galveston city manager, noted that predictions for the track of Beryl have not changed.
The size of Beryl has expanded slightly, according to the National Weather Service, and as a result, the island’s west end is currently under a storm surge warning.
Mayor Craig Brown “signed the order out of an abundance of caution,” said Maxwell.
If residents choose to stay in a low-lying area, they may not be able to safely leave for several hours, and emergency services may not be available while tides remain elevated, emergency management officials said.
Jul 06, 5:09 PM Beryl now less than 400 miles from Corpus Christi
Beryl, now less than 400 miles from Corpus Christi, remains a tropical storm with winds of 60 mph, moving at 13 mph.
Beryl is moving over water that is slightly warmer than normal, by 1 to 2 degrees.
As Beryl approaches the Texas coast it will move over much warmer waters, 4 and 5 degrees above normal. The warmer water is expected to help boost Beryl back into a hurricane before making landfall northeast of Corpus Christi on Monday morning.
Hurricane Warnings have been issued for parts of Texas, from Baffin Bay northward to Sargent. Tropical Storm Warnings are now issued north of Sargent to High Island.
Landfall may occur with the center of circulation most likely northeast of Corpus Christi — the greatest impacts remaining north of that city as well. There is still time for this track to change over the next 24 hours.
The last hurricane to make landfall in Texas was Nicholas in September 2021, which was a Category 1 and made landfall on the northern side of East Matagorda Bay.
The last hurricane to make landfall just north of Corpus Christi was Harvey in 2017 as a Category 4. Harvey then stalled and dumped historic rainfall over southeast Texas. Beryl is not expected to stall and therefore similar impacts as Harvey are not expected, in terms of rainfall, wind or storm surge.
A Hurricane Watch has been issued for the entire coast south of San Luis Pass due to the hurricane-strength, over 74 mph sustained wind expected along the Texas coast.
Jul 06, 12:33 PM Hurricane watch in effect for parts of Texas
A Hurricane Watch is in effect in Texas from the Rio Grande Valley to San Luis Pass, just west of Galveston Island, with a Storm Surge Watch from the mouth of the Rio Grande northward to High Island, Texas.
Storm surge is forecast to be 3 to 5 feet in Corpus Christi and Matagorda Bay, and 2 to 4 feet in Galveston Bay. These numbers are subject to change depending on the exact track and intensity of the storm as it approaches landfall.
Residents along the Texas coast need to be prepared for a powerful hurricane with life-threatening storm surge, damaging winds, and significant flooding.
Flooding rain is often the most impactful aspect of tropical systems. In terms of rainfall amounts, much of southeastern Texas is looking at 5 to 10 inches, with locally higher amounts up to 15 inches. Most of this rain will fall on Monday and Tuesday.
Jul 06, 12:27 PM Now a tropical storm, Beryl expected to strengthen before hitting Texas
Beryl remains a tropical storm with winds of 60 mph as it churns in the Gulf of Mexico as of Saturday morning, but it is expected to strengthen before hitting Texas on Sunday with potential Category 1 strength.
On Saturday, Beryl may take some time to recover, but is forecast to begin strengthening by the end of the day. The storm is moving into favorable conditions for hurricanes, with warm water and limited wind shear.
The track from the National Hurricane Center takes Beryl towards the Texas coast by late Sunday night into early Monday, likely as a strong Category 1 Hurricane.
Currently, the most likely landfall location is around Matagorda Island, just east of Corpus Christi, but that will likely need to be adjusted as the storm’s track becomes more “fine-tuned” in the next day or so.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden is planning to travel the country next week, as the Republicans gather for their nominating convention, to hold counterprogramming events targeting Black and Latino voters in a sign his campaign is continuing unabated despite growing calls for him to step aside.
On the first day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 15, Biden plans to mark the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, Texas, according to a White House official.
“President Biden will continue traveling the country to discuss the extraordinary progress the American people have made in the past three and a half years, lay out his vision to ensure the promise of America reaches all communities, and make clear that we must resist attempts by Congressional Republicans to take us backwards,” the White House official said in a statement.
On July 16, the president will travel to Vegas for two days to deliver remarks at the 115th NAACP National Convention and then the UnidosUS Annual Conference on July 17.
Biden’s stops are a part of the campaign’s July strategy that will include visits to key battleground states, as well as a $50 million paid media blitz.
Leading up to these stops, the president will meet with national union leaders at the AFL-CIO on Wednesday and travel to Detroit for his fourth trip to Michigan this year on Friday, according to the campaign.
(PHILADELPHIA) — As President Joe Biden contends with the growing fallout from his debate performance, calls to drop out and criticism of his age, he found safe harbor at a Black church in Philadelphia on Sunday, where the congregation came to his defense.
“We want you to know, President Biden, that Bishop Morris is 91 years old on his way to 92,” Mount Airy Church of God in Christ Bishop J. Louis Felton said of the church’s founder, Bishop Ernest C. Morris Sr.
“And so, Mr. President, since you are only an octogenarian sitting next to a nonagenarian, don’t let anybody talk about your age. You’re a young whippersnapper,” Felton continued during his introduction of 81-year-old Biden, eliciting a laugh from the president and applause from the audience.
Later, during his sermon, Felton took on Biden’s critics head-on, saying more attention should be given to former President Donald Trump’s false statements.
“I don’t know why it is that you want to make an issue of the president and his condition with stammering and not being able, at certain times, to bring forth words while another person lies fluently and you never challenge his lies,” Felton said to cheers.
Biden, when he got up to speak after Felton, said he was grateful for the support.
“Mr. Felton, thank you for that introduction and moving sermon. And thank you, this incredible congregation, for welcoming me as you have,” Biden said.
“I’ve always felt the power of your faith in good times and in tough times,” Biden later added of the Black church. “Fact is, the Scripture says, all things work together for good. To those who love God are in our call according to His purpose. Our purpose is to serve others.”
“We’re all imperfect beings,” the president went on to say. “We don’t know where or what faith will deliver us to or when. But we do know is that we can seek a life of light, hope, love and truth. No matter what, we can seek that life. Take all of our experiences and give everything we have to work together, because when we do, you can’t stop us.”
Biden praised the church for its role in helping America live up to the ideal of equality, saying that because of the church, America has “never full walked away from it.”
“And that’s because of you and generations before you who led the church from slavery to freedom. Always praying, always believing that joy cometh in the morning,” Biden said. “You’ve never given up. And my life, and as your president, I’ve tried to walk my faith.”
Biden dismisses concerns about mental fitness, says he’d drop out if the ‘Lord Almighty’ told him to In his earlier remarks, Felton said America needed to “see some love for a change.”
“That is why I believe God, who is in charge of everything, interfered [with] the president’s schedule. He was previously scheduled to speak at a conference today, but God knew President Biden need[ed] some love and sen[t] him here today so we can show him,” Felton said.
Biden was to speak at the National Education Association’s conference in Philadelphia on Sunday, but his campaign announced Friday that he backed out because the group’s staff union went on strike, and the president would not cross a picket line.
“President Biden, you are not only among friends, you’re among family,” Felton continued. “We did not come to beat up on you, to put you down, to criticize you, to magnify your flaws or mistakes. We come to love you.”
With a nod to the precarious political position Biden finds himself in, Felton said Biden will find his way out.
Major Democratic donors continue calls for Biden to step aside after ABC News interview “If Jesus could get out of the pit, President Biden is coming back,” Felton said. “He’s a comeback kid, he’s a fighter, he’s a champion, he’s a winner.”
“Our president gets discouraged but today, through your Holy Spirit, renew his mind, renew his spirit, renew his body,” Felton prayed. “He’s the man we need in these terrible times.”
Afterward, Biden went to a separate space in the church to greet congregants and snap selfies.
“Can I get a hug from you?” one woman asked Biden, who gave her a kiss on the cheek, as others asked for pictures.
At one point, another woman said, “We don’t want to wear him out.”
Later in the day, Biden told reporters that his party was behind him.
“Mr. President, is the Democratic Party behind you, sir?” a reporter shouted on the tarmac in Harrisburg, where Biden is set to make his third campaign stop of the day.
(WASHINGTON) — Second gentleman Doug Emhoff, Vice President Kamala Harris’ husband, tested positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, his office announced.
“Yesterday, the Second Gentleman tested positive for COVID-19 after experiencing mild symptoms. He is fully vaccinated and three times boosted,” Liza Acevedo, Emhoff’s communications director, said in a statement Sunday. “He is currently asymptomatic, continuing to work remotely, and remaining away from others at home.”
“Out of an abundance of caution, yesterday, the Vice President was tested for COVID-19. She tested negative and remains asymptomatic,” Acevedo added.
Emhoff was at the White House a few days ago to celebrate Independence Day with Harris, President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden.
(DETROIT) — At least two people were killed and 19 others were injured when gunfire erupted early Sunday morning at a block party in Detroit, according to police.
The shooting unfolded at aproximately 2:25 a.m. during a block party on the city’s east side near Wish Egan Field in the Mohican Regent neighborhood, police said.
Michigan State Police confirmed on X that two fatalities occurred and 19 others were injured in the shooting.
State police officials said they are assisting the Detroit Police Department in the investigation through its joint Homicide Task Force.
No suspects were in custody Sunday afternoon, according to police.
Details of the shooting, including motive, were not immediately released by officials.
Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to call Crime Stoppers or contact Detroit police detectives.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
