| | | | | President Trump speaks on the phone with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto in the Oval Office Monday. Credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images | | | Washington Honors McCain While White House Keeps Flag at Full Staff: Sen. Schumer said the Russell Building should be renamed after McCain
Melania's Hairdresser Speaks: "There is a look about her where it's almost like she's the mother of the public"
How Palin Remembered McCain: His former running mate said she'll "remember the good times" | | | What the White House is Talking About:
President Trump and first lady Melania Trump welcome the President and first lady of Kenya to the White House. Trump then has a separate bilateral meeting with President Kenyatta. This evening, Trump and the first lady will host a dinner for evangelical leaders at the White House.
What the White House Press Corps is Talking About:
The passing of Sen. John McCain and how the President has chosen to (not) honor him.
The Cringe-iest Phone Moment Ever:
Watching the President try to get Mexican President Enrique Peña on speaker phone from the Oval Office to announce the United States' new trade agreement with Mexico was good television, guys. When he was able, with the help of an aide, to get Peña on the phone, the two leaders outlined their renegotiated plan, which will predominantly help the auto manufacturing industry. Trump said he'll completely dissolve NAFTA if Canada doesn't get on board: "They used to call it NAFTA, we're going to call it the 'United States Mexico Trade Agreement.' We'll get rid of the name NAFTA." | | Credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images
The Flag:
To me, one of the most egregious slights in the wake of Sen. McCain's death is the lack of a proclamation from the President to lower and keep the flags at half-staff until after his funeral services. They were lowered for a day, but as press arrived for work at the White House this morning, it was quickly noticed that the flag atop the building was back up to full staff. There is now a bi-partisan request from Capitol Hill to the Department of Defense to get the flags on government buildings back to half-staff. | | Credit: @mattwhouse/Twitter
Here's a shot from longtime CBS News White House correspondent Mark Knoller: | | Credit: @markknoller/Twitter
The Lack of Statement is a Statement:
Trump's aides had a statement written up to put out in addition to the President's tweet after McCain's death, but the President nixed the idea of saying anything else. I'm not going to harp on this too much because I think the story about McCain needs to be about McCain and his service to this country, but here's our statement story.
Dana Bash Has The Best McCain Memories:
CNN's Dana Bash has dug into years and years of her coverage of McCain and as a result has written a really wonderful and important first-person of her memories of the senator. I highly suggest reading it at some point.
And here is the schedule of services and events for McCain's funeral. CNN will cover it all. | | Our Daily Melania:
I'm heading to the White House this afternoon to cover a tree-planting ceremony that Melania is doing on the South Lawn. She's overseeing the planting of a sapling from the original Eisenhower Oak Tree (which is on the East side of the White House, near the Kennedy Garden). The planting is being done in conjunction with a special project from the White House Historical Association's Presidential Sites Summit. | | Melania's Hairdresser Speaks:
Melania's longtime hairstylist, Mordechai Alvow, did a rare interview this weekend. He's been Melania's stylist for 12 years, since they met at a shoot for Vogue Japan. Alvow told Refinery29 that he and the first lady are close: "During their sessions, Alvow says that he and Trump talk about hair, fashion, energy, spirituality (he practices Kabbalah), exercise routines, and food. And, yes, there are times when the conversation turns political, too. 'I'm not the one encouraging conversations in that direction, only because I know that her head is so involved in so many things that I don't want to impose anything,' Alvow says. 'But yes, when she was looking to choose a name [for Be Best, Trump's initiative to improve kids' social, emotional, and physical health in light of toxic social media and the opioid epidemic], we talked about [the initiative]. We do talk about when she's with the schools; she tells me about her experience and what she encounters.'" Alvow says it's also important to him to keep Melania's look consistent because she's like the mom of America "She's not like a performer. There is a look about her where it's almost like she's the mother of the public. You want your mother to have one steady look."
Dress Like the First Lady:
On Saturday, Melania honored the 102nd birthday of the National Park Service by thanking the White House grounds crew (all of whom are technically NPS employees) and doing a photo with them. Interestingly, she wore a dress by Prabal Gurung, one of Michelle Obama's favored designers and a critic of Trump administration policies. Melania hasn't ever really cared about what designers do or don't want to dress her for political reasons -- and she almost always buys off-the-rack anyway -- so I don't think she's making any kind of statement. She probably just liked it. | | Credit: @FLOTUS/Twitter
Here's the dress on sale in the long-sleeve version for $1,119. The print also comes in navy in pajamas, here for $695, but I dig them because they're the kind of pj's you can wear out to things in public. | | | Credit: barneyswarehouse.com, farfetch.com | | What Washington is Talking About:
Mourning the passing of Sen. John McCain. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Saturday he will introduce a resolution to rename the Russell Building after McCain. The late Arizona Republican will lie in state at the Capitol Friday.
What America is Talking About:
Two people were killed before a gunman took his own life in a shooting at a gaming tournament in Jacksonville, Florida, Sunday and a former archbishop has called on the Pope to resign.
What Phoenix is Talking About:
McCain will lie in state at the Arizona State Capitol Wednesday, there will be a memorial at the North Phoenix Baptist Church Thursday, and Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey said he will announce McCain's successor after the former POW is laid to rest at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, on Sunday.
Poll of the Day:
Of all the people who ran for president this century, McCain was among the most popular. His approval rating during the general election was at 58%, higher than any other recent major party nominee who lost, and behind only the two men who beat him, Barack Obama in 2008 and George W. Bush in 2000, according to Gallup data. | | Credit: Gallup
People Have Tried to Change the Russell Before:
The Russell, one of three Senate office buildings, is named after Sen. Richard Russell, a Georgia Democrat who served for about 38 years, from 1933 to his death in 1971. The building was named for him in 1972, and in a resolution, Sen. Robert Byrd of West Virginia said he couldn't think of anyone who "contributed more of his intellect, his knowledge, and his extraordinary skills, to enhance the integrity of the Senate." But Russell was also an opponent of civil rights and desegregation.
Russell opposed bills banning lynching and the poll tax. He opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and instead proposed the Voluntary Racial Relocation Commission to move black Americans out of the South so the black population would be more evenly spread across the country. In 2003, a group called "Change The Name" wrote a letter to every senator saying Russell "violated individual rights, jeopardized orderly democratic procedure and extended victimization to an already oppressed group of U.S. citizens." And there have been calls to rename the building after other icons of the Senate, such as Ted Kennedy.
But maybe this attempt will have a better chance? McCain's fellow Arizonan, Jeff Flake, said on "Face the Nation" Sunday he'd like to be the first Republican to co-sponsor Schumer's renaming proposal, and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told "This Week" it would be a "great tribute." | | Credit: Google Maps
How Palin Remembered McCain:
Sarah Palin has long remained loyal to the man who made her a political star, even as their paths diverged. When McCain wrote in his book "The Restless Wave" that he regretted not selecting Connecticut Dem Sen. Joe Lieberman as his 2008 running mate, Palin called it a "gut punch" and said she would "choose to look back on the good times that we did have together." She took a similar stance this weekend, publishing a note from her and her family calling McCain a maverick and fighter. "John McCain was my friend. I will remember the good times," she wrote on Facebook. | | Credit: Sarah Palin/Facebook
My Fav McCain Tweet:
It's still the Snooki one, from 2010. Snooki had expressed displeasure that tanning salons would be taxed under an Affordable Care Act provision and said McCain would have never done that if he was president. McCain tweeted this: | | Credit: @SenJohnMcCain/Twitter
Kate Mara is Fine with NFL Protests, is Also a Football Heiress:
Actress Kate Mara told Variety she believes "everybody has a constitutional right to stand, or kneel or sit during the national anthem" and that she supports players no matter their decision. The most surprising part of this news, though, is that I found out Mara is football royalty. She's a great-granddaughter of Giants founder Tim Mara and Steelers founder Art Rooney, per Variety.
"House of Cards" Getting a Little Melanabe:
The show teased some characters who will make an appearance in the final season -- siblings Annette and Bill Shepherd who "exert a powerful behind-the-scenes force in politics." In a shot from the season of Annette, played by actress Diane Lane, Lane looks a little Melanabe, with a white bell-sleeve dress: | | Credit: @seewhatsnext/Twitter
Street Art Sighting:
A group of Arizona artists are raising money to paint a mural of McCain titled "The Maverick" on a wall in Scottsdale's Old Town neighborhood. | | Artist's rendition. Credit: via Kickstarter
Aaron Bass, who wrote about the project on Kickstarter, says the mural would use icons for Arizona's "five Cs," which any true Arizona kid will tell you are cattle, citrus, climate, copper, and cotton, which helped build the early Arizona economy, to depict McCain's face and an Arizona flag. As of this morning, the project has raised more than $15,000 of its $20,000 goal, with 114 backers. Here's what the icons would look like close up: | | Credit: via Kickstarter
If you spot political street art, tweet me @hunterschwarz, tag me on Instagram @hunterschwarz, or email me at coverlinehunter@cnn.com with your sighting so I can feature it in COVER/LINE. | | | | | | |
