Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Can reasonable people agree that 17 is a lot? “At least 17 mass shootings were recorded across the country over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, including a string of deadly incidents that left as many as 18 people dead, data published by the Gun Violence Archive showed.”
* A provocative situation in the Strait of Hormuz: “The U.S. Navy prevented Iranian warships from seizing two oil tankers in international waters near Oman on Wednesday, according to an American military official.”
* Classified docs case: “A federal judge in Florida has ordered that more information be made public from the search warrant affidavit that led the FBI to discover a trove of classified documents at Donald Trump’s Florida resort.”
* The latest evidence of the climate crisis: “Earth on Monday notched its hottest day since record-keeping began — only to smash that record again the very next day, according to preliminary data from the U.S. National Centers for Environmental Prediction and scientists with the Climate Reanalyzer project.”
* In related news: “Storms that ride in on seas rising due to global warming will displace millions of Floridians in low-lying areas by century’s end, according to a new analysis by a flood-risk research group. Well before then, a higher ocean will force many to elevate their homes, similar to stilted homes on North Carolina’s Outer Banks, or else endure deadly surging floodwaters and sky-high insurance costs.”
* Biden continues to prioritize NATO expansion: “President Joe Biden welcomed Sweden’s prime minister to the White House on Wednesday in a show of solidarity as the United States ramps up pressure for the Nordic nation’s entry into NATO ahead of the alliance’s summit next week. Biden said it was very important for Sweden to join, something that’s been held up by objections from Turkey and Hungary.” * A case I’ve been following: “Republican Ken Paxton, who was suspended as attorney general of Texas in May following his impeachment by the GOP-controlled state House, is not planning to testify at his Senate trial, his lawyer says.” * Do you ever get the sense that Twitter’s new leadership team doesn’t really know what it’s doing: “Days after requiring users to log in to view tweets, Twitter has silently removed these restrictions. This means you can open Twitter links in a browser without an account.” See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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