JUST IN — “GOP picks Houston for Republican National Convention in 2028,†scooped by Natalie Allison GEORGIA ON MY MIND — All 19 defendants charged in the Georgia election interference case alongside former President DONALD TRUMP officially surrendered to the Fulton County jail ahead of DA FANI WILLIS’ noon deadline. Illinois pastor STEPHEN LEE and publicist TREVIAN KUTTI were the final holdouts this morning after several defendants in the case turned themselves in overnight. “All but one of the defendants have surrendered after negotiating a bond deal with prosecutors. The 18 agreements allow each defendant to be out on bond during the course of their legal case,†CNN’s Hannah Rabinowitz and Marshall Cohen report. “The one defendant who did not negotiate before turning himself in, HARRISON FLOYD, remains in law enforcement custody while he awaits a bail hearing.†Meanwhile: “Trump is selling his mug shot on shirts, koozies and bumper stickers,†by WaPo’s Timothy Bella DISPATCH FROM JACKSON HOLE — Despite hopes that the national economy is on the upswing, Fed Chair JEROME POWELL used his address today at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s annual conference in Jackson Hole, Wyo., to emphasize that the Fed continues to stand behind its 2% inflation target and hasn’t ruled out further rate hikes. “Although inflation has moved down from its peak — a welcome development — it remains too high," Powell said. “We are prepared to raise rates further if appropriate, and intend to hold policy at a restrictive level until we are confident that inflation is moving sustainably down toward our objective.†Still, Powell acknowledged it was difficult to measure the progress of the existing measures due to “uncertainty about the duration of the lags with which monetary tightening affects economic activity, and especially inflation." "As is often the case, we are navigating by the stars under cloudy skies," Powell added, concluding his speech with the pledge that “we will keep at it 'til the job is done.†The context: “Powell’s remarks come at a pivotal moment for the economy, which could go along two very divergent paths,†writes Victoria Guida. “While there are clear signs that inflation is easing and growth is continuing, there are indications that business sentiment is weakening, and high rates will continue to bite into consumer savings as credit card debt swells Sneak peek: Powell gave an advance notice of July’s inflation numbers ahead of the release of the full report next week, noting “Inflation peaked at 7% in June 2022 and declined to 3.3% as of July.†Should that 3.3% hold, it would mean a slight ramp up in inflation from last month’s reported 3%. More from NYT’s Jeanna Smialek MORE PRIGOZHIN FALLOUT — The Kremlin has rejected claims that Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN arranged the jet crash that may have killed Wagner Mercenary Chief YEVGENIY PRIGOZHIN, calling the assertion an “absolute lie,†Reuters’ Andrew Osborn reports from Moscow. The announcement came just a few hours after Russian Deputy Foreign Minister SERGEI RYABKOV chastised President JOE BIDEN for saying earlier this week that he was "not surprised" by news of Prigozhin's likely death, and that “there's not much that happens in Russia that Putin's not behind.†“It is not for the U.S. president, in my opinion, to talk about such tragic events of this kind," Ryabkov said. More from Reuters Despite the Kremlin’s curt denial, the presumed death of the man who launched an armed rebellion against Putin earlier this year sends a powerful message from the Russian autocrat to his opposition that “no degree of effectiveness and achievement can protect someone from punishment for violating Mr. Putin’s loyalty,†NYT’s Anton Troianovski and Valerie Hopkins report. “[W]hether Mr. Putin personally ordered the attack may be beside the point: What matters is that Mr. Prigozhin suffered a violent death after Mr. Putin publicly condemned him.†Related read: “Nerve agents, poison and window falls. Over the years, Kremlin foes have been attacked or killed,†by AP’s Dasha Litvinova Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line: [email protected].
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