The Note: Speak of the Devil

— -- NOTABLES

--TRUMP CALLS HILLARY CLINTON 'THE DEVIL': Donald Trump has taken his assault on Hillary Clinton the furthest he has ever before; calling his Democratic rival "the devil." Trump said that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders should have stayed in the race and not thrown his support behind Clinton. "He would’ve been a hero," Trump said. "But he made a deal with the devil. She’s the devil. He made a deal with the devil." Trump has linked Clinton to the devil before, saying in the past that Sanders "sold his soul to the Devil" but this is the first time he has been so explicit in this attack, ABC’s CANDACE SMITH and JOHN SANTUCCI report: http://abcn.ws/2aEvMyT

--TRUMP SAYS HE'S 'AFRAID THE ELECTION IS GOING TO BE RIGGED': Trump appears to be laying the groundwork for a possible loss in November -- suggesting to a town hall in Ohio that the general election is a corrupt process, ABC’s JOHN SANTUCCI and CANDACE SMITH note. "First of all, [primary season] was rigged and I’m afraid the election is going to be rigged. I have to be honest. Because I think my side was rigged." This isn't the first time Trump has made such a suggestion. Last week, during a rally in Iowa, Trump appeared to make the same suggestion, referring to his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton. http://abcn.ws/2aXVfSG

--MILITARY MOM BOOED AT PENCE RALLY: Mike Pence can't escape the controversy surrounding Donald Trump's critical remarks about the parents of fallen soldier Capt. Humayun Khan. Taking questions from the audience at a rally in Carson City, Nev., the Indiana governor was asked how he could "tolerate" Trump disrespecting military families, ABC’s INES DELACUETARA reports. "Time and time again Trump has disrespected our nation’s armed forces and veterans and has disrespect for Mr. Khan and his family is just an example of that,” Catherine Byrne asked, as the crowd started loudly booing. “Will there ever be a point in time when you’re able to look Trump in the eye and tell him enough is enough? You have a son in the military. How do you tolerate his disrespect?” Pence, whose father was a combat veteran, thanked Byrne for the question and tried to quiet the room. “Folks -- that’s what freedom looks like and that’s what freedom sounds like, okay? It is,” he said. http://abcn.ws/2ah97WI

--RNC CHAIR WEIGHS IN ON KHAN-TROVERSY: RNC Chair Reince Priebus said on CNN that Gold Star families were "precious, and they are to be honored and loved and cherished." He also said the Khans "should be off-limits." "There is just nothing more sacrificial than that, and we believe that and we know that and I believe that Donald Trump and Mike Pence also know, and understand that," he said. "That’s why I think that we just, we don't go there and I don't go there.” http://abcn.ws/2aWzJ0u

--ANALYSIS -- ABC’s RICK KLEIN: To review the bidding since the post-convention weekend… Donald Trump called Hillary Clinton the devil, said the election will be rigged, accused a local fire marshal of limiting his crowd for political reasons, and said his daughter should find another job if she were sexually harassed. He stayed on the attack against the family of a fallen service member, and saw a military mom who asked his vice-presidential candidate about that booed by Trump’s own supporters. He’s clarified his call for the Russians to hack Hillary Clinton’s email as “sarcasm,” and he’s also clarified that he did know that Russia had taken over Crimea. He acknowledged that he didn’t get a letter from the NFL about debates after all. In the political realm, he offered a measure of public support to House Speaker Paul Ryan’s long-shot primary challenger, a week before that election. Plenty of candidates make gaffes, though these actions amount to more than that. They veer between reckless, careless, and just plain mean. The only through-line is Trump being Trump, with no apparent strategy greater than that. At this post-convention time for party consolidation, with everything magnified in the final 100 days before Nov. 8, this looks like a candidate who senses he is losing and is not happy about it.

BY THE NUMBERS: CLINTON OPENS UP 9-POINT LEAD ON TRUMP IN NEW NATIONAL POLL. Hillary Clinton is leading Donald Trump by nine percentage points in a new national CNN/ORC poll released Monday. As ABC’s RYAN STRUYK notes, Clinton got a seven-point bounce -- leading Trump 52-43 -- after the Democratic convention, reaching her highest support in any poll since early May. http://abcn.ws/2aKruIt

YESTERDAY ON THE TRAIL with ABC’s JENNIFER HANSLER and ADAM KELSEY

WARREN BUFFET CHALLENGES TRUMP TO SHOW TAX RETURNS, SAYS HE'S 'AFRAID.' Business magnate Warren Buffett took on Donald Trump over his refusal to release his tax returns -- issuing the real estate mogul a challenge to put his cards on the table. Speaking at a Hillary Clinton rally in Omaha, Nebraska today, the multi-billionaire joked he would meet Trump "any place, any time between now and election" to go over each other's tax returns. ABC’s JOSH HASKELL and JENNIFER HANSLER have more: http://abcn.ws/2adyqgP

COLUMBUS FIRE DEPARTMENT BLASTS TRUMP'S CLAIM OF PLAYING POLITICS WITH CROWD SIZE. The Columbus Division of Fire is fighting back against Donald Trump's accusations that marshals were playing politics by limiting crowd size at his rally -- saying that Trump's people agreed to the capacity of the venue. Trump made a similar claim in Colorado Springs on Friday, ABC’s JORDYN PHELPS notes, where he accused the marshal of being a Clinton supporter and Democrat. http://abcn.ws/2apXhZT

MCCAIN CONDEMNS TRUMP'S ATTACKS ON KHANS, JOINING OTHER REPUBLICANS. John McCain is joining the chorus of Republicans condemning Donald Trump's attacks on the parents of a slain Muslim-American soldier who made an emotional case against Trump's candidacy at the Democratic National Convention. "It is time for Donald Trump to set the example for our country and the future of the Republican Party," the Arizona senator and 2008 GOP presidential nominee said in a statement. "While our Party has bestowed upon him the nomination, it is not accompanied by unfettered license to defame those who are the best among us." ABC’s ALANA ABRAMSON and JORDYN PHELPS have more: http://abcn.ws/2aH4ASE

TRUMP ATTEMPTS TO CLARIFY COMMENTS ON RUSSIAN FORCES IN UKRAINE. Donald Trump attempted to clarify his comments that Russian President Vladimir Putin did not have forces in Ukraine on Monday. “When I said in an interview that Putin ‘is not going into Ukraine, you can mark it down,’ I am saying if I am President. Already in Crimea!” Trump tweeted. “So with all the Obama tough talk on Russia and the Ukraine, they have already taken Crimea and continue to push. That’s what I said!” In an interview with ABC’s GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS on Sunday, Trump said Putin was "not going into Ukraine,” notes ABC’s ELIZABETH MCLAUGHLIN http://abcn.ws/2aM33aP

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

DR. DONALD TRUMP OFFERS A POLITICAL PROGNOSIS DIFFERENT FROM HIS NAMESAKE'S. While Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump lives in a three-story penthouse apartment in Manhattan, Dr. Donald Trump lives in a one-story house in Oakton, Virginia. A bit younger than the 70-year-old candidate, Dr. Trump, 68, has endured comparisons to the real estate developer and TV show personality for much of his adult life, ABC’s MICHAEL KOENIGS and CHRIS CASEY report. “I have dealt with the smiles and the chuckles and the, ‘Oh, you’re really not Donald Trump’ for a long time, but it’s obviously gotten more intense in the last year.” http://abcn.ws/2aDohIb

WHO’S TWEETING?

@MattMackowiak: My first column for @observer: Trump’s Path to Victory Is Narrow http://bit.ly/2axGHbT

@nytimes: How Donald Trump avoided war http://nyti.ms/2aoQNwf 

@MegKinnardAP: .@CNN to host #Libertarian town hall tonight w/ @GovGaryJohnson & @GovBillWeld. Ticket needs 15% to be in debates.

@frankthorp: Retiring GOP Rep Hanna (NY) becomes 1st Congressional Republican to say he'll support @HillaryClinton

@greta: Debate schedule conflicting w/NFL equally bad for @HillaryClinton and @realDonaldTrump