A political newsletter for normal people
WTF Just Happened Today? is a sane, once-a-day newsletter helping normal people make sense of the news. Curated daily and delivered to 200,000+ people every afternoon around 3 pm Pacific.
Day 1266: "We have one job."
Today in one sentence: Biden told congressional Democrats that he was committed to “running this race to the end” and that it's time to "end" the pressure on him drop out; an expert on Parkinson’s disease visited the White House eight times between last July and March of this year; Judge Aileen Cannon granted convicted felon Trump’s request to delay some deadlines in his Mar-a-Lago classified documents case following the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling; June was the warmest month on record worldwide; and 48% of Americans say Trump should serve time in prison after he was convicted on all 34 felon counts of orchestrating an illegal conspiracy to influence the 2016 presidential election by falsifying business records, while 50% say he should not.
1/ Biden told congressional Democrats that he was committed to “running this race to the end” and that it’s time to “end” the pressure on him drop out. Following mounting concern over his poor debate performance, Biden wrote in the two-page letter that “the question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it’s time for it to end,” saying that as a party “We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump.” He added that he’s had “extensive conversations” with party leadership, members, and voters over the past 10 days. “Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us,” Biden concluded. “It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump.” Biden also made an unscheduled call-in appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” and dared Democratic “elites” who’ve called for him to drop out of the race to “challenge [him]” at next month’s Democratic convention in Chicago. “I’m getting frustrated by the elites […] in the party,” he said. “If any of these guys don’t think I should run, run against me. Announce for president […] I am not going anywhere.” And, later in the day, Biden told donors that he’s “done talking about the debate [..] We need to move forward. Look, we have roughly 40 days til the convention, 120 days til the election. We can’t waste any more time being distracted.” Meanwhile, less than 24 hours earlier, four senior Democrats said on a private call with House party leadership that Biden should step aside. (Associated Press / Axios / Politico / NPR / New York Times / Washington Post / ABC News / NBC News / CNN / Bloomberg / Semafor / Wall Street Journal)
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Read: The letter Biden sent to House Democrats telling them to support him in the election. (Associated Press)
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Previously: In an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos following his poor debate performance, Biden said he simply a “bad episode” and that there’s “no indication of a serious condition” that would prevent him from continuing as president. Biden also said he would be at peace if he lost to Trump “as long as I gave it my all,” said he didn’t accept that he trails Trump in the polls, said he had not directly heard discussions among senior Democrats about asking him to step aside, and declared only the “Lord Almighty” would prompt him to consider ending his reelection bid. Biden also refused to commit to taking a cognitive or neurological test and releasing the results. (Axios / Bloomberg / ABC News / Politico)
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Earlier: Biden told a gathering of Democratic governors that he needs to sleep more and work fewer hours. At a campaign rally in Wisconsin, Biden told supports: “You probably heard that I had a little debate last week. Can’t say it is my best performance, but ever since then, there’s been a lot of speculation: ‘What’s Joe going to do? Is he going to stay in the race? Is he going to drop out, what’s he going to do?’ Well, here’s my answer. I am running and gonna win again.” (New York Times / CNN / NBC News / Axios)
2/ An expert on Parkinson’s disease visited the White House eight times between last July and March of this year, according to public visitor logs. Dr. Kevin Cannard also met with Biden’s physician at least once. It’s unclear why Dr. Cannard was at the White House, and any more recent visits, if any, will not be released until later under the White House’s voluntary disclosure policy. The White House said Biden had met with a neurologist three times during his time in office – once during each of his annual physicals – and “that examination has found no sign of Parkinson’s and he is not being treated for it.” The White House, however, refused to say if Dr. Cannard ever treated Biden or consulted on his care, citing privacy concerns. Meanwhile, House Republicans on the Oversight Committee demanded that Biden’s personal physician appear behind closed doors for a transcribed interview. In his February report, Dr. Kevin O’Connor said that Biden took “an extremely detailed neurologic exam” and that there were “no findings which would be consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder.” Nevertheless, House Republicans question if O’Connor is “in a position to provide accurate and independent reviews of the President’s fitness to serve.” [Editor’s note: Discussing someone’s mental health is a serious and sensitive issue, and I generally avoid making assumptions or playing armchair psychologist. However, this situation becomes a matter of public concern when it is revealed that a Parkinson’s doctor has repeatedly visited Biden’s White House, while he refuses to take a neurological test or make the results public. This raises significant questions that deserve attention, even if it is uncomfortable, unpopular, or upsetting.] (New York Times / ABC News / CNN / Washington Post / Politico)
3/ Judge Aileen Cannon granted convicted felon Trump’s request to delay some deadlines in his Mar-a-Lago classified documents case following the Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling, which said Trump has immunity from prosecution for some conduct as president. On Friday, Trump asked Cannon to pause court proceedings and consider how the Supreme Court’s ruling affects the case, saying the decision “guts the [Special Counsel’s] position that President Trump has ‘no immunity’ and further demonstrates the politically-motivated nature of their contention that the motion is ‘frivolous.’” As a result, Cannon paused deadlines tied to his classified documents case to allow for further briefing. There is no trial date set in the case. (Axios / New York Times / NBC News / CNN)
4/ June was the warmest month on record worldwide with the global average surface temperature 0.67°C (1.2°F) above the 1991-2020 average. June was the 13th consecutive month to be the warmest on record for that particular month. Additionally, it marked the 12th straight month where the global temperature was 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than pre-industrial levels. (Axios / Associated Press)
poll/ 48% of Americans say Trump should serve time in prison after he was convicted on all 34 felon counts of orchestrating an illegal conspiracy to influence the 2016 presidential election by falsifying business records, while 50% say he should not. (Associated Press)
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📅 The WTFJHT Calendar: Now until then.
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🛠️ July 15-18: WTFJHT Infrastructure Week (limited publishing)
🐘 July 15: Republican National Convention.
🇮🇱 July 24: Netanyahu addresses joint session of Congress.
🫏 Aug. 19: Democratic convention.
⛔️ Sept. 2: Labor Day – No WTFJHT.
📺 Sept. 10: Biden-Trump debate.
⚖️ Sept. 18: Trump is sentenced.
📆 Oct. 6: Last day to register to vote in some states.
⛔️ Oct. 14: Indigenous Peoples’ Day – No WTFJHT.
🗳️ Nov. 5: Presidential Election.
A political newsletter for normal people
WTF Just Happened Today? is a sane, once-a-day newsletter helping normal people make sense of the news. Curated daily and delivered to 200,000+ people every afternoon around 3 pm Pacific.
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