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latimes.com
THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020
Testing lags for nursing home monitors
PROTEST COULD PUT END TO NBA PLAYOFFS
Inspectors say state program to screen them for coronavirus is disorganized and lacks clear protocols.
Three games, including Lakers, are called off in response to shooting. Dodgers game also postponed.
By Jack Dolan and Brittny Mejia
By Tania Ganguli and Dan Woike ORLANDO, Fla. — In their two months in the NBA’s bubble, the Lakers expressed determination about accomplishing two things: speaking out about racism and police brutality, and winning an NBA championship. In the aftermath of the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wis., their coach reminded them during a team meeting that the further they got in the playoffs the bigger their platform would be to talk about injustice. The plan was to keep playing while processing their pain, keep winning so they could share their heartbreak and fears. Until Wednesday, when everything changed, and games that counted were postponed in protest for the first time in league history. By the end of the day, the Lakers and Clippers had both decided as teams that they did not want to play any more games. That decision was made during a three-hour meeting of players from the 13 teams still competing in the playoffs, according to people familiar with the situation. Whether it will stand is unclear. NBA owners are scheduled to meet Thursday morning here. It’s possible that if the other teams decide to play, the Lakers and Clippers will continue their [See NBA, A14]
Police reforms stall in Capitol Many proposals fail to advance. Blame falls on the coronavirus, wildfires and unions. By Anita Chabria SACRAMENTO — Three months after the death of George Floyd in police custody ignited national outrage and filled California streets with protesters, the Legislature is in the final hours of a session that is poised to deliver a much more modest law enforcement reform agenda than many expected. More than a dozen bills regarding police accountability and oversight were introduced in the weeks after Floyd, a black man, died after a Minneapolis police officer help his knee on his neck in May. But weeks later, legislators are lukewarm on passing some of those reforms. Backers blame several factors, from external sources — a shortened session due to the novel coronavirus and the urgency of focusing on wildfires — to fierce opposition from law enforcement unions, which have long been major power players in Sacramento. [See Reforms, A14]
David Goldman Associated Press
UPHEAVAL ON THE STREET AND ON THE COURT Protests continue in Kenosha, Wis., on Wednesday night, hours after a 17-year-old police supporter was arrested on suspicion of shooting and killing two protesters the previous night. NATION, A4 As the nation convulses over violence against Black people, NBA players are willing to stop the game and give up a lifelong dream to win a title. It’s the right call, Dylan Hernández writes. SPORTS, B6
■■ ■ ELECTION 2020 ■ ■ ■ Republican National Convention
Amid tumult, ‘law and order’ Pence sticks to script despite pandemic, protest and a hurricane By Eli Stokols and Noah Bierman WASHINGTON — Mike Pence emerged from President Trump’s long shadow Wednesday night to accept the nomination for vice president, delivering a revisionist case for their management of the COVID-19 pandemic and offering unwavering support for law enforcement amid growing protests over the police shooting of another Black man. The rising calls for racial justice and an end to police abuses prompted the cancellation of professional basketball and baseball games and formed a chaotic backdrop to the third night of the Republican National Convention, which took place as a monstrous hurricane roared toward the Gulf Coast, threatening widespread devastation. Speaking from historic Ft. McHenry in Baltimore, Pence elided over the multiple crises convulsing the country, offering gauzy claims of success and criticizing Democrats for a convention last week that focused on the grim realities of the coronavirus that has killed 180,000 Americans and put millions out of work in the last six months. “Where Joe Biden sees American darkness, we see American greatness,” Pence said, in one of several harsh attacks against the Democratic nominee. “In these challenging times, our country needs a president who believes in America.” Unlike all but one other speaker, Pence acknowledged the looming threat from Hurricane Laura and urged residents along the Gulf Coast to stay safe as the most powerful storm to hit [See RNC, A6]
Saul Loeb AFP/Getty Images
MIKE PENCE with wife Karen Pence at Ft. McHenry National Monument in
Baltimore, where he accepted his party’s nomination as vice president. ANALYSIS
In 2020, the GOP is firmly Trump’s party. What next? By Janet Hook
MORE COVERAGE
Wisconsin turmoil reflected, in part Convention speakers tout “thin blue line” but skirt alleged vigilante killings, and other takeaways. NATION, A7
Staffers take center stage Kellyanne Conway and Kayleigh McEnany aim to appeal to suburban women on behalf of the president. NATION, A7
Susan Walsh Associated Press
WHITE HOUSE counselor Kellyanne Conway gives
her prerecorded speech Wednesday in Washington.
WASHINGTON — Amid vast uncertainty about the Republican Party’s future, several of its rising stars spoke at the convention this week with a dual purpose: falling in line behind President Trump while finding a lane for themselves. The up-and-comers, many eyeing a run for president in 2024, were unanimous in singing Trump’s praises, but they pointed to very different paths into the party’s future. Their varied approaches illustrate the larger problem facing Republicans thinking about their party’s postTrump era: Amid an economic downturn, a pandemic and uncertainty about whether Trump can win in the fall, it’s anyone’s guess what the party may stand for after Trump leaves the White House. Donald Trump Jr. offered a high-volume recommitment to his father’s culture wars as he warned that “anarchists have been flooding our streets.” A more inclusive, low-key [See Analysis, A6]
A month after Gov. Gavin Newsom promised an aggressive program to test nursing home inspectors for the deadly coronavirus, at least 60% still have not been tested, state health officials acknowledged. Newsom ordered the testing in late July after a Los Angeles Times investigation found that, since the beginning of the pandemic, state health officials had been sending inspectors from nursing home to nursing home — many of which had raging outbreaks — without testing those inspectors to make sure they were not spreading the virus themselves. The testing program itself has been sharply criticized by some inspectors, who say it’s an informal and disorganized process with little supervision or clear protocols: They’re sent for do-it-yourself drive-through testing at Rite Aid. They are not required to quarantine during the long waits for the results. And some inspectors say they haven’t shared the results with the department because they don’t know how to. Nursing homes, with their concentrated populations of vulnerable people, have suffered a disproportionate share of death and illness as the virus has spread across the country. In California, more than 40,000 nursing home residents and employees have tested positive for COVID-19, and more than 4,000 have died of the disease. Since the start of the pandemic, state health officials have barred friends and family from visiting nursing homes, meaning thousands of residents have died without a final embrace from their loved ones. Since May, nursing home employees have been required to undergo an aggressive testing regime — all had to get a baseline test to begin with, and they have to get follow-up tests at least once a month for surveillance. Those drastic measures are designed to prevent someone from picking up the virus outside a home and then inadvertently bringing it in, potentially sparking a lethal outbreak. But while all of that was [See Inspectors, A10]
Hurricane Laura roars toward land As the storm rises to Category 4 off the Gulf Coast, forecasters warn of an “unsurvivable” 20-foot storm surge. NATION, A4
Arrests linked to L.A. unrest A law enforcement task force publicizes dozens of cases involving arson, burglary or looting. CALIFORNIA, B3 Weather Morning clouds. L.A. Basin: 92/66. B10 Printed with soy inks on partially recycled paper.
BUSINESS INSIDE: A planned merger will create the largest Black-led bank in the U.S. A11
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Late Edition Today, warm, thunderstorms, windy hail, high 90. Tonight, thunderstorms, warm, humid, low 74. Tomorrow, warm and humid, high 87. Weather map appears on Page B6.
VOL. CLXIX . . . No. 58,798
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NEW YORK, THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020
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U.S. INVESTIGATES POLICE SHOOTING AS KENOSHA BOILS
REPUBLICANS USE LAW AND ORDER AS RALLYING CRY
NEW DETAILS RELEASED
A U.S. ‘OVERRUN’ BY MOBS
Teenager Is Arrested in Deaths of Protesters in Blake Case
Attacks on Biden Over Issues of Religion and National Security
By JULIE BOSMAN and SARAH MERVOSH
By JONATHAN MARTIN and ALEXANDER BURNS
KENOSHA, Wis. — The Justice Department on Wednesday announced a civil rights investigation into the police shooting of a Black man in Kenosha, Wis., as new details emerged in the case, a white teenager who confronted demonstrators was arrested in connection with two deaths, and protests spread to athletes in three pro sports leagues. Protesters have poured into Kenosha’s streets to decry the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black father who was partially paralyzed after a white officer fired at him in front of his children. The authorities released new details of the case on Wednesday that gave a clearer picture of why police officers confronted Mr. Blake, who they said had a knife. Amid the ire over the shooting of Mr. Blake, some in Kenosha have torched buildings, and the authorities have fired tear gas in an effort to clear the streets. Counterprotesters have also emerged, and gunfire broke out along one crowded, dark street late Tuesday, sending bystanders fleeing into parking lots and screaming in terror. The violence that broke out came as demonstrators scuffled with a group of men carrying long guns who said they were protecting the area from looting. The authorities were investigating whether the white teenager who was arrested on Wednesday, identified as Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, was part of a vigilante group. His social media accounts appeared to show an intense affinity for guns, law enforcement and President Trump. The fatal shooting followed a tense night of standoffs between the police and demonstrators and escalated a situation that had drawn the attention of Mr. Trump, who is in the third day of the Republican National Convention and has sought to portray Democratic cities as rife with violence and crime. Protests over the shooting of Mr. Blake also expanded to sports, where the N.B.A. postponed multiple playoff games on Wednesday after the Milwaukee Bucks boycotted their matchup with the Orlando Magic. Mr. Rittenhouse was arrested in Antioch, Ill., and faces a charge of first-degree intentional homicide, according to a court document from Lake County, Ill. Antioch is about 30 minutes southwest of Kenosha, just over the Illinois line. Two men, a 26-year-old and a 36year-old from Kenosha County Continued on Page A18
Republicans used the third night of their convention on Wednesday to amplify warnings of violence and lawlessness under Democratic leadership, trying to capitalize on the worsening unrest in Wisconsin to reclaim moderate voters who might be reluctant to hand President Trump a second term. The party also made appeals to social conservatives with attacks on abortion and accusations that the Democrats and their nominee, Joseph R. Biden Jr., were “Catholics in name only.” And they intensified their effort to lift Mr. Trump’s standing among women with testimonials vouching for him as empathetic and as a champion of women in the workplace — from women who work for him, a number of female lawmakers and his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump. Speaking hours after Gov. Tony Evers of Wisconsin called in the National Guard to restore order to Kenosha, Wis., where a police officer shot a Black man this week, numerous Republicans led by Vice President Mike Pence assailed Mr. Biden for what they claimed was his tolerance of the vandalism that has grown out of racial justice protests, claiming the country would not be safe with him as president. “Last week, Joe Biden didn’t say one word about the violence and chaos engulfing cities across this country,” said Mr. Pence, standing before an array of American flags at Fort McHenry in Baltimore and vowing: “We will have law and order on the streets of this country for every American of every race and creed and color.” Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota said that places like Seattle, Portland and other Democrat-run cities are being “overrun by violent mobs.” She likened the violence to the lead-up of the Civil War and asserted that residents “are left to fend for themselves.” Ms. Noem invoked a young Abraham Lincoln, claiming he had been “alarmed by the disregard for the rule of law throughout the country.’’ “He was concerned for the people that had seen their property destroyed, their families attacked and their lives threatened or even taken away,” she said, adding “Sound familiar?” The intense focus on the rioting amounted to an acknowledgment by Republicans that they must reframe the election to make urban unrest central and shift attention away from the deaths and illnesses of millions of people from the coronavirus. Skirting the most complex and trying issues of the pandemic, Mr. Pence, calling America “a nation of miracles,” teased the prospect of a vaccine in Continued on Page A15
DOUG MILLS/THE NEW YORK TIMES
Vice President Mike Pence, in his convention speech in Baltimore on Wednesday night, accused Democrats of tolerating violence.
G.O.P. Warnings of Chaos Resound in Wisconsin A ‘Welcome,’ After 3 Years Fires and Looting Push Of ‘Stay Out’ Some in Swing State By SABRINA TAVERNISE and ELLEN ALMER DURSTON
John Geraghty, a 41-year-old worker in a tractor factory, has barely paid attention to the presidential race or the conventions. Every day he focuses on survival: getting his son to sports practice, working at his job where he now wears a mask, and getting home to sleep, only to start over again the next day. But when he woke up on Monday morning to images of his hometown, Kenosha, Wis., in flames, he could not stop watching. The unrest in faraway places like Portland, Ore., and Minneapolis had arrived at his doorstep, after a white police officer on Sunday shot a Black man in the back multiple times. And after feeling “100 percent on the fence” about who he will vote for in November,
Closer to Trump he is increasingly nervous that Democratic state leaders seem unable to contain the spiraling crisis. “It’s crazy that it’s now happening in my home city,” he said. “We have to have a serious conversation about what are we going to do about it. It doesn’t seem like the powers that be want to do much.” The politically calculated warnings of President Trump and the Republican Party about chaos enveloping America should Democrats win in November are reverberating among some people in Kenosha, a small city in the south-
east corner of one of the most critical states in this election, where protests have raged for a number of increasingly combustible nights. While many demonstrators have been peaceful, others have set fire to buildings. At least four businesses downtown have been looted. Men armed with guns have shown up to confront protesters, leading to the shooting of three people, two of them fatally. On Wednesday, a white teenager from across the state line in Illinois was arrested in connection to the shooting, and Mr. Trump vowed to send in federal law enforcement and additional National Guard troops. In Kenosha County, where the president won by fewer than 250 votes in 2016, those who already supported Mr. Trump said in interviews that the events of the past Continued on Page A18
REFUSAL TO PLAY Athletes across
sports raised the stakes of a social justice movement. PAGE B9
ALYSSA SCHUKAR FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES
Protesters confronting the police on Tuesday in Kenosha, Wis., after the shooting of Jacob Blake.
By ZOLAN KANNO-YOUNGS and MICHAEL D. SHEAR
WASHINGTON — President Trump moved within weeks of taking office to prohibit immigrants from Sudan from entering the United States, citing terrorism threats and including it in his travel ban on some predominantly Muslim countries — restrictions that remain partly in place today. But on Tuesday, when Mr. Trump wanted to portray himself as pro-immigrant, he invited Neimat Abdelazim Awadelseid, a Sudanese woman who had just qualified to become a U.S. citizen, and four others to a White House naturalization ceremony that his re-election campaign featured prominently during the Republican National Convention. The president’s willingness to use the trappings of presidential power during a campaign convention was a striking departure from previous presidents, who avoided so blatantly blurring the lines between official actions and political activity. And Mr. Trump’s declaration that “we welcome five absolutely incredible new members into our great American family” stands in stark contrast to his antiimmigrant policies, often fueled by xenophobic language. His decision to preside over the naturalization ceremony appeared aimed at suburbanites, people of color and women put off by his usually strident talk. Ms. Awadelseid, 66, a substitute teacher who works with Sudanese children in her suburban Virginia community, said in an interview that “it is hard for my country” to be subject to travel restrictions but that it was an honor to visit the Continued on Page A12
Flood-Prone Communities Retreat to Drier Land Questions Swirl Around C.D.C.’s Shift on Testing By CHRISTOPHER FLAVELLE
This week’s one-two punch of Hurricane Laura and Tropical Storm Marco may be extraordinary, but the storms are just two of nine to strike Texas and Louisiana since 2017 alone, helping to drive a major federal change in how the nation handles floods. For years, even as seas rose and flooding worsened nationwide, policymakers stuck to the belief that relocating entire communities away from vulnerable areas
Sea Rising, U.S. Sours on Rebuild-in-Place was too extreme to consider, an attack on Americans’ love of home and private property as well as a costly use of taxpayer dollars. Now, that is rapidly changing amid acceptance that rebuilding over and over after successive floods makes little sense.
TRACKING AN OUTBREAK A4-7
Doomsday Subway Warning The M.T.A. said it would have to cut bus and subway service by 40 percent without $12 billion in federal aid. PAGE A4
The shift threatens to uproot people not only on the coasts but in flood-prone areas nationwide, potentially exacerbating racial inequality while making the consequences of climate change even more painful for cities and towns already squeezed financially. This month, the Federal Emergency Management Agency detailed a new program, worth an initial $500 million, with billions more to come, designed to pay for large-scale relocation nationwide. Continued on Page A22
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
WASHINGTON — Trump administration officials on Wednesday defended a new recommendation that people without Covid-19 symptoms abstain from testing, even as scientists warned that the policy could hobble an already weak federal response as schools reopen and a potential autumn wave looms. The day after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued the revised guidance, there
Finger-Pointing on Who Made the Decision were conflicting reports on who was responsible. Two federal health officials said the shift came as a directive to the Atlanta-based C.D.C. from higher-ups in Washington at the White House and the Department of Health and Human Services.
Adm. Brett P. Giroir, the administration’s coronavirus testing czar, called it a “C.D.C. action,” written with input from the agency’s director, Dr. Robert R. Redfield. But he acknowledged that the revision came after a vigorous debate among members of the White House coronavirus task force — including its newest member, Dr. Scott W. Atlas, a frequent Fox News guest and a special adviser to President Trump. “We all signed off on it, the docs, Continued on Page A6
NATIONAL A19-23
ARTS C1-8
THURSDAY STYLES D1-6
Where the Traumas Converged
Cloudy Progress on Diversity
Pandemic, social distancing, wildfire, destruction — a photograph evoking 2020’s trauma went viral. But Lake Berryessa, Calif., lived it. PAGE A19
The CreateNYC program increased funding for smaller neighborhood arts organizations but never required institutions to disclose demographic data that would measure the results. PAGE C1
Girl Scouts Get A Fresh Look
$1,000 Boost for Babies A New Jersey plan would set aside money at birth for most children, giving them a lift when they turn 18. PAGE A19 BUSINESS B1-5
INTERNATIONAL A8-10
Hong Kong’s Push for Control Arrests swept up Ted Hui, a lawmaker, as officials tried to polish their image amid a clampdown on dissent. PAGE A8
Gaza Finds First Local Cases
The Fed on Your Computer
Punishment for a Massacre
Community transmission led Hamas, the militant group that rules the territory, to impose a curfew. PAGE A7
The Federal Reserve’s loftiest annual meeting will be webcast on Thursday, allowing the public to watch. PAGE B1
A judge sent Brenton Tarrant to prison for life for killing 51 people at mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. PAGE A10
Comedy in Parks, Not Clubs Stand Up NY is staging dozens of outdoor shows a week across the city. The performances, though technically unauthorized, raise the stakes for comedians and audiences alike. PAGE C1 EDITORIAL, OP-ED A26-27
Nicholas Kristof
PAGE A26
A stylish utility vest. Leggings. A denim jacket. And pockets for a big iPhone. For the first time in decades, scouts have new uniforms and separates, designed by Fashion Institute of Technology students. PAGE D1
U(D54G1D)y+%!\![!$!"
THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2020 ~ VOL. CCLXXVI NO. 49
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Category 4 Laura is on track to surpass Katrina; hundreds of thousands flee area
Business & Finance acebook said privacy changes in Apple’s latest operating system would cripple its ability to place personalized ads and deal a financial blow to app makers. A1
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The SEC deemed more investors capable of navigating the opaque world of leveraged buyouts, hedge funds and startups. A1 The agency approved an NYSE proposal to let firms raise capital through direct listings, a cheaper alternative to the traditional IPO. B1
Laura was poised to strike the heart of the U.S.’s fuelmaking and chemicals production, much of which is located in low-lying areas along the By Valerie Bauerlein, Rebecca Elliott and Elizabeth Findell
BEAUMONT, Texas—Hurricane Laura barreled toward the Texas and Louisiana coasts late Wednesday as a vicious Category 4 storm—nearing a Category 5—threatening what forecasters described as “unsurvivable” flooding and widespread wind damage.
Gulf Coast. Nearly half of the nation’s refining capacity is on the Gulf Coast, federal data show, with about half of that within Laura’s potential path, analytics firm IHS Markit said.
Refineries, chemical plants and ports closed in preparation for the hurricane’s arrival, including Saudi Arabian Oil Co.’s Motiva refinery, the nation’s largest fuel-making facility. The fast-moving hurricane continued to gain strength Wednesday night, with sustained winds of 150 miles an hour, according the National Hurricane Center, and could still strengthen before it makes landfall. It was close to the 157 mile-an-hour threshold of a Category 5 storm. Hurricane-
force winds extended outward 60 miles, the center said. Tropical storm-force winds were beginning to hit parts of Louisiana Wednesday evening. Laura is projected to make landfall early Thursday. Laura is a storm of historic proportions, with wind speed at landfall on track to surpass Hurricane Katrina in 2005, which made landfall near New Orleans as a Category 3 storm. The western Gulf Coast is less densely populated than the New Orleans area, though like
YEN 105.99
U.S. businesses in China are pushing back against a looming Trump administration prohibition on Tencent’s WeChat app. B1
World-Wide Hurricane Laura barreled toward the Texas and Louisiana coasts late Wednesday as a Category 4 storm—nearing Category 5—threatening what forecasters described as “unsurvivable” flooding and widespread wind damage. A1, A6 Pence hailed Trump’s support for law enforcement during what he called a “time of testing” spurred by recent protests against police and the coronavirus pandemic, as he accepted the GOP’s vice-presidential nomination. A1, A4 A 17-year-old was arrested in connection with a shooting that left two dead and one injured during unrest in Kenosha, Wis. Meanwhile, a state agency investigating the police shooting of Jacob Blake said he admitted to having a knife in his possession and it identified the white officer who shot him. A3 The NBA postponed three playoff games after the Milwaukee Bucks staged a boycott in protest of the Blake shooting. Other sports leagues followed suit. A3 The CDC has dialed back its guidelines about who should get tested for Covid-19, prompting pushback from public-health and infectious-disease experts. A5 Iran agreed to allow U.N. inspectors access to two sites where it is suspected of carrying out illicit nuclear-weapons work in the past, bowing to months of pressure. A8 The man who murdered 51 people in attacks on two New Zealand mosques was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. A9 Opinion.............. A15-17 Personal Journal A11-12 Sports....................... A14 Technology............... B4 U.S. News.... A2-3,5-6 Weather................... A14 World News........ A7-9
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Vice President Mike Pence with his wife, Karen, at Fort McHenry in Baltimore on Wednesday night as part of the convention.
Pence Accepts Renomination As GOP Puts Focus on Police BY REBECCA BALLHAUS
largely virtual GOP convention, sought to tie Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden to efforts among some Democrats and liberal groups to defund police departments in response to cases of police brutality and racial inequity. “You won’t be safe in Joe Biden’s America,” Mr. Pence said. “Under President Trump…we’re not going to defund the police—not now, not ever.” Since the killing of George
Vice President Mike Pence hailed President Trump’s support for law enforcement during what he called a “time of testing” spurred by recent protests against police and the coronavirus pandemic, as he accepted the Republican Party’s nomination Wednesday. Mr. Pence, speaking to a crowd at Fort McHenry in Baltimore on the third day of the
Floyd in police custody in May sparked nationwide protests, Mr. Trump has made clear he is more aligned with law enforcement than the protesters. Speakers at the Republican convention threw that alignment into sharper relief by casting the president as the champion of law enforcement and attacking Mr. Biden for being sympathetic to protesters. The Democratic presidential nominee’s campaign has said he
opposes efforts to defund the police, but would seek “transformative change” to the criminal justice system. Mr. Biden said the convention highlighted the contrast Please turn to page A4 Trump hotel is annex for GOP’s A-listers.......................... A4 New citizens surprised to be part of convention.................. A4 No foreign interference seen in voting by mail..................... A4
Trump Remade Party in His Image Republicans have largely united behind the president, his vision and his style BY CATHERINE LUCEY AND ALEX LEARY WASHINGTON—Four years after an unorthodox presidential bid that laid bare deep divisions among Republicans, President Trump is accepting the nomination for a second term before a party that has largely united behind him, embracing his America-first foreign and economic policies and unorthodox, sometimes chaotic style. Mr. Trump has taken command of the GOP through a combination of persuasion and purges. He has brought
rank-and-file Republican voters around to his views on economic, social and foreign-policy issues. He has supported loyalists to help take control of state and local party infrastructure around the country and has jumped into primaries for House, Senate and governor to reward allies and punish apostates. “The Trump approach has to be Trump-centric,” said Kevin Madden, a GOP strategist and former adviser to 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, a critic of the president. “Party unity is defined by Trump’s vi-
Stylish Mask, but You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a ‘Smize’ i
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Smile with your eyes, a term coined by model Tyra Banks, becomes popular move BY JEN MURPHY Restaurant servers typically prepare for shifts by polishing silverware and memorizing the day’s specials. Since the coronavirus pandemic, the staff at Local Jones in the Halcyon Hotel in Denver have embraced an additional ritual: making faces. Teams gather in a circle with their masks on and run through a series of facial-ex-
pression drills that involve arching their eyebrows, crinkling their noses and, most important—smizing. A neologism coined by supermodel Tyra Banks in 2009 on the television show “America’s Next Top Model,” smizing means smiling with your eyes. It involves bringing life to your eyes while keeping the rest of the face neutral. Please turn to page A10
sion, message and style. Either you celebrate those and run on it or you stand aside.” Mr. Trump’s convention lineup this week is packed with speakers from his administration, elected Republicans who have been supportive of his agenda, conservative media stars and his family. Republicans not on the schedule: President George W. Bush and former Vice President Dick Cheney. Neither is Mr. Romney nor past vice presidential nominees Paul Ryan and Sarah Palin. Please turn to page A10
INSIDE MIKE CARLSON/GETTY IMAGES
Fund giant Vanguard is scaling back in Asia, with plans to close its operations in Hong Kong and Japan. B2
BYUN JI-CHUL/YONHAP/ASSOCIATED PRESS
World Economic Forum meetings have been moved to next summer from January because of the Covid-19 crisis, the Davos organizer said. B1
SAUL LOEB/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
The S&P 500 and Nasdaq again closed at records, rising 1% and 1.7%, respectively. The Dow added 0.3%. B9
Fuel-making corridor prepares for hurricane.............................. A6
BY PATIENCE HAGGIN AND JEFF HORWITZ
The U.S. unveiled sanctions on Chinese state-owned firms involved in advancing Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea. A7 Salesforce began notifying some staff that they could lose their jobs, a day after the software provider reported record sales. B1
Katrina, Laura was expected to make landfall in the dead of night, complicating any lastminute evacuation or rescue efforts. Laura is expected to produce waves as high as 20 feet along portions of the Louisiana coast with as much as 15 inches of rainfall. The city of Lake Charles, La., braced for as much as 15 feet of flooding, Please turn to page A6
Facebook Accuses Apple of Hindering Ad Sales
The Fed’s Powell is expected to reveal conclusions of the central bank’s review of its monetary policy framework at the virtual Jackson Hole symposium. A2
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Hurricane Takes Aim at Gulf Coast
What’s News
CONTENTS Arts in Review... A13 Business News.. B3,5 Capital Account.... A2 Crossword.............. A14 Heard on Street. B10 Markets...................... B9
HHHH $4.00
THE MIDDLE SEAT Travel insurance faces questions over rejected claims for canceled trips. A11
SPORTS Halfway through the season, nine-inning games are taking longer than ever. A14
Facebook Inc. said privacy changes in Apple Inc.’s latest operating system would cripple its ability to place personalized ads and deal a financial blow to app makers, highlighting a high-stakes clash between the tech titans over the rules of the road in the mobile-internet economy. Under Apple’s changes, which will go into effect this fall in its iOS14 operating system, Facebook and other companies that facilitate online advertising will no longer be able to collect a person’s advertising identifier without the user’s permission. Many apps will begin asking users whether or not they want their behavior on the web to be tracked for the purposes of personalized ads. Facebook fears many users will reject tracking, if given the choice, affecting not only its business but also any app that uses its services to sell ads, from game makers to news publishers. Facebook told app developers Wednesday the changes will affect its “Audience Network” business, which facilitates ad sales in outside apps. Apple’s move also will hit Google’s AdMob unit, which facilitates ad sales in apps, as well as several ad-technology companies that rely on tracking iPhone users. Apple’s ad identifier, or IDFA, is a 32Please turn to page A8
SEC Eases Access To Private Markets BY PAUL KIERNAN WASHINGTON—The Securities and Exchange Commission decided more investors are capable of navigating the opaque world of leveraged buyouts, hedge funds and startups, a move likely to fuel further growth in loosely regulated private markets. Commissioners voted 3-2 on Wednesday to approve a proposal expanding its definition of so-called accredited investors to include holders of an entry-level stockbroker’s license, “knowledgeable employees” of nonpublic firms and others. It also opened the door to further broadening the category to holders of other credentials. Until now, investors could be considered accredited if they had $1 million in net assets, not counting their primary residence, or at least $200,000 in annual income. The thresholds aren’t indexed for inflation, so the ranks of people who meet them Please turn to page A6 NYSE’s new alternative to IPO gets green light............... B1