CNN
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The Harris campaign has accepted an invitation to participate in a CNN town hall on October 23. It remains uncertain whether the Trump team will shrug off the invite, considering the former president has repeatedly dismissed calls for another debate before the election.
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Florida is scrambling to pick up the pieces after Hurricane Milton, which has killed at least 16 people since Wednesday. The storm made landfall as a dangerous Category 3 hurricane and cut through the state as a Category 1 storm before moving offshore. Nearly 1,000 people have been rescued so far, according to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, with thousands of personnel deployed across the state. More than 2.5 million customers were still without power early today — down from 3.2 million on Thursday afternoon, according to PowerOutage.us. The storm represents a more than 1-in-1,000-year rainfall event in some areas, such as St. Petersburg. Several other hard-hit regions are conducting rescue and relief operations as well as assessing damage.
The 2024 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Nihon Hidankyo, a grassroots Japanese organization of atomic bomb survivors, for its efforts “to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons.” The Norwegian Nobel Committee praised the group today “for demonstrating through witness testimony that nuclear weapons must never be used again.” The organization was formed by survivors of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. This prize is the 105th to be awarded since 1901. Nihon Hidankyo, the 141st laureate, will receive a cash award of around $1 million.
Nihon Hidankyo wins 2024 Nobel Peace Prize
With less than a month until Election Day, former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are racing to make their final pitches to voters on the campaign trail. Trump visited the battleground state of Michigan on Thursday, where he spoke at the Detroit Economic Club and compared the city to a “developing nation.” Harris outlined her plans for immigration reform at a Univision town hall in Nevada as she tried to appeal to Latino voters. Former President Barack Obama also headlined a rally for Harris in the key state of Pennsylvania, where he furiously expressed concerns about Trump’s potential return to the White House. “Whether this election is making you feel excited or scared, or hopeful or frustrated, or anything in between, do not just sit back and hope for the best. Get off your couch and vote,” Obama said.
Obama calls out Trump’s attempt to ‘sell stuff’
One person has died and 23 people have been rescued after an elevator issue at a Colorado tourist mine left some visitors trapped 1,000 feet underground for six hours. At around noon on Thursday, the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine in Cripple Creek, Colorado, experienced a mechanical issue with its elevator system, causing “a severe danger for the participants,” Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell said. The one-hour tour is an entirely underground experience that takes guests through the 1890s gold mine and requires an elevator descent at a speed of about 5 mph, the company’s website states. The cause of the incident remains under investigation.
Nearly 10 million pounds of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products have been recalled due to listeria concerns. Dozens of the contaminated items were distributed to restaurants and institutions nationwide, prompting the US Department of Agriculture to issue a warning about listeriosis — the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the country. BrucePac ready-to-eat chicken was identified as the source of the listeria, the USDA said. This recall follows a deadly listeria outbreak connected to recalled Boar’s Head deli meat that is the nation’s largest in more than a decade. There have been 59 hospitalizations and 10 deaths since the CDC started an investigation in July.
Northern lights dazzle during solar storm
Solar flares and coronal mass ejections released from the sun made colorful auroras visible overnight in parts of the US. View CNN’s photo gallery here.
Why is Netflix’s ‘Emily in Paris’ heading to Rome?
Oh, crêpe … French President Emmanuel Macron said the country “will fight hard” to stop the Paris-inspired show from relocating to Italy’s capital.
Al Pacino says being a new dad at 84 is a ‘mini miracle’
“The Godfather” star is enjoying being a late-in-life dad.
‘Headspin hole’: Man develops tumor after decades of breakdancing
Researchers in Denmark have published a report revealing an unexpected consequence of one of breakdancing’s most iconic moves: the headspin.
Why it’s OK to crave the taste of home when you travel
Do you often seek out home comfort foods when abroad? There may be a scientific reason.
Which iconic Las Vegas hotel was demolished this week?
A. Flamingo
B. Tropicana
C. Treasure Island
D. Harrah’s
Last week, 46% of readers who took the quiz got eight or more questions right. How will you fare?
Ethel Kennedy, the widow of Robert F. Kennedy and a longtime human rights activist, died Thursday. She was 96. Marrying into one of the US’ most influential political families, Kennedy supported her husband through his successful Senate campaign and later through his 1968 presidential run, which ended with his assassination months into the campaign. In the decades following her husband’s death, she continued her activism and received the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, from President Barack Obama in 2014.
Remembering Ethel Kennedy
$20 billion
That’s how much money FEMA received in a recent infusion from Congress to respond to hurricane season. However, the agency is now down to $11 billion in its Disaster Relief Fund, a FEMA spokesperson said Wednesday, before Milton even made landfall. This rapid spending rate means Congress may need to appropriate billions more in disaster funding for the agency earlier than expected.
“By making its services convenient for criminals, it became one.”
— Attorney General Merrick Garland, commenting at a news conference on Thursday after TD Bank was hit with a record $3 billion fine over drug cartel money laundering.
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AND FINALLY …
‘A toaster on wheels’: Swisher reacts to Musk unveiling ‘Robovan’
Elon Musk unveils self-driving ‘Robovan’ and ‘Cybercab’
Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Thursday unveiled a driverless vehicle designed to carry a larger group of people or items. CNN contributor Kara Swisher described it as “a toaster on wheels.” See it in action here.
