HILLARY DRAWS RED LINE FOR REPORTERS

Hillary Clinton can now say that she has been asked questions by a national reporter, but she sure can’t say that she’s answered them. In her first national interview since her April campaign launch, the Democratic frontrunner didn’t exactly get murder-boarded. But even the limited inquiries aimed her way by CNN were waved away.
Perhaps the richest moment in the interview came when Clinton was asked about allegations of payola during her tenure as secretary of state. Clinton’s response? She’s not going to talk about that. Oh. Well in that case, let’s do talk about John Podesta’s footwear. The interviewer here should have at least made Clinton reiterate her lengthy no comment and perhaps have declined to proceed to any topic unless Clinton answered.
The closest thing one could discern to a theme from Clinton – other than her grim insistence about how much fun, fun, fun she is having – was that questions about her secret email server in office, destroyed emails, previously undisclosed overseas donations and other ethical problems were strictly the province of kooks and crackpots.
This is an approach that politicians, including Clinton, have long pursued but that has come to the fullest flower in the Obama era. Part of the purpose is to denigrate the stories for the news-consuming public. But the larger purpose is to make sure reporters stay away from these topics. And asking about them will be the brand of an enemy combatant.
It’s not just that a particular line of questioning or an angle is inappropriate or unfair, but that entire topics, including the most important one in her campaign, are verboten.
It was a short fall for Clinton from the candidate who wanted Americans to get out of their “partisan bunkers” and get into a “purple space” to the candidate who is rallying Democrats to shout down questions and relying on bunker-mentality partisanship to bring her the presidency.
It is not a coincidence that Clinton is rolling out a new economic plan next week. Feeling pressure from her left and, as this interview demonstrates, embracing a divisive and galvanizing partisan strategy Clinton is running headlong into full-blown Obamism.
And that’s a very risk bet in a country in which voters are eager for change.
[Scooby got an upgrade - Republican group America Rising got video of Clinton getting aboard a private jet in Iowa.]
Whiteness problematic - Clinton’s team yanked a tweet on Tuesday of the candidate shaking hands with a young man with prosthetic legs. The caption read in part, “I think we are a nation that really believes in a helping hand.” All good, right? …until users zoomed in on the tattoo which read “WHITE.”
[On a trip to Ireland last week, House Speaker John Boehner says he was mistaken for former President Bill Clinton. Not sure who should be offended here.]
Bernie plots Mass revolt - Boston Herald: “Bernie Sanders is planning a major offensive in one of Hillary Clinton’s favorite haunts — Massachusetts — in a bold move to shock his rival in a potentially crucial faceoff, a top Sanders strategist told the Herald. ‘I think Massachusetts could be a really pivotal, important battleground this year,’ Sanders campaign senior adviser Tad Devine said in an interview. ‘We’re going to try to put together a real organization there.’ A Sanders upset in the Massachusetts primary, scheduled for March 1, would be a major blow to Clinton, whose support is so strong here that the late Ted Kennedy dubbed it “Clinton Country” during Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign….The state also could have added juice because of home state U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a liberal darling whose decision to take a pass on 2016 helped Sanders gain a foothold. Warren has so far kept her distance from Clinton, even heaping praise on Sanders last weekend.”
Power Play: Bernie and Joe - Do the crowds and the flood of ink on Sanders mean he’s a serious challenge to Hillary Clinton or does it portend other developments in the Democrats 2016 field? Chris Stirewalt surveys the Sanders scene, in just 60 seconds. WATCH HERE.
[Sanders is in the Washington area today to speak at a policy forum sponsored by Virginia Democrats.]
O’Malley to unveil free college plan - AP: “[Martin O’Malley] lays out a goal of debt-free tuition for all students at public colleges and universities within five years if elected president….[He] will outline his proposal [today] in New Hampshire. Focusing on college costs could help O'Malley among younger voters in New Hampshire, where the average student loan debt burden is the nation’s highest.
[O’Malley has half dozen events across New Hampshire today, beginning with and education event at St. Anselm College in Manchester and ending with Politics and Pints in Concord.]
WITH YOUR SECOND CUP OF COFFEE…
The eyes of the world may be on Greece’s economic policy, but in Athens there are still some topics that take precedence. The Greeks’ neighbors to the north in Macedonia are being supportive on fiscal questions, but certainly not about Alexander the Great. The LAT looked at the still-intense debate over which country can claim the man who more than 300 years before the birth of Jesus briefly ruled an empire that stretched from the Himalayas in the east to the borders of modern-day Romania and Libya in the west. Despite being the son of Philip of Macedon and being born in the Macedonian capitol of Pella, Greeks claim Alexander as their own on the grounds that that was actually a Greek province which was invaded by Macedonians. The article quotes a Greek governmental official saying, “Aristotle taught Alexander the Great, and they were both Greek. They would shiver in their graves today at the idea that [Slavs] who migrated to the vicinity of their region seven centuries after them, belonging to a completely different civilization, would try to change history in order to give allure to their own culture.”
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POLL CHECK
Real Clear Politics Averages
Obama Job Approval: Approve – 46.7 percent//Disapprove – 49.3 percent
Directions of Country: Right Direction – 31.2 percent//Wrong Track – 59.5 percent
FIRST IN FOX NEWS FIRST: PERRY CALLS OUT TRUMP
Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry fired back at Donald Trump today in a video response. Trump has made himself the target of many GOP candidates for his comments about illegal immigrants from Mexico. Presidential candidates like Perry sent tweets and made public statements declaring their disagreement with Trump, who then took to Twitter swiping back at each candidate by name. For Perry, Trump said in part, “He needs a new pair of glasses to see the crimes committed by illegal immigrants.”
Perry, speaking directly to “Donald,” touts his 14-year record of dealing with immigration issues as Texas governor and defends Mexican Americans who have fought in conflicts from “the Alamo to Afghanistan.” Perry says, “Your remarks might make for good reality TV, but they are out of touch with reality.”
[Watch Fox: Perry appears on "The Real Story" in the 2 p.m. ET hour.]
JEB, HILLARY SPAR ON IMMIGRATION
On the heels of Hillary Clinton’s first sit-down interview Tuesday, the Bush campaign wasted no time hitting back. The two frontrunners in their party nominations have each taken to calling each other out by name, making this feel a lot like July 2016 instead of July 2015. In her CNN interview, Clinton claimed Bush didn’t support a pathway to citizenship, and called Republicans hostile towards immigrants. Spokesperson for former Gov. Jeb Bush, R-Fla., hit back in a statement to the Tampa Bay Times writing, “Hillary Clinton will say anything to get elected and her numerous flip-flops on immigration prove it,” also adding Bush, “believes in a conservative legislative solution to fix our broken immigration system that includes earned legal status for those currently in the country after they pay fines and taxes, learn English, and commit no substantial crimes while securing our border.”
Roll tape - A web video posted featuring former Gov. Jeb Bush, R-Fla., attacks Hillary Clinton for her lack of action as a U.S. senator. He says that she was in the Senate eight years and only sponsored 3 bills that became law. Meanwhile, he says he knows how to take action. Watch the video here.
Makes tracks for Baier - Bush sits down with Bret Baier for Bret’s Contenders series on “Special Report.” Whatever news breaks will air tonight at 6 p.m. ET and the full profile is set to run in the days to comes. Bush is the 17^th Republican in the series. Bret has interviewed three of the five major Democratic contenders. You can see them all here.
[Bush holds an evening town hall in Hudson, N.H.]
BIG WIN FOR WALKER BACK HOME
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “With just a few minutes to midnight, Senate Republicans passed the two-year $72.7 billion state budget Tuesday after voting to repeal salary minimums for workers on local government projects but abandon proposals that would have gutted the state’s open records law…It now goes to the Assembly, which will take up the budget Wednesday, just days ahead of Walker's presidential campaign announcement scheduled for Monday in Waukesha.”
[WaPo’s Dan Balz visited Madison to chat with the members of Walker’s team on their strategy.]
Rubio stresses high ed changes, tax cuts, immigration reform in economic plan -  Miami Herald: “[Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.] also advocated for his tax plan — which would cut the corporate-tax rate to 25 percent but has been slammed by some conservatives as doing little to spur the economy — and for rewriting immigration laws to give priority to workers needed in the economy rather than to family reunification.”
[Rubio has four events in Iowa today capped by a summer gathering hosted by State Rep. Bobby Kaufmann, R-Iowa.]
A Timesman today - While Rubio continues his feud with the NYT over coverage, he did give the paper an op-ed on the Obama administration’s decision to open an embassy in Havana. The junior senator from Florida was not impressed. “No Communist police state has ever unclenched its fist just because a McDonald’s has opened or an embassy has been established,” he said.
Carly gets a hand in Nevada - The Las Vegas Sun reports, that former state Senator Sue Lowden will run Fiorina’s Nevada campaign operations, including a fundraiser next week. Lowden is best known for running the Republican primary for senate in 2010 where she would have faced Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., but lost to Sharron Angle.
No third party for the Donald… probably  - WashEx’s Byron York talked with Donald Trump on whether he might run as a third party candidate. He hasn’t. As Trump told York, “My sole focus is to run as a Republican…because of the fact that I believe that is the best way we can defeat the Democrats.”
Kasich talks Iran - Sitting center seat last night, Gov. John Kasich, R-Ohio, talked about the Iran deal and why he thinks this administration’s tactics could have bad outcomes. “I feel that it’s very dangerous to fall in love with your own idea. And I think the administration has probably fallen in love with the fact that they want to get an agreement, and when people are hyperventilating and unable to get one, sometimes they go and they sign something that they shouldn’t.”  Watch the segment from “Special Report with Bret Baier” here.
[Kasich campaigns in the South Carolina coastal communities of Hilton Head Island and Bluffton today.]
WINNER IN PRIMARY FOR SCHOCK SEAT
AP: “State Sen. Darin LaHood won the GOP nod in Tuesday's primary to replace disgraced ex-U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock, setting up the son of the former U.S. transportation secretary as the likely next congressman in this heavily Republican swath of central Illinois. LaHood heads into the Sept. 10 special general election heavily favored to succeed Schock after defeating anti-establishment conservative writer Michael Flynn.”
SHE DOESN’T GET IT FROM HER MOTHER
WAFF: “A vehicle crashed into a Huntsville [Ala.] driver’s license office Tuesday. According to troopers at the office on Church Street, a teenager had just finished taking a road test on the vehicle with no apparent issues. However, when the teen’s mother was driving out afterward, she ran into the front doors of the building, causing extensive damage. The woman said the brakes failed. No injuries were reported. The Huntsville police department is handling the crash investigation.”
Chris Stirewalt is digital politics editor for Fox News. Want FOX News First in your inbox every day? Sign up here.