WASHINGTON (AP) — A unanimous Supreme Court ruled Monday that thousands of people living in the U.S. for humanitarian reasons are ineligible to apply to become permanent residents.
Justice Elena Kagan wrote for the court that federal immigration law prohibits people who entered the country illegally and now have Temporary Protected Status from seeking “green cards” to remain in the country permanently.
The designation applies to people who come from countries ravaged by war or disaster. It protects them from deportation and allows them to work legally. There are 400,000 people from 12 countries with TPS status.
The outcome in a case involving a couple from El Salvador who have been in the U.S. since the early 1990s turned on whether people who entered the country illegally and were given humanitarian protections were ever “admitted” into the United States under immigration law.
Kagan wrote that they were not. “The TPS program gives foreign nationals nonimmigrant status, but it does not admit them. So the conferral of TPS does not make an unlawful entrant…eligible” for a green card, she wrote.
The House of Representatives already has passed legislation that would make it make possible for TPS recipients to become permanent residents, Kagan noted. The bill faces uncertain prospects in the Senate.
The case pitted the Biden administration against immigrant groups that argued many people who came to the U.S. for humanitarian reasons have lived in the country for many years, given birth to American citizens and put down roots in the U.S.
In 2001, the U.S. gave Salvadoran migrants legal protection to remain in the U.S. after a series of earthquakes in their home country.
People from 11 other countries are similarly protected. They are: Haiti, Honduras, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen.
JOINT BASE ANDREWS, Md. (AP) — A technical problem that involved “no immediate safety issue” forced Vice President Kamala Harris’ plane to return to Joint Base Andrews in Maryland about 30 minutes after she had left Sunday on a trip to Guatemala and Mexico.
Air Force Two landed safely and she gave a thumbs-up when she got off.
“I’m good, I’m good. We all said a little prayer, but we’re good,” she said.
The vice president departed in another plane about an hour and a half later.
Her spokesperson, Symone Sanders, told reporters traveling with Harris that shortly after takeoff the crew of the original aircraft noticed that the landing gear was not storing as it should, which could have led to further mechanical issues.
“While there as no immediate safety issue, out of an abundance of caution they returned to JBA where they have all the parts and mechanics they need to fix the issue,” she said.
Moscow, June 7, (dpa/GNA) – President Vladimir Putin has signed a law withdrawing Russia from the Open Skies treaty, an arms control pact with the United States that permitted unarmed surveillance flights over military facilities in both countries.
The law went into effect upon publication by the Kremlin on Monday.
The Kremlin leader himself had ordered the withdrawal from Open Skies. The military observation flights were seen as key to building confidence between Russia and the West after the Cold War.
The decision to abandon the pact was mutual. The administration of former US president Donald Trump announced a year ago that the US would withdraw from Open Skies, alleging Russia had violated its terms. The Biden administration decided in May to stick to that decision.
Russia blamed the United States for the end of the agreement.
Last week, Russia’s upper house of parliament voted to scrap the treaty. Putin’s signature was the last legal act to withdraw from the deal, signed in Helsinki on March 24, 1992. It has been in force since 2002.
The topic is now expected to be off the table at Putin’s summit with US President Joe Biden on June 16 in Geneva.
Only one key arms control agreement remains between the United States and Russia: the New START nuclear disarmament treaty. Shortly before it was set to expire in February, Biden and Putin had agreed on an extension. The New START treaty limits the nuclear arsenals of both countries to 800 delivery systems and 1,550 ready-to-use nuclear warheads.
“On July 20th, I will take that journey with my brother,” he wrote in the Instagram post. “The greatest adventure, with my best friend.”
Mr Bezos’s brother Mark called it a “remarkable opportunity” in the video.
Bidding for a seat on the New Shepard – the name of the Blue Origin vehicle – had reached $2.8m when Mr Bezos announced his plan to take the flight. The auction concludes on 12 June.
The New Shepard booster can land vertically on the ground after returning from space.
According to Blue Origin’s website the company plans to launch its passengers more than 100km (62 miles) above the earth’s surface, allowing them to experience microgravity.
Instead he will serve as executive chairman of the e-commerce giant he first founded 30 years ago in his garage, allowing him “time and energy” to focus on other ventures.
Major Indian states that have been virus hotpots are easing restrictions as Covid case numbers continue to fall.
National capital Delhi and financial hub, Mumbai, are among the cities that are opening partially.
This comes in the wake of a crushing second wave that saw hospital beds, medicines and even oxygen run short as cases spiked and deaths rose.
But experts continue to advice precaution amid a lagging vaccine drive and the threat posed by new variants.
India has administered more than 230 million jabs of a Covid vaccine so far – but less than four percent of it’s 1.4 billion people have been fully vaccinated.
It has also struggled to speed up the drive across the country, partly because of a botched roll-out that saw demand outstrip supply.
Among other things, it allowed higher prices for jabs in private hospitals, which has skewed access heavily in favour urban areas and those who can afford to pay. Vaccine hesitancy too remains a challenge, especially in rural areas.
India reported about 101,000 new infections on Monday and more than 2,400 deaths – far lower than the nearly 400,000 daily cases it was recording about a month ago. It has registered some 28 million cases and 349,000 deaths so far, but experts say the actual toll is far higher.
image caption Many are struggling to book slots for their second jab
Despite the drop in case numbers, not all states have chosen to reopen. Rajasthan in the north, and Karnataka, Kerala Tamil Nadu and Telangana in the south have all extended lockdowns until the middle or end of this week.
Even those that have reopened – Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana – are doing so cautiously, in phases and with conditions.
Delhi’s chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, said more restrictions will be announced if case numbers continue to fall, adding that his government is preparing for a third wave.
The Delhi metro, India’s largest rapid transport system, for instance, resumed operations on Monday at half its capacity. The city’s shops will take turns to open on alternate days to limit crowding at markets or inside malls.
In Mumbai, shops and restaurants can reopen but malls and cinemas will remain shut. Local trains, considered the lifeline of the city, will run only for a few hours.
In Uttar Pradesh, Covid restrictions have been lifted in all but a few districts. But curfew will continue every night and on weekends. Haryana state has allowed shops, malls and places of worship to open – but the last cannot allow more than 21 people in at a time. Weddings, funerals and social gatherings have also been permitted for groups of 21.
The prime minister says the world must be vaccinated to end the pandemic but he does not mention any extra commitment from the UK.
The prime minister will call on G7 leaders to pledge to vaccinate the world’s population against COVID-19 by the end of 2022.
Boris Johnson is planning to use the UK’s presidency of the group to push for global vaccination coverage within the next 18 months.
When he meets fellow G7 leaders face-to-face on Friday – including President Joe Biden for the first time since his election win – Mr Johnson will call on them to “rise to the greatest challenge of the post-war era” to stop the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected at least 172 million people and killed more than 3.7 million worldwide.
Image:Boris Johnson, who has had both doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, wants the world to be fully jabbed by the end of 2022
Mr Johnson said: “The world is looking to us to rise to the greatest challenge of the post-war era: defeating COVID and leading a global recovery driven by our shared values.
“Vaccinating the world by the end of next year would be the single greatest feat in medical history.
“I’m calling on my fellow G7 leaders to join us to end to this terrible pandemic and pledge we will never allow the devastation wreaked by coronavirus to happen again.”
According to data collated by US university Johns Hopkins, some 2.076 billion vaccine doses have been administered across the world.
But with most of the vaccines available requiring two doses for full protection, this number is not enough.
The UK has secured access to more than 400 million doses over the next two years, after creating a portfolio of seven different vaccines.
Image:Some UK vaccination centres have been able to offer jabs to everyone over 18
Meanwhile, many poorer countries have not even managed to vaccinate health workers – who are among those most at risk – due to lack of funds, inadequate infrastructure or, most often, lack of supply.
Vaccinating the whole world is not just important morally – supply chains and global economic activity cannot fully resume until all countries can open up.
And new variants are more likely to occur if large groups of people are unvaccinated, possibly rendering our current vaccines less effective.
And on Friday, Health Secretary Matt Hancock promised the UK would “absolutely” look to donate spare doses – but added there were not any available yet.
“At the moment we don’t have any excess doses – we’re just getting them into arms as quickly as possible,” he said.
Germany, France and Italy, on the other hand, have vowed to donate at least 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines before the end of the year.
Downing Street has held up its £548m contribution to Covax, the United Nations-backed scheme aiming to make vaccines available to low and middle income countries.
But this only fixes half of the problem: you cannot buy vaccines if there are none available – no matter how much money you have.
British taxpayers also made a major contribution to the production of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, which – because it is being sold at cost – is the main vaccine being used in poor and middle income countries.
Number 10 says almost one in three shots given around the world have been the Oxford vaccine and it makes up 96% of the 80 million shots administered by Covax.
The ethical dilemma facing UK vaccine experts over whether to offer jabs to children
The G7 leaders will meet in Cornwall’s Carbis Bay on Friday for three days of meetings discussing issues such as the global recovery from the pandemic.
They will be joined by experts including the UK’s chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, philanthropist Melinda French Gates, and environmentalist Sir David Attenborough.
On Saturday, they will be joined either in person or virtually by the leaders of Australia, South Africa, South Korea and India for discussions on health and climate change.
Lili is named after her great-grandmother the Queen – who was affectionately nicknamed Lilibet by her family – and her grandmother, the late Princess Diana.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: “The Queen, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, and The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been informed and are delighted with the news of the birth of a daughter for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.”
Image:Lili is a first sibling for Archie, pictured here with his parents back in 2019
Lili is the first of the Queen’s great-grandchildren to be born outside the UK.
The Sussexes said in a statement: “It is with great joy that Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, welcome their daughter, Lilibet “Lili” Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, to the world.
“Lili was born on Friday June 4 at 11.40am in the trusted care of the doctors and staff at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, California.
Lili is named after her great-grandmother the Queen – who was affectionately nicknamed Lilibet by her family – and her grandmother, the late Princess Diana.
A Buckingham Palace spokesperson said: “The Queen, The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, and The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been informed and are delighted with the news of the birth of a daughter for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.”
Image:Lili is a first sibling for Archie, pictured here with his parents back in 2019
Lili is the first of the Queen’s great-grandchildren to be born outside the UK.
The Sussexes said in a statement: “It is with great joy that Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, welcome their daughter, Lilibet “Lili” Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, to the world.
“Lili was born on Friday June 4 at 11.40am in the trusted care of the doctors and staff at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, California.
She weighed 7lbs 11oz (3.5kg). Both mother and child are healthy and well, and settling in at home.
“Lili is named after her great-grandmother, Her Majesty The Queen, whose family nickname is Lilibet.
“Her middle name, Diana, was chosen to honour her beloved late grandmother, The Princess of Wales.
“This is the second child for the couple, who also have a two-year-old son named Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor.
“The Duke and Duchess thank you for your warm wishes and prayers as they enjoy this special time as a family.”
Image:Lili was born at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in California. Pic: Google Street View
Harry and Meghan, who live in Montecito and are now on parental leave, also said on their Archewell website: “On June 4, we were blessed with the arrival of our daughter, Lili.
“She is more than we could have ever imagined, and we remain grateful for the love and prayers we’ve felt from across the globe. Thank you for your continued kindness and support during this very special time for our family.”
The website added that while the couple were on leave “Archewell will continue to do important work and publish stories on the site. We look forward to seeing you!”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson also sent a message of goodwill, tweeting: “Many congratulations to The Duke & Duchess of Sussex on the birth of their daughter.”
The new baby is the Queen’s 11th great-grandchild – poignantly the first of the monarch and Prince Philip’s great-grandchildren to be born since the death of the Duke of Edinburgh in April.
Lilibet was first used when Princess Elizabeth was a toddler and unable to pronounce her own name properly.
Her grandfather, King George V, would affectionately call her ‘Lilibet’ imitating her own attempts to say Elizabeth.
The nickname stuck and from then on she became Lilibet to her family.
Prince Philip also referred to his wife as Lilibet, writing to his mother-in-law after their wedding: “Lilibet is the only ‘thing’ in the world which is absolutely real to me.”
Among the allegations were that a member of the family – not the Queen or the late Duke of Edinburgh – had raised concerns about the colour of Archie’s skin before he was born in May 2019.
Image:Princess Diana with Prince William and Prince Harry in 1995
Reacting to today’s baby news, Sky’s royal correspondent Rhiannon Mills said: “We knew they were expecting a daughter because they announced it during that interview with Oprah back in March.
“This completes their family, now adding a daughter to their son Archie who celebrated his second birthday in May.
“But of course it has been a difficult time for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, a huge amount of attention on them.
“I think what’s interesting is that the child was born on Friday and they have decided to take a little bit of time before announcing to the world that they have a new child in their life.
“And I think it’s a sign of how they want to do things differently. They moved away from the UK, they didn’t want to be settled into that royal life anymore.
“They wanted to embark on this new financially independent way of life and again this is them showing how they want to do things. Wonderful news for the couple that they now have a daughter in their life.”
Image:The Queen pictured with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. File photo
Mills added: “A really lovely nod, that name Lili after Her Majesty The Queen.
“And the middle name Diana showing how important Princess Diana was to Prince Harry as he was growing up as a young child, but also lost her at such a young age.”
Lili will be entitled to be a princess and Archie a prince – both with HRH styles – when the Queen dies and Prince Charles becomes king.
This is because they will have moved up the line of succession to become the children of a son of a monarch.
Despite Harry and Meghan quitting as senior working royals, the baby still has a place in the line of succession.
Lily is eighth in line to the throne, coming after Archie, who is seventh in line, and before Prince Andrew, who has dropped to ninth place.
Anyone wishing to send a present is asked to support organisations working for women and girls.
A message on the Archewell website reads: “For those inquiring on sending gifts, we would ask that you support or learn more about these organisations working for women and girls: Girls Inc., Harvest Home, CAMFED or Myna Mahila Foundation.”
