Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* It’s a big day for party primaries, with seven states holding contests today: New York, Maryland, Utah, Colorado, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and South Carolina. (Note: The primaries in South Carolina and Mississippi are primary runoffs.)
* Among the contests of note today is the gubernatorial primary in South Carolina, where Gov. Henry McMaster (R) welcomed Donald Trump last night. The president said at a rally that if the governor loses, the media will say it was “a humiliating defeat for Donald Trump, so please get your asses out tomorrow and vote.”
* At the same event, Trump said he hosted a rally in Minnesota last week at a venue that seated 9,000, “and they had 15,000 or 20,000 people outside couldn’t get in.” The president originally said there were 10,000 who couldn’t get in, then he said it was 15,000. I can’t wait to see how big the number is next week.
* To the relief and delight of Democratic leaders, the latest vote tally in California found that Harley Rouda (D) will take on Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R) in November.
* After Trump’s summit with North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, a Gallup poll showed the president’s approval rating climbing to its highest point in over a year. After the public learned about Trump’s policy separating immigrant children from their families, his approval rating collapsed again. * In Wisconsin’s competitive Republican Senate primary, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) weighed in yesterday, throwing his support behind Leah Vukmir. The primary is on Aug. 14, and the GOP nominee will take on Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D) in the fall. * And just in case disgraced former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) is thinking about ever launching a comeback bid, it’s probably worth noting that the GOP-led Missouri House committee that investigated allegations against the former governor found evidence “that he engaged in ‘multiple acts constituting crimes, misconduct, and acts of moral turpitude,’ according to a scathing Monday letter from committee chairman.”
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past." Recommended
