THE WEEK TO COME

The future of Democracy for the USA got a boost from former Congresswoman Liz Cheney and her father, former  Congressman, Vice President under George W. Bush and White House Chief of Staff for President Gerald Ford.  Like JD Vance, Dick Cheney graduated from Yale.  Liz is a law school graduate from the University of Chicago.

Better yet, it appears that Liz will campaign with Harris as needed and the Harris-Walz team raised $361 million August, triple that of Trump-Vance.  Plus all those additional campaign volunteers to boost their ground game.

The highlight of this coming week is the Donald Trump vs Kamala Harris debate.

Finally, some good news for Boeing and NASA.  The Starliner spacecraft returned to Earth, but without the two astronauts.  When are they returning, and how?  A lot of unknowns remain.  Looks like February of 2025, with SpaceX looming to be the carrier.  But the USA might need to ask Russia for help.

Last week I had a sidelight coverage of Rupert Murdoch and his marriages.  Today, the future of his empire:

• Was born in Melbourne, Australia to two famous people:  His father was Sir Keith Murdoch and his mother Dame Elisabeth Greene.

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  He is 93 and said to be worth $21.7 billion.
• Murdoch loathes Donald Trump so much that wishes Trump were dead.

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  Owns a lot of newspapers around the world, including the Wall Street Journal and New York Post in the U.S., and the Fox News, which has since 2002 been the most-watched television news channel.

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  Has had five wives, with six children.
• Left Fox as chairman a year ago to his family, which owns 40% of all shares.

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  Oldest son Lachlan, from the second marriage, was named chief executive by father Rupert.  Both are conservatives.
• Prudence from the first marriage, and Elizabeth and James from his second marriage, are not on the board, but have sued.  They are politically moderate.

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  The HBO series Succession is about the palace intrigue inside the Murdoch family.  Four seasons rated 95/88 by Rotten Tomatoes.  Can be seen on various streaming channels.
• Fox News settled with Dominion Voting Systems by avoiding trial and paying them $787.5 million.
• The fight for Rupert's global media kingdom is headed to court this coming week in Reno, Nevada.

Is this possible?  The last American man to reach the U.S. Tennis Open final was Andy Roddick in 2006.  Our women have been doing okay, for Coco Gauff won last year and Serena Williams reigned at length.  Today, American Jessica Pegula is facing Aryna Sabalenka for the women's championship.  In fact, they are at this moment competing on ESPN.  Tomorrow, American Taylor Fritz plays #1 ranked Jannick Sinner for the men's championship.

Season 19 of America's Got Talent semifinals will be on Wednesday night this week, followed by the results Thursday night.  I found this season to be rather boring.  My favorite was Richard Goodall's singing of Don't Stop Believin' because he is the antithesis of a star.  Click on that link and watch the initial reaction of Simon Cowell.  The remaining dozen acts.

1. 
   Richard Goodall (age 55) - Singer from Terre Haute, Indiana - Quarterfinals 1
2. Ashes & Arrows (ages 29-32) - Band from Asheville, North Carolina - Quarterfinals 1
3. Roni Sagi & Rhythm (age 30) - Dog Act from Tel Aviv, Israel - Quarterfinals 1
4. Alex Sampson (age 20) - Singer from Atikokan, Ontario - Quarterfinals 2
5. Young-Min (age 33) - Magician from Seoul, South Korea - Quarterfinals 2
6. Sky Elements (ages 25-55) - Drone Precision Group from Dallas, Texas - Quarterfinals 2
7. Reid Wilson (age 14) - Singer from Montgomery, Alabama; Howie Mandel’s Golden Buzzer - Quarterfinals 3
8. Kelsey Jane (age 33) - Aerialist from Dallas, Texas - - Quarterfinals 3
9. Learnmore Jonasi (age 30) - Stand-Up Comedian from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - Quarterfinals 3
10. Pranysqa Mishra (age 40) - Singer from Tampa, Florida - Quarterfinals 4
11. Solange Kardinaly (ages 30 & 32) - Quick Change Artist from Leiria, Portugal - Quarterfinals 4
12. Brent Street (ages 15-20) - Dance Group from Sydney, Australia - Quarterfinals 4

Then, next Tuesday, September 17, the Final Round, to be followed by the Finale Results on Tuesday, September 24.

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