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Column: Following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, some foreign diplomats are now predicting that he’ll likely win the presidential race — and that more U.S. political violence is on the way.

The Secret Service will privately brief lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday as Congress investigates the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump, a committee aide told POLITICO. The closed-door briefing is the latest sign that Congress is gearing up for a sprawling, multi-committee investigation into the shooting at Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania, which has sparked a litany of security questions from lawmakers since Saturday. In addition to the member briefing, Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) has invited Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to testify publicly before his panel on July 22. The committee aide said that "based on our conversations with the Secret Service” they expect Cheatle will appear for the hearing and “more details will be announced soon.” 📷 Evan Vucci/AP https://lnkd.in/ecneWGdZ

Judge Aileen Cannon has dismissed the federal criminal case against Donald Trump charging him with amassing highly sensitive national security secrets at his Mar-a-Lago estate and then obstructing government efforts to reclaim them. Cannon, in a 93-page ruling, concluded that special counsel Jack Smith’s appointment was unconstitutional. Smith is likely to appeal the ruling. A spokesman for his office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. “The Special Counsel’s position effectively usurps … legislative authority, transferring it to a Head of Department, and in the process threatening the structural liberty inherent in the separation of powers,” ruled Cannon, who is a Trump appointee. More soon at the link below. https://lnkd.in/eM-SjtVh

Column: Trump's defiant response following Saturday's shooting will strengthen his hand — not only in the campaign but also with a party that will prove far less likely to resist his second-term impulses should he win, writes politics bureau chief Jonathan Martin.

President Joe Biden used a rare Oval Office address on Sunday to condemn political violence and pleaded with Americans to turn down the temperature in the increasingly toxic political system after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump. “A former president was shot. An American citizen was killed while simply exercising his freedom to support the candidate of his choosing. We cannot, we must not go down this road in America. We’ve traveled it before throughout history. Violence has never been the answer,” Biden said. “In America, we resolve our differences at the ballot box,” he continued. “Not with bullets.” More soon at the link below. https://lnkd.in/ezcpunMa

Important questions around the attempted assassination of Donald Trump remain unresolved, but one is already prompting calls for an investigation: the glaring failure of the Secret Service to protect the former president. The gunman, identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, was shot dead by a Secret Service sniper team after he opened fire from a building overlooking the rally, killing one attendee and wounding Trump. His ability to reach that rooftop, where he had a direct shot at Trump, is among the most immediate areas of review. Link below for full story. https://lnkd.in/e_qwz9m8

The attempted assassination of Donald Trump shocked the nation — but not everyone was totally surprised: It was “almost just a matter of time,” said political violence expert Rachel Kleinfeld. Kleinfeld, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told us the shooting at Trump’s rally Saturday comes amid a huge rise in threats and violence against lawmakers, judges and others engaged in the political process. She said while the attack *could* help fuel further violence, it doesn’t have to. In American history and abroad, political violence can be tamped down — but the public also has to want it. Swipe for some of Kleinfeld’s thoughts on how the U.S. can curb political violence, or read her full Q&A at the link below. 📷 Scott Goldsmith for POLITICO https://lnkd.in/ee5EwY4h

Here are some of the biggest questions law enforcement, the Trump campaign and members of Congress will tackle following the assassination attempt on Donald Trump ⬇️

Pastors at megachurches across the country on Sunday credited God with sparing the life of Donald Trump. The portrayal could solidify the inevitability of Trump’s presidency among some Evangelicals.

Not everyone was totally surprised by the attempted assassination of Donald Trump. An expert on political violence said it was "just a matter of time." Still, she believes there's a way out of America's crisis — but the public has to want it.