Nation & World Glance
NEW YORK — New York billionaire Michael Bloomberg urged world leaders not to follow President Donald Trump’s lead on climate change and declared his intention to help save an international agreement to reduce carbon emissions.
Bloomberg, who considered a presidential bid after serving three terms as New York City’s mayor, addressed his intensifying focus on climate change in an interview with The Associated Press. He said there was no political motive tied to last week’s release of his new book, “Climate of Hope: How Cities, Businesses, and Citizens Can Save the Planet,” co-authored by former Sierra Club executive director Carl Pope.
“I’m not running for office,” the 75-year-old Bloomberg said.
Instead of helping to reignite his political career, he said the new book offered a specific policy objective: To help save an international agreement, negotiated in Paris, to reduce global carbon emissions.
The Trump administration is debating whether to abandon the pact as the president promised during his campaign. Under the agreement, the U.S. pledged that by 2025 it would reduce its annual greenhouse gas emissions by 26 to 28 percent below 2005 levels, which would be a reduction of about 1.6 billion tons.
Pence to cut short his trip to Hawaii
PAGO PAGO, American Samoa — US Vice President Mike Pence plans to shorten his visit to Hawaii ahead of a busy week for President Donald Trump.
Pence’s office said he will depart Hawaii on Monday afternoon after meeting with U.S. Pacific Command leaders and troops stationed in Honolulu. Plans for a Tuesday visit to the USS Arizona in Pearl Harbor have been postponed, Pence’s office said.
Trump reaches his 100th day in office on Saturday. Pence was returning early to assist with a busy agenda that includes health care, a tax overhaul and a budget agreement this week.
Pence is wrapping up a tour of Asia that included stops in South Korea, Japan, Indonesia and Australia.
Police stop 12-year-old boy from driving across Australia
SYDNEY — Outback police have arrested a 12-yearold boy who was almost a third of his way toward driving solo across Australia.
The unlicensed boy had driven more than 1,300 kilometers (800 miles) from his home in Kendall on the east coast when he was stopped by traffic police on Saturday on the Barrier Highway near the remote mining town of Broken Hill.
He was pulled over because a bumper bar was dragging on the road, a police statement said Sunday.
Police said he was driving to the west coast city of Perth, more than 4,100 kilometers (2,500 miles) from Kendall. Police have released no details on why the boy wanted to drive to Perth, whether he would be charged or whether he had refueled during his journey.