| | | | The NFL snapped back against President Trump's inflammatory criticism of players who protest during the national anthem. Dozens of players at all of Sunday's games either knelt or raised a fist during "The Star-Spangled Banner." Other players, often with team owners, locked arms. The Pittsburgh Steelers didn't come out for the anthem at all, but Steeler offensive lineman Alejandro Villanueva -- an ex-Army Ranger -- stood outside the tunnel with his hand over his heart while it played.
Trump, unsurprisingly, didn't back down, saying owners "should do something" about the protests and that he thought it was "very disrespectful." Fans of America's most popular sport are divided too. Lots has been written about a white, conservative President lambasting protests in a sports league filled with African Americans, but Trump said his comments had nothing to do with race. Here's a piece that explores the unexpected connection between slavery, NFL protests and the national anthem. | | | President Trump's controversial travel ban is out (it expired over the weekend), so new travel restrictions are in. The new restrictions hits travelers from eight countries: Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela and Yemen. In most instances, travel from these nations will be broadly suspended, while in other cases, travelers will have to undergo enhanced screening and vetting requirements. These new restrictions don't kick in until October 18. | | 3. Elections and referendums | | As expected, Angela Merkel won a fourth term as German Chancellor, but the story of the election was Alternative for Germany, a hard-right party founded just four years ago. It won enough votes to became the first far-right party to enter Germany's parliament since the 60s. It'll also be the third-largest party in parliament. Here's a piece on why the German elections matter to the rest of the world.
There's another vote happening now that's worth watching: Kurds in Iraq are voting in a referendum on independence. The Kurds, who live in a semi-autonomous region in northern Iraq, are the country's largest ethnic minority. Tensions between them and the Iraqi government are high. So Iraq has blasted the referendum; so has Turkey, which also has a sizable Kurdish minority. Both countries fear a vote for independence in Iraq might galvanize other such movements. | | The drive to repeal and replace Obamacare is never quite dead. The newest last-ditch effort that GOP Senate leaders are considering involves tweaking the Graham-Cassidy bill to win over a couple of more votes. They've already lost Rand Paul and John McCain so they can't lose another one. They're hoping to win over Alaska's Lisa Murkowski -- who's leaning 'no' -- by loading the bill up with a few more Medicaid goodies for Native Americans and Alaska Natives in her state. Whatever they come up with, it has to be done this week. The deadline for repealing Obamacare through reconciliation -- meaning with just 50 votes and VP Pence as a tiebreaker -- is at the end of the month.
The bill's architects, Sens. Lindsey Graham and Bill Cassidy, will debate Sens. Bernie Sanders and Amy Klobuchar in a CNN Town Hall Debate on health care. It starts at 9 ET tonight on CNN. | | | A woman was killed and seven other people injured after a shooting at a church in Tennessee. A man shot and killed the woman in a parking lot just as services at Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Antioch were ending. He then entered the church with two pistols and continued firing. He was stopped by a church usher. During the struggle with the usher, the suspect accidentally shot himself. The shooter, a Sudanese man with legal US residency, once attended the church. | | | People are talking about these. Read up. Join in. | | Thanks for the memories
Millennials, kiss another one of your 90s icons goodbye. The "Family Matters" house is being torn down. | | Cool and creepy?
Walmart will not only deliver food to your house, but with a new service the retail behemoth will have someone put the food away too. | | Need a ride?
Uber's been deemed not "fit and proper" for London so, for now at least, you may have to hail one of those stylish black cabs to get around the city. | | House hunters
His daughters needed a playhouse, so this Michigan dad built one. It's two stories and comes with a bridge, a slide, hardwood floors and lights! | | | | | | |
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