Tropical Storm Beta on Sunday was making a slow crawl to the shores of Texas and Louisiana, casting worries about heavy rain, flooding and storm surge across the Gulf Coast.Beta was one of three named storms whirling in the Atlantic basin during an exceptionally busy hurricane season. If the system makes landfall in Texas – which forecasters predict it will sometime Monday – it would be the ninth named storm to make landfall in the continental U.S. in 2020. Colorado State hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach said that would tie a record set in 1916.Coastal communities began preparing for Beta over the weekend, with both the city of Galveston and Galveston County on Saturday issued voluntary evacuation orders. The city of Seabrook to the north of Galveston did, too.Mayor Pro Tem Craig Brown said in a statement that high tides and up to 25 centimeters of expected rainfall would leave roads impassable, especially along the city’s west end and low-lying areas.County Judge Mark Henry said during a Saturday news conference that his concern is also based on rising waters creating a storm surge and that a mandatory evacuation is not expected.“If you can survive in your home for three or four days without power and electricity, which we’re not even sure that’s going to happen, you’re OK,” Henry said. “If it’s uncomfortable or you need life support equipment, maybe go somewhere else.”Beta was brewing in the Gulf of Mexico, 355 kilometers southeast of Galveston, Texas, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said Sunday morning. The storm had maximum sustained winds at 95 kph and was moving north at 6 kph.Little change in strength was expected as the system approaches Texas, forecasters said. Earlier predictions showed Beta could reach hurricane strength before making landfall.A tropical storm warning was in effect from Port Aransas, Texas, to Morgan City, Louisiana. A hurricane watch, a tropical storm watch and a storm surge watch were all discontinued Sunday morning.In Lake Charles, Louisiana, where thousands of people remain without power more than three weeks after Hurricane Laura slammed into the coast, there are concerns that Beta could super-soak the region once again. Up to 51 centimeters of rain is possible in some parts of the area, Donald Jones, a National Weather Service meteorologist based in Lake Charles, said in a Saturday briefing.“A lot of people have been saying, `Is this going to be like Harvey? Is this going to be like Imelda?’” Jones said. “We’re not talking about rainfall totals yet that are on the orders of magnitude that we saw with that.” Imelda, which struck southeast Texas in 2019, was one of the wettest cyclones on record. Harvey — which dumped more than 127 centimeters of rain on Houston in 2017.However, if the storm ends up moving a bit more slowly than what’s being forecast now, rainfall totals could be even higher than 51 centimeters, Jones said.“Harvey was a very specific and unique event, but we are talking about the same idea in terms of very heavy, heavy rainfall,” he said.Forecasters were predicting up to 1.2 meters of storm surge from Port Aransas, Texas, to Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge, Louisiana. Strong winds, and life-threatening surf and rip current conditions were also expected with the storm.Forecasters ran out of traditional storm names on Friday, forcing the use of the Greek alphabet for only the second time since the 1950s.Meanwhile, Hurricane Teddy remained a powerful hurricane Sunday, with maximum sustained winds at 185 kph and moving northwest at 19 kph. Teddy was centered 550 kilometers south-southeast of Bermuda less than a week after Hurricane Paulette made landfall in the wealthy British territory.A tropical storm warning was in effect for Bermuda. Large swells from Teddy were impacting the Lesser Antilles, the Greater Antilles, the Bahamas, Bermuda, the U.S. East Coast and Atlantic Canada, forecasters said.Tropical Storm Wilfred was still at sea but expected to dissipate by Tuesday.Parts of the Alabama coast and Florida Panhandle were still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Sally, which roared ashore on Wednesday. At least two deaths were blamed on the system. Roughly 82,300 were still without power in the Florida Panhandle on Saturday. Gulf Power said 95% of its customers in hardest hit Escambia and Santa Rosa counties will have power restored by the end of the day Tuesday.Meanwhile, residents in Springfield were warned to avoid contact with standing water after about 19,000 liters of raw sewage spilled into Lake Martin, according to county health officials.The Salvation Army was distributing roughly 10,000 meals Saturday at 10 locations throughout the Panhandle.  
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Australia will allow more of its citizens stranded overseas by COVID-19 border controls to return home. The current weekly cap of 4,000 arrivals, who must go into mandatory hotel quarantine for 14 days, is to be increased by 1,500 by mid-October.COVID-19 travel restrictions have left tens of thousands of Australians unable to fly home. Limits have been imposed on the number of citizens and permanent residents allowed to return because authorities do not want to overburden the quarantine system. All travelers returning from overseas must spend two weeks under guard in a hotel as part of efforts to curb the virus.Under a new plan, announced by Prime Minister Scott Morrison late Friday,1,500 additional passengers will be allowed to come home by October 12. The plan was agreed to by the so-called national cabinet, made up of the prime minister, and state and territory premiers and chief ministers. The states of New South Wales, Western Australia and Queensland will all accept an additional 500 people per week. The number of arrivals will gradually climb in coming weeks despite federal authorities’ desire that they be increased much sooner.Western Australian premier Mark McGowan, who was concerned over an earlier federal plan to double the state’s quota by September 28, said the system needs to be carefully managed.“The decision by the federal government to unilaterally double Western Australia’s international arrivals by the 28th of September in our view carried too much risk for our state,” he said. “Today we secured a new way forward, a unique agreement for Western Australia, one that is more sensible and more workable.”The pandemic has also brought fragmentation to the Australian federation of six states and two main territories. Many have closed their borders to Victoria, which is at the center of the nation’s coronavirus crisis, and neighboring New South Wales.Authorities say the measures are needed to protect public health, but the federal government believes the restrictions are heavy-handed and are stifling the economy’s recovery from the virus.Tasmanian Premier Peter Gutwein says he is hoping to lift his island state’s restrictions earlier than a previously set deadline of December 1.“The state controller, on the advice from public health, is looking at the possibility of bringing forward the date for easing our border restrictions with COVID-safe and low-risk states by the end of October, such as South Australia, WA [Western Australia] and the Northern Territory,” he said.Officials are also working to set up a so-called “travel bubble” to allow flights to resume with New Zealand. Both countries have closed their borders to foreign nationals, although citizens and permanent residents can return.COVID-19 was first diagnosed in Australia in late January. Almost 27,000 confirmed cases have been detected, and about 850 people have died. Most of the infections and fatalities have occurred in Victoria, although daily new case numbers are falling. The state capital, Melbourne, remains in lockdown for at least another week. 
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With precision and boundless energy, a team of carpenters used medieval techniques to raise up — by hand — a 3-ton oak truss Saturday in front of Notre Dame Cathedral, a replica of the wooden structures that were consumed in the landmark’s devastating April 2019 fire that also toppled its spire.The demonstration to mark European Heritage Days gave the hundreds of people a firsthand look at the rustic methods used 800 years ago to build the triangular frames in the nave of Notre Dame de Paris.It also showed that the decision to replicate the cathedral in its original form was the right one, said Gen. Jean-Louis Georgelin, who heads the cathedral’s reconstruction.“It shows … firstly that we made the right choice in choosing to rebuild the carpentry identically, in oak from France,” Georgelin said in an interview. “Secondly, it shows us the … method by which we will rebuild the framework, truss after truss.”A debate over whether the new spire should have a futuristic design or whether the trusses should be made of fireproof cement like in the Cathedral of Nantes, which was destroyed in a 1972 fire, ended with the decision in July to respect Notre Dame’s original design and materials.Carpenters put the skills of their medieval colleagues on show in front of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, Sept. 19, 2020. French President Emmanuel Macron wants the cathedral reopened in 2024 in time for the Paris Olympic Games.A total of 25 trusses are to be installed at an unknown date in the cathedral nave. Philippe Gourmain, a forestry expert working on the cathedral project, said the carpentry phase will not come before 2022.“The problem of Notre Dame is not a carpentry problem. We have the wood. We know how to do it,” Gourmain said. “The big issue is regarding the stone.”Some stones — which support the carpentry — were damaged by the fire and “it’s not so easy now” to find similar stone, he said.French President Emmanuel Macron wants the cathedral reopened in 2024 in time for the Paris Olympic Games, a deadline that many experts have called unrealistic.For the moment, the delicate task of dismantling melted scaffolding, which was originally erected to refurbish the now-toppled spire, continues. That job, started in early June, will be completed in October.The soaring cathedral vaults are also being cleared of debris by 35 specialists on ropes. The organ with its 8,000 pipes was removed for repair in early August.It is not yet known what technique will be used to create and install the wooden trusses.Carpenters showcase medieval techniques in front of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, Sept. 19, 2020. A total of 25 trusses are to be installed at an unknown date in the cathedral nave.The truss mounted for the weekend display is a replica of truss No. 7, more advanced that the first six trusses, which were “more primitive,” said Florian Carpentier, site manager for the team from Carpenters Without Borders team that felled the trees and used axes to cut the logs for the wooden frame. With rope cables and a rustic pulley system, the carpenters slowly pulled the truss they built in July from the ground where it was laid out.“It’s a moment to see, ancestral techniques that last. There is the present and the past and it links us to our roots,” said Romain Greif, an architect who came with his family to watch the display. “It’s an event.”In a final touch, once the No. 7 truss replica was raised on high, a carpenter shinnied up the wooden beams — to cheers — to tie an oak branch to the top of the triangular structure, a symbol of prosperity and a salute to the workers, a tradition still honored in numerous European countries. 
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An iconic New Orleans eatery, K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen, is no more, one of countless economic casualties of a pandemic that has flattened businesses across America.“We hung on as long as we could,” co-owner Brenda Prudhomme told VOA, “but we had no choice but to shut down.”Closing K-Paul’s was no easy choice. The restaurant had been a local favorite in the heart of the city’s legendary French Quarter since her aunt and uncle opened its doors 40 years ago. Her uncle was Paul Prudhomme, a nationally recognized celebrity chef credited with popularizing Creole and Cajun cuisines through his best-selling cookbooks and beloved television shows.“K-Paul’s means so much to us, and to the customers who have been dining here for decades,” Prudhomme said. “But when something like a global pandemic happens and the government doesn’t do enough to help small businesses, we’re only left with horrible choices.”Months of negotiations in Congress have stalemated on a new round of economic stimulus that would provide additional relief to struggling Americans. The most recent attempt failed in the Senate earlier this month as Democrats pushed for more expansive benefits while Republicans sought a more limited package. Both sides have blamed each other for the impasse. Many view Congress as unlikely to pass anything before the November election.Congress’ inability to forge an agreement is having far-reaching consequences for tens of millions of Americans who received federal help earlier this year that has run out.Round 1 not enoughWhen the coronavirus pandemic took hold in the United States in February and March, the nation’s economy appeared headed toward an unprecedented collapse. By April, the U.S. unemployment rate had reached 14.7%, the highest rate since the Great Depression.In late March, Congress passed the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act. The massive expenditure provided a substantial financial boost for many struggling Americans, including a $600 weekly supplement of unemployment benefits and one-time stimulus checks of up to $1,200 for middle- and lower-income earners.Those payments ceased in July, severing an important economic lifeline for New Orleans, where the hospitality and tourism industries, both hit hard by the pandemic, employ about 20% of the local workforce.Kevin Caldwell found that initial infusion of revenue a lifesaver for his family. Before COVID-19, he bartended at a popular music club while his wife worked at a well-known restaurant.“I’ve been in the service industry for decades,” Caldwell said, “and I know live music is going to be one of the last things allowed back at the end of this crisis. It’s beyond our control, so we just have to wait and hope we get some support.”In the first few months of the pandemic, Caldwell said he and his wife were both receiving $847 in unemployment insurance per week thanks to the CARES Act. When the supplement expired, their weekly unemployment insurance checks dropped to $247.“We’re not in a personal crisis yet, but we’re getting close,” Caldwell said. “Pretty soon we’re not going to be able to afford our health insurance, and that’s not ideal during a pandemic.”Waiting for Round 2The CARES Act wasn’t meant to help only struggling individuals. Initiatives like the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) were funded to assist businesses affected by the pandemic by helping them retain and pay employees, and to survive revenue losses.Businesses that qualified for a PPP loan, for example, were awarded enough funding to pay their workforce their salary for about 10 weeks. Many economists believe it could be 2022 or even 2023 before the U.S. economy fully recovers.“We received help from those programs,” Prudhomme said, “but it’s really just a shot in the arm. Spring revenue is huge in New Orleans, because the summers get pretty dead here. Now we lost spring, summer and were going to miss the fall, too. The funding we got wasn’t enough to sustain us. We were hoping for a second round, but it never came.”Joe Frisard with his dogs, Robert and Bruno. Frisard is a freelancer in New Orleans. He rents out a portion of his home through Airbnb, but the coronavirus pandemic has cut his income by more than 40%. (Photo Courtesy Joe Frisard)Another New Orleanian, Joe Frisard, has experienced similar challenges. He is a self-employed freelancer, with income streams as diverse as videography, restaurant work, and renting part of his home on Airbnb. He received a $1,200 stimulus check, as well as some assistance from the EIDL program, but said neither is sufficient during a pandemic that drags on and on.“I’ve lost 40% of my income during COVID, but all my bills are still there,” he said. “During the spring, with all the New Orleans festivals, I could make as much as $4,000 per month renting out a room in my home. Because of coronavirus, my total from mid-March to May wasn’t even $1,000 combined.”Frisard said he felt he could last five months before he had to start pulling money from his retirement fund. But he’s angry because he thinks politicians should be doing more to help Americans navigate a crisis this rare and severe.“I’m lucky to even have money saved,” he acknowledged. “A lot of people don’t have that. People are going homeless. They can’t pay for food. And somehow Congress isn’t able to pass another stimulus? They’re playing politics with peoples’ lives and it’s not moral.”Kevin Caldwell said he’s watching what both parties do as debates around additional support for struggling Americans and businesses continue because it’s an issue that is hitting close to home for him, as well as for most Americans. It’s also an issue he feels should factor into November presidential contest as well as congressional elections.“It affects me, it affects my wife, it affects the company at which I work, it affects my co-workers, and it affects most New Orleanians in some way,” he said. “So, yeah, I’m keeping a close eye on it. And what each party does will directly affect how I vote this November.” 
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Battle lines were drawn across America’s political landscape Saturday over the replacement of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, whose death Friday silenced the court’s best-known liberal voice and raised the possibility of a 6-3 conservative majority on the bench.The vacancy came weeks before the November 3 general election that will decide whether President Donald Trump gets a second term in office as well as which party will control the chambers of Congress. How and when the vacancy is filled will have immediate political impact and could leave a permanent imprint on how the Senate functions and America is governed.Conservatives, eager at the prospect of a third Trump-nominated high court justice, cheered Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s pledge late Friday that Trump’s eventual pick “will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.” He did not offer a timetable.’They should not falter’“President Trump and Senate Republicans have worked hard to overturn decades of liberal activism in our court system and they should not falter now,” Washington-based Heritage Foundation’s political arm, Heritage Action, said in a statement. “Republicans must exercise the power of confirmation that voters have entrusted in them[.]”Liberal groups and Democrats, meanwhile, girded for battle.“I’ve never seen political hypocrisy at this level [magnitude],” veteran Vermont Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy said on NPR, noting that in 2016 McConnell refused to allow consideration of former President Barack Obama’s final Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, arguing that high court vacancies should be left unfilled during an election year so the American people can weigh in on the choice.FILE – Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., is pictured at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 5, 2020.“This is a flip-flop, it’s pure politics,” Leahy, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said. “It is going to stain the Supreme Court.”Leahy and other Democrats wrote a letter to the committee’s chairman, South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham, saying, “There cannot be one set of rules for a Republican president and one set for a Democratic president, and considering a nominee before the next inauguration would be wholly inappropriate.”For his part, Graham, rejected such calls, noting that in 2013, Democrats changed Senate rules to hasten the confirmation of Obama’s judicial nominees and unsuccessfully sought to block Trump’s second Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, whose 2018 confirmation was roiled by an allegation of sexual misconduct.“In light of these two events I will support @realDonaldTrump in any effort to move forward regarding the recent [Supreme Court] vacancy,” Graham tweeted.FILE – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham of South Carolina prepares to hear testimony in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, June 3, 2020.Republicans have a 53-47 Senate majority and can afford three defections from their ranks and still confirm a nominee with a simple majority, with Vice President Mike Pence breaking a potential 50-50 tie.Alaska Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski has said she would not vote for a Supreme Court pick before the election. Others may or may not follow suit.The looming fight added uncertainty and suspense to an election season already brimming with both. Political observers mulled how a high court vacancy may energize voter turnout to the benefit of either political party. Some argued against jumping to conclusions.’Not clear’“In a world of slim majorities & few persuadable voters, it’s not clear that we know how a controversial SCOTUS confirmation battle before November would affect Senate elections and control of the chamber,” Brookings Institution political analyst Sarah Binder wrote on Twitter.Whether Trump succeeds in filling the high court vacancy, the mere effort appears to be strengthening Democrats’ resolve to change how Washington works should they win control of the Senate next year.For months, many Democrats have signaled a desire to eliminate the filibuster that requires three-fifths consent for most legislation to advance in the chamber.FILE – Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 24, 2017.Tweeting shortly after McConnell’s statement backing an eventual Trump Supreme Court nominee, Hawaii Democratic Senator Brian Schatz said, “It is going to be very hard after the procedural violence that Mitch McConnell has inflicted on the Senate and the country for anyone to justify us playing it soft next year just to satisfy pundits. We must use the power that voters give us to deliver the change we are promising.”In addition, some Democrats have suggested expanding the number of seats on the Supreme Court from nine to 11 if they win control of the chamber.Republicans contend the Democrats’ fury is unjustified and that 2020 is nothing like 2016, when Garland was blocked from consideration. The Senate and White House were controlled by different political parties at that time.“By contrast, Americans reelected our [Republican] majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary,” McConnell said in Friday’s statement.The finger-pointing and recriminations since Ginsburg’s death are the latest examples of escalating partisan tactics that have transformed the judicial confirmation process from what was once a mostly bipartisan endeavor into a near-constant brawl.Bork hearings, Obama nomineesRepublicans were incensed when Democrats banded together in opposition to former President Ronald Reagan’s ultraconservative Supreme Court nominee, Robert Bork, in 1987. Democrats cried foul from 2009 to 2013 when Republicans drastically slowed the consideration of Obama’s judicial nominees, prompting Democrats to change the Senate rules and eliminate the filibuster for all but high court nominees. Republicans went one step further and eliminated the filibuster for all nominees in 2017.Today, analysts say, America is in uncharted territory as the nation grapples with a Supreme Court vacancy weeks ahead of a general election.“We rarely have these situations where someone passes away and leaves the court, right before an election,” said University of Virginia presidential studies director Barbara Perry, who described the situation as unprecedented in modern times.“So, we’ll have to stay tuned to see what happens,” she added.
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Afghan journalists covering the government’s peace talks with the Taliban in Doha, Qatar, say Kabul did not provide them with full access to information. The government has reiterated its pledge of transparency and support for press freedom in the peace talks process. But journalists say they are concerned an agreement between Afghanistan and the Taliban could mean a loss for media freedom and access to information in the future. VOA’s Samsama Sirat files this report from Kabul, narrated by Bezhan Hamdard.
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The World Food Program says many countries affected by conflict, COVID-19 and climate change are experiencing record levels of hunger, threatening the lives of thousands of people.WFP officials say they fear many more people will die from hunger due to the economic impact of COVID-19 than from the pandemic itself. The pandemic has infected more than 30 million people around the world, and nearly 1 million have died.The agency warns that many people in countries of conflict are on the brink of starvation because lockdown measures aimed at curbing the coronavirus have destroyed jobs and livelihoods. For example, the WFP says nearly 22 million people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are expected to face a hunger crisis because of increased violence coupled with COVID-19.WFP spokesman Tomson Phiri says years of conflict-induced hunger in Yemen makes the country of more than 30 million particularly vulnerable to sickness and death from the pandemic.“Some 20 million people are severely food insecure due to war, a collapsed economy and currency devaluation, crippling food prices and the destruction of public infrastructure,” Phiri said. “We believe a further 3 million may now face starvation due to the virus.”South Sudan in perilPhiri was until recently the WFP spokesman in South Sudan and says he is very concerned about the impact of COVID-19 on a population there that has been weakened by years of relentless violence.“South Sudan was already on its knees even before the emergence of COVID-19; 6.5 million people were expected to face severe food insecurity at the peak of the hunger season in July. … We all thought we were on the path to peace in South Sudan,” he said. “And then, bang, we now have violence, renewed violence, more atrocities in Jonglei State.”It is the peak of the rainy season right now. Phiri says Jonglei State is drowning in floodwaters, economic challenges, conflict and COVID-19. He says millions of people in Nigeria, Burkina Faso and other countries are also facing crisis levels of COVID-induced hunger.  Many, he warns, will die because they will be unable to put food on their tables.
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President Donald Trump on Saturday urged the Republican-run Senate to consider “without delay” his upcoming nomination to fill the Supreme Court seat vacated by the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg just six weeks before the election.The White House was making preparations to select a nominee for the seat held by Ginsburg, who spent her final years on the bench as the unquestioned leader of the court’s liberal wing.Senate Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, vowed on Friday night, hours after Ginsburg’s death, to call a vote for whomever Trump nominated. Democrats said Republicans should follow the precedent they set in 2016 by not considering a Supreme Court choice in the run-up to an election.Trump made his view clear in a tweet Saturday: “We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!”.@GOP We were put in this position of power and importance to make decisions for the people who so proudly elected us, the most important of which has long been considered to be the selection of United States Supreme Court Justices. We have this obligation, without delay!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 19, 2020Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said any vote should come after the Nov. 3 election. “Voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice to consider,” Biden said.The impending clash over the vacant seat — when to fill it and with whom — is sure to significantly affect the stretch run of the presidential race, further stirring passions in a nation already reeling from the pandemic that has killed nearly 200,000 people, left millions unemployed and heightened partisan tensions and anger.McConnell, who sets the calendar in the Senate and has made judicial appointments his priority, declared unequivocally in a statement that Trump’s nominee would receive a confirmation vote in the chamber. In 2016, McConnell refused to consider President Barack Obama’s choice for the high court months ahead of the election, eventually preventing a vote.As the nation learned of Ginsburg’s death, Trump was unaware, speaking for more than an hour and a half at a Minnesota rally without mentioning it. He huddled with aides after stepping off stage but acted surprised when he spoke with reporters moments later, saying he did not know she had died.Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg Dies at 87Ginsburg, a stalwart liberal and the second woman to serve on the court, died Friday from complications with cancer The president told reporters that Ginsburg was “an amazing woman who led an amazing life.” Aides had worried how the Minnesota crowd would react if Trump mentioned her death from the stage, according to a White House official not authorized to publicly discuss private deliberations and spoke on condition of anonymity.But Trump had noted in his rally speech that the next presidential term could offer him as many as four appointments to the nine-member court, whose members are confirmed for life. “This is going to be the most important election in the history of our country and we have to get it right,” he added.A confirmation vote in the Senate is not guaranteed, even with a Republican majority. McConnell has not indicated if he bring a vote before the election.Typically it takes several months to vet and hold hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, and time is short ahead of the election. Key senators may be reluctant to cast votes so close to the election. With a slim GOP majority, 53 seats in the 100-member chamber, Trump’s choice could afford to lose only a few.McConnell did not specify the timing, but trying for confirmation in a post-election lame-duck session if Trump had lost to Biden or Republicans had lost the Senate would carry further political complications.Democrats immediate denounced McConnell’s move as hypocritical, pointing out that he refused to call hearings for Merrick Garland, Obama’s pick, 237 days before the 2016 election. The 2020 election is 46 days away.Battle Heats Up Over Justice Ginsburg’s ReplacementDeath of the liberal justice gives President Donald Trump an opportunity to add another conservative to the bench, shifting the court’s ideological balanceSenate Democratic leader Charles Schumer, in a tweet, echoed word for word what McConnell said in 2016 about the Garland nomination: “The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president.”Trump said last month that he would “absolutely” try to fill a vacancy if one came up before the end of his first term. “I would move quickly, ” Trump said in an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt. “Why not? I mean, they would. The Democrats would if they were in this position.”Trump last week added 20 names to his list of candidates he’s pledged to choose from if he has future vacancies to fill. He contrasted his list with unnamed “radical justices” he claimed Biden would nominate who would “fundamentally transform America without a single vote of Congress.”Trump released a similar list in 2016 in a bid to win over conservative and evangelical voters who had doubts about his conservative credentials. Among those on his current list: Sens. Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton, former Solicitor General Noel Francisco and Judge Amy Coney Barrett of the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in Chicago, long a favorite of conservatives.The average number of days to confirm a justice, according to the Congressional Research Service, is 69, which would be after the election. But some Republicans quickly noted that Ginsburg was confirmed in just 42 days.Four GOP defections could defeat a nomination, while a tie vote could be broken by Vice President Mike Pence.Among the senators to watch are Republicans Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Mitt Romney of Utah and others.Collins is in a tight race for her own reelection, as are several other GOP senators, including Cory Gardner in Colorado. Murkowski and Romney have been critical of Trump and protective of the institution of the Senate.Some Republicans, including Collins and Murkowski, have suggested previously that hearings should wait if a seat were to open. And because the Arizona Senate race is a special election, that seat could be filled as early as November 30 — which would narrow the window for McConnell if the Democratic candidate, Mark Kelly, hangs onto his lead.In a note to his GOP colleagues Friday night, McConnell urged them to “keep their powder dry” and not rush to declare a position on whether a Trump nominee should get a vote this year.“For those of you who are unsure how to answer, or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, I urge you all to keep your powder dry,” McConnell wrote. “This is not the time to prematurely lock yourselves into a position you may later regret.”McConnell argued that there would be enough time to fill the vacancy and he restated his argument that the 2016 Senate precedent — in which a GOP-held Senate blocked Obama’s election-year nomination — did not establish a rule that applies to the Ginsburg case. Under McConnell, the Senate changed the confirmation rules to allow for a simple majority.Obama called for Republicans to wait, saying “a basic principle of the law – and of everyday fairness – is that we apply rules with consistency and not based on what’s convenient or advantageous in the moment.”One difference from 2016 is that, despite the vacancy resulting from Ginsburg’s death, conservatives have a working majority of five justices on a range of issues. When Antonin Scalia died four years ago, the court was divided between four liberals and four conservatives.The next pick could shape important decisions, including on abortion rights, as well as any legal challenges that may stem from the 2020 election. The 2018 hearings on Trump’s second pick, now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh, turned into a bitter partisan battle after sexual assault allegations were made.Biden has promised to nominate a Black woman to the high court if given the chance. He has said he’s also working on a list of potential nominees, but the campaign has given no indication that it will release names before the election. 
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Delegates of Afghanistan’s government and the Taliban continue finalizing “rules of negotiations” for a power-sharing deal a week after the two foes launched their historic U.S.-brokered direct peace dialogue.
 
Meanwhile, battlefield hostilities between Afghan forces and Taliban insurgents continued to inflict heavy casualties on both sides and deepen a mutual trust deficit at the negotiating table.  
 
The insurgents have rejected calls for a cease-fire until they negotiate a broader political deal over the future of Afghanistan in the ongoing dialogue being hosted by Qatar.  
 
The two negotiating teams have held daily meetings but have shared few details about the intra-Afghan dialogue that began September 12 in Doha, the Qatari capital.Abdullah Abdullah (C), chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, speaks with members of delegations at the end of a session during peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, in Doha, Qatar, Sept. 12, 2020.In a weekly commentary published Saturday, the Taliban insisted it has, from the outset, called for the establishment of an “Islamic system” of governance in Afghanistan to be a “focal point of discussions.”
 
The radical group asserted it “believes” the Islamic system could only bring peace and solve problems facing Afghanistan, including corruption and other criminal activities.  
 
The Taliban denounces the existing Afghan ruling system as illegal and a product of what it calls America’s occupation of the country.
 
The Afghan government vehemently defends the political system as “fully Islamic” and has vowed not to compromise on it in the ongoing discussions with the insurgent interlocutors.  
 
The peace negotiations in Doha are an outcome of the deal the U.S. signed with the Taliban in February to withdraw about 8,600 American troops remaining in the country by May 2021 and close out America’s longest war.Trump’s take on Taliban  
 
On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump described the Taliban as “tough” and “smart,” saying his administration was dealing well with the insurgents.  
 
“We’ll be down very shortly over the next couple of weeks to 4,000 — less than 4,000 [service members] in Afghanistan. And then we’ll make that final determination a little bit later on,” Trump told reporters.FILE – U.S. soldiers load onto a Chinook helicopter to head out on a mission in Afghanistan, Jan. 15, 2019.“We’re dealing very well with the Taliban. They’re very tough, they’re very smart, they’re very sharp … So, we’re having some very good discussions with the Taliban, as you probably heard … And so, we’ll be out of there, knowing that certain things have to happen — certain things have to be fulfilled,” Trump underscored.  
 
A U.S.-led foreign military alliance invaded Afghanistan and ousted the Taliban from power days after the September 11, 2001 terror strikes on the U.S. that al-Qaida leaders orchestrated from their Afghan sanctuaries.
Trump is seeking re-election November 3 and terminating what he often denounces as America’s “endless war” in Afghanistan has been a key campaign promise.  
 
The Afghan war has cost Washington the lives of more than 2,400 U.S. service members and hundreds of billions of dollars.  
 
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier this week cautioned that intra-Afghan negotiations will be a “difficult” process, but it will help reduce the cost of war for the U.S.
 
A recent survey by the nonprofit Eurasia Group Foundation found strong public support among Republican and Democratic voters for Trump administration-backed peace talks to end the 19-year-old U.S. war in Afghanistan.
 
The U.S.-Taliban pact binds the insurgents to disallow international terrorism from Afghan soil and engage in peace talks with rival Afghan factions to end the deadly conflict.
 
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The death of liberal Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg gives President Donald Trump an opportunity to add another conservative to the bench and shift the powerful high court’s ideological balance further to the right.With a super-majority on the bench, wide-ranging issues could be impacted. Trump’s other Supreme Court appointments – conservative jurists Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh — had succeeded other Republican-appointed justices. Now, with the death of Ginsburg, Trump can do something no other president has accomplished in a generation: replace a liberal justice with a conservative jurist.  The last time this opportunity presented itself was when Republican President George H. W. Bush nominated conservative judge Clarence Thomas in 1991 to replace liberal icon Thurgood Marshall on the court.   
 
Appointed to the Supreme Court in 1993, Ginsburg, who died at her home in Washington Friday at the age of 87 after five bouts with cancer, was the oldest and longest serving liberal justice on the nine-member Supreme Court.  
 
For months, as Ginsburg’s health deteriorated, liberals worried that her death would enable Trump to nominate a replacement ahead of the November election regardless of whether voters decide to re-elect Trump for a second term.
   
For many liberals, their worst fears have been realized.  “The next nominee is all but guaranteed to be well to the right” of Kavanaugh and Gorsuch, Trump’s two choices to the high court, said Gabe Roth, executive director of the left leaning Fix the Court.
 
A lifelong champion of women’s rights, Ginsburg served as a federal judge from 1980 to 1993 when President Bill Clinton nominated her to the Supreme Court to become only the second woman in history to serve on the bench. Before her career as a federal jurist, Ginsburg made a mark as a women’s rights advocate at the American Civil Liberties Union in 1970s, leading high-profile litigation against gender discrimination.  
“I have four daughters, and I told them just now that this woman singlehandedly established rights for women as equal human beings,” said Kimberly Wehle, a professor of law at the University of Baltimore.  “Of course, there are many, many women and men that contribute to that. But in terms of how the law was shaped, it was her work as a lawyer and of course as a Supreme Court justice.” 
 
Known for speaking her mind, she famously clashed with Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign, calling him a “faker,” prompting the real estate mogul to call on her to resign.  
 
In a statement issued late Friday, Trump praised Ginsburg as a “fighter,” saying her legal opinions “inspired all Americans, and generations of great legal minds.”  Flowers and tributes are seen as people gather in front of the U.S. Supreme Court following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, in Washington, Sept. 19, 2020.With Ginsburg’s passing, the Supreme Court is ideologically divided between five conservatives – including the two Trump nominees – and three liberals. Conservative Chief Justice John Roberts has sometimes served as a swing vote.   
 
The addition of a sixth conservative justice would strengthen what conservatives have long viewed as a tenuous hold over the court.
    
“It makes a big difference whether you have six conservative-leaning justices on the court or five conservative justices on the court,” John Malcolm, Vice President for the Institute for Constitutional Government at the conservative Heritage Foundation.   
 
The Heritage Foundation and the conservative Federalist Society have both advised the White House on Trump’s judicial nominees.    
 
Gorsuch and Kavanaugh — while solidly conservative — have occasionally broken ranks and voted with the court’s liberal wing on key issues.   Trump, who campaigned on appointing conservative judges four years ago and takes pride on his judicial appointment record, recently released a list of 20 potential Supreme Court nominees, describing them as jurists in the mold of the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia and current conservative justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.  
 
Among the front runners on Trump’s list are Amy Coney Barrett, Amul Thapar and Thomas Hardiman, all currently appeals court judges.   
 
If Trump decides to replace Ginsburg with another woman, Barrett will likely be considered the front runner, Malcolm said.  
 
Barrett, 48, was appointed to the federal court of appeals for the seventh circuit in 2017.   
 
Malcolm described her as a believer in textualism and originalism – constitutional interpretation theories championed by conservatives.
 
“I would say the same thing about just about everybody on the president’s list,” Malcolm said.  
 
Wehle, who is the author of a book about the U.S. Constitution, said the appointment of another conservative justice could affect a host of contentious issues: abortion rights, immigration, health care, the separation of church and state and others.  
 
“It takes two thirds of a majority of both houses of Congress and ratification by three quarters of the states to amend the Constitution through the will of the people,” Wehle said.  “But it only takes five lifelong members of the United States Supreme Court to effectively amend the Constitution in a decision.”  
 
The prospects are good that Trump will prevail in appointing a conservative to succeed Ginsburg, even if he loses to Democrat Joe Biden in the Nov. 3 election. With the help of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Trump could try to push through a nomination before the election or – more likely – during the lame duck session of Congress after the election.
 
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Health officials are warning the public to get a flu shot this year to avoid having to deal with COVID-19 and the flu simultaneously.Both are highly contagious and share similar symptoms. The flu, however, is seasonal, while COVID-19 does not appear to have a timeline as it snakes around the world.While there is no COVID vaccine yet, flu shots have been available for decades.The only way to determine if someone has one or both of the illnesses is through laboratory tests.Gary Simon, director of the Division of Infectious Diseases at George Washington University in Washington, told The Washington Post the prospect of beating back both diseases is making 2020 “a very tough year.”Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center reported early Saturday there are 30.5 million COVID-19 cases worldwide with nearly 1 million deaths.The U.S. has more coronavirus infections than any place else with 6.7 million, followed by India with 5.3 million and Brazil with 4.5 million.European countries announced new coronavirus restrictions Friday, one day after the World Health Organization warned infections have started to spread again across the continent at “alarming rates.”In Spain, which has more cases than any other European country with more than 640,000, the regional government of Madrid ordered a lockdown effective Monday in some poorer areas after a spike in infections there. While movement in the area will be restricted, people will still be allowed to go to work.Authorities in Nice, France, have banned gatherings of more than 10 in public spaces and cut bar operating hours, after new restrictions were imposed earlier this week in Bordeaux and Marseilles.Britain said it is considering a new national lockdown after cases nearly doubled to 6,000 a day in the latest reporting week. British Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said another lockdown should be a last resort but that the government would do whatever is necessary to contain the virus.Israel began a second lockdown Friday because of a sharp jump in the number of coronavirus cases.The three-week-long restrictions come just as the country begins the Jewish holidays.Israelis are allowed to travel no more than 500 meters from their houses, with few exceptions.In Iran, a senior Iranian official said the country should be on “red alert” after it reported 3,049 new cases Friday, the highest daily gain since early June.“The color classification doesn’t make any sense anymore,” Deputy Health Minister Iraj Harirchi said in an interview with Reuters. “We no longer have orange and yellow. The entire country is red.”Canada has decided to extend the closure of its U.S. border to nonessential travel until October 21, after seeing an increase in infections in recent weeks. Canadian Public Safety Minister Bill Blair said Friday such decisions would continue to be based on public health advice to protect Canada’s citizens. The closing was first announced March 18 and has been extended each month since.  
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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a stalwart liberal on the U.S. Supreme Court since 1993, died on Friday at age 87, giving President Donald Trump a chance to expand its conservative majority with a third appointment at a time of deep divisions in America and a presidential election looming.Following are reactions to Ginsburg’s death:U.S. PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP”She led an amazing life. What else can you say? She was an amazing woman,” the Republican president told reporters after learning of Ginsburg’s death after a campaign rally in Minnesota. “I’m sad to hear that.””Today, our Nation mourns the loss of a titan of the law,” Trump said later in a statement. “Justice Ginsburg demonstrated that one can with disagree without being disagreeable toward one’s colleagues or different points of view.”U.S. DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE JOE BIDEN”She was fierce and unflinching in her pursuit of … civil rights for everyone. Her opinions and her dissents are going to continue to shape the basis for law for a generation … There is no doubt — let me be clear — that the voters should pick the president and the president should pick the justice for the Senate to consider.”U.S. CHIEF JUSTICE JOHN ROBERTS”Our Nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her – a tireless and resolute champion of justice.”U.S. SENATE MAJORITY LEADER MITCH MCCONNELL”Justice Ginsburg was thoroughly dedicated to the legal profession and to her 27 years of service on the Supreme Court,” the top Senate Republican said in a statement.”Americans reelected our majority in 2016 and expanded it in 2018 because we pledged to work with President Trump and support his agenda, particularly his outstanding appointments to the federal judiciary. Once again, we will keep our promise. President Trump’s nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate.”U.S. SENATOR DIANNE FEINSTEIN, TOP DEMOCRAT ON JUDICIARY COMMITTEE”Under no circumstances should the Senate consider a replacement for Justice Ginsburg until after the presidential inauguration.”U.S. SENATE DEMOCRATIC LEADER CHUCK SCHUMER”The American people should have a voice in the selection of their next Supreme Court Justice. Therefore, this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president,” Schumer said on Twitter. “She would want us all to fight as hard as we can to preserve her legacy.”WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF MARK MEADOWS”Joining the whole nation tonight in mourning the loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg—a trailblazer, a dedicated public servant, and an inspiration to so many. My prayers are with her family and friends,” he said on Twitter.JERROLD NADLER, DEMOCRATIC CHAIR OF HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE”Ruth Bader Ginsburg has left an indelible mark on this country, and her loss will be deeply felt. She will be remembered for her brilliant mind, her razor-sharp wit, and her tenacious and lifelong fight to protect the rights of women in this country. In a year of incalculable loss, may we pause for a moment to honor this remarkable woman who never backed down from a fight and was never afraid to stand up for what she believed.”SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN LINDSEY GRAHAM”It was with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Justice Ginsburg,” the Republican senator said on Twitter. “Justice Ginsburg was a trailblazer who possessed tremendous passion for her causes.”REPUBLICAN SENATOR MITT ROMNEY”The beautiful friendship she shared with the late Justice Scalia serves as a reminder for all Americans to treat each other with kindness and respect, despite our differences.”FORMER DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE HILLARY CLINTON”Justice Ginsburg paved the way for so many women, including me,” the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee tweeted. “There will never be another like her. Thank you RBG.”ERIC TRUMP, PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP’S SON”Justice Ginsburg was a remarkable woman with an astonishing work ethic. She was a warrior with true conviction and she has my absolute respect! #RIP,” he wrote on Twitter.FORMER PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA”Over a long career on both sides of the bench – as a relentless litigator and an incisive jurist – Justice Ginsburg helped us see that discrimination on the basis of sex isn’t about an abstract ideal of equality; that it doesn’t only harm women; that it has real consequences for all of us. It’s about who we are – and who we can be.”FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH”She dedicated many of her 87 remarkable years to the pursuit of justice and equality, and she inspired more than one generation of women and girls.”FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT JIMMY CARTER”A powerful legal mind and a staunch advocate for gender equality, she has been a beacon of justice during her long and remarkable career. I was proud to have appointed her to the U.S. Court of Appeals in 1980.”SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS”The passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is a tremendous loss to our country,” the former 2020 Democratic presidential contender tweeted. “She was an extraordinary champion of justice and equal rights, and will be remembered as one of the great justices in modern American history.DANIEL EPPS, PROFESSOR, WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW”I would be surprised if the president and Senate Republicans don’t try to fill the seat. They probably have the votes.”DEMOCRATIC SENATOR KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND“She fought to ensure equal protection in our laws, fearlessly dissented and defended, and was a powerful role model for us all. I’m devastated to hear of her passing. Thank you, Justice Ginsburg. Rest in power.”NARAL PRO-CHOICE AMERICA FOUNDATION”Rest in peace, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg,” the abortion rights group tweeted. “Her many years of service on the Supreme Court were an inspiration for so many, and we’ll forever be grateful for her fierce defense of reproductive freedom. May her memory be both a blessing and call to action.”TOM FITTON, PRESIDENT OF JUDICIAL WATCH”President Trump now has a historic opportunity to nominate yet another constitutional conservative who will honor the Constitution and the rule of law across the full spectrum of constitutional issues,” said the head of the conservative legal advocacy group.”SENATOR CHUCK GRASSLEY, REPUBLICAN EX-CHAIRMAN OF JUDICIARY COMMITTEE”For more than a quarter century on the highest court in the land, Justice Ginsburg fought tirelessly for greater justice, equality and opportunity for all people. She was a trailblazer in so many ways and for so many people.”SHANA KNIZHNIK, LAWYER”Gutted,” tweeted Knizhnik, who as a law student coined the nickname “Notorious R.B.G.” in reference to the late rapper The Notorious B.I.G.CHRISTOPHER SCALIA, SON OF LATE SUPREME COURT JUSTICE ANTONIN SCALIA”I’m very sad to hear about the passing of my parents’ good friend, and my father’s wonderful colleague, Justice Ginsburg,” he tweeted. “May her memory be a blessing.”   
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The Detroit home where American civil rights activist Rosa Parks took refuge after the historic bus boycott has been rebuilt as an art project in Naples, Italy. Parks’ niece saved the two-story home from demolition in Michigan following the 2008 financial crisis. She donated it to an American artist who rebuilt it for public display in Germany, and now in Italy, after failing to find a permanent place for it in the United States. VOA correspondent Mariama Diallo reports.
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A recent survey by the nonprofit Eurasia Group Foundation found strong public support among Republican and Democratic voters for Trump administration-backed peace talks to end the 19-year-old U.S. war in Afghanistan. The survey found that younger voters are especially fatigued with American involvement in foreign conflicts and want Congress to slash military spending.  VOA’s Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports from Washington.
Produced by: Rob Raffaele
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