memeorandum: If the Government Cannot Be Trusted, Can It Protect the Nation? (Andrew C. McCarthy/National Review)

12:30 PM ET, April 16, 2017

Top Items:

Donald Trump / ABC News:

Trump ‘will take action’ to end any North Korea threat to US: top security adviser — National security adviser said Trump won't allow North Korea threat to continue. — 58m ago — ‘This Week’ Transcript: High Alert | North Korea — A rush transcript for “This Week” on April, 16 2017.

Discussion: Politico, Talking Points Memo, KTLA and Associated Press

Josh Meyer / Politico:

Failure to sanction China helped North Korea, former officials say — Even as presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping pledge to stop North Korea's fast-advancing nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, there's one uncomfortable secret that neither leader has publicly acknowledged …

Discussion: ABC News

Patrick Sawer / Telegraph:

Is this the missile Donald Trump is afraid of? Kim Jong-un puts show of nuclear strength in Pyongyang parade — Tension between North Korea and the United States rose to new levels on Saturday after the Pyongyang regime unveiled what could be a missile capable of striking the American mainland.

Discussion: Infowars

ABC News:

‘This Week’ Transcript: High Alert | North Korea — THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT FOR ‘THIS WEEK’ on April 16, 2017 and it will be updated. — MARTHA RADDATZ, ABC HOST: That was then-candidate Donald Trump during the New Hampshire primary debate saying that China should take care of the North Korea.

Discussion: Politico, Talking Points Memo and Associated Press

BBC:

N Korea missile launch fails, says South Korea — North Korea has attempted to launch a missile on its east coast which is believed to have failed, South Korea's military says. — It comes a day after the state warned the US that it was “ready to hit back with nuclear attacks” amid mounting tension in the region.

Discussion: Raw Story, AOL, The Gateway Pundit, Axios and CNN

Anna Fifield / Washington Post:
N. Korea didn't test a nuclear weapon, but it did try to launch another missile

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Power Line, New York Times and Hot Air

Scott Campbell / Daily Mail:
BREAKING NEWS: North Korea ‘attempts to launch missile but fails’ …

Discussion: Infowars

CNN:

Pro-Trump, anti-Trump protesters clash in Berkeley, California — (CNN)At least 13 people were arrested as pro-Trump and anti-Trump protestors clashed Saturday at a park in Berkeley, California, police said. — “A large number of fights have occurred and numerous fireworks have been thrown in the crowds …

Discussion: The Root, CBS San Francisco, Raw Story and The Daily Caller

NBC Bay Area:

Twenty-One People Arrested as Clashes Break Out at Opposing Rallies in Berkeley — In what has become an eerily familiar scene in Berkeley, supporters and detractors of President Donald Trump on Saturday exchanged blows, burned flags, and set off fireworks at opposing rallies, resulting in at least 21 arrests, police said.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and Business Insider

Los Angeles Times:
Berkeley braces for another pro-Trump rally, counter protests

Discussion: Vox Popoli, Daily Wire, Instapundit, The Hill, Washington Post, TheBlaze, Infowars and Althouse

KRON4.com:
VIDEO: 21 arrested in violent pro, anti-Trump protests in Berkeley

Discussion: CBS San Francisco and The Gateway Pundit

David Ferguson / Raw Story:

White supremacist caught on video sucker-punching woman Berkeley protester faces calls for arrest — DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY! — A notorious white supremacist got caught on camera sucker-punching a woman in the melee that erupted on Saturday in Berkeley, CA between pro- and anti-Trump demonstrators.

Travis Waldron / The Huffington Post:

WTF Happened To Curt Schilling? — How the Red Sox hero went from the top of the world to the bottom of the fever swamps. — The sign appeared in a window above Boylston Street as the Red Sox paraded through downtown Boston to celebrate the team's first World Series title in 86 years.

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money

Matthew Nussbaum / Politico:

Has Trump found religion in the Oval Office? — President Donald Trump has increasingly infused references to God into his prepared remarks — calling on God to bless all the world after launching strikes in Syria, asking God to bless the newest Supreme Court Justice, invoking the Lord to argue in favor of a war on opioids.

Discussion: Mother Jones and Political Wire

Ian Mason / Breitbart:

Weiner Rising in White House: Ally of Disgraced Ex-Congressman Hired — Jared Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump enlisted the services of Risa Heller, a New York City public relations figure known for her work with Democrats including former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), Sen. Chuck Schumer …

Discussion: Mediaite

New York Times:

With Trump Appointees, a Raft of Potential Conflicts and ‘No Transparency’ — WASHINGTON — President Trump is populating the White House and federal agencies with former lobbyists, lawyers and consultants who in many cases are helping to craft new policies for the same industries in which they recently earned a paycheck.

Discussion: Business Insider, ProPublica and Political Wire, more at Mediagazer »

Clare Foran / The Atlantic:

Are Anti-Trump Protests Losing Steam? — On Saturday, protesters plan to gather in cities across the United States, and around the world, to demand that President Trump release his tax returns, in an early test of the strength and staying power of the grassroots movement that has mobilized in opposition to the new administration.

Discussion: NBC News and ThinkProgress