Will Biden declare a climate emergency? Wait and see.

Biden orders executive action on climate change; Russia expands its goals beyond eastern Ukraine.

Tonight's Sentences was written by Jariel Arvin.

Biden stops short of declaring a climate emergency

 Drew Angerer/Getty Images

• President Joe Biden announced a series of executive actions to combat the climate crisis Wednesday, but stopped short of declaring a national emergency. [ABC News / Ben Gittleson and Morgan Winsor]
• Biden ordered additional federal funding to help communities prepare for climate hazards and assist lower-income families with energy costs. He also boosted spending on US offshore wind infrastructure. [Reuters]
• After Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) stalled legislative climate action last week, Democrats urged Biden to declare a national climate emergency, empowering the government to ramp up the production of renewable infrastructure and block fossil fuel projects. [Associated Press / Seung Min Kim]
• The pressure from Democrats comes just after the Supreme Court limited the government’s ability to regulate emissions from power plants. More decisive action by the White House would likely face legal challenges. [Politico / Alex Guillen]
• Biden is still reportedly weighing a national emergency, however, which could come in the next few weeks. [Washington Post / Tony Romm and Yasmeen Abutaleb]

Russia sets sights beyond eastern Ukraine

• The Kremlin’s goals have expanded beyond capturing eastern Ukraine, according to statements Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made Wednesday on state TV. [AP / Susie Blann]
• Earlier this year, the Kremlin abandoned taking the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and shifted focus to the eastern Donbas region. Lavrov blamed the US for arming Ukraine with long-range weapons, which he claimed have changed the war. [CNN / Radina Gigova and Sana Noor Haq]
• However, US intelligence has long predicted Russia would attempt to annex vast parts of Ukraine by installing pro-Moscow leaders to run staged referendums. That could happen as soon as September. [BBC / Ben Tobias]
• Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the EU asked its members to slash gas demand by 15 percent until March to avoid winter shortages. The bloc’s leaders fear Russia could cut off EU supply over its support of Ukraine. [Reuters/ Kate Abnett]

A bipartisan group of senators has unveiled two bills clarifying the role of the vice president in certifying elections to prevent another January 6. [Washington / Leigh Ann Caldwell]

• Conservatives Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak will run against each other in the race to become the UK’s next prime minister. The final results will be announced by September 5. [CNBC / Karen Gilchrist]
• On Tuesday, the Senate voted 64-34 to appoint Judge J. Michelle Childs to the powerful US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit. Childs had been on the shortlist to replace Justice Breyer on the Supreme Court. [19th News / Candice Norwood]
• Sri Lanka’s parliament on Wednesday elected former prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe president. The choice of the unpopular longtime politician could mean more protests. [Wall Street Journal / Philip Wen]

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“The clock is rapidly ticking towards inevitable, irreversible climate catastrophe. There is no more time to lose.”

[Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch / Guardian]

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