AP News Digest 3 a.m.

Here are the AP’s latest coverage plans, top stories and promotable content. All times EDT. For up-to-the minute information on AP’s coverage, visit Coverage Plan at https://newsroom.ap.org.

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ONLY ON AP

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PUBLIC HEALTH-CARES ACT — Congress has allocated trillions of dollars to ease the coronavirus crisis, but many communities with big outbreaks have spent little of that federal money for work such as testing and contact tracing, a joint Kaiser Health News and AP investigation finds. By Michelle R. Smith, Lauren Weber, Hannah Recht and Laura Ungar. SENT: 2,220 words, photos, graphic. An abridged version of 1,070 words is also available.

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TOP STORIES

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ELECTION 2020-DNC — Michelle Obama delivered a passionate condemnation of President Donald Trump as the Democrats opened their national convention. And for the two-hour, made-for-TV program Monday night, presidential nominee Joe Biden showed off the breadth of his political coalition to a nation in crisis. By Steve Peoples and Michelle L. Price. SENT: 1,370 words, photos, video. With ELECTION 2020-DNC-PROGRESSIVES — Sen. Bernie Sanders is imploring his supporters to vote for Joe Biden. SENT: 1,120 words, photos; ELECTION 2020-DNC-TAKEAWAYS — Key takeaways from the first day of the convention. SENT: 1,250 words, photos; ELECTION 2020-DNC-JILL BIDEN — Those who have worked closely with Jill Biden say her warmth will appeal to Americans confronting tough times of their own. SENT: 1,245 words, photo.

ELECTION 2020-DNC-MICHELLE OBAMA — At the 2016 Democratic National Convention, former Michelle Obama told party members that “when they go low, we go high.” After four years of President Donald Trump, she came back to give it to them straight. “If you think things cannot possibly get worse, trust me they can; and they will, if we don’t make a change in this election,” Mrs. Obama told her party in a blunt and emotional appeal that capped the first night of the Democrats’ convention. By Darlene Superville and Alexandra Jaffe. SENT: 885 words, photo, video.

ELECTION 2020-DNC-WHAT TO WATCH — The Democratic Party’s attempt to adapt its typical convention rituals to a pandemic-induced virtual affair will be put through its paces Tuesday night. Democrats this year will try abbreviated ceremonies for the roll call vote of state delegations and the keynote speech that has helped catapult political careers in past years. Tuesday will also see the candidate’s wife, Jill Biden, give a speech introducing herself to Americans as a potential first lady and making a pitch for her husband. By Michelle L. Price. SENT: 1,080 words, photos.

ELECTION 2020-POSTAL SERVICE — Facing a public backlash over mail delays, the Trump administration scrambles to respond as the House prepares an emergency vote to halt delivery interruptions and service changes that Democrats warn could imperil the November election. By Matthew Daly and Lisa Mascaro. SENT: 1,135 words, photos. With ELECTION 2020-POST OFFICE-Q&A — What’s happening at the Postal Service, and why? SENT: 1,000 words, photos; ELECTION 2020-POSTAL SERVICE-WORKERS The U.S. Postal Service is poised to play a central role in this year’s presidential elections, but some staffers are worried about the agency’s ability to deliver. SENT: 985 words, photos.

Find more coverage of the conventions and Election 2020 on the 2020 U.S. Elections featured topic page in AP Newsroom.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-INACCURATE TEST — The Food and Drug Administration is warning about problems with a widely used test for coronavirus that can lead to false results. The FDA issued the alert to doctors and laboratory technicians using Thermo Fisher’s TaqPath genetic test. By Matthew Perrone. SENT: 440 words. With VIRUS OUTBREAK-THE LATEST.

ARCTIC-WILDLIFE REFUGE-OIL LEASING — The Trump administration gave final approval Monday for a contentious oil and gas leasing plan on the coastal plain of Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, where critics worry about the industry’s impact on polar bears, caribou and other wildlife. The next step, barring lawsuits, will be the actual sale of leases. Development — should it occur — is still years away.. By Mark Thiessen. SENT: 940 words, photos.

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WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

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NATION’S CAPITAL-BABY PANDA — Zookeepers at Washington’s National Zoo are on baby watch after concluding that venerable giant panda matriarch Mei Ziang is pregnant and could give birth this week. By Ashraf Khalil. SENT: 490 words, photo.

DEATH-VALLEY-130-DEGREES — Meteorologists seek to confirm 130-degree Death Valley temp, which if the sensors and other conditions check out, would be the hottest Earth has been in more than 89 years and the third-warmest ever measured. SENT: 855 words.

OBIT-DAN BUDNIK — Acclaimed photographer Dan Budnik, noted for his portraits of artists in New York in the 1960s along with the civil rights movement and Native American culture, has died in Arizona at age 87. SENT: 445 words, photos.

LOST HIKER-TWO WEEKS — A hiker has survived after being stranded in a forest near Santa Fe for 14 days. SENT: 145 words.

TV-ELLEN DEGENERES — Three producers of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” have exited amid allegations of a dysfunctional workplace that harbored misbehavior including sexual misconduct and racially insensitive remarks. SENT: 345 words, photo.

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WASHINGTON/POLITICS

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ELECTION 2020-DNC-TRUMP — Declaring it’s “crunch time” for the upcoming election, President Donald Trump zeroes in on Midwest battleground states with a tough, law and order message to counterprogram Joe Biden’s show at the Democrats’ convention. By Zeke Miller. SENT: 1,125 words, photos, video.

TRUMP-TRANSGENDER — A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from enforcing a new regulation that would roll back health care protections for transgender people. By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar. SENT: 515 words, photos.

19TH AMENDMENT-ERA — On the centennial of women earning the right to vote, women are still fighting to have equal rights enshrined in the constitution. It was an effort launched almost immediately after passage of the 19th Amendment but one which lingers a century later. Virginia earlier this year became the 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment but the vote came long after the deadline for ratification expired, sending the issue into murky legal territory. By Jocelyn Noveck. SENT: 1,100 words, photos. With AP-WAS-THERE-19TH AMENDMENT — How The Associated Press covered the ratification of the 19th Amendment that provided women the constitutional right to vote. SENT: 1,300 words, photos.

ELECTION 2020-DNC-LOBBYING — There will be no palms to grease in Milwaukee, no checks to stroke and no influence to peddle. The Democratic convention that was supposed to crown Joe Biden this week will be digital-only, taking down with it a four-day binge of networking, catering and cocktails that brings together lobbyists, operatives, major donors and elected officials from across the country. By Brian Slodysko. SENT: 1,115 words, photos.

TRUMP-BIDEN-UKRAINE — President Trump retweets an audio recording that U.S. intelligence officials have described as part of a Russian campaign to denigrate Joe Biden. By amplifying the recording to his more than 85 million Twitter followers, Trump underscores the ease with which pro-Russian narratives can seep into American public discourse ahead of the 2020 election. By Eric Tucker. SENT: 665 words, photo.

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MORE ON THE VIRUS OUTBREAK

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VIRUS OUTBREAK-UNIVERSITIES — North Carolina’s flagship university canceled in-person classes for undergraduates just a week into the fall semester Monday as the school and other campuses around the U.S. scrambled to deal with coronavirus clusters linked in some cases to student housing, off-campus parties and packed bars. By Susan Montoya Bryan. SENT: 1,085 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NEW YORK — Indoor gyms in New York can reopen as soon as next week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Monday, if they meet public health requirements including inspections, mandatory mask wearing, a 33% occupancy limit and 6 feet between gym-goers. By Marina Villeneuve. SENT: 475 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NURSING HOMES — Cases of COVID-19 in U.S. nursing homes jumped nearly 80% this summer, driven by uncontrolled spread across the South and West, the industry reports. By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar. SENT: 820 words, photo.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-ASIA — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has decided to ease a mild lockdown in the capital and four outlying provinces to further reopen the country’s battered economy despite having the most reported coronavirus infections in Southeast Asia. SENT: 1,175 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-UNEMPLOYMENT-STATES — President Donald Trump’s plan to offer a stripped-down boost in unemployment benefits to millions of Americans amid the coronavirus outbreak has found little traction among the states, which would have to pay a quarter of the cost to deliver the maximum benefit, according to an Associated Press survey. By Geoff Mulvihill. SENT: 1,130 words, photos.

VIRUS-OUTBREAK-HOME-FRONT — For four nurses in a Southern California hospital, the scariest place isn’t the ward where they care for coronavirus patients. It’s home, where they feel helpless to keep their families safe. They care for their patients during 12-hour shifts, taking temperatures and holding hands through gloves, and wondering when it will all end. By Stefanie Dazio. SENT: 1,725 words, photos. An abridged version of 925 words is available.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-CONTACT TRACING — New York City’s 3,000 contact tracers are working to curb the spread of coronavirus in what appears to be the biggest such effort in any U.S. city. New York says it’s now meeting its goal of reaching about 90% of all newly diagnosed people and completing interviews with 75%. By Jennifer Peltz. SENT: 1,180 words, photos.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-NAVAJO NATION — The Navajo Nation has rescinded its stay-at-home order, but is encouraging residents to leave their homes only for emergencies or essential activities and errands. Much of the Navajo Nation has been closed since March as the coronavirus swept through the reservation that extends into New Mexico, Utah and Arizona. SENT: 460 words.

Find more all-format coverage on the Virus Outbreak featured topic page in AP Newsroom.

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NATIONAL

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CALIFORNIA HEAT WAVE — California’s power grid operators are keeping a wary eye on the thermometer as a heat wave continues to stress the electrical system. The state avoided a third day of rolling blackouts on Monday. SENT: 850 words.

OPIOID CRISIS-STATE COSTS — U.S. state and territorial governments say the opioid crisis has cost them $630 billion since 2007 and that the cost could balloon to more than $2 trillion over the next two decades. The estimate was made public Monday in a filing in the bankruptcy case of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma. By Geoff Mulvihill. SENT: 345 words.

JUSSIE-SMOLLETT-FOXX — A special prosecutor in Chicago says that Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and her office abused their discretion in the case against actor Jussie Smollett but did nothing criminal. SENT: 370 words, photos.

RACIAL INJUSTICE-LATINOS-POLICE — As national Black Lives Matter demonstrations grow, Latino activists are joining the multiracial protests while trying to draw attention to their deadly police encounters, some of which go back decades. SENT: 1,295 words, photos.

GOLDEN STATE KILLER - Nearly three-dozen victims or survivors plan to tell their stories before the man known as the Golden State Killer is formally sentenced to life in prison. Some plan to tell of their pain during an extraordinary four days of hearings starting Tuesday. Others will talk of their healing since Joseph DeAngelo terrorized much of California more than four decades ago. SENT: 610 words, photos. With GOLDEN STATE KILLER-GLANCE (sent)

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INTERNATIONAL

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INDIA-POLICE BRUTALITY — For two and a half minutes the Indian radio DJ described in graphic detail what she said was the torture and killing of a father and son in police custody. The video shared to Instagram sparked an extraordinary groundswell of outrage at the deaths with politicians marching in the streets, Bollywood stars voicing condemnation and television stations holding debates on police brutality. By Sheikh Saaliq. SENT: 855 words, photos.

BELARUS PROTESTS — Workers heckled and jeered President Alexander Lukashenko as he visited a factory and strikes grew across Belarus, raising the pressure on the authoritarian leader to step down after 26 years in power. On the ninth straight day of mass protests over the official results of the Aug. 9 presidential election that demonstrators say was rigged, Lukashenko flew by helicopter to a factory in the capital of Minsk to rally support, but he was met by angry workers chanting, “Go away!” He told the workers: “I will never cave in to pressure.” SENT: 1,365 words, photos.

CANADA-FINANCE MINISTER RESIGNS — Canada’s finance minister has announced his resignation amid reports of differences with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over government spending to protect the economy during the coronavrius pandemic. Bill Morneau said he is leaving politics and has put his name forward as a candidate to lead the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. By Rob Gillies. SENT: 640 words, photos.

LEBANON-HARIRI TRIBUNAL — A U.N.-backed tribunal in the Netherlands is to deliver verdicts in the trial held in absentia of four members of the militant Lebanese Hezbollah group. The men are accused of involvement in the truck bomb assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005. By Mike Corderd. SENT: 510 words, photos.

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ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT

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JAM-MASTER-JAY-KILLING-INDICTMENT — Nearly two decades after the slaying of Run-DMC star Jam Master Jay, federal prosecutors said Monday they have solved one of New York City’s most enduring mysteries, charging two men from his neighborhood with murder and suggesting that the hip-hop artist — celebrated for his anti-drug stance — was ambushed over a cocaine deal. By Jim Mustian, Michael Balsamo, Tom Hays and Michael R. Sisak. SENT: 910 words, photos, video.

COLLEGE ADMISSIONS-BRIBERY — Federal prosecutors urged a judge Monday to accept deals that call for “Full House” actor Lori Loughlin to spend two months in prison and her fashion designer husband, Mossimo Giannulli, to serve five months for paying half a million dollars to bribe their daughters’ way into college. By Alanna Durkin Richer. SENT: 620 words.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-SHARON STONE — Actress Sharon Stone is criticizing the availability of COVID-19 testing in Montana, where her sister and brother-in-law are hospitalized with the respiratory virus. SENT: 295 words.

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BUSINESS

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JAPAN-ECONOMY - Government data show that Japan’s economy contracted at a annual rate of 27.8% in April-June, the worst downturn on record, as the coronavirus pandemic slammed consumption and trade. SENT: 650 words, photos

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SPORTS

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FBC--SEC-UNCERTAIN BEGINNING — The Southeastern Conference is starting football practice as schools around the league hold their first workouts ahead of the scheduled delayed start of play. The powerful SEC would normally be preparing for a run at another national championship, but the coronavirus pandemic has cast an ongoing cloud of uncertainty over what exactly teams are getting ready for — if anything. By John Zenor. SENT: 870 words, photos.

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HOW TO REACH US

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