Vice presidential debate: Harris, Pence spar on plexiglass-divided stage over coronavirus, Supreme Court

Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris and Vice President Mike Pence didn't waste time trading fire over President Trump's handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the idea of packing the Supreme Court and taxes as they faced off Wednesday in their first and only debate during the general election.

Pointing to a national death toll from the virus that's surpassed 210,000 -- with more than 7.5 million confirmed cases -- the Democratic senator from California charged that "the American people have witnessed what is the greatest failure of any presidential administration in the history of our country."

Pence, defending the administration, emphasized that "from the very first day, President Donald Trump’s has put the health of the American people first."

Touting the president's curtailing of nearly all airline flights incoming from China, where the pandemic originated, Pence said "that decision along by President Trump bought us invaluable time to stand up the greatest national mobilization since World War Two and I believe it saved hundreds of thousands of American lives."

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Vice presidential debate: Pence raises Biden plagiarism scandal in defending coronavirus response

Vice President Mike Pence, in Wednesday's vice presidential debate in Utah, brought up the plagiarism scandals that embroiled Joe Biden decades ago when arguing that the Democratic nominee’s coronavirus plan looks a lot like President Trump’s.

“When you read the Biden plan it reads a lot like what Trump and I have been doing every step of the way,” Pence told his debate opponent, Biden running mate Sen. Kamala Harris, noting advanced testing and building up personal protective equipment. “It looks a little bit like plagiarism, something Joe Biden knows a little bit about.”

Biden released a coronavirus plan in March and a plan for reopening in April.

Earlier Wednesday, Biden again reversed course on a national mask mandate, saying on Twitter he would institute such a mandate as president. He also said he would ensure access to free testing and accelerate vaccine developments.

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Washington Post's Jennifer Rubin suggests Congress defund Walter Reed following Trump's release

Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin called on Congress to consider defunding Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Monday, lambasting the hospital's doctors for agreeing to release President Donald Trump back to the White House following treatment for COVID-19.

Fox News reported that Rubin went on a Twitter tirade after the president announced he would be heading home after roughly three days at the facility. The president tweeted, "I will be leaving the great Walter Reed Medical Center today at 6:30 P.M. Feeling really good! Don't be afraid of Covid. Don't let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!"

Rubin tweeted in response, "If he falls ill and relapses or infects anyone else his doctors will be responsible."

"Is there no one at Walter Reed with the nerve to speak out publicly to warn others and express they objected to this dangerous course of conduct?" she continued. "After election there's going to need to be a thorough review and [American Medical Association] will need to consider discipline if appropriate."

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Kirstie Alley trounces CNN reporter over President Trump's return to the White House: 'You hate him. Just report that.'

Actress Kirstie Alley trampled on criticism from a CNN reporter being leveled against the president over his actions after returning to the White House from the Walter Reed Medical Center.

President Donald Trump took his mask off before cameras after arriving at the White House. Some in the media and many of his critics pounced on the moment to accuse him of being irresponsible.

"Only days into his diagnosis, the first thing President Trump does when he gets back to the White House is take his mask off," CNN's Kaitlan Collins said.

Alley ripped into Collins with an expletive-ridden response.

"What would you like him to do? Start crying like a little b***h so you can report that he's ...crying like a little b***h? He could have a hazmat suit on and you would report ... he's a f***ing lunatic in a hazmat suit," Alley said.

"You hate him. Just report that," Alley concluded.

Collins had been accused of being a "Faker" by the president himself in a previous kerfuffle where the reporter had been caught pulling off her mask when she thought cameras were off after she had criticized the administration for the same offense. She tweeted later that she had only taken off her mask for six seconds.

Baltimore police prepare for possible protests during voting period

The Baltimore Police Department is preparing to handle any possible protests or demonstrations during the voting period.

The commissioner said the department does not have specific information about planned disruptions during in-person voting, but they are putting together a plan in the event demonstrations unfold.

The department has held two training sessions to go over how officers should handle any disruptions at the polls.

Baltimore Police Commissioner Michael Harrison said no disruptions are expected, but the department is aware of the heated national rhetoric and the deep partisan divide.

"We are all seeing the same energy. We are all seeing the same social media conversations that there could be protests at voting locations. How do we do it, how do we keep people safe?" Harrison said.

Harrison said voters could see officers at voting centers in Baltimore. He said they are being careful not to appear to be overpolicing but instead responding to concern about safety.

Shot-up home of 2 NJ officers with newborn was wrong address

Four men were at the wrong New Jersey address last month when they fired bullets into a house occupied by two New Jersey officers and their newborn baby, authorities said.

The four were arrested over the weekend, Camden County police said Monday. No one in the house was injured. A reward for information leading to arrests in the case reached $100,000.

The officers whose home was shot up Sept. 15 are members of the Camden department, and detectives feared they had been targeted because of their law enforcement work, according to reports. The six shots that struck the house were fired from a vehicle that sped away.

Anne Arundel County Board of Education passes plan allowing return of sports

The Anne Arundel County school board passed a plan Tuesday that will allow for the return of sports.

The two-semester plan will have sports practices resuming Oct. 19, with each season having four weeks of practice starting with fall sports.

Groups of 50 student-athletes would stay together and there would be no extensive contact.

The competitive season will start with winter sports on Feb. 1, 2021 and each season would have five weeks of competition. The seasons will end on June 19, 2021.

There will be two in-person practices and one virtual session per week per sport. The board also strongly encouraged the addition of inter-scholastic school scrimmages.

Wicomico Began Welcoming Some Students Back To School This Week

Small groups of Wicomico County students returned to school on Oct. 5 as part of the school system’s ongoing recovery efforts.

As Wicomico County Public Schools wrapped up its first month of virtual learning, Superintendent Donna Hanlin announced last week the school system’s plans for bringing back small groups of students beginning Monday.

“As of Oct. 5 we will have students coming to schools in small numbers for Special Education, English Language Learners, Career & Technical Education, secondary math tutoring and some Advanced Placement science labs,” Hanlin said in a message to families. “After that, working by grade level, we will gradually bring back students who choose to return.”

Beginning Oct. 19, prekindergarten students will return to the classroom in small numbers with health and safety precautions, Hanlin said, followed by kindergarten students a week later. Other grades and programs will follow in the weeks ahead with communication forthcoming for families, and as health conditions in the community allow.

“Please note that before a student may return to a school or use school transportation, a COVID-19 Parent/Guardian Agreement must be signed online,” Hanlin said. “The link will be provided by the student’s school when the student is identified as part of a group or grade that will be returning.”

School sports will not resume today, as previously planned.

Hanlin said the school system’s recovery plan, posted on www.wcboe.org, has been updated, and families are encouraged to review it.

Video shows Seattle-area teacher scold 10-year-old for admiring Trump

A Seattle-area middle school teacher scolded a 10-year-old student and briefly kicked him out of his virtual classroom last week after the child said he admires President Trump, his mother said.

Brendan Stanton, a sixth-grade teacher at Perry G. Keithley Middle School in Tacoma, asked his students on Friday to name a person they admire and to state why. Students were supposed to type their answers in a chat room.

"I admire Donald J. Trump because he is making America great again," the child wrote, according to the "The Jason Rantz Show." "And because he is the best president the United States of America could ever, ever have. And he built the wall so terrorists couldn’t come into in the U.S. Trump is the best person in the world. And that’s why I had admire him."

Stanton reportedly booted the child from the chat and proceeded to berate Trump without saying his name.

"The example that was shared in the chat, which I went ahead and erased for us, was not appropriate right?” Stanton told the class. “Especially as that individual has created so much division and hatred between people and specifically spoken hatred to many different individuals, OK?"

He referred to Trump as an "individual" who "has spoken hate to many individuals and I don’t think is an appropriate example for a role model that we should be admiring.”

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Trump authorizes declassification of all Russia collusion, Hillary Clinton email probe documents

President Trump on Tuesday said he has “fully authorized the total Declassification of any & all documents" related to the Russia investigation and the FBI’s investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server.

“I have fully authorized the total Declassification of any & all documents pertaining to the single greatest political CRIME in American History, the Russia Hoax. Likewise, the Hillary Clinton Email Scandal. No redactions!” The president tweeted Tuesday night.

"All Russia Hoax Scandal information was Declassified by me long ago," Trump tweeted. "Unfortunately for our Country, people have acted very slowly, especially since it is perhaps the biggest political crime in the history of our Country."

He added: "Act!!!"

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Biden raises eyebrows after telling 'these beautiful young ladies' he wants to 'see them dancing when they're four years older'

Joe Biden has been raising eyebrows again with remarks he made to a group of "beautiful young ladies" during a campaign stop in Miami. While paying a visit on Monday to the Little Haiti Cultural Center, Biden closed his remarks by quipping to the crowd, "the good news is, for me, I'm here. The bad news for you is I'm coming back." He then spotted a gathering of young girls to the side. "And I want to see these beautiful young ladies- I want to see them dancing when they're four years older too," Biden pointed, sparking laughs from attendees. Footage of the remark went viral, sparking allegations from some of "creepy" behavior. These weren't the only Biden remarks that caused a stir on social media this week. A resurfaced clip from a September 15 campaign event showed the Democratic nominee suggesting why people were able to quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic. "They're saying, 'Jeez, the reason I was able to stay sequestered in my home is because some Black woman was able to stack the grocery shelf,'" Biden is heard saying in the clip.

Twitter, Facebook censor Trump's message comparing coronavirus to flu

Tech giants Twitter and Facebook both cracked down on President Trump comparing COVID-19 to the seasonal flu on Tuesday, resulting in the president calling for a repeal of Section 230.

“Flu season is coming up! Many people every year, sometimes over 100,000, and despite the Vaccine, die from the Flu,” Trump tweeted. “Are we going to close down our Country? No, we have learned to live with it, just like we are learning to live with Covid, in most populations far less lethal!!!”

Twitter put up a warning that shields the tweet from followers: “This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about spreading misleading and potentially harmful information related to COVID-19. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible.”

Trump’s followers had to select “view” in order to see the message that was covered by Twitter’s warning.