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| Donald Trump gave a speech in Milwaukee accepting the Republican presidential nomination, as screens showed images from the attempt on his life last weekend. Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times |
A ‘roller coaster’ presidential race
The U.S. presidential race has reached a pivotal moment. Donald Trump formally accepted the Republican nomination last night in an arena packed with supporters. His opponent, President Biden, is currently isolating with Covid-19 and, according to people in his inner circle, wrestling with whether to drop out of the race.
In his first speech since surviving an assassination attempt last weekend, Trump gave a cinematic account of the shooting, describing the experience in vivid detail and vowing never to tell the story again. “I felt very safe because I had God on my side,” he said to cheers from people in the crowd, some of whom were in tears. Read a recap of his speech.
Jess Bidgood, who writes our On Politics newsletter, gave us the latest analysis from Milwaukee.
It’s been a wild ride this week. Where do you think the race stands now?
Up until Biden’s bad debate performance about three weeks ago, it was a fairly steady race between two familiar candidates. Now, after weeks of Democrats wringing their hands and an assassination attempt against Trump, I think American voters suddenly feel like they’re on a roller coaster.
What’s happening to Biden’s campaign?
Biden has sought to demonstrate his fitness with campaign events, interviews and a news conference, but he hasn’t been able to tamp down his party’s concerns. In 2020, the reason the Democrats picked him was because they saw him as electable; they saw him as somebody who could beat Trump. As he slips behind Trump in the states he needs to win, that electability argument has seemingly vanished.
There has been a lot of speculation in recent weeks about which Democrats might be interested in stepping into Biden’s place. The most straightforward option is Vice President Kamala Harris, but there is also a pretty deep bench of talented Democratic governors.
Follow our live coverage of the campaign.
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| Demonstrators in Tel Aviv blocked traffic this week as they called for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Gil Cohen-Magen/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images |
Cease-fire in doubt ahead of Netanyahu’s U.S. visit
With Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel scheduled to speak to the U.S. Congress next week, he faces mounting pressure to reach an agreement that would end the fighting in Gaza and secure the return of hostages held by Hamas. Yet comments made by him and others in his coalition this week suggested that a cease-fire deal was not imminent.
On Wednesday, Netanyahu told Israel’s Parliament that more military action would yield more concessions. And yesterday, Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right national security minister, visited Jerusalem’s most contested holy site, revered by Muslims as the Aqsa Mosque compound and by Jews as the Temple Mount. He called on the government “to add more military pressure” and prevent shipments of fuel to Gaza “until victory.”
Related: Yair Lapid, the leader of Israel’s opposition, has called on Netanyahu to cancel his speech in Washington unless he plans to announce an agreement. “He needs to declare a hostage deal without inventing conditions or raising obstacles every 10 minutes,” he said.
In other news: Acting on a landmark Supreme Court decision, Israel’s military will begin sending initial conscription orders to ultra-Orthodox men on Sunday.
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| The re-election of Yaël Braun-Pivet, a Macron ally, as president of the National Assembly infuriated the French left. Sarah Meyssonnier/Reuters |
France’s Parliament votes to keep its centrist leader
After three tense rounds of voting, French lawmakers re-elected Yaël Braun-Pivet, a centrist ally of President Emmanuel Macron, as president of the National Assembly, infuriating the left after its surprise victory in parliamentary elections this month and strengthening the president’s own position.
The result gave the impression that nothing had changed in France despite weeks of political tumult. The so-called Republican front of left and center parties that kept Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally from power in the runoff election on July 7 turned into a center-right front to keep out the left.
Related: Marine Tondelier, the leader of the Green Party, is a rising star on the left. She was the driving force behind the creation of the New Popular Front, herding disparate parties into a successful left-wing alliance.
| MORE TOP NEWS |
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| Ivan Antypenko/Reuters |
| Ukraine: The military said it had lost a hard-won position on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River, near Kherson, to Russia after months of bloody fighting.South Korea: The Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples qualify for dependent coverage under the national health insurance plan. Activists hope it’s a step toward legalizing same-sex marriage.China: Carbon emissions from China, the world’s biggest emitter for most of the past two decades, seem to be on the verge of plateauing.E.U.: Ursula von der Leyen secured a second five-year term as president of the European Commission, the union’s executive branch.Japan: Five people died on Mount Fuji in one week, an unusually deadly start to the climbing season.Britain: The country must accelerate efforts to deal with climate change if it is to meet its net-zero interim targets, a government monitoring group said.Bangladesh: At least 17 people have been killed during protests over a quota system used to fill coveted civil service jobs.Venezuela: With the presidential election in 10 days, a poll found that a third of residents are considering leaving the country if Nicolás Maduro, its authoritarian leader, wins again.Italy: A judge found a journalist guilty of defaming Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in the latest lawsuit to raise concerns about press freedom.Russia: Closing arguments in the trial of the Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on espionage charges are scheduled for today. |
| SPORTS NEWS |
| Flag football: The sport has grown in popularity across the U.S., especially among women. In 2028, it will debut at the Olympics. |
| Golf: Here’s what to know from the first day of the Open Championship at Royal Troon in Scotland. (And what is the Postage Stamp Hole?)Formula 1: We break down the narrow, bumpy, relentless track at the Hungarian Grand Prix. |
| MORNING READ |
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| Ana María Arévalo Gosen for The New York Times |
The police in Spain use VioGén, an algorithm, to predict how likely domestic violence victims are to be abused again, and to suggest what protection to provide. Overall, it has reduced the number of repeat attacks. But sometimes the risk levels are miscalculated — and the consequences can be fatal.
| ARTS AND IDEAS |
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| via Reesa Teesa |
A Dickensian TikTok tactic
Attention spans are short. But epic sagas of romantic misdemeanors and lying lovers can be long. So creators on TikTok are taking inspiration from the age of serialized fiction and breaking down longer stories into snackable clips.
There’s a financial imperative: Holding onto viewers for even a single second longer can translate into greater algorithmic reach and, thus, higher earning potential. In some cases, these stories stretch over dozens of videos and hours of content. You’ll have to watch the next video to find out what happens next.
| RECOMMENDATIONS |
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| Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Samantha Seneviratne. |
Bake: This blueberry spoon cake pours blueberry juice on top of a gluten-free cornmeal batter.
