memeorandum: Tea Party's Sharron Angle joins fight for Reid's seat (Evelyn Rupert/The Hill)

10:35 AM ET, March 19, 2016

Top Items:

Mitt Romney / Facebook:

This week, in the Utah nominating caucus, I will vote for Senator Ted Cruz. — Today, there is a contest between Trumpism and Republicanism. Through the calculated statements of its leader, Trumpism has become associated with racism, misogyny, bigotry, xenophobia, vulgarity and, most recently, threats and violence.

Katie Glueck / Politico:

Inside Cruz's bid to conquer Rubioworld — While Marco Rubio was flailing in Florida, Ted Cruz's team was lying in wait, preparing to move state by state, donor by donor to capture Rubio's supporters after his fall. And with Rubio out, that effort is now in full swing.

Discussion: New York Post, Associated Press and Slantpoint

David Wasserman / The Cook Political Report:
House Republicans Staring Into the Abyss: 10 Ratings Changes Favor Democrats

Discussion: Politico, Vox, Talking Points Memo and Investor's Business Daily

Rasmussen Reports:
Trump Still Holds 15-Point Lead Over Cruz

Discussion: Morning Consult, Hot Air, Slate, Townhall.com, Washington Times, BizPac Review and Politico

Nick Madigan / New York Times:

Hulk Hogan Awarded $115 Million in Privacy Suit Against Gawker — The retired wrestler Hulk Hogan was awarded $115 million in damages Friday by a Florida jury in an invasion of privacy case against Gawker.com over its publication of a sex tape. — The wrestler, known in court by his legal name …

Discussion: Gothamist, Associated Press, Above the Law, The Week and Mother Jones, more at Mediagazer »

Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:

Hulk Hogan Gets $115M Verdict Against Gawker at Sex Tape Trial — The outcome comes after two weeks of testimony in a first-of-its-kind case where discussions of newsworthiness and decency dominated. — Weighing free speech against privacy, a Florida jury has decided to uphold the sanctity …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, CNNMoney, The Gateway Pundit, Da Tech Guy Blog, RT, NPR, Hit & Run, AOL and Scared Monkeys, more at Mediagazer »

Julia Marsh / New York Post: Jury awards Hulk Hogan $115 million in Gawker sex-tape trial

Letitia Stein / Reuters: Wrestler Hulk Hogan wins $115 million in sex tape suit against Gawker

Mark Plotkin / The Hill:

Garland selection proves that to Obama, DC doesn't count — President Obama, in an attempt to show Merrick Garland's “compassion” and devotion to the public good, pointed out that the Supreme Court nominee by “tutoring a young student at Northeast D.C. elementary school each year for the past 18 years.”

Discussion: Washington Post and Politico

Seth Barrett Tillman / THE NEW REFORM CLUB:
Does the President Have A Duty To Nominate Supreme Court Candidates? Does the Senate Have A Duty To Consider Nominees?

Discussion: The Originalism Blog

George F. Will / Washington Post: Do Republicans really think Donald Trump will make a good Supreme Court choice?

Jennifer Bendery / The Huffington Post:
Former Iowa Officials Wonder What Happened To The Chuck Grassley They Knew

Discussion: Slate, Salon, Chicago Sun Times, Morning Consult and Daily Kos

Paul Waldman / The Week:
How the Merrick Garland nomination explains the rise of Donald Trump

Discussion: Daily Kos and Washington Post

Mark Hensch / The Hill:

Trump calls for boycott of Megyn Kelly's show — GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump — is urging his supporters to stop watching Megyn Kelly's show on Fox News. — “Everybody should boycott the @megynkelly show,” he tweeted Friday, referencing “The Kelly File.” “Never worth watching.

Discussion: The New Civil Rights Movement, Raw Story, Politicus USA, AOL, Deadline, The Week, Talking Points Memo, TVNewser, CBS New York, Politico, The Right Scoop and CNNMoney

Dylan Byers / CNNMoney:

Fox News hits Donald Trump for ‘sexist verbal assaults’ on Megyn Kelly — Fox News has accused Donald Trump of making “sexist verbal assaults” against Megyn Kelly, issuing its most aggressive response yet to the Republican frontrunner's repeated attacks on its star anchor.

Discussion: AMERICAblog NewsAMERICAblog … and Washington Post

Lindsey Ellefson / Mediaite:
Read the Statement From Fox News About Trump's ‘Extreme, Sick Obsession’ With Megyn Kelly

Discussion: John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Mother Jones, addictinginfo.org, Mashable and Raw Story

Ben Botkin / Las Vegas Review-Journal:

Sharron Angle running for U.S. Senate again in Nevada — Nevada's candidates in the 2016 elections will give Silver State voters a show like no other. — There are plenty of interesting races: A legal brothel owner who wants to combat sex trafficking, among other goals, is running for state Senate in Northern Nevada.

Discussion: Political Wire

Evelyn Rupert / The Hill:

Tea Party's Sharron Angle joins fight for Reid's seat — Sharron Angle, a controversial Tea Party Republican who upset the 2010 Nevada GOP primary is reviving her bid for the Senate, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. — She will face off against Rep. Joe Heck in the primary, hoping to fill Democratic Leader Harry Reid

Discussion: Outside the Beltway

Jordain Carney / The Hill:

Senate whip: Trump would need GOP majority to govern — (R-Texas) suggested Friday that if Donald Trump — wins the White House, he'll need a Republican-controlled Congress to approve his policies. — “If Mr. Trump does become the president of the United States, he's going to need …

Mike DeBonis / Washington Post:
Mark Kirk is first Republican senator to call for vote on Garland

Discussion: Salon, Outside the Beltway, Hot Air, Slantpoint, New York Times, audioBoom, Western Journalism, WLS-AM 890 and ThinkProgressPage Array

Adam Davidson / New York Times:

What Donald Trump Doesn't Understand About ‘the Deal’ — Donald Trump loves the word “deal.” The book he released with a co-writer in 1987 to summarize his views of the world was called, of course, “The Art of the Deal.” His view of trade with China is summarized in this quotation …

Pierre Meilhan / CNN:

Airliner crashes in Russia; 55 aboard reported dead — CNN Map — (CNN)A Boeing 737 passenger jet crashed as it was landing at the Rostov-on-Don airport in southern Russia, the country's Southern Regional Emergency Center said Saturday. — All people on board have died …

Discussion: Al Jazeera English, The Week, Mashable and The Right Scoop

Elliot Smilowitz / New York Times:

Trump: David Brooks ‘one of the dumbest’ pundits — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump — is firing back after conservative New York Times columnist David Brooks called for the GOP to reject Trump. — “While I have never met @nytdavidbrooks of the NY Times …

Discussion: Booman Tribune

New York Post:

Students freak out after teacher shows video of ISIS beheading — The city unsuccessfully tried to fire Bronx middle-school teacher Alexiss Nazario (left) after she scared students with a video of an ISIS execution (like this one of journalist James Foley). Photo: Tomas E. Gaston (2)

Discussion: Weasel Zippers

Arthur Allen / Politico:

America's summer threat: Zika virus — If brokered conventions and third-party insurgencies aren't enough, consider the chaos that Zika could bring to the United States this summer. — If the mosquito-borne virus linked to birth defects hits big — and that's a big if …

Katherine Timpf / National Review:

Fired U Missouri Journalism Prof's Defense: I Didn't Know How Journalism at Protests Worked — Click on CBS This Morning (via YouTube)

Discussion: Fox News

abc7chicago.com:

ATTY FOR DAUGHTER SUSPECTED OF BEATING REP MOM'S OPPONENT: 'MAYBE IT'S GOOD HE LOST THE RACE' — Illinois Rep. Cynthia Soto's daughter and another campaign volunteer are accused of attacking aspiring politician Robert Zwolinski — Illinois Rep. Cynthia Soto's daughter and another campaign volunteer …

Discussion: Independent Journal Review and The Gateway Pundit

David Wells / fox13now.com:

Protesters clash with SLC police outside Trump rally — SALT LAKE CITY — Video clips captured outside the Donald Trump rally in Salt Lake City Friday night shows protesters in a shoving match with officers in riot gear. — In the video, the protesters can be heard shouting “Trump Stinks!”

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Weasel Zippers

Eric Levitz / New York Magazine:

The Republican Party Must Answer for What It Did to Kansas and Louisiana — The GOP’s economic program just decimated two American states. Why haven’t the Party’s presidential candidates been asked to account for that? — Over the course of 12 debates …

Matea Gold / Washington Post:

How ‘ghost corporations’ are funding the 2016 election … Two days before Christmas, a trust called DE First Holdings was quietly formed in Delaware, where corporations are required to reveal little about their workings. A day later, the entity dropped $1 million into a super PAC with ties to Jersey City …

Andrew Rafferty / NBC News:

John Kasich's Delegate Math Keeps Voters Largely Out of Equation — John Kasich, whose presidential run has largely been based on the faith that voters would reward him for his optimistic message, is now relying on a campaign strategy that could leave voters out of the equation.

Discussion: Washington Post, Allen B. West and The Gateway Pundit

Peter Moore / YouGov US Opinion Center News:

A quarter of Republicans think protestors deserve to be ‘roughed up’ — While most Republicans disavow violence at political rallies just over a quarter do say protestors deserve to get ‘roughed up’ — Last week a Trump campaign event was cancelled in Chicago due to clashes between protestors and supporters.

Discussion: Fortune