Joe Biden and Kamala Harris brace for tonight's debate – live updates

Frontrunners unlikely to face as many existential questionsIt’s been more than 12 hours since Trump tweetedSign up for the US briefing and get a new perspective 2.46pm BST Jeffrey Epstein is due to appear in Manhattan federal court later this morning, about one week after he was reportedly found unconscious in his jail cell with neck injuries.The Manhattan US Attorney’s Office alleged earlier in July that Epstein “sexually exploited and abused dozens of minor girls” from 2002 to 2005. Some of his victims were just 14 years-old, prosecutors also alleged. 2.29pm BST The Guardian’s opinion panelists are in with their assessments of last night’s debate – essentially concluding it was a good night to be Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. Theodore R Johnson, a senior fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice, noted the debate went on for two hours before candidates mentioned black people and the specific challenges they face. And once the topic of black America finally came up, the candidates rushed to discuss their respective policy proposals that they hoped would signal their seriousness about racial equality, from the funding of black colleges to the study of reparations.But black voters know that campaign promises rarely materialize once a candidate becomes president, so one’s reputation, trustworthiness, and passion tend to be what wins black support. On this score, the candidates were who we thought they were. Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren were the only two on stage who entered the evening with observable black support in their coalition, and it will remain that way after tonight. Related: Who won the Democrats’ debate? Our panelists’ verdict Continue reading…
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