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By Anna Palmer, Jake Sherman, Daniel Lippman, Eli Okun and Akela Lacy

Presented by

PLAYBOOK SCOOP ... HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER KEVIN MCCARTHY secured commitments for $10 million from House Republicans this morning for PROTECT THE HOUSE, his joint fundraising committee with VP MIKE PENCE, which is designed to support vulnerable Republicans.
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MCCARTHY SPOKE at the event this morning at the Capitol Hill Club. The biggest check came from MCCARTHY himself, who gave $6 million to the effort. REP. GREG WALDEN (R-ORE.), a former NRCC chairman, gave $1 million.

WHO GAVE: Montana Rep. Greg Gianforte committed to $800,000; Reps. Karen Handel (Ga.), Bruce Westerman (Ohio) and Mimi Walters (Calif.): $300,000; Rep. Devin Nunes (Calif.): $250,000; Rep. Jeff Denham (Calif.): $200,000; Reps. Will Hurd (Texas), Mike Rogers (Ala.), Tom MacArthur (N.J.) and David Valadao (Calif.): $100,000; Reps. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.) and Sean Duffy (Wis.): $50,000.

-- HERE'S ANOTHER NOTABLE ELEMENT: Two candidates who have not been elected gave. GREG PENCE, Mike's brother, gave $250,000. And DAN CRENSHAW, a Texas Republican who leadership has high hopes for, gave $100,000.

SPLIT SCREEN ... AS MCCARTHY RAISES MILLIONS FOR REPUBLICANS, Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan announced a run for speaker. The Daily Caller's Robert Donachie had the scoop. The Daily Caller

-- ALMOST EVERY House Republican recognizes that Jordan winning the speakership is a long shot. Many of his closest friends say that. But he can try to make life difficult for McCarthy, and could try to extract promises from McCarthy, should Republicans keep the majority. REMEMBER: Jordan was accused just a few weeks ago of ignoring sex abuse at Ohio State. He denies any wrongdoing.

NEWS ... TRADE WARS HEAT UP ON CAPITOL HILL -- JOHN BRESNAHAN sends us this dispatch: Top White House economic advisers Larry Kudlow and Peter Navarro were on Capitol Hill Thursday morning to meet privately with House Republicans to talk about President Donald Trump's trade wars.

OHIO REP. WARREN DAVIDSON, who holds former Speaker John Boehner's seat, wasn't happy about standing in line while fellow members were complaining about the Trump administration's trade policy. Davidson mostly backs Trump on restructuring trade deals, but was frustrated with the session, which included Kudlow and Navarro spewing talking points. So he got angry, yelled and 'stormed out of the meeting,' he said.

In an interview, Davidson admitted that "I was very frustrated" and "upset." But his tantrum had some benefits. Navarro followed Davidson out of the room and they had "a very productive" conversation. More discussions will follow, and Davidson has asked for a meeting with Trump to talk about the issue, although nothing is scheduled yet. "I think this is progress," Davidson said. "I hope this is the start of a better path on engagement."

JUST POSTED -- THE INVESTIGATIONS ... "Mueller Examining Trump's Tweets in Wide-Ranging Obstruction Inquiry," by NYT's Mike Schmidt and Maggie Haberman: "For years, President Trump has used Twitter as his go-to public relations weapon, mounting a barrage of attacks on celebrities and then political rivals even after advisers warned he could be creating legal problems for himself.

"Those concerns now turn out to be well founded. The special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, is scrutinizing tweets and negative statements from the president about Attorney General Jeff Sessions and the former F.B.I. director James B. Comey, according to three people briefed on the matter." NYT

Good Thursday afternoon.

MELANIA WATCH: FIRST IN PLAYBOOK -- KATE BENNETT, a CNN reporter covering first lady Melania Trump, is working on a book about Melania for Flatiron Books, according to a source familiar with the matter. Bennett last week visited Melania's home country of Slovenia and documented her trip on Instagram. She, Flatiron and CNN all declined to comment.
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BREAKING -- "Ryan rejects conservative push to impeach Rosenstein," by Kyle Cheney and Rachael Bade: "The Wisconsin Republican said the Department of Justice was largely complying with the GOP demand for documents surrounding the FBI's Russia investigation. 'I don't think we should be cavalier with this process or this term,' he said of impeachment. 'I don't think this rises to the level of high crimes and misdemeanors.'" POLITICO

-- "Sessions defends deputy Rosenstein after impeachment move," by Reuters' Nate Raymond: "'My deputy, Rod Rosenstein, is highly capable. I have the highest confidence in him,' Sessions said during an appearance in Boston. 'What I would like Congress to do is to focus on some of the legal challenges that are out there,' including illegal immigration, the attorney general added." Reuters

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DEM LEADERSHIP FREE FOR ALL ... "House Democrat Katherine Clark launches leadership bid," by Heather Caygle: "Rep. Katherine Clark is running for vice-chair of the House Democratic Caucus, becoming the first member to declare her candidacy for the No. 5 leadership post." POLITICO

FOR YOUR RADAR -- LAURA NAHMIAS and GLORIA PAZMINO: "De Blasio launches federal PAC and considers post-mayoral run": "The new political action committee, called 'Fairness PAC,' will pay for both the mayor's travel and that of his wife Chirlane McCray, and will give direct support to both federal and state candidates ...

"The mayor, who has struggled to define his national profile since he was elected, said Wednesday he felt it was his 'obligation' to support national Democratic candidates in their efforts to retake the House, Senate and New York state Senate ...

"But the new fundraising vehicle could also reignite speculation about de Blasio and his wife's plans for future runs for political office, which he did not categorically rule out, and raise new questions about his fundraising habits, less than two years after federal prosecutors concluded a criminal investigation, without charges, into fundraising at an outside nonprofit he created." POLITICO

WHAT'S ON THE PRESIDENT'S MIND -- @realDonaldTrump at 7:46 a.m.: "Twitter 'SHADOW BANNING' prominent Republicans. Not good. We will look into this discriminatory and illegal practice at once! Many complaints."

... at 11:22 a.m.: "The United States will impose large sanctions on Turkey for their long time detainment of Pastor Andrew Brunson, a great Christian, family man and wonderful human being. He is suffering greatly. This innocent man of faith should be released immediately!"

2018 WATCH -- "To Take the Senate, Democratic Group Will Spend Big in Red States," by NYT's Alex Burns: "Senate Majority PAC ... intends to steer at least $20 million into the voter-mobilization campaign ahead of the midterm elections, officials with the group confirmed. The program ... underscores the degree to which outside groups that can take massive donations have supplanted the traditional role of political parties.

"The initiative by Senate Majority PAC will span more than a dozen states where Senate seats are at stake, but it is to focus on four states above all: Missouri and Indiana, where endangered Democrats are seeking re-election, and Arizona and Tennessee, where strong Democratic challengers are running for open seats currently held by Republicans." NYT

-- "Trump ponies up to stop Democratic House takeover," by Alex Isenstadt: "The president has signed off on plans for his reelection campaign to funnel contributions to 100 Republican candidates running in House and Senate races, the campaign said Thursday. The precise amount is unclear, but Trump is expected to send thousands of dollars to each contender. ...

"Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) announced that Trump was slated to appear at a September event benefiting House Republicans, who are trying to protect their 23-seat majority. Additionally, as part of the financial decision, the [RNC], which Trump has been aggressively raising money for, will transfer $4 million apiece to the [NRCC] and [NRSC]." POLITICO

-- "West Virginia officials deny Blankenship a spot on Senate ballot," by James Arkin: POLITICO

THE BIG PICTURE -- "The 24 Candidates for 2018 Sunk by #MeToo Allegations," by The Atlantic's Elaine Godfrey, Lena Felton and Taylor Hosking: The Atlantic

2020 WATCH -- "Michael Avenatti heads to Iowa," by CNN's Dan Merica and Sara Sidner: "'I'll be at the Wing Ding,' the lawyer said." CNN

NYT'S JESSE DRUCKER, EMILY STEEL and DANNY HAKIM: "A Kushner Ally Was Up for a Federal Post. Then the F.B.I. Began Digging": "Ken Kurson is a confidant of Rudolph W. Giuliani. He is a onetime speechwriter for Donald J. Trump. And he is a close friend of Jared Kushner, Mr. Trump's son-in-law, who appointed Mr. Kurson to run his weekly newspaper, The New York Observer.

"This spring, those relationships appeared to yield a prestigious offer from the Trump White House: a seat on the board of the National Endowment for the Humanities ... First, Mr. Kurson had to undergo a government background check. As part of that process, the Federal Bureau of Investigation learned about allegations that he had harassed a New York doctor in 2015, according to Mount Sinai Hospital, where the doctor worked. ...

"Mr. Kurson said in an interview last week that he withdrew from consideration for the government post around early June, citing the amount of paperwork involved in the vetting process." NYT

WAR REPORT -- "Watchdog says U.S. wasted more than $15 billion in past 11 years in Afghanistan," by NBC News' Laura Strickler and Dan De Luce: "After 10 months of research, [the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction] sent a letter back to the congressmen that estimated the waste at $15.5 billion between SIGAR's inception in 2008 and Dec. 31, 2017, or 29 percent of the spending it audited. In the letter, obtained by NBC News, Special Inspector General John Sopko describes the figure as 'likely ... only a portion of the total waste, fraud, abuse and failed efforts.'" NBC News

TRADE WARS! ... "Europe Welcomes Trade Steps With U.S. but Many Questions Remain," by WSJ's Valentina Pop and Emre Peker in Brussels: "A high-level working group will work to fill in the details, said commission spokesman Alexander Winterstein on Thursday. ... [T]he agreement comes as a relief, especially for the bloc's political heavyweight and economic engine, Germany." WSJ

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ON THE CENSUS -- "Multi-State Lawsuit Against Census Citizenship Question To Move Ahead," by NPR's Hansi Lo Wang: "A federal judge in Manhattan has ruled that the largest of the six lawsuits against the new citizenship question on the 2020 census can move forward in court. ...

"In his opinion released on Thursday, [U.S. District Judge Jesse] Furman said that the plaintiffs 'plausibly allege that Secretary Ross's decision to reinstate the citizenship question was motivated at least in part by discriminatory animus and will result in a discriminatory effect.' Still, the judge noted that Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, who approved adding the citizenship question, has 'broad authority' over the census." NPR

DACA WATCH -- @seungminkim: "Super interesting: The GOP-led House Approps Committee has passed amendments barring DHS from 'deporting, detaining or initiating removal proceedings' for DACA beneficiaries."

ICYMI -- "Whistleblower provides emails that show Stormy Daniels' arrest was pre-planned," by the Fayette Advocate's Derek Myers: "In an exclusive investigation, the Advocate has obtained emails from a whistleblower from inside the Columbus Police Department that outline the arrest of Stormy Daniels earlier this month may have been pre-planned days before she ever arrived in town.

"Columbus Police arrested the adult entertainer - who claims to have had an affair with then-private citizen Donald Trump in 2006 - on July 12. Police said that Daniels violated an Ohio law by 'touching' club-goers, who were actually undercover VICE officers. The charges were dismissed 12 hours later ...

"A whistleblower from the City of Columbus contacted the Advocate with numerous emails between several high-ranking Columbus police detectives and VICE officers. Inside the emails are news clippings discussing Daniels' planned appearance in Columbus, pictures of Daniels with President Donald Trump, videos of her dancing, and even a map to the club where she would be performing, all sent days before she would pull into town on her tour bus." Fayette Advocate

FUN READ -- "The Highest Court in the Land: A converted storage room on the top floor of the Supreme Court building has become a place for justices and their clerks to get a run in-and a source of a great many tales," by Sports Illustrated's Stanley Kay: Sports Illustrated

MEDIAWATCH -- JOE POMPEO in Vanity Fair: "'We Didn't Expect to Make Money': How The Daily's Michael Barbaro Unexpectedly Became The Ira Glass Of The New York Times": "Long before it became a bonafide, next-generation media phenomenon for The New York Times-a 20-something-minute morning podcast with millions of monthly downloads, an army of super-fans, and a big marketing campaign featuring giant ads in large cities-the concept for The Daily began almost as an afterthought." Vanity Fair

SPOTTED: Nikki Haley entering Circa in Foggy Bottom late this morning.

OUT AND ABOUT: Several GOPs celebrating the going-away party at Rare for Helen Ferre, special assistant to the president and director of media affairs: Lindsay Walters, Brad Rateike, Ninio Fetalvo, Kate Karnes, Liz Oberg, Natalie Strom, Michael Short, Laura Nasim, May Davis, Ory Rinat, Zach Parkinson, Kirk Marshall and Tyler Ross.

TRANSITIONS -- Enrique Gutiérrez will be the DNC's Hispanic media director for the 2018 cycle and will also serve as the Southern regional press secretary. He most recently was communications director for Voto Latino. ... Caleb Tiller is now VP of global communications and marketing at EngenderHealth. He previously headed up comms at the U.N. Foundation.

WELCOME TO THE WORLD -- Valerie Volcovici, energy and environment correspondent at Reuters, and Jonathan Faull, an independent Africa policy analyst and South African columnist, welcomed Zev David Nelson Faull. Pic

-- Sigrid Simpson, a senior international trade specialist at the Department of Commerce and a USTR and WTO alum, and Saulo Ferreira, of the World Bank, recently welcomed Carson Ferreira Simpson. Pic

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Anna Palmer @apalmerdc

Jake Sherman @JakeSherman

Daniel Lippman @dlippman

Akela Lacy @Akela_Lacy

Eli Okun @eliokun

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