Trump suspect faces two firearms counts
A man who was suspected to have been planning to shoot Donald Trump was charged with two firearm counts yesterday in Florida. Cellphone data indicated that the man, Ryan Routh, had waited near Trump’s golf course for roughly 12 hours before a Secret Service agent spotted what appeared to be the barrel of a rifle and opened fire.
Trump was a few hundred yards away, but Routh never had him in his sightline and did not fire his weapon, said Ronald Rowe, the acting Secret Service director.
Routh was convicted of a felony for “possessing a weapon of mass death and destruction” in 2002 after he barricaded himself inside a building with a fully automatic weapon. He has been a serial crusader for causes large and small dating back to at least 1996.
The fact that a gunman was able to get so close to Trump for a second time in two months raised questions about the Secret Service. President Biden told reporters that the Secret Service “needs more help” and that Congress should take action.
The suspect’s book: In a rambling self-published book titled “Ukraine’s Unwinnable War,” Routh last year called Trump a “buffoon” and other insults. In one angry passage about the dismantling of the Obama administration’s nuclear deal with Iran, the author appears to suggest that Iran — or perhaps readers — were “free to assassinate Trump.”
Political violence: The shooting underscored how much American politics has been shaped by anger stirred by and against Trump.
 More on the U.S. electionAmericans head to the polls in less than eight weeks.Elon Musk wrote, then deleted, a post suggesting it was odd that nobody had tried to kill President Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris.It’s too soon to know for certain about the fallout from the presidential debate, but the polls suggest that Harris might be poised to gain.Democrats could for the first time send two Black women to the Senate. |
Deadly floods hit Central Europe
At least 17 people were killed and several others were missing after days of flooding in Central Europe. Thousands were displaced, and with heavy rains continuing in some places, officials feared there could be more destruction ahead.
The floodwaters have ravaged towns, destroyed bridges and breached dams since intense rainfall began last week from Storm Boris, a slow-moving, low-pressure system.
History: For some, the disaster recalled the devastating floods that struck the region in July 1997, killing more than 100 people and driving thousands from their homes.
| The Titan, which imploded in June 2023 deep below the Atlantic Ocean. Imago/OceanGate Expeditions, via Alamy |
The Titan was riddled with problems, investigators said
The U.S. Coast Guard began two weeks of hearings yesterday on what went wrong last year during the Titan submersible’s trip to view the Titanic shipwreck. The submersible imploded, killing all five people on board.
According to testimony, the company was plagued with equipment problems in the years before the disaster and had fired an engineering director who would not approve a deepwater expedition. The Titan had also experienced dozens of problems during previous expeditions, including 70 equipment issues in 2021 and 48 more in 2022.
| MORE TOP NEWS |
| Israel: The defense minister told a U.S. envoy that “military action” was “the only way” to end cross-border violence between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Ukraine: The authorities said yesterday that they had repelled a “massive” Russian attack on Kyiv, the eighth on the capital in just over two weeks. E.U.: France’s commissioner to the E.U. resigned, criticizing the European Commission president over what he called “questionable governance.” Georgia: The leader of the country’s governing party ignited a political firestorm by saying that his nation should apologize for a 2008 war with Russia. TikTok: Lawyers for the Chinese-owned app faced tough questioning in a U.S. court as it fought against a ban that is set to go into effect in mid-January. Typhoon Bebinca: The strongest storm to hit Shanghai in 75 years made landfall yesterday, bringing the city to a virtual standstill. Sean Combs: The music mogul, whose career has been upended by sexual assault lawsuits, was arrested after a grand jury indicted him, according to a person familiar with the indictment. |
Business
| Tech: China’s ability to outrace the U.S. technologically hinges on SMIC, the Asian nation’s sole maker of advanced chips. A.I.: A group of influential scientists called for an international authority to oversee artificial intelligence. |
| SPORTS NEWS |
| Soccer: A hearing began on whether Manchester City broke the Premier League’s financial rules. The case will have repercussions for English soccer. Olympics: Sebastian Coe and Kirsty Coventry are on the shortlist of candidates to succeed Thomas Bach as I.O.C. president. N.F.L.: The Athletic breaks down Week 2 of the new season. |
| MORNING READ |
The National Ballet of Ukraine will perform in New York this week. For the dancers, international tours provide relief from the constant stress of incoming fire in Kyiv. “Even though we’re working very hard, it’s like taking a break,” Nataliia Matsak, the principal dancer, said, “because we can finally sleep.”
| ARTS AND IDEAS |
Women lead the Booker Prize shortlist
The Booker Prize is one the most coveted literary awards, given each year to a novel written in English and published in Britain or Ireland. For the first time in the award’s 55-year history, five of the six nominated titles are by female authors.
The nominees include Rachel Kushner’s “Creation Lake,” a novel about a spy-for-hire who infiltrates an environmental activist group, and Yael van der Wouden’s “The Safekeep,” an erotically charged novel about a Dutch woman who unexpectedly falls for her brother’s girlfriend.
The judges will reread the shortlisted novels before choosing a winner, to be announced at a ceremony in London on Nov. 12. Here’s the full list.
| RECOMMENDATIONS |
Cook: Shakshuka with feta is a favorite from our Cooking app, which made its debut 10 years ago today.
