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  2. The Sabbath changed in ancient Israel, a day started out in the morning and would last until the following morning when a new day would start - over time this changed into an observation of the pending sabbath (Friday night being part of the sabbath). I think other things were going on with the celebration of the Sabbath as well.
  3. phkrause

    This Day in History

    THIS DAY IN HISTORY July 28 1868 14th Amendment adopted Following its ratification by the necessary three-quarters of U.S. states, the 14th Amendment, granting citizenship to all persons born or naturalized in the United States—including formerly enslaved people—is officially adopted into the U.S. Constitution. read more Sponsored Content by REVCONTENT 1970s 1975 Grizzly bear is classified as a “threatened” species Arts & Entertainment 1978 “Animal House” released in theaters Great Depression 1932 Bonus Marchers evicted by U.S. Army Native American History 1968 American Indian Movement (AIM) is founded Natural Disasters & Environment 1945 Plane crashes into Empire State Building 1976 One of the worst earthquakes in modern history destroys Chinese city U.S. Presidents 1929 Future first lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy is born Vietnam War 1965 President Johnson announces more troops to Vietnam Women’s History 2016 Hillary Clinton accepts Democratic nomination for president World War I 1914 Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia World War II 1942 Stalin issues Order No. 227—outlawing cowards
  4. 🚆 1 for the rail: Big NYC comeback Data: Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Chart: Noah Bressner/Axios Monthly ridership on the Long Island Rail Road surpassed pre-pandemic levels — the first time any of New York's transit or rail lines has exceeded pre-COVID numbers for an entire month, Bloomberg reports. About 7.9 million riders used the LIRR in June, up from 7.7 million the same month in 2019. The surge coincided with two big events: the Knicks' championship parade through lower Manhattan and the U.S. Open in the Hamptons, where the LIRR added a temporary station. Go deeper (gift link).
  5. 🌐 World's 10 biggest companies Cover: Spencer Lowell for Fortune Out this morning: Amazon toppled Walmart to take the No. 1 spot in the Fortune Global 500 ranking of the biggest companies in the world by revenue. Walmart held the top spot for 12 straight years. The top 10: Amazon (U.S.) Walmart (U.S.) State Grid (China) UnitedHealth Group (U.S.) Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia) Apple (U.S.) McKesson (U.S.) Alphabet (U.S.) CVS Health (U.S.) China National Petroleum (China) 🇺🇸 Between the lines: The U.S. has the most companies on the list — 141 — since 2008. China is in second with 122 companies, its lowest since 2018. Explore the list.
  6. Today
  7. 💰 U.S. officials: Sanctions could hurt Iran more than bombs Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz yesterday near a beach in Bandar Abbas, Iran. Photo: Razieh Poudat/ISNA via Reuters President Trump's economic assault on Iran has drawn a fraction of the attention devoted to his bombing campaign, even as senior U.S. officials believe it may ultimately do more damage to the regime in Tehran, Axios' Marc Caputo writes. Why it matters: U.S. intelligence and open-source media reports point to a deepening economic crisis inside Iran, including gasoline shortages in one of the world's most oil-rich countries. A senior administration official told us: "The Iranians want to stop being bombed and they want money. But that's almost in reverse order. They really want the money first." "Intelligence is picking up that the Iranians are complaining they can't pay their fighters," that official said. "Why? Because of the financial pressures. Because of Treasury." A second U.S. official acknowledged that sanctions and the U.S. naval blockade will take longer to force Tehran to the table than a full-scale bombing campaign, which Trump has so far declined to authorize. Keep reading.
  8. 🚘 Trump's GM tour President Trump visited GM's sprawling Milford Proving Ground in Michigan yesterday to promote his tariffs and their impact on auto manufacturing. The visit included a tour and a trio of drag races with muscle cars and luxury vehicles, including the Corvette Z06, Cadillac Escalade V and EV Hummer. Go deeper. ⚖️ "Self-deportation" push ramps up President Trump's controversial "self-deportation" program, which pays unauthorized immigrants to leave the U.S., is on pace to account for more than 200,000 departures, according to internal data shared with Axios' Brittany Gibson. Why it matters: Launched last year alongside a multimillion-dollar ad campaign, the initiative is virtually the only carrot in an aggressive immigration crackdown that has been long on sticks. Through July 16, the nearly $600 million program — dubbed Project Homecoming by the Department of Homeland Security — has helped about 132,000 people exit the U.S. Roughly 70,000 more have signed up and are on track to leave, according to the data. 🖼️ The big picture: The self-deportation program is a key part of the administration's push to remove 1 million unauthorized immigrants from the U.S. each year. The idea was to offer unauthorized immigrants free travel and $1,000 to leave voluntarily rather than risk arrest and detention. The stipend has increased to $2,600. Keep reading.
  9. 🤖 AI revenue explosion Data: Company reports, Funda via "Key Context." Chart: Ben Berkowitz/Axios AI revenue is accelerating so fast that it's starting to dwarf some of the world's most recognizable brands, Axios' Ben Berkowitz writes. Why it matters: AI infrastructure spending forecasts that run into the trillions of dollars start to make at least a little more sense when investors see how they're paying off. 🧮 By the numbers: OpenAI and Anthropic, combined, are on track for an annual revenue rate of about $120 billion, "Key Context" Substack author Tae Kim noted yesterday. Both would make the Fortune 500's top 100 companies by revenue, according to data from AI investment research platform Funda. Keep reading. Data: FactSet. Chart: Matt Phillips/Axios 📈 Charted above: Apple reclaims the title of the world's most valuable public company, Axios' Matt Phillips writes. It's a sign that investors are keeping some distance from companies making giant bets on AI infrastructure — even longtime favorites like Nvidia. Apple got flak last year for its seeming lack of an ambitious AI strategy.
  10. 🇮🇱 Diminished Bibi arrives in D.C. Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo: Ilia Yefimovich/AFP via Getty Images Benjamin Netanyahu will meet President Trump in the Oval Office today for the eighth time since Trump returned to office. Bibi arrives weaker and less influential than the previous seven times, Axios' Barak Ravid writes. Why it matters: On Feb. 28, when Trump and Netanyahu went to war together, it looked like there was no daylight between them. Exactly five months later, their interests have diverged. Bad blood and frustration have deepened as they've grown suspicious of each other's intentions. 🔎 Behind the scenes: In the first few months of the war, Trump and Netanyahu spoke almost every day to coordinate and exchange views. In recent weeks, their phone calls have become increasingly infrequent. Netanyahu started leaning more on Secretary of State Marco Rubio for updates on Trump's thinking, sources say. Netanyahu even struggled to get on Trump's schedule for today's sit-down. Bibi wanted to come to the White House last week but couldn't get an appointment. 👓 Between the lines: Netanyahu is deeply unpopular in Washington these days — among Democrats, Trump's close circle and the MAGA base. In public, Trump says his relationship with Netanyahu is still very good. In private, though, Trump has expressed frustration with the Israeli leader. Many senior officials in Trump's inner circle have come to view Netanyahu with disdain, arguing he was consistently wrong about the war. Numerous U.S. officials, including Vance, have accused Netanyahu of making rosy predictions that didn't pan out. ps:I agree that he made those rosy predictions that didn't pan out, but who were the fools listening and doing his bidding?????
  11. phkrause

    US Politics

    The 6 stages of political surrender Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Stock: Getty Images 👉 Watch a video version of this column. Republicans didn't decide to become President Trump's party. They surrendered to him, one stage at a time, over a decade, in plain sight, Jim VandeHei and Mike Allen write in a "Behind the Curtain" column. Democrats swear that socialism's growing grip on their party is different and can be contained. The early signals suggest otherwise. Why it matters: Party transformations follow a predictable six-stage evolution — recoil, squint, rationalize, submit, amplify and purge. Each stage has a language you can hear long before you see it in the votes. Republicans just finished the full cycle. Democrats might be starting it. Watch how the language shifts, stage by stage, for signs of whether recent socialist wins are an anomaly, or the start of something bigger and broader. Stage 1: Recoil. Denounce, by name. Lindsey Graham called Trump a "kook" who was unfit for office. Ted Cruz called him a "pathological liar." That was 2016. Both later defended him against the exact words they coined. Stage 2: Squint. Support without looking. "I haven't seen the tweet" became the go-to response of House and Senate Republicans in Trump's first term when they were asked about the latest storm. Some did the binary dodge: "The other side is worse." Stage 3: Rationalize. This is the "yes, but" stage: "I don't love the style, but the judges ... the tax cuts ... the border ... He's a fighter." This is where accommodation becomes the norm, and the need to win trumps style or tactics. Stage 4: Submit. Dissent becomes career-ending. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy said on the floor that Trump "bears responsibility" for Jan. 6. Two weeks later, McCarthy flew to Mar-a-Lago to make peace. In less than three years, he'd been ousted as speaker. Silence becomes political survival. Stage 5: Amplify. Fully adopt the vocabulary, the style, the maximal claims. Try to out-Trump Trump. After privately calling Trump "America's Hitler" in 2016, JD Vance is now vice president. And routinely seeks to show his Trumpiness. That's almost every Republican now. Stage 6: Purge. Actively work to oust anyone who disagrees. You either fully accept and amplify, or get exiled. Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) — gone. This year alone, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) was beaten in a Trump-backed primary, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) chose retirement over humiliation, and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) drew a primary challenger (and lost to him) after voting with Trump 99% of the time. 🔭 Zoom out and in: With socialism, the Democratic base moved first, as the base always does. Gallup found last year that Democrats viewed socialism more positively than capitalism by 24 points — the widest gap on record, and sharpest among younger voters. All three candidates New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani endorsed won their June 23 House primaries, defeating two incumbents: Brad Lander over Rep. Dan Goldman, Claire Valdez over Brooklyn's borough president, and Darializa Avila Chevalier over Rep. Adriano Espaillat — the Congressional Hispanic Caucus chair, backed by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Sit with that: A Jeffries-endorsed incumbent lost to a democratic socialist. That's Stage 4 machinery switching on, with the primary electorate punishing the establishment side of the fight. It's not just New York. In Colorado, 29-year-old democratic socialist Melat Kiros toppled 15-term Rep. Diana DeGette, who leans progressive. Now listen to the language: "It's not socialism, it's affordability" is the left's "It's not the tweets, it's the judges." Textbook early sign of Stage 3. Bill Daley — former Commerce Secretary and White House chief of staff — told us Democrats can't rationalize a candidate saying: "Oh, I didn't mean it when I said or agreed with a crazy idea a while ago." Instead, Daley said, they need to aggressively denounce "out-of-mainstream ideas and plans," and go after actual socialists by "shoving that platform up their noses." In an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal warning Dems of the "Tea-Party Trap" that befell the GOP, Daley wrote: "Democrats are fooling themselves if they think a similar hijacking can't happen to their party." The counterpoint: Socialism is widely seen by most elected Democrats as political poison. So this moment could prove fleeting. Four reasons for this: Socialism has no enforcer yet. Trump ended careers personally. An idea can't, unless someone becomes the idea. Mamdani endorsing, campaigning and toppling incumbents is what an enforcer looks like in beta. But it's hard to see Bernie Sanders or AOC taking this national. The far left has no Fox News synchronizing base and elites. In fact, it's safe to assume The New York Times, The Atlantic and MS NOW will resist socialism, at least initially. But watch for the formation of a media ecosystem to counter them. Politics is downstream from information flow and currents. Transmission is slower. Democratic voters, broadly speaking, are institutionalists. Republican voters wanted demolition. Submission to an insurgency may have a lower ceiling on the left. Socialists need to clear general-election hurdles, as Trump did. If socialist nominees cost Democrats swing seats in November, expect the Iraq-style reversal and recoil to come roaring back. 👀 What to watch: The language: Do swing-district Democrats start saying "democratic socialist" without flinching or keep laundering it as "affordability"? Laundering means Stage 3. The endorsement lag: How long do Jeffries and Chuck Schumer stall on Mamdani-wing nominees this fall? Jeffries' slow-walk on Mamdani himself last year was textbook squint. The Liz Cheney test: Does a Democrat lose a primary specifically for attacking the socialist wing? That's the Stage 4 gateway. Copycat: Do 2028 hopefuls adopt the rent freezes and public groceries they mocked in 2019? Stage 5: Language + policies. Retirements: Do moderate Democrats retire rather than adapt? That's Stage 6 starting. 📱 Watch our video ... Subscribe to our YouTube channel ...
  12. The world’s first motel, built in 1925, is in San Luis Obispo, California. When opened, it cost $1.25 for a two-room bungalow with a kitchen and a private adjoining garage. James
  13. In the days of Jesus and the disciples the Saturday sabbath was practiced. In the Babylon exile, the feasts of the land, such as the new moon was connected to when the feast arrived in the land. There was a series of places for smoke signals to let those who were left inside the land to notify those outside of the land know when the feast arrived. (Sometimes people who lived between, knowing that the Hebrews were looking for the signal would send signals to get them to celebrate a day or two early. However, the 7th day Sabbath did not need the smoke signals. They greeted the Sabbath when the sun set were they were located. Those in Babylon (or otherwise east of Jerusalem) would welcome the Sabbath as the sun set there every 7 days. Those in Jerusalem welcomed the Sabbath when the sun set there every 7 days. Those in Egypt, and farther west would celebrate when the sun set there every seven days. The feasts of the land were very much the feasts of the land, very connected to the agricultural cycle of the land. They were kept by the Canaanites long before Abraham was born. But the Sabbath was seen as universal and the Hebrews greeted the Sabbath when the sun set where they were, a little earlier as they were further east and a little later as they went west. (The international date line is placed pretty good based on the practice we have seen in Judaism the ancient world.) We find the 7 day week going back as far as records can be found. Now, they were connected to the sun, moon, and the 5 planets that they saw moving. Some say that the 7th day Sabbath was taken by the Hebrews from the Babylonians as they took a day of rest every 7 days on the same day that the Hebrews kept. However, they did not see it as the blessed Sabbath, but as a day where it was bad luck to work and not rest.
  14. What are the biggest drivers of inflation in the past year? Housing was the main driver of inflation from June 2025 to June 2026. As of June 2026, overall prices increased 3.5% over the previous year. Of this, 1.5 percentage points came from price increases in housing, or about two-fifths of it. https://usafacts.org/answers/what-are-the-biggest-drivers-of-inflation-in-the-past-year/country/united-states/? What is the average price of beef in the US? As of May 2026, the average price of ground beef nationwide was $6.75 per pound. This figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) Average Price data, which tracks the cost of specific items commonly purchased by US households. https://usafacts.org/answers/what-is-the-price-of-beef/? One last fact Did you know the Energy Information Administration tracks how many households have a fridge in their garage? In 2024, 20 million households — 15% of households nationwide — had a secondary fridge in their garage. Learn about the “second fridge belt” on YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok!
  15. phkrause

    Archeology

    Who Were the Sea Peoples? In Nolan’s new adaptation of the Odyssey, Homer’s epic poem about Odysseus’s struggle to return to his kingdom in Ithaca after the Trojan War, the “People of the Sea” hang over the plot like a dark cloud—a rumor of coming destroyers and harbingers of a dark age mentioned by multiple characters along the way. But who are these “People of the Sea”? Well, they’re not just a plot device or a way of adding dramatic tension. The “Sea Peoples” were a very real phenomenon of the Mediterranean world in the tumultuous days at end of the Late Bronze Age. https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/ancient-cultures/ancient-near-eastern-world/who-were-sea-peoples/?
  16. Trump Hit by Brutal Verdict on His Signature Project Many Americans are unaware of what is in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. President Donald Trump’s signature legislative achievement is facing a brutal new reality check, with a new poll showing many Americans are either unaware of what is in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act or believe it benefits the wealthy more than working families.Signed into law on July 4, the sweeping package extends key parts of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts while adding new breaks, including temporary deductions for tips and overtime pay, an expanded child tax credit, senior tax deductions, auto loan interest relief, and government-backed “Trump Accounts” for children. Republicans have promoted the bill as a major tax victory for working Americans. “Putting more money in Americans’ pockets. Helping them seize opportunities to get ahead, and creating new pathways to success,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune said during remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday. “That is the Working Families Tax Cuts at work.” But Democrats and outside analysts argue it will disproportionately benefit higher earners and add to the national deficit. The Congressional Budget Office has projected the law will significantly increase deficits over the next decade. A new Politico poll of 2,061 U.S. adults conducted July 12-15 found the law has yet to win over a majority of Americans. Nearly half of voters said they either cannot explain the bill or know little about what it contains. Just 11 percent said they could explain the law in detail, while 39 percent said they had heard of it but could not explain its features. The confusion cuts across party lines, with Trump voters and Kamala Harris voters equally likely to say they know of the bill but cannot explain it, at 40 percent each. And for many Americans, the bill has not translated into a noticeable financial boost. One in five voters said they did not know whether the law had helped their personal finances, while another quarter said it had made no difference. Instead, many Americans believe the benefits are tilted toward the wealthy. Just 14 percent said the bill provides substantial tax relief for working-class Americans. Another 34 percent said it offers some relief but hides larger tax cuts for the wealthy, including 35 percent of Republicans. Twenty-one percent said it does not provide working-class Americans with tax breaks at all. The poll also found wealthier Americans are more likely to say they have benefited. More than 40 percent of voters earning over $100,000 said the law had helped them financially—more than double the share among those earning less. Overall, one-third of Americans said the massive tax and spending package had hurt their bottom line, a warning sign for Republicans heading into the midterm elections, where the cost of living is expected to be a defining issue. White House spokesman Davis Ingle told the Daily Beast: “No other President in history has accomplished more for the American people than President Trump, who is working tirelessly to create jobs, cool inflation, increase housing affordability, and more. The President has already made historic progress not only in America but around the world, and this is just the beginning as his agenda continues taking effect.” The challenge comes as voters continue to feel squeezed by rising prices amid Trump’s war in Iran, which has seen gas prices rise above $5 a gallon. The Politico poll showed that more than half of Americans say Trump’s war in Iran has made things more expensive. Meanwhile, wage growth has not been keeping up with inflation, which soared after Trump decided to go to war with Iran In June, wages rose 3.5 percent from a year earlier—the same rate as inflation—leaving workers with virtually no gain in purchasing power, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-hit-by-brutal-verdict-on-the-one-big-beautiful-bill-act/?
  17. Furious Trump Melts Down Over Republicans Going Back on Vacation Trump is unhappy with the Senate majority leader for failing to get his bill through Congress. Donald Trump erupted at Senate Majority Leader John Thune for failing to get his signature bill through Congress as the Senate scrambles to wrap up its priorities before the August recess. Tensions between the two men have been simmering for weeks but could take an explosive turn as the Senate struggles to move forward with Trump’s agenda because it does not have the votes. “John Thune should not allow the United States Senate to ‘leave town’ until it passes The Save America Act or, far better still, TERMINATES THE FILIBUSTER, where Republicans can then quickly pass everything they ever dreamed of, including a full and deep throated SAVE AMERICA ACT, the Budget, and the ever looming Debt Ceiling disaster, 1929!” Trump ranted on Truth Social. Trump, 80, repeated his claim that “Dumocrats will do it on day one,” despite that not having happened when Democrats were in power less than two years ago. He took aim at top Senate Republicans, claiming Democrats “can’t believe how lucky they got with this Senate leadership” and declared, “Remember, stupidity always brings LOSING & DEATH!” The Senate is in this week and next week before heading out for a summer recess through mid-September. The House headed out for five weeks of August recess last week, and will only return for one week at the end of next month before skipping out again until after Labor Day. House Republicans recently included provisions of the SAVE America Act in a larger legislative package before leaving town, but the effort has no path forward in the Senate. Republicans do not have the votes to even pass the SAVE America Act with a simple majority, never mind the necessary 60 votes to pass legislation without being blocked by the filibuster through regular order. Trump’s post on Monday came after he also demanded Senate Republicans terminate the filibuster in an unhinged posting spree over the weekend. Some Senate Republicans are threatening civil war as senators head back to Washington, D.C. on Monday over the president’s voting legislation. On Sunday, Sen. Mike Lee said he would object to any effort for the Senate to recess in August until the Senate passes the SAVE America Act. A single senator has the power to object to the Senate adjourning for a longer recess and can force a roll-call vote on it, slowing the Senate’s ability to head out. “Do not assume you have my consent,” he wrote, tagging Thune on X. “You do not.” He was joined by Sen. Rick Scott, who said that he stood with Lee and would vote to keep the Senate in session until the passage of MAGA voting legislation. “The American people expect us to deliver,” Scott wrote on X. “They deserve secure elections.” It comes after Thune fired back at White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt on Thursday for venting frustration over Trump’s stalled agenda. Leavitt, 28, complained that the Senate needed to do its job and warned that patience is running out with Senate Republicans at her press briefing, which led to a rare direct rebuke from Thune on Capitol Hill. “Maybe she or somebody else ought to get on the phone and get the votes. Right? It’s 50 around here,” the Senate majority leader fired back while speaking to a group of reporters. Republicans have 53 seats in the Senate while Democrats hold 47 seats, but Senator Mitch McConnell has been out for more than five weeks since being hospitalized on June 14. Other Republicans, including Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Thom Tillis, have been critical of the SAVE America Act and efforts to rush it through before the midterms. https://www.thedailybeast.com/furious-trump-melts-down-over-republicans-going-back-on-vacation/? ps:Good for Thune!!
  18. phkrause

    Great Photo Shots!

    🦦 Parting shot: View from Otter Cliff Photo: Matthew Kalinowski Acadia National Park in Maine is reader and New Yorker Matthew Kalinowski's favorite national park because of the beauty it offers in a compact area. Last summer, Kalinowski's kids treated it like "the giant natural playground that it is," he writes, "splashing at the edge of peaceful ponds that housed frogs and ducks," and taking in views of tree-lined mountains meeting the deep blue Atlantic. 💎 Below: Jordan Pond, a glacier-carved lake in the park — often called the "crown jewel" of the park's many ponds for its clarity and depth. Photo: Matthew Kalinowski
  19. ⚡️Thune's force field Senate Majority Leader John Thune is pulling off something today's Republicans rarely attempt: telling President Trump "no." Why it matters: Pressure from Trump and the MAGA base is piling up on Thune, especially over a voter ID bill, but he has an important insurance policy: GOP senators have his back. 💪 "I think he's got strong support. I read all the stories, but I think mostly that's made up by reporters," Sen. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) told us. "Leaders absorb some of the punishment, but I think he's doing great. No one could do a better job than he is right now," Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) told us. "His cred in the conference has never been stronger," Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) told us. 🔥 Catch up quick: Trump's frustration with Thune over the inability to pass the SAVE America Act or nuke the filibuster is, again, bubbling over. "Thune should not allow the United States Senate to 'leave town' until it passes The Save America Act or, far better still, TERMINATES THE FILIBUSTER," Trump demanded on Truth Social this morning. 🧮 Thune has snapped back, reiterating that it is a matter of math. There are not enough votes to pass SAVE, end the filibuster or justify canceling the August recess. "Give me a rationale or a path to getting success, staying here through the month of August," Thune told reporters today about the calls from Trump and a few GOP senators to cancel recess to pass SAVE. "You could stay here til Christmas." 👀 What to watch: Trump has not called for Thune's ouster. He even told reporters today that their relationship is "fine." But the building anger has fueled widespread speculation in D.C. that the president could eventually go there. Even if he does, it would not carry the same weight as a threat to Speaker Mike Johnson's leadership in the House. For one, Senate leadership elections are conducted by private ballot, giving more cover to senators who may not want to publicly cross Trump. 👂 What we're hearing: Many Republican senators are quick to share their support for Thune behind closed doors, even if not all are willing to publicly do so right now. Thune "is not in jeopardy," a GOP senator told us, requesting anonymity to speak candidly. "He is not the problem." "We have a bunch of people across Capitol Hill that are obsessed with social media fame," another senator told us, referring to those questioning Thune's leadership. Senior GOP aides for other senators also tell us the problem is really "squeaky wheels" getting more attention and that the situation could ultimately benefit Thune within the conference. The other side: A conservative corner of the conference is certainly growing frustrated with Thune. ⛱️ Seven senators are now calling to delay the August recess until SAVE is passed: Mike Lee (R-Utah), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Ashley Moody (R-Fla), Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) and Darline Graham (R-S.C.) But even some of them admit Thune's leadership is not at stake. "I wouldn't say that, because his job lies with us," Tuberville said when asked about any risk to Thune's position as leader. "But a lot of people are getting a little bit frustrated." The bottom line: "I've been somewhat disappointed more Republican senators haven't been bold enough to speak out," Cramer said. — Stef W. Kight
  20. phkrause

    The United Nations, The Hague, ICC and ICJ

    UN human rights chief says Israel must end occupation and house demolitions in Lebanon The United Nations' human rights chief said Monday that Israel must end its occupation of large areas of southern Lebanon and halt the demolition of homes, days before Lebanese and Israeli officials are set to hold another round of direct talks. Read More.
  21. NOAA report finds Gulf of Maine warming slowed for now, but ecosystem remains unstable Maine’s fishing ports are doing well for now, but climate change is destabilizing the Gulf of Maine, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s latest “State of the Ecosystem” report for New England waters. Federal scientists presented the report to the New England Fishery Management Council in April, and published it online last week. Read More.
  22. Misinformation is reshaping how we see science 80% of Americans say science misinformation is a major problem. Social media is both the top source of science news and the top source of confusion. That loop is exactly why understanding how science actually works matters more than ever. Learn more.
  23. phkrause

    1 for the road

    1 for the road: Superheroes in San Diego A fan dressed as Darth Vader attends Comic-Con International in San Diego this weekend. Photo: Daniel Knighton/Getty Images 🍿 Pop culture and the entertainment business collided this weekend at Comic-Con International in San Diego. Fans packed the halls of the San Diego Convention Center, dressed in cosplay outfits to celebrate their favorite heroes, villains and characters from across pop culture. Andrea Seale, dressed as Bob from "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," attends Comic-Con International in San Diego. Photo: Daniel Knighton/Getty Images 🎬 Over the weekend, Marvel Studios announced "Black Panther III," with "Sinners" director Ryan Coogler back at the helm, and "Ghost Rider," starring Ryan Gosling. Rick Moranis teased the sequel to "Spaceballs" (simply titled, "Spaceballs: The New One,") and Johnny Depp teased his "A Christmas Carol" adaptation "Ebenezer" — his first major studio film in eight years. Ryan Reynolds, in a gray Deadpool costume inspired by the X-Force comics, at Comic-Con International in San Diego. Photo: Amy Sussman/Getty Images Rick Moranis arrives in costume as Lord Dark Helmet at Comic-Con International in San Diego. Photo: Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images 💭 Thought bubble from Herb, a self-professed nerd: Marvel Studios generated the most hype, but the convention's huge attendance showed that nerd culture is alive and well. I'm very excited for the coming year of movies, comics and gaming!
  24. phkrause

    Gambling

    🤑 Americans spent $166 billion on sports betting in 2025, which is more than the revenue generated by the American movie, music, book and museum industries combined, turning it into "America's favorite pastime," Fortune reports.
  25. 🥞 The Cracker Barrel CEO who led the company through a marketing transformation that sparked a MAGA backlash, Julie Masino, is leaving the company. David Deno — a former CEO of Bloomin' Brands, the owner of Outback Steakhouse and Carrabba's Italian Grill — will succeed her on Aug. 10, Axios' Nathan Bomey reports.
  26. 📈 Gallup's Economic Confidence Index rose to -31 in July, up 14 points from its May low of -45, though Americans remain broadly pessimistic about the economy. Explore the data.
  27. Trump administration urges Supreme Court to allow order targeting mail-in voting before midterms WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Monday to clear the way for an executive order from President Donald Trump that could dramatically change mail-in voting ahead of November’s midterm elections. https://apnews.com/article/trump-mail-voting-appeal-executive-order-supreme-court-5482700c21f4945d6991dff24776b525?
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