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News Brief: Week of Sept. 23-29

NATIONAL NEWS:


Kavanaugh

The fate of embattled Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh now lies in the hands of the U.S. Senate.

After a week filled with high-stakes testimony and heightened media coverage, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Friday voted 11-10 to send Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Senate floor. Their vote could be delayed until the end of this week while the FBI investigates claims of sexual assault made against Kavanaugh by Christine Blasey Ford and others.

Ford took the stand before the Senate Judiciary Committee for more than two hours on Thursday, describing an alleged incident where Kavanaugh attempted to rape her at a party when he was 17 and she was 15. Kavanaugh rebutted the allegations when speaking before the committee Thursday afternoon, saying he has gone through intense vetting for prior government positions and there is little chance he would ever encounter Ford because she went to a different school than him.

A 51-vote majority from the senate is required for Kavanaugh to be confirmed. The vote will take place by the end of next week. (CBSNews)

 

Facebook data breach

More than 50 million Facebook accounts were compromised during an unidentifiable hacker attack on Tuesday, the company announced three days later.  

According to a statement released by Facebook, hackers were able to gain access to accounts by stealing access tokens, the equivalent of digitals keys, which allow users to access their account without re-entering their password. Facebook has logged affected users out of their accounts.

Facebook drew negative media coverage in March, when it was discovered they were selling personal data to marketing and research firms. (ConsumerReports)

 

Trump signs government shutdown bill

President Donald Trump signed a multi-billion dollar spending package Friday to fund the government through Dec. 7, effectively averting a possible government shutdown.

With midterm elections just five weeks away, top republican aids informed the president an unfunded government could hurt election results.

On Sept. 5, Trump said he would be willing to shut down the government to negotiate his demands, including a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border. (CNNPolitics, Politico)

 

LOCAL NEWS:


Sonic/Oklahoman sold

Two iconic Oklahoma City-based businesses were purchased by larger corporations last week.

Sonic Drive-In was sold for $2.3 billion to Inspire Brands, the parent company of Arby’s and Buffalo Wild Wings. Company headquarters will remain in Oklahoma City as the restaurant operates as an independent brand.

The Oklahoman newspaper will join Gatehouse Media, a conglomerate of 145 newspapers across the U.S., including business publication The Journal Record in Oklahoma City. Thirty-seven employees were notified they had been laid off on Thursday, including more than a dozen newsroom staff. (CNNMoney, Poynter)

 

Norman school bus crash

A school bus filled with female fifth graders from Cleveland Elementary School in Norman rolled over and crashed into a fence northwest of Austin, TX Saturday afternoon, killing none but injuring several.

According to the Lampasas Police Department, injuries include severe bruising and possible broken bones. All students were taken to a nearby hospital to be evaluated.

Students were en route to an annual field trip to SeaWorld in San Antonio. (Norman Transcript)

 

Liquor laws changing

New liquor laws allowing the sale of wine and cold, high-point beer in Oklahoma convenience and grocery stores officially takes effect starting today.

Previously, only low-point 3.2 beer was allowed to be sold in grocery stores and gas stations, and liquor stores could not sell any cold beer.

With brewing companies stopping the distribution of low point beer Aug. 31, several establishments began to report shortages in the weeks leading up to the law change.

Sixty-six percent of Oklahomans voted yes to the changes in the 2016 election when reforms were proposed as State Question 792. (APNews)

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