5 Things for Tuesday, August 8: North Korea, African Votes, Marine Crash, Obamacare
CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 8/8/2017, 8 a.m.
By Doug Criss, CNN
(CNN) -- It's safety first for this month's solar eclipse: Don't buy bogus sunglasses. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door.
1. North Korea
North Korea's response to the latest round of sanctions -- this time from the UN -- was fiery but not completely unexpected. The regime said the US would "pay dearly," not just for the sanctions but for all other "crimes" against the country. The North Koreans also said they have no intention of negotiating over their nuke program, though Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the US is open to dialogue "when the conditions are right." The sanctions, OK'd over the weekend, target the North's primary exports and could slash income from them by a third.
2. African votes
It's election day in Kenya, one of Africa's largest economies and a buffer of stability near Somali, Sudan and South Sudan. Incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta faces off against former Prime Minister Raila Odinga. Lines at voting places were long, and an independent electoral commission said turnout looked "huge." Kenyatta promises to create 1.3 million jobs; Odinga vows to fight corruption.
Meanwhile, down in South Africa, President Jacob Zuma faces a no-confidence vote. Zuma, who has been dogged by criminal investigations and corruption probes, would have to step down if he loses the secret ballot in Parliament.
3. Military plane crash
Three US Marines killed in a crash off Australia's east coast have been identified. 1st Lt. Benjamin Cross, 26; Cpl. Nathaniel Ordway, 21; and Pfc. Ruben Velasco, 19, died over the weekend when an Osprey aircraft crashed in the ocean. Twenty-three other people on board the aircraft were rescued. The incident occurred while attempting to land the Osprey on a Navy ship.
4. Obamacare
The Affordable Care Act may be safe (for now) from repeal efforts, but that doesn't mean all is well with it. Insurers are still leaving. The latest is Anthem, which is getting out of Nevada's Obamacare exchanges next year and cutting its participation in Georgia's marketplace pretty much in half. Anthem, like other insurers, is spooked over uncertainty in Washington about the health care law, especially President Trump's threat to stop paying some subsidies.
Anthem had already announced it was pulling out of exchanges in Ohio, Indiana and Wisconsin and much of California. But the news isn't all bad: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina says it's reducing its requested premium increase for next year to 14.1% (it originally had asked for a 22.9% hike) because the market in that state is becoming less volatile.
5. Sanctuary cities
The Trump administration has threatened to hit so-called sanctuary cities where it hurts; now one city is fighting back. Chicago has filed suit against the Justice Department over plans to withhold federal grant money to local police departments unless they agree to assist the feds in the fight against illegal immigration. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said the DOJ was undermining the city's "actual safety agenda" and that the new conditions for the grant money were unconstitutional. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the political leaders in Chicago were "deliberately and intentionally" obstructing immigration laws.
NUMBER OF THE DAY
38%
President Trump's approval rating in the latest CNN poll, his lowest showing in the poll
BREAKFAST BROWSE
People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.
Spoiler alert
Rachel Lindsay made history this season on "The Bachelorette," but the show's typical finale controversies remain intact.
Holy BATS!
Batman has a bat cave. That's cute. But it's probably nothing compared to this cave in Austin, Texas, which sports millions of the winged creatures.
Double misery
A Canadian man lost his home last year in the Fort McMurray wildfire. Nine hundred miles away in British Columbia, wildfires just hit him again.
Guardian of the galaxy
He's watched "almost all" of Hollywood's space and alien movies. That makes this 9-year-old kid a shoo-in for NASA's planetary protection officer gig, right?
I need a hero
Netflix just bought a comic books publisher, because we obviously don't have enough superheroes in the movies just yet.
AND FINALLY ...
Just like 'Jumanji'
A rampaging rhino runs cars off the road in India. And yes, we love alliteration.