FM Nirmala Sitharaman to present Economic Survey 2024 in parliament today: Key points
The Economy Survey document may also give some idea about the tone and texture of the actual Budget for 2024-25, to be presented on Tuesday.
NEET UG 2024 Paper Leak: SC to resume hearing today, here’s all you need to know
The Supreme Court issued a notice to the NTA, requesting a response to complaints regarding alleged document leaks and misconduct.
Sawan Somwar 2024: Shubh muhurat, puja vidhi, bhog, lord Shiva mantra and more
The first day of Sawan is July 22 and will end on August 19. This means Sawan will be observed for 29 days.
Forcing President Biden out of campaign may have been more about Congress than White House
Switching out President Biden for someone else may not have been so much about getting someone to defeat former President Trump but rather about saving seats down-ballot. In other words, polling has revealed that Harris does not match up much better than Biden. But it may be just enough to salvage seats. The Senate will be tough to hold. But this strategy may be all about flipping the House. The current breakdown is 220 Republicans to 213 Democrats with two vacancies. Democrats need to change a little more than a handful of those seats to reclaim the House. Democrats have done nothing but rail against Republicans and how they’ve run the House for a year and a half. Republicans gave them plenty of fodder. They took days to elect former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) as speaker and then dumped him by the fall. The House then consumed 22 days to elect House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) – after burning through three other speaker candidates first. They’ve dealt with various censures and contempt of Congress resolutions, some of which have gone against the wishes of leaders. Democrats have also highlighted the various stunts of Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Lauren Boebert (R-CO). BIDEN DROPPING OUT OF 2024 RACE IS A ‘TECTONIC SHIFT IN POLITICS’: BRET BAIER So, Democrats thought that pandemonium gave them a great chance to win the House. But Biden was nothing but a dead weight. In other words, this maneuver might prove to be more about the House versus the presidency. The House returns to Capitol Hill tomorrow. And expect a flurry of questions for Democrats about whether they support Vice President Harris to step into the void or someone else. It’s notable that senior leaders like Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) are not endorsing anyone. They want to see how this plays out and not tip the scale in favor of any individual. Former House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn (D-SC) salvaged Biden’s presidential bid in 2020 ahead of the South Carolina primary. He has supported the president staying in the race but shifted his alliance to Harris today. CLINTONS ENDORSE KAMALA HARRIS HOURS AFTER BIDEN DROPS OUT The Congressional Black Caucus PAC – not the Congressional Black Caucus – has endorsed Harris. The CBC never put out a statement after Biden’s terrible debate performance in late June. But CBC Chairman Rep. Steve Horsford (D-NV) stood by the president, speaking solely for himself. But when it comes to Harris, it may be about the math – and the Golden State. Forty House Democrats come from California. That’s 9% of the House Democratic Caucus and about 20% of the House Democratic Conference. Harris was a senator from California. So, it may be hard to overcome that. It’s also interesting that Rep. Dean Phillips (D-MN), who ran against the president, was ostracized by some Democrats to the point that he stepped down from a lower-tier leadership position after he raised questions about the president’s viability. The House Progressive Caucus has now endorsed Harris. Some members of the Squad are now backing Harris: Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Cori Bush (D-MO). The “New Dems Coalition,” which is a bloc of mainstream to moderate Democrats, has also thrown its weight behind Harris. Many of the Democrats calling on Biden to step aside in the early going were New Dems. This has been a slow wave building against Biden. A senior House Democratic leadership source told Fox News the day after the debate that “this was not sustainable.” The source added that those close to the president “have not served him well.” TRUMP SAYS BIDEN ‘IS NOT FIT TO SERVE’: ‘WHO IS GOING TO BE RUNNING THE COUNTRY FOR THE NEXT 5 MONTHS?’ Don’t forget that Schumer met with Biden last Saturday at Rehoboth, Delaware. Schumer put out his statement about that meeting minutes before former President Trump was shot in Pennsylvania on July 13. It was thought that more and more Democrats would have come out last week, trying to push Biden out the door. But the shooting delayed some of that. Otherwise, this conversation may have come several days ago. It never happened because of the shooting. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Republicans are now starting to question whether Biden is up to serve the remaining months of his term. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said, “If President Biden is not fit to run for president, he is not fit to serve as president. He must resign the office immediately.” Expect more Republicans to begin calling on Biden to resign. They could also begin to hold hearings and investigations, asking who knew what and when about the president’s cognitive abilities. Republicans will also target vulnerable Democrats in competitive states and districts, asking what they knew about Biden’s circumstances. And they will also wonder which of those candidates stands behind Harris. For instance, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) faces a competitive re-election bid, and she backs Harris. Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) also faces a tough race, but he did not endorse Harris. Republicans will likely fold the president’s departure into their House and Senate campaign strategy this fall. In hockey, there’s something known as “last change.” The visiting team always puts its skaters on the ice first before each new faceoff. That gives the home team a slight advantage to see which line the visitors are putting on the ice – and then determine which players they have to create the best matchup. This is playing out right now in a similar fashion for the Democrats. Because they are the incumbent party and their party comes second, they have “last change.” The GOP has gone with former President Trump and Sen. JD Vance (R-OH). But the Democrats now have an opportunity to put out whoever they think matches up best. It could be Vice President Harris. It could be someone else. It could
RFK Jr says this is ‘2-man race’ after Biden drops presidential bid
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the contest for the White House is a “two-man race” and that only he can beat Donald Trump after President Biden‘s shocking withdrawal from a second-term bid. Speaking Sunday at a hastily called press conference from his family’s storied compound in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts, Kennedy praised Biden while simultaneously blaming Democratic Party leaders for “hiding” his mental decline. “I want to begin by commending President Biden for a career in public service: a long, long career and representing and serving our country and for his handling of the many difficulties and challenges, personal challenges and tragedies that he suffered during his life with so much admirable conduct and the empathy that he derives from those experiences,” Kennedy said. Kennedy, who left the party his family once ruled after it blocked his bid to challenge Biden in primaries, said the Democratic National Committee created a mess by covering for Biden. RFK JR INTERVIEW: TRUMP, BIDEN ‘BOTH RAVAGED AMERICAN DEMOCRACY AND THE REPUBLIC’ “The reaction of the DNC to that obvious condition was to hide it from the American public and to use their power over the Democratic Party nomination process to make sure that nobody could compete with President Biden in a way that would expose his deficiencies,” Kennedy argued. Kennedy continued his campaign as an independent, and he has reached double-digits in some polls on a platform that decries “corporate capture,” the affordability crisis, and “forever wars,” according to his campaign website. Kennedy also called out former President Trump as well as Vice President Harris, who appears poised to head the Democrat ticket. “President Trump has a connection to the American people, a populist connection,” said Kennedy. “But in many ways, it’s the same fraudulent connection that we saw with the DNC over the past year, concealing a real purpose of their objective, which was to give us a president that … represents corporate interests rather than the interests of the American public.” WHAT COMES NEXT FOR DEMOCRATS AFTER BIDEN’S CAMPAIGN SUSPENSION? “If the Democrats do what I suspect they’re going to do, which is to anoint Kamala Harris, a vice president who is monumentally unpopular within her own party … they’re doing it because it’s the easiest way to hold on to the money,” Kennedy said. Kennedy said he would consider accepting the Democrat nomination if were it offered to him. “I would certainly listen to the party elders if they came to me, I would discuss something with them,” said Kennedy. “I’m the only presidential candidate who can beat Donald Trump, and if I were them, I would do that, and I would certainly listen to their proposals.” “I wouldn’t be the front-runner, because by the time I left the Democratic Party, it was really clear that, and this is the only reason I left that day, that the rules have been rigged to prevent me from winning,” Kennedy said. “So, I would be in the same position as [presidential candidates] Dean Phillips today or Marianne Williamson, which is, you know, sidelined.” Kennedy added, “I am very content running where I am, and I believe I can win this election. I believe at this point it’s a two-man race or two-person race. Let me put it that way. And, you know, and that I’m in the best position to win.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP A Fox News Poll from July showed Kennedy receiving 10% of the general electoral vote in a three-way race with Trump and Biden.
Trump calls for next presidential debate to be held on Fox News
Former President Donald Trump said the next presidential debate should be moderated by Fox News, not “on Fake News ABC,” after President Biden dropped out of the 2024 race. “My debate with Crooked Joe Biden, the Worst President in the history of the United States, was slated to be broadcast on Fake News ABC, the home of George Slopadopolus, sometime in September. Now that Joe has, not surprisingly, has quit the race, I think the Debate, with whomever the Radical Left Democrats choose, should be held on FoxNews, rather than very biased ABC. Thank you!,” Trump posted to Truth Social late Sunday afternoon. Trump’s statement comes after Biden officially dropped out of the 2024 presidential race following weeks of mounting pressure from Democratic allies that he should bow out and pass the mantle to someone better suited to defeat Trump come November. The calls for him to drop out stem from concerns over his mental fitness and 81 years of age, which came under heightened scrutiny after his disastrous debate performance last month. “It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek re-election, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden said in his letter posted to X Sunday afternoon. WHAT COMES NEXT FOR DEMOCRATS AFTER BIDEN’S CAMPAIGN SUSPENSION? The president endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president shortly following his announcement. Harris is the most likely candidate to run in Biden’s place, but still needs to become the official nominee at the Democratic National Convention next month. READ IT: BIDEN DROPS OUT OF 2024 RACE WITH LETTER “My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this,” Biden said. CNN moderated the first presidential debate in June, with ABC News slated to host the second debate in September. Due to Biden now out of the race, Trump is calling for the debate schedule to be modified and have Fox News host the debate. It is unclear who Trump will debate until the DNC certifies its nominee. Trump and his campaign previously accepted two Fox News debates this election cycle, including a presidential debate for Oct. 2, and a vice presidential debate for a date that had not yet been determined. ‘PROUD OF OUR PRESIDENT’: DEMS HEAP PRAISE ON BIDEN FOR DECISION TO END 2024 CAMPAIGN Trump said shortly following Biden’s announcement that “Crooked Joe Biden is the Worst President, by far, in the History of our Nation.” BIDEN ENDS BID FOR 2ND TERM IN WHITE HOUSE AS HE DROPS OUT OF 2024 REMATCH WITH TRUMP “He has done everything possible to destroy our Country, from our Southern Border, to Energy Dominance, National Security, International Standing, and so much more. He was annihilated in an Earth Shattering Debate, and now the Corrupt and Radical Democrats are throwing him overboard. He was not fit to serve from the very beginning, but the people around him lied to America about his Complete and Total Mental, Physical, and Cognitive Demise. Whoever the Left puts up now will just be more of the same. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump posted. The 45th president added in a phone call with CNN that Harris would be an easier candidate to defeat than Biden. Trump posted in a follow-up Truth Social post Sunday evening that his campaign was “forced to spend time and money on fighting Crooked Joe Biden” before he quit the race. “Shouldn’t the Republican Party be reimbursed for fraud in that everybody around Joe, including his doctors and the Fake News Media, knew he was not capable of running for, or being, President? Just askin’?” Trump wrote. The ABC News debate is scheduled for Sept. 10.
Obama allies, advisers helped lead the charge among Dems looking to sink Biden ahead of official announcement
A list of former President Obama’s allies and former advisers helped lead the charge in calling on President Biden to drop out of the 2024 race before he officially ended his campaign on Sunday afternoon. Biden officially dropped out of the 2024 race after weeks of increasing pressure from traditional Democrat allies to bow out after his disastrous debate performance against former President Trump last month, which put concerns surrounding his mental acuity and 81 years of age under increasing scrutiny. “My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term,” Biden posted on X after he dropped out of the race on Sunday afternoon. “My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this,” he said in a separate social media post. GROWING LIST OF OBAMA ALLIES, FORMER ADVISERS LOOK TO SINK BIDEN RE-ELECTION BID Among some of the most noteworthy voices calling on Biden to bow out were allies of Obama’s, including his former adviser, David Axelrod, who said this month that Biden is “not winning this race.” Biden served as Obama’s vice president from 2009 to 2017. “There are certain immutable facts of life,” Axelrod said in an interview with CNN while discussing Biden’s age and leadership. “Those were painfully obvious on that debate stage. The president just … hasn’t come to grips with it. He’s not winning this race.” Axelrod formerly served as Obama’s chief campaign strategist, and he said Biden is used to fighting “his way back from political defeats and against the odds.” EX-OBAMA ADVISER SAYS BIDEN CAN’T BEAT ‘FATHER TIME’ AND IS ‘NOT WINNING THIS RACE’ “So, his psyche is that he can beat anybody and any long odds,” he said this month. “What he can’t beat is Father Time.” “And that’s really the concern here. It’s not about his record,” Axelrod continued. Axelrod was soon followed by actor George Clooney calling on Biden to drop out of the race in a bombshell op-ed that was published just weeks after the Hollywood star co-hosted Biden, alongside Obama, for a ritzy campaign event in Los Angeles. Clooney has long had a personal friendship with Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama, including vacationing with the first couple in previous years. “It’s devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fundraiser was not the Joe ‘big F-ing deal’ Biden of 2010,” Clooney wrote in a New York Times op-ed. “He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.” Another ally in Obama’s orbit, Jon Favreau, who served as former director of speech writing for Obama, also called on Biden to drop out of the race this month, saying he attended the fundraiser in L.A. with Clooney and Obama and saw Biden’s state of mental acuity. OBAMA AGAIN STEPPING INTO ROLE AS JOE’S CLOSER AHEAD OF TRUMP V BIDEN REMATCH “It was not surprising to any of us who were at the fundraiser. I was there. Clooney was exactly right, and every single person I talked to at the fundraiser thought the same thing, except for the people working for Joe Biden, or at least they didn’t say that,” Jon Favreau said during an appearance on CNN this month. “I remember my wife, Emily, turned to me after the fundraiser and said, ‘What are we going to do?’ And I said, ‘Well, there is a debate in a week. Either he’ll do well in the debate, and we’ll think he was just tired because he flew all the way back from Europe, and that’ll be that, or he’ll be like this at the debate and then the whole country will be talking about it. So, here we are.” Favreau, alongside former Obama advisers Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor – known collectively as the “Obama Bros” when they worked in the White House – dedicated the majority of a podcast episode of “Pod Save America” this month to trashing Biden. “I thought it was bad, and at times very hard to watch,” Vietor said, referring to Biden’s sit-down interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos after Biden’s debate performance. Vietor said it “seems like a clear-cut choice that we’d have a better chance with someone else,” while Lovett added that Biden wasn’t “delivering the message effectively.” Up until Sunday afternoon, Biden and his campaign remained adamant that the president would not bow out of the race. Obama has remained relatively silent while Biden weighed his options for the election, coming to Biden’s defense after his recent debate performance but not responding to media reports that he was working behind the scenes to promote Biden’s exit. OBAMA SILENT OVER REPORTS HE’S WORKING ‘BEHIND THE SCENES’ TO FORCE BIDEN OUT OF THE 2024 RACE “Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know. But this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself. Between someone who tells the truth; who knows right from wrong and will give it to the American people straight — and someone who lies through his teeth for his own benefit. Last night didn’t change that, and it’s why so much is at stake in November,” he posted on X at the time. As media reports circulated that Obama was working “behind the scenes” to oust Biden from the race, the 44th president remained mum, not denying the reports. Politico reported that Clooney even gave Obama a “heads-up” that his op-ed calling on Biden to bow out of the race was set to publish, with
Republicans want Biden to ‘resign immediately’ after election withdrawal
As US President Joe Biden announces his decision to drop out of the November election, top leaders from the Republican Party say he must resign as president “immediately”. “If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President. He must resign the office immediately. November 5 cannot arrive soon enough,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, the top Republican in the US Congress, said in a statement on Sunday. Johnson characterised Biden’s withdrawal as an “unprecedented” moment in United States history. “We must be clear about what just happened. The Democrat Party forced the Democrat nominee off the ballot, just over 100 days before the election,” he wrote. “Having invalidated the votes of more than 14 million Americans who selected Joe Biden to be the Democrat nominee for president, the self-proclaimed ‘party of democracy’ has proven exactly the opposite.” Biden said he intends to serve out the remainder of his term, which ends on January 20, 2025. But Biden’s Republican opponents, including Donald Trump, slammed his presidency and called for the 81-year-old to resign before the end of his term. “Crooked Joe Biden was not fit to run for President, and is certainly not fit to serve – And never was!” Trump posted on his Truth Social network. The Republicans have seized on Biden’s poor debate performance last month to batter him as incapable of serving four more years. Now that he is out of the presidential election, many are saying he should resign from his office, too. Johnson, in a separate interview with the network ABC, hinted that the Republicans may mount legal challenges to the Democrats’ move to replace Biden on the ballot. Johnson also used his post for an attack on Vice President Kamala Harris, who Biden has proposed as his replacement candidate. Johnson described Harris as “a gleeful accomplice” who “co-owns the disastrous policy failures of the Biden Administration”. “Regardless of the chaos in the current White House, our adversaries around the globe should be reminded that the US Congress, the US military, and the American people are fully prepared and committed to defend our interests both at home and abroad,” Johnson wrote. Senator JD Vance, the Republican vice-presidential candidate, said on X that not running for re-election would be a “clear admission” that Trump was right all along about Biden “not being mentally fit enough to serve as Commander-in-Chief”. “There is no middle ground,” he added. Elise Stefanik, House Republican Conference chairperson, shared a similar sentiment, saying in a statement that if Biden can’t run for re-election, he is “unable and unfit to serve” as the US president. Meanwhile, the Democrats have defended Biden’s decision, calling it a “patriotic” and “selfless” move. In a joint statement, former President Bill Clinton and ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said they “join millions of Americans in thanking President Biden for all that he accomplished”. They also threw their weight behind Harris to be the Democratic nominee to face Trump in November. “Now is the time to support Kamala Harris and fight with everything we’ve got to elect her. America’s future depends on it,” the Clintons said. Former President Barack Obama, who picked then-Senator Biden as his running mate in 2008, called him a “patriot of the highest order”, but warned of “uncharted waters in the days ahead” – and stopped short of endorsing Harris. “I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges,” the former US leader and Democratic Party member said in a statement. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement that Biden has not only been a “great president and a great legislative leader but he is a truly amazing human being”. “His decision of course was not easy, but he once again put his country, his party, and our future first,” he said. Schumer and Senator Dick Durbin, the top two Senate Democrats, however, did not offer support for Biden’s proposed replacement, Harris. “Now the Democratic Party must unite behind a candidate who can defeat Donald Trump and keep America moving in the right direction. I will do everything in my power to help that effort,” Durbin said. Adblock test (Why?)
Full text: Biden’s letter announcing withdrawal from presidential race
‘It is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down,’ the US president writes. The following is the letter from United States President Joe Biden, announcing he will no longer run for re-election in November: “My Fellow Americans, Over the past three and a half years, we have made great progress as a Nation. Today, America has the strongest economy in the world. We’ve made historic investments in rebuilding our Nation, in lowering prescription drug costs for seniors, and in expanding affordable health care to a record number of Americans. We’ve provided critically needed care to a million veterans exposed to toxic substances. Passed the first gun safety law in 30 years. Appointed the first African American woman to the Supreme Court. And passed the most significant climate legislation in the history of the world. America has never been better positioned to lead than we are today. I know none of this could have been done without you, the American people. Together, we overcame a once in a century pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. We’ve protected and preserved our Democracy. And we’ve revitalized and strengthened our alliances around the world. It has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President. And while it has been my intention to seek reelection, I believe it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term. I will speak to the Nation later this week in more detail about my decision. For now, let me express my deepest gratitude to all those who have worked so hard to see me reelected. I want to thank Vice President Kamala Harris for being an extraordinary partner in all this work. And let me express my heartfelt appreciation to the American people for the faith and trust you have placed in me. I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America can’t do — when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America.” – Joe Biden Adblock test (Why?)
What’s behind the recurring unrest in Bangladesh?
Student protesters won’t stand down despite the top court reducing quotas for government jobs. After weeks of widespread unrest in Bangladesh, the Supreme Court has changed a controversial quota system for government jobs. It has significantly reduced the share of public sector positions reserved for war veterans’ family members. But despite the ruling, the protests appear to be far from over. Initially student led, they have grown to include people frustrated by rising inflation and high food prices. Dozens of student leaders, activists and opposition figures have been arrested. With soldiers on the streets, a nationwide curfew in place and a communications blackout, there are also growing calls for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to take accountability. So will the quota reforms be enough to restore calm? Presenter: Mohammed Jamjoom Guests: Mubashar Hasan – Political analyst and post-doctoral fellow at the University of Oslo Zaman Ashraf – Bangladeshi activist who works with the Asian Human Rights Commission Sreeradha Datta – Professor at the Jindal School of International Affairs whose research focuses on India-Bangladesh relations Adblock test (Why?)