Florida Braces for 'Major Impact' as Hurricane Idalia Approaches; US States Ask SEC to Audit Shein #HurricaneIdalia

Good morning. In today's headlines, former President Trump vowing to fight back after a federal judge set the trial date for his 2020 election case. And in Georgia, Trump's former chief of staff testifies. We have the latest on the indictments. And we hear analysis from a law professor what to expect at Trump's arraignment in Georgia and the impact of a March 2024 trial date in his election case. Florida braces for Hurricane Idalia forecast to make landfall tomorrow. The storm is expected to intensify considerably into a powerful Category 3 hurricane. The CDC stops collecting data on adverse events related to COVID vaccines as millions of Americans report being impacted by such vaccines. And the final of the first NTD Global Chinese Beauty Pageant is fast approaching. One of the candidates tells us why she's in the race and what she believes is the power of true beauty. Good morning. Welcome to NTD. I'm Kevin Hogan. Today is Tuesday, August 29. Former President Trump is now vowing to appeal after a federal judge set a trial date for the Justice Department's 2020 election case. NTD's Iris Tao has more from outside the D.C. courthouse. So federal judge Tanya Chuggin, who's in charge of Trump's 2020 election case here in Washington, D.C., has set the trial date for March 4, 2024. And that is just one day before Super Tuesday, which is when 15 states will hold their primaries. So it's really in the middle of the Republican primary season. And Trump responded on True Social, calling it election interference. He said that, quote, a biased Trump-hating judge gave me only a two-month extension, just what our corrupt government wanted. Super Tuesday, I will appeal. Before the judge announced her decision, Trump's lawyers sparred with federal prosecutors over the issue of a trial date right behind me at this courthouse. Federal prosecutors had asked for a trial date in January 2024, citing the need for a speedy trial. But Trump's lawyers asked for a trial date in April 2026, saying that they would need years to go through the over 10 million pages of documents presented to them by the DOJ, which they said in their court filing that, if printed out, would amount to a tower eight times the height of the Washington Monument. In court, Trump's lawyers said that, quote, this man's liberty and life is at stake and he deserves an adequate representation, adding that the DOJ's time frame of just five months from now will not allow Trump to have a fair trial. But prosecutors fired back, saying that a lot of the documents had already been available to them beforehand, adding that it's not like they have to go through them page by page anyway. And of course, now the judge has set a trial date for March 2024, which would give Trump's lawyers just two months, more than what the DOJ wanted them to have. Mark Meadows has testified that he was doing his job in the actions he took during former President Trump's challenge to the 2020 election results in Georgia. Meadows and others are asking a federal judge to remove their charges to federal court. And T.D.'s legal correspondent Arlene Richards has more. A Georgia prosecutor presenting a preview of the case against former President Trump and 18 co-defendants at a federal hearing, the proceeding scheduled by District Court Judge Steve Jones to hear arguments on former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows' motion to move the case against him to federal court. Meadows argued in his filing and in testimony that all election-related actions he took were part of his role as the president's chief of staff. Under the law, federal officials are typically tried in federal courts in cases involving official acts conducted while in office. Meadows testified that his role involved setting up meetings and phone calls for the president. Also, meeting with state officials was part of his job. Meadows had arranged the phone call between Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on January 2, 2021. Trump attempted to get an official recount and said he was looking for more votes that would prove he beat Joe Biden. The call has been identified as the spark that led to Fulton County District Attorney Bonnie Willis' investigation. The prosecution asked Meadows about specific actions alleged in the indictment and whether those actions were part of his official duties. For example, the indictment alleges he traveled to Georgia in December 2020 to observe a signature-matching audit. Meadows testified that he did attend and that it was within his responsibilities as chief of staff. However, he denied being involved in an alleged strategy to have then-Vice President Mike Pence delay the electoral proceeding on January 6, 2021, and testified that it was the biggest surprise in the indictment. The judge's decision on this motion will affect at least four other co-defendants who filed similar motions, including Trump's former assistant attorney general, Jeffrey Clark. Clark is also facing an ethics case related to challenging the 2020 election results. Federal Judge Rudolph Contreras on Friday denied his bid to have the case put on hold while he defends against the Georgia case. And a judge overseeing a California disbarment case against Georgia defendant John Eastman has denied his request for a delay in the proceeding due to the Georgia indictment. In the Georgia indictment, Eastman has been painted as the architect of a plan to have Pence pause the certification of electoral votes. In California, he faces multiple ethics violations related to his role in Trump's challenge to the 2020 election results. Arlene Richards, NTD News. Ray Smith, the first defendant in the alleged 2020 election subversion case, is pleading not guilty, and he also waived his arraignment. Prosecutors allege Smith made false statements at that hearing involving illegal voting by felons and deceased people. Smith was Trump's lawyer in 2020 when he appeared at a Georgia Senate hearing calling for the election in Georgia to be vacated. The other 18 defendants will be arraigned on September 6. And we're going to look at Trump's cases from a legal standpoint. Let's get some analysis on his trial date for his election case and his September 6 arraignment in Georgia. Bill Jacobson, professor at Cornell Law School, joins us live. Bill, it's great to have you with us this morning. March 4, 2024, that's about six months away. So does that give the defense enough time to go through all the defense material in the election case? No, it really doesn't. It's a pretty shocking date. Of course, we are up against a political calendar, but that's supposedly not going to influence the judge. I don't know. That is a very quick date. If you look at the amount of material they have to get through, if you look at her schedule that she ordered, there's motions taking place practically every other week, designations of experts. I mean, this is a significant sized case. This is not a simple case. There's going to be lots of witnesses, a lot to get ready for trial. I think she set a date which really does prejudice Donald Trump and his ability to mount a vigorous and constitutionally required defense here. So I think that's a pretty shocking date. You mentioned that Judge Tanya Trutkin does not consider the political calendar. So what factors go into considering a trial date? Well, she says she doesn't consider the political calendar, but it's kind of hard to imagine that when she picks a date right before Super Tuesday. Prosecution wanted it early January, and the defense, I think, made a mistake by asking for April of 2026. They clearly don't need that much time. I think if they had maybe asked for a more reasonable date, but the defense does have to consider the political calendar. So it's hard. The problem here is the prosecution brought this case in an election cycle. They could have brought it a year ago, and we wouldn't be worried about times and rushing things. So I think that the judge considers the right of the defendant to a speedy trial and the right of the people to a speedy trial or to a reasonable trial date. So I don't know how she justifies the day before Super Tuesday. Clearly, that puts the defense under enormous burden to prepare their defense. And we'll see how that impacts voters. And Trump does plan to appeal this. So what factors are to be considered there? Well, I don't know how he's going to appeal a trial date. Maybe his lawyers know more than I do, and they very well might. But normally, an appeals court is not going to get involved in micromanaging a trial calendar. After the result is in, if he's found guilty, that might be an issue for appeal that he was deprived of the effective assistance of counsel. In fact, his lawyer said in court, at least as it was reported, that this will deprive the defendant of his right to counsel, that there's no way they can do a proper job going through all the documents within this time frame. And again, according to reports, the judge's response is, well, you don't have to review everything. You just have to review things that relate to what Trump said. And I think that's a completely ridiculous statement. Of course they have to go through everything, because it's the defense lawyer's position to decide what's important and relevant and not important. It's not the prosecution's decision and it's not the judge's decision, at least not in terms of discovery, as opposed to what gets admitted at trial. So I think this really does deprive Trump of his right to a fair trial. Look, I've always said, and I think I've said it on your show before, that this should have been brought a year ago. I wish if they're going to bring these charges that they would have done it in a more timely fashion. But the prosecution didn't. The prosecution created this problem. And I don't think that you should damage a defendant's right to self-defense and a right to defend himself, I should say, in court properly, just because the judge thinks it's better to do it. I think this is really a bad decision by the judge, but I don't know that it's appealable right away. Right. Some of the short and long-term implications of that trial date. Let's go to Georgia here. What motions do you expect to see from Trump's team at a September 6th arraignment? Well, I don't know that there'll be motions at the arraignment. Arraignments are usually fairly short affairs, and he may even waive appearance, assuming the prosecution agrees. I know one of the other defendants was arraigned without physically appearing. But that will then trigger a lot of events that take place in the case. I don't think that judge has yet set a date for Trump's trial. I know she did set an October date for another defendant, but that defendant requested a speedy trial. So I don't know when the trial date's going to be, but there will be motions. The first one will probably be in federal court. Once the judge decides Mark Meadows motion to pull this case out of state court and move it to federal court, Trump may follow suit, or the judge may order the whole case brought to federal court. So that's the first thing that they're going to try to do is get this away from the state court system. And then there will be defenses like immunity, that Trump has immunity from state prosecution for things he did while he was president. And that could be disputed. What is covered by that immunity? What is not covered? Of course, the prosecution will say he wasn't acting as president, he was acting as candidate, and the courts will have to sort that out. But the immunity from state prosecution is going to be a big thing in the Georgia case. And how does that work? Is that a motion that they try to appeal to this immunity cause? Yeah, that's right. It will be a motion that they will make, whether it's in federal court if the case is removed, or in state court saying that Trump cannot be prosecuted by state officials for actions that he took while he was president. The supremacy clause of the constitution does not allow state prosecutors to interfere in the conduct of federal officials. And so that doesn't prevent necessarily a federal prosecutor from prosecuting, but this is a state official. This is actually a local district attorney. This is a local official doing this. And if you had a president who could be subjected to hundreds of such prosecutions by state and local prosecutors for what the president does while president, you could never have an effective presidency. So I think that will be a huge issue. Some really great analysis. Bill Jacobson, professor at Cornell Law School, thank you. Thank you. And just ahead, Florida is buckling down for Hurricane Idalia, projected to strike tomorrow. Life-threatening 12-foot storm surges are forecast in some areas. Does China's fast fashion giant Xi'an use forced labor? That's what 16 Republican attorneys general are asking the SEC to find out before the company's potential initial public offering. Stay tuned for that after the break. Did you know dragging chains can spark a wildfire? It's all good, baby. Is it really all good? If you love me enough to routinely test your handyman skills, not to mention the strength of your marriage, then of course you'll visit nhtsa.gov slash the right seat to make sure I'm in the right car seat. This is my country, Myanmar. The government is not doing anything. Welcome back. Potentially catastrophic winds, heavy rain and dangerous storm surge. Florida is bracing for major impact as Hurricane Idalia heads for the Gulf Coast. And today's Daniel Monahan has more on the storm projected to strengthen into a powerful Category 3 menace. Idalia is expected to intensify over the coming hours before it makes landfall in the Sunshine State on Wednesday morning near Florida's Big Bend. That's an area stretching from Tampa to just south of Tallahassee. Life-threatening storm surge there of up to 12 feet is possible, a danger that could be worsened by waves fueled by hurricane-force winds stronger than 100 miles an hour. Storm surge is when a storm blows the ocean onshore. It accounts for nearly half of all hurricane-related deaths. Governor Ron DeSantis, Floridian should expect that this storm will be a major Cat 3 plus hurricane. The storm churned past western Cuba on Monday, giving Americans a preview of what could come. Homes were flooded in towns south of Havana and thousands of people were evacuated. Idalia's center is forecast to move over the eastern Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday before slamming into the Gulf Coast of Florida Wednesday. The storm is expected to dump 4 to 8 inches of rain from Tuesday into Thursday. National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan. And this is an area that we're highlighting the danger of life-threatening inundation from storm surge. So the circulation of Idalia is going to push water from the Gulf of Mexico up into places like Charlotte Harbor, Tampa Bay and the Big Bend region where the storm surge is very, very sensitive here. As the storm makes its way to Florida, preparations could be seen across the state. People were seen filling up sandbags at a distribution point in Tampa or stocking up on fuel in Gainesville. This marina has prepared for Idalia by moving all their rental boats to land, while empty grocery store shelves illustrate that people aren't leaving things to chance. School districts across the region canceled classes starting on Monday afternoon. Tampa International Airport says it's suspending commercial operations starting Tuesday, and evacuations were ordered in at least 20 counties as of Monday. Some hospitals are also shutting down services and transferring patients. More than 5,000 National Guard members have been activated to help respond to the storm. Governor DeSantis warned residents about power outages. Floridians in the path of this storm just be prepared to lose power. Temperatures in the Gulf have been record warm overall this summer, with more than enough heat to support rapid strengthening of the potentially dangerous storm. Daniel Monahan, NTD News. Speaking of impact, frightening video of a helicopter crash in South Florida yesterday. Authorities say two people were killed and four injured, a paramedic captain on board and a resident on the ground. The Broward County Sheriff's Fire Rescue helicopter went down just north of Fort Lauderdale and smashed into a small apartment complex. The helicopter appears to catch fire and break in half as it spirals to the ground. The captain has been identified as 49-year-old Terrison Jackson, a 19-year veteran of the fire department. A woman on the ground was also killed. Her name has not been released as her family is being notified. Two from the helicopter and two others on the ground were injured. All four are taken to a local hospital and in fair condition. Fire Department says the FAA and the NTSB will help investigate the accident. As U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo meets with her Chinese counterparts in China, she's raising concerns over China's restrictions on American companies. Raimondo pointed to China's restrictions on American businesses, including Intel and Micron Technology. She said U.S. businesses meet with difficulty operating in China. For instance, the Chinese regime effectively banned purchases of Micron memory chips. During the Monday meeting, the pair also discussed China's recent curves on gallium and germanium exports. The two sides agreed to form a working group to exchange information and export controls. Raimondo said the U.S. will not compromise or negotiate on matters of national security. The Commerce Secretary is the latest Biden administration official to travel to Beijing, following Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. So what's behind the timing of the visits? NTD spoke with Bart McCoys, a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of International Affairs, to find out more. How important is this trip? I think it's very important to communist China. It's not as important to us because we hold the upper hand here. And if she can just hold firm, then we could make progress. If, on the other hand, our focus is on, as you put it so well, diplomatic detente, then we're playing the Chinese game rather than the American game. You said President Trump was hawkish. He was, and he never let it be doubted that he believed in putting American interests first. When you look at Joe Biden and his family and their commercial dealings with China over the last 20 or 30 years, I don't think we can be sure that they are putting American interests first. The Americans have been reaching out to China for two and a half years and have been rebuffed. Communist China is treating the Biden administration like a lackey. And now that they are facing their real estate empire imploding and an economic depression, they suddenly have an interest in speaking to America. And of course, it's on commerce and trade. The administration should be very tough in their approach to China, and I'm afraid they will not be. China's fast fashion giant, Xi'an, is back in the spotlight. Sixteen U.S. states have asked the SEC to audit the retailer's supply chain ahead of its potential initial public offering. The China-founded company has been accused of using forced labor. NTD's Jeremy Sandberg tells us more. Republican attorneys general from 16 states asked the SEC for the audit of Xi'an in a letter last week. They urged the SEC to ensure Xi'an and other foreign companies listed on U.S. exchanges verify through independent audits that they comply with U.S. laws that made with any forced labor. Xi'an, which sells $7 dresses and $5 home goods in more than 150 countries, recently moved its headquarters to Singapore. But most of its business operations, including factories and warehouses, remain in China. Pressure on the fast fashion giant is mounting as China hawks in Congress target Chinese firms not aligned with U.S. foreign policy goals. Reuters, citing anonymous sources, reported last month that Xi'an was working with at least three investment banks on a potential U.S. initial public offering and had been in talks with the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ. Xi'an has previously said it does not plan to IPO this year and has zero tolerance for forced labor. Two dozen U.S. representatives sent a similar letter to the SEC in May, asking for it to halt a potential Xi'an IPO until the company confirmed that it does not use forced labor. Accusations against the company include criminal use of cotton from the Xinjiang region where genocide against the Uyghur minority group is ongoing, forced labor, intellectual property theft from independent designers, and a production process that contributes to pollution. A 2022 undercover documentary by the UK's Channel 4 found Xi'an factory employees working up to 18 hours a day, with just one day off every month, and earning next to nothing. The retailer has been able to rapidly expand in the U.S. despite concerns over its labor practices and sustainability. The China-founded fast fashion retailer opened a warehouse in Indiana in 2022 to expedite deliveries and meet rising demand. It reportedly expanded by 20% this month to nearly 1.8 million square feet. Indiana's Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita did not sign the letter. Jeremy Sandberg, NTD News. Did you know ESG is impacting every part of your life? From rising gas prices to global food shortages to out of control inflation, even losing your freedom of speech and being censored on the internet, it's all being driven by ESG ideology. Who's in control? What can you do about it? Find out in The Shadow State, the first documentary exposing ESG. The ESG movement of governments and corporations operates in the shadows. Only the light of truth can expose it. Watch The Shadow State documentary streaming now. Edgeneau Coffee, that cares for your health. expertly fermented with a 50-enzyme complex to enhance flavor and remove bitterness. Small batch roasted to a decadent medium zelting in a brew that is gentle on digestion, low acid, and up to 90% less caffeine than regular coffee. first enzyme fermented coffee today. Good to have you back with us. The U.S. is denouncing Russian actions taken against embassy employees at the U.S. consulate in Moscow, accusing Russian officials of intimidation and harassment. TASS, Russia's state news agency, said the State Security Service, FSB, claimed a Russian national, Robert Shinoff, gave information to embassy staff. They say the information concerned the effect that Russia's conscription campaign had on political discontent there before the 2024 Russian presidential election. The FSB said it would question any U.S. embassy employees who had contact with Shinoff, who himself has been under arrest since May. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said the report was wholly without merit. The Russian embassy in Washington hasn't yet responded to requests for comment. Ukraine says it has liberated a settlement in the country's southeast. Its military said they raised the national flag in the strategic village Robotina last week and confirmed control of it yesterday. It's part of Ukraine's counteroffensive that has been going on for two months. Earlier I spoke with a former deputy national security advisor in the Trump administration to learn more about what's at stake, given that the Ukrainian counteroffensive is proceeding slower than expected. Please welcome Victoria Coates, the vice president of the Davis Institute at the Heritage Foundation. Victoria, thank you for making the time today. Good to be with you. Senior officials briefed on intel on Ukraine tell CNN that the chance of Ukraine making progress in their counteroffensive that would change the balance of this war is highly unlikely. So what is at stake for both sides here? Well, it's really a problem with the Biden administration approach to this war from the early days when it was clear that this was not going to be a three day war. The Ukrainians were in a fight very bravely. Russia was not as strong as we thought you could make the case for a swift intervention led by our European partners supported by the United States to repel Vladimir Putin and prevent him from doing this again. But that didn't happen. And now here we are, 115 billion dollars of U.S. taxpayer money later. And basically what's a grinding stalemate. So what do you think is the best use of taxpayer money here at this point? Well, this is this is a question President Biden and his administration have failed to answer for now a year and a half. All they say is as much as it takes, as long as it takes, which in my mind is a blank, undated check from the U.S. taxpayer for the war in Ukraine. So in my mind, the U.S. aid should be focused on military support. That's what we do best. And all of the civil society stuff that we're supporting should be coming out of Brussels. Now, similar to these claims that you're making here, the Atlantic Council calls Ukraine's slow counteroffensive a wake up call for the West. And they say that there's talk among the international pundits that maybe Ukraine should be pushed towards the bargaining table instead of prolonging this war. What's your take on this? Well, in my mind, this is a case of figuring out what the strategy is to win the war. If there is a path to a decisive victory for Ukraine on terms that are favorable to Kiev and Washington, that that we would be open to. But we haven't heard any such plan. And I think most Americans are concerned. We've got inflation here at home. We've got a fiscal crisis. This is a lot of money. They're about to ask for more. And if we can't win, what are we achieving here except for more violence, more destruction in Ukraine? So what is the ideal outcome here in terms of whether or not there are negotiations? Well, I mean, I think ideally we would have a time machine go back a year and actually wrap this thing up over the summer of 22. Since that didn't happen, you know, I think figuring out what the terms are that will prevent, as I said earlier, Putin from doing this again. This is the second time he's done this in Ukraine. And to be doing this again in five years is just going to be even more painful and more expensive, especially if he goes into a NATO member. Unless we can really exact a severe cost from Putin, it's hard for me how this does anything but embolden autocrats. And of course, we're all looking at Chairman Xi and his intentions towards Taiwan. And I would be very concerned that after a year and a half and over $100 billion of U.S. aid, if this fails, is that going to embolden Xi? And I don't see anybody in the Biden administration explaining. Well, Victoria Coates at the Heritage Foundation, thank you so much for your analysis today. Thank you. The Biden administration didn't respond to requests for comment on the statement that aid to Ukraine would embolden aggressor nations. However, Biden did say in February, appetites of the autocrat cannot be appeased. They must be opposed and that U.S. support for Ukraine will not waver. And now some short headlines from around the world. Leading officials with the Spanish Soccer Federation are demanding the immediate resignation of the body's president, Luis Rubiales, for kissing a player on the lips at the World Cup. It comes after the country's high court prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation on whether he might have committed an act of sexual aggression. FIFA suspended Rubiales over the incident last week. Slovenia is facing another rainstorm and more floods just a few weeks after being hit with flash floods. The port city of Kopar said was most affected. Its downtown was flooded in a matter of minutes. Storms brought traffic to a standstill on many highways. Around 1,000 residents had to be evacuated from the wider area. The U.K. government says passengers heading to and from the U.K. will face disruption for days before things get back to normal. A breakdown at the Nationwide Air Traffic Control System yesterday saw hundreds of flights going to and from the U.K. canceled. The technical fault left thousands of passengers stranded. And heading into break, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it's not collecting certain information anymore. Who can you inform now that they're not accepting reports of COVID vaccine adverse events anymore? A longtime San Francisco resident gives people a tour of the city's Tenderloin neighborhood. He introduces the area's history and its current situation when we come back. Shen Yun Creations, the streaming platform from Shen Yun featuring world-class dance, past programs, and all original music. Masterclasses, behind the scenes, comedy, and more. Explore chenyuncreations.com. Anyone who's ever sold a home can tell you it is really hard. That's why who you work with matters. Together with Homelite, we've helped thousands of people sell faster and for the best price. Life doesn't always give you time to change the outcome. Prediabetes does. With early diagnosis, prediabetes can be reversed. Take the one-minute prediabetes risk test today. Go to doihaveprediabetes.org. Welcome back. We're continuing with a short update, but the latest headlines. A shooting at the University of North Carolina yesterday left one faculty member dead. Police have a suspect in custody. They're still searching for a weapon and a motive. Shots were reportedly fired at around 1 p.m. local time at the school's Caudill Laboratories, a chemistry studies building that sent the university with over 30,000 students into lockdown for hours. The school's chancellor says the suspect was taken into custody shortly after 2.30 p.m. An all-clear was issued shortly after 4 p.m. Neither the faculty member nor the assailant have been identified yet. It's not clear if they knew each other. No other injuries were reported. Classes and campus activities were canceled for today. Officials say the FBI is assisting in gathering evidence. A family of four were found fatally stabbed in a New York City apartment yesterday. Officers were called for a wellness check on Manhattan's Upper West Side around 3 p.m. Police say they found the bodies of a father, mother and their two boys, ages 1 and 3. Emergency officials pronounced them all dead at the scene. Officers are investigating if the deaths may have been the result of a murder-suicide. And over to health. The CDC is no longer collecting COVID-19 vaccine adverse events reports. The agency has quietly removed the function from its website. The CDC halting collection of COVID-19 vaccine adverse events reports through the agency's V-safe page. This, as millions of Americans have reported being impacted by such vaccines. When visiting the V-safe page, a message shows, Thank you for your participation. Data collection for COVID-19 vaccines concluded on June 30, 2023. If you have symptoms or health problems following your COVID-19 vaccination that concern you, please contact your health care provider. You can also report to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System, VAERS. The CDC created V-safe for the COVID-19 vaccine in December 2020, while VAERS is an older system co-managed by the CDC and the FDA. Roughly 10 million participants on V-safe completed over 151 million health surveys regarding their experiences following the COVID-19 vaccination. According to V-safe data accessed by the Advocacy Informed Consent Action Network in September 2022, 3.5 million people said they were adversely impacted by the vaccination, 1.2 million reported that they were unable to conduct normal activities, 1.3 million missed school or work, and 800,000 required medical care. Face masks in medical facilities seem to be making a comeback. NTD's Daniel Monaghan has more on hospitals reinstating face covering mandates to prevent the spread of COVID. Some of the mask mandates apply only to staff and physicians, not to patients or visitors. In Massachusetts, UMass Memorial Hospital says it will reimpose masking for staff. It says the move was due to a dramatic increase in COVID-19 positive employees. Patients and visitors are exempt from the mandate for now, but that may change if upward trends increase. The hospital acknowledged that a return to masking may be upsetting for some staff members. Earlier this month, United Health Services in Binghamton, New York, also began requiring masks for patients, visitors, staff, and doctors. Elsewhere in the state, Auburn Community Hospital didn't wait long in reinstating its on-site mask policy this month, its previous mask mandate having ended just a month earlier. The mandate applies to patients, staff, and visitors. University Hospital in Syracuse, New York, also reimposed masking this month for everyone entering the building. The hospital's previous mandate was lifted in late April. Many studies from around the world suggest masks don't prevent the transmission of COVID-19 or that many people wear masks incorrectly. However, some health officials say masks should be worn where there are large numbers of people vulnerable to developing severe COVID-19. That includes people with weak immune systems and the elderly. Daniel Monahan, NTD News. A tour calling itself the Doom Loop Walking Tour promised to show San Francisco's open-air drug markets and vacant department stores. NTD's Jason Blair reports that the tour was canceled, but a second, unaffiliated tour of many of the same areas took place instead. A downtown Doom Loop Walking Tour showing San Francisco's drug and economic issues was sold out for a Saturday tour according to a listing on Eventbrite. However, it was suddenly canceled, and a different tour that was unaffiliated ended up happening instead. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, a notice was sent out canceling the Doom Loop tour less than a day before, saying, "...unfortunately, the substantial media interest means that it is not possible to preserve my anonymity while publicly posting the tour's time and meeting location." The tour listing says the anonymous guide is a city commissioner and co-founder of San Francisco's largest neighborhood association. And, quote, we will view the open-air drug markets, the abandoned tech offices, the outposts of the non-profit industrial complex, and the deserted department stores. In recent years, open-air drug use, homelessness, and closing businesses have been in the spotlight for the city. Now the tour was scheduled to start right over here in this area, and when I showed up to investigate, not knowing that it was canceled, I saw a group forming, but it turned out to be for a different tour. The simultaneously scheduled tour was the Tenderloin Walking Tour, and it went through the Tenderloin and Midmarket neighborhoods, which are hotspots for homelessness and drug use. It was led by Del Seymour, a homeless advocate and non-profit founder that helps struggling people find employment and helps addicts find recovery. Because even you got people in the community to believe in weird, zooing, doing, whatever it is. And so, and that's really depressing to be already being in this situation, then having people tell you how bad you are, how bad you look, how bad you smell. The tour showed the Tenderloin's sights and unique history. It didn't ignore the homeless and drug issues, but it also showed the many efforts to help people get back on their feet. We not only pass out meals to people, we help people find housing, we help people find educational resources. Seymour has been doing the free tour three times a week for 17 years and says he does it to show people what the often avoided area is really like. I want people to learn how to deal with, learn a better way to deal with their unhoused neighbors in this neighborhood or their own neighborhood. The tour was just under two hours long and had around 70 in attendance. It ended at Seymour's non-profit, Code Tenderloin, where free lunches were waiting for attendees. Reporting from San Francisco, Jason Blair, Entity News. Ludlum resigned yesterday. According to NBC Bay Area, he was forced to. Mayor London Breed's office told SFGate his tour was a deep error in judgment. And just ahead, major asset manager Vanguard is cutting support for shareholder resolutions on environmental and social issues. We have the latest from Entity Business host Don Ma in just a moment. One in five children worldwide are faced with the reality of living without no family dinners, no special treats, no full bellies. All around the world, parents are struggling to feed their children. Toddlers are suffering from acute malnutrition, which stunts their growth. Kids are forced to drop out of school so they can help support their families. COVID, conflict, inflation and climate have ignited the worst famine in our lifetime. And we're fed up. Fed up with the fact that hunger robs children of their childhood. Fed up with the lack of progress. Fed up with the injustice. Help us brighten the lives of children all over the world by visiting getfedupnow.org. For as little as $10 a month, you can join Save the Children as we support children and families in desperate need of our help. Now is the time to get fed up and give back. When you join the cause, your $10 monthly donation can help communities in need of life-saving treatments and nutrients, prevent children from dropping out of school, support our work with communities and governments to help children go from short-term surviving to long-term thriving. And now, thanks to special government grants, every dollar you give before December 31st can multiply up to 10 times the impact. That means more food, water, medicine and help for kids around the world. You'll also receive a free tote bag to share your support for children in need. Childhood without food is unimaginable. Get fed up. Call us now or visit getfedupnow.org today. Good to have you back with us. The world's second largest asset manager, Vanguard, is cutting support for shareholder items on climate and social issues. The move joins other firms in the industry, including BlackRock and State Street. Here to discuss this is NTD business host, Don Ma. Good morning, Don. It's great to have you with us. As always, good to be here, Kevin. Vanguard is reducing support for climate and social issues proposed by shareholders, as you mentioned. So Don, how much of a decline are we talking about here? So the drop in support by Vanguard for ESG factors like climate and social issues is actually very dramatic. The drop is significant here. The asset manager backed just 2% of environmental and social proposals by shareholders this year. And let me just tell our viewers how much lower this is compared to last year. Kevin, it's six times, six times lower. So in 2022, it supported 12% of environmental and social proposals. So now why is this significant, right? Well, because Vanguard manages $7 to $8 trillion. The company is a leader in deciding whether other companies should take steps like curbing greenhouse gas emissions or reviewing their workforce diversity. So it's significant here. Right, yeah. And well, we've seen pushback to ESG and surrounding that. Even Larry Fink, the CEO of BlackRock, said that he was going to drop the term. It wasn't clear if this was a rebranding or if they were actually backing off from it. So now Vanguard pulling back on the climate and social issues, does that indicate that there is an overall pullback on ESG within the industry? Kevin, I think you could potentially say that because Vanguard, as you mentioned, is not the first company to do something like this. Last week, BlackRock actually did something similar. It also reported that it's dramatically lowering its support for environmental and social proposals from shareholders. And as well, industry support for these issues in the last year has declined about 10%. So I think we could be starting to see a shift in the other way when it comes to ESG because recently we've seen it with our own eyes, so much pushback from states, lawmakers, and even consumers are starting to push back too, Kevin. Right, yes, and we've seen that with Target, of course. And firms say that ESG is good risk management, but a lot of people think that they're just pushing a political agenda. So Don, do you have anything else for us? Yeah, sure. Just a few updates. First is Amazon is raising the free shipping minimum to $35. It's $10 higher than the previous limit. The new policy applies to non-Prime members. A spokeswoman said the company is testing the $35 threshold in some areas based on zip codes. And other than that, an update on X, formerly known as Twitter, the company is facing 2,200 arbitration cases that could cost more than $3 million in filing fees. According to CNBC, former Twitter employees are suing company X for failing to pay them promised severance packages after mass layoffs. The lawsuit also alleges that the company delayed their arbitration cases by not paying the proper filing fees. And an update on San Francisco as well, Nordstrom is closing its 35-year-old department store there. The city is seeing a retail depression following the COVID-19 pandemic. Data shows the total of nearly 40 retail stores have gone out of business in downtown San Francisco since 2020, including Whole Foods and other stores as well. And there's been a rising crime over there as well. So that might be a factor. Now, turning to air travel, American Airlines is facing one of the largest fines ever, more than $4 million. The Department of Transportation says the company had over 40 flights delayed on the tarmac for lengthy periods of time, affecting more than 5,800 passengers. The flights occurred between 2018 and 2021. According to federal regulations, the maximum time a passenger can be held is three hours for domestic flights and four hours for international flights. And Kevin, that's all from me this morning. Well, it's a great comprehensive update from you, Don. And going back to what you said about Amazon raising that up to 35 for the minimum, well, we'll see if it backfires on them or if people just make bigger purchases. Don Ma, host of NTD Business, I appreciate it. Thank you, Kevin. Vehicle maker Tesla is preparing for its first court trial related to the issue of an autopilot fatality. The trial is set for next month and will be a major test of Tesla's autopilot software technology. The civil lawsuit alleges the autopilot system caused owner Mika Lee's car to suddenly veer off a highway near LA at 65 miles per hour, hit a tree, then burst into flames, killing the driver and his eight-year-old son. The lawsuit alleges Tesla knew that autopilot and other safety systems were defective when it sold the car. Tesla denied liability for the accident and blamed driver error. It said in court documents that drivers must pay attention to the road and keep their hands on the steering wheel. Tesla faces another autopilot fatality lawsuit in October and numerous others involving non-fatal injuries. Just ahead, what is true beauty? Miss NTD candidate says beauty has power and inspires goodness. Find out why she chose to participate in the pageant in just a moment. My dad's name was David. He always talked about getting life insurance, and now it's too late. No one was expecting my husband, Dave, to suffer from a heart attack. We didn't have life insurance. We thought we had more time. Don't be Dave, and don't wait until it's too late to get the life insurance coverage you need. And if you don't have enough insurance to cover funeral costs, credit card debt, and other expenses, your family is gonna get stuck with the bill. Call now to get affordable life insurance. Just call. 800-494-1562. If you're over 50, you can't be turned down for this insurance, regardless of your health. Plus, there's no medical exam, no health questions. Your rate will never go up. Your coverage will never go down. And rates start as low as $5 a week. Remember, don't be Dave. Call now. 800-494-1562. Life doesn't always give you time to change the outcome. Pre-diabetes does. One in three adults has pre-diabetes. But with early diagnosis, pre-diabetes can be reversed. And you can change the outcome. Take the one minute pre-diabetes risk test today. Go to doihaveprediabetes.org. Welcome back. Luke Willett and Lauren Kopp won the British Open Speed Golf Championship in Ascot over the weekend. Willett completed his 18-hole round of 67 in just 25 minutes, 39 seconds. He also won the title in 2021. Kopp shot a 68 in 40 minutes, 5 seconds to take the women's event. The aim is to find the sweet spot between pace and performance with no slow play at the tournament where buggies are strictly off limits. The format reduces the average 4-hour round to well under 60 minutes, with some players using up to 7 clubs to help with the shot making. Others use just one club for speed. Kopp is also the current women's U.S. Speed Golf champion and has a number of other speed golf titles to her name. What is true beauty today? Why do traditional values and culture matter? One of the candidates of the NTD Global Chinese Beauty Pageant tells us about her journey to discover the power of beauty. Let's hear her story. I was born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, which is a very multi-ethnic city. I was very fortunate to grow up in an area with just such a large Chinese community, and I think it's definitely one of the things that kept me connected to my Chinese roots. I had many classmates who were Chinese. At first, I had volunteered to be a translator in the classroom just because I liked being able to help. My journey to becoming a translator started with simply the wish to help others. I like to use this experience to remind myself that in helping others gave me an excellent opportunity and an excellent environment to practice my Chinese. And I guess you could say I'm now almost a semi-professional translator. As I learned more about traditional Chinese culture and values, I was able to develop a different perspective of the world around me. There are also many codes of conduct in traditional Chinese culture. All these things are laid out very meticulously and very clearly. In today's society where people are all about progressivism and breaking free of the rules, for me, I think these moral teachings in traditional culture have really taught me what self-respect is. And so by behaving with propriety, not only am I being respectful of others, I'm also being respectful of myself, which I think is just so important because how can you expect others to respect you when you're not even respecting yourself? I think traditional Chinese culture has also made me a steadier and more grounded person. Just because China has such a long history and there are so many outstanding historical figures to look up to and to learn from, it's taught me to remain humble at all times because that really is the best way to remain open-minded and to always be ready to learn new things. Now it's become very natural for me to think about things from both a Western and a Chinese perspective, which actually allows me to be more flexible in the way I handle things. There are many thinkers and philosophers in both China and the West, actually, who have argued that beauty is directly connected to virtue and to goodness. So I believe that beauty is a kind of goodness that touches people's souls and it really just inspires goodness in them. It's actually quite profound to have the power to influence society in a positive way. By participating in this pageant, I'm able to be a part of an event that could actually make a difference, that aims to promote and bring back traditional culture and values, which just isn't something you see very often in society nowadays. And it's really just such an honor to be part of something that's so much more meaningful, so much bigger than just an opportunity to present myself. This would be a good opportunity to gain some experience, learn some new things, and meet other like-minded young women. My family has been so incredibly supportive and encouraging. My parents, my grandmother, brother, they've just all had so much confidence in me. I've just received so much positivity from the people around me. They were really always there to tell me, like, this is 100% something that you should do, something you should participate in. And I've also just had so many friends, elders, teachers, really just go out of their way to help me without any hesitation. And I'm just so extremely grateful for all that they've done. The Miss NTD Grand Final and Coronation will be held in late September inside SUNY Purchase College in Upstate New York. Tickets are on sale at missntd.org. And that's all for today's program. We'd love to hear from you at goodmorning at ntd.com, so shoot us an email if you'd like. Thanks for watching. Thanks for watching us on YouTube. Did you know YouTube only keeps selected videos on its platform? So if you want to make sure you get the full picture, just subscribe to our newsletter. Go to newsletter.ntd.com and sign up. It's free.