AP News Digest 3 a.m.
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TOP STORIES
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ELECTION 2020 — President Donald Trump plans to cast his vote in his adopted home state, Florida, before campaigning in North Carolina, Ohio and Wisconsin. Challenger Joe Biden returns to Pennsylvania with rock icon Jon Bon Jovi along for the ride. By Steve Peoples, Jill Colvin and Will Weissert. SENT: 1,090 words, photos, video. UPCOMING: Updates throughout the day.
SUPREME COURT-BARRETT — The Senate gears up for a rare weekend session as Republicans race to put Amy Coney Barrett on the Supreme Court and cement a conservative majority before Election Day despite Democratic efforts to stall President Trump’s nominee. By Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick. SENT: 680 words, photos, video. UPCOMING: 800 words after Senate convenes at noon.
VIRUS OUTBREAK — The United States is approaching a record for the number of new daily coronavirus cases in the latest ominous sign about the disease’s grip on the nation, as states from Connecticut to the Rocky Mountain West reel under the surge. By Rebecca Boone and David Crary. SENT: 1,118 words, photos. WITH — VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE. AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson announce U.S. regulators have given them the go-ahead to resume U.S. testing of their COVID-19 vaccine candidates.
NIGERIA-POLICE-PROTESTS — Nigeria’s president says 51 civilians have been killed in unrest following days of peaceful protests over police abuses. He blames “hooliganism” for the violence while asserting that security forces have used “extreme restraint.” SENT: 829 words, photos.
ASTEROID GRAB: Scientists say a NASA spacecraft grabbed more than enough rubble from the surface of an asteroid to bring back to Earth.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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NOT-REAL-NEWS — A variety of false claims circulated widely on social media this week in advance of the upcoming U.S. election: Comments by Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden during an Oct. 15 town hall on ABC were altered to suggest he expressed support for sex change medical procedures for young children. He said no such thing. Rappers Ice Cube and 50 Cent did not sport baseball caps that showed support for President Trump. SENT: 1,470 words, photos.
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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK
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EU-POLAND-PRESIDENT — Polish President Andrzej Duda has tested positive for the coronavirus. according to his spokesman. The spokesman, Blazej Spychalski, said Saturday on Twitter that the 48-year-old conservative leader was tested the day before and his result was positive. He said the president feels well. There was no other immediate word on how the situation would affect the government. SENT: 280 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — Authorities in Sri Lanka have closed at least two fishery harbors and many stalls after a surge of 609 cases linked to the country’s main fish market. The government also widened the curfew in parts of Colombo. At least 11 villages were isolated in densely populated Western province, which includes the capital. Health authorities on Wednesday temporarily closed the fish market on Colombo’s outskirts after 49 traders tested positive for the coronavirus. By Saturday, the number of cases went up to 609. SENT: 585 words, photos.
Find more coverage on the Virus Outbreak on the featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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WASHINGTON
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ELECTION SECURITY-TRUMP — As President Trump sows doubts about the election, an obscure government agency he created is working behind the scenes to inspire confidence in the vote amid unprecedented challenges. By Ben Fox. SENT: 990 words, photo.
ELECTION 2020-INAUGURATION — While much of Washington is twisted in knots over the upcoming election, there’s another contingent already busy trying to figure out how to stage an inauguration for the next president during a pandemic. By Kevin Freking. SENT: 670 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-ENERGY POLICY — Joe Biden spells out for voters that staving off the worst of global warming will require a “transition away” from the oil and gas industry over time. The GOP moves quickly to use Biden’s statement against Democrats in down-ticket races. By Ellen Knickmeyer and Kathleen Ronayne. SENT: 900 words, photos.
TRUMP-IMMIGRATION — A top adviser to President Donald Trump says a key second-term priority on immigration, if the president is reelected, would be using agreements with Central American governments as models to get countries around the world to field asylum claims from people seeking refuge in the United States. By Elliot Spagat. SENT: 720 words, photo.
CONGRESS-MCCONNELL — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says there’s nothing the public needs to know about his health after photos taken earlier this week captured what appeared to be bruising on his hands and around his mouth. By Mary Clare Jalonick and Lisa Mascaro. SENT: 340 words, photos.
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INTERNATIONAL
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EGYPT-ELECTION — Egyptians have begun voting in the first stage of a parliamentary election, a vote that is highly likely to produce a toothless House of Representatives packed with supporters of President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi. The election Saturday is taking place as the Arab world’s most populous country faces a slight increase in coronavirus cases, with authorities warning of a second wave of the pandemic. By AP Samy Magdy. SENT: 400 words.
ARMENIA-AZERBAIJAN — Heavy fighting has raged over Nagorno-Karabakh even as top diplomats from Armenia and Azerbaijan traveled to Washington for negotiations on settling the neighboring countries’ decades-long conflict. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s scheduled talks with Armenia and Azerbaijan’s foreign ministers follow two failed Russian attempts to broker a truce. SENT: 670 words, photos. WITH: UNITED STATES-ARMENIA-AZERBAIJAN — The Trump administration wades cautiously into international efforts to halt fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which are engaged in their worst conflict in more than 25 years. By Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee. SENT: 500 words, photos.
MALAYSIA-POLITICS — Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim says he’s concerned about reports that the prime minister is seeking the declaration of a state of emergency to fight the coronavirus as an excuse to suspend Parliament so he can stymie bids to oust his government. Local media has reported that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin is seeking an emergency declaration to focus on battling a fresh coronavirus outbreak. By Eileen Ng. SENT: 460 words, photos.
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NATIONAL
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CALIFORNIA-WILDFIRES — Pacific Gas & Electric may cut power to over 1 million people on Sunday to prevent the chance of sparking wildfires as extreme fire weather returns to the region, the utility announced Friday. SENT: 680 words, photos.
POLICE-SHOOTING-ILLINOIS — A suburban Chicago police chief says an officer who shot a Black couple inside a vehicle has been fired after committing “multiple policy and procedure violations.” The shooting earlier this week in Waukegan, Illinois, killed 19-year-old Marcellis Stinnette and wounded his girlfriend, Tafara Williams. The officer’s firing was announced shortly after Lake County’s chief prosecutor said the FBI will join Illinois State Police in investigating the shooting. SENT: 370 words, photos.
PLANE-CRASH-ALABAMA — Authorities say a U.S. Navy training plane traveling from Florida has crashed in an Alabama residential neighborhood near the Gulf Coast, killing both people in the plane. Navy spokesman Zach Harrell says both people in the T-6B Texan II training plane died Friday. No injuries were reported on the ground. The crash occurred near the city of Foley and the town of Magnolia Springs. A Navy spokeswoman says the plane had flown out of Naval Air Station Whiting Field, about 30 miles northeast of Pensacola. SENT: 174 words, photos.
SCOTT-PETERSON-CONVICTION — California prosecutors said Friday they again will seek the death penalty for Scott Peterson even as a county judge considers throwing out his conviction for murdering his pregnant wife because of juror misconduct during a 2005 trial that riveted the nation. SENT: 725 words, photos.
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ENTERTAINMENT
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ARNOLD-SCHWARZENEGGER — Arnold Schwarzenegger says he feels “fantastic” after his recent heart surgery. The 73-year-old “Terminator” actor and former California governor said on social media Friday that he had a new aortic valve implanted in his heart. He posted a photo of himself with a thumbs up from his hospital bed. Schwarzenegger also posted some photos of himself standing in front of a few monuments in Cleveland. Schwarzenegger underwent heart surgery in 2018 to replaced a pulmonary valve that was originally installed in 1997. SENT: 129 words, photos.
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SPORTS
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WORLD SERIES — Los Angeles Dodgers ace Walker Buehler set down the Tampa Bay Rays with dominance and ease that brought flashbacks of Orel Hershiser during the Dodgers’ last title run. Buehler pitched three-hit ball over six innings and struck out 10 in a pulsating performance that gave Los Angeles a 6-2 victory and a 2-1 World Series lead. Justin Turner homered in the first inning off a surprisingly hittable Charlie Morton. Austin Barnes, the Dodgers’ No. 9 hitter, became just the second player to drive in runs with both a homer and a sacrifice bunt in the same Series game. By AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum. SENT: 1087 words, photos.
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