National

Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden apologized Saturday and said he was wrong for his comments last month on segregationist senators.

Why it matters: Previously, he defiantly refused to apologize for citing segregationists James Eastland and Herman Talmadge as examples of how the Senate used to be more civil, saying his comments were taken out of context. During his apology at an event in South Carolina, Biden did not address whether it was wrong to work with the segregationists.

When asked last month if he'd apologize, Biden said, "Apologize for what?" He added Democratic presidential rival Sen. Cory Booker should apologize for criticizing his remarks. 

The big picture: Biden found himself attacked from all sides during the first Democratic presidential debate, the New York Times notes — and, in an indication he's the presumed 2020 rival, he's repeatedly come under attack from President Trump.

During his apology, Biden invoked his work during the Obama administration and defended his civil rights record. 

“It’s as if my opponents want you to believe I served from 1972 until 2008 — and then took a hiatus for the next eight years. They don’t want to talk much about my time as vice president of the United States. I was vetted ... And [then-President Obama] selected me. I’ll take his judgment about my record, my character my ability to handle the job over anyone else's."

Go deeper: Joe Biden on the issues, in under 500 words

Biden apologizes for remarks about segregationist senators

"Was I wrong a few weeks ago? Yes, I was. I regret it."

Former Vice President and 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event on July 4, 2019 in Marshalltown, Iowa. 

Politics

Joe Biden

For Dems, a pre- and post-Reagan divide

Old-world Democrats are moderate because they remember consequences from Reagan's election, WashPost argues.

Illustration of a donkey, symbolizing the Democratic party, split in half and shown in different colors.

Democrats

2024 will be an election year like no other, as President Biden seeks re-election amid economic uncertainty, two wars and questions about his age. His likely foe, former President Trump, faces felony charges and vows revenge on his political enemies. Meanwhile, Americans generally are dissatisfied with those choices and are divided over immigration, race, education and more.

Politics & Policy

A magnitude 7.1 earthquake shook Southern California around 8:20 pm on Friday night — just one day after a 6.4 magnitude quake struck the Ridgecrest area on July 4, AP reports.

Why it matters: Following a quiet stretch in California's seismic history, these are the largest reported earthquakes to affect the state in nearly 20 years. Scientists say the fault causing the quakes seems to be growing, per the LA Times.

The big picture: Lucy Jones, a Caltech seismologist, said Friday's temblor was 10 times larger than Thursday morning's, and that "there's no reason to think we can't have more large earthquakes," the LA Times reports. In a tweet, Jones said another magnitude 5 quake is likely, and a magnitude 6 quake is possible. Aftershocks could continue for months, if not years, per the Weather Channel.

There are no reported deaths, but some injuries. Several buildings and homes were damaged, along with fires and ravaged roads, according to the Washington Post.

"The quake was felt as far north as Sacramento and Reno, Nevada, as far south as northern Mexico and as far east as Phoenix and Las Vegas. The temblor was felt throughout the Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco Bay areas," the Weather Channel reports.

According to the U.S. Geological Service, more than 600 quakes of at least a magnitude of 2.5 have been identified since July 4 in the Mojave Desert. More than 20 were magnitude 4.5 or greater, per the Weather Channel.

A U.S. Navy weapons testing facility outside of Ridgecrest was harmed, rendering it incapable of completing missions, says the LA Times.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom mobilized the state's office of emergency services and requested an emergency declaration from President Trump to receive federal aid.

Go deeper: Biggest earthquake in 20 years hits Southern California

Second major earthquake in 2 days jolts Southern California

The 2 quakes are the largest to hit in 20 years.

Damage at a store in Southern California following 2 major earthquakes

U.S. News

Earthquakes

Breaking climate science and policy coverage as extreme weather events reshape communities. Keep tabs on the race to a low carbon economy, which may be bumpy as governments, climate tech startups and major oil and gas companies race to find their niche amid the changing energy landscape.

Energy & Climate

Macro

Axios Macro

Job prospects are finally rising for people of color in the U.S, a development with big implications for 2020 political races.

Why it matters: African-Americans, Hispanics, Latinx and others left behind are finally starting to reap rewards from the economic boom. And in a major shift, the Federal Reserve is listening to people who say the central bank should use its policies to help sustain the record-long expansion that's still in the early stages for low-income communities of color. 

Driving the news: June's hiring surge calmed fears that the labor market is rapidly slowing down. But falling jobless rates haven’t caused the usual upswell in wages, and thus, inflation. Low unemployment alongside inflation near the Fed's target is typically a trigger for the central bank to raise interest rates, but this dynamic hasn't occurred.

In an unprecedented series of events called “Fed Listens,” Chairman Jerome Powell and colleagues are hearing from community leaders who say their residents were hit hardest by the recession.

They’re being told that economic growth needs to continue so that people in impoverished neighborhoods can see the same benefits as wealthy whites. 

Poor people and people of color tend to be "the first ones into the recession and the last ones out," Rachel Flum, executive director of the Economic Progress Institute, tells Axios.

The big picture: Marginalized communities begin to prosper the longer an economic expansion goes on.

"Those left behind don't have a chance to benefit from an economic expansion until there's persistent high pressure in labor markets," Jared Bernstein, a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, wrote in an article for Vox.

Bernstein’s article quoted Powell’s remarks after a “Fed Listens” event in Chicago: “The reason why we say sustain the expansion is, you’re seeing now for the first time … communities that are being brought into the benefits of this expansion that hadn’t been earlier.”

One of the people who talked to the Fed in Chicago about the on-the-ground experience was Maurice Jones, CEO of Local Initiatives Support Corporation. “For folks in the neighborhood that are disinvested or underinvested, the prolonged low unemployment is what gives them a chance to get jobs,” Jones tells Axios. “What we're getting now is businesses that are coming to us” because companies need employees.

Of note: The labor force participation rate for African-Americans — which counts both people with jobs and those who are actively looking for work — has been catching up to the labor force participation rate for whites at a rapid pace, reflecting optimism about prospects for employment. 

Minority women in particular, as the New York Times notes, have started to notch gains in the labor market as the expansion continues.

But, but, but: Pay hasn't picked up much. Wage growth, which has accelerated in recent months, pales in comparison to previous economic expansions. And that doesn't bode well for inflation, which has undershot the Fed's 2% target, supporting the argument that the Fed should let the economy run a bit hotter for longer.

People of color are among the groups least likely to have recovered the money lost in the wake of the financial crisis, as the Washington Post points out. 

And the unemployment rate for white people is still far lower than the rates for African-Americans, Hispanics and Latinx, though the gap has been shrinking.

What’s next: The Fed’s next listening session will be July 16 in Atlanta, weeks before the FOMC convenes on July 30 for a highly-anticipated meeting that may result in the first interest rate cut since 2008.

African-Americans are jumping back faster into the workforce 

Chart: How many jobs the U.S. economy has added each month

A more inclusive jobs rebound

Poor people and people of color tend to be "the first ones into the recession and the last ones out."

Business

Jobs

Top stories & latest news on the Federal Reserve, real-time data, plus the biggest shifts happening in the U.S. and global economy.

Economy

After a record economic expansion, the coronavirus pandemic sent the U.S. economy into a recession as unemployment soared to staggering heights. The country now faces urgent questions about how much stimulus is needed for reeling consumers and businesses, and what a recovery might look like.

Economy & Business

2020 Democrats are being forced to reckon with a broken, complicated immigration system and offer solutions to a crisis that has become emotionally charged and politically risky.

The bottom line: There may be solutions to prevent so many migrant kids from coming into custody in the first place, but the answers we received showed the challenges of dealing with the status quo.

There is broad agreement for ending child separation, but the government has little capacity for detaining or caring for migrant families together.

Some want to shut down child migrant camps like Homestead in Florida, but the U.S. is already strained for capacity on existing facilities.

And others want to work to immediately reunite kids with family in the U.S., but the child migrant crisis also includes unaccompanied kids who might not have family or potential guardians in the country.

The big picture: Axios asked every Democratic presidential campaign what they'd do for migrant children on Day 1 as president. Their answers are paraphrased below. 

Bernie Sanders: End child separation, undo all Trump executive orders on immigrants.

Elizabeth Warren: End child separation, close detention centers like Homestead.

Pete Buttigieg: Expand an Obama-era program that provided alternatives to detention for migrant families seeking asylum. 

Beto O'Rourke: End child separation, reinstate an Obama-era program that granted Central American minors temporary legal residence in the United States, expand the use of alternatives to detention programs for non-criminal migrants.

Cory Booker: Reinstate Central American minors program, ending immigrant detention.

Julian Castro: End zero tolerance policy, end child separation.

Amy Klobuchar: End child separation, reverse attempts to undo Flores Agreement.

Kirsten Gillibrand: End child separation and reform the asylum process.

Bill de Blasio: End zero tolerance, put child welfare experts at border patrol stations. reverse attempts to undo Flores Agreement.

Marianne Williamson: End child separation, close detention centers.

Mike Gravel: Close the camps housing migrant kids.

Wayne Messam: End child separation, "allocate executive funding to properly accommodate children and families held into custody."

Joe Sestak: End family separation, and will "mobilize all resources — money to personnel" to bring them back together.

What Democratic campaigns would do for migrant kids on Day 1

"What would you do to help migrant kids on Day 1?"

2020 presidential election

2020 election

President Trump, for the first time, has publicly acknowledged that he is considering issuing an executive order to add a question about citizenship to the 2020 Census.

Driving the news: Speaking to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House today, Trump said he was thinking "very seriously" about issuing an executive order — but it was among "four or five" options he was weighing to force a citizenship question onto the Census. 

Government lawyers wrote in a federal court filing in Maryland this afternoon, per WaPo, that "the Justice and Commerce departments had been 'instructed to examine whether there is a path forward' for the question and that if one was found they would file a motion in the Supreme Court to try to get the question on the survey to be sent to every U.S. household."

Per WaPo: "The government has begun printing the Census forms without the question, and that process will continue, administration officials said."

The big picture: The Supreme Court ruled last week that the Trump administration's rationale for including the citizenship question was "contrived." 

Critics of the question argue that its inclusion in the 2020 Census would deter immigrants in the country illegally from participating in the Census, meaning they'd be undercounted. 

Congressional districts are decided based on total population numbers, regardless of citizenship, and some top Republican officials believe including the question could benefit the party in future elections. 

Between the lines: Former federal Judge J. Michael Luttig, who has deep ties to top officials in the Trump administration, told me: 

"I believe the president of the United States will sign an executive order grounded in his full Article II constitutional powers, directing that the citizenship question be added to the 2020 Census — pending the final decision on the 2020 Census by the Supreme Court of the United States."

"I believe," Luttig added, "that there is a way to draft an executive order, constitutionally, that would be entirely consistent with and faithful to the Supreme Court’s decision last week in New York v. Department of Commerce."

Luttig is known to be close to with Attorney General Bill Barr, and Solicitor General Noel Francisco clerked for Luttig. 

Go deeper: Luttig drove this executive order conversation — both inside the White House and in influential circles close to the president — with an interview he conducted over email with radio host Hugh Hewitt. 

Trump publicly weighs executive order on citizenship question

It's the first time Trump has publicly acknowledged he's considering this route.

Donald Trump on the south lawn of the White House

Photo: Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Census citizenship question

Donald Trump

President Trump told reporters Friday that he plans to issue an executive order creating a "favored nations clause," where the U.S. would pay no more for a drug than the lowest price paid by another country.

Why it matters: There are a lot of details that are unclear, such as how the order would be enforced and how much of a difference it would make. But it's a sign that Trump wants to use his executive authority to move ahead on his campaign promise to lower drug prices — and a bad sign for drug companies.

Transcript of Trump's remarks, per the White House pool report:

"We're going to be announcing something very shortly, a favored nations clause. As you know, for years and years other nations paid less for drugs than we do. Sometimes by 60-70 percent.

"We're working on it right now, we're working on a favored nations clause, where we pay whatever the lowest nation’s price is.

"Why should other nations — like Canada — but why should other nations pay much less than us. They've taken advantage of the system for a long time, pharma. 

"But we're working on right now a favored nations clause, so that whatever the lowest nation is anywhere in the world, or company, but the lowest nation or company, then what happens is, we will pay that amount. And that’s being worked on right now. We're gonna do it in the form of an executive order."

Trump says he'll issue executive order on drug prices

The U.S. would pay no more for a drug than the lowest price paid by another country.

Trump talks to reporters at the White House Friday. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Health Care

Drug prices

Health care costs

The U.S. health system faces critical questions about cost, access and equity. Technological advances and new discoveries about diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s are transforming patient care and reshaping public health.

Health

Data: Bureau of Labor Statistics; Chart: Axios Visuals

The U.S. economy added 224,000 jobs in June — far more than the 165,000 economists were expecting, while the unemployment rate edged slightly higher to 3.7% and wages grew at an annualized pace of 3.1%, the Labor Department said on Friday. 

Why it matters: This is a significant rebound from the weak jobs report in May, calming concerns that the labor market — the standout of the 10-year U.S. economic expansion — was losing momentum at a rapid pace. It may, however, complicate financial markets' expectations of a series of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve starting as soon as this month.

May's numbers were weaker than initially thought at 72,000 (from 75,000). So were April's, which were revised lower by 8,000 jobs.

Employment growth has averaged 172,000 per month so far this year — a slower pace than the average monthly gains of 223,000 last year.

One big bright spot: the manufacturing sector added 17,000 jobs in June after several months of cooling. But the industry has averaged 8,000 jobs per month — a sharp drop from the average 22,000 jobs gained per month last year.

"[D]espite other weak areas in the US economy, job growth is still holding up, which should continue to bolster consumer confidence and spending," Patrick Chovanec, chief strategist at Silvercrest Asset Management, tweeted in part.

The backdrop: Stocks have soared to all-time highs on hopes that the Fed would step in with a rate cut in response to signs of weakening in the economy. Bond yields, which jumped in response to the jobs report, have dropped to multi-year lows in recent months on concerns that a recession could be imminent. 

The strong report doesn't necessarily take a rate cut off the table at this month's Fed meeting — particularly since inflation has been so weak — but the numbers help make the case for cutting rates by 25 basis points instead of 50 basis points. 

After the jobs report, traders eased bets that the Fed would 100% cut rates later this month.

U.S. jobs market rebounds with 224,000 jobs in June

This is a significant rebound from the weak jobs report in May.

Jobs report

Sudan's military leaders and civilian protestors have agreed to share power, reports the New York Times.

What's next: The military and civilian leadership are forming a joint legislative council, and they will be rotating control until democratic elections are held in about 3 years, says the NYT. Once a new president is elected, the military is expected to resume its traditional role and cease involvement in the nation's leadership.

A military general will lead a joint council for the first 21 months of the transition period, followed by a civilian leader who will be in charge for 18 months, per the Times.

The military and civilian groups will each nominate 5 members to the council, and will jointly nominate an 11th member, according to Al Jazeera.

An independent investigation will be launched looking into the violence that broke out during a civilian protest in June, per Al Jazeera.

Backdrop: "The uprising in Sudan began in December and brought down Sudan’s brutal dictator Omar al-Bashir, who ruled for 30 years, in April. Since then the army and the opposition have grappled over the future of the country," writes Axios' Dave Lawler.

On June 5, paramilitary forces attacked protestors and killed at least 100 civilians, raped women and threw the bodies into the Nile River.

Go deeper: How Sudan's pro-democracy uprising was beaten back

Sudan reaches deal to end bloody military crackdown

The country has been looking for stability since overthrowing a dictator.

Sudanese people celebrate after civilian and military leaders reached an agreement

World

Sudan

Joe Biden says he's "looking forward to" a chance to debate President Trump, the former VP told CNN's Chris Cuomo in an interview airing Friday.

"You walk behind me in the debate. Come here, man. The idea that I'd be intimidated by Donald Trump. He's the bully that I knew my whole life. He's the bully that I've always stood up to. He's the bully that used to make fun when I was a kid that I stutter, and I'd smack them in the mouth."

Flashback: In the 2016 presidential debate, Trump walked behind Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

Hillary Clinton: 'My skin crawled' in Trump debate - BBC News

China: "While he's tweeting, China's going to own the 5G market."

North Korea: "Look, you want to talk, you want to deal with us, you want sanctions lifted. Show me something ahead of time."

Russia: "He's embracing Putin, who is a flat dictator."

NATO: "If [Trump] wins re-election, I promise you, there will be no NATO in 5 years."

Biden taunts Trump on 2020 presidential debates

"He's the bully that used to make fun when I was a kid that I stutter, and I'd smack them in the mouth."

The Supreme Court is already poised to drop some big political bombshells right into the heat of the 2020 campaign. And there are even more waiting in the wings.

Why it matters: The court will likely hand down rulings on some of the most contentious issues in American politics just a few weeks before the Democratic convention. They'll be a reminder of just how often the justices effectively have the final say — and that 2020 is a race to pick the next justices.

The court’s next term will “probably help to crystalize people’s thinking in the political season about the importance and the role of the court,” said Leonard Leo, the executive vice president of the Federalist Society and a key adviser on President Trump’s Supreme Court nominations.

The justices have taken their first big Second Amendment case in over a decade — a challenge to New York City’s restrictions on transporting guns.

They’ll also decide whether Trump has the power to end the Obama-era immigration program known as DACA, which shields about 700,000 young adults and children from deportation.

And they’ll decide whether federal civil-rights law prohibits employers from firing workers because they’re gay or transgender.

The justices are likely to take up an abortion case out of Louisiana.

Yet another challenge to the Affordable Care Act is also working its way through the system. Depending how things play out in a federal appeals court, it could land on the high court’s docket before Election Day.

Between the lines: Trump's ability to steer the court to the right, and specifically the presence of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, looms large in all of these cases.

New York is now trying to undo its own gun rules, hoping to scuttle the Supreme Court case rather than risk a loss that could implicate other gun laws.

Louisiana's abortion restrictions are highly similar to ones the court struck down in 2016 — but with then-Justice Anthony Kennedy as the decisive vote. Kennedy was also a consistent advocate for LGBT rights.

All of these cases carry major legal and political implications. The DACA case, for example, is a question about executive power. And immigration is also central to Trump's 2020 campaign, just as gun control animates Democratic candidates. 

These rulings, at least some of which will likely come at the end of next June, would be hard for either Trump or the Democratic nominee to avoid even if they wanted to, and they may not want to.

Together, it all adds up to a reminder of the court's large — and growing — role in national politics.

Traditionally, conservative voters are more focused on the courts than liberals. That was evident in 2016, when the court's vacant seat helped Trump rally a base of both evangelical activists and establishment Republicans.

"If another vacancy emerges, you'll see another very similar kind of prioritization," Leo said.

The bottom line: If Trump is reelected and able to replace a liberal justice — or even if a Republican Senate blocks a Democratic president from filling lower-court vacancies — the judiciary could become a roadblock that stymies Democrats for generations. It's already headed that way.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that DACA includes young adults and children.

How the Supreme Court will upend 2020

Politically charged rulings will land right before the Democratic convention.

Illustration of the supreme court intertwined with elements from an American flag 

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