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BILL KRISTOL & ANDREW EGGER: Whiplashing Between Hope and Fear
JVL: The Christian-Nationalist Rot Runs Deep š
MARC CAPUTO: Trump Camp Is Planning to āWillie Hortonā Kamala Harris
JOE PERTICONE: Congressās Most Dysfunctional Committee Gets (Mostly) Serious
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JOSHUA TAIT: Brace Yourself for Harrismania
HERE IS A POLITICAL FABLE: A party leader, an elder statesman from a center-left party, has lost his mandate. Heās up against a beatable opponent from the right, but heās unpopular. Itās less than two months until Election Day, and the polls say he canāt win. So he steps down and anoints his deputy, a young woman, the new party leader. Thereās an instant change. Overnight, donations start to roll in, volunteers sign up. Poll numbers rocket. The new leader scores well, especially among young voters and women. The press is infatuated. When the votes are counted, the young leader has defied the odds. Sheās put together a big enough coalition to beat the conservative party.
MONA CHAREN: America Has One Healthy Political Party
WITHIN MINUTES OF PRESIDENT BIDENāS WITHDRAWAL from the 2024 race, Senator Tom Cotton leaped onto X to declare that āJoe Biden succumbed to a coup by Nancy Pelosi, Barack Obama, and Hollywood donors, ignoring millions of Democratic primary votes. Donald Trump took a bullet for democracy.ā
š„ PODCASTS AND VIDEOS š§
Bulwark Podcast with Tim Miller: Sam Stein and Ron Brownstein: Now We're Talking
Just Between Us: Kamalamentum! š
Across the Movie Aisle: Is 'Twisters' the Summer's Popcorn Hit?
The Dark Side: How Kamala Will Beat Trump
Did you know? Bulwark+ members can listen to an ad-free version of these podcasts on the player of their choice.
Learn more at Bulwark+ Podcast FAQ.
š£Bulwark+ members can now listen to ad-free podcasts on Spotify! Learn more here.
WILL SALETAN: Biden Couldnāt Beat Trump. Harris Can.
DOES KAMALA HARRIS HAVE a better shot at winning the presidential election than Joe Biden did?
To answer that question, Iāve looked at every public poll taken since Bidenās debate with Donald Trump on June 27. These polls were taken before Biden withdrew from the race and Harris stepped in, so she may get an additional bounce from her partyās euphoria. But already, the answer in the data is: Yes, she has a better chance.
BILL LUEDERS: QAnon Is Still Ripping Families Apart
EMILY HAD SOME TOUGH BREAKS IN LIFE but she was strong, smart, and resilient. When her husband took his own life, leaving her with three children to raise, the Tennessee resident launched a new career by going to law school. Her youngest son, Adam, then in grade school, tagged along to some of her night classes and watched amazed as she stood there ābrilliant and fearless, dazzling her law instructors.ā She graduated with top honors and was hired by a large law firm, later going into solo practice.
šØOVERTIMEšØ
Happy Tuesday! Hopefully youāre enjoying the good summer weather and getting outside!
šµOn the Jukeboxšµā¦ āMy City Was Goneā (2007 Remaster) - The Pretenders
You know who also went back to Ohio? Chrissie Hynde, who visited her childhood home in Cuyahoga Falls. Fun Fact: Hynde allowed Rush Limbaugh to use her song for his show, in part, for her father, but also made Rush pay royalties to PETA.
Senator Menendez⦠says heās going to retire. On August 20, which is paycheck day in the U.S. Senate.
Speaking of embarrassing Senators⦠Mike Lee amplified a fake announcement of Jimmy Carterās death. Among the things he missed, Bryan Metzger reports: āThe fake letter quoted the former president as calling his late wife a ābaddieā and the āoriginal Bratā who āthroat goat Nancy Reagan had nothing on.āā Staff should take away his phone or change the password.
Fix the Insurrection Act! A valuable webinar from the Brennan Center for Justice this Thursday (RSVP Reqād). Hereās a bit about the seminar:
Join us on Thursday, July 25, at 3 p.m. ET for a live virtual event moderated by Elizabeth Goitein, senior director of the Brennan Center Liberty & National Security Program, featuring lawyer and writer Hawa Allan, Harvard law professor Jack Goldsmith, and Brennan Center counsel Joseph Nunn. The panel will shed light on a presidentās alarming powers under the Insurrection Act and examine possible solutions to prevent the lawās misuse.
The Tragedy and Remaining Hope of the Biden Presidency⦠He has not yet escaped Trump. (Gabriel Debenedetti, New York)
Was Kamala Harris Actually Bidenās āBorder Czarā? Analysis from the WSJ that perhaps friends pushing the exaggerated GOP narrative might appreciate. (Like these looney tunes accusations from Rep. Andy Ogles, who canāt even get his own lifeās story straight.)
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