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| Welcome to October, Daily Briefing readers! It's already shaping up to be a jam-packed month. Lawmakers are expected to resume tandem negotiations on a giant $3.5 trillion package of President Joe Biden's social welfare priorities and a key $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, hours after narrowly averting a government shutdown. |
| The United States is close to recording 700,000 COVID-19 deaths, a grim milestone it never expected to hit. October is Breast Cancer, Domestic Violence Awareness and LGBTQ History Month. Snail mail will get even slower. And, happy birthday, Disney World! The Magic Kingdom in Florida turns 50. |
| It's Steve and Jane, with Friday's news. |
| 🔵 New this morning: New treatments are changing the lives of people with breast cancer. And the future holds greater promise. |
| 🔴 "Cannot believe we are here": The United States is poised to cross the dark threshold of 700,000 coronavirus deaths, including another 350,000 this year. |
| 🐦 Humans were raising the "most dangerous bird in the world"18,000 years ago, according to a new study. |
| 🚔 Police kill more people in this state than any other. And many deaths go unreported, according to estimates in a new study. |
| 🎤 "Regular, old bloke": Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger went unnoticed at a small North Carolina bar when he dropped in for a drink while on tour. |
| 🥁 "We think about him every minute of every day": Melissa Ruggieri reports on how late drummer Charlie Watts was remembered at the band's "No Filter" tour in Charlotte, North Carolina. |
| 🔴 Staying could mean death. The escape nearly killed her. This is the story of how one woman fled Afghanistan for freedom. |
 | | Afghanistan escape: How one woman survived brutal Taliban checkpoints | | USA TODAY | |
| 📰 Did you pay attention to the news this week? Take our quiz! |
| 🎧 On today's 5 Things podcast, we toast LGBTQ History Month. You can listen to the podcast every day on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or on your smart speaker. |
| Here's what's happening today: |
Lawmakers get back to work after delaying infrastructure bill vote |
| After talks between key lawmakers and White House officials lasted into the evening, the House delayed a vote Thursday on a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill as negotiations continue on separate legislation with President Joe Biden's social welfare priorities. Talks are expected to resume Friday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said this week she wouldn't call a vote on the infrastructure bill without also having legislative language for the compromise reached with the Senate and White House on the $3.5 trillion package of Biden's priorities. A source told USA TODAY that top aides to Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., met with White House officials to try to nail down a compromise on Biden's package to get moderate Democratic senators on board. Dozens of progressive Democrats have threatened to vote against the infrastructure bill unless it moves in tandem with the larger package. |
 | | The House of Representatives voted Thursday to join the Senate in extending funding for the federal government through Dec 3. | | USA TODAY | |
USPS mail delivery will slow down |
| On Friday, some mail delivered by the U.S. Postal Service will begin to take longer to get to recipients because of new standards added by the agency. The USPS will "implement new service standards for First Class Mail and Periodicals," a spokesperson told USA TODAY. The changes mean an increased time-in-transit for mail traveling long distances, such as from New York to California. But most first-class mail, or standard-sized letters and flats, as well as periodicals, will be unaffected by the changes, according to USPS. The changes are part of the Postal Service's much-criticized, 10-year strategic plan, which was announced by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy in March. |
What else people are reading: |
| 🔵 "Mothers of Gynecology": a new monument in Montgomery, Alabama, honors the legacy of three enslaved women whose suffering helped advance modern medicine. |
| 🏠 The largest house in the country is for sale. And its asking price has dropped by over half. Meet "The One Bel Air." |
| 🏟 Super Bowl LVI is getting some "California Love." Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Kendrick Lamar will headline the Pepsi Super Bowl Halftime Show on Feb. 13 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. |
| 🖌 Cool your home simply by painting the roof? The lead researcher behind the whitest paint ever made says the highly-reflective paint is on track to be sold to the public. |
Federal judge to hold hearing on Texas abortion ban |
| A federal judge in Texas is set to hold a hearing Friday on a request by the Justice Department to temporarily halt enforcement of an abortion ban while underlying constitutional questions are resolved. A 5-4 majority of the Supreme Court declined to block the Texas law in September in a ruling that did not reach whether the law is constitutional. It prompted an outcry from reproductive rights advocates who noted the ban conflicts with the court's abortion precedents. Last week, abortion rights groups brought a new challenge to the Supreme Court in an effort to stop the law's enforcement. The Texas law passed in September bans most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. |
Newsmakers in their own words: Scarlett Johansson, Disney settle |
 | | Scarlett Johansson stars as Natasha Romanoff in "Black Widow." | | Marvel Studios photo; USA TODAY graphic | |
| Longtime Marvel star Scarlett Johansson and Walt Disney Studios have settled their lawsuit over the actress' payout for "Black Widow." The dispute boiled over when the movie was released in theaters and on the Disney+ streaming service at the same time. Details of the settlement were not disclosed. |
| In a lawsuit filed in July, Johansson said her agreement with Marvel Studios guaranteed an exclusive release in movie theaters and her salary was based in large part on box-office performance. |
October raises awareness of breast cancer, domestic violence and LGBTQ history |
| October is Breast Cancer, Domestic Violence Awareness and LGBTQ History Month. Advocates started observing Breast Cancer Awareness Month in 1985, and developments in treatment since then have given patients greater options and more hope. Domestic Violence Awareness Month, meanwhile, was launched in 1987. The coronavirus pandemic, which experts say has made some people more vulnerable at home, and the case of Gabby Petito, who vanished while on a cross-country expedition with her fiancé and was later found dead, brought nationwide concern about domestic violence back to the forefront. LGBTQ History Month also begins Friday. Every day in October one LGBTQ individual's achievements are spotlighted by the civil rights group the Equality Forum, with upcoming honorees including suffragist Susan B. Anthony and poet W.H. Auden. |
Fact check: Let's clear up a few things |
| ✔ The claim: A "driving tax" proposed by President Joe Biden would cost Americans 8 cents per mile. Our rating: False ❌ The $1.2 trillion infrastructure package in Congress includes a voluntary pilot program to study whether a per-mile user fee could help improve roads and maintain the Highway Trust Fund. |
| ✔ The claim: Podcast host Joe Rogan lost his Spotify deal when he announced he was taking the anti-parasitic medicine ivermectin after testing positive for COVID-19. Our rating: False ❌ |
| ✔ The claim: Rinsing your nose with xylitol or hydrogen peroxide can kill viruses and decrease spread. Our rating: Partly false. The effectiveness of xylitol as a nasal rinse in humans has not been proven in studies. And experts say hydrogen peroxide should not be used as a nasal rinse since it can lead to injury. |
| ✔ The claim: A photo shows Draymond Green of the NBA's Golden State Warriors wearing a T-shirt with an aggressively pro-vaccine message. Our rating: Altered. |
| 🔵 Did you know we have an entire newsletter dedicated just to fact checks? Sign up here to get the real story. |
Disney World celebrates 50th anniversary |
| The public had never seen anything quite like it: On Oct. 1, 1971, the imaginary world of Disney came alive with the opening of Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. Mickey Mouse led the first lucky visitors – a local family – into the Magic Kingdom while beloved characters danced and sang. Setting the stage for what would become the East Coast vacation destination, Maestro Arthur Fiedler conducted the 60-nation World Symphony Orchestra, Hollywood star Bob Hope led the dedication of the Contemporary Resort, and "Music Man" Meredith Willson conducted the grand opening parade's marching band. On Friday, the resort celebrates its 50th anniversary with the official debut of two new fireworks shows. The celebration will continue for 18 months. |
 | | Walt Disney World is celebrating their 50th anniversary | | Walt Disney World Resort | |
ICYMI: Some of our top stories Thursday |
| 🌊 Big swells from Hurricane Sam "will likely cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions" along the East Coast, the National Hurricane Center said. |
| 🍔 It's coming back! McDonald's McRib is returning. Here's when the barbecue sandwich will be available nationwide. |
| 💰 A Texas man took COVID-19 tests at an emergency room. Then, he got a bill for $54,000. |
| 🔵 Donald Trump's organization says it has cut ties to aide and former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, amid allegations of sexual misconduct lodged by a Trump donor. |
📸 Photo of the day: Ruth Bader Ginsburg exhibit opens in New York📸 |
 | | The "Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg" exhibit opens to the public at the New-York Historical Society on Friday, Oct. 1. | | Morgan Hines, USA TODAY | |
| Over a year after Supreme Court Associate Justice Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg died, the New-York Historical Society is remembering the icon in a new exhibit "Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg" that runs Friday through Jan. 23. The traveling exhibit, which was organized by the Skirball Cultural Center, is based on a popular Tumblr account and bestselling book with the same title. |
| "Notorious RBG" highlights Ginsburg's strides in protecting civil rights and fostering equal opportunity for Americans by using photos, documents, interactive galleries, artifacts, contemporary art and more. |
| Click here to see more images from the "Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsberg" exhibit. |
| The Daily Briefing is free, but several stories we link to in this edition are subscriber-only. Please support our journalism and become a USA TODAY digital subscriber today. |
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