The Edge: House Dems Sit Their Ground
Representative John Lewis led Democrats in a sit-in on the chamber floor to protest congressional inaction on gun control.
Today in One Paragraph
It was a busy day on Capitol Hill: Georgia Representative John Lewis led House Democrats in a sit-in to protest the chamber’s refusal to vote on gun measures; Florida Senator Marco Rubio said he’ll run for re-election; Hillary Clinton met with House Democrats for the first time since securing the Democratic nomination; and House Republicans introduced a plan to replace Obamacare. Meanwhile in New York, Donald Trump attacked Clinton in a speech. And the U.S. Justice Department announced the largest health-care fraud takedown in U.S. history.
Top News
Congress Stages a Sit-In. Days after the Senate voted down four gun-control measures proposed in response to the Orlando nightclub attack, congressional Democrats sat on the House floor in protest. “We have to occupy the floor of the House until there is action,” said Representative John Larson. “Rise up Democrats, rise up Americans, this cannot stand.” The CSPAN cameras in the chamber are controlled by the Republican majority and have been turned off, but House members are documenting the protest on social media. We’re following it live here. (The Atlantic)
Rubio’s 180. The Florida senator and former Republican presidential candidate announced in a statement that he changed his mind and will run for re-election in November, after insisting for months that he would not. Rubio said he made the reversal because “the Senate’s role of being able to act as a check and balance on bad ideas from the president I think are going to matter more in 2017.” (Manu Raju and Tom LoBianco, CNN)
Clinton on the Hill. At the invitation of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Democratic Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra, Hillary Clinton addressed House Democrats on Capitol Hill, explaining how she plans to compete in all 50 states ahead of the general election and help win back control of the House and Senate. (John Bresnahan and Heather Caygle, Politico)
Trump Fires Back. The real-estate mogul called Hillary Clinton a “world-class liar” during a speech meant to serve as a rebuttal for Clinton’s recent remarks suggesting Trump’s business practices would threaten the U.S. economy. In the scripted speech, Trump encouraged Bernie Sanders’s supporters to coalesce behind him, and delivered a point-by-point attack of Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state. (Alan Rappeport, The New York Times)
A Republican Alternative. House Republicans, led by Speaker Paul Ryan, revealed a health-care proposal they hope will replace the Affordable Care Act. The legislation would keep current provisions that allow children to stay on their parents’ coverage until age 26, and prevent people with pre-existing conditions from being denied insurance coverage, among other things. (Eric Beech and Richard Cowan, Reuters)
Taking on Health-care Fraud. Federal authorities charged 301 people for $900 million in false billings. The defendants allegedly made Medicare and Medicaid claims that were “medically unnecessary and often never provided,” and some supposedly received kickbacks for providing information for fraudulent bills. (Matt Vasilogambros, The Atlantic)
Tomorrow in One Paragraph: Bernie Sanders will give a speech in New York City. Former Democratic presidential candidate Martin O’Malley will campaign for Hillary Clinton in Iowa.
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Top Read
“There’s an obvious connection between a decentralized internet, in which individuals create and oversee their own digital identities, and a functioning democracy, in which we make informed choices about who rules us and how we are ruled. Yet too few people make that link. We live in a world in which sensitive information of every conceivable sort—financial, sexual, medical, legal, familial, governmental—is now kept, and presumably guarded, online.” The New Republic’s Paul Ford on the disintegration of the internet’s democratic system.
Top Lines
An Odd Couple. Alabama Republican Jeff Sessions and presidential hopeful Donald Trump may have vastly different backgrounds and personalities, but they do have one thing in common: their hard-line stance on immigration. (Matthew Cooper, Newsweek)
‘The Woman Card.’ The New Yorker’s Jill Lepore explains how feminism and its countermovements shaped American politics—and created both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
Leave It to the Court? American politics have become so poisonous that two branches of government have been rendered powerless, leaving the U.S. Supreme Court to settle major disputes relating to health care, climate change, and immigration. (Alex Wagner, The Atlantic)
Top View
Rural Inequality. A new report from the Economic Policy Institute finds that some of the largest income gaps occur not just in big cities, but in rural America, too. This map shows the level of inequality in every U.S. county. (Kim Soffen, The Washington Post)
Inside the Supreme Court. A Reuters photographer spent several months documenting small moments in America’s current eight-justice court, including Justice Ginsberg sorting through her collection of lace collars, and Chief Justice Roberts enjoying some soup. (Joan Biskupic)
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-Written by Elaine Godfrey (@elainejgodfrey)