Garbage and Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds were forced to cancel the Wisconsin concert they were set to co-headline on Wednesday due to poor air quality in the region as hundreds of wildfires in Canada continue burning.

The president uses a CPAP machine, the White House said after reporters spotted marks on his face.

Joe Biden suffers from sleep apnea, and has begun use of a medicial CPAP device at night to treat the condition, the White House said on Wednesday. Sleep apnea, which is a relatively common sleep disorder, refers to the condition that inhibits oxygen intake during sleep, often causing snoring. A CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) device is sometimes used in more aggressive cases to ensure proper oxygen flow overnight. The president’s press team made the revelation shortly after reporters noticed a set of indentations on Mr Biden’s face as he spoke to the press line — the indentations were a residual souvenir of the mask worn over one’s face while sleeping during use of a CPAP device. “Since 2008, the president has disclosed his history with sleep apnea in thorough medical reports. He used a CPAP machine last night, which is common for people with that history,” a White House spokesman said on Wednesday. Though many of the president’s supporters chafed at media reports disclosing the president’s use of the device, it’s commonly accepted that any medical condition which affects the US commander-in-chief takes on an importance which other politicians are often spared. Though sleep apnea is not a condition which could reasonably be considered likely to affect the presidency in any way, Mr Biden’s use of the device was nevertheless instantly picked up on by experts who were eager for a presidential light to be shown on sleep disorders. In fact, the White House’s statement only shortly followed an educated guess floated by the National Sleep Foundation, which this morning blasted out a press release to DC-area reporters in which a medical expert on sleep hypothesised that Mr Biden had CPAP-device indentations on his face. "It looks like the sort of indentation one would expect from a CPAP mask. If you look at photos of popular CPAP mask styles you can see how the strap would leave a similar mark as the one we see on President Biden. Sleep apnea is very common and the risk increases with age. As the oldest U.S. President ever, it would not be surprising if President Biden was being treated for sleep apnea,” said Dr Joseph Krainin, a sleep expert with SleepApnea.org and the National Sleep Foundation. Dr Krainin added: “We also know that President Biden has a history of a ruptured brain aneurysm which could predispose him to a certain type of sleep apnea where his brain forgets to breath during sleep." Mr Biden’s health has been closely watched by reporters since he took office in 2021, and with particularly renewed interest in 2023 following the official launch of his 2024 campaign for reelection. The president has attended a handful of campaign events since that announcement so far, but is due to see that ramp up as the election nears. In 2020, Mr Biden won election to office following a campaign season where many events changed from live to virtual venues as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Read More ‘Any Republican not named Trump’: Paul Ryan says former president is only candidate who would lose to Biden What next for Biden’s billion dollar broadband expansion? Kevin McCarthy knows he crossed the line with Donald Trump Biden touts his economic record in fiery speech: ‘Guess what – Bidenomics is working’ US public debt is projected to reach 181% of American economic activity in 30 years Biden urged to declare climate emergency as millions under heat wave warnings and air quality alerts — live

Michigan's Democratic-controlled state legislature gave final approval this week to a pair of bills that would ban so-called conversion therapy for minors, joining other blue states in advancing protections for the LGBTQ community this legislative session.

A federal judge in Kentucky has issued a preliminary injunction that partially blocks a sweeping state law banning gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth, joining several other federal court decisions that have temporarily blocked or struck down a wave of similar laws. The decision from US District Judge David J Hale on 28 June – one day before the law was set to go into effect – follows a legal challenge from a group of seven trans children and their families arguing that the law unconstitutionally singles out trans kids from the healthcare they can receive. They also argued that the law unconstitutionally restricts a parent’s right to make medical decisions for their children. Senate Bill 150 prohibits doctors from providing hormone therapies and puberty blockers to trans minors – treatments that Judge Hale notes “are medically appropriate and necessary for some transgender children under the evidence-based standard of care accepted by all major medical organizations in the United States.” “These drugs have a long history of safe use in minors for various conditions. It is undisputed that puberty-blockers and hormones are not given to prepubertal children with gender dysphoria,” he wrote. Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, said the decision is a “huge relief” for the families at the centre of the lawsuit. “We are grateful that the court carefully considered all of the evidence and recognized that there is no support for this dangerous and unprecedented law,” she added. The law, denounced as one of the most far-reaching state-level measures targeting LGBT+ people amid an explosion of similar proposals across the US, was initially struck down by Democratic Governor Andy Beshear. A week later, lawmakers in the state’s Republican-controlled legislature voted to override his veto. The law also determines which bathrooms and locker rooms students can use and prohibits students from using pronouns and names other than those assigned at birth. It also prohibits discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools, adopting elements of what critics have called “Don’t Say Gay” language introduced in similar legislation across the US. Those elements of the law are preserved; the lawsuit solely focused on provisions of the law impacting healthcare. State senator Karen Berg – whose trans son died by suicide weeks before this year’s legislative session – drove opposition to the bill over the last several months. During legislative debate, she denounced the “absolute willful, intentional hate for a small group of people, who are the weakest and the most vulnerable among us.” By the end of May, state lawmakers this year had introduced more than 500 bills impacting LGBT+ people, including 220 bills specifically targeting trans and nonbinary Americans, according to an analysis from the Human Rights Campaign. More than a dozen states have enacted laws or policies banning affirming healthcare for young trans people. But federal judges in several states have struck down or temporarily blocked similar laws with a series of rulings that refute evidence from Republican officials and their arguments against widely accepted medical guidance. Last week, a federal judge in Arkansas permanently struck down the state’s first-in-the-nation ban on gender-affirming care for trans youth, finding that the law violates the constitutional rights of trans patients, their families and health providers. Read More She lost her transgender son to suicide. She isn’t giving up fighting for him Transgender teen defends trans rights in Senate testimony: ‘These are human rights hanging in the balance’

Fourth of July baseball games have been popular since the Civil War era. Here’s how the tradition started.

The Pittsburgh synagogue shooter made several suicide attempts as a young man, was involuntarily committed multiple times and has schizophrenia and epilepsy, a neurologist who examined him testified at his death penalty trial Wednesday.

The Republican-controlled North Carolina General Assembly made several last-minute changes to the 12-week abortion ban it passed earlier this year in an effort to stave off a legal challenge. The state’s abortion ban, which is set to take effect on 1 July, is being challenged in court. That lawsuit, attorneys said, was the main factor behind the Republican majority’s decision to introduce an amendment to an unrelated Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) bill that effectively amends the abortion ban. ”The General Assembly is working to pass and enact, with or without the Governor’s signature, a technical and conforming bill to make changes to clarify and address most, if not all, aspects of Plaintiffs’ claims about the Act,” W Ellis Boyle, an attorney for House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate Leader Phil Berger, wrote in a legal filing on Tuesday. The amendment to the DHHS bill, House Bill 190, directly addresses a number of the concerns outlined in the lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood of the South Atlantic and a number of other organisations. For instance, the lawsuit argues that a provision of the abortion ban stating that it is illegal “after the twelfth week of a woman’s pregnancy to advise, procure, or cause a miscarriage or abortion” violates the Constitution by preventing people from legally providing information about how a person could get legal abortion care in another state. In response, the amendment to HB 190 removes the word “advise” from the text of the abortion ban. The amendment also seeks to clean up a section on the regulation of medication abortion — which is banned after 10 weeks, not 12 — by deleting language that physicians prescribing medication abortions would have to verify that a pregnancy is no more than “70 days” old. Backers of the lawsuit, who are seeking a Temporary Restraining Order to prevent the abortion ban from taking effect on 1 July, do not believe that the changes to the ban proposed amendment to HB 190 go so far as to eliminate the need for the restraining order. “If those amendments are passed, they may remedy some of the constitutional violations that Plaintiffs allege,” North Carolina attorney general Josh Stein, nominally the defendant in the suit, wrote in a court filing reported by CNN. “But unless and until the current law is repealed or significantly amended, immediate injunctive relief is necessary to avoid a due-process violation.” Mr Stein, a Democrat, has said he does not intend to defend parts of the abortion ban his office believes are unconstitutional. Mr Stein wrote that even if the amendments pass, they would still “fail to make clear that doctors in North Carolina can help their patients obtain abortions out of state.” It is not yet clear whether Gov Roy Cooper, also a Democrat, intends to sign HB 190 or not. Mr Cooper vetoed the abortion ban, but saw his veto overriden by Republican supermajorities in the legislature. The fact that North Carolina is in the position of dealing with a 12-week abortion ban at all is a surprise: when the legislative session started, the Republicans did not have the votes needed to override a veto of an abotion bill. That changed, however, when Rep Tricia Cotham — a Democrat representing a heavily Democratic seat in the Charlotte area — suddenly switched her party affiliation and gave the Republicans the final vote needed to override Mr Cooper’s veto. Read More North Carolina Republicans censure Sen Thom Tillis for backing LGBT+ rights One year after Roe v Wade fell, anti-abortion laws threaten millions. The battle for access is far from over

An overview of the media in Kosovo, including links to broadcasters and newspapers.

Tickets have gone on sale for Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour in Australia, and such is the demand Aussies have warned American fans "stay in your own country." The pop star is set to play five dates Down Under - two nights at Melbourne Cricket Ground on February 16 and 17 and then three nights at Sydney’s Accor Stadium from February 23, 24, and 25. After an American Express presale took place earlier this week, and with presale tickets and VIP packages on sale for fans who registered with Frontier Touring today (Sydney at 10 am and Melbourne at 2 pm), Aussie Swifties have expressed their nerves about getting their hands on tickets. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Given the limited number of tickets available, some fans have posted warnings online to American fans who perhaps were thinking about buying tickets and flying over to see the concert. Despite the 50 US tour dates, 14 million Americans attempted to buy pre-sale tickets – with only 1.5 million available on sale, leaving many disappointed American Swifties. Many have argued that Americans shouldn't buy tickets to other countries as they have already had a 50-date tour, and that demand is high enough in Australia because there are only five dates - without the addition of fans coming from another country. "I want to see no trace about people being rude to you because you've been warned," one Australian Swiftie said on TikTok. "Americans stay home." @snarkywench A heads up on flying to Australia for #taylorswift if you’re American. Another fan also echoed similar sentiments, noting how the ticket sale is going to be "pandemonium." "If you're American, stay in your own country. I don't even understand how you should be allowed to buy tickets here," she said. "You had 50 shows, Australia has five - that doesn't even just cover Australia that covers New Zealand - in two states, that's it." “There are not even going to be enough tickets to go around for the diehard Swifties, and you want to come here? We’re really chill until you p*** us off. Don’t get on a plane, we’ll meet you at the gate. You’re not ready for that, trust me.” She also asked Aussie Swifties to "please don't be greedy," and to not invite someone along who isn't a die-hard fan of the Anti-Hero singer. Someone else wrote on TikTok: "If I don't get Eras Tour tickets because some Americans decided to come to Australia's five shows over their 50+ shows there will be war." @samixwilliams preparing to fight for my life #taylorswift #erastour #erastouraustralia Many in the comments agreed and believe there should be some kind of restriction that prevents fans from other countries from buying tickets. One person said: "It should be only listed for Aus. Like have restrictions for the country, considering they’ve had so many concerts 😅 just so us Aussies have a chance." "If their postcode isn’t Australian or NZ, ban them from buying tickets," another fan agreed. Though others argued back in the comments section that people should be able to do what they want, which includes travelling to see Swift in concert abroad. One person said: "The USA has 12x Australia’s population but does not have 12x the amount of shows, it is fair." "I’m gonna be honest it’s way cheaper for US people to go to the Europe shows not Australia so I think you’re ok," another person wrote. Someone else added: "Say it with me…. people can do whatever they want." Swift's The Eras Tour marks her first tour in five years, the last time being back in 2018 for her Reputation album tour. Meanwhile, the general sale for Australian Eras Tour tickets will take place on June 30. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Bethenny Frankel claims she forgot her real outfit in the Hamptons

Despite their soulful voice, Howie Mandel did not agree with Trailer Flowers moving ahead in the show