 Undercover videos from the Center for Medical Progress, another of which popped yesterday, have sparked a fight over Planned Parenthood funding that could shut down the federal government this fall. (Courtesy of Center for Medical Progress) THE BIG IDEA: — The fight over federal funding for Planned Parenthood is one of the most significant stories of the summer, and it's not ending any time soon. Four congressional investigations have now been initiated. Social conservatives, led by Ted Cruz, are threatening to shut down the government this fall to slash all federal funding for the group, even though it can’t legally use that money for abortions. Cruz and other Republican presidential candidates, all of whom are competing for support from the religious right, have put the issue front-and-center. But while the issue may play well with Republican primary voters, it risks alienating women at a time when Donald Trump is already turning off Hispanics. New Quinnipiac polls from Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania show opposition to the GOP’s defund strategy. There is a sizable gender gap on the question of funding. In Florida, for example, men support a cutoff by 8 points (49-41) while women oppose it by 17 points (53-36). Nonetheless, Republicans are plowing ahead. Here are the latest volleys, many of them now in the legal sphere: - The Center for Medical Progress released its eighth undercover video yesterday.
- Lawyers for the activists behind the hidden-camera videos declared that their clients plan to invoke the Fifth Amendment, according to minutes from a discovery hearing in the California lawsuit to block the release of more footage.
- Separately, Planned Parenthood filed a federal lawsuit yesterday to block Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal's order barring patients from using Medicaid to receive medical care through them. Only about 5,200 people in his state are affected, but it is important because several states, including Arkansas, Alabama and New Hampshire, are testing the same legal strategy in seeking to block the group’s funding.
- During a conference call yesterday to which 100,000 pastors were invited, Ted Cruz complained that congressmen in both parties want an “empty show vote” on Planned Parenthood that isn’t tied to must-pass legislation. Tying the vote to an appropriations bill funding the federal government will ensure it matters, he said: "We can expect President Obama and many of the congressional Democrats to cry loudly that if Congress uses its authority, Congress will be quote ‘shutting down the government,” he said, according to Katie Zezima.
- Jeb Bush, in Colorado yesterday, drew another rebuke from Hillary Clinton when he claimed that Planned Parenthood is "not actually doing women's health issues." Fact checkers are almost certain to inveigh against Bush here. Just a few weeks ago, the governor said he "misspoke" after declaring to a crowd of Baptists that he's "not sure we need half a billion dollars for women’s health issues." There is a 100 percent chance that Democratic attack ads in places like Northern Virginia use this soundbite next October, should Jeb become the GOP's standard bearer. The Bush campaign happily engaged in a Twitter back-and-forth with the Clinton camp over how the organization spends its money because, again, it’s helpful in the short term.
- Today, by the way, is Women's Equality Day, the 95th anniversary of suffrage. In addition to Planned Parenthood, the Democratic National Committee will use it as a peg to attack Republicans over paid leave, equal pay and the minimum wage.
 Planned Parenthood chief Cecile Richards (AP Photo, File) –A story on the front page of today's Post, by ProPublica's Charles Ornstein, details how anti-abortion activists are more aggressively seeking out, and publishing, personal details about patients and information about the doctors who work at clinics. They're using public records laws to get recordings of 911 calls, autopsy reports and documents from state health departments and medical boards. Supporters of reproductive rights describe a campaign of intimidation. "Some activists have dug through clinics' trash to find privacy violations by abortion providers — such as patient records tossed in dumpsters — and used them to file complaints with regulators," Ornstein reports. "Some wait outside clinics, tracking or taking photos of patients' and staffers' license plates and ambulances, if called." Cheryl Sullenger, senior policy adviser for Operation Rescue, estimates that her anti-abortion rights group has 100 complaints pending in various states based on this strategy. "They not only mine public records but also collect information leaked by sympathetic health-care workers — for example, emergency-room doctors and ambulance drivers — who are required to keep patient information confidential under HIPAA. The law, however, doesn't apply to advocacy groups. Sullenger acknowledges receiving private patient information and said it helps to confirm when patients have suffered complications or died. … Sullenger served two years in federal prison for conspiring to bomb a California abortion clinic in the 1980s. Today, the Operation Rescue Web site says, she denounces violence."  Mark Gietzen is the chairman for Kansas Coalition for Life. His group keeps a log book to record the license plate information of every car that enters the South Wind Women's Center in Wichita. (Travis Heying for The Washington Post) WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING: — In a moment that lit up social media, Univision anchor Jorge Ramos was kicked out of a Donald Trump press conference in Iowa. He returned and tangled with Trump for five minutes on immigration. Read Philip Rucker’s account from the scene in Dubuque here, and click on this image to watch the remarkable video:  (The Washington Post) National Review Editor Rich Lowry and former Obama adviser Dan Pfeiffer immediately reacted: Univision released its own statement about the kerfuffle: “We’d love for Mr. Trump to sit down for an in-depth interview with Jorge to talk about the specifics of his proposals.” — Meanwhile, Cruz tangled with Megyn Kelly on Fox News over immigration: The host repeatedly pressed him on a question that Trump was asked on the network the night before: If a husband and a wife were undocumented immigrants and had two children who were born in the United States and citizens, would you deport the citizen children? Cruz did not answer the question, but instead launched into an explanation of how he thinks the immigration system should be changed. “But that doesn’t sound like an answer,” Kelly said. “Mr. Trump answered that question explicitly last night on ‘The O’Reilly Factor.’ Will you do so now?” She later added, “You’re dodging my question. You don’t want to answer that question?” GET SMART FAST: - U.S. stocks plunged in the last hour of trading yesterday to wipe out a day-long rally.
- 26 percent of employers could face the "Cadillac tax" on the health insurance plans they offer in 2018, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation study.
- The average Washington-area driver spends 82 hours per year stuck in traffic, worst in the country, a new report finds.
- A man who had climbed a wall near the White House earlier this year was shot and killed by a sheriff's deputy after cutting another deputy with a knife inside a Pennsylvania courthouse, authorities said.
- Oshkosh Defense won the contract to build the ground vehicle that will eventually replace the Humvee. Under the contract, which could eventually be worth $30 billion or more, Oshkosh will build nearly 50,000 of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle for the Army, and about 5,500 for the Marine Corps." (Christian Davenport)
- The CBO now projects that the debt ceiling will not need to be increased until mid-November or early December, not the end of October, as the Treasury Department warned earlier this summer. (Kelsey Snell)
- The British reopened their embassy in Tehran, as a leader in the Iranian parliament reiterated his support for the annihilation of Israel. (Jerusalem Post)
- "The Moroccan man who French police say brandished and fired an AK-47 on a high-speed train headed to Paris from Amsterdam before he was restrained by three Americans had watched a jihadi video on his cellphone just before the attack," Fox News reports.
- One of those Americans, Oregon National Guardsman Aleksander Skarlatos, will be awarded one of the U.S. Army’s highest honors. He'll get the Soldier’s Medal, which is the Army’s highest award for acts of heroism not involving actual conflict with the enemy. (NBC)
- A federal judge has temporarily blocked the state of Mississippi from carrying out executions over a challenge to the drugs used in executions. (Clarion Ledger)
- The highest criminal court in Texas halted the execution, scheduled for tonight, of a Nicaraguan man convicted of murdering a high school teacher while robbing a dry cleaning store in 1997.
- The FDA ruled that vegan-friendly mayonnaise cannot be described as mayo because it does not contain eggs, a big win for the big food companies.
- "The Pentagon's ban on transgender troops will end May 27 under a draft timeline on repeal of the policy that affects about 12,000 troops," according to USA Today.
- One of the Catholic Church's most senior U.S. leaders, who recently led the Vatican's doctrine-enforcing arm, was arrested and charged with drunken driving after police said his car was swerving about midnight on a Hawaii highway. (Michelle Boorstein)
POWER PLAYERS IN THE NEWS: - Donald Trump has until Sept. 30 to pledge he will not run as an independent if he intends to appear on the South Carolina Republican primary ballot. It's the latest move by a state GOP organization to prevent him from becoming a spoiler.
- George W. Bush will headline a luncheon fundraiser in New York City on Sept. 10 for his brother, Matea Gold scoops. "The 43rd president is scheduled to take part in a retreat for top donors in Houston in late October that will also feature their parents. Other finance events are in the works, including discussions about a fundraiser in Arkansas in early October."
- Trying to dampen the Biden buzz, the Clinton campaign rolled out Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack‘s formal endorsement. It’s not surprising; a longtime aide to the former governor is running her operation in Iowa. Still, he’s the first sitting member of President Obama’s cabinet to endorse. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
- Civil rights activist Cornel West endorsed Bernie Sanders, meaningful validation from a leading African-American voice for the Vermont senator who has struggled to make inroads with the black community.
- Joe Biden will pitch key members of the Democratic National Committee on the Iran deal during a conference call this afternoon, per CNN.
- Patty Murray, a member of Senate Democratic leadership, became the 29th member to back the Iran agreement.
- Caroline Kennedy, the ambassador to Japan, used her personal email account for official business, and some emails contained sensitive information, according to the State Department's Inspector General.
- Hillary Clinton stored at least 63 emails on a private server that have now been deemed classified by State, Politico's Josh Gerstein reports.
- Cheryl Mills, Hillary's chief of staff at State, and Jake Sullivan, her deputy chief, will be interviewed privately by the House Select Committee on Benghazi next week.
- Scott Walker has apparently ceased talking about bargain shopping at the Kohl's department store and started wearing more expensive clothes on the campaign trail, which beat reporter Jenna Johnson sees as part of a broader effort to emulate Trump.
- Sam Clovis, the Iowa social conservative activist who withdrew his support for Rick Perry because he stopped getting paid, endorsed Trump and appeared alongside him in Dubuque last night.
- The Stop Chris Christie super PAC responded to FEC concerns that it used a candidate's name by saying it will disband. "Our decision to cease and desist as a PAC is not due to your letter, but instead is based on recent polling and the miserable showing of the candidate in question," the group's treasurer wrote.
- Three Democrats are now vying in a primary for Illinois Rep. Tammy Duckworth's Chicago-area seat, opening because she's running for Senate, after the mayor of Villa Park announced her candidacy. (Roll Call)
WAPO HIGHLIGHTS: — “Global market chaos throws Federal Reserve’s rate hike plan in doubt,” by Ylan Q. Mui and Jim Tankersley: “The Federal Reserve had expected to begin withdrawing its support for the nation's economic recovery this year, but mounting evidence of a global slowdown could extend the era of easy money.Fed officials have signaled for months that they are getting closer to raising the central bank's target interest rate for the first time in nearly a decade. Many investors had anticipated the milestone would come when policymakers meet in September. But that timeline is now unlikely. Traders have slashed the odds of a rate increase next month. And a growing list of prominent economists say the central bank is not ready to let the American recovery stand on its own.” — “Can federal workers be fired for adultery?”, by Lisa Rein: The rules surrounding the use of work computer are murky for federal workers. “Mostly, they're more restrictive than a private company's. It's okay to make a doctor's appointment, call the babysitter, tell your spouse you'll be home late. It's okay to check on your investments during the stock market's current nosedive. These are technically called "private use" exceptions to authorized uses of government property.” Indulging in pornography is banned, but “the employees who browsed the goods on Ashley Madison or used the Internet connections in their federal offices to pay membership fees may or may not have been doing anything sexually explicit. They could have spent hours every week on the site, or visited once. They may be actually having an affair, or they may not.” SOCIAL MEDIA SPEED READ: — ZIGNAL VISUAL: Trump continues to overshadow everyone else. So much for the Bush counteroffensive. Our analytics partners at Zignal Labs report that The Donald accounted for 62 percent of all the chatter about 2016 yesterday. The Ramos spat drove the day. This tracks Tuesday’s mentions of Trump in 15-minute increments: 
Between 6:30 and 6:45 p.m., there were just under 5,500 Trump mentions. Between 7 and 7:15, that number had jumped to 14,520. It stayed at that level for much of the evening. As you might imagine, much of the media attention came from the Spanish-language media. According to Zignal, more than 1,600 of the 13,000 traditional media mentions of Trump on Tuesday were in Spanish. More than half of those came from three countries: 433 stories in Mexico, 302 in the United States and 260 in Spain. –Pictures of the day: A potluck held in a California assemblywoman’s office included a Trump piñata:  (@cchavez_05) “We tortured our Trump piñata,” tweeted Lorena Gonzalez, a Democrat who represents a legislative district along the U.S.-Mexico border:  (@LorenaSGonzalez) After inviting constituents on Twitter to come “take a swing,” Gonzalez seemed to anticipate criticism with a series of tweets ending with #sorrynotsorry: Capital Weather Gang collected photos from Monday night’s storm:  (@tPFmariah9999)  (@JamesWillinghan) –Tweets of the day: Members of the GOP rose to Megyn Kelly's defense after Donald Trump criticized her (again): So did Kelly’s colleagues and boss. Fox News chief Roger Ailes ripped into Trump with a statement that called his latest criticisms “unacceptable” and “disturbing”: “Megyn Kelly represents the very best of American journalism and all of us at FOX News Channel reject the crude and irresponsible attempts to suggest otherwise.” Meanwhile, Trump just keeps trolling, trolling, trolling: Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) slammed ESPN for removing Curt Schilling from a broadcast over a tweet (now-deleted) that seemed to compare Muslims to Nazis: Schilling called the tweet a "bad choice" on Tuesday afternoon: Chris Christie released a 250-word statement on the 40th anniversary of Bruce Springsteen's album, "Born to Run":  (@ChrisChristie) Referring to the Iran nuclear debate, Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-S.C.) posted the following image of the House Minority Leader, calling it "too good not to share":  (@RepJeffDuncan) –Instagrams of the day: The Department of the Interior posted photos in celebration of the National Park Service, which turned 99 on Tuesday:  (usinterior) While Michelle Obama celebrated by posting a photo from a Girl Scout campout on the White House lawn:  (michelleobama) Rick Perry's campaign manager posted the following image with a famous quotation — some would say misquotation — from Mark Twain:  (millertimeintx) GOOD READS FROM ELSEWHERE: — Boston Globe, "Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren have frosty past," by Annie Linskey: "As Joe Biden mulls a presidential run, he's aiming his legendary charm squarely at Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. For it to work, he must overcome an awkward history between the two. A look at the public record shows that clashes between the pair began more than a decade ago. The fraught relationship has improved in recent years, but their past would complicate a potential alliance should he decide to run for president — and, as some have speculated, ask her to join him on a ticket. … Their one-on-one Saturday lunch at the US Naval Observatory was Warren's first solo meal with the vice president and her first trip to the vice president's official residence." - "There's the lengthy letter she penned in 2002 to The New York Times. In the missive she accused him of taking a position that made it harder for women to overcome debt and suggested a reason why: His home state is a place 'where many banks and credit-card issuers are incorporated,' she wrote.
- "Three years later they were still at it, continuing to debate on consumer debt, with Biden accusing her in 2005 of making a 'mildly demagogic' argument as a witness before his Judiciary committee. At one point Biden interrupted Warren as she testified. 'That is not my question,' he snapped. 'I would like you to answer my question.' … Biden dismissed the argument, but nodded to her debating skills, noting 'You are very good, Professor.'
— Denver Post, "Colorado Republicans cancel presidential vote at 2016 caucus," by John Frank: "Colorado will not vote for a Republican candidate for president at its 2016 caucus … The GOP executive committee has voted to cancel the traditional presidential preference poll after the national party changed its rules to require a state’s delegates to support the candidate that wins the caucus vote. 'It takes Colorado completely off the map' in the primary season, said Ryan Call, a former state GOP chairman. Republicans still will hold precinct caucus meetings in early 2016 to begin the process of selecting delegates for the national convention — but the 37 delegates are not pledged to any specific candidate. For Republicans, no declared winner means the caucus will lack much of its hype … the move makes it less likely that candidates will visit Colorado to court voters." Who loses? "The Colorado system often favors anti-establishment candidates who draw a dedicated following among activists — as evidenced by Rick Santorum’s victory in 2012 caucus. So the party’s move may hurt GOP contenders such as Donald Trump, Ben Carson and Rand Paul." — Politico, “Jeb Bush’s fundraising juggernaut shows signs of slowing,” by Eli Stokols: “A prominent Florida donor backing Bush said the former Sunshine State governor and his supporting super PAC are having to work even harder to keep up the pace, as hard-money contributions have been harder to come by in recent weeks. ‘The debate performance scared a few people,’ said Brian Ballard, a Tallahassee lobbyist backing Bush. ‘But I think the campaign's trouble raising money right now is not because of his performance, but there's some donor fatigue after that $100 million. I've been on some donor calls and it's a hard sell for hard money.'” — BuzzFeed, “Hillary Clinton Camp sees proof of undercover conservative sting,” by Ruby Cramer: “Aides point to emails and a screenshot, uncovered on Tuesday, as proof that [James O’Keefe’s group] Project Veritas is linked to a string of recent incidents in Iowa: a series of undercover maneuvers by fake supporters to trick or provoke Clinton volunteers and operatives into doing illegal, inappropriate, or embarrassing things.” The alleged Project Veritas members did things like “attempted to hand a cash contribution to Clinton campaign volunteers and interns. (Campaign finance regulation does not allow cash donations.) Next, on Aug. 13, one of the women identified herself as Canadian and asked a Clinton campaign "fellow," or unpaid organizer, for instructions to falsify a donation. (Another violation.). On Aug. 19, a woman asked the Clinton campaign if her parents could give an additional $2,700 to the campaign in her own name, in order to skirt campaign contribution limits.” HOT ON THE LEFT David Duke compliments Trump. From BuzzFeed: “David Duke, a former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan and self-described ‘racial realist,’ says Donald Trump is the best Republican candidate for president because he ‘understands the real sentiment of America.’ Duke, who unsuccessfully ran for president as a Democrat in 1988 and later served in the Louisiana House of Representatives, noted Trump's experience as a salesman and his ‘great sense’ of what people want to buy. ‘I praise the fact that he's come out on the immigration issue,'” Duke said on his radio program last week. | | | HOT ON THE RIGHT GOP senator accuses Clinton of improperly passing state secrets to her lawyer. From McClatchy DC: "Hillary Clinton gave her State Department emails containing Top Secret and other classified information to her lawyer, who lacked sufficient clearances to possess it and who kept it for as long as eight months, the Republican Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee charged Tuesday … Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa said when she turned over thumb drives containing her official emails to her lawyer, ‘it appears Secretary Clinton sent (Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information) to an unauthorized person.’" Kendall wrote Grassley a letter insisting that he actually had the proper clearances in order to help his client respond to congressional inquiries. | | | DAYBOOK: — What’s happening today on the campaign trail: Hillary Clinton will give remarks in Ankeny, Iowa, followed by stops in Sioux City and Baldwin, Iowa. Marco Rubio will campaign in Orford, Littleton and Londonderry, New Hampshire. Jeb Bush will hold a town hall meeting in Pensacola, Florida. Mike Huckabee will hold events in Elkader, West Union, Decorah and Waukon, Iowa. Carly Fiorina has a town hall meeting in Cushing, Iowa. George Pataki addressed the Bull Moose Club in Des Moines. Scott Walker will stop in Denison, Onawa, Missouri Valley, Harlan and Hamlin, Iowa. Martin O’Malley has events in Windham, Portsmouth, Manchester and Hollis, N.H. Ben Carson will campaign in Tennessee. — On the Hill: Both chambers are in recess. — At the White House: President Obama will welcome the WNBA Champion Phoenix Mercury to the White House to honor the team’s championship. Later in the afternoon, Obama will conduct interviews with local television anchors on the Iran deal. QUOTE OF THE DAY: "You can't help but get a kick out of him," actor Owen Wilson told the Daily Beast of Donald Trump, "and part of it is we're so used to politicians on both sides sounding like actors at press junkets — it's sort of by rote, and they say all the right things. So here's somebody who's not following that script. It's like when Charlie Sheen was doing that stuff — like, wow! He's answering a question completely honestly, and in an entertaining way. You sort of feel he could be a character from 'Network.'" | NEWS YOU CAN USE IF YOU LIVE IN D.C.: — “It's hard to imagine a better weather week to bring summer to an unofficial close. And for those who are already back to school, well this is pretty outstanding stuff for outdoor recess. The superlative-deserving weather continues through Friday,” the Capital Weather Gang forecasts. — The Nationals routed the San Diego Padres, 8-3. — “Metro has implemented speed restrictions on curves throughout the system,” Dr. Gridlock reports: That means trains are slowing to 35 mph to 40 mph as they approach a curve. The restrictions are in place as part of what Metro calls an "aggressive campaign" to inspect curved sections of track following the Aug. 6 derailment between the Federal Triangle and Smithsonian Metro stations.” — "Responding to the District's surging homicide rate, Mayor Muriel E. Bowser will ask the D.C. Council to expand law enforcement powers to make it easier for officers to search individuals on parole or probation and immediately detain anyone found in violation of the terms of release," Aaron C. Davis and Peter Hermann report. — One of the two tiny giant panda cubs born at the National Zoo this weekend is faltering, requiring extra medical attention from zookeepers. Zoo officials said the smaller of the two cubs has been regurgitating and has not been keeping on weight but also has not had more serious problems such as respiratory distress. — The D.C. Public Service Commission denied Chicago-based Exelon's proposed $6.4 billion takeover of Pepco Holdings, a major setback for the giant utility marriage, per Thomas Heath. VIDEO OF THE DAY: Former Rep. Trey Radel (R-Fla.) talked about hip-hop and his cocaine bust with IJReview:  (IJReview) |
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