memeorandum: Tom Brady to Appeal ‘Deflategate’ Ruling to Entire 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals (Brian McBride/ABC News)

3:00 PM ET, May 23, 2016

Top Items:

Sanders picks pro-Palestinian activist for Democratic platform committee — Sen. Bernie Sanders has been given highly unusual say over the drafting of the Democratic Party platform this year even if, as expected, he loses the primary contest to Hillary Clinton.

Discussion: Politico, Politicus USA, Mediaite, Political Wire and The New Civil Rights Movement

Bill Scher / Politico:

Bernie Loses His Halo — Is the left turning on its darling, Bernie Sanders? On Friday, Netroots titan Markos Moulitsas, namesake of the liberal Daily Kos, dropped a rhetorical bomb on the Bern, blaming the candidate for doing too little to denounce death threats received by the Nevada Democratic Party …

Discussion: TalkLeft, Shadowproof, CANNONFIRE, Infowars, Guardian and BuzzFeed

New York Times:

Do Sanders Supporters Favor His Policies? — Bernie Sanders is widely credited with pulling Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party to the left on major issues like health care, trade, financial regulation and the minimum wage. Now he says he will battle all the way to the convention on behalf of …

Discussion: NBC News, The Resurgent, Hot Air, Shadowproof and No More Mister Nice Blog

Seung Min Kim / Politico:
Sanders pushes Dems to reject Puerto Rico debt deal

Discussion: Washington Post and New York Magazine

Laura Meckler / Wall Street Journal:

Donald Trump Defends His National Security Positions as Hillary Clinton Attacks — Clinton is working to stoke fears that Trump fails the — Hillary Clinton is leveling a withering attack on Donald Trump's temperament and judgment when it comes to national security, calling him unqualified …

Discussion: Fox News, Taylor Marsh, Jewish Insider, Daily Kos, Politico, The Gateway Pundit and NBC News

Juan Williams / The Hill:

Electoral map looks grim for Trump — is getting good news in the polls. — Last week, a Fox News poll saw him take a 3-point lead over Hillary Clinton — in a national survey. That's within the margin of error. — But step back and take the long view. Clinton led by seven points in April.

Discussion: Politico

Katherine Krueger / Talking Points Memo:
RNC Spox: Trump ‘Very Clear’ We're Going With ‘Aggressive’ Clinton Attacks

Discussion: Breitbart and The Last Refuge

Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:

One Of The Most Aggressive Gerrymanders In The Country Just Lost In The Supreme Court — Nearly two years ago, a federal court struck down Virginia's congressional maps, finding that state lawmakers engaged in an unconstitutional racial gerrymander when they packed tens of thousands …

Associated Press:
Supreme court dismisses GOP appeal over Virginia districts

Discussion: Washington Post and ACS Blog

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Supreme Court finds jury tainted by race in murder case

Discussion: Washington Post

Baltimore Sun:

Freddie Gray case: Baltimore Police Officer Edward Nero found not guilty of all charges … Baltimore Circuit Judge Barry Williams on Monday acquitted Officer Edward Nero of all counts for his role in the arrest and death of Freddie Gray. — The judgment, following a five-day bench trial, is the first in the closely-watched case.

Discussion: New York Times, The Daily Caller, Reuters, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The San Diego Union …, Daily Kos, BizPac Review, Washington Free Beacon and Hit & Run

Courtney Pomeroy / CBS Baltimore:
Freddie Gray Arresting Officer Edward Nero Found Not Guilty On All Charges

Discussion: Joe.My.God., Daily Wire and CBS San Francisco

CNN:
Freddie Gray verdict: Officer Edward Nero not guilty

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Associated Press, Front Page Magazine, TPNN, WNEP-TV, Clash Daily and New York Magazine

Nick Gass / Politico:

Obama dining with Anthony Bourdain in Vietnam — President Barack Obama has no reservations about dining with celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain. — During his visit to Hanoi, Vietnam, Obama is taping a segment for a forthcoming episode of Bourdain's CNN program “Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown …

Discussion: Vox, Associated Press, RedState, Independent Journal …, Mediaite, Mashable, The Daily Caller and Washington Free Beacon

CNN:
Obama lifts U.S. arms ban on Vietnam

Discussion: USA Today, Politico, RedState, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, NPR, Daily Wire, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller and Clash Daily

David Nakamura / Washington Post:
In historic move, U.S. lifts embargo on arms sales to Vietnam

Discussion: New York Times and Washington Times

Ben Schreckinger / Politico:

Trump acknowledges climate change — at his golf course — Donald Trump says he is “not a big believer in global warming.” He has called it “a total hoax,” “bulls**t” and “pseudoscience.” — But he is also trying to build a sea wall designed to protect one of his golf courses from “global warming and its effects.”

Discussion: Mother Jones, Salon, RedState, Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress, The Daily Caller, Political Wire, twitchy.com and The Slot

Jordain Carney / The Hill:

Reid: ‘Hell no’ to VP pick from state with a Republican governor — must not pick a senator from a Republican-controlled state as her vice president, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid — (D-Nev.) warned Monday. — “If we have a Republican governor in any of those states …

Sarah Westwood / Washington Examiner:

VA secretary: Disney doesn't measure wait times, so why should VA? — Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald on Monday compared the length of time veterans wait to receive health care at the VA to the length of time people wait for rides at Disneyland, and said his agency shouldn't use wait times …

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, Washington Post, Mediaite, Hit & Run, Speaker.gov and Washington Times

Eliana Johnson / National Review:

In Trump's World, Newt Gingrich Is King — and Maybe VP — The two men are kindred spirits in more ways than one. — He has an uncanny ability to dominate the media and shape a narrative, and he harnessed the anger and anxiety of lower-middle-class whites to reshape the Republican party.

Discussion: Raw Story, Media Matters for America and Political Wire

Allegra Kirkland / Talking Points Memo:

New Trump Video Mixes Bill Clinton Rape Allegation, Hillary Clinton Laughing — Donald Trump released a new Instagram video on Monday featuring audio from interviews with women who've accused former President Bill Clinton of sexual assault. The accompanying text asks if Democratic presidential …

Discussion: Daily Wire, Breitbart and The Slot

Michael Walsh / New York Post:
How corporate America bought Hillary Clinton for $21M

Discussion: John Hawkins' Right Wing News, The American Spectator and The Last Tradition

Brian McBride / ABC News:

Tom Brady to Appeal ‘Deflategate’ Ruling to Entire 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals — Tom Brady will appeal the federal court ruling reinstating his four-game suspension for “Deflategate,” requesting that the entire 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals rehear his case, in what's known as an en banc hearing …

Discussion: Washington Post, Outside the Beltway and Independent Journal …

Associated Press:
High Court Rejects Request to Reconsider Blagojevich Case

Discussion: Political Wire

Glenn Thrush / Politico:

Ryan: Trump could win, but I'm not ‘betting’ on it — Paul Ryan loves the word “unity,” but his definition of that term differs sharply from Donald Trump's vision of a smiling speaker at his side, mouth shut and domesticated — just like Chris Christie. — Ryan, who made peace with Trump earlier …

Discussion: RedState, Daily Mail and Politicus USA

Patrick Maines / The Hill:

The civil war within conservative media — Though it's not been well analyzed by mainstream reporters, the so-called conservative media have been split down the middle by the Donald Trump — phenomenon. Outlets like the Drudge Report, Breitbart and The Washington Times have been in loud …

Discussion: Daily Wire and The Resurgent

Frank Newport / Gallup:

Republicans Paying More Attention to Election Than Democrats — PRINCETON, N.J. — Republicans continue to follow the news of the presidential election more closely than Democrats. In mid-May, 47% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents say they are following election news …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Politicus USA and Politico

Bloomberg:

Trump Looks to Evangelicals for Financial Boost — The presumptive Republican presidential nominee has been holding meetings at Manhattan's Trump Tower to try and court members of the evangelical community. — kevcirilli — Donald Trump is banking on small donations from evangelicals put off …

Discussion: Raw Story, Mediaite and AMERICAblog NewsAMERICAblog …

Reid J. Epstein / Wall Street Journal:

Donald Trump Lags Behind Hillary Clinton in Organizing Key State — The presumptive GOP nominee's slow start in Ohio could undermine his chances of winning the White House — PLAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio—Though Donald Trump dispensed with his last primary opponent months before Hillary Clinton will …

Discussion: CNN, Politicus USA, Red Alert Politics, Salon, Hullabaloo, National Review, WISH-TV, ABC News and Guardian

Ta-Nehisi Coates / The Atlantic:

Study Finds Median Wealth For Single Black Women at $5 … That's the headline for an article that came out in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. It's based on this study written by sociologist Mariko Chang. Before I say anymore, I want to emphasize the importance of this study …

Matt Pearce / Los Angeles Times:

I was just another reporter sent to cover radicalization in Minneapolis. Then 2 local Somalis took me on a tour — Haqhawo Qaasim holds a photo of Guled Ali Omar, a defendant in an Islamic State recruitment trial, while standing in front of the courthouse in Minneapolis. (Elizabeth Flores / Star Tribune)

Discussion: Power LinePower Line

Ed Yong / The Atlantic:

Release the Kraken — Every winter in Spencer Gulf, a large inlet intruding into Australia's south coast, hundreds of thousands of giant cuttlefish gather to breed. They're about the size and weight of a corgi, with ever-changing displays of shadow and colour rippling across their dynamic skins.

Discussion: Washington Post