Good morning.
The Republican national convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, will focus its second day on crime and immigration, after Donald Trump on Monday announced that the Ohio senator JD Vance would serve as his running mate.
The convention’s theme on Tuesday will be “Make America Safe Once Again”, focusing on red-meat issues for Trump and his allies, who have repeatedly and falsely accused the president, Joe Biden, of supporting “open borders”.
Trump has previously called for 15 to 20 million undocumented immigrants to be deported if he is re-elected – a view that Vance echoed his support for in an interview with the Fox News host Sean Hannity on Monday. “We have to deport people,” Vance told Hannity. “We have to deport people who broke our laws who came in here. And I think we need to start with the violent criminals.”
Where does Vance stand on the big issues? As well as on immigration, Vance backs the Maga brand of populist nationalism and echoes Trump on abortion, climate, election denialism, and America-first isolationism – which is devastating news for Ukraine.
Has Vance always been a Trump ally? No. Back in 2016 he labelled Trump as “cultural heroin” and even described himself as “a never-Trump guy”. But like much of the Republican party, he has since been on a journey away from that position.
Trump’s convention welcome Delegates described Trump as “Braveheart” as he received a rapturous welcome on Monday after surviving an attempted assassination.
California bans rules requiring schools to tell parents of child’s pronoun change
California has become the first state to ban school districts from enacting policies that require school staff to disclose a student’s gender or sexual orientation.
Governor Gavin Newsom signed the landmark law on Monday, barring school districts from forcing teachers to reveal a student’s gender identity or sexual orientation to anyone without the child’s permission.
It comes after several school districts passed policies requiring that parents be notified if a student requests to change their gender identification, which Democrat state officials argued infringed on their right to privacy.
What is the argument for the legislation? Proponents of the Safety Act say it will help protect LGBTQ+ students who live in unsupportive households from being outed.
And what about against? Advocates of “parental notification” policies see them as key to children’s wellbeing and for maintaining transparency and trust between schools and parents.
US warns of ‘serious concern’ about civilian casualties in Gaza
Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, has voiced concern over Israel’s recent deadly strikes in the Gaza Strip at a meeting with two senior Israeli officials, his spokesperson has said.
Blinken held a meeting with Israel’s strategic affairs minister, Ron Dermer, and national security adviser, Tzachi Hanegbi, “to express our serious concern about the recent civilian casualties in Gaza”, the state department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters.
Israeli strikes killed more than 90 people in Khan Younis on Saturday, Gaza’s health ministry said. Israel said it had been targeting the Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif, believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attack, and Rafa Salama, the group’s commander in Khan Younis.
How will Saturday’s strikes affect truce talks? According to the Hamas spokesperson Jihad Taha: “There is no doubt that the horrific massacres will impact any efforts in the negotiations.”
In other news …
Evan Wright, the award-winning journalist and author of the book Generation Kill, has died at the age of 59.
A senior North Korean diplomat defected to South Korea from Cuba in November, the South Korean spy agency has said, making him the most senior North Korean diplomat to flee to South Korea since 2016.
People are turning vigilante to fight back against rising kidnappings in the region where Chad, Cameroon and Central African Republic meet, using bows, arrows and spears to fight gunmen.
The newly elected European parliament features no Roma representatives, Roma rights organisations have said, adding that it was a serious setback for Europe’s largest ethnic minority, especially as the far right grows.
Stat of the day: an average of 327 Americans are shot each day
Every day, on average, 327 Americans are shot and 117 die of their injuries, according to Brady: United Against Gun Violence, a nonprofit organization advocating for gun control. Americans are 26 times more likely to be shot and killed than others in high-income countries.
Don’t miss this: dirty, hedonistic, happy and bra-less … Brat summer is here
The aspirational TikTok trend of clean living – hair slicked back into a bun, pink yoga mats and grueling days of pilates – is over. Brat summer has arrived. But what is a Brat really? Zoe Williams dives deep into the cultural context of the vibe heralded by Charlie xcx’s eponymous album and finds parallels with young women in the 1990s and hedonism in periods of crisis.
Climate check: can the climate survive AI’s thirst for energy?
The energy required to power artificial intelligence is vast and threatening key environmental targets. AI companies have high ambitions for the technology, ranging from medical breakthroughs to the fight against global hunger, but a key question remains: can the planet survive AI’s astronomical energy needs? Science Weekly explores that conflict in today’s podcast.
Last Thing: do you feel mad about something that happened in a dream? Read on …
We’ve all had them: a dream so emotionally vivid you can’t shake it even hours after waking. A cheating partner, or a betrayal by a close friend. The Guardian’s lifestyle and wellness reporter Shayla Love looks at what this means and why the feelings might stick around.
Sign up
First Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday. If you’re not already signed up, subscribe now.
Get in touch
If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email newsletters@theguardian.com
