Malloy Continues Conn. Education Reform Tour

On C-SPAN's Washington Journal, a caller claimed that the real President Joe Biden would not be participating in tonight's CNN debate; an AI mask will. The lunatics are out in force. SUSAN: So, it's, I'm just waiting, I can't, I'm excited about watching it tonight and I don't even believe that it'll be the real Joe Biden. I think the technology is so great now, till they can make a mask and it can look just exactly like the person.

It looks like the Sackler family, head of the Purdue Pharma company that drove the opioid crisis, is not off the hook from future lawsuits anymore. GOOD. The Supreme Court took the bold step of blocking a very controversial bankruptcy settlement that would have cost Purdue $6 billion dollars that would have shielded them from all future lawsuits.

In Britain, where you can bet on anything and everything, betting against yourself to lose an upcoming election in a seat that you've represented for nearly twenty years is certainly a novel strategy for gaining voters' trust. Davies is married to Lady Esther McVey, herself a Minister in Rishi Sunak's Conservative government, the so-called Minister of Common Sense. The Gambling Commission is investigating at least five Conservatives as part of its inquiry into wagers on the timing of the 4 July election. Source: The Independent Another senior Tory has become embroiled in the election betting scandal after allegedly placing an £8,000 bet that he would lose his seat. Sir Philip Davies is accused of betting he would lose his Shipley seat in West Yorkshire at the upcoming election. “What’s it got to do with you whether I did or didn’t,” the Conservative candidate, defending a majority of 6,242, told The Sun, adding that the bet was “nobody’s business”. “I hope to win.

A self-proclaimed "prophet" Hank Kunneman tells his MAGA audience he hopes Trump will move to shake Biden's hand and then rip off his apparent mask reveling Satan, maybe? There are a multitude of self-proclaimed prophets inhabiting the MAGA cult that claim they talk to God while trying to turn diminished Donald into an new angelic figure akin to Jesus. I think President Trump, he'll always make it about, you know, what's, you know, this fake Biden, what's he going to be like when he shows up, you know, if he shows up. I think it's going to be more about what are the moderators going to do, how they're going to try to set President Trump up, limit what he says, mute his microphone, and really make it difficult for him. I think that's going to be the real thing that's going to happen in the debate. Fake Biden?

As Americans prepare to watch the presidential debate on Thursday night, the economy will likely be top of mind for many voters. Although inflation has cooled and hiring has continued to grow, polls show that many Americans have maintained negative views about the economy and some 22% of voters say that inflation and the price of goods are their most important issue in the November election. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Ahead of the debate, TIME sat down with Heather Boushey, a member of President Joe Biden’s Council of Economic Advisers and a key architect of “Bidenomics,” to discuss the biggest challenges facing the economy and why there’s a disconnect between public perception of the economy and economic indicators. Below is a transcript of that conversation, which has been edited for clarity. Nik Popli: Economic policy is undoubtedly going to be one of the biggest issues as we head into the election.

Even if you can’t escape rising summer temperatures to more comfortable climes, you can at least get lost in a good book. The best new books coming in July include Kevin Barry’s Western romance, Lev Grossman’s reimagining of King Arthur’s legend, and Laura van den Berg’s unsettling new novel set in Florida’s underbelly. Keep Shark Week going with shark scientist Jasmin Graham’s debut memoir focused on her work with the most misunderstood fish in the sea.