NEWSNATIONNOW (Taylor Delandro) - Kentucky governor urges McConnell to address health or resign
Sen. Mitch McConnell, 84, hasn't appeared publicly since he was hospitalized for a fall June 14.
AXIOS (Courtenay Brown) - Low layoff rates defy AI jobs domination fears
Data: Department of Labor; Chart: Neil Irwin/Axios The last time this few Americans were filing for unemployment benefits, Creedence Clearwater Revival topped the music charts , while "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" was the star of the box office. Driving the news: Only 187,000 people filed new claims for unemployment insurance benefits last week, pointing to an astoundingly low level of firings across the economy . It was the lowest since September 1969. - The labor force was much smaller then, too, so relative to the number of workers, this is easily the lowest number of jobless claims on record. Why it matters: There are plenty of gloomy warnings about the labor market, including that the proliferation of AI will lead to…
AXIOS (Stef W. Kight) - Senate rabble-rousers are gaining power
Hardline conservatives are gaining power in the Senate atop key committees. Why it matters: The senators known for rankling GOP leadership now have gavels that let them hold hearings, advance legislation and even issue subpoenas. Driving the news: Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) will be the new chair of the Budget Committee, Senate Republicans agreed in their closed-door lunch Tuesday. - The committee, which has a key role in reconciliation, had been chaired by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) - Johnson also chairs the Homeland Security subcommittee on investigations, allowing him to launch probes into everything from former President Biden's health to Meta's alleged cooperation with China. What to watch: Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is next…
NYTIMES (Catie Edmondson) - What We Know About Senator Mitch McConnell’s Condition
The Kentucky Republican and former Senate majority leader was hospitalized on June 14. Scant details about his condition have emerged since.
NPR (Steve Mistler) - Susan Collins brings federal dollars to Maine. She's hoping that's worth it to voters
As Maine's Senate matchup is all but set, incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins urges voters to pick her over Democrat Graham Platner because she can fund state priorities due to her seniority.
AMERICANTHINKER - Retire the old judges?
Didn’t they use to call this “age-ism”?
NPR (Carrie Johnson) - Why a 98-year-old federal judge is asking the Supreme Court for her job back
Pauline Newman's story shines a light on the aging judiciary, where judges are getting older and lifetime tenure is raising thorny questions about retirement.