Episode Details

Today's Headlines: Dolly Parton, the legendary country singer, songwriter, actress, and philanthropist, has died at 80. Beyond music, she leaves behind an extraordinary legacy of generosity and her work supporting medical research. Shifting gears, the CIA director made an attempted secret trip to Moscow with the plane sitting on the ground for eight hours and no explanation of who Ratcliffe met with or why, with possibilities ranging from hostage negotiations to addressing Russia's recent NATO provocations. Pivoting to the trade war, Canada announced 50% retaliatory tariffs on $20 billion in American goods effective September 8th, matching Trump's tariffs dollar for dollar on dairy, seafood, steel, appliances, and toilet paper, while Trump responded by threatening to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America on a gold-lettered map posted to Truth Social. That’ll show them. And since we’re on the subject of renaming, the DOJ argued in court that the Kennedy Center will collapse into a "decrepit structure" without Trump's name on the facade. On the Iran war beat, Tulsi Gabbard reportedly warned Trump before he started the Iran war in February that Iran would immediately close the Strait of Hormuz, that killing the Supreme Leader would produce a more hardline regime pursuing nuclear weapons, and that Iran would strike US bases across the region — all of which happened. On “the decline,” the Agriculture Secretary couldn't say where the 300,000 metric tons of mystery ground beef is coming from, saying conversations are "still going on," which is not reassuring. Two unvaccinated people in Lancaster, Pennsylvania died of measles — the first US measles deaths this year — amid a local outbreak of nearly 400 cases, a third of them children, as case numbers continue to break records for the most since measles was eliminated in 2000. Gary, Indiana is entering its second week without power for thousands of residents with no restoration in sight, and Darline Graham won her South Carolina Senate runoff, spending nearly a million Trump-backed dollars to inherit her brother's seat and run against Dr. Annie Andrews in November.

Resources/Articles mentioned:

NYT: C.I.A. Director Makes Secret Visit to Moscow

The White House: President Trump Is Finally Ending Canada’s Free Ride

AP News: Canada strikes back at US with retaliatory tariffs as trade war escalates

Axios: Kennedy Center's survival depends on Trump, DOJ says in new filing

WSJ: The Warnings That Came Before a War Now Reaching the Six-Month Mark

The New Republic: Trump Team Refuses to Explain Imported Beef Origin as Backlash Grows

NYT: Two Unvaccinated People Died From Measles in Pennsylvania, Officials Say

CNN: Powerful storms knocked out power in northwest Indiana 2 weeks ago. This majority Black city has suffered the most

NBC News: Elections live updates: Darline Graham beats Ralph Norman in South Carolina GOP Senate primary runoff

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