- PoliticsNBC News
Trump aides warn president: Mental fitness attacks on Biden could be used against you
President Donald Trump and his campaign are pushing ahead with efforts to attack former Vice President Joe Biden's mental fitness, despite polling and guidance from advisers warning that the strategy could backfire. The campaign has been running a fresh batch of Facebook ads this week with titles such as “Joe Biden is clearly diminished,” “Joe Biden is slipping,” and “Do you think Joe Biden has the mental fortitude to be president?” And over the past week, Trump, his top advisers and family members have promoted videos portraying Biden as confused and stumbling over his words. Trump campaign aides say to expect the line of attack to be a steady drumbeat throughout the rest of the race.
- U.S.The Guardian
Ghislaine Maxwell pleads not guilty in trafficking case
Ghislaine Maxwell appeared in Manhattan federal court via video feed on Tuesday, to plead not guilty regarding her alleged involvement in Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking of minor girls. One, in an anonymous statement read to the court, described “the sociopathic manner in which [Maxwell] nurtured our [relationships]” and said that “she would have done anything to get what she wanted, to satisfy Mr Epstein”. Long out of the public eye, Maxwell, 58, appeared unsettled, a far cry from the glamorous, jet-setting image she once cultivated.
- U.S.Time
Mississippi Is Replacing Its State Flag, But a Confederate Emblem Still Flies Over Georgia
In June, as many people across the United States took a renewed look at the nation's history of racism, legislators in Mississippi voted yea on House Bill 1796, replacing the state flag. With that, theirs became the last state to remove a flying Confederate battle emblem from above their statehouse. The landslide vote, with 92 of 115 Representatives and 37 of 51 Senators opting for removal, was resoundingly heralded as a massive step forward for American equality.
- PoliticsNational Review
Lindsey Graham Attempting to Declassify FBI Memo on Steele Source Who Undermined Dossier
Senator Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) revealed on Tuesday that he is attempting to declassify an FBI memo describing an interview with a crucial source for the Steele dossier, whose comments undermined the dossier's assertions. The source was dossier author Christopher Steele's only direct source inside Russia for many of the allegations included in the dossier. The Justice Department Inspector General report released in December 2019 noted that the individual, referred to as the “Primary Sub-Source,” has since disputed various claims in the dossier, including that Trump-campaign officials colluded with Russian operatives during the 2016 election.
- WorldAssociated Press
Tanker off UAE sought by US over Iran sanctions 'hijacked'
An oil tanker sought by the U.S. over allegedly circumventing sanctions on Iran was hijacked on July 5 off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, a seafarers welfare organization said Wednesday. Satellite photos showed the vessel in Iranian waters on Tuesday and two of its sailors remained in the Iranian capital. It wasn't immediately clear what happened aboard the Dominica-flagged MT Gulf Sky, though its reported hijacking comes after months of tensions between Iran and the U.S. David Hammond, the CEO of the United Kingdom-based group Human Rights at Sea, said he took a witness statement from the captain of the MT Gulf Sky, confirming the ship had been hijacked.
- LifestyleINSIDER
The California woman who refused to wear a face mask in Starbucks is considering suing to get half of the barista's $100,000 in GoFundMe tips
Last month, a San Diego woman named Amber Gilles publicly shamed a Starbucks barista for refusing to serve her because she wasn't wearing a face mask. A GoFundMe campaign raised more than $100,000 in tips for the barista, Lenin Gutierrez. Now Gilles says she wants half of the money, telling KGTV she was the one who was "discriminated against."
U.S.Yahoo News VideoVirginia police are searching for people posting flyers calling on residents to 'pray for white Americans in 2020'
Virginia police are investigating white supremacist flyers that are appearing in local resident mailboxes across the state.
- U.S.USA TODAY
A Michigan jeweler is retiring and burying $1 million worth of treasure for a 'quest'
A Michigan jeweler is calling it quits after 23 years and taking prospective adventurers on a treasure hunt. Johnny Perri, who owns J&M Jewelers in Washington Township, Michigan, had an "epiphany" after being forced to shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. "Although I enjoyed being in business for myself and have been blessed serving our wonderful customers, I've discovered that I was never truly happy," Perri writes on the website set up for his "Treasure Quest."
- WorldBusiness Insider
US Navy warship challenges China in South China Sea as US blasts Beijing's 'unlawful' claims and 'gangster tactics'
US Navy A US Navy destroyer challenged China in the South China Sea with a freedom-of-navigation operation on Tuesday. The USS Ralph Johnson sailed near the disputed Spratly Islands, the Navy said, adding in a statement that "unlawful and sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea pose a serious threat to the freedom of the seas." The operation, one of at least six such operations this year, comes after the US State Department officially rejected most of China's sea claims, declaring its maritime efforts to assert sovereignty unlawful.
- PoliticsNBC News
'Difficult to attack vanilla': Trump's throwing everything at Biden, but nothing is sticking
President Donald Trump and his campaign have spent months deploying a series of attacks depicting Joe Biden as weak, unfit and a tool of leftists. On Tuesday, Trump stood in the Rose Garden and went on a non-stop nearly hour-long anti-Biden rant, spraying a variety of broadsides at the former vice president, on everything from China policy to immigration to policing and much more. In what may have been his wildest attack, Trump claimed Biden's housing policy would "abolish the suburbs."
- U.S.Yahoo News
Georgia murder case tests whether a Black man can stand his ground against whites
William Marcus “Marc” Wilson believed he was standing his ground when he fired at a pickup truck he says was trying to run his car off the road as he drove home with his girlfriend one night last month. The pickup truck's driver then allegedly tried to run Wilson's much smaller Ford Focus off the road before, according to Johnson, Wilson “defended his life” by using a legally registered firearm to shoot at the truck.
- WorldReuters
Philippines reports 29 new coronavirus deaths, 2,498 infections
The Philippines' health ministry on Thursday reported 29 new coronavirus deaths and 2,498 additional cases, the country's the biggest daily rise in confirmed infections in more than a week. In a bulletin, the ministry said total deaths had increased to 1,643, while confirmed infections reached 61,266. President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday retained partial quarantine measures in the capital Manila for two weeks until the end of July, but warned that stricter curbs would be reinstated if the rise in new cases and deaths did not slow.
- WorldThe Telegraph
South Korean prosecutors open probe into North's Kim Yo-jong
Seoul prosecutors have opened an unprecedented probe into North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister over Pyongyang's blowing up of a liaison office last month, officials said. The move is likely to infuriate the nuclear-armed North, which has repeatedly condemned South Korea in recent months, including directing personal insults at President Moon Jae-in. Seoul Central District prosecutors received a criminal complaint against Kim Yo-jong from a Seoul-based lawyer and had started an investigation, a spokeswoman told AFP.
- WorldAssociated Press
US imposes restrictions as pressure builds on Guyana leaders
The United States said Wednesday that it has imposed visa restrictions on people in Guyana who were involved in “undermining democracy" in the South American nation, which held a disputed election on March 2 and has yet to declare a winner. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who did not name the individuals affected, said Guyana's leaders have refused to accept the result of a recount of votes that showed a victory for the opposition. He said immediate family members of those “responsible for, or complicit in, undermining democracy" could also be subject to U.S. restrictions.
- U.S.INSIDER
An international student said the Trump administration rescinding its deportation threat is a relief, but the whiplash is unsettling
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced on July 6 that international students who were taking courses entirely online would not be allowed to remain in the US. The new policy was met with immediate backlash as 17 states and Washington, DC, filed a lawsuit to block the motion while Harvard and MIT led a similar suit that quickly garnered the support of 200 more universities. An international student told Insider that while she is happy about the rollback, she is still unsettled by the inconsistency of the Trump administration on potentially life-altering issues for students like her.
- LifestyleArchitectural Digest
21 Best Wall-Mounted Planters to Infuse Your Space With Greenery
Create living wall art that will freshen up any space Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
- U.S.USA TODAY
Fact check: A fake tweet claims AOC urged governors to shut down businesses to hurt Trump
The claim: AOC tweet says governors should maintain restrictions on businesses until after the election Politicians are clashing as the U.S. attempts to balance surging coronavirus cases, reopening economies and election year politics. Baseless conspiracy theories about the coronavirus being a Democratic hoax to damage Trump's reelection campaign have arisen after criticisms of how the president has handled the pandemic. One Facebook post contributed to the conspiracy theories.
- U.S.Business Insider
GOP Rep. Steve Watkins of Kansas was charged in voter fraud investigation
The Shawnee County district attorney charged Rep. Steve Watkins of voter fraud, local outlets reported. Republican Rep. Steve Watkins of Kansas is being charged in relation to a voter fraud investigation by the district attorney in Shawnee County, Kansas, local outlet KMBC reported.
- PoliticsLA Times
Kamala Harris made her mark confronting Joe Biden. Could they end up as running mates?
Others were more critical, saying Harris' genuine anguish over Biden's remarks on working with Southern senators was overshadowed when she raised another issue, school busing, and then muddled their differences and undercut her attack. Some Biden backers, meantime, continue to nurse hard feelings, believing Harris — who was good friends with Biden's late son, Beau — unfairly blindsided him. They have lobbied against selection of California's junior senator, one of half a dozen or so women floated as potential running mates.
- EntertainmentPopular Mechanics
'MythBusters' Host Grant Imahara, Dead at 49, Embodied the Pop Mech Spirit
The brilliant roboticist and master tinkerer inspired a generation of makers. From Popular Mechanics
- PoliticsReuters
Trump rebukes aide Navarro for attacking popular Fauci
President Donald Trump issued a rare rebuke of his senior adviser Peter Navarro on Wednesday, saying Navarro should not have written a scathing opinion piece about Anthony Fauci, a top government coronavirus expert who is hugely popular. Navarro, a trade adviser who at times has expanded his reach within the Trump White House, launched an attack on Fauci in an article for USA Today. “Dr. Anthony Fauci has a good bedside manner with the public, but he has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on,” Navarro wrote.
- U.S.NBC News
Black Lives Matter mural outside Trump Tower defaced; mayor says 'nice try'
The Black Lives Matter mural on Manhattan's Fifth Avenue in front of Trump Tower was defaced Monday but quickly fixed, authorities said. The Black Lives Matter "movement is more than words, and it can't be undone," de Blasio said. The New York City Police Department said they received a call at around 12:15 p.m. Monday about criminal mischief at 725 Fifth Avenue.
- WorldAssociated Press
Analysis: Risks grow after blast hits Iran's nuclear program
A mysterious explosion and fire at Iran's main nuclear facility may have stopped Tehran from building advanced centrifuges, but it likely has not slowed the Islamic Republic in growing its ever-increasing stockpile of low-enriched uranium. Limiting that stockpile represented one of the main tenets of the nuclear deal that world powers reached with Iran five years ago this week — an accord which now lies in tatters after President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from it two years ago. The larger that stockpile grows, the shorter the so-called “breakout time” becomes — time that Iran would need to build a nuclear weapon if it chooses to do so.
- WorldThe Telegraph
Polish president fooled by Russian phone pranksters claiming to be UN secretary general
A Russian prankster posing as the U.N. secretary-general managed to reach Poland's president on the telephone and rendered him speechless with questions about Ukraine, Russia and his reelection on Sunday. The prankster, Vladimir Kuznetsov, known as Vovan, posted a recording of the 11-minute call on YouTube. President Andrzej Duda's office confirmed Wednesday that it was authentic.
- WorldBBC
India coronavirus: Kuwait's new expat bill has Indians worried
Pratik Desai, a chief executive with engineering giant Larsen and Turbo has been living in Kuwait for the last 25 years. But his future looks uncertain after a bill to reduce the number of foreign workers in Kuwait has been partially approved. The bill has been cleared by the legal and legislative committee of the national assembly of Kuwait, but it needs the government's approval to become a law.
