Search underway for missing Titanic tourist submarine, new abortion polling: 5 Things podcast

On today's episode of the 5 Things podcast: Search underway for missing Titanic tourist submarine

A search continues for the missing Titanic tourist submarine. Plus, USA TODAY Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page looks at polling on abortion one year after the Dobbs decision, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he had a successful trip to China, advocates fear a 'dark money' blitz after an $82.5M transfer for Ron DeSantis' presidential race, and USA TODAY Health Reporter Karen Weintraub looks at how safe it is to boost low testosterone levels.

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Hit play on the player above to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript below. This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.

Taylor Wilson:

Good morning. I'm Taylor Wilson and this is 5 Things you need to know Tuesday, the 20th of June, 2023. Today, the search continues for a tourist submarine looking for the Titanic. Plus where support for legal abortion stands a year after the Dobbs decision, and how safe is boosting your testosterone?

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US and Canadian rescue teams continue to search for a missing submersible used to take groups to view the wreckage site of the Titanic. The submarine left Newfoundland, Canada Sunday morning before a ship supporting the watercraft lost contact about an hour and 45 minutes later. OceanGate Expeditions, a Washington based deep sea exploration company confirmed it owned the submersible and the Coast Guard said yesterday there was one pilot and four paying customers on board. Coast Guard officials said the sub has a 96-hour capability, including oxygen and fuel, meaning it may have around 48 hours remaining as of this morning if still intact.

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Support for legal abortion has risen one year after the landmark Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. That's according to the latest USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll. I spoke with USA TODAY Washington Bureau Chief Susan Page for more of the poll's findings. Welcome back to 5 Things, Susan.

Susan Page:

Hey, it's great to be with you again.

Taylor Wilson:

How have Americans' views on abortion changed over the past year?

Susan Page:

It's so interesting. The views on abortion have been pretty much set in stone for decades, and then we had that important decision one year ago overturning Roe v. Wade. And since then we've seen support for legal abortion rise. In our poll, one in four Americans tell us that the aftermath of the Dobbs decision has made them more supportive of abortion rights.

Taylor Wilson:

And Susan, how do men and women compare in their abortion views over this past year?

Susan Page:

Well, women are more likely to oppose the overturning of Roe v. Wade protections than men do. That's not really the big divide. The big divide continues to be between Democrats and Republicans. We do see a big surge in the proportion of Independent voters who have come to support abortion rights.

Taylor Wilson:

And how do Americans rank abortion compared with other issues ahead of 2024?

Susan Page:

We ask Americans, "What's the most important issue to you in the election next year?" And number one, this won't surprise you, was inflation. And then there was immigration and threats to democracy and gun control, and then abortion. On the other hand, we do find that many Americans, a majority of Americans, say abortion is important to their vote, and 20% of Americans say it's the most important issue to them.

Taylor Wilson:

One goal put forward by some anti-abortion activists is a federal nationwide abortion ban. What did polling find on that idea?

Susan Page:

The idea of a federal law banning abortion is extremely unpopular. 80% overall oppose it. That includes two thirds of Republicans. So if Republicans try to go down that course in Congress, they're going to encounter a lot of public resistance.

Taylor Wilson:

And how do the USA TODAY/Suffolk findings compare with other survey research on this issue?

Susan Page:

Gallup has been asking about abortion since 1975, and they did again last month. And what they found is after the Dobbs decision, support for legal abortion began to rise and it continues to be found at record levels.

Taylor Wilson:

Susan Page, thanks as always.

Susan Page:

Hey, thank you.

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Taylor Wilson:

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met yesterday with Chinese President Xi Jinping and said they agreed to stabilize deteriorating US-China relations. China's main diplomat for the Western hemisphere, Song Tao, said he thought Blinken's visit to China marks a new beginning and both Blinken and XI said they were satisfied with progress made during two days of talks in the highest level US visit to the country in five years. The US said that previously, since 2021, China had declined or failed to respond to over a dozen requests from the Department of Defense for top level dialogues. Still, there was little indication from the US or China that either side is ready to budge on critical issues including Taiwan, trade, human rights conditions, and Russia's war in Ukraine. And Blinken said China is not ready to resume military to military contacts, something the US considers crucial to avoid conflict.

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Advocates are warning of a blitz of so-called dark money spending after the transfer of $82.5 million in funds raised to support Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's governor election campaign to Never Back Down, a political action committee that supports his presidential campaign. The transfer is drawing legal scrutiny and has sparked a formal complaint from the campaign legal center. A PAC called Empower Parents made the transfer, which the legal center claims violates federal laws that bar political candidates from coordinating spending with super PACs. The campaign legal center's Legal Director, Adav Noti, told the USA TODAY Network that there are laws that say if you're running for federal office, you can't control super PAC money. Noti said, "That money was in his state account. He controlled it and he was also running for president at the time. So when he arranged for it to a federal super PAC, he committed a major violation of federal law." Representatives from the DeSantis campaign and Never Back Down did not return requests for comment.

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Boosting testosterone in middle-aged and older men with low levels doesn't appear to increase heart attack risk according to an new study funded by drug makers. I spoke with USA TODAY Health Reporter Karen Weintraub to learn more. Hello Karen.

Karen Weintraub:

Hello.

Taylor Wilson:

So why was this testosterone study done in the first place?

Karen Weintraub:

Yeah, so in 2015 the Food and Drug Administration got concerned that a lot of men were going particularly to these clinics in like strip malls and being diagnosed with low testosterone and put on testosterone without really any evidence of safety, and so particularly cardiac safety. So they were worried about heart attacks or strokes potentially being triggered by this testosterone. So they ordered the companies to do what's called a stage four trial, getting people who were taking testosterone, or starting people on testosterone and seeing what the effect might be on their heart.

Taylor Wilson:

And so what did the study actually find?

Karen Weintraub:

Good news. The study found that it does not have an effect on cardiovascular disease. It did not increase the risk of heart attack or stroke, but it was in a very specific population of people. And the researchers are quick to point out, they looked at people who already had some heart disease risk, they looked at middle-aged and older men, and they used a testosterone gel which upped the testosterone levels a little bit, but not as much as like an injectable would do, which a lot of men get. So for that group of people who got those things, there was not an increased risk - and who took it for two years or thereabouts, there was not an increased risk of heart disease.

Taylor Wilson:

And as you say, this study focused on testosterone gels. Can any of these research findings apply to those who take testosterone in other ways, as you mentioned, like injecting it?

Karen Weintraub:

Right. So the injectables apparently provide often a big spike in testosterone levels short term, but it's not clear whether that spike has a negative effect. Also, they were very clear that athletes and younger men who take testosterone to build up their muscles, this does not at all cover them. They take much, much higher levels of testosterone that are expected to be much riskier, so they should not feel any relief from this study. These are men who have low levels of testosterone to begin with, who have symptoms of that low testosterone, whether it be fatigue, sexual issues, loss of pubic hair, other things like that, bone loss. This might help them in the decision making process, that they don't have to worry now that taking testosterone will increase their heart disease risk. That's the plus here.

Taylor Wilson:

And what questions are left unanswered after this research?

Karen Weintraub:

Lots unfortunately. There are more studies to come, more papers to come out of this trial, which will show us things like whether it had any benefit in addition to not having a big risk taking this amount of test testosterone. What we don't know long-term is does testosterone really improve mood? There have been some reports in smaller studies that said that men feel better if they have low testosterone levels and take testosterone. It also has been suggested that it might reduce osteoporosis risk and diabetes risk, but neither of those is proven.

Taylor Wilson:

All right. USA TODAY Health Reporter Karen Weintraub, thanks so much.

Karen Weintraub:

Thank you.

Taylor Wilson:Thanks for listening to 5 Things. If you like the show, please subscribe and leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts. And if you have any comments, you can reach us at podcasts@usatoday.com. I'm back tomorrow with more of 5 Things from USA TODAY.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Titanic submersible search continues, Blinken on China: 5 Things podcast