memeorandum: Jerry Brown: California Taxpayers are ‘Freeloaders’ (Joel B. Pollak/Breitbart)

5:45 PM ET, May 17, 2017

Top Items:

Cristina Marcos / The Hill:

First Republican raises impeachment for Trump — (R-Mich.) on Wednesday said reports that President Trump pressed ousted FBI Director James Comey to end an investigation would merit impeachment if true, becoming the first Republican lawmaker to broach the idea.

Discussion: Shareblue, ABC News, Politico, Refinery29, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, Mediaite, The Gateway Pundit, The Week and Political Wire, more at Mediagazer »

Matthew Nussbaum / Politico:

White House on edge: ‘We are kind of helpless’ — It was, in the words of one senior White House official, the worst day of Trump's presidency. — White House officials spent early Tuesday wondering who was leaking details of President Donald Trump's classified conversations with Russian officials …

Discussion: Axios, Washington Monthly, Daily Kos, BillMoyers.com, Raw Story, Mediaite and The Week

New York Times:

Comey Memo Fallout: Senate Committee Invites Comey to Testify — The Senate Intelligence Committee invited the former F.B.I. director James B. Comey to testify on reports that President Trump asked him to scuttle the investigation into Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser.

Dan Merica / CNN:

Trump to graduates: ‘No politician in history... has been treated worse’ — New London, Connecticut (CNN)President Donald Trump, amid his own swirling controversies, advised United States Coast Guard Academy graduates that while things aren't always fair, “you have to put your head down and fight, fight, fight.”

Discussion: New York Times, Hit & Run, IJR, Mediaite, TheBlaze, Booman Tribune and Lawyers, Guns & Money

USA Today:

Pretend Clinton did what Trump has done — Republicans in Congress and conservative media would be clamoring for investigations, if not impeachment: Our view — Imagine what would have happened had a President Hillary Clinton abruptly fired the man overseeing an investigation of her campaign's ties to a hostile foreign government.

Discussion: Washington Post, The Atlantic, CNBC, New York Times, CNN, Washington Monthly, New York Post and NPR

Mike Allen / Axios:

“Comey's revenge” may be far from over — Republicans close to the White House fear that yesterday's revelations could take President Trump into a legal or constitutional realm where his staff and supporters can't save him. — “A whole new door has opened,” said a well-known Republican operative …

Discussion: Politico, ABC News, The Daily Beast, ThinkProgress, Just Security, IJR, Fox News Insider, The Daily Caller, Vox, The National Interest, Weekly Standard, Mediaite and Feeds

Cristina Marcos / The Hill:
First Republicans talk possibility of impeachment for Trump

Discussion: Breitbart, Mother Jones, TheStreet, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, The Daily Caller, NBC News, Talking Points Memo and TheBlaze

Brian Beutler / New Republic:
Trump Has Really Screwed Himself This Time

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, CBS News, Media Matters for America, The Guardian, Daily Kos and Balloon Juice

Washington Examiner:
GOP fears Trump will take the Republican Party down with him

Discussion: Washington Post and Raw Story

David Remnick / New Yorker:
Is the Comey Memo the Beginning of the End for Trump?

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Hot Air, ThinkProgress, CNN, Fox News, Indy Week, The Week and Political Wire

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
Trump considering Joe Lieberman for FBI director

Discussion: Latest from Crooks and Liars and Mediaite

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:
Trump: No politician has been treated worse by media than me

Discussion: RedState

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Trump to interview Joe Lieberman, 3 others for FBI post

David Nakamura / Washington Post:
Trump claims ‘no politician in history’ has been ‘treated worse or more unfairly’

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, ABC News, New York Times, Politico, Mashable, The Guardian, Media Matters for America and Vox

Seung Min Kim / Politico:
Senate Intelligence Committee leaders demand Comey memos

Discussion: Breitbart, The Atlantic, New York Times, ThinkProgress, Washington Post, Media Matters for America, Chuck Grassley, ABC News, HuffPost, Talking Points Memo, Common Dreams, Little Green Footballs, NPR, Townhall.com, TheBlaze, Gizmodo, The Guardian and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

David A. Graham / The Atlantic:
The Trump Presidency Falls Apart

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Sunlight Foundation, Shareblue, Washington Monthly, Politicus USA and The Week

Allegra Kirkland / Talking Points Memo: Murkowski: ‘May’ Be Time For Independent Probe On Trump-FBI-Russia

Jeff Larson / ProPublica:

Any Half-Decent Hacker Could Break Into Mar-a-Lago — We tested internet security at four Trump properties. It's not good. — Two weeks ago, on a sparkling spring morning, we went trawling along Florida's coastal waterway. But not for fish. — We parked a 17-foot motor boat in a lagoon …

Discussion: Axios and The Week, more at Techmeme »

Gizmodo:
Any Half-Decent Hacker Could Break Into Mar-a-Lago. We Tested It.

Discussion: Raw Story

Chris Cillizza / CNN:

The scariest thought: What if Donald Trump just doesn't know what he's doing? — (CNN)The fundamental question, always, when it comes to President Donald Trump is this: Is he following a grand plan that only he can see or is he just saying and doing things with no broader blueprint in mind?

Discussion: Hullabaloo, New York Magazine and AOL

Mark Landler / New York Times:
A New Goal for President Trump's First Foreign Trip: Damage Control

Discussion: The Hill, The Independent and SiliconBeat

Reuters:
Embroiled in controversies, Trump seeks boost on foreign trip

Discussion: The Hill, Shareblue, RedState, Daily Kos, Talking Points Memo, The Week and twitchy.com

Josh Rogin / Washington Post:
Trump to unveil plans for an ‘Arab NATO’ in Saudi Arabia

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Politico, ABC News, RedState, Hot Air and Shakesville

Sarah Wildman / Vox:
Trump gave the Russians Israeli intelligence. That's a uniquely bad country to compromise.

Discussion: RedState, Politico and New York Times, more at Mediagazer »

Ross Douthat / New York Times:

The 25th Amendment Solution for Removing Trump — It was just three days and a lifetime ago that I wrote a column about Donald Trump's unfitness for the presidency that affected a world-weary tone. Nothing about this White House's chaos was surprising given the style of Trump's campaign, I argued.

Discussion: National Review, Vox, Washington Post, Bloomberg, Outside the Beltway, Hot Air, The Atlantic, Business Insider, The Rush Limbaugh Show, THE WARREN (HENRY) REPORT, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Mother Jones, New York Magazine, The Gateway Pundit and The Week

Jonathan Swan / Axios: Behind closed doors, House GOP “shellshocked” by Comey

John Daniel Davidson / The Federalist: The Media Elite Is Indulging Dangerous Fantasies About Removing Trump From Office

Wall Street Journal:

Russian State-Run Bank Financed Deal Involving Trump Hotel Partner — A Russian-Canadian developer put money into a Donald Trump hotel project in Toronto after receiving hundreds of millions from a deal involving Russian state-run bank VEB.

Discussion: Axios, Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, ThinkProgress, Raw Story, AOL and The Week

Dave Itzkoff / New York Times:

Jimmy Fallon Was on Top of the World. Then Came Trump. — Ambling onto the Art Deco set of “The Tonight Show” for his monologue rehearsal one Monday afternoon, Jimmy Fallon gave the crowd here at Studio 6B a warm, practiced welcome before trying out a new batch of jokes about the French election …

Discussion: TheBlaze, Gothamist, The Daily Caller, The Guardian, AOL, Refinery29, IndieWire, Shakesville, Mashable and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Sandra Sobieraj Westfall / People.com:

What Does Barack Obama Really Think of Donald Trump? 'He's Nothing But a Bullsh-ter' — She packs her own lunch, and he still isn't allowed to drive. Subscribe now for all about Michelle and Barack Obama's lives after moving out of the White House - only in PEOPLE

Discussion: Fox News Insider, The Root, Raw Story, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, IJR, Infowars, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, AOL, Refinery29, The Week and Washington Free Beacon

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke accepts job in Department of Homeland Security — Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr. will leave office next month to accept a federal appointment as an assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Discussion: Mother Jones, RT, Raw Story, The Week and IJR

Natalie Johnson / Washington Free Beacon:
Trump Administration Taps Sheriff David Clarke for DHS Role

Discussion: Hit & Run, ThinkProgress, The Root and Media Matters for America

Bloomberg:

Trump Said to Rule Out Moving Israel Embassy to Jerusalem — The embassy will remain in Tel Aviv for now, official says — Administration seeks to avoid provoking Palestinians — President Donald Trump has decided not to immediately move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem …

Discussion: CNN, ABC News, Political Wire, Hot Air, The Week and Jerusalem Post

David Montero / Los Angeles Times:

Alex Jones settles Chobani lawsuit and retracts comments about refugees in Twin Falls, Idaho — Inside the Chobani Yogurt factory in Twin Falls, Idaho. — Alex Jones backed down. Again. — The far-right conspiracy theorist agreed Wednesday to settle a defamation lawsuit filed against him by Greek yogurt manufacturer Chobani.

Discussion: Right Wing Watch and Media Matters for America, more at Mediagazer »

Austin American-Statesman:

‘THIS IS CRAZY’: Austin man sues date for texting during movie — A man is suing a Round Rock woman for texting during a movie date at the Barton Creek Square theater, according to a petition filed in small claims court in Travis County. — Brandon Vezmar, 37, of Austin filed the claim Thursday against his date.

Discussion: Breitbart, The Daily Caller, Refinery29, IndieWire, Mashable, AOL, Fox News Insider and TheBlaze

Matt O'Brien / Washington Post:

Why liberal democracy only dies when conservatives help — Liberal democracy is not dead, but it's not well. From Hungary to Poland to even the United States, far-right populists have won power, and, in a few cases, are busy consolidating it. — In some sense, it shouldn't be too surprising …

Max Kutner / Newsweek:

FBI NOT PROBING DNC STAFFER SETH RICH'S MURDER, DESPITE WIKILEAKS CLAIM — U.S. SETH RICH #DNCLEAKS DNC HACK DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE — The FBI is not investigating the unsolved murder of former Democratic National Committee staffer Seth Rich, Newsweek has learned.

Discussion: New York Times, CNNMoney, NPR, Washington Post, The Daily Caller, RT, WTTG-TV, Right Wing Watch, Infowars and Washingtonian, more at Mediagazer »

Joel B. Pollak / Breitbart:

Jerry Brown: California Taxpayers are ‘Freeloaders’ — California Governor Jerry Brown referred to taxpayers as “freeloaders” last week for objecting to his new gas tax and car fee hikes. — “The freeloaders — I've had enough of them ... They have a president that doesn't tell the truth and they're following suit,” he said.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, RedState and The Resurgent

Samantha Schmidt / Washington Post:

Yale dean once championed cultural sensitivity. Then she called people ‘white trash’ on Yelp. — As the dean of Yale University's Pierson College, June Chu is responsible for advising about 500 students and fostering “a familiar, comfortable living environment” in keeping with the university's residential college system.