5 things to know for your New Day – Friday, September 11

The nation pauses to remember one of its darkest days. CNN’s GOP debate is set. And the NFL regular season begins.

It’s Friday, and here are five things to know for your New Day.

SEPTEMBER 11 ANNIVERSARY

Remembering: Almost a decade and a half later, it still hurts. Today marks 14 years since terrorists used airplanes to kill thousands of people in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. This morning the nation, as it has done 13 times before, will stop to remember and honor those who lost their lives in the attacks. Bells will ring. Lists of names will be read. American flags will wave everywhere. And the threat still remains. Just this week, a 20-year-old Florida man was arrested, accused of plotting to attack a 9/11 commemoration event in Kansas City, Missouri.

CAMPAIGN 2016

Politicking: The candidates are set for CNN’s debate next week, which will feature 11 people instead of 10 to account for the rise of Carly Fiorina. But no candidate on the GOP side of things is rising as high as Donald Trump, who surges to 32% support in the latest CNN/ORC poll. Things aren’t quite so rosy for Hillary Clinton. The Democratic frontrunner’s support continues to fade, and she is now at 37% support, only 10 percentage points ahead of Bernie Sanders. Her advantage in hypothetical general election matchups against the top Republican contenders has also vanished.

MIGRANT CRISIS

Resettling: The United States has been criticized for the low numbers of Syrian refugees it has taken in during the current crisis. Now something is being done about it. Yesterday President Obama called for his administration to prepare for at least 10,000 Syrian refugees to be admitted to the United States in the coming year. But that probably won’t be enough. Secretary of State John Kerry reportedly told a group of lawmakers yesterday that “an additional increase beyond that” number would be sought.

JAMES BLAKE

Apologizing: We’re sorry. That’s what New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton said he told former tennis star James Blake yesterday, a day after New York cops slammed him to the ground and handcuffed him in a sting operation gone wrong. It was a case of mistaken identity; Blake wasn’t the man the police were looking for. Bratton said the “incident should not have happened,” race wasn’t a factor and a review would determine if the amount of force used against Blake was appropriate. “It may not have been,” Bratton conceded.

NFL

Playing: Despite Deflategate, Spygate, the “tuck” rule, heck despite even having an entire nation of football fans rooting against them, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots just keep rolling along. Last night, the Pats opened up the 2015 NFL season with an impressive 28-21 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers (and it really wasn’t even that close). Brady lived up to his nickname – Tom Terrific – by being, well, terrific, carving up the Steelers defense for 288 yards and four touchdowns. It was a night only a New England fan could love: the Patriots got to show off their Super Bowl hardware and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell – reviled in those parts after the Deflategate fiasco – stayed home.