The Hill Articles: August 24, 2021

Wildfire smoke leads to worst air quality on record in Nevada counties Ohio State University mandates vaccines for students, faculty and staff US intel report on COVID-19 origins inconclusive: report Listen to vinyl records like never before with $40 off this advanced turntable 2 House lawmakers make secret trip to Afghanistan amid evacuations NBC correspondent: History will remember Afghan withdrawal as ‘very dark period’ Expand your entertainment streaming options and cybersecurity with 60% off CuriosityStream and VPN Unlimited Kansas Supreme Court allows officials to limit governor’s emergency powers Supreme Court rebuffs Biden over Trump-era ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy Jerry Jones on players getting COVID-19 vaccine: ‘Be a part of a team’ Small plane makes emergency landing on Interstate north of San Diego Overnight Defense & National Security: Outcry over Biden’s Afghanistan deadline FCC proposes $5M fine against conservative activists for robocalls House approves John Lewis voting rights measure Judge declares mistrial in Michael Avenatti embezzlement case Overnight Energy: Interior moves ahead with drilling lease sales after judge halts pause Tennessee floods missing count rises to 20 Washington state tech executive gets two years for $1.8M coronavirus relief fraud On The Money: House Democrats break internal impasse to adopt $3.5T budget plan Interior to move forward with lease sales after pause UN compounds overtaken by Taliban: report Witness says R. Kelly kept watch over girlfriends during Gayle King interview Biden commends Pelosi for ‘masterful’ leadership Crenshaw: ‘We should laugh’ at Taliban when they try to negotiate withdrawal deadline View from a fire scientist when the world is burning Overnight Health Care: LA data finds unvaccinated 29 times more likely to be hospitalized for COVID-19 NRA cancels annual Texas meeting due to coronavirus WHO officials ‘fear’ COVID-19 misinformation fuels new outbreaks Hillicon Valley: Tech leaders to tackle cybersecurity at White House meeting Biden: US ‘on a pace’ to leave Afghanistan by Aug. 31 Zaid Jilani: Clashing protests becoming ‘feature of Portland’s social fabric’ Portland explodes again in violent battles between antifa, Proud Boys David Dayen: Pelosi is pursuing ‘path of least resistance’ with legislative maneuvers The 10 fastest shrinking cities in America  Officials, experts warn against using COVID-19 vaccine in kids under 12 The Hill’s Sustainability Report: A viable — and delicious — seafood solution Cynthia Nixon trolls Cuomo over Emmy loss TikTok, Shopify announce selling partnership Oregon implementing mask mandates outdoors regardless of vaccination status What does Andrew Cuomo’s resignation mean for #MeToo? Most Floridians back school mask mandates as battle between districts, state escalates Taliban spokesperson on Afghans leaving: ‘We are not even happy about it’ NASA releases breathtaking panorama view of Mars You’re 29 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19 if you’re not vaccinated Pelosi commits to rallying support for infrastructure vote Judge: DHS did not properly analyze environmental impact of border security Amazon, IBM leaders among those convening at White House for cyber meeting Wednesday Michigan woman wins $2M in vaccine sweepstakes New home sales tick higher as prices hit record highs Los Alamos warns drone pilots about flights in restricted airspace US has evacuated 4,000 American passport holders and families from Kabul House Democrats break internal impasse to adopt $3.5T budget plan Biden spoke to Hochul before swearing-in New guidelines recommend earlier diabetes screenings for overweight adults If we’re really rebuilding our infrastructure, we have to do it right DHS to allow some Afghans to enter US without formal visas Missouri AG files class action suit against school districts enforcing mask mandates Herschel Walker files paperwork to run for Senate in Georgia Man charged in Jan. 6 assault of news photographer Poll: Majority say Biden guilty of mismanaging the US withdrawal from Afghanistan Majority of Florida residents support requiring masks in schools Americans warned about travel to the Bahamas as COVID-19 cases surge LSU requiring fans at football games to be vaccinated or show negative test Hispanic caucus calls for Fort Hood to be renamed in honor of Mexican American general Joe Biden: Republicans’ secret weapon for retaking Congress Walmart opening delivery service to other retailers Legendary Rolling Stones drummer dead at 80 Alaska Airlines flight evacuated in Seattle after passenger’s cellphone catches fire G-7 leaders say Taliban is responsible for stability of Afghanistan Two US diplomats to be evacuated from Vietnam after ‘acoustic incidents’: report Soldier who confronted Black man in viral video convicted of misdemeanor Cuomo pushes back on report he left dog at governor’s mansion Trump’s border wall devastated by rain Afghanistan debacle upends Biden’s upcoming summit with Israel’s Bennett House Republicans call for inspector general investigation of Afghanistan troop withdrawal Diner leaves massive $10k tip at Florida restaurant hurt by pandemic FAA launches review after Boeing employees report interference on safety matters Democrats shouldn’t squander the opportunity to pass transformative legislation Unvaccinated 29 times more likely to be hospitalized with COVID-19, CDC study says America’s largest labor union collective elects first woman president Continuing US engagement with Afghans International Emmys rescinds Cuomo’s honorary award Rise in Dallas-Fort Worth COVID-19 hospitalizations predicted to top winter peak 55 percent now disapprove of Biden job performance: poll Rolling Stones’ Charlie Watts dies at 80 In ‘horrifying and amazing’ video, a giant tortoise attacks, devours baby bird Are nonprofit hospitals holding up their end of the tax-free bargain? What America’s Thinking: August 24, 2021 Lawmakers from both parties push back at Biden’s Aug. 31 deadline Lawsuit claims SC school mask mandate ban discriminates against children with disabilities Fox News dominates prime-time ratings during Afghanistan crisis Cruise passenger dies of COVID-19 amid outbreak on ship New York’s first female governor takes over as Cuomo exits Giuliani associate expected to change plea to guilty in campaign finance case Al-Shabaab storms Somali military base ‘Exhausted’ Florida doctors gather outside hospital to urge people to get vaccinated Trump teases potential 2024 bid amid Afghanistan crisis Resettling Afghan refugees is America at its finest FBI asked to help probe deaths of two newlywed women in Utah Minnesota mosque bombing convict asks judge to acknowledge transgender identity ‘Kill it! Squash it, smash it’: State officials call on residents to destroy invasive insect The Hill’s 12:30 Report – Presented by AT&T – Pelosi’s negotiates with centrists to keep Biden’s agenda afloat To engage the Taliban, the US needs an honest debate on Sharia law Harris rebukes Beijing over South China Sea WHO says its medical supplies in Afghanistan will only last a week National Guard to be deployed as Kentucky hospitals are completely overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients Congressional advisers find fentanyl fight hampered by limited Chinese cooperation Biden to stick with Aug. 31 deadline for Afghanistan withdrawal Pennsylvania Senate president plans election investigation hearings Watch live: White House COVID-19 response team holds briefing Jerome Powell’s Jackson Hole dilemma Broadway theater coalition agrees to reforms boosting equity, diversity American Medical Association calls for public, private sectors to mandate vaccines Reuters photographer killed in Afghan military retreat, general says Alarming new study finds delta infections come with viral load hundreds of times greater than original coronavirus UN Glasgow summit may be our last chance to prevent self-created climate disaster Airbnb will provide temporary housing to 20k Afghan refugees worldwide Virginia commission will redraw districts from scratch US decides against plan to use military bases in South Korea, Japan to house Afghan refugees: report Watch live: House Democratic leaders hold press conference Schiff: Kabul airport a ‘very attractive target’ for terrorists Lawsuit uses Jan. 6 to challenge secrecy of Congress Hochul makes New York the 31st state to have had a female governor Taliban sending fighters to opposition stronghold in northern Afghanistan Bombshell report says Cyber Ninjas leader seriously ill with COVID-19, delaying controversial Arizona audit ShotSpotter technology does little stop gun crime: Chicago watchdog Record number of COVID-19 patients in Kentucky hospitals, governor says Watch live: Jen Psaki holds press briefing Afghanistan withdrawal: Warfighters’ déjà vu Sponsor drops Schwarzenegger over rant about anti-maskers Pelosi, moderates inch closer to infrastructure, budget deal DOJ investigating one-time Trump campaign adviser over alleged ties to Qatar: report Walt Disney World requiring union employees to be vaccinated Florida mother loses unvaccinated sons to COVID-19 in 12 hours Federal courts have dismantled Biden’s immigration plan Rising: August 24, 2021 Proud Boys leader who burned BLM flag stolen from historic Black church gets jail time Climate change increasing chances for deadly flooding in western Europe: research Fauci: US could control COVID-19 by next spring if ‘overwhelming majority’ is vaccinated Trump’s last national security adviser endorses JD Vance in Ohio Senate race McConnell urges Biden to ignore Aug. 31 Afghanistan deadline Players from Afghan women’s national soccer team evacuated from Kabul Watch live: Biden delivers remarks on Afghanistan evacuation efforts Apple employees organizing for ‘systemic change’ in workplace Biden must tell Beijing: ‘War means instant independence for Taiwan’ Cuomo commutes sentence of ex-Weather Underground member behind Brinks robbery Florida doctors urge unvaccinated to get shots: ‘It’s the worst it’s ever been right now’ Bill Kristol endorses McAuliffe in Virginia governor’s race Former GOP congressional candidate Kimberly Klacik suing Candace Owens for defamation Watch live: Scalise holds news conference on Afghanistan Harris’s flight delayed after potential health issue in Vietnam Is it safe to go back to school? We may find out the hard way Notre Dame defends leprechaun mascot after survey ranks it 4th most offensive Airbnb giving temporary housing to Afghan refugees worldwide Hawaii governor tells tourists to stay home as coronavirus surges across islands As COVID-19 cases spike, Hawaii Gov tells tourists to back off Biden’s weak leadership is now America’s top national security threat UK: Afghanistan evacuation deadline unlikely to be extended Alex Jones blasts Trump as ‘dumbass’ over vaccines Afghan refugees living in ‘dire conditions’ at US air base: report China: US military must be held accountable for alleged rights violations in Afghanistan Social Security reports nearly 400,000 more beneficiary deaths in 2020 than 2019 7 people apparently poisoned at German university US ramps up evacuations, flying 12,700 out of Afghanistan in one day Hochul sworn in as New York governor Here’s your decision: Get vaccinated first or be infected first Press: Why is Mo Brooks still in the House? UN rights monitor warns of abuses including ‘summary executions’ in areas under Taliban control Feehery: Walking the plank Congress unveils a surreal budget reel that only plays backwards CIA director met secretly with Taliban leader in Kabul: report The coming collapse of the Taliban The Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – Pelosi, Democratic moderates struggle to strike budget deal The Memo: Boos for Trump show scale of vaccine challenge Sanders goes back to 2016 playbook to sell $3.5T budget GOP sees Biden crises as boon for midterm recruitment Bottom line House Democrats punt key vote on budget to Tuesday