The Rundown: Top headlines today: Friday, September 2, 2022
Stay up to date on the developing stories making headlines.
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ABC NewsHouston area facing 'catastrophic' flood conditions as severe weather pummels Texas
The Houston area is bracing for "catastrophic" flooding Friday as severe downpours and extreme weather pummel parts of Texas. Harris County's Office of Emergency Management moved to its highest activation level Friday morning in anticipation of the imminent flooding, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo told reporters during a news conference. Hidalgo warned residents that the forecast has changed as heavy rains have already fallen in northern Polk County and will make their way to Harris County sooner than expected.
- ABC News
Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar, wife indicted on charges of bribes tied to Azerbaijan
Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife were indicted Friday on charges of conspiracy and accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes from foreign entities, the Justice Department announced. Prosecutors allege Cuellar and his wife, Imelda Cuellar, began accepting the roughly $600,000 in bribes beginning as early as December of 2014 from an oil and gas company owned by Azerbaijan's government as well as a bank headquartered in Mexico City. While Cuellar's wife allegedly propped up sham front companies on the promise of providing consulting services to the two companies in order to launder the payments, she "performed little to no legitimate work under the contracts" all while Rep. Cuellar was promising to use his office for the benefit of Azerbaijan's foreign policy as well as influencing "high-ranking" officials in the executive branch to benefit the Mexico City bank, according to the indictment.
- ABC News
Young people disapprove of Biden’s Israel policy. It may not mean much for November.
On Tuesday night, hundreds of New York Police Department officers entered Columbia University and the City College of New York to remove protestors who had set up encampments and taken over administrative buildings in opposition to Israel's conduct in its conflict against Hamas, U.S. military support for Israel and colleges' investments in companies tied to Israel — just one in a series of clashes on college campuses across the country that have captured the attention of the media and the public. Scenes of left-leaning collegiate protestors upset with President Joe Biden for his continued support for Israel — even as he's become more critical of its operations — and the lack of a ceasefire have raised the prospect that the Israel-Hamas conflict could significantly hurt Biden's support among younger voters in the 2024 presidential election.
- ABC News
Columbia University student recalls the day she was arrested
Columbia University has seen student protesters camping out on the school’s campus since April 17. Pro-Palestinian protesters are calling for the Ivy League school to financially pull out from companies and institutions that “profit from Israeli apartheid, genocide and occupation in Palestine,” according to an online statement from the group Columbia University Apartheid Divest. Following Columbia University President Minouche Shafik’s congressional hearing about antisemitism on campus, the encampment drew a larger group of protesters.
- ABC News
AI gadgets are here, but are they any good?
If 2023 was the year of AI software, 2024 is shaping up to be the year of AI hardware. Over the past few months, companies like Google, Samsung, Meta and Microsoft have shown off smartphones and laptops – even glasses – all of which claim to heavily integrate generative artificial intelligence. At an event in the TWA Hotel in New York City last month, customers took delivery of the very first Rabbit R1s.
- Good Morning America
Rihanna's Met Gala dresses: All her past looks from fashion's biggest night
Ahead of the 2024 Met Gala, we're taking a look at all the standout looks your favorite stars have worn in the past. When it comes to fashion's biggest night, Rihanna is one who never disappoints with her Met Gala fashion moments. Last year, Rihanna wore a dramatic white Valentino Haute Couture gown for the Costume Institute Benefit's theme, "Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty."
- Good Morning America
Cinco de Mayo food deals: $1 tacos, free Chipotle delivery, Guac on The Rock and more
From complimentary guacamole to free delivery on burritos, restaurants are rolling out deals for diners this Cinco de Mayo. Check out the list below for a snapshot of some nationwide offers this weekend, and as always, be sure to check out eateries in your local area for additional specials to support independent restaurants. CPK is offering an all-day happy hour on May 5 to celebrate Cinco de Mayo with deals on the special menu starting at just $5.
- ABC News
Columbia under investigation amid allegations of anti-Palestinian discrimination
Columbia University is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Education following allegations of discriminatory treatment of Palestinian students and their supporters. Palestine Legal, an advocacy group centered on Palestinian Rights, filed a civil rights complaint on behalf of four students and the student group Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine with the DOE’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR).
- ABC News
Former government official charged for falsely accusing colleagues of participating in Jan. 6 attack
A former government official in Virginia has been charged for allegedly submitting false tips to the FBI and accusing seven of his coworkers of participating in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, newly unsealed court records show. Miguel Zapata was taken into custody Thursday after prosecutors accused him of using the FBI's anonymous tip website to report the allegations about his colleagues, several of whom were members of an unnamed intelligence agency. According to his arrest affidavit, Zapata said his former colleagues were tied to groups like the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys and even accused some of sharing classified information with the extremist groups in what he described as a coordinated plot to overturn the government.
- ABC News
April jobs report misses expectations, signaling a possible slowdown
A worse-than-expected jobs report on Friday offered the latest evidence of an economic slowdown that could help ease inflation and trigger interest rate cuts. The trend, however, threatens to downshift the nation’s brisk economic growth. The unemployment rate ticked up to 3.9%, which remains near a 50-year low.
- Good Morning America
Raven-Symoné tells 'trolls' to stop sending wife Miranda Pearman-Maday death threats
Raven-Symoné is defending her wife Miranda Pearman-Maday amid death threats. On Thursday, the actress shared a video on TikTok with Pearman-Maday asking people to stop sending her wife death threats. "I'm here with Miranda, my wife, to tell you to stop it in the comments and stop with the death threats in her DMs," Raven-Symoné began.
- ABC News
Police, cancer researchers team up to track stolen vehicles
Police in Portland, Oregon, are arresting more suspected car thieves and reducing the number of vehicles stolen, thanks to a partnership with cancer researchers. Officer Michael Terrett said he came up with the idea of a more strategic approach to battling car thefts after the city saw a steep rise in stolen cars in 2019. Terrett said they once found a stolen vehicle among every 31 pulled over.
- Good Morning America
Civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen talks being the 1st Vietnamese woman to go to space
For as long as Amanda Nguyen can remember, she's been reaching for the stars. "It has always been my dream to be an astronaut," Nguyen told ABC News' Juju Chang at the Liberty Science Center in New Jersey. "Being the first Vietnamese woman is to let every young Vietnamese girl know that we belong," the 32-year-old Southern California native said.
- ABC News
Inside the 'Hungryland Homicide': Why police investigated a pastor, a ventriloquist and ex-husband to find Florida mom's killer
When Tricia Todd didn’t pick up her 2-year-old daughter Faith from her babysitter on April 27, 2016, her family knew something was wrong. After completing dozens of interviews, combing through hours of surveillance footage and chasing several dead ends, investigators were finally able to determine why Faith had not been picked up by her mother that day: the 30-year-old nurse had been killed. Investigators spoke in a new “20/20” episode, airing Friday, May 3, at 9 p.m. ET on ABC and streaming the next day on Hulu, about how they were able to sift through an array of leads to finally secure a shocking confession from Tricia Todd’s murderer – and arranged a plea deal to locate her missing body.
- Good Morning America
ABC News’ Becky Worley joins research study that could help millions of others
It started like most "Good Morning America" assignments, an idea from our Med Unit about a new study being conducted by the National Institutes of Health. The National Institute of Health's All of Us Research Program will collect more data on more types of people than ever before. "The hope for the impact is that we will be generating evidence on people who have traditionally not been part of biomedical research, so that eventually clinical care can be more personalized for everyone," she said.
- Good Morning America
'Not going to leave': Family returns to Kharkiv after fleeing when Russia invaded
Less than a month after Russia invaded Ukraine, Yana, 33, the lonely mother of Roman, who is now 11, left the front-line city of Kharkiv with their relatives and spent seven months in Lviv, a city in the western part of Ukraine, farther from the fighting. "I am infinitely grateful to Lviv and its people for the fact that we are now alive and unharmed -- I have never received as much help as I received in Lviv," Yana told ABC News.
- Good Morning America
Americans' views divided on US policy toward Israel-Hamas war: POLL
Nearly four in 10 Americans in a new ABC News Ipsos poll say the United States is doing too much to support Israel in its war with Hamas, up from about three in 10 in January. About a third of Americans say the U.S. is doing too little to help protect Palestinian civilians caught up in the war -- yet a quarter say it's doing too much. On Israel, there has been a shift: Early this year, 31% said the U.S. was doing too much to support Israel in its war with Hamas, while today 38% say so, up 7 percentage points.
- Good Morning America
Biden set to award Presidential Medal of Freedom to Pelosi, Al Gore, Bloomberg, Michelle Yeoh and more
President Joe Biden will honor 19 people with the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Friday, the nation’s highest civilian honor. The diverse group of names from politics to activists and entertainment include Biden’s 2020 Democratic primary opponents and former NYC mayor Michael Bloomberg, former Vice President Al Gore, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Jim Clyburn, Elizabeth Dole and recent Biden Climate Envoy and former Sec.
- Good Morning America
'Little Rascals' and 'Mummy Marauder': How the FBI Houston brainstorms nicknames for suspects
The FBI's Houston office in March said it was searching for three alleged bank robbers, suspects whom the bureau dubbed the "Little Rascals" because witnesses described them as being between 14 and 18-years-old. "They left the bank on foot," the bureau said in a post on social media, including photos of the young suspects. The same FBI bureau said a few days later it was searching for a suspect in a separate bank robbery who was assumed to be several decades older.
- Good Morning America
Biden administration will expand health care coverage for immigrants under DACA
The Biden administration has finalized plans to expand government-subsidized health insurance for people brought to the country illegally as children but shielded from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Immigrants with DACA status receive protections from deportation but had been formerly barred from receiving health care coverage made available by the Affordable Care Act.