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July 9, 2026
Maine Democrats approve 600-person convention to pick Graham Platner's replacement
(Bangor Daily News) The Maine Democratic Party’s state committee voted Wednesday to hold a nominating convention to select a replacement for U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner, according to a party statement and an account of the meeting shared with the Bangor Daily News. More than 100 state committee members attended the meeting and voted in favor of the convention process, the party said in a statement. The convention would include 500 delegates elected proportionally by county committees, along with the entire state committee, according to the account of the meeting.
Go to discussion'This Is a Cover Story': Leon Panetta Says Trump Is Hiding the True Reason Behind Air Force One Switch
(Mediaite) Former CIA Director Leon Panetta wasn’t buying President Donald Trump‘s excuse for switching planes for his journey home from the NATO Summit in Turkey. On Wednesday, Shawn McCreesh of The New York Times asked Trump during a news conference in Ankara why he wasn’t flying the much-ballyhooed new Air Force One home. The $400 million jet was a gift from the Qatari government and has long prompted security concerns.
Go to discussionSecret Service advised Trump to not fly Qatari-gifted Air Force One
(The Hill) The Secret Service advised President Trump not to leave the NATO Summit in Turkey on the newer Qatari-gifted Air Force One, according to a Wednesday report. Sources familiar with the matter said the president flew out of Ankara on the older Air Force One model out of an abundance of caution for a potential threat from Iran, although none were explicitly identified, the New York Times reported.
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Graham Platner ends U.S. Senate campaign in Maine
(Washington Post) Graham Platner, the populist political newcomer who Democrats had hoped could flip a critical U.S. Senate seat in Maine, ended his campaign Wednesday night after a woman he previously dated publicly accused him of sexual assault. “We believe for the movement to continue, it can’t be me and for that reason, we are suspending campaign operations,” Platner said Wednesday night.
Go to discussionME-SEN: Collins' allies think Platner's exit makes her reelection bid tougher
(Politico) Republicans may be publicly using Graham Platner’s exit from Maine’s Senate race to ratchet up their attacks on Democrats, but behind the scenes, his withdrawal is hardly being viewed as good news for Sen. Susan Collins’ reelection campaign. According to a person familiar with the campaign’s thinking, granted anonymity to discuss it, Collins’ team had long viewed Platner as a uniquely vulnerable opponent whose personal controversies could help offset one of the biggest challenges she faces in 2026: running as a blue-state Republican in the Trump era.
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Trump denies disaster aid for 4 Democratic-led states
(Politico) Trump on Friday rejected $227 million in aid requests from New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island for help recovering from a major snowstorm in February. Two days earlier, Trump approved Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster aid for six Republican-led states, while extolling the political virtues of GOP politicians and candidates in the states. White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement that “there is no politicization to the President’s decisions on disaster relief,” adding that Trump “provides a more thorough review of disaster declaration requests than any Administration has before him.”
Go to discussionThe New York Times Would Like You To Meet This Totally Harmless Tradwife/Heritage Foundation Hack
(Wonkette) "A Conservative Role Model for Ending the Fertility Crisis." That is the actual title of a New York Times profile on Heritage Foundation Senior Policy Analyst Emma Waters -- an ideologue in the mold of Phyllis Schlafly, who also famously traveled around the country telling other women to stay home. It's not the first. As writer Jessica Shortall pointed out on Bluesky yesterday, Waters has been the subject of at least two other New York Times profiles on her quest to replace standard fertility treatments with some bullshit called "restorative reproductive medicine" and downplaying her desire to force other women back to the 1950s.
Go to discussionFamily of Black woman on DC train surrounded by white nationalists in 'defining image' of America breaks silence
(The Independent) Paul Bowlding was concerned when he saw the now-viral July 4 photo of his sister, Bernita Bowlding, as she sat on a train surrounded by members of the white nationalist group Patriot Front in Washington, D.C. The image, of a single Black woman surrounded by masked extremists, spread widely, with commentators comparing it to images from the Civil Rights era, but Bowlding said he was worried for his sister’s immediate safety.
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