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Good afternoon. With a dramatic arrival by John McCain and a tie-breaking vote from the vice president, the Senate inched closer to taking action on Obamacare in a highly unorthodox manner. Meanwhile, Republican senators and President Trump squared off over the attorney general. And – déjà vu – corporate sabotage theories resurface around Chipotle. –Emily Banks

 

The Senate voted to begin debating health-care, even though it's unclear exactly where the legislation will end up. Three options have been discussed: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's replacement bill; a bill that would repeal much of Obamacare with a two-year delay; or a stripped-down repeal bill that eliminates the individual mandate. It's unclear which, if any, would get the 50 votes needed to pass.

 
Here are today's top stories...
 

Republican senators rallied around Jeff Sessions in a rebuke to Trump. The president lashed out against the attorney general again Tuesday, drawing an immediate backlash from senators who rallied around their former colleague. “Attorney General Jeff Sessions has taken a VERY weak position on Hillary Clinton crimes (where are E-mails & DNC server) & Intel leakers!” Trump tweeted. Asked earlier whether Trump wanted Sessions gone, White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci said that was “probably right.”

 

Four of Hampton Creek's five board members quit in June, leaving only its co-founder and CEO Joshua Tetrick, employees learned last week. The group departure was the culmination of more than a year of infighting when many of Hampton Creek’s executives, investors and board lost faith in the founder they’d previously hailed as a visionary. Some of Tetrick’s most fervent defenders decided he had become a liability to Hampton Creek as well as their own reputations.

 

Tesla buyers are getting anxious, three months after making $1,000 deposits for the Model 3. The 373,000 people who have put down deposits don’t know where they fall in the wait list — or even what month or year their new cars will be available. More details will be released Friday, when CEO Elon Musk throws a handover party for the first 30 customers.

 

Researchers found evidence of brain disease in most football players in a new study. It's the largest update on chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a brain disease linked with repeated head blows. CTE was diagnosed in nearly 90 percent of the 202 brains studied. That includes 110 of 111 brains from former NFL players.

 

The Chipotle corporate sabotage theory returns. The burrito chain experienced another outbreak of foodborne illness last week, and with it spawned suspicions. One analyst, who says he found numerous statistical anomalies, posited the illness might not be a matter of bad luck, but rather a conspiracy to benefit short sellers who stand to gain millions when news of an outbreak causes the company's stock to plunge.

 
 
 

The Get-Ready-for-Armageddon Businesses

The Japanese have viewed North Korea as a menace for decades, but the regime’s July 4 launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile raised the level of alarm among people serious about emergency preparedness. Underground-shelter manufacturers in the U.S. have been inundated with inquiries.

 
 

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