Axios

President Biden on Thursday took a victory lap on drug pricing in his first joint event with Vice President Kamala Harris since she became the party's presidential nominee, building a case for their accomplishments.

The big picture: Biden turned an event touting the administration's negotiations to slash drug prices into an opportunity to jab former President Trump and other Republicans who had opposed the efforts.

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. slammed Vice President Kamala Harris online after several outlets reported he sought a meeting to discuss a potential administration post, writing, "VP Harris's Democratic Party would be unrecognizable to my father and uncle."

Why it matters: Kennedy was once viewed as a potential spoiler in the Biden-Trump race, but recent polling shows the third-party candidate losing footing in the Harris-Trump contest.

If re-elected, former president Donald Trump really probably could strip SEC chair Gary Gensler of his place at the head of the agency.

Why it matters: The former president promised to "fire" the American blockchain industry's No. 1 enemy last month in front of a cheering crowd at this year's biggest Bitcoin conference, but there's actually no precedent for a president firing a leader of the agency.

The Trump campaign is bringing back a number of veterans, including former President Trump's 2016 campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, as the election enters its most pivotal stretch.

Why it matters: The Trump campaign this week has made a number of moves to try to counter the momentum surrounding Vice President Harris' campaign.

Once the epicenter of the Chicano Movement, Central California is at risk of losing its Latino history amid broad political shifts and lack of preservation.

Why it matters: As the Latino population grows and becomes more diverse in the region, past lessons are being lost, depriving a new generation of activists of stories on how people once battled poverty and inequality — issues that persist in the Central Valley.

Latinos and Native Americans are more likely to be killed by police than white Americans and are much younger at the time of their deaths, according to newly released data.

The big picture: A mapping initiative by Campaign Zero, an organization that advocates against police violence, found that nearly 13,400 people have been killed by law enforcement in the U.S. since 2013, and Hispanics and Indigenous people account for around 22% of those deaths, probably more.

Memes — viral snippets of a cultural moment — are defining the 2024 presidential election cycle.

Why it matters: In a fragmented media landscape, memes still find a way to transcend constituencies, shape narratives and forge connection.

Former President Trump's legal team requested on Wednesday that the judge in his hush money case delay sentencing until after the November presidential election.

Why it matters: Trump's sentencing for the 34 felony counts he was convicted of is scheduled on Sept. 18. The Republican presidential nominee's lawyers said in a letter that proceeding with the date would constitute election interference.

Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday plans to propose a federal ban on "corporate price-gouging in the food and grocery industries," plus heightened regulatory scrutiny of food producer and grocery mergers.

The big picture: This comes less than 24 hours after Mars, the closely held maker of Snickers and Skittles, agreed to buy salty snack maker Kellanova for a whopping $35.9 billion.

A Russian court on Thursday convicted a Russian-American woman on treason charges and sentenced her to 12 years in prison.

The big picture: Ksenia Karelina, 33, was detained in Russia in February while visiting family. She was not included in the historic prisoner swap that freed fellow Americans Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan earlier this month.

Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) said Thursday that he accepted an invitation from CBS News for a vice presidential debate on Oct. 1.

Why it matters: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said earlier this week that he had accepted the Oct. 1 invitation, meaning the two running mates will share the stage at least once before the election.

The Energy Department is steering around $50 million into six states to help small- and mid-sized auto suppliers convert facilities to serve EV value chains.

Why it matters: The money for states with large auto workforces is the latest of many White House financial carrots to help the industry go electric.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement Thursday that he did not speak with former President Donald Trump on Wednesday to discuss the Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal.

Why it matters: A crucial round of negotiations with senior U.S., Qatari, Egyptian and Israeli officials is set to take place in Doha on Thursday to try to close the remaining gaps between Israel and Hamas.

Growing up an immigrant in the U.S., writer Viet Thanh Nguyen tried to make sense of the Vietnamese story. "There were these two very different versions of history and memory that were going around, and I was growing up very confused about what the actual history was," he tells Niala Boodhoo. That set him on a path to become a scholar and a writer about the past. The author of The Sympathizer on why we need "defiant storytellers" and "scholars of memory" now.

Guests: Viet Thanh Nguyen, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "The Sympathizer" now also a series on Max.

Credits: 1 big thing is produced by Niala Boodhoo, Alexandra Botti, and Jay Cowit. Music is composed by Alex Sugiura and Jay Cowit. You can reach us at [email protected]. You can send questions, comments and story ideas as a text or voice memo to Niala at 202-918-4893.

Former President Trump one year ago faced the most recent and potentially most damaging of four indictments against him in Georgia. He's now hitting the campaign trail in the vital months before Election Day.

The big picture: Trump became the first president to be convicted of a crime in his New York hush money case earlier this year, but the other three cases against him have either been dismissed, put on ice or undercut.

Donald Trump's obsession with "election integrity" has led his team to build a network of more than 150,000 poll watchers and poll workers, while relying mostly on outside groups to connect with voters on the ground.

Why it matters: Some Republicans worry that Trump's focus on preventing a "rigged" election has hurt the party's ground game, the get-out-the-vote operations that can be crucial in an election as close as this one.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump's teams are racing to define the vice president, burning through cash to buy TV ads at a rate that indicates both sides see August as a turning point in the 2024 election.

Why it matters: Harris' late entry after President Biden stepped aside has compressed the campaign into a European-style sprint.

George Helmy, former chief of staff to New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, is expected to be appointed as the state's next U.S. senator, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Helmy will serve in a caretaker role until 2025, when the winner of the November general election for the seat will take over.

Columbia University president Minouche Shafik resigned on Wednesday following months of criticism from students, donors and members of Congress over how she handled pro-Palestinian protests on campus, she announced in a letter addressed "to the Columbia community."

Why it matters: Shafik is the third Ivy League president to step down following backlash to congressional testimony earlier this year on alleged campus antisemitism. Elite colleges have struggled to balance the right to protest with student safety — none more so than Columbia, which became the epicenter of the student protest movement.

Former President Trump is offering massive tax cuts if he's elected, courting voters with big giveaways without discussing how they'll pay for it.

Why it matters: Trump's big policy legacy was his tax cuts in 2017. Now he's promising to go much further in 2025.

The Senate's three most vulnerable Democrats are skipping next week's DNC in Chicago — an effort to fence their campaigns off from the top of the ticket.

• Sens. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Jon Tester (Mont.) and Jacky Rosen (Nev.) plan to campaign back home instead, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Vice President Harris and running-mate Tim Walz are both from the party's liberal wing. That's pushing endangered Democrats to localize their campaigns whenever they can, in an effort to project a moderate face.

The Senate's three most vulnerable Democrats are skipping next week's Democratic National Convention in Chicago — an effort to fence their campaigns off from the top of the ticket.

• Sens. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Jon Tester (Mont.) and Jacky Rosen (Nev.) all plan to campaign back home instead, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Vice President Kamala Harris and running-mate Tim Walz both hail from the party's liberal wing. So endangered Democrats are localizing their campaigns whenever they can, in an effort to project a moderate face.