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 1295: "It’s personal."
Today in one sentence: Kamala Harris officially secured the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination, making her the first woman of color in U.S. history to lead a major party ticket; Harris named Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate; and the Supreme Court rejected an attempt by Missouri's Republican attorney general to delay Trump's sentencing in the New York criminal case, where Trump was convicted on 34 counts of orchestrating an illegal conspiracy to influence the 2016 presidential election by falsifying business records.
1/ Kamala Harris officially secured the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination, making her the first woman of color in U.S. history to lead a major party ticket. Harris received 4,567 votes from delegates in a virtual roll call – or about 99% of votes from the participating delegates. Harris also named Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate. Walz, a former public school teacher, high school football coach, and military veteran, served in the House for 12 years. In a late July interview, Walz called Trump and Vance “weird,” which Harris began using almost immediately. “One of the things that stood out to me about Tim is how his convictions on fighting for middle class families run deep. It’s personal,” Harris said in a statement. As governor, Walz signed a law ensuring 20 weeks of paid family and medical leave; signed a law protecting abortion rights in Minnesota after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade; signed a pair of “shield” laws protecting people who travel to Minnesota to receive gender affirming care and abortions from prosecution; legalized recreational marijuana; restored voting rights for 55,000 felons on probation; pushed aggressive targets on climate change and renewable energy; made Minnesota one of six states that provides universal free school lunches; proposed an expansion of the child tax credit; and created a prescription drug affordability board. Harris’s choice of Walz ensures that 2024 will be the first presidential ticket without a Bush, Clinton, or Biden since 1976. (Axios / Washington Post / Politico / CNN / New York Times / NBC News / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal / NPR / ABC News)
- Where Tim Walz stands on key issues: Abortion, climate, marijuana and more. (Washington Post)
- Five things to know about Tim Walz. (Associated Press)
- 19 Facts About Tim Walz. (New York Times)
- 55 Things to Know About Tim Walz. (Politico)
2/ The Supreme Court rejected an attempt by Missouri’s Republican attorney general to delay Trump’s sentencing in the New York criminal case, where Trump was convicted on 34 counts of orchestrating an illegal conspiracy to influence the 2016 presidential election by falsifying business records. Andrew Bailey claimed that Trump’s sentencing and gag order infringed on the rights of Missouri voters to hear from presidential candidates. In a one-page order, the justices denied the request without explanation. (Politico / Reuters / CNN / NBC News / New York Times / Bloomberg / NPR / Associated Press)
- Judge in Trump’s hush money case delays date for ruling on presidential immunity. “The judge in Donald Trump’s hush money trial is pushing back a date for a key ruling on presidential immunity until two days before Trump’s scheduled sentencing.” (ABC News)
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📅 The WTFJHT Calendar: Now until then.
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🫏 Aug. 19-22: Democratic National Convention.
⛔️ Sept. 2: Labor Day – No WTFJHT.
📺 Sept. 4: Fox News debate (maybe?) \ 📺 Sept. 10: ABC News debate (possibly?).
⚖️ 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. - ✅ Get election ready: Register to vote, update your address, or request an absentee ballot at Vote.org, TurboVote, RocktheVote, or Votes From Abroad.org.
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📈 The WTFJHT Election Poll Tracking Tracker ™️
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Harris 47% – Trump 47% (New York Times)
Harris 45% – Trump 43% (538)
Harris 45% – Trump 43% (Nate Silver)
Harris 47% – Trump 45% (The Economist)
Harris 47% – Trump 46% (RealClearPolitics)
Trump 52% – Harris 46% (Polymarket)
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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