News from around the nation.

North Dakota's abortion ban overturned; Trump holds campaign rally in Tucson, his first since debate with Harris. NY groups expand support for federal voting rights bills; Ohio leaders clash over migrant influx, persistent rumors; Already largest in world, Oregon's dark sky sanctuary expected to grow.

Transcript

The Public News Service Daily Newscast, September the 13th, 2024.

I'm Mike Clifford.

In the near future, abortion care restrictions in North Dakota are expected to be lifted.

That after a monumental court ruling on Thursday.

The state judge said North Dakota's ban on the procedure, part of a wave of abortion laws that stem from the U.S.

Supreme Court's Dahms case, violates the state's constitution.

Prior to this week's decision, the state's lone abortion provider moved its clinic just across the border to Minnesota.

But Dr. Ana Tobias, an obstetrician and gynecologist in Bismarck, says physicians in hospital settings had been weighed down by uncertainties about what to do in cases of medical exceptions under the law.

We have been made to choose between saving a patient's life and possibly facing jail time.

Tobias, a plaintiff in the case, says while there are no more abortion clinics in North Dakota, hospitals can at least step in during pregnancy complications without legal ramifications getting in the way.

I'm Mike Moen.

Meantime, 2024 Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump held a Thursday campaign rally in Tucson.

It is his first since this week's debate with Vice President Kamala Harris.

The former president told the crowd the debate was a victory for him, but said he won't participate in another one.

He thinks it's too late in the election cycle and early voting has already begun in some states.

Since the debate, new polling shows Harris has widened her lead over Trump by five points during his speech in Arizona's second largest city.

Trump touched on the economy and the housing crisis, two issues he pledges he'll fix.

But now Arizonans are experiencing an affordability crisis.

And this is a crisis of historic proportions.

You agree?

You know that.

You know what's going on in this area in particular.

Today not a single major city in Arizona is considered affordable.

Not one.

The Center for the Future of Arizona has found almost 80 percent of likely voters across political ideologies agree the state needs more affordable housing.

Another key issue is immigration, with 82 percent of likely voters saying they consider the U.S. southern border an international humanitarian crisis.

I'm Alex Gonzalez reporting.

Reuters notes the recent debate attracted 67.1 million television viewers, according to Nielsen data.

And New York groups are building support with federal lawmakers for several voting rights bills.

In passing the Freedom to Vote Act, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, and the Native American Voting Rights Act, some hope to clarify how a person can access their ballot.

New York has passed a series of voting rights protections since 2020, though attacks on them persist.

Che Trumac-Clue with the American Federation of Teachers says the federal bills create fair elections.

The John Lewis Act provides for federal review of changes to ensure new changes are not discriminatory.

I think that's very, very important.

And also the equal access to the ballot box.

I'm Edwin J. Vieira.

This is Public News Service.

Tensions are rising in Springfield, Ohio, as controversial claims from Senator J.D. Vance about migrants in the area have garnered national attention.

Vance has suggested that migrants have caused significant issues in the community, including allegations of pets being abducted and eaten, a claim that was referenced during Tuesday's presidential debate by former President Donald Trump.

While the validity of these claims remains unclear, they have fueled debates surrounding immigration policy.

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine responded to the situation.

This is something that came up on the internet, and the internet can be quite crazy sometimes.

And look, the mayor, Mayor Rue of Springfield says, no, there's no truth in that.

They have no evidence of that at all.

While the claims about pets being abducted have not been substantiated, DeWine emphasizes that Springfield has faced challenges with a rapid influx of migrants.

The city of about 58,000 residents has seen an increase in its Haitian population, with estimates ranging from 15,000 to 20,000 under temporary protection status.

Farah Siddiqi reporting.

And a new study addresses the major impacts severe weather events worldwide have had on crops from lost income and higher food prices to rising levels of hunger.

The report says this is especially true in low and middle income countries that rely heavily on farming.

But food insecurity is also on the rise in Nebraska and nationwide, according to the USDA.

Nationwide, the agency says over a million more Americans were food insecure in 2023 than in 2022.

Eric Saviano with Nebraska Appleseed says the data shows a marginal increase in food insecurity in Nebraska, as it has in the past two years.

There's more people who do not know where their next meal is coming from, and there's more people who don't have the food that they need.

It's worse for people who are black and who are Hispanic, and it's worse for families with kids.

The study identifies a number of U.S. policies that could strengthen global food security.

Several focus on women, whom the study says are disproportionately affected.

I'm Debra Van Fleet.

Finally, our Eric Kadolf lets us know a sanctuary for stargazing in Oregon is the largest in the world and is set to get even bigger.

In eastern Oregon, the organization Dark Sky International declared 2.5 million acres of the Oregon Outback International Dark Sky Sanctuary in the first phase of its process in March.

It plans to increase the sanctuary to more than 11 million acres in the next few years.

Damon Motts-Storey is the Oregon State Chapter Director of the Sierra Club and recently visited the area.

Anybody who's visited it on a clear summer night or otherwise will agree that it is very spectacular.

It's a very unique and amazing place to stargaze and get into astronomy.

Motts-Storey says the area is far from urban centers and it's estimated that more than two and a half times as many stars are visible than in urban areas.

This is Mike Clifford.

Thank you for wrapping up your week with public news service.

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