PoliticsUSA TODAY OpinionBiden wants a referendum on Trump the person. That's because Trump's agenda is better than his.
He needs the election to be a choice between himself and the radical Democrats who would “transform” (Joe Biden's word) America for the worse. This is the framing of the race he can win. Diminished, passive and transitional Objectively, Joe Biden is clearly past his prime.
U.S.INSIDERA Georgia police officer was fired after a viral TikTok showed him tasing a Black woman outside her home
A police officer from the Gwinnett County Police Department in Georgia was fired after a viral video on TikTok showed he used a Taser on an unarmed woman outside her mother's home. Former officer Michael Oxford had been placed on desk duty following the Tuesday incident but was later fired, the Gwinnett County Police Department announced on Friday, citing inappropriate conduct in the field. "The investigation in this case has shown that Officer Oxford violated our policy and did not meet our core values," the department said in a statement.
U.S.Business InsiderHealth officials in 3 states have traced new COVID-19 cases to the Sturgis motorcycle rally where hundreds of thousands of bikers gathered
Health officials in South Dakota, Nebraska, and Minnesota have now traced multiple new COVID-19 cases back to a motorcycle rally held in Sturgis, South Dakota between August 7 and 16. The rally, which drew hundreds of thousands of bikers to the 6,900-person city, has been tied to 15 new coronavirus cases in Nebraska, seven in Minnesota, and multiple incidences in South Dakota, according to CNN. The event was one of the largest public gatherings in the US since the coronavirus pandemic began.
PoliticsThe Independent‘He took all that money from Build the Wall’: Bannon jokes about financial fraud in resurfaced video
Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Steve Bannon joked about fraud at a We Build the Wall fundraising event, in a clip that has resurfaced the day after his arrest. Mr Bannon was indicted on Thursday, alongside three others, for allegedly funnelling “hundreds of thousands of dollars” from the We Build the Wall online fundraising campaign to the founder of the organisation, Brian Kolfage, who was among those charged. We Build the Wall started as a GoFundMe campaign in 2018, and was created to help raise money from public funding to go directly towards building the the US-Mexico border wall at a time when the president was struggling with Congress.
U.S.BBCGolden State Killer sentenced to life in prison
After sitting silent and expressionless throughout victims' testimony this week, DeAngelo addressed those in court on Friday, removing his mask and rising from a wheelchair to speak, shortly before Judge Michael Bowman began the sentencing. "I've listened to all of your statements. Each one of them.
U.S.Business InsiderLeaked USPS email tells postal workers not to reconnect or reinstall sorting machines 'that have been previously disconnected'
A leaked email to United States Postal Service employees instructed them to not reassemble mail sorting machines that have been dismantled, CNN first reported. The note, written by Kevin Couch, a maintenance operations director, said that workers were "not to reconnect/reinstall machines that have been previously disconnected without approval from HQ Maintenance." Just hours before, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said that all service changes will be paused until after Election Day.
CelebrityINSIDERDouble tragedy for Larry King as his son and daughter die in the space of 3 weeks
Famed TV interviewer Larry King is mourning the loss of two children, who died in the space of three weeks, according to Page Six. Daughter Chaia, 52, died on Thursday after battling lung cancer, following the sudden death of his son, Andy, 65. Larry and his remaining three children were said to be "distraught."
- EntertainmentFOX News Videos
NYPD officer shares his experience as a minority member of law enforcement
An anonymous police officer sits down with 'Fox & Friends Weekend' co-host Will Cain to tell all.
PoliticsUSA TODAYFact check: DNC didn't leave out 'under God' from the Pledge of Allegiance
The claim: The phrase 'Under God' was skipped during the Pledge of Allegiance at the Democratic National Convention Following the four-day virtual convention, social media posts emerged claiming that Democrats abstained from saying "under God" during the Pledge of Allegiance. The claim was initially shared on Facebook by former U.S. Republican senatorial candidate Peggy Hubbard. "The DNC omitted, One Nation Under God.
WorldReutersAustralia virus cases dive to five-week low
Australia headed for its lowest daily increase in coronavirus infections in five weeks on Friday as the hotspot state of Victoria neared the midway point of lockdown, prompting the prime minister to hail "a week of increased hope". While the rest of Australia eases restrictions, the home state of a quarter of its population is in a six-week lockdown due to a second wave of virus infections. Victoria reported 179 new cases in the past 24 hours, from 240 a day earlier and down from over 700 a day two weeks ago.
PoliticsBusiness InsiderGOP Sen. Martha McSally of Arizona suggests supporters should 'fast a meal' and donate money saved to her campaign as she lags in fundraising
Sen. Martha McSally of Arizona suggested her supporters should "fast a meal" and donate the money saved to her campaign as she falls behind in the polls to keep her Senate seat, according to audio obtained by a local news outlet. McSally reportedly made the suggestion at an event in northern Arizona, according to the audio obtained by Arizona Family. "There's an air war going on on television right now, right, you see it," McSally said in the audio.
U.S.USA TODAYLouisiana officers fire 11 rounds, fatally shooting Black man; state police investigate
A Black Lafayette man, shot Friday night by police in a flurry of 11 gunshots while surrounded by a half dozen officers, died following an incident some community leaders argue should not have ended in the fatal shooting. Louisiana State Police identified the man killed as 31-year-old Trayford Pellerin and said he was carrying a knife when police first fired a stun weapon at him and later shot and killed him. Rickasha Montgomery, a witness who filmed a video of the police shooting of the suspect, said she saw what appeared to be a knife in the man's hand.
PoliticsThe Independent‘The worst president’: 95-year-old Republican World War II veteran says he regrets voting for Trump and now backs Biden
A 95-year-old World War II veteran and longtime Republican, called Donald Trump the “worst” president the US has ever had and praised Democratic candidate Joe Biden, ahead of November's presidential election. On Thursday, Edward Good spoke at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) and praised Mr Biden, after multiple other Republicans endorsed the Democratic presidential candidate earlier in the week. Mr Good revealed that he voted for Mr Trump in 2016, but told those watching the virtual convention that he regretted voting for the president and revealed that he is now backing Mr Biden, according to the Daily Mail.
U.S.National ReviewSuspect in Portland Beating Turns Himself in
The suspect in the beating of a truck driver in downtown Portland turned himself in Friday morning, police said. “I am pleased the suspect in this case turned himself in and appreciate all of the efforts to facilitate this safe resolution,” Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell said in a statement on Friday. A crowd of rioters in downtown Portland beat a man unconscious Sunday night after dragging him from his truck, video footage of the incident shows.
U.S.The Daily BeastEmails Show Georgia School District Asked Students to Disinfect Classrooms for Volunteer Hours
The email from the principal had a lighthearted, friendly tone, but the news she delivered was alarming: Three more students at Creekview High School in Canton, Georgia, had tested positive for the coronavirus—the fourth such letter sent to parents that week. “Come to CVHS to see our lady Grizzlies play at 9:00 10:00 or 12:30,” she wrote. Two days later, after 25 students tested positive and more than a quarter of the student body was placed in quarantine, the entire school was shut down.
PoliticsThe Independent‘You are an idiot’: Trump mocked for tweeting about ‘entrance requirements’ to virtual DNC
Donald Trump has been mocked for suggesting that people needed ID to attend this year's virtual Democratic National Convention (DNC). “To get into the Democrat National Convention, you must have an ID card with a picture...” In years gone by, those wishing to attend the DNC have been asked to buy a ticket and provide photographic ID to gain entry.
TechnologyBusiness InsiderA US Air Force F-16 pilot just battled AI in 5 simulated dogfights, and the machine emerged victorious every time
An artificial intelligence program developed by Heron Systems went head-to-head against a seasoned Air Force F-16 pilot in a simulated dogfight Thursday. Heron's AI achieved a flawless victory with five straight wins. The "WWII-style" dogfight was part of DARPA's AlphaDogfight competition, which is designed to advance the agency's efforts to build trust in AI and develop manned-unmanned teaming capabilities.
- U.S.Reuters
Rescuers recover two bodies in Texas offshore explosion
The bodies of two of four workers missing after a dredging vessel caught fire and sank in Corpus Christi, Texas, harbor were recovered on Saturday, the U.S. Coast Guard said. Four workers on the dredging vessel Waymon L Boyd went missing on Friday after the vessel caught fire in the Corpus Christi ship channel. The search for the other two missing employees is continuing, Coast Guard officials said.
PoliticsUSA TODAYHouse poised to pass additional $25 billion for Postal Service as Trump tweets opposition
The House of Representatives is poised to pass legislation Saturday to prevent any further changes at the United States Postal Service and to provide $25 billion in funding ahead of an expected surge in mail-in ballots in the November election. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told the Louisville Courier-Journal Tuesday he was doubtful a bill only addressing the Postal Service could pass the Senate. The White House said Friday it would veto the bill, calling it an "overreaction to sensationalized media reports."
PoliticsThe Daily BeastRush Limbaugh: Biden’s ‘Flawless’ DNC Speech ‘Had to Be Taped’
On Thursday night, a series of Fox News hosts and commentators readily acknowledged that Joe Biden “blew a hole” in President Donald Trump's depiction of him as a demented old man by delivering a highly effective speech at the Democratic National Convention. Rush Limbaugh has a different theory. The conservative radio host who not so long ago received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Trump during a State of the Union address, spent his show Friday pushing the notion that Biden did not, in fact, deliver his speech live.
WorldBBCTech Tent: Can we trust algorithms?
It appears to have been chosen by politicians with the aim of avoiding grade inflation - that is a big rise in top grades compared with previous years. But what it meant was that if nobody in a school had been awarded an A grade in the previous year, no student - however outstanding - could get one this year. Very soon after the results were released, it became evident that there were thousands of cases where young people had been treated unfairly - even if the overall political goal had been achieved.
PoliticsAssociated PressAppeals court won't step in for now on Trump tax records
A federal appeals court said Friday it wouldn't step in right away to delay New York prosecutors' effort to get President Donald Trump's tax records, potentially leaving the Supreme Court as his most promising option to block prosecutors' subpoena. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied Trump's request to immediately put Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr.'s subpoena on hold while Trump appeals to try to get it invalidated. The appeals court said it would hold a hearing on the request for a delay, but not until Sept. 1.
WorldThe Daily BeastHow We Cover Dictators, Dissidents, and Dangerous Places
Editor's note: Our beloved World Editor Christopher Dickey wrote this ode to The Daily Beast's coverage and to his network of foreign correspondents just weeks before he suddenly passed away. PARIS—At The Daily Beast we like to say our world news coverage focuses on “dictators, dissidents, and dangerous places,” but when we first came up with that alliterative motto I don't think any of us imagined we'd see so many reflections of dictatorship, dissent, and danger in the United States. In fact, international news and U.S. news are perilously intertwined in ways they never have been before, feeding off of each other in a constant rush of events that The Daily Beast is covering around the globe and around the clock.
BusinessReutersModerna says more than 40% of participants enrolled for COVID-19 vaccine trial
In a tweet, the company also said that 18% of the participants currently enrolled are Black, Latino, American Indian or Alaska Native, groups among the hardest hit by the coronavirus virus pandemic. Moderna began the study of its vaccine candidate, mRNA-1273, in July and expects to complete enrollment in September. Moderna, which has never brought a vaccine to market, had earlier received nearly $1 billion from the U.S. government, which is helping bankroll several vaccine candidates under its Operation Warp Speed program.
U.S.The IndependentMinneapolis police officer Thomas Lane didn’t check George Floyd’s ‘counterfeit’ $20 note
The alleged counterfeit $20 bill used by George Floyd wasn't inspected or collected before his fatal arrest in Minneapolis, according to one of the first officers at the scene. Former police officer Thomas Lane said in newly-released audio that he didn't obtain the bill before, during or after the incident that led to Mr Floyd's death on 25 May. In response to questioning by the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Mr Lane said that he didn't look at the alleged $20 forgery being held by the Cup Foods worker identifying Mr Floyd.
“Harris brings an unusual blend of social justice progressiveness and law-and-order conservatism.”
“It's hard to imagine Trump-skeptical independents now aching to pull the trigger for Biden with Kamala on the ticket.”
“If Biden wishes, he can delegate the daily barrage of rebukes against his opponent to her. Biden now can rise above the fray.”
“Voters viewed her as among the most qualified to be president on Day 1 — a key positive.”
“Here’s a reality check: Running mates have very little direct effect on voters.”