Start your week smart: Israel, Norma, Synagogue stabbing, House speaker, Trump

By CNN Newsource

Published October 22, 2023 6:11 am

By Andrew Torgan, CNN

(CNN) — E.T. phone home? Astronomers have detected a mysterious blast of radio waves that has taken 8 billion years to reach Earth. The cosmic flash is one of the most distant and energetic ever observed.

Here’s what else you need to know to Start Your Week Smart.

The weekend that was

• The death toll in Gaza since October 7 has risen to 4,651, with more than 14,245 wounded, the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said earlier today. Meanwhile, the Israeli military has escalated its operations in the occupied West Bank, striking a mosque today to thwart what it called “an imminent terror attack.”
• Norma weakened to tropical storm strength Saturday after bringing hurricane-force winds, flash flooding and storm surge to Mexico’s Pacific coast. Norma made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane with winds of 80 mph over the far southern portion of Mexico’s Baja California Sur — which includes Cabo San Lucas — Saturday afternoon, the National Hurricane Center said.
• Investigators are searching for a motive in the death of a Detroit synagogue leader found stabbed over the weekend, the city’s police chief said. The body of Samantha Woll, president of the board of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue, was discovered with multiple stab wounds at her home on Saturday morning, the Detroit Police Department said in a statement.
• House Republicans are once again scrambling with no clear path to elect a new speaker after voting to push Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan out of the race Friday, the latest sign of the chaos and divisions that have engulfed the majority party and left the chamber in a state of paralysis.
• Kenneth Chesebro, a Donald Trump-aligned attorney who helped craft the 2020 fake elector plot, pleaded guilty Friday in the Georgia election subversion case. The plea deal is another major victory for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who charged Trump and 18 others in the effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Former Trump campaign lawyer Sidney Powell pleaded guilty last Thursday.

The week ahead

Monday
Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey is scheduled to be arraigned on new charges that he conspired to act as a foreign agent for Egypt. Menendez and his wife were indicted last month on corruption-related offenses, and are accused of accepting “hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes” — including gold, cash, home mortgage payments and a luxury car — in exchange for the senator’s influence. The superseding indictment filed against Menendez, who was chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee at the time of the alleged actions, adds a new dimension to the case by alleging a US senator was working on behalf of another country. Both Menendez and his wife have pleaded not guilty.

The City of Orlando will seek final approval from the city council to buy Pulse, the popular LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed and at least 53 others were injured in a mass shooting in 2016. The site of the deadly shooting was referred to as “a permanent part of Orlando’s history” in an agenda item to be discussed at Monday’s city council meeting. “The City is interested in acquiring this property as part of the process of developing a permanent memorial that honors the victims,” the agenda item states.

North Carolina’s GOP-controlled state legislature is expected to vote on new congressional district maps that could put at risk as many as four Democratic-held seats in the US House — a move that could help determine which party gains the upper hand in the chamber after the 2024 elections. Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper does not have veto power over redistricting legislation in North Carolina.

Wednesday
President Joe Biden will host Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia for an official visit to the US, which will include a state dinner. The event will be Biden’s fourth state dinner since taking office. In June, he welcomed India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the White House.

Thursday
The Commerce Department will release its first reading of third-quarter gross domestic product, the broadest measure of US economic output. The agency’s final revision of Q2 GDP last month showed economic growth holding at an annualized rate of 2.1% — a positive sign for the Federal Reserve’s campaign to cool demand and bring down price increases.

One Thing: Florida’s book ban playbook
In this week’s “One Thing” podcast, CNN’s Elle Reeve explains how a state law in Florida around books in schools is turning school board meetings into spectacles. Listen here.

Photos of the week

Check out more images from the week that was, curated by CNN Photos.

What’s happening in entertainment

TV and streaming
The end is near for “Fear the Walking Dead.” The first in a veritable horde of “Walking Dead” spinoffs will begin airing its final six episodes tonight on AMC through November 26 (maybe skip the Thanksgiving leftovers that night). But fear not, devotees of the undead – AMC says “The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live” is coming in 2024.

In theaters
Just in time for Halloween comes “Five Nights at Freddy’s.” Josh Hutcherson (“The Hunger Games”) stars in this horror movie based on the popular video game series about a security guard who encounters strange creatures while working the late shift at a family-friendly kids’ pizzeria. Think Chuck E. Cheese, but with homicidal animatronic animals. “Five Nights at Freddy’s” opens Friday.

Also hitting the big screen Friday is “Freelance,” an action comedy starring John Cena as a former Special Forces soldier who is hired for a freelance gig providing security for a journalist.

This portion of 5 Things is brought to you by the letter “F.”

What’s happening in sports

At a glance …
The 2023-24 NBA season begins Tuesday when the Los Angeles Lakers take on the Denver Nuggets and the Phoenix Suns face the Golden State Warriors.

And in baseball, The Philadelphia Phillies moved just one game from another World Series with a 6-1 win in Game 5 against the Arizona Diamondbacks Saturday night. Over in the American League Championship Series, the Houston Astros take on the Texas Rangers tonight. Houston also leads the series 3-2. Game 1 of the World Series is scheduled for Friday.

For more of your favorite sports, head on over to CNN Sports as well as Bleacher Report, which – like CNN – is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery.

Quiz time!

Looking for a challenge to start your week? Take CNN’s weekly news quiz to see how much you remember from the week that was! So far, 66% of fellow quiz fans have gotten eight or more questions right. How will you fare?

Play me off …

Happy birthday, Katy Perry!
The Grammy-nominated singer and “American Idol” judge turns 39 on Wednesday. (Click here to hear her roar …)

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