Wednesday, November 11th, 2020
All Eyes on Georgia, Veterans Day & Fireballs in the Sky
All the news you need in 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by HelloFresh.com/NEWSWORTHY90 and ButcherBox.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…
NC Senate Race Results
Another tight race in North Carolina effectively came to an end yesterday. North Carolina Democrat Cal Cunningham conceded to the incumbent Republican Sen. Thom Tillis. Tillis’ victory gave the GOP 49 seats in the U.S. Senate. That will likely jump to 50 once Alaska finishes tallying ballots. After Alaska, Republicans will have half of the Senate seats. Democrats and left-leaning Independents have a combined 48 seats. Two are still up in the air.
Read More: AP, USA Today, FOX News, Cunningham Statement
GA Runoffs
Two U.S. Senate races in Georgia were so close on Election Night that they were forced to schedule an automatic January 5th runoff. If Republicans win the two Georgia seats, they’ll have a strong majority in the Senate with 52 seats. If Democrats win them both, that will give the Senate a 50-50 split with the future Vice President Kamala Harris acting as the tie-breaker if needed. In Georgia, Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler is up against Democratic Rev. Raphael Warnock. Republican Sen. David Purdue is facing Democrat Jon Ossoff.
Read More: ABC News, NBC News, Axios
Biden Transition Team Blocked
President-elect Biden says his transition team is preparing for a transfer of power in January. However, the Trump administration is holding things up since the current White House is still challenging the election results in several battleground states. The White House reportedly ordered senior government officials not to cooperate with Biden’s transition team. That means no access to everything from funding to classified information. Biden says the classified information and funding would be nice to have, but “it’s not critical.”
Read More: Politico, NPR, WSJ, CNN, WaPo
U.S. COVID-19 Hospitalizations Hit High
A record number of Americans are now hospitalized with serious cases of COVID-19. As of last night, there were nearly 62,000 coronavirus patients in hospitals around the U.S. The COVID Tracking Project says that’s more than double the number of hospitalizations we saw in September. That’s concerning since health experts think, with winter coming, the trend won’t change directions anytime soon, and medical facilities could become even more overwhelmed when we hit the peak of flu season.
Read More: NY Times, NPR, CNN, COVID Tracking Project
Fauci on Vaccine Availability
The nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, gave more insight on a vaccine timeline. He told CNN if everything goes as planned with approval, the first doses could go out as soon as next month. The CDC decides who gets those, but it will likely be healthcare workers and people with underlying conditions. The majority of Americans will likely be able to get a vaccine by the end of April 2021. Still, more research is needed and the CDC is still working on its distribution plan.
Read More: CNN, Bloomberg, Axios
Veterans Day
It’s Veterans Day. That means it’s time for Americans to celebrate and thank all those who have served in the U.S. armed forces. This year, there will be wreath-laying ceremonies at memorials around the country. Also starting today, veterans and Gold Star families have lifetime access to all national parks and other public federal lands. Today, plenty of restaurants and other businesses are offering discounts and freebies to veterans. You just need a military ID or VA card to take advantage.
Observing Veterans Day: VA.Gov, WaPo, Today, Arlington National Cemetery, NPS
Veterans Day Discounts: USA Today, Newsweek, VA.Gov
Another 2020 Hurricane Season Record
The 2020 hurricane season has hit yet another milestone. Tropical Storm Theta became the 29th named storm of the season. That’s the most ever recorded. Until now, the record was 28, set in 2005. As far as Theta is concerned, it’s expected to stay away from land. Of course, forecasters are watching it closely in case the path changes. Hurricane season runs through November 30th.
Read More: USA Today, WSJ, AP, NHC
Romaine Lettuce Recall
A big batch of romaine lettuce was recalled over concerns it could be contaminated with E. coli. It was sold at more than 1,000 Walmart stores across 22 states. The lettuce was produced by the brand Tanimura & Antle. The affected bags have a “packed on” date of October 15th and October 16th. Officials with the FDA say if you have any at home, you should throw them out. At this point, it’s not clear if the lettuce has made anyone sick.
Read More: USA Today, NBC News, FOX Business, FDA
Apple Event Reveals
Apple unveiled a fleet of new Mac computers. There’s three of them and they’ll all be powered by what the company calls “the most powerful chips.” Apple says these computers will be faster and the battery will last longer. Also, the Macbook Pro will have what Apple calls “studio quality” microphones and improved video quality. The new computers range in price from $700-$1,300. Next, Apple plans to roll out the new chip to the rest of its lineup.
Read More: Engadget, TechCrunch, Reuters, AP, Apple
Country Music Awards Tonight
The 54th annual CMAs are happening tonight, celebrating the best in country music. This year, it will be hosted by singers Reba McEntire and Darius Rucker, live from Nashville’s Music City Center. There won’t be an in-person crowd because of the pandemic, but big-name artists are still planning to perform like Maren Morris, Chris Stapleton, Eric Church, and Rascal Flatts. Miranda Lambert is nominated for the most awards of the night. The show airs at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
Read More: Vulture, Billboard, Rolling Stone, CMAs
Northern Taurid Meteor Shower Peaks
Tonight, you can watch one of the most explosive meteor showers of the year. The Northern Taurid meteor shower is peaking tonight, into tomorrow morning. NASA says stargazers can expect to see about five fireballs an hour. Fireballs are meteors that shine even brighter than Venus, the brightest object in the sky after the moon. They usually last a second or two. That’s more than twice as long as an average meteor. The best time to see this meteor shower is after midnight in your area.
Read More: CNN, Cnet, Space.com
Work Wednesday: Americans Moving Due to Remote Work
A new study by Upwork estimates between 14-23 million Americans plan to relocate soon. A good chunk of those people are leaving major cities and opting for less expensive housing markets instead. The pandemic has made that possible since more people are working remotely and not having to commute to an office. Tech companies like Facebook, Twitter, Square, and Dropbox are letting employees choose permanent remote work, but in some cases, workers leaving the city have to take a pay cut.
Read More: Reuters, UpWork, NPR