Your Monday Evening Briefing

September 21, 2020

Your Monday Evening Briefing

By Victoria Shannon and Judith Levitt

Good evening. Here’s the latest.

Michael A. McCoy for The New York Times

1. President Trump said he would name his nominee to the Supreme Court on Friday or Saturday.

That left Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican majority leader, little time to lock up the support he would need to proceed on hearings and a confirmation vote before Inauguration Day, and possibly before the Nov. 3 election. Above, flowers in her memory at the Supreme Court in Washington.

With two Republican senators already objecting to a vote before Election Day, Mr. McConnell could afford to lose only one more from his 53-to-47 majority. Attention was focused on Mitt Romney of Utah, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Charles Grassley of Iowa, who have said nothing publicly about their intentions.

Judge Amy Coney Barrett is regarded as the leading contender to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died Friday at 87. To conservatives and anti-abortion activists, Judge Barrett has the “perfect combination” of attributes for the Supreme Court.

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Michael A. McCoy for The New York Times

2. Ruth Bader Ginsburg will be brought for a final time on Wednesday to the court where she served for 27 years.

Justice Ginsburg will lie in repose at the Supreme Court for two days during an unusual outdoor viewing aligned for the pandemic era. She will also lie in state at the Capitol on Friday.

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President Trump, meanwhile, suggested that Democrats had concocted Justice Ginsburg’s dying wish that her replacement on the Supreme Court be chosen by the next president.

“I don’t know that she said that, or if that was written out by Adam Schiff, and Schumer and Pelosi,” Mr. Trump said, referring to Representative Schiff of California, Senator Chuck Schumer of New York and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The justice’s quote had been verified by journalists.

Amid the national outpourings of grief after her death were critiques of R.B.G.-mania, and perhaps even of the judge herself, as reflecting a myopic “white feminism.”

Oli Scarff/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

3. “We have, in a bad sense, literally turned the corner.”

That’s Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, warning that Britain faces a six-month battle ahead to control the spread of the coronavirus.

Much of Europe is scrambling to avoid another round of widespread lockdowns as new spikes emerge in France, hospitals begin to fill in Spain and rules tighten in Wales. Above, in Liverpool, England, where new restrictions have been imposed.

New targeted lockdown measures also took effect in Madrid, where virus-related hospitalizations have tripled. The measures restrict nearly a million residents from traveling outside their neighborhoods except for essential activities.

Eskinder Debebe/United Nations, via Associated Press

4. At the U.N., a General Assembly without the assembly.

It’s the 75th anniversary of the United Nations, and the 193-member organization has never conducted its annual gathering of world leaders quite this way. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, no leader has traveled to the New York headquarters this year, and speeches will be virtual.

President Trump, who has made his disdain for the U.N. clear, did not speak at today’s session, above, to mark the anniversary of the world body. He was expected to deliver a prerecorded speech on Tuesday.

At least there will be no gridlock alert in Midtown Manhattan this year.

David Ryder for The New York Times

5. The Justice Department wants to cut funds to “anarchist” New York, Seattle and Portland.

It is unclear whether the administration has the legal standing to withdraw federal funding. Still, the Justice Department said the move was because the cities had failed to counter protests against police brutality and systemic racism this summer. Above, police in Portland pushed a protester to the ground last month.

President Trump had ordered Attorney General William Barr to identify jurisdictions for funding cuts, citing the three cities — all led by Democratic mayors — as some that had permitted “anarchy.”

Mr. Trump has cast Democrats as unable to protect citizens and maintain public safety, often resorting to great exaggeration or misleading characterizations of Democratic positions.

ZeniMax Online Studios, via Associated Press

6. Microsoft is acquiring the video game maker ZeniMax Media for $7.5 billion.

The deal will bolster the software maker’s presence in gaming, one of the few industries that have thrived during the pandemic, with titles like The Elder Scrolls, above, Fallout and Doom. Microsoft’s gaming revenue jumped by 64 percent in the latest quarter from a year ago.

And President Trump said today he would not approve a deal for TikTok if its Chinese owner did not fully sell its interest. If Oracle and Walmart, which under the proposal would take a 20 percent stake, did not control the service, “then we’re not going to approve the deal,” he said.

Amr Alfiky/The New York Times

7. New York City students returned to the classroom.

It was an extremely unusual first day back for up to 90,000 children in prekindergarten and students with advanced disabilities who began in-person learning today in the nation’s largest school system. There was a mix of joy and confusion as school doors opened.

The rest of the city’s 1.1 million students started the school year online and will have the option of returning to classrooms over the next few weeks. Above, outside Earth School in New York’s East Village.

Nationally, a number of women working in retail say they are being forced to choose between keeping their jobs and making sure their children can keep up with remote learning.

A study shows women were three times as likely as men to have left their job because of child care issues during the pandemic. But retail work, where shifts can vary widely week to week, makes the pressure on employees particularly acute.

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Jens Schluter/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

8. Electric car prices near parity with gas-powered cars. But not in the U.S.

You can get an electric Volkswagen ID.3, above, for the same price as a Golf, a Tesla Model 3 that costs as much as a BMW 3 Series, or a Renault Zoe electric subcompact whose monthly lease might equal an expensive dinner for two.

That kind of price convergence is possible only in Europe because of government subsidies that can cut more than $10,000 from the final price. Carmakers there are also offering deals on electric cars to meet stricter European Union regulations on carbon dioxide emissions.

Electric vehicles are not yet as popular in the U.S., largely because government incentives are less generous. But technology is advancing faster than expected and could be poised for a quantum leap, industry experts say.

Pop TV

9. A boost for Canada’s ego.

The quirky Canadian TV series “Schitt’s Creek” didn’t just win at the Emmys. It took top honors in all seven categories in which it was nominated, including best comedy. Above, from left, Daniel Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Annie Murphy and Eugene Levy, who all won Emmys.

“Schitt’s Creek” — written by Canadians, starring Canadians and filmed in Canada — follows the lives of the once fabulously wealthy Rose family, who, after falling on hard times, must move to a decrepit hotel in a nondescript town that the patriarch once bought as a joke.

After the show was awarded best comedy, the Emmy Awards host, Jimmy Kimmel, joked: “Canada only has, like, 200 people in it. As of tonight, one out of every four living Canadians has an Emmy Award.”

Thailand Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment/EPA, via Shutterstock

10. And finally, here’s one way to address the problem of littering.

The environment minister of Thailand was so fed up with trash left behind at a national park that he swore he would find the culprits.

Using social media and old-fashioned detective work, government officials succeeded in tracking down one particular group of offenders. Then the officials mailed them a box filled with the litter they had abandoned in a tent.

“You have forgotten some of your belongings at the Khao Yai National Park,” read the note to the campers. “Please let us return these to you.” The minister said he wanted to draw attention to the garbage problem that endangered animals that could eat the litter.

Have a responsible evening.

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