Harris builds momentum over Trump

With just over six weeks until Election Day, a new national NBC News poll finds Vice President Kamala Harris with a 5-point lead over former President Donald Trump among registered voters, 49% to 44%. The result is within the margin of error, but a clear shift from July’s poll, when Trump was ahead by 2 points before President Joe Biden’s exit.

Harris’ favorability has jumped 16 points since July, and in a contest between a sitting vice president and an ex-president, she has the upper hand on which candidate better represents change.

Still, Trump holds important advantages on the economy and inflation, as voters rank cost of living as their top concern in the election.

The biggest change in the polls is among young voters ages 18 to 34, who were essentially split between Biden and Trump in July but who now back Harris by 23 points. But other key voting blocs — including Latino voters, seniors and independents — haven’t changed as much.

House sets vote to avoid a shutdown

Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday the House will vote this week on a three-month stopgap funding bill to keep the federal government open through Dec. 20.

Congress has just over a week to avert a shutdown at 12:01 a.m. on Oct. 1. The funding bill will be "a very narrow, bare-bones CR including only the extensions that are absolutely necessary," Johnson said in a letter to colleagues.

"As history has taught and current polling affirms, shutting the government down less than 40 days from a fateful election would be an act of political malpractice," the Speaker added.

Israel and Hezbollah exchange heavy fire

Israel and the Hezbollah militant group exchanged heavy fire across Lebanon’s border on Sunday, fueling fears of a wider conflict in the region as the monthslong war in Gaza continues to rage.

The IDF said its fighter jets had “struck dozens of Hezbollah terror targets, including launchers and military structures,” while Hezbollah said it had launched dozens of rockets as part of its initial response to Friday’s airstrike on a densely populated suburb of Beirut that killed 45 people including senior leaders of the group.

In a separate development, Israeli soldiers shut down Al Jazeera’s bureau in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, on Sunday morning. “This is a blatant attack on the Al Jazeera channel and Al Jazeera Network and those who are working with them, as well as on the freedom of speech and the task of delivering the truth,” the network’s bureau chief, Walid al-Omari, said.

Manhunt launched for ‘multiple shooters’ in Alabama

A manhunt has been launched for “multiple shooters” who killed four and injured 17 more when they “fired upon a large group of people” in Birmingham, Alabama, police said early Sunday.

At least four of the wounded have “life-threatening injuries,” Birmingham Police Department officer Truman Fitzgerald told a news conference hours after the incident, which he said occurred in one of the city’s “most popular entertainment districts.”

Police later said they believed the shooting “was not random and stemmed from an isolated incident where multiple victims were caught in the crossfire.”

Meet the Press

South Carolina GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham told “Meet the Press” that North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson “has an obligation to defend himself” following reports last week that Robinson made lewd posts on a pornographic website over a decade ago.

“The charges are beyond unnerving,” Graham said, referring to a CNN report Thursday that said Robinson made posts on a porn site referring to himself as a “black NAZI” and arguing in favor of reinstating slavery. Robinson has denied the report, calling it “tabloid trash” and vowing to stay in the race.

“If they’re true, he’s unfit to serve for office,” Graham said. “If they’re not true, he has the best lawsuit in the history of the country for libel.”

Sen. JD Vance said Saturday that the allegations “aren’t necessarily reality” and that it’s “ultimately up to Mark Robinson and North Carolina whether he’s going to be their governor and whether he wants to stay in the race.”

In his interview on “Meet the Press,” Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania told moderator Kristen Welker that Robinson is “the new dream candidate to run against.”

You can watch Graham’s full interview here.

Politics in brief

“Doomsday preppers”: People readying for disasters and end-of-world events are more on edge as Election Day draws closer.

Billionaire donations: The nation’s wealthy opened their wallets in August, pouring millions into super PACs backing Harris and Trump.

Clearing the air: Local Republicans in places like Springfield, Ohio, and Charleroi, Pennsylvania, are speaking up to challenge misinformation being spread about immigrants.

The final campaign: In an interview on Sharyl Attkisson’s show “Full Measure,” Trump said he doesn’t believe he would run for office again in four years if he loses the November election.

Disturbing ‘Diddy’ allegations paint a picture of a mogul shielded by fame

For decades, Sean “Diddy” Combs was known as a tough business mogul developing fresh talent. But behind the scenes was a more sinister picture, prosecutors say, with allegations of violence, sex trafficking and abuses of power.

They alleged Combs and his associates “wielded” his “power and prestige” to orchestrate sexual, emotional and physical abuse against the people around him.

How a steakhouse server makes ends meet in one of America’s least affordable markets

Stefany Serna waits tables at a high-end steakhouse in Coral Gables, Florida, where she makes about $55,000 a year in salary, plus tips. She and her partner, both in their 30s, pay $2,250 for their two-bed, one-bath home and hope to save up to get married, buy a house and start a family.

A local real estate broker specializing in food and beverage spaces has quipped that Miami is currently experiencing “restaurant Armageddon” amid a wave of high-profile closures. Serna has seen it firsthand, saying her restaurant “is not making any money right now.” Management, she said, is pulling back on shifts and reducing its operating schedule.

Among the changes Serna and her partner have made to their budget to increase savings: switching toilet paper brands; easing off of coffee and buying more goods in bulk; and cooking at home more. They have also contemplated moving, but say that this would be a last, and painful, resort.

This is part of NBC News’ Checkbook Chronicles, a series of profiles looking at the financial realities of everyday Americans and the challenges they face.

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