--:-- Yasmin Khan: Good morning. It's Thursday, March 7th. I'm Yasmin Khan, in for Shamita Basu. This is Apple News Today.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Coming up, why there's a lot riding on tonight's State of the Union address. How Texas ranchers are reeling from the impact of a wildfire. And a remarkable feat in a ship around the world. But first, let's take a quick look at some major stories in the news.
--:-- Today marks five months since the Hamas attack on Israel that sparked a devastating war in Gaza. In recent days, health officials have grown increasingly concerned about malnutrition among children in the enclave. One in six children under two years old in northern Gaza is acutely malnourished, according to the World Health Organization. There, the issue is even worse than in the South, where at least some food assistance has arrived. Already, local health officials told the Washington Post that at least 16 children have died from malnutrition. Without a ceasefire and more aid, there are concerns about how much worse the issue could get.
--:-- Conflict is also causing a hunger crisis in Sudan, where a civil war has been ongoing since last April. Reuters recounted the stories of a number of people struggling with hunger, including a 60-year-old man who had one meal a day, a lump of dough made of just flour and water. Aid agencies also say they've had difficulties delivering food to many areas. David Miliband, CEO of the International Rescue Committee, raised his concerns with Reuters. So the greatest risk to the aid operation is the conflict. And the biggest losers are obviously the civilians who are suffering from conflict, but also from its consequences. The war in Sudan has driven more than 8 million people from their homes, making it the world's largest displacement crisis.
--:-- In the United States, Alabama's governor signed a bill into law intended to protect IVF patients and providers from legal liability. This comes after a state Supreme Court ruling that threatened the future of IVF access. At least one clinic that had halted services is planning to resume this week, but experts say more needs to be done to protect fertility services in the state. And yesterday there was an update in the case regarding an accidental shooting on the set of the movie Rust which was filming in New Mexico in 2021. The armor on the set, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for failing to ensure that a prop gun used on set was safe. Her attorney said they will appeal. The actor Alec Baldwin was rehearsing with it when it went off and killed the movie cinematographer. Baldwin is scheduled to face trial this summer on an involuntary manslaughter charge. Baldwin has previously pleaded not guilty.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Tonight is the State of the Union address, where President Biden is going to have to cover a lot of domestic and international ground. With me to talk about it all is Apple News editor Gideon Resnick. Hi, Gideon.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Hi, good morning.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: So this is President Biden's third State of the Union. We know how these things typically go. You know, there's both performance in these speeches and substance. Why does this particular speech feel bigger?
--:-- Gideon Resnick: I think it's in large part because this speech feels like the first moment of the general election in earnest. You know, Super Tuesday told us something we already know, that Trump is going to be the Republican nominee. And here you have this moment on a large stage for Biden in front of millions of Americans to begin to offer a contrast of sorts and really a defense of his incumbency.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: So I think to your point, yes, there will be a typical ticking through of accomplishments and agenda items. But this speech from a 30,000-foot view offers a moment of opportunity for Biden while there is a lot of dissatisfaction showing up for him in polls. It's a chance to say to the American people, hey, look, it's either me or the other guy.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Yeah. So there's a lot riding on the speech in that sense. This address needs to convey confidence and strength. And he is confident. The New Yorker just profiled him and he's got swagger. Biden says, you know, he's the only one to ever beat Trump and he'll do it again.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Right. Yeah. And that confidence is nothing new for Biden and the people around him. But Democratic voters are very, very anxious about this entire situation. The polls at the moment are showing that Trump is leading Biden in a lot of key battleground states. But look, what Biden and his allies are saying is as this choice becomes clear to voters, they are going to be able to successfully argue that electing Trump would put the future of democracy at stake.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: You mentioned the dissatisfaction with Biden, or at least angst among big portions of the electorate. And a lot of that has to do with specific policy. So on that front, what can we expect to hear from him tonight?
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Yeah, it's a great question. And there is a lot he's going to have to cover. So based on reporting from outlets like NBC News, it seems like Biden is going to devote some time to Ukraine. He's going to talk about more kind of kitchen table domestic issues like junk fees that get charged by credit card companies. Also, abortion and reproductive rights. I think we can almost be certain of that.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: First Lady Jill Biden will be sitting next to Kate Cox. That's the woman from Texas who was denied an abortion by the state Supreme Court. Biden will also talk about legislative accomplishments, Medicare drug pricing, the Inflation Reduction Act, jobs more generally or the state of the economy, and most pressing Biden statements on Israel and Gaza. Those are going to be closely watched.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Biden's going to have to do some work here to address some of the vast dissatisfaction with his White House's actions thus far, and to talk about what they see as the future there. And of course, there are a lot of optics around speeches like this. In Biden's case, it happens to be of even greater import because of questions about his age. Yes, that old question. It's a consistent issue Biden is confronting. And really, despite the fact that Trump is close in age to Biden, it's one that's dogging Biden in the polls at the moment.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: There was, of course, the special counsel report that kind of reignited this issue in a manner that the Biden White House found to be deeply unfair. So I think around the State of Union Republicans are certainly going to be looking for any minor mistake or mix up or what have you. And then I think sympathetic voters to Biden are going to be looking for assurances that he has the kind of, you know, energy, if you will, to take on someone like Trump again, that he is genuinely ready for this.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: But you're right. No doubt about it. The performance factor here is going to play a role in the perception of how well Biden did. And we see that, too, and the lawmaker Republicans selected to give their response, the 42-year-old senator from Alabama, Katie Britt. We will be following all of it tonight.
--:-- Gideon Resnick: Thanks so much.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Of course. Now to Texas, where wildfires have scorched more than one million acres over the last week. The Smokehouse Creek fire is the state's largest wildfire on record, and we have some new details about how it may have started. An energy company in Texas said today that a downed utility pole appears to have sparked the blaze. Homeowners have filed a lawsuit accusing Accel Energy of failing to maintain its power lines, which the company denies.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: Meanwhile, the fire is still burning, making its way across the Texas panhandle and into Oklahoma, leaving a trail of destruction and devastation. At least two people have been killed, homes have been destroyed, and farmers and ranchers have suffered serious losses. The Texas cattle industry, which is vital to the region, has lost thousands of livestock in the fire. Rancher Shane Pennington lost nearly 50 cattle. He told CNN those that survived suffered through incredible pain.
--:-- Shane Pennington: This is one little calf here. I don't know if he's going to be all right. His feet are burned really bad. A lot of them have been blinded by it. It burned their eyelashes, eyelids, everything, and just burned all the hair off of them. Their feet are coming off their hooves, they're bloody. It burned their udders. And you know even if they survive, it more than likely they're going to get pneumonia, they're going to get sick, they're going to die. We've already had to put some down.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: The fire has put his livelihood, and that of other cattle ranchers, at risk. More than 85% of the cattle industry in Texas is concentrated in the panhandle. Some counties there have more cows than people. And raising cattle is the most profitable form of agriculture in the state, worth over $15 billion. Conditions in Texas had improved over the last few days. Temperatures dropped, and some parts of the panhandle even got some snow, bringing minor relief from the fires. As of yesterday, the Smokehouse Creek fire was about 44% contained. But there have been renewed worries about dry and windy conditions. The head of agriculture for the state told CNN, the threat is far from over for ranchers. There's no grass, there's no water for all the livestock. We've lost over 3,000 head, which is a very small number. That will double or triple easily. Experts say it will take years for the land and Texas' cattle industry to recover.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: And finally, a remarkable feat in the sport of sailing. Early this morning, sailor Cole Brower became the first American woman to complete a nonstop race around the world totally alone. Brower has been at sea since October, where she had been her own mechanic, medic, and her own company. She spoke with NBC a few days ago before crossing the finish line in Spain. Solo sailors, you have to be able to do everything. You need to be able to get up even when you're so exhausted. And you have to be able to fix everything on the boat.
--:-- Cole Brower: At 29 years old, Brower is the youngest person to finish this race, known as the Global Solo Challenge. It's so tough that more than half of the field dropped out. And she was the only woman competing. She hopes her record finish will inspire more women to get into the male-dominated sport. It would be amazing if there was just one other girl that saw me and said, oh, I can do that too.
--:-- Yasmin Khan: You can find all these stories and more in the Apple News app. And if you're already listening in the News app right now, a narrated article is coming up next. A writer for Vanity Fair shares her unusual childhood story spent swimming at the famous grotto at the Playboy Mansion, where she was best friends with two of Hugh Hefner's children. If you're listening in the podcast app, follow Apple News Plus Narrated to find that story. And I'll be back with the news tomorrow.
