Wednesday Briefing: Day 2 of the Democratic National Convention

Plus, Barcelona's war on overtourism.

View in browser|nytimes.com August 21, 2024 By Natasha Frost Good morning. We're covering the second night of the Democratic National Convention and obstacles to a Gaza cease-fire deal. Plus: Barcelona's war on overtourism. 🇺🇸 U.S. ELECTION 2024 The presidential election is less than 80 days away. This is what we're watching. Vice President Kamala Harris made a video appearance from Milwaukee at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago last night. Kenny Holston/The New York Times Harris rallies Democrats on Day 2 of the convention The lineup of speakers on the second night of the Democratic National Convention featured Barack Obama, and the nominee herself, Vice President Kamala Harris, made a video appearance. A jubilant crowd danced in the aisles and cheered as Republicans who'd disavowed Donald Trump announced their support for Harris. Here's the latest. Harris and Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, her running mate, were rallying supporters at the site of last month's Republican convention in Milwaukee, in the swing state of Wisconsin. "This is a people-powered campaign," she said, appearing on screens throughout the Chicago arena. "And together we will chart a new way forward." In a show of unity, the speakers last night included Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, eight years after hundreds of his supporters stormed out of the Democratic convention in Philadelphia to protest Hillary Clinton's nomination after a bruising primary contest. Republican counterprogramming: Trump spoke about crime and public safety in Howell, Mich., about an hour northwest of Detroit. His choice of location — a city whose past involves white supremacy and activity by the Ku Klux Klan — drew criticism from the Harris campaign. More highlights: President Biden was greeted on Monday with chants of "Thank you, Joe!" in honor of his lifetime of public service. But the crowd was also thanking him for not running again. Harris supported Obama in 2008 when Hillary Clinton was dominating the Democratic primary race. It was a political risk that he never forgot. Harris's appearance onstage Monday was a surprise for two reasons. One was her suit. Our fashion critic explains. Do you have questions about the election? Send them to us, and we'll find the answers. Stay up to date: Live coverage | Poll tracker | The "Run-Up" podcast | On Politics newsletter The U.S. secretary of state, Antony Blinken, right, arrived in Egypt on Tuesday for talks with the president and the foreign minister. Pool photo by Kevin Mohatt Obstacles remain in Gaza cease-fire proposal The latest U.S.-backed proposal for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, which Israel has accepted and Hamas so far has not, leaves major disagreements between them unresolved, officials said. Negotiations are expected to continue this week, a U.S. official said. Hamas said yesterday that it was eager to reach a cease-fire but that the latest American proposal was "a reversal" from what it had agreed to in early July. While many details of the plan remained unclear, at least parts of the American proposal appeared to conform to demands added by Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, in late July, officials said, such as Israeli troops continuing to patrol Gaza's border with Egypt, albeit in reduced numbers. Recovery efforts: Israeli forces said they had retrieved the bodies of six Israeli hostages from tunnels in southern Gaza. The latest news: Two Israeli strikes yesterday, one on a school building in Gaza City, killed at least 19 people, the Palestinian emergency services said. An Iranian military official said that retaliation against Israel over the killing of a Hamas leader in Tehran may be long in coming and could take any number of forms, suggesting that an attack may have been placed on hold. A decimated Russian border post after Ukraine's incursion. David Guttenfelder for The New York Times Zelensky called for an end to the West's 'red lines' Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, is trying to use his military's surprise incursion into Russia to convince allies to lift restrictions on its use of Western-supplied long-range weapons. Ukraine's assault showed that the West's fears about the ramifications of attacks on Russian territory were unfounded and should be abandoned, he said. "The whole naïve, illusory concept of so-called red lines regarding Russia, which dominated the assessment of the war by some partners, has crumbled," he said in a speech published on Monday. Moscow's faltering response to Kyiv's offensive should signal to the world that Russia is not the fearsome superpower it once seemed to be, he said. "It is the time when the world is shedding its last and very naïve illusions about Russia," he said. Background: For more than two years, Washington has denied Ukraine permission to strike into Russia using the weapons it supplies, citing fears of an escalating conflict between Moscow and the West. This spring, after months of Ukrainian lobbying, the U.S. and other NATO countries adjusted their policies and allowed it to do so. Women stepping up: In Ukraine, Russia's war is reshaping the labor market, as jobs long dominated by men have been left vacant by soldiers sent off to war. Other news: Ukraine's Parliament passed a bill creating a legal path to ban a Russian-aligned branch of the Orthodox church. MORE TOP NEWS Alberto Pizzoli/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Italy: Deep-sea divers resumed their search for six passengers — including a British software mogul and his daughter — who were missing after a yacht sank off the coast. U.S. nuclear strategy: President Biden approved a highly classified nuclear plan in March that reorients America's deterrent strategy to focus on the rapid expansion of China's nuclear arsenal. Electric vehicles: The E.U. yesterday proposed charging Tesla an additional tariff of 9 percent on its vehicles imported from China. Other automakers face rates as high as 36.3 percent. Boeing: The airplane maker said it had paused test flights of the 777-9, a large plane whose development was already delayed, after discovering problems with a key part. Weather: Tropical Depression Jongdari moved toward South Korea, threatening to buffet the country with heavy rain and strong winds. Pakistan: Internet speeds have slowed to a crawl, fueling fears that the authorities are introducing technology to surveil and control online behavior. Kenya: The authorities are searching for a man who escaped from custody after being accused of killing scores of women. Mexico: Federal judges voted to go on strike, protesting President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's proposed overhaul of the judicial system. Rescue mission: A woman was rescued in the Colorado mountains, where she had been on a guided spiritual "quest" in which participants had been encouraged to fast and discouraged from bringing cellphones. SPORTS NEWS Tennis: Jannik Sinner has received an antidoping sanction after testing positive twice for a banned substance. Soccer: Chelsea is set to complete the signing of João Félix from Atlético Madrid. Golf: The most intriguing PGA Tour players ahead of the BMW Championship. MORNING READ Emilio Morenatti/Associated Press This summer, thousands of local protesters in Barcelona denounced overtourism. Still more crowds are expected for the America's Cup, an international sailing competition. Barcelona now finds itself limiting some kinds of tourism while encouraging others, in a complicated balancing act. But according to the deputy mayor responsible for tourism, Jordi Valls, the city has no choice. "The demand is unstoppable," he said. "The only thing we can do is control the supply." Lives lived: Maria Branyas Morera, an American-born Spanish woman believed to be the oldest person in the world, has died at 117. CONVERSATION STARTERS Flipping the script: A U.S. law protects social media companies from liability. One professor thinks he can use that law to restrain their power. "Plant messiah": Carlos Magdalena risks his own extinction to rescue the rarest flowers. My voice on T: A transgender music critic explored the change in their singing voice after taking testosterone. ARTS AND IDEAS Marco Borrelli/Salzburg Festival The world's most prestigious classical music festival Since its founding more than 100 years ago, the Salzburg Festival has been known as a gathering place for the world's finest musicians. That's still true, but the event is now also a proving ground for artists on the cusp on stardom. Our classical music critic Joshua Barone went to the festival to see who would break through this year. One standout: Robert Carsen's new staging of Mozart's "La Clemenza di Tito," which transports the opera's ancient Roman tale to the present. With echoes of Giorgia Meloni's Italy and the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, the production is a lesbian political thriller in which Annio is a young woman, sweetly sung by the Israeli mezzo-soprano Anna Tetruashvili. Read Joshua's other picks. For more: In Scotland, two different shows at the Edinburgh Fringe make fun of Gwyneth Paltrow's ski trial — and one of them is a triumph. We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times. RECOMMENDATIONS Ryan Liebe for The New York Times Bake: This big, bold Bundt cake goes heavy on the lemon for an extra-puckery bite. Listen: In the latest in our series of conversations with authors, Jennifer Egan looks back at "A Visit From the Goon Squad." Watch: "Lousy Carter" is one of our favorite under-the-radar movies to stream this month. Compete: Take this week's Flashback history quiz. Play the Spelling Bee. And here are today's Mini Crossword and Wordle. You can find all our puzzles here. That's it for today's briefing. See you next time. — Natasha Reach Natasha and the team at briefing@nytimes.com. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Morning Briefing: Europe Edition from The New York Times. To stop receiving Morning Briefing: Europe Edition, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. To opt out of updates and offers sent from The Athletic, submit a request. 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