Good morning, it’s Friday. Between tornadoes, meteors, extreme heat, presidential politics, political conventions and more it has been a week and a half. Again, I’m glad to put this one in the rear window.
We’ve finally gotten a break in the muggy, hot weather, which is such a great respite. It will be in the low 80s today with a mix of sun and clouds. The weekend is shaping up to be not bad at all, though temperatures will climb back up into the mid-to-high 80s, with mostly cloudy skies tomorrow and more sunshine on Sunday. I’ll take it.
I’m sure the athletes who will be participating in the Lake Placid Ironman are not at all sad about the forecast of temps in the low-to-mid 70s. That sounds like perfect racing weather, on its face, though since it’s the Adirondacks, it’s all subject to change in an instant. Good luck out there, everyone!
These days most athletes who are still fitting alcohol into their nutrition lineup tend to trend toward beer, which has a fair share of carbs and therefore could be seen as fuel, depending on how you look at it. I think it’s more of a mental/mood thing than a physical thing, and most experts will tell you that alcohol has more downsides than upsides when it comes to optimal performance.
When I did drink I was more of a wine or liquor lady, and didn’t go in beer or anything too fruity. I liked my alcohol largely unadorned, though I wouldn’t say “no” to a well-made rye old fashioned.
I know there are a lot of people who love a good daiquiri, which, in its purest form is nothing like the sugary frozen concoctions on offer at many tropical-themed bars, but rather a simple and balanced mix of rum, citrus juice (usually freshly squeezed lime juice), and sugar (or some other sweetener).
For the record, a daiquiri is not a margarita, though based on their original recipes, they both are supposed to contain lime juice and both are in the classic sour category of mixed drinks. The margarita contains tequila and triple sec, while the daiquiri, as mentioned above, is made from rum and sugar syrup.
The daiquiri originated in Cuba and takes its name from the town of Daiquiri on the island’s southeastern tip of Cuba. It was supposedly invented in 1898 by an American mining engineer named Jennings Cox. Legend has it that the drink immigrated to the U.S., compliments of a Naval officer who had sampled the daiquiri during deployment.
As vodka and whisky were rationed and hard to come by during WWII, but rum was easier to come by, thanks to FDR’s Good Neighbor trade policy, the daiquiri rose in popularity during the 1940s.
The drink has accumulated a number of high-profile fans over the years, most notably Ernest Hemingway, who was a frequent patron at El Floridita, an American-style bar in Havana during Prohibition. (This bar, by the way, is reportedly where the addition of chipped ice to turn the daiquiri into a sort of frozen adult slushie was first invented).
Hemingway, who was a big drinker by all accounts, did not like a sweet daiquiri. The version of the drink that he preferred, now known as the Papa Doble, included twice the usual amount of rum and grapefruit juice and maraschino liqueur to accompany the lime.
For no reason that I have been able to discern, today is National Daiquiri Day. But it’s Friday and, as the saying goes, it’s 5 o’clock somewhere. So why not break out the shaker – or even the blender, you do you – and get your drink on. A virgin daiquiri is nice, too.
Since we already dispensed with the weather, let’s get right down to business.
In the headlines…
Former President Donald Trump ended a buoyant Republican National convention in Milwaukee with an acceptance speech that started solemn, turned rambling and showcased his all-encompassing power over his party.
It was an evening of raw emotions, as Trump, for the first time, recounted how a bullet “came within a quarter of an inch of taking my life.” Warning a rapt crowd that he would tell this tale only once because it was “too painful” to repeat.
“I am running to be president for all America, not half of America because there is no victory in winning for half of America,” Trump said, adding that he came to the podium in front of the crowd with a “message of confidence, strength and hope.”
The speech was a departure from his usual bombastic and brazen rhetoric. He only referred to his political foe, President Biden, by name once, but avoided any of the sneering nicknames he has used to denounce the president in the past, such as “Crooked Joe.”
Trump’s speech lasted nearly two hours – the longest in RNC history.
Trump brought on stage the fire helmet, which he kissed, and jacket of Corey Comperatore during his speech to the RNC, honoring the supporter murdered Saturday during the assassination attempt on the former president.
The president’s supporters were seen donning bandages on their ears in solidarity with Trump in the days leading up to his big speech.
Melania Trump and Ivanka Trump were at the RNC last night, making a rare appearance in support of the former president’s third White House bid. If her husband is re-elected, it’s not entirely clear that the former first lady would return to the White House.
Missing from the celebratory scene at the Republican National Convention: the youngest Trump son, 18-year-old Barron, who has always been somewhat removed from his father’s political life. Melania Trump has fiercely protected her son’s privacy.
Dana White, CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), was, as expected, the final speaker at the Republican National Convention before Trump accepted the GOP presidential nomination.
News that a far-right initiative promoted by former Trump administration officials would make drastic cuts to the country’s weather tracking and forecasting agencies has drawn criticism from a forecasting service named in that initiative.
Several people close to President Joe Biden said that they believe he has begun to accept the idea that he may not be able to win in November and may have to drop out of the race, bowing to the growing demands of many anxious members of his party.
The president has not changed his mind as of now, multiple people close to him say. The latest Democratic defection to become public came from Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland.
Montana Sen. Jon Tester became the second senator to call on Biden to step aside, just over a week after Vermont Senator Peter Welch did so.
The 81-year-old president, now self-isolating with COVID, remains publicly dug in. But privately he’s resigned to mounting pressure, bad polls, and untenable scrutiny making it impossible to continue his campaign, the Democrats tell Axios.
The Washington Post reports that, according to people familiar with the matter, Obama “has told allies in recent days that President Biden’s path to victory has greatly diminished and he thinks the president needs to seriously consider the viability of his candidacy.”
Nine physicians weighed with the New Yorker in on Biden’s health. Almost all were concerned that his symptoms might go beyond a gradual, aging-related decline.
Vice President Kamala Harris laid into J.D. Vance in a campaign speech in Fayetteville, N.C., yesterday, saying that his “compelling” life story was a distraction from policies that she called “extreme and divisive.”
Allies of Harris are making calls to assess the political environment “just in case,” according to a Democrat close to her, who emphasized that at the present moment, “there is no ‘in case’.”
“If you think that there is consensus among the people who want Joe Biden to leave … that they will support, Vice President Harris, you would be mistaken,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told her supporters during an Instagram live chat.
New York Attorney General Letitia James sent out a fundraising pitch talking up Harris — and tellingly made no mention of President Biden as pressure mounts on the 81-year-old to bow out of the 2024 race.
Gov. Kathy Hochul reiterated her support for Biden’s election campaign, stating she remains committed as long as Biden continues to seek reelection.
“Obviously, if there’s a change, there’s a change. We’re adaptable,” she said. “But Joe Biden’s our nominee, he’s our candidate. … As long as Joe Biden’s in it to win it, I’m there with him.”
Hochul has long positioned herself as an ardent supporter of Biden’s administration and a defender of the president’s candidacy despite major performance concerns raised by his recent public appearances.
Hochul said for the first time that the state probably won’t meet its landmark climate goals, which include cutting emissions 40 percent from 1990 levels and relying on 70 percent renewable electricity, all by 2030.
Hochul signed legislation that aims to reduce case backlog in both family and civil courts by adding 28 judges across the state and 16 judges for New York City.
“Civil and family courts adjudicate some of the most sensitive issues New Yorkers face, and for too long, backlogs and delays have inhibited their ability to function effectively,” Hochul said in a statement.
Two Western New York organizations were awarded a total of $1.9 million for food initiatives, Hochul announced. The inmates will be transferred to the state’s remaining 13 other maximum security prisons in the state, a spokesman for DOCCS said.
The state will close the Great Meadow and Sullivan correctional facilities Nov. 6. The Legislature earlier this year approved a provision in Hochul’s 2024-2025 executive budget that backed the closure of up to five state correctional facilities.
Adams said he will sit down with embattled Brooklyn Councilwoman Susan Zhuang in hopes of finding a “resolution” in the wake of her arrest for allegedly biting an NYPD chief during a raucous protest against a homeless shelter development in her district.
The officer sustained broken skin, teeth marks and “substantial pain,” and was treated with an antiviral cocktail and a tetanus shot at a nearby hospital, according to a criminal complaint charging Zhuang with second-degree assault.
Zhuang said that she was trying to protect an older woman who had tumbled to the ground by police barricades erected at the protest. She said that she and other protesters had asked in vain for a barricade to be removed to give the woman safe passage.
“Police brutality is wrong, the misuse of enforcement is wrong, the act of violence against innocent citizens is wrong,” Zhuang (D-43) said to a packed room of constituents and reporters in southern Brooklyn.
Adams and NYC Sheriff Anthony Miranda joined “Mornings On 1” yesterday to discuss the latest takedown of two illegal cannabis shops in the Bronx, one of which appeared to be operating as a distribution center for other illegal sellers.
Rana Abbasova, a longtime Adams aide whose home was raided last fall as part of the FBI investigation into his campaign, did not file her mandatory personal financial disclosure on time this year, the Daily News has learned.
Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s campaign account paid polling firm Expedition Strategies nearly $68,000 earlier this year to test his popularity as he plots a political comeback – including eyeing a run for New York City mayor.
The New York City Council voted yesterday to push local public schools to create a systemwide dress code. For now, principals can adopt their own policies, leading to variation between schools.
Manhattan Councilwoman Gale Brewer introduced a bill that requires the Adams administration to release quarterly reports providing details on the city’s cannabis enforcement activities — a measure she says she’s advancing due to a lack of transparency.
A bill introduced in the City Council yesterday would require hotels to be licensed to operate in the Big Apple — a requirement that would fundamentally reshape the city’s hospitality industry.
Two Council members lawmakers say their names were used in Mayor Adams’ resource and meeting request form without their knowledge.
The City Council submitted its “advice and consent” bill to the Board of Elections in the hopes it could appear on the November ballot — but only if the mayor’s charter review group fails to come up with a proposal of its own.
Financial District locals are raging against plans to open a “safe haven” homeless shelter in their lower Manhattan neighborhood — just 50 feet away from a city-funded site housing migrants.
The CEO of the $16 billion Gateway project to build a new tunnel under the Hudson River announced his resignation yesterday, one month after he was repeatedly referenced in the indictment of powerful South Jersey political boss George Norcross.
The storms that caused immense damage in central New York produced at least four tornadoes in Warren, Oneida and Hamilton counties, all touching down within a short window between 3:30 – 5:30 p.m., according to National Weather Service confirmation.
The owner of the Fort Orange General Store, a downtown Albany gift shop selling sweatshirts, jewelry, skin care items and other home products by local brands, has listed the business for sale.
Dara Silbermann spent an estimated $3,500 over several months cultivating a 150-square foot “living fence” around her Troy property. On July 3, the city cut it all down — removing everything from a black raspberry patch to cultivated pockets of mint.
Prominent Capital Region attorney E. Stewart Jones has been disbarred after an investigation found that he was commingling clients’ funds.
The 3-2 decision handed down by the Appellate Division’s Third Department in Albany noted that Jones had admitted to the misconduct and resigned voluntarily from the practice of law.
Schenectady City Council members took no action after debating a proposed change to the city charter having to do with the deadline for the municipal budget that also saw Mayor Gary McCarthy and City Council President Marion Porterfield lock horns.
Some of the greatest players in history are gathering again in Cooperstown for the National Baseball Hall of Fame Weekend.
Vacationers were advised to avoid traveling yesterday to Edinburg and Day — two towns often crossed for people heading to Lake George or other Adirondack areas — after a severe storm wreaked havoc in the region Tuesday.
RIP Pearl, the Railroad Puppy.
Alec Baldwin’s legal team has signaled its intention to sue a Santa Fe sheriff and prosecutor after it was revealed they withheld evidence during his trial for the on-set shooting death of “Rust” cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
Bob Newhart, the genial funnyman whose button-down mind produced a treasure trove of TV comedy, died yesterday at age 94. His publicist said he died at his home in Los Angeles following a series of short illnesses.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
