the president s visit comes as his administration is facing mounting pressure following this, you know, 41-year inflation high that we re seeing and a huge surge in gas prices. the nation s national average for gas, $5.02 a gallon now. all of this as a key inflation measure slowed slightly last month. also this morning, the white house is now confirming that the president will be traveling to the middle east, specifically to israel and saudi arabia, in july. we re also learning his visit will include a meeting with the saudi crown prince, mohammed bin salman. remember, president biden had previously called the kingdom a pariah for its role in the killing of washington post journalist jamal khashoggi. that was before he became president. we ll have much more on that in a moment. plus, the january 6th committee is postponing now a hearing that was scheduled for tomorrow. a member of the committee saying this was due to technical issues. we ll be live on capitol hill with
another prisoner swap? then, the same kind of technology used for the best covid vaccines, mrna, is showing promise in treating other conditions, including some cancers. welcome to the lead. i m jake tapper. we start with our money lead. prices are up and the stock market is down. president biden is trying to put a positive spin on the economy, today insisting that tackling the worst inflation the u.s. has seen in decades remains a top priority. during a speech in front of the afl-cio in philadelphia, the president touted his administration s coronavirus relief efforts, record new job creation, and low unemployment levels. sure, but that s likely little consolation to the millions of americans paying record prices for everything from food to gasoline. especially as many economists predict the federal reserve will drastically hike interest rates tomorrow to try to get control of the inflation. president biden will try to address one of those crises, gas prices, now avera
infections. and likely unconstitutional. a florida judge appointed by ron desantis says the governor s proposed congressional map is not fair because the judge says it boxes out black voters. but we begin this hour in europe with a dramatic example of how vladimir putin s war in ukraine is backfiring. today finland s leaders say they support ending decades of neutrality and joining nato. the nato chief promises a quick welcome if finland follows through and applies to join the alliance. the kremlin says finland joining nato would definitely pose a threat to russia s security. the president of finland says putin has one man to blame for this decision. well, if that would be the case that we join, my response would be that you caused this. look at the mirror. sweden could soon follow finland. new nato members would redraw the security map and expand along russia s border the alliance putin hoped to weaken with his assault on ukraine. we begin our coverage with h helsinki an
Violent tornado. David unbelievable. Catastrophic tornadoes tearing across the plains leaving Dozens Injured and many homes destroyed. 60 million Americans Still under Severe Weather threats across the nation. Were going to take you to hardhit elkhorn, nebraska, in just a moment. And if to New York City where Columbia University still is, quote, negotiating with indianaisrael protesters antiisrael protesters camped out on its lawn. Were going to talk to a democrat who says t time to break it up there and across the country. Miss, with protests growing and legal battles brewing, these two candidates say they are ready to start debating, but will it ever happen . Welcome, everyone. Im david asman in for neil cavuto, this is cavuto lye. More on that potential debate coming up cavuto live. First, to those disastrous tornadoes. Fox weathers Nicole Value December is in elkhorn, nebraska, with the very latest. Reporter good morning. Just horrific images coming out of state of nebraska. But as