VP Debate Date Uncertain; Supreme Court Grants Stay of Execution for Texas Inmate – Jul. 19

Good evening everyone. Welcome to NTD Tonight. I'm David Lam, sitting in for David Zhang. Here are today's top stories. A massive computer outage causes delays for passengers and customers. It's related to an update affecting people worldwide. Many people came out to show support for Cory Comparatore at his funeral earlier today. He was tragically killed while protecting his family at the Donald Trump rally. NTD's Daniel Monahan updates us on Trump's speech at the RNC's final day Thursday. First up, a massive cyber outage causes global chaos. Airlines, retailers and banks affected. It stems from an update from cyber security company CrowdStrike on Windows Host. CrowdStrike's CEO said it wasn't a security incident and they've deployed a fix. What the public has to say about the situation. A music professor encountered travel disruptions en route to an Alaskan cruise this morning. He was stranded at a Minnesota airport after two flights were cancelled. Here he is describing his experience. We started kind of the boarding process for the second plane here when we were de-planed and moved onto a different plane. All of the computer monitors were essentially shut down, blue screen of death type of Microsoft screen that they had obviously lost communication with their servers and then shut down and kind of stayed in like a safe mode that wasn't allowing them to boot back up. Yeah, so I've definitely experienced delays and even overnight delays, but usually those are things related to weather and or even mechanical issues, but they're things that are, they have very clear answers and solutions. And right now, what's interesting to watch is the airline have no idea what's happening. Because it is such an issue that they don't have a grasp on yet, at least here at the Minneapolis airport. Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg told CNBC that the agency is monitoring the impact of the global IT outage on transportation. He said his department reminded airlines of their responsibility to assist passengers. Buttigieg said public transit is running normally, but some consumers may face website and ticketing issues. He clarified that the outage was not a cyber attack. Aside from flight delays, hospitals in some cities are also canceling non-urgent procedures due to the IT problems. Here's New York city mayor Eric Adams addressing the issue. A strike is a cyber security software prevalent in computers across the globe. Their goal as the chief technology officer would explain is to identify if there is a problem and to immediately take action. And early this morning, they sent out a software update that inadvertently took systems offline. They sent out a software update that inadvertently took systems offline. This was not a cyber attack that was a hit or a cyber hit on our city infrastructure. Continuing with reactions to the former president, here's what patrons at a bar in San Francisco had to say. Resignation of surprise around how his message continues to resonate with a broad swath of the country. If he just doesn't talk as much, he would be a fantastic president. But unfortunately, he doesn't have the mindset that he just keeps speaking. Seeing the last two candidacies of presidents Trump and Biden, nothing has really changed in the last eight years. Resignation of surprise around how his message continues to resonate with a broad swath of the country. Now he has a lot of intelligent people that have worked for him, and that's great, which will help us out. In terms of the assassination attempt, it's a person, nonetheless, regardless of who you believe in, what political party you represent. It's a really terrible thing that's happened. So really prayers out to his family and him. A Georgia man has been charged with threatening FBI Director Chris Wray. The man was arrested a week before the unrelated assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. According to charging documents, John Woodbury posted threats against Wray and others on 4chan, a forum where users are known to post hate-filled messages that go largely unmoderated. Woodbury allegedly posted Wray's address online and called to hit Chris at his home, along with other violent threats. Woodbury has been charged with making interstate threats and threatening to assault a federal officer. Across the board in Mexico, the U.S. Treasury Department is sanctioning an alleged transnational criminal organization. The DOJ says the group is responsible for smuggling thousands of people into the United States. The group in question is based in Tijuana. It's allegedly responsible for bringing people from Africa, China, the Middle East, and other places into the U.S. The group is said to provide false documents and offer advice on how to illegally enter the country. The organization is led by Sierra Leone national Abdul Kareem Conte. The sanctions against him and his Mexican wife target their financial and property assets in the U.S. They also ban U.S. citizens from transactions with the two. A funeral procession for Corey Comparator, the former fire chief who was fatally shot at a Trump rally in Pennsylvania last weekend. The procession was led by dozens of fire trucks and motorcycles. Entity's Christina Corona has more details on the event. The coffin of Corey Comparator traveled on top of a fire truck and draped in an American flag on Friday during a funeral procession to Cabot Church, Pennsylvania. Comparator died while shielding his family from gunfire during the rally on Saturday, July 13th. He was 50 years old. We're here today for Corey. He served the United States U.S. Army Reserves for 10 years. He was also a chief of the Buffalo Volunteer Fire Department. We're here to honor and respect his service to his country and his community. As Trump began his speech, shots were fired and Trump was injured by a bullet grazing his right ear. I was in the middle bleacher behind Trump at the shooting and it was absolutely terrifying to hear those pops and not know where they came from and then see action on the bleachers of both sides of me not knowing that I was going to later find out that I knew two of the people shot and one of the people killed. Hundreds of friends, family and community members gathered to honor and support the fallen hero. It doesn't surprise me so many people showed up especially volunteer firemen, some retired volunteer firemen. It's a family. On Thursday, former U.S. President Donald Trump addressed delegates at the RNC meeting in Milwaukee paying tribute to Comparator. He lost his life selflessly acting as a human shield to protect them from flying bullets. He went right over the top of them and was hit. What a fine man he was. The FBI has identified 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania as the suspect in the assassination attempt on Trump. Christina Corona, NTD News. The Republican National Convention has concluded. NTD's Daniel Monahan reports on the speech from former President Trump and others at the Former President Trump discussed the aftermath of the attempt on his life. He said he wanted to do something to let people know he was okay. I raised my right arm, looked at the thousands and thousands of people that were breathlessly waiting and started shouting, fight, fight, fight. In an emotional moment as the crowd cheered Corey, Trump paid his respects to former fire chief Corey Comparator who threw his body over his family as bullets flew by. Trump says his journey with the American people nearly ended that day. But if the events of last Saturday make anything clear, it is that every single moment we have on earth is a gift from God. The former president says the attacker in Pennsylvania wanted to stop their movement. But the truth is the movement has never been about me. It has always been about you. It's your movement. It can't be stopped. It has always been about the hardworking, patriotic citizens of America. Trump says he is running to be president for all of America, not half of America. Together we will launch a new era of safety, prosperity and freedom for citizens of every race, religion, color and creed. The discord and division in our society must be healed. We must heal it quickly. As Americans, we are bound together by a single fate and a shared destiny. We rise together or we fall apart. The former president outlined his plans for the country. Republicans have a plan to bring down prices and bring them down very, very rapidly by slashing energy costs. And remember, we have more liquid gold under our feet than any other country by far. We are a nation that has the opportunity to make an absolute fortune with its energy. Professional wrestler Hulk Hogan said there was so much energy at the convention that he thought he was at Madison Square Garden getting ready to win another world title. And they tried to kill the next president of the United States. Enough was enough. And I said, let Trumpamania rule again. Let Trumpamania make America great again. Journalist Tucker Carlson said Trump didn't say a single word about himself when he reached out to him hours after the assassination attempt. Carlson says Trump expressed his amazement that the crowd didn't run. And I thought two things. The first thing I thought was, well, of course they didn't run. His courage gave them heart. A leader's courage gives courage to his people. And the second thing I thought was, this is the selfish guy I've been hearing about for nine years, really not a word about himself. Carlson said Trump is no longer just a political party's nominee or a former or future president. He is now a leader of a nation. When he stood up after being shot in the face, bloodied and put his hand up, I thought at that moment that was a transformation. Ultimate fighting championship president Dana White also spoke and Kid Rock performed. Now that the convention is a wrap, it's back to the campaign trail. Trump will be holding a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Saturday with his new running mate, J.D. Vance. Vance will then head to his home state of Ohio on Monday. Daniel Monahan, NTD News. We'll take a short break now, everybody, but here's a look at what we have for you when we come right back. Two founders of a former tech company pleaded guilty. The DOJ alleges the two lied to investors and employees about the company's funds. A university system in California wants to separate from political statements, a ban on its online homepages. Hundreds of Disneyland workers rally in front of the park as the union prepares for a strike vote. Those stories and more coming up on NTD Tonight. Welcome back to NTD Tonight. I'm your host, David Lam. Shifting to tech news, ex-executives with a tech company pleaded guilty to wire fraud, according to the Department of Justice. The former Bitwise founders pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud each. Bitwise Industries was a talent, software and real estate company. On Wednesday, after about seven months of negotiations, Jake Soberall and Irma Olguin Jr. changed their original plea of not guilty. The SEC alleges, among other things, that while raising approximately $70 million for Bitwise from investors, Soberall knowingly made material misrepresentations and provided false documentation to investors concerning Bitwise's cash position and historical financial performance. Prosecutors recommended full restitution to all victims affected by Soberall and Olguin Jr.'s offenses, totaling roughly $115 million. The Fresno Land Outlet reported that around 900 former Bitwise workers lost their jobs when the executives abruptly announced furloughs in a May 2023 meeting. In a statement, Soberall and Olguin's lawyers told NTD, It has been a priority for Jake and Irma to take full responsibility for their wrongdoing since the moment we met them over a year ago. These are two people who made serious mistakes but did not do so out of greed or any desire to enrich themselves. They care deeply about this community and desperately wanted to see Bitwise succeed. The important message for today is that Jake and Irma are profoundly sorry for the hurt they've caused. The Fresno, California based company Bitwise Industries was in business for over a decade until it failed in 2023. The maximum sentence each charge carries is 20 years of incarceration, a fine of $250,000 and three years of probation. The former founder's sentencing is scheduled for November 6th. A university system in California decided to ban political statements on university online home pages is to avoid the misunderstanding that the statement is the university system's official view. The University of California Board of Regents voted Thursday to ban employees from posting political statements on the home pages of university websites. They say such comments could be interpreted as the university system's official view. Political statements and personal opinions will be allowed on secondary pages and must include a disclaimer saying they don't represent UC's official views under the new policy. University employees can also post political opinions on their personal university web pages or social media accounts. Faculty members, students and members of the community have criticized the policy saying it restricts free speech. The free speech movement started in the 1960s at the University of California Berkeley before it spread to college campuses across the nation. Recently political opinions have mainly been posted on the home pages of ethnic studies departments and carried pro-Palestinian messages. A message on the home page of the UC Santa Barbara's Department of Feminist Studies that remained online Thursday expresses support for Palestinians and criticizes the University of California for its numerous attacks on free speech. Under the new policy the home page of websites for each campus department or academic unit should only be used to post events and news related to Hundreds of Disneyland employees marched outside the theme park seeking support for higher wages in upcoming contract negotiations. Entity's Christina Corona tells us more. Workers from four unions including custodial staff, food workers and costume makers at Disneyland rallied together in Anaheim on Wednesday. Teamsters joined Disney cast members at the rally demanding fair wages, a reasonable attendance policy, seniority rights and safe working conditions for both cast members and guests. I would say it is not the happiest place on earth for these cast members right. You know while we respect the fact that Disneyland have built their brand they built it on the back of these workers and we feel that the workers should be compensated and they should be earning a part of what has been built. Teamsters accused Disney of using unlawful discipline, intimidation and surveillance tactics during the contract campaign. One rally goer stressed the struggle of paying rent on their current salary. They are asking for a fair contract. We have workers that have been working here since decades that are making 23 dollars an hour. You cannot pay rent in Orange County on a 23 dollars an hour wage. It is impossible to rent a studio on a 23 dollars an hour wage and so when you have workers that have given their life to be here that make this park special that go above and beyond to make our experiences at the park important they must be respected and paid and paid a living wage. Over 6,000 of the nearly 14,000 cast members at Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, Downtown Disney and the Disney Hotels are Teamsters. I'm so happy that all my fellow cast members came out. I was so worried this morning. I just came out from work this morning. I thought I was like going to see less people but now look at us. We are more than 100. A spokesperson for Disney told news outlets with today's rally we continue to be focused on the well-being of our guests and cast members. We remain committed to the upcoming meetings on July 22nd through 23rd and reaching an agreement with master services that focuses on what matters most to cast members. Positions Disneyland resort for growth and job creation and enables us to continue delivering incredible guest experiences. A planned strike authorization vote was held on Friday. Christina Corona, NTD News. The inflation rate is at three percent and a new survey by bank rates states that 43 percent of Americans say their finances have become worse since 2021. Finding access to food at a lower cost can help relieve stress on the pocketbook and one company is doing just that. NTD's Helen Billings has the story. If you're looking for quality food at a lower price, one company called Too Good To Go has created an app that lets restaurants and grocery stores sell leftover food at a discounted price. NTD talked to Chris McCauley, the VP of operations for Too Good To Go North America, who said that within the app customers can purchase surprise bags due to leftover food being unpredictable and they range in price from $2.99 to $9.99. According to a press release, customers can expect to get a range of products at a third of the retail price. Depending on the participating businesses in your area, the bags can contain anything from fresh produce or pantry items to ready-to-eat foods like pizza, ice cream, or baked goods. Recently on July 17th, they announced plans to expand their collaboration with Whole Foods Market to 450 plus locations across the country. McCauley said, quote, this marks a tremendous milestone for Too Good To Go and the landscape of food waste reduction in the U.S. By adding Whole Foods Market locations, we are providing greater access to high quality foods to our consumers. To try out the app, I personally purchased two different surprise bags at the cost of $9.99 each. One order was from a pizzeria called Pizza Twist in which I received a 12-inch combo pizza and a large Caesar salad valued at $27. The second order from Whole Foods included three containers, one each of prepared chicken cutlets, buffalo chicken wings, and fresh green beans valued at over $30. Additionally, according to the USDA, up to 40 percent of the food supply in the United States is wasted. With that, Too Good To Go is taking on the challenge of helping that extra food get into the hands of consumers. Helen Billings, MTD News. Stay tuned for China In Focus with Tiffany Meyer coming up next. Massive flooding devastates a province in northern China. Over 20,000 have been evacuated, while others trudge through floodwaters covered in mud. The disaster so far destroying bridges and damaging roads. More on China In Focus with Tiffany Meyer at 9.30 p.m. Eastern. That's all we've got for you tonight. We'd like you to join us again on MTD Tonight every weekday at 9 p.m. I'm David Lam. That's our program. Have a wonderful weekend.