After nearly two years of heated debate, scrutiny and litigation, the proposed merger of Kroger and Albertsons is entering a crucial phase. This hurricane season has been unusually quiet in the Atlantic. Tuesday is the deadline for cutting NFL rosters.

🙋🏼‍♀️ I am Nicole Fallert, Author of the Daily Briefing. These dinosaurs have left their mark.

Kroger merger with Albertsons faces important court hearing

Kroger faces regulators this week in U.S. District Court in Portland, Oregon, for a key legal hearing related to its proposed $25 billion acquisition of Albertsons.

The background: Regulators at the Federal Trade Commission have filed suit to stop the merger and asked a federal judge to issue a temporary restraining order to block the deal. The court order would halt the deal while regulators continue to pursue their claim to prevent it.

• Your food bill at the center: After more than a year of investigation, the FTC argued that the merger of two major market competitors would reduce competition and lead to higher prices.

• How does Kroger respond? Kroger promised that the deal would allow the company to lower prices, that store employees would not lose their jobs and that the company would be a stronger competitor to supermarket operator Walmart, online giant Amazon and wholesale warehouse operator Costco, which have become major players in the grocery supply chain.

• Ultimately, Americans are worried about high food prices. It is uncertain whether a merger would solve consumers’ problems, but Kroger promised to invest $1 billion in lowering prices at Albertsons if the merger is approved.

Where are all the hurricanes in the Atlantic?

The 2024 hurricane season isn’t going as predicted — yet. So far this year, including the three storms currently swirling, there have been more storms in the Pacific than in the Atlantic, and that’s a bit of a surprise, meteorologists say. The Atlantic has been eerily quiet over the past week, even though we’re approaching what is traditionally the busiest time of the season. Read more

The most important news from Tuesday

How is the weather today? Check your local weather forecast here.

More than 200 former Bush, McCain and Romney members support Harris

More than 200 Republicans who previously worked for former President George W. Bush, the late Sen. John McCain (R-Arizona) or Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president in an open letter obtained exclusively by USA TODAY on Monday. The Harris campaign has sought to make clear its support among Republicans who oppose Trump, launching a “Republicans for Harris” group this month and lining up Republican speakers at the Democratic National Convention last week. Read more

Will protests related to the war between Israel and Hamas return to universities?

Some college students have spent the summer speaking out and participating in protests alongside members of Congress, most recently at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago and during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s controversial visit to Washington. Although many of them face disciplinary action for their involvement in pro-Palestinian encampments last spring, some say they will not be deterred from protesting in some form when classes resume in the next few weeks. Read more

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Who will be released from the NFL?

All 32 teams are beginning the painful process of trimming their 90-man rosters — those allowed in the offseason — down to the 53-man teams they will carry into the regular season. The deadline for roster adjustment is Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET — meaning a flood of players will be released, traded, placed on the injured list or subjected to other mechanisms while roster lists are finalized (for now). Read more

Photo of the day: Why are spotted lanternflies a problem?

Be prepared to see more of the invasive lanternfly in the coming days and take action.

Nicole Fallert is a newsletter writer for USA TODAY. Sign up for the email newsletter here. Want to send Nicole a message? Email her at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kroger, Albertsons, hurricanes, Harris, Trump, NFL, Taylor Swift: Daily Briefing