In today's newsletter: Some Democrats fear Kamala Harris is playing it safe in a tight presidential race. Yellow jackets are swarming in flooded parts of North Carolina. And Kim Kardashian advocates for the release of the Menendez brothers. 

Here's what to know today.

Polling shows the presidential race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump is a toss-up. But in the final stretch before Election Day, Harris' team has acted as if she's sitting in a lead, making some Democratic strategists and activists worry that Harris has failed to fully capitalize on the excitement surrounding her entry into the race in July.  

Harris' events have largely been rallies, rather than town hall-style events or interviews with the media that could give voters a sense of Harris' authentic self and make people more comfortable with her abrupt placement at the top of the Democratic ticket, these experts say.

"It's so obvious she's been avoiding the one-on-one interviews, and the voters deserve better," said Steve Shurtleff, a former Democratic speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives. 

Chris Kofinis, a Democratic strategist, said Harris' campaign is banking on Trump's weaknesses being enough to carry Harris to victory. "But the danger in that is if you don't define your own candidacy well enough, people will start defining it themselves."

Harris campaign aides say she will venture into new forums in the coming weeks, including with a CBS News "60 Minutes" interview that will air next week. Harris' running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, will also need to mix it up with voters after a debate performance this week that ignited fresh doubts among Democratic faithful. 

Read the full story here.

More 2024 election coverage:

Israel targets Hezbollah's presumed new leader in massive Beirut attack

Israel launched intense strikes on Beirut targeting Hezbollah's presumed new leader as he met with other senior militants, an Israeli official told NBC News. The IDF is still assessing whether Hashem Safieddine was killed, as its bombing campaign in Lebanon cut off a key road used to flee into Syria. The Israeli attack comes as Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, delivered a rare sermon eulogizing former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and praising the country's strikes on Israel.

Follow our live blog for updates. 

Israel is preparing to retaliate against Iran for those strikes. With a vastly superior air force, Israel could hit a wide range of targets in Iran if it wanted to. The most likely targets would be any site or unit associated with Iran’s missile assault. But it could also choose to hit oil infrastructure, which is the country’s economic lifeline. Here’s a look at those and other possible targets, according to analysts, former intelligence officers and current and former officials.

Yellow jackets swarm after North Carolina floods

Health officials in North Carolina are working to distribute Benadryl and EpiPens to parts of the states ravaged by Hurricane Helene after severe flooding stirred up colonies of yellow jackets. The rain and floodwater most likely destroyed the insects' underground hives and toppled trees or stumps that held nests, said Chris Hayes, an expert with North Carolina State University. "Now they're out of a home, just like many people are." One resident said that since the hurricane, she "can't even walk outside and not see one or two" of them.

Yellow jackets are generally more aggressive than bees and are able to sting people multiple times. People who are allergic to bees are usually allergic to yellow jackets as well, though the scale of the reaction may differ. Here's what else to know.

More coverage of Hurricane Helene's aftermath:

Kim Kardashian advocates for Menendez brothers' release, L.A. prosecutors review their case

Kim Kardashian is backing the Menendez brothers in a personal essay shared with NBC News, writing that “I have spent time with Lyle and Erik; they are not monsters.” Kardashian, the reality TV star and entrepreneur who has used her celebrity platform to advocate for inmates on criminal justice issues, believes Lyle and Erik Menendez were treated unfairly by prosecutors and the media. 

The brothers were convicted of murdering their parents in their Beverly Hills, California, home in 1989, when Erik was 18 and Lyle was 21, and were sentenced to life in prison. The brothers’ case has drawn renewed interest with Netflix’s biopic series “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” and their lives are the subject of a forthcoming documentary on Netflix, “The Menendez Brothers.” 

“We owe it to those little boys who lost their childhoods, who never had a chance to be heard, helped or saved,” Kardashian says. Read more about Kardashian’s push for the brothers’ release, and read her full essay.

Meanwhile, prosecutors in California said they are reviewing the Menendez brothers’ convictions to determine whether they should be resentenced and potentially released. L.A. District Attorney George Gascón said his office is also reviewing possible evidence included in petitions the brothers filed last year alleging molestation by their father.

Trump on trial: Donald Trump said special counsel Jack Smith’s court filing with new revelations about his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss was a “weaponization of government.” He accused Smith of improperly influencing a presidential election. But the federal judge in the case, not Smith, decided to make it public. 

2020 election fallout: A Colorado judge called a former county clerk a “charlatan” who used her time in office “to peddle snake oil” while sentencing her to nine years in prison in connection to tampering with election equipment after the 2020 election.

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A tough road ahead for this vibrant arts community

Asheville's vibrant arts and culture scene has been a tourist draw and economic driver for years, much of it concentrated in the River Arts District. But Hurricane Helene carved a devastating path through the area. "My entire portfolio is in the river somewhere," one artist told reporter Alexandra Byrne. Keeping the creative community together was already a challenge before the storm because of rising living costs. Now, "the whole district will change drastically," one studio owner predicted.

— Rich Bellis, senior business editor

“Water and hardwood floors just don’t get along,” one cleaning expert said. So what is the right way to clean hardwood floors? Here's a step-by-step guide. 

Also, consider celebrating the start of the weekend with a grocery store splurge — maybe olive oil? Here are 12 best extra virgin olive oils for roasting, drizzling, dipping and more.

Thanks for reading the Morning Rundown. Today's newsletter was curated for you by Elizabeth Robinson. 

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