STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
Shock – this Tuesday in August, as we speak, is an election day in Ohio.
SARAH MCCAMMON, HOST:
The Republican-dominated state legislature organized that vote for as we speak, a time when traditionally fewer individuals take note of politics. If authorised, the poll measure would make it more durable to alter the state’s structure. So as a substitute of a majority to alter it, as up to now, Republicans wish to require 60% to make a change, and that may be a bid to lock in anti-abortion legal guidelines earlier than one other poll measure on abortion rights in November.
INSKEEP: Statehouse Information Bureau’s Karen Kasler joins us now from Columbus, Ohio, the place she’s overlaying this. Good morning.
KAREN KASLER, BYLINE: Good morning, Steve.
INSKEEP: OK, so we heard it goes from 50%, or 50 plus 1, to 60% to alter the structure. Is that each one that is on this measure?
KASLER: That’s the half that is getting probably the most focus. However there’s a form of under-the-radar half that may make it even more durable for grassroots teams to even get onto the poll. It could enhance the variety of counties the place teams must get legitimate signatures from 44, as in present legislation, to 88 counties. That will make Ohio the one state within the nation that may require signatures from each county in Ohio. It could additionally imply failure to get signatures in a selected county would block the group from truly making the poll and even – not even attending to the 60% threshold. So this actually does make it harder not solely to cross constitutional amendments by residents and teams, however even to get on the poll.
INSKEEP: How did this occur to get on the poll itself proper now?
KASLER: Nicely, you talked about it. It is an abortion modification that is developing within the fall. Final summer time, after the U.S. Supreme Courtroom overturned the correct to abortion, Ohio’s six-week abortion ban went into impact. There have been loads of horrible tales, together with one in all a 10-year-old rape sufferer who needed to go to Indiana to get therapy as a result of no Ohio physician felt comfy treating her. And so abortion rights teams then began to draft an modification to ensure abortion rights in Ohio’s structure. Abortion rights have been upheld in different pink states, however by lower than 60%. And so state lawmakers introduced up the concept of let’s increase the brink to get an modification to 60%. And that is the place we’re proper now.
INSKEEP: I simply wish to underline this to be very clear, as a result of it is sophisticated. You are telling me that Republicans appeared forward and noticed that they may lose an election in November on abortion, so that they mentioned let’s change the foundations in order that even after we lose, we win. Is that appropriate?
KASLER: Nicely, Republicans will let you know it is about extra than simply abortion, that they are frightened about holding out-of-state particular pursuits with some huge cash from shopping for their manner into Ohio’s structure. However what’s attention-grabbing in that is that out-of-state cash has been coming in on either side of this subject. And definitely the abortion subject developing in simply a few months is one factor that’s introduced up very often as that is the explanation that this vote is going on now in the midst of summer time.
INSKEEP: Nicely, let’s discuss it being in the midst of summer time. This can be a time when you may have very light-turnout elections and a small curiosity group can flip in elections. So is that this turning out to be a low-turnout election as Republicans might need hoped?
KASLER: It is in all probability going to be a low-turnout election, I imply, comparatively. Individuals are serious about different issues somewhat than voting. However the turnout up to now, as a result of Ohio has a month of early voting, has been fairly large. I imply, there have been strains in some city areas. And so as we speak’s turnout goes to be actually vital.
INSKEEP: Karen Kasler is the bureau chief on the Statehouse Information Bureau in Ohio, and he or she is overlaying as we speak’s vote on altering the state structure occurring on this Tuesday in August. Karen, thanks a lot.
KASLER: It is nice to be right here. Thanks.
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INSKEEP: President Biden is on the Grand Canyon as we speak.
MCCAMMON: However he isn’t mountaineering. The president is there to announce a brand new nationwide monument. It is all a part of a visit this week selling the administration’s environmental insurance policies.
INSKEEP: NPR senior White Home correspondent Tamara Keith is touring with the president. She’s on the road from Arizona. Tam, good morning.
TAMARA KEITH, BYLINE: Good morning.
INSKEEP: What’s the significance of this nationwide monument, which we should always point out comes after some others the president introduced lately?
KEITH: Yeah, this new monument – it is all on federal land, practically one million acres in three completely different sections across the Grand Canyon. And this land has loads of that means to Native American communities. In accordance with the White Home, the monument accommodates greater than 3,000 recognized cultural and historic websites, together with a dozen listed on the Nationwide Register of Historic Locations. Looking and fishing and current livestock grazing permits will proceed, however this designation prioritizes the cultural and non secular makes use of of the land. And notably, this may also stop future uranium improvement. So new permits have been frozen for greater than a decade, however this can make it everlasting. It is one thing that tribal leaders within the space have been calling on for years. U.S. Inside Secretary Deb Haaland, the primary Native American secretary, mentioned the importance with reporters on a name yesterday.
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DEB HAALAND: These particular locations will not be a pass-through on the way in which to the Grand Canyon. They’re sacred and important unto their very own proper. They shouldn’t be open to new mining claims and developed past recognition.
KEITH: And she or he visited the realm in Could and mentioned it was probably the most significant journeys of her life.
INSKEEP: You mentioned one thing about current permits will proceed for looking and fishing and so forth. What about current mining permits?
KEITH: The present permits would have the ability to proceed, however future permits wouldn’t be granted. This can put a everlasting moratorium in place.
INSKEEP: Tam, Sarah mentioned a second in the past that is a part of a visit selling environmental insurance policies. Is there one thing extra to this journey than the monument?
KEITH: So after we requested about this, a Biden administration official tied this journey, a minimum of partially, to the acute warmth that the Southwest has been experiencing this summer time. It additionally comes on the one-year anniversary of this large local weather and well being care invoice that was handed underneath the identify the Inflation Discount Act. So as we speak, Biden may also be saying $44 million in funding to spice up local weather resilience in nationwide parks everywhere in the nation. Extra broadly, within the first two years he was in workplace, he labored with Congress – generally it was bipartisan, generally it was simply Democrats – to cross a bunch of payments, large payments. Now they’re within the implementation section. And the speculation of the case right here is that via laws and govt motion, Biden’s insurance policies are capable of get at a few of the drivers of local weather change and in addition create new jobs. So this journey is mainly an enormous billboard promoting what was handed, what they’re engaged on in hopes of getting some credit score, which the general public has not but been actually prepared to provide the president.
INSKEEP: He is additionally visiting a state, we should always observe, that till very just lately was thought of a pink state. It did go for him narrowly in 2020, however he needs to be serious about 2024.
KEITH: Proper. And this monument designation is broadly common right here in Arizona, although some ranchers within the uranium mining business are elevating flags. However that is the form of headline-grabbing native story that the president and his marketing campaign want greater than a 12 months out from the election. There’s loads of focus in nationwide politics on former President Trump and the Republican main, however this enables the president to go to locations that may matter and get these native headlines.
INSKEEP: NPR senior White Home correspondent Tamara Keith, thanks a lot.
KEITH: You are welcome.
INSKEEP: Secure travels.
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INSKEEP: The Crimson Cross is adopting new pointers that may change who’s eligible to donate blood.
MCCAMMON: And that is an enormous deal as a result of the Crimson Cross contributes about 40% of the nation’s blood provide. It is following the lead of the Meals and Drug Administration, which altered long-standing guidelines about homosexual and bisexual males. For many years, the FDA mentioned it was attempting to guard the blood provide from HIV by limiting donations from homosexual and bisexual males. However now, as a substitute of utilizing sexual orientation, the company is specializing in sexual habits.
INSKEEP: Fenit Nirappil is a well being reporter for The Washington Put up, and he is overlaying this. Good morning. Welcome.
FENIT NIRAPPIL: Good morning. Thanks for having me.
INSKEEP: And I suppose we should always simply observe some individuals could also be uncomfortable with the language on this story, and if that’s the case, it should final a little bit bit greater than three minutes. However let’s discuss what the foundations are, as a result of that is – this issues quite a bit. Who will get to donate blood now as in comparison with up to now?
NIRAPPIL: So the FDA used to have a lifetime ban that prevented homosexual males from donating blood. It has been relaxed just a few occasions since then, however this newest change now permits monogamous homosexual and bisexual males to provide blood for the primary time. That is as a result of this prohibition shifts away from whether or not you are a person who has intercourse with different males to asking extra gender-neutral questions. The prohibition now applies to anybody who’s had a brand new or a number of sexual companions within the final three months and in the event you had anal intercourse. This is applicable to people who find themselves homosexual, straight, bi, males, ladies, nonbinary. And it additionally means that you’ll see heterosexuals who’re banned from giving blood for the primary time.
INSKEEP: Nicely, that is attention-grabbing. Is that this then an argument that the previous pointers had been not likely the most secure pointers as a result of it’s the habits that makes you weak?
NIRAPPIL: The change in pointers is basically extra about equity, as a result of even underneath these new pointers, you are seeing people who find themselves banned, even when they don’t seem to be at elevated dangers of HIV. However for many years, there have been complaints that homosexual males are handled as pariahs and that these requirements that was in place had been too broad. And also you had people who find themselves banned from giving blood, even when they’re additionally at low threat for HIV due to the way in which that they observe secure intercourse.
INSKEEP: I suppose we should always point out there are exams to detect HIV, I suppose. Why is that not enough or not deemed to be enough to maintain the blood provide secure?
NIRAPPIL: Sure, we do have a extremely delicate screening measure that may detect HIV in blood inside 11 to 33 days of an infection. However that additionally signifies that it would miss an HIV an infection within the early days, and in order that’s why you may have this three-month commonplace, which is supposed to have an additional buffer time.
INSKEEP: How large a deal is it that the Crimson Cross now would comply with this modification in FDA pointers and alter their very own pointers, given the large function they play within the nation’s blood provide?
NIRAPPIL: In order you talked about on the prime, the Crimson Cross contributes an enormous portion of the nation’s blood provide. So there have been some unbiased blood facilities which have already made this modification, however that is thought of an enormous deal as a result of this is without doubt one of the greatest shifts that we have seen in many years. So you are going to have monogamous homosexual and bisexual males who can provide blood for the primary time due to the modifications that you have seen this week.
INSKEEP: We’re in a time of tradition wars, and it is a topic that offers with sexuality with homosexual and bisexual individuals. Has there been any resistance or pushback to this modification within the guidelines?
NIRAPPIL: I’ve heard some simply pushback on social media, however there’s been loads of different pushback from throughout the homosexual group as a result of this is not lifting the ban on each homosexual man from giving blood. You are still barring homosexual males who’ve been just lately sexually lively, and also you’re barring homosexual males who take PrEP, which is an HIV treatment that drastically reduces your threat of contracting HIV, as a result of being on PrEP creates points with the screening that we talked about.
INSKEEP: OK. Fenit Nirappil of The Washington Put up, thanks a lot.
NIRAPPIL: Thanks for having me.
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