FiveThirtyEight: “On Aug. 2, Kansans will vote on a state constitutional amendment that would clarify that the state’s bill of rights does not protect Kansans’ right to an abortion. And even though the state leans Republican, new polling and fundraising numbers suggest it’s a close race.”
Trump Still Trying to Overturn Election Results
Wisconsin Speaker Robin Vos (R) told WISN that Donald Trump called him “within the last week” still seeking to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
Said Vos: “I explained that it’s not allowed under the constitution. He has a different opinion.”
Maryland Republicans Go Extreme Right
Vice News: “A man who organized buses to Washington on Jan. 6, tweeted during the Capitol Riot that Vice President Mike Pence was a ‘traitor,’ tried to impeach Maryland Republican Governor Larry Hogan over his actions to stem Covid-19, and spoke at a QAnon conference this spring, just won the Republican nomination for Maryland governor.”
“And he’s not even the most extreme candidate Maryland Republicans nominated for statewide office on Tuesday.”
Democrats Want Biden to Go Scorched Earth Against GOP
“When Michelle Obama declared ‘When they go low, we go high’ about Republicans in 2016, Democrats generally agreed with the sentiment,” The Hill reports.
“After all, the party was up against Donald Trump, a man who seemed to find joy in making personal attacks part of his daily routine. But nearly six years later, the party that pledged to play nice is fed up.”
“Democrats are tired of being stomped on by the opposition. They hate the public perception of President Biden as a president in peril. And the conservative Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade is pushing them past their limits.”
“Going low suddenly seems more appealing, some Democrats now say.”
A Very Powerful House Vote
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The Talent Gap
Janan Ganesh: “The question is whether, over a large enough sample size, a country can survive the sending of its ablest people to the private sector. In a sense, democratic capitalism is self-eroding. In allowing for private careers of such lavish pay and privacy, it makes politics into a mug’s game. The resulting decline in laws and institutions in turn threatens the economy.”
“If the Tory circus distresses you, consider that, in Labour’s shadow team, the experience comes from someone who has spent a quarter of a century in parliament without leaving much mark (Yvette Cooper) and a failed ex-leader (Ed Miliband). Autocracies at least allow officials enough scope for graft and the indulgence of peccadillos to keep the talent coming.”
Pat Leahy Had Additional Surgery
Sen. Pat Leahy (D-VT) had additional surgery related to fractured hip on Tuesday, Fox News reports.
Arizona Republicans Censure Rusty Bowers
The Arizona GOP Executive Committee formally censured Arizona House Speaker Rusty Bowers (R), saying “he is no longer a Republican in good standing,” KPNX reports.
GOP Lawmaker Sidesteps Questions Over Affair
Rep. William Timmons (R-SC) “went on conservative talk radio to address rumors circling for weeks that he had an extramarital affair and abused his power as a congressman to further it,” the Charleston Post & Courier reports.
Said Timmons: “My wife and I do not comment on our personal lives because they’re private, and they should remain that way.”
He added: “That said, we are experiencing challenges. We’re going through a difficult time. I regret anything I’ve ever done to let her down.”
Memos Show Trump’s Secret Strategy for Census Question
“Former President Donald Trump’s administration spent years trying to add a census citizenship question as part of a secret strategy for altering the population numbers used to divide up seats in Congress and the Electoral College,” NPR reports.
“Long kept from the public, the Trump administration memos and emails were disclosed by lawmakers following a more than two-year legal fight that began after Trump officials refused to turn them over for a congressional investigation.”
Trump’s Choices Led to January 6 Insurrection
Washington Post: “At each moment when Trump could have soothed an agitated nation, he escalated tensions instead, the committee has illustrated through its presentation of 18 live witnesses, scores of videotaped depositions and vast documentary evidence. At each moment when longtime loyal advisers offered their view that his election loss was real, he refused to listen and found newcomers and outsiders willing to tell him otherwise.”
“On at least 15 different occasions, the president barreled over those who told him to accept his loss and instead took actions that sought to circumvent the democratic process and set the nation on the path to violence, according to the committee’s evidence.”
“The resulting attack on the Capitol was not spontaneous, the committee has argued, but instead a predictable outcome that Trump enabled even after learning the crowd he was addressing that day was armed and baying for blood.”
U.S. Initiates Trade Fight With Mexico
“The U.S. accused Mexico of favoring state-owned energy companies at the expense of American businesses, in a trade dispute that could lead to U.S. tariffs,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Senate Advances Bill to Boost Semiconductor Production
“The Senate voted to advance a slimmed-down version of its bill designed to boost U.S. semiconductor competition with China,” CNBC reports.
“The bill cleared a key procedural hurdle Tuesday evening in a 64-34 vote even as lawmakers worked to finish various sections of the legislation.”
“The bill, which would provide about $50 billion in subsidies to bolster U.S. computer chip manufacturing, is a multifaceted bipartisan effort that combines the interests of several committees, ranging from national security to economics.”
Punchbowl News notes the bill might be expanded as it secured significant bipartisan support.
U.K. Inflation Hits 9.4%
“The U.K.’s annual rate of inflation rose to a new four-decade high, outpacing increasingly rapid wage growth and weakening the country’s economic outlook during a period of political vacuum,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
New York Times: “Since Russia invaded Ukraine, energy, commodity and food prices have jumped higher, worsening inflation around the world. But in Britain, this had collided with a tight labor market that is encouraging employers to offer higher wages and increase prices for their goods and services. For policymakers, there is now a difficult balancing act between raising interest rates to tackle inflation, which is running far above the rate targeted by the Bank of England, and not exacerbating a cost of living crisis by tipping the economy into a recession.”
Ohio Republicans Grumble About J.D. Vance
“Complaints about J.D. Vance and his Senate campaign are rising among Ohio Republicans after the conservative populist posted an anemic second-quarter fundraising report,” the Washington Examiner reports.
Europe Prepares for Russia to Cut Off Gas
The European Union proposed a plan for countries to reduce demand for natural gas — as officials warned that Russia was “likely” to cutoff the flow to Europe, the Washington Post reports.
The GOP’s Grassroots Money Problem
“Democrats across the 10 most competitive Senate races are out-raising Republicans by more than $75 million among small-dollar donors — those giving less than $200,” Axios reports.
“Inflation, Trump-induced donor fatigue and other factors are impacting the GOP grassroots, prompting Republican candidates to rely more heavily on high-dollar donors.”
Related from CBS News: ActBlue processed more than half a billion dollars in three-month period.
Nearly Half of Americans Expect Civil War
A new study confirms one in five Americans believes violence motivated by political reasons is—at least sometimes—justified.
Nearly half expect a civil war, and many say they would trade democracy for a strong leader.
