Good afternoon! It’s Tuesday, and it looks like summer is effectively over. Here’s what you need to know today. (PS: You can have this delivered to your inbox by subscribing here.)

1. Chicago suffers most violent Labor Day weekend since 2016

At least 51 people were shot — nine fatally — during the holiday weekend, according to the Chicago Tribune. That’s the most violence reported over the Labor Day weekend since 2016, when 63 people were shot and 13 people were killed.

An 8-year-old girl was the youngest person killed. The child was riding in a car that stopped at a red light at 47th and Union. When the light turned green, shots were fired from a Dodge Charger that was behind them, striking the girl and two adults in the back. Police have made no arrests in the shooting. [Chicago Tribune]

The Chicago Tribune reported last month that 24 children younger than 10 years old had been shot this year, five of them fatally. That is three times higher than the same period last year. [Chicago Tribune]

2. Trump considers putting up to $100 million of his own cash into campaign as financial advantage evaporates

Bloomberg News reports that President Donald Trump has discussed putting his own money into the race, news that comes after The New York Times reported the Trump campaign faces a cash crunch with less than two months until the election.

Trump defended his campaign’s financial decisions, saying it had to spend “a lot of money up front in order to compensate for the false reporting and Fake News concerning our handling of the China Virus.” [Bloomberg]

So far, the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee have spent more than $800 million. Critics told the Times that the Trump campaign’s excessive spending appears to have been a waste, as the president continues to trail Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden in several national and swing-state polls.

“If you spend $800 million and you’re 10 points behind, I think you’ve got to answer the question ‘What was the game plan?’” said a veteran Republican strategist. [New York Times]

3. Drugmakers vow to prioritize safety as they search for COVID-19 vaccine

Nine pharmaceutical companies issued a joint pledge today to “stand with science” and not move forward with a potential COVID-19 vaccine unless it has been thoroughly tested.

The unusual pledge comes as President Trump has repeatedly claimed a vaccine could be available before the November election, raising concerns that election-year politics have infiltrated the race to find a vaccine. [NPR]

Meanwhile in Illinois, state officials today reported nearly 1,400 new cases and seven deaths. Illinois faces a weekly average of 2,281 cases per day, according to The New York Times. That’s a 13% increase from the average two weeks ago. You can find more information about Illinois’ numbers in this link. [WBEZ]

In Chicago, officials added Kentucky to the city’s travel quarantine list, which includes more than a third of the nation. [Chicago Sun-Times]

4. Congress returns, but divide remains over rescue package

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced today that his chamber will vote to advance a GOP-backed stimulus plan as soon as this week. The Republican plan, which could cost $500 billion to $700 billion, is significantly scaled down compared to a competing proposal from Democrats, who refuse to consider anything below $2.2 trillion.

The GOP plan would boost unemployment benefits by $300 per week. Democrats, however, want to fully restore a $600 weekly supplement that expired in July. [CNBC]

As the debate over a new stimulus bill shows no signs of slowing down, government funding is scheduled to expire on Oct. 1.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that he and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi reached a tentative agreement to work on a short-term spending bill that would avoid a government shutdown right before the election. [Washington Post]

Meanwhile, the top Democrat and Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee are calling on President Trump to launch an investigation into the alleged poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. [Axios]

5. Chicago students are (remotely) back in class

Chicago Public Schools began the new academic year today with remote-only classes, and the district faces several questions over its plans to educate students from home.

Chalkbeat Chicago created a list of eight substantial questions that remain unanswered, such as whether improvements to the district’s virtual-only plan will result in a better learning experience for students. [Chalkbeat Chicago]

Meanwhile, some families were still scrambling over the weekend to get computers and internet access. And a $50 million plan to provide internet to more than 100,000 Chicago students has so far signed up just about 25,000. [Chicago Tribune]

Here’s what else is happening

A new billboard campaign in Illinois aims to remind the public that abortions are covered under Medicaid in the state. [WBEZ]

More than a million voters in Illinois have requested mail-in ballots. [AP]

A gender reveal stunt sparked a massive wildfire in California, which faces one of its worst wildfire seasons ever. [Buzzfeed]

WTTW Ch. 11 will launch two new programs this weekend that examine issues facing Chicago’s Black and Latino communities. [Chicago Tribune]

Oh, and one more thing …

Hollywood is deciphering the U.S. box office returns of Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, which has been viewed as something of a litmus test for movie studios struggling to find a path forward as the pandemic upended the summer blockbuster season.

The results are mixed. Tenet, a spy thriller that has enjoyed mostly positive reviews, brought in an estimated $20.2 million over its opening weekend. Industry experts believe the film would have made $50 million its opening weekend under normal circumstances.

The results could be interpreted a number of ways. Warner Bros. Pictures Group, which produced Tenet, characterized the film as a “box office success.” But a film research consultant told The New York Times that the U.S. returns are at best “fair” and show that safety concerns about theaters remain a deterrent. [New York Times]

Tell me something good …

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