| | | | Trump's closing argument on health care:
Vote for it, or else! | | President Donald Trump had a very simple message for Senate Republicans in advance of the expected vote Tuesday to begin debate on repealing and replacing Obamacare: Do it -- or else.
"So far Senate Republicans have not done their job in ending the Obamacare nightmare," Trump scolded senators in remarks delivered at the White House Monday afternoon. "Any senator who votes against starting debate is telling America you are fine with the Obamacare nightmare."
Trump's setting of the stakes -- he told a series of stories of families negatively affected by Obamacare, many of whom were with him in the Blue Room -- was relatively traditional politics from this most unorthodox of politicians.
The problem for Trump is that:
1. The Republican senators opposed to the bill -- or even voting to begin debate on the bill -- aren't afraid of Trump and his not-very-good approval ratings.
2. The public views the Republican attempt to repeal and replace Obamacare overwhelmingly negatively.
3. It's not clear what the actual bill that Senate Republicans want to pass looks like. What Trump -- and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who spoke on the Senate floor soon after the President ended his remarks -- are urging is to simply vote Tuesday to open debate on some sort of Republican health care bill. The particulars, they insist, can be worked out later. That's not good enough for skeptical senators.
It's hard to see how a Republican senator on the fence about voting to start debate on health care tomorrow would be convinced by Trump's words today. Or his actions in recent days, when he threatened Nevada Sen. Dean Heller and has been chatting with potential primary challengers against Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake.
Passing health care reform was always a very dicey proposition. But Trump's lack of a nuanced understanding of how to pressure -- and how not to pressure -- Republican senators has turned it into an even more difficult challenge.
-- Chris | | Jared Kushner -- husband of President Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka -- said in a statement Monday that he has "not sought the spotlight" during his time as a White House adviser.
But Kushner hasn't always shied away from the cameras. Before Trump was elected president, and before Kushner came under scrutiny from federal and congressional investigators looking into Russian meddling in the 2016 election, Ivanka Trump and her hubby had a cameo on popular CW teen soap "Gossip Girl."
Josh Billinson resurfaced the clip on Twitter Monday, the same day Kushner had a closed-door interview with Senate intelligence committee staff. It features Jared presenting an award at a party, as Ivanka smiles from the crowd. Another clip from the episode, which aired in 2010, features the couple greeting fictional characters Lily van der Woodsen and Rufus Humphrey. (Note from Chris: These are dumb names.)
BTW, there's also another "Gossip Girl" connection in the Trump White House: Hope Hicks, Trump's director of strategic communications, was the cover model for a "Gossip Girl" spin-off book called "It Girl." | | | Jenny from the Block is 48 years old today. And still dating A-Rod, who's celebrating his birthday on Thursday. | | Congrats, President Donald Trump: You've mastered the eyeroll -- and now you will go down in 2017 GIF history like Anderson Cooper and German Chancellor Angela Merkel before you.
Trump's eyeroll came after he was asked if Attorney General Jeff Sessions should resign. Moments later, when a reporter asked about health care, he said "be quiet." H/T NBC News' Bradd Jaffy for pointing this moment out on Twitter. | | THIS ONE TIME, AT THE BOY SCOUT JAMBOREE | | President Trump decided to bust out his infamous reality TV phrase -- "you're fired!" ... at a Boy Scout Jamboree in West Virginia.
After bringing Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price to the stage, Trump asked, "You gonna get the votes?" referring to the efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. He then said to the crowd: "He better get 'em, otherwise I'll say, Tom -- you're fired." Here's the full clip, courtesy of CNN Politics' Twitter account.
Also notable: As CNN's Jeff Zeleny pointed out on Twitter, Trump appeared with two Eagle Scouts in his Cabinet: Rick Perry and Ryan Zinke. Eagle Scout/"beleaguered" Attorney General Jeff Sessions did not appear. | | LIGHTS, CAMERA, SCARAMUCCI | | Newly installed White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci seems to be making good on a promise to lower the temperature between the press office and the press.
He tweeted Monday morning that TV cameras would be "back on" in the briefing room. That came just 24 hours after he told CNN's Jake Tapper: "If you're asking me for my personal opinion, and maybe the President will be upset with me for giving my personal opinion, we should put the cameras on."
Friday's daily press briefing, in which Scaramucci was formally introduced as the communications director, was the first on-camera briefing since June 29. Departed White House press secretary Sean Spicer had made a point of keeping the briefings off-camera to keep President Trump's voice and face front and center.
Worth noting: With President Trump speaking at the White House and again in West Virginia on Monday evening, there was no on-camera briefing. Instead, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders held a less-formal off-camera gaggle aboard Air Force One. | | A new Monmouth University poll released Monday suggests that Trump "appears to be a drag" on Virginia gubernatorial candidate Republican Ed Gillespie.
CNN's Ryan Struyk has more:
The race for Virginia's next governor just got a lot more interesting. New numbers out from Monmouth University show a neck-and-neck race knotted at 44% -- a surprise after Republican Ed Gillespie barely squeaked out a tight primary win and many thought Democrat Ralph Northam was emerging as a clear favorite. Not so fast.
And the data shows Trump's unpopularity is the sole cause behind 12% of Northam's likely voters -- not exactly a ringing endorsement that drives voters to the polls. A Quinnipiac poll last month showed Northam up by 8 points. | | The NAACP is (still) feeling the Bern. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is among the most influential Democrats ahead of the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries, talked about the Republican agenda, specifically GOP plans for health care, in a speech at the NAACP national convention in Baltimore on Monday.
CNN's Noa Yadidi reports:
The Vermont senator slammed the Senate Health Care bill, calling it the "cruelest, most destructive and irresponsible piece of legislation ever brought to the United States Senate in the modern history of this country."
Sanders -- who has recently taken trips to West Virginia, Kentucky and Iowa -- was participating in the conference's Federal Legislative and Public Policy Workshop. It included a panel of legislators such as Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin, Illinois Sen.Tammy Duckworth, California Sen. Kamala Harris (also on the #2020 watch list), Virginia Rep.Bobby Scott, Texas Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and Virginia Rep. Scott Taylor.
Still, Sanders told SiriusXM's Mark Thompson two weeks ago that it was still "too early" to talk 2020. "I am not taking it off the table. I just have not made any decisions. And I think it's much too early," Sanders said.
Meanwhile...
In Virginia, Sen. Elizabeth Warren was spotted dancing onstage while at an event with fellow Democratic lawmakers to announce the launch of the party's new "A Better Deal" economic agenda. According to Buzzfeed's Alexis Levinson, the Massachusetts senator on Monday was "mobbed by adoring" fans. Oh, and she "had painted her toenails blue for the occasion."
Also: Actor and former wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson -- who recently expressed interest in seeking the highest political office -- has been enlisted by Apple to promote Siri. We wonder if his next question will be: "Siri, get my campaign poster ready for 2020."
Random fun fact: Warren is a big fan of Johnson's Ballers show on HBO. The celeb and lawmaker have tweeted at each other before. | | Discovery Channel has spent the last few weeks promoting its 29th Shark Week by highlighting a new special: "Phelps vs. Shark: Great Gold vs. Great White." That's right, Olympic Gold medalist versus a great white shark. In the trailer for the special, Phelps says "I've raced the fastest swimmers on the planet, except for one. I traveled 30 hours to South Africa. I prepared for hours in the open water with a monofin to increase my speed. Am I faster than a shark? Watch with me to find out."
Well, people did watch -- and they were disappointed. Why? Despite promos suggesting otherwise, Phelps actually swam alone, and was matched with a computer-generated image of a shark that simulated a real shark's speed.
A spokeswoman for the Discovery Channel told The New York Times: "The whole point is to get people excited about sharks. The idea was, is it possible to get the world's greatest swimmer competitive with a shark? We're not going to risk Michael Phelps' life. In the first two minutes of the show, we make it clear we were not going to make it side by side." That didn't stop the backlash from fans on Twitter. Thanks for nothing, Shark Week. | | | We, like former VP Biden in this GIF, have something to say: Tell your friends, fans, family -- whoever! -- to subscribe. | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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