The Daily Digest: Pols take cues from S.C. shooting
Welcome to the Daily Digest. Here's what happening in political news today.
The shooting of nine African Americans at a church in Charleston last week is driving politics locally and nationally.
In Minnesota, Sixth Congressional District Rep. Tom Emmer returned $500 in campaign contributions from a white supremacist who reportedly influenced the suspected shooter. Some GOP presidential candidates have done the same. (MPR News)
Meanwhile, in the wake of the shootings, local activists want to rename Lake Calhoun because it was named after John Caldwell Calhoun, a South Carolina statesman, former vice president, senator, secretary of state and proponent of slavery. (MPR News)
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In South Carolina, Gov. Nikki Haley says she wants the Confederate flag flown at the State House taken down. (NPR via MPR News)
The shooting has President Barack Obama using his bully pulpit to once again address racism in America. (NPR via MPR News)
And the incident is forcing presidential candidates to talk about race in a way they haven't so far. That includes Hillary Clinton, who largely avoided the issue in her 2008 campaign. (The New York Times)
The Supreme Court is expected to issue big decisions soon on same-sex marriage and the health care law. The court is considered conservative, but a closer look reveals it's been shifting to the left. (The New York Times)
And lastly, my apologies, folks: I forgot to include this excellent piece by Mark Leibovich in yesterday's Digest.