Friday, Oct 4, 2019 | View in browser

Good morning.

We’re covering President Trump’s public request for China to investigate Joe Biden, the N.B.A.’s mission in India and the winding journey of a stolen crown from Ethiopia.

By Alisha Haridasani Gupta

Trump asks China to investigate his opponent

President Trump on Thursday openly called on China to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, an extraordinary request that mirrored the one he made privately to the Ukrainian president, which is at the center of his impeachment inquiry.

Critics argue that these requests, which seek foreign assistance in discrediting a potential opponent in the 2020 election, are an abuse of presidential power. By asking so publicly, Mr. Trump seems determined to push back against those charges.

Details: Mr. Trump was specifically referring to a business deal between Mr. Biden’s son Hunter and a fund that involved the state-owned Bank of China. The fund was announced in 2013, days after Hunter Biden had flown to China with his father, who as vice president was in the midst of a diplomatic mission.

A lawyer for Hunter Biden has said that he did not conduct any business related to the investment fund on that trip, and that he was not an equity owner in the fund while his father was vice president.

The inquiry process: House investigators on Thursday interviewed their first witness in the growing impeachment inquiry: Kurt Volker, the State Department’s special envoy for Ukraine, who was named in the whistle-blower’s complaint.

Protesters in Hong Kong hiding behind umbrellas on Tuesday. Adam Dean for The New York Times

Hong Kong’s fight against China’s surveillance state

One growing concern in Hong Kong is that the city will fall under the shadow of China’s technological authoritarianism, which leverages broad surveillance, digital censorship and artificial intelligence to tighten the Communist Party’s control.

Those worries are now playing out on the streets: Protesters have used umbrellas to hide from cameras, abandoned Chinese messaging apps, and even pulled down a camera-equipped lamppost out of fear that it was running surveillance software.

Separately: Europe’s top court ruled that an individual country can order Facebook to take down posts, photographs and videos around the world.

And the U.S. attorney general, William Barr, is expected to press the company to allow investigators access to its encrypted messaging service WhatsApp.

A tip for Google users: The search giant recently introduced settings to auto-delete search and location history, and is rolling out private modes for YouTube and Google Maps. Here’s how to make the most of those tools.

If you have time this weekend, this is worth it

The N.B.A.’s quest for an Indian star

George Georgiou for The New York Times

The world’s biggest basketball league, already wildly popular in China, is trying to tap into India’s billion-dollar market. It has set up youth camps and academies, and this month Mumbai will host the country’s first preseason game.

But it still has one big hurdle to overcome: persuading a country where cricket is a near-religious obsession to fall in love with the American export.

Here’s what else is happening

Paris: A veteran police employee attacked his colleagues with a knife inside the city’s heavily guarded Police Headquarters on Thursday, killing four people before being shot dead. His motive is still unclear, but the attack came a day after a mass demonstration by police officers over bad working conditions and a lack of public respect.

Pakistan: The bodies of four children were found in recent weeks in the eastern district of Kasur, an area with a dark history of child sexual abuse. The police said Thursday that a man had been arrested and confessed to the killings.

Brexit: British lawmakers have rallied around Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s proposed plan for withdrawing the country from the E.U. But he still faces steep skepticism from European officials, raising concerns that negotiations were headed for another deadlock.

E.U. trade: The Trump administration will impose a 25 percent tariff on a range of European imports to the U.S., including French wine and Italian cheeses, starting on Oct. 18, a move that broadens the president’s global trade tensions.

Herman Wouters for The New York Times

Snapshot: Above, a looted Ethiopian crown that a Dutch civil servant, Sirak Asfaw (also pictured), found in the suitcase of a guest who was staying at his house in 1998. He held onto it for decades, out of fear of what might happen if it were returned to Ethiopia. But after the country installed a new prime minister last year, he decided that it was time to return the crown.

Stay-at-home parents: Several Democratic presidential candidates are proposing paying parents who do the housework and child care through monthly checks or tax credits — an idea that has been gaining support from both the left and the right.

Love Letter: The Times is starting a newsletter dedicated to real stories that examine the highs, lows and woes of relationships. Sign up here.

What we’re reading: The poet and essayist Patricia Lockwood on the work of John Updike, in The London Review of Books. “If somehow you got through yesterday without reading this,” writes Bill Wasik, deputy editor of The Times Magazine, “you MUST read it right now.”

Now, a break from the news

Romulo Yanes for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Vivian Lui.

Cook: A gooey cider glaze makes cinnamon apple quick bread stand out.

Watch: In “Judy,” Renée Zellweger plays several versions of Judy Garland: worried mother, needy lover, disaster, legend. Here’s our review.

Read: Demi Moore’s memoir “Inside Out” debuts at the top of our hardcover nonfiction and combined print and e-book nonfiction best-seller lists.

Go: Whether your flights are already booked or you’re just considering it, we have tips about attending next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Smarter Living: Washing clothes can be surprisingly bad for the environment. But our Climate Fwd: newsletter has some tips on how your laundry can be more eco-friendly: Use the cold setting whenever you can, since about 90 percent of a washing machine’s energy goes toward heating water, and take advantage of your dryer’s high-speed spin cycle.

“Productivity hacks” only work if you already have a certain level of privilege. For those who don’t — including many people of color and women — here is some specific advice on getting ahead in your career.

And now for the Back Story on …

Rugby

New Zealand, England, France and Wales are among the undefeated teams in contention to win the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan, which runs till Nov. 2. (Japan’s team is doing surprisingly well.)

A version of the game has been around for centuries. The ball was originally made of skins and/or animal bladders, and players kicked and passed it.

A statue of William Webb Ellis at Rugby School in Warwickshire, England. Andrew Testa for The New York Times

The Romans had harpastum, and as far back as the 14th century, Celts played caid (pronounced, roughly, cahjch). That is believed to have evolved into Gaelic football and Australian Rules football, also quite similar to rugby.

As for the modern game, legend has it that in 1823, William Webb Ellis, a student at Rugby School in Warwickshire, England, became the first to run the ball in his arms during a match. Though some dispute that, the World Cup trophy is named after him.

History is, however, clear on this: His school wrote rules for the game in 1845, permanently lending the name Rugby to what is now one of the world’s most popular sports.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.

— Alisha

Thank you
To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. Wadzanai Mhute wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.
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