Good evening. Here’s the latest at the end of Monday.
Harris is searching for precious swing votersKamala Harris hit the road today for campaign events in the three battleground states that make up her clearest possible path to victory: Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin. In each state, Harris is holding sit-down discussions with the former congresswoman Liz Cheney, her most prominent conservative surrogate. With just over two weeks before Election Day, the appearances are designed to appeal to the tiny fraction of voters who could prove decisive in a race that our chief political analyst Nate Cohn says can hardly get any closer. The Harris team hopes the events will help them attract moderate, suburban, Republican women, a demographic her campaign believes can be cleaved away from Donald Trump in sufficient numbers to win key states. Harris has been able to spend more time with voters, and less with donors, because her fund-raising efforts have broken records. Behind the scenes, the Harris and Trump campaigns have also dug through data to find the last remaining undecided voters. They both think many are younger, Black or Latino, and the Harris team is also eyeing white, college-educated women.
Your questions: We asked Lisa Lerer, our national political correspondent, this question from a reader. (Send us your questions here.) Where do voters living in the nonswing states find the motivation to vote? — Marcel Schutte, the Netherlands Lisa: Voters living in nonswing states are still casting ballots for a list of other statewide and local offices, so their votes do matter in those races. There’s also a sense of sending a political message. While New York or Texas is unlikely to change the outcome of the presidential race, shifts in party support in those states can impact the political mandate a new president has to lead. Scrapping the electoral college would require a constitutional amendment, which would face an extraordinarily — if not nearly impossible — bar to passage. With no clear way to change the system, most Americans focus on more pressing concerns, like the economy, immigration, abortion rights or even foreign policy.
A top U.S. official called for a Israel-Hezbollah trucePresident Biden’s de facto envoy on the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, Amos Hochstein, said today that the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah had “escalated out of control.” He called for the revival of a U.N. resolution that would require Israeli forces to withdraw from Lebanon, and for Hezbollah to be disarmed along the countries’ border. Later this evening, the Israeli military launched new waves of airstrikes near Beirut. At least four people were killed, including a child, and more than 20 injured in an attack near a government hospital, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. Israel claimed that Hezbollah was operating an command center beneath the hospital. Here’s the latest.
Biden proposed that insurers cover over-the-counter birth controlThe White House today proposed a rule that would require insurers to cover over-the-counter birth control at no cost to patients. That would include emergency contraception, a newly approved nonprescription birth control pill, and condoms.
The first sickle cell gene therapy patient left the hospitalKendric Cromer, 12, was one of roughly 20,000 Americans with a severe form of sickle cell disease that makes everyday activities impossible because they could bring on searing pain. Last week, he became the first person to complete a newly approved gene therapy that is expected to free him from its ravages. Kendric’s family feels fortunate since the treatment may be his only hope of living a normal life. But his 44-day hospital stay was incredibly arduous, hinting at what others will be up against. More top news
In Navalny’s new book, he predicted his demiseAleksei Navalny, the Russian opposition leader who died this year in an Arctic penal colony, began his posthumous memoir, “Patriot,” with the brutally prescient line: “Dying really didn’t hurt.” The book, which comes out tomorrow, was compiled by his widow, Yulia Navalnaya, who spoke to The Times from a location in Europe that she couldn’t disclose because of security concerns. It's funny, fiery, reflective and tragic, laced with Navalny’s trademark wry humor and idealism. At one point he foresees the memoir becoming a hit: “The book’s author has been murdered by a villainous president; what more could the marketing department ask for?”
How to sell a haunted houseEvery once in awhile, rumors will swirl that a home is occupied by ghosts. Sometimes it’s because a previous occupant died there; other times flickering lights will cause a scare. In four states, real estate agents are required to disclose suspected haunting. It can make it more challenging for the agent looking to sell the home. But in interviews with agents, several said they don’t just ignore the sprits. Some support their clients’ decision to walk away, while others burn sage to clear away the ghosts.
Dinner table topics
Cook: These Indian-ish baked potatoes are an impressive appetizer. Watch: In “Goodrich,” Michael Keaton stars as a gallery owner learning to take care of his kids. Read: These two spooky books are good picks for October. Consider: Some hair growth supplements work, but they also have some downsides. Grill: These are the best American cheeses. Compete: Take this week’s Flashback history quiz. |
