Start your Monday smart: CNN Heroes, Golden Globe noms, UK election, Nobels, Heisman
Here’s what you need to know to Start Your Week Smart.
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TODAY
• The Miss Universe pageant is on. The crown gets awarded after the competition that starts at 7 p.m. ET on Fox and Telemundo.
• CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute. It’s one of the year’s most inspiring nights. Join us as we honor 10 real-life heroes who are changing their corners of the world and reveal who will be named 2019’s top hero. Watch at 8 ET, only on CNN.
MONDAY
• Watchdog’s report on the Russia probe lands. Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz’s much-anticipated report is expected to drop. Attorney General William Barr reportedly has already said he “disagrees” with findings that the FBI had enough info in 2016 to launch an inquiry into President Trump’s campaign. Horowitz is due to discuss it all Wednesday with the GOP-led Senate Judiciary Committee.
• The House gets back to impeachment business. The Judiciary Committee is set to meet to hear from staff attorneys. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has asked the chamber to proceed with articles of impeachment, with an eye toward a full vote before Christmas.
• The race to the Oscars begins. This week could clue us in to Academy Awards front-runners. First up are the Golden Globe nominations, announced Monday. The Screen Actors Guild announces its nominees Wednesday.
TUESDAY
• Nobel Prizes are awarded. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed receives the peace prize on the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death in Norway, while winners in physics, chemistry, medicine and literature get theirs at a ceremony in Sweden. Every honoree is expected to deliver a speech and adhere to a strict dress code.
WEDNESDAY
• The Presidents Cup tees off. The weeklong biennial men’s golf competition between the US and an international team starts from Australia. Here’s how to watch.
THURSDAY
• Brits go to the polls. Facing another crippling political deadlock, UK voters queue up to decide their future on the world stage. Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for balloting after a series of defeats over his Brexit strategy. European Union leaders, who gave the UK until January 31 to firm up its exit plan, will no doubt watch returns from a conference Thursday and Friday in Belgium.
• Marathon bomber appeals for his life. Attorneys for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev reportedly are due to ask a federal judge to reverse his death sentence or convictions at a hearing in Boston. Tsarnaev’s legal team argues he was denied a fair trial because everyone in the regional jury pool was touched in some way by the 2013 attack.
• 2020 Dems face another debate deadline. Candidates vying to face Trump in November have until Thursday to qualify for the next primary debate a week later. Sen. Cory Booker launched a full-court press to reach the fundraising threshold and join at least six of his fellow Democrats on stage December 19 in Los Angeles.
FRIDAY
• An indicted Rudy Giuliani associate heads to court. Lev Parnas is expected to plead the Fifth and decline to answer questions at a federal hearing about his campaign donations. A judge had said the Soviet-born businessman could be asked about claims he covered up financial transfers to GOP groups. Parnas has described being assigned by Trump “a secret mission” to pressure Ukraine’s government to investigate Joe Biden and his son, according to what Parnas told two confidants.
• On the big screen this weekend. “Jumanji: The Next Level,” the latest installment in the franchise about a dangerous, magical game, hits theaters. Also opening is Clint Eastwood’s drama “Richard Jewell,” about a man wrongly accused in the 1996 Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta.
SATURDAY
• College football honors its most outstanding player. The Heisman Trophy winner is due to be announced during a ceremony starting at 8 p.m. ET. Watch on ESPN.
• The UFC welterweight title is on the line. Defending champ Kamaru Usman faces Colby Covington on Saturday at UFC 245’s main event in Las Vegas. Watch at 10 p.m. ET. on ESPN+.