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IDAHO REPUBLICANS

New Idaho GOP chairman seeks unity among party, outreach

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — New Idaho GOP Chairman Tom Luna says Republicans in the state have an opportunity to unite by focusing more on what they have in common and less on their differences. Republicans elected Luna chairman at their state GOP convention in Nampa in June. Luna inherits a party with growing fractures, including disagreement over the state’s response to the coronavirus. Much of the animus has focused on Gov. Brad Little and state health officials but Luna tells the Idaho Statesman he thinks Little has done a “stellar job.” Luna says he plans more outreach for the party, especially among newcomers to the state.

VIRUS OUTBREAK-COLLEGE TESTING

Colleges plan for virus testing, but strategies vary widely

BOSTON (AP) — Dozens of U.S. colleges are announcing plans to test students for the coronavirus this fall, but their strategies vary widely. Colby College in Maine plans to test all students every other day for two weeks and then twice a week. Harvard University will test students on campus three times a week. But some plan to test students only if they show symptoms or come into contact with a positive case, including the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Federal health officials discourage widespread testing on college campuses, but some researchers say it's necessary to prevent outbreaks. Cornell and Yale university researchers say that without widespread testing, COVID-19 could be spread by infected students who don't show symptoms.

RACIAL INJUSTICE-PORTLAND

Tear gas fired again; Portland protest standoff continues

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Federal agents again repeatedly fired tear gas to break up rowdy protests in Portland, Oregon, that continued into the early morning Saturday as demonstrations that have happened every night for two months showed no signs of letting up. Thousands of people gathered in front of the downtown federal courthouse beginning Friday evening. Authorities say six federal officers were injured and one person was arrested. Demonstrations have happened in Oregon’s largest city nightly since George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis in May. President Donald Trump said he sent federal agents to Portland to halt the unrest but local officials say they are making the situation worse.

RACIAL INJUSTICE-SEATTLE

Police declare riot at Seattle protests, make arrests

SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle police declared a riot following large demonstrations in the city’s Capitol Hill neighborhood and deployed flash bangs and pepper spray to try to clear an area near where weeks earlier people had set up an “occupied protest zone” that stretched for several blocks. Via Twitter, police said they had made some arrests Saturday and were “investigating a possible explosive damage” to the walls of the city’s East Precinct police station. Authorities said rocks and bottles were thrown at officers. More than two dozen people were arrested. Thousands of protesters had initially gathered peacefully near downtown Seattle on Saturday in a show of solidarity with fellow demonstrators in Portland, Oregon.

AP-US-RACIAL-INJUSTICE-PORTLAND-SPOTLIGHT

Portland struggles with liberal identity under nation's gaze

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Images of Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler getting tear-gassed alongside protesters made him an overnight standard-bearer for the movement against President Donald Trump’s use of federal agents to quell violence in U.S. cities. But for many Portland residents, the moment felt hypocritical. That's because Wheeler is also head of the local police bureau, which used tear gas multiple times before federal agents arrived. The contradiction underscores Portland's unfolding struggle with its identity under the nation's gaze. Long hailed as one of the most progressive cities in the U.S., Portland is now being challenged in new ways as the nation grapples with racism.

AP-US-NUCLEAR-POWER-MARS

US eyes building nuclear power plants for moon and Mars

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The U.S. wants to build nuclear power plants that will work on the moon and Mars. The U.S. Department of Energy put out a request on Friday for ideas from the private sector on how to build what it calls a fission surface power system that could allow humans to live for long periods in harsh space environments. The Idaho National Laboratory, a nuclear research facility in eastern Idaho, the Energy Department and NASA will evaluate ideas for developing the reactor. The lab has been working on advanced reactors that can operate without water for cooling. Water-cooled nuclear reactors are the vast majority of reactors on Earth.

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