The Hill’s 12:30 Report

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The Hill’s 12:30 Report: House passes bill allowing 9/11 victims to sue Saudis | Trump under fire for Russian TV interview | DC celebrates 50 Most Beautiful honorees | Trump’s Penn. Avenue hotel ready to open its doors | Green Day’s surprise DC concert

OBAMA’S BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE: Via The Hill’s Jordan Fabian and Katie Bo Williams, President Obama is facing a dilemma over legislation allowing the families of 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia in U.S. courts.

Latest — Congress is for it: The House just passed the bill unanimously, and the Senate already did the same. But Obama’s very against it: Obama argues it could both strain relations with Saudi Arabia and also lead to retaliatory legislation overseas against U.S. citizens. http://bit.ly/2bXDDp4

It’s Friday, and two months from today, we will (likely!) have our next president-elect! I’m Cate Martel with a quick recap of what you missed this morning and what’s on tap for the rest of the day. Send comments, story ideas and weekend plans to cmartel@digital-release.thehill.com, @CateMartel and on Facebook.

I’M SORRY FOR ACCIDENTALLY GOING ON RUSSIAN PROPAGANDA TV: Yes, this is real. GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump appeared on RT, a Russian government-sponsored television network. But his campaign manager said in an interview that they didn’t realize it would air on Russian television. Head smack. http://bit.ly/2cKBotM

{mosads}REMEMBER HER? MICHELLE OB–, I MEAN MELANIA TRUMP: Via The Washington Post’s Mary Jordan and Stephanie McCrummen, Melania Trump has largely vanished from the campaign trail since delivering lines from a Michelle Obama speech at the Republican National Convention in July. The Post notes, “It was only Wednesday night — after a seven-week absence — that Melania Trump appeared at a campaign event, sitting in the audience as her husband addressed a national security forum.” http://wapo.st/2czhajp

AND WHO SAYS POLITICS ISN’T A CONTACT SPORT?: … they’re wrong. Rudy Giuliani, a high-profile supporter of Donald Trump‘s presidential bid, appeared on MSNBC’s “Hardball” last night with Chris Matthews where he raised questions about Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton‘s health. Things got pretty heated. It’s intense television: http://wapo.st/2cbe322

YOU KNOW WHAT D.C. IS MISSING? MORE BLING, GLITZ, GLAM, THE MOST MAGNIFICENT THING YOU’VE EVER SEEN: Yep, you probably could have guessed from the headline. The Trump International Hotel in Washington is having its soft opening Monday. http://bit.ly/2cIoeuA

OH, AND HE’S CHARGING: $500,000 to stay in the penthouse during the presidential inauguration. http://nym.ag/2bZ9A4X

ELECTION FUN FACT: Via The Associated Press’s Kathleen Ronayne, in the U.S. Senate race in New Hampshire between Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R) and Gov. Maggie Hassan (D), campaign spending will likely hit $100 million or more — a record for the state http://apne.ws/2cbdy83

WE’RE ALL BEAUTIFUL!: Last night, The Hill held a rooftop soiree at The Observatory at America’s Square to celebrate The Hill’s 50 Most Beautiful List. Guests sipped on craft beer and ate German beer garden-style food. Spotted: Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Washington Life’s Virginia Coyne, Steve Scully of C-SPAN, Ron Bonjean, Hollywood on the Potomac’s Janet Donovan, Sughrue Mion’s Tony Arpin, Capitol Strategies’s Katie Dapper, Ty Bofferding of Sen. Bill Cassidy’s (R-La.) office, DCI Group’s Sarah Benchaita, DOJ’s Kevin Blakeman, Gallup’s Riley Brands, the White House Historical Association’s Leslie Calderone, The Washington Post’s Megan Chan, Deputy Associate Counsel at The White House Adam Chandler, Fox5 D.C.’s Ronica Cleary, The Hill’s Bob Cusack, SIFMA’s Carol Danko, Christine Delargy, NRCC’s Lauren Devoll, U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Harshika Errangani and Shelby Parish, Politico’s Danny Vinik, K Street Magazine’s Selma Khenissi, CNN’s Elizabeth Landers, RNC’s Leah LeVell and Hall Smith, Dewey Square Group’s Alma Molina, Washington Life’s Erica Moody, The Blaze’s Leigh Munsil, NBC’s Olivia Petersen, Edelman’s Derrick Plummer, Reuters’s Tim Ryan and many more. http://bit.ly/2c3QY2r

Veep shout out of The Hill’s 50 Most Beautiful: http://bit.ly/2cbNGbY

 

SEPT. 11 — 15 YEARS LATER:

JUST PUBLISHED — BUSH AIDE’S PERSONAL NOTES FROM 9/11: Via Yahoo’s Olivier Knox, a previously unpublished behind-the-scenes account of President George W. Bush’s response in the traumatic hours after the 9/11 attacks. Included: A flood of inaccurate reports and Bush’s reactions. This article is seriously worth reading: http://yhoo.it/2cp6hon

— At 12:40 p.m. Bush announces, “I can’t wait to find out who did it. It’s going to take a while + we’re not going 2 have a little slap on the wrist crap.”

— At 1:05 p.m., another inaccurate report: “high-speed object heading 4 POTUS ranch” in Crawford, Texas.

— At 2:58 p.m., Bush tells an aide “we need 2 get back to Wash. We don’t need some tinhorn terrorist to scare us off. The Am ppl want 2 know where their dang P is.”

MISSING 9/11 FLAG MYSTERIOUSLY RETURNS: The iconic American flag that firefighters hoisted above the rubble on 9/11 went missing hours after the photo was taken. Fifteen years later, the flag mysteriously reappeared in Everett, Wash. http://cnn.it/2cJY4KZ

WHAT TO WATCH: 8 p.m. EDT Sunday: CNN is airing a documentary, “9/11: Fifteen Years Later.”

BEHIND-THE-SCENES ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE: In Politico, Garrett Graff tells the oral history of what it was like being on Air Force One for the eight hours after the attacks, told by the people who were there. Bookmark this for later, if you don’t have time to read now. It’s worth it: http://politi.co/2ccuDNz

— Then-Rep. Adam Putnam (R-Fla.):”There was one van, maybe a press van, that was parked too close to the plane’s wing. I remember a Secret Service agent running down the aisle; they opened the back stairs, he ran down to move the truck. He never made it back on board. They didn’t wait for him.”

BIDEN’S 9/11 TRIBUTE: Vice President Biden will participate in a tribute before the Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia Eagles season opener. http://bit.ly/2cIs9aG

 

NOTABLE TWEETS:

Los Angeles Times’s Sarah D. Wire
House members bow their heads during a moment of silence for the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. http://bit.ly/2cf8gcq

The Huffington Post’s Matt Fuller
Sheila Jackson Lee walks down this hallway and announces herself thusly: “Friends and countrymen.” http://bit.ly/2cczcYd

National Review Online’s Alexis Levinson
Spotted outside the House chamber: Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards http://bit.ly/2cczG0w

 

ON TAP:

Today: The House has been in since 9 a.m. The Senate is out today.

Today: Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) campaigns in New Hampshire with Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) in Nashua, Amherst, Manchester, Windham and Kingston. Ayotte faces a heated reelection fight. http://bit.ly/2c1dnAe

Today–Sunday: The Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C. Featured speakers include Ted Cruz, Nikki Haley, Kirk Cameron, Bobby Jindal, Pat McCrory, Paul Ryan, Ben Sasse and Donald Trump. Details: http://bit.ly/2cEuvrh

2–5 p.m. EDT: Donald Trump, former Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.), RNC Chairman Reince Priebus, Academy Award-winning actor Jon Voight, Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-Okla.) and former Sen. Rick Santorum (Pa.)speak at the Values Voter Summit.

7:15 p.m. EDT: Phil Robertson from “Duck Dynasty” speaks at the Values Voter Summit.

8:50 a.m.–12 p.m. EDT tomorrow: GOP vice presidential nominee Mike Pence and Gov. Matt Bevin (R-Ky.) address the Values Voter Summit.

7:30–10 p.m. EDT tomorrow: Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Gov. Doug Ducey (R-Ariz.) and Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) speak at the Values Voter Summit. http://cnn.it/2cfUVOC

10 a.m. EDT Monday: SiriusXM is hosting a presidential forum with Libertarian presidential ticket Gary Johnson and Bill Weld. It will air on P.O.T.U.S., SiriusXM channel 124.

Noon Monday: Debate expert Sam Nelson of Cornell University gives insight on the upcoming presidential debates. Live stream: http://bit.ly/2cIvzKD

 

NOW FOR THE FUN STUFF …:

Today is National Weiner Schnitzel Day. And for planning purposes, tomorrow is National Hot Dog Day.

PLEASE, MY FRIENDS. OBSTAIN FROM PURCHASING THIS: We have a reputation to uphold. Pokemon Go has released a Bluetooth watch that connects to your smartphone. http://cnnmon.ie/2cIc8BD

ON SALE TODAY — WAKE US ALL UP WHEN SEPTEMBER, ERR NOV. 8, ENDS: Green Day announced a surprise concert at the iconic (and tiny!) 9:30 Club for Monday, Oct. 3. The tickets went on sale today and sold out in minutes. http://bit.ly/2cp9Cnk

WEEKEND PLANS — PROST!: Port City Brewing Company is holding an Oktoberfest party in D.C. It starts today at 2 p.m. and runs through tomorrow. There will be live music and food trucks! http://bit.ly/2cw4tqJ

And to leave you on an upbeat note, here’s a viral video of a toddler totally losing her mind over cotton candy at a Seattle Mariners game. But then she sacrifices the snack to cheer for a grand slam. http://abcn.ws/2bXFJoF

 

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