Putin and Trump Arrive late for Helsinki Summit

President Donald Trump blamed “U.S. foolishness” for souring relations between Washington and Moscow on Monday, shortly before he is expected to sit down with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Trump said previous U.S. administrations — and not Moscow — were to blame for a steep decline in U.S.-Russia relations in recent years. The official Twitter account of the Russian foreign ministry liked the tweet, shortly before posting a response saying: "We agree." The U.S. president’s comments appeared to show just how much domestic political pressure he is under ahead of a much-anticipated meeting with his Russian counterpart in Helsinki.

Trump Claims Credit for Boosting NATO Defense

President Donald Trump is claiming credit for bolstering NATO as he heads into a day of meetings with Russia's Vladimir Putin. Trump rocked a NATO summit last week when he lambasted members for failing to meet defense spending pledges and questioned the value of the alliance before doing a 180 and embracing it. But Trump says in a tweet that he's received "many calls from leaders of NATO countries" thanking him for helping "to get them focused on financial obligations, both present & future." Trump says, "We had a truly great Summit" and claims it was "inaccurately covered by much of the media."

GOP Volunteers Kicked Out of Uber

Six Republican campaign volunteers say they were kicked out of an Uber on Saturday as their driver told them “welcome to the resistance.” The six volunteers were told halfway to their destination in Raleigh, North Carolina, to exit the vehicle at a gas station because the driver “had the right to deny us service,” Mary Russell, one of the riders in the Uber told The Daily Caller News Foundation. The six riders exited the car and were told “welcome to the resistance” as the driver drove away. “I reviewed the relevant policy of Uber and we did not use ‘inappropriate and abusive language or gestures’ that would result in the early termination of a ride,” Russell said. “This type of discrimination against politically oriented conservatives should be against the policy of Uber.”

Conservative Group Launches Project to Oppose Sexist Attacks in Women in Politics

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., aren't exactly friends, but you'll find them in close quarters on a new website. Independent Women's Voice, the 501(c)(4) nonprofit affiliate of the conservative Independent Women's Forum, recently launched Champion Women, a project described on its site as "a movement committed to championing the ideas and amplifying the voices of all women." Alongside Sanders and Gillibrand, you'll find HLN host Ashleigh Banfield, Carly Fiorina, and other women from across the political spectrum. "We've all noticed how degraded the public conversation has become, and especially it became clear when it came to how women were being discussed in the political arena. The responses to women were obviously coarse, sexualized, personal, ad hominem, and to some degree, we were becoming used to it," IWV President Tammy Bruce told me by phone on Thursday, explaining what motivated her group to launch the project.

Internal FBI Employee Survey Shows Plummeting Faith in Bureau Leadership

An annual survey of FBI employees found a sharp decline in confidence in bureau leadership amid a series of scandals, results published Sunday indicate. Although pride in working at the FBI remained about the same, faith in the "honesty and integrity" of senior executives plummeted -- going from an average employee rating of more than four out of five in 2017 to 3.5 out of five this year at the FBI's 56 field offices. The survey data was collected in February and March amid significant internal uncertainty about the fate of top leaders including then-Deputy Director Andrew McCabe and FBI agent Peter Strzok.

Dennis Rodman Booed for North Korea Joke

Dennis Rodman was reportedly booed at a comedy roast, when he made a joke about North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. At a taping Saturday for the "The Comedy Central Roast of Bruce Willis," the NBA star knocked the actor's Hollywood career. "You keep making these bomb movies like Kim, but at least he is smart enough not to release his," Rodman said. That joke was met by boos, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

P---y Riot Charged After On-Field Protest Delays World Cup

Protest group P---y Riot, long a thorn in Vladimir Putin's side, claimed responsibility Sunday for four people who brought the World Cup final to a brief halt by running onto the field dressed in police uniforms as the Russian president and a global audience watched. Stewards tackled the three women and one man who charged onto the field simultaneously in the 52nd minute of one of the world's most viewed sporting events. Croatia defender Dejan Lovren pushed the man, helping a steward to detain him, and suggested the incident put Croatia off its game. Croatia was 2-1 down when the protest happened and eventually lost 4-2 to France. 

Tweet Inspires "National Blue Cheese Dressing Day"

The founder of Buffalo's annual chicken wing festival is offering foodies another reason to indulge — with the creation of National Blue Cheese Dressing Day. The inaugural celebration is Monday. Founder Drew Cerza, known as Buffalo's "wing king," says the idea for a national holiday grew from a tweet sent out on National Ranch Dressing Day in March. The post from Frank's RedHot sauce paired buffalo wings and ranch dressing. In Buffalo, where the appetizer was created, blue cheese is the preferred dip for wings. In honor of Blue Cheese Dressing Day, fans at the evening's Buffalo Bisons' baseball game will have a chance to bob for wings in pools of blue cheese dressing. The team's blue cheese character mascot will be ceremonially inducted into the Buffalo Wing Hall of Fame.

 

Rapper Buys Every Seat in House, Takes Strangers to Movies

A Maine rapper surprised moviegoers with free tickets to a sci-fi satire movie. Rory Ferreira, who goes by the stage name Milo, bought all 129 seats to the 4:20 p.m. showing of the movie "Sorry to Bother You" at a theater in Portland, Maine, on Saturday. The Portland Press Herald reports employees told patrons they could see a movie for free as they arrived at the theater. Ferreira says he was inspired by the movie's director, Boots Riley, to do something good for society. Ferreira, of Biddeford, also attended the movie, and tweeted an invite for anyone interested to "catch a flick wit me."

Finnish Brewery Creates Quirky Beer for Trump-Putin Summit

A small Finnish craft brewery is paying a humorous tribute to the Helsinki summit. RPS Brewing has issued a limited-edition lager depicting cartoon U.S. and Russian presidents on its label, with text for Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin saying "Let's Settle This Like Adults" and "Making Lager Great Again." The beer has been in high demand since it hit the shelves nationwide a few days ago and the whole 10,000-bottle lot had been sold out ahead of Monday's summit. Samples have also been delivered to the U.S. and Russian embassies in Helsinki. CEO Samuli Huuhtanen told The Associated Press on Saturday that "a couple of good beers can help any negotiations."

Rhode Island Governor to Hold Office Hours at the Beach

Rhode Island's governor says she's holding summer office hours at the beach. Democratic Gov. Gina Raimondo will hold the first event Monday at Scarborough State Beach in Narragansett, RI. She'll be joined by members of her Office of Constituent Services to help connect residents with various services. Raimondo says she looks forward to hosting office hours and hearing directly from residents at some of the state's most popular destinations. She plans to go to East Matunuck State Beach on July 23 and Lincoln Woods State Park on Aug. 3.

NOTABLE TWEETS:

@THEWHITEHOUSE, JULY 15: “President Trump is in Helsinki, Finland. This morning he will meet with the President of the Republic of Finland. Then later today he will have a bilateral meeting with the President of the Russian Federation.”

@REALDONALDTRUMP, JULY 16: “Our relationship with Russia has NEVER been worse thanks to many years of U.S. foolishness and stupidity and now, the Rigged Witch Hunt!”

@TPKANSLIA, JULY 16: “President @Niinisto and Mrs @JenniHaukio welcomed @POTUS Donald Trump and Mrs Melania Trump to the Mäntyniemi Residence. #HELSINKI2018”

(Respnding to @TPKANSLIA) @REALDONALDTRUMP, JULY 16: “It was an honor to join you this morning. Thank you!”