memeorandum: Response to Ben Shapiro: Five Reasons I Don't Care If Donald Trump Lies (John Nolte/Daily Wire)

5:20 PM ET, January 23, 2017

Top Items:

Sources say Trump's CIA visit made relations with intel community worse — U.S. government sources tell CBS News that there is a sense of unease in the intelligence community after President Trump's visit to CIA headquarters on Saturday. — An official said the visit …

CNN:

TPP withdrawal Trump's first executive action Monday, sources say — (CNN)President Donald Trump's first executive action on Monday will be to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, two sources familiar with matter told CNN. — That withdrawal is consistent with campaign promises Trump made.

Discussion: ABC News, LifeNews.com, The Atlantic, Common Dreams, Wall Street Journal, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Gateway Pundit, Hot Air, Axios, New York Magazine, Talking Points Memo and Althouse

CNBC:
Trump to sign executive order to renegotiate NAFTA and intent to leave TPP

Discussion: Vox, The Hill, Forbes, Motherboard, BizPac Review and Washington Free Beacon

Jacob Pramuk / CNBC:
Trump tells business leaders he wants to cut regulations by 75% or ‘maybe more’

Discussion: The Atlantic, NPR and The Gateway Pundit

Jenna Johnson / Washington Post:
Trump to CEOs: Stay here, and I'll wipe out 75 percent of regulations, fast-track factories

Discussion: Daily Kos

Peter Baker / New York Times:
Trump Abandons Trans-Pacific Partnership, Obama's Signature Trade Deal

Discussion: The Atlantic, Hit & Run and Techdirt

David Weigel / Washington Post:
Sanders, joined by rust belt Democrats, praises Trump for nixing TPP

Discussion: Vox, The Daily Caller and Jamie Dupree

Louis Nelson / Politico:

White House press briefings to go virtual — White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Monday that beginning later this week, he will take questions at his daily press briefing via Skype from reporters based outside of Washington. — Spicer said four of the so-called “Skype seats” …

Discussion: ABC News and Political Wire

New York Times:
Rocky First Weekend for Trump Troubles Even His Top Aides

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Trump administration signals no immediate reversal on Dreamer program

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Vox, Fox News and CNSNews

Jack Shafer / Politico:
Put on Your Big-Boy Pants, Journos

Discussion: Recode, The Guardian, The Week, Sydney Morning Herald, Washington Post, CNBC, PressThink, Salon, Hullabaloo, CNN, Hot Air, TheBlaze and RedState, more at Mediagazer »

Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
How Sean Spicer messed up, and how he can make it right — from a guy who's been there

Discussion: Business Insider, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and Balloon Juice

Ryan Struyk / ABC News:
The Note: President Trump's First Monday at the Office

Discussion: Politico, BizPac Review, Associated Press and John Hawkins' Right Wing News

I believe the president is entitled to:

I believe the president is entitled to significant deference when it comes to his choices for the cabinet. I also believe given the uncertainty surrounding the future direction of our foreign policy that a higher degree of scrutiny is justified in evaluating whoever is nominated to serve as secretary of state.

Discussion: The Hill, Vox, Washington Post, Business Insider, Axios, Sputnik International, Common Dreams, New York Times, Hot Air, The Atlantic, The Week, Politico, New York Magazine, IJR and Talking Points Memo

Joe Davidson / Washington Post:

Trump's federal hiring freeze draws immediate fire from unions — Federal labor leaders were ready when President Trump froze government hiring Monday. It was a campaign promise they criticized before the election and did so again shortly after he made good on the pledge.

Discussion: RedState, Hit & Run, Business Insider, Common Dreams, The Gateway Pundit and The Geller Report

Andrew Restuccia / Politico:

Revenge of the bureaucrats — President Donald Trump is setting himself up for a messy clash with the country's 2.1 million federal employees as his administration quietly preps plans to cut the size of the government workforce. — As one of his first acts Monday, Trump signed an executive order freezing most federal hiring.

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Sasha Savitsky / Fox News:

NBC won't comment on ‘SNL’ writer's controversial Barron Trump tweet — NBC won't comment on a “Saturday Night Live” writer's tweet that went after President Donald Trump's youngest son Barron. — Katie Rich said Friday in a now-deleted tweet that Barron Trump “will be this country's first homeschool shooter.”

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, New York Times, IJR, TheBlaze, KFOR-TV, New York Post and Instapundit

Nellie Andreeva / Deadline:

‘Saturday Night Live’ Writer Katie Rich Suspended Over Barron Trump Tweet, Issues Apology — Katie Rich, writer for Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update, who sparked a backlash with a tweet targeting President Donald Trump's 10-year-old son Barron, is no longer working on NBC's veteran late-night sketch comedy show.

Discussion: New York Times, Politico, Gothamist, Washington Post, AOL, The Daily Caller, CBS Philly, TMZ.com, Mashable and twitchy.com

CNNMoney:

Trump Organization documents say he has resigned from more than 400 businesses — President Donald Trump says he has resigned from positions in hundreds of business entities, according to a document provided to CNN by the Trump Organization. — The text of the 19-page letter reads: “I …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos and The Week

Ben Smith / New York Times:

Why BuzzFeed News Published the Dossier — Since BuzzFeed News published a 35-page dossier of unverified allegations about ties between President Donald J. Trump and Russia, I've heard a chorus of criticism from journalists who say we abdicated our role as gatekeeper, and a chorus of thanks …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Hill, BizPac Review, RedState, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, TheBlaze, Politico and Althouse, more at Mediagazer »

Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
We Are Dissidents; We Are Legion — On Friday, Donald J. Trump …

Discussion: Raw Story and The Week

Jessie Hellmann / The Hill:

Trump reinstates ban on US funds promoting abortion overseas — President Trump on Monday morning signed an executive order blocking foreign aid or federal funding for international nongovernmental organizations that provide or “promote” abortions. — The order comes one day after the 44th anniversary …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, The Moderate Voice, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Center for American Progress, Politico, Motherboard, AOL, Washington Free Beacon, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Hot Air

Billy House / Bloomberg:

Trump Aide Says He Won't Release Taxes, Breaking Campaign Pledge — Tax issue was litigated by winning campaign, Conway says — ‘We the People’ petition has over 200,000 signatures — The White House now has no intention of releasing President Donald Trump's tax returns …

Discussion: Politico, Common Dreams, ThinkProgress, Shareblue, The Verge, taxpolicycenter.org, Talking Points Memo, The Week, NPR, ABC News and RT

Evan Osnos / New Yorker:

Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich — Some of the wealthiest people in America—in Silicon Valley, New York, and beyond—are getting ready for the crackup of civilization. — Steve Huffman, the thirty-three-year-old co-founder and C.E.O. of Reddit, which is valued at six hundred million dollars …

Discussion: Business Insider and Mashable

John Nolte / Daily Wire:

Response to Ben Shapiro: Five Reasons I Don't Care If Donald Trump Lies — Let me first acknowledge Ben Shapiro's Sunday piece about those who excuse from Donald Trump what they never would from Barack Obama. On this particular subject, I have been very clear since the beginning, since The Donald stepped out onto the political stage.

Discussion: RedState

Simón Rios / WBUR:

WBUR Poll: Republican Gov. Baker More Popular Than Democrat Sen. Warren 04:56 — Play — Over four years in office, Elizabeth Warren has staked her claim as the Senate's liberal lion. And many Massachusetts voters like it — 51 percent view her favorably.

Discussion: RedState, Politico, Power Line, The Lid, Hot Air, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Daily Caller, Politicker, Mediaite and TheBlaze

Gabriel Debenedetti / Politico:

Hillary Clinton plots her next move — LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — In a series of private meetings and phone calls at their home in Chappaqua, in New York City and in Washington, Bill and Hillary Clinton are slowly starting to puzzle through their political future, according to over a dozen people …

Discussion: RedState, Washington Free Beacon, The Daily Caller, Hot Air, The Week and Political Wire

Michael Hiltzik / Los Angeles Times:

Column U.S. judge finds that Aetna misled the public about its reasons for quitting Obamacare — Aetna Chairman and CEO Mark Bertolini groused about the Department of Justice lawsuit blocking the company's merger with Humana in an interview this summer on Aetna's website. (Aetna)

Stephen F. Hayes / Weekly Standard:

Republicans: Schumer Broke His Word on Pompeo Confirmation — An inside look at the behind-the-scenes drama. — Rep. Mike Pompeo, R-Kan., nominee for director of the Central Intelligence Agency, testifies during his Senate Select Intelligence Committee confirmation hearing in Dirksen Building, January 12, 2017.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Hot Air, BizPac Review, Booman Tribune, The Daily Caller, Power Line, Instapundit and New York Times

Judith Thurman / New Yorker:

Philip Roth E-Mails on Trump — In 2004, the writer published “The Plot Against America,” about an election that upends the country. Has it happened here? — In 2004, Philip Roth published “The Plot Against America.” The four main characters of the novel, which takes place between June …

Discussion: Liberal Values, Hullabaloo and Axios

Neetzan Zimmerman / The Hill:

Defense Department links social media use to mental health in official tweet — A tweet posted Monday morning by the Department of Defense is raising eyebrows for linking social media use to mental health. — “Social media postings sometimes provide an important window into a person's #mentalhealth …

Discussion: RedState, Politico, AOL, Slate and Talking Points Memo

Stephen Rodrick / Rolling Stone:

The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence — He's trampled on the rights of women, LGBTQ folks and the poor. Then there's the incompetence. Meet, quite possibly, the next president — During his time as Indiana governor, Mike Pence made a name for himself as virulently anti-abortion and anti-LGBT.

Discussion: The Week