Top Items:
Rachael Bade / Politico:
Inside Kevin McCarthy's secret promise to expunge Trump's record — Donald Trump is angry that the speaker hasn't endorsed his campaign. To placate him, McCarthy privately vowed to hold a vote to clear Trump's impeachments. Now, that promise is coming due.
RELATED:
Washington Post:
Trump aide William Russell at D.C. courthouse for grand jury appearance — An aide to Donald Trump was at a D.C. federal courthouse on Thursday for a grand jury appearance that is part of an investigation of the former president, as the Justice Department moves toward deciding whether …
emptywheel:
Trump's Attack on Black Votes Was There the Whole Time, We Just Didn't Call It a Crime — As I noted in an update to this post, NYT and the Guardian have clarified that the third charge mentioned in Trump's target letter was 18 USC 241, Conspiracy against Rights, not — as Rolling Stone originally reported — 18 USC 242.
Discussion:
acecomments.mu.nu and PoliticusUSA
Josephine Harvey / HuffPost:
George Conway Says Mark Meadows' ‘Strange Quietness’ Could Spell Trouble For Trump — The conservative attorney reacted to Donald Trump's announcement that he expects to be indicted in special counsel Jack Smith's Jan. 6 investigation. — Conservative attorney George Conway speculated Wednesday …
Discussion:
Raw Story, Mediaite and Political Wire
Politico:
Playbook: Scoop: McCarthy's secret promise to Trump — Presented by With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross — DRIVING THE DAY — HAPPENING TODAY — “'It makes them all look silly': Dems prepare to scorch RFK Jr. testimony,” by Nicholas Wu and Jordain Carney
Discussion:
The Messenger, The Daily Caller, Bulwark+ and The Hill
New York Times:
Potential Trump Charges Include Civil Rights Law Used in Voting Fraud Cases
Potential Trump Charges Include Civil Rights Law Used in Voting Fraud Cases
Discussion:
Insider, Just Security, The Guardian, NBC News, Digby's Hullabaloo, The Hill, emptywheel, Raw Story, The Daily Beast, The Wrap, The Gateway Pundit, PoliticusUSA, ABC News, CNBC, Balloon Juice and Bloomberg
Michael Daly / The Daily Beast:
Jan. 6 Rioters Have Bad News for Trump About D.C. Juries
Jan. 6 Rioters Have Bad News for Trump About D.C. Juries
Discussion:
Media Matters for America, Raw Story, New York Times, The First TV, Just The News, National Review, Axios and USA Today
Kaitlan Collins / CNN:
Trump quietly adds new attorney to January 6 legal team
Trump quietly adds new attorney to January 6 legal team
Discussion:
The Messenger, CBS News and Washington Examiner
Allison Quinn / The Daily Beast:
Florida Schools Will Teach How Slavery Brought ‘Personal Benefit’ to Black People — The Florida Board of Education has approved shocking new standards for African American history, despite overwhelming backlash from the public. — Middle school students in Florida will soon be taught …
Discussion:
NAACP, Florida Phoenix, The Messenger, The Root, Tallahassee Democrat, UPI, Sun-Sentinel and Florida Politics
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Lori Rozsa / Washington Post:
Florida approves Black history standards decried as ‘step backward’
Florida approves Black history standards decried as ‘step backward’
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, al.com, Newsbusters, Rolling Stone, WKRG-TV and HuffPost
Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Whistleblower X reveals identity as IRS special agent Joseph Ziegler — IRS whistleblowers testified at the House Oversight committee — The identity of the anonymous IRS whistleblower alleging political misconduct throughout the Hunter Biden investigation was revealed on Wednesday …
Discussion:
HotAir, New York Post, Daily Kos, Axios, New Republic, RedState, IJR, Louder With Crowder, The Federalist, The Gateway Pundit, CBS News, Washington Free Beacon, Advocate, USA Today, New York Times, TheBlaze, The Daily Caller, The Messenger, The Daily Signal, Mediaite, ZeroHedge News, Just The News, Power Line, NBC News, CNN, Breitbart, Ops Stuff and Washington Examiner
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Sinéad Baker / Insider:
MTG said she was ‘uncomfortable’ showing photos of Hunter Biden having sex but Americans ‘deserve’ to see them
MTG said she was ‘uncomfortable’ showing photos of Hunter Biden having sex but Americans ‘deserve’ to see them
Discussion:
New Republic, Washington Times, HuffPost, Washington Post, IJR, Twitchy, The Hill, Washington Examiner, Fox News, Just The News, Raw Story, PoliticusUSA, The Gateway Pundit and Must Read Alaska
Isabelle Chapman / CNN:
Nearly two years after Texas' six-week abortion ban, more infants are dying — Texas' abortion restrictions - some of the strictest in the country - may be fueling a sudden spike in infant mortality as women are forced to carry nonviable pregnancies to term.
Discussion:
NBC News, The Texas Tribune, CBS News, Fox News and Los Angeles Times
Brent D. Griffiths / Insider:
Trump praises ‘fantastic guy’ Jason Aldean after CMT pulls the country star's ‘Try That in a Small Town’ video — Trump threw his support behind country star Jason Aldean, joining a growing list of Republicans. — The former president's support came after CMT pulled Aldean's “Try That In A Small Town” video.
Discussion:
Fox News, Washington Post, Associated Press, Marin Independent Journal, Billboard, Rolling Stone, Big League Politics, The First TV, CNN, WKRN-TV, NewsNation, RedState, Florida Politics, Washington Examiner, New York Times, One America News Network, The Messenger, USA Today, HotAir, Global News, TheBlaze, Just The News, UPROXX, UPI, Breitbart, Not the Bee, The Daily Caller, Althouse, CBS News, The Daily Beast and Twitchy
Washington Post:
Influential activist Leonard Leo helped fund media campaign lionizing Clarence Thomas — The 25th anniversary of Clarence Thomas's confirmation to the Supreme Court was approaching — a moment that would draw attention to his accomplishments on the bench but also to the misconduct claims that had nearly derailed his rise.
Allan Smith / NBC News:
Five months in, Nikki Haley is still waiting for her moment — The former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and her allies feel like they'll soon prove the doubters wrong. Her rivals aren't worried. — NORTH CONWAY, N.H. — When Nikki Haley entered the presidential race Feb. 15, she was polling at 4.5%.
Discussion:
NewsNation
Mark Leibovich / The Atlantic:
The Long-Shot Candidate Who Has the White House Worried — Pull up a sticky green lawn chair, everyone. It's time for another round of Mounting Democratic Jitters, cherished summer pastime from Wilmington to the West Wing. Today's installment: Cornel West, unlikely MAGA accessory.
Discussion:
Reason
Tony Romm / Washington Post:
House GOP blocks funds to LGBT groups, using budget for cultural fights — Republicans denied funding to three Democratic efforts to assist local groups focused on LGBT housing and other issues, part of a sprawling conservative effort to use the 2024 budget to advance their social agenda
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Semafor, LGBTQ Nation and The Philadelphia Inquirer
Wall Street Journal:
How Donald Trump Ended Up With Priceless Israeli Antiquities — After an appeal from Israel, the former president agrees to return ceramic oil lamps and coins — Former President Donald Trump agreed to return ancient artifacts after Israel's antiquities authority launched a public campaign to get them back.
Discussion:
New York Post
Ryan Teague Beckwith / Bloomberg:
Poll Finds 16% Would Consider Backing Joe Manchin on a Third-Party Ticket — Poll shows three in ten voters open to alternative ticket — But support for fusion ticket drops when names attached — A new poll finds just 16% of registered voters would consider supporting …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Fox News, The Columbus Dispatch, Political Wire, Vote No In August and Florida Politics
RELATED:
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
GOP senators say Manchin bid would boost Trump, hurt Biden
GOP senators say Manchin bid would boost Trump, hurt Biden
Discussion:
The Economist, Washington Examiner, Fox News, WAVY.com and Bulwark+
Ella Lee / The Hill:
Judge denies bid by ‘QAnon Shaman’ to toss out Jan. 6 conviction — A federal judge Thursday denied a bid by Jan. 6 rioter Jacob Chansley — better known as the “QAnon Shaman” — to vacate his conviction in light of footage from the Capitol that day aired by ex-Fox News host Tucker Carlson.
Discussion:
Politico, The Messenger and Political Wire
Judd Legum / Popular Information:
Right-wing activists seek to ban “Arthur's Birthday” from Florida school libraries — On July 12, 2023, the book Arthur's Birthday was formally challenged in the Clay County School District, which is located outside of Jacksonville, Florida. The challenge is an effort to remove the volume from the district's school libraries.
ABC News:
RFK Jr. defends himself at House hearing as Dems rebuke him for COVID and race comment — Del. Stacey Plaskett said Kennedy had spread “idiotic, bigoted messaging.” — Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday appeared before a House subcommittee to testify …
Discussion:
The Hill, RedState, New Republic, Newsbusters, The Messenger, Rolling Stone, Washington Examiner, IJR and Media Matters for America
Politico:
Chinese and U.S. ag officials could meet in person next month — The U.S. has invited Chinese and Russian officials to a key food security meeting amid the fallout from Russia leaving the Black Sea grain deal, the Biden administration confirmed. — Key U.S. and Chinese officials …
Discussion:
The Messenger