News Wrap: Hurricane Oscar batters Cuba as island deals with electrical grid failure

Geoff Bennett:
And we start today’s other headlines in New Mexico, where water levels are starting to recede after record rainfall left at least two people dead.
National Guard officials say more than 300 people have been rescued since Saturday, with dozens brought to nearby hospitals with injuries. The National Weather Service says nearly six inches of rain fell on Roswell on Saturday, breaking a record setback in 1901. That sent water gushing down streets, trapping vehicles, and leaving entire homes submerged.
Tropical storm Oscar battered eastern Cuba today as the entire island deals with an electrical grid failure that has left millions without power. Oscar made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane in the Guantanamo province late yesterday with winds of 70 miles per hour. It unleashed up to 20 inches of rain in some areas, raising concerns about flooding and mudslides.
On the other side of the island, protesters in Havana banked pots and pans amid ongoing blackouts following Friday’s nationwide power outage. There are concerns that Oscar could hurt efforts to get the power back on.
The White House has proposed a new rule that would require health insurers to cover over-the-counter contraception and birth control at no cost to patients. That’s on top of prescribed contraception, which is already covered. The rule would include emergency contraception, as well as the new over-the-counter birth control Opill.
The proposed rule would not affect those on Medicaid. And it has a 60-day public comment period before it would be finalized. The White House today called birth control a fundamental right.
Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary:
We have women out there who don’t have the protections that they need on their own health care because Roe v. Wade, which was law of the land for almost — a constitutional right for almost 50 years, was stripped away.
And we have made that commitment from this administration, the Biden/Harris administration, to protect women, to do everything that we can.
Geoff Bennett:
The White House says if approved, the new rule would increase coverage of contraception for 52 million women of reproductive age who have private health insurance.
A bipartisan congressional task force says that stunning security failures contributed to the July assassination attempt on former President Trump. The House panel drew on documents, interviews and briefings to investigate how a gunman managed to open fire on Mr. Trump from a rooftop near his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. One attendee was killed and two others were wounded in the shooting.
The initial report largely blames the Secret Service, saying — quote — “The tragic and shocking events of July 13 were preventable and should not have happened.” A final report is due in December.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin promised to get Ukraine — quote — “what it needs” during an unannounced visit to the country. Meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the capital, Kyiv, today, Austin backed that up with another $400 million in U.S. military assistance.
But Austin didn’t address Ukraine’s request to use Western-supplied weapons to strike deeper into Russia. And he offered no hints on whether the U.S. would support Zelenskyy’s so-called victory plan. Instead, Austin urged all parties to stay the course.
Lloyd Austin, U.S. Secretary of Defense: There is no civil bullet. No single capability will turn the tide. What matters is the way that Ukraine fights back. What matters is the combined effects of your military capabilities. And what matters is staying focused on what works.
Geoff Bennett:
Separately, voters in Moldova narrowly approved a referendum to move forward with European Union membership amid accusations that Russia tried to interfere with the vote. Moldova applied to join the E.U. shortly after Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine in 2022. Russia has denied any wrongdoing.
The men once known as the Central Park 5 are suing Donald Trump for allegedly making defamatory remarks during last month’s presidential debate. In their federal complaint, the men write that Trump — quote — “falsely stated that plaintiffs killed an individual and pled guilty to the crime. These statements are demonstrably false.”
The five were accused of the 1989 rape and beating of a white female jogger in New York’s Central Park. They said that their confessions at the time were made under duress and their convictions were vacated in 2002. A Trump spokesman called the lawsuit frivolous.
On Wall Street today, stocks ended mixed, following last week’s strong gains. The Dow Jones industrial average snapped a three-session winning streak, giving back nearly 350 points. The Nasdaq managed a gain of about 50 points to start the week. And the S&P shed about 10 points, so just a small loss there.
And President Biden presented the latest National Medals of Arts at a private ceremony at the White House today. It’s the government’s highest award for artists and arts patrons. Those being honored include Missy Elliott, Idina Menzel, Queen Latifah, Spike Lee, Steven Spielberg, and Ken Burns.
After the event, Mr. Biden hosted the reception for those winners, plus the recipients of the National Humanities Medals, which were also presented today to 19 writers, historians, educators, and filmmakers.