memeorandum: Federal lawsuit claims Texas' mail-in ballot procedures are unconstitutional (Alexa Ura/The Texas Tribune)

1:05 AM ET, August 8, 2019

Top Items:

CNN:

Exclusive: El Paso suspect's mother called police concerned about gun — (CNN)The El Paso shooting suspect's mother called the Allen, Texas, Police Department weeks before the shooting because she was concerned about her son owning an “AK” type firearm, lawyers for the family confirmed to CNN.

Discussion: Breitbart, New York Post, Hyperallergic, Common Dreams and TheBlaze

New York Times:

Trump Uses a Day of Healing to Deepen the Nation's Divisions — EL PASO — President Trump visited Dayton, Ohio, and El Paso on Wednesday on a day intended as a show of compassion to cities scarred by a weekend of violence, but which quickly devolved into an occasion for anger-fueled broadsides against Democrats and the news media.

Discussion: Bloomberg, Boing Boing, Mediaite and NPR

Daniel Dale / CNN:

Fact check: Trump falsely accuses Sherrod Brown, Dayton mayor of misrepresenting his hospital visit — Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump, his press secretary and his director of social media accused Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown and Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley, both of whom are Democrats …

Discussion: Politico, Townhall, Daily Kos and Shareblue Media

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:

Joe Biden's speech in Iowa puts Trump to shame — President Trump visits El Paso and Dayton, Ohio, but cannot make a big speech in an open venue for fear of being booed. (In Dayton, he made himself invisible, meeting behind closed doors with family and medical staff, making no public appearance or comment.)

Discussion: Washington Examiner, The Hill, Dallas Morning News, The Moderate Voice and EURweb

Orion Rummler / Axios:
Trump attacks Ohio politicians, Biden, Fox News after visiting shooting victims

Discussion: CNBC, No More Mister Nice Blog and Breitbart

R. Derek Black / USA Today:
I grew up a white nationalist. We never blamed ourselves for mass shootings like El Paso.

Discussion: Common Dreams

Josh Israel / ThinkProgress:
Susan Collins has a predictably pathetic response to El Paso and Dayton shootings

Discussion: Common Dreams

Timothy Archuleta / El Paso Times:
Mr. President, the hatred of the El Paso shooting didn't come from our city

Discussion: New York Times, ABC News, The Week, Shareblue Media and Politico

Courier-Journal:

McConnell's campaign suspended from Twitter for posting critic's profanity-laced video — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's campaign has been thrown in Twitter jail. — After sharing a video of a profanity-laced protest outside of the Kentucky Republican's home in Louisville …

Discussion: Fox News, RedState, Axios, Reclaim The Net, Talking Points Memo, Patterico's Pontifications, The Last Refuge, TheBlaze and Breitbart

Colby Itkowitz / Washington Post:
Twitter freezes McConnell campaign account for posting video of protester's violent threats

Discussion: Courier-Journal

Alexandra S. Levine / Politico:
Twitter locks McConnell campaign account over video of protesters hurling threats

Discussion: Washington Times

Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
Twitter Locked McConnell Campaign's Account For Posting Video Of Protesters Outside Senator's Home

Discussion: Daily Wire, The Gateway Pundit and twitchy.com

Maggie Haberman / New York Times:

A Divisive Voice Once Again Has Trump's Ear — WASHINGTON — As President Trump doubles down on a re-election approach of stoking fear of immigrants, he is once again elevating a voice of validation — and many say racism — that he discovered during his last presidential campaign.

Joe DePaolo / Mediaite:

Bill de Blasio Attacks Fox News in Wild Clash With Hannity: This is ‘Such a Charade!’ — In the wild world of cable news, little surprises us here at Mediaite these days. But we must admit, the sight of New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio sitting across from Sean Hannity made us do a double take.

Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:
Tucker Carlson's claim that white supremacy is a hoax is easy to prove wrong. Just watch his show.

Discussion: Mediaite, The Daily Beast, Progressive Secular Humanist, VICE, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Boing Boing and Axios, more at Mediagazer »

Mehdi Hasan / The Intercept:
These 7 Prominent Conservatives Have Nothing in Common With White Supremacists, Nothing at All

Discussion: Big League Politics, Vox, Boston Globe and POLITICUSUSA

Reed Richardson / Mediaite: Tucker Carlson Rails Against The Left's ‘Frenzy of Racial Hatred’: ‘This is the Path to Civil War’

Laura Nahmias / New York Daily News:
Rules for thee but not for me: the de Blasio principle

Discussion: Politico and Wall Street Journal

Associated Press:

ICE raids food plants on day of Trump visit to grieving city — MORTON, Miss. (AP) — U.S. immigration officials raided several Mississippi food processing plants on Wednesday, part of a large-scale operation carried out by President Donald Trump's administration that targeted both corporations and their largely Latino employees.

Discussion: Payday Report, Splinter, NPR, emptywheel, The Gateway Pundit, Talking Points Memo and VICE

Washington Post:

ICE arrested hundreds of people in raids. Now ‘devastated’ children are without their parents. — Elizabeth Iraheta was passing the Koch Foods processing plant in Morton, Miss., on Wednesday when she saw immigration officials swarming outside and a helicopter overhead.

Associated Press:
The Latest: Mississippi immigration raids net 680 arrests

Discussion: Slate, Axios and Boing Boing

Sarah Fowler / The Clarion Ledger:
Where are Mom and Dad? School on standby to help children in aftermath of ICE raids

Discussion: New York Times

Abigail Hauslohner / Washington Post:
ICE agents raid Miss. work sites, arrest 680 people in largest single-state immigration enforcement …

Discussion: The Week

Safid Deen / Sun-Sentinel:

Dolphins' Kenny Stills calls out team owner Steve Ross for hosting Trump luncheon … Miami Dolphins owner Steve Ross was publicly criticized by the most outspoken NFL player on his team Wednesday for his plan to host a pricey fundraiser supporting President Donald Trump's 2020 re-election at his New York residence later this week.

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Times, ProFootballTalk, Business Insider, Politico, BuzzFeed News, USA Today, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Vanity Fair, Breitbart, KTLA, Splinter, Florida Politics, UPI and The Daily Caller

Lisette Voytko / Forbes: Backlash Hits Billionaire Stephen Ross—Equinox, SoulCycle, Dolphins Owner—Over Trump Fundraiser

Fran Tirado / Election:
Equinox Disavows Trump-Supporting Owner, Following Backlash

Discussion: Business Insider, ABC News, The Daily Beast, Advocate, Breitbart, ABC7 and Townhall

Michelle Ye Hee Lee / Washington Post:
Billionaire owner of SoulCycle, Miami Dolphins faces backlash over Trump fundraiser

Discussion: Jezebel, Mercury News, Boing Boing and Forbes

Nahal Toosi / Politico:

Iraqi man dies after Trump administration deports him — A 41-year-old Detroit man deported to Iraq in June died Tuesday, according to the American Civil Liberties Union and two people close to the man's family. — The man, Jimmy Aldaoud, spent most of his life in the U.S. …

Discussion: Facebook and Splinter

Jake Tapper / CNN:

Exclusive: White House rebuffed attempts by DHS to make combating domestic terrorism a higher priority — Washington (CNN)White House officials rebuffed efforts by their colleagues at the Department of Homeland Security for more than a year to make combating domestic terror threats …

Discussion: Vanity Fair, Talking Points Memo, POLITICUSUSA, The Daily Beast, Washington Post and Mediaite, more at Techmeme »

Michael Edison Hayden / Southern Poverty Law Center:

U.S. State Department Official Involved in White Nationalist Movement, Hatewatch Determines — A U.S. State Department official oversaw the Washington, D.C.-area chapter of a white nationalist organization, hosted white nationalists at his home and published white nationalist propaganda online, Hatewatch has determined.

Discussion: VICE, Splinter, Towleroad Gay News, Boing Boing and Political Wire

Karen DeYoung / Washington Post:

Kimberly Breier resigns as assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere — Kimberly Breier, the assistant secretary of state for the Western Hemisphere since October, has resigned, leaving a key vacancy at the top of the diplomatic office in charge of the Trump administration's efforts …

Discussion: CNN and New York Times

Daniel Lippman / Politico:

White House drafting executive order to tackle Silicon Valley's alleged anti-conservative bias — The White House is circulating drafts of a proposed executive order that would address allegations of anti-conservative bias by social media companies, according to a White House official …

Discussion: Vox, The Verge, Breitbart, The Daily Caller and National Review, more at Techmeme »

Washington Post:

Trump's openness to extensive background checks for gun buys draws warning from NRA — President Trump has repeatedly told lawmakers and aides in private conversations that he is open to endorsing extensive background checks in the wake of two mass shootings, prompting a warning …

Discussion: Fox News, Political Wire, VICE, The Trace, Talking Points Memo and The Week

Brooke Singman / Fox News:

Joaquin Castro outed one of his own donors in bid to shame Trump supporters — EXCLUSIVE: Trump donors whose names and employers were posted in a highly controversial tweet by Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro blasted the Texas congressman on Wednesday for what they described as a “ridiculous” …

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, PJ Media Home, Daily Wire, BizPac Review, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Patterico's Pontifications, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit, IJR, MSNBC, twitchy.com, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Big League Politics

Emily Larsen / Washington Examiner:
Six Trump donors Joaquin Castro tried to shame also gave to him and brother Julián

Discussion: The Federalist, twitchy.com, The Daily Caller, Axios and PJ Media Home

Josh Gerstein / Politico:

Judge greenlights libel suit against NPR over Seth Rich reports — A federal judge has rejected National Public Radio's bid to dismiss a Texas investment adviser's libel suit over news reports about conspiracy theories surrounding the death of a Democratic National Committee staffer during the 2016 campaign.

Nate Cohn / New York Times:

Don't Assume Trump's Approval Rating Can't Climb Higher. It Already Has. — Millions of Americans who did not like the president in 2016 now say they do. — Donald J. Trump doesn't always seem like a candidate focused on expanding his base of support. He may have done so anyway.

Discussion: PJ Media Home, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Spectator USA

Khadeeja Safdar / Wall Street Journal:

Leslie Wexner Says Jeffrey Epstein ‘Misappropriated Vast Sums of Money From Me’ — Billionaire behind Victoria's Secret, in letter to foundation, says disgraced financier misappropriated at least $46 million — Leslie Wexner, the billionaire behind Victoria's Secret …

Discussion: New York Post

Hamed Aleaziz / BuzzFeed News:

Families “Are Scared To Death” After A Massive ICE Operation Swept Up Hundreds Of People — On Wednesday morning, Dianne received an alarming call. It was her fiancé, dialing her from the chicken processing plant in a nearby central Mississippi town where he worked long shifts deboning meat.

Alexa Ura / The Texas Tribune:

Federal lawsuit claims Texas' mail-in ballot procedures are unconstitutional — A civil rights group has sued on behalf of two residents who say their votes were rejected based on their signatures. — Texas once again stands accused of violating the U.S. Constitution through its voting laws.

Ny MaGee / EURweb:

CNN Eyes All-black Opinion Show for April Ryan, Bakari Sellers, Angela Rye, Andrew Gillum — *CNN is reportedly planning to roll out an all-black panel show featuring regular contributors April Ryan, Andrew Gillum, Angela Rye and Bakari Sellers. — According to Page Six …

Discussion: Page Six

Aída Chávez / The Intercept:

Democrats Are Resurfacing a Gun Control Bill That Contains an Anti-Immigrant Amendment — This weekend, there were back-to-back mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio. The accused shooter in El Paso, who appears to have published an anti-immigrant manifesto on 8chan declaring …

Discussion: WDEF-TV