The Hill’s 12:30 Report

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The Hill’s 12:30 Report: GOP challenges FBI over Clinton probe | Ryan backs away from Trump’s Saddam remarks | Sanders booed by House Dems | Obama leaving 8,400 troops in Afghanistan | National Fried Chicken Day (!)

NEWS OF THE MORNING – FOX NEWS ANCHOR FILES SEXUAL HARASSMENT CHARGES AGAINST CEO: Former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson has filed a sexual harassment/retaliation lawsuit against CEO Roger Ailes. Carlson, who hosted “The Real Story with Gretchen Carlson,” alleges she was fired last month because she refused to have sex with Ailes. http://bit.ly/29OBGf6

Happy Wednesday. 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 upcoming events to cmartel@digital-staging.thehill.com, @CateMartel and on Facebook.

HAPPENING THIS A.M. — MAYBE WE JUMPED THE GUN A BIT: President Obama today announced he will leave 8,400 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Context: There are currently 9,800 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. This number was expected to be reduced to 5,500 next year, but the drawdown is being scaled back because of the situation in the war-torn country. Obama acknowledged “the security situation in Afghanistan remains precarious.” http://bit.ly/29xMthh

BREAKING THIS MORNING — WE AIN’T DONE WITH YOU YET: House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) has called on FBI Director James Comey to testify before his panel about the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server. Note: That day Trump will also be on Capitol Hill to meet with Republican lawmakers. http://bit.ly/29lG4Xa

AND WE’RE GOING TO WANT MORE DEETZ: Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) wants Comey to provide more details on his decision to recommend no charges for Clinton. http://bit.ly/29nGs5Q

AND ‘ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION’: Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Wednesday called on the State Department to take “administrative action” against Clinton. http://bit.ly/29rhznE

ALSO DEVELOPING: Attorney General Loretta Lynch will testify before the House Judiciary Committee next Tuesday. http://bit.ly/29qYZfL

SANDERS BOOED BY HIS NEW HOMETEAM: Democrats (!) grilled Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is still running his presidential campaign, about his party loyalty and his timeline for endorsing Hillary Clinton, the party’s presumptive nominee, during a meeting Wednesday morning. House Democrats booed when Sanders said his goal is to “transform America” instead of winning elections. He’s got some work to do to make work a friendlier place for himself. http://bit.ly/29xSvyc 

{mosads}TALK OF THE MORNING — I DON’T KNOW YOU. I DON’T KNOW YOU. LA DEE DAH: Donald Trump gave a shout out to Saddam Hussein last night, praising the former Iraqi dictator’s anti-terrorism tactics. Watch the clip: http://bit.ly/29tZAyC This morning, Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) backed away from Trump’s remarks, calling Saddam Hussein evil. “He was one the 20th century’s most evil people.” Takeaway: Arranged marriages aren’t always pretty, Paul.: http://bit.ly/29mQAul

I’LL LEAVE THIS HERE WITHOUT COMMENT: Via BuzzFeed’s Andrew Kaczynski, Donald Trump’s campaign claims the six-pointed star in the controversial Hillary Clinton tweet that also included a pile of money and the words “the most corrupt candidate ever” was not a Star of David — as critics have said — but actually a sheriff’s badge. Well, now former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke has gotten involved, saying there’s “no way” the star was a sheriff’s star. In fact, Duke praised Trump:

–“Now of course, the media immediately came out and said that this was ‘anti-Semitic.’ But of course, it’s all true. We’re not talking about something that’s not true,” said Duke adding that all the “Jewish extremists” support Clinton. “So everything in the tweet … was absolutely correct,” concluded Duke. “Absolutely right.” http://bzfd.it/29ha00D

WHAT THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN IS PROBABLY FEELING RIGHT NOW –> http://gph.is/29he2FW

ANNOUNCED TODAY – DOJ INVESTIGATING POLICE-INVOLVED SHOOTING: The DOJ’s civil rights division will be the lead agency investigating the shooting of Alton Sterling, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) announced Wednesday. Details: A graphic video shows the deadly encounter outside a convenience store when two officers pinned down Sterling, a 37-year-old black man. Police shot Sterling as he laid on the ground. http://bit.ly/29lXjI1

FASCINATING PERSPECTIVE — HILLARY MAY NOT WANT TO POP CHAMPAGNE JUST YET: Via The Washington Post’s Rosalind S. Helderman, yes, FBI Director James Comey’s remarks yesterday about the email server didn’t recommend prosecuting her, but they did directly contradict much of what Clinton had publicly said about the issue. Example: Clinton had said there were no security breaches. But Comey said, “We do assess that hostile actors gained access to the private commercial e-mail accounts.” This is worth reading: http://wapo.st/29knjho

A HEADLINE I WOULD HAVE BET SERIOUS MONEY AGAINST IN 2015: The last, strongest bastion of the #NeverTrump movement is the Republican national security establishment. Politico’s Michael Crowley and Alex Isenstadt assembled a list of the Republican foreign policy powerhouses that are flocking to Hillary Clinton. This is a “step back and take a moment to put this into perspective” moment. http://politi.co/29yfOWp

POPULAR ON SOCIAL MEDIA — BUYER’S REMORSE: Via Time’s Rishi Iyengar, the man who toppled Saddam Hussein‘s statue in 2003 says he regrets doing it because of everything that followed — i.e.: ISIS. The gist: “Every year, things started to get worse. There was corruption, infighting, killing, looting,” he said. “Saddam has gone, but in his place we now have 1,000 Saddams.” http://ti.me/29qDRpO

NOTABLE TWEETS:

The Atlantic’s Matt Ford
In the ultimate dad move, Obama outs his daughter as a secret Twitter user on national television. http://bit.ly/29nsKQy

CBS’s Jacqueline Alemany
Donald Trump’s digital operation in one Google search: Getting lapped by two ScamPACs http://bit.ly/29qUZLX 

ON TAP:

10 a.m. EDT: The House is in, with first votes between 3 and 4 p.m. and last votes from 9 to 10 p.m. 

10 a.m. EDT: The Senate is in with roll call votes at 2:45 p.m.

12:15 p.m. EDT: Hillary Clinton will deliver remarks on Trump’s business record on the boardwalk in Atlantic City, N.J.

1 p.m. EDT: White House press secretary Josh Earnest gives the daily press briefing.

1 p.m. EDT: Time’s Zeke Miller interviews New Hampshire Republican National Committeeman Steve Duprey about the state of the race.

2 p.m. EDT: The House Committee on Small Business will hold a hearing on the cyber threat to small businesses. http://bit.ly/29nR8iv

7 p.m. EDT: Donald Trump will rally supporters at an event in Cincinnati, reportedly with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a potential VP pick. 

NOW FOR THE FUN STUFF…:

Today is National Fried Chicken Day!

COMMUTER BUDDIES: Via The Washington Post’s Faiz Siddiqui, Uber launched a new software update today that lets D.C. commuters pick up fares on their way to work. Basically, drivers will only receive rider requests along their drive to work. http://wapo.st/29u0Phk

SUMMER PLANS: Here are 20 things to do in D.C. this July. http://bit.ly/29OpXwV

And to briefly distract you, here are hilarious animal facts someone posted all over the Los Angeles Zoo. Example: “Flamingos are monogamous. Except for Phillip, that cheating bastard.” Bahaha. http://bzfd.it/29qAtwa

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