Wednesday, August 19th, 2020
Election Interference Report, Wall Street Record & New Girl Scout Cookie
All the news you need in 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by www.Rothys.com/newsworthy
Story Summaries
All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want reading about the latest happenings…
Postal Service Suspends Cuts
The postmaster general says he’ll hold off on cutbacks because of growing concerns they could threaten mail-in voting. In the last few weeks, Louis DeJoy introduced measures like eliminating overtime for mail carriers, reducing post office hours, and removing mailboxes. However, DeJoy says he’s pressing pause “to avoid even the appearance of impact on election mail.” That’s a reversal from last week, when he warned that nearly every state might have ballots go uncounted because of slowdowns. Changes will likely still happen, but not until after the election.
Read More: AP, WaPo, Axios, CNN
Current Coronavirus Outbreaks
The World Health Organization’s latest warning is that COVID-19 outbreaks are being driven by people in their 20s, 30s, and 40s, especially those who don’t know they’re infected. The biggest concern is that young adults are infecting the most vulnerable populations, like people who are sick, or elderly. As of early this morning, more than 22 million people have been infected with COVID-19 around the world.
Read More: Johns Hopkins, Reuters, WaPo, CNBC
Latest College Changes
More universities are scaling back fall semester plans because of COVID-19 outbreaks. The University of Notre Dame announced it will stop in-person classes for at least two weeks, hoping to get current outbreaks under control. Michigan State University made an announcement saying it will shift to remote learning for the entire fall semester. About 190 got sick there before classes even started.
Read More: AP, CNN, Poynter, Inside HigherEd
Senate Report on Russia Investigation
A bipartisan Senate committee finished an exhaustive investigation into how Russia meddled in the 2016 election. It released the fifth and final volume of its report yesterday. It found President Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was a “grave counterintelligence threat,” due to his “willingness to share information with individuals closely affiliated with the Russian intelligence services.” However, it found "no evidence" of collusion between President Trump and the Kremlin.
Read More: WaPo, Axios, NBC News, NY Times, WSJ, Full Report
DNC Day 2 Recap/Day 3 Preview
On the second night of the Democratic National Convention, Democrats formally made Joe Biden their presidential nominee. He received enough delegate support during the roll-call vote last night. Big-name speakers from night two included former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter. Former Republican Secretary of State Colin Powell also threw his support behind Biden. Tonight, U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris will give a speech to formally accept the nomination for vice president. Other speakers include former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Barack Obama.
Read More: Politico, CNN, WSJ, WaPo, ABC News, CBS News
Trump RNC Speech Preview
President Trump is previewing what we can expect at next week’s Republican National Convention. Trump announced he will formally accept his party’s nomination at the White House. The president says by having his speech there, he’s saving money on travel and security costs. That same night, the RNC is reportedly planning a fireworks show at the Washington Monument. The event starts Monday and runs through Thursday.
Read More: WaPo, USA Today, FOX News
S&P 500 Closes at Record High
The economy as a whole might have a long road to recovery ahead, but the stock market is soaring. The S&P 500 closed at its highest level ever yesterday. It’s now up 5% this year. This is also the fastest-ever recovery from a bear market. Tech giants like Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon were big drivers in the comeback. That’s because people have needed to spend money on new networking, communications, and online shopping services.
Read More: CNBC, WSJ, WaPo, AP
Oracle in Talks to buy TikTok
Microsoft is no longer the only big American company in talks to buy TikTok. The software giant, Oracle, is now also reportedly interested in cutting a deal with TikTok’s Chinese parent company, ByteDance. Oracle reportedly wants to acquire TikTok’s business in the U.S., Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. President Trump says he’s open to the idea. He has threatened to ban the app in the U.S., unless an American company takes over.
Read More: CNBC, The Guardian, Reuters, WSJ
Asteroid Makes Close Pass by Earth
An asteroid just came closer to Earth than any other space rock ever. It was small, about the size of a car. It passed within 1,800 miles of our planet Sunday. Scientists have never seen an asteroid get that close without actually hitting Earth. Astronomers didn’t know it was coming. They reportedly only discovered it after it passed. That’s likely because it was so small and the fact that it was moving at 27,000 miles per hour.
Read More: Space.com, CBS News, Cnet
New Toast-Yay Girl Scout Cookie
The Girl Scouts are coming out with a new cookie flavor. This one is called Toast-Yay! It’s supposed to taste like french toast dipped in frosting. It will go on sale next year alongside the usual annual favorites like Thin Mints, Samoas, and Tagalongs. Cookie season typically starts in the winter, after Christmas. However, the exact date varies by region.
Read More: USA Today, CNN, Forbes, Girl Scouts
Work Wednesday: Amazon Adding Thousands of Corporate/Tech Jobs
Amazon is on another hiring spree. The online retailer announced it is looking to fill thousands of corporate and technology positions. It now has 3,500 positions open, including ones for software engineers, data scientists, and product managers. The jobs are in major cities like Dallas, Detroit, New York, San Diego, Phoenix, and Denver.
Read More: TechCrunch, CNBC, Amazon