Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Law-enforcement officials held the latest briefing today on the mass shootings in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, and shed new light on, among other things, how Wade Michael Page died during Sunday’s violence.
* Egypt: “The Egyptian military launched airstrikes early Wednesday in its boldest move to date to confront militant cells that have recently taken root in the Sinai Peninsula and used the region as a base for launching attacks against Israel.”
* July was the hottest month in the continental United States ever recorded and the warmest January-to-July period since modern record-keeping began in 1895.
* Texas yesterday executed Marvin Wilson, who was convicted of murder in 1992, despite his IQ rating of 61.
* President Obama directed the Agriculture Department yesterday to authorize another $30 million in drought relief. The money will be used “to get more water to livestock and restore land impacted by drought,” Obama told reporters.
* Sen. Dick Lugar (R-Ind.) is taking the lead on urging the United States and Russia to eliminate the stockpile of chemical weapons in Syria.
* Progress: “[T]he two government-controlled mortgage finance giants, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, this week reported some of their best quarterly results since the real estate collapse.”
* President Obama opposes anti-gay discrimination by the Boy Scouts. * A prominent official in the Pennsylvania Republican Party said he considers Obama supporters “mentally retarded.” * A year ago, Fox’s Eric Bolling’s global warming denial was so intense, he asked on the air, “Do we even need our air conditioners next year?” Here’s hoping no one in his audience actually threw out their a/c. Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
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