Friday morning news - August 28, 2020

Trump accepts renomination for president from White House lawn » With the White House as his backdrop, President Trump took center stage on the South Lawn last night and made it official. 

TRUMP: My fellow Americans, tonight, with a heart full of gratitude and boundless optimism, I profoundly accept this nomination for president of the United States. 

On the fourth and final day of the GOP convention, the president touted his unwinding of Obama-Biden era policies. And he told a crowd of supporters that he’s followed through on his 2016 campaign promises—including his pledge to reshape the courts. 

TRUMP: By the end of my first term, we will have approved more than 300 federal judges, including two great new Supreme Court justices. 

Trump said he has made the right moves for America amid the COVID-19 pandemic. And he predicted that the country will have a safe and effective vaccine by the end of year, crediting in advance his administration’s vaccine fast-track program Operation Warp Speed. 

He recalled an economy that was roaring before the pandemic and hammered home his core message that electing Joe Biden would doom the country’s economic recovery. He also said Beijing would—quote—“own our country” if Biden is elected. 

TRUMP: Joe Biden’s agenda is made in China. My agenda is made in the USA! 

The evening ended with a fireworks display over the Washington Monument… 

AUDIO: [Sound of fireworks]

And a live opera performance. 

Among the speakers setting the stage for the president last night: Franklin Graham, HUD Secretary Ben Carson, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and first daughter Ivanka Trump.

Hurricane Laura leaves massive destruction in its wake » The president said he plans to visit Texas and Louisiana over the weekend where one of the strongest hurricanes ever to strike the United States pounded the Gulf Coast Thursday.

Hurricane Laura slammed the coast as a Category 4, unleashing winds of 150 miles per hour, along with a wall of seawater. The storm killed at least four people, damaged or destroyed thousands of buildings and knocked out power to hundreds of thousands. 

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said relief efforts are underway. 

EDWARDS: We have thousands and thousands of our fellow citizens whose lives are upside down because their business and/or their homes have been damaged. And we have lots of challenges around the state to say the least. 

Southwest Louisiana took the brunt of the damage. Drone video showed water surrounding homes with much of their roofs peeled away. 

One Lake Charles resident said it was like living through a disaster movie. 

AUDIO: All you hear is gusts of winds, you know, debris flying, you know, glass shattering, wood flying. You’re scared to stick your head outside of the door.

Governor Edwards said he’s activated more than 5,000 National Guard troops to help with relief and cleanup and repairing infrastructure. FEMA is also on the ground. 

Unemployment claims tick down but top 1 million once again » The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits topped 1 million again last week and new numbers from the Commerce Department highlight the impact of the coronavirus. WORLD’s Leigh Jones reports. 

LEIGH JONES, REPORTER: Roughly a million people filed jobless claims last week—down by about 100,000 from the 1.1 million the week before. 

That as the Commerce Department downgraded its earlier estimate of gross domestic product in the last quarter. It reported that the U.S. economy shrank at an annual rate of 31.7 percent during the quarter ending in June—the sharpest quarterly drop on record.

But despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, some sectors of the economy are showing signs of rebounding, including the housing market and auto sales. 

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Leigh Jones.

Wis. Justice Dept: Blake had knife inside driver’s side door » The Wisconsin Department of Justice said Thursday that 29-year-old Jacob Blake had a knife inside his vehicle near the driver’s side door when police shot him on Sunday. State Attorney General Josh Kaul said Blake admitted to having the weapon in his possession. 

The shooting occurred when police responded to a domestic incident in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Officials said officers tried to arrest Blake, but he resisted. They then deployed a taser, but that wasn’t effective. 

That’s when Blake began walking to his car with officers trailing him, yelling at him to stop. He then opened the driver’s side door and appeared to reach inside. That’s when an officer shot him seven times. 

It’s unclear if Blake was reaching for the knife or if the officer who fired the shots saw the weapon. 

Also on Thursday, NBA players reportedly met and voted in favor of resuming the playoffs. That a day after the Milwaukee Bucks boycotted game 5 of their series against the Orlando Magic in protest of the Kenosha shooting. That led to the postponement of all games scheduled for yesterday. 

(AP Photo/David Goldman) Protesters march against the Sunday police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis., Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020. 

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