memeorandum: Fight back against political cowardice (Gabrielle Giffords/USA Today)

6:20 PM ET, April 17, 2014

Top Items:

Oren Dorell / USA Today:

Jews ordered to register in east Ukraine — Jews in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk where pro-Russian militants have taken over government buildings were told they have to “register” with the Ukrainians who are trying to make the city become part of Russia, according to Israeli media.

Discussion: protein wisdom, Power Line, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Gawker, Mashable, Liberaland, Towleroad News #gay, Hot Air, Talking Points Memo, The Jawa Report, Fox News Insider, The Daily Caller, Outside the Beltway, The Impolitic, kyivpost.com, NewsBusters, VodkaPundit and National Review

David M. Herszenhorn / New York Times:

Putin Asserts Right to Use Force in Eastern Ukraine — MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia emphasized on Thursday that the upper chamber of the Russian Parliament had authorized him to use military force if necessary in eastern Ukraine, and also stressed Russia's historical claim …

ThinkProgress:

Someone Is Ordering Eastern Ukraine's Jews To ‘Register’ — The flyer allegedly handed out to Ukrainian Jewish community members — CREDIT: The Coordination Forum for Countering Antisemitism — A flyer distributed in the eastern Ukrainian city Donestk is telling the city's Jewish community …

Discussion: International Business Times, OHCHR, Talking Points Memo, susiemadrak.com and Fox News Insider

Michal Margalit / Ynetnews:
Donetsk leaflet: Jews must register or face deportation

Discussion: Israel Matzav, Fox News, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Ben Swann Truth In Media, TheBlaze.com, Business Insider, “The Lid”, CBS DC, The PJ Tatler, Ed Driscoll, Weasel Zippers and Wake up America

Justin Sink / The Hill:
Diplomatic deal struck on Ukraine

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and New York Times

New York Times:
Text of Joint Diplomatic Statement on Ukraine

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Politico

Jamie Dettmer / The Daily Beast:
The Ukrainian Army Is Crumbling Before Putin

Discussion: Yahoo! News and kyivpost.com

Jonathan Cohn / The New Republic:

Obamacare Signups Hit 8 Million — And both young and old are on board — President Obama just announced the final numbers for the Affordable Care Act's open enrollment period. — Eight million people have signed up for private insurance plans through the new marketplaces.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, ThinkProgress, Talking Points Memo, USA Today, New York Times, Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times, Mediaite, Washington Post and Daily Kos

John Dickerson / Slate:

Obama Trolls the GOP — The refined cynicism of the president. — How do I get you to pay attention to this story? I could type out a balanced tale about an incremental change in White House spin and message control, relying on your discernment, patience, and kindness toward all the creatures of the Earth.

Discussion: Hot Air and Conservatives4Palin

Politico: Obama: 8 million enrolled under ACA

Sam Baker / NationalJournal.com:
Obamacare Is On a Winning Streak

Discussion: The New Republic, ThinkProgress and Gallup

Major Garrett / NationalJournal.com:
The Pen, Phone, and Stray Voltage

Discussion: Hot Air

Philip Rucker / Washington Post:

Chelsea Clinton announces she's pregnant — NEW YORK - Chelsea Clinton announced here Thursday afternoon that she is expecting her first child later this year. — “I just hope that I will be as good a mom to my child and hopefully children as my mom was to me,” the former first daughter …

Discussion: Gothamist, Gawker, Hinterland Gazette and Talking Points Memo

Wall Street Journal:
Transcript & Video: Chelsea Clinton's Baby Announcement

Discussion: Taylor Marsh

Liz Kreutz / ABC News:
Chelsea Clinton: I'm Pregnant!

Discussion: CNN, Guardian, Joe. My. God., CBS New York and Mashable

Aman Batheja / The Texas Tribune:

PAC to Shut Down After Name Draws Furor … A Texas political action committee called Boats 'N Hoes PAC will be just a memory by Thursday, according to the Republican political consultant who is the boss of the man who started it. — Houston consultant Allen Blakemore confirmed Wednesday evening …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Hinterland Gazette, The Week, Politico, Talking Points Memo, Liberaland and The Raw Story

Kolten Parker / MySanAntonio.com:
Texas 'Boats ‘N Hoes PAC’ raising controversy

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, BOR and The PJ Tatler

Salon:

Dick Morris is very afraid: A horrible pundit's “popular vote” hysteria — It is widely acknowledged that Dick Morris is the worst pundit in America. It's truly not up for debate. He's so bad that even Roger Ailes was embarrassed by his hilariously wrong predictions in the 2012 election and let him go.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Hullabaloo and The Hill

Glenn Blain Daily / NY Daily News:
New York joins campaign to end Electoral College role in presidential elections

Discussion: Liberaland and Hullabaloo

nbcnewyork.com:

4 Catholic High School Students Expelled After Confederate Flag, Blackface Incidents — Four Catholic high school students on Long Island have been expelled after two senior boys brought a Confederate flag to a school event and two sophomore girls posted a blackface photo on social media, the school said.

Discussion: Hinterland Gazette and Liberaland

KMOV-TV:
Parent says daughter warned by teacher for carrying Bible at local school

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, Liberaland and The Gateway Pundit

Ted Johnson / Variety:

‘X-Men’ Director Bryan Singer Accused of Sexually Abusing Teenage Boy — The filmmaker's lawyer calls suit ‘absurd and defamatory’ — “X-Men: Days of Future Past” director Bryan Singer has been accused of sexually abusing a teenage boy in 1999 in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in Hawaii federal court.

Discussion: Queerty, Guardian, Boing Boing and Shakesville

The Wrap:
‘X-Men’ Director Bryan Singer Accused of Sexually Assaulting Underage Boy

Discussion: Hollywood Reporter, Gawker, The Daily Caller, The Other McCain, The Daily Banter, New York Times, The Raw Story, Mashable and The Week

ThinkProgress:

Florida Voter Confronts GOP Representative On His Repeated Efforts To Repeal Obamacare — Rep. Dennis Ross (R-FL) at a Tampa town hall meeting. — CREDIT: Scott Keyes — TAMPA, Florida — A Florida voter had harsh words for Rep. Dennis Ross (R-FL) at a town hall Tuesday …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, Mediaite and Daily Kos

Stephanie Strom / New York Times:

When ‘Liking’ a Brand Online Voids the Right to Sue — Might downloading a 50-cent coupon for Cheerios cost you legal rights? — General Mills, the maker of cereals like Cheerios and Chex as well as brands like Bisquick and Betty Crocker, has quietly added language to its website …

Discussion: Firedoglake, ThinkProgress, ABC News, Discourse.net, Mashable, naked capitalism, The Week, The Raw Story, Gawker, RT and Fox News Insider

Jonathan Kandell / New York Times:

Gabriel García Márquez, Literary Pioneer, Dies at 87 — Gabriel García Márquez, the Colombian novelist whose “One Hundred Years of Solitude” established him as a giant of 20th-century literature, died on Thursday at his home in Mexico City. He was 87.

Discussion: Boing Boing and The Moderate Voice

RealClearPolitics Video Log:

Carney: The Toughest Interview Obama Had Was With Jon Stewart — JAY CARNEY: I remember we had some discussion during 2012 about well, is it appropriate for the president, the sitting president and candidate, to give interviews with Jon Stewart and others. And the answer was yes …

Discussion: Hit & Run, MichelleMalkin.com, Twitchy, Weasel Zippers, NewsBusters, Independent Journal Review and Ed Driscoll

Harry Enten / FiveThirtyEight:

Early Senate Polls Have Plenty to Tell Us About November — Republican Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell is fighting for his political life — or is he? The Senate minority leader is nearly tied in the polls with Democratic opponent Alison Lundergan Grimes.

Discussion: Political Insider blog, Washington Monthly, Taylor Marsh, Towleroad News #gay, Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times, PJ Media and Bloomberg View

Sarah McLaughlin / FIRE:

Bergen Administrators Fear ‘Game of Thrones’ Quote, Censor Professor — Brace yourselves; censorship is coming! — Displaying a lack of both pop culture and First Amendment awareness, administrators at Bergen Community College in New Jersey placed Professor Francis Schmidt on leave this past January …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Hit & Run and Instapundit

Matt Vasilogambros / NationalJournal.com:

Why Every Member of Congress Gets a Monthly Porn Delivery — Larry Flynt has sent a monthly copy of Hustler to every congressional office for the last 30 years, and members of Congress can't stop it. — Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Discussion: Gawker, The Daily Caller, RT and Outside the Beltway

Whoopi Goldberg / The Cannabist:

My vape pen and I, a love story — “I took a sip. It was beautiful. And my pen and I have been together ever since.” — My vape pen and I maintain a mostly private relationship. Sure, I'll sometimes show my pen to a friend or share her with a close confidant. But mostly it's just she and I working through my pain.

Discussion: Mediaite, Guardian, The Dish, Poynter, KDVR.com and The Huffington Post

Scott Kaufman / The Raw Story:

Study: People of color breathe air that is 38 percent more polluted than white people's — A study released by the University of Minnesota this week indicated that people of color are exposed to air that is 38 percent more polluted than the air breathed by white people.

Discussion: MinnPost, Hinterland Gazette and Facing South

ThinkProgress:
Why Air Pollution Is A Racial Issue

Discussion: protein wisdom and Weasel Zippers

Sean Higgins / Washington Examiner:

Media Matters for America is resisting SEIU's effort to unionize its staff — BELTWAY CONFIDENTIAL LABOR UNIONS LABOR NLRB MEDIA SEIU — Media Matters for America is apparently resisting an effort by Service Employees International Union Local 500 to unionize its staff.