“U.S. life expectancy drops sharply. American life expectancy fell by 1.5 yearsto 77.3 years in 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic, drug overdoses, homicides and some chronic diseases erased years of hard-won gains in the nation’s public health.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“The latest COVID-19 news: According to a new study, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine may not be as effective as those with mRNA technology.” Read more at USA Today
“Washington got vivid evidence of something we'd all heard, but maybe didn't believe:
You can be fully vaxxed and test positive for COVID.
You most likely won't get really sick. It's unclear whether you can spread it.
Multiple cases came to light Tuesday of White House and congressional staffers who tested positive despite having the shot.
Why it matters: Such ‘breakthrough cases’ could lead some unvaccinated people to believe the shots aren't worth getting, Axios' Caitlin Owens reports.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki confirmed multiple COVID cases among vaccinated White House staffers.
Axios' Hans Nichols scooped this morning that a Biden staffer and an aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi tested positive for COVID after attending the same reception last week. Both patients are fully vaccinated and are said to be mildly symptomatic.
The Pelosi staffer accompanied the runaway Democratic Texas lawmakers at the Capitol. Six of them have tested positive.” Read more at Axios
“It got loud: Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul accused Dr. Anthony Fauci of lying to Congress about COVID-19's origins during a hearing. Fauci wasn't happy about it.” Read more at USA Today
Top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci responds to accusations by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., as he testifies before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee about the origin of COVID-19 on Tuesday.Pool, Getty Images
“The progressive group Protect our Care today plans to target Paul and others for circulating false and misleading information about COVID-19. … House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), 55, received his first COVID-19 vaccine dose on Sunday and had it photographed. After telling reporters since April he would get inoculated ‘soon,’ he said he was persuaded this month that the available vaccines are effective (NOLA.com).” Read more at The Hill
“President Joe Biden travels to Cincinnati on Wednesday for a live CNN town hall , which is expected to focus on issues ranging from COVID-19 to the economy, the network reported. The event comes as COVID-19 cases are rising across the nation, driven by the highly transmissible delta variant. Also, Biden has been traveling throughout the Midwest to tout his $1.2 trillion infrastructure proposal. It's the president's first visit to Cincinnati since taking office and his third trip to Ohio, a state he lost by 8 percentage points to Donald Trump in 2020. CNN anchor Don Lemon will moderate the event, which will air at 8 p.m. ET.” Read more at USA Today
“The chairman of former President Donald Trump's inaugural committee, Thomas Barrack, was charged in a conspiracy to illegally advance the interests of the United Arab Emirates and leverage his political connections to Trump to push that effort.
Barrack, 74, of Santa Monica, California, was one of three charged in a seven-count indictment accusing the group of conspiring to act as agents of the UAE for two years ending in April 2018. The former Trump confidant also was charged with obstruction of justice for ‘making multiple false statements’ during a 2019 interview with federal agents.
‘The defendants repeatedly capitalized on Barrack’s friendships and access to a candidate who was eventually elected President, high-ranking campaign and government officials, and the American media to advance the policy goals of a foreign government without disclosing their true allegiances,’ acting Assistant Attorney General Mark Lesko said. ‘The conduct alleged in the indictment is nothing short of a betrayal of those officials in the United States, including the former president.’
Barrack attorney Matt Herrington said Tuesday that the former Trump adviser has been in contact with federal investigators from the start of the inquiry.
‘Mr. Barrack has made himself voluntarily available to investigators from the outset," Herrington said. "He is not guilty and will be pleading not guilty today.’
Federal authorities referred to an array of high level advisory positions Barrack held while attempting to exert influence on behalf of the UAE, including as a Trump campaign consultant; inaugural committee chairman; and as an adviser on foreign policy in the Middle East. Barrack, prosecutors said, also ‘sought appointment’ to the government's post as Special Envoy to the Middle East. Barrack and Trump have been friends for decades and Barrack was a significant fundraiser for Trump's presidential campaign.” Read more at USA Today
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
“House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy announced his five picks to serve on the select committee to investigate the January 6 Capitol riot — Reps. Kelly Armstrong (ND), Jim Banks (IN), Rodney Davis (IL), Jim Jordan (OH), and Troy Nehls (TX).” [Vox] Read more at The Week / Catherine Garcia]
“Unless House Speaker Nancy Pelosi vetoes the picks, the five Republicans will serve on the committee alongside her eight appointees. Pelosi also named a Republican as one of her appointees, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY).” [Vox] Read more at NPR / Alana Wise
“McCarthy said his appointees were intentionally chosen to represent various views within the GOP caucus and due to experience with oversight, either on past committees or their pre-Congress jobs.” [Vox] Read more at CNN / Annie Grayer and Melanie Zanona
“Three of the five picks — Banks, Jordan, and Nehls — voted against certifying the 2020 election, contributing to the Big Lie that spurred the attack on the Capitol. Jordan, in particular, is a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus and a fierce Trump loyalist known as the Republicans’ oversight bull.” [Vox] Read more at The Hill / Scott Wong
“Davis, who is more moderate, was one of 35 Republicans to support the creation of an independent, bipartisan January 6 commission. That effort ultimately failed in the Senate, lacking the support of 10 Republicans.” [Vox] Read more at The Washington Post / Jaclyn Peiser
“None of the five supported the second impeachment of President Trump. Banks, the chair of the Republican Study Committee, already released a statement saying, as other Republicans have repeated, that the commission should investigate antifa and last summer’s protests over racism.” [Vox] Read more at USA Today / Katie Wadington
“The committee will begin holding hearings on July 27. Capitol police officers who were on duty that day will be called as witnesses.” [Vox] Read more at Forbes / Andrew Solender
“Milwaukee celebrates after Bucks' title win
The Milwaukee Bucks defeated the Phoenix Suns 105-98 in Game 6 of the NBA Finals Tuesday night, delivering an excited city of Milwaukee its first championship since 1971 when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson were the star players. Two-time league MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo carried the Bucks in a career-defining effort that included scoring 50 points, and collecting 14 rebounds and five blocks. In addition to the thousands of fans inside the Fiserv Forum who got to see the long-awaited victory live, 65,000 more packed into the Deer District outside the arena, a wild party that figured to last deep into the Midwestern night. Antetokounmpo, who raised his game in the Finals and put up numbers never seen before, was voted the unanimous NBA Finals MVP.” Read more at USA Today
The Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo celebrates his first NBA championship in July 2021.USA TODAY Sports photo and graphic
Jeff Bezos watching a video of his spaceflight.Tony Gutierrez/Associated Press
“Jeff Bezos briefly flew to space. Afterward, he drew criticism for saying that Amazon employees and customers ‘paid for all of this.’” Read more at New York Times
“Harvey Weinstein has been extradited to California for sex-crime charges.
The convicted sex offender and former Hollywood producer was already serving a 23-year prison sentence in New York for felony sex crimes. He was extradited after more than a year of delays related to the pandemic and his declining health. Weinstein had challenged the extradition, arguing that he wouldn’t receive adequate medical care in a West Coast jail, but last month a judge in New York denied his request. In January 2020, prosecutors in Los Angeles announced sex-crime charges related to five women accusing Weinstein of rape and sexual assault between 2004 and 2013.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“After a year’s postponement and months of uncertainty, the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics are finally underway. (No, that’s not a misprint -- remember, this year’s games still carry last year’s branding.) Organizers in Japan spent months preparing for 11,000 athletes from 200 countries and thousands of journalists to arrive, even as the country struggles to rein in new coronavirus outbreaks. As a precaution, spectators won't be allowed at Olympic events. One of Japan’s top CEOs says the economic loss from this concession will be ‘enormous.’ The lack of domestic spectators could cost Japan's economy $1.3 billion, according to an estimate from a Japanese economist. Meanwhile, a new Olympic host city has been announced: Brisbane, Australia, will be the home of the Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games in 2032.” Read more at CNN
“Smoke from wildfires raging in the western United States were clouding skies as far away as New York, but the haze won't be in the forecast for the East Coast for long. A cold front will move into the Northeast from Canada Wednesday, clearing out some smoke in the process, Accuweather said. Meanwhile, in the western part of the U.S., where residents and wildlife alike have already been dealing with months of drought and extreme heat, thick smoke chokes areas near where wildfires continue to burn. The Bootleg Fire, now some 606 square miles in size, is burning 300 miles southeast of Portland in and around the Fremont-Winema National Forest. It is one of many fires burning in a dozen states, most of them in the West.” Read more at USA Today
A thick haze hangs over Manhattan, Tuesday, July 20, 2021, in New York. Wildfires in the West are creating hazy skies as far away as New York as the massive infernos spew smoke and ash into the air in columns up to six miles high.Julie Jacobson, AP
“U.S. and Germany reach agreement over Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The Biden administration will effectively waive its longstanding opposition to the natural-gas pipeline over fears the project would heighten Moscow’s economic and political sway across Europe, according to officials. The U.S.'s changed stance ends years of speculation over the project's fate.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
“The final list of candidates appearing on a Sept. 14 ballot to recall the election of California Gov. Gavin Newsom will be released Wednesday. Those hoping to oust the Democrat to run the most populous state in the country include Olympian and reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and millionaire businessman John Cox, who lost to Newsom in the 2018 election. The push to unseat Newsom is largely rooted in frustration with school and business closures during the COVID-19 pandemic that overturned daily life for millions of Californians. ‘I think Republicans are going to show up because they hate Newsom, not because they are particular fans of any of the replacement candidates,’ said Jack Pitney, a professor of political science at Claremont McKenna College.” Read more at USA Today
“Severe flooding in central China has killed at least 12 people inside a subway in the city of Zhengzhou.” Read more at New York Times
“A California couple are facing manslaughter charges over a wildfire last year that started at a gender reveal party.” Read more at New York Times
“A movement is gaining ground to curtail manufacturers' repair restrictions on smartphones, making it possible for consumers to fix devices rather than replace them, Axios' Margaret Harding McGill writes.
The FTC takes up the question today.
Manufacturers say the restrictions protect customers' safety and the companies' intellectual property rights.
Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak recently spoke in favor of the right to repair movement, saying: ‘We wouldn't have had an Apple had I not grown up in a very open technology world.’” Read more at Axios
“The top administrator of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops resigned after a Catholic media site told the conference it had access to cellphone data that appeared to show he was a regular user of Grindr, the queer dating app, and frequented gay bars.
Some privacy experts said that they couldn’t recall other instances of phone data being de-anonymized and reported publicly, but that it’s not illegal and will likely happen more as people come to understand what data is available about others.
Monsignor Jeffrey Burrill has since last fall been the general secretary of the USCCB, a position that coordinates all administrative work and planning for the conference, which is the country’s network for Catholic bishops. As a priest, he takes a vow of celibacy. Catholic teaching opposes sexual activity outside heterosexual marriage.” Read more at Washington Post
“$20 billion — The approximate cost to the Japanese government of this year's Tokyo Olympics, according to auditors, well above the $7.4 billion projected when Japan first bid for the Games. The event was supposed to be an economic boom for Japan, but with rising Covid-19 cases, a lagging vaccination campaign and Japanese public opinion firmly in opposition, it is feeling more like a bust.
$326 million — The price that Unilever paid for Ben & Jerry's in 2000. At the time, the multinational said it would continue to allow the ice-cream company, which is known for its liberal political stances, to make decisions about its social mission. Now, Unilever is in a tough spot and is facing backlash from Israel's prime minister after Ben & Jerry's said it would no longer sell its products in Jewish settlements located in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and contested East Jerusalem.” Read more at Wall Street Journal
Photo: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters
“Tom Brady, at the White House to celebrate the Tampa Bay Bucs' Super Bowl win, joked to President Biden during today's South Lawn ceremony: ‘I think about 40% of the people still don’t think we won.’
‘I understand that,’ Biden said, to laughter.
The legendary QB, not exactly known for his patter at the podium, kept on quipping: ‘We had a game in Chicago where I forgot what down it was. I lost track of one down in 21 years of playing, and they started calling me 'Sleepy Tom.' [Laughter. ] Why would they do that to me?’
Biden — called ‘Sleepy Joe’ at President Trump's rallies — played along: ‘I don’t know.’
Brady got applause. Biden got a No. 46 Bucs jersey.” Read more at Axios
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