Democratic Debate, Border Aid, Boeing: Your Thursday Briefing

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Good morning.

We’re covering Wednesday’s Democratic debate (and looking ahead to tonight’s) and the dispute in Congress over humanitarian aid for the border. And our editing quiz returns.

Democrats diverge on immigration and the economy

Ten of the party’s presidential candidates criticized President Trump’s immigration policies and conditions for the working class during a debate in Miami on Wednesday. But they disagreed over how aggressively to transform the country along liberal lines.

The details: The debate showed how far to the left Democrats have moved since 2016. Here are seven takeaways, as well as video highlights. We also kept track of how long each candidate spoke (some of them in Spanish).

Immigration: Julián Castro, the former mayor of San Antonio, repeatedly brought up his proposal to decriminalize illegal immigration, at one point asking Beto O’Rourke, a fellow Texan, why he would not support making it a civil offense.

Economy: Asked whether her plans risked hurting the economy, Senator Elizabeth Warren said the economy was “doing great” for a “thinner and thinner slice at the top.”

Biggest geopolitical threat: Several said climate change, some said China or Russia, and Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington said Donald Trump.

Reaction: Veteran campaign strategists and consultants on the left and on the right weighed in. We also fact-checked some of the candidates’ claims.

From Opinion: Our columnists Michelle Goldberg and Ross Douthat and an editorial board writer, Michelle Cottle, recapped and analyzed the evening.

A second night on the debate stage

Ten more Democratic candidates square off tonight. Among them are the two men who have run for president before — former Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Bernie Sanders — and the youngest candidate in the field, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, 37. Here are some of the dynamics to watch.

The details: It starts at 9 p.m. Eastern on NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo (in Spanish) and on their streaming platforms. (Wednesday’s debate was briefly interrupted by technical difficulties.) The Times will also have live coverage.

Stalemate over border spending

House Democrats plan to try today to reconcile their package of humanitarian aid for the southwestern border with a $4.6 billion version passed by the Senate that contains fewer restrictions on how the money could be spent.

On Wednesday, a photograph of a dead migrant father and his young daughter added an emotional charge to the debate in Washington, but it did little to narrow the partisan divide over immigration policy.

Related: The Customs and Border Protection authorities offered journalists a brief, highly controlled tour of a border station in Clint, Tex., after reports of filthy conditions for the children detained there. Conversations with the children were prohibited.

Another angle: Employees at Wayfair walked out of its offices in Boston on Wednesday to protest its sale of more than $200,000 of furniture to a government contractor that operates migrant detention facilities.

The Daily: Corroborating a sexual assault accusation

In today’s episode, one of our reporters talks to E. Jean Carroll, the columnist for Elle magazine who has accused President Trump of assaulting her in a dressing room in the mid-1990s. He has denied the allegation.

The podcast also features Carol Martin and Lisa Birnbach, the two women whom Ms. Carroll confided in at the time. They are both going on the record for the first time.

The details: Ms. Martin is a former news anchor at WCBS-TV in New York, and Ms. Birnbach is an author best known for “The Official Preppy Handbook,” a best seller released in 1981. She has occasionally written for The Times. The two women both knew or had met Mr. Trump, although they gave Ms. Carroll conflicting advice at the time. Read more here.

Eli Baden-Lasar always knew he was conceived with the help of an anonymous sperm donor.

When he was 19, he learned that he had half siblings. Over 10 months, he traveled to 16 states to meet and photograph 32 of them. He describes the journey in a moving essay for The Times Magazine.

Here’s what else is happening

Setback for Boeing: The Federal Aviation Administration said that it had discovered a new problem with the 737 Max jet that the company must correct before the plane returns to service.

New gauge for brain activity: Researchers have found a method to reveal “covert consciousness,” which could aid the recovery of people with severe brain injuries.

Angela Merkel: For the second time in 10 days, the German chancellor was seen shaking and struggling to maintain control of her body. Her spokesman insisted she was well.

From The Times: Rukmini Callimachi, a Times correspondent, will discuss her coverage of the Islamic State on a group call with readers today starting at 4 p.m. Eastern. It’s free, and you can sign up here.

Snapshot: Above, the Stonewall Inn in Manhattan in 1969, “a bar for the people who were too young, too poor or just too much to get in anywhere else,” one patron remembered. We revisited the night, 50 years ago today, that became a flash point in the modern gay rights movement.

Copy-edit this: How good are you at spotting grammatical errors? Take our quiz.

Late-night comedy: Several of the hosts broadcast live to weigh in on Wednesday’s debate. “There were 10 Democrats onstage, and to qualify, all a candidate needed was to poll at 1 percent or higher. That’s it? One percent? I mean, even O.J.’s at 2 percent,” Jimmy Fallon said.

What we’re reading: This piece from The Cut, by Allison P. Davis, about the rise and fall of the website Babe.net. Dan Saltzstein, our senior editor for special projects, writes: “The site stirred controversy last year for a #MeToo essay about the comedian Aziz Ansari. This article asks whether ‘the site’s writers — often with little or no journalistic experience or training — understood the traditions they were turning inside out or ignoring,’ capturing a fraught moment for youth media.”

Now, a break from the news

Cook: This cold rice-noodle dish, topped with spicy pork, herbs and peanuts, has roots in southwestern China.

Watch: In his Netflix series “Mr. Iglesias,” Gabriel Iglesias pays tribute to his alma mater, and to a classic comedy about underdog students.

Listen: Miley Cyrus sings a synth-pop remake of a Nine Inch Nails song in her role as a pop star in a recent “Black Mirror” episode. It’s the most effective Miley song of the past five years, our critic writes.

It sits atop the second-highest spot in Central Park, offering a panoramic look to the north of the Great Lawn. (“Belvedere” is derived from the Italian for “beautiful view.”)

Designed as an architectural “folly” with no practical purpose, the castle was later modified to house equipment for the U.S. Weather Service.

After falling into disrepair in the late 1960s and ’70s, the castle was renovated in the early 1980s. The current work is part of a broader $300 million renovation effort by the Central Park Conservancy.

Even if you haven’t visited, you may have seen the castle. It has had numerous appearances in TV and film, including in early episodes of “Sesame Street” as the home of Count von Count.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.

— Chris

Thank you
To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. Chris wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Today’s episode is about E. Jean Carroll, the woman who has accused President Trump of sexual assault.
• Here’s today’s Mini Crossword, and a clue: Terrain at the Italy/Switzerland border (4 letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• A letter to The Times in 1853, the year that Central Park was approved, said it would “present an object of public health, amusement and recreation, unsurpassed by any city in the world.” The park was completed 23 years later.