memeorandum: How David Clarke Bridges Donald Trump's Gun Nuts and Vladimir Putin's Kleptocrats (Cliff Schecter/The Daily Beast)

7:25 PM ET, December 5, 2016

Top Items:

Christopher Suprun / New York Times:

Why I Will Not Cast My Electoral Vote for Donald Trump — Dallas — I am a Republican presidential elector, one of the 538 people asked to choose officially the president of the United States. Since the election people have asked me to change my vote based on policy disagreements with Donald J. Trump.

Discussion: Vox, Politico, The Guardian, Politicus USA and Occupy Democrats

Gabriel Debenedetti / Politico:

Rogue electors brief Clinton camp on anti-Trump plan — Advocates of the long-shot bid to turn the Electoral College against Donald Trump have been in contact with close allies of Hillary Clinton, according to multiple sources familiar with the discussions, but the Clinton camp …

Discussion: Hot Air and Political Wire

Evan McMullin / New York Times:

Trump's Threat to the Constitution — WASHINGTON — On July 7, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, Donald J. Trump, met privately with House Republicans near the Capitol. I was present as chief policy director of the House Republican Conference.

Discussion: neo-neocon, RedState, Raw Story, Patterico's Pontifications and Politico

Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
Trump's Agents of Idiocracy

Discussion: Raw Story

New York Times:

Criminal Complaint in Comet Ping Pong Shooting — The criminal complaint filed on Monday in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia charged Edgar M. Welch with firing a semi-automatic assault rifle inside Comet Ping Pong, a restaurant that had been the center of a fake news story involving Hillary Clinton.

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Andrew Kaczynski / CNN:

Incoming national security adviser's son, who peddles conspiracies, has a government transition email — (CNN)The son of incoming national security adviser Michael Flynn, who Sunday night peddled a false conspiracy theory about a DC pizzeria, has an official government transition email address.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, CNNMoney, Little Green Footballs, Foreign Policy, Daily Kos, AMERICAblog NewsAMERICAblog …, Politico, Talking Points Memo, New York Times, Mediaite, Business Insider and BizPac Review

Nolan D. McCaskill / Politico:

Stelter says Trump is a ‘conspiracy theorist’ — America is swearing in a conspiracy theorist as president next month, according to Brian Stelter. — “Yeah, President-elect Trump is many things,” the CNN media reporter and “Reliable Sources” host said in a segment Monday. “To his voters, he's a beloved figure.

Discussion: Political Wire and The Guardian

Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
Michael Flynn's tweet wasn't actually about #PizzaGate, but his son is now defending the baseless conspiracy theory

Discussion: Politico, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, Little Green Footballs, ThinkProgress, Business Insider, Daily Kos, Talking Points Memo, Washingtonian, Vox, NPR, Occupy Democrats, Mother Jones, Hit & Run, Right Wing Watch and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »

German Lopez / Vox:
Pizzagate, the fake news conspiracy theory that led a gunman to DC's Comet Ping Pong, explained

Discussion: New York Times, Mashable, The Guardian and Politico

Eric Lipton / New York Times:
Man Motivated by ‘Pizzagate’ Conspiracy Theory Arrested in Washington Gunfire

Discussion: The Atlantic, USA Today, Washingtonian, Mashable, Talking Points Memo, No More Mister Nice Blog, Althouse, The Daily Beast, New York Magazine, Rewire, Raw Story and The Hill, more at Mediagazer »

YouTube:

Governor McCrory statement on 2016 election results

Discussion: NPR, Politico, New York Magazine, Washington Times, The Atlantic, ABC News, Business Insider, Daily Kos, Rewire, Political Wire, TheBlaze and Diane Ravitch's blog

Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:

Why Pat McCrory Lost and What It Means in Trump's America — Pat McCrory's now official defeat in the race for Governor of North Carolina has real implications for the progressive movement nationally in the era of Trump. — The dominant reason given for McCrory's defeat will be the unpopularity of HB2 …

Discussion: Balloon Juice

Tegna / WCNC-TV:
Cooper extends lead over McCrory in recount

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, BuzzFeed, governor.nc.gov and RedState

Colin Campbell / The Charlotte Observer:
McCrory concedes; Cooper next N.C. Gov.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Associated Press, Outside the Beltway, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Amber Phillips / Washington Post:
North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) concedes closely contested governor's race

Discussion: Washington Monthly and The Root

David Wright / CNN:

Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner plan move to DC — Kushner is expected to play a significant role in the new Trump administration, while Ivanka Trump may take a lead role in managing her father's sprawling business interests — (CNN)Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner …

Discussion: Vanity Fair, RedState, ThinkProgress, Independent Journal Review, The Daily Caller, TheBlaze, CNBC, AOL, Washingtonian, Talking Points Memo and Political Wire

Tal Kopan / CNN:

Donald Trump meets with Al Gore on climate change — Republicans are critical of the scientific consensus that human activities are exacerbating global climate change — Washington (CNN)President-elect Donald Trump met on Monday with Al Gore — one of the most vocal advocates of fighting climate change.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, BBC, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, RedState, Hot Air, Mother Jones, The Guardian, NBC News, Talking Points Memo, The Week, TheBlaze and Washington Free Beacon

Timothy Cama / The Hill:

Al Gore has ‘extremely interesting’ meeting with Trump — Climate change activist and former vice president Al Gore — had what he described as a “very productive” meeting with President-elect Donald Trump — Monday. — Aides for Trump's transition team said earlier Monday …

Discussion: ABC News

Neetzan Zimmerman / The Hill:
Ivanka Trump to meet with Al Gore

Discussion: ABC News, BizPac Review, alan.com and Patterico's Pontifications

Elana Schor / Politico:

Democrats to give Trump Cabinet picks the Garland treatment — Senate Democrats are preparing to put Donald Trump's Cabinet picks through a grinding confirmation process, weighing delay tactics that could eat up weeks of the Senate calendar and hamper his first 100 days in office.

Discussion: Townhall.com, Raw Story, Taylor Marsh, Washington Monthly, No More Mister Nice Blog, Politicus USA, The Week, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, Hot Air, Talking Points Memo, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, RedState, The Resurgent, Political Wire and rubber hose

Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:
GOP wagers Americans don't care about Trump's conflicts

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Magazine, Daily Kos and Talking Points Memo

Juan Williams / The Hill: McConnell won big by blocking Obama

Nathan McDermott / CNN:

Trump adviser on Taiwan call: 'If China doesn't like it, screw ‘em’ — President-elect Trump slams China on Twitter_00013714.jpg — (CNN)Stephen Moore, an economic adviser to Donald Trump, defended the President-elect's recent call with the president of Taiwan, saying in a local radio interview that he didn't care if it upset China.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, alan.com and The Week

Walter Russell Mead / The American Interest: What the Taiwan Call Means

Mark Berman / Washington Post:
Mistrial declared in case of South Carolina officer who shot Walter Scott after traffic stop

Discussion: ThinkProgress, New York Times, Hot Air, The Root, The Daily Caller and The Week

Philip Bump / Washington Post:

In an anti-recount filing, Trump's lawyers say the election was ‘not tainted by fraud or mistake’ — Three leading Republicans were asked over the weekend whether or not they agreed with Donald Trump's tweeted assertion that millions of voters had cast illegal ballots (part of Trump's effort to rebut his popular vote loss).

Discussion: Politico, Gothamist, Law News, Talking Points Memo, Hot Air, CBS News and The Guardian

Scott Wong / The Hill:

GOP leader declines to back Trump tariff plan — House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Monday declined to support President-elect Donald Trump — 's proposed 35 percent tariff on companies that leave the U.S., warning it could spark a trade war.

Discussion: RedState and Business Insider

Rachael Bade / Politico:
Top House Republican won't back Trump's tariff proposal

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:

Trump selling ‘official’ presidential hat for $40 — 's campaign is now selling an “official” presidential hat for $40 on the president-elect's website. — The hat comes in color options including white and red and says “USA” in large letters on the front.

Discussion: alan.com

Business Wire:

Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco Logistics Partners Respond to the Statement from the Department of the Army — DALLAS & NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. (NYSE: ETP) and Sunoco Logistics Partners L.P. (NYSE: SXL) announced that the Administration's statement today …