These are today’s top stories.
Headlines
Platner Ends Campaign
Graham Platner ended his Senate campaign after rape allegations. Maine Democrats will now hold a convention to pick a new nominee to challenge Republican Susan Collins. See Details
The U.S. and Iran exchange fire in incidents that threaten to pull the two countries back into full-scale war. Source
Prosecutors plan to play audio clips from interviews with the roommate of the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk. See Details
Politics
A federal judge ordered the release of a $5.8 million payment to writer E. Jean Carroll after President Trump’s attorneys made a last-minute bid to pause the judgment, which stems from a jury finding him liable for sexual abuse and defamation. Read More
Gov. Andy Beshear sent Sen. Mitch McConnell a public letter Wednesday urging transparency about his condition, three weeks after McConnell’s hospitalization, as speculation swirls following an emergency dispatch recording referencing cardiac arrest. Find out More
Maryland’s legislature will convene Aug. 3 to consider a constitutional amendment on congressional redistricting, state leaders announced, in the latest move in the national partisan redistricting battle ahead of the midterms. Find out More
U.S. News
A flight school pilot was forced to land a plane by himself after his instructor jumped out of the aircraft and jumped to his death mid-flight. See Details
Former Milwaukee Judge Hannah Dugan was fined $5,000 but avoided prison Wednesday for ushering a defendant out of her courtroom to evade ICE agents in April 2025, with a federal judge citing her “otherwise law-abiding life.” Read More
More than 700 people across the U.S. have been infected with cyclosporiasis, a parasitic illness causing severe gastrointestinal symptoms, with health officials investigating fresh produce as a possible source amid a sharper-than-usual summer uptick. Find out More
Business
U.S. futures were higher early Thursday, with S&P 500 futures up 0.3% and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.61%, as equity markets looked poised to rebound even amid fresh U.S.-Iran hostilities and a jump in oil prices. Source
Apple announced a multiyear, $30 billion-plus agreement with Broadcom to design and manufacture custom chips domestically, aiming to produce more than 15 billion chips in the U.S. and support hundreds of American jobs at an expanded Colorado facility. Find out More
South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix is set to price a roughly $28 billion Nasdaq share sale this week, an offering that would rank among the largest in history and serve as a key test of investor appetite for memory-chip stocks. Find out More
Market Report
| Symbol | Last Close | % Change | |
| Dow Jones | DJIA | $36,450.23 | 1.20% |
| S&P 500 | SPX | $4,780.50 | 1.50% |
| Nasdaq Composite | IXIC | $15,123.40 | 1.80% |
World News
North Korea’s state media on Thursday blasted expanding military cooperation between South Korea and Japan, calling it a “foolish act courting self-destruction” amid growing defense ties between the two U.S. allies. Source
South Korea’s Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a seven-year prison sentence for former President Yoon Suk Yeol on obstruction-of-justice charges tied to his 2024 martial law declaration, in the court’s first ruling on any of his eight pending cases. Source
China’s expanding fleet of marine research vessels is giving Beijing a new tool to assert its presence in contested waters of the South China Sea and western Pacific, neighboring governments and analysts say, blurring the line between science and strategy. Source
Entertainment
Netflix’s eight-episode reimagining of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s classic novels debuts Thursday, following the Ingalls family’s move from Wisconsin to Kansas, with a new season already ordered ahead of the premiere. Link
Tracking services estimate Disney’s live-action “Moana,” starring Dwayne Johnson, will open to just $60-65 million domestically — barely above the 2016 animated original — despite a hefty $250 million production budget. Read More
FX’s “Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette” landed seven Emmy nominations Wednesday, including a lead actress nod for Sarah Pidgeon, as the 78th Primetime Emmy nominees were announced. Source
Sports
The Cleveland Cavaliers are emerging as the favorite to sign LeBron James. This would be James’ third stint with his home state team. Read More
Connor McGregor is returning to the octagon for his first fight in five years when he takes on Max Holloway at UFC 329 this Saturday. Link
The jersey that New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson wore in Game 1 of the NBA Finals is set to sell at auction for over $1 million. Source
Off the Wall
Christopher Peden, 36, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, allegedly chopped off his own penis, doused it in gasoline and used it to start a fire inside his neighbor’s garage. Read More
