Top Items:
New York Times:
Barr Abruptly Seeks to Fire U.S. Attorney Who Investigated Trump Associates — But the United States attorney in Manhattan, Geoffrey Berman, who had been leading the inquiry into Rudolph Giuliani, is refusing to leave his position. — Attorney General William P. Barr on Friday night abruptly tried …
Discussion:
Axios, ABC News, The Hill, Gothamist, Raw Story, Why Evolution Is True, The Daily Caller and Politico
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U.S. Department of Justice:
Attorney General William P. Barr on the Nomination of Jay Clayton to Serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York — Attorney General William P. Barr has released the following statement: — “I am pleased to announce that President Trump intends to nominate Jay Clayton …
Discussion:
Raw Story, The Daily Beast, Reason, CNN, Daily Kos, TheBlaze, Law & Crime, Talking Points Memo, JONATHAN TURLEY, The Hill, Mediaite, NPR, Axios, emptywheel and Lawyers, Guns & Money
Devlin Barrett / Washington Post:
Trump administration replaces Manhattan U.S. Attorney — The Trump administration announced Friday night that Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman, whose office has handled a number of investigations involving the president or his campaign, will be leaving that job.
CNN:
Powerful US attorney who investigated Trump associates refuses to step down after Barr tries to push him out — Washington (CNN)In a fast-escalating crisis Friday night, Attorney General William Barr tried to oust Geoffrey Berman, the powerful US attorney for the Southern District of New York …
Associated Press:
US attorney who oversaw cases of Trump allies steps down — WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. attorney who oversaw key prosecutions of allies of President Donald Trump and an investigation into Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani is resigning from his post, officials said Friday.
Discussion:
New York Post, Fox News and The Last Refuge
NBC News:
‘I have not resigned’: Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman fires back at Barr, who says he's leaving — “I will step down when a presidentially appointed nominee is confirmed by the Senate. Until then, our investigations will move forward without delay or interruption,” Berman said.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Outside the Beltway, Mediaite and Raw Story
Wall Street Journal:
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman Stepping Down From Post
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman Stepping Down From Post
Discussion:
The Week
CBS News:
Donald Trump's campaign manager didn't vote for Donald Trump in 2016 — Brad Parscale, Donald Trump's campaign manager, did not vote for President Trump in 2016. In fact, he didn't vote in the general election at all, according to election records obtained by CBS News.
Discussion:
CNN, Raw Story, The Hill, National Review, Daily Kos, NPR, Associated Press, The Daily Caller and Talking Points Memo
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Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Trump and RNC trail Biden in May fundraising, but maintain cash advantage heading into summer — EXCLUSIVE: The Trump campaign, the Republican National Committee and their joint fundraising committee raked in a combined $74 million in May, topping their April numbers but trailing the Biden campaign …
Discussion:
Associated Press
BuzzFeed News:
Roger Stone Told Trump In Advance Wikileaks Would Release Documents Harmful To Clinton Campaign, Aides Claimed — Newly unredacted portions of the Mueller report show that Paul Manafort, Rick Gates, and Michael Cohen told investigators Stone had promised the campaign damaging revelations by Wikileaks.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly
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CNN:
Mueller raised possibility Trump lied to him, newly unsealed report reveals — (CNN)Special counsel Robert Mueller examined whether President Donald Trump lied to him in written answers during the Russia investigation, a possibility House Democrats have said they continue to look into even after Trump's impeachment.
Jonathan Martin / New York Times:
How the Shooting of Breonna Taylor Changed the Kentucky Senate Race — With a war chest of $40 million, Amy McGrath was considered a safe bet in the Democratic primary. But the recent movement for racial justice has elevated the candidacy of her African-American rival, Charles Booker.
Discussion:
The Nation
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Trump: Expect “wild evening” in Tulsa, mask optional — President Trump defended his decision to move ahead with a controversial large-scale Tulsa rally this weekend amid the pandemic, saying in an interview Friday with Axios that “we have to get back to living our lives” and …
Discussion:
The Guardian, The Hill, JustOneMinute, NBC News and Mediaite
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Lauren Egan / NBC News:
Outside Trump's Tulsa rally site, few face masks and no social distancing
Outside Trump's Tulsa rally site, few face masks and no social distancing
Discussion:
DCist, MSNBC and courthousenews.com
USA Today:
Black gun owners plan pro-Second Amendment walk in Oklahoma City on day of Trump rally — OKLAHOMA CITY - They will be arriving in peace, and hoping to carry a message. — Omar Chatman, 41, is one of the organizers for 1,000 brothers and sisters in arms, a pro-Second Amendment walk planned …
Amanda Woods / New York Post:
Florida Gov. blames coronavirus rise on ‘overwhelmingly Hispanic’ workers — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis pointed to clusters of “overwhelmingly Hispanic” day laborers and agriculture workers for driving the state's recent coronavirus spike — but farmworkers and industry associations argue …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, The Stranger, TheBlaze and Documented
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The Daily Beast:
Trump Wonders if John Bolton Will Go to Jail — The president's former national security adviser has rattled the White House, which hates the leaking as much as the substance of what was leaked. — In recent days, President Donald Trump has casually asked administration officials …
Discussion:
Raw Story, CNN, POLITICUSUSA and Mediaite
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Julie Pace / Associated Press:
Amid wave of cultural change, Trump tries to stir a backlash — WASHINGTON (AP) — It was June 2015, and Democrats felt the nation's political and cultural winds blowing their way. The Supreme Court ruled in President Barack Obama's favor on landmark gay marriage and health care cases.
Nikki Carvajal / CNN:
Asked repeatedly to say ‘Black lives matter,’ Mike Pence says ‘all lives matter’ — (CNN)Vice President Mike Pence declined to say the words “Black lives matter” during an interview with an ABC affiliate in Pennsylvania on Friday, instead saying that “all lives matter.”
Discussion:
New York Times, 6abc and POLITICUSUSA
Jonathan V. Last / The Bulwark:
America Is Lucky Bolton Didn't Testify During Impeachment — It's better to suspect that the Constitution is deeply imperiled than to remove all doubt. — 1. Better Lucky Than Good — I'm going to swerve on John Bolton's initial revelations: — America is tremendously lucky that Bolton did not testify during impeachment.
Discussion:
The Bulwark Podcast
Donie O'Sullivan / CNN:
Parent of toddler in ‘manipulated’ Trump video forces Facebook and Twitter to remove it — New York (CNN Business)Facebook and Twitter on Friday removed a video posted by President Donald Trump's account that had twisted a viral video of two toddlers after one of the children's parents lodged a copyright claim.
Discussion:
NBC News, The Daily Caller, Gizmodo, Law & Crime, The Verge, Mediaite, POLITICUSUSA, Mashable, Variety, The Western Journal, NPR and Snopes.com
Dan Rodricks / Baltimore Sun:
How a West Baltimore nursing home has zero COVID-19 infections | COMMENTARY — Here's a key question for the Rev. Derrick DeWitt, director of the Maryland Baptist Aged Home in West Baltimore, a 100-year-old nursing facility that has had no coronavirus infections: What was the moment …
Trip Gabriel / New York Times:
Joni Ernst and Donald Trump Could Both Be in Trouble in Iowa — Iowa seemed out of reach for Democrats not too long ago. Now, the presidential race appears to be tightening, and Senator Ernst, a Republican, is facing a strong challenge from a political newcomer. — Iowa was not on anyone's bingo card of 2020 battlegrounds.
Liam Stack / New York Times:
Can Gay Bars, an Anchor of N.Y.C. Nightlife, Survive the Pandemic? — June is Pride Month, but high rents and little-to-no income mean establishments including the Stonewall Inn are “facing an uncertain future.” — Protesters have returned to the Stonewall Inn again and again in recent weeks …
Robert T. Garrett / Dallas Morning News:
Profane recording surfaces of 2 Empower Texans operatives joking about Gov. Greg Abbott being in wheelchair — In outtakes after a podcast taping, the two excoriate Abbott for letting cities and counties fine businesses that don't require masks. ‘I hate him,’ one says.
Discussion:
Off the Kuff and Talking Points Memo
Roger Kimball / Spectator USA:
Thank goodness for Hillsdale College — Did you go to college? If so, then it is overwhelmingly likely that you have been the recipient of a nauseating communication like this one from ‘Maud’ (that would be Maud S. Mandel, President of Williams College) explaining how Williams will ‘confront and fight racial and social injustice.’
Aaron Navarro / CBS News:
After heated exchange on race, Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz reveals Cuban “son” — Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz revealed he has been raising an immigrant child from Cuba for more than six years on Thursday. — In a tweet featuring a picture of him and Nestor Galban, whom he calls his son …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Fox News, Twitchy, The Hill, Redstate, New York Post, The Federalist and People.com
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Grace Raynor / The Athletic:
Source: 23 Clemson football players test positive for COVID-19 — CLEMSON, S.C. — Clemson has had 23 football players and two football staff members test positive for COVID-19, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. The school on Friday announced 28 total positive test …
Discussion:
Twitchy, Sports Illustrated and New York Post
Andrew Pantazi / Florida Times Union:
Federal lawsuit calls Jacksonville protesters' arrests illegal and violent — A new federal lawsuit filed Friday calls on the court to enjoin the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office from continuing to arrest peaceful protesters, particularly as the city prepares for the Republican National Convention.
Discussion:
Raw Story