The Showdown is Over: The Senate voted 63-to-36 last night to end the  political showdown over the national debt and budget that’s been threatening a government shutdown. President Biden said he will sign the bill.

  Putting  a winning spin on it, Biden said last night, “No one gets everything they want in a negotiation, but make no mistake: This bipartisan agreement is a big win for our economy and the American people.”

  New York’s Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer  said, “We saved the country from the scourge of default.” 

  The agreement suspends the $31.4 trillion debt limit until January 2025, passing the burden of decision making to the next Congress and whoever’s in the Oval Office by then. 

Water, Water: The state of Arizona has decided that there’s not enough groundwater anymore beneath the growing metropolis of Phoenix and will block developers from building some new subdivisions, signaling that the boom years are over for the fastest growing metropolitan region in the country.

  Phoenix gets half its water from deep underground, a resource that would take possibly thousands of years to replenish once it goes dry in an area where overuse, drought, and climate change are endangering water supplies.

  Under the state order, Phoenix and nearby large cities would be denied approval for new homes that rely on groundwater beyond what the state has already authorized. Sarah Porter, director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University, told The NY Times, “We see the horizon for the end of sprawl.”  

Unforgiven: Two Democrats joined Republicans voting to cancel President Biden’s student loan forgiveness. Both Houses of Congress have now voted down the loan forgiveness, but Biden has vowed to veto whatever reaches his desk. He  wants to forgive up to $20,000 for every student borrower.

   Democratic Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Jon Tester of Montana as well as Arizona’s Kyrsten Sinema, an independent formerly a Democrat, voted with the Republicans.

Econ 101: Macy’s and Costco say customers are spending less at their stores, a possible indicator of economic cooling. Same-store sales at Macy’s dropped 8.7 percent in the last quarter, while higher-end department store Bloomingdale’s dropped 3.9%.

  Dollar General, the discount chain, is also predicting 8 percent lower sales for the year.

The War Room: Ukraine’s military says its air defenses shot down more than 30 Russian missiles and drones overnight. Air raid sirens blared around the country from the capital of Kyiv to the Black Sea port of Odessa.

Trump World: Donald Trump has renewed his promise to end the 14th Amendment guarantee of birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants if he returns to the Oval Office.  The 14^thAmendment says that anyone born in US territory is automatically a citizen.

  Trump said in a campaign video this week, “As part of my plan to secure the border on Day 1, I will sign an executive order making clear to federal agencies that under the correct interpretation of the law, going forward the future children of illegal aliens will not receive automatic US citizenship.” 

  Trump claims that birthright citizenship was based on a “historical myth and a willful misinterpretation of the law by open-border advocates.” But it is laid down in an amendment to the Constitution and Trump can’t just cancel it with an executive order, which doesn’t mean he wouldn’t try.

Family Matters: A trove of 10,000 photos from the laptop of President Biden’s troubled son, Hunter, is being released on a website in the name of “truth and transparency” by some clearly Biden-hating operatives.

 The younger Biden’s computer was left in a repair shop and its contents have become a focus of Biden haters. Garrett Ziegler, a former Trump White House aide, said, “If the American people want to know what their first family is like, they’re going to get it. And we’re not going to be taking out photos that paint the Bidens in a good light.”

  Ziegler says they redacted any pictures of genitalia, as well as nude photos of Hallie Biden, the widow of Hunter’s brother whom he dated for a while.

  There is plenty of salacious material scattered among meaningless shots of hallways and empty rooms.

  Ziegler said, “We’re going to keep all the photos that paint the Bidens in a good light and keep all the photos that paint the Bidens in a bad light. The American people can judge for themselves what they think about their first family through this.”

The Ball Bounces: The Denver Nuggets resoundingly beat the Miami Heat 104-93 in the Nuggets’ first appearance in the NBA finals in the franchise’s 47 years of existence.

The Spin Rack: — Following Republican objections, the Defense Department said it will not allow drag shows on military bases. Despite a history of drag shows going back to World War II, Sabrina Singh, deputy press secretary for the department, said in a statement that “drag events” were not a “suitable use” of the department’s resources. — Former Playboy centerfold Victoria Valentino, who’s 80 now, has sued comedian Bill Cosby under a new California law that temporarily lifts the statute of limitations. She says he drugged and raped her more than 50 years ago.  “It’s not about money, it’s about accountability,” Valentino told The Washington Post. Cosby has spent time in prison for sexual assault. — President Biden tripped over a sandbag and fell on the stage yesterday while handing out diplomas at the Air Force Academy. Arriving back at The White House Biden quipped, “I was sandbagged.” You’ll see that clip every day during election season.

Below the Fold: Former Vice President Mike Pence, who was raised Catholic, says the LA Dodgers need to apologize to “Catholics across America” for including the  gay satirical troupe Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence in the club’s Pride night on June 16. He calls the group “deeply offensive,” but he’s not known for having a sense of humor.

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