Democrats are "folding all over the place," a House Democrat who's deeply skeptical of President Biden told Axios' Andrew Solender ahead of a caucus meeting today where members largely closed ranks around the president.

• "As someone who wanted the reckoning and is really disappointed that it's over, trust me: It's over."
• "Most of our caucus is still with him ... meaning he'll stay in," another House Democrat said.

👀 Behind the scenes: Just before House Democrats' "come-to-Jesus" meeting this morning on Biden's path forward, a smaller group of swing-district Democrats — one of the few steadfast blocs of Biden resistance — held their own despondent gathering.

• One shell-shocked lawmaker who was present at the meeting would offer only one word to characterize it: "Intense."
• Another described the mood as "pretty much unanimous" that Biden has "got to step down," adding, "There were actual tears from people, and not for Biden."

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Some Republicans are not happy about the RNC's decision to leave a national abortion ban off of the party platform for the first time in 40 years, Axios' Stef Kight reports.

• "The RNC platform is a profound disappointment to the millions of pro-life Republicans that have always looked to the Republican Party to stand for life," former Vice President Mike Pence said in a statement today.
• "It has a lot of potential to hurt us," Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) told Axios.

💬 "It's the one issue that could divide the Trump base from President Trump," Cramer said over text. "Right now Republicans have enthusiasm for our nominee when the Democrats clearly do not for theirs."

• "I was surprised because it's been such an important part of our party's platform and what we stand for," Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) told Axios.

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1. ⛈️ Beryl is set to bring wind, power outages and surge-related flooding with it as it moves inland from Texas, perhaps stretching into Missouri and the Ohio Valley.
2. 🦾 The Washington Post launched a new AI chatbot that answers questions about climate with information pulled from Post articles. The Post plans to expand the tool to other topics. Go deeper.
3. ⚖️ Jury selection has begun in Alec Baldwin's manslaughter trial. He could face up to 18 months in prison if he's convicted. Go deeper.

Hundreds of people lined up before sunrise outside a used bookstore in Mebane, N.C., today to begin an epic road trip, Axios' Nate Rau and Michael Graff write.

• 🚙 McKay's, a treasured used bookstore and music shop in the South, is celebrating its 50th anniversary by offering up to $800 in store credit and swag to anyone who visits all five locations in North Carolina and Tennessee in one day.
• The crowds were so large in Mebane that the store said road-trip participants could skip it.

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