memeorandum: RFK Jr faces midnight deadline to qualify for CNN presidential debate (Stephanie Kelly/Reuters)

7:30 AM ET, June 20, 2024

Top Items:

Scorched-earth summer: Biden, Sunak and Macron go negative — Struggling leaders in America, Britain and France are bombarding their political opponents, some of whom are testing the bounds of the mainstream. — Even at a glittering Hollywood fundraiser, President Joe Biden's message was dark.

Discussion: Politico

Dana Blanton / Fox News:

Fox News Poll: Three-point shift in Biden-Trump matchup since May — 32% give the economy positive marks, a record-high during Biden's presidency — Join Fox News for access to this content — President Biden is the frontrunner in a hypothetical matchup against former President Trump …

Discussion: HuffPost, Reuters, FOX8 WGHP, Breitbart, New York Post, Mediaite and Hopium Chronicles

Shawn McCreesh / New York Times:

Trump Tries to Set Expectations, and Floats Excuses, for His Debate With Biden — The former president has set a low bar for President Biden's performance at next week's matchup. Now, he is preparing supporters for the possibility that Mr. Biden clears it.

Discussion: Boston Herald, Raw Story, Boing Boing and New Republic

Eric Levitz / Vox:
Biden's ads haven't been working. Now, he's trying something new.

Discussion: Florida Politics, Washington Examiner, The Western Journal and PoliticusUSA

Alex Thompson / Axios:
“In Mike I trust”: Biden's faith-based campaign

Discussion: Breitbart, The Western Journal, New York Post, The Dispatch, Washington Examiner, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Free Beacon, Raw Story, The Daily Caller, Fox News, The National Pulse, RedState, Mediaite and Tennessee Star

Sara Cline / Associated Press:

New law requires all Louisiana public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments — Louisiana has become the first state to require that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom, the latest move from a GOP-dominated Legislature pushing a conservative agenda under a new governor.

USA Today:
Louisiana law signed, first in US to require Ten Commandments in the classroom

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, Rolling Stone, Alternet.org, AllSides Balanced, Fox News and CBS News

Stephanie Kelly / Reuters:

RFK Jr faces midnight deadline to qualify for CNN presidential debate — Time is running out for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to qualify for 2024's first U.S. presidential debate, with the independent candidate counting on a longshot bid with a U.S. elections agency to put him on the stage.

Discussion: NOTUS, Washington Examiner, CNN, Kennedy24, Axios, HuffPost, UPI, Boston Herald, Breitbart, Balloon Juice, RedState, Washington Times, Vanity Fair, American Greatness, Reuters, OutsideTheBeltway, NBC News and Washington Post

Theodore Schleifer / New York Times:

Kennedy Raises Just $2.6 Million, a Sign of Reliance on His Running Mate — Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s campaign has depended heavily on contributions from Nicole Shanahan, his vice-presidential pick, who did not make major new donations in May. — Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s presidential campaign raised …

Discussion: Axios

Soo-Hyang Choi / Bloomberg:

Putin, Kim Agree to Immediately Offer Military Aid If Attacked — Mutual defense deal signed after Putin-Kim talks in Pyongyang — Pact similar to a 1961 deal signed during the Cold War — Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed …

Discussion: WHDH-TV, NBC News, Kyodo News+, AllSides Balanced, El País, Associated Press, The Guardian, Fox News, UPI, IJR and The Japan Times

David E. Sanger / New York Times:
Putin Once Tried to Curb North Korea's Nuclear Program. That's Now Over.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, PBS NewsHour, Washington Examiner, One America News Network, Associated Press, The Daily Beast, The Japan Times, NPR, RedState, Sputnik News, Breitbart, Semafor, Reuters, Human Events, KUSA-TV and AllSides Balanced

Sam Baker / Axios:

Supreme Court gets ready to drop its bombshells … - The court has 23 cases left to decide, and will likely hand down all of those opinions by the end of the month, give or take a few days — meaning the next week or so may redefine the limits of presidential power for generations to come.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Leah Litman / New York Times:
Something's Rotten About the Justices Taking So Long on Trump's Immunity Case

Discussion: The Wrap, Alternet.org, Raw Story, Digby's Hullabaloo, Lawyers, Guns & Money and National Review

Judd Legum / Popular Information:

These 25 rainbow-flag waving companies donated $18 million to anti-gay politicians since the last election — At the pride parade in Washington, D.C., earlier this month, accounting giant Deloitte promoted its support of the LGBTQ community: — In June 2023, Deloitte produced a report on “LGBT+ Inclusion @ Work.”

Noah Berlatsky / Public Notice:

Democrats need to push back harder on Trump's immigrant hate — PN is a reader-supported publication made possible by paid subscribers. Appreciate our independent journalism? Then please sign up to support us. — 🛂 Subscribe to Public Notice 🛂

Discussion: New York Times, The Guardian, Immigration Impact, Hartford Courant, NPR, New Republic, Politico, PBS NewsHour, CBS News, Washington Post, Vox and NOTUS

Michael Podhorzer / Weekend Reading:

Tipping the Scales: The MAGA Justices Have Already Interfered with the 2024 Elections — By shielding Donald Trump from standing trial before a jury in two of his felony cases, Trump's three appointments to the Supreme Court, along with the even more MAGA Justices Alito and Thomas and Judge Aileen Cannon …

Discussion: New Republic

David Ingram / NBC News:

The deceptive Biden G7 video was quickly debunked, but it kept going viral anyway — Despite fact-checks online, Big Tech platforms continued to spread a misleading video of President Joe Biden. — Misleading videos and false claims that President Joe Biden wandered off aimlessly …

Discussion: Fox News, The Western Journal, The Gateway Pundit, RedState, Rolling Stone and The Guardian

CNN:

The Supreme Court's approach on ‘history and tradition’ is irking Amy Coney Barrett — On a Supreme Court where the conservative supermajority increasingly leans on history as a guide, a dispute may be simmering over how many modern cases can be resolved by looking to the nation's past.

Discussion: RedState, Digby's Hullabaloo, New Republic, Raw Story and Politico

The Guardian:

Washington Post publisher alleged to have advised Boris Johnson to ‘clean up’ phone during Partygate Covid scandal — Sources' claim suggests advice by Will Lewis, an informal adviser to then prime minister, contradicted instructions to staff — Will Lewis, the Washington Post publisher …

more at Mediagazer »

Liz Crampton / Politico:

These 5 states are the most likely to see legislative chambers flip in November — Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania are among the country's biggest battlegrounds. — Democrats and Republicans are busting campaign spending records in state legislative races this year as they aim to shape policy debates far from Washington.

Discussion: The Daily Caller and Washington Examiner

Hans Nichols / Axios:
Exclusive: Harris to slam Trump in Arizona, Maryland on Dobbs anniversary

Discussion: RedState

BBC:

Stonehenge covered in powder paint by Just Stop Oil — Part of Stonehenge has been covered in orange powder paint by protesters. — Two Just Stop Oil campaigners sprayed the powder paint on the historic site near Salisbury, Wiltshire, at about 12:00 BST on Wednesday.