| | |  | BY GABRIEL GAVIN | | 
A person stands in front of an Israeli police water cannon being used to disperse demonstrators blocking a road during a protest against plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to overhaul the judicial system in Jerusalem on Monday. | Ariel Schalit/AP Photo | AWKWARD ALLIES — The dust is settling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bid to block Israel’s Supreme Court from overturning government decisions. But the move has left him facing more scrutiny, not less, as even long-standing supporters in the U.S. voice fears the country is on an increasingly authoritarian track. After the controversial new law was passed by the Knesset by a vote of 64 to 0 late on Monday night, with opposition politicians walking out of the chamber, on the streets outside the building a battle over the future of the country was only just beginning. Huge crowds of Israelis turned out to demonstrate in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and major foreign allies are now weighing in. While the full implications of the decision to defy the White House on the bill and go ahead anyway are only just becoming clear, Israeli civil society and Jewish diaspora groups are already seething. The American Jewish Committee, a stalwart advocate for Israel in Washington, has expressed “profound disappointment” over the decision, arguing that “reform to the institutions core to Israeli democracy should only be adopted on the basis of the broadest possible consensus.” A perceived weakening of the rule of law in one of the Middle East’s only democracies also has investors worried. The directors of high tech companies, a critical sector for the tiny nation’s economy, placed black page advertisements on the front of Israeli newspapers this morning to underline their fears the government is becoming more and more unaccountable. The Tel Aviv stock market has also taken a beating today as traders reacted to the news. “It’s hugely symbolic because the courts are seen as one of the last institutions left over from an older Israel,” Seth Franzman, a regional analyst and editor at The Jerusalem Post tells POLITICO. “That was a very different Israel to the one the protesters think we are moving towards, which would have a lot more of the authoritarianism we see in Hungary or Turkey or Poland.” Protests are now set to continue throughout the week, and several legal petitions have been filed to overturn the law, creating one of the most serious rifts in the three quarters of a century since the establishment of the state of Israel. Its 73-year-old veteran prime minister, however, is one of politics’ great survivors, defying corruption scandals and election defeats over a decade and a half in office. If he can weather the storm at home, there’s little even concerned allies abroad can do to hold him to account, says Franzman. “Netanyahu is a known quantity and Israel is an important partner in a time when its adversaries like Russia, China and Iran are going wild. A democratic slippage won’t change that — the West has the partners it has, and there aren’t a lot of alternatives.” At home, Netanyahu’s coalition of right-wing and ultra-religious parties gives him a tight grip on power. Abroad, the U.S. can air its concerns but ultimately he knows he’ll always be welcome alongside Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Hungary’s Viktor Orban in the club of awkward allies Washington might not like, but knows it needs. Welcome to POLITICO Nightly. Reach out with news, tips and ideas at nightly@politico.com . Or contact tonight’s author at ggavin@politico.eu or on Twitter at @GabrielCSGavin .
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| | YOUR TICKET INSIDE THE GOLDEN STATE POLITICAL ARENA: California Playbook delivers the latest intel, buzzy scoops and exclusive coverage from Sacramento and Los Angeles to Silicon Valley and across the state. Don't miss out on the daily must-read for political aficionados and professionals with an outsized interest in California politics, policy and power. Subscribe today. | | | | | | | — Judge knocks down Biden’s asylum policy as illegal border crossings dip: A federal judge today blocked the Biden administration’s new regulation restricting asylum-seekers , one that contributed to a severe drop in crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border over the past few months. U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar, an Obama appointee in Oakland, Calif., knocked down the restrictions as “arbitrary and capricious,” while staying his ruling for 14 days to give the Biden administration an opportunity to appeal. Tigar also halted a similar measure — the Trump administration’s so-called transit ban — a few years ago, joking during last week’s hearing that he heard “2023 was going to be a big year for sequels.” — Biden signs proclamation to honor Emmett Till with national monument: President Joe Biden today established a national monument to commemorate the legacy of Emmett Till , whose murder helped ignite the civil rights movement, and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley. Biden signed the proclamation to create the new Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument on the 82nd anniversary of the Black Chicago teenager’s birth. — Health insurers are dodging mental health bills, White House says: Biden administration officials today accused insurers of failing to comply with a 2008 law requiring them to put mental health care on the same footing as physical care . They proposed new rules that would ensure that insurers pay their share of the costs of psychological treatment. But the proposal could draw a backlash from the insurance industry and its allies in Congress, who could see the administration’s accusations as scapegoating that masks broader problems — the spike in mental illness and a dearth of providers trained to treat it.
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Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis speaks at Rep. Zach Nunn’s (R-Iowa) “Operation Top Nunn: Salute to Our Troops" fundraiser on July 15 in Ankeny, Iowa. | Scott Olson/Getty Images | SHRINKAGE — Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign is expanding the number of staff it’s cutting to include more than a third of his payroll as the Florida governor looks to get his primary bid back on track, POLITICO reports. The cuts, which were confirmed by advisers, will amount to a total of 38 jobs shed across an array of departments. They will include the roughly 10 event planning positions that were announced several weeks ago, in addition to the recent departures of two senior DeSantis campaign advisers, Dave Abrams and Tucker Obenshain. The expanded cuts are the latest sign that the Florida governor’s team is pivoting to a slim-down operation amid concerns over their finances. The campaign announced it had raised $20 million during the second quarter of this year. But it had spent a good chunk of that money. Much of the sum it raised, moreover, came from donors who had given the maximum amount and could not give again. LUCKY 7 — The August Republican debate is the first big chance for Donald Trump to face his rivals — if he decides to show up. Trump and six of his rivals have already met the qualifications to make the stage . How many more will join them — and whether so many candidates will qualify that the Republican National Committee will need to hold two debates to accommodate them all is still up in the air. The candidates who’ve already cleared the polling and fundraising thresholds to make it, according to POLITICO’s tracking: Trump, Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, Tim Scott, Chris Christie and Doug Burgum. DESANTIS UNHURT IN CAR CRASH — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is unhurt after he was involved in a multi-car accident while en route to a campaign event in Chattanooga, Tenn. this morning, POLITICO reports.. As he aims to make up ground in the Republican presidential primary, DeSantis had plans to hold three fundraisers around Tennessee today. One of them was scheduled in Chattanooga at 8:30 a.m. The chain reaction crash happened before 8:15 a.m. when traffic slowed on Interstate 75 in Chattanooga , causing four cars in the motorcade to hit one another, police said. All the vehicles involved in the crash were government vehicles taking DeSantis and his team to his scheduled event, police said. The Republican White House hopeful was not hurt, according to Chattanooga police, Florida law enforcement protecting the governor and Griffin. DeSantis continued on to the campaign event. A female staff member who suffered a minor injury in the crash was treated at the event, police said. BETWEEN FRIENDS — President Biden has made it his mission to wage what he momentously calls “the battle between democracy and autocracy.” But what to do when the ones he believes are undermining democracy are friends ? The New York Times writes that in the case of Israel, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday pushed through Parliament new curbs on an independent judiciary, Mr. Biden has chosen to speak out. The vote in Jerusalem, he declared, was “unfortunate,” the fourth time in a week he chastised Mr. Netanyahu for his drive to enhance his own power. But the president’s battle for democracy can be situational when it comes to America’s allies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, who has presided over a wave of Hindu nationalist violence and repression of dissent, was feted at the White House with a state dinner and little public criticism. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia was rewarded with a visit and a presidential fist bump despite his murderous reign.
| | GUILTY AS CHARGED — A Brussels court today found eight people guilty of murder and attempted murder in the 2016 Brussels terror attacks that killed 32 and injured more than 300, writes Nicolas Camut . One of the eight is Salah Abdeslam, who is already serving a life sentence for his role in the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks. (He was arrested four days before the Brussels attack.) Another of those found guilty, Mohamed Abrini, was identified on CCTV fleeing Zaventem airport when his explosives did not go off. He became known as the “man in the hat.” The bombers carried out attacks at the Maelbeek (Maalbeek) metro station in the EU Quarter and at Brussels airport in March 2016. The jury’s verdict closes the first part of the trial, which started in November 2022. Under Belgian law, sentences will be determined in a second part of the trial, which will start on September 4. OUT OF A JOB — Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang was sacked today , in a rare political scandal engulfing a loyalist to President Xi Jinping, writes Stuart Lau . Qin had been missing from public view for more than three weeks, fueling speculation about his future. The new foreign minister will be Qin’s predecessor, Wang Yi, according to state media CCTV. The media report didn’t give a reason for the abrupt removal of Qin, who only took charge of the foreign ministry in December. Qin, 57, a former ambassador to the U.S., was swiftly promoted when Xi was forming a new team last year. Qin’s Western counterparts have for the last few months started building a working relationship with him. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and her Dutch counterpart, Wopke Hoekstra, were among those to have met with Qin in Beijing following the city’s reopening after the coronavirus pandemic. The earliest sign of Qin’s disappearance came when Beijing canceled a visit by EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell earlier this month, with EU diplomats initially told that the Chinese official “tested positive” for coronavirus.
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| | HITTING YOUR INBOX AUGUST 14—CALIFORNIA CLIMATE: Climate change isn’t just about the weather. It's also about how we do business and create new policies, especially in California. So we have something cool for you: A brand-new California Climate newsletter. It's not just climate or science chat, it's your daily cheat sheet to understanding how the legislative landscape around climate change is shaking up industries across the Golden State. Cut through the jargon and get the latest developments in California as lawmakers and industry leaders adapt to the changing climate. Subscribe now to California Climate to keep up with the changes. | | | | | | | | |
340,000 The number of unionized workers who today reached a tentative agreement with UPS on a new union contract , avoiding a potentially calamitous strike. The Teamsters called the tentative agreement “historic” and “overwhelmingly lucrative” in a prepared statement. It includes, among other benefits, higher wages and air conditioning in delivery trucks. Member voting on the new contract begins Aug. 3 and concludes Aug. 22. |
| | | DRYING UP — As extreme heat worsens around the country, public pools have become an increasingly important public service. But just as the need for pools has increased, they’re disappearing . Access to swimming pools is now starkly divided between the wealthy and everyone else, due in part to staffing shortages and budget tightening for city governments and in part because of more demand for private pools. After a huge expansion in public pool building during the New Deal, these spaces have been dying a slow death since. Nathaniel Meyersohn reports on the history and future of the public pool for CNN.
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On this date in 1946: A huge mushroom cloud rises above Bikini atoll in the Marshall Islands following an atomic test blast, part of the U.S. military's "Operation Crossroads." The dark spots in foreground are ships that were placed near the blast site to test what an atom bomb would do to a fleet of warships. | AP Photo | Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here . | |
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