Key eventsShow key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureSummary of the dayHere’s a recap of today’s developments:
Family members of Democratic presidential hopeful Robert Kennedy Jr joined the White House in condemning his “deplorable” claim that Covid-19 was engineered to target some ethnic groups and spare others. The former attorney and nephew of John F Kennedy made the extraordinary assertion during a recent dinner in New York city, saying the virus was “targeted to attack Caucasians and Black people”.
Democratic Senator Joe Manchin and Republican former Utah governor Jon Huntsman repeatedly dodged questions on whether they would run on a third-party ticket in the 2024 presidential election under the No Labels movement. The pair appeared at the group No Labels’ town hall meeting to co-headline the organization’s “commonsense” policy platform release, the first in a series of events that the group says it will hold as the 2024 presidential election takes shape.
Manchin’s appearance at the No Labels event on Monday has fueled speculation that he is considering a run for the presidency. If he ran for the presidency as a No Labels candidate, it could not only split the Democratic vote in a way that gives the White House to the Republicans in 2024 but also hands the party his crucial seat in what is currently a finely-balanced Senate where the Democrats have a very narrow majority.
An Iowa judge has temporarily blocked the state’s new abortion ban from taking effect, just days after Governor Kim Reynolds signed the measure into law. The move restores access to abortion in Iowa for up to 20 weeks of pregnancy while the courts assess the new law’s constitutionality. Meanwhile, Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut warned that it is “100% certain” that the Republicans will pass a national abortion ban if they win Congress next year.
House Democrats plan to unveil a resolution to formally censure Republican congressman George Santos for lying to voters about his education, work history and family background. The resolution from Representative Ritchie Torres will be privileged, meaning that the Republican-controlled House must act on it. Santos has “disgraced [Congress], and the institution should speak with one voice against his misconduct,” said Torres.
Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy announced a list of candidates he would nominate to the supreme court if he were elected, including Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Senator Mike Lee of Utah as possible nominees for the nation’s top court.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds dodged a question about whether she would be Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s running mate if he won the Republican presidential primary. DeSantis, at a fundraising event on Saturday, told reporters that he would consider Reynolds as a pick for vice president if he won the GOP nomination.
Ohio secretary of state Frank LaRose formally announced his candidacy for US Senate, becoming the third prominent Republican hoping to challenge Democratic incumbent Sherrod Brown in 2024. Ohio’s Senate race looks to be one of the most competitive in the country next year, alongside races in Arizona, Montana and West Virginia. The state backed Trump in the 2016 and 2020 elections.
A leading environmental group has hit out at US climate envoy John Kerry over comments he made rejecting calls for the US to pay climate reparations to developing countries affected by climate-change fueled disasters.
Joe Biden has invited Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to Washington for an official visit, according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office. The phone call between the two leaders took place as Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, is traveling to Washington for meetings with Biden and to address a joint address to Congress.
The chair of the US Congressional Progressive Caucus apologized for calling Israel a “racist state”. “I offer my apologies to those who I have hurt with my words,” Pramila Jayapal of Washington state said in a statement on Sunday.
Joe Manchin refuses to rule out third-party run for presidentDemocratic Senator Joe Manchin and Republican former Utah governor Jon Huntsman repeatedly dodged questions on whether they would run on a third-party ticket in the 2024 presidential election under the No Labels movement.Manchin and Huntsman appeared at an event hosted by the bipartisan group in New Hampshire to unveil their platform, called Common Sense.The event at Saint Anselm College in Manchester was described as the first public opportunity to highlight the group’s policies.Asked if he would consider Huntsman as a potential running mate on a unity ticket, Manchin said people were “putting the cart ahead of the horse” and that the pair were there “to make sure the American people have an option”.He dismissed concerns that his candidacy could serve as a “spoiler” to Joe Biden that could help Donald Trump become president.
I’ve never been in any race I’ve ever spoiled, I’ve been in races to win. And if I get in a race, I’m gonna win. I haven’t made a decision.
At a No Labels event in New Hampshire, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) says he “hasn’t made decision” on a 2024 independent run but rejects the idea he’d be a spoiler."I’ve never been in any race I’ve ever spoiled, I’ve been in races to win. And if I get in a race, I’m gonna win." pic.twitter.com/SYGJ9JXC6Y— The Recount () July 17, 2023
Asked what his party affiliation is, Manchin said he was “the most independent Democrat you’ve ever met”.Martin PengellyIn an open letter to American librarians, Barack Obama has criticised “profoundly misguided” rightwing efforts to ban books from libraries in public schools.“Some of the books that shaped my life – and the lives of so many others – are being challenged by people who disagree with certain ideas or perspectives,” the former president wrote.
It’s no coincidence that these ‘banned books’ are often written by or feature people of colour, Indigenous people, and members of the LGBTQ+ community.
Obama’s letter on Monday supported Unite Against Book Bans, a campaign led by the American Library Association (ALA).Obama also appeared in a TikTok video posted by the Kankakee Public Library, from Illinois, which has found success with viral videos.The 44th president appeared at the end of the short video, which otherwise featured staff reading books subject to bans or attempted bans. Obama was shown reading and sipping from a library-branded mug. More videos are set to be released.The ALA has found that in US public schools last year, “a record 2,571 unique titles were targeted for censorship”, often by parent-led groups, “a 38% increase from the 1,858 unique titles targeted for censorship in 2021”.“Of those titles, the vast majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQ+ community and people of colour,” it adds.House Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Republicans will move forward with a scheduled hearing featuring Robert Kennedy Jr after the Democratic presidential hopeful was condemned for falsely claiming that Covid-19 was engineered to target some ethnic groups and spare others.“I disagree with everything he said,” McCarthy told reporters. But he rejected calls by Democrats to cancel Kennedy’s public appearance on Thursday before a Republican-controlled House committee.
The hearing we’re going to have this week is about censorship. I don’t think censoring somebody is the answer here.
Seconds after condemning purported Democratic anti-semitism, Kevin McCarthy defends House Republicans inviting RFK Jr to testify before Congress despite his anti-semitic remarks because "I don't think censoring somebody is actually the answer here" pic.twitter.com/yx5DscxSy8— Aaron Rupar () July 17, 2023
Richard LuscombeClose Kennedy family members weighing in reflects the growing outrage at Democratic presidential hopeful Robert Kennedy Jr’s words, which he tried to disavow on Monday in a statement sent to the Guardian by his campaign staff.The statement reads:
The New York Post story is mistaken. I have never, ever suggested that the Covid-19 virus was engineered to ‘spare Jews,’ and I unequivocally reject this disgusting and outlandish conspiracy theory.
New York Post reporter Jon Levine exploited this off-the-record conversation to smear me as an antisemite. This cynical maneuver is consistent with the mainstream media playbook to discredit me as a crank - and by association, to discredit revelations of genuine corruption and collusion.
Separate messages sent to the Guardian purportedly from Kennedy’s personal email address cite Wikipedia links to press articles about the plausibility of ethnically-targeted bioweapons.“The study is solid, and not at all controversial,” one of the messages says of a research paper by the British Medical Association, reported by the Guardian in 2004, that “rogue scientists” could develop bioweapons designed to target certain ethnic groups based on their genetic differences.Iowa judge temporarily blocks state's abortion banAn Iowa judge has temporarily blocked the state’s new abortion ban from taking effect on Monday, just days after Governor Kim Reynolds signed the measure into law.Polk County District Court Judge Joseph Seidlin ruled that a lawsuit by abortion providers is likely to succeed, and the temporary injunction will remain in place for the duration of the lawsuit.The move restores access to abortion in Iowa for up to 20 weeks of pregnancy while the courts assess the new law’s constitutionality.Last week, Iowa lawmakers passed a six-week ban on abortion in a rare special legislative session, called by Governor Reynolds, who signed the bill on Friday afternoon.The law would ban almost all abortions once cardiac activity can be detected, which is usually six weeks into a pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant. Prior to the law, abortion was legal in the state up to 22 weeks of pregnancy.West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin is speaking at an event hosted by the moderate group No Labels, fueling speculation that he could run on a third-party ticket for the presidency.Manchin has not declared whether he will run, but it’s difficult to see how his flirtation with No Labels would amount to a serious candidacy, according to a Vox report.
It’s true that many Democrats don’t want Biden to run again, and many Republicans say the same of Trump, who is the current GOP frontrunner. But while 2024 may shape up to be the rematch no one asked for, third-party candidates don’t have a successful track record in the US, and there’s no indication a third-party candidate would be able to launch a credible challenge to either party’s nominee this time. If Manchin or another third-party candidate runs, they would probably lose badly.
They might, however, get enough support among moderates to derail Biden in states that he narrowly won in 2020, despite No Labels co-chair Joe Lieberman’s assurances that his group is not looking to get in the race for a “spoiler.”
Updated at 22.30 BSTThe White House’s press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, described Robert F Kennedy’s comments that Covid-19 was “ethnically targeted” to spare Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people as false” and “vile”.“The claims made on that tape is false,” she said during a press briefing earlier this afternoon.
It is vile, and they put our fellow Americans in danger.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre condemns RFK Jr.’s comments that COVID -19 was “ethnically targeted” to spare Jewish and Chinese people:“The claims made on that tape is false. It is vile. They put our fellow Americans in danger.” pic.twitter.com/ANyTEqePGN— The Recount () July 17, 2023
She declined to discuss Kennedy directly, citing the legal constraints on the administration’s ability to address campaign matters. But she warned that the presidential candidate’s remarks amounted to encouraging racist theories around the virus.
If you think about the racist and antisemitic conspiracy theories that come out of saying those type of things, it’s an attack on our fellow citizens.
And so it’s important that we essentially speak out when we hear those claims more broadly.
She also cited a statement from the American Jewish Committee that called Kennedy’s claims “deeply offensive” and reflective of “some of the most abhorrent antisemitic conspiracy theories throughout history.” Jean-Pierre added:
This is something that this president, and this whole administration, is going to stand against.
Updated at 22.13 BSTFormer Utah governor Jon Huntsman, who is due to speak at this evening’s No Labels event in New Hampshire, has insisted it is “not a campaign”.Fmr. Gov. Jon Huntsman (R-UT) this AM to in Manchester, NH: No Labels event tonight at St. Anselm is "not a campaign" Huntsman tells me he is NOT weighing a third party presidential run. pic.twitter.com/2qh5bOxRGJ— Nathaniel Reed () July 17, 2023
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds dodged a question about whether she would be Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s running mate if he won the Republican presidential primary.DeSantis, at a fundraising event on Saturday, told reporters that he would consider Reynolds as a pick for vice president if he won the GOP nomination.Asked about DeSantis’s comments, Reynolds told Fox’s Ainsley Earhardt:
I appreciate the comments. But look, I’m so focused. We are implementing a boldest universal school choice plan in the country. I just called a special session last week. This last week we passed the fetal heartbeat bill, and I actually cut state government and I cut 21 agencies from my Cabinet and we’re implementing our alignment bill.
She added:
So I’m busy working on being governor of the great state of Iowa and I’m already working on cutting taxes again next year. So that’s my focus right now.
Donald Trump last week expressed his frustration with Reynolds for declining to endorse a candidate early in the race. In a post to Truth Social, Trump wrote:
I opened up the Governor position for Kim Reynolds, & when she fell behind, I ENDORSED her, did big Rallies, & she won. Now, she wants to remain ‘NEUTRAL.’ I don’t invite her to events! DeSanctus down 45 points!
DeSantis, speaking on Saturday, also dismissed Trump’s criticism of Reynolds, saying:
I thought the attacks on her were totally, totally out of hand and totally unnecessary.
Joe Kennedy III, a former congressman from Massachusetts and nephew of Robert F Kennedy Jr, has publicly distanced himself from his uncle’s latest comments. My uncle’s comments were hurtful and wrong. I unequivocally condemn what he said.— Joe Kennedy III () July 17, 2023
Robert F Kennedy’s sister, Kerry Kennedy, has also sharply criticised his remarks about Covid.Edward HelmoreA leading environmental group has hit out at US climate envoy John Kerry over comments he made rejecting calls for the US to pay climate reparations to developing countries affected by climate-change fueled disasters.On Friday, at a congressional hearing on the state department’s climate agenda, Kerry said that “under no circumstances” would the US meet reparations demands. However, the US has previously committed to contributing to a “loss and damages” fund for developing countries that does not involve statements of liability.“We are disappointed and angered by this news, but not surprised, because John Kerry’s words are just the latest example of Kerry and the US refusing to back up their vague claims for US support in global climate progress with real, substantive action,” said Jeff Ordower, North America director of the climate advocacy group 350.0rg.Ordower added that Kerry and president Biden “have tried to walk a tightrope of limited culpability: they talk a big game about “interconnected nations” and “the need for a fossil fuel phasedown,” but shied away “when it comes to “put their words into practice.”The criticism comes as Kerry met with Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua in Beijing to urge joint action to cut methane emissions and coal-fired power.“In the next three days we hope we can begin taking some big steps that will send a signal to the world about the serious purpose of China and the United States to address a common risk, threat, challenge to all of humanity created by humans themselves,” Kerry said, according to Reuters.“It is toxic for both Chinese and for Americans and for people in every country on the planet.”The US climate envoy’s comments came as temperature records in the US, Europe and China are coming close to being broken this week, alongside intense rain and flooding in other areas that are collectively pushing climate change issue to the top of the global political agenda.