memeorandum: Traveler, USC's mascot, comes under scrutiny for having a name similar to Robert E. Lee's horse (Nathan Fenno/Los Angeles Times)

3:45 PM ET, August 19, 2017

Top Items:

Mike Allen / Axios:

Bannon plots Fox competitor, global expansion — Unshaven and working from home in cargo shorts as he moves into “Bannon the Barbarian” mode, Steve Bannon is thinking bigger than Breitbart. — Axios' Jonathan Swan hears Bannon has told friends he sees a massive opening to the right of Fox News …

Discussion: Business Insider, Politico, The Gateway Pundit, Politicus USA, Washington Post, Mediaite and Los Angeles Blade, more at Mediagazer »

Mike Allen / Axios:

Trump: “Who the f@&$ does this guy think he is?” — Bannon didn't bother to go to work yesterday. He knew it was over. — At the end, Trump was beyond fed up, viewing Bannon as a self-aggrandizer who had built a personal narrative as the grand puppetmaster.

Discussion: Hullabaloo, Conservative News Today, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story and Mediaite

Ryan Lizza / New Yorker:

The Rise and Fall of Steve Bannon — In March, I went to the White House to visit Steve Bannon, who today was fired by President Trump. After Bannon showed off his office and his famous whiteboard, we sat down at a wooden conference table in the large corner office of Reince Priebus, who was then the White House chief of staff.

Discussion: Hullabaloo, more at Mediagazer »

John Wagner / Washington Post:
On Twitter, Trump thanks Bannon for his role in defeating ‘Crooked Hillary Clinton’

Discussion: CNBC, The Week, Joe.My.God. and Chicago Tribune

Peter J. Boyer / Weekly Standard:
Bannon: ‘The Trump Presidency That We Fought For, and Won, Is Over.’

Bill Scher / Politico:
Why Bannon Lost and the Globalists Won

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Times, VICE News, Sputnik International, 89.3 KPCC, Informed Comment, Raw Story, Weekly Standard, The Guardian and NBC News

Charlie Spiering / Breitbart:
Steve Bannon Speaks After White House Departure: 'I'm Going to War for Trump'

Discussion: John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Sputnik International, Business Insider and twitchy.com

Asawin Suebsaeng / The Daily Beast:
Seb Gorka's Fate ‘Extremely Uncertain’ as His Boss Bannon Is Ousted

Discussion: Raw Story and New York Magazine

New York Times:
Steve Bannon, Back on the Outside, Prepares His Enemies List

Discussion: Sputnik International, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, Daily Wire, Hot Air, Balloon Juice, The Hill, CNNMoney, vice and Axios

Nathan Fenno / Los Angeles Times:

Traveler, USC's mascot, comes under scrutiny for having a name similar to Robert E. Lee's horse — Hector Aguilar sits atop Traveler moments before a USC football game Oct. 18, 2014. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) — When Richard Saukko galloped his chalk-white Arabian horse named Traveler around …

Discussion: Power Line, Daily Trojan, IJR and The College Fix

President Vincent E. Price / Duke Today:

Duke Removes Robert E. Lee Statue From Chapel Entrance — Statue will be preserved for students to study university's ‘complex past’ — Editor's Note: — After hearing from and consulting with a number of students, faculty, staff, and alumni, and with the strong support of the Board of Trustees …

Discussion: IJR, Washington Post, TheBlaze and NPR

Jonathan Drew / Talking Points Memo:

Duke University Removes Statue Of Robert E. Lee From Campus Chapel — DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — Duke University removed a statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee early Saturday after it was vandalized amid a national debate about monuments to the Confederacy. — The university said it removed …

Discussion: Durham Herald-Sun and Washington Journal

Haley Britzky / Axios:
When Confederate statues were erected throughout history

Discussion: Politico

Max Boot / Foreign Policy:
The Difference Between George Washington and Robert E. Lee

Discussion: PBS NewsHour, Daily Wire and CNN

Senator Ben Sasse:

THE NEXT CHARLOTTESVILLE — Over the last week, many Nebraskans have told me some version of this: “There are lots of us here who are scared about where the country is headed. I think more violence is inevitable.” That much seems obvious. Less expected was where some of them went next.

Discussion: Mediaite, Axios, The Guardian, No More Mister Nice Blog, Raw Story and RedState

Wesley Lowery / Washington Post:

‘Free speech’ rally ends early as thousands of counter-protesters descend on Boston Common — BOSTON - Thousands of counter-protesters crammed Boston Common and marched through city streets on Saturday morning in efforts to drown out the planned “free speech” rally that many feared would be attended by white supremacist groups.

Discussion: BostonGlobe.com, Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress, New York Times, Mediaite, Boston Herald, CBS Boston, Rewire and Right Wing Watch

Doug Stanglin / USA Today:

Thousands march in Boston for protests a week after deadly demonstration — Thousands of counterprotesters marched through downtown Boston on Saturday to condemn neo-Nazis and white nationalism as conservative and libertarian activists mounted a “Free Speech Rally” at Boston Common …

Discussion: Boston Globe, JustOneMinute, CBS Boston, CBS New York and twitchy.com

Matthew Nussbaum / Politico:

Trumps to skip Kennedy Center Honors after artists boycott event — President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump will skip this year's Kennedy Center Honors, the White House announced on Saturday, after multiple honorees said they would skip the event.

Discussion: ABC News and Washington Free Beacon

David Nakamura / Washington Post:

Trump, first lady to skip Kennedy Center Honors over concerns of ‘political distraction’ — President Trump and first lady Melania Trump have elected not to attend the annual Kennedy Center Honors in December amid a political backlash among those who will be feted at the event.

Discussion: New York Times, Shareblue, IJR and The Week, more at Mediagazer »

Matt Pearce / Los Angeles Times:

Tweet from the account of Charlottesville rally organizer insults slain protester Heather Heyer — Jason Kessler, right, organizer of the Unite the Right rally last weekend, speaks at a press conference Sunday at Charlottesville City Hall. (Tasos Katopodis / EPA)

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Joe.My.God. and Raw Story

Chris Suarez / Daily Progress:
Kessler described as one-time wannabe liberal activist

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Betsy Woodruff / The Daily Beast:

Sheriff: Trump Wants Us To Break The Law … President Donald Trump's crackdown on undocumented immigrants has some sheriffs worried the White House is pushing them to break the law - demanding they violate the Fourth Amendment or face vilification from the commander-in-chief.

Discussion: Raw Story

mypalmbeachpost:

Five more charities pull out of Mar-a-Lago events … Five more philanthropic organizations said Friday they have pulled their fundraising events from President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club following an intense social media push calling on people to boycott charities that use the venue.

Discussion: NPR, Politico, Palm Beach Post and Political Wire

palmbeachdailynews:
Keeping track at home? Here's a list of who's leaving Mar-a-Lago

Discussion: ThinkProgress, New York Magazine and Raw Story

Kimberley A. Strassel / Wall Street Journal:

The ‘Resistance’ Goes Lower — Green groups are attacking staffers merely for working in Trump's government. — In a better world, Americans would never hear the name Samantha Dravis. She wouldn't be pictured on the front page of the New York Times or added to environmentalist “watch lists.”

CBS News:

1 Florida police officer killed, 3 others injured in separate shootings — KISSIMMEE, Fla. — One police officer was killed and three wounded in nighttime shootings in two Florida cities where the officers were responding to suspected drug activity and reports of a suicide attempt, police said Saturday.

Discussion: Orlando Sentinel, WOOD-TV, The Daily Caller, New York Times and IJR