Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, plan to visit Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Thursday, where they will hold a "community meeting" to "bring together Americans to heal and address the challenges we face" before making a local stop in the city, his campaign announced. They also plan to meet with Jacob Blake Sr. and other members of the Blake family, per a Biden campaign official.
Why it matters: The visit will come two days after President Trump made a trip to Kenosha against the wishes of Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) to tour damage from the violent protests that erupted after the police shooting of Jacob Blake. Trump spent much of his Tuesday visit defending law enforcement and attacking "left-wing violence."
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday she takes responsibility for "falling for a setup," after a video leaked to Fox News showed she visited a San Francisco hair salon for a personal appointment at a time when the city was not allowing indoor services due to COVID-19 restrictions.
What she's saying: "I take responsibility for trusting the word of a neighborhood salon that I've been to over the years many times. When they said what we're able to accommodate people, one person at a time, and that we can set up that time, I trusted that."
Half of likely voters surveyed in a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday said that having President Trump in the White House makes them feel less safe.
Why it matters: Trump has campaigned on the promise of "law and order" by telling voters they "won't be safe in Joe Biden's America."
Acting Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) said the committee will still receive in-person briefings on election-security issues, despite a recent directive from the Trump administration barring them, Politico reports.
Driving the news: Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe informed congressional committees at the end of August that in-person briefings covering election security will no longer take place and lawmakers will instead receive written intelligence reports. Democrats say that suspending in-person briefings will allow Ratcliffe to skirt accountability and avoid questions.
The White House on Wednesday joined other world governments to condemn the apparent poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
The state of play:The German government announced that the poisoning was conducted with Novichok, a chemical typically associated with Russian security services.
Joe Biden said at an event in Wilmington, Del., on Wednesday that the police officers in Jacob Blake's shooting and Breonna Taylor's murder "need to be charged," and called for an investigation into the individual who shot and killed a Trump supporter in Portland last weekend.
Driving the news: Biden was asked about these situations after delivering remarks about how to open school safely in light of the coronavirus pandemic. It comes during a week in which he's been out on the trail countering Trump's attacks about violence and unrest in America.
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) officials said Tuesday the agency is changing its policy on funding personal protective equipment, per a recording of a conference call obtained by NPR.
Why it matters: The new policy, effective Sept. 15., means that states will no longer be reimbursed for cloth face masks unless they're for emergency protective measures. This impacts schools, public housing, and courthouses, according to NPR.
The Commission on Presidential Debates on Wednesday announced the moderators for the general election debates: Fox News' Chris Wallace, USA Today's Susan Page, C-SPAN's Steve Scully and NBC News' Kristen Welker.
What to watch: President Trump has previously been a harsh critic of Chris Wallace and attacked NBC as "fake news."
Joe Biden's campaign, the Democratic National Committee and their joint fundraising committees together raised $364.5 million in the month of August, his campaign announced Wednesday.
Why it matters: The total is believed to be the most ever raised by a presidential candidate in a single month, likely driven in part by Biden's announcement on Aug. 11 that he had tapped Sen. Kamala Harris to be his running mate, according to the New York Times.
President Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump on Tuesday campaigned in Florida alongside far-right Republican congressional candidate Laura Loomer.
Why it matters: Loomer is a self-described "proud Islamophobe" who was banned from Facebook and Twitter after criticizing Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and making anti-Muslim comments.
The Department of Homeland Security withheld the release of an intelligence bulletin warning law enforcement agencies about a Russian campaign to promote allegations about Democratic nominee Joe Biden's "poor mental health," ABC News reports.
Why it matters: The report comes days after the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said that it will no longer brief congressional committees on election security issues and it echoes allegations from the Trump campaign on Biden's mental fitness. The news is likely to fuel even more accusations from Democrats that President Trump and his administration have politicized the use of intelligence.
A group of 81 Nobel Prize winners endorsed Joe Biden for president, reports CNN.
Why it matters: They cited Biden's "deep appreciation for using science to find solutions" in the letter — which it highlighted as particularly important during the coronavirus pandemic.
The National Institutes of Health on Tuesday released a statement undercutting the Food and Drug Administration's emergency authorization of convalescent plasma as a coronavirus treatment — an escalation of an extraordinary public disagreement between federal agencies.
Why it matters: Thankfully, the main question surrounding the treatment is whether it works, not whether it's safe. But this feud could erode public trust in any future coronavirus treatments and vaccines, potentially for good reason.
Americans' perceptions of the current state of race relations are more negative than at any time since Gallup started asking the question in 2001.
Why it matters: It comes during a summer of mass protests about racial injustice following a series of violent incidents against unarmed Black Americans by police officers.
The Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorialare among the targets of a task force D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser named this summer amid nationwide protests, AP reports.
The state of play: The committee yesterday recommended changes for dozens of monuments, schools, parks and buildings because of their namesakes' association with slavery or racial oppression.
First lady Melania Trump "regularly" used private email accounts while in the White House, her former adviser Stephanie Winston Wolkoff alleged to the Washington Post in an interview published Tuesday night.
Why it matters: President Trump made the FBI investigation into 2016 Democratic rival Hillary Clinton's private emails and server a major focus of his first presidential campaign and has continued to raise the issue during his re-election bid.
Sen. Ed Markey won the Massachusetts Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate on Tuesday evening,fending off a bitter challenge from Rep. Joe Kennedy, AP reports.
Why it matters: The power of the Kennedy name in Massachusetts wasn't enough to overcome the incumbency advantage and progressive credentials of Markey, the co-author of the Green New Deal.
Rep. Richard Neal, chair of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, on Tuesday evening defeated his primary challenger Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse in the Democratic primary for Massachusetts' 1st Congressional District, the AP reports.
Why it matters: It's a victory for the establishment wing of the Democratic Party, which took a hit with the primary defeat of House Foreign Affairs Chairman Eliot Engel (N.Y.) earlier this year. Neal had been targeted for his ties to corporate lobbyists and resistance to progressive policies like Medicare for All and the Green New Deal.
The Army announced Tuesday that a four-star general will lead an investigation into the "chain of command actions" related to the killing of 20-year-old Spc. Vanessa Guillén in Fort Hood, Texas.
Details: The Army said in a statement that Gen. John Murray, commanding general of Army Futures Command, would lead the "in-depth investigation." Maj. Gen. Scott Efflandt, deputy commander of III Corps at Fort Hood, is no longer commander for the 1st Armored Division.
The U.S. Postal Services' Office of the Inspector General found some unresolved issues within the agency that could impact its ability to efficiently process and deliver election mail with the general election just around the corner, according to an agency audit.
The big picture: More Americans than ever are expected to mail in their ballots in November's election as the coronavirus pandemic persists and voters aim to avoid possible exposure. The audit also comes as Democratic lawmakers worry that recent operational changes made by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy threaten the USPS' ability to handle the anticipated surge in mail-in ballots.
