| | | | | Sean Spicer delivers his final White House press briefing on July 17, 2017. Credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images | | | SIREN: Sean Spicer OUT
Pardon Me?: President Trump is looking for answers on the rules of pardoning
Cover/Line's Great American Road Trip: Hunter's travels take him to Little Rock, Arkansas | | | What the White House is Talking About:
Sean Spicer turned in his resignation.
What the White House Press Corps is Talking About:
SPICER's ✌️ out. And Anthony Scaramucci, the New York financier and former Trump campaign fund-raiser, accepted the position of White House communications director.
Sean Spicer Loses Job, Wins News Cycle:
Spicer's six-month stint as press secretary came to an end today as he turned in his resignation. There are lots of theories swirling as we are sending out today's newsletter -- follow CNNPolitics for the latest from our team of White House reporters getting the very latest from inside the White House. Also, in this Trump tweet, set to a "Proud to Be An American" soundtrack, I couldn't help but notice the body language between Spicer and the rest of Trump's top-tier staff, around the 40-second mark. And Spicer's sad, hurried selfie at around 46 seconds.
Pardon Me?:
CNN's Dana Bash today with the exclusive that Special Counsel Robert Mueller this week sent a letter asking White House staff to keep *all documents* related to the June 2016 meeting that Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner and Paul Manafort took with Russians on promises of dirt on Hillary Clinton. The Washington Post reports that Trump's been asking questions about his power to pardon those close to him -- and perhaps even himself --- in connection with the Russian intrigue being investigated by Robert Mueller. Trump is also reorganizing some of his legal team, apparently gearing up as Mueller's Russia probe intensifies.
Later Today: President Trump has one public appearance on his Friday schedule: He meets with survivors of the USS Arizona in the Oval Office at 2:45 p.m. ET.
The President Is All Of Us Trying to Open a Jar:
POTUS tried to break some unbreakable pharmaceutical glass Thursday during a demo that was part of "Made in America" week. My second favorite part of this image are the faces of the two men standing next to him. Guy on the left's like, "Haha, keep trying"; guy on the right's thinking, "WTH are you doing?" | | Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images
Our Daily Melania, Subbing In: Karen Pence:
Since Melania Trump hasn't been publicly seen in almost a week (gentle reminder: she's the first lady of the United States), today I'd like to thank second lady Karen Pence for stepping into this feature in a pretty baller way. While Melania has yet to do anything with the White House Kitchen Garden -- last month's planting was cancelled due to weather -- Mrs. Pence is actively engaged with the enviro situation at the Naval Observatory. She's beekeeping. "Bees aren't a political issue," Pence tells CNN. Please watch this video, shot by CNN photojournalist Jay McMichael. It's so fascinating, and I think it's actually the first time I've heard Pence's voice. | | Dress Like the First Daughter:
Officially, we haven't seen Ivanka Trump a lot this week, but via her Twitter and Instagram accounts, we learn that she hosted teams from the FIRST Robotics competition Thursday at the West Wing. She's wearing (yet another interesting outfit for a work day at the WHITE HOUSE?) a white skirt that's fitted at the top and sort of sheer below and a sleeveless black mock turtleneck -- and her ubiquitous Ivanka Trump-brand shoes. The skirt appears to be this Georgia Alice number, available for $609, and the shoes are her "Klover" style, on sale for $69.99. | | Credit: @ivankatrump/Twitter; 6pm.com (shoes); needsupply.com (skirt)
Alisyn Camerota is Amazing:
Because she's up early every morning to host "New Day," has three kids, and she's also found time to write a novel. I went to a party Thursday at the Newseum with other CNNers to toast Camerota's new book, "Amanda Wakes Up," a charming, funny and engaging read about a young TV reporter who lands her dream job and finds herself in the throes of cable news. I started it last night, and I'm already way into it. Also, strongly dig the cover art 🙌 : | | POLITICON IS HAPPENING, GET YOUR TICKETS:
You probably already know this because Hunter's on his road trip to drive to it in Pasadena, California, but just in case, a reminder that CNNPolitics is going big time at the coolest (read: realest) political convention around. Join us! | | What Washington is Talking About:
Spicer out.
What America is Talking About:
O.J. Simpson was granted parole.
Poll of the Day:
A majority of Americans are keeping up with the Russia story, but it's lost steam since earlier in the year. A CNN poll released today found 59% of Americans are following the news about Russia's attempts to influence the election "very" or "somewhat closely." That's down from 77% in January. | | I'm driving cross-country for COVER/LINE. You can read about it every day in the newsletter and follow along on Instagram, at @cnncoverline and @hunterschwarz.
~The Great American Road Trip 2017~ Stop No. 4: Little Rock, Arkansas: | | After my interview with Beverly Keel in Nashville, I'm determined to listen to more songs by female country musicians. I spun plenty of Carrie Underwood, Shania Twain, Kacey Musgraves, Dixie Chicks, and Miranda Lambert on the 349-mile drive from Nashville to Little Rock. Side note: Thank you to everyone who sent in playlists or music recommendations! I'm currently working my way through them (and I'm still accepting suggestions -- coverlinehunter@cnn.com). Not everyone put where they're from, but I think the playlist that came from farthest away is from Ashley in Australia.
Arkansas always has a special place in my heart. I lived there as a kid in the '90s, right after former Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton became President, and the first midterm election I ever covered from the campaign trail was the 2014 Senate race in Arkansas. I remember coming home from my first day of school there and asking my parents what "y'all" meant because everyone kept saying it. The verb "fixin'" was also new to me.
What Little Rock is Talking About:
A 22-year-old man has been hospitalized after he was handcuffed by police for allegedly shoplifting at a Home Depot, then allegedly fled from police and attempted a carjacking in the drive-thru of a nearby Chick-fil-A and was shot by police.
Little Rock's Must-See Political Spot:
The Clinton Presidential Library. Fun fact: Clinton has an apartment on the roof of the building where he stays when he comes to town about once a month, and he's known to play cards with his high school buddies when he's back. My favorite item at the library is Hillary Clinton's Grammy, from 1997 for Best Spoken Word Album for "It Takes a Village" (this is your semi-regular reminder that she's won more Grammys than Katy Perry): | | | There are also some fun items from the Clintons' childhood, like this high school campaign sign: | | Credit: Ryan Alexander
Meet Skip Rutherford:
To get into Little Rock, you can fly into the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport and take the Clinton exit to get to downtown. The Clinton Library has revitalized an entire part of the city. Presidents usually come from big states (Trump = New York, Obama = Illinois, W. = Texas), so to have one from Arkansas feels like an outlier, and the couple has left their mark on the city. And yet, Hillary lost the state in 2016, 60% to 33% (she did, however, win Little Rock).
"When you say Trump is appealing to his base, I would say Arkansas is his base," Skip Rutherford, dean of the Clinton School of Public Service, tells me. | | Credit: @cnncoverline/Instagram/Ryan Alexander
A lot's changed in the two decades since Bill Clinton won his last election here, and it has a lot to do with demographics. Democratic strongholds in the state have shrunk while Republican ones, particularly in parts north, like Bentonville, where Wal-Mart is headquartered, have grown. "We've had a big population shift," Rutherford says.
Other politicians have lost their home states when running for president, like Massachusetts for Mitt Romney in 2012 and Tennessee for Al Gore in 2000. And, of course, there's New York for Donald Trump in 2016. But what Trump pulled off was rare; the last time a president won the election but lost his home state was a century ago: New Jersey's Woodrow Wilson in 1916. | | | | | | |
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