Shots fired. Again.
Shots fired. Again.
Plus: The Veep’s old condo is on Airbnb
Hi, I’m Hunter and welcome to Whig, my new newsletter about politics and pop culture. Subscribe for more:
Sunday’s apparent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump at his West Palm Beach, Fla., golf club has an unfortunate precedent. In the span of 17 days in 1975, two attempts were made on then-President Gerald Ford’s life. Sixty-five days separate the incident in Florida this weekend and the shooting in Butler, Pa., in July, but unlike Ford, Trump’s close calls come in the middle of an election year. The suspect, arrested in Florida, appeared in court Monday.
The incident has again put a spotlight on the U.S. Secret Service. Trump’s golfing buddy Steve Witkoff, a founding member of Trump’s new crypto venture (read more on that below) told Good Morning America the Secret Service did “exactly what they’re supposed to do” after spotting a rifle in the bushes while walking the golf course perimeter. Trump agreed, saying they “did a good job, actually,” but President Joe Biden thinks the agency “needs more help,” he told reporters Monday.
Biden put the onus on Congress to give officers what they need, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the Senate was prepared to provide more resources for the Secret Service as part of budget negotiations. House Speaker Mike Johnson said rather than a funding issue, it’s “man-power allocation” because Trump needs more coverage. At a time when many would like temperature turned down, it’s feeling uncomfortably warm, but Biden and Trump did speak by phone yesterday on a call. “It was about Secret Service protection,” Trump said, and the White House called their chat “cordial.” May cordiality reign. — Hunter
Biden gives first-ever exclusive interview to LGBTQ+ news outlet:
Biden spoke to Christopher Kane of the Washington Blade, a D.C.-based LGBTQ newspaper founded in 1969, for an interview last week that the Blade said is the first time an LGBTQ newspaper had exclusive interview with a sitting president. During the interview, Biden said those involved in the 1969 Stonewall Riots “took their lives in their own hands,” which “took enormous courage” and “set an example” around the world.
Trump launches crypto business:
Trump announced World Liberty Financial, his new cryptocurrency venture, on an X Spaces livestream Monday, one day after an apparent assassination attempt against him and 50 days until Election Day. The company was described as a trading platform for crypto, with 63% of the tokens to be available for sale, 17% reserved for user rewards, and 20% reserved for the founders, including Trump, members of his family, his golfing buddy Witkoff, and others. House Democrats are concerned about the potential for conflicts of interest.
Trump said his son Barron Trump knows a lot about crypto. “He talks about his wallet,” Trump said. “He's got four wallets, or something. He knows this stuff inside out.”
Harris condemns Republican rhetoric on Springfield, Ohio:
In a conversation Tuesday with the National Association of Black Journalists, Harris said Trump’s false claims about migrants in Springfield, Ohio, eating pets were “lies that are grounded in tropes that are age old.”
“This is exhausting and it's harmful and it's hateful,” she said. During the conversation, Harris also called for an end to the Israel-Hamas war with a hostage deal and ceasefire deal, and said she would work with private investors to increase domestic housing supply.
The Veep’s old condo is on Airbnb:
A condo in San Francisco’s South of Market district owned by Harris for 17 years is listed on Airbnb and Verbo. The condo can be your home for one month at a time for $6,000 because of the city’s rules against short-term rentals of less than 30 days. Software engineer Zhengtao Ji bought the condo in 2021 for $860,000, according to the New York Times. Harris bought it in 2004 for $489,000.
FLOTUS promotes universal preschool for military families:
Visiting the Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Ala., last Friday with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, First Lady Jill Biden said the new full-day pre-kindergarten program at the base and 80 other military bases could be a model for early education programs nationwide.
“If we want kids to succeed in school and their careers — if we want to set them on a lifelong path of learning — we need to invest in them from the very beginning,” Dr. Biden said.
Obamas, Clintons to campaign for Harris:
The Harris campaign is getting ready to roll out its biggest surrogates. Former President Barack Obama is set to headline a Los Angeles fundraiser for Harris, hold campaign events next month, record ads and robocalls, and sign fundraising emails, sources told NBC News, while former First Lady Michelle Obama is expected to be deployed to promote voter registration and turnout. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to reach out to female and LGBTQ voters.
Ella Emhoff walks in NYFW:
Second stepdaughter Ella Emhoff spent New York Fashion Week not just attending runway shows but walking in one. Emhoff, who in 2021 graduated from Parsons School of Design and signed a modeling contract with IMG Models, walked for Coach’s Spring 2025 runway show on the High Line wearing one of the label’s “I Heart NY” tees, a black leather skirt, jacket, and baseball hat.
According to the New York Times, Emhoff also attended about a dozen shows during NYFW, which wrapped last week, including for Proenza Schouler, Susan Alexandra, Collina Strada, and Tory Burch, as well as parties for J.Crew and Refinery29.
Nixon thought pot was “not particularly dangerous,” new audio shows:
Recently unearthed audio of Richard Nixon talking about marijuana contradicts his hardline public stance on drugs. “Let me say, I know nothing about marijuana,” Nixon said in the Oval Office in March 1973, according to audio that was reviewed by a cannabis industry lobbyist. “I know that it’s not particularly dangerous, in other words, and most of the kids are for legalizing it. But on the other hand, it’s the wrong signal at this time.” Nixon, who started the war on drugs, called the penalties for marijuana-related crimes in the audio “ridiculous.”
✂️ The Federal Reserve is set to cut rates for the first time in four years. On Wednesday, the Fed is expected to make its first interest rate cut since 2020, which could provide some relief for consumers in the market for a home, auto purchase, or who carry credit card debt. [CBS News]
📱 Instagram is putting every teen into a more private and restrictive new account. Now, all new and existing Instagram users under the age of 18 will have restricted DMs and features like “Sleep Mode.” [The Verge]
🏛️ TikTok argues against its U.S. ban in court. An attorney for TikTok argued in court that the law unfairly targets the company and runs afoul of the First Amendment because TikTok Inc. — the U.S. arm of TikTok — is an American entity. [Associated Press]
💫 Billionaire completes first private spacewalk. A billionaire and an engineer have become the first non-professional crew to perform one of the riskiest maneuvers in space — a spacewalk. Before, only astronauts with government-funded space agencies had done a spacewalk. [BBC]
Diddy charged with sex trafficking and racketeering:
In a criminal indictment unsealed Tuesday, federal prosecutors said Sean “Diddy” Combs “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation and conceal his conduct” for decades, and they charged him on sex trafficking and racketeering.
Emmy ratings up:
Sunday’s Emmy Awards averaged 6.87 million viewers, according to Nielsen data, up from 4.46 million viewers for the 2023 awards, which were delayed because of the writers and actors strikes. Shogun won 18 awards, more than any other show, followed by The Bear, which won 11.
Cher to headline resurrected Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show:
To bring back its fashion show for the first time since 2018, Victoria’s Secret will rely on girl power. The shopping mall apparel brand announced Cher will headline the Oct. 15 show, with more performers to come. For the first time ever, the line-up will be all-female, Victoria’s Secret said.
Former CEO Martin Waters, who left Victoria’s Secret last month, said the company had “lost relevance with the modern woman” in 2021, and shares of the company fell earlier this year thanks to weak sales as consumers opted for cheaper options, like Lululemon. Tapping her royal highness Cher to revive Victoria Secret’s tentpole marketing event is a true “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” (Dave Aude Club Mix) moment for the brand under its new CEO Hillary Super, who last led Savage x Fenty.
:( Lil Wayne is sad he was passed over for the Super Bowl:
New Orleans native Lil Wayne said it “broke” him to not be selected to perform at next year’s Super Bowl halftime show in his hometown after the NFL announced Kendrick Lamar would get the coveted gig. “I thought there was nothing better than that spot, that stage, that platform, in my city,” Weezy said in an Instagram post. “I feel like I let all of ya’ll down for not getting that opportunity.”
The rapper said he’s “just trying to put myself back together,” adding, “I blame myself for not being mentally prepared for a letdown, for automatically mentally putting myself in that position.”
Britney weighs in on Sabrina Carpenter’s VMA performance:
The unofficial Britney Spears theme of last week’s MTV Video Music Awards (“At the 2024 VMAs, Everybody Wanted to Be Britney Spears,” said Harper’s Bazaar) got Britney’s attention. In a video posted to Instagram, Spears said it was “cool” to hear Sabrina Carpenter mention her name on the red carpet, but she didn’t quite get Carpenter’s Britney-inspired performance in which she kissed a blue alien.
“Why is she kissing an alien onstage?” Spears said. “I didn’t understand that part. Why didn’t she kiss a girl? That was weird.” You know what, Britney, I thought the exact same thing.
Mariah Carey went to the Great Wall of China:
While in China to perform shows at the Beijing Workers Stadium, Mariah Carey visited the Great Wall of China with her kids, but she didn’t wear proper footwear. “Someone should’ve warned me about heels,” Carey wrote in a social media post.
Pharrell is annoyed by celebrity political endorsements:
“I don’t do politics,” Pharrell Williams told The Hollywood Reporter in an interview about Piece by Piece, his animated Lego biopic. “In fact, I get annoyed sometimes when I see celebrities trying to tell you [who to vote for].”
Williams likened himself to a federal employee who does their job no matter who’s in office and he said though he’s committed to causes like equity in education and helping entrepreneurs of color, he’s not an activist. “Nobody asked you,” he said of some celebs who speak out.
Billie Eilish and Finneas endorse Harris:
“We are voting for Kamala Harris and (Vice President) Tim Walz because they are fighting to protect our reproductive freedom, our planet and our democracy,” Billie Eilish said in a social media video endorsing Harris with her brother Finneas today for National Voter Registration Day. “Vote like your life depends on it because it does.”
Thanks for reading! See you next time. ⭐