Happy Friday! The Killers stopped their concert at London’s O2 arena on Wednesday to show the end of the England vs. Netherlands semifinal game of the European Cup. The crowd watched England score the game-winning goal in the final regulation minute, and—with the game still on the big screen—the band launched into their iconic, crowd-pleasing hit, “Mr. Brightside,” to close out the night.
It’s frankly hard to imagine the transcendence of that moment.
Quick Hits: Today’s Top Stories
- President Joe Biden held a press conference Thursday evening—his first since the debate last month with former President Donald Trump—where he fielded questions from reporters about his candidacy and foreign policy. Biden delivered almost eight minutes of prepared remarks before answering questions for the next 50 minutes. The president stumbled in his very first answer, referring to Vice President Kamala Harris as “Vice President Trump.” The mistake followed a blunder earlier in the day when he referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin.” He defended his staying in the race but conceded, “I think it’s important that I allay fears.” When asked whether he would drop out if his team presented him with evidence that Harris would perform better than him against Trump, Biden said, “No, unless they came back and said, ‘There’s no way you can win,’” adding that “no one’s saying that, no poll has said that.” National polling averages and polls in key battleground states currently have the president losing to Trump. Biden also seemed to give democratic delegates permission to defect. “They’re free to do whatever they want,” he said. “If all of a sudden I show up at the convention and everybody says, ‘We want somebody else,’ that’s the democratic process. It’s not gonna happen.”
- Senate Democrats concerned about Biden’s fitness to be the party’s nominee met with top Biden aides on Thursday, though it’s not clear whether their efforts to assuage the senators’ worries were successful. Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont remains the sole Democratic senator to publicly call for the president to drop out, although Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado predicted earlier this week that Biden will lose—potentially in “a landslide.” Both senators said their thinking was unchanged after the Thursday meeting. Meanwhile, the number of Democratic representatives calling for the president to step aside nearly doubled from nine on Wednesday to 17 members by Thursday night. Several members called for Biden’s exit after his press conference, and Democratic Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, who represents a hotly contested district, seemed to suggest on Thursday that Biden should resign the presidency. “I doubt the President’s judgement about his health, his fitness to do the job, and whether he is the one making important decisions about our country, rather than unelected advisors,” she told a local NBC News affiliate.
- The Defense Department announced on Thursday that it would permanently disassemble the humanitarian aid pier in Gaza, one day after an attempt to fix the damaged pier failed “due to technical and weather-related” issues. “The pier has always been intended as a temporary solution to enable the additional flow of aid into Gaza during a period of dire humanitarian need,” Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement. Over the last three months, the U.S. delivered nearly 20 million pounds of aid to Gaza through the pier, which the Pentagon said cost roughly $230 million.
- The Biden administration unveiled new sanctions against Lehava, an ultra-religious nationalist organization based in Israel, for escalating violence in the West Bank—including violence against Palestinian civilians in the region. The organization—whose leader, Ben Zion Gopstein, was previously sanctioned by the U.S. in April—is known for its extremist views, including opposing the presence of Christians and Muslims in Israel. “Lehava’s members have engaged in repeated acts of violence against Palestinians, often targeting sensitive or volatile areas,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement. “The United States remains deeply concerned about extremist violence and instability in the West Bank, which undermines Israel’s own security.”
- Leaders of the U.S., Canada, and Finland announced a trilateral pact on Thursday focused on boosting the production of ships and bolstering their Arctic fleets to counterbalance increased Chinese and Russian presence in the region as melting ice opens up the possibility of commercial and military interests in the region. The agreement—known formally as the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort (ICE) Pact—promises billions of dollars in investment to build polar-class icebreakers. Russia currently operates more than 35 icebreakers, while Canada operates 20 and the United States just two. The new ships would be the first American-made icebreakers built in more than 50 years.
- The U.S. and Germany announced Wednesday that American forces will begin “episodic deployments” of U.S.-long-range missiles in Germany starting in 2026 to “demonstrate the United States’ commitment to NATO and its contributions to European integrated deterrence.” According to a U.S.-German joint statement, the deployments “will include SM-6, Tomahawk, and developmental hypersonic weapons, which have significantly longer range than current land-based fires in Europe.” Russian defense officials decried the move and warned that Russia “will develop a military response.”
- Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán met with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday night, apparently to discuss how to end the war in Ukraine. “We discussed ways to make #peace,” Orbán wrote on Twitter. “The good news of the day: he’s going to solve it!” Trump responded on Truth Social, writing that “there must be PEACE, and quickly” in this “war that should have never started!” Orbán has endorsed Trump’s reelection bid, and the prime minister has recently met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss a peace process.
- The Consumer Price Index (CPI) declined slightly in June, the Bureau of Labour Statistics reported Thursday, with prices dropping 0.1 percent from May and rising 3 percent annually—the lowest annual inflation rate in three years and lower than May’s 3.3 percent annual increase. June’s inflation was less than economists had predicted and provided another month of improved data, boosting the case for the Federal Reserve to begin cutting interest rates. Fed Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged Tuesday that “elevated inflation is not the only risk we face,” warning of the risk of waiting too long to start bringing ratings down.
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Politics at the Water’s Edge
WASHINGTON—As the 75th NATO summit wound to a close on Thursday, representatives of the alliance’s member countries gathered to sign a security agreement with the leader of Ukraine.
“I’d now like to turn it over to the president of Ukraine,” President Joe Biden said, “who has as much courage as he has determination. Ladies and gentlemen, President Putin!”
There was shock in the room as Biden moved away from the podium before he darted back with eyes wide. “President Putin?” he said before ceding the podium to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “We’re going to beat President Putin! President Zelensky.”
It wasn’t the last time Biden mixed up a name on Thursday, just a few hours later calling Vice President Kamala Harris “Vice President Trump”—as his advisers in the audience winced—during the opening response of his highly anticipated press conference that capped the summit.
In the wake of Biden’s disastrous debate performance two weeks ago, concerns over the president’s fitness shrouded the landmark meeting of the 32-member alliance. His infirmity—and sinking poll numbers—brought to the fore world leaders’ worries about a potential second Trump administration as the NATO allies moved to institutionalize support for Ukraine.
Since the debate last month, Biden has been under increasing pressure …
As a non-paying reader, you are receiving a truncated version of The Morning Dispatch. Our full 1,766-word story on this week’s NATO summit and President Joe Biden’s performance is available in the members-only version of TMD.
Worth Your Time
- Bryan Caplan, a professor at George Mason University, thinks he’s solved every problem all at once, though common sense says it can’t be true. “[I]t is awkward for me to declare that I know of something close to a panacea policy: one big reform that would raise living standards, reduce wealth inequality, increase productivity, raise social mobility, help struggling men without college degrees, clean the planet and raise birth rates,” he wrote in the New York Times, “The panacea policy I have in mind is housing deregulation. … Neither Democrats nor Republicans have embraced housing deregulation yet. YIMBY activists lean left, but they are only one voice in the progressive coalition. Republican states usually have less housing regulation, but more from tradition than from principle. Yet, given housing deregulation’s many demonstrated benefits, this policy agenda deserves bipartisan support. Democrats should cheer the effects on equality, social mobility, and the environment. Republicans should be delighted to see free markets spreading broad prosperity, creating new working-class opportunities, and fostering family formation. In a rational world, the panacea policy of housing deregulation would be a done deal. Hopefully whoever wins the next election will agree.”
Presented Without Comment
The Hill: Biden Says No Poll or Person Is Telling Him He Can’t Win
Also Presented Without Comment
CNN: Melania Trump to Attend Republican Convention in Milwaukee Next Week
Melania Trump has maintained a low profile throughout her husband’s campaign, having attended just two public appearances since he launched his third presidential bid—his campaign kickoff in November 2022 at their Mar-a-Lago home and a brief appearance in March when she accompanied her husband to vote in the Florida presidential primary.
Also Also Presented Without Comment
Washington Post: Nathan’s Hot Dog Contest Eater Apologizes After Cheating Accusations
In the Zeitgeist
Zach Bryan is currently one of the biggest stars in country music, and on his newest album—The Great American Bar Scene, out this week—he teamed up with John Mayer for a song that’s the perfect distillation of both their sounds.
Toeing the Company Line
- Kevin hosted a special edition of Dispatch Live (🔒) last night with David French, Paul Miller, Ramesh Ponnuru, and Michael Wear for a discussion of Christianity’s influence on the conservative movement and the new right. Plus, Victoria, Trent Horn, and Mark Tooley joined the conversation to discuss the proper role of faith in public policy. Lastly, Kevin Vallier explored the recent rise of catholic integralism. Members who missed the conversation can catch a rerun—either video or audio-only—by clicking here.
- In the newsletters: Will analyzed how recent Supreme Court decisions may impact the tech industry in the latest edition of Techne, Mike and Sarah mapped out a timeline of Trump’s outstanding legal cases and explored a chaotic potential Electoral College scenario in The Collision, and Nick explained why he thinks the Democrats could still figure out a way to get Biden off the ticket.
- On the site: John profiles vice presidential hopeful J.D. Vance of Ohio, Kevin offers his thoughts on the great Jonah Goldberg vs. Niall Ferguson debate, and intern Anna explains the Federal Trade Commission’s scrutiny of TikTok over alleged violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
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