Hello from CNN, I'm Joe Beck, with the five things you need to know for Monday July 8th.

Beryl has weakened to a tropical storm after making landfall in Texas as a hurricane this morning.

The storm is still expected to bring extreme rainfall and flash flooding to Metro Houston

and Galveston today though before continuing north.

Millions of people have lost power in the state, while flights have been cancelled at major airports.

And an official says a man was killed in Houston after a tree fell on his home, taking

barrel's death toll to 10 across the US, Venezuela, and the Caribbean.

The storm is expected to gradually lose strength as it moves further inland,

but is likely to stay as a tropical storm for the rest of the day,

bringing torrential rain and dangerous flash flooding.

President Joe Biden has a message for House Democrats.

He's staying in the race.

He wrote a letter to congressional party members today saying he will continue his

re-election bid, despite mounting concerns about his mental

fitness and the viability of his campaign.

Meanwhile, as Biden's problems continue to make headlines, former President Donald Trump is trying to get back into the spotlight.

Over the next 10 days, Trump is expected to announce his running mate, hold a pair of campaign rallies,

and kick off a Republican convention in Milwaukee.

But CNN Steve Contorno says Trump's events are getting overshadowed, and uncertainty over

Biden could ultimately impact his VP pick.

Many allies don't believe his choice is finalized.

We talked to one Republican fundraiser close to the campaign,

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