Elections

In an interview with DealBook, the U.S.T.A. chief Lew Sherr discussed the U.S. Open’s record attendance, the prospect of a new tennis league, and fighting with pickleball for court space.This weekend, Jessica Pegula and Aryna Sabalenka, and then Jannik Sinner and Taylor Fritz, will face off in championship matches as the U.S. Open concludes what has been a booming 144th run. The tournament is expected to draw more than a million in fans for the first time, sell $10 million worth of Honey Deuce cocktails and offer up its biggest prize pool ever.But the event’s success highlights the sport’s perennial struggle to get tournaments right the rest of the year. Professional tennis has been troubled by complicated scheduling and late start times that tire players and confuse fans. With private equity firms and sovereign wealth funds hungry to invest in tennis as they plow into sports globally, the big question is whether tennis can fix itself on its own.DealBook’s Lauren Hirsch spoke with Lew Sherr, the chief executive of the United States Tennis Association, about how the sport plans to approach those challenges. The interview has been edited and condensed.What explains the surge in attendance at the U.S. Open, beyond the growth of tennis as a sport?We’re seeing the results of investing in fan week, a period before the main draw when the top players are here practicing. This year we had 216,000 people come through the gates that week free of charge. Last year, we were under 160,000 fans.Years ago, we worried that investing in that programming might cannibalize first-week sales. It’s been the opposite. When our long-term partnerships come up for renewal, the fact that when the deal was signed, we might have been hosting 700,000 fans and now we’re up more than a million — there’s clearly more value in that partnership.Alicia Keys, Tony Goldwyn and Simone Biles were among the many celebrities spotted in Arthur Ashe Stadium. We are coming off a huge Olympics, where it felt like celebrities were everywhere. Has there been any extra effort to recruit celebrities to attend the U.S. Open recently?We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Elizabeth Alexander and John Bayley loved their partners to the end.Pekic/GettyDear readers,Marriage is like a second-grade spelling test: We shield our work while glancing around to see if a neighbor’s answers match. And I do mean work! Sharing your life with someone can be challenging, but it’s also fun and oddly liberating because you never really know how your weird union compares with anyone else’s. Eventually you learn to keep your eyes on your own paper.Unless you’re a reader. Then you’re privy to the occasional marriage memoir, in which some brave, generous, often beleaguered soul lifts the curtain on the whole operation and tells the rest of us what’s going on behind the scenes. This year has been a bonanza for voyeurs, thanks to Leslie Jamison (“Splinters”), Lyz Lenz (“This American Ex-Wife”) and Molly Roden Winter (“More”). Honorable mentions go to Maggie Smith for “You Could Make This Place Beautiful,” which came out last year, and “Liars” by Sarah Manguso, a novel so real-feeling it could be a body double for a true story.With one polyamorous exception, all of the above skew to the divorce end of the spectrum. This is not to say that their authors haven’t lived happily ever after; they’re doing just fine, if acknowledgments pages and Instagram posts are to be believed.But in honor of the 25th anniversary of the day I accidentally smeared car grease across my dress and had my name spelled wrong in the program — also known as my wedding day, Sept. 25, 1999 — I decided to reread two memoirs of happy marriages. These books were every bit as candid and thought-provoking and, in some ways, aspirational as I remembered.—LizPS. Both of these memoirs are really sad. Don’t read too much into it.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

The 2016 Democratic nominee fell short to Donald Trump, but she had strong debate moments against him. In an interview, she offered some thoughts for Kamala Harris.Hillary Clinton has as much experience as any Democrat in debating Donald J. Trump.The 2016 presidential campaign, when she was her party’s nominee, included three of the six general-election debates Mr. Trump has participated in. Those faceoffs went a long way toward shaping the country’s vision of his candidacy and what he would be like as president.Mr. Trump, of course, went on to win the 2016 election — an outcome that still haunts Democrats.When Mrs. Clinton called this week to discuss her old debate coach, Karen Dunn, who is helping out Vice President Kamala Harris this time around, I took the opportunity to ask about her experience on the debate stage with Mr. Trump.“The consensus was that I won all three debates and that I was well prepared,” Mrs. Clinton said.Here are excerpts from our conversation, which have been lightly edited and condensed.What do you remember about your own preparations to debate Donald Trump?It was the first debate when Trump literally ridiculed me for preparing. This was not something we had thought about beforehand, because who thought we could be ridiculed for preparing for a presidential debate in front of 85 or 90 million people?So basically I said, yeah, I did prepare. And I’ll tell you something else I prepared for: I prepared to be president. Because I had the confidence. I knew the material. I felt comfortable. I also knew I had to brush Trump back and not let him be the center of attention all the time.What advice do you have for Kamala Harris as she prepares to debate Trump?She’s proven to be a good debater, both in her races in California and in her debate with Mike Pence. So I think she needs to be prepared enough that she feels really comfortable going on both offense and defense against Trump, because there’s a lot to cover with him.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

ACROSS THE COUNTRYShocked by Extreme Storms, a Maine Fishing Town Fights to Save Its WaterfrontAfter two devastating storms hit Stonington in January, plans are multiplying to raise and fortify wharves, roads and buildings. But will that be enough?It is hard to imagine a more picturesque Maine fishing town than Stonington, home to about 1,000 people.WHY WE’RE HEREWe’re exploring how America defines itself one place at a time. In Maine, climate change and economic forces are threatening one town’s identity, and way of life. Sept. 7, 2024There were some who thought it was excessive when Travis Fifield, rebuilding his commercial lobster wharf a few years ago, raised it nearly a foot and a half higher above the blue expanse of Maine’s Penobscot Bay.The fourth generation to run the family business, Fifield Lobster, on a granite peninsula in remote Stonington, Mr. Fifield paid the skeptics no mind. He was determined to defend his property against the rising seas and raging storms he knew would be the consequences of a changing climate.Then two vicious storms slammed Maine’s coast in a single week in January, with intense winds and extremely high tides wiping out swaths of working waterfront. For Stonington, home to the largest lobster fishing fleet in Maine, the damage was so extensive and shocking that it extinguished any remaining doubt about the need for urgent action.There were some who thought it was excessive when Travis Fifield rebuilt his commercial lobster wharf a few years ago, raising it up nearly a foot and a half higher. Now, across the island town of 1,000 people, plans are multiplying to raise and fortify wharves, roads and buildings. At Isle au Haut Boat Services, managers intend to lift the dock two feet higher and add a concrete top to hold it down when waters surge. A similar upgrade is in store for the Stonington Lobster Co-op, home base for 90 of the town’s 350 lobster boats.“That storm surge in January — we never thought it could happen here,” said Mr. Fifield, 40, who is also a member of the Stonington Select Board. “When you’re smacked in the face with it, it’s hard to deny.”Tell Us About Where You Live

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California and Hawaii banned guns from various public venues. A federal appeals court dusted off the history books to help determine where to allow prohibitions.A federal appeals court on Friday partly reinstated firearm bans in California and Hawaii, finding that California could, for example, prohibit guns in parks, playgrounds and bars but not in banks or hospitals.The 3-0 ruling, by a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, said that the Supreme Court’s current interpretation of gun rights was “seemingly arbitrary” and “hard to explain” at the moment. The court’s findings applied only to laws in those two states.The judges found that most of the prohibitions enacted last year by California and Hawaii met the constitutional standards set in a 2022 Supreme Court decision that drastically narrowed the legal standard for restrictions on firearms.That decision struck down a New York law that had strictly limited the carrying of guns outside homes. The Supreme Court found that restrictions on guns are constitutional only if courts can find an analogue “consistent with this nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.” But, the court added, states could ban guns in “sensitive places” such as schools and courthouses.Democratic-led states rushed to rewrite laws to comply with the new interpretation, in some cases banning guns in dozens of specific locations. But federal judges last year struck down new laws in California and Hawaii.The Ninth Circuit judges ruled on Friday that California could prohibit guns in libraries, sports arenas, casinos, museums and restaurants that serve alcohol, in addition to parks, playgrounds and bars. Hawaii can ban guns on parks and beaches and in establishments serving alcohol.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

A 20-year-old Pakistani citizen was arrested in Canada after plotting to carry out a mass shooting at a Jewish center in New York, according to the Justice Department.A Pakistani citizen was arrested in Quebec this week and accused of plotting to kill “as many Jewish civilians as possible” in New York City on or near the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israelis, according to a Justice Department complaint unsealed Friday.Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, who lived in Canada, tried to cross the border with the intention of traveling to New York, where he planned to carry out a mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn, in support of the Islamic State, prosecutors said.“New york is perfect to target jews,” he wrote to an associate, according to the filing, adding, “We could rack up easily a lot of jews.”He also boasted that his plan would be “the largest Attack on US soil since 9/11,” the filing said.Mr. Khan was taken into custody by Canadian authorities on Wednesday after trying to enter the United States from Ormstown about 12 miles north of the New York State border. He changed vehicles three times en route to the border, perhaps to evade detection, prosecutors said.The complaint, filed in the Southern District of New York, also mentions an unnamed associate, but it was unclear whether that person was in custody, at large or an informant.Mr. Khan is charged with one count of attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, ISIS, and faces up to 20 years in prison.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Twenty-five people connected to the home, in Albany, N.Y., have been hospitalized amid the outbreak, officials said.Three people who tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease have died amid an outbreak at an assisted living home in Albany, N.Y., that sickened at least seven others, officials said on Friday.The deaths came amid what Maribeth Miller, the interim Albany County health commissioner, described in an email as a “cluster” of Legionnaires’ cases at the Peregrine Senior Living at Shaker home that officials had learned of on Aug. 30.Water samples from the home showed the presence of Legionella bacteria, which causes the disease, Ms. Miller wrote. She said the county Health Department had placed certain restrictions on water use at the home, one of 11 that Peregrine operates in New York and Maryland, while more tests were conducted. Water filters have been installed on some showers and sinks so that residents can still use bathrooms, she added.“There is no threat to the community at large,” Ms. Miller wrote.Kristyn Ganim, the home’s executive director, said employees had been working with health officials to address the outbreak. In addition to installing filters across the water treatment system, she said, staff members were providing residents with bottled water.“I want to reassure all of our residents, staff and visitors that our community is completely safe,” she said in a statement.Legionella bacteria occurs naturally in water, and people typically contract Legionnaires’ disease by inhaling mists or water vapor containing the bacteria, according to the state Health Department. The bacteria can grow in poorly maintained industrial water systems; cooling towers; or heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

Jill Biden, Anna Wintour and top American designers participated in a voting awareness march at the onset of New York Fashion Week.Morning rush hour in Midtown Manhattan slowed to a halt on Friday as nearly 1,000 fashion-industry professionals walked up Broadway in a march meant to urge people to vote on Election Day in November.The march, held at the onset of New York Fashion Week, was organized by a group that included the Council of Fashion Designers of America; I Am a Voter, an organization that promotes civic engagement; and Vogue. The event was billed as bipartisan, but an appearance by Jill Biden, the first lady, and a Harris-Walz campaign scarf worn discreetly by Anna Wintour, the editor of Vogue, were among the signs of an underlying Democratic tilt.The march started outside the Macy’s store in Herald Square, where designers, including Tory Burch, Brandon Blackwood, Joseph Altuzarra and Proenza Schouler’s Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hr4ernandez gathered with fashion editors and garment industry workers before the crowd walked roughly six blocks to Bryant Park, chanting “V-O-T-E, vote, vote, vote” along the way.Anna Wintour of Vogue with the designer Thom Browne. On Ms. Wintour’s bag is a scarf Mr. Browne designed in partnership with the Harris-Walz campaign.Todd Heisler/The New York TimesMost marchers wore Old Navy T-shirts that said “Fashion for our future” and were designed by Zac Posen, right, the brand’s chief creative officer.Todd Heisler/The New York TimesThe designer Prabal Gurung marched with the group from Herald Square to Bryant Park.Todd Heisler/The New York TimesMost participants were uniformly dressed in Old Navy T-shirts designed by Zac Posen, the brand’s recently appointed chief creative officer, which were emblazoned with the slogan “Fashion for our future.” In a manner particular to fashion activism, the T-shirts were styled in myriad ways: tucked into pleated slacks, layered over slip dresses, knotted into crop tops.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More