Joe Biden wipes away tears during key speech, special Qantas supermoon moment: Australia news live

Plus a winter heat record could be broken this week.

Yahoo's live news blog for Tuesday, August 20 has now concluded.

We started with the news Australia’s triple Olympic medal winner Matt Richardson is to join the Great Britain Cycling Team programme after changing nationality. Read more here.

Joe Biden has wiped away tears as he addressed the Democratic National Convention, offering a recap of his successes and reiterating his unwavering support for Kamala Harris ahead of the US election.

Three of Australia's Big Four banks have adjusted their term deposit rates in a move that some believe indicates the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) could cut interest rates this year.

LIVE COVERAGE IS OVER16 updates
  • Australia continues defence push as China's influence grows

    Australia and Indonesia have agreed to a major defence pact that will boost co-operation between the two countries, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced.

    It comes as Labor, who have pledged billions on defence spending, continues its push to strengthen ties with countries across the region as a counter measure to China's growing influence in the Indo-Pacific.

    Read more here.

  • Biden heaps praise on Kamala Harris

    Biden repeatedly praised presidential candidate Kamala Harris in his speech Monday at the DNC.

    "Selecting Kamala [to be vice presidential nominee in 2020] was the very first decision I made... when I became our nominee," Biden said, "And it was the best decision I made in my whole career."

    "She's tough," he continued, "She's experienced and she has enormous integrity."

  • Biden triggers laughs with remark about his age

    Biden offered an honest reflection of his career, even prompting laughs from the crowd when addressing his heavily-scrutinised age.

    "I made a lot of mistakes in my career but I gave my best to you. For fifty years, like many of you, I gave my heart and soul to our nation and I've been blessed a million times returned with the support of the American people," he said towards the end of his speech.

    "I've been too young to be in the Senate because I wasn't 30 yet, and too old to stay as president, but I hope you know how grateful I am to all of you.

    "I can honestly say Im more optimistic about the future than I was when I was elected as a 29-year-old United States Senator, I mean it."

  • Biden emotional during keynote speech

    US President Joe Biden has delivered a passionate keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention, which began with the 81-year-old fighting back tears after he was introduced by his daughter Ashley Biden, and at one point was forced to wipe his eyes with a tissue.

    "I'll tell you what," Biden said. "To my dearest daughter Ashley, God love you, you're incredible."

    He was cheered on by a raucous crowd in Chicago who repeatedly chanted: "We love Joe!"

    In his speech, President Biden said he ran against Donald Trump in 2020 in order to save democracy.

    "I stand before you now on this August night to report that democracy has prevailed," Biden said. "Democracy has delivered. And now democracy must be preserved."

    US President Joe BIden was teary-eyed as he began his speech at the Democratic National Convention. Source: ABC
    US President Joe BIden was teary-eyed as he began his speech at the Democratic National Convention. Source: ABC
  • Man fined over 'disturbing' kangaroo culling

    A man has been convicted and fined $80,000 after he admitted guilty of causing after he admitted to causing or likely causing the pain, suffering, and death of 71 eastern grey kangaroos, including two joeys, on his northern Victorian property.

    While the man had a permit to humanely kill kangaroos on his property, he hired the services of shooters who used inhumane methods, leaving many of the kangaroos to endure long and painful deaths, the Department of Energy, Environment, and Climate Action said.

    “The level of animal cruelty and unlawful shooting was disturbing for our officers to find and investigate. This conviction should serve as a reminder to the community that cruelty to native wildlife is always illegal and unacceptable, and we will pursue penalties for offenders," Hume Regional Manager Greg Chant said.

  • Hillary Clinton turns tables on Donald Trump eight years on

    The Democratic National Convention is well underway in the US and campaign history has come full circle.

    During former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton's speech on Monday, she went after her formal rival Donald Trump, noting that he had fallen asleep at his own criminal trial before being convicted of 34 felony counts.

    Clinton's remarks elicited an eerily familiar chant from her audience: "Lock him up!" At one point Clinton paused, and nodded along with the chants while smiling.

    Back in 2016, Trump spent much of the presidential campaign portraying Clinton as a lawbreaker and relished when his audience regularly chanted "Lock her up!"

    For live coverage of the Democratic National Convention, click here.

    Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during the Democratic National Convention Monday, Aug. 19, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
    Clinton gave a passionate speech on Monday. Source: AP
  • Mum's desperate attempt to save baby as superyacht sinks

    A mother has recalled the terrifying moment she kept her one-year-old daughter alive in the sea after tech billionaire Mike Lynch’s yacht sank off the coast of Sicily.

    Charlotte Golunski, 38, a senior associate at Invoke, Lynch’s venture capital firm, fought to prevent her child, Sofia, from drowning when the superyacht sank early on Sunday morning after being hit by a tornado.

    As the screams of passengers and crew broke out all around her as they were thrown into the water, Golunksi kept her grip on her baby to stop her from slipping beneath the waves.

    Golunksi, along with her daughter, were taken to Cristina’s paediatric hospital in Palermo.

    Charlotte Golunski saved her baby in a terrifying ordeal. Source: The Telegraph
    Charlotte Golunski saved her baby in a terrifying ordeal. Source: The Telegraph

    “I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning," she told La Republicca, the Italian newspaper.

    “It was all dark. In the water I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others.

    “For two seconds I lost the baby in the sea, then I immediately held her again in the fury of the waves. I held her tightly, tightly to me, while the sea was raging. So many were screaming. Fortunately, the lifeboat inflated and 11 of us managed to get on it," Golunski told Giornale Di Sicilia.

    One person has died while Lynch is one of six people who remain missing.

    Read more here.

  • Man and son vanish on fishing trip

    A desperate search is underway for a father and son who failed to return home after a day of fishing near Kiama.

    Police received reports of a concern for welfare for a 47-year-old father and his 17-year-old son about 3am on Tuesday after they failed to return to their southwestern Sydney home.

    The pair were out fishing in Storm Bay south of the Kiama Harbour off the NSW coast.

    Officers from Lake Illawarra Police District, Marine Area Command, Police Divers, Rescue and Bomb Disposal Unit, PolAir, Marine Rescue, SES, and Surf Life Saving NSW are all involved in the search for the two fisherman.

    Police have urged anyone with information to come forward and will be addressing the media on Tuesday morning.

    - NCA NewsWire

  • Special Qantas supermoon photo

    How's this for a photo of last night's supermoon?

    Taken in Sydney's Cronulla by photographer David, he managed to capture a Qantas plane passing above.

  • One state hoping for Powerball shift

    We're a couple of days out from another $100 million Powerball draw and those in Victoria will be hoping for a change of fortune for the state.

    Despite being the country's second most populous state, Victoria has only one of this year's 11 Division One Powerball winners.

    For NSW and Queensland, however, they have five and four winners respectively.

    South Australia has the remaining winner.

  • Staggering number of Aussies struggling to eat

    It has been a tough year for many Australians as the cost-of-living crisis continues to punish those struggling financially.

    And while the true extent of the pain is hard to quantify, according to atWork Australia, there are 3.7 million households in Australia struggling to put food on the table this year.

    "The cost-of-living crisis is pushing so many people to the edge. Our charities are telling us that people from all corners of the community are seeking help, many for the first time. If you are in need of food relief, please know you are not alone," Julia Gove of food charity OzHarvest said.

  • Caravan stolen while entire Aussie family slept inside

    A caravan with an entire family still inside was stolen on Monday in a scary after-dark ordeal that has police searching for answers.

    Officers say at about 9.10pm the Queensland family noticed their caravan was moving while they were inside it at a campground in Hughenden, a rural town in the Flinders Shire, northwest of Mackay.

    Reports suggest the children were asleep in the caravan at the time of the terrifying robbery.

    The family, comprising of a man, woman and their three children aged between six and 12, were able to free themselves as it was driven off by the offender. The keys to the car were believed to have been stolen from the caravan park earlier that afternoon.

    Both the car and the caravan were later located and recovered by officers. A Queensland Police spokeswoman confirmed to Yahoo on Tuesday morning that so far no arrests have been made.

    As investigations continue, anyone with information about the incident has been urged to make themselves known to authorities.

  • Is it right to shift countries in sport?

    Let's get your thoughts on Matt Richardson's surprise move to quit the Australian cycling set up to represent Great Britain instead.

    Richardson, who won three medals at the Paris Olympics, was born in the UK and moved to Australia when he was nine, 16 years ago.

    Changing international allegiances can be controversial in sport and there are some rules to prevent athletes moving around.

    For example, in international soccer a player cannot change to an eligible country if they have already played a competitive fixture for one country. However if they've only played in friendly fixtures, they still can just like Arsenal star Declan Rice did when he moved from Ireland to England.

    So if you've gone to the Olympics with one country, do you think you should be allowed to go with another? Have your say below.

  • Winter heat records could fall this week

    A strong high-pressure system is set to bring in a wave of warm weather for Central Australia – and could mean Alice Springs records its highest ever August temperature.

    “From today until at least the end of the weekend, an unusually warm air mass over Central Australia is leading to a rare and potentially record-breaking warm spell. Daytime and night-time temperatures will be significantly warmer than usual," Sky News meteorologist Alison Osborne said.

    “Current forecast is for seven days in a row to hit or exceed 30C – which would be the equal longest run for any August since 2009.”

    Ms Osborne added that highs of 35C – 12C above average – in Alice Springs were tipped for Friday and Saturday.

    The town’s previous warmest August day is 35.2C in 2009.

    - With NCA NewsWire

  • Hope for Aussies struggling with their mortgage

    Is good news on the horizon for Australian homeowners?

    Well three of Australia's Big Four banks have made a decision that some believe indicates the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) could cut interest rates this year. While RBA governor Michele Bullock warned Aussie homeowners not to expect any mortgage relief for the remainder of 2024, Commonwealth Bank (CBA), ANZ and NAB's movements suggest otherwise.

    CBA has slashed its rates on all but one of its term deposit periods, with the 12-month rate falling by 60 basis points. NAB and ANZ have now followed this week, raising eyebrows that the RBA could be poised for a rate cut by December.

    Read more over at Yahoo Finance here.

  • Aussie star makes 'disappointing' switch to Team GB

    After winning three medals racing for Australia at the Paris Olympics, track cyclist Matt Richardson is switching teams eight days later to ride for Britain.

    Richardson’s unexpected change of eligibility to the country of his birth was approved by the International Cycling Union, the Australian cycling federation said Monday.

    “The announcement of Matt’s switch is disappointing and came as a surprise,” the federation’s performance manager, Jesse Korf, said in a statement.

    Matt Richardson's move came as a surprise to the Australian side. Source: AP
    Matt Richardson's move came as a surprise to the Australian side. Source: AP

    The 25-year-old Richardson won his third medal in the Olympic velodrome — a silver in men’s keirin — on August 11 just hours before the closing ceremony.

    He also won a silver in sprint and a bronze in team sprint, and is a five-time world championships medalist for Australia. He moved there at the age of nine, the Australia cycling body said.

    - AP

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