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Today's edition of quick hits:
* If you missed the speech, it's worth watching: "President Joe Biden on Monday defended his administration's decision to continue with the U.S. military drawdown in Afghanistan despite mounting chaos in that nation, arguing that the turmoil provided further evidence that it was time to leave."
* Difficult to watch: "Desperate Afghans surrounded passenger jets and attempted to force themselves onto a plane in Kabul's airport overnight as panic spread after the Taliban took control of the capital 20 years after being toppled by U.S. forces."
* Among those needing rescue: "Washington Post publisher Fred Ryan pleaded with the Biden administration Monday to help evacuate journalists and their families from Afghanistan as the Taliban take control of the capital, Kabul."
* The heartbreaking earthquake in Haiti: "Haitians scrambled overnight to try to find survivors trapped in the rubble of collapsed buildings after a major earthquake killed more than 1,200 people and injured 5,700 in the Caribbean country Saturday. The 7.2-magnitude quake injured hundreds more and flattened churches, homes and government buildings."
* Tropical Storm Fred "made landfall in Florida Monday afternoon, bringing heavy rain and a dangerous storm surge to the coast of Florida's Panhandle as Tropical Depression Grace and newly formed Tropical Depression 8 prompted storm watches in the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Bermuda."
* Encouraging: "Total vaccination numbers in the U.S. are at the highest they have been in more than a month as companies, organizations and, most recently, cities have begun announcing vaccine mandates. At the same time, Covid cases have also climbed around the country, driven by the highly contagious delta variant."
* The latest DHS threat warning: "The Department of Homeland Security issued a new threat advisory Friday, citing the approaching 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and simmering unrest over government restrictions related to the resurgent coronavirus pandemic."
* The economic effects of this are real: "Companies are sitting on a record amount of cash amid lingering uncertainty about disruptions from Covid-19, defying expectations earlier this year that a waning pandemic would unleash a spending spree."
* Climate crisis: "Between the wildfires, the floods, the droughts and the hurricane, it was hard to ignore climate change in July, which now has the unfortunate distinction of being the hottest month on record. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Friday that last month saw the highest temperatures since record keeping began 142 years ago."
* So much avoidable suffering: "Cardinal Raymond Burke, an outspoken conservative within the Roman Catholic Church and skeptic of Covid vaccinations, has been admitted to the hospital with the coronavirus and is on a ventilator."
See you tomorrow.