memeorandum: A beloved senator heads into retirement with no clear successor to fill the void (Paul Kane/Washington Post)

12:15 AM ET, December 6, 2019

Top Items:

Phone logs in impeachment report renew concern about security of Trump communications — President Trump has routinely communicated with his personal lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, and other individuals speaking on cellphones vulnerable to monitoring by Russian and other foreign intelligence services …

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Raw Story

Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:

Nancy Pelosi and that four-letter word — One of the things every Catholic child is taught is that the word “hate” should never be used in connection with another human being. — This admonition flows from the expansive Catholic interpretation of the Fifth Commandment.

Ronn Blitzer / Fox News:
Does Pelosi have the votes for impeachment?

Discussion: Washington Post, Associated Press, Spectator USA and Disrn

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:
Pelosi's Leap on Impeachment: From No Go to No Choice

Discussion: The Wrap

CNN:
Democrats' latest steps suggest Mueller evidence likely part of articles of impeachment

Discussion: HuffPost and KTVZ-TV

Mariam Khan / ABC News:
Senate Republicans blast Pelosi, House Democrats for pursuing impeachment against Trump

Discussion: Associated Press, Politico and The Hill

Wall Street Journal:

Doubts Surface Over Giuliani-White House Budget Office Calls — Number associated with OMB is also linked to several other offices in the White House — WASHINGTON—House Democrats earlier this week released records asserting that Rudy Giuliani was in contact with a phone number associated …

Discussion: The Daily Caller and New York Post

Real Clear Politics:

White House: Adam Schiff Has Wrong OMB Number — Who called Rudy Giuliani from the White House, and who took his calls in the administration? Those question have been buzzing around the White House after phone logs were released Wednesday detailing how President Trump's personal lawyer back-channeled diplomacy to Ukraine.

Discussion: Breitbart, KIFI-TV and CNN

Sam Stein / The Daily Beast:
Schiff: No, We Didn't Subpoena John Solomon's Phone Records

Discussion: New York Post, BizPac Review and TheBlaze, more at Mediagazer »

Kimberley A. Strassel / Wall Street Journal: Adam Schiff Is Watching

Jonathan Turley / The Hill:

Democrats offering passion over proof in Trump impeachment — The most dangerous place for an academic is often between the House and the impeachment of an American president. I knew that going into the first hearing of the House Judiciary Committee on the impeachment of Donald Trump.

Elie Mystal / The Nation:

The Republicans' Star Impeachment Scholar Is a Shameless Hack — Jonathan Turley's testimony was so inconsistent, it contradicted his own previous statements on impeachment. — The House Judiciary Committee held something like a national teach-in on impeachment yesterday.

Discussion: NBC News

David R. Lurie / The Daily Beast:
Brett Kavanaugh Wrote That Hiding Evidence From Congress Is an Impeachable Offense

Discussion: Daily Kos

John Kruzel / The Hill:
Trump asks Supreme Court to shield financial records from House Democrats

Discussion: Associated Press, ABC News, CNBC, Breitbart and UPI

Julian Epstein / USA Today:
Facts will help Democrats win Trump impeachment debate even if Senate doesn't remove him

Discussion: Speaker Nancy Pelosi, The Bulwark and Washington Monthly

Christopher Miller / BuzzFeed News:

Rudy Giuliani Made A Surprise Visit To Kyiv And Nobody There Is Happy About It — KYIV — Rudy Giuliani has made a surprise visit to Kyiv — but the city isn't buzzing with his arrival, it's groaning. — Giuliani arriving with his shady band of conspiracy theorists …

Discussion: NBC News, Raw Story, Law & Crime, Contemptor and Slate, more at Mediagazer »

The Daily Beast:

Rudy's New Ukraine Jaunt Is Freaking Out Trump's Lieutenants—and He Doesn't Care — Top administration officials have been tracking Giuliani's venture through Europe, wondering if he's going to cause yet another major headache for the president. — Rudy Giuliani's decision to travel …

Discussion: The American Independent, TheBlaze and KyivPost

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
New revelations about Barr and Giuliani strengthen case against Trump

Discussion: Law & Crime, Redstate, Vox, Washington Monthly, Breitbart, The Resurgent, KTVZ-TV and ENM NEWS

Jake Zuckerman / Charleston Gazette-Mail:

WV employees suspended after photo emerges of correctional officers' Nazi salute — Local journalism makes a difference — Your support makes that possible — subscribe today for 99¢ — Your support makes that possible — subscribe today for 99¢

Discussion: WCHS-TV, HuffPost, Talking Points Memo, VICE, Law & Crime and New York Post

Marc Caputo / Politico:

'You're a damn liar, man': Biden lashes out at Iowan over Hunter claim — NEW HAMPTON, Iowa — Joe Biden lashed out at an Iowa town hall Thursday after a man suggested the former vice president helped his son get a sweetheart deal in Ukraine and was “selling access” like President Donald Trump does.

Discussion: The Federalist, Washington Free Beacon, Washington Post, New York Times, NPR, HuffPost, The Daily Beast, VICE and Breitbart

Mike Brest / Washington Examiner:
Voter attacked by Biden calls him ‘senile’ and says he should drop out of 2020 race

Discussion: NB Blog, Fox News, Breitbart, New York Post, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, American Greatness, IJR, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and ENM NEWS

Dan Balz / Washington Post:
John F. Kerry endorses Joe Biden, as the former vice president seeks a boost for his candidacy

Discussion: Boston.com, The Hill, The Guardian, The Daily Caller, PJ Media Home, HotAir, Raw Story, Orlando Sentinel, National Review, NBC News, Politico, Disrn, New York Post and Axios, more at Mediagazer »

ProPublica:

Inside the Cell Where a Sick 16-Year-Old Boy Died in Border Patrol Care — Video obtained by ProPublica shows the Border Patrol held a sick teen in a concrete cell without proper medical attention and did not discover his body until his cellmate alerted guards. The video doesn't match the Border Patrol's account of his death.

Discussion: New York Times, Associated Press, Common Dreams, The American Independent, Daily Kos and Lawyers, Guns & Money

New York Times:

Buttigieg's Untenable Vow of Silence — He needs to give voters more information about his work for the consulting firm McKinsey. — The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed by expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values. It is separate from the newsroom.

Discussion: CNN, The Guardian, HuffPost and The Hill

Michael Forsythe / New York Times:
When Pete Buttigieg Was One of McKinsey's ‘Whiz Kids’

Discussion: HuffPost

Psychology Today:

Disgraced “Peloton Husband” Speaks Out — The psychological impact of being at the centre of worldwide controversy. — Few people know what it's like to be thrust into the public eye amidst worldwide controversy quite like the actor who plays the “tone-deaf” husband in a recent controversial Peloton ad.

Discussion: New York Post and HotAir

NBC News:

Russian agents planned hit from assassins' lairs in French Alps, say intel officials — Western intelligence agencies tracked up to 15 members of Russia's military intelligence agency, the GRU, including 2 who poisoned a defector in London. — WASHINGTON — A group of elite Russian military …

Nicole Hong / New York Times:

R. Kelly Married Aaliyah at Age 15 by Using Bribes, Charges Allege — He bribed a government employee in 1994 so that he could obtain a fake ID for the singer Aaliyah, a person familiar with the matter said. — One persistent question has dogged R. Kelly's two-decade music career …

Discussion: Associated Press, SPIN, The Daily Caller, The Wrap, TMZ.com, News Breaking LIVE and PAPER

Nelson Oliveira / New York Daily News:

Boy invites entire kindergarten class to his adoption hearing — and it's adorable — This boy's definition of family will warm your heart. — A Michigan kindergartner brought his entire class to witness his adoption hearing Thursday in an adorable courtroom scene marking Kent County's annual Adoption Day.

CNN:

Ethics Committee urges Duncan Hunter to stop voting in House after guilty plea — (CNN)The House Ethics Committee urged Rep. Duncan Hunter in a letter on Thursday to stop voting on legislation and other matters on the House floor after he pleaded guilty earlier this week to campaign finance violations.

Associated Press:
Duncan Hunter's exit unsettles US House race in California

Discussion: The Hill

Bryan Anderson / Sacramento Bee:

Another California GOP lawmaker is leaving the Republican Party. Here's why — California's Republican Party is getting even smaller. — The super-minority in the Legislature has lost another state lawmaker, as former Assembly Republican leader Chad Mayes of Yucca Valley has decided …

Discussion: Raw Story

Monica Hesse / Washington Post:

Is Melania Trump sending coded messages, or are we just talking to ourselves? — A new unauthorized biography of Melania Trump is titled “Free, Melania,” and although the words refer to the left-wing fantasy meme that the first lady is a prisoner begging for liberation, the comma demands unpacking.

Discussion: Newsweek, BizPac Review, Sputnik International, The Gateway Pundit, Twitchy and Raw Story

Alyssa Goodman / AP Images Spotlight:

Top AP photos of 2019 range from the epic to the intimate — Ours is a world of sweeping vistas, and intimate scenes. In 2019, Associated Press photographers captured both. — A single Border Protection officer stands in the rain at the border; pieces of heavy equipment …

Daily Mail:

Revealed: Billionaire Russian oligarch killed in mystery Surrey car crash while walking dog is linked to murky dealings in his native Volgograd where his business partner is behind bars — A Russian billionaire has died after he was knocked down by a car while out walking his dog near his Surrey home …

Faiz Siddiqui / Washington Post:

Uber disclosed 3,000 sexual assaults in U.S. rides last year in its long-awaited safety report — Uber disclosed 3,000 sexual assaults in U.S. rides last year in its long-awaited safety report, amidst widespread criticism of its safety practices and pressure to increase its transparency …

Discussion: New York Times, Boing Boing, Balloon Juice and Fox News, more at Techmeme »

Jeremy Frankel / The Daily Wire:

The Bongino Report: The Newest Conservative News Aggregator — Yesterday, conservative commentator and Fox News contributor Dan Bongino released his new news aggregating website, the Bongino Report. — Advertised as an alternative to the Drudge Report, likely the most prominent extant …

Discussion: The Wrap, Washington Times, BizPac Review and American Greatness

Neal Katyal / DemCast:

Every American Must Fear What Trump Has Done — I've now had the chance to go through the House Impeachment Report. My take thus far is it is a very solid, comprehensive piece of work. Amazing they produced it with this velocity. — Specifically, I'd isolate a few things:

Andrew Rice / New York Magazine:

Trump's Other Lawyer Much more powerful than Giuliani, William Barr is exercising the Justice Department's full force to defend a president in crisis. — Photo: David Williams for New York Magazine — Shortly before 5 p.m. on November 15, Attorney General William P. Barr arrived …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Adam Ganucheau / Mississippi Today:

Southaven Republican challenges 14-vote loss to Democrat, asks House to overturn election — State Rep. Ashley Henley, a Southaven Republican, is asking the GOP-led Mississippi House to overturn the results of the election she narrowly lost to Democrat Hester Jackson-McCray.

Discussion: Raw Story

Molly Jong-Fast / Washington Post:

Why Lisa Page has been such an intense and constant target of Trump's ire — Molly Jong-Fast is a contributor for the Daily Beast and an author. — President Trump has never been shy about going after those he perceives as his political enemies. Some are well-known …

Janet Hook / Los Angeles Times:

Warren and Biden lose ground, Sanders moves ahead in California's shifting 2020 Democratic race — The Democratic presidential contest in California remains extremely fluid — but not enough, at least so far, to provide an opening for Michael Bloomberg, who entered the race two weeks ago …

Discussion: The Hill, Common Dreams, Breitbart, Axios and Washington Times

Eric Levitz / New York Magazine:

Poll: Democrats Can Reduce Third-Party Voting in 2020 by Getting High on Weed — Donald Trump is never going to win a popularity contest. But he might just win a two-term presidency. — On the day of his election, Trump boasted a 38.6 percent approval rating — the lowest …

Daniel Nichanian / The Appeal:

In 2020, Look at Sheriffs and Prosecutors Too — In Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix, and beyond, next year features blockbuster local elections that could overhaul law enforcement and criminal justice — Next year is headlined by the re-election bid of a president whose administration …

Paul Kane / Washington Post:

A beloved senator heads into retirement with no clear successor to fill the void — Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) figured he should take advantage of his reputation as the Senate's most beloved member to sell his colleagues on changing their ways. — “Nothing first happens until somebody sells something,” Isakson recalled Wednesday.