10 things you need to know today: August 9, 2015

(Image credit: Elaine Thompson/Associated Press)

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1. Trump campaign, top political adviser part ways
2. Black Lives Matter protesters shut down Bernie Sanders speech
3. Obama feels 'great urgency' 1 year after Ferguson
4. 9 Republican presidential candidates take to RedState Gathering
5. Joe Biden expected to make presidential decision after weeklong retreat
6. Japan remembers Nagasaki after 70 years
7. Footage shows unarmed black college athlete in moments before cop shooting
8. 5 children, 3 adults found dead in Texas home after standoff
9. Junior Seau, 7 other NFL greats inducted into Hall of Fame
10. Katie Ledecky sweeps swimming World Championships

published 9 August 2015

1. Trump campaign, top political adviser part ways

Donald Trump's campaign announced Saturday it fired top political adviser Roger Stone. "We have a tremendously successful campaign and Roger wanted to use the campaign for his own personal publicity," a spokesperson said. "He has had a number of articles about him recently and Mr. Trump wants to keep the focus of the campaign on how to Make America Great Again." Stone claims he resigned, citing controversies and media fights. Trump has faced backlash this week for his misogynistic comments toward Megyn Kelly.

Two Black Lives Matter protesters took the stage as Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders was beginning a speech to thousands Saturday afternoon in Seattle. The activists called for 4.5 minutes of silence to represent the 4.5 hours Michael Brown's body was left in the street after he was shot by a cop in Ferguson, Missouri, one year ago. Refusing to let Sanders speak, they confronted him about their concerns over police brutality. At a more successful nighttime rally, Sanders spoke to a crowd of 15,000.

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One year after Michael Brown, an unarmed black man, was fatally shot in Ferguson, Missouri, by a white cop, NPR sat down with President Barack Obama. "I feel a great urgency to get as much done as possible," Obama said. "And, there's no doubt that after over six and a half years on this job, I probably have an easier time juggling a lot of different issues." Michael Brown Sr. led a march through Ferguson on Saturday to commemorate his son's life.

Donald Trump may have been uninvited from RedState.com editor-in-chief Erick Erickson's three-day conference after his comments about Megyn Kelly, but nine other presidential hopefuls were in attendance Saturday. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) refused to apologize for earlier remarks that President Obama was funding radical Islamic terrorism. Overall, the candidates and attendees stressed the importance of not going too easy on the Democrats, which they said would lead to a Hillary Clinton victory.

Vice President Joe Biden is expected to announce whether he will run for president in 2016 following a weeklong retreat with his wife to South Carolina. Aides have said Biden recently started showing interest in filing deadlines and what it would take to fundraise for a campaign. In July, reports suggested Biden was considering a presidential run just months after losing his son, Beau, to brain cancer, apparently at his late son's request.

Sunday marks the 70th anniversary of the U.S. dropping an atomic bomb on Nagasaki, the second of two to devastate Japan at the end of World War II. At a ceremony with guests from 75 countries, speakers criticized Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's plan to loosen restrictions on the Japanese military, which has not engaged in combat since the war. They also called for peace. "We cannot allow any future use of nuclear weapons," United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said. "The humanitarian consequences are too great."

A security company released footage of Christian Taylor, an unarmed black man who played college football in Texas in the moments before his death Friday. Edited video shows him kicking out a car windshield after allegedly driving his SUV into the dealership. Not on video, a rookie white cop then shot him several times. Arlington Police Chief Will Johnson said more information would be released soon. "The facts available today do not answer all questions or alleviate all concerns."

Five children and three adults were found dead inside a Texas home after one man exchanged gunfire with cops Saturday night. Deputies went to the home near Houston for a welfare check, but then received information that a man there was wanted on a warrant for aggravated assault of a family member. As deputies entered the home, a 49-year-old man began shooting. He surrendered an hour later. The victims' ages, genders, and connections to the suspect were not immediately known.

Eight former NFL players were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday in Canton, Ohio. Most notable was the late linebacker Junior Seau, who died by suicide in 2012, an event apparently brought on by brain damage from concussions he suffered on the field. Controversy surrounded his induction because his daughter, Sydney, was not allowed to speak at the ceremony. Charles Haley, Will Shields, Tim Brown, Ron Wolf, Mick Tinglehoff, Bill Polian, and Jerome Bettis were also inducted.

U.S. swimmer Katie Ledecky finished sweeping the four swimming World Championships freestyle races she entered Saturday with a world record in the 800. It was her third world-record swim in the Russia meet, during which the 18-year-old also won the 200-, 400-, and 1,500-meter freestyle races. Her gold medal haul marks the first time a swimmer has swept those events in a major international competition.

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Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.