memeorandum: Public record of usernames linked to state-sponsored disinformation campaigns (Help Center)

9:10 PM ET, March 23, 2018

Top Items:

Andrew Restuccia / Politico:

Trump aides are ‘at their wits’ end' — Forget senior White House staffers, outside advisers, friends and others “close” to the president. There's only one person who truly knows what Donald Trump is thinking at any given moment: Donald Trump. — The president's surprise Friday morning tweet threatening …

Discussion: ABC News, ThinkProgress, Washington Post, RedState, Jamie Dupree - AJC, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, CBS New York, IJR and The Daily Beast

Kate Bennett / CNN:

Melania Trump rides solo to Air Force One, again — (CNN)The day after a CNN interview with a former Playboy model who claims to have had a 10-month affair with her husband, first lady Melania Trump opted to leave President Donald Trump alone for the ride from the White House to Andrews Air Force Base.

Discussion: Political Wire

Matthew Waxman / Lawfare:

The John Bolton I Knew — Most of the commentary about John Bolton's appointment as national security advisor has focused on his extreme policy views, especially with regard to military strikes against North Korea and Iran. I want instead to offer here a few firsthand thoughts about his formidable skills …

Discussion: The Atlantic, Vox, Hit & Run, Niskanen Center, The Guardian, The American Conservative, Washington Post, Axios and Politico

Bloomberg:

Mattis Holds Firm as Chaos Engulfs Trump's National Security Team — Pentagon chief's influence shown in Trump move to sign budget — 'He'll be the last man standing,' analyst Eaglen says — President Donald Trump's shakeup of his national security team adds to the burden on one man …

Michelle Kosinski / CNN:

Trump's National Security Council recommends expelling Russian diplomats — Former Russian spy poisoned by nerve agent — Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump is expected to receive a recommendation from his National Security Council on Friday that he expel a yet-to-be-determined number …

Foreign Policy:

Bolton Expected to ‘Clean House’ — The incoming national security advisor aims to ax dozens of White House officials as he dismantles McMaster's NSC. — Incoming National Security Advisor John Bolton and people close to him are expected to launch a massive shake-up at the National Security Council …

Discussion: Washington Post, CNN and nucleardiner.wordpress.com

CNN:

John Bolton has decade-long association with anti-Islam activist Pamela Geller — (CNN)John Bolton, Donald Trump's pick to be the next national security adviser, has a decade-long history of associating with anti-Islam activist Pamela Geller. — The former UN ambassador wrote the foreword …

more at Mediagazer »

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Reaction to Bolton: Stunned, worried, horrified

Discussion: Crooked Media, National Review, New York Magazine, The Federalist, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Guardian, The Week, Fox News and Bangor Daily News

Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:
White House lawyer McGahn eager to exit

Discussion: ABC News, Hullabaloo, New York Magazine, Above the Law, Talking Points Memo, Mediaite, Political Wire, NBC News, Axios and The Hill

James S. Robbins / USA Today:
John Bolton will finally let Donald Trump be Donald Trump on foreign policy

Discussion: CNBC, Defense One, CNN and New York Times

Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Bolton bombshell: the clashes to come

Discussion: New York Times, Bloomberg, Breitbart, Reuters, The Daily Beast, ABC News, RedState, Common Dreams, The Daily Caller, Washington Post, Weekly Standard, The Week, Politico, CANNONFIRE and Vox

New York Times:
After Another Week of Chaos, Trump Repairs to Palm Beach. No One Knows What Comes Next.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, CNBC, NewsBusters, NPR, No More Mister Nice Blog, Splinter, MelaniePhillips.com and The Root

Foreign Policy:
John Bolton Is a National Security Threat

Discussion: USA Today, New York Magazine, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, The Atlantic, Haaretz, ThinkProgress, New Yorker, The Guardian, IJR, LobeLog, AOL, Vox, Hit & Run and New York Times

Washington Post:
The return of John Bolton, a hawk on North Korea and Iran, sparks concerns around the world

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Vox, The Atlantic, CNN, Bloomberg, ThinkProgress, New York Times, Outside the Beltway, New York Magazine and Just Security

Andrew McCabe / Washington Post:

Not in my worst nightmares did I dream my FBI career would end this way — Andrew McCabe served in the FBI from 1996 until March 16. He was the bureau's deputy director from 2016 to January, including time as acting director from May to August 2017. — On March 16, I spent …

Discussion: Axios, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story and Mediaite

Washington Post:

Attorney says Roy Moore supporters offered him $10,000 to drop client who accused the Senate candidate of sexual impropriety … BIRMINGHAM — Days after a woman accused U.S. Senate candidate Roy Moore of sexual impropriety, two Moore supporters approached her attorney with an unusual request.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, National Review, New York Magazine, Splinter, Mediaite, WHNT-TV and Joe.My.God.

Washington Post:

‘You should do it.’ Trump officials encouraged George Papadopoulos's foreign outreach, documents show. … When a Russian news agency reached out to George Papadopoulos to request an interview shortly before the 2016 election, the young adviser to then-candidate Donald Trump made sure to seek approval from campaign headquarters.

Discussion: Raw Story, Talking Points Memo, The Week, Political Wire and Mediaite

Former U.S. Senator Al Franken:
“Lack of candor.” — That's one of the reasons that Attorney …

Discussion: Politico and Raw Story

Matthew Rosenberg / New York Times:

Bolton Was Early Beneficiary of Cambridge Analytica's Facebook Data — WASHINGTON — The political action committee founded by John R. Bolton, President Trump's incoming national security adviser, was one of the earliest customers of Cambridge Analytica, which it hired specifically …

The Guardian:

Leaked: Cambridge Analytica's blueprint for Trump victory — Exclusive: Former employee explains how presentation showed techniques used to target voters … The blueprint for how Cambridge Analytica claimed to have won the White House for Donald Trump by using Google, Snapchat, Twitter …

Discussion: The Guardian, ABC News, The Daily Beast, Splinter, Washington Post, NPR, East Bay Times, Hullabaloo, Raw Story, VentureBeat, Daily Kos, Axios and Politico, more at Techmeme »

Andy Kroll / Mother Jones:
Cloak and Data: The Real Story Behind Cambridge Analytica's Rise and Fall

Discussion: Washington Post

Hannah Summers / The Guardian:
Investigators raid offices of Cambridge Analytica after search warrant granted

more at Mediagazer »

Peter Hasson / The Daily Caller:

BROKEN PROMISE: Trump, GOP Congress Give Planned Parenthood $500 Million In Taxpayer Funds — President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans broke their promise to conservative voters by giving Planned Parenthood approximately $500 million in taxpayer funding in the omnibus spending bill that Trump signed into law on Friday.

Discussion: CNBC and The Gateway Pundit

Neil Munro / Breitbart:
Schumer's Flack: ‘I, for one, am Tired of all the Winning’

Discussion: Washington Examiner and The Gateway Pundit

Jacob Pramuk / CNBC:
Trump threatens to veto omnibus spending bill over DACA and the border wall

Matthew Nussbaum / Politico:
Trump talked out of shoving government into a shutdown

Discussion: Washington Post, ABC News, The Hill, Daily Kos, Media Matters for America, Axios, Roll Call and Outside the Beltway

Sean Moran / Breitbart:
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) declared victory on the omnibus spending bill Thursday …

Discussion: twitchy.com

Hannah Hilyard / KCCI-TV:

Iowa family of 4 found dead in Mexican resort condominium — Family previously reported missing before bodies found — CRESTON, Iowa (KCCI) — An Iowa couple and their two young children were found dead in a rented condominium in Mexico, authorities said.

Discussion: Breitbart

Des Moines Register:
Iowa family reported missing found dead in Mexico condominium

Discussion: AOL

The Intercept:

Joshua Kushner Met with Government of Qatar to Discuss Financing in the Same Week Father Charles Kushner Did — Joshua Kushner, a venture capitalist and the younger brother of White House adviser Jared Kushner, met with Qatari Finance Minister Ali Sharif Al Emadi the same week as his father …

Daisuke Wakabayashi / New York Times:

Uber's Self-Driving Cars Were Struggling Before Arizona Crash — SAN FRANCISCO — Uber's robotic vehicle project was not living up to expectations months before a self-driving car operated by the company struck and killed a woman in Tempe, Ariz. — The cars were having trouble driving …

Discussion: Bloomberg, Engadget, East Bay Times and The Verge, more at Techmeme »

CNN:

DiGenova role on President's legal team in flux — Washington (CNN)Veteran Washington attorney Joseph diGenova's role as part of President Donald Trump's legal team is still in question, according to two sources familiar with the matter. — DiGenova's hiring was announced on Monday by Jay Sekulow, counsel to the President.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, Joe.My.God. and Eschaton

Andrew Sullivan / New York Magazine:

America Takes the Next Step Toward Tyranny — Every now and again, when I find myself buried in the latest blizzard of invariably disturbing news emanating from the Trump White House, I go back and remind myself of the core narrative. I read Plato's Republic again, the prism through …

Discussion: The Week

Shannon Vavra / Axios:

Elon Musk deletes Facebook accounts for Tesla, SpaceX — Elon Musk appears to have deleted the Facebook accounts for his companies Tesla and SpaceX. This comes amidst cries to delete Facebook in response to Cambridge Analytica's role in the misuse of data on Facebook of millions of Americans.

Discussion: TechCrunch, Motherboard, Daily Caller News Foundation, AOL and CNNMoney

Jackie Wattles / CNNMoney:
Elon Musk deletes Facebook accounts for Tesla and SpaceX

Discussion: The Atlantic, NPR, twitchy.com and VICE News

Wall Street Journal:

U.S. Stocks End Worst Week in Years — A rocky stretch of trading amplified investors' concerns about a possible trade war — U.S. stocks tumbled Friday, capping off a rocky stretch of trading that ignited fears that the market could be headed for a deeper downturn.

Discussion: Washington Post

Sarah Ponczek / Bloomberg:
Stocks Tumble in Biggest Weekly Decline Since 2016: Markets Wrap

Discussion: Axios

Jason Jones / Sacramento Bee:

Former Kings star DeMarcus Cousins offers to pay for Stephon Clark's funeral — Former Kings All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins has reached out to the family of Stephon Clark to cover the cost of the funeral, a source told The Bee. — Clark, 22, was shot and killed by Sacramento police …

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, The Root, KTLA, CBS Los Angeles, AOL and HuffPost

Help Center:

Public record of usernames linked to state-sponsored disinformation campaigns — Democracy requires transparency and an informed electorate, and we take our responsibilities very seriously. We aggressively monitor Tumblr for signs of state-sponsored disinformation campaigns, and take the appropriate action when we uncover anything.

Discussion: Mashable, Axios and Gizmodo, more at Mediagazer »

David Weigel / Washington Post:

Republicans make six-figure investment in deep red Arizona district — The Republican National Committee has put $281,250 into the special election to replace former congressman Trent Franks, the first financial commitment by either national party in a district that has voted reliably Republican since being drawn in 2011.

Discussion: Political Wire

BuzzFeed:

She Thought She'd Shot A Burglar. Then She Realized It Was Her Roommate. — Good guys with guns don't only shoot bad guys. At least 47 times since 2015, a person has shot a friend, family member, or emergency responder they mistook for an intruder in their home. — The noise startled Alexis Bukrym.

Discussion: The Week