BULLETIN -- “BERLIN (AP) - Germany’s economy minister says free trade talks between the European Union and the United States have failed.”
GOOD SUNDAY MORNING. There are 72 days until Election Day, and it’s been a stunning 267 days since Hillary Clinton held a press conference. From Jake: Good afternoon from Jerusalem. It’s my last day here, and I’ve had a great time talking to interesting people who have fascinating views on life here. I went on a run today in the 90-degree heat and snapped a photo of the American flag flying high above the U.S. Consulate on Agron Road in the center of the city. http://bit.ly/2bP8iYl In the background is the Waldorf Astoria, where many top U.S. officials -- including members of Congress -- stay when in town.
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DONALD TRUMP is preparing for the presidential debates by holding prep sessions at his New Jersey golf course with Rudy Giuliani, Laura Ingraham and Roger Ailes, according to Bob Costa, Phil Rucker and Anne Gearan in the Washington Post.
--“Inside debate prep: Clinton’s careful case vs. Trump’s ‘WrestleMania’”: “Hillary Clinton is methodically preparing for the presidential debates as a veteran lawyer would approach her biggest trial. She pores over briefing books thick with policy arcana and opposition research. She internalizes tips from the most seasoned debate coaches in her party. And she rehearses, over and over again, to perfect the pacing and substance of her presentation…
“Trump’s aides have put together briefing books, not that the candidate is devoting much time to reading them. Trump is not holding any mock debates, proudly boasting that a performer with his talents does not need that sort of prepping. Should Trump submit to traditional rehearsals, some associates are talking about casting Ingraham, an adversarial chronicler of Clinton scandals, to play the Democratic nominee. ‘Donald Trump is the unpredictable X-factor and Hillary Clinton is the scripted statist,’ said Kellyanne Conway, Trump’s new campaign manager, in an interview. ‘I fully understand why Team Clinton feels the need to drown her in briefing books and Hollywood consulting.’” http://wapo.st/2cjkCD3
--REMINDER: Donald Trump has not yet accepted the invitation to debate, as the Post notes.
NIGEL FARAGE in the DAILY MAIL: “Trump was MY warm-up man... but I gave him a bounce - and he’ll be new Ronald Reagan”:“We [Farage and Trump] met at a private gathering of major Mississippi donors to his campaign. I was surprised, even slightly overwhelmed, by the warmth of his welcome and his huge support for Brexit. As he said to me: ‘Smart thing to do.’ … I had never addressed a public meeting in the US before and certainly never spoken to a crowd of 15,000. I was anxious. But I was told not to worry, it would be OK. I’d be one of the early speakers, they said, and hardly anyone would listen to me as they would be waiting to hear from the main man. So I waited in the wings – surrounded by swarms of stern-faced US Secret Service agents.
“Then, minutes before the event began, I was told there was a change of plan. Donald would introduce me. I couldn’t really believe what I was hearing. One of his aides said: ‘He’s gonna be your warm-up.’ … So what now do I think of Trump and his campaign? Often business people don’t make good politicians. … The Trump campaign is now about change. Having met him and having spoken to him, I am far less worried. If he becomes US President he will be able sensibly to make the big decisions.” http://dailym.ai/2brOWG7
TRUMP IN IOWA – NYT A15, “Donald Trump Tries to Clarify Immigration Plan, but Avoids Key Issue,” by Nick Corasaniti in Des Moines: “In a speech at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, Mr. Trump said he would strengthen the system that allows employers to verify the eligibility of workers, and would create an entry-exit tracking system for visas. He also reiterated his promise to cancel ‘unconstitutional orders’ and ‘executive orders’ relating to immigration.
“Mr. Trump largely avoided the question that has caused him trouble this week: what to do about the undocumented immigrants already in the country. ‘All the media wants to talk about is the 11 million people, or more, or less — they have no idea what the number is because we have no control over our country, have no idea what it is, that are here illegally,’ Mr. Trump said.” http://nyti.ms/2c5WcvI
-- POLITICO: “Trump talks to a white crowd about black voters: The GOP nominee returns to Iowa, where he still has a chance to catch up to Clinton,” by Eli Stokols in Des Moines: “The GOP nominee referenced the murder of NBA star Dwyane Wade’s cousin in Chicago overnight, hours after mentioning it in a controversial tweet in which he commented, ‘Just what I have been saying. African-Americans will VOTE TRUMP.’ It was the third time Trump seemed to claim credit for predicting another tragedy, as he did following terror attacks in France and Florida.
“Speaking from prepared remarks loaded into a teleprompter,Trump called Wade, whose first name was misspelled in his script, a ‘great guy’ before telling the crowd about his cousin’s murder. ‘She was the mother of four, and was killed while pushing her infant child in a stroller. Shot,’ Trump said. ‘It breaks all of our hearts to see. It’s horrible, it’s horrible and it’s only getting worse. This shouldn’t happen in our country; this shouldn’t happen in America. We send our thoughts and our prayers to the family, and we also promise to fight for a better tomorrow.’” http://politi.co/2c5Wvqb
-- AP: “Trump warns of regulations, taxes harming family farmers,” by Scott Bauer in Des Moines and birthday boy Ken Thomas in White Plains, New York: “Trump warned a crowd in Iowa on Saturday that Clinton ‘wants to shut down family farms’ and implement anti-agriculture policies. His comments came in a speech to the annual ‘Roast and Ride’ fundraiser for Republican Sen. Joni Ernst. Trump skipped the 42-mile motorcycle ride that preceded the event …
“Clinton met Saturday for more than two hours with intelligence officials at the FBI office in White Plains, New York, for her first overview of the major threats facing the nation around the globe since she became the Democratic nominee. Trump received his briefing earlier this month, a customary move for major-party nominees.” http://apne.ws/2brV6WO
--FRONT PAGE of the Des Moines Register included only a tease of the Trump speech. http://bit.ly/2bICEfG But Trump got a great headline out of the Quad-City Times: “Trump pledges to help people without a voice.” http://bit.ly/2bJeH9T … Story here http://bit.ly/2bJPmIq
GOOD LUCK WITH THAT -- “Anti-Trump Republicans to launch swing-state ad buy,” by Kyle Cheney: “Anti-Trump Republicans are preparing to launch a broadcast TV ad in a handful of swing-state suburbs urging Donald Trump to quit the presidential race so the party can replace him with a more electable nominee. The ad, titled ‘Keep Your Word,’ features footage of Trump during the Republican primary in which he suggested he’d drop out if he saw his poll numbers decline …
“The 30-second spot is marked for a limited run on broadcast networks in suburban Florida, Virginia, Ohio and Michigan, according to Regina Thomson, a Colorado Republican activist and leader of Free the Delegates, the organization that failed to stop Trump’s nomination at last month's national convention.” http://politi.co/2bJ9izH … The ad http://bit.ly/2bJTR5I
POLL DU JOUR -- “Trump Gains Ground on Clinton; Black Voters Still Wary,” by Morning Consult’s Fawn Johnson: “Donald Trump trails Democratic rival Hillary Clinton by only 3 percentage points in a new national poll from Morning Consult, shrinking a deficit that has alarmed GOP operatives who fear their unconventional nominee may harm the prospects of other Republican candidates on the ballot this fall …
“Trump’s outreach to African American voters appears to be falling flat among that demographic, with only 5 percent of black voters saying they will vote for Trump; 79 percent of African American respondents say they will vote for Clinton, with 16 percent undecided.” http://bit.ly/2buqlVw
SWING STATE FRONTS -- The Tribune-Democrat of Johnstown, Pennsylvania (one column, right-hand side), “Toomey crosses gun-rights divide” http://bit.ly/2bsebIe … Naples Daily News (five columns, across the bottom), “Election Day not what it used to be as many people choose convenience voting” http://bit.ly/2bJgzPS … Atlanta Journal-Constitution (front lead story, two columns), “Campaign war over voting rights … Amplifying concerns: Georgia could be in play in presidential race” http://bit.ly/2bXU2fG … Union Leader of Manchester, New Hampshire, “Bully pulpit? Pundits: Discourse at an all-time low” http://bit.ly/2c0dWVV … Charlotte Observer (bottom of the page, five columns), “Cities beset by gun violence use subsidies to woo NRA” http://bit.ly/2bJgJXw … Cleveland Plain Dealer(centerpiece), “Clinton, Trump and the economy … What would their campaign pledges mean for the country’s financial well-being? We asked three economists to help us figure it out. Here’s what we found.” http://bit.ly/2bsiovA
NEW TRUMP WEB AD – “Clinton’s Corruption Exposed... Again” with the narrator calling the Clinton Foundation a “slush fund” and cameos by Chris Wallace and Brian Fallon. 1-min. video http://bit.ly/2bYVa1I
CLINTON INC. -- “He was a billionaire who donated to the Clinton Foundation. Last year, he was denied entry into the U.S.,” by LA Times’ Joseph Tanfani: “Nigerian billionaire Gilbert Chagoury, one of Africa’s richest men, has built a reputation as a giant of global philanthropy. His name is on a gallery at the Louvre and a medical school in Lebanon, and he has received awards for his generosity to the Catholic Church and St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. He owns a seven-bedroom hilltop mansion in Beverly Hills, and he has a high-level network of friends from Washington to Lebanon to the Vatican, where he serves as an ambassador for the tiny island nation of St. Lucia. His website shows him shaking hands and laughing with Pope Francis. ‘I never imagined what the future would hold for me,’ Chagoury once said of his boyhood in Nigeria. ‘But I knew there was a vision for my life that was greater than I could imagine. … I consider it a duty to give back.’
“Since the 1990s, Chagoury has also cultivated a friendship with the Clinton family — in part by writing large checks, including a contribution of at least $1 million to the Clinton Foundation.” http://lat.ms/2bXWen4 … Chagoury’s response http://lat.ms/2bYMRTq
-- “Clinton Foundation Official Requests State Lunch Invitation, Special Seating for Foundation Allies, Emails Show,” by ABC News’ Jonathan Karl, Devin Dwyer and Benjamin Siegel: “In one December 2010 email chain with Clinton’s closest aide Huma Abedin, then-top Clinton Foundation official Doug Band offers names for a State Department lunch with Chinese President Hu Jintao scheduled for January 2011. On the list were three executives from organizations that have donated millions to the Clinton Foundation: Bob McCann, the then-president of wealth management at UBS; Dr. Judith Rodin, the president of the Rockefeller Foundation; and Hikmet Ersek, the CEO of Western Union. According to the Foundation website, the UBS Wealth Management USA has contributed between $500,001 and $1 million to the Foundation; the Rockefeller Foundation has given between $10 million and $25 million, while Western Union and its foundation has contributed between $1 million and $5 million.” http://abcn.ws/2c08vGu
WHAT VEGAS IS READING -- front page of the Las Vegas Sun (http://bit.ly/2bXR9eH) -- “Mormons in Nevada bristle at the thought of backing Trump,” by Megan Messerly: “In Nevada, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints comprise a small but reliable voting bloc that has exercised outsize influence in Republican caucuses, turns out to the polls at higher rates than other demographic groups, and often mobilizes grassroots-style on behalf of conservative causes. But politically active members of the Latter-day Saint community say this year has been different.
‘“I’m concerned about the message we send if we put a candidate at the top of the ticket whose campaign has largely been fueled by insults,’ said Steven Fellows, a member of the LDS community who fundraised for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign. ‘Even if his policies are good, the character of our nation is at stake.’” http://bit.ly/2cjp7h0
HOW THE OTHER HALF LIVES -- “The rich are different: Like Rick Scott, they run for state office,” by Tampa Bay Times’ Michael Auslen in the Tallahassee bureau: “After Tuesday, Irv Slosberg could be a state senator — or he could be out nearly $2 million in a failed election. Slosberg, a Democratic state House member from Boca Raton, has spent about $1.9 million of his own money in a primary battle with Sen. Jeff Clemens, D-Lake Worth … A number of conditions explain why. The concentration of wealth in the last 30 years has produced a record number of billionaires and millionaires undaunted by the typical expenses of a campaign. While state law limits donors to $1,000 per candidate each election year, no such restrictions exist for candidates. They can loan or donate themselves as much as they can afford. In an era where being an outsider appeals to voters, relying on personal wealth comes with political benefits. Candidates don’t have to worry about appearing bought and paid for by big money donors. Convenience. Candidates don’t have to spend time making pleas for big bucks.” http://bit.ly/2bXUIkR
PLAYBOOK INBOX from Barbra Streisand (info@hillaryclinton.com) with the subject line, “I would love to meet you”: “I’m spending an evening campaigning with Hillary in New York City next week, and I would love to meet you there. Will you add your name for a chance to win a free trip to join us? When I was a kid and told my mom I wanted to be an actress, she said, ‘Well, you’re not pretty enough; you better cut your nails off and become a typist so you’ll have a job.’
“Years later, I was trying to make my first movie, Yentl, and man after man in Hollywood told me I was just an actress -- I could never direct and produce a film. So many of us -- especially women -- know how it feels to be told, ‘No, you can’t.’ It’s easy to believe that about ourselves. It’s harder to believe the truth: that we have power, and we can use it. Hillary Clinton is the proof.”
POWER PLAYBOOKER -- MOHAMED EL-ERIAN on Bloomberg View, “Yellen Wisely Keeps the Fed on a Steady Course”: “Given the recent protracted period of unbalanced policy stances that have relied excessively on unconventional monetary measures, there seems to be a growing consensus, both within the Fed and outside, that central banks are less able to deliver macroeconomic outcomes. ... Because the U.S. economy has been a relative out-performer in the advanced world, the Fed has been able to observe the experience of some of its peers that have ventured even deeper into unconventional policies -- including via negative policy rates and by specifying a broader set of market products for their large-scale asset purchases. ... And the result is less than encouraging so far, highlighting not just the limited benefits of such approaches, but also the notable risk of collateral damage and unintended consequences.” http://bloom.bg/2burRqC
--“Navy gets $2.7B attack submarine sponsored by Michelle Obama,” by AP’s Jennifer McDermott: “Submarine builder General Dynamics Electric Boat, based in Groton, Connecticut, delivered the submarine that will become the USS Illinois to the Navy on Saturday after nearly five and a half years of construction. The first lady, who's from Chicago, will be involved in the life of the submarine and the lives of its sailors and their families. ... Obama, who has made it a priority to support military families, broke a bottle of champagne across the submarine’s hull to christen it last year. She has been invited to give the order to ‘bring the ship to life’ at the commissioning ceremony in October. Inside the submarine, there’s a metal plate inscribed with the first lady’s initials, which each sailor will see several times a day. It's mounted where the crew eats.” http://apne.ws/2bJeEdY
DEEP DIVE – NYT A1, “SEAL Team 6 and a Man Left for Dead: A Grainy Picture of Valor,” by Sean D. Naylor and Chris Drew: “An airman with the unit [John Chapman] is being considered for the Medal of Honor after new video analysis suggested that he fought alone bravely in a 2002 battle on an Afghan peak.” http://nyti.ms/2bJc73C
PLAYBOOK METRO SECTION -- “Maglev Train Project to Link Baltimore and Washington Gets a Boost: Japanese technology could connect cities in about 15 minutes, but skeptics abound,” by the WSJ’s Scott Calvert in Baltimore: “On Wednesday, Maryland officials announced a $2 million pledge from the government of Japan, where the technology was developed, for a feasibility study. Last fall, the U.S. Transportation Department awarded a $28 million grant for environmental and engineering studies. Northeast Maglev, the company promoting the effort, says the roughly 40-mile line could open in about a decade at a cost ‘somewhat north’ of $10 billion, with the Japanese government covering a major portion. The technology uses magnetic forces to accelerate trains to speeds of more than 300 miles an hour as they hover inches off the ground. There is one 26.6-mile stretch of maglev track in Japan using this technology, but it isn’t yet open for commercial service.” http://on.wsj.com/2bYrTnM
THANKS, OBAMA -- “Persian rugs enjoy post-sanctions boom: US sales soar, providing a rare bright spot for Iran,” by the FT’s Monavar Khalaj in Tehran: “The US was Iran’s major market for Persian rugs and the sanctions caused total carpet exports to drop by 30 per cent — the embargo meant no American could buy, sell or import Persian rugs, even if they were purchased outside of the Islamic republic. But now, with many of the west’s sanctions lifted after Tehran reached a historic nuclear deal with western powers last year, the industry is enjoying a boom as sales to America soar. Persian carpet exports were up 39 per cent in the four months to July 21, with American devotees of the Iranian artistry the main buyers.” http://on.ft.com/2bAaLEZ
BONUS GREAT WEEKEND READS, curated by Daniel Lippman, filing from NYC, where he recommends the pan-Asian restaurant Tao, which has a giant statue of Buddha in the main dining room (www.taorestaurant.com):
-- “A fortress against fear: In the rural Pacific Northwest, prepping for the day it hits the fan,” by the WashPost’s Kevin Sullivan in Hayden, Idaho: “The Bradways are among the vanguard moving to an area of the Pacific Northwest known as the American Redoubt, a term coined in 2011 by survivalist author and blogger James Wesley, Rawles (the comma is deliberate) to describe a settlement of the God-fearing in a lightly populated territory that includes Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and the eastern parts of Washington and Oregon.” http://wapo.st/2brtxzu
--“Beware the Tyranny Trap,” by Steven B. Smith in National Interest: “Surveys have shown that 31 percent of American teenagers expect to be famous one day. ... [W]hile the desire for fame and recognition may be inseparable from ambition, they are not the same thing. Ambitious people desire not only to be recognized but also to be deemed worthy of recognition. The concept of ambition is invariably tied to notions of honor and deference. Today, however, these terms have an obsolete sound.” http://bit.ly/2bmvEr7
--“Pin Kings,” by Brett Forrest in ESPN: “The astonishing story of how two wrestling teammates from Miami came to oppose each other in the cocaine wars -- one as a drug smuggler, the other as a DEA agent.” http://es.pn/2bmil4A
--“Margalit Fox on Life, Death, and the Best Job in Journalism,” by Tyler Cowen on Medium: “The stereotypical obituary is a formulaic recitation of facts—dry, boring, and without craft. But Margalit Fox has shown the genre can produce some of the most memorable and moving stories in journalism. Exploiting its ‘pure narrative arc,’ Fox has penned over 1,200 obituaries, covering well-known and obscure subjects with equal aplomb.” http://bit.ly/2cfH8Nj
--“Little People, Big Woes in Hollywood: Low Pay, Degrading Jobs and a Tragic Death,” by The Hollywood Reporter’s Seth Abramovitch: “The politically correct term is ‘little people’, abbreviated to ‘LPs’. ‘Dwarf’ is acceptable, the plural being ‘dwarfs’ — not ‘dwarves’. ‘Midget’ has long been considered offensive, referred to by many LPs as ‘the M-word’. Historically, the term ‘midget’ referred specifically to pituitary dwarfism, which produces LPs with proportions similar to average-size adults. In Hollywood’s golden age there was a turf war between proportional and disproportionate little people, and some of those attitudes linger.” http://bit.ly/2c2PSoH (h/t TheBrowser.com)
--“Burj Khalifa: Alone at the Top of the World,” by Matt King in Catapult: “Why are people building elaborate residential towers for no one to live in?” http://bit.ly/2bV5tEw
--“The Secret Nazi Attempt to Breed the Perfect Horse,” by Elizabeth Letts, author of “The Perfect Horse: The Daring U.S. Mission to Rescue the Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis”: “The bestselling author of ‘The Eighty Dollar Champion’ describes the Nazis’ secret stud farm, where dubious visionaries imagined a breed of perfect (and perfectly white) horse. ... Like Hitler himself, the horses, once quintessentially Austrian, would be given a distinctly German stamp.” http://bit.ly/2bN9MlQ ... $16.46 on Amazon http://amzn.to/2bnuR6J
--“How Things Work,” by Nick Denton, the founder of Gawker, in his farewell post: “The chief rule of establishment journalism is the one that recommends against pissing off billionaires. Gawker did overextend itself, as an enterprise. We were internet exceptionalists, believing that that from blogs, forums and messaging would emerge a new world of unlimited freedom to associate and to express. As our experience has shown, that freedom was illusory. The system is still there. It pushed back.” http://bit.ly/2c64vZA
--“How Guilty Should I Feel?” by Kelly Stout in Gawker: “I was the deputy editor of Gawker for four months, and in that time I enjoyed maybe three days without admonition from my own conscience over how I earned a paycheck. My guilt wasn’t exactly Gawker-specific: I would have felt self-recrimination anywhere I worked because I blush when I tattle, and journalism, no matter where, can sometimes feel a whole lot like tattling.” http://bit.ly/2bEewLh (h/t Longreads.com)
--“Did I Kill Gawker?” by Max Read in N.Y. Mag: “Or was it Nick Denton? Hulk Hogan? Peter Thiel? Or the internet?” http://slct.al/2bMO42B
--“A Family Matter,” by Jessica Weisberg in The Atavist: “Each year, California’s child protective services agencies remove thousands of kids from their homes. The story of how some parents decided to fight back.” http://bit.ly/2bmYcOE
--“Anger—what is it good for?” by Julian Baggini in Prospect Magazine: “Martha Nussbaum thinks we shouldn’t lose our tempers. Good luck with that.” http://bit.ly/2bqgRG5 (h/t ALDaily.com)
--“I Spent 5 Years With Some of Trump’s Biggest Fans. Here’s What They Won’t Tell You,” by Arlie Russell Hochschild in the Sept./Oct. issue of Mother Jones: “How Donald Trump took a narrative of unfairness and twisted it to his advantage.” http://bit.ly/2bqiHXp
--“Making a Home For Black History,” by Vinson Cunningham in The New Yorker: “The vision and the challenges behind a new museum on the National Mall.” http://bit.ly/2bn1664
--“The [Noam] Chomsky Puzzle,” by Tom Bartlett in the Chronicle of Higher Education: “Piecing together a celebrity scientist. ... That’s what happens when you are ‘arguably the most important intellectual alive today,’ a line from a 1979 New York Times book review that’s been recycled ever since as shorthand for a hard-to-summarize man.” http://bit.ly/2bmv7pr
--“Inside the World’s Biggest Record Collection: An Interview with Zero Freitas,” by Dominik Bartmanski in The Vinyl Factory: “Brazilian businessman Zero Freitas owns over six million records, a collection which he intends to catalogue for public use and transform into a vast listenable archive.” http://bit.ly/2bvyBld (h/t Longform.org)
GREAT WEEKEND LISTENS, curated by Jake Sherman, filing from Jerusalem:
--Grateful Dead, today in 1982 at the Oregon County Fair in Veneta, Oregon. http://bit.ly/2bXJ0Xw
--Phil Lesh and Friends this weekend in Arrington, Virginia, at the Lockn Festival playing Scarlet Begonias. http://bit.ly/2bJ8gUh This band features Page McConnell and Jon Fishman of Phish, and the Infamous Springdusters.
SPOTTED -- Sen. Elizabeth Warren and her husband Bruce Mann yesterday afternoon at the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts, looking at the “Splendor, Myth, and Vision: Nudes from the Prado” exhibit. NYT review http://nyti.ms/2cjjWxI
ENGAGED -- Over a long weekend in Colorado, Jonathan Nabavi -- majority counsel on the Senate Judiciary Committee -- dropped to one knee over a beautiful expanse at the Maroon Bells in Aspen, Colorado, to ask Catherine Hansen to marry him. Ms. Hansen, of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, and formerly of Team Boehner, emphatically said “Yes.” The couple’s King Charles Cavalier, Ruby, was not in attendance but the couple quickly FaceTimed with her to break the news. The proposal location had a special significance for the couple -- Ms. Hansen spent several years in Colorado after college working at the Aspen Skiing Company.
WELCOME TO THE WORLD -- James Gleeson, comms director for Dr. Jill Biden, and Kelly Gleeson, director of events at the Internet Association, email friends and family: “We welcomed our son, Jack Weller Gleeson, into the world at 11:53 PM ET on Saturday ... At the time of his birth, Jack weighed 8 pounds, 8.1 ounces, and was 20 inches long. He was also 8 days past his due date — just 7 more minutes and Jack and his grandfather, with whom he shares a middle name, would have had the same birthday. Kelly (aka Jack’s mom) was in tears of joy and is recovering like a champ. Jack’s older sister, Charlotte, can’t wait to meet the little guy later today.” First selfie http://bit.ly/2bJQDiG
--James Rahm, account supervisor at GMMB, and Isabel Owen Rahm, of The Council of Chief State School Officers, email friends and family: “James and I are very pleased to introduce Claire Margaret Anne Rahm. She joined us Sunday, August 14 just after 8 pm, weighing in at 6 pounds and 14.5 ounces. She is 19 inches long and 100 percent Badger. We are all recovering nicely and couldn’t be happier.” Pics http://bit.ly/2c0737f ... http://bit.ly/2bP62Ae
– Josh Scheinblum, reporter at WTNH News 8 in New Haven and a CBS News DC bureau alum, and Lindsay Scheinblum, director of development for the American Diabetes Association’s CT/Western Mass chapter, post on Facebook: “My son, Julian Paul Scheinblum, came into the world early [Wednesday] morning. He is beautiful like his mom. This is the best day of my life.” Pics http://bit.ly/2cfQ6tU ... http://bit.ly/2bqkFHe
WILL GATTENBY, formerly press secretary for Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt and an alum of Public Notice, Sen. Coburn, and Romney 2012, emails: “I’m leaving the political game to run a business I started about a year ago. It’s called William & Lauren - we make custom-tailored suits and shirts (at an honest price). Everything is online based, and I’m currently commanding the ship from my living room (my wife is thrilled).” www.williamandlauren.com
BIRTHDAYS: Alex Skatell, founder and CEO of Independent Journal Review and the pride of Isle of Palms, S.C. (click tips: Sam, Anton, Rob, Gerrit, and Matt) … Politico’s Marty Kady … AP’s Ken Thomas, a Georgetown grad ... Allison Lichter, audience engagement and emerging media editor at WSJ ... former Defense Secretary William S. Cohen is 76 ... Tori Stilwell, soon-to-be law student at Yale and former US economics reporter at Bloomberg … Pat Pelletier, LD for Rep. John Kline and the pride of Minnesota, is 31 (h/t Josh Cook) … Robert Greenwald, founder and president of Brave New Films, is 73 … Morgan Chalfant, defense/national security and politics reporter at the Washington Free Beacon, celebrating this weekend in Frederick and dinner at Volt (h/t Raffi) … Matthew Swift, chairman, co-founder and CEO of The Concordia Summit ... Georgetown MBA candidate Hilary Halpern, a U.S. Chamber alum … Ryan McDevitt, LA to Rep. Leonard Lance ... Ellen Carmichael, proud Louisianan and president of The Lafayette Company ... Ellen Ratner of The Talk Radio News Service … Thomas Winslow, an OFA alum now a senior associate at Precision Strategies… Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, EVP of gov’t and corporate affairs at Univison Communications (h/t Stewart Verdery) ... Darius Tandon (puppy tip: Dixie) ... Meghan Snyder, senior account executive at CRC Public Relations …
… Jim O’Brien, vice-chair of the Albright Stonebridge Group ... Connor Ryan is 25 (h/ts Tim and Swin) ... Rep. Julia Brownley (D-Calif.) is 64 ... Ann Marie Jablon, COS for Rep. Richard Neal ... Robert Simpson, LC for Sen. Toomey ... Scott Miller of Sen. Tillis’ office ... Michael Keefer of Rep. Rod Blum’s office ... Jay Wegimont of Rep. Engel’s office is 25 ... Luke Bunting, LC and press aide for Rep. Todd Rokita ... Luci Arveseth, LA for Rep. Chris Stewart ... Abbie Sumbrum of Rep. Brad Wenstrup’s office ... Lindsay Gill, LC for Rep. Sean Duffy ... Arlet Abrahamian of Rep. Zoe Lofgren’s office ... Rachael Dollar, FL scheduler for Sen. Bill Nelson ... Charles Schneider, district director of Rep. Diane Black’s office (h/ts Legistorm) ... Jennifer Cervantes ... Nick Tropin is 27 ... Kate Peyton, celebrating by fishing and sky diving and dancing and bowling the day away ... Laura Seaholm, celebrating by swimming 2.5 miles at Devil’s Lake (h/ts Teresa Vilmain) ... Steve Nichols …Carol Kelly ... R.C. Hammond ... Naila Alam ... Paul Moran ... David Gray ...Tim Birdseye is 44 ... Lane Roberts ... actor Sonny Shroyer is 81 ... former MLB manager and player Lou Piniella is 73 ... Wayne Osmond is 65 ... movie director David Fincher is 54 ... Shania Twain is 51 ... Jack Black is 47 ... Jason Priestley is 47 ... Carly Pope is 36 ... LeAnn Rimes is 34 ... country-pop singer Cassadee Pope (“The Voice”) is 27 ... actress Quvenzhane Wallis is 13 ... Alana Thompson (Honey Boo Boo) is 11 (h/ts AP)