memeorandum: IRS chief: ‘Whenever we can, we follow the law’ (Sarah Ferris/The Hill)

9:40 PM ET, September 10, 2014

Top Items:

AP NEWSBREAK: SOURCE SAYS RICE VIDEO SENT TO NFL — ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — A law enforcement official says he sent a video of Ray Rice punching his then-fiancee to an NFL executive three months ago, while league officers have insisted they didn't see the violent images until this week.

Discussion: Deadspin, ESPN, New York Times, BuzzFeed, Firedoglake, Mediaite, The Big Lead, FOX31 Denver, myfox8.com, Power Line, Jezebel, Daily Kos, Baltimore Sun, SBNation.com, SportsGrid, ThinkProgress and Washington Post

CBS News:

Goodell: No. — O'Donnell: No one in the NFL? — Goodell: No one in the NFL, to my knowledge, and I had been asked that same question and the answer to that is no. We were not granted that. We were told that was not something we would have access to. On multiple occasions, we asked for it.

Discussion: Deadspin, Hit & Run, The Big Lead, Taylor Marsh, CBS DC, SBNation.com, ABC News, ProFootballTalk and The Hill

ABC News:

NFL, Ravens Missed Chances to See Ray Rice Punch Video: Sources … The Baltimore Ravens knew shortly after Ray Rice knocked out his wife in a hotel elevator that a surveillance video of the assault existed and that Rice's lawyer had a copy of the video, but never asked to see it, sources told ABC News today.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, SBNation.com, Robert Littal Presents …, 7online.com and SportsGrid

Darin Gantt / ProFootballTalk:

Roger Goodell cancels appearance at banquet for Jerry Richardson — With the stuff that is brown hitting the fan this afternoon, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has decided to keep his friends from getting splattered with it. — Amid reports that law enforcement officials did provide …

Discussion: Robert Littal Presents …

Judy Kurtz / The Hill:
McCain: Goodell has ‘credibility issues’

Discussion: Politico, TMZ.com, ABC News, Truth Revolt, Broadcasting & Cable and ProFootballTalk

Jeff Zrebiec / Baltimore Sun:
Ravens executives address Ray Rice investigation in exclusive interview

Discussion: Deadspin, Robert Littal Presents … and ProFootballTalk

Christine Brennan / USA Today:
Roger Goodell: We asked for Ray Rice video on multiple occasions

Discussion: Politico, ProFootballTalk, Hot Air, NOLA River and Baltimore Sun

Elise Coletta / National Organization for Women:
NOW Calls for Roger Goodell's Resignation, Appointment of Independent Investigator

Discussion: Deadspin, ThinkProgress, ProFootballTalk, SBNation.com, Mediaite, USA Today and Robert Littal Presents …

Hadas Gold / Politico:

Jay Carney joins CNN — Former White House Press Secretary Jay Carney will join CNN as a political commentator, the network announced Wednesday. — He will start Wednesday night as President Barack Obama makes a primetime statement about the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant , Sam Feist …

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Guardian, Hot Air, Taylor Marsh, Business Insider, Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon and Poynter

Peter Hamby / CNN:

Carney: Obama would give more speeches if networks would let him — Washington (CNN) — Former White House Press Secretary Jay Carney — a longtime journalist before he joined the Obama administration in its infancy — is back in the media game as a political analyst for CNN.

Discussion: Mediaite

Kendall Breitman / Politico:
Report: Golf courses nixed President Obama

Discussion: Truth Revolt, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, Washington Post and Mediaite

David Frum / The Atlantic Online:

Don't Go Back to Iraq, Mr. President — This campaign against ISIS is an emotional reaction without purpose. — President Obama's speech to the nation on Wednesday night will deliver a simple, clear, and forceful message: “Don't blame me.” — The top foreign-policy priority of the president's …

Discussion: Hot Air and Hit & Run

Gregory D. Johnsen / BuzzFeed:
Obama Will Fight ISIS With George W. Bush's Legal Theories

Discussion: ThinkProgress, The Huffington Post, Hot Air, Hit & Run, Firedoglake, Business Insider, Ed Driscoll and Instapundit

New York Times:
Obama Ready to Authorize Airstrikes on ISIS in Syria

Discussion: Firedoglake, Washington Post, Outside the Beltway, emptywheel, The Intercept, Business Insider, FAIR Blog, Daily Signal, JustOneMinute, Mashable, The Other McCain, Hit & Run, Gawker and Foreign Policy

Judy Kurtz / The Hill:

'Real Time"s Maher ‘could’ vote for Paul — Longtime viewers of Bill Maher on HBO's “Real Time” may be surprised to learn the liberal-leaning host, who makes a habit of skewering Republicans on a weekly basis, is “considering” casting a vote for one come 2016. — “Rand Paul is an interesting candidate to me.

Discussion: OnPolitics, Mediaite, CBS DC, The Daily Caller and Hit & Run

Tom Kludt / Talking Points Memo:
No Fan Of Hillary, Bill Maher Says He Could Vote GOP In 2016

Discussion: Mediaite, Liberal Values, The Hill and The Raw Story

Bryan Fischer / OneNewsNow.com:

No atheist should be permitted to serve in the U.S. military — Military service should rightly be reserved for those who believe in and are willing to die for what America stands for - and what America stands for is a belief in God as the source of our rights. — Tweet to @BryanJFischer

Discussion: Right Wing Watch, Good As You, CANNONFIRE, Agence France-Presse and The Raw Story

Sarah Ferris / The Hill:

IRS chief: ‘Whenever we can, we follow the law’ — During another grueling hearing on the ObamaCare rollout, the head of the Internal Revenue Service tried to offer lawmakers an assurance about the soon-to-open enrollment period. — “Whenever we can, we follow the law,” …

Discussion: Ed Driscoll and The Gateway Pundit

Daily Mail:

The teacher (and English graduate) who admits: I'm illiterate - SARAH SMITH blames liberal education dogmas for creating a generation of hopelessly ill-equipped teachers — My hands were feeling clammy and beads of sweat broke out under my collar as I shifted nervously in my seat. It was parents' evening.

Discussion: John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Roger Ailes

Meghan Daum / New York Times:

Lena Dunham Is Not Done Confessing — Credit: Benjamin Lowy/Reportage, for The New York Times — On a recent afternoon in Brooklyn, Lena Dunham and her sister, Grace, met up at a local hangout. Grace was nursing a sprained ankle she sustained a few nights earlier, after, by her account …

Discussion: ABC News, Althouse and Jezebel

WSB-TV:

State launches fraud investigation into voter registration group — ATLANTA — Channel 2 Action News has learned Georgia's secretary of state is investigating allegations of forged voter registration applications and demanding records from a voter registration group with ties to one of the state's highest ranking Democrats.

Discussion: Political Insider blog, National Review, Washington Post, Hinterland Gazette, Talking Points Memo, The Moderate Voice and RedState

Wall Street Journal:

Dick Cheney Is Still Right — Obama's return to Iraq reveals how wrong he has been about the world.

Discussion: The Federalist, Gawker, New York Times, No More Mister Nice Blog, Politico, Mediaite, Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, The Dish, The Huffington Post and NBC News

kff.org:

2014 Employer Health Benefits Survey — This annual survey of employers provides a detailed look at trends in employer-sponsored health coverage, including premiums, employee contributions, cost-sharing provisions, and employer opinions. The 2014 survey included almost three thousand interviews …

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post, The Dish and Balloon Juice

Jason Noble / Des Moines Register:

Exclusive: Michelle Obama to campaign with Bruce Braley in October — Michelle Obama will travel to Iowa next month for campaign events with U.S. Senate candidate Bruce Braley, the Des Moines Register has learned. — The First Lady's plans were confirmed by the White House and the Braley campaign …

Discussion: OnPolitics and Washington Post

Caitlin MacNeal / Talking Points Memo:

Mass. Mayor Brandishes Gun During Late-Night Meeting With Rival — A Massachusetts councilman accused his town mayor of “intimidation” after he pulled out a gun during an informal, late-night meeting in an SUV between the two officials. But the mayor disputes the claim, the Boston Herald reported.

Discussion: NY Daily News, Boston Herald, The Raw Story, WPRI-TV, Liberaland and Hullabaloo

Colin Campbell / Business Insider:

CHENEY: I'd Be Shocked If Obama Did The Right Thing On ISIS — Vice President Dick Cheney doesn't expect President Barack Obama's big Wednesday night speech outlining his strategy for confronting Islamic State will include a foreign policy vision that's adequate to deal with the jihadist group's threat.

Lori Mitchell / WKRN-TV:

Man arrested for drugs after butt-dialing 911 — Grant O'Connor was arrested by Mt. Pleasant following a traffic stop last Friday. — O'Connor placed the accidental call to 911 from this Mexican restaurant. — Mt. Pleasant police say they arrested a man for drugs after he pocket-dialed 911 …

Discussion: Gawker and The Raw Story

Justin Driver / The New Republic:

How Scalia's Beliefs Completely Changed the Supreme Court — And therefore, the country — Scalia: A Court of One by Bruce Allen Murphy (Simon & Schuster). — On October 15, 1987, as Justice Antonin Scalia settled into his second term at the Supreme Court, he emerged from conference …

Discussion: National Review

Philip Bump / Washington Post:

Andrew Cuomo spent almost 40 times as much for his votes as Zephyr Teachout — Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York has been raising money for his reelection essentially since he took office in 2010. His campaign account has been in the eight figures since 2012; he's been raising $5 million or more every six months like clockwork.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Firedoglake, Daily Kos and Balloon Juice