promoearn: Two dead. One injured. Will Rittenhouse be convicted?

Monday, November 15

Kyle Rittenhouse and his attorney Corey Chirafisi in Kenosha, Wis., on Nov. 11, 2021.

Two dead. One injured. Will Rittenhouse be convicted?

What side of Rittenhouse will the jury see? And what happens when you ignore a congressional subpoena? It's Monday's news.

Closing arguments were held in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial. A deadly parasite slithering through Florida is causing concern. And coming soon to a road near you: President Joe Biden's new infrastructure package.

👋 It's Ashley and Alex (remember us?) with the inside scoop on today's news.

But first, go easy on Adele. The singer's much-anticipated "30" is out Friday. Here's everything we know about the album so far.

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A tourist vigilante, or a youthful sense of patriotism?

Ahead of jury deliberations in Rittenhouse's murder trial on Monday, the prosecution and defense delivered competing narratives about why the then-17-year-old fatally shot two men and wounded a third on the night of Aug. 25, 2020. What the prosecution is saying: Rittenhouse was a tourist vigilante from Illinois, armed with bad judgment and a rifle he couldn't legally possess, looking for righteous vengeance against anti-police rioters. What the defense is saying: Rittenhouse was essentially a Kenoshan, driven by a youthful sense of patriotism to protect and defend his community, forced to kill two protesters and wound a third to save his own life.

Now the jury must decide if he is guilty or not guilty of first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, attempted first-degree intentional homicide and two counts of first-degree reckless endangerment.

Bannon surrenders to FBI but is quickly released

Dear readers, this is what happens when you ignore a congressional subpoena. Steve Bannon, political strategist for former President Donald Trump, surrendered to federal authorities Monday after being indicted for refusing a deposition and documents demanded by the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection. The flamboyant Trump stalwart started the day in Bannon style, livestreaming his arrival at the FBI's Washington Field Office for his podcast "War Room." "We're taking down the Biden regime," he said. "I want you guys to stay focused, stay on message. Remember, signal, not noise." He's since been released without bond pending trial.

•	What documents does Trump not want the Jan. 6 House panel to see? Appointments, call logs and handwritten notes.

Former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon arrives at the FBIs Washington office on November 15, 2021 in Washington, DC before a scheduled court appearance to face charges after refusing to cooperate with the investigation into the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol.

BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI, AFP via Getty Images

He's running. And he's retiring.

Roses are red, violets are blue. Politicians are shaking things up for 2022.

In Texas, Beto O'Rourke ended months of speculation Monday when he announced Monday morning that he's running for governor against Republican incumbent Greg Abbott. Why it matters: O'Rourke is the first high-profile Democrat to announce his intention to run for the seat, giving his party a serious contender at the top of the ticket. Democrats are hopeful his gubernatorial campaign will replicate the success O'Rourke saw in 2018 when he came within 2.6 percentage points of unseating U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz.

Up North in Vermont, Sen. Patrick Leahy announced he will retire from the Senate after this term in Congress – a seat he's held since 1975. The influential Vermont Democrat and Senate's president pro tempore said, "It is time to pass the torch to the next Vermonter who will carry on this work for a great state. It's time to come home." Why it matters: Leahy's retirement opens the field for a fierce primary in Vermont, a New England state known for its progressive yet idiosyncratic politics.

Democrat Beto O'Rourke announced he's running for governor of Texas and says he'll move past divisive politics and bring the state together.

Beto O'Rourke via Storyful

What everyone's talking about

•	Biden signs landmark infrastructure package into law in a major win for his domestic agenda.
•	Kobe Bryant's widow, Vanessa, ordered by judge to turn over private therapy records as part of her lawsuit over leaked crash photos.
•	Kendall Jenner wore an eye-popping dress to a friend's wedding. Was it out-of-line?
•	TikTok swears by time blocking for a productive day. What is it and does it work?
•	A high school quarterback lost his mom to cancer. He scored eight touchdowns in a playoff game the next day.
•	Review: Without a presidential election, 'Saturday Night Live' is funnier and lighter than it's been in years.

The Short List is free, but several stories we link to are subscriber-only. Consider supporting our journalism and become a USA TODAY digital subscriber today.

Astroworld: 9-year-old boy dies, believed to be youngest victim

Ezra Blount, the 9-year-old boy who was placed in a medically induced coma after being injured at Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival in Houston, died on Sunday. Ezra was the 10th and youngest person to die in connection to the music festival on Nov 5., where a large crowd surge pushed toward the stage as Scott performed, packing people so tightly together they couldn't breathe. Ezra and his father, Treston Blount, traveled from out of town to attend the concert and spend quality time together, his grandfather Bernon Blount said last week. "I began to be crushed until I couldn't breathe," Treston Blount wrote on a fundraiser site for Ezra. "And I woke up and my son was gone." The Blount family hired a team of lawyers, including Ben Crump, to file a lawsuit on behalf of Treston Blount against Scott and others.

This photo provided by Taylor Blount shows Ezra Blount, 9, posing outside the Astroworld music festival in Houston. Ezra was injured at the concert during a crowd surge.

Courtesy of Taylor Blount via AP

Real quick

•	U.S. premature births saw a slight decline in 2020 but experts say it's no cause for celebration.
•	Florida is the epicenter of the nation's HIV and opioid crises. This doctor is battling to stop the virus and winning.
•	Defense attorney fails to get the Rev. Jesse Jackson removed from courtroom in the trial over the killing of Ahmaud Arbery.
•	Three months since the Taliban took over, the hunger crisis in Afghanistan is leaving children emaciated.

Afraid of snakes? You might want to skip this section

Invasive Burmese pythons have decimated native mammal populations in Florida's Greater Everglades ecosystem for years, but the northern region has managed to keep them at bay – until now. The last stronghold of the northern Florida Everglades – a sprawling scruff of emerald in western Palm Beach County – had its first reported invasive python sightings this fall as the parasite slithers north.

•	What's so bad about these slithery snakes? To a python, Florida's rich biodiversity of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians is a smorgasbord of delicacies. According to a 2012 study in Everglades National Park, pythons have contributed to these population declines: 99.3% fewer raccoons, 98.9% fewer opossums and 87.5% fewer bobcats.
•	See something? Say something: The best thing you can do if you spot a Burmese is to report it immediately to a python rapid response unit.

Conservancy of Southwest Florida Wildlife Biologist Ian Bartoszek with 235 pounds of pythons located while tracking a scout snake on Feb. 19, 2020.

CONTRIBUTED PHOTO BY Conservancy of Southwest Florida.

A break from the news

•	Deals on deals: Amazon's Black Friday sale to start on Thanksgiving with 'more deals than ever before.'
•	Start shopping now: 28 self-care gifts that everyone could use this year.
•	Horse meat and blowfish chips for sale? This company is making chips with flavors of 'banned' foods.

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