Complete article can be found on The Morning Dispatch.
- U.S. Africa Command announced yesterday it conducted an airstrike in a remote location in Somalia on Monday that killed two al-Shabaab terrorists, one day after members of the group attacked partner forces near the city of Libikus. The military said no civilians were injured or killed in the attack, and the strikes represent the first major U.S. action in the east African country since President Joe Biden ordered the redeployment of hundreds of troops there in May.
- During a visit to troops fighting in Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu ordered his forces to focus on destroying the long-range rocket and artillery systems Western countries have sent Ukraine in recent months. U.S.-provided HIMARS have reportedly allowed Ukrainian forces to strike Russian logistics centers and supply lines well beyond the front lines.
- More than 1,100 people have reportedly died in Spain and Portugal from heat-related causes in recent days, as an unbearable heat wave sweeps across Europe. The United Kingdom declared an unprecedented national emergency on Monday as the country experienced its hottest day on record. Tens of millions of Americans—mostly in Texas and Oklahoma—are under an excessive heat warning with temperatures expected to reach up to 112 degrees Fahrenheit today.
- Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Tom Tugendhat was eliminated on Monday from the race to succeed British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, leaving just four Conservative candidates—former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, and Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch—vying for the post. Tory lawmakers are likely to whittle the field down to two candidates on Thursday.
- Former Vice President Mike Pence on Monday endorsed Karrin Taylor Robson—a former member of the Arizona Board of Regents—in the state’s upcoming Republican gubernatorial primary, labeling her the “only candidate” in the race who will promote conservative values. The move aligns him with outgoing Gov. Doug Ducey but pits him against former President Donald Trump, who is backing former local TV news anchor and Stop the Steal proponent Kari Lake in the August 2 primary. Both Pence and Trump plan to travel to Arizona on Friday to campaign for their respective candidates.
- House Democrats have scheduled votes this week on legislation that would essentially create via federal statute rights established by the Obergefell v. Hodges and Lawrence v. Texas Supreme Court cases—marriage equality and access to contraception, respectively—after the court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade last month. Justice Clarence Thomas signaled in his Dobbs concurrence a desire to revisit those precedents, but Justices Samuel Alito and Brett Kavanaugh were adamant that “overruling Roe does not mean the overruling of those precedents, and does not threaten or cast doubt on those precedents.”
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci—who also serves as President Joe Biden’s chief medical adviser—told Politico on Monday he will retire from his post by the end of Biden’s current term, after more than 50 years in public health.
