New Trump indictment; Paralympic opening ceremony : NPR

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Today’s top stories

Prosecutors have filed another indictment against former President Donald Trump in the federal election interference case, weeks after the Supreme Court gave the former president substantial immunity from prosecution. Court documents say the new indictment was presented to a grand jury that hadn’t previously heard evidence in the Jan. 6 case. The core charges in the D.C.-based case remain the same: conspiracy to defraud the U.S. and to deprive millions of 2020 voters of their rights.

• 🎧 NPR’s Carrie Johnson tells Up First the biggest change in the new indictment is that the allegations about Trump misusing the Justice Department to try to promote claims of election fraud are gone. In court papers, Special Counsel Jack Smith said this latest action was an effort to respect and implement the Supreme Court holdings. The new charges specify when prosecutors think Trump was acting as a candidate seeking political office and not as the President. If he wins the election in November, Trump could order the Justice Department to dismiss the case. If he loses, Johnson says all the legal wrangling could get even more intense.

Two members of Trump’s campaign staff had a verbal and physical altercation with an official at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday while Trump was attending a ceremony honoring 13 troops killed in Afghanistan in 2021. Campaign officials strongly deny this. NPR learned a cemetery official tried to prevent Trump staffers from filming and photographing in a section where recent U.S. casualties are buried. Arlington Cemetery officials had made their rules clear in advance of the visit.

• 🎧 Trump’s motorcade arrived with several Gold Star family members whose loved ones are buried at the cemetery, NPR’s Quil Lawrence says. The campaign brought a staffer to get footage of the visit. When a cemetery official tried to prevent that, she was verbally abused and pushed aside. Trump’s campaign says they’re prepared to release footage showing there was no physical altercation. The cemetery confirmed the incident happened and a report was filed.

The Paralympic Games kick off in Paris tonight, bringing around 4,400 athletes together to compete in nearly 200 events over the next week and a half. The participating athletes have all overcome tremendous challenges in their lives, including limb amputation or disease taking away their eyesight. They’ll compete across 22 different sports, most of which have an Olympic equivalent. In all, nearly 550 medals will be awarded.

• 🎧 Americans aren’t quite the powerhouse at the Paralympics that they are at the Olympic Games, NPR’s Becky Sullivan says. China has won the most gold medals and medals overall in the past couple of decades. Sullivan says viewers should look out for 24-year-old swimmer Ali Truwit from Connecticut, who has been a competitive swimmer all her life. Last year, her left leg was amputated below the knee after she was bitten by a shark. She’s competing in three events.
• ➡️ Here’s everything you need to know about the Paralympic Games, including how to watch.

Deep dive

Medical professionals and students take part in a protest rally against the rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata on Aug. 21. India’s Supreme Court on Aug. 20 ordered a national task force to examine how to bolster security for healthcare workers after the “horrific” rape and murder of a doctor sparked medical strikes and furious protests.

Dibyangshu Sarkar/AFP via Getty Images

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Dibyangshu Sarkar/AFP via Getty Images

A young woman was raped and murdered while on break from a 36-hour shift at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, India earlier this month. She was found with extensive injuries in the seminar hall of the hospital. The case has once again brought concerns about women’s safety to the forefront of the country — especially from women in health care. Along with protests demanding better security measures for women, medical professionals are speaking out about the lack of respect in their workplace.

• ⚕️ Women say they’re harassed at work by peers and patients.
• ⚕️ Nationwide anger has sparked due to the increasing frequency of reports of sexual crimes against women in India from 25,000 rape cases in 2012 to 31,000 a decade later.
• ⚕️ The Indian Medical Association, one of the country’s largest unions representing doctors, is demanding increased security protocols that are “no less than an airport” for all hospitals.
• ⚕️ These safety concerns have brought attention to India’s low rates of employment among women.

Today’s listen

Professional entertainer and wrestler Hulk Hogan poses as he speaks on stage on the fourth day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/Getty Images North America

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/Getty Images North America

Celebrities have endorsed presidential candidates for over a century. Today, Trump has Rosanne Barr and Hulk Hogan in his corner, while Vice President Harris has George Clooney and Beyoncé on her side. The rich and famous have the ability to move audiences, but can they move the polls and turn an election?

3 things to know before you go

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered nearly $5 million worth of methamphetamine that was disguised as watermelons at a San Diego checkpoint on Aug. 16.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection

1. A man driving a commercial tractor-trailer attempted to haul $5 million worth of methamphetamine into the U.S. from Mexico disguised as a watermelon harvest.
2. In 2014, Ian Sandler’s 9-year-old daughter, Riley, was at sleepaway camp for the summer when she had a medical emergency around 1:30 a.m. The hospital was hours away and Ian was too shaken to drive so he booked an Uber. The driver, his unsung hero, empathized with him, something Ian remembers from the devastating time.
3. Naomi Osaka advanced to the second round of the U.S. Open after defeating No. 10 seed Jelena Ostapenko. It’s her first win against a top 10 opponent in four years.

This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.