memeorandum: Exclusive: A top Trump campaign adviser close to plea deal with Mueller (CNN)

11:00 PM ET, February 15, 2018

Top Items:

No, there haven't been 18 school shootings in 2018. That number is flat wrong. … The stunning number swept across the Internet within minutes of the news Wednesday that, yet again, another young man with another semi-automatic rifle had rampaged through a school, this time at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in South Florida.

Discussion: Dallas Morning News, twitchy.com, JustOneMinute, National Review, EW.com, Raw Story, Vox, Daily Wire, New Republic, Investor's Business Daily, The Right Scoop, The Daily Caller, The Daily Signal, ThinkProgress, IJR and New York Times

Anti-Defamation League:

Florida White Supremacist Group Admits Ties to Alleged Parkland School Shooter Nikolas Cruz — A spokesperson for the white supremacist group Republic of Florida (ROF) told the Anti-Defamation League on Thursday, February 15, that Nikolas Cruz, the man charged with the previous day's deadly shooting spree …

The Daily Beast:

White Supremacists Claim Nikolas Cruz Trained With Them; Students Say He Wore Trump Hat in School … PARKLAND, Florida—Nikolas Cruz, the man accused of killing 17 people in a Florida high school, was a member of a “white separatist paramilitary proto-fascist organization,” the group told The Daily Beast.

Discussion: RedState, Axios, Associated Press, ThinkProgress, Raw Story, The Nation, Washington Press, Jezebel and Hollywood Life

Karl Etters / Tallahassee Democrat:

Local law enforcement: No ties between militia and school shooter — Jordan Jereb, local leader for the Republic of Florida, a separatist group on the Southern Poverty Law Center's Hate Watch — Local law enforcement sources have so far not found a connection between accused Parkland …

Discussion: HuffPost, The Gateway Pundit, Right Wing Watch and Business Insider

miamiherald:

The victims of the Douglas High mass shooting — The Broward County Sheriff's Office has not yet released the names of the 17 people killed in the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Wednesday. But relatives and friends of the victims took to social media on Thursday to mourn and honor the people they lost.

Discussion: Sun-Sentinel, Indianapolis Star, The Daily Beast, ThinkProgress, ABC News and Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Brianna Sacks / BuzzFeed:

The FBI Was Warned About A School Shooting Threat From A YouTube User Named Nikolas Cruz In September — In September, a YouTube user named Nikolas Cruz left a comment on a video stating, “I'm going to be a professional school shooter.” The video's creator alerted both the FBI and YouTube.

Associated Press:

The Latest: FBI alerted to YouTube ‘shooter’ post last year — PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) — The Latest on a deadly school shooting at a Florida high school (all times local): — A Mississippi bail bondsman named Benjamin Bennight says he alerted the FBI last September after someone using the screen name …

Discussion: WTXL-TV, The Hill, NPR, KQED News, The Right Scoop, theGrio, TheBlaze and Fox News

New York Times: Flashes of Rage. Family Loss. Nikolas Cruz's Lifetime of Trouble.

CNN:
Another ‘unspeakable tragedy’ at a US school leaves 17 dead in Florida

Discussion: KFOR-TV, KTLA, WTVR-TV and Washington Press, more at Techmeme »

New York Times:
Florida Shooting Live Updates: White Supremacy Group Claims Nikolas Cruz as Member

CNNMoney:
Casting blame on Russia probe, far-right fumes at FBI in aftermath of Florida shooting

Discussion: Washington Monthly, CNN and Talking Points Memo

Richard A. Oppel Jr / New York Times:
In Florida, an AR-15 Is Easier to Buy Than a Handgun

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Orlando Weekly and Raw Story

Amir Vera / CNN:
A football coach who shielded students from the Florida shooter died as he lived — by putting himself second

Discussion: Sun-Sentinel, WTVR-TV, ABC News, FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV, Washington Post, CBS Miami, CBS New York, myfox8.com, WISH-TV, abc7ny.com, WPIX 11 New York, The Daily Beast, Faithwire, New York Times and KTLA

Doug Criss / CNN:
You don't need a permit or license to buy a gun in Florida. (And you don't have to register your gun either)

Discussion: Breitbart, VICE, VICE News, ThinkProgress and RedState

Eric Levenson / CNN:
These are the victims of the Florida school shooting

Discussion: fox13now.com, fox8.com, FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV, FOX40, KFOR-TV, KTLA and Business Insider

Associated Press:
Lots of talk, little action in Congress after shootings

Discussion: Politico, Washington Post, TheBlaze and The Daily Caller

Jason Kurtz / CNN:
‘President Trump, please do something!’ …

Discussion: Mother Jones

CNN:

Exclusive: A top Trump campaign adviser close to plea deal with Mueller — Who is Rick Gates? — Washington (CNN)Former Trump campaign adviser Rick Gates is finalizing a plea deal with special counsel Robert Mueller's office, indicating he's poised to cooperate in the investigation, according to sources familiar with the case.

Discussion: The Hill, RedState, Talking Points Memo, Vox, The Week, emptywheel, The Right Scoop, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Daily Caller, Axios, TheBlaze, Washington Press, Raw Story, Politicus USA and Mediaite

Hallie Jackson / NBC News:

Steve Bannon met with Mueller multiple times over the past week — WASHINGTON — Steve Bannon, who served as President Donald Trump's chief strategist, was interviewed by special counsel Robert Mueller over multiple days this week, NBC News has learned from two sources familiar with the proceedings.

Discussion: Politico, CNN, The Daily Beast, The Root, Mother Jones, The Daily Caller, Axios, Business Insider, CNBC, Talking Points Memo, Washington Post and VICE News

Nancy Cook / Politico:

White House left feeling rudderless as Trump hangs back in crisis — President Donald Trump has cast himself as a master brander and dealmaker, but rarely talks much about his crisis management style. — The past week has, however, put that style on clear display.

Discussion: Political Wire

CNN:
Ex-wife's photos raise questions about McGahn's role in Porter scandal

Discussion: Axios and The Week

CNN: Ex-wife: Porter informed in September security clearance was ‘delayed’ due to ‘violent’ past

Anne Gearan / Washington Post: White House portrayal of security office conflicts with its role in past administrations

New York Times:

Trump's Inaugural Committee Paid $26 Million to Firm of First Lady's Friend — WASHINGTON — President Trump's inaugural committee paid nearly $26 million to an event planning firm started by an adviser to First Lady Melania Trump, while donating $5 million — less than expected — to charity …

Discussion: Politico, Washington Post, Raw Story, The Atlantic, Washington Press, ABC News, Business Insider, NPR and CBS Los Angeles

New York Times:

Senate Rejects Immigration Plans, Leaving Fate of Dreamers Uncertain — WASHINGTON — The Senate summarily blocked three measures on Thursday — including one backed by President Trump — to resolve the fate of the so-called Dreamers, leaving hundreds of thousands of them facing an uncertain future.

Discussion: Bloomberg, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Week

Dylan Scott / Vox:
The Senate put 4 immigration bills up for a vote. They all failed.

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Axios, Latino Rebels and Washington Monthly

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
Senate rejects centrist immigration bill after Trump veto threat

Discussion: Power Line, New York Magazine and IJR

Mike Walters / The Blast:

Stormy Daniels Has a ‘Monica Lewinsky Dress’ from Alleged Donald Trump Affair, Will Test It for DNA — Stormy Daniels pulled a Monica Lewinsky and held on to the dress she wore to an alleged hotel rendezvous with President Donald Trump, and now we are told she's going to get it tested for DNA to back up her story.

Discussion: Raw Story, Daily Wire and Towleroad

Alex Guillén / Politico:

Pruitt's security threat? A passenger shouting, 'You're f—ing up the environment' — EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt's security team decided last year he should fly first class to avoid confrontations with angry individuals on planes and in airports, an agency official said Thursday …

Washington Post:
Public confrontations prompted Pruitt to switch to first-class travel, EPA says

Discussion: Mother Jones and ThinkProgress

Department of Homeland Security:

Schumer-Rounds-Collins Destroys Ability of DHS to Enforce Immigration Laws, Creating a Mass Amnesty For Over 10 Million Illegal Aliens, Including Criminals — The Schumer-Rounds-Collins proposal destroys the ability of the men and women from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to remove millions of illegal aliens.

Discussion: Conservative Review, United States Senator …, Politico, Axios, Breitbart, ThinkProgress, fairus.org, Daily Kos, Washington Free Beacon, Hullabaloo, National Review, The Daily Signal and The Daily Caller

The White House:
Statement from the Press Secretary regarding the Schumer-Rounds-Collins Amendment

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon

Erin Griffith / Wired:

Pro-Gun Russian Bots Flood Twitter After Parkland Shooting — EACH NEW BREAKING news situation is an opportunity for trolls to grab attention, provoke emotions, and spread propaganda. The Russian government knows this. Fake-news manufacturing teenagers in Macedonia know this. Twitter bot creators know this.

Discussion: Political Wire, Axios, Mashable, CANNONFIRE, New York Times, Breitbart and Daily Kos

Monmouth University Polling Institute:

Small Lead for Saccone in CD18 — Opinion on Trump helps Dem candidate remain in the hunt — West Long Branch, NJ - Republican Rick Saccone has a small advantage in the special election for Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District, even when the potential for a Democratic surge is taken into account.

Discussion: Politicus USA, Politico, ABC News, New York Magazine and National Review

Katie Notopoulos / BuzzFeed:

How I Cracked Facebook's New Algorithm And Tortured My Friends — Last Saturday — 12 days ago now — I shared a cringeworthy video on Facebook: a 6-minute clip of a twentysomething white woman showing off her small, blandly decorated Brooklyn apartment. Sort of the pumpkin spice latte version of MTV Cribs — innocuous, but annoying.

more at Mediagazer »

Lesley Goldberg / Hollywood Reporter:

Jeffrey Tambor Officially Fired From ‘Transparent’ in Wake of Harassment Claims — Amazon Studios has concluded its investigation into the actor and confirmed the decision Thursday. — It's official: Jeffrey Tambor will not be returning to Amazon Studios' Transparent in the wake …

Discussion: Deadline, CBS Los Angeles, Engadget, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, GeekWire, The Verge, Daily Wire, Hollywood Life and VICE

Christopher Ingraham / Washington Post:

It's time to bring back the assault weapons ban, gun violence experts say — The perpetrator of Wednesday's horrific school shooting in Parkland, Fla., purchased his military-style assault weapon legally. So did the man who shot more than 400 people in Las Vegas in October.

Discussion: Breitbart and Washington Press

New York Times:

Two Bronx Men Arrested in Terror Scheme — A former Harlem high school teacher and his twin brother were arrested on Thursday in a federal investigation and charged with building an explosive device, according to court papers. — The two men kept boxes full of what the government …

Discussion: Politico, Justice News, The Right Scoop and Splinter

Washington Post:

VA chief fights for his political future amid internal strife and allegations of subterfuge … Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin battled for his political survival Thursday as he faced ethics questions about a trip to Europe, acknowledging to lawmakers that “the optics of this are not good” …

Discussion: Political Wire, Military Times, CBS Denver and ABC News

David Leonhardt / New York Times:

The Truth About the Florida School Shooting — It's hard to imagine a worse distinction for a country to hold. A recent study in the journal Health Affairs concluded that the United States has become “the most dangerous of wealthy nations for a child to be born into.”