memeorandum: Judge Lobs Political Bomb at Trump by Nullifying Obamacare (Sahil Kapur/Bloomberg)

2:00 PM ET, December 16, 2018

Top Items:

John Harwood / CNBC:

Voters are growing uneasy over the probes swirling around Trump, as a clear majority believe he hasn't been honest: NBC-WSJ poll — A robust 62 percent majority say Trump has not been honest about the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign, up from 56 percent in August.

Discussion: Political Wire

Mark Murray / NBC News:

Poll: 62 percent say Trump isn't telling the truth in Russia probe — More Americans want Democrats — not Trump — in charge of setting policy, a new national NBC News/WSJ poll finds. — WASHINGTON — Six in 10 Americans say President Donald Trump has been untruthful about the investigation …

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA

Jordyn Phelps / ABC News:

President Donald Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani blasts former personal attorney Michael Cohen as pathetic — President Donald Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani blasted the president's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen as “pathetic” and a “serial liar” when questioned about Cohen's claim …

Discussion: Political Wire and Breitbart

Quint Forgey / Politico:

Giuliani: ‘I can produce 20 witnesses’ to defend hush money payments — Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump's attorney, claimed Sunday he could “produce 20 witnesses” to testify that hush money payments to women ahead of the 2016 election were intended to protect then-candidate Trump's family …

Discussion: Washington Post

Eli Watkins / CNN:
Elijah Cummings calls for Cohen testimony in January

Discussion: Bloomberg, The Guardian and AOL

Zachary Basu / Axios:
Giuliani on Trump sitting down with Mueller: “Over my dead body”

Discussion: Political Wire

Mark Scott / Politico:

British officials line up for second referendum: reports — LONDON — Theresa May, the British prime minister, faces renewed domestic pressure over Brexit after a series of high-profile U.K. politicians threw their support behind a second referendum, according to media reports.

Discussion: The Times & The Sunday Times, BBC, Breitbart and One America News Network

Caroline Wheeler / The Times & The Sunday Times:

No-deal Brexit travel warning: don't go on holiday after March 29 — Families will be advised not to book holidays after next March, according to contingency plans being drawn up to prepare for a no-deal Brexit. — The proposed guidance, which will shock the travel industry …

Discussion: Telegraph

Michael Savage / The Guardian:
Senior Tories urge free vote on second referendum

Discussion: One America News Network

Brianne Pfannenstiel / Des Moines Register:

Iowa Poll: Biden, Sanders top early look at possible Democratic hopefuls in 2020 caucuses — Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders top the list of potential presidential candidates preferred by Iowa's likely Democratic caucusgoers, reflecting their belief that it will take political experience to defeat President Donald Trump in 2020.

Discussion: Vox, No More Mister Nice Blog, Splinter, POLITICUSUSA, Althouse, Axios and Townhall

Todd J. Gillman / Dallas Morning News:
O'Rourke marvels at Beto-mania, conceding it's ‘a great question’ whether he's ready for White House

Discussion: CNN, Outside the Beltway and Breitbart

Kris Schneider / ABC News:

Sen. Dick Durbin: Obamacare ruling ‘once again puts Republicans in Washington on the spot’ — Just days after a federal judge in Texas ruled that the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional, the Senate minority whip said Sunday the ruling is bad news for Republicans in Congress.

Discussion: RedState, Politico, HuffPost, Reason, The Daily Caller and Breitbart

Sahil Kapur / Bloomberg:
Judge Lobs Political Bomb at Trump by Nullifying Obamacare

Discussion: Axios, Progressives Everywhere, New York Times and Los Angeles Times

TMZ.com:

HQ Trivia Co-Founder and CEO Colin Kroll Dead at 35 of Apparent Drug Overdose — Colin Kroll, the CEO and co-founder of HQ Trivia, has died of an apparent drug overdose ... TMZ has learned. — Law enforcement sources tell TMZ, Kroll's girlfriend called police early Sunday and asked …

Discussion: The Verge, The Daily Beast, Mashable and Full Feed, more at Mediagazer »

David Brooks / New York Times:

Who Killed The Weekly Standard? — The bureaucratic mind has a temporary triumph. — I've only been around Phil Anschutz a few times. My impressions on those occasions was that he was a run-of-the-mill arrogant billionaire. He was used to people courting him and he addressed …

Discussion: Althouse, more at Mediagazer »

Michael Brice-Saddler / Washington Post:

The 7-year-old girl who died in Border Patrol custody was healthy before she arrived, father says — Guatemalan girl's family is calling for an “objective and thorough” investigation into her death, a representative for the family said Saturday. — The 7-year-old Guatemalan girl who died …

Discussion: New York Times, Times of San Diego and IJR

Tamar Auber / Mediaite:
Father of Little Girl Who Died in Border Control Custody Says He Has No Complaints With Treatment

Discussion: IJR and twitchy.com

Sonia Perez D. / Associated Press:
Girl who died fled intensely poor Guatemalan village

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Daily Wire, FOX6Now.com and Annunciation House

Justin Glawe / The Daily Beast:
Jakelin Caal Was Held at Border Patrol Base Previously Cited for Contaminated Water

Discussion: BuzzFeed News

Emily Gillespie / Fortune:

Mueller Investigation Cost $25 Million So Far, Report Says. It's Pulled in $48 Million From Tax Cheats — Robert Mueller's investigation has cost just over $25 million in the first 16 months of its investigation, according to CNBC. — The Special Counsel's Office released …

Discussion: CBS News, POLITICUSUSA and ThinkProgress

Dan Lamothe / Washington Post:

Trump says he'll review case of Matt Golsteyn, a Special Forces veteran who faces murder charge — The Army veteran is accused of killing an alleged Taliban bombmaker without permission. — President Trump tweeted Sunday that he will review the case of a former Special Forces officer …

Discussion: ABC News, Mother Jones and New York Times

CBS News:

Sunday: Miller, Klobuchar, Barrasso, Davis, Potter — Friday evening, President Trump turned to Twitter to name Office of Management and Budget chief Mick Mulvaney his pick for acting White House chief of staff. … Fierce speculation had abounded over the president's replacement for John Kelly …

Discussion: Mother Jones, Raw Story and Talking Points Memo

Washington Post:

White House prepares for shutdown as GOP lawmakers struggle for an alternative — The White House and a number of federal agencies have started advanced preparations for a partial government shutdown, as President Trump and congressional Democrats appear unlikely to resolve their fight …

Discussion: The Hill