memeorandum: Why It's Hard for the GOP to Discredit Donald Trump (Conor Friedersdorf/The Atlantic)

11:30 AM ET, July 21, 2015

Top Items:

Trump should pull the plug on his bloviating side show — It's time for Donald Trump to drop out of the race for president of the United States. — People who run for public office typically perform a great public service, regardless of whether they win on Election Day.

Washington Post:

Poll: Trump surges to big lead in GOP presidential race — Businessman Donald Trump surged into the lead for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, with almost twice the support of his closest rival, just as he ignited a new controversy after making disparaging remarks …

NBC News:

Can John Kasich Get Traction in the Summer of Donald? — First Read is a morning briefing from Meet the Press and the NBC Political Unit on the day's most important political stories and why they matter. — If the two-term governor of all-important Ohio — with a 60% approval rating in his state …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Mock Paper Scissors, Political Wire, No More Mister Nice Blog and Washington Post

Philip Bump / Washington Post:

The Republican poll nightmare that is Donald Trump, in four charts — Ten days ago, we raised an important point. People referring to Donald Trump as the Republican front-runner ignored that his leads, where they existed, were within the margin of error. Meaning that he was among the leaders, but he wasn't the clear leader.

Discussion: Politico, Daily Kos, The Week, Talking Points Memo and Salon

Jesse Byrnes / The Hill:
Rick Perry compares Trump to cancer

Discussion: National Review, Political Wire, Phantom Public, ThinkProgress, Washington Times and Hit & Run

Ginger Adams Otis / New York Daily News:
Photos show Donald Trump in military uniform, with athletic teams before dodging the Vietnam draft …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Business Insider and Mediaite

Conor Friedersdorf / The Atlantic:
Why It's Hard for the GOP to Discredit Donald Trump

Discussion: Mediaite, RedState and Talking Points Memo

Jake Tapper / CNN:
First on CNN: Palin calls both McCain and Trump heroes

Discussion: Politico, The Huffington Post, Slantpoint, Raw Story, Addicting Info, The Week, Mediaite, Washington Examiner, Hot Air, The Daily Caller, US News, New York Daily News, Steyn Online and Wall Street Journal

Ashley Killough / CNN:
Lindsey Graham: Donald Trump is a ‘jackass’

Discussion: Political Wire, Shakesville, The Week and Mediaite

Adam Howard / msnbc.com:
Trump offers no apologizes for McCain war record attack

Discussion: Gothamist, Slantpoint and Addicting Info

CNN:
Jeb Bush defends McCain, but supported Swift Boat attacks against Kerry

Discussion: Democratic Strategist, Guardian, Slantpoint and ThinkProgress

Gary Langer / ABC News:
Donald Trump Gains Yet Shows Vulnerability in a Crowded, Contentious GOP Race (POLL)

Discussion: Politico, Business Insider and 7online.com

Maggie Haberman / New York Times:
Donald Trump Unfiltered, From His New York Times Interviews

Discussion: Fox News, Politico, Political Wire and Washington Post

Mark Z. Barabak / Los Angeles Times:

Ohio's John Kasich brings heat, intrigue to 2016 GOP race — In a large and varied Republican field, there may be no more confounding presidential candidate than John Kasich. — In the 1990s, he was part of the conservative revolution on Capitol Hill. As Ohio governor …

Discussion: Washington Post and The PJ Tatler

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
John Kasich throws a Hail Mary

Discussion: The Daily Beast, The Columbus Dispatch, FiveThirtyEight, Daily Kos, The PJ Tatler, Phantom Public and Hit & Run

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:
John Kasich to Enter Crowded 2016 Race Facing Job of Catch-Up

Discussion: Bloomberg Business, Washington Post, The Columbus Dispatch, The Atlantic and Yahoo Politics

Julian Hattem / The Hill:

White House on defense after Security Council vote on Iran — The Obama administration was forced to play defense on Monday after lawmakers in both parties criticized its decision to let the United Nations — not Congress — have the first say on the Iran nuclear deal.

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Megan R. Wilson / The Hill:

K Street bouncing back in 2015 — Nearly all of Washington's top lobby shops saw gains in revenue in the first half of 2015 as an uptick in activity within both Congress and the Obama administration translated to a boon for K Street. — Following a period of relative stagnation …

Discussion: RedState

Steven Ertelt / LifeNews.com:

Shock Video Catches Another Top Planned Parenthood Doctor Selling Body Parts of Aborted Babies — A second shocking video in as many weeks has been released showing a top Planned Parenthood official discussing and arranging the sale of body parts of aborted babies.

Discussion: BREITBART.COM, Weekly Standard, The Federalist, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Free Beacon, The PJ Tatler and Washington Times

Ryan Anderson / Townhall.com:
How Redefining Marriage Puts Unborn Children at Risk

Discussion: Mock Paper Scissors

Kate Mather / Los Angeles Times:

LAPD finds 1,200 guns, two tons of ammo in dead man's Pacific Palisades home — It wasn't what police expected to find when they searched a man's Pacific Palisades home last week. — More than 1,200 guns were strewn about the Palisades Drive house and garage, police said.

Discussion: Guardian and Slantpoint

Jason Howerton / TheBlaze.com:

Legendary SEAL Marcus Luttrell Seemingly Sends Clear, Four-Word Message to Obama Over Chattanooga Shooting — Retired Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell, author and subject of “Lone Survivor,” responded tersely Monday to reports indicating officials have told U.S. Marine recruiters not to wear …

Discussion: BizPac Review and John Hawkins' Right Wing News

Andy Greenberg / Wired:

Hackers Remotely Kill a Jeep on the Highway—With Me in It — I was driving 70 mph on the edge of downtown St. Louis when the exploit began to take hold. — Though I hadn't touched the dashboard, the vents in the Jeep Cherokee started blasting cold air at the maximum setting …

Discussion: Guardian, The Verge and Unfogged

Dominic Holden / BuzzFeed:

Democrats Plan To Introduce Sweeping LGBT Rights Bill In Congress This Week — The measure, which lawmakers plan to file in the House and Senate, would ban discrimination in seven categories — including housing, education, and public accommodations. — Getty Images / Afp

Discussion: AMERICAblog News, PinkNews, Towleroad and RH Reality Check

ABC News:

Chattanooga Shooter Mohammod Abdulazeez Followed Al Qaeda Cleric Online in 2013 — FBI agents have found evidence that Chattanooga shooter Mohammod Abdulazeez was following a radical American member of al Qaeda online in 2013, as well as pages of writing that showed the young man was suicidal …

Discussion: KXAN-TV and 7online.com

New York Times:

Formal Restoration of Diplomatic Ties With Cuba Is Just a Beginning — As a neatly pressed Cuban flag was raised outside Cuba's diplomatic mission in Washington on Monday morning, rancorous cries rang out from the crowd gathered outside the stately limestone building. — “Cuba without Castro!” a hoarse-voiced man yelled.

Azam Ahmed / New York Times:
U.S. Embassy in Cuba Reopens After More Than 50 Years

Discussion: The Week, The Hill and Outside the Beltway

The Texas Tribune:

Bland's Death Being Treated Like Murder Investigation … Editor's note: This story has been updated to include additional details. — HEMPSTEAD — The probe into Sandra Bland's hanging death inside a Texas jail — which a medical examiner ruled a suicide last week — now includes the possibility of murder.

Discussion: KHOU-TV, Washington Post, NBC News, Hot Air, Hit & Run and Off the Kuff