'The future of abortion access in many states may come down to who has the final say'

'Republicans are doubling (and tripling) down on abortion restrictions'

Grace Segers in The New Republic

Republican lawmakers are out of touch with voters on abortion access, says Grace Segers. "GOP-controlled legislatures continue to introduce and enact measures restricting abortion even further, despite the fact that their voters have made clear they want more moderate restrictions." As Republicans double down, "voters themselves" have fought back with successful ballot measures to protect abortion access in state constitutions. We'll see who wins when the issue appears on the ballot in five key swing states in November.

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'When "stop the steal" becomes your motto'

Jamelle Bouie in The New York Times

It's too early to say whether Donald Trump can turn his polling lead into a November victory, says Jamelle Bouie. But the "former president and his allies are already laying the foundation for an effort to contest — or even try to overturn — the results" if he loses. Trump's 2020 "stop the steal" charade, fueled by dishonest "illegal voting" allegations, has become the rallying cry of a GOP that "cannot share this country with its political opponents."

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'Biden's spin on marijuana's rescheduling exaggerates its practical impact'

Jacob Sullum at Reason

President Joe Biden, hoping to win over young voters, is calling his administration's decision to reclassify marijuana under federal law "monumental," says Jacob Sullum. But he must hope they won't read the fine print, because the "practical consequences of rescheduling marijuana" are far "more modest than his rhetoric implies." Moving cannabis from a category of dangerous drugs will remove "barriers to medical research" and help state-licensed suppliers, but it is far from the decriminalization Biden has promised.

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'US wildfire season is now everywhere, all at once'

Mark Gongloff at Bloomberg

"It's getting to the point that wildfire season is all year long," says Mark Gongloff. The Midwest is choking on "toxic smoke" from Canada's early fires, and America's "own season starts much earlier these days, too." The reason is no mystery. Studies show the "flame-conducive combination of hot, dry air and strong winds has become more common as the planet gets warmer." That translates into a wildfire season that lasts two months longer than in 1973.

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