memeorandum: New poll poses serious questions about Democratic impeachment drive (Byron York/Washington Examiner)

9:25 PM ET, October 29, 2019

Top Items:

White House Ukraine Expert Sought to Correct Transcript of Trump Call — Lt. Col. Alexander S. Vindman, who heard President Trump's July phone call with Ukraine's president and was alarmed, testified that he tried and failed to add key details to the rough transcript.

Natasha Bertrand / Politico:

NSC official's testimony appears to contradict Rick Perry Ukraine claims — Testimony from a senior White House official on Tuesday appeared to contradict Energy Secretary Rick Perry's ardent denials that he ever heard former Vice President Joe Biden or his son Hunter discussed in relation …

Discussion: The Week, Occupy Democrats, Talking Points Memo, Political Wire, Raw Story, Breitbart, Associated Press, NBC News, The Hill and Axios

Washington Post:

Mike Pence is reliably, relentlessly wrong — THE MORE undisciplined President Trump becomes in his scattershot defenses of his behavior toward Ukraine, the more robotically Vice President Pence seems to stay on message. Unfortunately, that message is an indefensible falsehood.

Discussion: PBS NewsHour and The Hill

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:

Meet Alexander Vindman, the Colonel Who Testified on Trump's Phone Call — He fled Ukraine at age 3 and became a soldier, scholar and official at the White House. That's where, he told impeachment investigators, he witnessed alarming behavior by President Trump.

John Podhoretz / Commentary:

Vindman is a Jew, Not a Ukrainian, Mr. Duffy — Forget about the specifics of the testimony of Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman in the Ukraine matter and what it might explain or portend. Let's talk instead for a minute about the specifics of one particular insinuation about him almost from the minute we learned of his existence.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Politico and BizPac Review

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

Republicans Smear Army Vet Testifying Against Trump as a Ukrainian Spy — Last night, the New York Times reported that Alexander S. Vindman, the top Ukraine expert in the National Security Council, will testify to the House that he expressed grave concerns about President Trump's politicized extortion of Ukraine's president.

Discussion: Washington Examiner, ABC News, Washington Post, New York Times, Raw Story, HuffPost, Alternet.org, Don Surber, The Moderate Voice, Patterico's Pontifications and Balloon Juice

Aaron Rupar / Vox:

Trump allies are now accusing an impeachment witness — and Purple Heart recipient — of disloyalty — Lt. Col. Vindman was born in Ukraine, but he's a decorated veteran of the American armed forces. — Ahead of Lt. Col. Alexander S. Vindman's testimony to House impeachment investigators …

Discussion: Politico, The Atlantic and Salon

Julia Ioffe / GQ:

Alexander Vindman and the Questioning of an American Jew's Patriotism — Julia Ioffe on the making of a decorated U.S. military officer, and the immigrant experience of Soviet Jews in America and abroad. — One June evening in 2013, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency …

Discussion: US News, VICE, NBC News, Washington Post and CNN

Melanie Zanona / Politico:
'He's a patriot': Republicans defend key impeachment witness from attacks

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, NBC News, The Hill, Foreign Policy, The Guardian, Redstate, Breitbart, One America News Network, The Daily Beast, Politico and Axios

New York Times:
After Vindman's Testimony Went Public, Right-Wing Conspiracies Fired Up

Discussion: Mediaite, The Stranger, The Daily Beast, Task & Purpose, No More Mister Nice Blog and Alternet.org

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Slandering an American war hero must have consequences

Discussion: American Greatness and The Week

Natasha Bertrand / Politico:
Trump's most favorable witness faces credibility crisis

Discussion: CNN, Commentary, CNBC and Mediaite

Tiana Lowe / Washington Examiner:
Vindman is a patriot, not a Ukrainian spy

Discussion: New York Daily News, Army Times and Washington Post

The Daily Beast:

Trump Sides With Indicted Oligarch Over His Own Diplomat — The President of the United States amplified a tweet calling one of his diplomats a liar—and, by implication, absolving a Ukrainian gas mogul of any mob ties. — President Donald Trump boosted a tweet Monday promoting …

Gary Stein / Washington Post: President Trump may have violated criminal provisions of the Hatch Act

Anna Schecter / NBC News: Diplomat Bill Taylor receives rock star reception in Ukraine after House testimony

Axios:

Jared Kushner says his White House work is focused on “cleaning up the messes” from Joe Biden — President Trump's senior adviser Jared Kushner told me during an exclusive interview with Israel's Channel 13 news that many of his efforts since he started working at the White House were focused on …

Discussion: New York Post, One America News Network, The Hill, Raw Story and Associated Press

NBC News:
Internal White House debate stifles release of Pence-Zelenskiy call

Discussion: The Hill, Associated Press, Daily Kos, One America News Network, Breitbart, Talking Points Memo and Raw Story

Miru / CREW:
Kushner, Barrack, Perry and Plenty of Ethics Problems Attend Saudi Conference

Discussion: The Guardian and Al Jazeera

Burgess Everett / Politico:
Schumer warns Trump may shut down the government over impeachment

Discussion: Townhall and Breitbart

CNN:

Shouting match erupts in Vindman deposition as Democrats accuse Republicans of trying to out whistleblower — (CNN)Democrats and Republicans got into a shouting match behind closed doors on Tuesday while interviewing a witness in the impeachment investigation, with Democrats accusing Republicans …

Discussion: Breitbart, The Week, Raw Story, Mediaite and New York Times

Tyler Olson / Fox News:
GOP reps say Schiff stopped impeachment witness from answering certain GOP questions

Discussion: The Federalist and Redstate

Jamie Lovegrove / Post and Courier:

SC Rep. Joe Cunningham to vote for House resolution setting rules for impeachment inquiry — WASHINGTON — Charleston's U.S. Rep. Joe Cunningham said Tuesday he intends to vote in favor of a House resolution this week that will lay out the ground rules for the ongoing impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.

Discussion: Politico, Roll Call, Political Wire and The Hill

Bradford Betz / Fox News:
House approves resolution recognizing Armenian genocide in snub to Turkey

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Associated Press, One America News Network and NPR

Crystal Thomas / Kansas City Star:

Missouri health director kept spreadsheet of Planned Parenthood patients' periods — The Missouri state health director, Dr. Randall Williams, testified at a state hearing Tuesday that he kept a spreadsheet to track the menstrual periods of women who visited Planned Parenthood.

Discussion: Alternet.org, Slate, FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV, The Week, The Hill, VICE, Political Wire and Lawyers, Guns & Money

New York Times:

Rising Seas Will Erase More Cities by 2050, New Research Shows — Rising seas could affect three times more people by 2050 than previously thought, according to new research, threatening to all but erase some of the world's great coastal cities. — The authors of a paper published Tuesday developed …

Discussion: Rolling Stone

Orion Rummler / Axios:

George Papadopoulos files to run for Rep. Katie Hill's seat — Former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos — who pled guilty in 2017 to making false statements to the FBI about Russian contacts — filed his statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday for California's 25th district.

Discussion: Associated Press, Politico, The Hill and Washington Times

Bob Brigham / Raw Story: Convicted Trump aide to run for ex-Rep. Katie Hill's seat after she was forced out by revenge porn attack

Audrey McNamara / The Daily Beast:
George Papadopoulos Has Filed to Run for Rep. Katie Hill's Seat

Discussion: CNN, NBC News and The Daily Beast

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

New poll poses serious questions about Democratic impeachment drive — There's no doubt Democrats in Washington are hellbent on impeaching President Trump over the Ukraine matter. But after weeks of polling, it is still unclear precisely what Americans outside the Beltway think.

USA Today:
Poll: Who's sticking with President Trump, through trouble and tweets? His seemingly unshakable base.

Discussion: Breitbart, Roll Call, American Greatness and POLITICUSUSA

Media Matters for America:

Fox's Jason Chaffetz says two days isn't enough time for congressional Republicans to read the eight page impeachment resolution — Chaffetz: “She said they're going to vote on Thursday, but it's Tuesday. So, do the math”

Taylor Lorenz / New York Times:

‘OK Boomer’ Marks the End of Friendly Generational Relations — Now it's war: Gen Z has finally snapped over climate change and financial inequality. — In a viral audio clip on TikTok, a white-haired man in a baseball cap and polo shirt declares, “The millennials and Generation Z …

Discussion: Althouse

Washington Post:

Islamic State defector inside Baghdadi's hideout critical to success of raid, officials say — U.S. commandos zeroed in on Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's final hideout with the help of an extraordinarily well-placed informant, an Islamic State operative who facilitated the terrorist leader's movements around Syria …

Discussion: Roll Call and The Daily Caller

Yahoo News:

‘The Wild West’: Questions surround Trump legal team payments — In 1994, as a slew of scandals were popping up around President Bill Clinton, an attorney who worked with his defense team visited the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) in Washington to ask a simple question in person …

Discussion: Hullabaloo

Richard Stengel / Washington Post:

Why America needs a hate speech law — Richard Stengel, a former editor of Time, is the author of “Information Wars” and was the State Department's undersecretary for public diplomacy and public affairs from 2013 to 2016. — When I was a journalist, I loved Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.'s assertion …

Discussion: Fox News, Washington Free Beacon, NB Blog, Instapundit and Twitchy

Caleb Ecarma / Mediaite:

NEW: Reporter Behind Story on Katie Hill Affair Worked for Republican Candidates Who Ran Against Hill — Jennifer Van Laar, the writer behind the RedState.com and Daily Mail stories that included nude photos of former Rep. Katie Hill (D-CA), is a longtime GOP consultant who has worked …

Discussion: The Guardian, Vox and Mother Jones, more at Mediagazer »

Wall Street Journal:

Senator Asks Whether Biden Probe Was Linked to China Trade Talks — Wyden sends letters to senior administration officials after trade adviser Navarro declined to address questions — WASHINGTON—A Democratic senator has asked the Trump administration to clarify whether U.S. officials sought …

Andrew Feinberg / The Independent:

Since they realized insulting an army officer isn't a good look, Republicans are changing their impeachment strategy — Alexander Vindman was a firsthand witness to the phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Zelensky, and many Republicans had felt as uncomfortable as their Democrat counterparts about the idea of smearing him

Ben Terris / Washington Post:

Can the Bennet brothers save the Establishment? — Michael is running for president. James is a top editor at the New York Times. Both are struggling to figure out their place in an altered landscape. — For all the scandals, screw-ups and controversial hires, James Bennet's colleagues …

CNN:

Stuck in an airport for almost two weeks, Iranian beauty queen says she will be killed if she is deported — (CNN)An Iranian beauty queen who has spent almost two weeks inside Manila's international airport says she will be killed if she is sent back home and is seeking asylum in the Philippines.

Discussion: ImmigrationProf Blog

BBC:

MPs back 12 December election — The UK is set for a 12 December general election after MPs voted to back it following months of deadlock over Brexit. — By a margin of 438 votes to 20, the Commons approved legislation paving the way for the first December election since 1923.

Discussion: National Review, JustOneMinute, CNBC and CapX

Priscilla Alvarez / CNN:

No refugees will be resettled in the US in October, leaving hundreds in limbo around the world — Washington (CNN)The United States is on track to not admit any refugees in October, after already canceling around 500 flights this month, CNN has learned. — A pause on admissions that was expected …

Discussion: VICE, The Daily Caller, Shareblue Media, The Week, The Hill and UNHCR

Jordain Carney / The Hill:

Menendez seeks probe into if Pompeo violated Hatch Act — Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) is asking for a probe into whether Secretary of State Mike Pompeo violated a federal law on political activities with his recent trips to his home state of Kansas. — Menendez, the top Democrat …