5 things to know for May 24: Covid-19, Biden, hate-related incidents, Belarus, bitcoin

President Biden is still hoping for bipartisan support for his wide-ranging infrastructure bill, despite a deepening partisan divide. The White House has dropped the price of the bill from $2.25 trillion to $1.7 trillion in what is widely seen as a concession to Republicans who have balked at its cost and scope. The reduction takes spending on manufacturing, research and development and supply chain out of the talks and drops Biden’s proposed spending level on roads, bridges and other projects. White House senior adviser Cedric Richmond says Biden is willing to “change course” on the future of the bill if negotiations sputter into inaction. 

The New York Police Department is stepping up its presence among the city’s Jewish communities following two hate-related incidents in Brooklyn over the weekend. The episodes were among a handful recently reported across the US as tensions flared over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Also in Brooklyn, a man last week allegedly tried to set a synagogue and Jewish school on fire. He has been charged with arson. In Los Angeles, a man was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon after an altercation that began with slurs allegedly yelled at patrons at a restaurant.

Belarus’ government is facing international condemnation after President Alexander Lukashenko ordered a fighter jet to escort a re-routed Ryanair flight carrying a leading Belarusian opposition activist. Accounts of why the plane was diverted differ: Ryanair says it was notified of a potential security threat on board; Belarusian authorities claimed the plane’s captain decided to change course after being told of a potential bomb on board. Raman Pratasevich, in exile and a vocal critic of Lukashenko’s regime, was detained when the flight landed in the Belarusian capital of Minsk. The US and the UK are among those questioning Belarus’ motives and accounts of the incident. 

It’s been a rough few days for the cryptocurrency markets, and the woes continued yesterday when Bitcoin prices temporarily fell as much as 13%. The crypto slump began last week when Chinese authorities announced further restrictions on cryptocurrency transactions, resulting in a broad crypto crash that wiped out about $1 trillion in market value. The US has also recently hinted at more restrictions. Cryptocurrencies have always been subject to dramatic ups and downs, but as they become more mainstream, their volatility attracts more scrutiny from experts and investors. Over the long term, however, they’re still going strong: Bitcoin, the most prominent cryptocurrency, is still up more than 250% over the past year.

It was a good weekend to be The Weeknd. 

For those keeping track, that’s 13 (!!!) “Fast & Furious” films so far. (You’d think it would be nine, but real fans know the truth.)

The move is described as a roundoff onto the springboard, then a back handspring onto the vaulting table and a piked double backflip into the air to land. You know, easy peasy. 

That’s how much of Iraq’s oil money has been stolen and smuggled out of the country in corrupt deals since the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Iraqi President Barham Salih estimated. 

Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s de facto leader who was detained at the start of the brutal military coup that upended the country’s government in February. The junta-appointed election commission has said it would dissolve her party because of what it claims was election fraud. Suu Kyi appeared today in court for the first time in person since the coup. 

This song, featuring some autotune magic of the inimitable Mister Rogers, never fails to put me in a good mood. (Click here to view.)