World News: 'A clear stand against Putin's war of choice'

Wednesday, April 6

April 5, 2022: People walk by an apartment building destroyed during fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces in Borodyanka, Ukraine.

'A clear stand against Putin's war of choice'

Russia will be hit again in response to "war crimes," President Biden will delay student loan repayments and more news to start your Wednesday.

Good morning, Daily Briefing readers. The U.S. and its allies will announce new sanctions that will "impose acute and immediate economic harm on Russia" in response to atrocities in Ukraine. A second day of dangerous weather could be in store for the South, a day after two people died in violent storms. And a rampaging fox has been captured after two days of terrorizing D.C. lawmakers. Scroll to the bottom to see the culprit behind the "aggressive fox encounters."

It's Steve and Jane, with Wednesday's news.

🚨 For decades the identity of an elusive figure, dubbed the "Days Inn" and "I-65" killer evaded police. Law enforcement officials say they've solved the case.

The announcement of the Days Inn killer's identity bookends an investigation that's spanned more than 30 years.

USA TODAY

🏥 "Family glitch" fix: President Joe Biden proposed a way to increase the number of dependents who can get subsidized insurance under the Affordable Care Act at a White House event attended by former President Barack Obama.

👰🏼 Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker have tied the knot! The reality TV star and the Blink-182 drummer married shortly after Barker's Grammy performance Sunday night in Las Vegas.

April 3, 202: Travis Barker and Kourtney Kardashian toast to the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards with Grey Goose vodka in Las Vegas.

Jerod Harris, Getty Images

🏀 The Los Angeles Lakers were at their best before the season started — when on paper and per the oddsmakers — they were considered among the favorites to win the NBA title. Instead, the Lakers will be sitting at home as they were eliminated from playoff contention Tuesday night.

🎤 Bobby Rydell dies: The 1950s teen idol, who starred in the hit musical film "Bye Bye Birdie," died Tuesday from pneumonia complications in Pennsylvania. He was 79.

Actor and singer Bobby Rydell in New York City in 2015

WireImage photo; USA TODAY graphic

🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, Supreme Court correspondent John Fritze looks at Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson's unique waiting game. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker.

Here's what's happening today:

Russia to be hit with new sanctions in response to 'war crimes'

The United States and the European Union plan to impose stiff new sanctions against Russia in retaliation for its "war crimes" in Ukraine after revelations of atrocities in towns near Kyiv, including the discovery Tuesday of six burned and blackened corpses. The new penalties by the U.S. and its allies, which will be announced Wednesday, include a ban on new investment in Russia and are intended in part to "impose acute and immediate economic harm on Russia." The news comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the U.N. Security Council Tuesday that the U.N. must bring war crimes charges against Russian leaders. The European Union's executive branch on Tuesday proposed a ban on coal imports from Russia. "Today we are proposing a 5th package of sanctions. To take a clear stand is crucial for the whole world," the E.U. Commission said in a Twitter post. "A clear stand against Putin's war of choice. Against the massacre of civilians."

In other developments, Russian forces overnight struck a fuel depot and a factory in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region, and the number of casualties remains unclear, the region's Governor Valentyn Reznichenko said Wednesday on the Telegram messaging app via an Associated Press report.

📩 Ukraine-Russia crisis: The latest news straight to your inbox. Sign up for the newsletter here.

Biden to delay student loan repayment, again extending pause

President Joe Biden plans to extend the moratorium on federal student loan payments through Aug. 31, the Associated Press reported, citing a federal official. For tens of millions of Americans, student debt limbo will continue another three months. The move will mark the fifth extension since the pause took effect in March 2020. This time, inflation is climbing and gas prices are soaring in connection to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The freeze saves 41 million borrowers about $5 billion a month, the Department of Education has said previously. Though borrowers likely will appreciate the extra wiggle room, many have grown frustrated with the continued extensions without a plan for widespread forgiveness. Both conservative and liberal politicians are expected to pan the Biden administration's actions.

Just for subscribers:

➕ "I don't understand anything": Thanks to pandemic schooling, college students are failing math.

⛳ "Walking is the hard part": Writing from Augusta National Golf Club, columnist Christine Brennan says that Tiger Woods is confident in his golf at the Masters.

♥ "Vanilla sex shaming": The conversation around sex is changing and there is more openness than ever before out there.

🔵 Understanding each other is in our nature: So why are we in a severe empathy crisis?

🐶 From USA TODAY Opinion columnist Steven Petrow: A "gay" dog got dumped at a shelter. I wish that were the most troubling LGBTQ news.

⛰ What does a park ranger actually do? A glimpse at the day-to-day life of Josh Scheffler, a ranger at Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, makes it clear: a lot.

Josh Scheffler starts every day with a good cut of coffee.

Josh Scheffler

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2 dead as South hit by severe storms again; extreme weather to move north

Violent storms killed at least two people, one in Georgia and another in Texas, on Tuesday as hail, strong winds and tornadoes tore across the South, where authorities warned a second day of violent weather could follow. A woman died Tuesday evening in Pembroke, Georgia, where a suspected tornado ripped through. In Whitehouse, Texas, about 100 miles southeast of Dallas, a 71-year-old man died when storm winds toppled a tree onto his home. There were also several reports of tornadoes in Mississippi and South Carolina on Tuesday, the Storm Prediction Center said. The threat of damaging weather will move further north Wednesday, forecasters said, with severe storms possible across an area stretching from western Alabama to the western tip of the Carolinas. More than 10 million people in metro areas including Atlanta; Birmingham; and Chattanooga, Tennessee, will be at risk, the Storm Prediction Center said.

Dwayne Johnson, Mayim Bialik, others need help: Vote in our 25th Save Our Shows poll

It's time once again to Save Our Shows: 24 of them are among this year's crop of endangered network series.

Included on the 2022 list: ABC's remake of "The Wonder Years"; CBS' "Magnum P.I."; all of NBC's comedies, including "Kenan" and "Young Rock"; and Mayim Bialik's Fox sitcom "Call Me Kat," now in its second season.

This marks the 25th anniversary of USA TODAY's exclusive Save Our Shows poll, which gives viewers a voice in whether two dozen TV series hovering between renewal and cancellation get another lease on life: a slot on the networks' 2022-23 schedules. More on the shows to consider this year:

📺 Is your favorite network TV show renewed, canceled or "on the bubble"? Here is our 2022 status report.

📺 Photo gallery: Here are all the endangered series in USA TODAY's exclusive Save Our Shows poll.

Mayim Bialik stars as Kat, a single woman who owns a cat café, on "Call Me Kat."

LISA ROSE/FOX

House to vote on contempt for Scavino, Navarro in Jan. 6 probe

The House will vote Wednesday on whether to hold Peter Navarro and Dan Scavino, who were advisers to former President Donald Trump, in contempt of Congress after their monthslong refusal to comply with subpoenas from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. If approved as expected, the criminal referrals will be sent to the Justice Department, which would decide whether to prosecute. The House committee investigating the attack voted late last month to urge the full House to find Navarro and Scavino in contempt. Navarro, 72, a former White House trade adviser, was subpoenaed in early February over his promotion of false claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election that the committee believes contributed to the attack. Scavino, a communications aide, was with Trump the day of the attack on the Capitol and may have "materials relevant to his videotaping and tweeting" messages that day, the committee said.

ICYMI: Some of our top stories yesterday

🎓 President Joe Biden plans to extend the moratorium on federal student loan payments through Aug. 31, the Associated Press reported. For tens of millions of Americans, student debt limbo will continue another three months.

🐶 There's an outbreak of an infectious dog disease in Florida. Should pet owners be worried?

🦠 Why do some people seem unable to catch COVID? Scientists are looking for answers.

🏁 NASCAR driver Hailie Deegan skips race, tells shocking story on YouTube: "Our lives are being threatened."

Jury deliberations in Whitmer kidnap plot case head into third day

Jury deliberations are entering a third day in a trial that centers on a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. No verdict was reached Tuesday, hours after U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker turned down the jury's request for trial transcripts . Transcripts aren't available yet. But even if they were, the judge said, jurors shouldn't have them and instead must rely on their memory. Adam Fox, Barry Croft Jr., Daniel Harris and Brandon Caserta are charged with a kidnapping conspiracy. Prosecutors said the conspiracy against Whitmer was fueled by anti-government extremism and anger over her COVID-19 restrictions. Former federal prosecutor Mark Chutkow told the Detroit Free Press , part of the USA TODAY Network, a rule of thumb in the trial world is that a jury deliberates around one day per every week of trial. In the Whitmer case, the trial lasted for 15 days. "That would suggest at least three days of deliberations in a closely contested trial," Chutkow said, noting it's only a guideline.