1/ Rudy Giuliani to Stormy Daniels: “I don’t respect a porn star the way I respect a career woman or a woman of substance.� He added that being a porn star “entitles you to no degree of giving your credibility any weight.� Daniels’ attorney, Michael Avenatti, called Giuliani an “absolute, disgusting pig� and demanded Trump fire him “immediately.� He added that “it doesn’t matter what a woman’s profession is. It has nothing to do with their credibility or whether they should be respected.� Giuliani defended his statement, saying: “I don’t have to undermine her credibility. She’s done it by lying.� (NBC News / ABC News / CNN)

2/ The Justice Department will brief lawmakers next week about the FBI’s use of an informant in connection with its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. The new offer is a concession to Republican demands for more information about the probe. The Justice Department and FBI “are prepared to brief members on certain questions specifically raised by the speaker and other members� and allow lawmakers “to review certain supporting documents that were made available during the prior briefing.� Democrats are concerned that the briefings could allow Trump’s legal team access to sensitive details of the investigation. (Washington Post / CNBC)

Paul Ryan insisted that there was “no evidence of collusion� between Trump’s campaign and Russia, but that there is “more digging to do.� (Associated Press)

The classified briefing comes a day after Paul Ryan disputed Trump’s assertion that FBI “spies� had infiltrated his campaign, saying evidence suggested the Bureau had acted appropriately. (Wall Street Journal)

Officials from the Justice Department and the FBI will brief the Republican and Democratic “Gang of Eight� leaders from the House and Senate and the intelligence committees. The documents won’t be shared with other lawmakers. (Bloomberg)

3/ Adam Schiff called on Republicans to release the House Intelligence Committee interview transcripts related to the Russia investigation, saying they could shed “additional light on the issues of collusion and obstruction of justice.� Schiff said some witnesses “may have testified untruthfully� and that Robert Mueller and his team “should consider whether perjury charges are warranted.� (NBC News)

4/ Sean Hannity suggested that witnesses in Robert Mueller’s probe “follow Hillary Clinton’s lead� by destroying their personal phone...

1/ Stormy Daniels filed a new lawsuit against her former attorney and Michael Cohen, saying the two men “colluded� and “acted in concert� to “manipulate� her in order to benefit Trump. The lawsuit alleges that as a part of the effort to deny Trump’s affair with Daniels, her former attorney, Keith Davidson, and Cohen “hatched a plan to have Ms. Clifford appear on Mr. Sean Hannity’s program to falsely deny the accuracy of the In Touch article� in January. In Touch magazine published excerpts from its 2011 interview with Daniels in which she said she had an affair with Trump starting in 2006. It was revealed in April that Cohen also represents Hannity. Daniels’ current attorney, Michael Avenatti, called the private messages evidence that “prior denials by Mr. Trump and Mr. Cohen relating to what Mr. Trump knew, and about the honesty of my client, were absolute lies,� adding that “there was a significant cover-up here as part of an attempt to deceive the American people and Mrs. Trump and we intend on getting to the bottom of it.� (New York Times / NBC News / CNN)

2/ Ivanka Trump connected Michael Cohen with a Russian who offered to introduce Trump to Putin during the campaign in 2015 in order to facilitate a 100-story Trump Tower in Moscow. Mueller’s team and congressional investigators have reviewed emails and questioned witnesses about the interaction. There is no evidence that Ivanka’s contact with former Olympic weightlifter Dmitry Klokov was illegal or election related. (BuzzFeed News)

3/ Robert Mueller requested that witnesses turn in their personal phones so investigators can inspect their encrypted messages on WhatsApp, Confide, Signal and Dust. The revelation comes as the special counsel filed a claim that Paul Manafort tampered with witnesses through the same types of programs. (CNBC)

4/ Giuliani claimed Mueller’s team is “trying very, very hard to frame [Trump] to get him in trouble when he hasn’t done anything wrong.� He added that Mueller’s team “can’t emotionally come to grips with the fact that this whole thing with Russian collusion didn’t happen. They are trying to invent theories of obstruction of justice.� Giuliani also reiterated the claim that Trump has the power to pardon himself, but won’t do so because “he’s innocent� and “he hasn’t done anything wrong.� (Associated Press)

5/ Paul Ryan agreed that there is “no evidence� to support claims that the FBI spied on Trump’s 2016 campaign for political purposes by using a confidential informant to contact members of the campaign while investigating its ties to Russia. Ryan added that Trump should not try to pardon himself, saying, “I don’t know the technical answer to that question, but I think obviously the answer is he shouldn’t. And no one is above the law.� (New York Times / Politico)

The Justice Department’s internal watchdog has concluded that James Comey defied authority while FBI dire...

1/ Trump blamed Jeff Sessions for the ongoing Russia investigation into possible collusion, lamented asking Sessions to lead the Justice Department, and suggested that the probe would have been shut down by now if Sessions had not recused himself. In a tweet, Trump said the “Russian Witch Hunt Hoax continues, all because Jeff Sessions didn’t tell me he was going to recuse himself.� (Washington Post / Reuters / Politico)

The Russian Witch Hunt Hoax continues, all because Jeff Sessions didn’t tell me he was going to recuse himself...I would have quickly picked someone else. So much time and money wasted, so many lives ruined...and Sessions knew better than most that there was No Collusion!

Trump demanded to know “what is taking so long� in the release of the Justice Department inspector general’s report into the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. He complained about “numerous delays� and said he hopes it’s not being “made weaker.� (Politico / The Guardian / Washington Post)

What is taking so long with the Inspector General’s Report on Crooked Hillary and Slippery James Comey. Numerous delays. Hope Report is not being changed and made weaker! There are so many horrible things to tell, the public has the right to know. Transparency!

George Papadopoulos’ wife asked Trump to pardon her husband, who pleaded guilty last year to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russians. (The Hill)

The Trump administration ended its effort to appoint the Justice Department’s No. 3 official after at least two potential candidates said they weren’t interested in the position. The associate attorney general position would be responsible for overseeing the Mueller probe if Rod Rosenstein were to depart. (Wall Street Journal)

2/ Robert Mueller’s team accused Paul Manafort of felony witness tampering in his federal tax and money laundering case. Prosecutors say Manafort attempted to contact witnesses by phone through an intermediary and through an encry...

1/ Trump tweeted that Robert Mueller’s appointment is “totally UNCONSTITUTIONAL!� and asserted that he has the “absolute right to PARDON myself.� Trump, however, said he would “play the game� because he has “done nothing wrong.� Over the weekend, Giuliani said Trump “probably� has the power to pardon himself, but that it would be “unthinkable� for him to do so and would “lead to probably an immediate impeachment.� He added that Trump “has no need to do that. He didn’t do anything wrong.� (New York Times / CNBC / CNN / Washington Post)

As has been stated by numerous legal scholars, I have the absolute right to PARDON myself, but why would I do that when I have done nothing wrong? In the meantime, the never ending Witch Hunt, led by 13 very Angry and Conflicted Democrats (& others) continues into the mid-terms!

The appointment of the Special Counsel is totally UNCONSTITUTIONAL! Despite that, we play the game because I, unlike the Democrats, have done nothing wrong!

2/ Trump’s lawyers sent a 20-page letter to Mueller’s office asserting that Trump cannot be compelled to testify. The letter also argues that it’s impossible for Trump to obstruct justice in the Russia investigation because the U.S. Constitution empowers the president to, “if he wished, terminate the inquiry, or even exercise his power to pardon.� Giuliani responded to news of the leaked letter, saying that “if Mueller tries to subpoena us, we’re going to court� and that “our recollection keeps changing� about the 2016 Trump Tower meeting and that “this is the reason you don’t let this president testify in the special counsel’s Russia investigation.� The letter confirms that Trump dictated a “short but accurate� statement issued by Trump Jr. about his 2016 Trump Tower meeting with a Russian lawyer who an intermediary claimed had “dirt� on Hillary Clinton. (New York Times / ABC News)

There was No Collusion with Russia (except by the Democrats). When will this very expensive Witch Hunt Hoax ever end? So bad for our Country. Is the Special Counsel/Justice Department leaking my lawyers letters to the Fake News Media? Should be looking at Dems corruption instead?

1/ The European Union opened a case at the World Trade Organization in response to Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs. The EU is also expected to announce retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. on products such as Levi’s jeans, bourbon whiskey, cranberries, and peanut butter. “The European Union is not at war with anyone,� said the EU high representative on foreign policy. “We don’t want to be; for us this is out of the question … The European Union is a peace project, including on trade.� (The Guardian)

2/ Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau refused to attend a meeting with Trump to discuss the renegotiation of NAFTA because Mike Pence told him the meeting would only happen if Trudeau agreed to include a five-year sunset clause into the deal. Trudeau said it was a “totally unacceptable� precondition. “I had to highlight there was no possibility of any Canadian prime minister signing a NAFTA deal that included a five-year sunset clause and obviously the visit didn’t happen,� Trudeau said. (Tampa Bay Times)

3/ American employers added 223,000 jobs in May, bringing the national unemployment rate to an 18-year low of 3.8 percent. Average hourly pay rose by 2.7 percent compared to last year, but pay rates remain below typical levels when the unemployment rate is this low. Some economists are concerned that Trump’s aggressive actions on international trade could disrupt the recent economic progress, but most employers have not suspended hiring yet. (Associated Press / CNN Money)

4/ Trump broke with decades of protocol by publicly commenting on the jobs report data 69 minutes before they were released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Treasury yields shot up just seconds after Trump tweeted that he was “looking forward to seeing the employment numbers at 8:30 this morning.� Ari Fleischer, former press secretary to George W. Bush, said Trump’s tweet was “certainly a no-no. The advance info is sacrosanct – not to be shared.� Labor Department rules state that executive branch employees are barred from publicly commenting on jobs reports until “at least one hour� after its official release. (Washington Post / Politico / ABC News)

5/ The Pentagon says 499 civilians were killed and 169 were injured in U.S. military operations during Trump’s first year in office.

1/ Former acting FBI director Andrew McCabe wrote a confidential memo about a May 2017 conversation he had with Rod Rosenstein regarding the firing of James Comey. The memo says Trump originally asked Rosenstein to reference Russia in the public memo used to justify firing Comey. McCabe thought that seemed like evidence that Comey’s firing was actually about the Russia investigation and that Rosenstein was helping to provide a cover story by writing about the Clinton investigation. (New York Times)

2/ Trump repeatedly pressured Jeff Sessions to reclaim control over the Russia investigation on at least four separate occasions. Three of those occasions were in-person, and the fourth was over the phone. The constant pressure made several other officials uncomfortable at the time, because they felt it was improper and could present its own legal and political problems. Two sources familiar with the conversations said Trump never directly ordered Sessions to reinsert himself into the investigation, but would instead ask Sessions whether he had “thought about� stepping back in. (Axios)

3/ The White House announced a new 10% tariff on metal imports from the European Union, Canada, and Mexico, which supply nearly half of all U.S. metal imports. The steel and aluminum tariffs will go into effect at midnight on Thursday. The European Union immediately announced that it would impose countermeasures against the U.S. as a response. (New York Times / Washington Post / CNBC)

4/ Trump is preparing to block German luxury carmakers from the United States. Trump told French president Emmanuel Macron last month that he planned to stop Mercedes-Benz from driving down Fifth Avenue in New York. No further details are currently available about the specific policies Trump might pursue in order to effectively prevent German automakers from selling in the U.S. (NBC News / WirtschaftsWoche)

5/ Trump offered a full pardon to conservative pundit Dinesh D’Souza for violating campaign finance laws. D’Souza illegally used straw donors to funnel additional money into the campaign of a GOP Senate candidate in 2012, and pleaded guilty to the charges in 2014. He was sentenced to five years of probation and a $30,000 fine. “Will be giving a Full Pardon to Dinesh D’Souza today,� Trump tweeted. “He was treated very unfairly by our government!� (

1/ Robert Mueller is investigating Trump’s request to Jeff Sessions that he reverse his decision to recuse himself from the Russia investigation in March 2017. Trump berated Sessions in public and in private over his decision to step away, but Sessions refused Trump’s request. Mueller is investigating the previously unreported confrontation as part of the ongoing obstruction of justice probe. Mueller’s interest in Sessions suggests the investigation may be even more broad than Trump’s interactions with and subsequent firing of James Comey. (New York Times / Washington Post)

2/ Federal prosecutors investigating Michael Cohen are set to receive 1 million files from three of Cohen’s cell phones that were seized last month in raids on his apartment, office, and hotel room. A court filing submitted by special master Barbara Jones on Tuesday says investigators for the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York have already received nearly 300,000 pieces of potential evidence from the raids. So far, only 252 seized items have been flagged by Cohen’s or Trump’s attorneys as privileged materials. An additional 292,006 items were turned over to prosecutors on May 23. (Washington Post)

3/ A federal judge in Manhattan ordered Michael Cohen’s lawyers to complete their review of the huge trove of seized documents and data within two weeks. Judge Kimba Wood warned that she would allow the government to take control of the review process if Cohen’s attorney’s don’t meet her June 15 deadline. The purpose of the review is to determine whether any of the materials seized by the FBI last month should be protected under attorney-client privilege. (New York Times / Washington Post)

4/ The Senate Intelligence Committee wants to interview Roger Stone. The committee also wants Stone’s attorneys to hand over certain electronic communications. The email from the committee to Stone’s lawyers includes a list of search terms it wants his attorneys to use to identify which communications to hand over. Stone says he hopes the interview with the committee will be public, and that he has “already begun to think about what to wear.� (Daily Beast)

5/ Trump bragged about a classified battle between U.S. forces and Russian mercenaries in Syria while speaking to donors at a closed-door fundraiser. Trump said he was amazed by the actions of American F-18 pilots, suggested that the strikes lasted “10 minutes,� and claimed they killed up to 300 Russians. The details of the battle remain classified. (

1/ The U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement lost track of nearly 1,500 unaccompanied immigrant children between October and December of 2017. The acting assistant secretary of the Administration of Children and Families, Steven Wagner, claimed during testimony in April that the agency was not legally responsible for the 1,475 missing children. “I understand that it has been [the Department of Health and Human Service’s] long-standing interpretation of the law that ORR is not legally responsible for children after they are released from ORR care,� Wagner said. The children are not lost, said Deputy HHS Secretary Eric Hargan, their sponsors “simply did not respond or could not be reached when this voluntary call was made.� The comments come as the Trump administration have been defending the policy of separating immigrant children from their families as part of increased border enforcement efforts at the U.S.-Mexico border. (CNN / Reuters / NPR)

How federal authorities track undocumented minors. “My experience both in the Obama administration and under prior administrations, both Republican and Democratic,� said former head of the Office of Refugee Resettlement under Obama, Bob Carey, “was that the law was not interpreted in the same way. And children were not being separated from their parents unless there was a very strong body of evidence that indicated that they were not their parents.� (NPR)

ACLU: Border patrol beat, kicked and threatened migrant children with sexual abuse during Obama administration. Migrant children under the care of United States Customs and Border Protection were allegedly beaten, threatened with sexual violence and repeatedly assaulted while in custody between 2009 and 2014, according to a report from the ACLU. (Newsweek)

2/ The White House said it “continues to actively prepare� for the proposed-but-canceled summit between Trump and Kim Jong Un in Singapore on June 12. White House officials have been characterizing the cancellation letter Trump sent to Kim as a negotiating tactic, one that is purportedly designed to bring the North back to the table. (Associated Press)

We have put a great team together for our talks with North Korea. Meetings are currently taking place concerning Summit, and more. Kim Young Chol, the Vice Chairman of North Korea, heading now to New York. Solid response to my letter, thank you!

1/ Mitch McConnell said he supports the Mueller investigation and that nothing in Thursday’s secret briefing on the Russia probe changed his mind. “The two investigations going on that I think will give us the answers to the questions that you raise — the [inspector general] investigation in the Justice Department and the Mueller investigation,� McConnell said. “I support both of them, and I don’t really have anything to add to this subject based upon the Gang of Eight briefing that we had today, which was classified.� (NPR / NBC News)

After a closed-door briefing with top Justice Department officials, Congressional Democrats said there is “no evidence� that the FBI placed a spy in the Trump campaign. “Nothing we heard today has changed our view that there is no evidence to support any allegation that the FBI or any intelligence agency placed a spy in the Trump campaign or otherwise failed to follow appropriate procedures and protocols,� said Adam Schiff. (The Hill)

Lindsey Graham: “A confidential informant is not a spy.� Graham undercut Trump during an interview and issued a subtly strong rebuke of Trump’s evidence-free claim that the FBI was “spying� on his presidential campaign. (Washington Post)

2/ The head of the national Border Patrol union called Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard to the U.S.-Mexico border “a colossal waste of resources.� Roughly 1,600 National Guard troops were deployed to the border in April. “We have seen no benefit,� said union president Brandon Judd. Another 750 troops may soon be added to fill support roles and the total deployment could reach nearly 4,000 troops, according to Army Lt. Col. Jamie Davis. (Los Angeles Times)

3/ Trump wanted to call off the North Korean summit before Kim Jong Un could beat him to the punch. “There was no hint of this yesterday,� said a person briefed on the summit preparations. Defense Secretary James Mattis was not involved in the discussions on Wednesday about canceling the meeting, but Trump said he called Mattis about it Thursday morning. The decision happened so quickly that the White House was unable to give congressional leaders and key allies advance notice, and the letter to Kim was sent out while more than two dozen foreign journalists and several U.S. citizens were still inside North Korea covering the demolition of a nuclear test site. (NBC News / Politico)

A day after he bailed on a summit with North Korea’s leader, Trump is now saying that the meeting could still take place after all. “We’ll see what happens. We are talking to them now,� Trump said. “They very much want to do it. We’d like to do it.� He added: “It could even be the 12th.� (Washington Post)

Tr...

1/ Trump canceled the planned nuclear summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and accused North Korea of “tremendous anger and open hostility.� In a letter to Kim, Trump wrote: “Sadly, based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting.� Trump was apparently referring to North Korea’s recent statement, in which it called Mike Pence a “political dummy.� Most of the letter uses seemingly friendly language, but Trump also appeared to include a veiled threat that the U.S. might someday use its nuclear weapons against North Korea, if necessary: “You talk about your nuclear capabilities,� Trump wrote, “but ours are so massive and powerful that I pray to God they will never have to be used.� (CNBC / NPR)

President Trump cancels historic meeting with North Korean leader due to "tremendous anger and open hostility" in recent statement by North Korea.

Here's the letter he sent Kim Jong Un: https://t.co/Zv0rNDZiwg pic.twitter.com/c0VNCZ9z0D

The letter Trump sent to Kim Jong Un canceling the summit, annotated. (Washington Post)

Trump dictated ‘every word’ of the letter canceling North Korea summit. (The Hill)

North Korea demolished its nuclear test site just hours before Trump announced that he was canceling the proposed nuclear summit. North Korea officially closed down the site with a series of explosions that caused landslides near the tunnel entrances to the facility. The closure of the site is not irreversible, and several follow-up measures would be required in order to ensure the facility meets Trump’s demands for true denuclearization. Kim also did not invite international nuclear weapons inspectors to the demolition. (Associated Press)

2/ Trump says the U.S. military “is ready if necessary� to respond to any provocation by North Korea after Trump cancelled the proposed North Korean nuclear summit. “I’ve spoken to General Mattis and the Joint Chiefs of Staff,� Trump said during a press conference, “and our military, which is by far the most powerful anywhere in the world that has been greatly enhanced recently, as you all know, is ready if necessary.� Trump also said he consulted with Japan and South Korea which, according to Trump, are prepared to respond in the event that Kim Jong Un commits any “foolish or reckless acts� in response to Trump calling off the summit. (NBC News)

South Korean President Moon Jae-In said he was “very perplexed� by Trump’s decision to cancel the summit. Moon called the cancellation “very regrettable.� He continued: “Denuclearization of...