Tipsheet: The Memo: Trump's gun pledge met with skepticism

View in your browser     The Memo: Trump's gun pledge met with skepticism BY NIALL STANAGE President Trump says he will act on gun control in the wake of mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton — but Democrats and liberal activists are skeptical, and even Republicans aren’t convinced.  Trump said on Friday he would favor “intelligent background checks.” He suggested there was bipartisan support for such an idea and evinced confidence that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) was also “on board” with the idea. Read the full story here     Trump retweets post promoting conspiracy theory about Jeffrey Epstein's death BY RACHEL FRAZIN President Trump on Saturday retweeted a post promoting a conspiracy theory about Jeffrey Epstein's death.  Read the full story here     Epstein death sparks questions for federal government BY TAL AXELROD   Jeffrey Epstein’s apparent suicide while locked up at a federal jail is sparking questions for officials tasked with overseeing his custody as the disgraced financier awaited trial on sex-trafficking charges. Read the full story here     Attorney General Barr 'appalled' by Epstein death in federal custody BY JESSE BYRNES Attorney General William Barr on Saturday decried the death of wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein in federal custody while he awaited charges on sex trafficking, saying the apparent suicide "raises serious questions." Read the full story here       FBI investigating Epstein death in Manhattan jail BY JESSE BYRNES The FBI signaled it is investigating the death of disgraced billionaire Jeffrey Epstein after he was discovered dead in his Manhattan jail cell due to an "apparent suicide." Read the full story here     Sasse tells AG that 'heads must roll' over Epstein treatment in federal custody BY RACHEL FRAZIN Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) on Saturday wrote a letter to Attorney General William Barr that "heads must roll" regarding Jeffrey Epstein's apparent suicide after his body was found and it was reported that he had been take off suicide watch.  Read the full story here     Castro takes heat as outed Trump donors swing back BY JONATHAN EASLEY Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), the chairman of his twin brother Julian Castro's presidential campaign, is taking heat for publishing the names and business interests of dozens of President Trump’s campaign donors who live and make their livelihoods in Castro’s San Antonio district. Read the full story here     The Memo: Warren emerges as Biden's most dangerous rival BY NIALL STANAGE Sen. Elizabeth Warren is now the most serious rival to former Vice President Joe Biden for the Democratic nomination in 2020. Read the full story here     Biden mistakenly says he was VP during 2018 Parkland shooting BY RACHEL FRAZIN Former Vice President Joe Biden said Saturday that he was vice president during a mass shooting last year in Parkland, Fla., even though it occurred more than a year after he had left office. Read the full story here     Studio says it will cancel release of 'The Hunt' after backlash BY JUDY KURTZ Universal Pictures says it is canceling the release of "The Hunt" following intense backlash from conservatives and President Trump over the politically charged violence depicted in the purported satire. Read the full story here     Jeffrey Epstein's suicide makes no sense BY BERNARD B. KERIK Opinion | Accused pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s death this morning — reportedly a suicide, according to federal officials — is an inexplicable end to a bizarre, tragic case that only got more disturbing the more we learned about it. Read the full story here     Guns, Trump and a nation at a crossroads BY MARIA CARDONA Opinion | The issues at hand are threefold: the Republican party’s long-standing tolerance of politicians who spew bigotry and xenophobia, a president who is metastasizing that hateful cancer and a country that allows guns to be purchased by almost anyone. Read the full story here     The Washington Post: Democrats fret in Iowa: Can Biden beat Trump? If not Biden, then who? BY MATT VISER With Joe Biden’s age and his gaffes, there’s a nagging concern about whether he’s up to facing President Trump on the campaign trail — or the debate stage. But a clear alternative has yet to emerge. Read the full story here     Reuters: Parade of Democratic 2020 hopefuls push for momentum in Iowa BY JAMES OLIPHANT AND AMANDA BECKER A cavalcade of Democratic presidential hopefuls on Friday tried to turn a few precious minutes before Iowa voters into the momentum needed to catapult their campaigns in the pivotal state. Read the full story here     The New York Times: Kamala Harris, in a pivot, makes her play for Iowa BY SHANE GOLDMACHER AND MADDIE MCGARVEY After months of putting the state on the back-burner, Ms. Harris has stepped up her presence in Iowa, spending more days there in recent weeks than she did through June. Read the full story here     The Wall Street Journal: Iowa is ground zero for gun debate as presidential hopefuls weigh in BY JOHN MCCORMICK AND TARINI PARTI Activists organize gun-control event on sidelines of the Iowa State Fair, ahead of the state’s presidential nomination balloting next February. Read the full story here     The Associated Press: Gun-control backers concerned about changing federal courts BY DON THOMPSON California has some of the toughest gun laws in the nation, including a ban on the type of high-capacity ammunition magazines used in some of the nation’s deadliest mass shootings. How long those types of laws will stand is a growing concern among gun control advocates in California and elsewhere. Read the full story here   Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for The Hill Tipsheet       Forward this Tipsheet     You might like         Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.