CHICAGO — Democrats across the Midwest are appealing to President Joe Biden to back Chicago as the destination for the 2024 Democratic National Convention, arguing the party must send a strong signal of support if it is to keep its "blue wall" of states intact in the next presidential election.

A band of governors, members of Congress and mayors from Illinois to Minnesota to Kentucky signed a letter Wednesday that was first made available to NBC News, calling on both the White House and Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison to choose Chicago.

Their argument? The so-called blue wall has voted for Democratic presidential candidates since 1992 with one exception – Donald Trump in 2016.

That's when Democrats took their eye off the ball, they say.

All eyes are on New York City’s latest avian celebrity: Flaco the Owl. In February, the Eurasian Eagle-Owl, a large species native to Europe and Asia, escaped his enclosure in the Central Park Zoo after an act of vandalism. News of his escape quickly spread, and almost immediately Flaco became a star of the local birding scene, attracting crowds of birders wherever he has been spotted. Despite initial concerns that he would not be able to feed himself, the owl has been hunting and living alongside native wildlife in Manhattan’s Central Park for more than a month. This success has led a cohort of Flaco fans to argue that he should be allowed to continue to live freely.

But in an urban setting, Flaco, who previously spent his entire life in captivity, faces life-threatening risks—from rat poison in his diet to collisions with vehicles or buildings. He also could potentially harm other wildlife in the park by preying on native birds, which he far outsizes. Many conservationists and raptor experts argue it is better for him and his surroundings if he returns to his “home” in the zoo.

The saga started on February 2 at 8:30 p.m., when Central Park Zoo staffers found Flaco missing from his enclosure, which is “the size of a bus stop,” Gothamist reported. Vandals had cut a hole in the enclosure's stainless steel mesh large enough for Flaco to slip out, according to a statement from the zoo, which is run by the Bronx-based nonprofit Wildlife Conservation Society. The culprits have not been identified as of March 6, the police say.

Later that evening, passersby spotted Flaco exploring Manhattan’s busy Upper East Side neighborhood, which is next to his home of 13 years. He spent some time on the sidewalk near the Sherry-Netherland Hotel on 5th Avenue, about 380 yards from the zoo, before flying south, according to the NYPD’s 19th Precinct. Onlookers then located him perched on a tree near the luxury department store Bergdorf Goodman before he flew back to Central Park. Since then, Flaco has spent most of his time in and around the park, hopping from one tree to another in forested areas, such as the Hallett Sanctuary at its south end and near the Loch, a narrow waterway in its northern region.

Donald Trump may be in legal trouble over his alleged weakness for vice, but his predicament is increasingly placing Ron DeSantis – his chief rival for the Republican presidential nomination – in a political vise.

The Florida governor must join Republican attacks on Alvin Bragg, the Democratic Manhattan district attorney whose indictment of Trump over a hush money payment to a porn star is reportedly imminent, while trying not to lose ground in a primary he has not formally entered.

DeSantis has floated criticism of Trump over the hush money payment – and indeed did so again on Tuesday in an interview with Fox Nation that prompted Trump to say he was “not working for the people of Florida as he should be”.

The same day, however, a new poll showed how Trump, who is also fundraising off his legal peril, has tightened his grip on the primary race.

France's President Emmanuel Macron addressed his country on Wednesday after weeks of protests and strikes over a plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. During the much-anticipated interview, televised on TF1 and France 2, Macron stood firmly behind his government and the very much controversial retirement plan.

Macron said his disputed pension overhaul was “necessary” to balance France’s pension system over the coming years amid shifting demographics.

“The longer we wait, the more it (the deficit) will deteriorate,” said the French president, whose government has failed to persuade the public – and indeed many economists – of the need for reform.

“This reform is necessary, it does not make me happy. I would have preferred not to do it,” he said, calling for the reform to come into force by the end of 2023.