memeorandum: CDC prepares to join Ebola fight in Africa (Reid Wilson/The Hill)

8:20 AM ET, May 19, 2018

Top Items:

F.B.I. Used Informant to Investigate Russia Ties to Campaign, Not to Spy, as Trump Claims — WASHINGTON — President Trump accused the F.B.I. on Friday, without evidence, of sending a spy to secretly infiltrate his 2016 campaign “for political purposes” even before the bureau had any inkling of the “phony Russia hoax.”

Discussion: Washington Post, The Last Refuge, Mediaite, Wall Street Journal, Law & Crime, MSNBC, NBC News, Daily Wire and Patterico's Pontifications

Washington Post:

Secret FBI source for Russia investigation met with three Trump advisers during campaign — A retired American professor in 2016 began working as a secret informant for the FBI as it investigated Russia's interference in the U.S. presidential campaign, and he contacted three Trump advisers …

Discussion: twitchy.com and Raw Story

Asha Rangappa / Washington Post:

The FBI didn't use an informant to go after Trump. They used one to protect him. — What the president doesn't get about counterintelligence. — President Trump and his allies are outraged at reports that the FBI used an “informant” to spy on Trump's 2016 campaign.

Discussion: Consortiumnews.com, The Last Refuge and ABC News

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

Why Trump Tweets — When I talk to Trump-haters, invariably the first thing they cite against him is his tweets. And, in truth, they have sometimes been impolitic. But on the whole, I think Twitter has helped him. This Associated Press news story illustrates why.

Discussion: Associated Press

Kyle Cheney / Politico:
Warner: Identifying FBI source to undermine Russia probe could be a crime

Discussion: RedState

Katie Bo Williams / The Hill: Talk of unproven FBI ‘plant’ in Trump campaign circulates among Republicans

Philip Bump / Washington Post:

2018 has been deadlier for schoolchildren than service members … The school shooting near Houston on Friday bolstered a stunning statistic: More people have been killed at schools this year than have been killed while serving in the military. — Initial estimates put the number killed …

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Bustle, The Atlantic, Little Green Footballs, twitchy.com, The Week, Hit & Run, HuffPost, AOL, Bangor Daily News and Political Wire

The Daily Beast:
Dimitrios Pagourtzis, Texas Shooting Suspect, Posted Neo-Nazi Imagery Online

Discussion: RedState, The Guardian, CBS Los Angeles, The Resurgent, Splinter, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, CBS News, CNN and Shakesville

Houston Chronicle:
‘Multiple fatalities’ reported at Santa Fe High School shooting

New York Times:
In Texas School Shooting, 10 Dead, 10 Hurt and Many Unsurprised

NBC News:
Shooting suspect Dimitrios Pagourtzis posted ‘Born to Kill’ T-shirt

Discussion: Heavy.com, New York Times, AOL, Mediaite and TVNewser

Ben Shapiro / Daily Wire:
CNN Says There Have Been 22 School Shootings This Year. That's A Lie.

Discussion: Conservative Review, Bustle, NewsBusters and The Week

Todd Starnes Show / FOX News Radio:
Kellyanne Conway Criticizes Democrats Using School Shootings For Politics

Discussion: Raw Story

BuzzFeed:
Here's What We Know About Dimitrios Pagourtzis, The Suspected Santa Fe High School Shooter

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Hot Air and No More Mister Nice Blog

Naomi Martin / Dallas Morning News:

White, straight and Christian: Dallas County politician admits rewarding kids for marrying within race — Vickers “Vic” Cunningham, a former criminal district judge now in a runoff to be the sole Republican Dallas County commissioner, acknowledged Friday that in 2010 he set up a living trust …

Discussion: HuffPost and Raw Story

Dallas Morning News:

We withdraw Vickers Cunningham recommendation in GOP runoff for Dallas County Commissioners Court Precinct 2 — This newspaper recommended Vickers Cunningham for the Precinct 2 seat on the Dallas County Commissioners Court because we felt the former state district judge's career left him best prepared for the job.

Washington Post:

Trump personally pushed postmaster general to double rates on Amazon, other firms — President Trump has personally pushed U.S. Postmaster General Megan Brennan to double the rate the Postal Service charges Amazon.com and other firms to ship packages, according to three people familiar …

Discussion: Raw Story, Washington Press, GeekWire, Daily Kos, Gizmodo, MSNBC, The Week, Engadget, The Verge, Mediaite, New York Magazine, CNBC, Talking Points Memo, BloombergQuint, Bloomberg, The Moderate Voice and Political Wire, more at Mediagazer »

Reuters:

Exclusive: Special Counsel subpoenas another Stone aide in Russia probe - sources — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller has subpoenaed a key assistant of long-time Donald Trump adviser Roger Stone, two people with knowledge of the matter said, the latest sign …

Discussion: Raw Story, Breitbart, VICE News, Axios, The Gateway Pundit, Talking Points Memo and Political Wire

Katie Rogers / New York Times:

White House Keeps Details of Melania Trump's Health Under Wraps — WASHINGTON — This week, the first lady, Melania Trump, underwent a procedure for what the White House called a benign kidney condition. Four days into her recovery for the procedure, which experts say typically …

Discussion: Raw Story and CNN

Kate Brannen / Just Security:

Getting to the Bottom of the Trump Tower Meeting — Donald Trump Jr. has no memory of Rinat Akhmetshin attending the infamous June 9, 2016, Trump Tower meeting, even though he was apparently dressed entirely in pink, and according to at least one attendee, did most of the talking.

Discussion: Washington Post

Ruth Marcus / Washington Post:
Congratulations, America, indeed

Discussion: Politico, CNN, New York Times and Sputnik International

Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
Russian-American Lobbyist At Trump Tower Meeting Described Knowing Hillary Clinton, Associates

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and Daily Caller News Foundation

New York Post:

Protesters spite racist lawyer with live Mariachi band outside home — A Mariachi band triumphantly played at a protest Friday outside the home of the Midtown lawyer caught on camera hurling racist insults at Spanish-speaking restaurant workers. — More than 100 people gathered in front …

Discussion: CBS San Francisco

Kate Conger / Gizmodo:

Google Removes 'Don't Be Evil' Clause From Its Code of Conduct — Google's unofficial motto has long been the simple phrase “don't be evil.” But that's over, according to the code of conduct that Google distributes to its employees. The phrase was removed sometime in late April or early May …

Discussion: American Greatness, more at Techmeme »

Eve Peyser / VICE:

The Onion's Brutal Israel Commentary Goes Beyond Satire — The country's leading humor publication has taken a stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict in a way that most “real” newspapers haven't. — via The Onion — On Monday, as the United States celebrated moving its Israeli embassy …

Discussion: New York Times and IJR

Justin Wilfon / WSB-TV:

Police: 2 people shot, 1 dead near high school graduation — CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. - Clayton County police confirm to Channel 2 Action News that two people have been shot and one of them is dead near Mt. Zion High School in Clayton County. — Investigators said both victims are females.

Discussion: ABC News

Juliegrace Brufke / The Hill:

House rejects farm bill as conservatives revolt — House conservatives tanked a GOP farm bill on Friday over an intraparty feud over immigration, delivering a stunning blow to Republican leaders as they try to find a path forward on immigration. — In a 198-213 vote, GOP conservatives …

Discussion: Breitbart, New York Magazine, NPR, RedState, The Week, Washington Press, Booman Tribune, Washington Post and Politico

Callum Hoare / Dailystar.co.uk:

Mystery booms and lights throughout US spark secret WW3 tunnelling fears — THE US government is running a not-so-secret underground project and the unexplainable booms across the country prove it, according to wild claims online. — Kimberly Kempke, a concerned resident from Anderson Township …

David French / National Review:

The Best Explanation for Our Spate of Mass Shootings Is the Least Comforting — On another terrible day, I hate to introduce even more pessimism, but when we discuss mass shootings, one of the first questions we ask is the simplest and also the hardest to answer. Why? Why does this keep happening?

Discussion: The American Conservative, Instapundit, Power Line and CNN

Ben Hubbard / New York Times:

Saudi Arabia Detains Activists Who Pushed to End Ban on Women Driving — BEIRUT, Lebanon — Saudi Arabia has detained at least five people connected to the campaign to end the kingdom's longtime ban on women driving, despite the fact that the government has promised to lift the ban next month …

Ahmed Al Omran / Financial Times: Saudi Arabia arrests campaigners who challenged women driving ban

Kyle Spurr / Bend Bulletin:

Stormy Daniels performance cut short after drunk man throws wallet in her face — Daniels appearance in Bend was delayed for hours — A customer takes a picture of herself with a poster of Stormy Daniels and a cutout of President Donald Trump while waiting to enter Stars Cabaret in Bend on Thursday, May 17, 2018.

Discussion: smokeroom.com, Daily Wire, The Daily Caller and Talking Points Memo

Laura Bassett / HuffPost:

Trump's New ‘Domestic Gag Rule’ Would Strip Funds From Planned Parenthood — The president reportedly doesn't know the difference between HIV and HPV, but he still wants to penalize family planning providers. — The Trump administration will propose a new rule Friday that would block federal funds …

Discussion: Raw Story, NPR, NBC News, MSNBC and Vox

Washington Post:
Trump administration will pull funds from groups that perform abortions or provide referrals

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, Rewire.News, National Review, NBC News, CommonWealth Magazine, CNN, Aleteia, Bustle, NPR and Planned Parenthood Action Fund

miamiherald:

The gunman shot at Trump hotel was a stripper and porn actor who loved Melania Trump — Less than a year ago, South Africa native Jonathan Oddi proudly posed behind a backdrop of an American flag, touting his new citizenship. “God bless the USA finally an American!” he wrote on Instagram.

Discussion: CBS News, Washington Post, Raw Story, Bustle, twitchy.com, The Guardian, Fox News and Law & Crime

Jordan Weissmann / Slate:

Actually, the 1 Percent Are Still The Problem — The Atlantic trots out a familiar argument blaming the upper middle class for income inequality. It's wrong. — One of the nice things about Occupy Wall Street was that it provided a tidy shorthand to describe the problem of income inequality …

Discussion: RealityChek

Kenneth Lovett / New York Daily News:

Columbia Law professor who coined ‘net neutrality’ term mulling run for attorney general — ALBANY - Tim Wu, a Columbia Law professor credited with coining the term “net neutrality,” is considering a run for state attorney general. — “I'm thinking about it,” Wu told the Daily News. “It's a great job.