memeorandum: Sessions' loyalty to Trump will be put to the test (Seung Min Kim/Politico)

8:10 AM ET, June 13, 2017

Top Items:

John Harwood / CNBC:

Trump makes bizarre claims at press event as Cabinet members take turns praising him — Trump said that few presidents have passed more legislation than he has, though Congress has passed no major legislation since he has been president — Since taking office in January …

Discussion: Common Dreams, New York Times, Washington Post, Vox and NBC News

Julie Hirschfeld Davis / New York Times:

Trump's Cabinet, With a Prod, Extols the ‘Blessing’ of Serving Him — WASHINGTON — One by one, they praised President Trump, taking turns complimenting his integrity, his message, his strength, his policies. Their leader sat smiling, nodding his approval.

Discussion: The Guardian, RedState, Washington Free Beacon, The Moderate Voice, Politicus USA, Crooked Timber, Hullabaloo and Mediaite

Chris Cillizza / CNN:

Donald Trump just held the weirdest Cabinet meeting ever — (CNN)Leave it to Donald Trump to reinvent the Cabinet meeting. — The public portion of these gatherings of all of the president's top advisers are usually staid affairs. Photographers are let in to take pictures.

Discussion: Daily Kos, New York Times, Common Dreams, Politico, Washington Post, Mediaite, Business Insider, The Week, Washington Monthly, The Washington Journal, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Fox News Insider, Talking Points Memo, Little Green Footballs, Political Wire and twitchy.com

Mike Allen / Axios:
This isn't normal: Inside Trump's daily disruptions

Discussion: Daily Mail, Washington Times and Fox News

John Wagner / Washington Post:
Praise for the chief: Trump's Cabinet tells him it's an ‘honor’ and ‘blessing’ to serve

Discussion: ABC News

Rosie Gray / The Atlantic:

A Friend of Trump's Reports That He Is Considering Firing Robert Mueller — Donald Trump is considering dismissing the special counsel assigned to the Russia investigation, a confidant said on Monday. — Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy told PBS Newshour that Trump is “considering perhaps terminating” …

Discussion: Vox and CANNONFIRE

Paul Mirengoff / Power Line:

Should Trump fire Mueller, Part Two [UPDATED] — What, at this point, is the rationale for having a “special counsel” investigate matters relating to Russian involvement in the 2016 election and matters stemming from the investigation of these matters? We don't need a special counsel to investigate Russian interference in itself.

Discussion: The Hill, The Gateway Pundit and New York Magazine

Erica R. Hendry / PBS NewsHour:
Trump confidant: 'I think he's considering perhaps terminating the special counsel'

Discussion: Washington Post, Politico, CNBC, Fox News, The Hill, theGrio, Just Security, NBC News and Media Matters for America

John Wagner / Washington Post:
Trump friend floats possibility of firing special counsel in Russian probe

Discussion: New York Times, Fast Company, The Week and Outside the Beltway

JGoldsmith / Lawfare:
If Trump Fires Mueller (Or Orders His Firing)

Discussion: The Hill, Politico, Power Line, ThinkProgress, The Washington Journal, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, IJR, Vox, RedState, Talking Points Memo, Shareblue, TheBlaze, Business Insider and Media Matters for America

Eli Watkins / CNN:

Judge orders DOJ to produce Sessions' clearance form — DOJ: Sessions didn't disclose Russia meetings — Washington (CNN)A US District Court judge in Washington gave the Justice Department one month to make public a page of Attorney General Jeff Sessions' clearance form …

Discussion: New York Post, New York Times, The Guardian, Raw Story, Mediaite, Shareblue, The Root, Washington Post and Talking Points Memo

Julia Ioffe / The Atlantic:
Why Did Jeff Sessions Really Meet With Sergey Kislyak?

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, Washington Post, New York Times and Vox

Jonathan Swan / Axios:
What Jeff Sessions will say in his Senate hearing

Discussion: Business Insider

Daniel Lippman / Politico: TRUMP'S lunch companions today …

Seung Min Kim / Politico:
Sessions' loyalty to Trump will be put to the test

Discussion: ABC News and The Hill

Suzanne Vranica / Wall Street Journal:

J.P. Morgan Removes NBC News Ads Over Megyn Kelly Interview with Alex Jones — So far, advertisers—with one notable exception—have remained quiet as Sandy Hook families criticize the NBC host for her sit-down with the Infowars founder — NBC anchor Megyn Kelly's plan to air an interview …

Daniel Nussbaum / Breitbart:

Megyn Kelly Faces Boycott over Alex Jones Interview — Megyn Kelly has come under fire for a planned Father's Day interview with InfoWars founder Alex Jones on her new Sunday night NBC News program, with social media users calling for a boycott of the program's advertisers and urging others …

Discussion: Washington Post, Vox, Media Matters for America, The Daily Caller, Death and Taxes, Business Insider and Daily Kos

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Plurality Of Voters Think Trump Obstructed Justice — PPP's newest national poll finds a variety of bad news for Donald Trump in the wake of James Comey's testimony to Congress last week. 49% of voters say that they think Trump committed obstruction of justice, to just 41% who don't think he did.

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

Caitlin Owens / Axios:
Senate GOP won't release draft health care bill

Sarah Kliff / Vox:
Want to see the Senate's draft health care bill? Good luck.

Discussion: Axios, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider and The Week

BuzzFeed:

Poison in the System — When a financier dropped dead in Britain shortly after exposing a vast Russian crime, police said it was not suspicious. But with his inquest now underway, BuzzFeed News has uncovered explosive evidence of a suspected Kremlin assassination plot …

Discussion: Axios

Bloomberg:

Russian Breach of 39 States Threatens Future U.S. Elections — Hackers said to take measure of voting systems, databases — A ‘red phone’ warning to the Kremlin from Obama White House — Russia's cyberattack on the U.S. electoral system before Donald Trump's election was far more widespread …

Discussion: The Week

Louise Radnofsky / Wall Street Journal:

Secret Service Has No Audio or Transcripts of Any Tapes Made in Trump White House — The U.S. Secret Service has no audio copies or transcripts of any tapes recorded within President Donald Trump's White House, the agency said Monday.

Discussion: Vox, The Hill, Politico, Death and Taxes, NBC News, Common Dreams, Mediaite, Daily Kos, AOL, CNBC, Business Insider, Talking Points Memo, Axios, The Atlantic, The Washington Journal, RedState, The Week, IJR, Political Wire, Washington Free Beacon and Bloomberg

CNN:

Exclusive: Dennis Rodman heading to North Korea — Hong Kong and Washington (CNN)NBA Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman is expected to arrive in North Korea Tuesday, according to two officials in that country who spoke to CNN. — CNN spotted Rodman at Beijing International Airport, where he declined to answer questions.

Discussion: Business Insider, Detroit Free Press, Death and Taxes, The Daily Caller, AOL, RedState, New York Magazine and Mediaite

Jordain Carney / The Hill:

Senate strikes deal to exert power over Russia sanctions — The Senate has clinched a deal to exert power over President Trump when it comes to sanctions on Russia, according to a key senator involved in the talks. — Sen. Bob Corker — (R-Tenn.) said lawmakers have struck an agreement …

Discussion: Politico, The Week, New York Magazine, The Washington Journal, IJR and Politicus USA

Bloomberg:

Cook Says Apple Is Focusing on Making an Autonomous Car System — For the first time, CEO elaborates on Apple's car plans — The company's automotive program has experienced turmoil — After years toiling away in secret on its car project, Apple Inc. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook …

Discussion: Engadget, WIRED UK, The Verge and Fast Company, more at Techmeme »

Circa:

WATCH | Ex-FBI Director James Comey had second, frosty exchange with Obama Attorney General Loretta Lynch. — Ex-FBI Director James Comey has privately told members of Congress that he had a frosty exchange with Obama Attorney General Loretta Lynch last year when he confronted …

Discussion: IJR, twitchy.com, The Gateway Pundit and Talking Points Memo

Marshall Cohen / CNN:

Special counsel team members donated to Dems, FEC records show — Special counsel members donated to Dems — Washington (CNN)Four members of the legal team known to have been hired so far by special counsel Robert Mueller to handle the Russia investigation have given political donations almost exclusively …

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, Power Line, Mediaite, ABC News, ThinkProgress and The Week

Hayley Miller / HuffPost:

Wyoming Town Hall Replaces Donald Trump Portrait With Photo Of Native American Chief — “We aren't required to display signs of respect — our respect is earned, not demanded,” the mayor said. — A Wyoming mayor's decision to remove portraits of President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence …

Discussion: Raw Story

Damian Paletta / Washington Post:

The government only has enough money to pay its bills through September, Trump administration says — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin for the first time Monday said the Treasury Department only has enough money to fund the government through early September, a much earlier timeline than many analysts had projected.

Discussion: Raw Story and Political Wire

Associated Press:
The Latest: Treasury has ‘backup plans’ to fund government

Discussion: Politico

Jack Maidment / Telegraph:

Queen's Speech delayed because it has to be printed on goatskin paper that takes days for ink to dry — The Queen's Speech is going to be delayed because it has to be written on goatskin paper and the ink takes days to dry. — Whitehall sources suggested at a briefing of journalists …

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Alan Henry / Broadway World:

Delta Sponsored 2012 Guthrie Theater Season Which Featured Obama Inspired Julius Caesar — On Sunday night, Delta Air Lines announced that they were ending their four-year-old sponsorship agreement with The Public Theater over their current Shakespeare in the Park production of JULIUS CAESAR.

Discussion: Washington Post, WCCO | CBS Minnesota, arts.gov, New York Post, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, Mashable, Longreads, Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times and Slate, more at Mediagazer »

Wall Street Journal:

Goldman's Blankfein, Citi's Corbat Duped by Email Prankster — The chief executives of Goldman Sachs Group and Citigroup are the latest bank bosses to be hooked by an email prankster trolling top Wall Street brass, exposing a low-tech gap in banks' cybersecurity armor.

Etan Vlessing / Hollywood Reporter:

ABC's ‘Roseanne’ to Tackle Trump Era in Sitcom Revival — At Banff, ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey says she isn't certain Roseanne Barr will name the U.S. president, but “she's going to speak very honestly.” — Expect comedian Roseanne Barr to tackle Donald Trump …

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:

Rolling Stone Settles With University Of Virginia Fraternity Over Rape Hoax Article — Rolling Stone has settled a lawsuit with the University of Virginia fraternity whose members were falsely accused of raping a female student in a Nov. 2014 article, The Daily Caller has learned.