NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-03-2024 7PM EST

Episode Date: November 4, 2024

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Janene Herbst. Election day is just two days away and the candidates are busy scraping for every last vote. And Piers Mara Eliason reports on Vice President Harris and former President Trump's closing arguments. Piers Mara Eliason, Vice President of the United States, and former President Trump's closing arguments. Donald Trump has two closing arguments, one from his campaign ads, that prices were lower when Trump was president and there were no wars.

And then there's the argument from Trump himself. It's dark. America is a garbage can. It's violent. Quote, let's see how Liz Cheney feels when the guns are trained on her face. And it's gendered. Quote, Harris is a weak and foolish woman who will get overwhelmed and meltdown. Harris's closing strategy also has two parts.

She's reaching out to undecided voters and disaffected Republicans, promising to search for common ground and listen to those who didn't vote for her. But she also says Trump is unstable, extreme, and is only interested in taking revenge on his opponents, not solving the problems of ordinary Americans. Mara Eliasson, NPR News. Republicans have filed several lawsuits trying to stop counties in Georgia from accepting hand-delivered absentee ballots this weekend. As NPR's Stephen Fowler reports, one state judge has already rejected those claims.

The Republican National Committee and the Georgia GOP say they're filing a federal lawsuit that asks the court to block any mail-in ballots from being returned by hand until election day. The suit makes several false claims about the voting process, including the allegation that accepting ballots in person illegally extends the in-person early voting period. Saturday, a state judge rejected a similar lawsuit filed by the same attorney ruling that Georgia state law is clear. Mail-in voting is different from in-person voting, and voters can hand-deliver absentee ballots to election offices until polls close at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Stephen Fowler, NPR News, Atlanta.

In Oklahoma, the National Weather Service has issued tornado watches and warnings, along with flash flood warnings, for the central part of the state again today. This after at least 11 people were injured and nearly 20,000 customers lost power after a damaging spate of tornadoes in central Oklahoma early this morning. Robbie Korth of Member Station KOSU reports the tornadoes are part of a widespread storm system. The National Weather Service issued more than a dozen tornado warnings overnight Saturday into early Sunday.

The severe weather ripped through parts of Oklahoma City and leveled buildings nearby. Strong winds flipped vehicles and downed trees and power lines, leading to tens of thousands of outages. Further complicating recovery efforts was the sheer amount of rain, which led to flooding. Some communities received almost five inches from the storms. For NPR News, I'm Robbie Korth in Oklahoma City. You as futures contracts are trading lower at this hour. You're listening to NPR News from Washington.

Going to a concert or a sports event used to require a paper ticket. But these days, tickets have gone digital. But as NPR's Rafael Nam reports, many fans still miss the feel and permanence of a physical ticket. Jared Castillo has a box full of old ticket stubs of games and music concerts he's attended. He still goes to many of these events today, but there's nothing there to say you were there. Now some teams and concert promoters are starting again to sell paper tickets.

Not like the old ones that got torn or scanned. These are special souvenir tickets. Castillo bought one last year after attending a World Series game to see the Texas Rangers. It's a special ticket with an artistic rendering of a Rangers player. It's now one of Castillo's favorite mementos, a physical reminder that, yes, he was there. Rafaela Nam, NPR News. At the New York City Marathon today, Abdi Nagagi of the Netherlands won the men's race and Sheila Chepkuri of Kenya won the women's race. Both pulled away from their closest competitors in the final few hundred meters to take their first victories in the race. Garrett took the win in two hours, seven minutes and 39 seconds. Chepkuri ran this marathon for the first time today, one

in two hours, 24 minutes and 35 seconds. Runners from more than 150 countries participated in the marathon. I'm Janene Herbst, and you're listening to NPR News from Washington.