10 things you need to know today: August 5, 2016

1. Clinton takes biggest polling lead over Trump yet

Hillary Clinton continued her post-convention surge in the polls, jumping to a 15 percentage-point lead over Republican rival presidential nominee Donald Trump in a McClatchy/Marist poll released Thursday. In a two-candidate matchup, Clinton leads Trump 48 percent to 33 percent, her biggest lead yet. Last month, her advantage was 42-39. In a four-way race that includes Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson and Green Party candidate Jill Stein, Clinton leads Trump by 14 points, 45 percent to 31 percent. A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll put Clinton's lead over Trump at nine percentage points, 47 percent to 38 percent in a head-to-head matchup, up from a five-point lead last month.

McClatchy NBC News

2. Rio gears up for Olympics Opening Ceremony

The Rio Olympics officially get underway on Friday night with an Opening Ceremony that Brazilian officials hope will put concerns about their preparations, security, Zika, and doping to rest. Competition will unfold under tight security — the U.S. reportedly has sent more than 1,000 security personnel, including intelligence analysts, law enforcement agents, and more than a dozen highly trained Navy and Marine Corps commandos, to work with the Brazilian police and military. The U.S. has chosen swimmer Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian in history with 22 medals, to carry the American flag in the Opening Ceremony.

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The Baltimore Sun NBC News

3. Obama says payment to Iran was not ransom

President Obama on Thursday defended a $400 million payment to Iran that came in a flurry of diplomatic activity tied to the Iran nuclear deal in January. The cash was airlifted to Iran on the same day four detained Americans were released in Tehran. Republicans have accused Obama of paying Iran ransom. The Obama administration says the money was part of the settlement of Iran's longstanding claim that the U.S. failed to come through on an arms deal struck before the Iranian revolution toppled the Shah of Iran in 1979. "The United States does not pay ransoms," Obama said, adding that the $400 million payment was not "some nefarious deal."

CNN

4. Report uncovers sexual assault mishandling at USA Gymnastics

Top executives at USA Gymnastics failed to notify authorities of dozens of accusations of sexual abuse by coaches, according to an investigation by The Indianapolis Star. The organization compiled confidential sexual misconduct complaint files on about 54 coaches from 1996 to 2006, but allegedly failed to investigate them. USA Gymnastics, the governing body of the sport in the U.S., responded to IndyStar by defending its handling of child abuse complaints, saying it follows reporting laws and does what it can to protect children.

IndyStar

5. Black Lives Matter demonstrators block road to London's Heathrow Airport

Black Lives Matter protesters shut down the main road to London's Heathrow Airport on Friday. Black Lives Matter U.K. said four people were arrested near Heathrow, and another five were arrested trying to block access to Birmingham Airport. The demonstrations were part of a day of action marking the fifth anniversary of the fatal shooting of Mark Duggan, 29, by London police. "We stand in solidarity with the families and friends of all who have died at the hands of the British state," a spokesman for Black Lives Matter U.K. said.

The Telegraph

6. Egypt says it killed Sinai ISIS leader

Egypt's military said Thursday that it killed Abu Duaa al-Ansari, the head of the Islamic State's Sinai branch. Egypt said he was killed in a series of airstrikes targeting fighters from the group Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, or Sinai Province. which is the most active Islamist extremist group. Sinai Peninsula has been linked to attacks in Sinai and Cairo.

BBC News

7. Inmate assaults alleged Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof in jail shower

Charleston church shooting suspect Dylann Roof was assaulted in the shower of a South Carolina jail on Thursday. Roof, who is white, is awaiting trial for the murder of nine black parishioners during a Bible study meeting at a historic black church, Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal. Roof is in protective custody, but an African-American inmate, Dwayne Stafford, allegedly left his cell, ran down stairs to the showers, and attacked Roof, leaving him bruised on the face and back before officers broke up the fight. Roof and his attorney say they have "no desire to press charges," Charleston County Sheriff Al Cannon said.

NBC News

8. BoE stimulus plan lifts U.K. stocks as U.S. investors await jobs report

The Bank of England's new stimulus measures helped boost British stocks to their highest level in a year on Friday. Stocks in many other parts of the world also edged higher. The BoE cut a key interest rate to a record low 0.25 percent and offered billions of pounds in stimulus to ease economic harm from the U.K.'s vote to exit the European Union. In the U.S., investors are awaiting the release of the federal government's jobs report on Friday morning before markets open. Economists expect solid July job gains of 180,000, down from June's 287,000-job rebound from a dismal report in May.

Reuters USA Today

9. Hurricane Earl downgraded after hitting Belize

Hurricane Earl was downgraded to a tropical storm on Thursday after lashing the Central American Caribbean nation of Belize with 80 mile-per-hour winds and heavy rains. The storm moved inland over Guatemala and headed into Mexico. Overnight, Earl's top sustained winds dropped to 40 mph, but the storm could drop as much as 8 to 12 inches of rain on parts of Belize, Guatemala, and southern Mexico on Friday morning, with isolated areas getting as much as 18 inches.

The Associated Press WSAV

10. IOC bars a third of Russia's athletes from Olympics over doping scandal

The International Olympic Committee on Thursday approved 271 of Russia's 389 athletes to compete in the 2016 Summer Olympics in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro. Russia's other 118 qualifiers were barred over Russia's government-sanctioned doping regime. The excluded athletes can appeal to a special Rio court of the world sporting arbitration panel, but the appeals could easily swamp the court. Anti-doping officials had called for Russia's entire roster to be banned, but the IOC considered input from officials in each sport, as well as each athlete's drug-test history.

The New York Times