memeorandum: Rep. Elijah Cummings, Democratic leader and regular Trump target, dies at 68 (Jenna Portnoy/Washington Post)

8:40 AM ET, October 17, 2019

Top Items:

Elijah E. Cummings, Powerful Democrat Who Investigated Trump, Dies at 68 — A son of sharecroppers, he fought tirelessly for his hometown of Baltimore and became a key figure in the impeachment investigation of President Trump. — Representative Elijah E. Cummings, a son of sharecroppers …

Jenna Portnoy / Washington Post:

Rep. Elijah Cummings, Democratic leader and regular Trump target, dies at 68 — Elijah E. Cummings, a Democratic congressman from Maryland who gained national attention for his principled stands on politically charged issues in the House, his calming effect on anti-police riots in Baltimore …

Discussion: RedState, Townhall, Mediaite, TheBlaze, NPR, Outside the Beltway, Common Dreams, Liberty Unyielding, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Florida Politics and The New Civil Rights Movement

Jeff Barker / Baltimore Sun:

U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, longtime advocate for Baltimore and civil rights and key figure in Trump impeachment inquiry, dies at 68 — U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings of Baltimore, a committee chairman known for his devotion to Baltimore and civil rights and for blunt and passionate speechmaking …

Discussion: Political Wire, The Hill and The Week

Greg Ng / WBAL:

Rep. Elijah Cummings has died — HIDE TRANSCRIPT SHOW TRANSCRIPT — Maryland U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings has died, according to his office. — Cummings' office released a statement, saying, “At approximately 2:45 a.m. on Thursday Oct. 17, 2019, Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (MD-07) …

Discussion: UPI and The Root

Marc Nathanson / ABC News:

Rep. Elijah Cummings, House Oversight Committee Chair, is dead at 68 — Elijah Cummings, the long-serving Democratic congressman who was deeply involved in the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, has passed away at the age of 68.

Discussion: USA Today, BizPac Review, The Hill and Axios

Quint Forgey / Politico:

Rep. Elijah Cummings, powerful Democratic chairman and Trump target, dies at 68 — Rep. Elijah Cummings — the Baltimore-area Democrat who chaired the powerful House Oversight Committee and drew the ire of President Donald Trump — died early Thursday at Johns Hopkins Hospital due to complications …

Discussion: Fox News, Associated Press and The Hill

Brian Witte / Associated Press:

Baltimore Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings has died — ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland Rep. Elijah E. Cummings died early Thursday due to complications from longstanding health challenges, his congressional office said. He was 68. — A sharecropper's son, Cummings became the powerful chairman …

Discussion: Washington Post, Politico, VICE, Daily Kos and Slate

Baltimore Sun:
What they're saying about U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings' death

Discussion: The Hill

CBS News:
Elijah Cummings, esteemed longtime Baltimore congressman, has died at 68

Discussion: The Hill and Contemptor

Kate Grise / CNN:
Rep. Elijah Cummings dies at age 68

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Lee Moran / HuffPost: Rep. Elijah Cummings Dead At 68

Jamie Ross / The Daily Beast: Elijah Cummings' Widow Pays Tribute to Her Husband: ‘He Worked Until His Last Breath’

Alexander Smith / NBC News:
Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Maryland Democrat and House Oversight Chairman, dies at 68

Discussion: Mother Jones and Mediaite

Jeff Barker / Baltimore Sun:
Rep. Elijah Cummings, key in Trump impeachment probe, hasn't returned as expected after medical procedure

Discussion: Breitbart and Mediaite

Katie Rogers / New York Times:

Someone Had a ‘Meltdown’ at the White House. Pelosi and Trump Just Disagree on Who. — A meeting intended to brief congressional leaders at the White House about the president's Syria policy quickly devolved into name-calling and a dispute over which insults were used.

Discussion: Politico, CNN and The Week

Dan Zak / Washington Post:

Day 1,000 of the Trump presidency: ‘I think now we have to pray...’ — Wednesday was the 1,000th day of Donald Trump's presidency. He spent it the usual way, by saying unusual things. — “It's a lot of sand,” Trump said. — He was sitting in the Oval Office next to the president of Italy …

Discussion: Axios, Political Wire and CNN

Burgess Everett / Politico:
McConnell eyes quick impeachment trial in Senate

Discussion: The Week, The Hill, Law & Crime, Talking Points Memo, Fox News, NBC News, Hot Air and Axios

Zachary Basu / Axios:
Democrats say Trump had a “meltdown” and insulted Pelosi in Syria meeting

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Informed Comment, The Daily Caller, The Federalist Papers, The Week and Breitbart

Marina Pitofsky / The Hill:
Lawmakers, social media users praise photo of Pelosi confronting Trump

Discussion: Townhall, BizPac Review, NPR and Raw Story

Lisa Mascaro / Associated Press:
‘See you at the polls’: Trump and Pelosi have it out

Discussion: The Week

Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
The world is staring at Trump, mouth agape

Discussion: CNN, Politico, The Last Refuge and Axios

Bess Levin / Vanity Fair: “Is This Real?”: Trump Sends Third-Grade Reading-Level Letter to Erdoğan

Washington Post:
McConnell tells Senate Republicans to be ready for impeachment trial of Trump

Discussion: American Greatness and The Week

Eli Lake / Bloomberg:
The Trump Doctrine: American Unexceptionalism

Discussion: ABC News, KTLA, New York Times and Talking Points Memo

Washington Post:
Trump tries to distance himself from chaos in Syria as tensions with lawmakers in both parties escalate

Discussion: New York Times, The Week, CNN, Foreign Policy, The White House, One America News Network, Task & Purpose, Patterico's Pontifications, Reuters, The Root and Mediaite

Kyle Cheney / Politico:
House lawyers: Trump trying to ‘obstruct his own impeachment’

Discussion: The Hill and The New Civil Rights Movement

Wall Street Journal:

Rick Perry Called Rudy Giuliani at Trump's Direction on Ukraine Concerns — President's lawyer said Ukraine had worked to hurt Trump in 2016 election, energy secretary says in interview — WASHINGTON—Energy Secretary Rick Perry said he sought out Rudy Giuliani this spring …

Discussion: Washington Post, CNN, Just Security, Fox News, Raw Story, HuffPost and Axios

Josh Lederman / NBC News:

Sondland asked Ukrainian officials during private White House talk about gas firm linked to Hunter Biden — Sondland's meeting with Ukrainian officials just steps from the White House Situation Room came minutes after a larger meeting that included John Bolton.

Discussion: Mother Jones

New York Times:

Trump's Impeachment Blockade Crumbles as Witnesses Agree to Talk — After vowing not to cooperate with a “kangaroo court,” the president has largely failed to prevent current and former administration members from spending hours with Democrats seeking to impeach him.

Discussion: Axios and Raw Story

New York Times:
Gordon Sondland Elbowed His Way Into Ukraine Policy. It Could Cost Him.

Discussion: The Week, Raw Story and Politico

New York Times:
Ex-Aide Saw Gordon Sondland as a Potential National Security Risk

Discussion: The Atlantic, CNN, What The Fuck …, LewRockwell, Raw Story, Politico, HuffPost, The American Conservative, Daily Kos, NBC News, The Week, National Review, Vanity Fair and Washington Post

Ragip Soylu / Middle East Eye:

‘We dumped it in the trash’: Trump's letter to Erdogan gets hostile reception — Explosive correspondence threatening the Turkish president sours relations even further ahead of Mike Pence's visit to Ankara — A leaked letter written by US President Donald Trump to Recep Tayyip Erdogan warning …

Discussion: Raw Story

BBC:

Turkish president Erdogan 'threw Trump's Syria letter in bin' — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan put US President Donald Trump's letter “in the bin”, the BBC has been told. — In the letter dated 9 October, and sent after US troops were pulled out of Syria, Mr Trump told Mr Erdogan: “Don't be a tough guy.

Discussion: New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Outside the Beltway, The Week, Sputnik International and Political Wire

Bloomberg:
Trump-Erdogan Call Led to Lengthy Quest to Avoid Halkbank Trial

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money, New York Times and U.S. Department of Justice

Reuters: Kremlin questions language of ‘unusual’ Trump letter to Erdogan

NBC News:
Trump's extraordinary letter to Turkey's Erdogan: 'Don't be a tough guy'

Discussion: HuffPost, The American Conservative, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Colorado Independent and The Hill

William D. Cohan / Vanity Fair:

“There Is Definite Hanky-Panky Going On”: The Fantastically Profitable Mystery of the Trump Chaos Trades — The president's talk can move markets—and it's made some futures traders billions. Did they know what he was going to say before he said it? — In the last 10 minutes of trading …

Discussion: The American Conservative

Josh Rogin / Washington Post:

Elizabeth Warren is failing the commander in chief test — It should be obvious this week that the United States needs a president who has the foreign policy chops to speak clearly about the United States' role in the world and has a real plan to keep our country safe.

Discussion: New York Times, The Intercept, Breitbart, Reason, Yahoo News and Foreign Policy

Liz Sly / Washington Post:
The hasty U.S. pullback from Syria is a searing moment in America's withdrawal from the Middle East

Discussion: CNN

William Saletan / Slate:
Is Elizabeth Warren an Ideologue?

Discussion: Washington Post, PinkNews, The Week, Vanity Fair, American Prospect and The Mahablog

Washington Post:

Amid impeachment probe, Gordon Sondland is overseeing a renovation of his residence that has cost $1 million in taxpayer money — BRUSSELS — Gordon Sondland, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union and a central figure in the House impeachment inquiry of President Trump …

Discussion: Fortune and Vanity Fair

KTIV-TV:

Blood fills Iowa family's basement — (WHO/NBC News) What sounds like a scene from a horror film is reality for the Lestina family of Bagley, Iowa. — Nick Lestina and his family of seven were getting ready to put their house on the market until their basement was flooded with animal blood.

Discussion: Slate