memeorandum: While GOP candidates stammer, Clinton directly confronts race (Washington Post)

12:00 PM ET, June 23, 2015

Top Items:

David Edwards / Raw Story:

Mike Huckabee calls for less dialog on race and more ‘conversions’ for Jesus: God already ‘solved’ racism — DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY! — Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee declared on Tuesday that racism had been solved. — The day after South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley …

Discussion: Mediaite, Joe. My. God. and Mock Paper Scissors

MJ Lee / CNN:

First on CNN: Walmart to stop selling Confederate flag merchandise — (CNN)Walmart, the country's largest retailer, will remove all Confederate flag merchandise from its stores, the company told CNN Monday. — The announcement is the latest indication that the flag, a symbol of the slave-holding South …

Clay Chandler / The Clarion Ledger:

Gunn: Confederate part of state flag ‘needs to be removed’ — Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn said Monday night that the Confederate emblem in the state's official flag has to go. — “We must always remember our past, but that does not mean we must let it define us,” Gunn, a Clinton Republican, said in a statement.

Washington Post:

While GOP candidates stammer, Clinton directly confronts race — The racially motivated massacre last week at a church in Charleston, S.C., opened a leadership opportunity for the nearly two dozen politicians running to be the next president. — But very few stepped forward to seize it.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Daily Kos, Hinterland Gazette, Raw Story, Politico, Slate, NPR, ABC News, US News, CNN, Guardian, Outside the Beltway, Bloomberg Business, Business Insider and NBC News

Politico:

Inside the Republican reversal on the Confederate flag — South Carolina Gov. Haley began informing people Friday of her decision, while Sen. Graham worked the phones with business leaders. — John McCain has expressed regret in hindsight over his own statements during his 2000 campaign that the Confederate flag was a state issue.

Discussion: Bloomberg Business, BuzzFeed, The Federalist, Outside the Beltway, Washington Post, CNN and New York Times

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:
Rand Paul: Confederate Flag “Inescapably A Symbol Of Human Bondage And Slavery”

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

New York Times:
Take Down the Confederate Flag, Symbol of Hatred

Discussion: Fusion, Daily Kos, PoliticusUSA, Poynter., AMERICAblog News and Gawker, more at Mediagazer »

Ta-Nehisi Coates / The Atlantic:
What This Cruel War Was Over — The Confederate Monument …

Discussion: Washington Post, Jackson Free Press, Religion News Service, Slantpoint, Associated Press, Instapundit and US News

Michael Falcone / ABC News:
The Note: Confederate Flag Decision Shines a Spotlight on Nikki Haley

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, The Intercept, Patterico's Pontifications and Yahoo Politics

Dave Boucher / Tennessean.com:
TN leaders: Remove Nathan Bedford Forrest bust from Capitol

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Politico, The Daily Beast, NBC News and Occidental Dissent

Washington Post:
The Confederate battle flag is not worthy of respect

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Washington Monthly and The Huffington Post

Paige Lavender / The Huffington Post:
Nikki Haley Calls For Confederate Flag To Be Removed From South Carolina Capitol

Discussion: The Great Debate, The Nation, Mock Paper Scissors, Slate and Slantpoint

Reuters:
Wal-Mart, Sears to stop selling Confederate flag merchandise

Discussion: Quartz

CNN:
Nikki Haley calls for removal of Confederate flag from capitol grounds

Discussion: WTVR-TV, The Huffington Post, Joe. My. God., Scared Monkeys, Guardian, Washington Post, KTLA, New York Times, FITSNews, Hot Air, RedState, Raw Story and Warren Throckmorton

New York Times:

The Roberts Court's Surprising Move Leftward — This term so far shows potential for a greater percentage of liberal decisions than any since 1969. — Decisions … The Supreme Court under Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. has been a conservative court.

Discussion: Liberaland

Damon Root / Hit & Run:
The Kelo Debacle Turns 10

Discussion: Cafe Hayek and Washington Post

Orange County Register: Ten years later, still learning the lessons of Kelo

Patrick O'Connor / Wall Street Journal:

WSJ/NBC Poll Finds Hillary Clinton in a Strong Position — She has firm grip on Democratic nomination and leads three GOP rivals, new survey shows — Hillary Clinton has emerged from the rocky launch of her second presidential bid with a firm grip on Democratic voters and leads …

Discussion: Politico, Taylor Marsh, Washington Post and Outside the Beltway

Peter Schweizer / New York Post:
‘Clinton Cash’ author demolishes Hillary's self-defense

Discussion: Betsy's Page

Mark Murray / NBC News:
Hillary Clinton Dominates 2016 Democratic Field, Leads GOP Rivals

Discussion: Washington Post, Shakesville, New York Times, OnPolitics, NBC News, The Moderate Voice, Political Wire, The Daily Caller and Business Insider

Bill Curry / Salon:
Hillary Clinton is going to lose: She doesn't even see the frustrated progressive wave that will nominate Bernie Sanders

Discussion: Diary of a Mad Voter, Roll Call, Power Line, Liberal Values, Fox News and The Stranger …

Caroline Bologna / The Huffington Post:

Charleston Dad's Viral Photo Captures Love In The Aftermath Of Tragedy — On Sunday June 21, local parishioners from churches across the Charleston area took part in “Charleston United,” an emotional prayer and worship gathering to honor the victims of the Emanuel A.M.E. Church shooting.

Discussion: New York's PIX11, FOX31 Denver, Slantpoint and Common Dreams

John Nettles Jr / Facebook: #charlestonstrong #prayforcharleston — This picture was hard …

Andres Jauregui / The Huffington Post:

KFC ‘Fried Rat’ Is In Fact Chicken, Lab Test Confirms — It doesn't look appetizing, but it's definitely chicken. — Last week, KFC was forced to confront a customer's accusations that he'd been served a fried rat in a three-piece meal at a Los Angeles store.

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, New York's PIX11 and KFOR-TV

Sylvia Patrycja / Hollywood Reporter:

Composer James Horner Dies in Plane Crash: Hollywood Reacts — For his work on the 1997 best picture winner Titanic, directed by James Cameron, Horner captured the Oscar for original dramatic score, and he nabbed another Academy Award for original song (shared with lyricist Will Jennings) …

Discussion: Hit & Run, Variety, Washington Post, Guardian, The Huffington Post, KXAN-TV and Towleroad

Public Religion Research Institute:

Survey | Most Americans Believe Protests Make the Country Better; Support Decreases Dramatically if Protesters are Identified as Black — June 2015 PRRI/RNS Religion News Survey — ▶ Read the topline questionnaire, including the survey methodology, here. ▶ Read the news release here.

Discussion: Washington Post and Real Clear Politics

Scott Wong / The Hill:

Punished GOP lawmaker stirs new talk of Boehner rebellion — A band of House conservatives is discussing whether to retaliate against GOP leaders for punishing rank-and-file lawmakers who voted against a procedural vote on trade earlier this month. — Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) …

Discussion: Political Wire

Mark Blumenthal / The Huffington Post:

The Surprising Reason So Many People Still Don't Like Obamacare — The Supreme Court could issue a ruling in King v. Burwell, the lawsuit threatening to undermine a key part of the Affordable Care Act, as early as Monday. But the debate over President Barack Obama's controversial health care law …

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Slantpoint

Michael D. Shear / New York Times:
Obama's Legacy Is at Stake in Supreme Court's Health Care Ruling

Discussion: Business Insider

Casey Michel / Politico:

Putin's plot to get Texas to secede — For Moscow's right-wingers, payback means teaming up with a band of Texas secessionists. — Lead image by AP Photo. — Nathan Smith, who styles himself the “foreign minister” for the Texas Nationalist Movement, appeared last Spring at a far-right confab in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Discussion: BuzzFeed, Joe. My. God. and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Sen. Ted Cruz / BREITBART.COM:

Exclusive — Ted Cruz: Obamatrade Enmeshed in Corrupt, Backroom Dealings — The American people do not trust President Obama. And they do not trust Republican leadership in Congress. And the reason is simple: for far too long, politicians in Washington have not told the truth.

Discussion: Politico, Daily Mail and TPNN

Stephanie Smith / Page Six:

MSNBC staff chanted ‘F- -k Brian Williams’ at party — Brian Williams' welcome to MSNBC might be frigid because staffers there haven't forgotten a scathing report he arrogantly aired on his short-lived “Rock Center” about “corrosive” cable news blowhards at MSNBC, Fox News and CNN.

Discussion: Business Insider, Mediaite and The Daily Caller