memeorandum: 4 climbers die in 4 days on Mount Everest (CNN)

5:35 PM ET, May 23, 2016

Top Items:

Sanders wins greater say in Democratic platform; names pro-Palestinian activist — Sen. Bernie Sanders has chosen a well-known advocate for Palestinian rights to help draft the Democratic Party platform this year, after party leaders gave the longshot but deeply popular candidate unusual …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo, Guardian, Politico, Shakesville, Israel Matzav, Jewish Insider, Politicus USA, Mediaite, Eschaton 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: ABC News, Rush Limbaugh, Daily Kos, TalkLeft, Shadowproof, CANNONFIRE and Infowars

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, Hot Air, The Resurgent, No More Mister Nice Blog and Shadowproof

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

Discussion: Washington Post, The Daily Caller and New York Magazine

CNN:

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe under federal investigation for campaign contributions — Washington (CNN)Virginia Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe is the subject of an ongoing investigation by the FBI and prosecutors from the Justice Department's public integrity unit, U.S. officials briefed on the probe say.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, WWBT-TV, Daily Wire, The American Mirror, Political Wire, Washington Free Beacon and Guardian

Associated Press:
Virginia GOP Filing Lawsuit to Block Felons From Voting

Discussion: Hampton Roads Daily Press and ThinkProgress

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: Mediaite, Daily Kos, Jewish Insider, Politico, The Gateway Pundit, NBC News and FOX News Radio

Janet Hook / Wall Street Journal:

Newt Gingrich Rips Mitt Romney's ‘Pathetic’ Anti-Trump Effort — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich Monday lambasted Mitt Romney for his failed drive to derail GOP front-runner Donald Trump, calling his actions “pathetic” and his effort “not particularly effective.”

Discussion: Political Wire and The Daily Caller

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, Hot Air, The Resurgent and Media Matters for America

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: Power LinePower Line, National Review, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Reuters, The Last Refuge, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, BizPac Review, Washington Free Beacon, The San Diego Union … and Hit & Run

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

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

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 …

Discussion: Bloomberg, New York Times, USA Today and Slate

Associated Press:
Supreme court dismisses GOP appeal over Virginia districts

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Post and ACS Blog

Stephanie Mencimer / Mother Jones:
The Supreme Court Just Sent a Strong Message About Racism in the Justice System

Discussion: ThinkProgress, New York Times, CNN, Associated Press and SCOTUSblog

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

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Post, USA Today, electionlawblog.org and Reuters

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

Meghan Keneally / ABC News:
A Look At What's Behind Donald Trump's Climb in New National Poll

Discussion: Politico and Daily Wire

Frank Newport / Gallup:
Republicans Paying More Attention to Election Than Democrats

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Politicus USA and Politico

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: Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon, TPNN, Washington Post, The Daily Caller, Independent Journal …, Speaker.gov, The Resurgent, Hit & Run, Hot Air and Washington Times

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, Independent Journal …, RedState, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, Mashable and Washington Free Beacon

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

Discussion: USA Today, Politico, RedState, NPR, Daily Wire, The Gateway Pundit, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, 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, Washington Times and Balloon Juice

The Local:

Left-winger van der Bellen wins Austrian presidential election — With just a few votes left to be counted, it appears Austria has chosen the former Green leader Alexander van der Bellen to be the country's next president, in what was one of the tightest presidential election races seen in Austria.

Discussion: Hot Air

New York Times: How Far Is Europe Swinging to the Right?

BBC:
Austria far-right narrowly loses poll, Van der Bellen elected president

Discussion: USA Today, Vox Popoli, Breitbart, AMERICAblog NewsAMERICAblog …, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Shakesville, Instapundit and The Atlantic

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

Travis M. Andrews / Washington Post:

Woman trying to prove ‘vegans can do anything’ among three dead on Everest. Two more missing and thirty sick or frostbitten. — 29,029. — That's how many feet in the air the peak of Mount Everest towers over Nepal, and the world, in its gleaming white brilliance.

Discussion: Sydney Morning Herald, The Atlantic and New York Times

CNN:
4 climbers die in 4 days on Mount Everest

Discussion: Washington Post, NPR, Heat Street and AOL

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: Daily Wire, RedState, Daily Mail and Politicus USA

Emily E. Smith / Oregonian:

‘Something needs to be done’: Parents say they want justice for baby's bruises — A Sherwood couple say they came home from a date night a couple of months ago to find their 1-year-old son, Jacob, screaming and the babysitter asleep on the couch. The next morning, they awoke to find him covered in bruises.

Discussion: TheBlaze.com, Independent Journal …, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Raw Story

Mystwlker / RedState:

The False Choice of Trump vs Hillary — No, Not Voting for Trump Is Not Voting For Hillary — In life, oversimplification is a coping mechanism used to resist the overwhelming complexity that can pervade modern life. In today's world of multiple devices, multiple venues of social connectivity …

Discussion: John Hawkins' Right Wing News

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 …

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