AP News Digest 6:15 p.m.
Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All Times EST. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.
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NEW/DEVELOPING
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Adds ELECTION 2020-WISCONSIN, VIRUS OUTBREAK-GRASSLEY, NAVY SHIP-FIRE, NORTHEAST-STORM, GAO-UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS, NBA-CAMPS OPEN, FILM-I’M YOUR WOMAN-RACHEL BROSNAHAN.
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FOREIGN INFLUENCE-STRAW DONOR — Imaad Zuberi, an elite political fundraiser, had the ear of top Democrats and Republicans alike — a reach that included private meetings with then-Vice President Joe Biden and VIP access at Donald Trump’s inauguration. But federal prosecutors say Zuberi’s life was built on a series of lies and the lucrative enterprise of filling the campaign coffers of American politicians and profiting from the resulting influence. By Alan Sudermand and Jim Mustian. SENT: 3,300 words, photo. Abridged version also available. With FOREIGN-INFLUENCE-STRAW-DONOR-TAKEAWAYS (sent).
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VIRUS-OUTBREAK — Moderna Inc. says it will ask U.S. and European regulators to allow emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine as study results confirm the shots offer strong protection. By Medical Writer Lauran Neergaard. SENT: 960 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-US SURGE — Americans face new COVID-19 restrictions after Thanksgiving. SENT: 880 words, photos; VIRUS OUTBREAK-THINGS TO KNOW (sent).
BIDEN-ECONOMIC TEAM — President-elect Joe Biden announces his senior economic team, including the first woman to head the Treasury Department as well as several liberal economists and policy specialists who established their credentials during the previous two Democratic administrations. By Aamer Madhani and Zeke Miller. SENT: 750 words, photos. With BIDEN-TANDEN — Political fight brewing over Biden’s WH budget chief nominee. SENT: 540 words, photo.
SUPREME COURT-2020 CENSUS — The Supreme Court sounds skeptical that President Donald Trump could categorically exclude people living in the country illegally from the population count used to allot seats in the House of Representatives. But it also appears possible that the justices could avoid a final ruling on the issue until they know how broadly the Trump administration acts in its final days in office. By Mark Sherman. SENT: 610 words, photos.
IRAN — A top Iranian security official says Israel used “electronic devices” to remotely kill a scientist who founded the country’s nuclear program in the 2000s. Israel, long suspected of killing Iranian nuclear scientists over the last decade, has declined to comment on the killing of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. By Nasser Karimi and Jon Gambrell. SENT: 790 words, photos.
CYBER MONDAY — The pandemic is accelerating a transformation of America’s holiday shopping season. Few people showed up to the mall this weekend. Everybody else was shopping from home. By Retail Writer Joseph Pisani. SENT: 630 words, photos. With FINANCIAL MARKETS — Stocks pull back slightly from their record levels. SENT: 850 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-VACCINE-FRAUD PREVENTION — The coronavirus vaccine is desperately anticipated by Americans longing for a path back to normal life, but criminals are ready to use that desperation to their advantage. Homeland Security investigators are working with drug companies to fight scammers. By Colleen Long. SENT: 990 words, photos, video. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-FRAUD PREVENTION-BOX — How to watch out for scams. SENT: 130 words, photos.
BIDEN-PRESIDENTIAL PETS — Major Biden gets an early start in the spotlight as a presidential dog after a play date ended with his owner, President-elect Joe Biden, suffering a broken foot. Pets will be returning to the White House after a four-year hiatus during the Trump administration. By Kevin Freking. SENT: 590 words, photos.
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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
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WHITE HOUSE-CHRISTMAS — This year’s White House Christmas decorations highlight first responders and frontline workers who are being challenged by the pandemic. SENT: 600 words, photos, video.
MYSTERIOUS MONOLITH — Disappearance of Utah monolith won’t prompt major probe. SENT: 270 words, photos.
BRITAIN-ARCADIA — British retail empire Arcadia Group, which owns well-known fashion chains including Topshop, has gone into bankruptcy protection, putting 13,000 jobs at risk. SENT: 730 words, photos.
VIRUS-OUTBREAK-WORD OF THE YEAR — Dictionary companies choose same word of the year: pandemic. SENT: 860 words, photo.
SAVING A SEAHORSE — A Florida vet school has turned to an unusual treatment to save a woman’s seahorse. SENT: 650 words, photos.
RAVENS-STEELERS-PPD — Rav ens-Steelers rescheduled again by COVID-19 to Wednesday. SENT: 500 words, photos.
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HONG KONG-VIRUS-OUTBREAK — Hong Kong imposes sweeping curbs to stop a fresh spike in coronavirus infections. SENT: 245 words, photos. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-TURKEY —Turkey’s president announces the most widespread lockdown so far amid a surge in COVID-19 infections. SENT: 370 words, photos.
AIRLINES-HOLIDAY TRAVEL — The TSA says nearly 1.2 million people went through U.S. airports on Sunday. That’s the highest number since the pandemic began in March. SENT: 180 words, photo.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-ONE GOOD-THING-ARTIST-BUYING-ART — Art world star gives back by buying work of the undiscovered. SENT: 600 words, photos.
Find more coverage on the Virus Outbreak on the featured topic page in AP Newsroom.
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BIDEN-INTELLIGENCE — Joe Biden gets his first look as president-elect at the President’s Daily Brief, a top secret summary of U.S. intelligence and world events — a document former first lady Michelle Obama has called “The Death, Destruction, and Horrible Things Book.” SENT: 850 words, photos.
CONGRESS RETURNS — Congress returns to Washington for one last attempt at deal-making this year. The only absolute must-do is preventing a government shutdown on Dec. 11, but lawmakers are also debating whether to deliver another round of coronavirus relief before President Trump leaves office. SENT: 920 words, photo.
ELECTION 2020-WISCONSIN — Joe Biden’s victory in battleground Wisconsin is confirmed following a partial recount. President Trump has promised to sue in an effort to undo the results. SENT: 780 words, photos. With ELECTION 2020-ARIZONA-CERTIFICATION — Arizona certifies Biden’s narrow victory over Trump. SENT: 640 words, photos.
ELECTION 2020-GEORGIA — Georgia’s top elections official says his office is investigating potential election violations by groups working to register voters ahead of January’s Senate runoffs. SENT: 600 words, photos.
VIRUS OUTBREAK-GRASSLEY — Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, the longest-serving Republican senator and third in the line of presidential succession, is back in the Senate after testing positive for coronavirus two weeks ago. SENT: 390 words, photo.
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VATICAN-CARDINAL PELL — Cardinal George Pell, who was convicted and then acquitted of sexual abuse in his native Australia, reflects on Pope Francis’ papacy and the humiliations of solitary confinement in his jailhouse memoir. SENT: 940 words, photo.
FRANCE-POLICE — French lawmakers will rewrite the most criticized article of a proposed security law — a measure aimed at banning the publication of images of police officers with intent to cause them harm. SENT: 220 words, photo.
ETHIOPIA-MILITARY CONFRONTATION — The fugitive leader of Ethiopia’s defiant Tigray region calls on Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to “stop the madness” and withdraw troops from the region. SENT: 580 words, photos. With YEMEN — Charity says shelling kills 11 civilians in Yemen’s Hodeida SENT: 300 words.
NATO-AFGHANISTAN — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance is grappling with a dilemma over its future in Afghanistan. SENT: 570 words, photos.
EUROPE-MIGRANTS — Spain dismantles most of the temporary camp for migrant processing that became known as the “dock of shame” for holding in unfit conditions thousands of Africans arriving in the Canary Islands. SENT: 350 words.
INDIAN-FARMER PROTESTS — India’s government moves up talks to Tuesday with the leaders of farm groups protesting new agricultural laws in the country’s biggest farmer protests in years. SENT: 580 words, photo.
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HAWAII-CORRUPTION-SENTENCING — A former Honolulu prosecutor is sentenced to 13 years in prison after a judge says she used her husband’s position as a police chief to frame a relative for a crime he didn’t commit. SENT: 580 words, photo.
NAVY SHIP-FIRE — The Navy says it will decommission a warship docked off San Diego after suspected arson caused extensive damage, making it too expensive to restore. SENT: 440 words, photos.
NORTHEAST STORM — Gale-force winds lash much of the northeastern U.S., prompting tornado watches and flash-flood warnings and knocking out power to tens of thousands. SENT: 200 words, photo.
EXECUTION-SOUTH-CAROLINA — South Carolina prison officials say they have to delay an execution scheduled Friday because they won’t be able to obtain the lethal injection drugs. SENT: 470 words.
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SCIENCE/HEALTH
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ALZHEIMER-BLOOD-TEST — A company begins selling the first blood test to help diagnose Alzheimer’s disease, a leap for the field that could make it much easier for people to learn whether they have dementia. By Chief Medical Writer Marilynn Marchione. SENT: 850 words, photos.
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GAO-UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS — A government watchdog finds that the Labor Department’s widely watched weekly unemployment benefits data are providing an inaccurate reading on the number of newly laid off workers. By Economics Writer Martin Crutsinger. SENT: 500 words.
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NBA-CAMPS OPEN — For the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, it was the shortest offseason ever. For eight other teams, it was the offseason that lasted longer than most seasons. Either way, it’s back to work in the NBA. Training camps open Tuesday. By Basketball Writer Tim Reynolds. SENT: 620 words, photos
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FILM-I’M YOUR WOMAN-RACHEL BROSNAHAN — “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” star Rachel Brosnahan may be wearing period clothes in the new film “I’m Your Woman,” but it’s worlds away from the sunny show she made her name with. By Film Writer Lindsey Bahr. SENT: 900 words, photos.
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HOW TO REACH US
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