Here are the headlines you Need2Know for Thursday, August 4, 2021:

CUOMO REPORT

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is refusing to step down after the state attorney general’s investigation found that he sexually harassed 11 women, including current and former government staffers, and retaliated against one woman for going public. Cuomo responded to the report’s release by saying he never touched anyone inappropriately and included a slideshow showing pictures of him kissing and touching various men and women. President Biden joined the calls for Cuomo’s resignation for the first time, effectively ending any significant continued Democratic support for the governor. TIMES UNION

DELTA LATEST

The FDA has accelerated its timetable for full approval of the Pfizer vaccine and has reportedly given itself until Labor Day to complete that process. When the shot is fully approved, more vaccine mandates are expected to follow. Getting a head start, NYC will require proof of vaccination for restaurants, theaters and gyms starting next month. It’s the first big city in the U.S. to mandate vaccines for leisure activities. Mayor Bill de Blasio said:  “If you want to participate in our society fully, you’ve got to get vaccinated." NY TIMES

EVICTION MORATORIUM

President Biden is extending the federal eviction moratorium in areas of the country with high Covid spread, following pressure from progressive Democrats who have been calling on him to reinstate the eviction ban after it lapsed last weekend (Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri had been sleeping on the steps of the Capitol to draw attention to the issue). The new 60-day extension comes courtesy of the CDC and covers the vast majority of counties in the U.S. Biden acknowledged that the action is potentially unconstitutional after the Supreme Court ruled against a previous extension, but is hoping that this buys states time to get billions in federal rental assistance funds disbursed to those who need it. BLOOMBERG

OHIO SPECIAL ELECTIONS

Two special primary elections for open House seats in Ohio served up an early assessment of the national mood heading into next year’s midterms. In the Cleveland area, the Democratic establishment favorite Shontel Brown beat the outsider and former Bernie Sanders surrogate Nina Turner. Down in Columbus, the energy lobbyist Mike Carey — who was a virtual unknown until recently — easily beat a field of more than 10 other Republicans after he got an endorsement from former President Trump. Both Brown and Carey will be favored to win their elections this fall. POLITICO

PASSENGER FROM HELL

A Frontier Airlines passenger allegedly assaulted three flight attendants on a flight from Philly to Miami last weekend, prompting the crew to duct tape him to his seat until the plane landed. Frontier put the flight crew on paid leave while it investigated the incident, leading to criticism on social media and from the flight attendants’ union, which noted that airline crews have been dealing with an uptick in unruly and sometimes dangerous passengers this summer. The man, Maxwell Berry, 22, reportedly had been drinking heavily and groped two female crewmembers before punching a third male crewmember who intervened — all while screaming "my parents are worth 2 million g-damn dollars!" The incident was recorded by several other passengers: WATCH

XMAS SHOPPING IN AUG

It’s not too early to start thinking about holiday shopping, believe it or not. Recent flooding in China and Europe is exacerbating delays in the global supply chain, which is still struggling to get back to pre-pandemic levels of normalcy. Supply chain analysts say the result is going to be more shortages and higher prices through the back-to-school shopping season and into Black Friday, when discounts are expected to be smaller and fewer between. IBT

OLYMPICS LATEST **SPOILER**

Sydney McLaughlin of the U.S. shattered her own world record to take the gold in the women’s 400m hurdles, the 21-year-old prodigy’s first Olympic gold medal. McLaughlin’s rival and teammate Dalilah Muhammad — the defending Olympic champion —  was  0.12 of a second behind for the silver. The U.S. baseball team and women’s basketball team both kept their gold medal hopes alive with wins over the Dominican Republic and Australia, respectively. Today’s broadcast coverage includes beach volleyball, diving, and a pair of men’s track finals. ESPN

HIP HOP HOORAY

This could be an epic weekend for hip-hop fans. Nas and Eminem, two of the best lyricists of all time, will be teaming up together for the first time on Nas’ new album. The rapper released the tracklist for King’s Disease II, set to drop Friday. It includes tracks with Lauryn Hill, Charlie Wilson, and Slim Shady himself. Meanwhile, Kanye West’s Donda is — maybe — dropping on Friday. And Drake recently confirmed his first studio album in three years, Certified Lover Boy, is being mixed. There’s speculation Drake could be releasing that on the same day as Kanye’s record to spite his sometimes-foe. CLEVELAND.COM

SPOTTED...

… Jessica Springsteen, daughter of The Boss, making her Olympic debut and narrowly missing the cut in the equestrian individual jumping final (she’ll compete in the team final later this week): SEE PIC

...a new roller coaster, coming to Six Flags in San Antonio, that will feature the world’s steepest dive — a 95-degree, 150-foot drop: SEE IT

...Camila Cabello as Cinderella, in the first trailer for the modern retelling of the classic fairy tale, coming to Amazon next month: WATCH

LEFTOVERS: PASSPORT RENEWAL

Do you know when your passport expires? If it’s even remotely soon, consider starting the renewal process now. According to the State Dept., it’s now taking as long as six months for Americans to get their passports renewed or to get their first ones issued. Pre-Covid, the wait times ranged from six to eight weeks for regular applications and two to three if you paid the expedite fee. Now, even expedited applications are taking up to three months to process. A combination of pandemic staffing issues and backlogs are to blame, as people who let their passports lapse during the travel bans are now rushing to get them renewed.  The State Dept. even had to suspend online bookings because scammers were using bots to book appointments and re-sell them to travelers. SEATTLE TIMES

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