Good morning. The Democrats shift their attack on Republicans from “threat to democracy” to just “weird” – more on that below, along with Canadian rugby’s Cinderella run and rumours of another rate cut. But first:
Today’s headlines
- In what appears to be the second assassination carried out by Israel in a matter of hours, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh is killed in Tehran as fears of a regional war grow
- Israel also launched an air strike yesterday on the Hezbollah stronghold of southern Beirut, in retaliation for a deadly rocket attack this weekend in the Golan Heights
- Cabinet Minister Harjit Sajjan lobbied for 100 soldiers to perform with a Punjabi pop star in Vancouver
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Minnesota Governor Tim Walz at a Harris event this weekend.Caroline Yang/The New York Times News Service
U.S. Election
The odd politics of Trump and Co.
By now you’re probably familiar with J.D. Vance’s position on childless women: not a fan! He thinks they’re miserable cat ladies with no real stake in the country’s future, and all they want is to make everyone around them equally miserable, which they can do in their abundant no-kids free time. They’re sociopaths! (He uses this word a lot.) They’re a drag on the economy! Also, their votes should count for less.
Some might say Vance’s statements are offensive. Others could call them incorrect. The Democrats landed on a different word: They’re going with weird.
And that’s not just their response to the whole cat-lady business – or to Vance’s push for a federal ban on abortion, or his somewhat contradictory push to block access to in vitro fertilization. Kamala Harris’s campaign has rolled out the “weird” rebuke to both headliners of the Republican ticket. Praising dictators and the “beautiful note” Xi Jinping sent after the rally shooting? Insisting the woke mob finds it racist to drink Diet Mountain Dew? Repeatedly bringing up “the late, great Hannibal Lecter”? People are saying that’s pretty weird. It’s a major pivot from Joe Biden’s high-minded appeals to saving “the soul of a nation.” But as messages go, weird has legs.
Tim Walz leans in
Minnesota Governor and former high-school teacher Tim Walz debuted this particular dig at Republicans nearly a year ago. In the past two weeks, though, he’s gone all in, showing up on every conceivable TV show as a spirited and effective attack dog. “These guys are just weird,” he told MSNBC. “They’re running for He-Man women-haters’ club or something. That’s not what people are interested in.”
This is a bit weird?Reuters/Reuters
Now U.S. senators, cabinet members and campaign surrogates are all rushing to pick up what Walz is putting down. Sure, Harris hasn’t totally abandoned conventional political rhetoric. Her new ad touts a future “where every person has the opportunity not just to get by but to get ahead.” But the Kamala HQ campaign account – with its brat-coded aesthetic and millennial-speak jabs – has largely set aside that kind of language. And if Walz is plucked next week from the shortlist of running mates, it won’t just be for his Midwestern white-dude credentials. The ex-teacher showed Harris that a cheerful schoolyard taunt, relentlessly delivered, can land a devastating blow.
“Weird” wins
Why is that blow so devastating? It has to be said: A lot of the stuff in the Republican Party is kind of strange. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and his teenage son police each other’s porn habits. The “QAnon Shaman” stormed the Capitol in a horned helmet and fur pelt. Tucker Carlson thinks there’s a masculinity crisis but testicle-tanning can solve it. RNC delegates accessorized with square ear bandages in homage to Donald Trump. Weird might be a broad catch-all, but – as with pornography – people tend to know it when they see it. And once you’re stuck with that label, good luck shaking it off.
Also, Democrats seem to be enjoying a bit of mud-slinging. That might help explain the 26-point jump in voting enthusiasm since Harris got into the race. Four straight years of dire warnings on the fate of democracy – however accurate those warnings may be – can get demoralizing. Calling the GOP a bunch of odd ducks starts to defuse their menacing threat. As Walz said at a recent rally, “Fascists depend on fear. But we’re not afraid of weird people. We’re a little creeped out, but we’re not afraid.”
Paris 2024
‘This whole day has just been like a dream.’
Alysha Corrigan in action.Phil Noble/Reuters
An epic run for the women’s rugby sevens team ended in a silver medal yesterday, after Canada lost to reigning Olympic champs New Zealand. The men’s basketball team is all but assured a place in the knockout round after beating Australia, while the Canadian Soccer Association should find out today – before the women’s team faces Colombia – whether it successfully appealed FIFA’s six-point penalty. Also, one postponement and much hand-writing later, officials deemed the Seine clean enough for a swim and 55 triathletes hopped in – to the huge envy of spectators seeking respite from Paris’s 35 C heat. For all our Olympics coverage, go to tgam.ca/olympics-daily.
The Wrap
What else we’re following
At home: A deadly listeria outbreak caused by tainted plant-based milks has spread to a fourth province and caused at least one child to fall ill.
Abroad: The Globe’s Mark MacKinnon rides along with United Nations forces on Lebanon’s southern border – who have no peace to keep and no place to go.
Screen: After Bell dropped its sponsorship, TIFF finds funding in another telecom giant: Rogers.
Saver: The odds of a Bank of Canada cut in September have shot up 93 per cent in the past days.