Maddow Blog | Wednesday’s Mini-Report, 5.22.24

Today’s edition of quick hits.

* This White House is serious about student loan debt relief: “President Joe Biden announced a new round of federal student debt forgiveness Wednesday that his administration said will provide relief to 160,000 borrowers. The Education Department said it’s canceling $7.7 billion for certain borrowers who received Public Service Loan Forgiveness, like teachers, nurses and law enforcement officials.”

* A big diplomatic move: “Three European nations announced Wednesday they will formally recognize a Palestinian state, a landmark move that drew a swift rebuke from Israel and praise from Palestinians. The announcements from Ireland, Norway and Spain dealt the latest diplomatic blow to Israel, as the United States’ close ally faces mounting international isolation and backlash over its deadly military offensive in the Gaza Strip.”

* In related news: “Biden administration officials said Tuesday that a U.S.-brokered deal to normalize relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia was within reach, but that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government might balk at the historic agreement rather than accept Riyadh’s demands for a new commitment to a Palestinian state and a halt to the Gaza war.”

* A bizarre incident at the RNC: “The Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington, D.C., was put under lockdown Wednesday morning after someone sent vials of blood to the building, three sources familiar with the situation told NBC News.”

* At least Sunak won’t be the first British leader to have a difficult Fourth of July: “British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called a new election for July 4, setting his ruling Conservative Party the challenge of overturning dismal polling if it is to retain its 14-year hold on power against the high-flying opposition Labour Party.”

* This regressive measure will still need approval from the state Senate: “The Louisiana House approved a bill Tuesday that would add two medications commonly used to induce abortions to the state’s list of controlled dangerous substances, making possession of the drugs without valid prescriptions a crime punishable by fines, jail time or both.”

* Quite an allegation: “Smartmatic alleges that Newsmax has destroyed evidence in the voting machine company’s lawsuit against the right-wing news channel over false claims that Smartmatic helped ‘rig’ the 2020 election, according to court documents made public this week.”

* An exceedingly rare sight on Capitol Hill: “In a unique modern congressional occurrence, a discharge petition, led by Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.), that would provide tax relief for victims of hurricanes, wildfires and the East Palestine train derailment passed on the House floor. The vote was 382-7 after Steube notched the rare feat last week of forcing a vote on the legislation, thanks to heavy Democratic support. Whether the Democratic-led Senate takes up the legislation remains unclear.”

* Best wishes for a speedy recovery: "Rep. Greg Murphy (R-N.C.) announced Tuesday that he is scheduled to undergo surgery to remove a tumor at the base of his skull in the coming days."

See you tomorrow.

This article was originally published on MSNBC.com