Welcome to the Overnight News Digest with a crew consisting of founder Magnifico, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, Chitown Kev, eeff, Magnifico, annetteboardman, Besame and jck. Alumni editors include (but not limited to) Interceptor 7, Man Oh Man,
wader, Neon Vincent, palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse (RIP), ek hornbeck (RIP), rfall, ScottyUrb, Doctor RJ, BentLiberal, Oke (RIP) and jlms qkw.
OND is a regular community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00 AM Eastern Time.
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We begin tonight with the latest updates about Hurricane Ian.
The Weather Channel: Hurricane Ian Heads Toward Potentially Catastrophic Strike On Florida
Hurricane Ian is gaining strength in the Gulf of Mexico and headed for a potentially catastrophic strike on Florida beginning Wednesday.
Ian rapidly intensified into a major hurricane overnight Sunday night, then made landfall in western Cuba two hours later.
Any final preparations for Ian in Florida should be rushed to completion since conditions are deteriorating in South Florida, and will steadily do so in central Florida.
Here's a look at the latest status and forecast.
Latest Status
Ian's center is over the southeast Gulf of Mexico after raking across western Cuba. Storm surge flooding, heavy rain and damaging winds lashed Cuba's western provinces late Monday into Tuesday in what was far western Cuba's first Category 3 landfall in 14 years. A wind gust to 87 mph was measured in Havana Tuesday afternoon.
Bands of rain containing gusty winds are lashing parts of the Peninsula and the Florida Keys. Winds have gusted from 40 to 70 mph in Key West Tuesday.
A tornado watch is in effect for South Florida and the Keys until 5 a.m. EDT.
Associated Press: Cuba without electricity after hurricane hammers power grid by Andrea Rodriguez
Hurricane Ian knocked out power across all of Cuba and devastated some of the country’s most important tobacco farms when it slammed into the island’s western tip as a major hurricane Tuesday.
Cuba’s Electric Union said in a statement that work was underway to gradually restore service to the country’s 11 million people during the night. Power was initially knocked out to about 1 million people in Cuba’s western provinces, but later the entire grid collapsed.
Ian hit a Cuba that has been struggling with an economic crisis and has faced frequent power outages in recent months. It made landfall as a Category 3 storm on the island’s western end, devastating Pinar del Río province, where much of the tobacco used for Cuba’s iconic cigars is grown.
Tens of thousands of people were evacuated and others fled the area ahead of the arrival of Ian, which caused flooding, damaged houses and toppled trees. Authorities were still assessing the damage, although no fatalities had been reported by Tuesday night.
New York Times: McConnell Endorses Electoral Count Overhaul, Lifting Chances of Enactment by Carl Hulse
WASHINGTON — Senator Mitch McConnell endorsed a bill on Tuesday to overhaul how Congress counts electoral votes to confirm the results of a presidential election, significantly enhancing the prospects of enacting the most substantial legislative response yet to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
The support from Mr. McConnell, the Kentucky Republican and minority leader, represented a substantial break with his party in the House, where all but nine Republicans opposed a similar measure that passed last week. It came as the Senate Rules Committee delivered an overwhelming bipartisan vote to send the legislation to the floor.
“The substance of this bill is common sense,” said Mr. McConnell, a member of the Rules Committee, about the legislation negotiated in recent months by a bipartisan group led by Senators Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, and Joe Manchin III, Democrat of West Virginia.
One crucial piece of the measure spells out that the role of the vice president, who presides over the counting of the electoral votes as the president of the Senate, is strictly ceremonial. That provision is a direct response to the failed effort by President Donald J. Trump and his allies to persuade Vice President Mike Pence to reject presidential ballots cast in favor of Joseph R. Biden Jr. as part of a scheme to invalidate his victory.
NBC News: The Jan. 6 committee is moving into its final stage by Peter Nicholas and Scott Wong
After a two-month hiatus, the House Jan. 6 committee appears to be winding down an investigation that made and broke political careers among the nine members while providing the fullest account yet of what happened the day the peaceful transfer of power was nearly subverted.
The committee had been planning to hold another hearing on Wednesday but postponed it due to the hurricane approaching Florida. In a statement Tuesday, committee leaders said they would "soon" announce the date of the ninth hearing — the first since July.
Once rescheduled, the hearing is to be a valedictory of sorts, with the committee diverting from a format that leaned heavily on a few members at a time and instead giving all nine a chance to take the microphone and lead various segments.
BBC News: Japan says Russia 'blindfolded and restrained' its consul in Vladivostok by Simon Fraser
Japan has accused Russia's security services of blindfolding and restraining one of its diplomats in the eastern city of Vladivostok.
Motoki Tatsunori, its consul in the city, was freed from custody on Tuesday after being accused of espionage - and given 48 hours to leave Russia.
Moscow alleges he received secret information about its co-operation with an unnamed Asian country.
Japan denies the allegation and is demanding a formal apology.
Russia's FSB security service said it had detained Mr Tatsunori on Monday for soliciting information about "the impact of Western sanctions" on Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine in February.
Guardian: Mohammed bin Salman named prime minister ahead of Khashoggi lawsuit by Stephanie Kirchgaessner
Mohammed bin Salman has been named prime minister of Saudi Arabia in a move that experts said would probably shield the crown prince from a potentially damaging lawsuit in the US in connection to his alleged role in the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday that King Salman was making an exception to Saudi law and naming his son as prime minister, formally ceding the dual title of king and prime minister he had personally held until now.
The development is not likely to change the balance of power in Saudi Arabia, where the 37-year-old prince is already seen as the de facto ruler of the kingdom and heir to the throne.
But the timing of the decision was seen by critics of the Saudi government as almost certainly linked to a looming court-ordered deadline next week. The Biden administration had been asked by a US judge to weigh in on whether Prince Mohammed ought to be protected by sovereign immunity in a case brought by the fiancee of Khashoggi, Hatice Cengiz. Such protection is usually granted to a world leader, such as a prime minister or a king.
DW: Iran: Lawmaker says women who remove headscarves are prostitutes
An Iranian lawmaker on Tuesday labeled women who have taken off mandatory headscarves to protest against the death of Mahsa Amini as "rioters" who are "out to prostitute themselves."
Mahmoud Nabavian, a legislator from Tehran, made the comments as hardline attitudes grow against ongoing protests following Amini's death, which occurred while in police custody.
Nabavian suggested that taking off the hijab, or headscarf, was akin to being naked in public.
In similar statements Iranian state media branded the protesters "hypocrites, rioters, thugs and seditionists"
Amini, a 22-year-old woman, died on September 16 after the so-called morality police detained her in Theran (sic) for allegedly breaking strict hijab rules.
There’s a good chance that the ACC Game of the Year between #5 Clemson and #10 North Carolina State will be affected by Hurricane Ian.
And last but definitely not least...The Master.
But JJ might want to go outta bounds as soon as he gets that first down the next time, tho.
Michigan plays at Iowa this coming Saturday and...well
Have a good evening, everyone!