memeorandum: GOP Split on Possible Health-Law Fixes (Wall Street Journal)

5:35 PM ET, May 29, 2015

Top Items:

Hastert made payments to conceal sexual misconduct from high school coaching years, officials say — Indicted former House Speaker Dennis Hastert was paying an individual from his past to conceal sexual misconduct, two federal law enforcement officials said Friday.

New York Times:

Payments by Hastert Linked to Report of Sexual Abuse — WASHINGTON — J. Dennis Hastert, the former speaker of the House of Representatives, was paying a man to not say publicly that Mr. Hastert had sexually abused him decades ago, according to two people briefed on the evidence uncovered in an F.B.I. investigation into the payments.

Discussion: CNN, Daily Kos, Bloomberg View, NOLA River, Talking Points Memo and NPR

NBC News:

Dennis Hastert Paid to Hide Sexual Misconduct With Student: Official — Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert paid a man to conceal sexual misconduct while the man was a student at the high school where Hastert taught, a federal law enforcement official told NBC News on Friday.

Discussion: Mediaite, Boing Boing, The Daily Banter, The Huffington Post, CANNONFIRE, The Atlantic and Patterico's Pontifications

John Stanton / BuzzFeed:

Hastert Reportedly Sexually Abused Man While He Was A High School Wrestling Coach — Former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert was accused of lying to the FBI and evading reporting requirements on cash payments he reportedly made to a man he sexually abused while he was a high school wrestling coach.

Tom Maguire / JustOneMinute:

So What Did Hastert Do? — “The Coach”, former House Speaker turned high-priced lobbyist, is the target of a mysterious indictment. The Times has some details (and attaches the indictment) and the WaPo has some speculation that is informative for its omissions. [BREAKING UPDATES below]

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Times and NBC News

Catherine Thompson / Talking Points Memo:

Creepy C-SPAN Caller To Hastert: Do You ‘Remember Me From Yorkville?’ (VIDEO) — Former House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) got a strange call from an Illinois resident last year in a C-SPAN segment that surfaced in light of allegations that he agreed to pay $3.5 million in hush money to an individual from the town of Yorkville.

Discussion: The Huffington Post, TVNewser and Associated Press

Tarini Parti / Politico:
How Dennis Hastert made his millions

Discussion: ABC News

Michael Falcone / ABC News:
The Note: Welcome To The Martin O'Malley Moment

Discussion: BuzzFeed, Bloomberg Business, Hinterland Gazette, Booman Tribune and Political Wire

Monique Garcia / Chicago Tribune:
Hastert statue shelved at Illinois Capitol

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress and Chicago

Michael Tarm / Associated Press:
The Few Clues In Hastert Indictment

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, Daily Kos, msnbc.com and Reuters

Lydia Saad / Gallup:

Americans Choose “Pro-Choice” for First Time in Seven Years — Story Highlights — PRINCETON, N.J. — Half of Americans consider themselves “pro-choice” on abortion, surpassing the 44% who identify as “pro-life.” This is the first time since 2008 that the pro-choice position …

Discussion: Politico, RH Reality Check, Religion News Service, Daily Kos, The Federalist, Hot Air, The Moderate Voice, PoliticusUSA, Washington Monthly, LifeNews.com, Mediaite, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, The Huffington Post and Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times

Deborah Sontag / New York Times:

An Award for Bill Clinton Came With $500,000 for His Foundation — To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Petra Nemcova, a Czech model who survived the disaster by clinging to a palm tree, decided to pull out all the stops for the annual fund-raiser of her school-building charity, the Happy Hearts Fund.

Discussion: Weekly Standard, National Review, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, Fox News, American Spectator, Hot Air, Bloomberg Business, The Week, Althouse and Politico

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

If Hillary becomes president, who will make her obey the law? — A President Hillary Clinton would have far more power to set up a secretive system of communications than a Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Who could tell her no? (AP Photo) — Last year, before Hillary Clinton's …

Peggy Noonan / Wall Street Journal:
The Hillary Clinton Paradox

Discussion: Hot Air, The PJ Tatler and Cafe Hayek

Joe Conason / Politico:
The fake Clinton scandals are back

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Atlantic, Slate, The National Memo, Washington Post, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Daily Mail

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

Rand Paul's money problem — Behind the Kentucky senator's NSA ‘filibuster’ lies a desperate quest for cash. — In a presidential campaign defined by billionaire sugar daddy donors, Rand Paul has a problem: He doesn't seem to have one. — While his rivals cultivate wealthy backers …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, NBC News, Bloomberg Business, Hot Air and Washington Monthly

Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Pro-Paul group unleashes fiery attack ad

Discussion: Hot Air and Politico

Katie McDonough / Salon:

Bernie Sanders exposed! A shocking look at his views on rape and violence against women — Mother Jones senior reporter Tim Murphy has a profile out this week on Bernie Sanders' “long, strange trip” from a “restless political activist” to mayor of Burlington, Vermont and now a presidential bid.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Hullabaloo, CNN, Shakesville, Mediaite, BuzzFeed, BarbWire.com and mrctv.org/videos

Dan Merica / CNN:

Bernie Sanders distances himself from ‘dumb’ 1972 essay on rape — Bernie Sanders wrote about rape fantasies in 1970s 06:17 — New York (CNN)Bernie Sanders' campaign tried on Thursday to distance the presidential candidate from a 1972 essay in which he wrote — among other things …

Discussion: TheBlaze.com, National Review, BREITBART.COM, The Hill, Daily Mail, Slantpoint, Seven Days, Jezebel, Taylor Marsh, Hinterland Gazette, No More Mister Nice Blog, Shakesville and Vox

Politico:

Lincoln Chafee to announce presidential run on June 3 — Former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee will officially enter the presidential race on June 3, a source with knowledge of his plans told POLITICO. — He'll make the announcement in a speech he's scheduled to deliver next Wednesday …

Discussion: Bloomberg Business, OnPolitics, Towleroad News #gay, The Week and The PJ Tatler

David Wasserman / FiveThirtyEight:

The Supreme Court Could Give The GOP Another 8 Seats In Congress — This week, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a lawsuit filed by conservative activists in Texas that could redefine the principle of “one person, one vote” as we know it. And if the Court sides with the plaintiffs …

Discussion: Election Law Blog, Political Wire and AMERICAblog News

Rasmussen Reports:
Most Democrats Think Illegal Immigrants Should Vote

Discussion: Hot Air and American Spectator

Nelson D. Schwartz / New York Times:

U.S. Economy Contracted 0.7% in First Quarter — The economy got off to an even weaker start this year than first thought, the government reported Friday, as economic activity contracted amid a disappointing trade picture and continued caution on spending by businesses and consumers alike.

Discussion: White House.gov Blog, Associated Press, Wall Street Journal, Truth Revolt, Scared Monkeys, Washington Monthly and The Week

Wall Street Journal:
U.S. GDP Swings to Contraction in First Quarter

Discussion: Forbes, Outside the Beltway and NPR

Tierney Sneed / Talking Points Memo:

Appeals Court Strikes Down Idaho's 20-Week Abortion Ban — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit struck down an Idaho law banning abortions 20 weeks into pregnancy Friday on the basis that the law unconstitutionally prohibits abortions before the point of viability.

Discussion: Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times

Dan Levine / Reuters:
Idaho abortion restrictions are unconstitutional: appeals court

Discussion: Daily Kos and Wall Street Journal

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:

CNN's Jake Tapper won't moderate panel discussion at Clinton Global Initiative confab — CNN anchor Jake Tapper has pulled out of his scheduled duties moderating a panel on workforce investment at the upcoming Clinton Global Initiative America Meeting in Denver from June 8-10.

Discussion: FishbowlDC and Mediaite

Matt Richtel / New York Times:

Windshield Devices Bring Distracted Driving Debate to Eye Level — In a widely watched YouTube video, a man is driving around Los Angeles when his phone rings. On a small screen mounted on the dashboard, an image of the caller, the man's mother, appears. — But there's an optical twist …

Discussion: Boing Boing and Eschaton

Daniella Silva / NBC News:

Beer Giant Stops Production to Give Water to Storm Victims — Beer giant Anheuser-Busch stopped production at its Georgia brewery this week to instead produce drinking water for those affected by a deadly bout of historic flooding and storms in Texas and Oklahoma.

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, US News, Washington Post, The Week and BizPac Review

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

The Insecure American — America remains, despite the damage inflicted by the Great Recession and its aftermath, a very rich country. But many Americans are economically insecure, with little protection from life's risks. They frequently experience financial hardship …