YOUR MORNING NEWS ROUNDUP |
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A group of civilians is set to carry out the first private spacewalk in orbit on Thursday from a SpaceX capsule. Newbies and veterans alike belted on the stage at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards. Francine has been downgraded to a tropical storm after winds cut power to the homes of thousands of Louisiana residents. |
Just a typical Thursday walking in space |
Billionaire entrepreneur Jared Isaacman will become the first private astronaut to venture outside of a spacecraft as part of the SpaceX Polaris Dawn mission. Isaacman will hold onto a skywalker device installed outside the Dragon spacecraft. Basically a handrail system, he will maneuver and stabilize himself − a difficult task while in a pressurized spacesuit in the weightlessness of space. SpaceX pushed back the start time of a civilian spacewalk to just before 6 a.m. Thursday but did not provide a reason for the delay. |
Taylor Swift makes the VMAs holy ground |
Taylor Swift will be celebrating after making history at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards Thursday night. The "Tortured Poets Department" singer won seven awards Wednesday, including the night's top prize of video of the year. |
That makes Swift the solo artist with the most career VMA wins, and the artist with the most video of the year wins. |
| • | Her winning night came on the (cat) tail
of an endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential election. On the VMA stage, Swift kept up her political momentum, encouraging viewers to register to vote and paying tribute to the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, saying "Everyone we lost, and that is the most important thing about today." |
| • | In her acceptance speech for best collaboration, Swift praised her polite "Fortnight" song partner. |
| • | Our brutally honest performance reviews: The 40th
incarnation of the show featured performances by chart-toppers and classics, with opener Eminem, VMA new artist honoree Chappell Roan in medieval flair, Sabrina Carpenter's "Espresso" aesthetic, a career medley by Video Vanguard honoree Katy Perry and the show closer from LL Cool J. |
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Post Malone and Taylor Swift accept the Best Collaboration award for "Fortnight”.
Mike Coppola, Getty Images for MTV |
More news to know now on Thursday |
Francine downgraded amid blackouts in Louisiana |
Hurricane Francine has been downgraded to a tropical storm and is expected to become a tropical depression by late Thursday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its latest advisory. Francine made landfall along the Louisiana coast as a Category 2 hurricane on Wednesday, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands and threatening the region with widespread flooding as cities became inundated with rainfall.
Read more |
People leave with supplies from a supermarket as Hurricane Francine approaches the U.S. Gulf Coast, in Morgan City, Louisiana on September 11, 2024.
Marco Bello, REUTERS |
Spiking West Bank violence adds another front |
After almost a year of a brutal war with Hamas in Gaza, Israel is at the center of a tinderbox of multiple, interrelated Middle East conflicts. A steady escalation with Hezbollah in Lebanon. A brewing all-out confrontation with Iran. Strikes from Yemen's Houthis. And now, growing deadly violence in the West Bank. |
Paying the rent always hurts, but maybe less than previous months |
Inflation slowed to a more than a three-year low in August as falling gasoline and used car prices offset further gains in the cost of services such as rent, car insurance and airline fares. The report likely bolsters the Federal Reserve’s plans to start lowering interest rates next week, but some economists noted the rise in service costs pushed up an underlying price gauge and could help solidify a modest quarter-point cut.
Read more |
Photo of the day: Shades of grief |
Family and friends copied the names of 9/11 victims onto pieces of paper during a day of solemn tribute on Wednesday,
marking the 23rd anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center at Ground Zero in New York City. |
Family and friends of the victims of the 9/11 terror attack attend the annual 9/11 Commemoration Ceremony at the National 9/11 Memorial and Museum on September 11, 2024 in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago, Getty Images |
Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY, sign up for the email here. Want to send Nicole a note? Shoot her an email at NFallert@usatoday.com. |
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Music's hottest stars wore dazzling (and puzzling) looks to walk the 2024 MTV VMAs red carpet in New York. |
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Donald Trump is threatening to prosecute and imprison his political enemies. Experts on democracy and the rule of law told USA TODAY the risk is real.
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Even in an election year, House Speaker Mike Johnson doesn't care about consequences. His speakership is all about Trump.
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A Texas player won the $810 million Mega Millions jackpot Tuesday night, but there's an even bigger prize sitting unclaimed.
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NFL star Tyreek Hill was handcuffed during a traffic stop before Sunday's game. What lawyers say about rolling down your window. |
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Week 2 of the NFL season is just around the corner. Here's the full slate of game and how to watch.
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