World News: August 2020

USA TODAY: QAnon is radicalizing Americans

Monday, August 31

Supporters of President Donald Trump hold up their phones with messages referring to the QAnon conspiracy theory at a campaign rally at Las Vegas Convention Center on February 21, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

What to know about the far-right conspiracy theory QAnon. The US hit 6 million coronavirus cases. It's Monday's news.

A far-right conspiracy movement is spreading through America. Coronavirus cases in the U.S. are higher than anywhere in the world. And in another episode of time appearing to be meaningless, it's almost September.

It's Ashley with Monday's news to know. Let's do it.

But first, hold on tight: Terrifying video shows a 3-year-old girl get accidentally carried into the sky by a kite at a festival. Thankfully, her family says she's OK.

The Short List newsletter is a snappy USA TODAY news roundup. Subscribe here!

The QAnon conspiracy theory has gone mainstream

Been hearing about the far-right conspiracy theory QAnon lately? Me, too. So I asked my colleague, Nathan Bomey, to explain it to me. Here's what he had to say:

Before the internet, it was hard to share conspiracy theories. Now, however, it's really simple. And Americans are increasingly diving deep — so deep that it's getting dangerous. A growing number of people are falling prey to a patchwork of conspiracy theories called QAnon. The group circulates a wide range of conspiracy theories, but its main premise is the baseless assertion that President Donald Trump is protecting the world from a network of "evil" Democrats who are secretly leading a child-sex trafficking ring. The far-right movement is increasingly spreading their conspiracies on mainstream social media channels. Feeling the suffocating grip of social isolation and economic challenges amid COVID-19, many Americans are desperately searching for a sense of community — and they're finding it in QAnon.

But this isn't harmless clickbait: Extremism experts say they're concerned about signs that the "digital cult" is translating into real-world violence. In April, an Illinois woman who had immersed herself in QAnon theories was arrested in New York after traveling there with a stash of knives and weapons and threatening Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton.

•	What is QAnon and where did it come from? What to know about the far-right conspiracy theory.

Conspiracy theorist QAnon demonstrators protest child trafficking on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, August 22, 2020.

KYLE GRILLOT, AFP via Getty Images

We've hit 6 million coronavirus cases

As much as we dislike reporting grim coronavirus milestones, they keep coming. The U.S. quietly surpassed 6 million coronavirus cases on Monday, just seven months and 10 days after the first case was confirmed in the country. With pressure to alleviate the crisis, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is willing to provide "emergency use authorization" for the use of a vaccine before Phase Three clinical trials are complete. An FDA official said that if a vaccine developer applies before concluding the crucial testing phase – involving tens of thousands of patients – the FDA might find authorization "appropriate."

Give it to me straight:

•	At least 183,000 people have died from COVID-19 in the U.S.
•	Globally, there are 25 million cases and more than 846,000 deaths.

Audra Quisenberry, 6, puts on a mask as she sits at her desk inside Premier Martial Arts on her first day of school Monday, Aug. 24, 2020, in Wildwood, Mo. The first grader will attend her classes virtually while spending her days at the martial arts studio since her school has been shutdown due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Jeff Roberson, AP

What everyone's talking about

•	Adele is stirring up controversy with a photo. This time, it's over cultural appropriation.
•	"That's the shooter": Witnesses describe the night Kyle Rittenhouse opened fire in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
•	The 75-year-old Buffalo man shoved by police opened up about the incident after a month in the hospital.
•	The beginning of the end of airline change fees? United is ditching them for good – with a catch.
•	Kid Rock tied the knot this weekend. Kinda. The lucky lady? Country music icon Loretta Lynn.
•	Emma Roberts revealed she's pregnant with a baby boy in new photos with her boyfriend Garrett Hedlund.

State police return to Portland

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced a "unified law enforcement plan" to curb violence in Portland as the state's largest city was reeling after a fatal weekend shooting following clashes between Trump supporters and counter protesters. Brown said Oregon State Police would be returning to Portland to provide help amid the nightly protests that have taken place since the killing of George Floyd. A man was fatally shot Saturday shortly after a caravan of vehicles carrying Trump supporters rolled through Portland, drawing heated counter protests. Founder of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer , Joey Gibson, identified the victim as Aaron "Jay" Danielson.

What is Patriot Prayer? It's a group based in Washington state that has rallied Trump supporters for demonstrations in Portland since 2017. Gibson has complained that the group had been unfairly pegged as white supremacist.

Ex-Trump adviser Michael Flynn is back in the hot seat

The criminal case against Michael Flynn should not be dismissed, a federal appeals court ruled Monday in a major setback for President Donald Trump's former national security adviser, who has proclaimed his innocence. The ruling in Washington, D.C., which reverses a previous decision, is the latest in the long and politically fraught legal case of the former Army general. Flynn is one of half a dozen former Trump aides and advisers who were indicted as a result of the special counsel investigation on Russian election interference. Now, the case will head back to the District Court, where a judge is expected to hear oral arguments from the Department of Justice — which has argued in favor of dismissal.

President Donald Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn arrives for his sentencing at the U.S. District Court in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018.

Carolyn Kaster, AP

Real quick

•	One Disney World resort won't reopen until next summer.
•	What does Walmart see in TikTok? Millions of young shoppers.
•	With the peak of hurricane season almost here, weather forecasters are watching four areas for tropical development.
•	Are college COVID-19 outbreaks the fault of campuses full of reckless partiers? Experts and students say no.
•	Chasten Buttigieg talks Biden, quarantine and new memoir: "I wanted to write my real story."

Legendary Georgetown basketball coach John Thompson dies

Legendary Georgetown coach and Basketball Hall of Fame member John Thompson has died. He was 78. Thompson became the first Black head coach to win the NCAA men's basketball national title when he guided the Hoyas to the championship in 1984. Thompson coached several future NBA greats, including Allen Iverson, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutombo and Patrick Ewing, the 1985 national player of the year and the team's current head coach. Following news of Thompson's death, Iverson paid tribute to him on Twitter: "Thanks For Saving My Life Coach."

Allen Iverson, left, hugs presenter and former coach John Thompson during Hall of Fame induction ceremonies in 2016.

Elise Amendola, AP

A break from the news

•	🚘 These oddball Jeeps and far-out concepts lay the foundation for this week's SUV unveilings.
•	🍃 Are these nature-inspired kits the key to getting your kids outside?
•	🎁 Birthday coming up? These will be the 10 most popular gifts for 2020.

This is a compilation of stories from across the USA TODAY Network. Want this news roundup in your inbox every night? Sign up for The Short List newsletter here.

Biden comments on Trump, unrest across country

Rev. Mebane on June 03, 2020, in St. Barnabas Chur

Rev. Will Mebane's lifelong stand for justice

A Postal worker removes mailboxes in downtown Colu

USPS removes thousands of mailboxes each year

USPS explained

Problem viewing email? View in browser

Unsubscribe • Manage Newsletters • Terms of Service • Privacy Policy/Your California Privacy Rights • Privacy Notice • Do Not Sell My Info/Cookie Policy • Feedback

Monday, August 31

President Donald Trump's supporters remain committed, though former Vice President Joe Biden leads in several polls.

OnPolitics: Biden and Trump blame each other for escalating violence

President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden are arguing over who is to blame for the recent violence and over who can stop it.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden attacked President Donald Trump's "law and order" message toward violent protests and asked voters whether they really felt safer with the 180,000 deaths from COVID-19 and a rising homicide rate this year.

"Do I look like a radical socialist with a soft spot for rioters?" Biden asked in a 24-minute speech in Pittsburgh. "I want a safe America - safe from COVID, safe from crime and looting, safe from racially motivated violence, safe from bad cops."

During the Republican National Convention last week, Trump and his supporters repeatedly argued protests and unrest would grow if Biden wins the Nov. 3 election and falsely claimed Biden had not condemned violent demonstrators.

In his closing RNC speech Thursday, Trump said, "No one will be safe in Biden's America."

Biden countered that the violent crime fell 15% while he was vice president in the Obama administration, but that the homicide rate is up 26% this year under Trump. COVID-19 has killed 180,000 Americans. And the Social Security actuary projected that the program would be permanently depleted by 2023 if the country abandoned the payroll tax that funds it, as Trump has proposed.

"Do you really feel safer under Donald Trump?" Biden asked.

Did RNC speakers know history?

Abraham Lincoln. James Madison. The Declaration of Independence. Socialism. Impeachment.

Speakers at the Republican National Convention last week used United States history to make the case President Donald Trump should be reelected to a second term.

However, many of the historical references and examples used were inaccurate, misleading, omitted important facts and clarifications, or were unverifiable.

Here are some of those historical claims mentioned at the RNC.

Did SCOTUS help abortion activists?

The Supreme Court's decision in June striking down a Louisiana restriction on abortion clinics is giving abortion opponents an unlikely opportunity in other states.

Officials in Texas, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and Oklahoma have in recent weeks argued that the high court's 5-4 ruling actually bolsters their defense of anti-abortion laws, even though the justices ruled against Louisiana.

The states' arguments coincide with a federal appeals court decision earlier this month reinstating several abortion restrictions in Arkansas, which was based in part on the Supreme Court's seemingly pro-choice ruling.

What else is going on?

•	Schiff vows to 'compel' intelligence on election security
•	Indiana Congressman introduces bill to ban protest 'thugs' from receiving unemployment aid
•	Scalise defends use of altered video that claimed Biden wants to 'defund the police'
•	House committee to subpoena Postmaster
•	Steve Bannon court date set for May 2021 in 'We Build the Wall' fraud case