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From The Reporter’s Notebook
Fred Malek, a prominent Republican businessman who has been involved in Republican campaigns for decades, told TPM’s Lauren Fox that he still cannot abandon Donald Trump even after a week of confounding controversy. “As a Republican I would like to see the nominee of my party prevail in November,” he said. “At this point in time I don’t think we are going to see a whole lot of moderation coming out of our candidate.”
Agree or Disagree?
Josh Marshall: “Some have suggested that Trump realized that Ryan was going to win easily and wanted to get out in front of that embarrassment. More persuasive to me though is the suggestion that he was given an ultimatum of some sort. The most logical one would be for the RNC to withdraw its money and personnel from supporting Trump. That would be particularly devastating for Trump. Usually it’s the party and congressional candidates that have to rely on the money and inertial force of the presidential campaign, which has the fullest coffers and best people in the field. It’s always a coordinated effort between presidential candidate and party. But in this case, the balance is entirely different. Even though Trump now seems to be raising competitive money, he barely has a campaign in the field to speak of. And that’s simply not something that can be stood up on a dime. No matter how much money you have that takes time.”
Say What?!
“I got hammered, really, because I’m pro-life. That’s the bottom line of it.”
– Former Rep. Todd Akin (R-MO), infamous for his comments about “legitimate rape,” called Trump’s rhetoric “a breath of fresh air.”
BUZZING: Today in the Hive
From a TPM Prime member: “Trump’s problem going into the debate is his propensity to fly by the seat of his pants. I don’t know enough about Trump to say if the comments of some of his critics are true, that he doesn’t have the focus or attention span to study and memorize details. I do think that from his performance in the later Republican debates that he can be relatively subdued. But I don’t know that a subdued Trump who is unable to respond to detailed questions is one that sells well, and if Trump finds himself backed into a corner his history suggests that he is unlikely to restrain himself.”
Related: Trump is fumbling and overplaying the typical GOP talking points on the supposed threat of voter fraud, but he might still be fueling the arguments used to justify voting restrictions.
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What We’re Reading
How immigrants like Melania Trump became white. (Fusion)
A guy walks into a news cycle. (McSweeney’s)
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