memeorandum: Under Trump, the Swamp Is Draining (Ross Douthat/New York Times)

9:00 PM ET, December 1, 2018

Top Items:

‘Where Are We Going?’: George Bush's Final Days — BUENOS AIRES — George Bush had been fading in the last few days. He had not gotten out of bed, he had stopped eating and he was mostly sleeping. For a man who had defied death multiple times over the years, it seemed that the moment might finally be arriving.

Discussion: Townhall, CNN, FOX6Now.com, AOL, myfox8.com, The Daily Caller and The Guardian

Bill Clinton / Washington Post:

George H.W. Bush's Oval Office note to me revealed the heart of who he was — Bill Clinton was the 42nd president of the United States. — On Jan. 20, 1993, I entered the Oval Office for the first time as president. As is the tradition, waiting for me was a note from my predecessor, George Herbert Walker Bush.

Discussion: Axios, New York Times, ABC News, Bloomberg, The Guardian, The Atlantic, TheBlaze, Daily Wire, NPR, IJR, Mother Jones and Mediaite

Damian Paletta / Washington Post:

Congress considers measure to postpone shutdown deadline until after Bush services — Congressional negotiators and White House officials are discussing a one-week budget bill that would delay a partial government shutdown while Washington prepares for the state funeral of former president George H.W. Bush …

Discussion: Political Wire

Daniel Lippman / Politico:

Despite bitter family rivalry, Bush wanted Trump at his funeral — When President Donald Trump didn't attend Barbara Bush's funeral earlier this year, it stoked chatter about a rivalry between the two powerful families who have a history of sniping at each other.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Washington Post and FiveThirtyEight

David Greenberg / Politico:

Is History Being Too Kind to George H.W. Bush? — George Bush, Sr., has died, and our national media have begun the familiar rituals of presidential passings: round-the-clock pieties on cable news, fond tributes from associates, the inevitable softening of the rough edges. This isn't surprising.

Discussion: Breitbart

Andrew Restuccia / Politico:
Trump to attend George H.W. Bush funeral

Discussion: Axios, Breitbart, CBS News, Vox and Washington Post

Michael S. Rosenwald / Washington Post:
'Wouldn't be prudent': George H.W. Bush's unlikely friendship with Dana Carvey

Discussion: East Bay Times, Bloomberg, JustOneMinute and New Republic

Andrew Restuccia / Politico:
Pragmatist vs. pugilist: Bush death highlights Trump's isolation on world stage

Discussion: Sputnik International, HuffPost and Politico

Rachel Siegel / Washington Post:
For George H.W. Bush, Pearl Harbor changed everything, and World War II made him a hero

Discussion: KRON, The Daily Caller, Task & Purpose and IJR

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:
George Bush, 41st President, Dies at 94

Connor O'Brien / Politico:
Mattis, other defense leaders salute Bush 41

Discussion: ABC News, One America News Network, KTLA, Breitbart and Politico

USA Today:
Former president George H.W. Bush to lie in state at U.S. Capitol

Discussion: The Moderate Voice

Philip Rucker / Washington Post:
Trump to name Dec. 5 a national day of mourning for George H.W. Bush

Discussion: Associated Press, Breitbart, The White House, Vox, Deadline, Washington Times, Sputnik International and Althouse

Susan Page / USA Today: An appreciation for George H.W. Bush, one of politics' most ‘courteous’ people

Tim Naftali / Slate:
The Overlooked President

Discussion: ThinkProgress and Breitbart

Jon Meacham / New York Times: George H.W. Bush and the Price of Politics

Clinton Foundation:
Statement by President Clinton and Secretary Clinton on the Passing of President George H.W. Bush

Discussion: LifeZette, IJR, CBS Denver, CBS New York, ABC News, Full Feed, CBS Dallas, Associated Press, VICE News and Axios

Mary Kate Cary / USA Today:
George H.W. Bush was an ‘American great’ committed to unity, diversity and generosity

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog

David R. Lurie / Slate:

How Devin Nunes Helped Robert Mueller — Michael Cohen's guilty plea to a single felony count of lying to Senate and House committees will not appreciably add to his criminal liability. As Ken White observed, the panoply of serious felonies to which Cohen previously pleaded guilty carry …

Discussion: National Review and Washington Examiner

Sharon LaFraniere / New York Times:

Mueller Exposes the Culture of Lying That Surrounds Trump — WASHINGTON — When Michael D. Cohen admitted this past week to lying to Congress about a Russian business deal, he said he had testified falsely out of loyalty to President Trump. When he admitted this summer to lying …

Discussion: Washington Post, Mediaite, Raw Story and CNBC

Eric Tucker / Associated Press:
Trump aides caught in web of deception over Russia contacts

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA

Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:
Cohen claims ‘regular contact’ with Trump legal team when crafting false statement to Congress

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, Splinter, Raw Story, The Week and Political Wire

Matt Zapotosky / Washington Post: Cohen seeks ‘time served’ prison sentence, says again his crimes were meant to protect Trump

CNN:

Mattis: Putin ‘tried again to muck around in our elections’ — Pompeo: Putin meeting canceled over Ukraine — (CNN)Defense Secretary James Mattis said Saturday that Russia attempted to interfere in the US midterm elections last month. — “(Putin) tried again to muck around in our elections …

Discussion: Politico, Axios and KTLA

Washington Post:

Trump pulls punches at global summit, making nice with foes and avoiding feuds — BUENOS AIRES — President Trump managed to spend two days in the company of world leaders he has long antagonized without any visible eruptions. — There were no feuds, at least none publicly detected …

Discussion: Raw Story

Washington Post:
'We don't want him here': Saudi crown prince is a protected pariah at G-20 summit

Discussion: Politico, One America News Network and Reuters

Warren P. Strobel / Wall Street Journal:
CIA Intercepts Underpin Assessment Saudi Crown Prince Targeted Khashoggi

Discussion: KBZK, Splinter, CityLab, Common Dreams, Bloomberg, RedState, The Guardian, Liberty Unyielding, The Week, Raw Story and Mediaite

Bret Stephens / New York Times:
Scent of the Russians — There's a connection between Cohen's …

Discussion: Mediaite, Washington Press and Sputnik International

Politico:
Merkel and Putin agree to more talk on Ukraine

Discussion: One America News Network

Claudia Koerner / BuzzFeed News:

Fox Is Investigating Neil DeGrasse Tyson After Allegations Of Sexual Misconduct — Fox Broadcasting Company and National Geographic are investigating astrophysicist and Cosmos host Neil deGrasse Tyson after three women came forward with allegations of sexual misconduct.

Discussion: twitchy.com, No Sacred Cows and The Root, more at Mediagazer »

No Sacred Cows:
Two More Women Accuse Neil deGrasse Tyson of Sexual Misconduct

Discussion: USA Today, Daily Wire, Engadget, The Daily Caller, Breitbart, Vox, TMZ.com, ThinkProgress, FOX6Now.com, WPIX 11 New York, Friendly Atheist, IndieWire, Mashable, Variety, The Verge, Consequence of Sound, Deadline, AOL and Mediaite

Ross Douthat / New York Times:

Under Trump, the Swamp Is Draining — A grifter president has inspired an elite housecleaning. — Impeachment is a political act, and the endgame of the Robert Mueller investigation may not deliver the stark evidence that would remove Donald Trump from office.

Discussion: Raw Story, RedState and miamiherald

David Mack / BuzzFeed News:

She Thought She Was In Bed With Her Boyfriend, Until She Saw His Face — “I was like, 'I feel violated. This feels wrong. But I don't know if it's illegal.'” This woman's case has exposed a loophole in rape laws. — Reporting From — West Lafayette, Indiana

Laura McGann / Vox:

Eight women say George HW Bush groped them. Their claims deserve to be remembered as we assess his legacy. — Those we entrust with power need to use it for all of us. — George H.W. Bush died at his home in Houston on Friday night, launching a blizzard of long-held obituaries praising …

Discussion: Splinter

BuzzFeed News:

This Document Is Some Of The Research Facebook Commissioned On George Soros — Definers' research for Facebook on billionaire George Soros has never been published before. You can read one of those documents here. — Reporting From — BuzzFeed News obtained a document Facebook commissioned …

Discussion: The Verge and Common Dreams

New York Times:

A Generation of Widows, Raising Children Who Will Be Forged by Loss — KABUL, Afghanistan — As evening takes over Kabul, daylight fading to gray, 3-year-old Benyamin senses that his father should be coming home from work about now. — But it's been months since a bombing killed his “Aba …

Amy Gardner / Washington Post:

North Carolina elections board chairman resigns, says he doesn't want his partisan views to hurt election fraud investigation — TAR HEEL, N.C. — The Democratic chairman of the state elections board in North Carolina resigned Saturday, saying he did not want his partisan views to undermine …

Discussion: NPR, Axios, Law & Crime and twitchy.com