Wednesday briefing: Trump takes the bait on night that could transform the presidential race

In today’s newsletter: His advisors wanted him to tie Harris to the Biden administration – but instead he lost his temper. Here are the key moments

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Good morning. If you had a sinking feeling on 28 June when you woke up to the news that Joe Biden had turned in an utterly incoherent debate performance, you will probably have a bit more appetite for your boiled egg this time. A few hours ago, the only scheduled debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris came to an end – and even Fox News said Harris won.

Democrats’ moods can only have been improved by the news, a few minutes after it ended, that Taylor Swift had endorsed Harris, and signed her post “childless cat lady”. And CNN’s snap poll suggested that voters thought Harris won by a margin of 63% to 37% – nearly as big a margin as Trump achieved over Biden last time around. Key to Harris’ success was baiting her opponent into rants on marginal topics, instead of talking about the issues that voters are interested in.

Winter fuel allowance | MPs have voted to remove the winter fuel allowance from all but the poorest pensioners in England and Wales. Just one Labour MP, Jon Trickett, voted for the opposition motion but 52 abstained – at the higher end of predictions.

Conservatives | Mel Stride has been knocked out of the race to succeed Rishi Sunak as Conservative party leader after the second round of voting by MPs. On Tuesday, the former work and pensions secretary became the second casualty in the weeks-long leadership contest, which is due to culminate in early November.

Israel-Gaza war | Israeli airstrikes on al-Mawasi “humanitarian zone” in the Gaza Strip have killed at least 19 people and injured a further 60, according to witnesses and medical officials in the blockaded Palestinian territory.

Port Talbot steelworks | The British steel industry is braced for 2,500 job cuts at the Port Talbot steelworks, with thousands more jobs at risk in the UK, as the government prepares a taxpayer-backed deal for the south Wales plant. Owners Tata Steel are expected to get a rescue deal worth £500m.

UK news | An inquest into a man who killed himself a week after appearing on The Jeremy Kyle Show has found “insufficient evidence” to rule that participating in the programme caused his death. Continue reading...