The 10-Point: Presidential Hopefuls, Post-Crisis Finance, the Middle East and More

CLICK HERE to sign up for this briefing by email.

Crunchtime

An unsettled electorate is changing the dynamics of the 2016 presidential contest for both parties, according to our new poll. Amid a rise in Americans saying the country is on the wrong track, Donald Trump has moved to the top of the Republican field. Furthermore, two-thirds of Americans want the next president to take a different tack from President Barack Obama and more expressed pessimism about the economy. The survey also finds declining support among primary voters for Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush, although both are still well-positioned for the long haul. And, it’s crunchtime for GOPpresidential candidates hoping to make it into the prime-time debate Thursday, as a decision is due shortly on who will make the cut. (Pictured above: Donald Trump, shown arriving at the Women's British Open Golf Championships in Turnberry, Scotland, is ahead of the field of candidates in the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.)

After the Crisis

Nearly seven years after standing at the brink of collapse during the financial crisis, amid heavy losses and a struggle to build an investment bank, Chicago-based Citadel has crawled back near the top of the hedge-fund heap. But rather than take it slow, as many competitors have done since the 2008 shock, Kenneth Griffin is again embarking on an aggressive expansion. Meanwhile, a unanimous jury verdict delivered one of the harshest penalties meted out against a banker since the financial crisis. Former bank trader Tom Hayes was sentenced to 14 years in prison yesterday after a London jury convicted him of trying to fraudulently rig the London interbank offered rate, or Libor.

A Region in Turmoil

Following Turkey’s recent decision to step up its cooperation in the fight against Islamic State, the U.S. has assured the Ankara government that driving out militants from a safe zone in Syria won’t clear the way for Kurdish fighters to move in. Elsewhere in the Middle East, Gulf Arab states publicly backed the Obamaadministration’s nuclear agreement with Iran, giving the White House a potentially important diplomatic win. Meanwhile, a power struggle has emerged within Afghanistan’s Taliban following the death of their supreme commander, causing confusion among foot soldiers and sowing fears that some might defect to Islamic State.

Jump in the Pool

Training is more important than the race at U.S. Masters Swimming. Members hit the pool three or four times a week for demanding workouts but only 25% ever compete. “What’s most important is that you show up,” says one swimmer and coach. Appeal for the group has grown among veteran endurance athletes and fitness fanatics due to the rigor of the sessions, which mix fast-paced intervals of freestyle, butterfly, breast stroke and backstroke with drills such as kick-boarding. And for athletes who—because of injury or other reasons—have crossed their final finish line, membership offers a way to stay race-day fit in the absence of competition.

TOP STORIES

U.S.

Colorado Jury Decides to Keep Death Penalty as Option in James Holmes Trial

Federal Agents to Help Stem Violence in Baltimore

WORLD

Hunt for MH370: French to Lead Initial Probe of Plane Debris

Brazil’s Petrobras Scandal Yields Surprise Bounty: a Much-Buzzed-About Art Exhibit

BUSINESS

Apple and Google Know What You Want Before You Do

Supersize Cargo Skips Small Ports

MARKETS

Pimco Gets Warning From SEC That Lawsuit Could Be Coming

Fund Caught in Snare of Global Probe

NUMBER OF THE DAY

5.3%

The increase in U.S. auto sales in July—on pace to exceed 17 million for the year for the first time since 2001, according to Autodata Corp.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

‘If we don’t do it, nobody will. The only reason that China is now looking at getting serious about its emissions is because they saw that we were going to do it, too.’

—President Barack Obama on an aggressive plan to cut carbon emissions from U.S. power plants.

TODAY’S QUESTION

What are your thoughts on emissions regulations and the president’s push for an international pact? Send your comments, which we may edit before publication, to [email protected]. Please include your name and location.

—Compiled by Khadeeja Safdar

READER RESPONSE

Responding to yesterday’s question about Rick Santorum’s comments about the Republican presidential debates, James J. Hyland of Wisconsin wrote: “Candidates who don’t make the prime-time cut have an opportunity in a New Hampshire forum Monday evening and a non-prime time forum on Fox on Thursday evening. I suggest Mr. Santorum take advantage of these opportunities and continue his fight for ‘relevancy.’” Dave Oldham commented from North Carolina: “Mr. Santorum needs to realize that having been in the spotlight during prior presidential campaigns doesn’t automatically give him a seat at the table. Given the way the criteria lies, he could actually try to meet the requirements (e.g., do better in the polls).” But Mike Furlong of Alabama wrote: “I think he has a legitimate point. The differences in poll numbers are smaller than the margin of error, indicating they are essentially meaningless. Second, they are national polls, which have little to do with how the candidates are doing in Iowa and New Hampshire, where most of them are working. Third, while breaking the group in two makes the forum more manageable, a better division could be based on random selection. That way everybody has a chance, and the same chance, to appear in a given forum.”

This daily briefing is named "The 10-Point" after the nickname conferred by the editors of The Wall Street Journal on the lead column of the legendary "What's News" digest of top stories. Technically, "10-point" referred to the size of the typeface. The type is smaller now but the name lives on.

Photo: Agence France-Presse/Getty Images