Romney And Perry Clash Over Social Security

“During his 2016 campaign, Donald Trump orchestrated a takeover of the Republican Party in part by blasting wealthy political donors as the root of corruption and delivering a populist message that appealed to working-class voters,” the New York Times reports. “Eight years later, one of his key decision points in choosing a running mate is connections to the superrich.” “As the end of the selection process approaches, with an announcement expected in the next two weeks after months of suggestion and misdirection, Republican hopefuls are looking to convince Mr.

Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC) told USA Today he would support Vice President Kamala Harris taking over the top spot on the ticket if President Biden “ain’t there.” Said Clyburn: “I’m a Biden-Harris person, so I’m not getting away from that. I’m for Biden-Harris. I’m going to be for Biden if Harris ain’t there and I’m going to be for Harris if Biden ain’t there.” However, he urged Democrats to “stay the course” and “chill out.”

“Democrats who worried about President Biden’s re-election prospects even before his uneven debate Thursday had been pointing to a bright spot in this year’s campaign: The party’s Senate candidates, and some vulnerable House candidates, generally poll better than the weakened president,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “Now, those Democratic candidates and their aides are trying to sort through whether Biden’s halting performance and sometimes dazed appearance have sapped the party’s goals of retaining the Senate and flipping the House.

“Iran has threatened an ‘obliterating war’ if Israel launches a full-scale attack in Lebanon, as diplomats work to prevent tensions between Israel and the Lebanese militia Hezbollah, which is backed by Tehran, from escalating into an all-out conflict,” the New York Times reports.

Inside Elections: “While it is uncommon for any incumbent to lose a primary race — it happens just 2 percent of the time on average in any given cycle — it is exceedingly rare for a representative to lose a primary challenge after defeating another incumbent in a previous primary election.” “And it’s even more rare for those primary wins and losses to be a function of ideological differences rather than corruption or misconduct, as Bowman’s were and as Virginia Republican Bob Good’s likely loss this year is as well.”

Associated Press: “Unless a court halts the legislation, schools have just over five months until they will be required to have a poster-sized display of the Ten Commandments in all public school K-12 and state-funded university classrooms.l “But it’s unclear whether the new law has any teeth to enforce the requirement and penalize those who refuse to comply.”