1. President Joe Biden’s job approval rating among Democrats has tumbled 11 percentage points in the past month to 75%, the worst reading of his presidency from his own party. This drop has pushed his overall approval rating down four points to 37%, matching his personal low. At the same time, Biden’s approval among independents has declined four points, to 35%, while Republicans’ rating remains unchanged, at just 5%. (Source: gallup.com)
2. A likely 2024 rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump remains a tossup in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania, according to a new poll, as concerns about the economy continue to weigh down the incumbent. The Franklin & Marshall College poll gave Mr. Biden a two-point lead over Mr. Trump, 44% to 42%, well within the survey’s margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points. Mr. Biden also held a two-point lead in August and a one-point lead in April. Even after a couple years of robust job creation and near-record low unemployment, Pennsylvania voters continue to express pessimism about the state of the economy. Half of those surveyed said they are worse off now than a year ago, with only 11% saying they’re better off and 39% saying they’re the same. They said the economy is their most important issue. And by a margin of 49% to 38%, they said Mr. Trump is most prepared to handle the economy. (Sources: fandmpoll.org, post-gazette.com, italics mine)
3. Former President Donald Trump's final chief of staff in the White House, Mark Meadows, has spoken with special counsel Jack Smith's team at least three times this year, including once before a federal grand jury, which came only after Smith granted Meadows immunity to testify under oath, according to sources familiar with the matter. The sources said Meadows informed Smith's team that he repeatedly told Trump in the weeks after the 2020 presidential election that the allegations of significant voting fraud coming to them were baseless, a striking break from Trump's prolific rhetoric regarding the election. (Source: abcnews.go.com)
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