Wednesday, November 18th, 2020
U.S. Troop Drawdown, First At-Home Covid Test & NBA Draft
All the news you need in 10 min:
This episode is brought to you by Fitbod.me/newsworthy and BetterHelp.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…
Trump Cutting Iraq, Afghanistan Troops
The Pentagon announced it’s bringing a couple thousand more American troops home from Afghanistan and Iraq by January 15th. There are currently about 4,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan and 3,000 in Iraq. This new directive will bring troop levels down to 2,500 in each country. The White House national security adviser said the decision fulfilled Trump’s campaign promise to bring an end to “America’s endless wars.” However, some senior lawmakers from both parties worry it could undermine security in the Middle East.
Read More: Reuters, The Hill, Axios, AP
Trump Fires Cybersecurity Official
President Trump fired the top U.S. cybersecurity official at the Department of Homeland Security. Chris Krebs oversaw efforts to safeguard the presidential election. The firing comes a week after he called the 2020 presidential election the “most secure” in American history. Trump accused Krebs of making a “highly inaccurate” statement, saying voting machines changed votes and more. However, he did not provide evidence. Krebs sent out a tweet saying, “Honored to serve. We did it right.”
Read More: AP, Reuters, Trump Tweet, Krebs Tweet
PA Trump Legal Victory Reversed
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court reversed a legal victory for the Trump team. At first, a court order sided with the Trump campaign. It argued poll watchers were not allowed access in Philadelphia because they had to stay at least 15 feet away from vote counters. The judge ordered they could move up to six feet away instead. Well, the state Supreme Court changed that lower court’s decision. It said Pennsylvania law gives local officials leeway to decide the rules themselves.
Read More: Philadelphia Inquirer, Bloomberg, NBC News, FOX News
Biden Names Senior White House Staff
President-elect Biden announced nine new members of his White House staff. They’re a mix of people who have been with him for years and some new faces to the team. For example, Jen O’Malley Dillon is coming on as deputy chief of staff. She is the first woman to run a successful Democratic presidential campaign. Another campaign veteran is Julie Chavez Rodriguez. She’s also a labor activist and former aide to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris. Rodriguez is going to be the director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.
Read More: WaPo, Reuters, WSJ, Axios, Biden-Harris Transition
Hurricane Iota Damage
For the second time in two weeks, people in Central America are recovering from a major hurricane. Iota slammed into Nicaragua just 15 miles from where Hurricane Eta made landfall. Hurricane Iota has since weakened and moved into Honduras, but the threat isn’t over. The storm could still cause deadly landslides and flooding. Already, six people have died. Tens of thousands of people had to move into shelters, joining thousands more who lost their homes during Eta.
Read More: Weather Channel, AP, CNN, NBC News, NHS
How to Help: CNN, MTN, Americares, Heart to Heart, Project HOPE
At-Home Coronavirus Test Authorized
The FDA gave the emergency green light to a new at-home coronavirus test. It requires a prescription from your doctor, but from there, it’s supposed to be easy. You do the nasal swab yourself, then within about half an hour, you’ll have results back. A handful of other at-home tests have already been cleared by the FDA, but those still had to be sent off to a lab for results. With these, the federal government says you should let a healthcare provider know your result, so they can keep track of how the virus is spreading.
Read More: NY Times, CNN, NPR, FDA, Lucira Health
Twitter, Facebook Hearing Takeaways
The CEOs of Twitter and Facebook told lawmakers they did a better job fending off election interference this time around than in 2016. Both Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter’s Jack Dorsey faced tough questions from both sides of the aisle. They appeared by video in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday. Many Republicans complained again about the platforms censoring conservative speech. Democrats argued the platforms weren’t doing enough to stop misinformation.
Read More: NY Times, Reuters, AP, WSJ
Twitter Rolls out “Fleets”
You may notice a new feature in your Twitter app called “fleets.” The name is because they’re fleeting. They look and act like Instagram stories and will disappear after 24 hours. The user’s picture will be at the top of the app. You can click on it to see their message, photo, or video as a fleet. People will be able to respond with a direct message, but they can’t retweet or like them. The social network has already been testing fleets in certain countries. Now, they’ve launched worldwide.
Read More: Reuters, The Verge, Engadget, Twitter
Amazon Starts Selling Prescriptions
Amazon Pharmacy is now open. That means people can start ordering prescriptions through the online retailer and they’ll be delivered within a few days. The company will offer common medications, from pills to creams to insulin. However, it won’t ship drugs that are often abused, like opioids. Amazon says people can sign up for the new pharmacy on its website and have doctors send prescriptions there. It’s now available in all U.S. states except Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, and Minnesota. The company plans to add those five in the coming year.
Read More: CNBC, AP, Axios, Amazon
HBO Max Coming to Amazon Fire TV
HBO Max has finally come to Amazon Fire TV. Even though the new streaming service launched six months ago, it was in a battle with Amazon that delayed its rollout on the platform. That made it tough for some HBO customers to figure out where or how to watch. Now, people can reportedly load HBO Max on their Amazon fire streaming services, like smart TVs and tablets. For now, HBO Max is still unavailable on the Roku devices.
Read More: WSJ, The Verge, Variety
NBA Draft Begins
The 2020 NBA Draft is happening virtually tonight. Players will likely be at home, like the rest of us, waiting for their names to be called. The Minnesota Timberwolves get the first overall pick, followed by the Golden State Warriors and Charlotte Hornets. LaMelo Ball is expected to be one of the top picks, if not the top pick. Other top contenders include James Wiseman and Anthony Edwards. Coverage starts at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Read More: NBA, CBS Sports, AP
Work Wednesday: Deutsche Bank Proposes Work-From-Home Tax
Researchers at Deutsche Bank say remote workers should pay an extra 5% in taxes because they have the privilege of doing their job remotely. They also say remote workers contribute less to the economy because they don’t spend money on things like a daily commute, work clothes, or business lunches. Researchers say this new tax revenue could then go to grants to help low-income workers who can’t work remotely and are putting their health at risk to do their jobs. Still, this is just an idea. It’s not happening anywhere anytime soon.
Read More: Axios, USA Today, CNBC, DB Research