Political Futures

DEBATE BLITZ: Joe Biden, who in 2018 bellowed, “If we were in high school, I’d take [Donald Trump] behind the gym and beat the hell out of him,” was last night’s punching bag, the Washington Examiner reports. “Biden fended off political attacks on multiple fronts during the second night of Democratic 2020 presidential primary debates in Detroit, hitting the former vice president and longtime senator over his record on immigration, race, and crime.” Notwithstanding the attacks, National Review’s Jim Geraghty believes that “Biden Survives, So Biden Wins.” “If [last night] doesn’t do any damage to his numbers,” surmises Geraghty, “he will probably cruise to the nomination.” Meanwhile, expect a slew of others to cruise to the dustbin.

JUDICIAL INROADS: “The Senate confirmed 13 of President Trump’s judicial picks this week, helping clear the deck ahead of the five-week August recess. The nominees were split up throughout the week with four confirmation votes taking place on Tuesday and nine on Wednesday, three of which were by voice votes.” (The Hill)

Economy

LENDING RATE LOWERED: “The Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark rate by a quarter point Wednesday as an insurance policy not against what’s wrong with the economy now, but what could go wrong in the future. It was the first rate cut by the central bank in more than a decade.” (CNBC)

National Security

SLUGGISH PROGRESS: “Mexico announced Tuesday that there has been a 39 percent reduction in the number of Central American migrants passing through the country on their way to the U.S.,” according to National Review. “The number of migrants traversing Mexico to reach the southern border has fallen from 144,278 in May to 87,648 thus far in July, foreign-relations secretary Marcelo Ebrard told the Associated Press.” However, the Washington Examiner adds, “Federal law enforcement based on the U.S.-Mexico border are expected to encounter 1.1 million people trying to cross illegally by the end of the fiscal year Sept. 30, despite Mexico’s assistance stopping migrants on their journey north.” By the way, Fox News reports, “The U.S. Ambassadors’ Fund for Cultural Preservation granted $475,000 to the Great Zimbabwe Museum to make repairs to the border wall of an 11th century stone fortress that surrounds the ruins of an ancient city.”

BIN LADEN’S SON DEAD: “The United States has obtained intelligence that the son and potential successor of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, Hamza bin Laden, is dead, according to three U.S. officials. The officials would not provide details of how Hamza bin Laden died or if the U.S. played a role in his death. The death occurred some time in the past two years, said the officials, but confirmation came only recently.” (NBC News)

Culture

NO RACIAL BIAS: “A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences demolishes the Democratic narrative regarding race and police shootings, which holds that white officers are engaged in an epidemic of racially biased shootings of black men. It turns out that white officers are no more likely than black or Hispanic officers to shoot black civilians. … In fact, if there is a bias in police shootings after crime rates are taken into account, it is against white civilians, the study found.” (Heather Mac Donald)

PROFITS SHAVED: “Gillette’s infamous ‘toxic masculinity’ ad may cost Procter & Gamble more than anyone imagined in January. The year that Gillette launched its ‘We Believe’ campaign and asked ‘Is this the best a man can get?’ has coincided with P&G’s $8 billion non-cash writedown for the shaving giant.” (The Washington Times)

OLYMPIC CONCERN: “With the Tokyo Olympics looming, women’s groups in New Zealand and the U.K. are sounding the alarm over the threat posed to the integrity of women’s sports by biological males who identify as females being allowed to compete against females.” (The Daily Wire)

Closing Arguments

POLICY: Slow and steady wins the race with China (The Washington Times)

POLICY: When the Supreme Court is right to overturn precedent (The Daily Signal)

HUMOR: AOC hits New York Times Best Sellers list with Economics for Dummies (IMAO)

For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit In Our Sights.

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