10.29.2019

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Need To Know
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Los Angeles Fires
​​​​​​Wildfires continue to rage across the state of California, with a new blaze jamming Los Angeles traffic yesterday as it burned alongside Interstate 405 and raced toward the city's famous Getty Center. By nightfall the fire had burned through more than 600 acres and at least 10,000 structures were under evacuation in the affluent northwestern suburbs, forcing a number of celebrities - including LeBron James and Arnold Schwarzenegger - to flee the area. Like many of the other 15 major fires burning across the state (see map), the Getty Fire began as a smoldering brush fire but spread rapidly as dry, strong winds swept through coastal areas. Conditions in Los Angeles are especially critical, with virtually no rainfall since May and humidity as low as 5%. Meanwhile, firefighters are battling the Kincade Fire, which has consumed 66,000 acres in Northern California's wine country.

See video of the Los Angeles blaze captured by a driver on the 405.
Dems to Formalize Impeachment Probe
The House will hold its first full vote related to the impeachment inquiry Thursday, top Democrats said yesterday. Though unlikely to make any substantive changes to the ongoing probe, the full floor vote will lay out procedures for open hearings and outline next steps. The news came as House Intelligence Chair Adam Schiff (D, CA-28) said his committee would not ask federal courts to compel administration witnesses to testify, instead using their refusal to bolster the case for advancing impeachment proceedings. The decision marks a shift in strategy and comes after Charles Kupperman, the former deputy national security adviser, failed to appear for scheduled testimony yesterday. The White House had argued that Kupperman was immune from testifying, and Kupperman asked a federal judge to resolve the dispute. The suit raised the prospect of a drawn-out legal battle over the separation of powers; something Democrat leaders were keen to avoid. Today Lt. Col. and NSC staffer Alexander Vindman is expected to testify that he reported concerns over a July 25 call with Ukraine to the group's legal counsel. 

Feel lost? Freshen up on the nuts and bolts of the impeachment process here (pdf). 
Facebook Faces Internal Backlash
More than 250 employees signed a letter denouncing Facebook's recent decision to allow a wide range of claims, including false or partially false statements, in political ads. The internal backlash came after the company said it would not send ads from politicians to third-party fact-checking groups for review (though it would reject ads with previously debunked content). US presidential candidates, including President Trump, have spent nearly $50M on political advertising on the site already. While the total signatories represent a tiny fraction of the company's 35,000 employees, it highlights Facebook's struggle to identify its role in delineating between blatantly false propaganda and more common political rhetoric - a problem made worse by ongoing misinformation campaigns by foreign actors. Company executives had yet to respond as of this morning. 

Read the letter here ($$, NYT). 
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In The Know
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Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> Robert Evans, famed Hollywood producer and former Paramount Pictures head, dies at 89 (More)
> Viacom and CBS $30B merger approved; could be finalized by early December (More)
> Netflix to test varying speeds that would allow viewers to speed binge TV shows; move draws criticism from filmmakers (More)
Science & Technology
> Study finds cells that have stopped dividing, or senescent cells, can eat neighboring cells and promote cancer growth (More)
> US Air Force's mysterious space plane, the X-37B, lands after 780-day mission; marks the longest flight for the reusable spacecraft (More)
> Genetic analysis pinpoints the location of human origin as the Okavango Delta in Botswana (More) | Critics argue study is not comprehensive enough to make conclusion (More)
Business & Markets
> General Motors, Fiat Chrysler, Toyota, Hyundai, and other automakers join Trump administration in bid to bar California from setting own fuel efficiency rules (More)
> S&P 500 index reaches all-time high on strong earnings season and potential Fed rate cut on Wednesday (More)
> Earnings Season: Alphabet (Google) shares drop 4% after earnings miss (More) | Spotify increases subscribers & reports surprise profit, shares up 12% (More) | Beyond Meat reports first quarterly profit but shares fall 6% as increased competition leads to discounted pricing (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> New protests over high cost of living and lack of social services erupt in Chile despite President Sebastián Piñera replacing eight cabinet members with more centrist (More)
> Former North Carolina Senator Kay Hagan (D) passes away at age 66 after three-year battle with encephalitis (More) | Election 2020: Republican Greg Walden (OR-2), ranking member of House Energy Committee, to retire at end of term (More)
> UK lawmakers reject Prime Minister Boris Johnson's call for early general elections as the European Union extends the Brexit deadline from Oct. 31 to Jan. 31 (More)
In-Depth
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Daring and Dangerous
Washington Post | Dan Lamothe, Ellen Nakashima. Just 72 hours after his reported death, details are beginning to emerge about the raid that took down ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. From intelligence gathering to livestreaming in the White House situation room, here's what went into taking down the world's most wanted man. (Read, $$)

Editor's note: The operation was named after former aid worker and ISIS hostage Kayla Mueller. Read her story here.
I'm 72. So What?
Longreads | Catherine Texier. Health science and technology has pushed the average American life span close to 80 years, but society's expectations of how older generations should act haven't kept up with the times. (Read)
 
 
Etcetera
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The best celebrity Halloween costumes of 2019 (so far). 
Americans, especially those who save lives, are getting less sleep
One hundred years of data show poor immigrants climb the economic ladder ($$, NYT). 

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Meet the hero dog that helped take down Baghdadi.
Striking images from an obsessed storm chaser
Cinderblock the cat is not into exercising (w/video). 
When gender reveal parties turn deadly.
Pittsburgh sinkhole partially swallows a city bus
Clickbait: Something big is swimming off the coast of Florida
Historybook: Sir Walter Raleigh is executed (1618); International Red Cross is formed (1863); "Joy of Painting" host Bob Ross born (1942); HBD Gabrielle Union (1972); Astronaut John Glenn becomes the oldest person in space at age 77 (1998).
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