memeorandum: Libertarian Johnson would not use marijuana as president (Jonathan Easley/The Hill)

6:20 PM ET, June 7, 2016

Top Items:

Donald J. Trump / Donald J Trump for President:

DONALD J. TRUMP STATEMENT REGARDING TRUMP UNIVERSITY — It is unfortunate that my comments have been misconstrued as a categorical attack against people of Mexican heritage. I am friends with and employ thousands of people of Mexican and Hispanic descent. The American justice system relies on fair and impartial judges.

Discussion: Vox, Talking Points Memo, Mother Jones, ThinkProgress, Little Green Footballs, RedState, NPR, Political Insider blog, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Post On Politics, KTLA, AOL, The Daily Caller, LawNewz, Mediaite, Althouse and Yahoo

Lynn Sweet / Chicago Sun Times:

Sen. Mark Kirk withdraws support for Trump — WASHINGTON - Sen. Mark Kirk R-Ill., facing a big challenge from Rep. Tammy Duckworth D-Ill., said Tuesday he will not support presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump after earlier saying he will back him. — " I cannot and will not support …

Discussion: Reuters, Hot Air and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Ben Jacobs / Guardian:

Iowa state senator is first elected official to leave Republican party over Trump — David Johnson changes registration to No Party in response to Donald Trump accusing federal judge Gonzalo Curiel of bias based on his race — Iowa state senator David Johnson became the first elected official …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Raw Story and Politicus USA

Jordain Carney / The Hill:

GOP senator: 'I can't see myself voting for Donald Trump' … (R-Ariz.) on Tuesday doubled down on his skepticism of Donald Trump — , saying he currently doesn't believe he'll support the GOP's presumptive presidential nominee in November. — “As of now, unless he changes significantly …

Discussion: Politico, RedState, Bloomberg.com, Business Insider and Politicus USA

CNN:

Paul Ryan rips Donald Trump remarks as ‘textbook definition of a racist comment’ — (CNN)House Speaker Paul Ryan ripped Donald Trump's recent remarks saying a judge presiding over a lawsuit involving his business was biased because of his Mexican heritage as “the textbook definition of a racist comment.”

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, Heat Street, Media Matters for America and Right Wing Watch

Yoni Appelbaum / The Atlantic:

Live Coverage of the California and New Jersey Primaries … Breaking a day of silence—no press conferences, no television interviews, not even so much as a blustery tweet—Donald Trump this afternoon issued a statement. It began: … Fear not, gentle reader.

Discussion: The Last Refuge, Hullabaloo, Political Insider blog and American Prospect

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

Trump self-destructive rambling baffles GOP strategists — How did the controversy begin over Donald Trump's attacks on the judge in the Trump University lawsuit? It began when Donald Trump couldn't stop talking about the Trump University lawsuit. — In the normal course of events …

Discussion: The Week, RedState and Hot Air

Niels Lesniewski / Roll Call:

Rubio Says He Won't Speak on Trump's Behalf at GOP Convention — Florida senator says he would talk about own beliefs to Republican audience — McConnell to Trump: Don't Try to Fight Over the GOP Platform Chamber Backs Toomey With Cheesy Ad Would Rubio Be Pushing Zika Aid If He Were Still Running?

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Daily Wire, Business Insider, RedState and Hot Air

Associated Press:

The Latest: Scott calls Trump's comments ‘racially toxic’ — WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on campaign 2016 as California, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota and South Dakota vote. (all times Eastern): — The only black Republican senator says Donald Trump's comments …

Discussion: Mediaite, Bloomberg, Raw Story and The Daily Caller

Nick Gass / Politico:

Christie: Trump ‘not racist,’ has ‘right’ to express opinions on judge — Donald Trump has the “right” to express his opinion about the U.S. federal judge presiding over Trump University lawsuits, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie asserted Tuesday, defending the presumptive Republican nominee …

Sean Sullivan / Washington Post:
Under heavy criticism, Trump says he won't talk about judge in Trump University case any longer

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Daily Mail and Vox

Tierney Sneed / Talking Points Memo:
Trump Surrogate: Paul Ryan Is ‘Racist’ For Condemning Judge Attacks

Discussion: Daily Kos

William Petroski / Des Moines Register:
Iowa GOP lawmaker dumps party to protest Trump

Discussion: Business Insider, Political Wire, Politicus USA and Yahoo

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed: Susan Collins: “Very Difficult” To Back Trump After His Attack On Federal Judge

Brian Tashman / Right Wing Watch:
Pat Buchanan: Stop ‘The Lynching’ Of Donald Trump Over Racist Attack On Judge

Discussion: Politico

Joseph Murray / Breitbart:
Donald Trump Is Correct To Hit ‘La Raza’ Judge For Latino Identity Politics

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, Salon, The Atlantic, Media Matters for America and LawNewz

Sara Jerde / Talking Points Memo:
Ryan: Trump's Judge Attacks ‘The Textbook Definition Of A Racist Comment’

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Daily Wire, Hit & Run, Politico, New York Times and Associated Press

Pat Buchanan / Townhall.com:
The Donald & The La Raza Judge

Discussion: Daily Wire

David M. Herszenhorn / New York Times:
Paul Ryan Calls Donald Trump's Attack on Judge ‘Racist,’ but Backs Him Still

Discussion: The Atlantic, Mashable, Outside the Beltway, Talking Points Memo and rubber hose

Jay Newton-Small / TIME:
Susan Collins Says She's Not Yet Ready to Back Donald Trump

Discussion: RedState, Business Insider, Mediaite and WMUR

The Intercept:

Perfect End to Democratic Primary: Anonymous Super-Delegates Declare Winner Through Media — Last night, Associated Press - on a day when nobody voted - surprised everyone by abruptly declaring the Democratic Party primary over and Hillary Clinton the victor.

Joe Perticone / Independent Journal Review:
Bernie Sanders Delegate Forced to Withdraw from Democratic National Convention Over Drug Charges

Discussion: Politico, Talking Points Memo and The Daily Caller

New York Times:
Hillary Clinton Has Clinched Democratic Nomination, Survey Reports

Discussion: New York Magazine, Salon, Hit & Run, Independent Journal …, The Mahablog, Mediaite, Althouse, Outside the Beltway, The Nation and Politico

MSNBC:
Hillary Clinton makes history

Discussion: Washington Post, NBC News, Politico, Hit & Run, Gothamist, The Daily Caller, Washington Free Beacon, USA Today, Mother Jones, Vox, The Week and Booman Tribune

Bloomberg: Clinton's Historic Moment Tempered by Sanders, Who Won't Go Away

Nate Cohn / New York Times:
Pledges Pushed Hillary Clinton Over the Magic Number

Discussion: NBC News and CANNONFIRE

Robert Costa / Washington Post:
In San Francisco, Berniecrats lash out at media for calling nomination for Clinton

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Argus Leader, Fox News, Guardian, The Week, Politico, Political Insider blog, Instapundit, ABC News, CANNONFIRE and Sky Dancing

Benjamin Siegel / ABC News:
Nancy Pelosi ‘Proud to Endorse’ Hillary Clinton for President

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Sky Dancing, Mediaite, NBC News, Hot Air, Washington Times, No More Mister Nice Blog, Shakesville, The Week, Washington Free Beacon, Politico and CBS New York

Lisa Hagen / The Hill:
Clinton will call Sanders Tuesday night

Discussion: Politico, The Atlantic, Common Dreams, Mediaite, Daily Kos and New York Times

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:

Mitch McConnell: This Election Is About Choosing The Lesser Of Two Evils — “This is a choice that many Americans are not happy with.” — w.soundcloud.com — Asked on Monday if the general election between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump was a “lesser of two evils election,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell answered yes.

Discussion: RedState and Talking Points Memo

Chris Cillizza / Washington Post:

It's time for GOP leaders to choose sides on Donald Trump — This post has been updated. — Donald Trump has been the Republican presidential nominee for five weeks as of Tuesday. Those 35 days have been filled with self-inflicted wounds — the latest being Trump's insistence that a judge …

Discussion: Vox, ThinkProgress, CNN, New York Magazine, The Week, Talking Points Memo, Common Dreams, RedState and No More Mister Nice Blog

J.D. Durkin / Mediaite:
GOP Congressman Bizarrely Defends Trump: ‘You Could Easily Argue’ Obama Is Racist

Discussion: alan.com, National Review, New York Times and RedState

Joey Nolfi / EW.com:

Meryl Streep dons a fat suit and orangeface as Donald Trump — Further proving there's no role she can't tackle, acting legend Meryl Streep has gone from complete Margaret Thatcher to full Donald Trump, sporting messy hair, a low-hanging red tie, a fat suit, and comically-applied self-tanner …

Discussion: CNN, Raw Story, The Gateway Pundit, Gothamist, Business Insider and Mediaite

Melena Ryzik / New York Times:
Meryl Streep Does a Number on the Donald at the Public Theater's Gala

Discussion: The Verge, Associated Press and CBS New York

Associated Press:

Florida AG asked Trump for donation before nixing fraud case — WASHINGTON (AP) — Florida's attorney general personally solicited a political contribution from Donald Trump around the same time her office deliberated joining an investigation of alleged fraud at Trump University and its affiliates

Discussion: Warren Throckmorton, The Daily Caller, RedState, Raw Story, Daily Kos, LawNewz, Above the Law, Washington Free Beacon and Politico

Julian Hattem / The Hill:

FBI asks to make new secret filing in Clinton email case — The FBI has asked a federal judge for permission to file a second secret declaration detailing its probe into Hillary Clinton — 's private email server. — In the request, which came as part of a Freedom of Information Act …

Discussion: LawNewz and Hot Air

Lisa Hagen / The Hill:
State would need 75 years to compile Clinton emails

Discussion: CNN and MichelleMalkin.com

Gabriel Sherman / New York Magazine:

Dick Morris Is in Talks to Join the Trump Campaign — The controversial former Clinton adviser could play a key roll in Trump's anti-Hillary strategy. — Before Donald Trump's campaign was derailed by his racist attacks on a federal judge, the GOP nominee was surprisingly disciplined in his attacks on Hillary Clinton.