GOOD SUNDAY MORNING! Happy Republican convention eve. Eight days until the Democratic convention in Philadelphia.
DEVELOPING -- “Turkey Rounds Up Thousands of Military Personnel,” by NYT’s Tim Arango and Ceylan Yeginsu in Istanbul (A11 in the print edition): “President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaking to hundreds of flag-waving supporters outside his home in Istanbul on Saturday evening, declared that ‘the strong aren’t always right, but the right are always strong.’ He called on the United States to arrest an exile living in Pennsylvania who Mr. Erdogan claimed was behind the coup attempt.” http://nyti.ms/29YYsU5
SNEAK PEAK -- THRUSH PODCAST EXCLUSIVE WITH TED CRUZ: Pence is a “good man,” but hasn’t sold Cruz on a Trump endorsement -- yet. In a far-ranging and reflective interview on the eve of the convention in Cleveland, the GOP-runner-up pushed back on the idea that Trump could shore up the party’s conservative base by selecting the values-voter-friendly Indiana governor. “I think very highly of Pence -- he’s a good man,” Cruz said during an interview to be posted Monday morning. “I think he’s been a good governor. He did a good job in Congress. And so, you know, I certainly congratulate him on being named…”
“But--” added Cruz, still stinging from Trump’s personal attacks on his family, “in this election I am where a great many voters are, which is that I am listening and watching and coming to a decision.”
-More Cruz: He previews his big speech Wednesday, talks about how much Republicans can learn from Barack Obama and Bernie Sanders – and blasts what he sees as the media’s devil’s bargain with Trump. Get POLITICO’s “Off Message” podcast here: http://apple.co/29G4qFp
**SUBSCRIBE to Playbook: http://politi.co/1M75UbX
DEPT OF ‘YA CAN’T MAKE IT UP’ -- Watch this clip that will air on “60 Minutes” tonight. Indiana Gov. Mike Pence decries negative campaigning, and then Donald Trump says “Hillary Clinton is a liar,” and “Hillary Clinton is a crook.” Leslie Stahl tells Trump: That is an example of negative campaigning! And Trump says, “You better believe it. … I call her ‘Crooked Hillary’ … She's crooked Hillary. He won’t-- I-- I don’t-- I didn't ask him to do it, but I don’t think he should do it because it's different for him.” http://cbsn.ws/29QvZjN
SCOOP -- RYAN ON THE AIR: Speaker Paul Ryan is spending nearly $150,000 next week to run his own political advertising during the week of the Republican convention, according to an ad-buying source. The spot will air beginning Tuesday of the GOP convention, and will end on July 25, when the Democratic convention starts. Ryan, who is speaking at the Republican convention, has made no secret that he wishes this campaign were more substantive, and the tone less harsh. Ryan’s ad will run on Discovery, ESPN, Fox Sports 1, Fox News, HGTV, History, NBC Sports, TNT, TBS and Hallmark.
BITE DU JOUR – Tom Vilsack to NBC’s Danny Freeman yesterday afternoon in Mount Pleasant, Iowa: “Donald Trump is sort of to politics what Bernie Madoff was to investment ... He is selling something that people don’t fully understand and appreciate what it actually means.” http://nbcnews.to/29YNvSk
LIVE FROM NEW YORK, IT’S DONALD! -- “In announcing Mike Pence, Donald Trump talks mostly about himself,” by WaPo’s Jenna Johnson in New York and Bob Costa in Cleveland: “Introducing his new running mate on Saturday, Donald Trump stood alone behind a lectern bearing only his name and rambled for 28 minutes about his primary victories, what he called Hillary Clinton’s crimes against the country, how pastors should be allowed to endorse candidates and how he correctly predicted the outcome of the Brexit vote.
“Occasionally, Trump mentioned his new ‘partner,’ Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, mostly looking down to read from notes when he did. The presumptive Republican nominee insisted Pence was his ‘first choice’ despite reports that he was uncomfortable with the decision until the end. Trump eventually invited Pence onstage, and the two shook hands. ‘You’re amazing,’ Pence whispered to him.”
“Then Trump left the stage. The interaction lasted all of six seconds.” http://wapo.st/29MFeh2
--“Donald Trump’s reluctant attack dog,” by Darren Samuelsohn in Indianapolis: “When it comes to the Clintons … Pence has often been a reluctant aggressor. … One early example came in May 1997 during an episode of Pence’s daily radio program that was syndicated across much of Indiana. According to rare video footage of one episode of ‘The Mike Pence Show,’ obtained by POLITICO, the far-off-in-the-future GOP vice presidential pick engaged on the issue of Bill Clinton’s infidelity — but only after his listeners brought it up.” http://politi.co/2a2TtzY
COMING ATTRACTIONS -- “Trump Plans To Steal The Spotlight Back With Cabinet Announcements,” by HuffPost’s Ryan Grim: “Frustrated at the lack of enthusiasm for his vice presidential pick Mike Pence, Donald Trump is now telling those close to him that he wants a do-over of sorts, which he aims to get by rolling out the names of potential cabinet members, a source who spoke to Trump told The Huffington Post.” http://huff.to/29ZRFbD
SPOTTED on yesterday’s direct United flight from Reagan to Cleveland for the GOP convention: Tom Cotton, Brit Hume, Jake Tapper, Judy Woodruff and Cokie Roberts.
PLAYBOOK IRL -- Check out the latest on the ground photos in Cleveland. View of Trump’s stage http://bit.ly/2a0RIXa … One of the swankest lounges in the Q http://bit.ly/29ZKeko … Team Trump “You are being filmed” http://bit.ly/29H0K6C
--@MaeveReston: “‘Welcome to Beruit’ ~~ My cab driver as he drops me off near the barricaded convention center in downtown Cleveland”
POLITICO MAG EARLY LOOK -- MICHAEL KRUSE, “The Executive Mr. Trump: The surprising truth about Trump as a boss — from the people he’s hired, fired and micromanaged”: “Based on conversations with people who have worked for him, people who still work for him and a half dozen of his biographers, the reality of Trump as an executive — his methods and his manner — bears little resemblance to the man viewers saw on the show. Rather than magisterial and decisive, Trump the actual boss swings wildly between micromanaging meddler and can’t-be-bothered, broad-brush, big-picture thinker. He is both impulsive and intuitive, for better and for worse. He hires on gut instinct rather than qualifications; he listens to others, but not as much or as often as he listens to himself.” http://politi.co/29SmvDN Full magazine drops Monday
ZEITGEIST -- JON WARD on Yahoo, “In Cleveland, a dazed GOP marches toward a Trump nomination”: “Those who talk to Priebus say that he has stopped commiserating with them in private about Trump and his transformation into a loyal, albeit zombified, field general is complete. Even the man picked by Trump to be his running mate, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, reportedly told people privately earlier this year that Trump was ‘unacceptable.’ Pence had supported Sen. Ted Cruz in the primary. ‘It’s disorienting to have had commiserated w/someone re: Trump — about how he was unacceptable, & then to see that someone become Trump’s VP,’ tweeted Dan Senor ... That word — disorienting — described what it was like for me to see Republicans here who four months ago were sending me emails saying, ‘I hope he has a bad day’ in Super Tuesday voting, and were now making sure that the Rules Committee revolt went nowhere.” http://yhoo.it/29H18ll
TODAY IN #NEVERTRUMP – “Never Trump plots last stand at Cleveland convention,” by Kyle Cheney in Cleveland: “For now, the favored strategy appears to be an attempt to block the convention’s 2,472 delegates from adopting a new set of party rules on Monday, rejecting the blueprint passed Thursday by the Convention Rules Committee. Anti-Trump operatives are cobbling together signatures from delegates in order to force a recorded vote on the rules package. They need the support of majorities in seven delegations to guarantee a vote. And if they succeed, their next challenge would be to furiously lobby the entire convention to reject the rules and add new language freeing them to rebel against Trump.” http://politi.co/29NrdlJ
2016 PLAYERS – PENCE brings longtime allies aboard Trump train -- Mike Pence is bringing several of his staunch loyalists onto the Trump campaign. Marc Short, who served as his chief of staff in GOP leadership on Capitol Hill and is the former president of Koch-backed group Freedom Partners, will be his communications adviser. KellyAnne Conway, who, beginning in 2010 began to build out Pence’s national brand, will be an adviser to Pence. Nick Ayers, a top Republican political consultant in Pence’s kitchen cabinet, will be a senior adviser. Josh Pitcock, who was Pence’s man in Washington and his chief of staff while he was in the House, is his policy director. Marc Lotter, who was a top hand on Pence’s Indiana re-elect, will be press secretary. Marty Obst, Pence’s former finance director, will keep the trains running on time as manager of VP operations.
UNDERSTANDING TRUMP -- “Donald Trump’s drive to surpass his father’s success,” by Boston Globe’s Matt Viser (A1 above the fold in the Boston Sunday Globe. Lots of juicy nuggets -- see the page: http://bit.ly/29FGdQD): “Fred Trump couldn’t understand it. His son Donald was building a new Manhattan skyscraper, and in the process blowing huge sums on exotic materials, especially bronze solar glass that wrapped all 58 stories … Fred Trump would tour the building site, according to a project manager, finding fault and declaring, ‘You guys don’t know what you’re doing.” http://bit.ly/2a0SNhH
FUN READ – “Donald Trump the Political Showman, Born on ‘The Apprentice,’” by NYT’s Michael M. Grynbaum and Ashley Parker: “He routinely fibbed about ratings, declaring ‘The Apprentice’ the No. 1 show on television even when, as NBC officials would sheepishly admit, it was not. And he demanded a raise to $6 million from roughly $50,000 an episode during a lunch with Jeff Zucker, then head of NBC. It was only fair, he explained, because the cast of NBC’s sitcom ‘Friends’ earned the same amount — combined.” http://nyti.ms/29YSF0D
TOON DU JOUR -- @ericbradner: “Fun @mike_pence fact: He draws caricatures. One he gave me in 2013, when I left the @courierpress for @politico:” http://bit.ly/29ZOD7a
--@frankthorp: “Full page ad on back side of the A section of the Cleveland Plain Dealer is this ltr from @joshtetrick against Trump.” http://bit.ly/2a0WS5F
COUNTERPROGRAMMING -- “Clinton using Republican convention to spur voter signup,” by AP’s Ken Thomas: “Hillary Clinton’s campaign is launching a major voter mobilization drive during the Republican National Convention, setting a national goal of getting more than 3 million people to register and commit to vote in the 2016 election...During the week, Clinton’s campaign and state Democratic coordinated campaigns will hold more than 500 registration or ‘commit to vote’ events across the nation. For example, voter registration events will be held at the Islamic Center of Akron’s Eid celebration in Ohio; a bilingual day camp in Hazelton, Pennsylvania; Detroit’s Eastern Market; and a campaign office opening in Madison, Wisconsin.” http://bit.ly/2a2SgsH
POLLS DU JOUR -- Donald Trump is leading Hillary Clinton by more than 2-to-1 in a new Military Times poll of military personnel. Though a strong majority of respondents say they are unimpressed by both candidates. More than 61 percent indicated they are “dissatisfied” or “very dissatisfied” with Trump as the Republican nominee, including 28 percent of those who intend to vote for him. More than 82 percent said the same about Clinton, the Democratic nominee, with 30 percent of those pledging to vote for her voicing displeasure with the choice. http://bit.ly/29LSZvM
--NBC/WSJ July national poll -- off embargo at 9 a.m. -- Clinton 46, Trump 41. Poll conducted July 9-13. “Clinton has the advantage among African Americans (84 to 7 percent), voters ages 18-29 (55 to 32 percent) and women (52 to 37 percent). … Trump, meanwhile, is ahead among whites (50 to 37 percent) and men (46 to 39 percent), and the two candidates are tied among independents (36 percent each).”
INSIDE THE CAMPAIGNS – “Behind The Scenes Drama as Donald Trump Picks Mike Pence,” by Time’s Zeke Miller and Alex Altman: “All the way to the end, each of the finalists for the role of Donald Trump’s running mate believed that history beckoned. Chris Christie’s allies were so sure the New Jersey governor was the pick that his former New Hampshire state director quit a lucrative consulting job to join the Trump campaign. Newt Gingrich thought things were drifting his way too, thanks to a lobbying push led by powerful conservative stalwarts ... During Trump’s deliberations over the vice-presidential pick, Adelson’s allies made clear that he would open the spigot if Gingrich — on whose 2012 presidential campaign Adelson dropped more than $20 million — was the pick, the Adelson ally said. But the strings-attached offer turned Trump off ... ‘Trump cannot be bought,’ says a Trump ally ... ‘And he didn’t like the insinuation that [Adelson] has more money than he does.’” http://ti.me/29SgTcC
WHAT BROOKLYN IS READING -- “Trump had a problem with women voters. Pence could make it even worse,” by WashPost’s Katie Zezima (a birthday girl today): “Donald Trump has already had problems making inroads with female, gay and minority voters. His vice-presidential pick, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, could make things even worse. Pence ... has endorsed conservative legislation on abortion, gay rights and immigration both in his home state and while in Congress, where he was consistently ranked as one of the most right-leaning members of the House. He attempted to shut down the government over Planned Parenthood funding, supported a measure that made English the nation’s official language and signed one of the nation’s strictest abortion laws earlier this year.” http://politi.co/2a2TtzY
VIDEO DU JOUR – “Mike Pence Is Boring, And That’s OK,” by Matt Negrin and Griffin Hammond of Bloomberg Politics http://bit.ly/2akkVbV
GET SMART FAST – “What Caused the Turkish Coup Attempt: President Erdogan’s uncompromising approach to rule was bound to produce a violent backlash — but this wasn’t the way to go,” by former U.S. Amb. to Turkey W. Robert Pearson in Politico: “The president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is devoted to a view that emphasizes the right of majority rule over concepts of shared control by institutions within a constitutional system. ... His view contrasts sharply with the original vision of Kemal Ataturk and his contemporary disciples to maintain a secular democratic state.” http://politi.co/2a2Tsw6
BONUS GREAT WEEKEND READS, curated by Daniel Lippman:
-- “The Day That Went Missing,” by NYT’s Trip Gabriel in Sunday Review section: “Do you remember June 27, 2015? If you knew you had been on a sailboat, and that the weather was miserable, and that afterward you had a beer with the other sailors, would you expect to recall — even one year later — at least a few details? I was on that boat, on a blustery Saturday on Long Island Sound. But every detail is missing from my memory, as if snipped out by an overzealous movie editor.” http://nyti.ms/29LWe6q
--“The ISIS Correspondent,” by Isaac Chotiner in Slate: “The New York Times’ Rukmini Callimachi on the group’s ruthless tactics, the perils of getting close to dangerous sources, and the emotional toll of reporting on terrorism.” http://slate.me/29J8H0u
--“Falling for sleep,” by Rubin Naiman in Aeon Magazine: “When wakefulness is seen as the main event, no wonder so many have trouble sleeping. Can we rekindle the joy of slumber?” http://bit.ly/29JScvX
--“Rehoboth Gone Wild: Inside the Insane Feud in a Delaware Beach Town,” by Britt Peterson in Washingtonian: “Locals and out-of-towners are fighting about the right to have fun.” http://bit.ly/29Jq2lZ
--“The Ugly Battle Over the Wildenstein Art Empire,” by Bloomberg’s James Tarmy and Vernon Silver: “Once the world’s richest and most influential dealers, the family is trying to fight off a half-billion dollar tax bill.” http://bloom.bg/29EbbYh (h/t TheBrowser.com)
--“The Omnivore’s Guilt Trip,” by Adam Platt in Grub Street: “Is there anything to buy in the supermarket that isn’t bad for you, or bad for the world?” http://grb.st/29Ws2rR
--“Was Diane Arbus the Most Radical Photographer of the 20th Century?” by Alex Mar in NY Mag: “A new biography and Met exhibit show how she sacrificed her marriage, her friendships, and eventually her life for her career as an artist living on the edge.” http://thecut.io/29Va9uR (h/t Longreads.com)
--“The FBI, My Husband, and Me,” by Shirley Streshinsky in The American Scholar: “What I know now about Ted, whose photographs documented the 1960s, and about J. Edgar Hoover’s attempts to label him a Soviet spy.” http://bit.ly/29Pc2J0
--“Voltaire’s Luck: The French philosopher outsmarts the lottery,” by Roger Pearson in Lapham’s Quarterly: “Lotteries were all the rage in eighteenth-century Paris. There had been a financial crisis in 1719, and France had nearly gone bankrupt. ... With the ensuing austerity came the lottery and the blandishments of la bonne chance. Why tax a weary and resistant populace when luck might seduce them?” http://bit.ly/29Zo0ig
--“The Tamir Rice Story: How to Make a Police Shooting Disappear,” by Sean Flynn in GQ: “Maybe you heard about the Tamir Rice case and wondered: How does a 12-year-old boy with a toy gun on a playground get shot to death on-camera by the police without anyone getting charged? Put another way: How does a small group of government officials make this case disappear without a trial? Here’s how.” http://bit.ly/2agODON (h/t Longform.org)
--“The Art of the Donald: The Trumpster Stages the Comeback of a Lifetime,” by Mark Bowden in the May 1997 issue of Playboy: “His is a magic kingdom of perfect luxury, a life without stain, without wear and tear, without malfunction, mistake or delay. Perfect ease surrounded by brilliant people and beautiful things, a life without failure, distraction or care. Trump’s own life sets the standard and is meant to be seen. Being seen is key.” http://bit.ly/2agPrTX
--“First ever Refugee Olympic team to go for the gold in Rio,” by Rich Tenori in the Times of Israel: “Over 65 million people became displaced in 2015. At next month’s games, ten stateless athletes will compete together, aiming to win not only awareness, but also medals.” http://bit.ly/29Qx6Qr
HAPPENING TONIGHT, CLEVELAND EDITION -- Lynyrd Skynyrd will take the stage at Jacobs Pavilion tonight as part of the Cleveland Rocks 2016 concert series. Doors open at 8 p.m. Last-minute tickets here: http://bit.ly/29MxAEL
TRANSITIONS -- “World Bank Names Paul Romer as Chief Economist,” by WSJ’s Ian Talley: “Mr. Romer, who received his doctorate in economics at the University of Chicago, the World Bank will be getting a rock star in economist circles who has also made it big in the private sector. He is known as a proponent of the ‘endogenous growth theory,’ which holds that investment in human capital, ideas and technology are the major drivers of economic growth.” http://on.wsj.com/29QwOc7 ... His most recent essay on economic growth http://bit.ly/2akoH53
REMEMBERING ROBERT MORGAN – Charlotte News and Observer’s Rob Christensen: “From humble beginnings on a Harnett County farm, Morgan had a remarkable career in Raleigh and Washington serving as a powerful state legislator, a crusading attorney general, a one-term U.S. senator and finally, in an unlikely coda, as head of the State Bureau of Investigation. Throughout his career, Morgan displayed a pronounced independent streak, whether it was taking on North Carolina’s establishment to create a medical school at East Carolina University, alienating conservatives by supporting the Panama Canal Treaty, or reining in the excesses of the FBI and the CIA.” http://bit.ly/29H26xS
WEEKEND WEDDINGS -- For Obama’s Speechwriting Team, the Message Finally Got Through,” by Sarah Wildman in the NYT Sunday Styles’ “Vows” column: “When Kristen Bartoloni came on board as a researcher on the White House communications team in 2011, there was one rule she was intent on following: Don’t mix dating and work. ... But she hadn’t anticipated meeting the very persistent Cody Keenan, a speechwriter whom President Obama nicknamed ‘Hemingway.’ Still, she adhered to her self-set rule through three attempts by Mr. Keenan to get her to go out with him. Mr. Keenan, who had begun working for Barack Obama in the early stages of his 2008 campaign for the presidency, was smitten from the moment Ms. Bartoloni popped her head into his office to say hello. ... On July 3, the couple married at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington. As guests filed out in a light drizzle, the couple slipped away to the White House, where they met the president for a congratulatory hug and photo.” With 9 pix and a Ben Rhodes cameo http://nyti.ms/29LY2vZ
ENGAGED – DCCC’s Mary Ryan (from Cleveland, OH originally) and Klobuchar deputy comms director Colin Milligan (from Grand Rapids, MI originally) got engaged on Saturday. Colin emails us: “Funny story – we met at the ‘Hammer’ bar in Las Vegas in 2012 (was a popular bar for campaign staff esp. Reid campaign staff in 2010 – and was also on Bar Rescue a few years ago) when I was the press secretary for Shelley Berkley’s Senate campaign and she was the finance director for John Oceguera’s House race against Joe Heck that year (both lost unfortunately).” Pic http://bit.ly/2a0Rm2U
OBAMA ALUMNI -- Ben Lazurus, a summer legal associate at Handy HQ and NYU law student, yesterday proposed to Jessie Singleton, chief digital officer for the City of New York. They got engaged on Governors Island NY by The Hills (opening on Tuesday!) They met in NYC during the 2013 DeBlasio mayoral campaign. Jessie was deputy digital director for Pennsylvania during Obama 2012 while Ben was a regional field director for OFA. Pic http://bit.ly/29QwIBo
SPOTTED: ABC’s Jon Karl - in jeans, a shirt and blazer - running through DCA Saturday morning … Bob Barnett at DCA getting off of the 10 a.m. shuttle from New York Saturday … Former Senate candidate and congressman Joe Sestak waiting for someone outside security at DCA late Saturday night after the storms delayed hundreds of flights
BIRTHDAYS: Kayla Tausche, CNBC reporter and co-host of “Squawk Alley,” Atlanta native and Tarheel basketball diehard (h/t Ben Chang) … Cruz spox Catherine “Cat” Frazier, celebrating by flying to Cleveland … WashPost’s Katie Zezima, an NYT and AP alum, brunching with hubby in DC before jetting to Cleveland (h/t Sarah Wheaton) ... U.S. Treasurer Rosie Rios ... Seth Bringman, former comms director at Ready for Hillary ... David L. Wade … Politico’s Caitlin O’Connell and Jessica Cuellar ... German Chancellor Angela Merkel is 62 ... Ben Deutsch, director of client strategy at Rising Tide Interactive ... Jon Graham of Gula Graham Group … Schumer alum Cathie Levine Isay ... EPA’s Jon Monger ... Jonathan Lee … Laura MacInnis … Matt Berger, senior adviser for strategic comms at Hillel International … Andy Barr, a Politico alum and now partner at Saguaro Strategies … Steve Spinner, Obama alum and founder/CEO of RevUp, the revolutionary data analytics fundraising start-up (h/t Tucker Warren) ... Mercury’s Caitlin Klevorick, a State and Clinton alum …
... The Atlantic’s Anna Christopher Bross, an NPR alum ... M Street Insight’s Dan Comstock is 33 … David Vandivier ... Dani Simons, comms director at bike-share company Motivate (h/t Ross) … CNN alum Shannan Butler Adler ... Carter Baer, Ken’s son ... David A. Steinberg, CEO of Zeta Interactive ... Annabel Ascher ... Myrna Lim ... Marnie Funk, senior advisor at Shell ... Chris Buki, an LA in Chairman Shuster’s personal office, is 27 ... Lizzie Cooper of Emily’s List (h/t Sandy Maisel) ... Jessica Cuellar ... Rep. Katherine M. Clark (D-Mass.) is 53 ... Susan Kennedy ... Rich Judge ... Caroline Koss ... Evi Wareka (h/ts Teresa Vilmain) ... Suzy Wagner ... Nicole Tarbet ... Kyle Dropp ... Bashir Rostom ... country music star Luke Bryan is 39 ... David Hasselhoff is 63 (h/ts Kurt Bardella) ... Donald Sutherland is 84 ... Diahann Carroll is 81 ... Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, is 69 ... Lucie Arnaz is 65 ... TV producer Mark Burnett is 56 ... actress Summer Bishil is 28 (h/ts AP)