Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Russia’s attacks on Ukraine continue: “For much of the war, Russia’s air assaults followed a battle-tested formula: first, waves of drones to saturate and tie up air defenses; then, once a path was cleared, a salvo of highly destructive missiles. But as Ukraine now struggles with severe air defense shortages, Russia is going straight for the missiles. Overnight on Thursday, it opened a deadly air assault with a volley of ballistic missiles that resulted in several explosions across Kyiv.”
* It’s about time: “The beleaguered aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln’s work in the Middle East is complete, and the ship, along with its crew of about 5,000 sailors, began its journey home to San Diego on Thursday after nine months of deployment. Another carrier, the Japan-based George Washington, has taken the Lincoln’s place.”
* A spokesperson didn’t comment on these allegations, except to refer to an earlier statement in which the congressman denied wrongdoing: “Lawyers for a woman interviewed as part of the House Ethics Committee probe into Rep. Jimmy Gomez alleged the California Democrat’s interactions with their client were not consensual — rebutting claims by Gomez that his ‘personal mistakes outside’ his marriage were ‘consensual in nature.’”
* Trump continues to lose key staffers: “James Braid, President Donald Trump’s point man on Capitol Hill, will soon leave that post ahead of a packed September congressional session and just over two months before voters will decide which party controls the House and Senate.”
* For people who hate forests, I have good news: “The Trump administration on Tuesday advanced a plan to open nearly 45 million acres of wilderness in national forests to road construction and logging, removing protections that had been in place for a quarter century.”
* There is no scenario in which this drop helps the United States: “The number of international students applying to attend US colleges this fall tumbled about 10%, the biggest decline in at least a decade, according to data released Thursday by the country’s most widely used college application platform.”
* Just when it seemed Fine’s reputation couldn’t get much worse: “Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.) declined to take accountability after ring camera footage of him appearing to rifle through a voter’s mailbox while on the campaign trail went viral online. Speaking to MS Now journalist Alexander Tabet on Tuesday, Fine attempted to cast doubt of the legitimacy of the footage, in spite of the fact that his own office confirmed it was indeed him in the video.”
See you tomorrow.
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