SEND HER BACK. Donald Trump insists he tried to stop the “send her back” chants even though the tape shows he paused for 13 seconds while the chants grew.
DESTROY. USDA suppresses plan to address climate change: “Staff members across several USDA agencies drafted the multiyear plan that outlines how the department should help agriculture understand, adapt to and minimize the effects of climate change. Top officials, however, decided not to release the plan and told staff members to keep it for internal use only, the employee told POLITICO. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of retribution.”
AND… Lower regulations for nuclear plants. ‘A new report by staff members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which oversees the safety of the nation's 59 aging nuclear power plants, recommends that the commissioners significantly weaken or reduce safety inspections of the plants.'
POPULARITY CONTEST. Instagram begins removing “Likes”.
PORTLAND, MAINE. 28 years after vandals smashed its glass, the city's last gay bar has windows again. “The new, full-length front windows at Blackstones are both of symbol of the city's bigoted past and how far it has come in accepting all its residents.”
JAPAN. Arsonist kills 33 at anime studio in Kyoto: ‘Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe tweeted that the apparently deliberate act is “too appalling for words.” According to local media, a man reportedly burst into Kyoto Animation's building and shouted “die” as he poured out a flammable liquid. At the time, there were reportedly about 70 people in the building. A suspect in his 40s has been taken into custody and was being treated at a local hospital, NHK reported.'
IMPRESSION OF THE DAY. Colbert does Eric Trump.
HOPE HICKS. Trump aide may have lied under oath that she wasn't there when Trump and Michael Cohen discussed Stormy Daniels.
MAYOR PETE. Buttigieg adds former DNC CEO Jess O'Connell as senior adviser and Sonal Shah as national policy director. ‘The hirings are the most high-profile additions the campaign has made since it announced raising $24.9 million in the second fundraising quarter of 2019, the highest total in the Democratic field. Buttigieg's campaign is planning to expand rapidly in the third quarter using that windfall.'
NYT. Pete Buttigieg is still figuring it out. “Amid the attention paid to Buttigieg's eclecticisms — his frequent literary references, his ability to speak eight languages, his classical piano training and Radiohead fandom — it's easy to overlook the fact that he is, at heart, a fairly conventional political animal. Buttigieg is steeped in campaign life, having worked for John Kerry in 2004 and Obama in 2008, and he tends to talk, more than most candidates, like an operative.”
MADISON, WISCONSIN. Boxes vending LGBT publications are vandalized…
NO BAIL. Jeffrey Epstein denied bail, must remain behind bars until trial. ‘U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman said prosecutors showed “clear and convincing evidence” that Epstein was a flight risk.'
MORE EPSTEIN. Questions abound about Epstein's fortune and significant connections.
COMIC-CON 2019. Full list of TV show and movie panels.
IOWA. Taxpayers could foot $6 million bill for anti-discrimination lawsuit against Governor Terry Branstad. ‘Godfrey's lead attorney, Roxanne Conlin, said Wednesday said she intends to request reimbursement for more than $2.6 million in attorneys' fees. That's the approximate tab her team racked up before the six-week trial started, she said. The private defense attorneys Branstad hired have received more than $1.2 million from the state so far, and Conlin predicted the defense's total bill will top $2 million.'
TEASER OF THE DAY. Snoopy in Space.
CAPE COD SHARK SIGHTING OF THE DAY. Experts take you on a tagging mission.
THIRSTY THURSDAY. Wicomeva.
