US Supreme Court Approval Rating at Highest in Over Decade

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At a time when other branches of the U.S. government remain relatively unpopular, public approval of the Supreme Court has risen to its highest level in more than a decade, according to a new Gallup survey.The Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor speaks during a panel discussion celebrating Sandra Day O’Connor, the first woman to be a Supreme Court Justice, Sept. 25, 2019, at the Library of Congress in Washington.The nine-member court’s approval rating had hovered around 50% in recent years after rising as high as 61% in 2009, fueled in part by the historic appointment of the first Hispanic justice,more

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Biden to Skip Milwaukee Trip for Presidential Nomination Acceptance

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Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has decided to not travel to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to accept the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination at the party’s national convention this month out of fear of the “worsening” coronavirus pandemic, convention organizers said Wednesday.The party said none of the planned convention speakers would go to the Midwestern city, in order to “prevent risking the health of our host community as well as the convention’s production teams, security officials, community partners, media and others.” Normally about 50,000 convention delegates, workers and media would have gone to the four-day event starting August 17.Much of the conventionmore

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Trump Campaign Sues to Block Nevada Mail-in Voting 

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U.S. President Donald Trump’s campaign and the national Republican Party have sued to block the western state of Nevada from sending a mail-in ballot to every registered voter in the state, even as Trump says absentee voting is fine by him in his adopted home state of Florida. The federal lawsuit filed Tuesday claims the Nevada voting plan approved by the state legislature Sunday night will result in “inevitable” fraud in the Nov. 3 national presidential election.  President Donald Trump speaks during a briefing with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, Aug. 4, 2020, inmore

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Desperate to Play: Coronavirus’ Impact on College Sports

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Many colleges and universities in the U.S. are in danger of losing millions in revenue from canceled sports events.College sports make roughly $1 billion annually in ticket sales and promotions for universities, according to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Athletic dollars from basketball, football and baseball can contribute more than half to a school’s operating budget.“There’s never a good time for a pandemic but for college sports, I think this was particularly bad, because it happened right at the beginning of the men’s basketball tournament, and the men’s basketball tournament is the largest source of revenue for the NCAA,”more

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Marshall Tops Kobach in Kansas Senate Primary 

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Voters in the U.S. state of Kansas have picked Congressman Roger Marshall from a field of 11 Republican candidates, including former Kansas secretary of state Kris Kobach, to be the nominee for U.S. Senate in the November election. Marshall will now go up against Barbara Bollier in the contest to fill the seat of retiring Republican Senator Pat Roberts. Roberts endorsed Marshall in the race, as did many Republican leaders who expressed concern that voters might not support Kobach and his more polarizing record.  In a House of Representatives primary in Kansas, first-term Congressman Steve Watkins will lose his seat after beingmore

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Voters Cast Primary Ballots in 5 US States

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Five U.S. states are holding primary elections Tuesday, with a Republican battle for a Senate seat representing Kansas among the key races. A total of 11 candidates are competing for the chance to be on the November general election ballot as voters make their pick to fill the seat of retiring Republican Senator Pat Roberts. Roberts has endorsed Congressman Roger Marshall, who also has the backing of other Republican leaders. Former Kansas secretary of state Kris Kobach and plumbing company founder Bob Hamilton are the other top contenders. Kobach lost a 2018 bid to be the governor of Kansas. The last time a Republican candidate lost an electionmore

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‘Generational Catastrophe’ Possible as Pandemic Creates Education Crisis

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United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says with schools being forced to shut their doors because of the coronavirus pandemic, the world is facing a “generational catastrophe.” Guterres made the comments Tuesday during a video briefing to launch a new U.N. campaign dubbed In this file photo taken on Feb. 8, 2020, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaks during a press conference at the African Union headquarters.The head of the world body said that as of mid-July, more than 1 billion children in at least 160 countries are missing out on formal studies, while at least 40 million children have missed outmore

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Voters in 5 US States Casting Primary Ballots

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Five U.S. states are holding primary elections Tuesday, with a Republican battle for a Senate seat representing Kansas among the key races. A total of 11 candidates are competing for the chance to be on the November general election ballot as voters make their pick to fill the seat of retiring Republican Senator Pat Roberts. Roberts has endorsed Congressman Roger Marshall, who also has the backing of other Republican leaders. Former Kansas secretary of state Kris Kobach and plumbing company founder Bob Hamilton are the other top contenders. Kobach lost a 2018 bid to be the governor of Kansas. The last time a Republican candidate lost an electionmore

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Voters in Five US States Casting Primary Ballots

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Five U.S. states are holding primary elections Tuesday, with a Republican battle for a Senate seat representing Kansas among the key races. A total of 11 candidates are competing for the chance to be on the November general election ballot as voters make their pick to fill the seat of retiring Republican Senator Pat Roberts. Roberts has endorsed Congressman Roger Marshall, who also has the backing of other Republican leaders. Former Kansas secretary of state Kris Kobach and plumbing company founder Bob Hamilton are the other top contenders. Kobach lost a 2018 bid to be the governor of Kansas. The last time a Republican candidate lost an electionmore

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White House, Democrats Cite Some Progress Toward Coronavirus Aid Deal

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White House officials and top congressional Democrats plan to meet again Tuesday after both sides cited some progress in their effort to find agreement on a new coronavirus aid package. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Monday staff members would meet overnight, and that she and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer would hold another round of talks Tuesday with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. “We are moving down the track,” Pelosi told reporters after two hours of negotiations Monday. “We still have our differences. We are trying to have clearer understanding of what the needs are.”White House Chief of Staff Markmore

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Nevada Adopts Mail-In Voting, But Trump Threatens Lawsuit

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Lawmakers in Nevada have agreed to send ballots to all voters in the western U.S. state for November’s presidential election, a move that drew an immediate rebuke from President Donald Trump as unfair to Republicans.The legislation, which is expected to be signed by Democratic Governor Steve Sisolak, would make Nevada the eighth state to automatically send mail-in ballots to make it easier to vote and avoid long lines at polling places on Nov. 3 in the midst of the continuing surge of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States.Trump has contended, without evidence, that increased mail-in voting, in Nevada andmore

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RNC: Decision on Private Trump Renomination Vote Not Final

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The vote to renominate President Donald Trump is set to be conducted in private later this month, without members of the press present, a spokeswoman for the Republican National Convention said Saturday, citing the coronavirus.However, a Republican National Committee official contradicted that assessment Sunday, emphasizing that no final decisions have been made and that logistics and press coverage options were still being evaluated, The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.While Trump called off the public components of the convention in Florida last month, citing spiking cases of the virus across themore

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Arts Students Lament COVID Shutting Down Practices, Performances

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A typical school day for Elon University junior Skyler Sajewski began at 7 a.m., starting with ballet, history, economics and tap classes, then rehersal for the upcoming musical. She would get back to her apartment around 11 p.m.     Then, the COVID pandemic hit.     The musical theater major who was used to “constantly running from place to place” returned home to Florida to shelter in place. She’s worried about missing out on “literally all of it” in terms of preparing for her future career.   “To be a well-rounded musical theater performer, you have to have amore

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White House, Democrats Remain at Odds Over Coronavirus Aid Deal 

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The White House and top congressional Democrats remained at odds Sunday over the scope of more assistance for 30 million American workers left unemployed by the coronavirus pandemic. In back-to-back appearances on ABC’s “This Week” show, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the leader of the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, sparred over how much new aid the national government should approve beyond less generous state unemployment benefits. Motorists take part in a caravan protest in front of Senator John Kennedy’s office at the Hale Boggs Federal Building asking for the extension of the $600 in unemployment benefits to peoplemore

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GOP: Trump Renomination will be Held in Private

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The vote to renominate President Donald Trump is set to be conducted in private later this month, without members of the media present, a spokesperson for the Republican National Convention said, citing the coronavirus.While Trump called off the public components of the convention in Florida last month, citing spiking cases of the virus across the country, 336 delegates are scheduled to gather in Charlotte, North Carolina, on August 24 to formally vote to make Trump the GOP standard-bearer once more.Nominating conventions are traditionally meant to be media bonanzas, as political parties seek to leverage the attention the events draw tomore

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Negotiators Report Progress in COVID-19 Aid Talks

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Lawmakers participating in rare weekend talks on a huge coronavirus relief measure reported progress Saturday, as political pressure mounted to restore a newly expired $600-per-week supplemental unemployment benefit and send funding to help schools reopen.“This was the longest meeting we had and it was more productive than the other meetings,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. “We’re not close yet, but it was a productive discussion — now each side knows where they’re at.”Schumer spoke alongside House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., after meeting for three hours with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows.Schumermore

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Trump To Ban TikTok

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President Donald Trump says he intends to ban the operation of TikTok in the U.S.Trump said Friday he could take action as soon as Saturday to stop the operation of the popular video-sharing social media app in the U.S.“As far as TikTok is concerned, we’re banning them from the United States,” he told reporters traveling with him Friday from Florida.He said he would likely use an executive order to prohibit the app.Trump does not support a deal that would allow a U.S. company to buy TikTok’s American operations.The app is extremely popular in both the U.S. and around the world.more

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Students Return to Campus Amid Virus Growth in Some States

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The first wave of college students returning to their dorms aren’t finding the typical mobs of students and parents. What they found Friday were strict safety protocols and some heightened anxiety amid a global pandemic where virus infections are growing in dozens of states.North Carolina State University staggered the return of its students over 10 days and welcomed the first 900 students to campus, where they were greeted Friday by socially distant volunteers donning masks and face shields.The rite of passage was a well-organized but low-key affair, as boxes were unloaded, luggage was wheeled and beds were hauled.”It’s just oddmore

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Key Takeaways from Trump’s Evolving Campaign Strategy

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With several polls showing Democratic presumptive nominee Joe Biden leading the U.S. presidential race nationally, in battleground states and among key demographics, President Donald Trump’s campaign is seeking a more effective strategy to win over voters.After spending weeks pushing to reopen the economy, the president now appears to be acknowledging the coronavirus pandemic will continue to drive news cycles through the final 100 days of the campaign.Here are a few key takeaways from Trump’s evolving re-election strategy.President Donald Trump wears a face mask as he participates in a tour of Bioprocess Innovation Center at Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, Monday, July 27,more

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Obama Takes Aim at Trump in Fiery Eulogy for Civil Rights Icon John Lewis

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In a fiery eulogy for longtime U.S. Representative John Lewis on Thursday, former President Barack Obama took a series of thinly veiled shots at the actions of his successor that he said tore at the legacy of the Black civil rights icon being laid to rest.     The funeral for Lewis, who played an instrumental role in passing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, came on the same day Republican President Donald Trump suggested the Nov. 3 election could be delayed. Trump has also waged a war against mail-in ballots, a tactic critics say is aimed at suppressing votes.more

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Trump Contrasts his Energy Dominance with Biden’s Climate Plan

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President Donald Trump was in Texas oil country this week, promoting his policy of “restoring energy dominance” in the U.S. while criticizing the clean energy climate plan of his Democratic rival, Joe Biden. White House Correspondent Patsy Widakuswara looks at how the two candidates plan to deal with an energy industry ravaged by the pandemic and tackle the challenges of global climate change. …

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