Texas’ new abortion law, Afghans left behind and residents recall Ida’s night of terror

To ensure delivery to your inbox add email@mail.nbcnews.com to your contacts Today's Top Stories from NBC News WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2021 Good morning, NBC News readers.     Texas' strict new abortion law went into effect overnight, only a small fraction of America's Afghan allies made it out and Louisiana's bayou towns pick up the pieces after Ida.   Here's what we're watching this Wednesday morning.     Strict new Texas abortion law takes effect, clinics already turning away patients Texas' new abortion law went into effect at midnight — despite a last-minute plea by abortion-rights advocates and providers to the Supreme Court to block the measure.    The law, known as S.B. 8, bans abortions in the state as early as six weeks into pregnancy — before many women even know they are pregnant.   Some Texas abortion clinics were already turning patients away even before the stringent new law went into effect. Since mid-August, all 11 of the Planned Parenthood health centers in Texas that provide abortion services had stopped scheduling visits after Sept. 1 for abortions past six weeks of pregnancy.     Abortion-rights advocates say the new law, which is the most restrictive in the country, would prohibit nearly all abortions in the state and force women to travel hundreds of miles out of state for treatment.      They worked with Americans. Now, left behind in Afghanistan, the Taliban are after them.  The Biden administration has touted that more than 120,000 people of all nationalities were evacuated from the Kabul airport as the U.S. military withdrew from Afghanistan.    But initial figures suggest that only about 8,500 of those who left Afghanistan in recent months were Afghans, according to numbers released by the Biden administration and estimates from advocates.   That is just a small percentage of the tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the U.S. government or U.S. organizations and applied for special U.S. visas, and an even smaller percentage of the Afghans eligible to apply.   Now those Afghan allies left behind say they are grappling with fear, anger and outright panic about being left to the whims of the Taliban, a group known for its violent and vengeful tendencies.   "The reward of working with the USA military is this?" asked one Afghan seeking to flee with his family. "Death by the hands of the Taliban?"    President Joe Biden on Tuesday gave a forceful defense of his decision to pull troops from Afghanistan.   "I was not going to extend this forever war, and I was not extending a forever exit," the president said, in his first address since the war ended.   Meantime, the level of coordination between the U.S. and the Taliban went well beyond what Pentagon leaders have stated publicly, three senior U.S. defense officials tell NBC News, and the help may have saved American and Afghan lives. Wednesday's Top Stories In two Louisiana towns hard-hit by Ida, residents recall frenzied exits, a night of terror The storm lashed a pair of towns southwest of New Orleans, leaving locals feeling dazed and rattled. Drone video gives a glimpse of the devastation in Lafourche Parish. In good news, officials say they have made "significant progress" toward restoring power in New Orleans. READ MORE After 17 grueling months on the front lines, why are so many retail and food workers refusing to get vaccinated? "I could see us doing [a vaccine mandate] if people were dying like crazy," said one worker who has resisted calls from his employer to get vaccinated. READ MORE Wealthy GOP donors flock to DeSantis as presidential speculation swirls Florida's governor has become the face of Republican efforts to fight anti-Covid-19 mandates — a position that is winning over some of the Republican Party's wealthiest donors.  READ MORE Also in the News 'All we can do': Firefighters attempt to merge California wildfires in effort to control one 5 missing after Navy helicopter crashes into sea off San Diego Videos capture encounter between Chicago police officer and Black woman walking a dog   Arrest warrant issued for Ohio man accused of confronting NBC's Shaquille Brewster on live TV   Ohio officials investigate if high school football team that played on ESPN is from real school Opinion  THINK  Steve Martin and Selena Gomez's hilarious true crime parody is almost too honest  The show's secret weapon, as in any good comedy, is the pathos behind the jokes, cultural critic Ani Bundel writes in an opinion piece.  READ MORE Shopping 30 dorm room essentials for 2021: A shopping guide by seniors. One Healthy Thing Eating certain foods can add — or subtract — hours from your life, study finds When you think about a healthy diet, do you consider the role the foods you eat play in reducing your risk of disease, their impact on the environment, or both?   A new study published in the journal Nature Food found that choosing a diet that's good for you and the planet is easier than you think — and could add years to your life.   Check out more about the eating philosophy here.  Thanks for reading the Morning Rundown.    Something to keep an eye out for: Tonight on NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, senior national correspondent Kate Snow will reveal the results of a new study from the CDC and the National PTA, which focuses on how parents nationwide are feeling as schools reopen. The reporting is part of NBC News' Kids Under Pressure series, which looks at the toll of the pandemic on student education and mental health.   If you have any comments — likes, dislikes — send me an email at: petra@nbcuni.com   If you're a fan, please forward it to your family and friends. They can sign-up here.    Thanks, Petra Cahill     FOLLOW US     Want to receive NBC Breaking News and Special Alerts in your inbox? SIGN UP HERE Check out all of NBC Newsletters here.     Get the NBC News Mobile App   30 Rockefeller Plaza New York, NY 10112 View in browser | Unsubscribe | Manage Subscription | Contact | Privacy