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By CURTIS YEE and TIFFANY STANLEY WASHINGTON — When the Rev. Lee Scott publicly endorsed Kamala Harris for president during the Evangelicals for Harris Zoom call on Aug. 14, the Presbyterian pastor and farmer said he was taking a risk. “The easy thing for us to do this year would be to keep our heads down, go to the ballot box, keep our vote secret and go about our business,” Scott told the group, which garnered roughly 3,200 viewers according to organizers.

By WILL WEISSERT WASHINGTON — Both major presidential candidates are making appearances Thursday meant to fire up their core supporters, with Vice President Kamala Harris participating in a livestream with Oprah Winfrey and Donald Trump attending an event with prominent Jewish donors before addressing a gathering of the Israeli-American Council. Winfrey, who has endorsed Harris and spoke at the Democratic convention in August, is set to host a two-hour “Unite for America” nighttime streaming session in Michigan with Harris that organizers say aims to highlight dozens of grassroots groups backing the vice president. Trump will be in Washington to address a “Fighting Anti-Semitism in America” evening event with Miriam Adelson, a co-owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks and widow of billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, who founded the Las Vegas Sands casino and was one of the Republican Party’s largest donors. Trump will also speak before the Israeli-American Council, a nonprofit long backed by Sheldon Adelson as well as Haim Saban, a major donor to President Joe Biden and Democratic causes.

By SAM MEDNICK KAMITUGA, Congo — Slumped on the ground over a mound of dirt, Divine Wisoba pulled weeds from her daughter’s grave. The 1-month-old died from mpox in eastern Congo in August, but Wisoba, 21, was too traumatized to attend the funeral. In her first visit to the cemetery, she wept into her shirt for the child she lost and worried about the rest of her family.

The idea behind “The Wild Robot” sounds like a paradox: An artificially intelligent machine transforms itself into an emotional creature after exposure to the wilderness. Chris Sanders attends the premiere of “The Wild Robot” during the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival at Roy Thomson Hall on Sept. 8, 2024, in Toronto, Ontario.

You don’t have to read the fine print for the Curious Theatre Company’s season 27 opener to know there’s going to be some tart language. The title of playwright Selina Fillinger’s breakneck comedy: “POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive” provides a hint. Still, you might be shocked — clutch your pearls, shocked!

Butterfly Pavilion’s spiders are back Saturday-Oct. 31. Most visitors to Westminster’s Butterfly Pavilion know of the lovable (er, mostly) mascot Rosie the Tarantula. But if she’s not enough for you, check out the Sept. 21-Oct. 31 return of “Spiders Around the World.” The limited-time programming leads up to Halloween with a stunning diversity of spiders sprinkled throughout the facility. No, they’re not all in captivity.