Axios

Sixteen Republican attorneys general sued the Biden administration on Friday over a program that grants an easier path to citizenship to undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens.

Why it matters: Led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the lawsuit alleges the program, which grants permanent residency, is unconstitutional and "rewards illegal immigration."

Rescue crews on Friday ended the search mission of a capsized luxury yacht off the coast of Sicily, multiple outlets reported. British tech tycoon Mike Lynch's body was recovered on Thursday.

The latest: The sixth and final missing body was found on Friday, Lynch's 18-year-old daughter Hannah. She was the last person unaccounted for aboard the ship.

The second-largest diamond ever found in a mine has been discovered in Botswana, the AP reports.

The big picture: The large 2,492-carat gemstone is the biggest diamond found in more than a century, since the Cullinan Diamond discovered in South Africa in 1905.

President Biden asked Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu during their call on Wednesday to agree to pull Israeli forces back from part of the Egypt-Gaza border during the first phase of the hostage-release and ceasefire in Gaza deal so negotiations on the deal can move forward, three Israeli officials said.

Why it matters: Netanyahu's demand that the IDF continue to be deployed along the Philadelphi corridor on the border of Egypt and Gaza during the first phase of the deal has become one of the main — and final — points of contention on the way to an agreement.

Publicly pointing the finger at foreign adversaries' hackers doesn't hold the same power that it used to.

Why it matters: Attributing nation-state hacks has long been one of the few tools the U.S. government had to deter adversaries in China, Russia, Iran and North Korea from coming after American officials and companies.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan will visit China next week to meet with Foreign Minister Wang Yi, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Why it matters: The two officials are expected to lay the groundwork for a potential final meeting between President Biden and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, later this year, to follow up on their California summit last November.

Protests were held outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago into Thursday night after Palestinian Americans were not granted a speaking slot at the DNC, despite pleas from pro-Palestinian delegates.

Why it matters: The Biden administration's handling of the Israel-Hamas war has become a point of contention within the party, prompting some delegates to remain uncommitted to supporting Vice President Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee.

Mothers of some of the most high-profile Black victims of police violence are expected to attend Kamala Harris' Democratic nomination acceptance speech Thursday, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: The invitation by Democrats to three mothers whose sons' deaths ignited the Black Lives Matter movement over the past decade suggests the party may symbolically renew the conversation on federal police reform, while also highlighting Harris's connection to victims affected by violence.

CHICAGO – Democratic leaders emphasized their commitment to address top issues to Latino voters, such as economic opportunity, child care and immigration at an Axios House event on Tuesday held alongside the Democratic National Convention.

Why it matters: The Latino voter population is growing rapidly, making them a vital voter bloc for both parties.

• Axios House hosted multiple events over two days at the DNC. This event focused on the power of Latino voters and was in partnership with Noticias Telemundo.

The Democratic party isn't taking any vote "for granted," said Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar.

• "I have always heard from Latinos that many of them feel taken for granted, like the assumption is they'll vote in the Democratic primary and they'll vote for a Democrat." "We are not making assumptions. We are not taking the community for granted and we're doing a lot of listening and engaging."

California Sen. Alex Padilla praised Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris' handling of immigration, saying she was "pivotal" to addressing the issue.

• "The numbers are way down, lower than at any point under the Biden administration and lower than they were at the end of the Trump administration," Padilla said.

Meanwhile, Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego, who's running for a Senate seat against Republican Kari Lake and an open U.S. senate seat, expressed how Democrats offer Latinos the American dream rather than the Republican party.

• "The people that wanna start businesses, wanna be able to send their kids to college, they wanna live this part of the American dream."
• "What I see coming from the Republican party and in particular, from my opponent Kari Lake, they're not offering solutions, they're just offering more division. They're just telling you who to hate and not what to do and what you're going to do."

Harris recently released an economic plan where she proposed a $6,000 tax credit per child for the first year, which former DNC Chair Tom Perez highlighted as one of the issues Harris is tackling to push the American dream.

• "She has a very aggressive proposal for childcare…We know how to reduce poverty in this country. Why do I say that with such confidence? Because we did it in 2021, we reduced childhood poverty by 40%."

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro responded to former President Trump's characterization of him as a "highly overrated Jewish Governor," saying the GOP nominee is "obsessed" with him and with "continuing to spew hate."

Why it matters: This is not the first time Trump has received backlash for his attacks on Jewish Democrats.

1. Mexican justice workers went on strike nationwide yesterday against a proposed reform they say will undermine judicial independence.

• The reform, with discussions in Congress set to start in coming days, has proven extremely controversial due to proposals like making all judges be elected in popular votes, without specifying how the elections would take place.
• Many legal experts have warned it would open the door for political parties to prop up amenable lawyers as candidates and pack the courts.
• Judges, clerks and other workers will be in an indefinite stoppage, with the exception of the Supreme Court, given the weight of its pending cases.

We're back with another pachanga!

This week we celebrate Pedro Reyes, who runs his family-owned home renovation company, PYR Millwork, in Jacksonville, Florida.

• Pedro, who is from Venezuela, was recently awarded a $5,000 grant from Comcast RISE to take his business "to the next level."
• Congrats, Pedro!

🎤 Please send us your pachanga nominations by filling out this form or replying to this email!

A unique program in Florida that helps immigrants get U.S. teaching licenses could help tackle teacher shortages if adopted on greater scale.

Why it matters: The Miami Dade College initiative is a win-win because it also gives immigrants "economic mobility opportunities," says Elizabeth Zamudio, vice president of education at UnidosUS, the Latino civil rights organization.

Israel, Egypt and the U.S. are holding talks in Cairo on Thursday evening to try to come to an agreement on how to secure the Egypt-Gaza border and reopen the Rafah crossing, U.S. and Israeli officials said.

Why it matters: Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's demand that Israel Defense Forces continue to be deployed along the Philadelphi corridor on the border of Egypt and Gaza has become one of the main — and final — points of contention on the way to a deal to release hostages being held by Hamas and establish a ceasefire in Gaza.

China's sputtering economy has become glaringly evident in financial markets in recent months: A historic bond market rally has been underway, driving the longer-term interest rates down. Beijing officials have forcefully tried to stamp it out.

Why it matters: The lackluster economic backdrop makes China's safest assets, government bonds, more appealing. The result is record-low borrowing costs that could give the economy a boost — except China's government has stepped in to push rates in the opposite direction, fearful of financial risks generated by low rates.

WeRide, a Chinese autonomous driving startup, has postponed an IPO that was seeking to raise around $110 million at a $5.7 billion market cap.

Why it matters: This would have been the first significant U.S. IPO in nearly a month, and there's not currently anything on the post-Labor Day calendar.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a global health emergency as a deadly new strain of mpox is spreading through parts of Africa.

The big picture: This is the second time in just over two years that the WHO has declared mpox — previously known as monkeypox — to be a global emergency.

Palantir Technologies has hired former Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.) to run its defense business, charged with identifying contract opportunities and guiding R&D.

Why it matters: Gallagher is an outspoken critic of China, and will reinforce the company's pick-a-side mentality.