THE BIG STORY

Trump called the CDC director’s timeline for a coronavirus vaccine “a mistake”

On Wednesday morning, CDC Director Robert Redfield testified that while limited doses for high-priority people could be available within months of a coronavirus vaccine proving effective, its widespread availability to people everywhere would not come until 2021, most likely by summer or fall.

A few hours later, President Donald Trump questioned the vaccine timeline Redfield gave, calling the senior health official’s estimate that a coronavirus vaccine would not be available until 2021 a “mistake.”

“We’re going to have a vaccine within months, at most,” Trump said. Meanwhile, Joe Biden held his own event on vaccines, criticizing the president’s record on science.

For public health experts, it was a worrying day. They fear that Election Day politics threaten to undermine public trust in vaccines. One expert put it directly: “Vaccination and prevention are life-saving efforts that apply to everybody that shouldn't have anything to do with elections.”

STAYING ON TOP OF THIS

Joe Biden is seeking Latino votes in Florida with a new plan to rebuild Puerto Rico

Joe Biden is bulking up his policy commitments to Puerto Rican voters in Florida, as he tries to build support among Latinos in one of the most competitive states.

The Democratic candidate detailed a recovery plan for the island, which has struggled to rebuild after a major economic crisis, hurricanes Irma and Maria, and widespread earthquakes earlier this year. The majority of Hurricane Maria evacuees who left Puerto Rico have settled in Central Florida.

Biden laid out a proposal to end federally imposed austerity measures in Puerto Rico and forgive some of the island’s debt, and he said he personally supports statehood for the island, though he prefers to leave the question up to Puerto Ricans.

SNAPSHOTS

A police officer who ordered his dog to attack a Black man has been charged with assault. Body camera footage published by the Salt Lake Tribune showed the man was kneeling with his hands in the air when Officer Nickolas Pearce ordered the dog to attack.

A grand jury indicted the white bar owner who killed a 22-year-old Black man during protests. A Nebraska grand jury has indicted Jake Gardner, a white bar owner, over the killing of James Scurlock, a 22-year-old Black man, during a Black Lives Matter protest in Omaha in June.

Devastating photos show the aftermath of the Oregon wildfires. At least 10 people are dead and more are missing after historic wildfires swept through the state. We collected some photos of what the fires left behind. This image really struck me:

Mailboxes in a neighborhood destroyed by a wildfire on Sept. 13 in Talent, Oregon. David Ryder / Getty Images

FEDERAL CRACKDOWN

These two lawyers face up to life in prison for allegedly burning an empty cop car

Colinford Mattis, 32, and Urooj Rahman, 31, are accused of burning a banged up, empty NYPD van during the nationwide protests against police brutality in May.

The pair were arrested in May, and transported into holding cells. They were among 23 people arrested in Brooklyn that night for actions connected to the protests.

Of the 23, 10 people were released without charges, and most others were hit with low-level infractions, such as criminal mischief or disorderly conduct.

But Mattis and Rahman’s cases went in a different direction. Federal prosecutors took over the case — one of the early moves in a widening federal crackdown against Black Lives Matter protesters across the country.

When it came to Rahman and Mattis and the alleged crime of burning an empty and already damaged police vehicle, the US attorney’s charges are so severe they carry a potential punishment one former federal prosecutor called “ridiculous,” another called “out of hand,” and a third described as an “extreme” tactic to “send a message” to other protesters.

THANKFUL FOR TEACHERS

This teacher’s TikTok of how energetic she is while teaching 5-year-olds has gone super viral

Teachers are doing their best under impossible circumstances right now, and nowhere is that more obvious than when you see kindergarten teachers trying to engage 5-year-olds in online classes.

Mackenzie, a teacher from Washington, posted a quick video of herself showing the kind of energy she has to bring in facial expressions in order to keep her kindergartners’ attention.

The TikTok, featuring Mackenzie’s extra engaged facial expressions, went mega viral with people in awe of teachers and what they’re able to do.

Reach out to a friend and tell them you admire them,

Elamin