Afternoon News Briefing: Debate Day brings bad news for Biden; Illegal alien arrested; Outrage over Harry award; more…

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Below are important excerpts from some of the top stories in the news this afternoon:

1 – Debate day brings bad news for Biden

The Washington Examiner writes: t’s only natural for pollsters and other political professionals to try to take the public’s temperature about a presidential race right before a big debate. The debate might have little effect on the race, or it might change everything, and the only way to know is to measure where the race was immediately before the event. So, on Wednesday, we saw a wave of new polls and analyses that added up to terrible news for the campaign of President Joe Biden.

  • On Wednesday, Quinnipiac released a new poll showing Trump ahead of Biden by four points among registered voters, 49 to 45, in a national head-to-head matchup.
  • Also on Wednesday, the New York Times and Siena released a new survey showing Trump leading Biden by six points among registered voters, 48 to 42.
  • Then the Washington Post published a new analysis of existing polls with the headline, “Trump leads in 5 of 7 states most likely to determine the election, polling averages say.”
  • Finally, also on Wednesday, the influential poll analyst Nate Silver published a piece headlined, “The presidential election isn’t a toss-up,” noting that yes, either Biden or Trump could win, “but the odds are in the ex-president’s favor.” Using a wildly complex model of analyzing data, Silver concluded that, at the moment, Trump has a 66% chance of winning.

TRUMP STATEMENT on Truth Social Thursday morning, ahead of the debate this evening: “JOE BIDEN IS A THREAT TO DEMOCRACY, AND A THREAT TO THE SURVIVAL AND EXISTENCE OF OUR COUNTRY ITSELF!!!”

2 – DNC mocks Trump with multiple billboards in Atlanta ahead of debate

The Democratic National Committee has paid for five billboards along the major freeways in Atlanta, Georgia mocking former President Donald Trump ahead of his historic debate with Joe Biden Thursday evening.

The billboards, erected along the route where Trump’s motorcade will travel as he arrives for the debate, read: “Donald. Welcome to Atlanta for the first time since becoming a convicted felon. Congrats – or whatever…”

Some conservatives are responding by noting that the Trump’s fundraising and standing in the polls only increased following the recent “conviction” in New York.

Another anti-Trump group is also trying to target Trump with a “billboard truck” running around Atlanta on the day of the debate.

The same anti-Trump group vowed to keep putting up billboards trolling Trump at all his rally locations. They have a billboard erected in Virginia where Trump will be holding a rally on Friday, again gloating that Trump is a “felon.”

3 – CNN’s Debate Moderators Were In Bed With Deep State’s Fake Anti-Trump Campaign

From the Daily Caller: Both of CNN’s moderators for Thursday’s presidential debate have deep ties to intelligence officials who peddled now-debunked conspiracy theories about former President Donald Trump.

Jake Tapper and Dana Bash are both intimately connected to former deep-state officials who pushed the now-discredited Steele Dossier and the hoax that reporting on Hunter Biden’s laptop was a product of Russian election meddling. The duo will preside over the first presidential debate Thursday between Trump and President Joe Biden.

Tapper published a story based on a leak from James Clapper, former President Obama’s Director of National Intelligence, indicating that Russia had hacked DNC emails on behalf of Trump and that the Trump campaign had coordinated with Russian officials, according to RealClearInvestigations. Neither Tapper nor Clapper initially disclosed that this false reporting relied heavily on the now-discredited Steele Dossier.

Bash was married to Jeremy Bash, a former CIA chief of staff in the Obama administration, from 1998-2007. Both Jeremy Bash and Clapper were signatories to a 2020 letter from dozens of former intelligence officials falsely attesting that the Hunter Biden laptop story broken by the New York Post had “all the classic earmarks” of a Russian disinformation operation. The laptop contents were later verified as authentic by various news outlets, including the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Tapper and Bash have both brazenly compared Trump to Hitler to their audiences.

4 – Famed polling expert makes bold claim about 2024 election: ‘Not a toss-up’

From the New York Post: There’s a clear front-runner in the 2024 presidential race, according to renowned election analyst and statistical guru Nate Silver.

The data maven unveiled his quadrennial model Wednesday and started off by giving former President Donald Trump a 65.7% chance of victory over President Biden on Nov. 5.

Silver’s current prediction, based on 40,000 simulations run through the model, predicts that Biden, 81, is likely to edge out Trump, 78, in the national popular vote by one-tenth of a percentage point (47.2% to 47.1%).

However, in the all-important Electoral College, Silver’s model has Trump receiving 287 electoral votes — just over the 270 needed to win the White House.

5 – illegal alien arrested in NY for rape of 15-yr-old girl

The New York Post reports: An illegal migrant has been arrested for allegedly forcing a 15-year-old girl into his car, stripping off her clothes and raping her in upstate New York. Sakir Akkan, 21, is accused of targeting the teen after spotting her walking down a street in Albany in the early hours of May 14, the Times Union reported, citing court documents.

Akkan, who hails from Turkey, allegedly jumped out of his Toyota Prius armed with a metal pole and threatened to beat the girl if she didn’t get in the car. Once she was inside, he allegedly sped off to an isolated street, took the girl’s clothes off and raped her, the filing charges.

The teen, who lived in a group home close to where the attack unfolded, was cut loose soon after and fled to a nearby residence for help, according to the court docs. The suspect was finally nabbed last Tuesday and slapped with a first-degree rape charge, Albany cops confirmed to The Post.

Court records show Akkan has an address listed in Troy, NY, but he is not a US citizen. He was arrested by US Border Patrol agents on Nov. 5 last year after crossing into San Diego, California, illegally, a Homeland Security source told The Post. Akkan informed agents he was trying to get to Philadelphia but failed to provide an address. Just days later, he was released on his own recognizance due to a lack of bed space and ordered to appear in a Philadelphia court on Feb. 19, 2025, the source added.

6 – Feds stop boat overloaded with illegal immigrants from landing on US soil

From Fox News: Border Patrol agents on Wednesday stopped over 100 Haitian illegal immigrants attempting to land on U.S. soil in Florida, a crossing that renewed concerns about an often uncovered part of the ongoing migrant crisis.

“At approximately 4:00 a.m., U.S. Border Patrol agents with support from federal, state & local law enforcement partners responded to a migrant landing & encountered 118 Haitian migrants,” Miami Sector Chief Patrol Agent Samuel Briggs said. The incident occurred in Key West.

It was the latest arrest by authorities of those trying to cross into the U.S. by boat. Earlier this month, 305 people from Haiti and the Bahamas were intercepted by the Coast Guard. That was part of an operation that intercepted nearly 12,000 migrants in FY 2023.

7 – The Supreme Court rejects a nationwide opioid settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma

From the Associated Press: The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a nationwide settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma that would have shielded members of the Sackler family who own the company from civil lawsuits over the toll of opioids but also would have provided billions of dollars to combat the opioid epidemic.

The decision also could affect other major bankruptcies, including the $2.4 billion bankruptcy plan for the Boy Scouts of America that has been approved by a federal judge, lawyers said.

After deliberating more than six months, the justices in a 5-4 vote blocked an agreement hammered out with state and local governments and victims. The Sacklers would have contributed up to $6 billion and given up ownership of the company but retained billions more. The agreement provided that the company would emerge from bankruptcy as a different entity, with its profits used for treatment and prevention.

Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for the majority, said “nothing in present law authorizes the Sackler discharge.”

Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Brett Kavanaugh, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor dissented.

8 – Judge rules law defining sex as only male or female is unconstitutional

From Fox News: A judge ruled that a Montana law which defined “sex” in state law, when referring to a person as only male or female, was unconstitutional, saying that the law’s description did not explicitly state its purpose.

District Court Judge Shane Vannatta struck down the 2023 law on Tuesday after a group of plaintiffs who identify as transgender, nonbinary, intersex and other identities sued, arguing the law denies legal recognition and protection to people who identify as gender-nonconforming, according to The Associated Press.

Vannatta did not address the claim of a lack of legal recognition and protection, but did say that the bill’s title did not adequately explain whether the word “sex” referred to gender or sexual intercourse and that it did not indicate the words “male” and “female” would be defined in the body of the bill.

9 – Girls’ coach speaks out after trans runner zips past competitors

From Fox News: Girls’ track and field coach Dean Vergillo spoke out against his Washington high school team’s state loss against a transgender runner.

The Cedarcrest High School coach spoke to the Independent Women’s Forum about his team competing in the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) state track and field meet earlier in May. One of his athletes had competed against 17-year-old transgender athlete Veronica Garcia in the 400-meter sprint. Though it wasn’t apparent that Garcia was a biological male, Vergillo remarked that it was easy to tell once the race started.

Garcia went on to win the race, earning 10 points for East Valley High School. Vergillo noted that his high school’s team only lost the state meet to East Valley by eight points, meaning Garcia’s win was the deciding factor.

10 – Outrage erupts as Prince Harry set to receive coveted award at 2024 ESPYs

From the New York Post: Prince Harry is set to receive the Pat Tillman Award for Service at the 2024 ESPYs, it was announced Thursday.

The Duke of Sussex, 39, and former NFL safety Steve Gleason were announced as the recipients of the esteemed Arthur Ashe Award for Courage and the Pat Tillman Award for Service, respectively, at the July 11 ceremony.

“This one is for our entire service community,” Harry said after learning of the honor. The prestige award is handed out to individuals who have made significant contributions in the world, which echo the legacy of former NFL player and US Army Ranger, Pat Tillman.

Below is a sample of the outrage pouring in on social media: 

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