2020 U.S. ELECTION: What you need to know right now

[October 16, 2020]  (Reuters) - -President Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden return to the campaign trail with visits to three battleground states after clashing from afar in dueling televised town halls.

-With less than three weeks until the election, vice presidential nominee Senator Kamala Harris pauses in-person campaigning through Sunday after a member of her staff tests positive for COVID-19.

-Twitter briefly restricted the Trump campaign account after it posted a video about Biden's son the social media company said broke its rules, causing backlash from Republicans.

-Biden would raise $2.4 trillion in new federal government revenue over the next decade, largely from tax hikes on corporations and the highest-income households, according to an analysis by the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.

-Biden holds his cards close to his chest on whether he would add judges to the U.S. Supreme Court to balance what will be a 6-3 conservative majority if Trump's third nominee, Amy Coney Barrett, is confirmed.

-U.S. oil majors, hit by the pandemic, donated less to political campaigns this year, but hedged their bets by increasing their spend on Democrats, amid a looming battle over fracking.

GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

Trump campaign ads appear in the streets of Tel Aviv - a move to court dual nationality American-Israeli voters, many of whom are registered in the key states of Pennsylvania and Florida.

INVESTOR VIEW

Despite Trump's offer to increase the size of the next COVID-19 stimulus package, markets remain on edge as investors believe a deal is unlikely before Election Day, Nov. 3.

President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden participate in their first 2020 presidential campaign debate held on the campus of the Cleveland Clinic at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S., September 29, 2020. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo

BY THE NUMBERS

Record-breaking fundraising gives Democrats an edge in the final lap of the election race, as ActBlue reports a $1.5 billion haul, the most it has ever raised in a quarter, while WinRed collected $623 million.

ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Expected events and Reuters coverage on Oct 16:

-Trump holds rallies in Florida and Georgia

-Biden campaigns in Michigan

-The cast of the hit musical "Hamilton" hold a fundraiser for Biden

-Vice President Mike Pence campaigns in Selma, North Carolina

-TV ratings to be released for Thursday's town halls
 

(Reporting by Gayle Issa; Editing by Frances Kerry)

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