Occupy Banksters & Crony Capitalism & GREED

Progressives own the first debate night
Axios | David Nather, Alexi McCammond | 07/31/19

Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders looked like Democrats' de facto leaders and policymakers last night, in the opening half of the party's back-to-back Debate 2.

The state of play: The two progressives dominated the clock. Warren had the most speaking time and Sanders was second, with Pete Buttigieg third. Both spoke to Democrats who are tired of small ball.

Warren: "I don't understand why anybody goes to all the trouble of running for president of the United States, just to talk about what we really can't do and shouldn't fight for." Sanders: "I get a little bit tired of Democrats afraid of big ideas."

2020 Democrats answer questions at National Education Association forum | older, but good 07/05/19 | 2:19:53

Bernie Sanders' website

Trump's Pick for Top Intelligence Job Bragged of Experience as Terror Prosecutor -- But He Doesn't Have Any
TheIntercept | Trevor Aaronson | 07/31/19

JOHN RATCLIFFE, President Donald Trump's selection to replace Dan Coats as director of national intelligence, has often touted his experience as a "terrorism prosecutor" -- a label that fellow congressional Republicans and the media have uncritically adopted.

That experience appears to qualify him for the top position at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which was created after 9/11 to coordinate the activities of the nation's 17 intelligence agencies. The law that established the position requires its holder to have "extensive national security expertise."

But Ratcliffe, in fact, has no record of prosecuting terrorists. In the one terrorism-related case he claims to have worked on -- the prosecution of the Texas-based Muslim charity Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development -- he played only a tangential part. ... Read more

Why the Fed wants higher inflation
Axios | Courtenay Brown | 07/31/19

Low inflation may sound good to consumers, who like what it suggests about the prices they'll pay. But the Federal Reserve -- which will likely cite the lack of meaningful price increases as a motive for cutting interest rates today -- has reasons for concern.

Why it matters: Inflation has come in below the Fed's "sweet spot" -- 2% inflation -- throughout much of the record-long economic expansion, and consumers have benefited from low prices accompanied by low borrowing costs. But Fed chair Jerome Powell has pivoted to warn of the dangers of weak inflation -- a shift from the more common fear of rising inflation, like the type of soaring prices seen in the late 1970s and early '80s. ... Read more

UK Heat Wave Breaks Temperature Record
HP | AP | 07/30/19

Weather agency the Met Office says the temperature reached 38.7 C (101.7 F) at Cambridge University Botanic Garden in eastern England.

Met office climate scientist Mark McCarthy said climate change was making extreme temperatures more common. He said "climate change has increased the likelihood and severity of heatwave episodes across Europe, which will have also increased the risks of a 40 Celsius temperature event in the U.K." ... Read more

Democratic debates, round two: Sanders and Warren to face off for first time
TheGuardian | Sabrina Siddiqui | 07/30/19

Progressive frontrunners Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren are set to go head to head on the national stage for the first time Tuesday night, as 2020 Democratic presidential candidates gather in Detroit for the second round of televised debates.

One month after the first set of debates in Miami, Florida, 20 of the Democratic presidential hopefuls will square off in what for many of them could be their last chance to make an impression before the American public ... Read more

Trump ups the ante on his Fed feud
Axios | Courtenay Brown | 07/30/19

Just as the Fed seems poised to announce the first interest rate cut since the financial crisis, President Trump took his feud with the central bank one step further, saying it "has made all the wrong moves."

Why it matters: In previous administrations, it would have been unthinkable for the president to publicly lobby for a rate cut, which Trump says will goose the economy. And even though Trump may have unintentionally gotten everything he's wanted from the Fed so far, he is pushing for even more. On Monday, he tweeted: "A small rate cut is not enough, but we will win anyway!" ... Read more

Trump Critics Post Photos of Poverty, Homelessness in Republican Districts Across U.S.
Newsweek | Benjamin Fearnow | 07/30/19

Critics of President Donald Trump responded to his recent labeling of Elijah Cummings' congressional district in Maryland as "disgusting" and "rodent infested" with photos of neighborhoods in Republican-controlled districts that also appeared to be rife with homelessness, poverty and waste.

Trump on Saturday railed against Cummings and Baltimore -- about half of which falls in the congressman's district -- calling the city "disgusting rat and rodent infested." Rather than decry or disavow the president's remarks, Trump's allies and conservative media outlets like Fox News attempted to bolster his claim by sharing photos and video of destitute and dirty portions of the Maryland metropolis. White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said Sunday he'd have been "fired" from running his former South Carolina congressional district if it had as much crime and homelessness. ... Read more

McConnell lashes out at media, Democrats over "Moscow Mitch" label
Axios | Zachary Basu | 07/30/19

Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) took to the Senate floor Monday to angrily defend himself against allegations that he is doing the bidding of Russian President Vladimir Putin by blocking a series of election security bills proposed by Democrats.

The backdrop: In the 24 hours after former special counsel Robert Mueller testified about Russian interference in the 2016 election, McConnell and several other Republicans blocked election security bills from being passed by unanimous consent on the grounds that they were partisan, and that the GOP has already take steps to improve security for the upcoming election. ... Read more

Earth Overshoot Day Shows We're Tearing Through Resources Faster Than Ever
Click on Image to Zoom in
HP | Laura Paddison | 07/29/19

July 29 marks the point at which we start to consume more than the Earth can replenish. And this date is getting earlier each year.

On July 29, we cross an alarming threshold. This date marks Earth Overshoot Day, the point each year at which humanity starts to consume the world's natural resources faster than they can be replenished.

It's taken us only 209 days to burn through a year's worth of resources -- everything from food and timber to land and carbon. We are using up nature 1.75 times faster than it can be replenished. To do this sustainably, we would need the resources of 1.75 Earths.

These latest figures come from Global Footprint Network, an international nonprofit that calculates our annual ecological budget and the date at which we exceed it. Once we bust through this budget, we start devouring resources at an unsustainable rate. ... Read more

The world is catching up on AI
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 07/29/19

The U.S. was home to nearly 75% of all deals in 2013, data shows, but is fast losing share in the startup market -- a key driver of innovation.

Why it matters: AI is a major growth force for American companies and "of paramount importance to maintaining the economic and national security of the United States" President Trump said in an executive order signed in February dubbed the "American AI Initiative."

... What's happening: In addition to the Chinese government allocating significant spending to AI, more new companies are being started in a raft of different countries and raising equity, analysts from CB Insights tell Axios in an email. ... Read more

Boris Johnson: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver | 07/28/19 | 22:02

Climate change: 12 years to save the planet? Make that 18 months
BBCNews | Matt McGrath | 07/24/19

Now it seems, there's a growing consensus that the next 18 months will be critical in dealing with the global heating crisis, among other environmental challenges.

Last year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that to keep the rise in global temperatures below 1.5C this century, emissions of carbon dioxide would have to be cut by 45% by 2030.

But today, observers recognise that the decisive, political steps to enable the cuts in carbon to take place will have to happen before the end of next year.

The idea that 2020 is a firm deadline was eloquently addressed by one of the world's top climate scientists, speaking back in 2017.

"The climate math is brutally clear: While the world can't be healed within the next few years, it may be fatally wounded by negligence until 2020," said Hans Joachim Schellnhuber, founder and now director emeritus of the Potsdam Climate Institute. ... Read more

Netflix's The Great Hack explores how Cambridge Analytica sold your data during the 2016 election
Vox | Alissa Wilkinson | 07/25/19

The premise: As a documentary, a thriller, and a screed, The Great Hack outlines in detail how social media sites such as Facebook and data firms such as Cambridge Analytica harvest and use people's data to sell users things -- including political candidates and agendas.

What it's about: By now, most Americans are aware -- no matter their political leanings -- that the data they give up to sites like Facebook and Twitter (as well as what they've purchased, their browsing history, and other personal data) is bought and used by companies that want to sell them things. But the extent to which this data harvesting has been used to reshape our world is, for many people, only beginning to come into focus ... Read more
The Cambridge Analytica Facebook scandal (VERY extensive)

The Great Hack | 07/25/19 | 1:54:07

The Great Hack | Official Trailer | Netflix | 07/11/19| 2:27

Student Debt in the U.S. Reaches an All-Time High | Trevor Noah | 07/25/19 | 6:10

U.S. GDP growth slows to 2.1% in the 2nd quarter
Axios | Courtenay Brown | 07/26/19

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.1% annualized rate in the second quarter, the Commerce Department said on Friday.

Why it matters: It's a significant slowdown from the first quarter's 3.1% growth rate, but still better than the 1.9% economists had expected. Once again, strong consumer spending offset the sharp decline in business investment and trade's drag on growth. ... Read more

More negative interest rates won't save Europe
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 07/26/19

The hope for interest rate cuts and more quantitative easing in September was not enough to placate the market on Thursday as stocks fell in the U.S. and Europe after an announcement from ECB President Mario Draghi that gave the distinct impression the central bank would ease monetary policy at its next meeting.

The state of play: Most analysts said the reaction from the market was due to Draghi sounding more hawkish than expected, but investors may simply be waking up to the idea that central bank easing isn't what it once was, and the ECB's policy tool kit looks exhausted. ... Read more

Europe endures a 2nd wave of record-breaking extreme heat
Axios | Rebecca Falconer | 07/25/19

Records have begun to tumble across Western Europe as a second blistering summer heat wave struck -- and forecasters warn the worst is far from over.

Details: The historic heat wave has shattered hottest temperature records in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and France, as the extreme weather system spreads. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said the heat would exacerbate drought in some areas and "fuel the risk of wildfires." ... Read more

Rudy dances after Mueller falters on the Hill
Axios| Mike Allen | 07/25/19

After a sterling career -- including the Bronze Star for heroism as a Marine in Vietnam, and a decade as FBI director after 9/11 -- Robert Mueller's last turn in the global spotlight will be remembered as a botch.

The big picture: There had been whispers in both parties about his faculties at age 74, and they became a roar yesterday as he stumbled through back-to-back appearances before the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committees. ...

... The big picture: This was 100% political theater and 0% meaningful new substance. Members dominated instead of the witness.... Read more

Jeffrey Epstein found unconscious in jail cell, say reports
TheGuardian | Edward Helmore | 07/25/19

Why Trump swallowed a budget deal that bleeds red ink
Politico | Nancy Cook | 07/25/19

Trump looked to his friend and Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin to work with Pelosi and McConnell to strike a budget deal that avoids another risky spending fight until after the 2020 election. President Donald Trump chose the pragmatist over the rabble-rousers.

Trump looked to Steven Mnuchin, his longtime friend, 2016 campaign official and now Cabinet member who earned a new reputation this week as a political deal-maker in Washington and helped Trump postpone any risky financial brinkmanship until after 2020.

The Treasury secretary took the lead in the five-month-long negotiations with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, striking a deal to raise the debt ceiling and set spending levels past the 2020 election. House lawmakers are set to vote on the agreement Thursday and are expected to approve it, despite widespread grumbling within the GOP. ... Read more

Open Hearings Enable Us To Be Better Citizens | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC | 07/25/19 | 6:36

Some Surprises Among Damning Mueller Testimony, Bad Day For Donald Trump | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC | 07/25/19 | 27:04

With more extreme heat, air conditioning becomes a matter of life and death
PBS | NewHour | 07/19/19

Last month was the hottest June on record going back 139 years, according to NASA. And, today, halfway into July, the National Weather Service forecasts potentially deadly temperatures throughout the weekend across much of the United States.

This week, a study by the Union of Concerned Scientists warned that the number of extreme heat days could more than double by mid-century, just 30 years away, if we don't change how much of those heat-trapping gasses we emit. ... Read more

Robert Mueller's secret hearing prep sessions
Axios | Mike Allen | 07/24/19/span>

Former special counsel Robert Mueller has been grilled in secret prep sessions for today's back-to-back Hill appearances, a source familiar with the process tells Axios.

The state of play: During the House Judiciary and Intelligence Committee sessions, which the networks are calling the most anticipated hearings in a decade, Mueller will face questions about his 448-page report from 63 total lawmakers, with little overlap, Politico points out.

Yesterday afternoon, Axios' Jonathan Swan called Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz to get a Mueller preview. Gaetz, along with Reps. Jim Jordan and John Ratcliffe, are expected to be the most aggressive Republican questioners. ... Read more

WATCH LIVE: Robert Mueller is testifying on his report, Trump and Russia | PBS | 07/24/19 | Live

The continuing global slowdown
Axios | Dion RabouinDion Rabouin | 07/24/19

The first half of the year has been weaker than expected for the global economy, and the main cause is a significant slowdown in manufacturing and trade.

What's happening: The IMF wrote down its global growth expectations for the third time this year, pointing squarely to the U.S.-China trade war that has thrown a wet blanket on cross-border trade and investment, sending manufacturing into a recession in the U.S. and in an increasing number of countries around the globe.

Why it matters: Manufacturing is a relatively small portion of the U.S. economy, but it remains a lifeline for much of the rest of the world.

Driving the news: Eurozone manufacturing activity fell to its lowest in more than 11 years this month, according IHS Markit figures released this morning. That number follows a report out of Britain showing manufacturing orders in the second quarter falling to their lowest since 2009. ... Read more

Greek Comedy: 10Y GGB Yield Plunges Below 2% For First Time Ever
ZeroHedge | staff | 07/24/19

For the first time in history, the yield on Greece's 10Y sovereign bonds dropped below 2.00% - having crashed from around 4.00% at the start of the year - and is below US Treasury debt costs. ... Read more

China's High-Stakes Robot Wars | 01/17/19 | 10:18

For two weeks each year, college students take over a massive stadium and fill it with fighting drones, plastic ammo, and rapt spectators. This is Robomasters, held in Shenzhen by DJI, the world's leading drone maker. In part two of Hello World Shenzhen, Bloomberg Businessweek's Ashlee Vance goes inside the world of Nerf-style robo-warfare to spotlight the kinds of innovation that have kept DJI, at the forefront of a booming market, and demonstrates why you may not want him on your squad.

Inside China's High-Tech Dystopia | 01/24/19 | 10:09

In part three of Hello World Shenzhen, Bloomberg Businessweek's Ashlee Vance heads out into a city where you can't use cash or credit cards, only your smartphone, where AI facial-recognition software instantly spots and tickets jaywalkers, and where at least one factory barely needs people. This is the society that China's government and leading tech companies are racing to make a reality, with little time to question which advancements are net positives for the rest of us.

Another Former Donald Trump Aide Convicted; Mike Flynn Strategy Suffers Blow | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC | 07/23/19 | 16:42

Official Secrets: The Spy Who Tried to Stop a War by Marcia Mitchell and Thomas Mitchell

In January 2003, 28-year-old GCHQ translator Katharine Gun received an email from the US National Security Agency that would turn her world upside down. The message requested Katharine's assistance in co-ordinating an illegal US-UK spy operation which would secure UN authorisation for the Iraq invasion. Horrified, she decided to leak the information to the British press.

Katharine's decision would change her life forever, as she was arrested under the Official Secrets Act whilst becoming a cause célèbre for political activists. Official Secrets is the definitive account of a whistleblower case that reads like a thriller, and will ask you the same question that was asked of Katharine that cold January day -- where do your true loyalties lie?

Official Secrets Trailer (2019) - Keira Knightley | 07/12/19 | 2:15

U.S. Justice Department Tells Mueller To Limit Congressional Testimony
HP | Reuters | 07/23/19

The U.S. Justice Department told former Special Counsel Robert Mueller on Monday he should limit his testimony before Congress this week to discussing his public report on the Russia probe.

In a letter to Mueller, Associate Deputy Attorney General Bradley Weinsheimer said his testimony set for Wednesday before the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees “must remain within the boundaries of your public report because matters within the scope of your investigation were covered by executive privilege.” ... Read more

"The Squad" interview: Gayle King's full conversation with AOC, Omar, Pressley & Tlaib | CBS | 07/20/19 | 33:04

Citing Intense Public Interest, Judge UNseals Files in Case of Trump Associate Felix Sater
TheIntercept | Johnny Dwyer | 07/22/19

A FEDERAL JUDGE in Brooklyn ordered on Monday the unsealing of previously secret portions of the court record involving the criminal case of Felix Sater, a former associate of President Donald Trump who was convicted on racketeering charges prior to his work with the president. The decision came after The Intercept sought access to the filings, some of which have remained under seal for two decades.

Sater, who has appeared before both congressional investigators and the special counsel’s office to address his involvement in a failed effort to launch the proposed Trump Moscow project, was a longtime government cooperator, serving both as a witness against the organized crime figures involved in his original racketeering case and in a range of national security matters.

He also represented an unusual nexus between Trump, Kremlin-connected Russian elites, and key members of special counsel Robert Mueller’s team who investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election. For some of Mueller’s prosecutors who had worked in the Eastern District of New York, Sater was a kind of golden goose — the rare informant who could provide tips on Russian and Italian mobsters and Al Qaeda. ... Read more

The future of monetary policy comes to Washington
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 07/23/19

As the Fed approaches a likely rate cut at the end of the month -- in the face of 50-year low unemployment, rising wages and strong consumer spending -- it could not have been a better time for a visit to Washington from Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda.

What it means: Kuroda has instituted some of the world’s most extreme and unorthodox monetary policies, including directing the central bank to buy Japanese stocks. More analysts are starting to believe such policies will be adopted in other places, including the U.S.

"Most economies have been experiencing low inflation and low growth since the global financial crisis," Kuroda said in a speech Monday at IMF headquarters in Washington. "Japan’s experience in the long battle against deflation could provide a case study for other central banks in conducting monetary policy going forward." ... Read more

'Essential Moral Values' Work Against Trump Policy Of Cruelty | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC | 07/22/19 | 5:42

Study: Immigrants and their kids founded 45% of U.S. Fortune 500 companies
Axios | Stef W. Kight | 07/22/19

Immigrants and their children have founded 45% of the U.S.'s Fortune 500 companies, according to a new study by New American Economy, a pro-immigration group.

Why it matters: The share of the most successful and globally-recognized U.S. companies that have immigrant founders is growing, according to NAE's Hanna Siegel and Andrew Lim, while the Trump administration has tried to make it more difficult for immigrants to come to the U.S., often claiming that they take American jobs and lower wages. ... Read more
Click on Image to Zoom in

Inside the Secret Border Patrol Facebook Group Where Agents Joke About Migrant Deaths and Post Sexist Memes
ProPublica | A.C. Thompson | 07/01/19

The three-year-old group, which has roughly 9,500 members, shared derogatory comments about Latina lawmakers who plan to visit a controversial Texas detention facility on Monday, calling them "scum buckets" and "hoes."

Created in August 2016, the Facebook group is called "I'm 10-15" and boasts roughly 9,500 members from across the country. (10-15 is Border Patrol code for "aliens in custody.") The group described itself, in an online introduction, as a forum for "funny" and "serious" discussion about work with the patrol. "Remember you are never alone in this family," the introduction said.

Responsible for policing the nation's southern and northern boundaries, the Border Patrol has come under intense scrutiny as the Trump administration takes new, more aggressive measures to halt the influx of undocumented migrants across the United States-Mexico border. The patrol's approximately 20,000 agents serve under the broader U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency, which has been faulted for allegedly mistreating children and adults in its custody. The agency's leadership has been in turmoil, with its most recent acting chief, John Sanders, resigning last week. ... Read more

What do kids really need in education | Prince Ea | 03/20/19 | 6:02

Teacher Reacts to Prince EA - Student vs Teacher | Deadlock Entertainment | 04/19/19 | 25:04

Official Secrets: The Spy Who Tried to Stop a War by Marcia Mitchell and Thomas Mitchell

In January 2003, 28-year-old GCHQ translator Katharine Gun received an email from the US National Security Agency that would turn her world upside down. The message requested Katharine's assistance in co-ordinating an illegal US-UK spy operation which would secure UN authorisation for the Iraq invasion. Horrified, she decided to leak the information to the British press.

Katharine's decision would change her life forever, as she was arrested under the Official Secrets Act whilst becoming a cause célèbre for political activists. Official Secrets is the definitive account of a whistleblower case that reads like a thriller, and will ask you the same question that was asked of Katharine that cold January day -- where do your true loyalties lie?

Official Secrets Trailer (2019) - Keira Knightley | 07/12/19 | 2:15

Eye in the Sky Official North American Trailer (2015) - Aaron Paul, Helen Mirren | 12/13/15 | 2:30

Focus group: It's still the economy, stupid
Axios | Alexi McCammond | 07/19/19

WARREN, Mich. -- Some swing voters here told us that even though they hate President Trump's behavior, they'll place more importance on the state of the economy -- and their personal financial situations -- when deciding how to vote in 2020.

Why it matters: This highlights the challenge for Democrats who relish the opportunity to label Trump as "lawless" or a "divider-in-chief." Every incumbent president since FDR who has avoided a recession in the lead-up to an election year was re-elected. ... Read more

Filthy Rich: The Billionaire's Sex Scandal - The Shocking True Story of Jeffrey Epstein by James Patterson

You've read the Jeffrey Epstein headlines, now get the full story. The world's bestselling author, James Patterson, has written the definitive book on the billionaire pedophile at the center of the newly unsealed federal sex crimes case.

Jeffrey Epstein rose from humble origins into the New York City and Palm Beach elite. A college dropout with an instinct for numbers -- and for people -- Epstein amassed his wealth through a combination of access and skill. But even after he had it all, Epstein wanted more. That unceasing desire -- and especially a taste for underage girls --resulted in sexual-abuse charges, to which he pleaded guilty and received a shockingly lenient sentence.

James Patterson on his investigation into Jeffrey Epstein | FOXNews | 07/09/19 | 8:35

The Jeffrey Epstein scandal
TheGuardian | Anushka Asthana | 07/19/19

Jeffrey Epstein is a wealthy financier and one-time friend to the rich and famous, counting Donald Trump, Prince Andrew and Bill Clinton as acquaintances. In 2005 a 14-year-old girl reported that Epstein had molested her in Palm Beach. Others came forward, some of them also minors. But after plea negotiations between Epstein's legal team and the then US attorney in Miami, Alexander Acosta, Epstein served just 13 months in prison.

This month he was arrested on sex trafficking charges and last week federal prosecutors claimed that lewd photographs of girls as young as 14 had been discovered in a safe in his Manhattan mansion. Epstein, 66, has pleaded not guilty. Journalist Vicky Ward tells Anushka Asthana about meeting Epstein in 2002 when she was profiling him for Vanity Fair magazine, while the Guardian's Ed Pilkington discusses the current case. ... Read more
The Jeffrey Epstein scandal | TheGuardian | 07/19/19 | 30:28

There Were Rumors For Years. Why Didn't The Jeffrey Epstein Story Break Earlier? | Beat the Press | 07/12/19 | 6:44

Rarely has the U.S. and global economy been under such self-inflicted pressure.
Axios | Steve LeVine | 07/19/19

Rarely has the U.S. and global economy been under such self-inflicted pressure, weighed down by a frenzy of deficit spending, attacks on trading partners, and a broadside to the fundamental system of business.

Why it matters: So far at least, global stock markets have seemed to shrug off the relentless jostling of the financial system, mostly by President Trump, with all three major U.S. exchanges rising again on Thursday. But experts tell Axios that investors ultimately will price in a costlier assessment of his "America First" policies.

Among the economic hits are:

Those wars are causing a massive disruption to the movement of stuff that big companies buy and sell, and the parts that go into it, forcing them into a costly reconfiguration of the essence of how they conduct business. ... Read more

I ran across this older video from FOXNew critiquing Rep. Ilhan Omar. It shows FOXNews slant, AND how much farther right FOXNews has gone since April.

Rep. Ilhan Omar blasted for 9/11 remarks | FoxNews | 04/12/19 | 9:52

Ilhan Omar Gets Hero's Welcome At A Minneapolis Airport 7-18-2019 | 07/18/19 | 1:40

Heat Wave To Scorch Midwest And East Coast, Create Dangerous Conditions For Residents
HP | AP | 07/18/19

More than 100 local heat records are expected to fall Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.

DETROIT (AP) -- The heat wave that has been roasting much of the U.S. in recent days is just getting warmed up, with temperatures expected to soar to dangerous levels through the weekend.

More than 100 local heat records are expected to fall Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. Most won't be record-daily highs but record-high nighttime lows, and that lack of cooling can be dangerous, meteorologists say. Temperatures in parts of the East won't drop below the mid- to upper-70s or even 80 degrees (26.7 Celsius) at night, he said.

A high pressure system stretching from coast-to-coast is keeping the heat turned on. The heat and humidity are made to feel worse by the large amount of moisture in the air coming from the Gulf of Mexico, much of it left over from Hurricane Barry.

The heat index, which is what the temperature feels like, should hit 110 (43.3 Celsius) in Washington, D.C., on Saturday and 109 (42.8 Celsius) in Chicago and Detroit on Friday, said Jeff Masters, meteorology director of Weather Underground. Wednesday marked Washington's seventh straight day with temperatures of at least 90 degrees (32.2 Celsius), and that streak was expected to last for another five days. ... Read more

Trump holds campaign rally in North Carolina amid racist tweets controversy | 07/17/19 | 2:05:04

Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib, Omar, Pressley respond to President Trump's racist tweets | PBS | 07/15/19 | 22:25

Big banks cash in on consumers
Axios | Courtenay Brown | 07/18/19

The flush U.S. consumer is lifting profits for the big banks, busily pouring free cash into savings and checking accounts while spending on credit cards and borrowing money to buy homes.

Why it matters: The strength and optimism of the American consumer continue to underpin the record-long economic recovery -- and stand as a contrast to the gloomy outlook expressed lately by business leaders. "There's solid consumer activity across the board," said Bank of America's CEO, Brian Moynihan, echoing sentiment from his competitors at JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and others. ...

... Yes, but: Fed chairman Jerome Powell has all but said the central bank will pare back interest rates later this month -- and might do so again later this year. This poses a risk for banks, which make money by charging borrowers higher, longer-term interest rates while paying out low rates on deposits. ... Read more

No-deal Brexit would plunge Britain into a recession, says OBR
TheGuardian | Larry Elliot | 07/18/19

A no-deal Brexit would plunge Britain into a recession that would shrink the economy by 2%, push unemployment above 5% and send house prices tumbling by around 10%, according to the government's independent forecasting body.

In an assessment of the impact of Britain leaving the EU without a deal at the end of October, the Office for Budget Responsibility said the result would be a year-long downturn that would increase borrowing by £30bn a year. The assessment prompted a fresh warning from the chancellor, Philip Hammond, to Brexiters calling for a "harder" exit from the EU. ... Read more

Game of Thrones Mashup | 07/17/19 | 2:40

MANSCAPED Created The Right Tools For The Job | 07/10/19 | 2:00

We Build the Wall - Wall-A-Thon | 06/24/19 | 6:27:57

Trump's premeditated racism is central to his 2020 strategy
Axios | Jim VandeHei | 07/17/19

It might seem like improvisational madness when President Trump tells American citizens in Congress to "go back" where they came from, but those close to Trump say there's a lot of calculation behind his race-baiting.

Why it matters: It's central to his 2020 strategy, they say. Trump's associates predict more, not less, of the race-baiting madness.

The rough calculation goes like this:

Watch Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, and Rashida Tlaib Answer Donald Trump's Racist Lies
TheIntercept | Robert Mackey | 07/15/19

THE FOUR DEMOCRATIC congresswomen who the president of the United States has been telling racist lies about responded on Monday with a passionate defense of the nation's highest ideals, voiced with the conviction and controlled fury their party's leaders have been unable to summon in the face of Donald Trump's white supremacist trolling.

For 21 remarkable minutes on Monday, Reps. Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Rashida Tlaib took turns rejecting Trump's racist suggestion that they were un-American for criticizing his lawless rule and promising not to be deterred by his dangerous incitement. ... Read more

Reps. Omar, Pressley, Ocasio-Cortez and Tlaib respond to Trump's comments | NBCNews | 07/15/19 | 22:01
Reps. Omar, Ocasio-Cortez, Pressley and Tlaib respond to Trump's racist tweets | CBSNews | 07/15/19 | 38:44
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley & Rashida Tlaib | TIME | 07/15/19 | 23:35
WATCH: Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib, Omar, Pressley respond to President Trump's racist tweets | PBS | 07/15/19 | 22:25
Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, Tlaib, Pressley condemn Trump in explosive press conference | FOX News | 07/15/19 | 22:56

American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump by Tim Alberta (07/16/19)

The 2016 election was a watershed for the United States. But, as Tim Alberta explains in American Carnage, to understand Trump's victory is to view him not as the creator of this era of polarization and bruising partisanship, but rather as its most manifest consequence.

American Carnage is the story of a president's rise based on a country's evolution and a party's collapse. As George W. Bush left office with record-low approval ratings and Barack Obama led a Democratic takeover of Washington, Republicans faced a moment of reckoning: They had no vision, no generation of new leaders, and no energy in the party's base. Yet Obama's forceful pursuit of his progressive agenda, coupled with the nation's rapidly changing societal and demographic identity, lit a fire under the right, returning Republicans to power and inviting a bloody struggle for the party's identity in the post-Bush era. The factions that emerged -- one led by absolutists like Jim Jordan and Ted Cruz, the other led by pragmatists like John Boehner and Mitch McConnell -- engaged in a series of devastating internecine clashes and attempted coups for control. With the GOP's internal fissures rendering it legislatively impotent, and that impotence fueling a growing resentment toward the political class and its institutions, the stage was set for an outsider to crash the party. When Trump descended a gilded escalator to announce his run in the summer of 2015, the candidate had met the moment.

Only by viewing Trump as the culmination of a decade-long civil war inside the GOP--and of the parallel sense of cultural, socioeconomic, and technological disruption during that period--can we appreciate how he won the White House and consider the fundamental questions at the center of America's current turmoil. How did a party once obsessed with national insolvency come to champion trillion-dollar deficits? How did the party of compassionate conservatism become the party of Muslim bans and family separation? How did the party of family values elect a thrice-married philanderer? And, most important, how long can such a party survive?

Loaded with explosive original reporting and based off hundreds of exclusive interviews--including with key players such as President Trump, Paul Ryan, Ted Cruz, John Boehner, Mitch McConnell, Jim DeMint, and Reince Priebus, among many others--American Carnage takes us behind the scenes of this tumultuous period as we've never seen it before and establishes Tim Alberta as the premier chronicler of this political era.

Thiel's Google charge opens new line of attack on tech
Axios | Scott Rosenberg | 07/16/19

Investor Peter Thiel's charge Sunday that Google is in bed with China apparently wasn't a one-off attack. It's increasingly looking like the first shot on a new front in the war between Trump's Washington and Silicon Valley.

Why it matters: Tech companies are already defending themselves against charges of privacy invasion, political bias and monopoly power. Now, they're being accused of being unpatriotic -- and even treasonous. ... Read more

Vice News
Trump Talk: All Our Best Mashups In One Video | Vice | 04/17/18| 8:26

Jimmy Kimmel
Trump's 2,000 Lies | Jimmy Kimmel, A Mini Documentary | Jimmy Kimmel | 01/10/18 | 5:22

At CPAC
The most bizarre moments from Donald Trump's CPAC speech | TheGuardian | 03/03/19 | 2:40

Against the Press
Trump's most heated exchanges with reporters at his longest press conference | BI | 02/16/17 | 2:28

His Opinion of Women
10 minutes of Donald Trump demeaning, objectifying, and insulting women | The Briefing | 11/06/16 | 10:03

Kellyann Conway
Kellyanne Conway's interview tricks, explained | Vox | 02/13/17 | 6:31

White House projects $1 trillion deficit for 2019
Axios | Rebecca Falconer | 07/16/19

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) projected in its midyear review Monday that the federal deficit would surpass $1 trillion this year.

Why it matters: It's the first time the U.S. deficit has exceeded the $1 trillion level since the 4-year period following the Great Recession. When President Trump was a presidential candidate, he promised to wipe out the deficit and also the entire federal debt, which has surpassed $22 trillion. ... Read more

A tough time to be a Trump supporter
Axios| Mike Allen | 07/15/19

Conservatives who reluctantly support President Trump often try to pretend the daily outrage didn't happen, but yesterday's "go back" tweets were like his "both sides" comment on Charlottesville -- a transgression that won't instantly fade, and can't be laughed off.

The bottom line: Trump is all-in on us-versus-them politics and does not care if he occasionally crosses the line into racism. Trump allies expect this to get worse, not better.

What happened: Trump attacked four young, female House Democrats of color who are U.S. citizens, three of whom were born in the U.S. -- "a racist trope ... factually inaccurate," as the N.Y. Times put it. ... Read more

Trump Tells Freshman Congresswomen to 'Go Back' to the Countries They Came From
NYT | Katie Rogers and Nicholas Fandos | 07/14/19

President Trump said on Sunday that a group of four minority congresswomen feuding with Speaker Nancy Pelosi should "go back" to the countries they came from rather than "loudly and viciously telling the people of the United States" how to run the government.

Wrapped inside that insult, which was widely established as a racist trope, was a factually inaccurate claim: Only one of the lawmakers was born outside the country.

Even though Mr. Trump has repeatedly refused to back down from stoking racial divisions, his willingness to deploy a lowest-rung slur -- one commonly and crudely used to single out the perceived foreignness of nonwhite, non-Christian people -- was largely regarded as beyond the pale.

"So interesting to see 'Progressive' Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world," Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter, "now loudly and viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful Nation on earth, how our government is to be run."... Read more

Donald Trump has been making disturbing comments about young girls for years
Vox | Emily Crockett | older 2016

Women are coming forward to accuse Donald Trump of sexual assaulting them in the ways he himself described in a leaked 2005 tape: "Just kiss. I don't even wait. When you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab 'em by the pussy."

But as those allegations were first surfacing, another disturbing old recording came out -- and this one featured Trump objectifying a young girl. In the 1992 recording, a 46-year-old Trump asks a little girl if she's going to go up an escalator. Then Trump turns to the camera and says, "I am going to be dating her in 10 years. Can you believe it?" ... Read more

American Carnage: On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump by Tim Alberta (07/16/19)

The 2016 election was a watershed for the United States. But, as Tim Alberta explains in American Carnage, to understand Trump's victory is to view him not as the creator of this era of polarization and bruising partisanship, but rather as its most manifest consequence.

American Carnage is the story of a president's rise based on a country's evolution and a party's collapse. As George W. Bush left office with record-low approval ratings and Barack Obama led a Democratic takeover of Washington, Republicans faced a moment of reckoning: They had no vision, no generation of new leaders, and no energy in the party's base. Yet Obama's forceful pursuit of his progressive agenda, coupled with the nation's rapidly changing societal and demographic identity, lit a fire under the right, returning Republicans to power and inviting a bloody struggle for the party's identity in the post-Bush era. The factions that emerged -- one led by absolutists like Jim Jordan and Ted Cruz, the other led by pragmatists like John Boehner and Mitch McConnell -- engaged in a series of devastating internecine clashes and attempted coups for control. With the GOP's internal fissures rendering it legislatively impotent, and that impotence fueling a growing resentment toward the political class and its institutions, the stage was set for an outsider to crash the party. When Trump descended a gilded escalator to announce his run in the summer of 2015, the candidate had met the moment.

Only by viewing Trump as the culmination of a decade-long civil war inside the GOP--and of the parallel sense of cultural, socioeconomic, and technological disruption during that period--can we appreciate how he won the White House and consider the fundamental questions at the center of America's current turmoil. How did a party once obsessed with national insolvency come to champion trillion-dollar deficits? How did the party of compassionate conservatism become the party of Muslim bans and family separation? How did the party of family values elect a thrice-married philanderer? And, most important, how long can such a party survive?

Loaded with explosive original reporting and based off hundreds of exclusive interviews--including with key players such as President Trump, Paul Ryan, Ted Cruz, John Boehner, Mitch McConnell, Jim DeMint, and Reince Priebus, among many others--American Carnage takes us behind the scenes of this tumultuous period as we've never seen it before and establishes Tim Alberta as the premier chronicler of this political era.

Jeffrey Epstein Shipped Himself a 53-pound Shredder and a Carpet and Tile Extractor, Maritime Records Show
TheIntercept | Ryan Grim | 07/11/19

JEFFREY EPSTEIN SHIPPED a shredder from the U.S. Virgin Islands to his Palm Beach home in July 2008, shortly after reaching a non-prosecution agreement with then-U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta, maritime records show. Then, in March of this year, shortly after a Florida federal judge invalidated that agreement, Epstein shipped a tile and carpet extractor from the Virgin Islands to his Manhattan townhouse, the records show.

Epstein, a billionaire financier, was arrested in New Jersey last Saturday on charges of running a sex trafficking ring that involved luring underage girls to his New York and Florida residences, and taking them on global flights on his airplane, dubbed the "Lolita Express." Epstein was first accused of abusing underage girls, some of them as young as 14, more than a decade ago, and he evaded prosecution potentially due to his high-profile connections. ... Read more

Sin, Sex and Subversion: How What Was Taboo in 1950s New York Became America's New Normal by David Rosen

During the tumultuous 1950s in America, sex was as threatening to the nation's moral order as communism. New York was the capital of the post-World War II world and the epicenter of a fierce culture war over music, theatre, movies, fashion, and literature, as well as birth control, homosexuality, adolescent sex, pornography, and prostitution. Over the last half-century, America's social life - especially notions of culture, sexuality, and politics - has fundamentally changed, and what were once sinful or subversive sexual practices have been integrated into the marketplace, irreversibly changing American moral values; the once illicit has become an industry of more than $50 billion.

Drawing on first-person interviews, unpublished memoirs, newspaper accounts, contemporary studies, government documents, and recent scholarship, Sin, Sex & Subversion argues that "deviant" sexuality was subversive, and that unique New York "outsiders" of the 1950s set the stage for the following decades and the world we know today. In each chapter, author David Rosen examines a critical moral issue through an in-depth profile of figures such as Liberace, Samuel Roth, Bettie Page, the Rosenbergs, and others. Through these individuals, Rosen shows how those who operated outside the law or who challenged popular values, even if they were silenced in their time, ended up paving the way for a new normal.

Developing hurricane threatens New Orleans levees
Axios | Andrew Freedman | 07/11/19

A developing storm in the north-central Gulf of Mexico, which is expected to become a hurricane by Saturday, threatens to unleash one of the worst flood events in New Orleans' history this weekend.

The big picture: Because the storm, to be named Barry, is lumbering off the coast, it's pulling copious amounts of moisture from the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico and is poised to direct it like a firehose at Louisiana and Mississippi. The Mississippi River is already so high in the New Orleans area that heavy rain plus a storm surge could overtop the cities' river levees for the first time, flooding large parts of the city. ... Read more

There's An Environmental Disaster Unfolding In The Gulf of Mexico
HP | Rocky Kistner | 07/11/19

As fishermen deep in the Louisiana bayou, Kindra Arnesen and her family have faced their share of life-altering challenges in recent years.

First came Hurricane Katrina, the 2005 monster storm that devastated her small fishing community in Plaquemines Parish before roaring up the Gulf Coast, killing more than 1,800 people and destroying $125 billion in property. Five years later, BP's Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded 40 miles offshore, spewing nearly 200 million gallons of crude. The fisheries have not fully recovered more than nine years later, nor has her family.

But this year may be worse. A historic slow-moving flood of polluted Mississippi River water loaded with chemicals, pesticides and human waste from 31 states and two Canadian provinces is draining straight into the marshes and bayous of the Gulf of Mexico -- the nurseries of Arnesen's fishing grounds -- upsetting the delicate balance of salinity and destroying the fragile ecosystem in the process. As the Gulf waters warm this summer, algae feed on the freshwater brew, smothering oxygen-starved marine life. ... Read more

Acosta digs a deeper hole
Axios | Jonathan Swan | 07/11/19

Trump insiders tell Axios that Labor Secretary Alex Acosta did little to help himself at his high-stakes news conference defending his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case when he was a federal prosecutor in Florida.

The state of play: Trump hates being goaded into action by media outcries, and a source close to the president said there was "zero" chance he fires Acosta right away. "Zero," the source repeated -- but allowing for Trump's impetuousness, another close source said: "I wouldn't say zero."

In part, this is Trump as theater critic, making decisions almost as a detached observer of his own administration. ... Read more

Sand and Blood: America's Stealth War on the Mexico Border by John Carlos Frey

Over the past three decades, U.S. immigration and border security policies have turned the southern states into conflict zones, spawned a network of immigrant detention centers, and unleashed an army of ICE agents into cities across the country.

As award-winning journalist John Carlos Frey reveals in this groundbreaking book, the war against immigrants has been escalating for decades, fueled by defense contractors and lobbyists seeking profits and politicians--Republicans and Democrats alike--who relied on racist fear-mongering to turn out votes. After 9/11, while Americans' attention was trained on the Middle East and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the War on Terror was ramping up on our own soil--aimed not at terrorists but at economic migrants, refugees, and families from South and Central America seeking jobs, safety, and freedom in the U.S.

But we are no safer. Instead, families are being ripped apart, undocumented people are living in fear, and thousands of migrants have died in detention or crossing the border.

2020 attention tracker: The might of right-wing media
Axios | Neal Rothschild | 07/10/19

This tracker looks at all the attention 2020 Democrats are generating from stories on social media, but many of the most viral pieces are actually being published by conservative media, according to data from NewsWhip exclusively provided to Axios.

Why it matters: The stories drive at wedge issues like immigration, redistributive policies and the culture war du jour, painting the Democratic candidates as radical leftists and serving as a testing ground for attacks from President Trump.

What's going on: Over the past two weeks, most of the stories about the candidates leading our tracker that generated the most interactions on Twitter (retweets and likes) and Facebook (reactions, comments and shares) came from conservative sites: ... Read more
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Trump Defends His Secretary, Who Is Under Fire Over Previous Sentence For Epstein | Deadline | MSNBC | 07/09/19 | 23:30

Another recession alarm goes off
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 07/10/19

Worriers have had good reasons to fret about the economic recovery. In addition to being the longest economic expansion in U.S. history, a number of reliable recession warning indicators have been flashing in 2019. The latest is the New York Fed's recession probability index. ... Read more
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Pelosi leads calls for Acosta to resign over Epstein's 2008 plea deal
Axios | Rebecca Falconer | 07/09/19

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is leading calls for Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta to resign over his role in a 2008 plea deal with financier and registered sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who now faces sex trafficking charges. And she questioned President Trump's decision to appoint Acosta to the cabinet.

Trump rails against U.K. ambassador, calling him a 'pompous fool'
Politico | Quint Forgey | 07/09/19

President Donald Trump resumed his verbal assault on the United Kingdom's ambassador to Washington on Tuesday, ridiculing the British envoy as a "pompous fool" after threatening the day before to terminate the administration's diplomatic relationship with him.

"The wacky Ambassador that the U.K. foisted upon the United States is not someone we are thrilled with, a very stupid guy," Trump wrote on Twitter. "He should speak to his country, and Prime Minister May, about their failed Brexit negotiation, and not be upset with my criticism of how badly it was ... handled."

The tweets are the latest broadside by the president against Ambassador Kim Darroch, who described Trump and his White House in stark, unflattering terms in various leaked cables to London dating as far back as 2017, according to the British tabloid Daily Mail. ... Read more and
Britain's man in the US says Trump is 'inept'.

Immigration Coverage: A Trip Down Memories We Can't Forget Lane | Samantha Bee | 07/03/19 | 26:05

Trump: Tech companies, not Russia, trying to 'rig the election'
Politico | Kyle Daly | 06/26/19

President Donald Trump today suggested tech giants like Google and Twitter are the greatest threat to the integrity of the 2020 presidential election -- and said anti-conservative bias among the companies had a greater impact in 2016 than Russian meddling.

"Let me tell you, they're trying to rig the election," Trump said in a phone interview on Fox Business. "That's what we should be looking at, not that witch hunt, the phony witch hunt."

Charging Google with being "totally biased" in favor of Democrats and fomenting "hatred for the Republicans," Trump downplayed Russia's 2016 social media manipulation: "You know, they talk about Russia because they had some bloggers -- and by the way, those bloggers, some of them were going both ways. They were for Clinton and for Trump." ... Read more

The increasing importance of share buybacks
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 07/03/19

Share buybacks contributed about half of S&P 500 companies' earnings growth in the first quarter, a new report from JPMorgan shows.

Why it matters: "This is corporate executives saying, 'Rather than investing back into the business by making capital expenditures or buying equipment, I'm just going to buy my own shares,'" says David Kelly, a global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management, which published the report.

Quick take: Buybacks accounted for the highest share of EPS growth since 2007, and Q1's share was almost 8 times higher than the average from 2001 to 2018, the bank found.

The big picture: S&P earnings growth has been a major worry for stock analysts this year, after 2018's blowout earnings following the passage of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act. The permanent reduction in corporate taxes was backed by President Trump and Congressional Republicans as a catalyst for a boost in wages and long-term investment.

The trend has gotten so strong that Moody's warned in May companies were spending more on buybacks and dividends than they were paying in taxes before the cut. ... Read more

Getting Nervous? Trump Schedules Big Rally For Same Day As Mueller Testimony
HP | Ed Mazza | 07/03/19

President Donald Trump appears to be creating some counter-programming for what will no doubt be a heavy news day: He has a campaign rally scheduled for July 17, the same day former special counsel Robert Mueller will appear before Congress.

With a 7 p.m. start time for the event, that means Trump will likely be speaking in the middle of primetime TV.If the cable news networks pick up any of his speech live, that would eat into time that otherwise almost certainly would have gone to discussion of Mueller's testimony. ... Read more

Trump's claim on Fox News flummoxes CNN fact checker | CNN | 07/02/19 | 6:40

Trump's war on refugees is tearing down US's life-changing resettlement program
TheGuardian | Amanda Holpuch | jun/19

Trump's war on refugees is no secret. He paused the refugee resettlement program a week after taking office and repeatedly tells lies that refugees have been tied to terrorist attacks, even though none of the more than 3 million refugees resettled since 1980 have committed a lethal terrorist attack.

The White House adviser Stephen Miller reportedly said he wanted to end all refugee resettlement in the US and has suppressed government studies that show the economic benefits of refugee resettlement. ...

IG Report Demands DHS Fix Dangerous Overcrowding In Detention Facilities | The Last Word | MSNBC | 07/02/19 | 13:31

Trump says he'd leave a "strong" intelligence presence in Afghanistan
Axios | Rebecca Falconer | 07/02/19

President Trump said he would leave a "very strong" intelligence presence in Afghanistan, in an interview broadcast on Fox News' "Tucker Carlson Tonight" on Monday.

Details: In a wide ranging interview, Trump told Fox News host Tucker Carlson he wanted to pull U.S. troops out of Afghanistan. "I would like to just get out," he said. "The problem is, it just seems to be a lab for terrorists. ... I call it the Harvard of terrorists." ... Read more

Exclusive Interview: Trump sits down with Tucker Carlson in Japan | FoxNews | 07/01/19 | 13:59

How US Meddling in Central America Created the Modern Day Border Crisis | Samantha Bee | june/19 | 7:05

Ivanka Trump isn't a diplomat. So why is she acting like one? | CNN | 07/02/19 | 5:56

How Lobbyists and Insiders Could Override Voters to Choose the Democratic Presidential Nominee
TheIntercept | Lee Fang | 06/30/19

THE ERA OF smoky backroom deals and political power brokers in charge of the Democratic Party could come roaring back in Milwaukee next year, when thousands of party faithful convene to formally select the party's presidential nominee at the Democratic National Convention.

The party's delegate allocation rules, combined with the large number of candidates and an early election calendar for key states, have laid the groundwork for a small group of lobbyists and party officials to potentially play a deciding role in choosing the nominee.

If no single candidate receives a majority of pledged delegates in the initial vote of the convention, called the first ballot, the nomination goes to what is known as a brokered convention, in which so-called superdelegates participate in subsequent rounds of nomination votes. ... Read more

Which countries achieved economic growth? And why does it matter?
ourworldindata.org | Max Roser | 06/25/19

The average person in the world is 4.4-times richer than in 1950. But beyond the global average, how did incomes change in countries around the world? And why should we care about the growth of incomes?

GDP -- Gross Domestic Product -- measures the total production of an economy as the monetary value of all goods and services produced during a specific period, mostly one year. Dividing GDP by the size of the population gives us GDP per capita to measure the prosperity of the average person in a country. Because all expenditures in an economy are someone else's income we can think of GDP per capita as the average income of people in that economy. Here at Core-Econ you find a more detailed definition. Look at the world average in the middle of the charts. The income of the average person in the world has increased from just $3,300 in 1950 to $14,574 in 2016. The average person in the world is 4.4-times richer than in 1950. ... Read more

Europe's Jean-Claude Juncker is saving free trade
Axios | Dion Rabouin | 07/01/19/span>

As the U.S. has abandoned its role as a champion of global free trade, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has quietly been cutting deals around the globe, bolstering free trade pacts and international cooperation many feared (or hoped) were dying in the age of Trump.

What's happening: At this weekend's G20 summit all eyes were on Trump and Xi's agreement to relax further trade war escalation. But perhaps lost in the shuffle was the official announcement of two major trade deals by the EU, with Vietnam and the Mercosur alliance, a bloc that includes Brazil and Argentina, South America's largest economies.

Details: The agreements with Vietnam and Mercosur follow recent accords the EU has signed with Canada, Japan, Mexico and Singapore. The deals cover trade of goods and services valued at nearly $600 billion a year, which is about half the value of trade between the EU and U.S. ... Read more

Hong Kong Protesters Storm Legislature On Anniversary Of City's Return To Chinese Rule
HP | Reuters, Jessie Pang | 07/01/19

Protesters smashed glass windows amid widespread anger over planned laws that would allow extraditions to China.

HONG KONG, July 1 (Reuters) -- Hong Kong protesters stormed the Legislative Council on the anniversary of the city's 1997 return to Chinese rule on Monday amid widespread anger over planned laws that would allow extraditions to China, plunging the city deeper into chaos.

A small group, mostly students wearing hard hats and masks, used a metal trolley, poles and pieces of scaffolding to hack through reinforced glass and charge at the government compound near the heart of the financial center. ... Read more

Inside the Trump campaign's plan to re-energize evangelicals
Axios | Alayna Treene | 07/01/19

President Trump's re-election campaign is developing an aggressive, state-by-state plan to mobilize even more evangelical voters than supported him last time, campaign officials tell Axios.

Why it matters: Trump captured 81% of the evangelical vote in 2016, a huge accomplishment considering they make up roughly a quarter of the electorate and play a prominent role in swing states like Florida.

According to a recent survey from the Pew Research Center, more than two-thirds of white evangelicals still support Trump, along with almost half of white Catholics and white mainline Protestants. ... Read more

SCOTUS Makes State Races Key To Next Decade Of Political Power | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC | 06/28/19 | 7:41