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Happening Today: Hurricane Florence, Woodward, Organ Donation, Ariana Grande, Olivia Munn

What to Know

  • With mandatory evacuations already issued for parts of three East Coast states, millions of Americans are preparing for Hurricane Florence
  • Living donors make up a fraction of transplants, and their numbers have plateaued amid barriers that can block willing people from giving
  • Ariana Grande took to social media to post a black and white photo of her ex Mac Miller, who died after an apparent drug overdose

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Millions Prepare for Potentially Catastrophic Hurricane Florence

With mandatory evacuations already issued for parts of three East Coast states, millions of Americans are preparing for what could become one of the most catastrophic hurricanes to hit the Eastern Seaboard in decades. Carrying winds of up to 140 mph as a Category 4 storm, Hurricane Florence is expected to strengthen and become a Category 5 storm later on. It's then forecast to close in on North or South Carolina on Thursday, hitting a stretch of coastline that's vulnerable to rising sea levels due to climate change. South Carolina's governor ordered the state's entire coastline to be evacuated and predicted 1 million people would flee. And Virginia's governor ordered a mandatory evacuation for some residents of low-lying coastal areas, while some coastal counties in North Carolina have done the same.

Trump Vents Over Leaks as Woodward Pushes Back on Criticism

President Trump vented over White House leaks as a new tell-all book commands attention, an anonymous writer detailing "resistance" in the administration remains at large and a former staffer reveals more private recordings of the commander in chief. But while Trump continues to insist privately that he wants leakers punished — in particular, the author of an unsigned New York Times opinion piece — it remained unclear if his administration would mete out any discipline. Spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said no lie detectors were being used to smoke out the writer of the op-ed, though she insisted the West Wing would like to see an investigation. A White House official has said Trump was just venting over the essay and wasn't ordering federal prosecutors to take action. It also doesn't appear that the essay revealed any classified information, which would be a crucial bar to clear before a leak investigation could be considered. The Justice Department said it will not confirm or deny investigations.

Doctors Explore Lifting Barriers to Living Organ Donation

Surgeons turned down Terra Goudge for the liver transplant that was her only shot at surviving a rare cancer. Her tumor was too advanced, they said — even though Goudge had a friend ready to donate, no matter those odds. People lucky enough to receive a kidney or part of a liver from a living donor not only cut years off their wait for a transplant, but those organs also tend to survive longer. Yet living donors make up a fraction of transplants, and their numbers have plateaued amid barriers that can block otherwise willing people from giving. Among them: varying hospital policies on who qualifies and the surprising financial costs that some donors bear. Now researchers are exploring ways to lift those barriers and ease the nation's organ shortage. Thousands of people die each year waiting for an organ transplant.

Ariana Grande Makes 1st Public Statement Following Death of Ex

Sometimes a single image can speak volumes. Ariana Grande took to social media over the weekend to post a black and white photo of her ex Mac Miller, who died after an apparent drug overdose. The Pittsburgh native, whose real name is Malcolm McCormick, was 26 years old. In the photo, Miller looks up at the camera while sitting on the grass. It's unknown if Grande took the photograph. Grande shared the image without a caption and disabled the comments section. Over the weekend the singer was trolled on social media after some blamed her for Miller's death following their breakup in May. When announcing their breakup, Grande had previously said that Miller was "one of my best friends in the whole world and favorite people on the planet.”

Olivia Munn Finds Little Support From Peers After Outing Sex Offender

Actress Olivia Munn says she has found little support from some of her "Predator" co-stars and director after a Los Angeles Times report revealedTwentieth Century Fox had removed a scene that featured a man who is a registered sex offender. Munn alerted the studio to Steven Wilder Striegel's status and the scene was cut within 24 hours. In a round of press at the Toronto International Film Festival, Munn described feeling lonely and isolated in the wake of the report. Munn told Vanity Fair that she has not heard from director Shane Black, who apologized in a statement for casting his friend. Some of her cast mates also backed out of interviews with her, according to The Hollywood Reporter. One of her co-stars, Keegan-Michael Key, was never booked to do that interview as he departed the festival early for the Jewish new year holiday. His publicist says he reached out to Munn privately last week to express his admiration for her.

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