memeorandum: An actual sinkhole has opened on the White House lawn. It's growing (Heather Timmons/Quartz)

5:45 PM ET, May 22, 2018

Top Items:

The Latest: EPA bars AP, CNN from summit on contaminants — WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on a hearing with EPA chief Scott Pruitt on a widespread contaminant in drinking water (all times local): — The Environmental Protection Agency is barring The Associated Press …

Miranda Green / The Hill:

Media push back against EPA limiting reporters at chemical summit — A number of media outlets are pushing back at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for limiting the reporters allowed to cover part of its chemical summit on Tuesday — including one reporter who says she was forcibly removed from the event.

Discussion: Politico, CNNMoney, New Republic, Raw Story, ThinkProgress, IJR, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and Media Matters for America

NBC News:
Pruitt bars AP, CNN from EPA summit on contaminants, guards push reporter out of building

Discussion: HuffPost, Joe.My.God. and Splinter

New York Times:

Michael Cohen's Business Partner Agrees to Cooperate as Part of Plea Deal — A significant business partner of Michael D. Cohen, President Trump's personal lawyer, has quietly agreed to cooperate with the government as a potential witness, a development that could be used as leverage to pressure …

Discussion: Political Wire

Paul Campos / New York Magazine:

Hey, Look: More Evidence That Broidy May Have Been Covering for Trump in That Playmate Affair — was a big day for David Dennison. Dennison — as Donald Trump was called in his hush-money agreement with Stormy Daniels — was taking a break from the golfing trips that had dominated his weekends for that entire fall.

Discussion: Philly.com, Shakesville, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Political Wire, Mother Jones, Raw Story and The Daily Beast

Paul Waldman / Washington Post:

Get to know Elliott Broidy, the next major Trump scandal figure — Like any good drama, the Trump omni-scandal, a story of corruption and greed that crosses years and continents, has a collection of colorful supporting players. It can be hard to keep up with them all …

Discussion: Associated Press, POLITICUSUSA and Joe.My.God.

Stephen Kalin / Reuters: UAE denies trying to influence Trump's election

Michael Finnegan / Los Angeles Times:

Law firm of Stormy Daniels' attorney hit with $10-million judgment — The law firm of Stormy Daniels' attorney Michael Avenatti was hit with a $10-million judgment Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court after he broke his promise to pay $2 million to a former colleague.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, National Review, CNBC, Washington Free Beacon, The Daily Caller, Law & Crime and Mediaite

Edward-Isaac Dovere / Politico:

Jimmy Carter: Trump Has a Shot At a Nobel Prize — President Jimmy Carter believes that under Trump, democracy is threatened and moral leadership is lacking. But if Korea goes well, he says there could be a Nobel Prize in Trump's future. … LYNCHBURG, Va. — Jimmy Carter thinks Donald Trump …

Discussion: CNN, ABC News, The Daily Caller, IJR, The Gateway Pundit, Townhall and Mediaite

Associated Press:

Can the ‘dealmaker’ president deliver on North Korea? — WASHINGTON (AP) — Weeks before his planned North Korea summit, President Donald Trump is staring down a dealmaker's worst nightmare: overpromising and under-delivering. — As the Singapore meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un draws near …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Mother Jones, Media Matters for America, Daily Kos, MSNBC, Eschaton and Politico

Emily Tillett / CBS News:
Trump on N. Korea summit: “It may not work out for June 12”

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and IJR

Axios:
3 factors behind Trump's cave on his China trade war

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Politico, Bloomberg, Breitbart, Washington Post, BloombergQuint, One America News Network and ABC News

Mark Landler / New York Times:
Trump Says June Summit Meeting With North Korea Might Be Delayed

Discussion: RedState

Heather Timmons / Quartz:

An actual sinkhole has opened on the White House lawn. It's growing — Construction on the US White House began in 1792. It has been almost continuously occupied by US presidents since 1800, barring a few years after the British set it on fire in 1814. — But that doesn't mean …

Discussion: HuffPost, Washington Press and CBS Pittsburgh

Brett Samuels / The Hill:
Sinkhole develops on White House lawn

Discussion: Mashable, The Root, Breitbart and Raw Story

Morgan Chalfant / The Hill:

Mystery in Mueller probe: Where's the hacking indictment? — In the year since the start of special counsel Robert Mueller — 's investigation, one thing has been notably absent: a public indictment of any Russians for the hacking of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

Discussion: ABC News

Politico:
DHS chief reignites debate over Russian election meddling findings

Discussion: The Daily Beast and MSNBC

Associated Press: DHS secretary says she's unaware Russia wanted Trump to win

Amber Ferguson / Washington Post:

Proud mom orders ‘Summa Cum Laude’ cake online. Publix censors it: Summa ... Laude. — Saturday was Jacob Koscinski's big day. His whole family, many from out of town, saw the Charleston, S.C., student graduate from his Christian-based home-school program with a 4.89 grade-point average and the coveted honor of summa cum laude.

Discussion: Eater, AOL, WHNT-TV, Weekly Standard, Mashable, CBS Dallas, Althouse, The Root and WGN-TV

TMZ.com: Publix Refuses to Put ‘Cum’ On Son's Graduation Cake, Mom Pissed

Bloomberg:

Mueller Asked About Money Flows to Israeli Social-Media Firm, Source Says — PSY Group's work included fake personas, firm's documents show — Founder is reported to have met with Donald Trump Jr. in 2016 — Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team has asked about flows of money …

Discussion: Law & Crime

Matt Viser / BostonGlobe.com:

‘Shame on you, Jared Kushner’: Harvard alumni tear apart classmate in 15th reunion notes — WASHINGTON — Graduates of the Harvard class of 2003 are making known their displeasure with the current White House administration in an unusual way, using the platform of their 15th reunion alumni notes …

Discussion: Political Wire

Adam Shaw / Fox News:

Huma email horror returns to haunt FBI brass, in IG report on Clinton case — Ever since she lost the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton has repeatedly blamed her defeat on the FBI's decision to reopen the probe into her email use after messages were found on the laptop of confidante Huma Abedin's estranged husband.

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
Trump Is Doing Same Thing He Demanded Clinton Be Locked Up For

Discussion: ABC News, Crooked Media, Townhall, Washington Monthly and No More Mister Nice Blog

Jim Geraghty / National Review:
Trump's Email . . . Er, Cellphone, Scandal

Discussion: The Resurgent, IJR, Washington Post and Hot Air

Harper Neidig / The Hill:

Senate panel overwhelmingly approves amendment blocking Trump on ZTE — A Senate panel on Tuesday rebuked President Trump — 's efforts to ease sanctions on the Chinese telecom firm ZTE, which the intelligence community and trade regulators have warned poses a national security risk for the U.S.

Discussion: Townhall and CNBC

Wall Street Journal:
U.S., China Agree on Outline to Settle ZTE Controversy

Discussion: RedState, Reuters, Washington Post, CNBC, Politico, The Daily Signal, Hot Air, New York Times, The Daily Caller, Breitbart, The Verge, Axios, National Review, Bloomberg and Mother Jones, more at Techmeme »

Amy Russo / Mediaite:
Senate Committee Votes Overwhelmingly to Block Trump's Plans to Revive Chinese Telecom Company ZTE

Discussion: The Guardian and CNBC

Annie Linskey / BostonGlobe.com:

Trump's tweets include grammatical errors. And some are on purpose — WASHINGTON — The hallmark of President Trump's Twitter feed is that it sounds like him — grammatical miscues and all. — But it's not always Trump tapping out a Tweet, even when it sounds like his voice.

Discussion: Washington Post, Daily Kos, VICE, MSNBC, IJR, Joe.My.God., New York Magazine, Talking Points Memo, twitchy.com, Mashable, The Week and Mediaite

Lachlan Markay / The Daily Beast:

Feds Seized a Fortune From #Resistance Icons Accused of Boosting Online ‘Ponzi Schemes’ … In late 2016, federal agents showed up at the Fort Myers, Florida, homes of brothers Brian and Edward Krassenstein, seizing computers and financial records, and hauling off with “at least 20 to 30 bundles of stuff.”

David Wasserman / The Cook Political Report:

House Ratings Changes: GOP Fortunes Improve in Four Districts — After a rough start to year, House Republicans are suddenly feeling less pessimistic about their fall prospects. At the “macro” level, robust economic data and positive developments on the Korean peninsula …

Discussion: Breitbart, Axios, Daily Wire, The Week and The Rush Limbaugh Show

Clifford D. May / USA Today:

Mike Pompeo's Iran speech reveals detailed plan that will require resolve to implement — Two weeks ago, President Trump terminated America's participation in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the deal his predecessor cut with Iran's rulers. Since then the administration's critics …

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Adam Kredo / Washington Free Beacon:
U.S. Moves to Shutter All Iranian Nuclear Enrichment Sites in Major Reversal of Obama Policy

Discussion: Algemeiner.com

MYPANHANDLE:

Shots Fired While Reporter is on Air — Panama City, Fla. - Multiple agencies are dealing with an active shooter situation at Beck Avenue and 23rd Street. Shots were fired while we were live on air.

Aaron Mehta / Defense News:

The US is running out of bombs — and it may soon struggle to make more — WASHINGTON The Pentagon plans to invest more than $20 billion in munitions in its next budget. But whether the industrial base will be there to support such massive buys in the future is up in the air …

Emily Badger / New York Times:

Rural and Urban Americans, Equally Convinced the Rest of the Country Dislikes Them — Country and city voters have been increasingly polarized in recent presidential elections, yet a new survey finds many points of similarity. — For all the ways Americans are divided today along urban and rural lines …

Discussion: Washington Post, twitchy.com and Pew Research Center

Emily Stewart / Vox:

Harley-Davidson took its tax cut, closed a factory, and rewarded shareholders — The motorcycle maker in January told Kansas City workers it would close a plant there. Days later, it announced a nearly $700 million stock buyback plan. — In September 2017, House Speaker Paul Ryan traveled …

Discussion: Raw Story and CNNMoney

Zach Berman / Philly.com:

Carson Wentz plans to make White House visit; Doug Pederson leaving decision up to individuals — The Eagles will visit the White House on June 5, coach Doug Pederson confirmed Tuesday. Pederson added that he'll let each player make an individual decision about whether to attend.

Stephen Dinan / Washington Times:

MS-13 gang member nicknamed ‘Animal’ sentenced to 40 years — An MS-13 member who goes by the gang name “Animal” received a 40-year prison sentence this week for a conspiracy that included the murder of a 15-year-old boy, the U.S. attorney's office in Massachusetts said Tuesday.

Discussion: American Greatness, The Daily Caller, Daily Wire and The White House

Adrianne Haney / WXIA-TV:

Actresses claim they were wrongfully arrested after using Atlanta Houston's bathroom — Video shows an Atlanta Police officer trying to handcuff the women. — ATLANTA — There are renewed calls for customers to #BoycottHoustons after the police had to be called on three women …

Discussion: The Root and Raw Story

Costas Paris / Wall Street Journal:

Father of Accused Texas Shooter Believes Bullying Was Behind Rampage — Antonios Pagourtzis says 17-year-old son was a ‘good boy’ who had been ‘mistreated at school’ — The father of the 17-year-old charged with killing 10 people at a high school in Santa Fe, Texas, said Monday that his son was a …

Discussion: WREG-TV, Raw Story, Law & Crime and Daily Kos

Associated Press:

Washington lobbyists put on notice over foreign agent law — WASHINGTON (AP) — A recent and rare prosecution of a Pakistani man in Maryland under a relatively obscure lobbying law has many in the multimillion dollar world of foreign influence in Washington bracing for more.

Gerry Smith / Bloomberg:

The Hard Truth at Newspapers Across America: Hedge Funds Are in Charge — From Miami to Denver, financial firms are playing a bigger role at local papers struggling to adapt in digital age — A group of journalists protesting outside the offices of a New York City hedge fund recently shined …

Sean Davis / The Federalist:

BREAKING: E-mails Show FBI Brass Discussed Dossier Briefing Details With CNN — New e-mails show former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe was surprisingly knowledgeable about CNN's understanding of and deliberation about a dossier briefing given to Donald Trump days before CNN ever reported on the matter.

Discussion: Power Line, The Gateway Pundit, Daily Wire, Townhall, Conservative Review, Fox News, IJR, RedState, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and CANNONFIRE

Josh Lederman / Associated Press:

Navarro clashes with State Department over UAE airline deal — WASHINGTON (AP) — After striking a delicate deal with the United Arab Emirates this month on rules for airline competition, the Trump administration went to war with itself. — It's a story of how a wonky aviation pact became a bitter …

Brett Samuels / The Hill:

Reuters poll shows Republicans leading generic ballot for first time — Republicans hold a slim lead over Democrats in a generic ballot among registered voters, a new Reuters poll found, marking the first time the survey showed the GOP ahead in this election cycle.