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250,000 deaths. Joe, what's the plan?

Editors  |  Paste BN

NYC school is out. Georgia tallies are in. And with a changing-of-the-guard in two short months, President-elect Joe Biden is now being asked to explain how he'll manage the raging global pandemic that's officially claimed the lives of 250,000 people.

It's Lindsay, halfway through a pre-Thanksgiving quarantine. Here's the news to look out for today.

New York City public schools cancels in-person classes, moves to all-remote

New York City Public Schools will return to remote learning Thursday because of rising COVID-19 cases. The largest public system in the country, New York City was the first large, urban district to start to bring back some in-person instruction — a move that was delayed until September and into October. It was also one of the only large districts to reopen with mandatory in-school testing, the results of which show that virus positivity rates within the school community have stayed remarkably low — just 0.22%. Public school buildings will close for in-person learning until further notice, including for kindergarten and preschool students.

More big news on COVID-19

Georgia's recount may be ending, but there could be another

Georgia election officials expect to release a report Thursday on a hand tally of the presidential race, and they have repeatedly said they expect it to affirm Democrat Joe Biden's slim lead over Republican President Donald Trump. "By noon (Thursday) is our goal to have the audit report out to everyone," voting system manager Gabriel Sterling said Wednesday. He said the past day of auditing found no more uncounted ballots like earlier in the week. Biden, who led Trump by 14,196 votes, saw his lead narrow to 12,781 votes – about 0.3 percentage points – after officials identified uncounted ballots in four counties. Each was a result of human error. Georgia must certify its election results Friday by state law. After certification, the Trump campaign is expected to ask for another recount, which is allowed because the race is decided by less than 0.5%.

Friend charged for purchasing rifle for Kenosha shooter appears in court

A man charged with illegally giving a rifle to Kyle Rittenhouse, which the 17-year-old used to kill two people and wound a third during unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in August is scheduled for a preliminary hearing Thursday. Dominick Black, 19, faces two counts of intentionally giving a dangerous weapon to someone under 18, resulting in the deaths of Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, the men Rittenhouse killed. According to records obtained by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, which is part of the Paste BN Network, Black told investigators he had purchased the Smith & Wesson M&P 15 rifle for underage Rittenhouse last summer with money Rittenhouse supplied.

More top news to know

Latin Grammy Awards takes virtual trip around the globe

Latin music's biggest stars are turning out Thursday for the 21st annual Latin Grammy Awards, which will air on Univision at 8 p.m. ET/PT. The show will be based in Miami, but for the first time will include performances from cities around the world, including Guadalajara, Buenos Aires, and Rio de Janeiro. Actress Yalitza Aparicio and singers Carlos Rivera and Ana Brenda will host. J Balvin leads all artists with a whopping 13 nominations; Bad Bunny and Ozuna are next with nine and eight, respectively. Some awards will be presented before the main event at the Latin Grammy Premiere, which starts at 3 p.m. ET on Facebook live.

Black Friday research: Target unveils deals on clothes, books and more

It's the Black Friday moment that holiday shoppers have been waiting for — Target unwrapped the closely guarded details of its fourth and final sales ad Thursday. With discounts on everything from clothes to books and electronics, the retailer revamped its holiday shopping extravaganza to spread out demand and reduce crowds amid the coronavirus pandemic. Target announced stores would be closed this Thanksgiving for the first time since 2011. One thing customers can look forward to? Target will extend its Price Match Guarantee through Christmas Eve and offer a longer period for price adjustments for items advertised as "Black Friday deals." Target deals go live early Sunday and end Nov. 28. 

Contributing: The Associated Press

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