| Under fire | Scandals engulfing the National Rifle Association threaten to undercut its financial and political power heading into the U.S. elections. The organization, long perceived as a kingmaker, was the top contributor to Trump's 2016 campaign. Now complaints over lavish spending, internal battles, legal fights and fundraising woes are coming to a head. - Trump's new campaign manager credited the revival of the president's daily briefings with narrowing the gap between him and Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
- Biden has apologized for comments he made yesterday suggesting the African-American community was not diverse.
Falling apart | Negotiations on a new coronavirus relief bill edged toward collapse after a meeting between White House officials and top congressional Democrats ended with each side accusing the other of being unwilling to compromise, leaving the biggest issues far from resolved. There's no guarantee they will resume talks today. - Trump said he expects to sign orders today or tomorrow extending enhanced unemployment benefits and imposing a payroll-tax holiday.
Legal fight | A former high-level Saudi official who has worked closely with U.S. intelligence agencies sued Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in an American court for unspecified damages, alleging he orchestrated a conspiracy to assassinate him. The lawsuit said a team of Saudi hit men known as the Tiger Squad flew to Canada, where Saad Aljabri lives, in October 2018 but were stopped by Canadian border officials. Neighborly strife | The U.S. will reimpose tariffs on some Canadian aluminum imports. It hits a crucial trade partner just weeks after Trump's new North American trade agreement went into effect and comes as he trails Biden in opinion polls and seeks to portray himself as best positioned to revive the economy. Canada has threatened retaliation. Waiting game | Facing an unprecedented challenge to his bid for a sixth term at Sunday's elections, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has resorted to lashing out at his ally, Russia, to try to rally public support and cast himself as a guarantor of independence. With opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya attracting huge crowds, Russian President Vladimir Putin may take advantage of a weakened Lukashenko to draw Belarus more tightly to Moscow after the vote, Aliaksandr Kudrytski, Henry Meyer and Ilya Arkhipov report.  Putin welcomes Lukashenko to a meeting at the Kremlin, on Dec. 29, 2018. Photographer: Kirill Kudravtsev/AFP What to Watch -
Germany is reacting angrily to a threat by U.S. senators to sanction a port operator in Chancellor Angela Merkel's electoral district over its involvement with the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia. -
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani will host a national gathering of leaders today to discuss plans to release hundreds of Taliban prisoners, a controversial move that could pave the way for talks to end the 19-year war. -
Hong Kong police charged pro-democracy activists including Joshua Wong for taking part in a June vigil commemorating the anniversary of China's crackdown in Tiananmen Square, the latest move in the clampdown on the city's opposition movement. -
The brothers ruling Sri Lanka scored a landslide victory in parliamentary elections but fell short of a super majority that would allow President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to restore sweeping executive powers to his office. Pop quiz, readers (no cheating!). As part of post-virus stimulus measures, Italy is offering an almost $600 payment to anyone who buys what? Send your answers to balancepower@bloomberg.net. And finally ... It's a World Heritage Site whose unique wildlife helped Charles Darwin devise his theory of evolution. Now, Stephan Kueffner explains, the waters surrounding the Galapagos Islands, off the coast of Ecuador, have become the latest point of friction between the world's two superpowers. The appearance of hundreds of Chinese fishing vessels near the protected nature reserve prompted a rebuke from U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, while Beijing said U.S. politicians were trying to "sow discord". Ecuador believes the fleet was attracted to the rich habitat for sharks, used to make shark fin soup which is considered a delicacy in China.  A Chinese-flagged ship confiscated by the Ecuadorean Navy sits in the waters of the Galapagos marine reserve, on Aug. 25, 2017. Photographer: Juan Cevallos/AFP via Getty Images | 
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