memeorandum: Alabama justice off bench for defying feds on gay marriage (Kim Chandler/Associated Press)

1:15 PM ET, September 30, 2016

Top Items:

USA TODAY's Editorial Board: Trump is ‘unfit for the presidency’ — The Editorial Board has never taken sides in the presidential race. We're doing it now. — In the 34-year history of USA TODAY, the Editorial Board has never taken sides in the presidential race.

Chicago Tribune:

A principled option for U.S. president: Endorsing Gary Johnson, Libertarian — Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson and vice presidential candidate Bill Weld explain why they're running as Libertarians on July 19, 2016, in a meeting with the Tribune Editorial Board. — Editorial Board

Discussion: Politico, Hit & Run, Heat Street, The Week, Mediaite and Associated Press

Tristan Lejeune / The Hill:

Trump: ‘Check out sex tape’ of former Miss Universe — went after a former Miss Universe in a string of early-morning tweets Friday, encouraging voters to “check out” an alleged “sex tape” of Alicia Machado, who has been on the offensive against the GOP presidential nominee all week.

Bloomberg:

Trump Tweets About Sex Tape as Campaign Struggles to Regroup — The salvos are part of an ongoing struggle between Trump and his aides about how to coordinate a cohesive strategy against Clinton. — JenniferJJacobs — kevcirilli — With the urgency of a presidential election 38 days away …

Discussion: The Atlantic, Politico, Talking Points Memo, Mirror.co.uk, USA Today, Balloon Juice, Heat Street and Daily Wire

Andrew Kaczynski / BuzzFeed:

Newt Gingrich: Alicia Machado Is “The New Benghazi Lie” — Newt Gingrich on Thursday called Hillary Clinton's attack on Donald Trump for mocking former Miss Universe Alicia Machado's weight “as false as Benghazi” and “the new Benghazi lie.” — In an interview on Sean Hannity's radio show on Thursday …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Washington Monthly, Hot Air, Independent Journal Review, alicublog and The Federalist

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:

Trump's ‘disgusting’ tweet about Alicia Machado got one thing right. It isn't what he thinks. — THE MORNING PLUM: — This morning, at a disconcertingly early hour, Donald Trump tweeted: … As Brian Stelter points out, this guarantees more news cycles will be spent on Trump's battle with Machado.

Discussion: Vox, Heat Street, BuzzFeed, USA Today, Liberty Unyielding and Daily Kos

Dylan Matthews / Vox:

The surprisingly logical reason Donald Trump is bringing up Bill Clinton's sex scandals — Let's be clear: Donald Trump is not making an issue of Bill Clinton's past infidelities. And, frankly, he feels he's owed a little bit of congratulations for his restraint.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Mother Jones, Daily Wire and Washington Post

CBS News:

Commentary: The curious case of Alicia Machado — As a rule, reporters like to keep their stories interesting, which is why the coverage we've seen of Alicia Machado is so curious. — This has been the week of Machado, who became famous literally overnight when Hillary Clinton brought her up at Monday's debate.

Discussion: Politicus USA, BillMoyers.com, The Talking Dog, BizPac Review, New York Magazine and The Daily Caller

Louis Nelson / Politico:

Trump assails former Miss Universe and Clinton in early morning tweet blitz — Donald Trump wrote on Twitter Friday morning that Hillary Clinton was “duped and used” by former Miss Universe winner Alicia Machado, urging his followers to “check out [her] sex tape and past.”

Discussion: Vox, The Hill and Towleroad

Joe Concha / The Hill:
Obama hometown newspaper picks Gary Johnson over Clinton

Discussion: RedState and Joe.My.God.

Alan Rappeport / New York Times:
Donald Trump Bashes Alicia Machado Again, Alleging a ‘Sex Tape’ (Without Evidence)

Heather / Latest from Crooks and Liars:
Donald Trump Attacks Miss Universe In Overnight Tweetstorm Urging Followers To ‘Check Out Sex Tape’

Discussion: ThinkProgress, USA Today, Politico, The Daily Beast, Washington Post, New Century Times, Hullabaloo, Politicus USA, Latino Rebels, Slate, Patterico's Pontifications, Infowars, Fox News Insider, AOL, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story and The Resurgent

Suffolk University:

Suffolk University Nevada Poll Shows Clinton Leading by 6 Points — A Suffolk University poll of likely voters in Nevada shows Democrat Hillary Clinton opening up a 6-point lead over Republican businessman Donald Trump, 44 percent to 38 percent, in the aftermath of the first presidential debate.

Discussion: Washington Times and Politico

Anthony Brooks / WBUR:

WBUR Poll: Clinton Leads Trump In New Hampshire — According to a new WBUR poll (topline, crosstabs,) Hillary Clinton leads Donald Trump by seven points among likely voters in New Hampshire, one of the key battleground states that could determine the outcome of the presidential election.

Discussion: CNN, Washington Post, Daily Wire, Washington Times and Politicker

David Byler / Real Clear Politics: Will the Debate Knock Trump Off the Comeback Track?

Marc Caputo / Politico:
Clinton leads Trump by 4 in post-debate Florida poll

Discussion: CNBC, FiveThirtyEight and Joe.My.God.

Chad Livengood / Detroit News:
Poll: Clinton holds 7-point lead in Michigan

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, NBC News, National Review, Washington Post and Politico

Josh Gerstein / Politico:

Trump deposition video set for release — A video of Donald Trump testifying under oath about his provocative rhetoric about Mexicans and other Latinos is set to go public as soon as Friday, drawing new attention to those comments just weeks before voters cast their ballots in the presidential race.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Mother Jones, Daily Wire, Mediaite and The Week

David A. Fahrenthold / Washington Post:

Trump Foundation lacks the certification required for charities that solicit money — Donald Trump's charitable foundation — which has been sustained for years by donors outside the Trump family — has never obtained the certification that New York requires before charities can solicit money …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Fox News, Daily Kos, VICE, New York Times, Law News, Raw Story, New York Magazine, Daily Wire, Occupy Democrats, The Week, The Mahablog and The Atlantic

Sarah K. Burris / Raw Story:
CNN's Jake Tapper slams Trump's advisors: 'He is surrounded by the Philanderer's club'

Discussion: the daily howler

Michael Falcone / ABC News:
The Note: Troubles With the Trump Foundation in New York State

Discussion: Associated Press, Louisiana Record and Politico

Kim Chandler / Associated Press:

Alabama justice off bench for defying feds on gay marriage — MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore's defiance of federal court rulings on gay marriage violated judicial ethics, a disciplinary court ruled on Friday before suspending him for the rest of his term.

Discussion: Vox, Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times, Law News and WSPA-TV

Lauren Walsh / WBMA-TV:
Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore suspended for remainder of his term

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Friendly Atheist

New York Times:

How Democrats Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love Big Donor Money — Democrats denounced it as an assault on democracy and a sop to billionaires when the Supreme Court issued a ruling two years ago that loosened limits on campaign giving. — But Hillary Clinton and Democratic Party leaders …

Discussion: Althouse and BillMoyers.com

Shane Harris / The Daily Beast:
GOP Blocks Probes Into Trump-Russia Ties

Discussion: The Week and War on the Rocks

Dorothy Rabinowitz / Wall Street Journal:

Hillary-Hatred Derangement Syndrome — She alone stands between America and the reign of the most unstable, unfit president in U.S. history. — There were cheers when Donald Trump assured his Virginia audience last weekend that the wall will be built and, yes, that Mexico would pay for it.

Discussion: The New Civil Rights Movement and Political Wire

Nolan D. McCaskill / Politico:

In swipe at Trump, Clinton names Merkel as her favorite world leader — Hillary Clinton trolled two White House opponents with a single response, dinging Gary Johnson and Donald Trump by naming Angela Merkel as her favorite world leader. — The Democratic presidential nominee on Thursday joined …

Discussion: The Geller Report, Jihad Watch, Front Page Magazine, The Daily Caller and Vox Popoli

Rasmussen Reports:
Voters Don't Trust Media Fact-Checking

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Kristin Salaky / Talking Points Memo:

Jeb Bush Thinks It Would Be ‘Powerful’ Statement If Nobody Voted This Year — Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush (R) has a bright idea for social change: don't vote for the presidency. — Bush told reporters Thursday that he won't vote for Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton …

Discussion: bradford-delong.com

New York Daily News:
EXCLUSIVE: Jeb Bush suggests voting for Gary Johnson at private luncheon

Discussion: CNN and Hit & Run

Paul Krugman / New York Times:

How the Clinton-Trump Race Got Close — Monday's presidential debate was a blowout, surely the most one-sided confrontation in American political history. Hillary Clinton was knowledgeable, unflappable and — dare we say it? — likable. Donald Trump was ignorant, thin-skinned and boorish.

Discussion: the daily howler, New York Magazine, twitchy.com and Media Matters for America

Kevin Robinson / Pensacola News Journal:

Apology cake: ‘Sorry I Tased You’ — A local woman has filed a civil lawsuit against a former Escambia County deputy who allegedly discharged a stun gun into her chest and neck without provocation, tried to cover up the incident, then apologized with an off-color cake.