Good morning! On this date in 1965, Lyndon Johnson signed the Medicare program into law. AND: In this 2012 essay, Bill recalls his days with Lyndon Johnson as they prepared to sell Medicare to Congress.
Stat of the day: 35 percent — share of American adults with a credit file who are facing debt collection, according to a new report by the Urban Institute.
Big deal –> The National Labor Relations Board ruled that the McDonald’s corporation can be named as a “joint employer” of low-wage workers in restaurants owned by independent franchisees. The ruling could put the fast-food giant on the hook for wage theft and other labor abuses.
“Brazen and lawless” –> The mother of a 16-year-old Mexican boy who was allegedly killed by Border Patrol agents is suing. Mexican authorities say the teen was in Mexico when agents in Arizona shot him in the back seven times. David Schwartz reports for Reuters.
Gaza –> At least 19 Palestinians were killed when Israeli forces fired on a UN school where people had gathered for prayer, according to CNN’s Josh Levs, John Vause and Holly Yan. AND: Jesse Rosenfeld reports for The Daily Beast that the Israeli military is shrinking the Gaza strip by 44 percent by “forcing tens of thousands of people out of their homes, [and] turning their old neighborhoods into a no-man’s land.” ALSO: At Mondoweiss, Philip Weiss writes about pro-Israel advocates’ “battle with the US media.” AND: Recent polls of Israeli Jews find strong support for Netanyahu and the Gaza war. BUT: A new Pew Research Center poll finds that American support for Israel varies across demographic lines. Overall, 40 percent of Americans blame Hamas for the conflict, while 19 percent blame Israel — but that doesn’t hold true among millennials: a larger portion of Americans aged 18 to 29 blame Israel.
Bad guy with a gun? –> Is the NRA’s general counsel a murderer who got away with it years ago, or an innocent man who was railroaded by police? Dave Gilson has the story for MoJo.
Funding terrorism –> Rukmini Callimachi reports for the NYT that “kidnapping Europeans for ransom has become a global business for Al Qaeda.”
Reprieve –> Mississippi’s lone abortion clinic will remain open, for now, after a federal appeals court struck down a “regulation” so onerous that it would have shuttered the facility. Irin Carmon reports for MSNBC.
“I won’t hesitate to have you shot” –> The Guardian’s Shaun Walker on his harrowing attempt to interview Igor “the Demon” Bezler, leader of the Ukrainian separatist group accused of shooting down Malaysia Airways flight 17.
Pro-life –> Sofia Resnick reports for RH Reality Check that several women allege that Hobby Lobby, which refuses to cover some forms of birth control, fired them when they became pregnant. The company also requires employees to sign arbitration agreements making it difficult to take it to court.
Constitutional –> Nicole Flatow reports for Think Progress that “a federal appeals court upheld a Florida law that became known as the ‘physician gag rule’ because it punishes doctors for talking about guns.”
