memeorandum: White House blows off constitution, declares new limits on free speech for private enterprise (Caroline Orr/Shareblue)

12:55 PM ET, September 24, 2017

Top Items:

Julia Manchester / The Hill:

Mnuchin: NFL players ‘can do free speech on their own time’ … Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin on Sunday defended President Trump's attacks on NFL players who kneel during the national anthem, saying members of the league “can do free speech on their own time.”

Discussion: ABC News, Washington Post, Axios, Politico, IJR, AOL, Balloon Juice, FOX6Now.com, Mediaite and Common Dreams

Abby Phillip / Washington Post:

Trump demands NFL teams ‘fire or suspend’ players or risk fan boycott — SOMERSET, N.J. — President Trump on Sunday morning renewed his demand that NFL owners fire or suspend players who kneel during the national anthem in protest, again urging that fans should boycott the sport to force change.

Discussion: Taylor Marsh, Hit & Run, ABC News, The Hill, Political Wire, Deadspin, AOL, IJR, CBS New York, NBC News, BBC, The Atlantic, CBS Miami, USA Today, Axios and The Daily Caller

Mike Allen / Axios:

What Trump, the NFL are thinking — White House director of social media Dan Scavino last evening cc'd Brian McCarthy, the NFL's vice president of communications (@NFLprguy), on a Trump tweet criticizing Commissioner Roger Goodell. — The taunt reflects the fact that far from being sheepish …

Discussion: Political Wire, Politico, Instapundit, Washington Free Beacon and The Hill

Justin Coleman / ABC News:

NFL players can have the ‘First Amendment off the field’: Treasury chief Mnuchin says — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin defended President Donald Trump's comments calling for NFL players who kneel during the national anthem to be fired, saying, players “have the right to have the First Amendment off the field.”

Discussion: Fox News Insider

David Remnick / New Yorker:

The Racial Demagoguery of Trump's Assaults on Colin Kaepernick and Steph Curry — Every day, and in countless and unexpected ways, Donald Trump, the President of the United States, finds new ways to divide and demoralize his country and undermine the national interest.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, SI.com, Washington Post and CNN

Marissa Payne / Washington Post:
'To single out NFL players for doing this isn't something we should be doing': A's player takes up anthem protest

Discussion: JustOneMinute, San Francisco Chronicle, Daily Wire, USA Today, Associated Press, Mediaite, FOX6Now.com, TheBlaze, The Last Tradition and Mother Jones

Chris Cillizza / CNN:
The dark racial sentiment in Trump's NBA and NFL criticism

Sally Jenkins / Washington Post: What President Trump doesn't get about the NFL

Julie Hirschfeld Davis / New York Times:
Trump Calls for Boycott if N.F.L. Doesn't Crack Down on Anthem Protests

Discussion: Washington Post, ABC News, Althouse, ThinkProgress, Shareblue, The Ringer - All, Mashable, IJR, The Last Tradition, ProFootballTalk, Raw Story, The Daily Caller and Mediaite

Kevin Robillard / Politico:

Graham: 'We're going to get the votes next week' — South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said the GOP would manage to round up the 50 votes necessary to pass Obamacare repeal through the Senate by the end of the next week. but their path to 50 is unclear. — “I think we're going to get the …

Discussion: Political Wire

Lauren Fox / CNN:

Collins: ‘Very difficult for me to envision a scenario’ where she backs GOP health care bill — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — Watch Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, speak with CNN's Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” at 9 a.m. ET and noon ET. — (CNN)Sen. Susan Collins said Sunday morning …

Discussion: New York Magazine and NBC News

Politico:

Cruz opposes latest Obamacare repeal — AUSTIN, Texas — Sen. Ted Cruz said Sunday that he doesn't support the latest Obamacare repeal plan drafted by Sens. Bill Cassidy and Lindsey Graham and suggested that the proposal also lacks the vote of Sen. Mike Lee.

Nicki Zink / ABC News:
GOP health care act sponsor to a Republican opponent: The bill will ‘save a lot of money’

Discussion: Politico

Politico:
Republicans continue Obamacare repeal work despite opposition

Discussion: Axios and ABC News

Caroline Orr / Shareblue:

White House blows off constitution, declares new limits on free speech for private enterprise — Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin defended Donald Trump's recent attacks on free speech with his own galling sentiment. — In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, Mnuchin declared that NFL players only …

Discussion: USA Today

Andrew Carter / The Charlotte Observer:

UNC national championship team not visiting White House — CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina's 2017 national championship men's basketball team will not visit the White House, a team spokesman said on Saturday, though the Tar Heels were invited to visit, as is the custom for teams …

Discussion: Mediaite

ESPN:
Warriors get shunned by president before there could be a dialogue

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post, The Atlantic, Raw Story, The Hill, NBC News, IJR, CBS Miami, Hullabaloo, Axios, Associated Press, USA Today, The Ringer - All, CBS New York and ThinkProgress

Jacqueline Thomsen / The Hill:
Steph Curry: It's ‘beneath’ Trump's position to target me

Discussion: Power Line, USA Today, Associated Press, Raw Story and Mediaite

Gary Langer / ABC News:

Trump seen by most Americans as doing more to divide than unite country (POLL) — President Donald Trump faces deep challenges on international and domestic issues alike, with a job approval rating mired in historic lows, a broad sense he's done more to divide than unite the country …

Discussion: The Hill, RedState, Politico and Opinion Today

Brooke Seipel / The Hill:
Trump on NK nuclear threats: 'They won't be around much longer'

Discussion: USA Today, RedState, Axios, CNBC, The Daily Caller, Reuters and Business Insider

Scott Clement / Washington Post:
Poll: Far more trust generals than Trump on N. Korea, while two-thirds oppose preemptive strike

Discussion: Axios and Politico

CNN:

CNN Poll: Opinion of the Republican Party falls to all-time low — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — WASHINGTON (CNN)There are fresh signs the Republican Party's brand is in trouble. — Fewer than three in 10 Americans — 29% — hold a favorable view of the Republican Party according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS.

Brian Stelter / CNNMoney:

Exclusive: NFL airing unity ad in prime time on Sunday — With President Trump taking aim at the NFL and its players who protest during the national anthem, the league is broadcasting a message of unity. — The NFL is dusting off a one-minute ad that it produced for the Super Bowl earlier this year.

Discussion: Raw Story

Fox News:

HHS Secretary Price will stop using private planes until internal review is completed — Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price on Saturday defended his using of private planes for official travel, saying he welcomes an internal review of the flights that have recently come under scrutiny …