James Hohmann: “Britain’s stunning vote to leave the European Union suggests that we’ve been seriously underestimating Donald Trump’s ability to win the presidential election.”

“When you consider all his controversies and self-inflicted wounds over the past month, combined with how much he’s getting outspent on the airwaves in the battleground states, it is actually quite surprising that Trump and Hillary Clinton are so close in the polls. He’s holding his own, especially in the Rust Belt.”

“The British campaign to exit the European Union… like Trump’s, was fueled by grievance. Those agitating to cut off formal ties to the continent were less organized and less funded than those who wanted to stay connected, but that deficit didn’t matter in the end, because the energy was against the status quo.”

First Read: “In what has to be one of the more surreal press conferences in U.S. presidential-campaign history, Donald Trump praised the British vote to leave the European Union in a place — Scotland — that overwhelming voted to remain; he said the falling British pound would be good for business; and he touted the opening of his new golf course in Scotland.”

Said Trump: “I love to see people to take their country back.”

“He said that Britain’s declining currency was good for business, including at his new golf course… One of Hillary Clinton’s greatest weaknesses is the perception that she has used her political standing to make money. But Trump overshadows that when he takes his presidential campaign to Scotland — the day after the Brexit vote — to christen a new resort/golf course and talk about how a falling currency is good for business.”

Washington Post: “The rapid series of payments — $730,637 over five days — made Left Hand the 10th biggest vendor to the Trump campaign for the entire election cycle. But why it was hired, and what work it provided, remains a mystery even to some top Trump aides.”

“The campaign’s use of the mysterious pop-up firm has surfaced at a time of financial tumult for the Trump operation, which began June low on funds and has come under scrutiny for making large reimbursements to his companies.”

Matt Bai: “We can derive at least three pretty relevant insights on the state of Trump’s candidacy from his political penury…First, as long as he has to rely on free exposure to compete with Clinton, Republican leaders should probably relinquish all hope of ever seeing a more responsible, electable version of their nominee… Second, Trump has just about wasted the small window he had, after the contested primaries and before the convention, to reassure Republican influencers and consolidate their support.”

“Trump’s so-called campaign is really just a small project in his business empire, populated by a handful of junior executives and based entirely on personal celebrity…my guess is he still wants to be president about as much as I want to be on ‘Dancing With the Stars’…  And that right there is the real problem for Republicans… They’ve allowed their party to become an elaborate prop in a tasteless stunt, used by a man who to this point shows very little seriousness of purpose… It’s not that Trump can’t win with a lot less money than his opponent. It’s that he’d probably have a lot more money if he were actually running to win.”