2 Deadly Earthquakes Hit Venezuela, and Why Chemo Drugs Could Soon Be Rationed

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0:34Ronda Kaysen:From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Thursday, June 25th. Here's what we're covering.

0:46Ronda Kaysen:In Venezuela last night, the country was rocked by a pair of huge, deadly earthquakes. One of the quakes, with a magnitude of 7.5, was the largest there in more than a century. And people described scenes of terror and confusion as building after building collapsed and residents flooded into the streets. Footage posted online showed rescue crews working through the night as they picked over the rubble looking for survivors. The areas that appear to be the hardest hits are coastal areas, Venezuela's Caribbean coast, which is a densely populated area, one of the poorest areas of the country. So a lot of substandard housing, a lot of informal housing.

1:30And the images that we are seeing show widespread devastation.

1:33Ronda Kaysen:Anatoly Kermenayev covers Venezuela for The Times. He says that the full scale of the disaster is not yet clear. As of early this morning, Venezuela's president said several dozen people had been killed and 700 had been injured, numbers that are expected to rise. Keep in mind that this is a government that's sort of been shaped by secrecy, that has not published any public data for years, in many cases for decades, and have been very strict about information that they provide to the public. So it's important to keep that in mind that the official estimates that we're going to be seeing in the next few days or weeks may not be an accurate reflection of reality or even of the numbers that the government has internally.

2:16Ronda Kaysen:The earthquakes are the latest blow to Venezuela, which has been in a state of upheaval for years, facing economic devastation and the dramatic U.S. capture of its authoritarian leader, Nicolas Maduro. Since Maduro was seized by American troops in January, the Trump administration took control of the country's oil industry, turning Venezuela into something resembling a vassal state. Last night, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. is deploying search and rescue teams to Venezuela, as well as humanitarian assistance. And other countries, including Spain, Chile, and Argentina, have also offered to send help.

2:52Ronda Kaysen:You can find live coverage of the latest on the earthquakes in the Times app or at nytimes.com.

3:02Ronda Kaysen:Now, in Congress. You know, by the end of the day on Wednesday, it was almost challenging to even remember how the day had begun. My colleague Robert Jemison's been tracking what's been a head spinning back and forth at the Capitol over the last 24 hours. We started with Republicans arriving on Capitol Hill optimistic. They expected to spend the day, probably the rest of the week, in a good bit of their recess over the Fourth of July holiday, touting a major housing bill that they believed would strengthen their message on affordability as they make the turn into midterm campaign season. That's what the Republicans stand for, to give more people a chance, to restore the American dream.

3:41That's what we promised to the voters and that's what we are delivering.

3:43Ronda Kaysen:But, Robert says, partway through a GOP press conference, as the stage was being put up for President Trump to sign that housing bill, Trump canceled, saying he would not do it until lawmakers passed a separate bill imposing controversial new voting restrictions. It's not a compromise. It's voter ID, it's proof of citizenship, and it's also the mail-in ballots. By lunch, Republicans were being castigated by President Trump. He blasted them for failing to pass his preferred voting legislation. And he was extremely upset that the two chambers, both controlled by Republicans, allowed a War Powers resolution to be approved, an overt rebuke of his handling of the war in Iran.

4:29The Senate has voted that they'd like Trump to stop the war. So Iran sees that and they go, what's that all about? Now, you know it's meaningless, right? Everything that followed that lunch was an exercise in appeasement. Republican leaders spent the rest of the day searching for a way to undo what Trump had seen as political damage.

4:52Ronda Kaysen:By the end of last night, the Senate took another vote, this time reversing course and defeating a measure that would have called for Trump to end the war. It was largely symbolic, but Trump still celebrated it on social media as a win. The day began with Republicans hoping to show voters something that they had accomplished, but it ended with them shifting to prove something just to Donald Trump, a clear reminder of who controls and sets the agenda for the Republican Party.

5:29Ronda Kaysen:Across the country, doctors treating cancer patients are facing a critical shortage of chemotherapy drugs due to supply chain issues. The drugs in short supply are among the most effective treatments for some breast, lung, ovarian, and other cancers, and there are growing fears the situation could lead to widespread rationing. That hasn't happened yet, but some clinics have started spacing out the time between doses, and one cancer doctor in Michigan told the Times that physicians there are already starting to prioritize some patients over others, a process that tends to favor those who are younger and have a better chance at recovery.

6:08Ronda Kaysen:He said the situation puts medical providers, patients, and families, quote, in a horrific situation. The chemo drug shortage is a global problem caused by disruptions at a major manufacturer over hygienic issues, the soaring costs of materials, and other factors. And this is not the first time this has happened. A few years ago, there was a similar shortage, and some of the same drugs were rationed in the U.S., which set off intense discussions among lawmakers about how to find a solution. But few new measures were put into place. This week, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health and Human Services said the agency is working to alleviate the shortage, and is considering allowing imports of medications from companies that don't typically ship to the U.S.

7:04Ronda Kaysen:And finally...

7:12Ronda Kaysen:At the World Cup last night, Brazil breezed by Scotland, advancing in the tournament and taking first place in its group, something the country's done in every World Cup since 1982.

7:28Ronda Kaysen:Brazil produces some of the most elite soccer talent on Earth. Now the Times has been looking at how it's increasingly using AI to find its next generation of stars. For a long time, finding that talent had meant traveling to far-flung corners of the massive country, from big cities to the Amazon rainforest, as scouts scoured amateur matches, school tournaments, and neighborhood games, looking for the next Pele. But now, hundreds of thousands of young Brazilian hopefuls are uploading footage of themselves from drills or matches into AI programs. The apps analyze everything from speed to ball control and generate a score.

8:08Ronda Kaysen:Then agents, human ones, can sift through that data, looking for the highest-ranking players. The technology is already widely used in Europe, but it could be particularly transformative in Brazil, given the huge amount of territory scouts are trying to cover. Of course, there are trade-offs. For example, the AI metrics can favor taller, stronger athletes and overlook less conventional talent. And some scouts say even if you are using new technology, there is nothing like standing on the sidelines watching for yourself, like one recruiter who told The Times he was about to travel 600 miles the next day just to see one promising player in person.

8:51Ronda Kaysen:Those are the headlines today on The Daily. What this week's primary sweep by left-wing candidates in New York could mean for the Democratic Party's chances in the midterms. You can listen to that in the New York Times app or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Tracy Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow with the latest and the Friday News Quiz.

9:19Most careers don't follow the path we're told to expect. So how do the best leaders actually make decisions when the stakes are high and the answers aren't clear? Work Life from Ted is back with a new host, Molly Graham. She goes inside real careers, the trade-offs, hidden truths, and hard lessons that shaped how today's leaders work and lead. Start with our first episode, A Conversation with Adam Grant, available wherever you get your podcasts.