Final Debate Before Election – The last debate between President Donald Trump and Joe Biden was held Thursday evening, and it didn’t disappoint – unless you were hoping for a repeat of the circus that was the first debate. Trump and Biden got into passionate arguments over each other’s political positions, as well as their histories and scandals connected with them, but the debate remained civil throughout. Trump went after Biden over emails on his son, Hunter’s, laptop, which appears to show that Joe Biden was deeply involved in his son’s business dealings. Biden fired back at Trump, skewering him for maintaining a hidden bank account in China and refusing to release any tax returns. Issues discussed at the debate included the coronavirus pandemic, health care, immigration, and the environment.
Trump Brokers Another Peace Deal – President Trump announced Friday that Israel and Sudan have agreed to normalize relations with each other, making Sudan the latest Arab country to normalize relations with the Jewish state. As part of the agreement, Sudan will pay over $300 million to the victims and families of certain terror attacks, including the 1998 bombing of the USS Cole. Trump also said that at least five other Arab countries are seeking to normalize ties with Israel and that discussions are ongoing with them.
Russia, Iran Attempting To Interfere In Elections – Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and FBI Director Chris Wray announced at a press conference this week that Russia and Iran have both obtained US voter registration information, and are seeking to use that data to interfere in the US elections. Ratcliffe said that Iran was behind a series of recent incidents in which voters received threatening messages about their vote. Ratcliffe said Iran’s efforts were intended to hurt President Trump. He did not specify what actions Russia has taken to interfere in the elections.
Millions Already Voted – Nearly 50 million Americans have already cast their votes for president via mail-in ballot so far, with more than a week left before Election Day. As of Thursday, some 47.5 million Americans had already voted, surpassing the early vote turnout for all of the 2016 elections. The surge comes from voters who see mail-in voting as a safer alternative to voting in person during a national pandemic. Several states, including New Jersey, are conducting the election almost exclusively by mail-in voting.
ACB Vote Heads To Full Senate Vote – The nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the US Supreme Court was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee and will head to a vote by the entire Senate on Monday. The Judiciary Committee technically voted to approve her unanimously, after Democrats boycotted the vote in protest. Democrats say that the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg occurred too close to a presidential election and that whoever is elected president on November 3rd should be the one to choose her replacement.