memeorandum: Presidential Election Already Fueled by $377 Million (Julie Bykowicz/Associated Press)

11:10 AM ET, July 15, 2015

Top Items:

Nick Gass / Politico:

Donald Trump: I don't know why I'm meeting Ted Cruz — Donald Trump is meeting with Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in Manhattan on Wednesday, though he claimed in an interview on MSNBC that he does not know why. — “Ted Cruz called me. And I don't know why I'm meeting him, to be honest …

Discussion: Political Wire

Washington Post:

Trump's popularity spikes among Republicans — Donald Trump's popularity has surged among Republicans after dominating several news cycles with his anti-illegal immigration rhetoric, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll. — Nearly six in 10 — 57 percent …

Discussion: Daily Kos, SaintPetersBlog, Mediaite, The Week and Political Wire

USA Today:
Poll: Trump leads the GOP field but falters against Clinton

Discussion: Guardian, The Interrobang, Post On Politics, Liberal Values, Hit & Run, Washington Post, Hot Air, Outside the Beltway, CNN, Slantpoint, BuzzFeed and Naked Politics

Gregory Holyk / ABC News:
Trump's Popularity Rises, Still 2-1 Negative, While Clinton Regains Positive Territory (POLL)

Discussion: Politico

Robert Costa / Washington Post:
Ted Cruz and Donald Trump to meet Wednesday in New York

Discussion: Trail Blazers Blog

Catherine Lucey / Des Moines Register:
Behind in the polls, Martin O'Malley looks to Iowa

Discussion: Phantom Public

Washington Post:

Undercover video shows Planned Parenthood official discussing fetal organs used for research — Editor's note: Contains graphic language. The Center for Medical Progress released a video that allegedly shows a Planned Parenthood executive talking about selling fetal organs. (The Center for Medical Progress)

Discussion: Washington Monthly, New York Times, The Daily Beast, Althouse, The Federalist, Weekly Standard, Mediaite, BREITBART.COM, The Center for Medical …, Washington Free Beacon, Addicting Info, The Hugh Hewitt Show, New Orleans Times-Picayune, US News, Shakesville, The Hill, AMERICAN DIGEST and LifeNews.com

Planned Parenthood:

Statement from Planned Parenthood on New Undercover Video — Statement from Eric Ferrero, Vice President of Communications, Planned Parenthood Federation of America: — “In health care, patients sometimes want to donate tissue to scientific research that can help lead to medical breakthroughs …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, BREITBART.COM, Cosmopolitan, Politico, The Week, Taylor Marsh, No More Mister Nice Blog, The PJ Tatler, The Daily Caller, TheBlaze.com, Trail Blazers Blog, Perry for President, Governor Bobby Jindal and Washington Free Beacon

Amanda Marcotte / Slate:

Live Action Puts Out Another Titillating but Misleading Video About Planned Parenthood — The conservative media is a-flutter thinking they have a “gotcha” against Planned Parenthood: a video supposedly exposing the organization for “selling” fetal body parts, which is against the law.

Discussion: Right Wing Watch, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Raw Story, Mediaite and The American Conservative

Politico:

Revenge of Citizens United — Republicans could barely contain their glee when the Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United decision cleared the way for unlimited spending in political campaigns. — But now — headed into a crowded presidential primary that promises to be longer …

Discussion: Political Wire and The Daily Caller

Julie Bykowicz / Associated Press:

Presidential Election Already Fueled by $377 Million — The 2016 presidential contest is barely underway, and already donors have poured some $377 million into it, an Associated Press review shows. — The first peek behind the fundraising curtain comes by midnight Wednesday …

Discussion: Guardian

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:

C-SPAN to preempt first GOP debate — C-SPAN is partnering with a handful of regional newspapers in early-voting states for a nationally televised forum with the Republican presidential candidates just days before Fox News Channel's first scheduled debate. — The network has invited all 17 …

Discussion: Political Insider blog and The Week

Doug Powers / MichelleMalkin.com:

Appease in Our Time: Nuke deal reached with Iran; Kerry apologizes for the sanctions — The administration that has been wrong on just about everything is patting themselves on the back for reaching a nuke agreement with Iran after successfully killing off the definition of the word “deadline”:

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, ThinkProgress and The Atlantic

Shane Harris / The Daily Beast:
Nuke Deal Helps Qasem Soleimani, The Top Iranian General With ‘American Blood on His Hands’

Discussion: Foreign Policy, Betsy's Page and RedState

Matthew Duss / The New Republic:
The Iran Deal Is a Victory for Obama Diplomacy Over Bush Warmongering

Discussion: New York Times, Daily Kos, The Last Tradition, Washington Post, The Atlantic, Al Jazeera English, Taylor Marsh, The Huffington Post, America Rising and Hit & Run

Max Boot / Commentary Magazine:
The Dawn of Iranian Empire

Discussion: New York Times, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Israpundit, Belmont Club, The Daily Beast, Philly.com, The Last Tradition and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

eeas.europa.eu:
Joint statement by EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad …

Discussion: Al Jazeera English, Business Insider, Wall Street Journal and Real Clear Politics

Paul Waldman / Washington Post:

The next GOP president won't walk away from the Iran deal. Here's why. — Now that we have a nuclear deal with Iran, Republicans are jostling each other to determine who can make the most angry and apocalyptic statements about it. — Scott Walker said it “will be remembered as one of America's worst diplomatic failures.”

Discussion: Al Jazeera English, PoliticusUSA, The Huffington Post, Hot Air, Balloon Juice and Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality

Mark Steyn / Steyn Online:
Far Worse Than Munich

Discussion: Power Line, Fox News Insider and Israel Matzav

Nick Gass / Politico:
Dick Cheney: Iran deal makes ‘actual use of nuclear weapons’ more likely

Discussion: Political Wire

Peter Sullivan / The Hill:

McConnell: No timeline for ObamaCare repeal — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday said he does not have a timeline for using reconciliation to repeal ObamaCare, but indicated that Republicans would look to roll back as much of the law as they can.

Discussion: The PJ Tatler

Manu Raju / Politico:
GOP senators challenge Ted Cruz book claims

Discussion: Trail Blazers Blog, Addicting Info and Daily Kos

Los Angeles Times:

This is the video Gardena police didn't want you to see — In the two years since Gardena police officers fatally shot an unarmed man, city officials fought to keep graphic video of the killing under wraps. — The grainy videos, captured by cameras mounted in two patrol cars …

Discussion: Hit & Run, Associated Press and The Week

Los Angeles Times:
Videos of Gardena police shooting of unarmed men are made public

Discussion: Guardian

Electa Draper / Denver Post:

10th Circuit Court of Appeals rules against Catholic sisters offering elder care in case over contraception mandate — The Denver-based Little Sisters of the Poor, who sued to avoid complying with the Obamacare contraception mandate, lost Tuesday in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals …

Discussion: Althouse and Washington Free Beacon

Becket Fund:
Court rules against Little Sisters of the Poor

Discussion: Hot Air and The Gateway Pundit

Bill Turque / Washington Post:

Maryland Del. Ariana Kelly charged with indecent exposure, trespassing — A 39-year-old state lawmaker from Bethesda was arrested in late June and charged with indecent exposure and trespassing after a dispute at the home of her ex-husband, according to court records.

Discussion: Bethesda Magazine, Political Wire, Talking Points Memo and Washington Free Beacon

Mark Leibovich / New York Times:

Re-Re-Re-Reintroducing Hillary Clinton … A few minutes before my meeting with Hillary Clinton on the Fourth of July, during my drive to the Mount Washington hotel in Bretton Woods, N.H., where she was staying, I passed a moose near the side of the road.

Discussion: The Daily Caller and Hot Air

Emily Smith / Page Six:

George Lopez in talks to replace Trump on ‘Celebrity Apprentice’ — George Lopez is in talks with NBC to take over as the face of “The Celebrity Apprentice,” after the network severed ties with Donald Trump over his comments about Mexicans. — Representatives for the Mexican-American comedian …

Discussion: CNNMoney, Mediaite and The Daily Caller

Toluse Olorunnipa / Bloomberg Business:

Google to Offer Internet Service for Free in White House Program — Google Inc. and other companies will offer free or low-cost Internet service to more than 275,000 low-income households as part of President Barack Obama's effort to expand U.S. broadband service, the White House said.

Discussion: The Verge

Jessica Roy / New York Magazine:

Lena Dunham Tries to Cement Her Guru Status — A weekly newsletter called Lenny will land in your inbox in September. — Shares — Pin It — The Lena Dunham experience is getting another brand extension: Starting in September, Dunham will add “newsletter publisher” to her résumé …

Discussion: Althouse, Guardian, Entertain This! and The Week