As the weaknesses of President Trump's legal cases to overturn Joe Biden's win become clearer, Republicans are talking more about the Electoral College — hinting at an extreme last-chance way for Trump to cling to power.

What we're watching: In this long-shot scenario, Trump and his team could try to block secretaries of state in contested states from certifying results. That could allow legislatures in those states to try to appoint new electors who favor Trump over Biden.

Geography, rather than race or age, paints the clearest picture of President Trump's defeat and illustrates the demographic trends that could hurt Republicans in future elections.

The big picture: The rural-urban divide demonstrated President-elect Joe Biden's power in and around cities — which helped him flip the states that delivered his election victory.

Here's something to think about on Veterans Day: As tough as the pandemic has been on most Americans, it has hit many U.S. veterans especially hard and made their struggles with mental health even tougher.

The big picture: Isolation during the coronavirus pandemic has resulted in increased instances of depression and suicide among veterans as coronavirus cases spike all over the country.

The reactions across the Middle East to Joe Biden’s victory revealed the strategic calculations of leaders in the region heading into a post-Trump era.

Driving the news: Some leaders quickly congratulated Biden while others hesitated. Some were restrained in their statements, while others couldn’t hide their joy at President Trump’s defeat.

1. Health: U.S. sees record 131,000 cases, hospitalizations hit peak — CDC: Masks protect wearers from COVID-19 — Fauci, Azar expect vaccine to be broadly available by spring
2. States: Texas becomes first state to surpass 1 million cases
3. Markets: Pfizer's CEO sold $5.6 million in stock on same day of vaccine news
4. World: Italy tightens COVID-19 restrictions for five hard-hit regions.

Texas has surpassed 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases, Johns Hopkins University data shows.

Why it matters: Texas is the first U.S. state to pass the milestone. It has the 10th most cases in the world, reporting 1,010,364 infections by early Wednesday — more than Italy, which has confirmed 995,463 cases, per JHU.

Hong Kong's government said they disqualified four opposition pro-democracy lawmakers on Wednesday for "endangering national security," without specifying how, per Reuters

Why it matters: The ouster of Kenneth Leung, Dennis Kwok, Alvin Yeung and Kwok Ka-ki came moments after China's parliament passed a resolution allowing the city's executive to expel legislators deemed "unpatriotic" without requiring court rulings, per Bloomberg. Opposition members said they'd resign en masse in response.

If you wear a mask, you're protecting yourself as well as others from COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in an update on Tuesday.

Why it matters: "Adopting universal masking policies can help avert future lockdowns, especially if combined with other non-pharmaceutical interventions such as social distancing, hand hygiene, and adequate ventilation," per the CDC.

The U.S. confirmed a record-high 130,989 new coronavirus infections on Tuesday, while the number of people currently hospitalized with the virus hit a peak of 61,964, according to a tally by the COVID Tracking Project.

By the numbers: The spread of the virus is showing no signs of slowing, as the U.S. surpassed 10 million reported cases on Monday. The 15 days with the highest number of new cases have all taken place over the past 18 days.

TikTok could be banned in the U.S. after this Thursday, although it remains unclear whether the Trump administration will follow through or if a judge will intervene.

Why it matters: The short-video entertainment and social networking app is estimated to have around 100 million U.S. users and more than 1,500 U.S. employees.