Severe weather conditions across the U.S. could disrupt holiday travel this weekend, as millions of people set out to reach their destinations or return home. The National Weather Service is forecasting tornadoes and thunderstorms, heavy rain, and wind in many regions.

An outbreak of severe thunderstorms with tornadoes is possible Saturday in parts of East Texas, the Lower Mississippi Valley, the Tennessee Valley, and central Gulf Coast states. Baton Rouge and Shreveport, La.; Mobile and Tuscaloosa, Ala.; and Jackson, Miss., are among cities under serious threat. Flash flooding, tropical storm strength wind gusts, and up to two-inch sized hail are possible in some places.

National Weather Service meteorologist Frank Pereira says long-range tornadoes could strike some communities from the Texas-Louisiana border, northern and central Louisiana, and into parts of Mississippi.

“They could stay on the ground for quite a while and they could be very strong tornadoes, EF3, which is really significant,” he said. “Once they touch down, they remain on the ground, and can do damage over quite a length, quite a distance.”

The potential for dangerous storms and twisters comes as many are traveling for the holidays. Auto club AAA projects a record 119 million people are traveling through New Year’s Day. Nearly 107 million are traveling the nation’s highways. About 8 million are estimated to be flying, many through the nation’s busiest airline hubs.

More than 3,000 U.S. flights were delayed as of Saturday morning, according to FlightAware.com.

For parts of western Oregon and northern California, heavy rain and strong winds are in the forecast this weekend, with the worst conditions Saturday. Pereira says the atmospheric river is likely to return to the region and could cause flash flooding and other headaches.

“By the time we get into Monday, Tuesday, things should start to taper off. We could see an uptick later in the week, Tuesday, Wednesday, but currently that round doesn’t look as heavy as what is currently ongoing,” he said.

Meanwhile, it’s not likely to be a white New Year. Outside of higher elevations in the West, forecasters are not calling for snow. Instead, well-above normal temperatures are expected in much of the country in the coming days.

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(portmanteau noun) the backlash against environmental policies. Not to be confused with greenwashing, green hushing or green wishing

It seems it was only yesterday that green policies were on the march. If it wasn’t the US passing the biggest climate law in the country’s history, it was the EU legislating for the world’s first major carbon border tax or the UK pledging to end sales of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030. 

Green progress was especially notable in Europe. By 2022, the EU’s renewable power generation had boomed so much that solar and wind overtook gas for the first time. EU emissions plunged 8 per cent in 2023, the steepest annual fall in decades outside of 2020.

But as climate promises were becoming a reality, inflation was spurring cost of living anxieties. Net zero-sceptic populist parties seized on these to denounce green policies as a costly elitist plot against working people. 

As 2023 turned into 2024, the green march began to stumble. Companies backed away from green targets. Germany watered down a contentious heat pump law that had helped to push the far-right AFD party’s poll numbers above 20 per cent. Brussels scrapped a plan to halve pesticide use. Green parties were hammered in June’s European parliament elections.  

In the UK, the former Conservative government pushed back the ban on new petrol and diesel cars to 2035. 

Yet the Conservatives still suffered a crushing election loss to the Labour party, which pledged to restore the 2030 target and is still committed to an ambitious decarbonisation agenda. 

That’s a reminder that the greenlash has limits, as does China’s remorseless charge towards green energy supremacy. But with an incoming Trump administration expected to reverse climate policies, and populism showing no sign of easing in Europe, it is clear that fraught green politics are by no means at an end.

pilita.clark@ft.com

Putin Aide Suggests Punishing Europe Over Its ‘Bloodthirsty Policies’ Against Russia | Ukraine War

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has called for decisive action against Europe, accusing it of “anti-Russian” policies and advocating political, economic, and hybrid measures to punish European nations aligned with the U.S. His remarks came after a Norwegian ship allegedly refused to rescue Russian sailors following the sinking of a Russian freighter, exacerbating tensions. Medvedev also suggested fostering internal instability within Europe and labeled its policies as deceitful, brainless, and bloodthirsty.

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