10 things you need to know today: November 4, 2019

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1. Lawyer: Whistleblower will answer Republicans' written questions
2. Mueller inquiry notes describe Trump pursuit of hacked Dem emails
3. Poll: Warren, Sanders, Biden solidify leads over other candidates
4. Venezuela, El Salvador expel each other's diplomats
5. McDonald's CEO resigns over consensual relationship with employee
6. Trump spars with Newsom over California fires
7. Impeachment inquiry continues, with several key witnesses staying away
8. Report: Under Armour accounting practices under investigation
9. Joyciline Jepkosgei wins New York City Marathon with fastest debut ever
10. Puerto Rican astrologer Walter Mercado dies at 88

published 4 November 2019

1. Lawyer: Whistleblower will answer Republicans' written questions

The whistleblower whose complaint about President Trump's attempt to pressure Ukraine into investigating Democrats is prepared to answer written questions from House Republicans, his lawyers said Sunday. Republicans have demanded that the whistleblower's identity be revealed and said his complaint was motivated by politics, which the legal team denied. "Being a whistleblower is not a partisan job nor is impeachment an objective," Mark Zaid, a lawyer for the whistleblower, said Sunday. "That is not our role ... We stand ready to cooperate and ensure facts — rather than partisanship — dictates any process involving" the complaint. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the House minority leader, said Sunday he didn't know about the offer but that the whistleblower, a CIA agent, should "come forward in an open hearing."

President Trump and some of his top campaign aides repeatedly discussed how to get hacked Democratic Party emails obtained by WikiLeaks during the 2016 campaign, CNN reported Sunday, citing interview notes from former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation. CNN and BuzzFeed sued the Justice Department for access to the notes, and won. The Justice Department released the first tranche of the material this weekend, and will continue to hand over new material monthly. The first notes released covered testimony by former Trump deputy campaign chairman Rick Gates, who served alongside campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Gates reportedly said Trump and top aides discussed how to get hold of damaging information within emails stolen — by Russia, intelligence officials have determined — from Hillary Clinton, then Trump's Democratic rival for the presidency.

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The three leading Democratic presidential candidates are cementing their lead over the pack less than 100 days before the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses, with Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) edging close to the leader, former Vice President Joe Biden, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Sunday. Among the Democratic-leaning registered voters surveyed, Biden, rated by respondents as the most likely to beat President Trump, had the support of 28 percent, trailed by Warren with 23 percent and Sanders with 17 percent. Warren has risen from 12 percent in July and 18 percent in September, and now trails Biden by less than the poll's margin of error. The only other candidate polling above 2 percent was South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who stands out in fourth place with the support of 9 percent of those polled.

Venezuela announced Sunday that it was kicking out El Salvador's diplomats following the Central American nation's expulsion of diplomats representing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's government. The foreign ministry of Maduro's government gave El Salvador's diplomats 48 hours to leave the South American nation. El Salvador doesn't recognize Maduro as Venezuela's legitimate president, and said Saturday that it would be welcoming allies of opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the South American nation's representatives. Guaidó, leader of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, accused Maduro of rigging his re-election last year, and in January invoked Venezuela's constitution to declare himself the country's interim president. The U.S. and dozens of other Western nations have recognized Guaidó as the nation's rightful leader.

McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook has left the fast-food giant after having a consensual romantic relationship with an employee in violation of company policy, McDonald's said Sunday. Easterbrook acknowledged in an email to employees that he had a relationship with a subordinate, and said it was a mistake. "Given the values of the company, I agree with the board that it is time for me to move on," Easterbrook said in the email. Easterbrook became CEO in 2015. The details of his separation package are expected to be released Monday in a federal filing. The McDonald's board named Chris Kempczinski, who has served as McDonald's USA president, to succeed Easterbrook. The company reports third quarter earnings on Tuesday.

President Trump on Sunday suggested the federal government could cut off aid to California for fighting wildfires, accusing Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat and frequent Trump critic, of doing a "terrible" job managing the state's forests to prevent fires. Newsom responded by saying that the state was "successfully waging war" against fires caused by "extreme weather created by climate change." He tweeted to Trump: "You don't believe in climate change. You are excused from this conversation." Newsom was referring to Trump's refusal to accept the scientific consensus that man-made factors are accelerating climate change.

House Democrats continue their impeachment inquiry this week, but three White House budget officials already have said they will not show up. Their testimony is considered crucial to determining whether President Trump withheld $391 million in congressionally approved security aid to Ukraine to pressure the country's government to investigate Democrats. Another key witness scheduled to appear on Monday, National Security Council lawyer John Eisenberg, will face questions about his role in the decision to move the transcript of Trump's controversial July call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to a classified computer system, an unusual move White House officials have said was necessary to prevent leaks.

Federal authorities are investigating Under Armour's accounting practices to determine whether the sportswear maker moved sales from one quarter to another to make the company's finances look better, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter. A Journal source said federal prosecutors are conducting a criminal inquiry, and coordinating with counterparts at the Securities and Exchange Commission who are conducting a civil case. Neither the Justice Department nor the SEC immediately released any comment. Under Armour, once among the nation's fastest growing apparel brands, has been working on restructuring its operations as it struggles with weak sales.

Joyciline Jepkosgei of Kenya won the women's race in the New York City Marathon on Sunday, finishing seven seconds off the course record. She edged out fellow Kenyan Mary Keitany, 37, who was trying for her fifth title. Jepkosgei, 25, holds the world record for the half-marathon, but it was her first major marathon. Her time of 2 hours 22 minutes 8 seconds was the fastest debut ever in the women's race. "I knew Mary had more experience in marathon, so I was trying to push," Jepkosgei said. In the men's race, Geoffrey Kamworor, another Kenyan who won in 2017 and finished third in 2018, won with a time of 2:08:13. Albert Korir of Kenya came in second at 2:08:36, followed by Girma Bekele Gebre of Ethiopia in 2:08:38.

Famed television astrologer Walter Mercado, a longtime star in Latin America, has died of kidney failure, his niece Betty Benet Mercado said Sunday. He was 88. Mercado was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico, and started out as a dancer and actor. His career took off after he moved to Florida and started working for Univision. Mercado dramatically read horoscopes into the camera with enthusiasm and theatrical gestures. He reached an estimated 120 million viewers in Latin America and the Caribbean for years. He was known for his positive messages and over-the-top costumes. Mercado avoided publicly discussing his sexual orientation, but he became an icon for LGBT communities, a rare gender-fluid celebrity in a culture dominated by machismo.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.