Monday morning news - November 9, 2020

Biden prepares for transition and Trump fights on » Former Vice President Joe Biden is preparing for a move into the White House. 

While President Trump has not conceded the race, every major network called the election for Biden over the weekend. 

Among the Republicans to congratulate Biden was Utah Senator Mitt Romney, but he spoke no ill of the president. He told Fox New Sunday…

ROMNEY: I think one of the things people like about President Trump is that he is different than typical politicians and people who have run for president before. He’s going to keep on fighting. That’s what you expect from President Trump.

The Trump campaign has vowed to continue the legal battle in several states, alleging voter fraud tilted the outcome of the election. 

But former President George W. Bush on Sunday said the election was “fundamentally fair” and that “its outcome is clear.” He also called Biden to congratulate him, one day after the former vice president delivered his victory speech. 

Speaking in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, Saturday, Biden promised to do all he can to unite a bitterly divided nation. 

BIDEN: It’s time to put away the harsh rhetoric, lower the temperature, see each other again, listen to each other again, and to make progress, we have to stop treating our opponents as our enemies. They are not our enemies. They are Americans!

Networks began calling the race for Biden after vote counts showed him edging in front of Trump in Pennsylvania and Georgia while maintaining a slim lead in Arizona. 

But with razor thin margins in all three states and the votes not yet certified, the Trump campaign insists it’s not over yet. 

Senate Majority may be decided in January » Meantime, voters may have to wait until next year to learn which party controls the Senate.

With control of the White House, Democrats would need two more Senate seats to claim the majority. And there are currently two undecided races in the state of Georgia.

One of those contests is already heading to a January 5th runoff election between GOP Senator Kelly Loeffler and Democrat Raphael Warnock.

In Georgia’s other Senate race, with 98 percent of the votes in, incumbent Republican David Perdue still leads Democrat John Ossoff by 2 percent. But his share of the vote has slipped under the 50 percent mark. If that’s where it stays, then by state law, that race will also head to a January runoff.

John Ossoff told CNN…

OSSOFF: I believe that history right now is unfolding in Georgia, with two Senate races, two Senate runoffs in a single state. 

There is one other Senate race still too close to call. That is in North Carolina where GOP Senator Thom Tillis leads Cal Cunningham by nearly 2 points, with 97 percent of the votes in. 

Even if Democrats manage to flip that seat, Senate control will likely still come down to Georgia on January 5th. 

Hurricane Storm lashes Fla. Keys, threatens Gulf Coast » Hurricane Eta is swirling over the Gulf of Mexico this morning. That after lashing the Florida Keys last night with winds around 70 miles per hour, driving rain and storm surge. 

Eta is now expected to steer north, perhaps slamming Florida’s Gulf Coast sometime over the weekend. 

Dan Brown with the National Hurricane Center said this has been a remarkably busy hurricane season. 

BROWN: Eta is the 28th named storm of the season. That ties it with 2005 with the record for the most number in the Atlantic basin.

Last week, Eta killed at least 150 people in Mexico and Central America, mainly due to flooding and mudslides. 

It battered Cuba on Sunday before swiping the Florida Keys. 

Azerbaijan claims it has captured key city in Nagorno-Karabakh » The militaries of Armenia and Azerbaijan continue to battle over the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.

On Sunday, Azerbaijan claimed it has taken control of the strategically key city of Shusha. Fighting has raged there for more than a month.

In a televised address to the nation, President Ilham Aliyev said “Shusha is ours — Karabakh is ours.” 

AUDIO: [Sound of Aliyev speaking]

Karabakh being the Azerbaijani version of the city’s name.

But Armenia’s Defense Ministry said—quote—“fighting in Shusha is continuing. Wait and believe in our troops.”

Nagorno-Karabakh is within Azerbaijan’s borders, but has been under the control of local ethnic forces backed by Armenia since 1994. 

The latest outbreak of fighting started on Sept. 27 and has killed hundreds, if not thousands. 

Longtime “Jeopardy!” host Alex Trebek dies » Game show host Alex Trebek has died. 

Most Ameicans knew him as the voice of “Jeopardy!” for more than 30 years. 

TREBEK: Thank you, Johnny Gilbert. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the final game in our Super Jeopardy summer tournament. 

Trebek announced last year that he had advanced pancreatic cancer. 

The good humored host joked that he needed to beat the disease because his “Jeopardy!” contract ran for three more years. He vowed to fight the illness, and he continued working as long as possible. 

The Sony studio said Trebek died at his LA home, surrounded by family and friends. He was 80 years old.

(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden gives a speech on the Supreme Court at The Queen Theater in Wilmington, Del., Sunday, Sept. 27, 2020. 

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