How much have you missed?

Here’s a recap of this week. Just click the story to read on!

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Politics

• It was reported by the Wall Street Journal that Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer, hired an IT firm to rig the polls for Trump, but then didn’t follow through on the payment. Cohen explained that this was ‘at the direction’ of Trump.
• Kirsten Gillibrand, a democratic senator from New York, has entered the 2020 presidential race, making her the third Democratic woman to enter so far.
• Karen Pence, the Second Lady, is going to teach art at a school that bans LGBTQ+ students, parents, and employees, and requires parents and employees to sign agreements with strict guidelines including that healthy marriages exist only between men and women.
• Donald Trump is considering extending recognition to controversial Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who has been called illegitimate by many both domestically and internationally.
• In the midst of the government shutdown, over 50,000 TSA workers who were promised one day’s pay back, in addition to the bonus, have not received the bonus. Some have only received part of the full day’s pay they were promised.

Pop culture

• Cardi B posted a video on Instagram discussing her concern over Trump’s handling of the government shutdown. It was so good that multiple senators are considering reposting it, even though it uses some choice language.
• A easer trailer for the new Spider-Man movie, Far From Home, was released. Here’s what we’re excited about.
• Chris Pratt got engaged this week to Katherine Schwarzenegger.
• Ariana Grande has been dropping teasers ahead of the release of her new song, 7 Rings, which will be accompanied by a music video.
• A photo of an egg is now the most liked Instagram post ever, beating out Kylie Jenner’s photo introducing Stormi to the world.
• Amid reports that Miley Cyrus was pregnant, she used some pretty egg-xellent puns to explain that she is not pregnant.

Humanity

• ISIS is responsible for a deadly explosion in a US-patrolled Syrian city that has killed several, including four Americans. This came weeks after Trump claimed to have beaten ISIS.
• A 21-year-old man was arrested for plotting to bomb the White House among other Washington, DC sites.
• The internet had a field day after Donald Trump invited the Clemson University football team to the White House and served fast food on silver platters.
• Gillette launched an ad encouraging men to be better, and backlash erupted from angry men.
• Jayme Closs, the 13-year-old who went missing in October after her parents were both murdered, has returned home to her aunt safely. Her abductor is in custody.

Science says...

• The World Health Organization published its top 10 threats to global health in 2019. Anti-vaxxers, climate change, and inadequate primary healthcare were on the list.
• A new report indicated that ocean temperatures are rising faster than scientists thought.
• A mass drug overdose in california killed one person and hospitalized 12 others.
• A cotton plant has begun growing inside China’s lunar lander on the moon. This is the first seed to germinate on the moon.
• A tech firm in London has created a braille “Kindle” for the blind.