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And here’s what you need to know to Start Your Week Smart.
(You can also get “5 Things You Need to Know Today” delivered to your inbox daily. You give us five minutes, and we give you five things you must know for your weekday, plus a Sunday edition to get your week started smart. Sign up here.)
TODAY
• It’s a day of candles and light for people of faith around the globe. Christians light the first of four Advent candles, representing prayer, penance, rejoicing and sacrifice in preparation for Christmas. At sunset, Jewish people turn to the menorah to mark the start of Hanukkah. The eight-day festival commemorates an ancient miracle, when one day’s-worth of consecrated oil lasted for eight during the rededication of the Second Temple of Jerusalem.
• Meantime, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, fresh off the G20 in Argentina, is due to meet with Mexico’s new foreign minister about border issues. Mexico’s new President is launching his administration as some migrants waiting in Tijuana to make asylum claims in the United States have been moved to a shelter with “better” accommodations, such as a “roof and a dry floor.”
MONDAY
• Members of the House and Senate will take part in a 5 p.m. arrival ceremony at the US Capitol for the late President George H.W. Bush, who will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda until Wednesday morning. The public can pay their respects from 7:30 p.m. ET Monday through 8:45 a.m. ET Wednesday.
• It’s the statistical peak of the Atlantic hurricane season, with the eight weeks around this date often prime time for conditions that fuel powerful storms. Right on schedule is Florence, which by late this week may well be hitting the East Coast. In the Pacific, Hurricane Olivia could affect Hawaii midweek as a tropical storm.
• He might be a painter who holds his brush in his mouth. Or a wheelchair-bound comedian who puts her own spin on stand-up. Or a deaf rapper. Or a sled hockey star with one leg. Or a decorated swimmer who’s blind. The International Day of Persons with Disabilities is meant to promote understanding and support the dignity, rights and well-being of people with disabilities.
TUESDAY
• The next shoe in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation could drop when ex-national security adviser Michael Flynn is set to be sentenced. Mueller says Flynn, the highest-ranking Trump administration official to face charges, shouldn’t go to prison for lying about contacts with the ex-Russian ambassador to the US because Flynn helped prosecutors with at least three ongoing investigations.
• We thought they were as inseparable as, well, Brangelina. Instead, one-time Hollywood supercouple, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, head to court to argue over custody of their six children. Jolie wants sole custody, while Pitt wants joint custody. Here’s how they ended up at this point.
WEDNESDAY
• Family, friends and political leaders will gather at the National Cathedral in Washington at 11 a.m. ET for a memorial service for George H.W. Bush. President Trump has designated a national day of mourning. The former President will also lie in repose at St. Martin’s Episcopal Church in Houston, Texas from 7:45 p.m. ET until 7 a.m. ET on Thursday, after which he will be taken by motorcade to the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas, and laid to rest.
• Drake, Ariana Grande, Dua Lipa, Ella Mai, Shawn Mendes and even Cher are bouncing around the rumor mill as Grammy noms are announced, starting at 8:30 a.m. ET on CBS. The ceremony is set for February 10.
THURSDAY
• Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s “The Titan Games” banks on a kitschy Mount Olympus theme. It airs at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.
• And if your Grammy predictions end up being a bit off, you can try again when Golden Globe nominees are announced, starting at 8 a.m. ET. That awards show is January 6.
FRIDAY
• A new, darker chapter gets added to the Rudyard Kipling classic, as “Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle” drops on Netflix.
SATURDAY
• It looks like a two-way battle for college football’s Heisman Trophy. The winner will be revealed in a ceremony at 8 p.m. Watch on ESPN.
• Will Army keep the new “streak” alive, or will Navy hit the reset button? The greatest rivalry in sports begins at 3 p.m. ET. Watch on CBS.
• Will Portland add more bling to its trophy case? Or will Atlanta make some history of its own? Major League Soccer’s final is set for 8 p.m. ET at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, just around the corner from the 5 Things mother ship, aka CNN Center. Watch on FOX, UniMás, TSN or TVAS.