JOHN HEILEMANN (HOST): Given the momentous Clinton news dropped by Director Comey today, is this Trump tweet controversy over, basically, or will it linger somehow?
MARK HALPERIN: I think it's over because of the Comey news and because veepstakes, the conventions are coming. But I do think that, once again, Trump has got to prove himself and his operation, prove himself to Republicans. He can't let a story like this fester. Whatever you think, whether you think it's unfair or you think the press is out to get you, whatever, you just can't let a story like this fester. So I think he's off the hook, probably, for this one in terms of dominating the news, but he does have to prove himself that he won't let these kind of things happen. He doesn’t have a day to waste.
HEILEMANN: This is not the first time that Donald Trump has tweeted things that have their origins in the nastiest, most disgusting corners of the alt right universe in Twitter. It's like the sixth time where some image Trump has tweeted has been sourced to some white nationalist, white supremacist, anti-semitic, racist Twitter account. He's got to cut it out. He's got to stop it. Because if he keeps doing it, people are going to come to the conclusion that he's playing with fire, that he’s trying to rile up parts of the Republican base that are the ugliest parts of it and if Trump doesn't want that impression, he can cut it out. He just needs to stop.
HALPERIN: And even if it was an absolute accident, a total coincidence, even if, he still should take the opportunity to apologize, to be indignant, not about Hillary Clinton in this case or the press, but to be indignant about the groups who he's being associated with. And that lack of indignation is hurting him with Republicans as well as Democrats. There's no doubt in my mind.
HEILEMANN: 100 percent. The Anti-Defamation League said something that was completely true about this. They said Donald Trump has had no problem denouncing people he disagrees with in the most clear and unequivocal terms. He’s denounced a lot of them. He should be denouncing these kinds of people and these kinds of websites and Twitter accounts with the same kind of clarity.
