Amy Coney Barrett Announced as Trump’s Supreme Court Justice Nominee 

U.S. President Donald Trump appointed Judge Amy Coney Barrett as the replacement for the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg on September 26, 2020. Barrett is Trump’s third supreme court justice nominee in his current term as president. 

According to the White House Press Release, Barrett is one of the most qualified people for the supreme court position, with many letters of recommendation from the Notre Dame Law School, law professors and former Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. 

Barrett has been awaiting her case to be processed and voted on by the Senate. It is believed that it will be a rather close vote between the two sides of the legislature, due to the 51 conservative seats, 47 liberal seats and two independent seats in the Senate .

Trump Nominated for Third Nobel Peace Prize 

POTUS Donald Trump was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for the third time, the most recent nomination being by Australian Law Professor David Flint. In his first two nominations, he was being recognized for his Serbia-Kosovo deal and the Israel-United Arab Emirates doctrine. 

According to the New York Post, Professor Flint and other Australian law professors wanted to recognize Trump for his foreign policy philosophies. 

The professors recognized Trump for reducing the tendency for the United States to get involved in any wars.

Fishermen Find Missing Woman Floating on the Ocean 

46-year-old woman Angelica Gaitan, who has reportedly been missing for two years, was found floating in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Colombia. Gaitan’s story is a rare case; her family had not heard from her since she supposedly left for Ecuador to live with her brother. 

According to the U.S. Sun, Gaitan revealed that she was in an abusive relationship for 20 years and in an attempt to end her life, she threw herself into the sea. 

Gaitan’s family was relieved to find her alive at a Colombian hospital, where she will reside until she recovers completely.

China’s Muslim Policy

Chinese leader Xi Jinping has been responsible for governing the Xinjiang region of China, which is home to 21.8 million people. Jinping is known for leading a forceful communist campaign to assimilate millions of the ethnic Muslims in his region. Jinping has been using tactics such as concentration camps, leading to many reports on the similarities of Jinping’s behavior and those displayed in the Holocaust against the Jewish population of Europe.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Xi Jinping believes the harsh treatment given to Xinjiang’s minority Muslim population is ‘completely correct’.

Jinping announced on September 26 that this ethnic-cleansing of the Xinjiang region is the beginning of an era. Chinese officials dismiss any rumors that the behavior of Jinping is bad, covering it with their mission statement that desires to ‘improve the lives of the Uighur Muslims’.

Armenia and Azerbaijan Clash

Battles between Armenian armed forces and Azerbaijani armed forces started back in July; however, the conflict between the two countries has seemed to escalate greatly. The conflict appears to be territorial based, fighting over the breakaway territory, Nagorno-Karabakh. 

According to the New York Times, the most recent battle began on September 27; it has already killed dozens of people and has threatened to bring in the two major powers of the area: Russia and Turkey.

A civilian in Armenia had reportedly been killed on September 29, by a Turkish-made armed drone. Russia was then prompted to act, due to their mutual defense treaty with Armenia; however, it was asked to not be activated. 

Pakistan Reconsiders Death Penalty for Pearl Case

The top court in Pakistan agreed to hear arguments that the death penalty should be reinstated for Omar Sheikh, who orchestrated the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter David Pearl in 2002. It is believed that the handling of Pearl’s case will act as a test for the future of Pakistan’s relationship with the United States. 

According to the Wall Street Journal, Sheikh and three of his accomplices’ convictions were overturned in April of 2020. 

There is no known timeline for when the appeals will be heard, but could possibly take months to years.

One of the Last OSS Spies Dies at 99

Patricia Warner, one of the United States’ female Office of Strategic Services (OSS) spies, died September 26 at the age of 99. Warner served as a spy for the OSS across Washington D.C., London and Madrid in the duration of World War II. 

According to the Boston Herald, Warner was close to a reporter for their news site, sharing her many stories from going undercover as a flamenco dancer in Madrid, to being stalked by an enemy spy. 

Warner impacted many, leaving her footprint in the intelligence agency world, as well as on her friends and family. Head of the OSS Society, Charles Pinck, led the mourning of Patricia Warner’s death on September 27.

COVID-19 Update

Plasma donors: Scientists across the nation, such as researchers at the University of California- San Francisco, have found that plasma can be a key factor in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19. The search for those with high levels of antibodies has begun, with large campaigns prompting those who have survived COVID-19 to donate plasma. 

Effects on Amazonian Tribes: COVID-19 began to worry an ancient tribe in the Amazon due to the fragility of their people. 140,000 people have died due to COVID-19 in surrounding Brazil.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the virus is expected to spread to Amazonian tribes, who do not have typical domestic resources to fight the virus. 

The tribes have begun to take precautions, such as gaining access to personal protective equipment and getting tested for the virus. 

Four Arrested for Mail-Ballot Fraud in Texas

Voting in the 2020 Presidential Election has undergone special circumstances; in-person voting has remained open in some states, while mail-in voting has become an option as well. Voting by mail has been expected to increase generously in response to COVID-19.

According to Dallas News, four people were arrested by Attorney General Ken Paxton for fraud via mail-ballot. 

Names have not been released, but Dallas News stated that the prosecuted included a democratic county commissioner and three associates. Paxton used this case to vouch for his stand against mail voting, as it can be easily manipulated. Over the four defendants, there are a total of 134 felony charges.

New Limits on Sugar Consumption Urged

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines Committee reviewed the current sugar consumption guidelines and later decreased the recommended added sugar from ten percent to six percent of the average person’s diet. This action was supposedly in response to increasing rates of obesity in America, and it addressed the poor quality of American diets that health officials warn about. 

According to KHN, a health policy coverage source, these guidelines have caused uproar and pushback from candy and soda makers.