10 things you need to know today: October 4, 2015
Jason Chaffetz formally launches House speaker bid, Doctors Without Borders closes damaged hospital, and more
- 1. Jason Chaffetz officially announces House speaker bid
- 2. Doctors Without Borders closes Afghan hospital after airstrikes
- 3. Hillary Clinton impersonates Donald Trump on SNL premiere
- 4. Oregon shooter's father calls for stricter gun control
- 5. Vatican fires openly gay priest before global LGBT outreach meeting
- 6. Hillary Clinton wants LGBT vets kicked out of military to get honorable discharge
- 7. California governor signs bill to eliminate racial profiling
- 8. Heavy rains flood Southeast
- 9. Hundreds possibly still missing after Guatemala landslide
- 10. Nationals' Max Scherzer tosses his second no-hitter of 2015 season
1. Jason Chaffetz officially announces House speaker bid
Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) formally announced his bid for House speaker in a Fox News Sunday interview. He'll be up against Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who is favored to take over when John Boehner steps down Oct. 30. "The American people want a fresh face and a fresh new person," Chaffetz said.
2. Doctors Without Borders closes Afghan hospital after airstrikes
Doctors Without Borders closed its northern Afghanistan hospital Sunday, one day after being hit in airstrikes possibly carried out by U.S. forces. The organization evacuated its foreign staff after at least 12 staff members and seven patients were killed in the assault that partially destroyed the building. It also denied that Taliban fighters were behind the attack. The U.S. military is conducting an investigation into the incident.
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3. Hillary Clinton impersonates Donald Trump on SNL premiere
Hillary Clinton took to Saturday Night Live to poke fun at herself while slipping in a few jabs at Republican rival Donald Trump. Clinton played Val, an ordinary bartender, to Kate McKinnon's Clinton, who was feeling down on her 2016 chances. The two acknowledged Clinton took a long time to oppose the Keystone pipeline and support same-sex marriage. When McKinnon mentioned Trump, the real politician mustered her best Donald impression for the camera. Former President Bill Clinton (as played by SNL vet Darrell Hammond) also dropped by.
4. Oregon shooter's father calls for stricter gun control
The father of the Oregon gunman who killed nine at a community college spoke out Saturday, arguing the shooting "would not have happened" if the U.S. had tighter gun control laws. Christopher Harper-Mercer was armed with six guns when he attacked Umpqua Community College on Thursday before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot in an exchange with police. "How was he able to compile that kind of arsenal?" Ian Mercer said. All of the shooter's weapons were purchased legally by himself or a relative.
5. Vatican fires openly gay priest before global LGBT outreach meeting
A priest who game out as gay was fired from the Vatican on Saturday, just one day before the start of the weeks-long Synod of Bishops. "The decision to make such a pointed statement on the eve of the opening of the synod appears very serious and irresponsible," Vatican spokesman Rev. Federico Lombardi said. At the global meeting, bishops will discuss the church's LGBT outreach. Krzysztof Charamsa can retain his priesthood, but will not be allowed to work for the Vatican or pontifical universities.
6. Hillary Clinton wants LGBT vets kicked out of military to get honorable discharge
Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton called on the military to upgrade the service records of LGBT veterans who were kicked out due to their sexuality under "don't ask, don't tell" and even before its 1993 enactment. "I can't think of a better way to thank those men and women for their service," Clinton said Saturday in a speech to the Human Rights Campaign. She also vowed to never treat support from LGBT voters as a "political bargaining chip."
7. California governor signs bill to eliminate racial profiling
California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed a bill Saturday that calls for law enforcement officials to identify and eliminate cases of racial profiling. The measure requires agencies to record the perceived ethnicity of every civilian they stop, along with the reason for the stop and whether an arrest was made. Activists cheered Brown, but law enforcement officials criticized his decision. An American Civil Liberties Union report said California has seen 149 civilian deaths by law enforcement this year, the highest in the country.
8. Heavy rains flood Southeast
President Obama declared an emergency to authorize federal aid for South Carolina as heavy rains flooded the state and surrounding region Saturday. The storm, expected to continue through Sunday and Monday and possibly drop a historic amount of rainfall, comes after the area mostly dodged Hurricane Joaquin, which has moved north. In events attributed to the weather, three people have recently died in traffic accidents in South Carolina and one person died in North Carolina when a tree fell on the interstate.
9. Hundreds possibly still missing after Guatemala landslide
About 350 people are still unaccounted for after a Guatemala landslide struck near the capital Thursday night. Rescuers were still searching Sunday, though it was doubtful they would find any more survivors. At least 86 people died when tons of earth, rock, and trees fell from the hillside above El Cambray, burying homes under debris.
10. Nationals' Max Scherzer tosses his second no-hitter of 2015 season
Max Scherzer led his Washington Nationals to a 2-0 victory over the New York Mets on Saturday with a no-hitter, his second of the 2015 season. The game, the tail-end of a doubleheader between the division rivals, made Scherzer just the fifth pitcher to accomplish that feat during the regular season, and the first since Nolan Ryan in 1973. The ace called his no-hitters "bittersweet," since the Nats will miss the playoffs after a lackluster season.
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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.
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