memeorandum: Senate Blocks Bill on N.S.A. Collection of Phone Records (Jennifer Steinhauer/New York Times)

11:40 AM ET, May 23, 2015

Top Items:

In Early Vote Count, Ireland Appears Headed Toward Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage — DUBLIN — Ireland appeared poised to become the world's first nation to approve same-sex marriage by a popular vote on Saturday, with early vote counts showing strong and broad support for a measure …

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money, Political Wire, The Week, Discourse.net and Common Dreams

Associated Press:

Both sides say Ireland has voted to legalize gay marriage — DUBLIN — Ireland has voted resoundingly to legalize gay marriage in the world's first national vote on the issue, leaders on both sides of the Irish referendum declared Saturday even as official ballot counting continued.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Moderate Voice and John Hawkins' Right Wing News

BBC:

Ireland same-sex referendum set to approve gay marriage — Large crowds have gathered at Dublin Castle ahead of the result — Early results suggest the Republic of Ireland has voted to legalise same-sex marriage in a historic referendum. — More than 3.2m people were asked whether …

Discussion: Mashable

BBC:
Same-sex referendum: High turnout reported as polls close in Republic of Ireland

Discussion: Right Wing Watch and Balloon Juice

Dylan Byers / Politico:

The Clinton team praises Monica Langley — From the newly released batch of Hillary Clinton emails, here is correspondence from Oct. 11, 2012, among senior State Department adviser Phillipe Reines, Deputy Secretary of State Tom Nides and State Department Communications Director Caroline Adler following …

Discussion: Weasel Zippers, The Daily Caller and Mediaite

Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:

What Hillary Clinton's e-mails tell us about her management style — The Debrief: An occasional series offering a reporter's insights — For those who have worried that Hillary Rodham Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign would be a repeat of the chaotic operation she ran eight years ago …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, CANNONFIRE, Outside the Beltway, Prairie Weather, Wall Street Journal, WSJ and The Atlantic

Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
‘Chris Smith’ — Hillary Mixes Up Slain Ambassador's Name In Email To Aides

Discussion: Weasel Zippers and John Hawkins' Right Wing News

Alexandra Jaffe / CNN:
First round of Hillary Clinton State Department emails released

Discussion: The Hill, America Rising, The Week and Scared Monkeys

Jason Howerton / TheBlaze.com:
Nearly 300 New Hillary Emails Released — and They Confirm She Received Now-Classified Info on Private Email

Discussion: Guardian

Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:

Senate Blocks Bill on N.S.A. Collection of Phone Records — WASHINGTON — After vigorous debate and intense last-minute pressure by Republican leaders, the Senate on Saturday rejected legislation that would end the federal government's bulk collection of phone records.

Discussion: Guardian, National Journal, Business Insider, The Atlantic, Washington Post, Techdirt, Politico and Outside the Beltway

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
White House: ‘No plan B’ for NSA reform

Discussion: Common Dreams, Techdirt, Firedoglake and The Week

Paul Kane / Washington Post:

Obama wins trade victory in the Senate — President Obama won a big victory for his trade agenda Friday with the Senate's approval of fast-track legislation that could make it easier for him to complete a wide-ranging trade deal that would include 11 Pacific Rim nations.

Discussion: The Week

Doug Palmer / Politico:

‘Fast track’ trade fight moves to House — The Senate on Friday approved a “fast track” trade promotion authority bill that will help President Barack Obama conclude a massive Asia-Pacific trade agreement and sets the stage for a fierce battle in the House when lawmakers return in June.

Discussion: ABC News and Daily Kos

Josh Kraushaar / National Journal:

Democrats' Vanishing Future — Hillary Clinton is not the only Democratic comeback candidate on the 2016 ticket. Senate Democrats are betting on the past to rebuild their party for the future. — One of the most underappreciated stories in recent years is the deterioration …

Jeremy W. Peters / New York Times:
A Hillary Clinton Match-Up With Marco Rubio Is a Scary Thought for Democrats

Discussion: The Daily Caller and Power Line

Allen Reed / Talking Points Memo:

Josh Duggar's Police Records Destroyed — Arkansas police have destroyed the records of the investigation into Josh Duggar's alleged molestation of five underage girls, a police spokesman announced Friday, a day after the reality TV star resigned his position as head of FRC Action.

Discussion: Fox News, KTLA, Liberaland, Taylor Marsh and In Touch Weekly

Brent Budowsky / The Hill:

Obama, Twitter and racism — President Obama has now moved the presidency into the vanguard of the social media movement by opening a Twitter account, @POTUS, that will be his personal social media sounding board. Great. Social media is exploding around the world.