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Page 1: AGAINST THE VIRUS APPEARS TO WORK ANOTHER VACCINE

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BRUSSELS — When EuropeanUnion leaders announced a land-mark stimulus package to rescuetheir economies from the ravagesof the coronavirus, they agreed tojointly raise hundreds of billions ofdollars to use as aid — a bold andwidely welcomed leap in collabo-ration never attempted in thebloc’s history.

But that unity was shattered onMonday when Hungary and Po-land blocked the stimulus planand the broader budget, crackingopen one of the bloc’s most per-sistent, existential divisions overwhat a European Union democra-

cy looks like.The two eastern European

countries said they would veto thespending bill because the fundingwas made conditional on uphold-ing rule-of-law standards, such asan independent judiciary, whichthe two governments have weak-ened as they defiantly tear downseparation of powers at home.

Their veto has thrown a signa-ture achievement of the bloc into

Hungary and Poland Block E.U. Stimulus PlanBy MATINA STEVIS-GRIDNEFF

and BENJAMIN NOVAKForcing a Battle Over

Democratic Values

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The proposition seemed tailor-made for one of the nation’s mostdiverse and liberal states. Califor-nia officials asked voters to over-turn a 24-year-old ban on affirma-tive action in education, employ-ment and contracting.

The state political and culturalestablishment worked as one topass this ballot measure. The gov-ernor, a senator, members of Con-

gress, university presidents andcivil rights leaders called it arighting of old wrongs.

“Women and people of color arestill at a sharp disadvantage by al-most every measure,” The LosAngeles Times wrote in an editori-

al endorsement.Yet on Election Day, the propo-

sition failed by a wide margin, 57percent to 43 percent, and Latinoand Asian-American votersplayed a key role in defeating it.The outcome captured the gap be-tween the vision laid out by the lib-eral establishment in California,which has long imagined the cre-ation of a multiracial, multiethniccoalition that would embrace pro-

Election Jars Liberals’ Vision of Multiracial BlocBy MICHAEL POWELL Diverse Ethnic Groups

Split Sharply at Polls

Continued on Page A19

ARIANA DREHSLER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Waiting to be fitted for running shoes at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego. Page A16.Masked Up and Ready to Serve

Double-decker sightseeingbuses carried fewer than 10 pas-sengers on runs around Manhat-tan on Monday. Big ferries arrivedat the Statue of Liberty with theirlower decks nearly empty. Someof the city’s largest hotels had fewguests, while others were housinghomeless men who had beencleared out of shelters to curb thespread of the virus.

The pandemic triggered a free-fall in tourism to New York City,one of the world’s most populardestinations. A new forecast pre-dicts that the influx of tourists willnot fully rebound for at least fouryears, a somber assessment thatreflects one of the biggest chal-lenges to the city’s recovery.

The surge in tourism in recentyears has been a vital pillar of the

city’s economy, supporting hun-dreds of thousands of workersacross a range of industries, fromhotels to restaurants to Broadway.

New York drew a record 66.6million visitors in 2019 and was onpace for even more this year, ac-cording to the forecast released onMonday by the city’s tourism pro-motion agency, NYC & Company.Now the city is likely to reach justone-third of last year’s total.

The collapse of tourism hasbeen a key reason that New York’seconomy has been hit harder thanmost other major American cities.Hundreds of restaurants, many ofwhich rely on out-of-town visitors,and several large hotels haveclosed for good. Before the shut-

Tourists May Love New York,But May Not Be Back for Years

By PATRICK McGEEHAN

Continued on Page A6

The drugmaker Moderna an-nounced on Monday that its co-ronavirus vaccine was 94.5 per-cent effective, joining Pfizer as afront-runner in the global race tocontain a raging pandemic thathas killed 1.2 million people world-wide.

Both companies plan to applywithin weeks to the Food andDrug Administration for emer-gency authorization to begin vac-cinating the public. Officials saidthe two companies could produceenough vaccine for a little morethan 20 million people in theUnited States by sometime in De-cember, with the first doses goingto people with the highest risk,like health care workers, emer-gency medical workers and frailresidents of nursing homes.

But a vaccine that would bewidely available to the public isstill months away, while the needfor one is becoming increasinglyurgent.

The pandemic has infectedmore than 53 million peoplearound the world so far. U.S. casesare soaring, setting records everyday. There have been more than 11million cases and 246,000 deaths.Covid-19 is killing more than 1,100Americans a day, and the last mil-lion cases occurred in just sixdays.

Some states and cities are re-instating lockdowns, restrictinggatherings, issuing mask man-dates, setting curfews for barsand restaurants, and closingschools once again. Hospitals insome areas are overwhelmed,scrambling to find enough bedsfor the severely ill. Major grocerychains like Kroger and Wegmanshave begun reimposing limits onpurchases of household supplieslike paper towels and tissues.

Despite those sobering meas-ures, the stock market rallied on

Monday, fueled by Moderna’snews. But businesses and othersbraced for what could be a bleakholiday season with Covid’s gripon the nation’s citizens and itseconomy.

Public health officials greetedModerna’s news with a modicumof excitement, especially whenviewed alongside the data re-leased last week by Pfizer, which,in collaboration with BioNTech,reported that its vaccine wasmore than 90 percent effective.The two companies were the firstto announce interim data fromlarge studies. Ten other vaccinemakers are also conducting bigPhase 3 trials, including efforts inAustralia, Britain, China, Indiaand Russia. More than 50 othercandidates are in earlier stages oftesting.

The Pfizer and Moderna vac-cines far exceeded the Food andDrug Administration’s require-ment that coronavirus vaccinesbe at least 50 percent effective toreceive approval.

Moderna also reported on Mon-day that its vaccine had a longer

ANOTHER VACCINEAPPEARS TO WORKAGAINST THE VIRUS

Early Data From Moderna Suggests ItsInoculations Are 94.5% Effective

By DENISE GRADY

Moderna’s vaccine is stored atminus 4 degrees Fahrenheit.

MODERNA INC., VIA REUTERS

Continued on Page A5

WASHINGTON — PresidentTrump asked senior advisers in anOval Office meeting on Thursdaywhether he had options to take ac-tion against Iran’s main nuclearsite in the coming weeks. Themeeting occurred a day after in-ternational inspectors reported asignificant increase in the coun-try’s stockpile of nuclear material,four current and former U.S. offi-cials said on Monday.

A range of senior advisers dis-suaded the president from movingahead with a military strike. Theadvisers — including Vice Presi-dent Mike Pence; Secretary ofState Mike Pompeo; ChristopherC. Miller, the acting defense secre-tary; and Gen. Mark A. Milley, thechairman of the Joint Chiefs ofStaff — warned that a strikeagainst Iran’s facilities could easi-ly escalate into a broader conflictin the last weeks of Mr. Trump’spresidency.

Any strike — whether by mis-sile or cyber — would almost cer-tainly be focused on Natanz,where the International AtomicEnergy Agency reported onWednesday that Iran’s uraniumstockpile was now 12 times largerthan permitted under the nuclearaccord that Mr. Trump abandonedin 2018. The agency also notedthat Iran had not allowed it accessto another suspected site wherethere was evidence of past nucle-ar activity.

Mr. Trump asked his top na-tional security aides what optionswere available and how to re-spond, officials said.

After Mr. Pompeo and GeneralMilley described the potential

Trump Is SaidTo Have TalkedOf Iran Attack

This article is by Eric Schmitt,Maggie Haberman, David E. Sang-er, Helene Cooper and Lara Jakes.

Continued on Page A14

WILMINGTON, Del. — Presi-dent-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. onMonday sharpened his criticismof President Trump’s refusal to co-operate in an orderly transition,warning that “more people maydie” from the coronavirus if thepresident does not agree to co-ordinate planning for the massdistribution of a vaccine when itbecomes available.

It was a marked shift in tone forthe president-elect, intended topressure Mr. Trump after Mr. Bi-den and his team had played downthe difficulty of setting up a newgovernment without the depart-ing administration’s help. Thenew criticism came as the White

House national security adviserall but conceded that Mr. Bidenwould be inaugurated and ac-knowledged the importance of asmooth federal handoff.

“The vaccine is important. Butit’s of no use until you’re vacci-nated,” Mr. Biden said, pledging towork with Republicans to defeatthe virus and spur an economic re-vival when he takes office. But hesaid the logistics of distributingvaccines to hundreds of millions ofAmericans were a vast challenge.

“It’s a huge, huge, huge undertak-ing,” he said.

“If we have to wait until Jan. 20to start that planning, it puts usbehind,” Mr. Biden said. “Morepeople may die if we don’t coordi-nate.”

Over the weekend, the presi-dent again refused to acknowl-edge Mr. Biden’s victory and onMonday morning tweeted, “I wonthe Election!” Without a conces-sion from Mr. Trump, the officialtransition remains frozen — andcould stay that way for months.

Mr. Biden made his commentsat a news conference after he andVice President-elect Kamala Har-ris had discussed reviving theeconomy at a virtual meeting withbusiness and labor leaders, in-cluding Mary Barra, the chief ex-

Transition Delay Could Cost Lives, Biden Warns

Shift in Tone as TrumpRefuses to Help Plan

Vaccine Deliveries

Continued on Page A14

President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris discussed the coronavirus and the economy on Monday.RUTH FREMSON/THE NEW YORK TIMES

By MICHAEL CROWLEYand MICHAEL D. SHEAR

Some scientists say that the predatorsare essential to curbing the deadlyspread of chronic wasting disease be-cause they pick off weak deer. PAGE D1

SCIENCE TIMES D1-8

Wolves as a Line of DefenseThe film academy once scoffed at Deb-bie Reynolds’s fabled Hollywood cos-tume collection, but not now. PAGE C1

ARTS C1-6

The Stuff of Movie MagicThe White House is making a late pushto allow drilling in the Arctic NationalWildlife Refuge in Alaska. PAGE A12

NATIONAL A12-19

U.S. to Sell Oil Rights in Arctic

The president is pushing to reduce thenumber of American forces in Afghani-stan, Iraq and Somalia. PAGE A13

Trump Plans Troop WithdrawalSteve Martin teamed up with the illus-trator Harry Bliss for a cartoon book, “A Wealth of Pigeons.” PAGE C1

A Star’s New Comic Turn

A raft of lawsuits has emerged from ahealth care system where the struggleto fight the pandemic has led to neglectof other serious conditions. PAGE A4

TRACKING AN OUTBREAK A4-8

Undiagnosed Cancers in SpainThe American icon saw promise in theworld’s largest market for two-wheel-ers. But not many consumers couldafford them. PAGE B1

BUSINESS B1-7

Harley-Davidson Quits India

President Jair Bolsonaro’s cavalierhandling of the pandemic drew outrage,but his popularity has grown. PAGE A9

INTERNATIONAL A9-11

Brazil Rallies Around LeaderThe 2021 N.C.A.A. men’s basketballtournament will be held in only one city,probably Indianapolis, out of concernabout the coronavirus. PAGE B9

SPORTSTUESDAY B8-10

One-Stop March Madness

Francisco Sagasti’s appointment isunlikely to quell ire at Congress, whichmany blame for political strife. PAGE A11

Peru Picks 3rd Leader in Week

Paul Krugman PAGE A22

EDITORIAL, OP-ED A22-23

VOL. CLXX . . . No. 58,880 © 2020 The New York Times Company TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2020 Printed in Chicago $3.00

Chilly. Mostly sunny. Highs from theupper 30s to the mid-40s. Clear late.Lows in the 20s. Sunny tomorrow.Windy. Highs in the 40s to the lower50s. Weather map is on Page A18.

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