memeorandum: DeSantis signs election overhaul; civil rights groups prepare lawsuit (Gary Fineout/Politico)

10:55 PM ET, June 28, 2019

Top Items:

Donald Trump Jr. Shares, Then Deletes, a Tweet Questioning Kamala Harris's Race — WASHINGTON — Donald Trump Jr., the president's eldest son, shared a tweet from a far-right supporter during the Democratic debate on Thursday night that quickly ignited a question online: Was Senator Kamala Harris …

BuzzFeed News:

A New Racist Campaign Against Kamala Harris Is Taking Shape — Not long after Sen. Kamala Harris challenged Joe Biden's record on race during part two of the first Democratic debate last night, a barrage of tweets questioned her race and US citizenship. While these claims erupted …

Discussion: The Daily Beast

Frank Rich / New York Magazine:

Kamala Harris's Debate Performance Should Scare Trump — Most weeks, New York Magazine writer-at-large Frank Rich speaks with contributor Alex Carp about the biggest stories in politics and culture. Today, the fallout from the first Democratic debates. — Over this week's two nights of debates …

Discussion: The Mahablog

Ezra Klein / Vox:

Kamala Harris was the Democrat you could imagine taking on Trump — How Harris shut down Joe Biden and transformed her candidacy, plus four other takeaways. — Sen. Kamala Harris is the closest Democrats have to a potential consensus candidate. She doesn't suffer from the enmity …

Discussion: Politico, New York Magazine, Breitbart, CNN, VICE, NBC News and New York Times, more at Mediagazer »

Brian Schwartz / CNBC:

Joe Biden loses support of top campaign fundraiser in Bay Area after comments on segregationists and Hyde amendment — KEY POINTS — Former Vice President Joe Biden lost a key financial supporter after his comments on working with segregationists and flip flopping on the Hyde Amendment.

Discussion: HuffPost, Politico, Associated Press, CNN, Daily Wire, Mercury News and Liberty Unyielding

Frank Bruni / New York Times:

And Now, the Dream of a Harris-Buttigieg Ticket — Two new Democratic stars outshone Biden and Sanders on the debate stage. — The big question going into Thursday night's debate was whether Joe Biden, the clear front-runner in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, would stumble.

Zach Montellaro / Politico:

Dem debates spark fundraising gusher for breakout stars — The Democratic digital fundraising platform ActBlue raised $6.9 million on Thursday alone — the party's biggest day in more than two months and a sign of fresh energy coursing through 2020 campaigns after this week's debates.

Discussion: One America News Network, Washington Post, Breitbart, Axios and Outside the Beltway

Domenico Montanaro / NPR:

LISTEN: Biden Supported A Constitutional Amendment To End Mandated Busing In 1975 — In 1975, one of the most divisive cultural and political issues of the time was busing, the practice of putting black and white children on buses and sending them to different schools within a school district to achieve integration.

Discussion: Vox, Above the Law and Washington Post

New York Times:
A Day After Bruising Debate, Biden Pushes Back Against Criticism on Civil Rights

Discussion: educationrealist, The Daily Caller, CNN, Politics K-12, Washington Post and The Wrap

Gabriel Debenedetti / New York Magazine:
Live Polling of the Debates: Good News for Harris, Warren, Biden, and Substance

Discussion: The Week

Reid Wilson / The Hill:
Harris claims Iowa momentum after first Democratic debates

Discussion: NewNowNext

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Biden addresses one problem, but bigger ones remain

Discussion: ABC News

David A. Graham / The Atlantic:
'My Time Is Up. I'm Sorry.'

Discussion: TheBlaze, CityLab and Refinery29

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Kamala Harris's takedown of Joe Biden was more lethal than it seems

Discussion: Hullabaloo, VICE, Daily Kos, Breitbart, Reason, The Mahablog, Vanity Fair and New York Times

Gary Fineout / Politico:

DeSantis signs election overhaul; civil rights groups prepare lawsuit — TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday quietly signed into law a sweeping elections overhaul that restricts the voting rights of former felons, a measure civil rights groups have already prepared to challenge in court.

Discussion: Washington Post, Axios and One America News Network

Lawrence Mower / Tampa Bay Times: Ron DeSantis signs Amendment 4 bill, limiting felon voting

Ari Berman / Mother Jones:
7 Months After Florida Approved an Expansion of Voting Rights, the Governor Just Gutted It

Discussion: ACLU and Washington Post

Washington Post:

Trump plans ticketed-access area for VIPs, friends and family at July 4 celebration — Plans by President Trump to reshape Washington's Independence Day celebration now include an area in front of the Lincoln Memorial reserved for dignitaries, family and friends that will be accessible …

Discussion: Political Wire

Kyle Cheney / Politico:

Ethics panel launches Gaetz investigation over Cohen tweet — The House Ethics Committee announced Friday that it is investigating Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) for a February tweet in which he threatened to release embarrassing personal information about President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen.

Discussion: Axios, Shareblue Media, BuzzFeed News, The Daily Caller and Mediaite

Emily Singer / Shareblue Media:
Matt Gaetz is afraid someone will throw pee at him

Discussion: Roll Call, Florida Politics and Joe.My.God.

House Committee on Ethics:
Statement of the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Ethics Regarding Representative Matt Gaetz

Discussion: Fox News, Washington Press, The Hill, New York Times, Roll Call, Talking Points Memo and UPI

Brian Stelter / CNN:

Harris, Biden face-off is highest-rated Democratic primary debate in history — New York (CNN Business)Thursday night's Democratic debate featuring Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, and eight other candidates was the highest-rated Democratic match-up in Nielsen ratings history.

Discussion: Hollywood Reporter, Hullabaloo, The Week, Shareblue Media, LGBTQ Nation and Washington Post, more at Mediagazer »

Alexander Nazaryan / Yahoo News: Conservative organization using claims of ‘secret list’ of liberal judges to rally Republican base

New York Times:

Trump and Putin Share Joke About Election Meddling, Sparking New Furor — OSAKA, Japan — They were having a good time. Like old friends reuniting, they warmly shook hands, smiled and chatted amiably. And then President Trump brushed off Russia's interference in American democracy …

Discussion: New York Post and Financial Times, more at Mediagazer »

John Wagner / Washington Post:
Jimmy Carter says Trump wouldn't be president without help from Russia

Discussion: Front Page Magazine, Axios, Breitbart and Reuters

Sarah Cammarata / Politico:
Jimmy Carter says a full investigation would show Trump lost in 2016

Discussion: Washington Post, Vox, Joe.My.God., TheBlaze and Washington Free Beacon

Veronica Stracqualursi / CNN:
Jimmy Carter suggests Trump is an illegitimate president

Discussion: fox5sandiego.com

David Nakamura / Washington Post:

In a tweet, Trump appears to invite Kim Jong Un to meet him at the Korean demilitarized zone — OSAKA, Japan — President Trump on Saturday invited North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to meet him in the Korean demilitarized zone when he visits the peninsula over the next two days …

Discussion: Political Wire

Dan Wetzel / Yahoo! Sports:

American Original: How Megan Rapinoe stole the show at the World Cup — PARIS — Megan Rapinoe took the pitch Friday to win for the United States, not to make a statement to its President or his supporters that had been barraging her social media accounts. — This was about the team, she said.

Andrew Sullivan / New York Magazine:

The Democratic Candidates Are in a Bubble on Immigration — There is now a photograph that sums up everything wrong about America's broken and overwhelmed immigration system. You've seen it, and it is hard to let it leave the mind or the conscience. Together with the accounts of horrifying abuse …

Discussion: The American Conservative

Jacqueline Thomsen / The Hill:

Judge blocks Trump from using billions in military funds for border wall — A federal judge on Friday issued a ruling blocking the Trump administration from tapping billions of dollars in military funds to construct a wall on the United States's southern border.

Discussion: Politico, The Gateway Pundit, One America News Network and Political Wire

David Brooks / New York Times:

Dems, Please Don't Drive Me Away — The dynamic pulling the party leftward. — I could never in a million years vote for Donald Trump. So my question to Democrats is: Will there be a candidate I can vote for? — According to a recent Gallup poll, 35 percent of Americans call themselves conservative …

Discussion: The American Conservative, Washington Monthly, Washington Post, twitchy.com, Hullabaloo, The Hill, Mother Jones, alicublog and The Root

Adam Serwer / The Atlantic:

Roberts's Rules of Misrepresentation — Chief Justice John Roberts would like the Trump administration to stop leaving a paper trail. — Conservatives were outraged Thursday when Roberts joined the Court's Democratic appointees in at least temporarily blocking the addition of a citizenship question …

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money

Slate:
John Roberts Played This Supreme Court Term Perfectly

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money

David French / National Review:

The Democrats Have No Answer for Mitch McConnell. Good. — If a Democrat wins the White House, McConnell will stop all his or her liberal plans. — After two debates and countless promises of sweeping political reform, the most important question of either night was asked …

Discussion: Splinter, New York Times and Outside the Beltway

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
Senate rejects attempt to curb Trump's Iran war powers

Discussion: The Nation, Politico, Townhall, Outside the Beltway and Daily Kos

Ted Nesi / WPRI-TV:

Kennedy: I now support Trump impeachment inquiry — EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Congressman Joe Kennedy III announced Friday he now supports opening an impeachment inquiry against President Trump, becoming one of the most high-profile House Democrats yet to break with Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the charged question.

Discussion: BostonGlobe.com, Mediaite and Daily Kos

J. Breen Mitchell / WFMJ-TV:

Vindicator announces it will stop production — After more than a century, The Vindicator will permanently cease production. — According to sources, the paper's final issue will be published in mid-August. — The announcement came Friday afternoon, just days after the newspaper marked its 150th anniversary.

Discussion: Plain Dealer, Vindicator and The Wrap, more at Mediagazer »