President Biden commemorated the 80th anniversary of D-Day today with a speech on the beaches of Normandy in France. He argued that the ongoing effort to stand up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a direct extension of the battle for freedom that raged across Europe during World War II.
Nations must team up, Biden said, to defeat another “tyrant bent on domination” and meet “the test of ages” to defend Ukraine. “Isolation was not the answer 80 years ago and is not the answer today,” Biden said. “The struggle between dictatorship and freedom is unending.”
Before Biden’s address, the audience delivered a nearly hourlong series of standing ovations as D-Day veterans arrived. Most of the men, now in their late 90s or over 100, rolled up a blue-carpeted ramp in wheelchairs. A few managed to walk with canes or unassisted, drawing extra applause. We spoke with some veterans about that pivotal battle and what came next.
Biden, who was a toddler on June 6, 1944, met with 41 veterans of the Normandy campaign. One had advice for the president, now 81: “Don’t get old.”
An Israeli strike killed dozens at a school-turned-shelter
As part of an offensive in central Gaza, Israeli fighter jets hit a United Nations school complex that had become a shelter for thousands of displaced Palestinians, killing dozens of people.
The Israeli military said it had “conducted a precise strike” targeting three classrooms that held 20 to 30 Palestinian militants. A military spokesman said the militants had used the compound to plan attacks on Israeli forces.
Democrats want to pin inflation on big business
Inflation has soared during President Biden’s time in office, and it has become one of his biggest political liabilities as he seeks re-election. Its causes are complex, including supply chain disruptions and stimulus bills signed by Biden himself and Donald Trump. But many progressives are pushing the president to simplify it for voters by blaming it on big corporations.
The president has embraced the “greedflation” message to a certain extent. But he has not leaned into it as frequently or naturally as some other Democrats, including senators running in competitive seats that are outperforming Biden in the polls.
Idaho failed to execute a man on death row. Will it try again?
Thomas Creech, who had been imprisoned in Idaho for nearly 50 years on five murder charges, was set to be executed in February. But the prison’s medical workers were unable to find a suitable vein, so the proceedings were called off, making Creech the latest survivor in a troubling trend of botched executions across the U.S.
My colleague Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs explained what’s next for Creech, and talked to him for his first interview since the bungled procedure. “The worst ones was when they got down to my ankles,” Creech said of the attempts to get a needle in. “I was thinking the whole time that this is really it. I’m dead. This is my day to die.”
Diane von Furstenberg is settling into her final act
My colleague Maureen Dowd recently traveled to Venice to interview the fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg about a new documentary about her life, now streaming on Hulu. But von Furstenberg — who has been a cultural sensation since her 20s, when she created the wrap dress and married a German prince — doesn’t do small talk.
So Maureen and she spent two days on the Grand Canal talking about the revelations in the documentary, von Furstenberg’s life at 77 and the future of her fashion brand. “I want to create a vocabulary for my legacy,” von Furstenberg said. “I realized I care more about women than fashion.”
For more: Maureen pressed von Furstenberg on a bunch of juicy subjects.
Enter the wombat zone
Australia’s wombats are impressive subterranean builders. They dig extensive burrow networks that can last for decades and remain cool when it’s hot out. They also don’t seem to mind when other creatures join them.
Those factors, scientists found, allow their burrows to serve as fireproof refuges for small mammals, birds and reptiles during and after extreme fires. Trail cameras tell the tale.
At 45, he’s chasing an Olympic first
Artistic swimming is a sport so enthusiastic about homogeneity that it used to be called synchronized swimming. But this year, one member of the U.S. team preparing for the Olympics is very much not like the others. Bill May is the only man on the team.
At 45, May is hoping to make the final roster and become the first man ever to compete in the sport at the Olympic level. A towering figure in artistic swimming, he helped convince the Games to allow men to compete for the first time this year. But his spot on the U.S. squad will rest on his ability to perform as one-eighth of a team of women half his age.
Have a determined evening.
Thanks for reading. I’ll be back tomorrow. — Matthew
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