News Wrap: FEMA adjusts North Carolina recovery effort following threats to personnel

In our news wrap Monday, FEMA said it made adjustments to its work in North Carolina following threats to its personnel, Taiwan says China launched large-scale military exercises to warn against Taiwanese independence and a NASA spacecraft lifted off on a mission to explore Jupiter moon Europa for signs of the building blocks of life.

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Geoff Bennett: And we start the day’s other news with the aftermath of the recent hurricanes.

FEMA has had to make what it calls operational adjustments to its work in North Carolina following threats to its personnel. It follows reports over the weekend about a militia possibly targeting government employees. A 44-year-old man was arrested and charged with a single misdemeanor offense. He was later released on bond and local authorities tell the “News Hour” he was acting alone.

That’s as FEMA is trying to stamp out disinformation about the federal government’s response to hurricanes Helene and Milton.

Officials in Taiwan say that China launched large-scale military exercises today to warn against Taiwanese independence. Taiwan’s Defense Ministry says Beijing used several warships and 125 military aircraft. That’s a record for a single day to surround the island.

Officials in Taipei say they believe Beijing was simulating a blockade of Taiwanese ports and international shipping lanes.

Sun Li-Fang, Taiwan Defense Ministry spokesperson (through interpreter): This irrational and provocative military exercise threatens security in the Taiwan Strait. It undermines the security of the Indo-Pacific region and threatens the rules-based international order.

Geoff Bennett: China says the drills were intended to punish Taiwan’s president for saying in a speech last week that China has no right to represent Taiwan.

Authorities in Sri Lanka say that nearly 7,000 people have been evacuated and three people died in severe flooding. Heavy downpours over the last several days have inundated streets, fields and homes in many parts of that island nation.

That includes areas in and around the capital of Colombo, where schools were closed today. Sri Lanka has been dealing with severe weather conditions since May mostly caused by monsoon rains.

A NASA spacecraft lifted off today on a mission to explore Jupiter’s moon Europa for signs of the building blocks of life.

MAN: Three, two, one, ignition, and liftoff.

Geoff Bennett: The unmanned Europa Clipper launched from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center aboard a SpaceX rocket to begin its 5.5-year journey. It’ll cover 1.8 million miles before entering orbit around Jupiter. Europa Clipper will then do dozens of flybys of the moon, looking at what’s believed to be a vast ocean beneath its icy surface.

Scientists say that if conditions are found to be favorable, then it’s possible life could exist on other ocean worlds much like Earth.

On Wall Street today, stocks rose to new all-time highs to start the week. The Dow Jones industrial average gained about 200 points to close above 43000 for the first time ever. The Nasdaq added more than 150 points on the day. The S&P 500 tacked on 44 points for a new record close of its own.

And we have a passing of note. Equal pay icon Lilly Ledbetter has died. Her decision to speak up about not being paid the same as her male colleagues eventually paved the way for the Fair Pay Act in her name. When she sued her old employer Goodyear Tires back in 1999 for gender discrimination, the Supreme Court ultimately told her in a 2007 ruling that she’d fallen outside of the statute of limitations.

The Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act changed that, making it easier for workers to sue for pay discrimination. In 2009, it was the very first bill that President Barack Obama signed into law. And at the 2012 Democratic National Convention, Ledbetter made clear the fight for equal pay was far from over.

Lilly Ledbetter, Political Activist: Women who faced pay discrimination, like I did, now can get their day in court. That was the first step, but it can’t be the last, because women still earn just 77 cents for every dollar men make. Those pennies add up to real money.

Geoff Bennett: More than a decade later, the U.S. Census Bureau says that women still only make about 83 cents on the dollar compared to men.

Mr. Obama posted on social media today that: “Lilly Ledbetter never set out to be a trailblazer or a household name. She just wanted to be paid the same as a man for her hard work.”

Lilly Ledbetter was 86 years old.