5 things for August 6: Venezuela, Russia, NRA

CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 8/6/2018, 7:37 a.m.
The view is not the only draw at the Space Needle. Now the Seattle icon sports the world's first revolving …
LeBron: My voice has to be more than sports

By Doug Criss, CNN

(CNN) -- The view is not the only draw at the Space Needle. Now the Seattle icon sports the world's first revolving glass floor. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door.

1. Venezuela attack

Six people have been arrested in connection with what Venezuelan officials call an assassination attempt on President Nicolas Maduro. The attack happened over the weekend as Maduro was giving a speech during a military parade. A pair of drones loaded with explosives flew right toward him. Live footage of the event showed Maduro suddenly looking up startled midspeech, while beside him his wife, Cilia Flores, winced after a loud bang and dozens of soldiers were seen scattering. Authorities were able to knock the drones off course and caused them to detonate away from Maduro.

Appearing on TV a few hours later, Maduro blamed the attack on the far right in Venezuela and Colombia, outgoing Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and Venezuelans living in the US. Venezuela has been gripped in chaos for a while now, with food and medicine shortages, soaring prices, political instability and violence causing thousands to flee the South American nation.

2. Russia investigation

Did President Trump admit in a tweet that the 2016 Trump Tower meeting was never about Russian adoptions, as Team Trump has always maintained, and instead was just about getting dirt on Hillary Clinton? It seems so. The President was tweeting out his displeasure with reports that he's worried about son Donald Trump Jr.'s legal exposure in the Russia investigation. (He says he's not worried.) Then he wrote that the purpose of that meeting was "to get information on an opponent, totally legal and done all the time in politics." That pretty much contradicts everything the President and his team have previously said. CNN's Chris Cillizza says Trump is "twisting himself in knots" trying to explain the Trump Tower meeting.

3. Indonesian earthquake

At least 91 people were killed when a 6.9-magnitude earthquake and strong aftershocks hit the Indonesian resort islands of Bali and Lombok. About 200 people were injured, but the number of victims is expected to rise. It was the second big quake on Lombok in a week. A 6.4-magnitude earthquake shook the island July 29, killing more than a dozen people and briefly stranding hundreds of hikers on the slopes of a volcano.

4. NRA

Is the NRA in danger of shutting down? The influential gun advocacy organization claims it is -- if the state of New York keeps it from doing business with financial companies. In a lawsuit filed in May and amended in July, the NRA accuses New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo of trying to stop banks and insurers from dealing with the gun rights group. The NRA says it will have to close its headquarters, shutter its internet presence and stop holding rallies if this doesn't stop. Cuomo said the state won't be "intimidated by the NRA's frivolous lawsuit to advance its dangerous gun-peddling agenda." New York has filed a motion to dismiss the case, and a hearing is scheduled for next month.

5. Hawaii

It's been a rough 2018 for the Aloha State. The year started off with that false missile alert in January. Then the Kilauea volcano started erupting on the Big Island back in May (and it may keep rumbling for years). Now the state is keeping a wary eye on a hurricane. Hurricane Hector is currently a category 4 storm. While it's expected to pass just south of the Big Island by midweek, it'll still be close enough to affect the islands. Gusty winds, rough surf, coastal flooding, and rip currents are possible, the National Weather Service says, so residents are encouraged to dust off those emergency plans, just in case.

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