“The White House responded to Thursday’s second quarter negative GDP growth with a full slate of events and a well coordinated message: Despite what everyone is saying, the U.S. economy is not in a recession,” CNBC reports.
David Leonhardt: “It is not whether the U.S. is in a recession. It’s whether the economy will soon worsen.”
Jared Kushner details his clashes with Steve Bannon in his new book, describing a “toxic” West Wing presence who accused him of “undermining the President’s agenda” and threatened to break him “in half” if Kushner turned on him, CNN reports.
“The detailed account in the memoir – set to be published next month – provides fresh insight into the pernicious environment inside former President Donald Trump’s West Wing. Coming just as the former President gears up for a 2024 campaign, excerpts from the book reveal how viciously the Trump team turned on one another from the earliest days of the administration, and how distrust and resentment affected every aspect of governing.”
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN) said he does not think President Joe Biden should run for reelection in 2024, preferring instead a younger, more “dynamic” Democrat be at the top of the presidential ticket, MinnPost reports.
Said Phillips: “I think the country would be well-served by a new generation of compelling, well-prepared, dynamic Democrats who step up.”
He added: “I think it’s time for a generational change. And I think most of my colleagues agree with that.”
Tim Miller: “During the Trump era I have often been the rain cloud that washes away the luminescent longings of the third-party dreamers, which isn’t a job I enjoy since many are friends or mentors or folks whose courage in the face of Trumpism I deeply admire.”
“But I soldier on anyway. Trying to convince them they are actually Red Dog Democrats. Or explaining why their idea might accidentally bring about a fascism even though they have nice arms and nicer intentions.”
“But given the boom cycle of new parties, clearly that message is not getting through. So today I wanted to offer another exercise.”
A new Fox News poll in Georgia finds Sen. Raphael Warnock (D) leading challenger Herschel Walker (R) by four points, 46% to 42%.
In the gubernatorial race, Gov. Brian Kemp (R) leads challenger Stacey Abrams (D) by three points, 47% to 44%.
“Russian advances in Ukraine have slowed almost to a standstill as newly delivered Western weapons help Ukrainian forces reclaim much of the advantage they had lost in recent months, opening a window of opportunity to turn the tide of the war in their favor again,” the Washington Post reports.
“Russian troops have made no significant territorial gains since the Ukrainian retreat on July 2 from the eastern city of Lysychansk under withering artillery fire.”
“Japan will open an R&D center for next-generation 2-nanometer chips by year-end under a partnership with the U.S., part of their efforts to establish secure chip supply chains amid tensions around industry leader Taiwan,” Nikkei Asia reports.
“The countries plan to research cutting-edge 2-nanometer semiconductors, which offer superior performance while using less power. The research and development center will include a prototype production line, with the goal of start mass-producing the chips domestically as early as 2025.”
A Kansas sheriff said that since last fall his office “has received more than 200 tips from people claiming they were victims of or witnesses to fraudulent activity in local elections,” KCUR reports.
Yet in response to a public records request “the office has produced only one offense report related to any alleged violations of Kansas election laws since 2020.”
The Associated Press has an inside look at how Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) surprised Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) when he suddenly put a new offer for a climate and tax bill on the table.
“Details were slim that Monday afternoon 10 days ago, but the size and scope shocked Schumer’s team and, most importantly, included the commitment to vote by the August recess… The two men shook hands, and agreed to start talking — again.”
“What happened next was a weeklong negotiation, largely out of sight, to produce the $739 billion surprise package now headed for quick votes in Congress.”
The Hill: Inside the secret Manchin-Schumer deal.
Sarah Longwell: “I conducted dozens of focus groups of Trump 2020 voters in the 17 months between the storming of the Capitol on January 6 and when the hearings began in June. One measure was consistent: At least half of the respondents in each group wanted Trump to run again in 2024. The prevailing belief was that the 2020 election was stolen—or at least unfair in some way—and Trump should get another shot.”
“But since June, I’ve observed a shift. I’ve conducted nine focus groups during this period, and found that only 14 percent of Trump 2020 voters wanted him to run in 2024, with a few others on the fence. In four of the groups, zero people wanted Trump to run again. Their reasoning is clear: They’re now uncertain that Trump can win again.”
“Russia has ordered mercenaries to hold sections of the frontline in Ukraine — a sign it is running short of combat infantry as Kyiv steps up a counter-offensive in the south,” Reuters reports.
“Greater reliance on fighters from the Russian private military company Wagner Group for frontline duties rather than their usual work in special operations would be another sign that Russia’s military is under stress six months into its war in Ukraine.”
“Former president Donald Trump was spotted using the presidential seal on multiple items during the LIV Golf tournament at his Bedminster, N.J., golf course,” the Washington Post reports.
“The seal was plastered on towels, golf carts and other items as the former president participated at the pro-am of the Saudi-sponsored tournament Thursday.”
“It is against federal law to use the presidential and vice-presidential seals in ways that could convey ‘a false impression of sponsorship or approval by the Government of the United States.'”
“It’s the ‘most wide-ranging investigation’ in Justice Department history: the unprecedented manhunt for hundreds of rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Donald Trump’s behalf on Jan. 6, 2021, and the criminal inquiry into efforts to stop the peaceful transfer of power,” NBC News reports.
“It’s also a logistical nightmare.
“As cases against Capitol rioters work their way through the court system and a federal grand jury hears testimony about Trump’s role in Jan. 6, some federal officials are raising concerns that it could bring the already stretched investigation of Jan. 6 to a breaking point.”
“Paul Manafort indirectly advised Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign while in home confinement as part of a seven-year sentence for offenses including tax fraud – advice he kept secret as he hoped for a presidential pardon,” The Guardian reports.
Said Manafort: “I didn’t want anything to get in the way of the president’s re-election or, importantly, a potential pardon.”
He added: “There was no contact with anyone in the Trump orbit when I was in prison… But when the re-election campaign started kicking off, I was interacting, unofficially, with friends of mine who were very involved. It was killing me not to be there, but I was advising indirectly from my condo.”
The startling admission is spelled out in Political Prisoner: Persecuted, Prosecuted, but Not Silenced, a memoir that will be published next month.
A new Washington Post/Schar School poll finds 65% of Americans say the end of Roe v. Wade represents a “major loss of rights” for women.
Fully 58% of the country supports a federal law establishing the right to an abortion before a fetus can survive outside the womb, the standard the Supreme Court enshrined for nearly 50 years and overturned last month.
And almost a third of Americans say abortion will be one of the “single most important” issues shaping their midterm vote. That’s less than the 39% calling rising prices a top issue but higher than the 23% citing crime and 20% citing immigration.
“U.S. Secret Service Director James Murray announced Thursday that he will “briefly delay” his retirement amid multiple investigations into the agency’s response to the attack on the U.S. Capitol,” CBS News reports.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.