Aloha, buonasera, and Happy Father’s Day from Gotham City to all you poppas (and mommas and kiddos lucky enough to have a good dad in their world) out there. In tonight’s edition of The Best & The Brightest: Impolitic, my indignant and unrestrained rant regarding the abject asininity of one of the longest-standing and most inescapable quadrennial rituals in our politics—the veepstakes.

But first …

💔R.I.P., Jamal: The restaurant world was stunned to learn last night that one of its fastest-rising and most beloved stars, Jamal James Kent, had died at the age of 45. (At this hour, the cause of death has yet to be reported.) James was a dear friend of mine and a huge supporter of The Circus, letting us use his joints—the restaurants Crown Shy and Saga and the bar Overstory—in the majestic Art Deco building at 70 Pine St. in New York’s Financial District repeatedly as locations on the show. Indeed, we shot the final scene of the series from Saga’s balcony, with its sweeping views of the five boroughs.

Jamal was widely seen in the hospitality industry as a man on the way to global renown; you can read all about why in the obits here and here. And you can hear more on Tuesday’s episode of Impolitic with John Heilemann, where I’ll be talking with restaurant legend Danny Meyer about Jamal and much more. Also, be sure to check out Friday’s episode, which will feature a deep dive with Joe Biden’s campaign manager, Jen O’Malley Dillon.

And now for that running-mate rant…