memeorandum: Mayor Bill de Blasio Enters 2020 Race for President (New York Times)

9:55 AM ET, May 16, 2019

Top Items:

Lori Jhons / Kay Ivey:

Governor Ivey Issues Statement After Signing the Alabama Human Life Protection Act — MONTGOMERY - Governor Kay Ivey on Wednesday signed into law the Alabama Human Life Protection Act, after both houses of the Alabama Legislature passed HB314. — Upon signing the bill, Governor Ivey released the following statement:

Sarah Pulliam Bailey / Washington Post:

Televangelist Pat Robertson: Alabama's abortion ban is ‘extreme’ and has ‘gone too far’ — Longtime televangelist Pat Robertson decried Alabama's new abortion ban as “extreme,” saying on his show on Wednesday that the state legislature has “gone too far.” — Alabama's law …

Discussion: YouTube, Mercury News, USA Today, CNBC, New York Times, CANNONFIRE, Splinter, ThinkProgress and Fox News

Summer Ballentine / Associated Press:

Missouri Senate passes bill to ban abortions at 8 weeks — JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri's Republican-led Senate has now passed a bill to ban abortions at eight weeks of pregnancy. — Senators approved the legislation 24-10 early Thursday with just hours left before a Friday deadline to pass bills.

Discussion: ABC News, Fox News, Raw Story, Political Wire, The Week and Fort Smith/Fayetteville News

Popular Information:
The corporations backing Alabama's war on women

Discussion: NPR

Shannon Dingle / USA Today:
I was 12 years old and pregnant. Alabama's abortion ban bill would punish girls like me.

Discussion: Slate, Glamour and Talking Points Memo

Associated Press:
The Latest: Alabama's governor signs abortion ban into law

Discussion: ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES, CNN and Washington Post

Eugene Scott / Washington Post:
Alabama's abortion ban will make abortion a key issue in 2020. Which party does that help?

Discussion: One America News Network, Florida Politics, Breitbart, ABC News and Bangor Daily News

Washington Post:

Trump, frustrated by advisers, is not convinced the time is right to attack Iran — The Trump administration has been on high alert in response to what military and intelligence officials have deemed specific and credible threats from Iran against U.S. personnel in the Middle East.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The American Conservative, VICE News, Washington Times, Raw Story, The Week, Politico, New York Post, Vanity Fair and Mediaite

New York Times:

Iran Threat Debate Is Set Off by Images of Missiles at Sea — WASHINGTON — The intelligence that caused the White House to escalate its warnings about a threat from Iran came from photographs of missiles on small boats in the Persian Gulf that were put on board by Iranian paramilitary forces, three American officials said.

Discussion: CNN, Washington Post, Political Wire, CNBC, The Drive, The Week, Scroll.in, New York Post, The National Interest and Splinter

William J. Burns / The Atlantic: We Led Successful Negotiations With Iran. Trump's Approach Isn't Working.

Daniel Larison / The American Conservative:
The Iran Obsession Has Made War Much More Likely

Discussion: LobeLog

Bill de Blasio / YouTube:

Working People First | Bill de Blasio 2020 — When we put working families first in New York City, the city got stronger. That can happen for our country, too. Learn about my candidacy for president of the United States of America to put working families first.

Discussion: Politico, Vox, BuzzFeed News, VICE News, Gothamist, UPI, Curbed NY, New York Post, Fortune, CBS New York, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, twitchy.com and Washington Times

Alex Seitz-Wald / NBC News:

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio to announce presidential bid — Bill de Blasio is not exactly popular back home, but he has a record of progressive accomplishments that allies think will resonate with Democratic voters. — WASHINGTON — New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio will declare …

Discussion: Breitbart, The Guardian, New York Daily News, CityLab, The Week, NPR, Mediaite, RedState, FiveThirtyEight, Fox News, Slate, PJ Media Home, Talking Points Memo, Vanity Fair, CNBC, Gothamist, twitchy.com, Axios, Splinter and Political Wire

Isaac Stanley-Becker / Washington Post:

A 17-year-old politics junkie scooped Bill de Blasio on news of his own presidential launch — New York Mayor Bill de Blasio had it all planned out — a stunt inside Trump Tower on Monday, an announcement on ABC's “Good Morning America” on Thursday and, from there, outings in Iowa …

Discussion: Power Line, Politico and Mediaite

New York Times:
Mayor Bill de Blasio Enters 2020 Race for President

Discussion: Hot Air, Outside the Beltway and Daily Kos

Rick Klein / ABC News:
The Note: Democrats seek out offense on culture wars

Discussion: Politico, The Week and One America News Network

Zak Hudak / CBS News: New York Mayor Bill de Blasio to announce presidential run

Colby Itkowitz / Washington Post:

Trump pardons billionaire friend Conrad Black, who wrote a book about him — Black was convicted in 2007 on fraud charges, including alleged embezzlement, and obstruction of justice. — Colby Itkowitz - · — The Fix — The Fix - Analysis — Alabama's abortion ban will make abortion a key issue in 2020.

Discussion: Las Vegas Review-Journal, The Week, NPR, Variety, Politico and Axios, more at Mediagazer »

Aaron Blake / Washington Post:

The very political pattern of Trump's pardons — Trump pardons his own hagiographer and a family ‘friend’ who criticized Mueller. — President Trump's pardons were self-serving before, and they became even more so Wednesday night, after he pardoned two prominent conservatives who had already completed their sentences.

Ben White / Politico:

Grassley on what Trump really believes on trade — Editor's Note: This edition of Morning Money is published weekdays at 8 a.m. POLITICO Pro Financial Services subscribers hold exclusive early access to the newsletter each morning at 5:15 a.m. To learn more about POLITICO Pro's comprehensive …

Discussion: New York Post

Jim Waterson / The Guardian:
Trump pardons fraudster Conrad Black after glowing biography

Discussion: Shareblue Media, New York Times, Deadline, Splinter, The Daily Caller and Mediaite

Conrad Black / American Greatness: A Full Presidential Pardon

Washington Post:

Toddler apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border dies after weeks in hospital — A 2½-year-old Guatemalan boy apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border died Tuesday night in El Paso after several weeks in the hospital, according to the Guatemalan Consulate and another person with direct knowledge of the case.

Discussion: CBS News, The Week, Associated Press, Axios and New York Post

Roque Planas / HuffPost: How Fox News Anointed Trump's Pick For ICE Chief

Adolfo Flores / BuzzFeed News:
A Two-Year-Old Boy Detained At The Border Has Died After Weeks In The Hospital

Discussion: Splinter

Silvia Foster-Frau / Houston Chronicle: 'Didn't want to wait' — Nine Central American migrants faced …

Chris Sommerfeldt / New York Daily News:

Company owned by Brazilian crooks received $62 million in Trump bailout cash meant for struggling U.S. farmers — The Trump administration has forked over more than $62 million — taxpayer cash that was supposed to be earmarked for struggling American farmers — to a massive meatpacking company owned …

Eliana Johnson / Politico:

‘Get Scavino in here’: Trump's Twitter guru is the ultimate insider — Shortly after President Donald Trump announced plans to yank U.S. troops out of Syria last December, a group of lawmakers came to the White House to talk him out of the idea, which critics called a threat to national security.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Axios and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »

Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:

Trump won't stop coining nasty nicknames for his foes — but the media must stop amplifying them. — I was talking to an acquaintance recently about Elizabeth Warren's presidential campaign. — He liked the Massachusetts Democrat's detailed policies and was impressed with her recent CNN town hall presentation.

Theodoric Meyer / Politico:

Kasich adviser will lobby against potential Russia sanctions — John Weaver, the top strategist for John Kasich's presidential campaign in 2016, has registered as a foreign agent and plans to lobby against potential sanctions on Russia. — Weaver signed a contract last month to lobby …

Discussion: BuzzFeed News, twitchy.com, The Daily Caller, Fox News, RedState, The Daily Beast and Daily Caller News Foundation

Jonathan Tamari / Philly.com:

Joe Biden chooses Philadelphia for 2020 presidential campaign headquarters — WASHINGTON — Joe Biden will base his presidential campaign in Philadelphia, setting up in a city where he has deep ties and in a state that is central to his strategy. — A formal announcement is expected Thursday …

Discussion: New York Post and Political Wire

Orion Rummler / Axios:
Biden will base 2020 campaign headquarters in Philadelphia

Discussion: Washington Post

Michael D. Shear / New York Times:

Trump Immigration Plan Emphasizes Immigrants' Skills Over Family Ties — WASHINGTON — President Trump will unveil on Thursday a plan to overhaul parts of the nation's immigration system that would impose new security measures at the border and significantly increase the educational …

Discussion: The White House, Splinter and The Week

Politico:
POLITICO Playbook: What Dianne Feinstein's phone told us

Discussion: Los Angeles Times and Raw Story

Stacey Abrams / New York Times:

Why I Am Determined to End Voter Suppression — As more people of color claim political power, efforts to block them will accelerate — unless we act. — Ms. Abrams is the founder of the voting rights group Fair Fight Action. — ATLANTA — In the mid-1960s, when my father was a teenager, he was arrested.

Elizabeth Warren / Team Warren:

It's Time to Reduce Corporate Influence at the Pentagon — I've made the short trip between the Washington DC airport and the United State Senate more times than I can count — sometimes just barely catching my flight back to Boston, Bailey and Bruce.

Sadie Gurman / Wall Street Journal:

Barr Says He Isn't Blocking Mueller's Testimony to Congress — Attorney General William Barr denied he is standing in the way of special counsel Robert Mueller's testimony before Congress.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, CNN, CNBC and Political Wire

Associated Press:

The Latest: Missouri Senate passes strict abortion bill — JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Latest on a Missouri bill to ban abortions at eight weeks of pregnancy (all times local): — Missouri's Republican-led Senate has passed a bill to ban abortions at eight weeks of pregnancy.

Discussion: Axios and The Week

Nicholas Fandos / New York Times:

After Pelosi Says She Has a ‘Little Jail,’ Barr Asks, ‘Did You Bring Your Handcuffs?’ — WASHINGTON — It's not every day in Washington that the attorney general dares the speaker of the House to lock him up. — But as he mingled backstage with V.I.P.s at an event honoring law enforcement officers …

Discussion: Althouse and Law & Crime

Andrew Desiderio / Politico:

Trump lawyers adopt Jim Jordan's playbook to fight Dem oversight — Rep. Jim Jordan has frequently defended President Donald Trump on cable news and gone to the mat for him on Capitol Hill. Now, the Ohio Republican's hard-line playbook is making its way into federal court.

Discussion: Raw Story

ProPublica:

Intuit CEO in Internal Video: Hiding Free TurboTax Was In “Best Interest of Taxpayers” — ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom based in New York. Sign up for ProPublica's Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox as soon as they are published.

Discussion: YouTube

Reis Thebault / Washington Post:

GOP lawmaker indicted for trying to trade his vote for cash, lying to the FBI, authorities say — The text message, which allegedly offered up a lawmaker's vote in exchange for cash, ended with a famous five-word phrase: “We never had this discussion.” — But a federal grand jury has accused …

Discussion: Axios, Detroit Free Press and Associated Press

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:

Silver Bulletpoints: Why Did All The White Guys Stampede Into The Race So Late? — Today is Thursday, May 16, 2019, which means we have 538 days4 worth of #content to bring you until the 2020 presidential election. In today's edition of Silver Bulletpoints, we'll ask the age-old question …

Bret Stephens / New York Times:

What's Our China Endgame? — We need to deflate Beijing's ambitions, without bursting them. — “My idea of American policy toward the Soviet Union is simple, and some would say simplistic,” Ronald Reagan told his adviser Richard Allen in January 1977, four years before he became president.