5 things to know for August 24: Trump, GOP debate, Wagner boss, Heat dome, Seafood ban

By CNN

Published August 24, 2023 4:17 AM

CNN

By Alexandra Meeks, CNN

(CNN) — Passengers flying with Korean Air in the next few weeks will be weighed anonymously before boarding their flights. Although potentially uncomfortable, the policy has nothing to do with body shaming, but rather about obtaining data on the aircraft’s fuel needs and weight distribution on board.

Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day.

1. Trump

Former President Donald Trump said he will turn himself in at the Fulton County Jail today after agreeing to a $200,000 bond and other release conditions. Trump and 18 others have been charged with participating in schemes to meddle with Georgia’s 2020 election results. All co-defendants must surrender ahead of a noon Friday deadline set by District Attorney Fani Willis. That deadline was set when Willis unveiled last week’s sweeping indictment over attempts to overturn Trump’s 2020 election loss. When asked whether Trump would have his mugshot taken, Fulton County Sheriff Pat Labat said the former president would be treated like local inmates and would not receive special treatment during the booking process.

2. GOP debate

Eight Republican presidential candidates faced off Wednesday night in the first primary debate of the 2024 campaign in Milwaukee, clashing over a multitude of issues as they vied to make their case as to why they’re the best alternative to frontrunner Donald Trump. The former president skipped the debate ahead of his expected surrender today in the Georgia 2020 election subversion case. In his absence, former Vice President Mike Pence led the debate with more than 12 minutes of speaking time. However, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy was the central figure for much of the night, brawling with Pence over his experience, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley over foreign policy, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie over Trump, and more. While sharp attacks were thrown, political experts say nothing that happened at the debate is likely to turn the race on its head, as Trump retains his massive lead in the polls.

3. Wagner boss

Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin was on board a plane that crashed with no survivors northwest of Moscow, according to Russian authorities, just months after he led a failed uprising against Russia’s military leadership. The Kremlin has not commented. Ten people were on board the aircraft and Russian authorities have said efforts will be made to confirm the identity of the victims. President Joe Biden suggested Russian President Vladimir Putin may have been behind the crash. “I don’t know for a fact what happened, but I’m not surprised,” Biden said. This comes as Ukraine marks its Independence Day, exactly 18 months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

4. Heat dome

Triple-digit temperatures and excessive heat warnings are expected today and Friday across a large swath of the US. On Wednesday, at least 22 states, many around the Gulf Coast northward to central Minnesota, were under some kind of heat alert. The high temperatures are being fueled by a heat dome, a strong area of high pressure that traps and intensifies hot air at the surface, which has been measured at record levels in multiple states. This week, nearly two dozen cattle died in Nebraska, more than 100 Missouri nursing home residents were evacuated and some businesses in Iowa were forced to close. By Friday, more than 65 million people will have experienced a temperature above 100 degrees, meteorologists say.

5. Seafood ban

China is banning all seafood from Japan in response to Tokyo’s decision to begin releasing treated radioactive wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear plant. The announcement today from Chinese officials is escalating an already tense feud between the two neighbors. Amid fierce criticism, Japan began discharging treated radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean at 1 p.m. local time today to free up storage space at the crippled nuclear power plant. While Japan has argued the water is heavily diluted and meets international safety standards, China said a seafood ban is necessary to protect the health of its consumers due to the potential “risk of radioactive contamination” in food.

BREAKFAST BROWSE

Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte is back
Mug-nificent news! The coffee chain’s signature drink returns to the fall menu today, marking its 20th anniversary.

Surprise encounter with seal goes viral
This playful seal enjoys “tickling” scuba divers. Watch the video here.

Katie Moon and Nina Kennedy agree to share pole vault gold medal
In a heartwarming moment, the two athletes agreed to share the pole vault gold medal at the World Athletics Championships on Wednesday.

Former USC star Reggie Bush files defamation suit against NCAA
Bush is accusing the NCAA of defamation and wants his football records reinstated so he can get his 2005 Heisman Trophy back.

Rolling Stones appear to tease new album in fake ad in local newspaper
British rock legends the Rolling Stones appear to have teased a new album through a fake ad placed in a local London newspaper.

TODAY’S NUMBER

$499 million
That’s how much Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley and UBS have agreed to pay to settle an antitrust lawsuit by investors who accused them of conspiring to maintain monopoly control in the stock lending market. Investors accused the banks of having conspired since 2009 to boycott startup platforms and charge excessive fees to investors in order to stifle competition.

TODAY’S QUOTE

“India is on the moon.”

— S. Somanath, chief of the Indian Space Research Organization, after India on Wednesday became only the fourth country to reach the moon. There was thunderous applause in the control room when the uncrewed Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft touched down on the lunar surface just after 6 p.m. local time. The history-making event has become an immense source of pride for the country of 1.4 billion as it takes challenging steps to become a space pioneer.

TODAY’S WEATHER

Check your local forecast here>>>

AND FINALLY …

This robot will do the jobs you don’t want to
Take a few minutes to learn about Apptronik’s latest robot named Apollo. It’s being built to do the jobs that humans don’t want to do — and to one day build settlements on the moon and Mars.

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