UPDATE: 2PM ET
The full text of Hillary Clinton’s speech is here, via Vox.com.
UPDATE: 11AM ET, JUNE 13
Watch Hillary’s rally live on C-SPAN here:
Live coverage from The Guardian is here.
Tweets from The Washington Post’s Philip Bump are here, including dogs.
Here’s some other selected tweets and commentary – if you’d just like the campaign’s own tweets, those are here.
http://twitter.com/jeffstrabone/status/609756679077535744
http://twitter.com/joshgreenman/status/609754143809531904
http://twitter.com/weknowwhatsbest/status/609753912195727360
MIDNIGHT, JUNE 12
There’s a big weekend ahead in Presidential politics. On Saturday, Hillary Clinton stages a “launch” rally for her campaign at Roosevelt Island in Manhattan. The campaign insists that she’ll address the “why” for her running – telling her political story through a family-oriented narrative.
(Clinton campaign video)
The next day, the candidate will be in Des Moines for an Iowa “launch party”.
Meanwhile, GOP hopefuls are gathered at an exclusive spa in Park City Utah to attend an event hosted by 2012 nominee Mitt Romney, who shared his thoughts via PowerPoint on President Obama’s – and by extension Hillary Clinton’s – record in foreign policy.
As well as schmoozing with big potential donors, there’s a range of activities – the NYT reports: “flag football with Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, skeet shooting with Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, and speeches by no fewer than six 2016 hopefuls — about 250 members of Mr. Romney’s network took stock of the Republican field, hoping to find a candidate who not only excites them but who they believe can win a general election.”
And, for some reason, there’s Calisthenics with Commentators…
One high-profile figure isn’t there – Jeb Bush, who’s expected to launch his campaign on Monday in Florida, is in Germany where he is again attempting to distance himself from his brother. The New York Times reports:
..as he prepares to declare his White House bid, Mr. Bush’s trip here has been a reminder that his attempt to escape the shadow of his older brother, as awkward and halting as it may be, is not just a political strategy. It reflects how dissimilar the two men really are, in temperament, interests and preparation.
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* POLITICS * Talking of Iowa, the local GOP decided that its usual Straw Poll finally needed to be put out of its misery.
What does the move mean for the state’s early Presidential caucus?
The White House tried to put a brave face on its stinging defeat over the trade bill, calling it a “temporary setback.” Politico reports:
It is a common tactic in Washington to downplay bad news, but the White House brought it to a new level on Friday after House Democrats soundly defeated a package of free trade legislation that the president had personally implored them to pass. The White House chose to highlight the fact that one part of the package passed, even though two approvals were necessary to give Obama the trade authority he needs to negotiate the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership.
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* WORLD * The US and Cuba are expected to announce next month a timetable for re-opening embassies and restoring diplomatic relations, Reuters reports.
The Associated Press reported that a second cyberbreach of federal data had been “dramatically worse than first acknowledged” and apparently exposed information on almost everyone with US intelligence clearance.
Regarding the hack of standard personnel records announced last week, two people briefed on the investigation disclosed Friday that as many as 14 million current and former civilian U.S. government employees have had their information exposed to hackers, a far higher figure than the 4 million the Obama administration initially disclosed.
American officials have said that cybertheft originated in China and that they suspect espionage by the Chinese government, which has denied any involvement.
The newer estimate puts the number of compromised records between 9 million and 14 million going back to the 1980s, said one congressional official and one former U.S. official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because information disclosed in the confidential briefings includes classified details of the investigation.
Fallout and armchair analysis continues from the truly bizarre story of Rachel Dolezal, a senior NAACP representative who apparently turned out to be not exactly who she seemed.
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* SPORTS * Both the Stanley Cup (Saturday) and the NBA Finals (Sunday) reach Game Fives this weekend, with both series all-square.
http://twitter.com/AllThingsDudes/status/609184059814715392
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* CULTURE *
Here comes the Knight. Arise, Sir George Ivan Morrison.
(Van Morrison Official)
The Overnight Note 