10 things you need to know today: August 28, 2019

1. Deutsche Bank says it has tax returns covered by Trump subpoena

Deutsche Bank confirmed Tuesday that if it responds to a House subpoena related to President Trump, lawmakers will see some tax returns. The bank, in a letter to a federal appeals court, confirmed it "has in its possession tax returns," although it did not specify whether it had Trump's tax documents. It also could have financial records for the president's children Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump; other close relatives; the Trump Organization; as well as other entities. Deutsche Bank said it could not publicly reveal the names of the people covered in the documents. The bank told the court whose tax returns would be handed over, but the names were redacted from the public record due to legal and privacy concerns. Trump has been fighting the subpoena.

CNN

2. Puerto Rico braces for tropical storm

Tropical Storm Dorian's path shifted Tuesday, threatening a direct hit on Puerto Rico on Wednesday. The storm had maximum sustained winds of 60 miles per hour early Wednesday. It could reach hurricane strength before hitting the island, which still has about 30,000 homes with tarps covering roofs damaged nearly two years by Hurricane Maria. The U.S. Caribbean territory's government has declared a state of emergency as residents brace for the storm. President Trump signed an emergency declaration too, allowing federal assistance for the island. His administration also reportedly opted to transfer $251 million in Department of Homeland Security disaster relief to the southern border.

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The Associated Press WFTV Orlando

3. Judge blocks Missouri law banning abortion at 8 weeks

A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a new Missouri law banning abortion at eight weeks of pregnancy, a day before it was scheduled to take effect. U.S. District Court Judge Howard Sachs said the law stood little chance of standing up to court challenges, and he criticized state lawmakers who passed it for demonstrating "hostility" toward Supreme Court precedent upholding abortion rights. Missouri Republicans passed the law as part of a nationwide effort to restrict abortion and send a case to the Supreme Court in the hope that its newly strengthened conservative majority would overturn the Roe v. Wade decision on abortion rights. The judge allowed the state to enforce parts of the law, such as a ban on abortions motivated by the sex, race, or Down syndrome diagnosis of the fetus.

The Kansas City Star The New York Times

4. Brazilian president says he might accept aid if France apologizes

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said Tuesday he might reconsider his rejection of $22.2 million in aid from Group of Seven nations to help fight fires in the Amazon rainforest, but only if French President Emmanuel Macron apologizes for calling into question Bolsonaro's commitment to the environment. "Before speaking or accepting anything from France, even if it comes from the best possible intentions, he must retract his words. Then we can talk," Bolsonaro said. Macron last week threatened to hold up a free trade agreement between the European Union and South America unless Bolsonaro took decisive action to protect the Amazon. Bolsonaro, a climate change skeptic who has promised to open up the Amazon to business interests, accused European critics of having a "colonial mentality."

The Washington Post

5. Purdue Pharma, Sackler family propose $10 billion opioid settlement

Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family, have offered to settle a wave of lawsuits over the company's role in the opioid crisis for $10 billion to $12 billion, news outlets reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with the negotiations. About $3 billion of the settlement money would come from the Sacklers, who would give up ownership of the company, The New York Times reported. The company faces more than 2,000 lawsuits by states, cities, and counties that accuse the OxyContin maker of starting and fueling the opioid crisis, which killed more than 400,000 people from 1999 to 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The company denies the allegations, but says it "sees little good coming from years of wasteful litigation and appeals."

CNBC The New York Times

6. Johnson confirms effort to suspend Parliament ahead of Brexit

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has asked Queen Elizabeth II to suspend Parliament, sharply limiting the time opposition lawmakers have to propose legislation to block a no-deal Brexit. Johnson confirmed Wednesday that he plans to hold the Queen's Speech on Oct. 14. The speech is typically a formality outlining the legislative agenda, but since Parliament is normally suspended until the speech is delivered, Johnson's move will leave Brexit opponents with little time to pass legislation barring the government from leaving the European Union as scheduled on Oct. 31 unless it has an approved deal with the trading bloc. House of Commons Speaker John Bercow said the effort to suspend Parliament "represents a constitutional outrage."

The Associated Press

7. College Board scraps 'adversity score' plan

The College Board on Tuesday said it was dropping a plan to give students who take the SAT an adversity score to complement their test results. Instead, the testing organization will provide schools with a set of data points indicating students' social and economic background, providing much of the same information about students' neighborhoods without reducing it to a single number. The announcement of the new tool, called Landscape, came after the College Board faced criticism from educators and parents about the plan to add the adversity score to the SAT scores reported to colleges. College Board CEO David Coleman said some people had the mistaken impression the adversity data would affect students' SAT scores. "The College Board scores achievement, not adversity," Coleman said.

The Wall Street Journal NPR

8. Epstein accusers speak out in court

Sixteen women who accused Jeffrey Epstein of sexual abuse expressed their anger in court on Tuesday, calling the late financier and convicted sex offender a coward who abused and manipulated teenage girls. A judge allowed the women to speak in court because they were denied the chance to do so at a trial because Epstein killed himself in jail. "The fact I will never have a chance to face my predator in court eats away at my soul," said Jennifer Araoz, who said Epstein raped her in his New York City mansion when she was 15. "Even in death, Epstein is trying to hurt me." The ostensible purpose of the three-hour hearing was for the judge to consider prosecutors' request to drop the charges against Epstein now that he is dead. Some of the accusers called for the investigation to continue, saying Epstein didn't act alone.

The Washington Post

9. Analysts: North Korea seems to be building ballistic missile-capable submarine

New satellite images taken on Monday suggest North Korea may be constructing a new ballistic missile submarine, analysts from the Beyond Parallel research project said Tuesday. The photos of Sinpo South Shipyard show support vessels and a crane, which could be used during a test launch, the analysts said. The analysts said there is no conclusive evidence that a test will happen soon, and the threat is "emerging rather than imminent." In July, North Korean state media said leader Kim Jong Un inspected a newly built submarine. The analysts said Sinpo South Shipyard has been a hub of activity for the last three years.

NBC News Beyond Parallel

10. Report: Trump calls for lifting logging restrictions in Alaska rainforest

President Trump has told Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to lift logging restrictions in Alaska's Tongass National Forest, The Washington Post reported Tuesday, citing three people briefed on the matter. If the nearly 20-year-old restrictions are lifted, about half of the 16.7-million-acre forest in southeastern Alaska could be opened to logging. The Tongass has millions of acres of old-growth spruce, hemlock, and cedars. It is the world's largest intact temperate rainforest. Just before leaving office in 2001, President Bill Clinton barred the construction of roads in much of the Tongass and other undeveloped national forests, putting the areas off limits to logging. President George W. Bush tried to reverse the policy but was blocked in court.

The Washington Post