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Trump says meeting with Putin in Alaska “productive,” but provided no specifics. The meeting between the US and Russian presidents lasted about three hours and ended abruptly, with both leaders making statements to the press but taking no questions. In Russian, Putin said, “I would like to hope that the understanding we have reached will allow us to get closer to that goal and open the way to peace in Ukraine.” Trump said, “We had an extremely productive meeting and many points were agreed to, there are just a very few that are left. We didn’t get there, but we have a very good chance of getting there.” Afterward, Trump gave an exclusive interview to Sean Hannity on Fox News, where he said, “Now, it’s really up to President Zelensky to get it done.” Zelensky was not invited to this meeting, but Trump said he would be briefing the Ukrainian president and NATO leaders on what transpired.—HVL

Americans shopped hard in July, but it may not last. US retail sales gained more than expected last month (+0.5%) and June’s figures were revised higher, showing that Americans were feeling plenty flush to spend on a broad range of goods this summer. Amazon’s four-day Prime Day sale surely helped, too. But other data released yesterday suggested more penny-pinching ahead: US consumer sentiment fell in August after climbing every month since May, and expectations for inflation jumped. Nearly 60% of Americans plan on curbing spending this year, the most recent University of Michigan survey found.—NF

DC’s police chief is back in charge. Less than a day after US Attorney General Pam Bondi issued an order that stripped the Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith of her authority in Washington, DC, the Trump administration rescinded it. The reversal followed an emergency hearing yesterday in federal court for a lawsuit filed by DC Attorney General Brian Schwalb, which challenged Bondi’s appointment of Drug Enforcement Administration Chief Terry Cole as the city’s emergency police chief. After the hearing, the Department of Justice filed a new order making Cole Bondi’s “designee.” While Smith can resume control of the day-to-day operations of the department, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser still must fulfill policing requests from the Trump administration.—HVL

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