AP News Digest 7:10 a.m.
Columbia Basin Herald | UPDATED 6 years AGO
Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.
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TROPICAL WEATHER — A powerful but plodding Hurricane Sally is crawling toward the northern Gulf Coast. Rain from the storm’s outer bands was pummeling northwest Florida early Tuesday, and Gov. Ron DeSantis declared an emergency in two western Panhandle counties. By Stacey Plaisance and Jeff Martin. SENT: 890 words, photo. With TROPICAL WEATHER-BERMUDA — Hurricane Paulette knocked down trees and power lines across Bermuda on Monday as it made a rare landfall in the wealthy British territory and strengthened into a Category 2 storm while still over the island. SENT: 415 words, photo.
ELECTION 2020 — With the smell of California wildfires in the air, President Donald Trump ignored the scientific consensus that climate change is playing a central role in historic West Coast infernos and renewed his unfounded claim that failure to rake forest floors and clear dead timber is mostly to blame. By Jonathan Lemire, Aamer Madhani, Will Weissert and Ellen Knickmeyer. SENT: 1,150 words, photos, video. With ELECTION 2020-CLIMATE-WILDFIRES — Trump and Joe Biden take sharply different stands on climate policy. SENT: 470 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-BIDEN — Joe Biden is making his first trip to Florida as the Democratic presidential nominee, while his campaign is acknowledging concerns about his appeal with Latinos. That voting bloc could be key to victory in a close race against President Donald Trump in a pivotal battleground state. By Will Weissert. SENT: 805 words, photos.
WESTERN WILDFIRES-SMOKY SKIES — People across the West struggled under acrid-yellowish green smog from raging wildfires that seeped into homes and businesses, sneaked into cars through air conditioning vents and caused the temporary closure of iconic locations such as Powell’s Books and the Oregon Zoo. And forecasters say the putrid air — measured as the worst on the planet — could last well into the week. By Sara Cline and Gillian Flaccus. SENT: 1,010 words, photos. With WESTERN-WILDFIRES-ECONOMIC-IMPACT — The fires consuming the forests of California and Oregon and darkening the skies over San Francisco and Portland are also damaging a regional economy already singed by the coronavirus outbreak. SENT: 990 words, photos.
UNITED STATES-MIDEAST — President Trump is set to preside over the signing of historic diplomatic deals between Israel and two Gulf Arab nations that could herald a dramatic shift in Middle East power dynamics. By Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee. SENT: 1,000 words, photo. UPCOMING: 1,100 words after noon event. With TRUMP-FOREIGN POLICY — Trump highlights diplomatic wins, but solutions to the country’s most challenging foreign policy problems are still out of his reach. SENT: 980 words, photos.
GERMANY-RUSSIA-NAVALNY — Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has posted a picture of himself in a hospital in Germany and says he’s breathing on his own. He posted on Instagram Tuesday: “Hi, this is Navalny. I have been missing you. I still can’t do much, but yesterday I managed to breathe on my own for the entire day.” Navalny was flown to Berlin two days after falling ill on a domestic flight in Russia on Aug. 20. A German military lab determined that Navalny was poisoned with Novichok, the same class of Soviet-era agent that Britain said was used on former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, England, in 2018. SENT: 310 words, photo.
ZIMBABWE-RIGHTS ABUSES — Human rights groups warn that critics of President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government are finding themselves thrown in jail and denied bail. They charge that some government opponents have been abducted and tortured. Zimbabwe’s deteriorating economy and reports of alleged corruption involving the procurement of COVID-19 protective equipment and drugs have stoked peoples’ anger at a government that promised reform and prosperity when it took power in 2017. By Farai Mutsaka. SENT: 995 words, photos.
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VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — India has confirmed more than 83,000 new coronavirus cases, bringing its total caseload to nearly 5 million, with 80,776 fatalities. With 4.93 million confirmed cases, India has the second-highest total in the world after the U.S. Infections have maintained an upward surge amid an ease in coronavirus restrictions nationwide. SENT: 510 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-THE LATEST (sent)
VIRUS OUTBREAK-FOOD INSECURITY — Brooklynite Sharawn Vinson felt she had no choice but to send her 11-year-old twins to live with their father in North Carolina after the pandemic threw into doubt her ability to make sure they had enough food. It was a painful decision, but it bought her time to save up money and food stamps, and find a job. By August the kids were able to return in time for a remote graduation and the start of youth football. Vinson is emblematic of some 2 milion New Yorkers facing food insecurity due to the pandemic. By Luis Andres Henao and Jessie Wardarski. SENT: 1,395 words, photos. An abridged version of 1,045 words is available.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-CONGRESS-CDC — A House subcommittee examining President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic is launching an investigation into reports that political appointees have meddled with routine government scientific data to better align with Trump’s public statements. By Mary Clare Jalonick. SENT: 480 words, photos.
Find more coverage on the Virus Outbreak on the featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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LIBYA-MIGRANTS — A boat carrying migrants bound for Europe capsized in the Mediterranean Sea off Libya, leaving at least two dozen people drowned or missing and presumed dead. SENT: 460 words, photos.
MASTERS TICKETS-CONSPIRACY CHARGES — A Georgia man has been sentenced to more than two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to a scheme that used stolen identities to obtain tickets the Masters golf tournament. SENT: 320 words.
OBIT-ANN GETTY — Longtime benefactor of the arts and culture in San Francisco Ann Getty has died. SENT: 400 words, photos.
PEOPLE-BRAD PAISLEY — Brad Paisley and his wife have pledged to donate one million nutritional meals in various cities around the country. SENT: 425 words, photos.
OBIT-FLORENCE HOWE — The co-founder of the Feminist Press and an architect of women’s studies programs has died. Florence Howe was 91. SENT: 885 words.
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WASHINGTON/POLITICS
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ELECTION 2020-HARRIS-POLICING — Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris is drawing on her past as the U.S. faces a reckoning over policing. As a San Francisco prosecutor, Harris declined to seek the death penalty against a young officer’s killer. But as she rose through politics, allies say she’s understood the need to build productive relationships with law enforcement. By Kathleen Ronayne. SENT: 1,135 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-TRUMP RALLIES — President Donald Trump is running as the “law and order” candidate, but that hasn’t stopped him and his reelection campaign from defying state emergency orders and flouting his administration’s coronavirus guidelines as he holds rallies in battleground states. By Jill Colvin. SENT: 1,285 words, photos.
Find more coverage on the 2020 U.S. Elections featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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RACIAL INJUSTICE-DEATH PENALTY — A new report by a think tank examining executions in the United States says death penalty cases show a long history of racial disparity, from who is executed to where and for what crimes. The report by the Death Penalty Information Center says that disparity has roots in the racist lynchings of the past. By Colleen Long. SENT: 820 words, photos.
RACIAL INJUSTICE-HAIR DISCRIMINATION — A growing number of states are facing pressure to ban race-based discrimination against hair texture and styles. By Russell Contreras. SENT: 210 words, photos. UPCOMING: Will be updated after 1 p.m.
SOUTH DAKOTA-ATTORNEY GENERAL-FATAL ACCIDENT — South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg said in a statement late Monday that he discovered he had struck and killed a man walking along a rural stretch of highway only after returning to the scene the next day and discovering the body. The state’s top law enforcement officer said he initially thought he hit a deer while driving home from a Republican fundraiser Saturday night. By Stephen Groves. SENT: 1,070 words, photos.
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CHINA-US-TRAVEL WARNING -- The U.S. has issued a new advisory warning against travel to mainland China and Hong Kong, citing the risk of “arbitrary detention” and “arbitrary enforcement of local laws.” The advisory issued Tuesday warned U.S. citizens that China imposes “arbitrary detention and exit bans” to compel cooperation with investigations, pressure family members to return to China from abroad, influence civil disputes and “gain bargaining leverage over foreign governments.” SENT: 630 words, photos.
ITALY-ROSA PARKS HOME — The run-down, paint-chipped Detroit house where U.S. civil rights icon Rosa Parks took refuge after her historic bus boycott is going on display in Italy. The location, though, is a setting that couldn’t be more incongruous: the imposing central courtyard of the Royal Palace in Naples. It’s the latest stop for the house in a years-long saga that began when Parks’ niece saved the tiny two-story home from demolition in Detroit after the 2008 financial crisis. By Nicole Winfield and Gregorio Borgia. SENT: 670 words, photos.
VENEZUELA-US CITIZEN ARRESTED — Venezuela’s chief prosecutor says a U.S. citizen arrested as a suspected spy has been charged with plotting a terrorist attack to sabotage oil refineries and electrical service. Tarek William Saab said Matthew John Heath had help from at least three Venezuelan conspirators. By Scott Smith. SENT: 710 words, photos.
SKOREA-JAPAN-REPAIRING TIES — When Shinzo Abe recently announced his decision to step down as Japan’s prime minster because of ill health, South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s office issued glowing praise for his unspecified contributions to bilateral ties. The rare accolades came after years of intense disputes over history, trade and military issues that plunged ties between the key U.S. allies to new lows. By Kim Tong-Hyung. SENT: 1,155 words, photos.
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JAPAN-NISSAN TRIAL — The financial misconduct trial of former Nissan executive Greg Kelly has begun with Kelly saying he committed no crimes and was only trying to keep his star boss Carlos Ghosn from leaving. Japanese prosecutors on Tuesday outlined allegations of what they said was a complex and clandestine scheme to pay former star executive Carlos Ghosn. By Yuri Kageyama. SENT: 810 words, photos.
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BILL COSBY — Legal advocates are lining up on both sides of actor Bill Cosby’s appeal as the Pennsylvania Supreme Court prepares to review his 2018 sex assault conviction. Cosby was the first celebrity to go on trial in the #MeToo era, and his appeal could resolve lingering questions about how they should be tried. By Maryclaire Dale. SENT: 645 words, photos.
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BKN--HEAT-CELTICS PREVIEW — Kemba Walker and Jimmy Butler entered the NBA on the same night. They’ve paid their dues since the 2011 NBA draft, and both went to new homes in the summer of 2019 looking for something better. Now here they are: For the first time, Walker and Butler are headed to the Eastern Conference finals. By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds. SENT: 700 words, photos. With BKN--Tipoff (Clippers-Nuggets in Game 7, sent).
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