The Rundown: The House To Deal With Postal Service Crisis

Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday that she's calling the House back into session early from its summer recess over the U.S. Postal Service crisis, amid concerns that the White House is trying to undermine the agency ahead of the November election. Louis DeJoy, President Trump's newly-installed postmaster general, has made changes that have led to an outcry over delivery delays, cutbacks and higher prices at a time when millions will be voting by mail instead of in person because of the coronavirus pandemic. With Pelosi calling back House members, a vote is expected next Saturday on legislation that would ban changes at the Postal Service.

Also yesterday, the House Oversight and Reform Committee said it wants DeJoy and the chair of the Postal Service board of governors to testify at an emergency oversight hearing on mail delays on August 24th. As part of what DeJoy, a major Republican donor, has said is intended to make the Postal Service more efficient, he has ended most overtime for postal workers and removed mail processing equipment. In response to complaints about mail boxes being removed from streets, the Postal Service said Sunday it would stop removing mailboxes for 90 days.

➤SALIVA TEST FOR CORONAVIRUS APPROVED BY FDA: A test for the coronavirus the uses saliva samples was approved for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Saturday. The test was developed by researchers at Yale in partnership with and with funding from the NBA and National Basketball Players Association. In comparison to the standard test that involves taking a swab from far up in the nose, the saliva test is non-invasive and reduces the risk for healthcare workers taking samples. It's also less expensive and has comparable accuracy. The saliva-based test could potentially be a game-changer, allowing more widespread testing.

There have been more than 170,000 deaths in the U.S. as of late last night, according to Johns Hopkins University's count, and more than 5,403,000 confirmed cases.

➤THREE TEXAS POLICE OFFICERS SHOT BY MAN HOLDING THREE FAMILY MEMBERS: Three police officers were shot Sunday afternoon in Cedar Park, Texas, by a man who was holding three of his family members barricaded inside a home. Interim Police Chief Mike Harmon said officers had responded to a call from the mother of the man, who's believed to be in his mid-20s, who said her son had kicked in the door of the home. The suspect, who Harmon said has "some mental health issues," shot at the officers when they arrived, wounding them with non life-threatening injuries. As of late last night, the suspect remained holed up in the home with his mother, a juvenile, and another person of unknown age.

Democrats happy with Harris pick and Biden holds lead ahead of convention — Battleground Tracker poll https://t.co/TYYJPQErjN

— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 17, 2020

➤DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION BEGINS TODAY: The four-day Democratic National Convention that will nominate Joe Biden for president and his running mate Senator Kamala Harris for vice president begins today, but it will be unlike any before because of the coronavirus pandemic. It was set to take place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but will now instead mostly be held virtually. That includes Biden's acceptance speech, which he'll deliver on the last night, Thursday, from Wilmington, Delaware, where he lives. Broadcast networks ABC, CBS and NBC will air an hour of coverage each night at 10 p.m. ET, PBS will air coverage from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET daily, and the cable news networks will also provide nightly coverage.

Trump planning event to counter Biden acceptance speech https://t.co/hS8aLbuGN5 pic.twitter.com/YpFzfqCzn6

— The Hill (@thehill) August 17, 2020

➤TEMPERATURE HITS 130 DEGREES IN DEATH VALLEY, POSSIBLY WORLD'S HIGHEST EVER RECORDED: As the Western U.S. continues to suffer through an historic heat wave, the temperature in Death Valley, California, reached a scorching 130 degrees on Sunday afternoon, among the top three highest ever measured around the world and possibly the highest ever recorded in the month of August. Death Valley holds the record for the hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth, 134 degrees, on July 10th, 1913. However, that measurement is in doubt, as is the only other higher reading since 1873, 131 degrees in Kebili, Tunisia, on July 7th, 1931, according to the Washington Post. Because of that, some experts consider the record to be 129 degrees, recorded in Death Valley on June 30th, 2013, and in Kuwait and Pakistan in 2016 and 2017, respectively. If that's correct, yesterday's temperature would have set a new record.

➤NYC TO HOLD ANNUAL 9/11 'TRIBUTE IN LIGHT' AFTER FIRST CANCELING DUE TO PANDEMIC: New York City will go forward with its annual "Tribute in Light" 9/11 remembrance next month after having first canceled it because of the coronavirus pandemic. There had been coronavirus safety concerns because of the large crew needed to carry out the tribute, which involves sending up twin beams of light into the night sky near where the Twin Towers stood in lower Manhattan. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Saturday that health care workers and supervision will be added to the crew to ensure safety. He tweeted, "The virus has taken so much and so many. But now the tribute will continue."

America's most popular pizza topping appears to have joined the list of products affected by the pandemic. https://t.co/YEAF0KaIXT

— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) August 17, 2020

➤PEPPERONI LATEST VICTIM OF CORONAVIRUS SHORTAGES: The coronavirus is now coming for your pepperoni pizza. The latest shortage caused by the pandemic is of pepperoni, America's favorite pizza topping. Bloomberg reported that small pizza shops across the country say they are paying significantly higher prices for pepperoni and that the supply has become tighter. There are two factors involved: pork processors have had fewer workers during the pandemic and some suppliers have reduced the amount of pepperoni being produced because it's a complicated product to make; and demand for pizza is up with more people staying home during the pandemic, including during the lockdowns. Large pizza chains, however, haven't been affected by the pepperoni shortage, since they buy their ingredients through long-term contracts.

➤OHIO STATE QB FIELDS STARTS PETITION FOR BIG TEN TO PLAY FOOTBALL: Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields, one of college football's biggest stars who was a Heisman Trophy finalist last season, started an online petition Sunday (August 16th) calling on the Big Ten to reverse its decision and play football this fall. Other players joined him in urging the Big Ten to go forward with playing the schedule the conference released six days before it postponed the season to the spring. The campaign is asking the Big Ten to let players and teams to make their own choices about playing or opting out of the fall season. Four football conferences, including the Big Ten and Pac-12, have postponed to the spring, while six others, including the Atlantic Coast Conference, Southeastern Conference and Big 12, are planning to play in the fall.

➤NBA PLAYOFFS BEGIN TODAY: The NBA playoffs will begin today, with 16 teams competing in the first round at the league's Walt Disney World "bubble," where all games have been played since the NBA returned from its coronavirus suspension at the end of July. In the Eastern Conference, the matchups are: Milwaukee vs. Orlando; Toronto vs. Brooklyn; Boston vs. Philadelphia; and Indiana vs. Miami, and in the Western Conference they are: L.A. Lakers vs. Portland; L.A. Clippers vs. Dallas; Denver vs. Utah; and Houston vs. Oklahoma City. Houston Rockets guard Russell Westbrook will miss at least the first game of the playoffs series with a quad injury.

➤NHL PLAYOFFS: Results from first-round playoff games yesterday:

• New York Islanders 2, Washington Capitals 1 (OT) - New York leads series 3 games to 0
• Dallas Stars 5, Calgary Flames 4 (OT) - Series tied 2-2
• Chicago Blackhawks 3, Vegas Golden Knights 1 - Vegas leads series 3 games to 1
• Philadelphia Flyers 1, Montreal Canadiens 0 - Philadelphia leads series 2 games to 1
• St. Louis Blues 3, Vancouver Canucks 2 (OT) - Vancouver leads series 2 games to 1
• 
  

4 IN A ROW! The White Sox tied the major-league record (10th time) by hitting four consecutive homers in the fifth inning. pic.twitter.com/4vtAjwiXQ7

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) August 16, 2020

➤WHITE SOX TIE MLB RECORD WITH FOUR CONSECUTIVE HOME RUNS: The Chicago White Sox tied an MLB record Sunday with four consecutive home runs against the St. Louis Cardinals in their 7-2 win, the 10th time in major league history it's been done. All four homers were hit in the fifth inning off Cardinals reliever Roel Ramirez, who was making his major league debut. Chicago's Yoan Moncada was first with a three-run home run, followed by homers by Yasmani Grandal, Jose Abreu and Eloy Jimenez.

➤BRADY WINS TOP SEED OPEN IN FIRST U.S. PRO TENNIS EVENT SINCE PANDEMIC BEGAN: Jennifer Brady won the Top Seed Open on Sunday (August 16th) in Lexington, Kentucky, in the first pro tennis event in the U.S. since the coronavirus pandemic began. No fans were allowed for the event. It was the first career WTA win for Brady, who beat Jil Teichmann of Switzerland 6-3, 6-4 in the final. The 25-year-old American began the week ranked 49th.

➤WASHINGTON QB SMITH CLEARED TO PLAY NEARLY TWO YEARS AFTER BREAKING LEG: Quarterback Alex Smith on Sunday (August 16th) was cleared to play by Washington's NFL team, nearly two years after he broke his leg in two places when he was hit during a November 2018 game. The 36-year-old Smith has made a remarkable return, having had to undergo 17 surgeries because he developed an infection, with doctors worried at the time that not only could he lose his leg, but that his life could also be in danger.

A rare summer thunderstorm brought lightning that sparked several small blazes in Northern California and stoked a huge wildfire that has forced hundreds of people from their homes north of Los Angeles. https://t.co/j3Q9kpjr8B

— NBC News (@NBCNews) August 17, 2020

➤HURRICANE WATCHERS ARE BUSY:  tracking two tropical waves as they move across the Atlantic