memeorandum: Gordon Sondland to Testify He Took Trump's Denial of Ukraine Quid Pro Quo at His Word (Rebecca Ballhaus/Wall Street Journal)

12:00 AM ET, October 13, 2019

Top Items:

Trump's envoy to testify that ‘no quid pro quo’ came from Trump — The U.S. ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland, intends to tell Congress this week that the content of a text message he wrote denying a quid pro quo with Ukraine was relayed to him directly by President Trump in a phone call …

Discussion: Mediaite, Raw Story, Political Wire and NPR

Washington Post:

How two Soviet-born emigres made it into elite Trump circles — and the center of the impeachment storm — Lev Parnas, a Ukrainian-born emigre, appeared at a dark time in Donald Trump's presidential campaign. Less than a month before the election, major GOP donors had been spooked …

Discussion: Roll Call

Rebecca Ballhaus / Wall Street Journal:

Gordon Sondland to Testify He Took Trump's Denial of Ukraine Quid Pro Quo at His Word — The U.S. ambassador to the EU to say he couldn't independently verify president's assertion — WASHINGTON—The U.S. ambassador to the European Union plans to tell Congress that President Trump personally assured …

Richard Read / Los Angeles Times:

Sondland faces local backlash denying Trump deal in Ukraine — President Trump's man in Brussels found events spinning out of control when he arrived in Washington, D.C., expecting to testify before House committees this week. — Gordon Sondland, appointed U.S. ambassador to the European Union …

Dan Lamothe / Washington Post:

U.S. forces say Turkey was deliberately ‘bracketing’ American troops with artillery fire in Syria — Turkish forces who launched multiple artillery rounds near a U.S. Special Operations outpost in northeastern Syria on Friday have known for months that Americans were there …

Discussion: UPI, Radio Free Europe/Radio …, twitchy.com, Newsweek and Informed Comment

CNN:

Exclusive: Military leader of Syrian Kurds tells US ‘you are leaving us to be slaughtered’ — (CNN)The commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces told a senior US diplomat, “You are leaving us to be slaughtered,” demanding to know whether the US is going to do anything …

Discussion: The Guardian, The Week, Daily Kos and Mediaite

Associated Press:
Trump says he's an ‘island of one’ on Syria

Discussion: Breitbart

Kurdistan24:
Senior female Kurdish political leader killed in ambush in Syria

Discussion: Occupy Democrats

New York Times: Militants Backed by Turkey Kill at Least Two Prisoners in Syria

New York Times:
Trump's Abrupt Shifts in Middle East Unnerve U.S. Allies

Discussion: Foreign Policy and Raw Story

Washington Post:
Turkey's invasion of Syria puts Islamic State fight on hold at a critical time

Discussion: Power Line

Newsweek: Exclusive: Kurdish allies learned of Trump's Syria pullout on Twitter: “We were like, ‘What is this sh*t?’”

BuzzFeed News:

A Fort Worth Cop Killed A Black Woman Inside Her Home After Her Neighbor Called Police Because Her Door Was Open — A black woman was shot and killed by police inside her own home early Saturday morning in Fort Worth, Texas, after her neighbor called a non-emergency police number for a wellness check on her.

Discussion: New York Times

Jack Howland / Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

Woman killed in own home when Fort Worth officer shoots her, police and witness say — A white Fort Worth officer fatally shot a black woman inside her home early Saturday morning after police were called to the house to do a welfare check, according to police and the neighbor who called them.

Discussion: WFAA-TV, Daily Kos, The Daily Beast and Occupy Democrats

Ben Schreckinger / Politico:

2014 photograph shows earlier ties between Trump and indicted Giuliani associate — A photograph of President Donald Trump posing with a recently indicted associate of Rudy Giuliani was posted online in March 2014, two years prior to what had been their first known interaction.

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, emptywheel, Raw Story, Vox and Washington Post

CNN:
Rudy Giuliani tells CNN he's unaware he's under investigation for Ukraine involvement

Discussion: New York Times, New York Post, The White House and Associated Press

Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:
‘Stop talking’: Trump advisers want Giuliani dumped

Discussion: New York Times, Vox, Washington Times, Slate, Occupy Democrats, Fox News, CNBC, POLITICUSUSA, Law & Crime, New York Post, Talking Points Memo, The Guardian, Hullabaloo, Mother Jones, The Week, TheBlaze, Outside the Beltway and Raw Story

CNN:

Trump threatens to sue top Democrats Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi amid impeachment inquiry — Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump threatened on Saturday night to sue top congressional Democrats Rep. Adam Schiff and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi amid the House impeachment inquiry into the President.

Discussion: Political Wire and POLITICUSUSA

Associated Press:
Trump backs Giuliani, but some aides wish he would cut ties

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, The Daily Beast and Raw Story

Dan Balz / Washington Post: Impeachment has put Trump in a different place. He's showing it every day.

Batya Ungar-Sargon / The Forward:

I Was Protested At Bard College For Being A Jew — When I was asked to speak at last week's conference on racism and anti-Semitism at Bard College's Hannah Arendt Center, I think my heart actually skipped a beat. — Arendt, the German-born political philosopher who fled the Nazis in the 1930s …

Tom Nichols / USA Today:

Ex-Republican: Do we still agree on beating Trump? After your LGBTQ forum, I'm not sure. — I'm not asking you to betray your principles, but Republican culture warriors are lying in wait. Why let them divide us where we already agree? — CONNECT — Dear Democrats: — We've been together for a while now.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Los Angeles Times, The Stranger, Slate, The Guardian and Washington Free Beacon

Deb Riechmann / Associated Press:

Anatomy of the phone call now imperiling Trump's presidency — WASHINGTON (AP) — There were dozens of ears listening to President Donald Trump's 30-minute phone call with the leader of Ukraine that is at the center of a House impeachment inquiry , and as many eyes that saw what he said.

Discussion: Occupy Democrats, Raw Story and Liberty Unyielding

New York Times:

Bill Gates Met With Jeffrey Epstein Many Times, Despite His Past — Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender who committed suicide in prison, managed to lure an astonishing array of rich, powerful and famous men into his orbit. — There were billionaires (Leslie Wexner and Leon Black) …

Discussion: The Daily Beast and The Verge, more at Techmeme »

CNN:

Manhattan US attorney in the spotlight with another high profile investigation of Trump's inner circle — (CNN) — With the indictment Thursday of associates of President Donald Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, New York federal prosecutors are yet again behind a criminal case that threatens Trump's inner circle.

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

Trump Bounces Back — I wrote here and here that, although the Democrats' impeachment claims are frivolous, they have hurt President Trump in the polls. Trump's history is that he tends to rise in the polls until a negative news cycle hits-which happens often-and then he will drop back down.

LaVendrick Smith / Dallas Morning News:

Tarrant County sheriff's son arrested on indecent exposure charge — Sergei Waybourn was arrested, days after Sheriff Bill Waybourn's comments about undocumented immigrants sparked controversy. — The son of Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn was arrested Friday on charges of public intoxication …

Matt Flegenheimer / New York Times:

James Comey Would Like to Help — The former F.B.I. director wants an end to the Trump presidency. And yes, he knows you might think he caused it. — James Comey slumps strategically in restaurants — all 6-foot-8 of him, drooping faux-furtively with his back to the room …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, TheBlaze and Liberty Unyielding

Michelle Goldberg / New York Times:

America Exports Its Corruption to Ukraine — Once upon a time, we spread ideals of democracy and rule of law. Now? We send Giuliani. — KIEV, Ukraine — In 2014, Ukraine's wildly corrupt president, Viktor Yanukovych, fled to Russia after mass protests on the Maidan, Kiev's central square.

Discussion: Reuters, CANNONFIRE, The Daily Caller, RedState, News Agency UNIAN and NBC News

Veronica Stracqualursi / CNN:

Harry Reid warns Democrats: Trump is a ‘very, very smart man’ who won't be easily beaten in 2020 — Harry Reid: How Democrats can beat Trump in Nevada — Watch the full interview on “The Axe Files” Saturday at 7 p.m. on CNN. — Washington (CNN)Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid …

Discussion: TheBlaze and Washington Times