AstraZeneca pauses vaccine trial after subject falls ill . . . AstraZeneca has suspended global trials of its experimental coronavirus vaccine after an unexplained illness in a participant, knocking the British drugmaker’s shares on Wednesday as prospects for an early rollout dimmed. The vaccine to combat COVID-19, which AstraZeneca is developing with the University of Oxford, has been described by the World Health Organization as probably the world’s leading candidate and the furthest developed. However, AstraZeneca said on Tuesday it had paused trials, including late-stage ones, to allow an independent committee to review safety data, and it was working to minimise any potential impact on the timeline. Reuters

 

Covid cases skyrocket at colleges . . . Any doubts that students would find a way to party, even during a pandemic, have been quickly dispelled as COVID-19 cases skyrocketed at colleges around the country. Some colleges promptly canceled in-person instruction, and social media videos and images of partying students helped feed a narrative of irresponsible behavior putting everyone in the university community at risk. Mental health professionals say expecting students to stop socializing is unrealistic and harmful to their developmental needs at that age. USA Today

 

 

South Dakota governor slams study tying 250K coronavirus cases to Sturgis rally . . . A study by a California research group estimates that the Sturgis motorcycle rally in South Dakota led to more than 260,000 coronavirus cases in the month following the event. Researchers from the Center for Health Economics and Policy Studies at San Diego State University published their findings Saturday in a 63-page report. The estimate is dramatically more than the number of cases tied to the rally reported by both the South Dakota health department and the Associated Press. South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem on Tuesday said the study was "fiction," and she criticized journalists who reported on it. USA Today

 

The Atlantic author admits anonymous sources "Not good enough" . . . Jeffrey Goldberg, The Atlantic’s editor in chief, conceded on MSNBC’s “All In with Chris Hayes” Monday that anonymous sourcing is “not good enough” after backlash over a story about President Donald Trump. Goldberg faced criticism after a Sept. 3 story used four anonymous sources to allege that the president referred to fallen soldiers as “losers” and “suckers.” Since its publication, Fox News and other publications have confirmed details of the story. Meanwhile, multiple current and former Trump administration members on the trip where the comments were allegedly made have denied the report. Daily Caller

 

 

Trump may put up to $100M of his own cash into the race . . . President Donald Trump has discussed spending as much as $100 million of his own money on his re-election campaign, if necessary, to beat Democratic nominee Joe Biden, according to people familiar with the matter. The billionaire president has talked about the idea with multiple people, though he hasn’t yet committed to any self-funding, according to people briefed on internal deliberations. Though Trump personally contributed $66 million to his 2016 campaign, it would be unprecedented for an incumbent president to put his own money toward winning a second term. Bloomberg

 

Trump: Harris would be "insult" as first female president . . . President Trump on Tuesday derided Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris, saying it would be "an insult to our country" if the California senator became the nation's first female president.

"People don't like her. Nobody likes her. She could never be the first woman president. She could never be. That would be an insult to our country," Trump told a crowd of supporters in North Carolina. The Hill

 

Today's Trump Schedule 

 

Harris supports Jacob Blake despite assault allegations . . . Sen. Kamala Harris believed Christine Blasey Ford, but whether she believes Jacob Blake’s ex-girlfriend is another matter. Ms. Harris offered her support Monday for Mr. Blake, 29, who remains hospitalized after being shot in the back by an officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, speaking with him by phone and visiting with several of his relatives and attorneys at Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee. Mr. Blake has been charged with sexually assaulting his ex-girlfriend, while Ms. Harris is known as a champion of the #MeToo movement, gaining national fame for her 2017 grilling of then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Washington Times

 

Video || Joe Biden acting strange: The definitive collection

 

Severely burned army bets furious Dems using his image . . . A U.S. army veteran blown up on his fourth tour of Iraq has asked critics of Donald Trump to stop using his likeness to illustrate the president's reported comments about 'losers' and 'suckers'. Bobby Henline, who spent 13 years in the army, was the only survivor of five soldiers whose vehicle went over an IED in April 2007. Henline, 49, suffered burns on 40 per cent of his body, and his head was burned down to the skull. He now works as a comedian and motivational speaker. Daily Mail

 

Republicans seek to unite around "skinny" stimulus bill . . . Senate Republicans proposed a new, smaller package of coronavirus aid Tuesday aimed at unifying the party and bolstering it politically, as talks with Democrats remained at a standstill and both parties blame the other for the lack of progress over the summer. The new bill, which includes jobless aid, liability protections for businesses and school funding among other measures, is expected to cost around $300 billion, after the $650 billion in new spending is offset with $350 billion in savings from unspent funds from earlier coronavirus packages. Wall Street Journal

 

DOJ to defend Trump against defamation allegation by woman who accused him of rape . . . The Justice Department is asking to take over President Donald Trump’s defense in a defamation lawsuit from a writer who accused him of rape, and federal lawyers asked a court Tuesday to allow a move that could put the American people on the hook for any money she might be awarded. After New York state courts turned down Trump’s request to delay E. Jean Carroll’s suit, Justice Department lawyers filed court papers aiming to shift the case into federal court and to substitute the U.S. for Trump as the defendant. That means the federal government, rather than Trump himself, might have to pay damages if any are awarded. USA Today

 

Trump to cut troop levels in Iraq . . . President Trump and the Pentagon plan to announce a reduction of U.S. troop levels from 5,200 to about 3,500, a senior defense official told Fox News.

The coordinated announcement is expected sometime Wednesday and the Iraqis are aware of the decision and are on board, according to the official. A senior administration official discussed the draw-down with reporters aboard Air Force One on Tuesday night, on condition of anonymity. The top U.S. general for the Middle East said in July that he believed the U.S. will keep a smaller but enduring presence in Iraq. Fox News

 

Britain bans gatherings of six or more . . . Social gatherings of more than six people will be banned in England from Monday in response to a sharp increase in coronavirus cases, Boris Johnson is set to announce. The prime minister is to give a press conference on Wednesday at which he will confirm that the legal limit at which police can disperse gatherings of people will be reduced from the current 30 to just six. The U.K. has seen a swift rise in the daily number of cases since the weekend, with a further 2,420 cases reported on Tuesday. Politico

 

Elon Musk's wealth drops $16.3B in one day . . . Elon Musk lost a record $16.3 billion after Tesla shares plummeted by 21 per cent losing more than $100 billion off its market value yesterday - the company's biggest ever drop. To add insult to injury, the electric car maker was snubbed for inclusion in the S&P 500 Index. Musk's drop in net worth is the largest single-day wipe-out in the history of Bloomberg's Billionaire's Index, and comes amid a rout in US technology stocks that started at the end of last week but continued after Labor Day. Daily Mail 

 

Riots drive record year for gun sales . . . In a record-breaking year for gun buying, the biggest spike in firearms purchases came as protests and riots broke out across the nation in June, a Washington Free Beacon analysis of FBI data indicates. While March saw the most guns sold thus far in 2020, seasonally adjusted data show that it was June—the month after the death of George Floyd and subsequent onset of protests and civil unrest—that most exceeded expectations, massively outpacing usually languid summertime sales. Washington Free Beacon

 

Sharpton slams Defund the Police . . .  MSNBC host Al Sharpton declared Tuesday that defunding the police is an idea only a “latte liberal” could support. During an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” the National Action Network founder said New York City’s poorer communities are in need of more policing, not less. “We’ve always heard about the tale of two cities,” Mr. Sharpton said. “On the side of the city that I come from, which is Blacker and poorer, we’ve seen more in terms of gun usage. I got a lot of attention when I did the eulogy for George Floyd’s funeral, but I also, a month later, preached a 1-year-old kid’s funeral in Brooklyn who was killed by a stray bullet.” Washington Times

 

Looks like Reverend Al took a logic pill.

 

Two women charged with hate crimes for stealing seven-year-old's MAGA hat . . . Two women are facing hate crime charges after confronting a seven-year-old boy and his Trump-supporting mother outside the Democratic National Convention in Delaware, and seizing a 'Make America Great Again' hat. The pair were caught on camera on August 20 in Wilmington - a few hundred feet from where Joe Biden gave his DNC acceptance speech that night. They were arrested on August 23. On Tuesday a grand jury in Delaware indicted Olivia Winslow and Camryn Amy, both 21, on felony charges of robbery, conspiracy and hate crimes and a misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of a child. Daily Mail

 

Forget jail time. They should be forced to wear MAGA hats in public every day for a year.

 

Movies must meet diversity standards to win Oscar for  Best Picture . . . Actress Kirstie Alley raged at the Oscars' 'dictatorial' new diversity rules last night - claiming they were akin to 'telling Picasso what had to be in his f***ing paintings'.  The Academy Awards shake-up means films hoping to win Best Picture from 2024 will have to hire more black, female, LGBT or disabled cast and crew or address themes that affect those communities. Daily Mail

 

Keeping up with the Kardashians to air final season . . . Keeping Up With The Kardashians was once a ratings hit for E! and over the past 14 years the show has forged the careers of Kim and her siblings Kourtney, Khloe, Kylie and Kendall, catapulting them to household name status. However alongside the show's stratospheric success, it has recently been plagued by unwanted drama, including Kim's husband Kanye West's very public meltdown, family members refusing to film and public backlash. While viewership has dwindled and the cast members' pay-cheques have only increased, it has long been questioned when the reality show will air its final season. Daily Mail

 

CNN removes Redskins logo from photo of Biden and son . . . CNN appears to have altered a widely-seen photograph of Joe Biden with his young son to remove the logo of the Washington Redskins. The Democratic nominee and former vice president initially shared the photo in June to commemorate Father's Day. However, when CNN featured the photograph in its Monday night special "Fight for the White House: Joe Biden's Long Journey," the Redskins logo was removed from the hat. Fox News

 

Hundreds assemble to hear musical piece change chords for first time in seven years . . . Hundreds of people flocked to a German church Saturday to hear an organ change chords for the first time in nearly seven years. The experimental piece, which consists of eight pages of music meant to be played very slowly, is intended to last for an entirety of 639 years — meaning it will end in 2640 if all goes according to plan. The organ had been playing the same chord for six years and 11 months before Saturday’s chord change. The piece officially started playing Sept. 5, 2001 but began without any sound — until Feb. 5, 2003, when the first chord change happened. UPI