memeorandum: Flying Assassins Are Called In to Combat Aggressive Gulls (Nick Corasaniti/New York Times)

12:50 PM ET, August 15, 2019

Top Items:

Netanyahu considers blocking Omar, Tlaib from entering Israel ahead of a planned weekend visit — Democrats in Congress are quietly bracing for a new public fight with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after his government informed congressional leaders on Wednesday that it would formally announce …

Isabel Kershner / New York Times:

Israel Denies Entry to Omar and Tlaib After Trump's Call to Block Them — JERUSALEM — Israel on Thursday barred the entry of two American Democratic congresswomen who had planned to visit the West Bank, hours after President Trump had urged the country to block them.

Discussion: The American Conservative and Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Amir Tibon / Haaretz:

‘They Hate Israel and All Jews’: Trump Says Israel Would Be Weak to Let in Omar, Tlaib — Barring Congresswoman would greatly damage Israel's relations with Democratic party, Israeli diplomats warn — WASHINGTON — Several Israeli diplomats warned on Thursday that significant damage …

Discussion: New York Post

Michael Bachner / Associated Press:

Israel will bar US lawmakers Omar, Tlaib from entering, deputy FM confirms — 'We won't allow those who deny our right to exist in this world to enter Israel,' Tzipi Hotovely tells radio, after Trump urges Jerusalem to impose entry ban — The Times of Israel is liveblogging Thursday's events as they unfold.

Discussion: Reuters, The Hill, Breitbart, Big League Politics, Washington Free Beacon, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Shareblue Media and Splinter

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Israel's ban of Omar and Tlaib is a grave misstep

Discussion: Axios

Tracy Wilkinson / Los Angeles Times:
Under pressure from Trump, Israel bans Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from visiting

Discussion: The Hill, Associated Press, Talking Points Memo and Mother Jones

Alex Ward / Vox:
Netanyahu blocks Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from visiting Israel

Discussion: Breitbart, ABC7 and Press Herald

Herb Keinon / Jerusalem Post: Final decision? Latest report indicates Israel will bar Tlaib and Omar

Isabel Kershner / New York Times:
Israel Weighs Blocking Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib from West Bank Visit

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, VICE, Breitbart, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and The Independent

Heather Caygle / Politico:
Israel bars Omar, Tlaib from entering country, as Trump lashes out

Discussion: Mother Jones, Roll Call, Daily Kos and Mediaite

Ilan Ben Zion / Associated Press: Israel considers banning entry to outspoken US congresswomen

Brie Stimson / Fox News:
Israel may bar Omar, Tlaib from entering country over support of BDS movement: reports

Discussion: RedState and POLITICUSUSA

Jonathan Martin / New York Times:

Many Democrats Love Elizabeth Warren. They Also Worry About Her. — COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Senator Elizabeth Warren has built the most formidable campaign organization of any Democratic presidential candidate in the first nominating states, raised an impressive $25 million without holding …

Discussion: Splinter

Amie Parnes / The Hill:

Biden allies float scaling back events to limit gaffes — Allies to Joe Biden have been floating the idea of altering the former vice president's schedule in an effort to reduce the gaffes he has made in recent days. — The allies, growing increasingly nervous about Biden's verbal flubs …

Discussion: Politico, RedState, Vanity Fair, Weasel Zippers, Political Wire and Mediaite

Walter Shapiro / New Republic:

Arguing the World — Over the past four decades, the American political landscape has been littered with the wreckage of booster rockets from eagerly anticipated presidential campaigns that failed to successfully take off. — Begin with John Glenn, whom I profiled on the cover of Newsweek …

Li Zhou / Vox:
5 reasons asking women candidates about “electability” is misguided

Discussion: Politico and Washington Post

Washington Post:

Autopsy finds broken bones in Jeffrey Epstein's neck, deepening questions around his death — An autopsy found that financier Jeffrey Epstein sustained multiple breaks in his neck bones, according to two people familiar with the findings, deepening the mystery about the circumstances around his death.

M.L. Nestel / New York Magazine:

Jeffrey Epstein's Bodyguard on His Former Boss's Lifestyle, Cruelty, Suicide — When Jeffrey Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting an underage girl for prostitution in 2008 and served a 13-month sentence under the cushiest of conditions, it was his bodyguard and driver, former UFC fighter Igor Zinoviev …

Discussion: Daily Wire, New York Post, Politico, Splinter, Bloomberg and twitchy.com, more at Mediagazer »

Alexander Burns / New York Times:

Beto O'Rourke's New Approach to 2020: ‘Taking the Fight to Donald Trump’ — After the shooting in El Paso, Mr. O'Rourke decided to abandon his focus on early primary states and more directly confront the president over immigration and gun control. — Beto O'Rourke plans to present himself …

Discussion: Axios, Talking Points Memo, IJR, Washington Free Beacon, Bloomberg, New York Post and Vanity Fair

Quinn Scanlan / ABC News:
Beto O'Rourke relaunches campaign from El Paso hometown in wake of mass shooting

Discussion: Balloon Juice, twitchy.com and KTLA

Rick Klein / ABC News:
The Note: Beto seeks El Paso reboot

Discussion: Washington Post and Hullabaloo

Hunter Woodall / Associated Press:

Trump's New Hampshire struggle: Voters feeling ‘Trumpgret’ — MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — When Chad Johansen voted for Donald Trump in 2016, he hoped he was picking someone who could help small-business owners compete with bigger companies. But that hasn't happened, and now the 26-year-old owner …

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Progress Pond

Wall Street Journal:

The Navarro Recession, II — Evidence of a tariff-inspired slowdown spooks the markets. — By The Editorial Board — After we warned last week that U.S. trade policy was courting recession, White House aide Peter Navarro took to Fox Business to denounce us for sounding like The People's Daily …

Heather Long / Washington Post:
9 key countries are on the verge of recession, driving fears the U.S. could follow

Discussion: Rolling Stone and The Mahablog

Jordan Weissmann / Slate:
Someone Should Probably Step In and Stop the Economy From Tumbling Into a Recession

Discussion: Bloomberg and Above the Law

Brian Beutler / Crooked Media:

PollerCoaster 2020: How to Win Wisconsin — RE: The Work We Need To Do To Win Wisconsin — The latest Crooked Media-Change Research poll takes a look at the pivotal battleground state of Wisconsin. We designed our survey to look less like a media poll that focuses on the horse race …

Tanya Somanader / Crooked Media: PollerCoaster 2020: What's Happening in Wisconsin

Dana Blanton / Fox News:
Fox News Poll: Most back gun restrictions after shootings, Trump ratings down

Discussion: CNN, Washington Post, The Hill, New York Times, Raw Story and The Week

Nick Corasaniti / New York Times:

Flying Assassins Are Called In to Combat Aggressive Gulls — A Jersey Shore town has come up with a creative but costly way to tame its marauding gulls. — OCEAN CITY, N.J. — They are deft predators of the French fried potato, able to pluck a fresh wedge in the milliseconds it takes …

Inquirer.com:

In N. Philly gun standoff, alleged cop shooter Maurice Hill has a long criminal history — Police sources identified the gunman in a standoff at a Tioga apartment building that left six police officers injured as Maurice Hill, 36, a Philadelphia man with a lengthy history of gun convictions …

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

‘Corey is a political hack’: Lewandowski Senate bid hits backlash in N.H. — President Donald Trump's Thursday evening rally in Manchester, N.H., is ostensibly about ginning up support for his reelection campaign. — But the state's establishment GOP class is worried he'll use the event …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, The Week and BostonGlobe.com

Quint Forgey / Politico:
Trump touts potential Lewandowski Senate bid ahead of New Hampshire rally

Discussion: Breitbart, Political Wire, Washington Times and WMUR

Kendall Taggart / BuzzFeed News:

Insurance Companies Are Paying Cops To Investigate Their Own Customers — When police showed up at Harry Schmidt's home on the outskirts of Pittsburgh, he thought they were there to help. He was still mourning the disappearance of the beloved forest green Ford F-15 pickup that he'd customized …

CNN:

Marianne Williamson promoted anti-vaxxer theories on her radio show in 2012 episode — Washington (CNN)Democratic presidential candidate and author Marianne Williamson once gave a platform to the unfounded theory that vaccines are linked to autism and called on her audience to “be awake” …

Discussion: Political Wire

Robert Moran / Inquirer.com:

Multiple Philly police officers wounded in active shootout near Temple University's health campus — At least five police officers were shot in a confrontation with possibly two gunmen Wednesday afternoon in the Tioga section of North Philadelphia. — Police Commissioner Richard Ross …

Discussion: NBC 10 Philadelphia, NBC News, ABC News, New York Post, New York Times, Talking Points Memo, USA Today, Breitbart, The First Street Journal, UPI, CBS Philly, twitchy.com, Mediaite, Townhall, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller and The Post Millennial

Caroline Linton / CBS News:
6 officers shot in “active and ongoing” standoff with gunman in Philadelphia

Discussion: WDEF-TV, Daily Kos, Shareblue Media, CBS Philly, CBS Chicago, New York Post, Balloon Juice, The Gateway Pundit, PJ Media Home, The Week and WTVR-TV

Felicia Sonmez / Washington Post:

After violent clashes in Hong Kong, Trump says Xi should meet with protesters — President Trump said Thursday that Chinese President Xi Jinping should meet with the pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong, after violent clashes that have raised fears of a military crackdown.

Discussion: Politico, Wall Street Journal and The Week

Joe Mcdonald / Associated Press: China threatens retaliation if US tariff hikes go ahead

Tim Elfrink / Washington Post:

A truck drove into ICE protesters outside a private prison. They say a guard was at the wheel. — The protesters were sitting on the pavement to block staff from parking at a Rhode Island prison that works with Immigration and Customs Enforcement when a black pickup truck swerved toward them.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Boston Herald, The Daily Caller, Common Dreams, RELEVANT Magazine, Splinter and Mediaite

Tom Nichols / USA Today:

Why this Never Trump ex-Republican will vote for almost any 2020 Democratic nominee — I'm good with anyone who is mentally stable and in no way sympathetic or beholden to a hostile foreign power. That's it. Policy just doesn't matter. — CONNECT — I don't care if Sen. Elizabeth Warren is a mendacious Massachusetts liberal.

Nolan D. McCaskill / Politico:

John Hickenlooper expected to drop out of presidential race — Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper is expected to drop out of the presidential race Thursday, a campaign staffer confirmed to POLITICO. — Hickenlooper will make the announcement via video.

Discussion: Vox, Associated Press, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, Talking Points Memo and BuzzFeed News