| | | | Bush 41 says he's voting for Clinton -- not Trump | | Former President George H.W. Bush said Monday that he will vote for Hillary Clinton in November, according to sources close to the 41st President -- an extraordinary rebuke of his own party's nominee in favor of the wife of the man who ousted him from office.
When he said it: Bush's comment came during a receiving line for board members of the bipartisan Points of Light Foundation when Bush was speaking to Kathleen Hartington Kennedy Townsend. There were roughly 40 people in the room, and it's not clear how many people heard him, though multiple sources did.
How it became public: Kennedy Townsend -- the former Maryland lieutenant governor and Robert F. Kennedy's daughter -- posted on Facebook that Bush "told me he's voting for Hillary!!" alongside a picture of herself with Bush. More from CNN's Jamie Gangel and myself.
The next GOP civil war: RNC chair Reince Priebus' warning to John Kasich, Ted Cruz, Jeb Bush and others to "get on board" with Donald Trump or face penalties if they ever want to run for president again -- and the blowback Priebus has received -- preview the post-Trump reckoning the GOP could face if he loses. Here's my story, with new details on Priebus plotting his warning with early-state party chairs in the days before he issued it. | | Donald Trump Jr. likened Syrian refugees to Skittles candy in this tweet Monday night -- and today, his father's campaign defended it. Said Trump spokesman Jason Miller: "Speaking the truth might upset those who would rather be politically correct than safe, but the American people want a change, and only Donald Trump will do what's needed to protect us."
There's some division in Trump's campaign. On CNN's "At This Hour," former CIA Director James Woolsey, a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, told John Berman and Kate Bolduan it was a "clumsy analogy" and it "doesn't help."
Here's the response from Mars Candy, which produces Skittles: "Skittles are candy. Refugees are people. We don't feel it's an appropriate analogy." | | Two megadonors dominate campaign finance deadline | | I asked CNN's campaign finance whiz, Theodore Schleifer, to take over this section. Here's what he sent:
It's Sheldon Adelson vs. Dustin Moskovitz.
That's one way to think about the new 2016 money landscape, revealed in campaign-finance reports still coming in this hour. Republicans finally caught the whale they have been courting for 18 months -- we broke last night that Adelson would part with $45 million of his casino fortune to help Republicans in November. Despite his public support for Donald Trump, many folks noted correctly that Adelson's donation to the pro-Trump effort -- only $5 million -- is likely to disappoint Trump boosters, who may have suggested that a $100 million check was en route. But something's better than nothing.
There is no Democratic Sheldon -- as their side of the campaign-finance ledger makes clear tonight. But Dustin Moskovitz is perhaps the most intriguing moneyman to watch in politics these days. The Facebook co-founder came out of nowhere to drop his own $20 million in the Democratic race, drawing parallels to environmentalists like Tom Steyer and perhaps even George Soros. But Moskovitz has yet to commit to giving to Clinton's super PAC, Priorities USA, and he's certainly a prime target ever since he decided to get involved in politics.
Republicans have the upper hand in the money race for the Senate. Democrats have it in the White House. But both races are a dead heat this September 20 -- so there are legitimate questions you can ask about whether any of these numbers even matter. | | | Sean Hannity, the conservative Fox News host usually seen lobbing softball questions to Donald Trump, helped film a new promotional video for Trump. The Washington Post's Erik Wemple quotes a Fox spokesperson saying: "We had no knowledge that Sean Hannity was participating in this, and he will not be doing anything along these lines for the remainder of the election." | | Trump ducks questions on 'birther' flip-flop | | Donald Trump declined Tuesday to answer reporters' questions about his sudden move Friday to drop five years of fueling the false "birther" conspiracy theory and admit that President Barack Obama is an American citizen, CNN's Jeremy Diamond reports. Trump ignored reporters' questions during a stop at a restaurant in North Carolina, the first opportunity journalists covering his campaign have had to ask the Republican nominee about his reversal on the issue.
Why not answering is news: Trump's statement Friday lasted just 33 seconds, and since then, his campaign has blocked reporters from being able to access him and ask questions. Still unclear: Why Trump -- who'd refused to admit Obama's citizenship repeatedly in 2016 -- decided to do so then, and what has changed.
The latest scoop on Trump's charitable history from The Washington Post's David Fahrenthold: Trump used $258,000 from his charity to settle legal disputes that involved his for-profit businesses.
Standing by his man: Trump isn't distancing himself from transition chair Chris Christie, despite federal prosecutors saying the New Jersey governor knew about the "Bridgegate" lane closures as they were happening. The New York Times' Maggie Haberman examines why -- with a statement from Trump. And CNN's Phil Mattingly looks at how Christie's transition efforts are rehabilitating his image.
An alarming Trump comment: In North Carolina this evening, Trump said, "Our African-American communities are in the worst shape they've been in before. Ever. Ever. Ever." The Boston Globe's Matt Viser points out the problem with what Trump said: | | Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the Senate will delay its break for the elections for an override vote on President Barack Obama's veto of a bill to let 9/11 victims sue Saudi Arabia in US courts. ... Former House Speaker John Boehner has joined a DC lobbying firm. ... The Sunlight Foundation, a leading advocate for public access to campaign finance data, is winding down and looking to merge.
We'll wrap up with the pop culture tweet of the day, from The New York Times' Helene Cooper: | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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