memeorandum: Trump, Putin and the ‘Incredible Offer’: Live Updates (New York Times)

5:20 PM ET, July 16, 2018

Top Items:

mccain.senate.gov:

SASC CHAIRMAN JOHN McCAIN ON TRUMP-PUTIN MEETING — Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement today on President Trump's meeting and press conference with Vladimir Putin in Helsinki:

Discussion: Home Page Rotator, Vox, Weekly Standard, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, CNN, BuzzFeed, Tennessean.com, Politico, Fox News Insider, RT, Cyberscoop, VICE News, Hot Air, WREG-TV, Roll Call, Associated Press, Chicago Sun-Times, Washington Times, twitchy.com, Breitbart, The Week and IJR

James Fallows / The Atlantic:

This Is the Moment of Truth for Republicans — There are exactly two possible explanations for the shameful performance the world witnessed on Monday, from a serving American president. — Either Donald Trump is flat-out an agent of Russian interests—maybe witting, maybe unwitting …

Axios:

Trump's extraordinary press conference was not normal — President Trump today, at a press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin, said he didn't see “any reason” why Russia would interfere in the 2016 election, in response to a question on whether he believed Putin or U.S. intelligence agencies.

Discussion: Politico, ABC News, Breitbart, The Mahablog, Washington Post and Mediaite

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:

Trump is now repaying Putin for helping him win the presidency — THE MORNING PLUM: — The events of the past few days — culminating in President Trump's meeting today with Russian President Vladimir Putin — have rendered this interpretation inescapable: Trump is currently in the process …

Discussion: CNN, Axios, Little Green Footballs, Associated Press, Vox, TVNewser, AOL, The Intercept and Roll Call

New York Times:

Trump, Putin and the ‘Incredible Offer’: Live Updates — Right Now: President Trump refused to say whether he believes his own intelligence agencies or President Vladimir V. Putin on the question of Russian interference in the 2016 American election. — In a remarkable news conference …

Discussion: Bloomberg, AOL, New York Magazine, Washington Monthly, CNN, The Hill, Vox, RedState, Refinery29, New Republic, VICE News, Joe.My.God., Bustle, Media Matters for America, Just Security and Mashable

David Morgan / CBS News:

Trump fist-bumped Turkish leader Erdogan, said he “does things the right way” — In the days before his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki Monday, President Donald Trump upset relations with America's allies during a visit to the United Kingdom and a contentious meeting with NATO leaders in Brussels.

Discussion: Vox, RedState, The Guardian, The Atlantic, Washington Post, Joe.My.God., CBS Boston, CBS Los Angeles and The Week

Ruth Marcus / Washington Post:

If you work for Trump, quit now — Everyone who works for President Trump: Quit now. Save your souls. Save your honor, such as it is. Save your reputation, such as it remains. Russia attacked our democracy. Trump has demonstrated repeatedly, and did so again with Russian President Vladimir Putin …

Discussion: Hot Air, RedState and Weekly Standard

Dan Balz / Washington Post:

After a jaw-dropping news conference, what does ‘America First’ really mean? — When the history of Donald Trump's presidency is ultimately written, July 16, 2018, will have a special entry. On a day when the setting called for a show of strength and resolve from an American president …

Discussion: Axios

Mark Landler / New York Times:

Trump Sheds All Notions of How a President Should Conduct Himself Abroad — WASHINGTON — President Trump made one thing clear after his meeting with President Vladimir V. Putin on Monday: He is willing to take Mr. Putin's word over those of his own intelligence agencies about whether the Russians tried to fix the 2016 election.

Axios:

Trump's Helsinki humiliation — President Trump's press conference with Vladimir Putin was a disaster. And that was the assessment of many of his GOP allies. — Why it matters: Trump had a chance to assert himself — and stand up for his countrymen — against foreign interference in our elections.

Discussion: Washington Post, Politico, ABC News and Breitbart

New York Times:

Republicans Rebuke Trump for Siding With Putin as Democrats Demand Action — WASHINGTON — Republicans across the ideological spectrum rebuked President Trump after Monday's extraordinary news conference with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, with Speaker Paul D. Ryan admonishing Mr. Trump …

Discussion: National Review and CNN

Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times: Trump and Putin vs. America

David Frum / The Atlantic:
The Crisis Facing America

Discussion: MSNBC and The Daily Caller

Meridith McGraw / ABC News:
Trump casts doubt on US intelligence, calls Putin's meddling denial ‘strong and powerful’

Discussion: CNN, Bloomberg, The Atlantic, Shareblue Media, NBC News, IJR and ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES

Kate Riga / Talking Points Memo:
Fox News Host Calls Trump's Presser Performance ‘Disgusting,’ ‘Wrong’

Discussion: The Hill and Daily Kos

John Ziegler / Mediaite:
About the Only Evidence Left that Trump Isn't Beholden to Putin is That It's Just Too Obvious

Discussion: CNN, Townhall and Vox, more at Mediagazer »

Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post: After a stunning news conference, there's a newly crucial job for the American press

Ezra Klein / Vox:
Trump and Putin: what we know is damning

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, NPR and CBS News

Nidhi Prakash / BuzzFeed:
A Senator Said He Thinks “Something Close To” The Trump Pee Tape Exists

Discussion: Washington Post, MSNBC, Politico, Raw Story and Joe.My.God.

Washington Post:
President Trump's news conference with Russia's Putin, annotated

Discussion: Mother Jones, Axios, Breitbart, BloombergQuint, The Atlantic and Politico

Justin Wise / The Hill:
‘Fox & Friends’ host: 'I don't understand' Trump tweet blaming US for bad Russia relations

Discussion: Vox and Mediaite

Rebecca Ballhaus / Wall Street Journal:
Trump Blames U.S. for Poor Relations With Moscow

Discussion: CNN, Raw Story, Mediaite, Philly.com, ThinkProgress, Bloomberg, Washington Post, CNBC, The Week and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Politico: POLITICO Playbook Power Briefing: Everything you need to know about Trump and Putin's joint appearance

Bloomberg:
Republicans Call Trump Summit Remarks ‘Shameful’ and ‘Bizarre’

Discussion: Washington Post, ABC News and Vox

James Michael Nichols / HuffPost:
Joking That Trump And Putin Are Gay Is Homophobia

Discussion: twitchy.com, Vox, Sputnik International and Splinter

Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
Trump, Treasonous Traitor

Discussion: Jacobin, Conservative Review, CANNONFIRE, VICE News, The Week, Taylor Marsh, FiveThirtyEight, BloombergQuint and Home Page Rotator

Tara Golshan / Vox: Trump says the Electoral College is advantageous to Democrats. But he is president because of it.

Waitman Wade Beorn / Washington Post:
Parallels lie in authoritarianism, racism, ethnic myths and dehumanizing language, not the Final Solution

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Washington Post:
Ahead of Putin summit, Trump faults U.S. ‘stupidity’ for poor relations with Russia

U.S. Department of Justice:

Russian National Charged in Conspiracy to Act as an Agent of the Russian Federation Within the United States — A criminal complaint was unsealed today in the District of Columbia charging a Russian national with conspiracy to act as an agent of the Russian Federation within …

Discussion: CNN, Washington Monthly, RT, NPR, The Week, Daily Kos, The Gateway Pundit, Balloon Juice, Sputnik International and WGN-TV

New York Times:

Mariia Butina, Woman Who Sought ‘Back Channel’ Meeting for Trump and Putin, Is Charged as Russian Agent — WASHINGTON — A Russian woman who tried to broker a pair of secret meetings between candidate Donald J. Trump and the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, during the 2016 presidential campaign …

Discussion: Bloomberg and Talking Points Memo

Washington Post:

Maria Butina, Russian gun rights advocate, charged in U.S. with acting as Russian Federation agent — A Russian national with alleged ties to a top Russian official was charged in federal court in Washington Monday with conspiracy to act as an agent of the Russian Federation, and was ordered held without bond.

Discussion: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, New Republic, KTLA and Lawyers, Guns & Money

CBS News:

Trump: “I don't know if I agree” with DNI Coats' warning about Russian cyberattacks — President Trump says he doesn't know if he agrees with a warning from Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats about the “critical” threat of potentially devastating cyberattacks targeting U.S. systems.

Discussion: Politico, NPR, Weekly Standard, CBS Denver and CBS New York

Garrett M. Graff / Wired:
What Robert Mueller Knows—and 9 Areas He'll Pursue Next

Discussion: JONATHAN TURLEY

Brian Beutler / Crooked Media:
Trump and Putin Colluded In Public

Discussion: Politico, BloombergQuint and MSNBC

MySanAntonio.com:

Plutonium went missing in San Antonio, but the government says nothing — Losses of civilian nuclear material are usually disclosed but when the government loses nuclear bomb ingredients it stays mum — Two security experts from the Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory drove to San Antonio …

Discussion: ABC News, Gizmodo, Motherboard, Daily Wire, Balloon Juice and Raw Story

Emily Crane / Daily Mail:

Bombshell Bourdain interview is published one month after his suicide: Celebrity chef unloads on 'rapey, gropey and disgusting Bill Clinton and hopes Weinstein is ‘beaten to death in jail’ — Anthony Bourdain gave a lengthy, wide ranging interview to journalist Maria Bustillos for her recently launched magazine Popula

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Maria Bustillos / Popula:
Bourdain Confidential — Anthony Bourdain had started smoking again …

Discussion: Breitbart, AOL, IndieWire, Conservative News Today, Daily Wire, Deadline, Washington Free Beacon, TheBlaze, LifeZette, Observer and Althouse

Michelle Martin / Reuters:

Germany: We can no longer fully rely on U.S. White House — BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's foreign minister said on Monday Europe could not rely on Donald Trump and needed to close ranks after the U.S. president called the European Union a “foe” with regard to trade.

Discussion: The Week, Politico and Talking Points Memo