First on CNN: Walmart to stop selling Confederate flag merchandise  —  (CNN)Walmart, the country's largest retailer, will remove all Confederate flag merchandise from its stores, the company told CNN Monday.  —  The announcement is the latest indication that the flag, a symbol of the slave-holding South …

Charleston Dad's Viral Photo Captures Love In The Aftermath Of Tragedy  —  On Sunday June 21, local parishioners from churches across the Charleston area took part in “Charleston United,” an emotional prayer and worship gathering to honor the victims of the Emanuel A.M.E. Church shooting.

The Roberts Court's Surprising Move Leftward  —  This term so far shows potential for a greater percentage of liberal decisions than any since 1969.  —  Decisions … The Supreme Court under Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. has been a conservative court.

WSJ/NBC Poll Finds Hillary Clinton in a Strong Position  —  She has firm grip on Democratic nomination and leads three GOP rivals, new survey shows  —  Hillary Clinton has emerged from the rocky launch of her second presidential bid with a firm grip on Democratic voters and leads …

Uninsured Rate Falls to Lowest Since Obamacare Implementation  —  The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act has helped many Americans get health insurance, including about 10 million through new markets with government subsidies, and millions more through an expansion of Medicaid, the state-federal program for the poor.

KFC ‘Fried Rat’ Is In Fact Chicken, Lab Test Confirms  —  It doesn't look appetizing, but it's definitely chicken.  —  Last week, KFC was forced to confront a customer's accusations that he'd been served a fried rat in a three-piece meal at a Los Angeles store.

Composer James Horner Dies in Plane Crash: Hollywood Reacts  —  For his work on the 1997 best picture winner Titanic, directed by James Cameron, Horner captured the Oscar for original dramatic score, and he nabbed another Academy Award for original song (shared with lyricist Will Jennings) …

Survey |  Most Americans Believe Protests Make the Country Better; Support Decreases Dramatically if Protesters are Identified as Black  —  June 2015 PRRI/RNS Religion News Survey  —  ▶ Read the topline questionnaire, including the survey methodology, here.  ▶ Read the news release here.

Punished GOP lawmaker stirs new talk of Boehner rebellion  —  A band of House conservatives is discussing whether to retaliate against GOP leaders for punishing rank-and-file lawmakers who voted against a procedural vote on trade earlier this month.  —  Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) …

Exclusive — Ted Cruz: Obamatrade Enmeshed in Corrupt, Backroom Dealings  —  The American people do not trust President Obama.  And they do not trust Republican leadership in Congress.  And the reason is simple: for far too long, politicians in Washington have not told the truth.

NH GOP Poll Shows Bush the Early Leader, While Trump Advances  —  Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (14 percent) leads businessman Donald Trump (11 percent) in the New Hampshire Republican presidential primary contest, according to a poll from the Suffolk University Political Research Center.

Obama laments ‘distorted impression’ of Muslims  —  President Obama stressed religious tolerance during an Iftar dinner to celebrate the Muslim holiday of Ramadan, linking the murders of nine black Christians in South Carolina with the killings of three Muslims in North Carolina earlier this year.

Putin's plot to get Texas to secede  —  For Moscow's right-wingers, payback means teaming up with a band of Texas secessionists.  —  Lead image by AP Photo.  —  Nathan Smith, who styles himself the “foreign minister” for the Texas Nationalist Movement, appeared last Spring at a far-right confab in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Prison Worker Joyce Mitchell to Husband: ‘I Was Over My Head’  —  New York prison worker Joyce Mitchell told her husband she was in over her head as part of a plot to free two killers who remain on the run, he told NBC News in an exclusive interview.  —  Speaking to TODAY's Matt Lauer …