memeorandum: RNC punts on rule changes (Ben Kamisar/The Hill)

10:10 AM ET, April 22, 2016

Top Items:

Trump team tells GOP he has been ‘projecting an image’ — HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (AP) — Donald Trump's chief lieutenants told skeptical Republican leaders Thursday that the GOP front-runner has been “projecting an image” so far in the 2016 primary season and “the part that he's been playing is now evolving” …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Hot Air, No More Mister Nice Blog, Daily Wire, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Resurgent, The Right Scoop, Mediaite and American Power

Kyle Cheney / Politico:

Delegates face death threats from Trump supporters — First it was an email warning Steve House, the Colorado GOP chairman, to hide his family members and “pray you make it to Cleveland.” Then there was the angry man who called his cell phone and told him to put a gun down his throat.

Discussion: Washington Examiner, The Week and Political Wire

Washington Post:

GOP veepstakes begin: Candidates start building lists and vetting prospects — What is the GOP establishment? … State of the race 2016 — HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — As the Republican presidential race heads toward a possible contested convention, the three remaining candidates …

Discussion: Politico, miamiherald, Bloomberg and Daily Wire

Philip Rucker / Washington Post:

Trump is playing ‘a part’ and can transform for victory, campaign chief tells GOP leaders — What is the GOP establishment? … State of the race 2016 — HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — The two new leaders of Donald Trump's presidential campaign sought Thursday to reassure nervous Republican Party leaders …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, Political Wire, Mediaite and Salon

Bloomberg:

Trump to Hone Image, Raise Funds for Republican Candidates, Adviser Says — The front-runner dispatched Paul Manafort to the party's final meeting ahead of the Republican convention. — McCormickJohn — tdopp — Outsider candidate Donald Trump sent emissaries to soothe tensions …

Discussion: Politico and TalkLeft

Jim Hoft / The Gateway Pundit:

HANNITY: There Will Be No Contested Convention - Things Are Happening Behind the Scenes (VIDEO) — Sean Hannity went on Your World with Neil Cavuto today to discuss his dust up with Senator Ted Cruz. — During the interview Hannity dropped this bomb — There won't be a contested convention …

Andrew R. Lewis / FiveThirtyEight:
Trump Doesn't Have A Monopoly On Intolerant Supporters

Discussion: Hullabaloo

Sean Sullivan / Washington Post:
Is Indiana the last stand for the ‘Never Trump’ movement?

Discussion: Wall Street Journal and Washington Times

New York Times:
Donald Trump to Reshape Image, New Campaign Chief Tells G.O.P.

Discussion: New York Post and Political Wire

Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
RNC punts on rule changes

Discussion: Political Insider blog, NBC News, Politico, NOLA River and The Bob and Chez Show

Perry Stein / Washington Post:
Kasich on D.C. voting rights: 'That's just more votes in the Democratic Party.'

Discussion: Hot Air, Vox, Mediaite and electionlawblog.org

Matea Gold / Washington Post:
As Trump moves to soften his image, Democrats seek to harden it

Discussion: Politico and Hot Air

Peter Willis / mirror:

Inside Prince's bizarre life at Paisley Park: This is what happened when we visited the music icon — When the Daily Mirror's Peter Willis went to interview the music legend at his Paisley Park mansion in 2010 it was even weirder than he could have imagined

Discussion: Washington Post, Associated Press, CANNONFIRE, New York Times and Refinery29, more at Mediagazer »

TMZ.com:

Dead at 57 — The artist known as Prince has died ... TMZ has learned. He was 57. — Prince's body was discovered at his Paisley Park compound in Minnesota early Thursday morning. — Multiple sources connected to the singer confirmed he had passed. We've obtained the emergency dispatch call for a “male down, not breathing.”

TMZ.com:

Prince — Treated for Drug Overdose Days Before Death — TREATED FOR DRUG OVERDOSE DAYS BEFORE DEATH — EXCLUSIVE — Prince was treated for a drug overdose 6 days before his death ... multiple sources tell TMZ. — We broke the story ... Prince's private jet made an emergency landing in Moline …

Discussion: Crime and Consequences Blog, The Daily Caller, AOL, Independent Journal …, KTLA, KFOR-TV, Fox 59, FOX6Now.com, fox13now.com, Q13 FOX News, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Fox News Insider

Jon Favreau / The Daily Beast:

Hey, Berniacs: I Learned to Love Hillary and So Can You — An Obama 2008 veteran, who's been on a campaign that was in a position similar to Clinton's and that had to reconcile with Clinton, offers his thoughts. — In late May of 2008, there was a bit of a misunderstanding that briefly blew …

Ben Collins / The Daily Beast:
Hillary PAC Spends $1 Million to ‘Correct’ Commenters on Reddit and Facebook

Discussion: Raw Story and Drudge Retort

Correctrecordk / Correct The Record:
Barrier Breakers 2016: A Project of Correct The Record

Discussion: The Verge and Drudge Retort

Telegraph:

As your friend, let me tell you that the EU makes Britain even greater — In 1939, President Franklin D Roosevelt offered a toast to King George VI in the White House. “I am persuaded that the greatest single contribution our two countries have been enabled to make to civilisation …

Discussion: New York Times, ABC News, Guardian, Politico, The Atlantic, Breitbart, Bloomberg, USA Today, Coffee House, Washington Post, NBC News, Spectator, The Week, Business Insider, Al Jazeera English, Sputnik International and France 24

Fareed Zakaria / Washington Post:
Saudi Arabia: The devil we know

Discussion: New York Times and The American Conservative

Travis / Uber Global:

Growing and growing up — Today we announced a settlement in two important class-action lawsuits: O'Connor (California) and Yucesoy (Massachusetts). The key issue at stake in both cases is whether drivers using the Uber app should be classified as independent contractors or employees.

Discussion: Washington Post, The Hill, KQED News, Mother Jones, NPR, Engadget and Drudge Retort

New York Times:
Uber Settles Cases With Concessions, but Drivers Stay Freelancers

Discussion: Forbes, The Verge and New York Magazine

Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:

Cruz ad imagines Clinton war room cheering on Trump — A new ad for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz — imagines a war room with Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton — to be the GOP nominee. — The ad highlights reasons why Clinton could beat Trump in a general election.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Emily Schultheis / CBS News:
Ted Cruz, Donald Trump spar over North Carolina transgender bathroom law

Discussion: Salon, Washington Post, Townhall.com, Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon, The Last Tradition, Media Matters for America, Towleroad, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Politicus USA, No More Mister Nice Blog and The Daily Caller

Shane Goldmacher / Politico:
Poll: Trump winning big in California

Discussion: BizPac Review and The Gateway Pundit

Shane Goldmacher / Politico:
Private polls reveal a Trump-Cruz Indiana dogfight

Discussion: Hot Air, The Last Refuge, BuzzFeed and Political Wire

Sabrina Tavernise / New York Times:

U.S. Suicide Rate Surges to a 30-Year High — WASHINGTON — Suicide in the United States has surged to the highest levels in nearly 30 years, a federal data analysis has found, with increases in every age group except older adults. The rise was particularly steep for women.

Discussion: USA Today, The Week and STAT

Betsy McKay / Wall Street Journal: Suicides in the U.S. Climb After Years of Declines

New York Times:

Apple No Longer Immune to China's Scrutiny of U.S. Tech Firms — For years, there has been a limit to the success of American technology companies in China. Capture too much market share or wield too much influence, and Beijing will push back. — Apple has largely been an exception to that trend.

Discussion: Business Insider, Mashable, Engadget, Computerworld, NPR and The Verge, more at Mediagazer »

Michelle Boorstein / Washington Post:

Raunchy Prince was actually a conservative Christian who reportedly opposed gay marriage — (Kristian Dowling/Getty Images for Lotusflow3r.com) — With the death Thursday of Prince Rogers Nelson, you may see a strange mix on your Facebook feed of sex and religion.

Discussion: Salon, AOL, Independent Journal …, Hit & Run, Religion News Service, Mediaite and Raw Story

Jim Hoft / The Gateway Pundit:

Screaming Black Lives Matter Protesters Bust Up Milo Yiannopoulous Speech - Chaos Ensues (VIDEO) — Outspoken conservative Milo Yiannopoulos brought his “Most Dangerous Faggot” speaking tour to American University in Washington DC on Thursday. — The young leftists ripped up his signs before he got there.

Harriet Tubman / National Review:

What They Didn't Teach You in School about Harriet Tubman — Harriet Tubman is a good choice to replace Andrew Jackson on the front of the $20 bill. Jackson, the first Democratic president, is exactly the sort of overheated, pompous populist that has tended to screw up the American political system.

Discussion: Betsy's Page and Q13 FOX News