memeorandum: Fox's Jason Chaffetz says two days isn't enough time for congressional Republicans to read … (Media Matters for America)

9:05 AM ET, October 30, 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.

Washington Post:

Firsthand account of Trump's Ukraine call puts GOP in bind, emboldens Democrats — A top National Security Council official on Tuesday delivered a firsthand account of President Trump pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rivals, putting congressional Republicans in a bind …

Discussion: HuffPost, BizPac Review, Just Security, CNN, Daily Kos, US News, ABC News, Salon, Raw Story, Hot Air, Axios, Redstate, Disrn, The Hill and National Review

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: Washington Post, CNN, The Week, Politico, The Intercept, VICE, The Hill, Media Matters for America, Breitbart, Alternet.org, Mediaite and Daily Kos

Jamelle Bouie / New York Times:

Impeachment Is Not a Coup — And no matter what Trump thinks, the president does not embody the will of the people. — In his letter denouncing the impeachment investigation, Pat Cipollone accused Democrats of waging an “illegitimate” effort to “overturn the results of the 2016 election …

Discussion: Fox News, American Greatness, Bloomberg, Washington Post, Occupy Democrats and CNN

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: Washington Press, Breitbart, The Week, Mediaite and New York Times

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, BizPac Review, Don Surber and Raw Story

Washington Post:
Mike Pence is reliably, relentlessly wrong

Discussion: PBS NewsHour and The Hill

CNN:
Retired General: Alexander Vindman is living his oath to America

Discussion: Task & Purpose, New York Times, ABC News and Inquirer.com

Natasha Bertrand / Politico:
NSC official's testimony appears to contradict Rick Perry Ukraine claims

Discussion: The Week, Occupy Democrats, The Wrap, Talking Points Memo, Commentary, Redstate, Breitbart and American Greatness

Michael Calderone / Politico:
CNN defends new contributor Sean Duffy while anchors decry his ‘anti-immigrant bigotry’

Discussion: Washington Post, The Week, The Daily Beast, CNN and BuzzFeed News

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

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

Brandon Carter / NPR:

READ: Ukraine Specialist Catherine Croft's Written Testimony In Impeachment Inquiry — Catherine Croft, a State Department employee who previously worked on Ukraine issues for the National Security Council, is testifying in the House impeachment inquiry on Wednesday.

Discussion: Raw Story and Alternet.org

CNN:

State Department official to testify that John Bolton warned about influence of Rudy Giuliani on Ukraine — WH weighs responses to impeachment as House vote nears — (CNN)Former national security adviser John Bolton cautioned about the influence Rudy Giuliani had on US-Ukraine policymaking during …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Politico, Political Wire, The Hill and The Week

New York Times:

Former G.O.P. Lawmaker Pressed for Ambassador's Ouster, Diplomat Will Say — Robert Livingston, the former congressman turned lobbyist, repeatedly contacted a White House official to criticize Marie L. Yovanovitch. — WASHINGTON — Robert Livingston, the former Republican congressman turned lobbyist …

Discussion: Political Wire

Greg Miller / Washington Post:

Two volatile meetings at the White House have become central to the impeachment inquiry — The Ukrainian officials arrived at the White House on July 10 hoping to cement their country's relationship with the United States, solidifying support the Trump administration seemed reluctant to extend for reasons they didn't fully understand.

ABC News:
State Department officials set to testify in Trump impeachment probe; say Mulvaney put ‘informal’ hold on Ukraine aid

Discussion: The Moderate Voice

Washington Post:
Testimony from career diplomats to outline Trump's dark view of Ukraine

Discussion: New York Post

Zia Weise / Politico:

Turkey summons US ambassador over Armenian genocide resolution — Turkey has summoned the U.S. ambassador after lawmakers in Washington voted to recognize Ottoman-era mass killings of Armenians as a genocide and called for sanctions against Ankara. — On Tuesday, the U.S. House …

Discussion: Anadolu Ajansı …, One America News Network and Axios

Joyce Karam / The National: US House recognises Armenian genocide and passes Turkey sanctions

Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
House Votes Overwhelmingly To Recognize Armenian Genocide, In Rebuke Of Turkish Government

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Fox News, Hot Air and Townhall

Aaron Schaffer / Al-Monitor: How Kim Kardashian became Armenia's most famous advocate

NBC News:

Mulvaney was left in the dark on al-Baghdadi operation — President Trump's acting chief of staff first learned of the raid when it was already underway, raising questions about his status in the White House. — WASHINGTON — Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney first learned …

Discussion: The Hill, Suffolk University and PolitiFact

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, Political Wire and The Daily Caller

NBC News:

Internal White House debate stifles release of Pence-Zelenskiy call — Nearly three weeks after the vice president said he had “no objection” to releasing a transcript, administration is divided on whether it could help or hurt Trump's cause. — WASHINGTON — It's been almost three weeks …

Discussion: Associated Press, Daily Kos and Breitbart

Ted Barrett / CNN: Mitch McConnell's extraordinary efforts to say nothing at all

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

Discussion: The Hill, Townhall, Associated Press and Breitbart

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: Al Jazeera

Benjamin H. Strauss / Nature:

New elevation data triple estimates of global vulnerability to sea-level rise and coastal flooding — Abstract — Most estimates of global mean sea-level rise this century fall below 2 m. This quantity is comparable to the positive vertical bias of the principle digital elevation model …

Discussion: Big Think and Rolling Stone

Zolan Kanno-Youngs / New York Times:

White House Finds Loophole in Search for Homeland Security Secretary — Officials who lead agencies in the department and echo the president's language on immigration were initially thought to be ineligible under a federal law. — WASHINGTON — The White House has found a way to bypass …

Discussion: The Hill, HuffPost and Political Wire

Jeff Greenfield / Politico:

When JFK Was Trump — Have we ever had a president before this one who so disdains the advice and policies of those who have spent their lives working for the government he leads? Have we ever had a chief executive who is so skeptical of the judgments of career diplomats and military leaders …

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 …

Discussion: NBC News

Emilio Casalicchio / Politico:

Brexit deal would leave Wales-sized hole in UK economy, experts warn — LONDON — Boris Johnson's Brexit deal would leave a hole in the U.K. economy the size of Wales, economists warned. — The agreement struck between the U.K. government and Brussels will leave gross domestic product 3 …

Discussion: One America News Network

BBC:
MPs back 12 December election

Discussion: CNBC, CapX, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and National Review

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”

Melissa Leon / Fox News:

Jeffrey Epstein's autopsy more consistent with homicidal strangulation than suicide, Dr. Michael Baden reveals — The body of disgraced money man and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who was found dead in his Manhattan federal prison cell in August, bore telltale signs of homicide despite …

Discussion: Sara A. Carter

Jemele Hill / The Atlantic:

The NCAA Had to Cut Athletes a Better Deal — Before anyone gives the NCAA Board of Governors any credit for letting college athletes profit from their name, image, and likeness, people should understand this: If the NCAA is bending slightly to the popular opinion that athletes should be able to cash in …

Discussion: Associated Press, Sports Illustrated and FOX6Now.com

David Brunnstrom / Reuters:

U.S. set to disappoint Asia with downgraded delegation for Bangkok summits — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has downgraded its participation in back-to-back Asia-Pacific summits in Bangkok next week, a move bound to disappoint Asian partners worried by China's expanding influence.

CNN:

Greta Thunberg declined a climate award because the world needs more action, fewer awards — Meet teen climate activist Greta Thunberg — (CNN)Teen climate change activist Greta Thunberg was awarded the 2019 Nordic Council Environment Prize, but she won't be accepting it.

Asawin Suebsaeng / The Daily Beast:

Trump Wants You to Know He's Smart Enough to ‘Do Quid Pro Quo’ — Everyone should just stop saying he's too dumb or incompetent to commit crimes—he could totally pull them off if he wanted to, Trump has been complaining privately. — As President Trump gets dragged deeper, and deeper …

Discussion: Raw Story and Breitbart

NBC Universal:

MSNBC'S “THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW” IS #1 IN A25-54 ACROSS CABLE NEWS, TOPPING ALL REGULARLY SCHEDULED SHOWS ON FOX NEWS AND CNN IN OCTOBER — “Morning Joe” at 6am Posts Record-Breaking Month in Total Viewers, Tops CNN in A25-54 for 24th Straight Month and in Total Viewers for 56th Straight Month

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: Washington Post, Associated Press, Raw Story, FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV, Slate, VICE, The Week, The Hill and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Donie O'Sullivan / CNN:

He's running for governor to run false ads on Facebook. Now Facebook is stopping him — New York (CNN Business)A San Francisco man tried to call out Facebook's controversial false ads policy by running false ads of his own. Now the company is barring him from doing so …

Discussion: USA Today, Los Angeles Times and Fortune, more at Mediagazer »

Grant Stern / Occupy Democrats:

House Democrats unveil new rules to end Republican shenanigans in impeachment hearings — House Democrats just unveiled a formal resolution of impeachment inquiry that will create a new and different way of holding public hearings that appears guaranteed to end Republican grandstanding and games.