(NEW YORK) — Excessive heat warnings are in effect across much of the southern U.S. heading into a weekend with potentially record-breaking temperatures.
As of Friday morning, 13 states are on heat alert and temperatures will reach triple digits in parts of the south, with feel-like temperatures as high as 115 degrees, ABC News weather team reports.
Here are the high temperature records to watch on Saturday:
Salt Lake City, UT: 102º (1994)
Denver, CO: 98º (2021)
Scottsbluff, NE: 104º (2017)
Corpus Christi, TX: 100º (2005)
Austin, TX: 104º (2009)
Houston, TX: 102º (1980)
Waco, TX: 104º (1978)
Dallas, TX: 106º (1980)
Shreveport, LA: 104º (1884)
Tupelo, MS: 100º (1936)
Severe weather is also expected to continue across parts of the North, including Montana, North Dakota and Minnesota where large hail and damaging winds are possible, and a tornado cannot be ruled out. Golf ball size hail was reported in Montana and record flooding was reported in North Carolina and Missouri on Thursday.
Flash flooding due to heavy rain is possible through the weekend in parts of the Southeast, especially coastal regions from Georgia through the Carolinas where more than 3” is possible.
(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden on Friday touted falling gas prices, robust new jobs numbers and a low unemployment rate to make the case that his economic program and fight to bring inflation down is “working.”
“The unemployment rate is near a historic low of 3.6%. The private sector jobs are at a record high,” he said at a White House event about abortion. “Gas prices are still way too high, and have fallen 25 days in a row. And this week we saw the second largest single day decrease in gas prices in a decade. We still have a lot of work to do … But I am suggesting we are making significant progress. The program is working.”
The national average for a gallon of gas stood at $4.72 Friday, down three cents from Thursday and about 12 cents since this time last week, according to AAA.
The average cost for gas peaked at $5.01 per gallon on June 14, according to AAA, and the price of crude oil fell below $100 per barrel this week for the first time since May 11.
Relief at the pump comes as global demand for commodities slows, resulting in lower prices for crude oil copper, cotton, and lumber.
“I think the reason why oil prices are going down now is because the prospect that we do see an economic slowdown,” GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan told ABC News Thursday.
If that trend continues, a potential recession could prove politically problematic for Biden and fellow Democrats ahead of the midterm elections in November. Building a strong economy was a priority in the Democratic party’s 2020 platform.
“But, if all of a sudden, the worries over the recession fade, we can see oil prices go right back up,” De Haan said.
A hurricane making landfall near a refinery, such as one in Louisiana, could also cause prices to rise.
In the coming weeks, what Americans pay at the pump in some states could fall another 25 to 50 cents per gallon on average, De Haan said.
Some stations around the country have already lowered prices to the mid-three-dollar range.
The president’s remarks Friday are the latest in a largely unsuccessful White House effort to counter damaging daily headlines about skyrocketing prices at the pump.
What began with attributing the rise in prices to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine became a proposal to suspend the federal gas tax for three months. But that plan found little support among Republicans and Democrats in Congress. Some Republican senators called the proposal to halt the 18-cent tax a gimmick, while some Democrats said it might not work.
The president also floated offering rebate cards to Americans in June, but the Washington Post reported a chip shortage would make it challenging to produce the cards.
Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm then met with top oil executives late last month to discuss how their companies might help ease pain at the pump, but some analysts say it is unlikely the current price drop is related to the administration’s lobbying efforts.
The falling price of crude oil and weakened demand have driven the cost of gas down and the industry is also working through higher-cost inventory, according to investment research firm Third Bridge’s global lead for energy Peter McNally.
“That is bringing prices at the pump down, not the president telling the corner gas station to do it,” McNally said Thursday.
The White House doubled down this week, again calling for Congress to suspend the federal gas tax Thursday and blaming Russia’s invasion of Ukraine Friday.
“Wholesale gas prices are down by $1 per gallon,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Thursday. “Retail gas prices have only come down by about 20 cents over the same period. More work needs to be done.”
But gas stations are slowly lowering their prices as they try to recapture some of their margins from when prices rose, De Haan said. Stations are behind the curve when their costs rise for up to five days, as raising prices is difficult if other stations do not adjust theirs, he said.
The White House and the Federal Reserve deserve some credit for recognizing inflation as a serious challenge, University of Houston petroleum engineering professor Ramanan Krishnamoorti said Thursday.
The FED raising interest rates last month “certainly slowed down some of the price exuberance we’ve seen with inflation,” he said.
The government’s release of 100 million oil barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve year-to-date has also helped. Releasing oil has added supply to the market, likely preventing prices from going higher, McNally said.
Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post via Getty Images, FILE
(NEW YORK) — Elon Musk is terminating his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter, according to a new Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
“Mr. Musk has sought the data and information necessary to ‘make an independent assessment of the prevalence of fake or spam accounts on Twitter’s platform'” and did not receive it, the filing stated.
Fake accounts have become a sticking point in Musk’s rollercoaster bid to acquire the social media platform, with the Tesla CEO previously threatening to end his agreement over concerns about the prevalence of bot and spam accounts
In the filing on Friday, Musk’s attorney claimed that Twitter “is in material breach of multiple provisions of that agreement” and appears to have made “false and misleading representations” when entering into the agreement.
Twitter stock is down about 6% in after-hours trading.
ABC News’ has reached out to Twitter for comment.
ABC News’ Joshua Hoyos contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Cruise and Teller in “Maverick” — Paramount Pictures
When any film makes a billion bucks, it’s all but guaranteed its movie studio wants to talk “sequel.” But in the case of Top Gun: Maverick, it all comes down to one person: Tom Cruise.
Considering the fact the biggest hit of his career came 36 years after the hit original, it’s unlikely we have to wait that long for a follow-up — if there will be any.
Still, co-star Miles Teller, who plays Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw, the son of Anthony Edwards‘ character “Goose” from the first movie, told Entertainment Tonight that he’s had “conversations about it” with Cruise.
“That would be great, but that’s all up to TC, that’s all up to Tom,” Teller says.
The film has Cruise’s AARP-qualified ace Navy pilot having to train a new squad of young hotshots for a dangerous mission. Teller’s fellow flyers included Monica Barbaro, Jay Ellis and Glen Powell.
However, even if a sequel doesn’t come to pass, the actor is satisfied. He says of the now-60-year-old star, “For him to share Top Gun with me and a lot of these other young actors, it’s just been such a wild ride, and it’s still going.”
Dai Sugano/MediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty Images, FILE
(NEW YORK) — The federal fraud case against the top executives of the failed biotech company Theranos posed an interesting tale of two different trials, according to ABC News’ Rebecca Jarvis.
Jarvis, the host and creator “The Dropout,” ABC News’ podcast that chronicled the case against its founder Elizabeth Holmes, spoke with “Start Here,” Friday following the conviction of Ramesh “Sunny” Balwani, the former president and COO of Theranos, on fraud charges.
A jury on Thursday convicted Balwani, Holmes’ former romantic partner, on 12 counts of fraud for his role in defrauding investors and patients.
The company claimed it could run any blood test using only a few drops of blood via its so-called proprietary technology. However, according to prosecutors, their product, a machine called “Edison,” could never run more than a dozen blood tests at a time.
Balwani joined Theranos in 2009, six years after Holmes created the startup, and quickly rose to be its president and chief operating officer.
Holmes, who faced 11 counts of fraud, one less than Balwani, was convicted on only four counts of fraud in January, which related to investors.
The feds originally charged Balwani and Holmes together, but their trials were later severed after Holmes revealed she may testify to abuse at the hands of Balwani. He denied those allegations.
Jarvis said Holmes taking the stand was a key factor in the different outcomes.
“[The abuse claims] did not come up at his trial, but for during [Holmes’] seven days of testimony, they were a big portion of what she talked about,” Jarvis told “Start Here.”
“The biggest difference is that he didn’t take the stand to say, ‘I didn’t do this,’ or…raise his own objections to the claims against him.”
Jarvis noted that after the federal government filed its charges against the duo, Balwani’s attorney initially told her, in 2018, this was a business failure and they were in it together. Things changed once they faced separate trials and evidence such as texts and e-mails that implicated that Balwani came to light.
“You think about a jury who is supposed to know nothing about any of their backstory, and they’re shown these things like…case pictures of her so much younger than him, supposedly having to rely on him for his expertise,” she said.
“You can imagine where the jury may have found that presentation more sympathetic than Sunny Balwani who had experience,” she said.
Holmes is scheduled to be sentenced in September and Balwani later this year. Both face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison per count.
Holmes’s attorneys have filed an appeal and Balwani’s attorneys are expected to follow suit, according to Jarvis. However, Jarvis said legal scholars and other experts say those appeals are rarely successful.
However, the case will have a broader impact on the business world and how future start-ups present themselves to investors and customers, she said.
“You don’t get to run a successful business on what might happen in the future. You can’t tell investors what might happen in the future. You can’t tell patients that your product might someday be up to snuff when it isn’t,” Jarvis said.
Julius Onah, the Nigerian-born director of 2018’s hit The Cloverfield Paradox, has been handed the reins to the next Captain America movie, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Marvel Studios is characteristically mum at this point, but the trade says he’s the man that will get Anthony Mackie‘s Sam Wilson to take flight in his first big-screen mission as Captain America.
As previously reported, the project is being written by Malcolm Spellman, who created, co-wrote, and produced the hit Disney+ show The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Another vet from the show’s writers’ room, Dalan Musson, is co-writing the screenplay.
The Emmy-nominated series picked up where Avengers: Endgame left off: After Chris Evans‘ Steve Rogers passed the shield and Cap mantle to Wilson, the series showed him grappling with what it means for a Black man in America to take up the stars and stripes on his vibranium shield.
The show ended with him embracing the title and vowing to do what he could to honor it.
There’s no word yet when the fourth Captain America is coming to theaters, but it’s expected Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige could reveal it at San Diego Comic-Con later this month.
Dua Lipa has new rules for the summer and they all involve her new line of spiked seltzers.
Last May the Grammy winner added a new job to her expansive resume: CFO, or “chief flavor officer,” of Truly Hard Seltzer. The two have finally released her first batch of drinks. Dubbed the Truly Poolside Variety Pack, it is packed with flavors inspired by her Future Nostalgia album, reports People.
She invites fans to open a can and sip on flavors such as piña colada style, strawberry melon fizz, kiwi mojito style and orange peach fizz. Each can will come with its own tagline, such as “Floaties Not Included” or “How Chill.”
She also fashioned the cans to hearken back to the ’90s with bold, retro colors and accents.
“I love exploring new ways to express my creativity,” Dua said of her new venture. “Playing CFO, Chief Flavor Officer, for Truly’s new Poolside Variety Pack is the latest trick up my sleeve and it being ready just in time for summer is no coincidence! See you by the pool!”
You can get your hands on a pack through the end of July.
Travis Denning has a new EP on the way called Might As Well Be Me. The six-song collection is due out August 5, but you can listen to one new track, “Buy a Girl a Drink,” right now.
Zac Brown Band have announced the next duet to come off the deluxe version of their The Comeback album. The track is a version of “Wild Palomino” that features Cody Johnson. It’ll be out next Friday, July 15.
Jelly Roll joined Craig Morgan on the Grand Ole Opry stage on Thursday night, and the pair gave an emotional performance of Craig’s “Almost Home.” It was a full-circle moment for the rising star, who cites Craig as one of his musical heroes.
Like many celebrities and entertainers who have spoken out about Brittney Griner‘s detainment in Russia, Chris Brown chimed in to share his thoughts on the case.
“It’s not my business. But…..it’s F****d up what they doing to Brittney Griner,” Brown wrote on his Instagram Story, later saved and shared by The Shade Room.
“IF THIS WAS A MALE STAR ATHLETE YALL WOULD BE WAY MORE VOCAL AND HELPFUL.” He added, “THAT S**T LAME AS F**K. I WISH I COULD REALLY HELP HER OUT.”
Brown seemingly agrees with Phoenix Mercury coach Vanessa Nygaard, who recently spoke to the media about Griner’s continued detainment.
“If it was LeBron [James], he’d be home, right?” Nygaard asked, according to USA Today. “It’s a statement about the value of women. It’s a statement about the value of a Black person. It’s a statement about the value of a gay person. All of those things. We know it, and so that’s what hurts a little more.”
The WNBA star has been held in Russia since Feb. 17, when she was arrested while visiting the country to play basketball in the off-season. She was detained at Sheremetyevo International Airport for having vape cartridges containing hashish oil, which is illegal in the country. In a Thursday court appearance,Grinerpleaded guilty to drug charges, saying that the vape cartridges were in her luggage unintentionally.
“I did not have any intention on breaking Russian law,” she said.
Heart singer Ann Wilson will take part in a special performance at an exhibition of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay‘s extensive collection of rock memorabilia and other historic artifacts, which will be held August 2 in Irsay’s hometown of Chicago.
Wilson will perform at the event with The Jim Irsay Band, which features Irsay backed by founding R.E.M. bassist Mike Mills, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, longtime John Mellencamp guitarist Mike Wanchic, John Fogerty touring drummer Kenny Aronoff and other noteworthy musicians.
The exhibit of the Jim Irsay Collection and the performance will take place at the Aon Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier and will run from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. CT. The event is free, but tickets will be required to attend and can be reserved at Eventbrite.com.
Irsay’s collection includes guitars that were played and/or owned by Bob Dylan, members of The Beatles, Prince, Eric Clapton, The Grateful Dead‘s Jerry Garcia, Pink Floyd‘s David Gilmour and many other famous musicians.
The collection also features other instruments, as well as autographed photos, handwritten lyrics and more. The most recent additions to Irsay’s trove of memorabilia is the guitar that late Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain played in his band’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video, and the guitar on which the late Janis Joplin learned to play “Me and Bobby McGee.”
Some non-music-related items also are part of the collection: an original “Wanted” poster for John Wilkes Booth, a baseball bat used by Jackie Robinson and a robe worn by Muhammad Ali.
