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Today’s Top Stories
President Biden gets hero’s welcome on first night of Democratic National Convention as he passed the torch to Vice President Harris. “I have made many mistakes in my career, but I have given you my all for 50 years,” Biden tells cheering crowd in Chicago earned him a five-minute standing ovation. His attempts to speak were repeatedly drowned out by cheers and chants of “thank you, Joe.” Harris also made a surprise appearance early to praise Biden, whose speech largely reflected his legislative accomplishments since taking office.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks on stage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 19, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
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Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
- 🎧 NPR’s Stephen Fowler reports To The Top That night one of the DNC sent the message that it was a new Democratic Party. with Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz leading the way. Fowler said the president decided to step aside and confirm Harris running against Trump could be a historic event. Among the speakers was Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who has not always been on the same page as the party leadership. She thanked Harris and Walz for their vision, and Biden for his leadership.
- ➡️ Catch up with DNC Keynote speech first night here.
- ➡️ Former President Donald Trump is now working as a chain of events in swing states including issues such as national security and immigration.
Thousands of protesters march in Chicago against Israel’s war in Gaza as the DNC kicked off yesterday. Chicago Police Chief Larry Snelling said the police department has a respectful working relationship with protest leaders and looks forward to supporting the protesters’ right to free speech without issue.
- 🎧 Everything was peaceful until a group of masked protesters attempted to enter the DNC security area. Protesters tore down sections of the fence and then called out to other protesters to follow them, NPR’s Martin Kaste reports. Police close them tightly from opposite ends and arrested a handful of people. Kaste found a long line of delegates and spoke to some of them, but none of them saw or heard any protests. More protests are planned for the remaining three days of the DNC.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Israel has agreed to a ceasefire proposal for the war in Gaza. The announcement came after he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for three hours on Monday in Jerusalem. After declaring Israel’s support for the deal, Blinken urged Hamas to do the same. Netanyahu has not directly said he supports the new proposal presented last week in Doha.
- 🎧 We’ve seen this before, says NPR’s Kat Lonsdorf. – just because the US says they have an agreement with Israel, then does not mean that Israel is really committed. Netanyahu’s office issued a statement last night that made no mention of agreeing to the proposal, instead focusing on getting as many hostages out of Gaza alive as possible. Hamas issued a statement that was largely negative about the proposal, saying it met Netanyahu’s demands on several key points, and that they blamed him entirely for blocking the deal. Egypt is expected to host new ceasefire talks later this week. Qatar is where some Hamas officials work, so it’s likely Blinken will be there to push Hamas to sign on.
Dive deep
There are more than 4,600 hospitals in the United States, and 49% of them are nonprofit and therefore tax-exempt. The CEOs of these nonprofit health systems currently earn an average of $1.3 million a year.
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Getty Images/E+
Nearly half of all hospitals in the United States are tax-exempt, nonprofit organizations whose mission is to provide health care to the community. But despite their community-focused missions, CEOs running these nonprofits command annual salaries that now average $1 million. Researchers found that the highest-paid CEOs work at hospital systems that have the biggest financial returns. The question is whether nonprofit health systems can achieve those returns. are doing so at the expense of their mission.subverts the original purpose of the tax exemption.
- 🏥 The CEO’s salary is decided by the hospital’s board of directors. Many members work in for-profit sectors, meaning their professional experience and perspective are separate from the mission of the nonprofit health organization.
- 🏥 Positive operating margins are what allow nonprofits to keep up with inflation.retain the best medical talent and balance treatment for insured patients with underinsured or uninsured patients.
- 🏥 The tax breaks given to these nonprofits have allowed them to become extremely competitive. and this has led to a wave of mergers and acquisitions in the health care sector, according to Ge Bai, professor of health policy and management at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health.
- 🏥 Bai predicts that unless policymakers interveneConsolidation will continue, reducing competition and leaving patients with fewer options at higher prices.
Listen today
The Los Angeles Music League wants you to dance. LA LOM, as the band is known, released their debut album earlier this month. The drum, bass and guitar trio plays a nostalgic, romantic musical portrait of Los Angeles. Their tunes are like a time capsule that takes you back to the 50s and 60s.
3 things to know before you go
Emmy Award-winning talk show host Phil Donahue.
Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
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Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
- Phil Donahue, the television host hailed as the father of the modern audience-participation daytime talk show, died on SundayDonahue’s show, which aired for about 26 years, tackled hot-button issues like racism and abortion. He was 88.
- Former Congressman George Santos pleads guilty to wire fraud and identity theft in Long Island federal court yesterday. He is expected to face sentencing on February 7 with a minimum sentence of two years and a maximum of 22 years in prison. (via Gothamist)
- In 1989, Julia Weber was walking to a bus stop in downtown San Francisco when the sidewalk began to shake. Fear took hold of her and she locked eyes with another commuter. They walked toward each other, hugged and held on until the earthquake ended. Now, 35 years later, Weber still thinking about her silent hero and her kindness in a scary moment.
This newsletter was edited by Obed Manel.
