Good morning — and a very happy Canada Day to all our friends up north!
Stat of the day: 30 percent — share of Americans who say they have “confidence” in the Supreme Court, a record low according to Gallup.
“Unexceptional behavior” –> Slate’s William Saletan writes that recent revelations about Blackwater mercenaries — now known as Academi – running amok in Iraq show that the “U.S. isn’t immune from behaviors we abhor in others.”
Who’s watching the watchers? –> Ellen Nakashima and Barton Gellman report for WaPo that according to top-secret documents, the FISA court gave the NSA “broad leeway” in surveillance — far broader than was previously known.
Slowing deportations –> Adrian Carrasquillo reports for Buzzfeed that the Obama administration “plans to move forward with administrative action by the end of the summer” to “fix as much of our broken immigration system” as it can without Congress.
Connecting the dots –> At In These Times, Sarah Jaffe writes that the common thread between yesterday’s Supreme Court rulings in Hobby Lobby and Harris is that both will hurt low-income working women.
Fractivism –> On Monday, New York’s highest court handed Big Energy a defeat by ruling that towns in the Empire State can ban fracking or drilling.
“Hamas will pay” –> Peter Beaumont reports for The Guardian that “Israeli jets and helicopters launched dozens of air strikes across the Gaza Strip overnight on Monday, just hours after the bodies of three abducted Israeli teenagers were found in a shallow grave near the southern West Bank city of Hebron.” Israeli PM Bibi Netanyahu blames Hamas for the killings and vowed retribution, but the group denies any involvement.
No “skeptics” in a flood zone –> Gwynn Guilford at Quartz: “The ocean is swallowing up Virginia so rapidly that its leaders are forgetting to bicker about climate change.”
#1 in CEO pay –> At Inequality.org, Sam Pizzigati points out that American CEOs are taking home much more than their counterparts in other rich countries. ALSO: Mike Lux writes at Crooks and Liars that a handful of enlightened billionaires are striking a populist note that’s shifting the conversation on inequality.
People power –> At Truthout, Michael Arria writes that it wasn’t just the work of politicians that got a single-payer healthcare bill passed in Vermont.
Blocking the vote –> DC residents are likely to vote to legalize marijuana, but WaPo’s Aaron Davis reports that Congress could block the popular measure.
Test subjects –> The California Highway Patrol is giving homeless people with substance abuse problems a choice: go to jail, or be subjects in a training program that teaches officers to detect intoxication. Colby Tibbet has the story for Vice.
