memeorandum: Inside the #NeverTrump Candidacy that Almost Was (Jason Reed/National Review)

1:20 PM ET, June 7, 2016

Top Items:

Trump self-destructive rambling baffles GOP strategists — How did the controversy begin over Donald Trump's attacks on the judge in the Trump University lawsuit? It began when Donald Trump couldn't stop talking about the Trump University lawsuit. — In the normal course of events …

Discussion: Hot Air

Chris Cillizza / Washington Post:

It's time for GOP leaders to choose sides on Donald Trump — This post has been updated. — Donald Trump has been the Republican presidential nominee for five weeks as of Tuesday. Those 35 days have been filled with self-inflicted wounds — the latest being Trump's insistence that a judge …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, MSNBC, Mediaite and New York Times

Joseph Murray / Breitbart:

Donald Trump Is Correct To Hit ‘La Raza’ Judge For Latino Identity Politics — “This is one of the worst mistakes Trump has made. I think it's inexcusable.” — Those words were spoken by Newt Gingrich - a man believed to be on Donald Trump's Vice Presidential shortlist - during an interview on “Fox News Sunday.”

Discussion: Salon, New York Times, Media Matters for America, Washington Free Beacon and Politicus USA

Gabriel Sherman / New York Magazine:

Dick Morris Is in Talks to Join the Trump Campaign — The controversial former Clinton adviser could play a key roll in Trump's anti-Hillary strategy. — Before Donald Trump's campaign was derailed by his racist attacks on a federal judge, the GOP nominee was surprisingly disciplined in his attacks on Hillary Clinton.

Discussion: Media Matters for America and The Daily Caller

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:

Mitch McConnell: This Election Is About Choosing The Lesser Of Two Evils — “This is a choice that many Americans are not happy with.” — w.soundcloud.com — Asked on Monday if the general election between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump was a “lesser of two evils election,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell answered yes.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Political Wire

Bridget Bowman / Roll Call:

Grassley: Senate Can Be a Check on Trump's Judges — Senate Judiciary chairman says he's not concerned who would be nominated — Reid: McConnell ‘Poster Boy’ for GOP ‘Spinelessness’ Over Trump GOP Senators Criticize Trump's Comments on Judge Sanders' Long-Shot Delegate Hunt

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Politico, Des Moines Register and Daily Kos

Nick Gass / Politico:
Christie: Trump ‘not racist,’ has ‘right’ to express opinions on judge

Discussion: The Root, The Week, Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, Hullabaloo, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Resurgent and Business Insider

Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
Republicans finally discover that Trump is an actual racist

Discussion: The Daily Beast

Adrian Carrasquillo / BuzzFeed:
The RNC Approached Two Hispanic Operatives Who Weren't Interested Because Of Trump

Discussion: alan.com and The Week

Bloomberg:
Trump Orders Surrogates to Intensify Criticism of Judge and Journalists

CNBC:
Paul Ryan: Trump's judge remarks ‘textbook definition of a racist comment’

Discussion: National Review, AOL and Reuters

Marina Fang / The Huffington Post:
Trump Campaign: Female Judges Could Be Biased, Too

Discussion: RedState, Yahoo, Religion News Service and Politico

Allegra Kirkland / Talking Points Memo: Trump Spox Suggests Trump's Sister Could Be ‘Biased’ As A Female Judge

New York Times:
Democrats Jump on Allies of Donald Trump in Judge Dispute

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, RedState, Politico, CNN, Courthouse News Service, Mediaite, New York Magazine, The Resurgent, WMUR, BizPac Review, Mother Jones and The Week

CNN:
Pro-Trump group's first ad uses Clintons' words against them

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Breitbart, RedState, Independent Journal … and Washington Free Beacon

Niels Lesniewski / Roll Call:
Rubio Says He Won't Speak on Trump's Behalf at GOP Convention

Discussion: Washington Examiner, RedState and Hot Air

Seung Min Kim / Politico:
Trump train derails on Capitol Hill

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Week, Washington Monthly, Media Matters for America, Raw Story, Washington Post and Associated Press

Benjamin Siegel / ABC News:

Nancy Pelosi ‘Proud to Endorse’ Hillary Clinton for President

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, NBC News, Sky Dancing, Politico, No More Mister Nice Blog, Politicus USA, Hot Air, Shakesville, Mediaite, Washington Times, The Week and Washington Free Beacon

New York Times:

Hillary Clinton Has Clinched Democratic Nomination, Survey Reports — Hillary Clinton has reached the number of delegates needed to clinch the Democratic nomination for president, The Associated Press reported Monday night. — Mrs. Clinton had been expected to clinch the nomination on Tuesday after polls closed in New Jersey.

Discussion: Associated Press, Politico, Mother Jones, Outside the Beltway, Althouse and The Week

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

Bernie Sanders Has Some Strange Ideas About Why He Deserves the Nomination — He was told there would be no math. — The season-finale episode of Saturday Night Live imagines a bar-stool conversation between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in which the two candidates bond …

Discussion: FiveThirtyEight, USA Today, Salon, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Vox, The Week, Politico, CANNONFIRE, Washington Post and BuzzFeed

Lisa Hagen / The Hill:
Clinton will call Sanders Tuesday night

Discussion: Politico, The Atlantic, Mediaite, Daily Kos and New York Times

Cyra Master / The Hill:
Sanders camp: Clinton has not secured nomination yet

Discussion: ABC News, Politico, The Intercept, FiveThirtyEight, Common Dreams, CNN, Washington Times, Daily Kos, Mother Jones and Guardian

Robert Costa / Washington Post:
In San Francisco, Berniecrats lash out at media for calling nomination for Clinton

Discussion: Politico, Hot Air, Fox News, Argus Leader, Guardian, The Week, Political Insider blog, ABC News, Instapundit and Sky Dancing

Stephen Collinson / CNN:
Hillary Clinton clinches Democratic presidential nomination

Discussion: Gothamist, whorunsGov, Jezebel, CBS New York, Politicus USA and Mediaite

John Judis / Talking Points Memo: Bernie Sanders should drop out and endorse Hillary Clinton. Period.

Robert Costa / Washington Post:
Sanders plans to ‘assess’ presidential bid at home in Vermont after Tuesday contests

Discussion: Truth Revolt, Political Wire and AOL

Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Sanders: Not sexist to stay in race against Clinton

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Breitbart and Washington Free Beacon

David M. Herszenhorn / New York Times:

Paul Ryan Calls Donald Trump's Attack on Judge ‘Racist,’ but Backs Him Still — WASHINGTON — Speaker Paul D. Ryan on Tuesday called Donald J. Trump's criticism of a Hispanic-American judge “the textbook definition of a racist comment” and said he “regrets” the remark.

Discussion: Political Wire

David Rogers / Politico:
New House Republican ‘anti-poverty plan’ repackages GOP proposals

Discussion: Bloomberg, Washington Post, Salon, Common Dreams and Daily Kos

Donovan Slack / USA Today: Paul Ryan starts unveiling plan for ‘better GOP’

Wlady Pleszczynski / The American Spectator:

Trump Is Right: The Shame of Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell — The GOP Establishment is in full flight. — No Abraham Lincolns here. — In a shameful haste to embrace identity politics, the latter the political descendant of slavery and segregation, Speaker Paul Ryan …

Discussion: Raw Story, Wall Street Journal and Media Matters for America

Pat Buchanan / Townhall.com:
The Donald & The La Raza Judge

Discussion: Daily Wire

Julian Hattem / The Hill:

FBI asks to make new secret filing in Clinton email case — The FBI has asked a federal judge for permission to file a second secret declaration detailing its probe into Hillary Clinton — 's private email server. — In the request, which came as part of a Freedom of Information Act …

Discussion: Hot Air

Lisa Hagen / The Hill:
State Dept. would need 75 years to compile Clinton emails

Discussion: MichelleMalkin.com and CNN

Associated Press:

Florida AG asked Trump for donation before nixing fraud case — WASHINGTON (AP) — Florida's attorney general personally solicited a political contribution from Donald Trump around the same time her office deliberated joining an investigation of alleged fraud at Trump University and its affiliates

Discussion: RedState, LawNewz, Daily Kos, Washington Free Beacon, Raw Story and Politico

Joey Nolfi / EW.com:

Meryl Streep dons a fat suit and orangeface as Donald Trump — Further proving there's no role she can't tackle, acting legend Meryl Streep has gone from complete Margaret Thatcher to full Donald Trump, sporting messy hair, a low-hanging red tie, a fat suit, and comically-applied self-tanner …

Discussion: CNN, The Verge, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, Mediaite and Gothamist

CNN:

Last known surviving 9/11 search and rescue dog laid to rest — (CNN)When it was time to say goodbye, she was given a hero's farewell. — Firefighters and rescue workers lined the sidewalk as her body, draped in an American flag, was carried out. Tears streaked down some faces.

Discussion: NPR, The Week and Scared Monkeys

Associated Press:
Last Known Living 9/11 Search Dog Dies in Texas at Age 16

Discussion: Independent Journal …

Jason Reed / National Review:

Inside the #NeverTrump Candidacy that Almost Was — Anti-Trump conservatives failed to recruit David French into the presidential campaign. What will they do now? — The latest would-be presidential candidate spent just under a week in the spotlight — long enough to confound official Washington …

Discussion: MSNBC, Daily Wire, Daily Mail, The Daily Caller, Vox, The Strident Conservative, Mediaite, RedState, Bloomberg and AOL

Allegra Kirkland / Talking Points Memo:

Trump: I'm The One Who ‘Really Broke The Glass Ceiling’ In My Industry — Donald Trump patted himself on the back for the help he had provided to his female employees during a Monday night appearance on Fox News' “O'Reilly Factor,” calling himself “the one that really broke the glass ceiling.”