Sen. Dean Heller Comes Out Against Obamacare Repeal Bill, E.U. and Japan Inch Closer to Trade Deal, and Johnny Depp Apologizes For Trump Assassination Joke: P.M. Links

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  • Actor Johnny Depp (left)
    Ricky Brigante/Flickr

    While the United States continues down its protectionist path, other areas of the world are gaining a bit more trade freedom. Japan and the European Union are reportedly nearing a trade deal that would rollback restrictions on food and automobile imports.

  • Johnny Depp issued an apology for joking about assassinating President Donald Trump during a screening of his 2004 film The Libertine at England's Glastonbury Festival. "When was the last time an actor assassinated a president?" he had asked the crowd, a reference to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
  • More and more Republican senators are coming out against the Senate version of Obamacare repeal. The latest is Sen. Dean Heller of Nevada, who said in a press conference that he could not support the bill in its current form. Five Republican senators are now opposed to the bill, including Heller, which would be enough to kill its chances. Read Reason's coverage on why that would be a good thing.
  • The Arab states of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, and Bahrain have presented a list of demands to Qatar which the country must satisfy to restore normalized diplomatic relations. They include shutting down its state-funded Al Jazeera news network, cutting ties with Iran, and halting the construction of a Turkish military base in its territory.