Compiled by Dr. Ghislaine Lewis – Faculty Advisor

Two closing arguments show the stark choice between Trump and Harris

By  STEVE PEOPLES

NEW YORK (AP) — In the shadow of the White House, seven days before the final votes of the 2024 election are cast, Kamala Harris vowed to put country over party and warned that Donald Trump is obsessed with revenge and his own personal interests.

Less than 48 hours earlier inside Madison Square Garden, Trump called his Democratic opponent “a trainwreck who has destroyed everything in her path.” His allies on stage labeled Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage” and said Harris, who would be the first woman to be president, had begun her career as a prostitute.

Two nights and 200 miles apart, the dueling closing arguments outlined in stark terms the choice U.S. voters face on Nov. 5 when they will weigh two very different visions of leadership and America’s future.

Trump’s raucous rally, marked by crude and racist insults, highlighted the uglier elements of his coalition. But other parts of it underscored the former businessman’s appeal as someone who vows to fix the economy and the border, and as a political outsider eager to defy any and all conventions despite the risks.

CNN bans conservative writer after ‘beeper’ comment to Muslim commentator

By  DAVID BAUDER

NEW YORK (AP) — CNN has banned conservative writer Ryan Girdusky from the network following a contentious on-air exchange in which he told panelist Mehdi Hasan that “I hope your beeper doesn’t go off.”

“Did you just say I should die?” Hasan said.

He was responding to Girdusky’s apparent reference to September’s attacks where pagers and walkie-talkies used by hundreds of Hezbollah members in Lebanon and Syria exploded simultaneously, killing 39. The attack was widely believed to be carried out by Israel.

Hasan and Girdusky were on a panel on “News Night” Monday night, talking about Donald Trump’s rally at Madison Square Garden, where speakers made a variety of racist comments and referred to Puerto Rico as a “floating island of garbage.” The panel discussion devolved into back-and-forth bickering after Girdusky said to Hasan, a commentator and founder of the media company Zeteo, that “you’ve been called an anti-Semite more than anyone else at this table.”

Israel’s move to ban a UN agency raises alarm about aid to Gaza even as the implications are unclear

BY  JULIA FRANKEL

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli legislation cutting ties with the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees raised fears that the largest provider of aid to Gaza could be shut out of the war-ravaged territory, even as the implications of the new laws remained unclear Tuesday.

The agency known as UNRWA provides essential services to millions of Palestinians across the Middle East and has underpinned aid efforts in Gaza throughout the Israel-Hamas war. Legislation barring it from operating in Israel passed with an overwhelming majority Monday. Israel says UNRWA has allowed itself to be infiltrated by Hamas, with the militants siphoning off aid and using the agency’s facilities as shields. UNRWA denies the allegations, saying it is committed to neutrality and acts quickly to address any wrongdoing by its staff.

The two newly passed laws are all but certain to hamper UNRWA’s work in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, as Israel controls access to both territories. But the details of how the legislation would be implemented, and potential workarounds, remain unclear. It could also face legal challenges.