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Thursday's Mini-Report, 8.6.20

Today's edition of quick hits.

Today's edition of quick hits:

* Beirut: "As the resilient capital of more than 2 million -- which for years has hosted refugees from neighboring countries and been no stranger to war -- tries to pick up the pieces, the death toll rose to at least 137 on Thursday with 5,000 injured, officials said, with numbers likely to climb."

* In related news: "The United States on Thursday began delivering aid to Lebanon in the aftermath of a massive deadly explosion, amid longstanding concerns about how officials can ensure that supplies get to those in need, and not to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah. The first C-17 transport aircraft with 11 pallets of food, water and medical supplies from the U.S. military's Central Command arrived from Qatar and two more were expected in the next 24 hours."

* Aid talks: "President Donald Trump huddled at the White House Thursday with the Senate's top Republican over a vital COVID-19 rescue package, but hopes on Capitol Hill for a deal were souring and there was increasing worry that GOP negotiations with Democrats might collapse."

* Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) "tested positive for the coronavirus on Thursday before he was supposed to meet President Donald Trump for his arrival in Cleveland."

* Michigan Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.): "A Democratic senator said Thursday he is launching an investigation into changes at the U.S. Postal Service that are causing delays in mail deliveries across the country just as big volume increases are expected for mail-in election voting."

* DHS: "Several former lobbying clients of Chad Wolf, now the acting secretary of Homeland Security, have received millions of dollars' worth of government contracts while he has held senior positions within the department."

* Robert Bluey: "When Vice President Mike Pence traveled to an event in Florida on Wednesday, he was not accompanied on his plane by a member of the White House press corps, as is typically the case. Instead, seated on Air Force Two in a space normally reserved for a White House reporter was the vice president for communications at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank that has helped the Trump administration fill jobs throughout the government and influenced policy decisions."

* This is a really interesting story about the CIA: "The Central Intelligence Agency has ignored requests to brief senators as part of a Republican-led investigation that targets presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his son Hunter, according to sources familiar with the matter and an email described to POLITICO."

* We live in such a strange timeline: "White House trade adviser Peter Navarro brought up 'Dilbert' comic creator Scott Adams on Wednesday night after CNN anchor Erin Burnett called out Navarro's 'irresponsible' comments hyping hydroxychloroquine."

See you tomorrow.