By Canadian Press

Pope in Quebec and Gun buyback prices: In The News for July 28, 2022

Jul 28, 2022 | 2:17 AM

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of Thursday, July 28, 2022 …

What we are watching in Canada …

Pope Francis is set to begin his second day of events in Quebec’s capital city as part of his tour that he has called a pilgrimage of penance.

The pontiff is scheduled to host his second mass on Canadian soil later this morning. 

The event will take place at the shrine of Ste-Anne-de-Beaupré, east of Quebec City.

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The site is one of the oldest and most popular places of pilgrimage in North America and annually attracts more than one million visitors. 

Organizers expect more than 16,000 people will attend though attendance during events in Alberta has been overestimated.  

Later in the day, he is to attend vespers with church officials in the Cathedral-Basilica of Notre-Dame de Québec.

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Also this …

The federal government is proposing $1,337 in compensation for turning in an AR-15 rifle under a mandatory buyback program.

Public Safety Canada has released a price list detailing how much money owners of banned firearms can expect to get under the program.

At the higher end of the scale, forfeiting a Swiss Arms SG550 could net an owner $6,209.

Ottawa will seek input from gun owners, businesses and industry on the proposed compensation amounts from now until Aug. 28. 

The mandatory buyback program would cover the more than 1,500 models and variants of what the government considers assault-style firearms, banned two years ago.

The government says the proposed price list for individual firearms owners was developed to reflect what Canadians may have paid for an assault-style firearm prior to May 2020.

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What we are watching in the U.S. …

The existential crisis confronting Canada’s automotive industry may finally be over. 

U.S. Democrats Sen. Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin have agreed to propose doing away with a tax-credit plan that favoured American-made electric vehicles. 

Instead, the Senate majority leader and the West Virginia moderate are proposing an amendment to Joe Biden’s climate and health bill that would expand the credits to include all of North America. 

To be eligible for the credits, the amendment would also require that vehicle batteries contain a certain percentage of material sourced from U.S. “free trade” partners. 

The legislation is still a long way from passing — it’s sure to infuriate Senate Republicans, who will be reluctant to give Democrats a legislative win with midterm elections looming in November. 

Manchin is a pivotal vote in the evenly divided Senate, but the bill, expected to reach the Senate floor next week, will still need 60 votes to avoid Republican filibuster tactics. 

“I am very pleased to see that our message has been heard and is reflected in the draft legislation,” Kristen Hillman, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., said in a statement. 

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What we are watching in the rest of the world …

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has warned he’s ready to use his nuclear weapons in potential military conflicts with the United States and South Korea. 

State media reported Kim made such a warning in a Wednesday speech marking the 69th anniversary of the end of the 1950-53 Korean War. 

Some experts say Kim’s threats were apparently meant to boost internal unity in the impoverished country suffering pandemic-related economic difficulties. 

Kim also called South Korea’s new president “a confrontation maniac” who’s gone further than past South Korean leaders. 

Some observers expect more North Korean threats before the United States and South Korea hold military drills the North views as an invasion rehearsal.

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On this day in 1755 …

The Council of Nova Scotia made a decision to deport Acadians on the pretext that they had refused the oath of allegiance to Britain. 

Over the next few years, most of the Acadians, who were the descendants of French settlers, were rounded up and deported, many going to Louisiana. 

Others managed to flee to Quebec or hide. It is estimated about one-half of them died during the expulsion.

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In entertainment …

Can Chris Cuomo live down being fired by CNN and win back a TV audience? We will see, now that he’s about to host another prime-time show in the fall. 

Cuomo says the new gig is on NewsNation, a new cable outlet that’s replacing WGN America. 

At one time, Cuomo was CNN’s most popular prime-time host. But he was fired in December after his bosses said he wasn’t being straight with them about the extent to which he helped his older brother — former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo — dodge a sexual harassment scandal. 

CNN has yet to name a full-time host to replace Cuomo in its 9 p.m. Eastern slot.

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Did you see this?

“Leave It to Beaver” actor Tony Dow has died. 

His agent says Dow died Wednesday at age 77.  

As Wally Cleaver on the beloved sitcom that ran on CBS and ABC from 1957 to 1963, Dow helped create the popular and lasting image of the 20th century American teenager. 

Wally was the just-a-little-wiser big brother “Beaver” Cleaver, played by Jerry Mathers. Dow would revive the role of Wally in a 1980s sequel series and also worked as a television director. 

Dow announced in May that he had been diagnosed with prostate and gall bladder cancer.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 28, 2022

The Canadian Press