Biden quits and BiBi speaks
To say the past week in Washington has been "eventful" would be like calling the swampy summers here "uncomfortable".
After mounting pressure within his own party, President Joe Biden announced he was ending his campaign at the weekend, instead endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris.
While it had been expected that the party would need to hurriedly re-top its ticket, Democrats appear to be uniting behind Ms Harris.
During her first campaign rally in Milwaukee, the crowd showed an exuberance that seemed to be born largely from a sense of relief that the uncertainty around Mr Biden was finally over.
His announcement prompted Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, to call on him to end his entire presidency, calling him "not fit to serve".
Amid the domestic drama, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Washington to deliver an address to Congress, during which he said the war, and its spillover effects in the region, was not a clash of civilisations but a "clash between barbarism and civilisation".
The National's Ellie Sennett was in the chamber for the speech, where she noted a great deal of division among those attending, with some applauding wildly and others refusing to stand when Mr Netanyahu entered.
Afterwards, she sat down with Senator Ben Cardin, who presided over the address. He said that he was "pleased" with the prime minister's emphasis on regional normalization, and expanding the Abraham Accords into an "Abraham Alliance."
Outside the building, thousands marched in protest against the Israeli leader and his actions in Gaza.
Sara Ruthven
Deputy US Bureau Chief
EYE ON 2024
Kamala Harris gains early momentum as she sharpens attack lines against Donald Trump
Just two days after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, Ms Harris opened a two-percentage-point lead over Mr Trump in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted on Monday and Tuesday.
Her advantage of 44 per cent to 42 per cent over Mr Trump is within the poll's margin of error, but it nonetheless marks a notable turnaround from recent polls, most of which have shown Mr Trump on course to easily prevail in November.
Democrats have reacted enthusiastically to Ms Harris's sudden emergence as a presidential candidate, pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into her campaign and political action groups that support it.
What's Washington talking about?
Iraq An Iraqi delegation spent Monday and Tuesday in Washington for the latest round of talks to wind down the coalition set up to battle ISIS and establish new bilateral security partnerships with each country that still has troops there. Iraqi politician Jawad Al Bulani, who is on the parliamentary security and defence committee, said Baghdad and Washington “are putting the finishing touches on the withdrawal deal of all foreign troops in the coalition in Iraq".
Trump security and Iran The head of the US Secret Service, Kimberly Cheatle, resigned this week after a contentious hearing over the attempted assassination of former president Donald Trump. Congressman Mike Turner grilled Ms Cheatle about increased threats from Iran against Mr Trump over his administration's killing of Iranian general Qassem Suleimani. Mr Turner said he was “shocked that the threat assessment of Iran did not seem to be baked into your security footprint and your threat assessment”.
QUOTED
领英推荐
“It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve as your President ... I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down"
- President Joe Biden announcing he was ending his presidential campaign
Spotlight: Republican campaigner claims 'amazing' support for Trump among American Muslims
Sajid Tarar’s voice quivers with emotion as he outlines what he sees as the erosion of America’s place on the world stage under President Joe Biden.
Whether it is the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the conflict in Ukraine or the Israel-Gaza war, Mr Tarar, originally from Pakistan, blames Mr Biden for the main foreign policy crises.
“I 100 per cent agree, whatever is going on in the world right now is due to the Biden weak foreign policy,” he told The National at a hotel in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the Republican Party held its national convention.
“Let's start from the fall of Kabul. Then you go to Gaza, you go to Ukraine … frankly speaking, I definitely agree if Donald Trump was the president, we wouldn’t have these conflicts.”
Mr Tarar is an ardent Trump supporter and has backed the former president in three elections now. For years, he led the group American Muslims for Trump.
While not officially connected to the Trump campaign this election cycle, he said he still has close ties to the former president and his team.
Only in America
Coco Gauff and LeBron James to be flag bearers in Paris
Tennis star Coco Gauff will join LeBron James as a flag bearer for the US Olympic team at the opening ceremony in Paris this week.
Gauff, the reigning US Open champion, is set to make her Olympic debut at the Paris Games and will be the first tennis athlete to carry the US flag. She and James were chosen by Team USA athletes.
“I mean, for me, the Olympics is a top priority," she said earlier this year. "I would say equal to the Grand Slams.
"I wouldn’t put it above or below, just because I’ve never played before. This is my first time. Obviously, I always want to do well, try to get a medal.”
Gauff and James, the 39-year-old leading scorer in NBA history, both compete in sports that are outside the traditional Olympic world and get attention year-round, not just every four years.
Salt Lake City was formally awarded the 2034 Winter Olympics and Paralympics following a vote by the International Olympic Committee in Paris, giving Utah its second Games after hosting the Winter version in 2002.
-AP