Today’s edition of quick hits.
* It reached 104.5 degrees Fahrenheit in the U.K, which was part of a brutal pattern: “Parts of North America, Europe, Africa and Asia are sweltering under extreme heat, with record-breaking temperatures baking regions of the world already grappling with wildfires and severe drought.”
* Bannon’s trial gets underway: “Former Donald Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon ‘decided he was above the law’ when he blew off the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack, a federal prosecutor told jurors Tuesday in opening statements of Bannon’s contempt of Congress trial.”
* Vaccine news: “A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advisory panel voted Tuesday to recommend Novavax’s two-dose Covid vaccine for adults.”
* D.C. protest: “More than a dozen House Democrats were arrested outside the Supreme Court on Tuesday during a demonstration that involved blocking the street to protest the high court’s June decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Capitol Police said they made 35 arrests, including 17 lawmakers.”
* At the pump: “The U.S. average retail gasoline price fell to $4.495 a gallon on Tuesday, slipping below $4.50 for the first time in nine weeks, data from the American Automobile Association (AAA) showed.”
* Thursday’s hearing is still on track despite this news: “The chair of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, Rep. Bennie Thompson, said Tuesday that has tested positive for the coronavirus and is experiencing ‘mild symptoms.’” * Intra-party drama: “All is not well in Kentucky’s Senate delegation. Sen. Rand Paul unloaded on fellow Republican Mitch McConnell for the Senate GOP leader’s handling of an anti-abortion judicial nomination, criticizing McConnell for refusing to consult with him about abandoned nominee Chad Meredith.” * Trump’s controversial SPAC remains controversial: “Months before former President Donald J. Trump’s social media company unveiled an agreement to raise hundreds of millions of dollars last fall, word of the deal leaked to an obscure Miami investment firm, whose executives began plotting ways to make money off the imminent transaction, according to people familiar with the discussions.” 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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