memeorandum: Iowa Poll: Joni Ernst's approval rating hits new high as she readies for 2020 re-election bid (Brianne Pfannenstiel/Des Moines Register)

8:35 PM ET, February 20, 2019

Top Items:

CNN:

Justice Department preparing for Mueller report as early as next week — Washington (CNN)Attorney General Bill Barr is preparing to announce as early as next week the completion of Robert Mueller's Russia investigation, with plans for Barr to submit to Congress soon after a summary …

Washington Post:

Justice Department preparing for Mueller report in coming days — Justice Department officials are preparing for the end of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's nearly two-year investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and believe a confidential report could be issued in coming days …

Discussion: Raw Story

emptywheel:

Questions to Ask before Reporting a BREAKING Mueller Report — Update: CNN is matching NBC's reporting on this. It also backs its report with real details from their superb stakeout. … I take from that I'm wrong about Mueller waiting for the two appeals (he knows what he'll get from them) before he delivers his verdict.

Discussion: CNN, Raw Story, RedState and Breitbart

Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:
Trump butters up Barr amid signs of Mueller conclusion

Discussion: Washington Post, Raw Story and Bloomberg

Quin Hillyer / Washington Examiner:
McCabe's depiction of Jeff Sessions is pathetically unbelievable

Discussion: The New Neo, BlueDot Daily and CNN

Lynh Bui / Washington Post:

Self-proclaimed white nationalist planned mass terror attack, government says. ‘I am dreaming of a way to kill almost every last person on earth.’ — A U.S. Coast Guard lieutenant and self-identified white nationalist has been arrested after federal investigators uncovered a cache of weapons …

Discussion: The Resurgent, Hot Air, The Daily Caller, Daily Wire, Mediaite, TheBlaze, Hullabaloo, Daily Kos and Political Wire

Dave Philipps / New York Times: Coast Guard Officer Plotted to Kill Democrats and Journalists, Prosecutors Say

CNN:

Actor Jussie Smollett now a suspect in criminal investigation — “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett has been “officially classified” as a suspect in a criminal investigation for allegedly filling a false police report, according to a tweet from Chicago police communications Officer Anthony Guglielmi.

Discussion: CBS Chicago, fox5sandiego.com, WPIX 11 New York, Washington Free Beacon, The Root, Page Six, Townhall, myfox8.com, TheBlaze, Daily Wire and The Week

Tina Nguyen / Vanity Fair:
“Activists Masquerading as Journalists”: Why the Right-Wing Media Is So Furious About the Jussie Smollett Affair

Discussion: RedState, Coffee House, Breitbart, Spectator USA and Page Six

CBS Chicago:
Video Shows Brothers Linked To Jussie Smollett Attack Buying Items Allegedly Worn In Assault

Discussion: TMZ.com, The Daily Beast, NBC News, The Source, Okayplayer, The FADER, Deadline, The Last Refuge, The Gateway Pundit, TheBlaze, The Daily Caller, CBS Los Angeles, Breitbart and Reason

John Kass / Chicago Tribune: Column: Politicians use Jussie Smollett, while a 1-year-old boy shot in the head is set aside

John McWhorter / The Atlantic:
What the Jussie Smollett Story Reveals

Discussion: The American Conservative, Hot Air, The Daily Signal, Page Six, twitchy.com, KBZK, Althouse, The Week and CBS Chicago

Associated Press:
The Latest: Police: Smollett suspected of lying about attack

Discussion: Breitbart, WPIX 11 New York and KTLA

Shannon Young / Union-News:

UMass poll gives Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders edge in 2020 New Hampshire Democratic primary — Although former Vice President Joe Biden has yet to enter the 2020 White House race, he continues to lead declared Democratic candidates among expected New Hampshire voters with less than one year …

Discussion: Political Wire and twitchy.com

Natasha Korecki / Politico:

‘Sustained and ongoing’ disinformation assault targets Dem presidential candidates — A wide-ranging disinformation campaign aimed at Democratic 2020 candidates is already underway on social media, with signs that foreign state actors are driving at least some of the activity.

Discussion: NBC News, New York Times, Washington Monthly, Booman Tribune, VICE News, Hill Reporter, The Week, Daily Kos and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »

Sean Sullivan / Washington Post:
Bernie Sanders's second campaign: Strong start, big challenges ahead

Discussion: Politico, No More Mister Nice Blog and Vox

Philip Bump / Washington Post:
A more liberal Democratic electorate gets a more liberal primary field — to an extent

Discussion: Politico, CNN, The Atlantic, Breitbart and National Review

Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:

“She Was Pitching Her Intimate Knowledge of the Mueller Probe”: Sarah Isgur Flores, Former Trumper, Talked to MSNBC Before Signing with CNN — The former Jeff Sessions spokesperson is now a power player at a network she once called the “Clinton News Network.” How'd she close the deal?

Discussion: The Intercept, The Daily Beast, The Wrap, Fox News and The Federalist

Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:

CNN's hiring of a GOP operative as political editor is even worse than it looks — A few months before the 2016 presidential election, Sarah Isgur tweeted some advice to Donald Trump: “The only 3 words that should be coming out of Donald Trump's mouth this week are: ‘Clinton’ ‘foundation’ ‘emails’”

Discussion: Vox, The Daily Beast, New York Times, Political Wire, Lawyers, Guns & Money, ThinkProgress, The Daily Caller, CNN, Boing Boing, Townhall, The Week and Politico, more at Mediagazer »

NBC News:

Pentagon chief briefing irks lawmakers, draws expletives from Sen. Lindsey Graham — The episode highlighted Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan's increasingly strained relationship with Capitol Hill two months after he replaced Jim Mattis. — Acting Defense Secretary and Sen. Graham spar over Syria policy

Discussion: Raw Story

Josh Rogin / Washington Post:
Inside Patrick Shanahan's clash with Congress in Munich over Syria

Discussion: Daily Kos, Task & Purpose, Roll Call and Politico

Kristina Wong / Breitbart:
Acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan's Rocky Meeting in Munich: 'You've Just Lost the Senate'

Discussion: Vox

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:

Dutch professor exposes Tucker Carlson's fraud — “Tucker Carlson Tonight” is a binary production. Here's how it breaks down: The host, Tucker Carlson, either welcomes a guest with whom he agrees, in which case the segment is a facile lovefest, or he welcomes a guest with whom he disagrees …

Discussion: The Guardian, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Hullabaloo, Hill Reporter, Contemptor, The Week, Mediaite and AOL, more at Mediagazer »

Brett Murphy / USA Today:

Blackface, KKK hoods and mock lynchings: Review of 900 yearbooks finds blatant racism — In one of the most extensive searches of college yearbooks ever, we found blackface and Ku Klux Klan photos like Ralph Northam's far beyond Virginia. — The old yearbook photos capture the lighthearted moments …

Discussion: Splinter

Nicole Carroll / USA Today:
I became part of our story on racist images in college yearbooks. I'm here to apologize for publishing that photo

Discussion: Raw Story

Isaac Chotiner / New Yorker:

The Classicist Who Sees Donald Trump as a Tragic Hero — Many of the books written in support of Donald Trump's Presidency have been authored by Trump family hangers-on or charlatans looking to make a buck. (Examples include “Trump's Enemies: How the Deep State Is Undermining the Presidency …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Dan Cancian / Newsweek:
Barack Obama: 'If You're Confident About Your Sexuality, You Don't Need Eight Women Around You Twerking'

Discussion: Breitbart

Luke Thompson:

The Congresswoman Loves the Swamp — Her Wealthy Chief of Staff used a PAC to Pay Her Boyfriend — Luke ThompsonBlockedUnblockFollowFollowing — Last Friday, my mentions died for your sins. I posted a screen grab of Riley Roberts's House Microsoft Outlook card, including his official house …

Discussion: Hot Air, RedState, TheBlaze, IJR, twitchy.com, Patterico's Pontifications and Instapundit

Becket Adams / Washington Examiner:
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's office sure looks swampy

Discussion: twitchy.com and checkyourfact.com

Amy Gardner / Washington Post:

Candidate's son warned father of N.C. political operative's alleged tactics — RALEIGH, N.C. — The son of Republican congressional candidate Mark Harris testified Wednesday that he warned his father repeatedly that he believed a political operative now at the center of an election-fraud investigation …

Discussion: Political Wire and Splinter

Raleigh News & Observer:
John Harris warned his father about legal red flags involving Bladen operative

Discussion: The Charlotte Observer, Talking Points Memo, Roll Call and The Daily Caller

Zoe Tillman / BuzzFeed News:

A Former Trump Staffer Filed A Class Action To Invalidate All Of The Campaign's Nondisclosure Agreements — WASHINGTON — A former Trump campaign staffer filed a class action Wednesday seeking to invalidate all of the nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements that the Trump campaign required all staffers to sign.

Discussion: Axios, VICE News and Splinter

Washington Post:

Supreme Court, in unanimous ruling, moves to limit state and local governments' power to impose fines and seize property — The court on Wednesday ruled in favor of Tyson Timbs of Marion, Ind., whose $42,000 Land Rover SUV was seized after his arrest for selling a couple hundred dollars' worth of heroin.

Robert Barnes / Washington Post:
Supreme Court limits power of states and localities to impose fines, seize property

Discussion: New York Times, Vox, Above the Law, Mother Jones, Boing Boing, ABC News and Axios

Rebecca Morin / Politico:

Trump says he directed Pompeo not to let ISIS bride back in U.S. — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he had directed the State Department not to allow the return of an Alabama woman who in 2014 joined the Islamic State terrorist group, days after the woman made public pleas to be let back into the U.S.

Discussion: RedState, Washington Post, The Guardian and One America News Network

Rukmini Callimachi / New York Times:
Alabama Woman Who Joined ISIS Can't Return Home, Pompeo Says

Discussion: Breitbart

Sean Hannity:

MANUFACTURED CRISIS? Border Agents Seize $13 MILLION of Meth Hidden in Frozen Strawberries — Border and Customs agents in south Texas seized $13 million worth of methamphetamines concealed in a frozen strawberry delivery truck over the weekend; discovering the illicit drugs …

Discussion: CNN

Mathew Rodriguez / Out Magazine:

Trump's Plan to Decriminalize Homosexuality Is an Old Racist Tactic … The Trump administration is set to launch a global campaign to decriminalize homosexuality in dozens of nations where anti-gay laws are still on the books, NBC News reported Monday. While on its surface …

Washington Post:

White House readies panel to assess if climate change poses a national security threat — The White House is working to assemble a panel to assess whether climate change poses a national security threat, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post, a conclusion that federal intelligence agencies …

Discussion: New York Times, Mother Jones, Bloomberg, Reuters, Daily Kos, CNN, Task & Purpose, The Daily Caller, IJR, Shareblue Media, The Guardian, Axios, The Democrats and The Week

Aaron Rupar / Vox:
Trump's pick to chair new climate panel once said CO2 has been maligned like “Jews under Hitler”

Discussion: Raw Story and Nature

Christopher Cadelago / Politico:

Kamala Harris shamed by Jamaican father over pot-smoking joke — Kamala Harris made headlines last week when she joked in a radio interview that of course she smoked marijuana in her younger years: “Half my family's from Jamaica, are you kidding me?” — But the crack didn't go over well with at least …

Discussion: Political Wire