memeorandum: Bloomberg postpones CNN town hall to focus on debate prep (Washington Times)

11:45 PM ET, February 23, 2020

Top Items:

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

Let's get to the memos. — 1. The Jessie Liu memo: Shortly before withdrawing the nomination of the former D.C. U.S. attorney for a top Treasury role, the president reviewed a memo on Liu's alleged misdeeds, according to a source with direct knowledge.

Discussion: INSIDER, Political Flare, The Hill, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Raw Story and Occupy Democrats

Politico:

Sanders sends Democratic establishment into panic mode — LAS VEGAS - Moderate Democrats watched in horror as Bernie Sanders soared to a landslide victory in Nevada. — It wasn't the win that was surprising — it was the walloping Sanders gave his opponents, his ability to dominate among Latino voters …

Discussion: ABC News and Twitchy

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:

Here is Democrats' last chance to get this right — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) racked up an impressive win in the Nevada caucuses, crushing his opponents and expanding his support to older voters and Hispanics. Unless Democrats manage to alter the race swiftly and dramatically …

Discussion: The Atlantic

NBC News:

Biden to grab second in Nevada, above threshold to win delegates, NBC News projects — Biden is likely to receive some delegates based on his statewide vote total, but Pete Buttigieg remained beneath the 15 percent threshold. — CHARLESTON, S.C. — Former Vice President Joe Biden …

Politico:

Clyburn poised to endorse Biden in big boost before S.C. primary — House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, who wields enormous influence in his home state of South Carolina, is planning to endorse Joe Biden on Wednesday, multiple sources with knowledge of the Democrat's plans told POLITICO.

Discussion: Mediaite, The Hill, Associated Press, The Gateway Pundit and Washington Post

Jennifer De Pinto / CBS News:
CBS News poll: In South Carolina, Biden's lead narrows, with Sanders and Steyer on his heels

Discussion: UPI, Slate, Washington Post, IJR, CNN, The Guardian, NBC News, Washington Times, The Week, Politico and Breitbart

Washington Post:
Bernie Sanders, powered by diverse liberal coalition, forces a reckoning for Democrats

Discussion: Politico, The Hill and Outside the Beltway

Ross Douthat / New York Times:
Bernie Sanders Romps in Nevada. Is He Unstoppable?

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money

Zack Budryk / The Hill:
Biden blames Steyer for drop in South Carolina African American support

Discussion: NBC News, Fox News and The Moderate Voice

CNN:

US intelligence briefer appears to have overstated assessment of 2020 Russian interference — Washington (CNN)The US intelligence community's top election security official appears to have overstated the intelligence community's formal assessment of Russian interference in the 2020 election …

Discussion: Redstate, PJ Media Home, Big League Politics, The Last Refuge, The Gateway Pundit, Townhall, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Twitchy, Fox News, TheBlaze, Raw Story and CBS News

Felicia Sonmez / Washington Post:
Trump makes veiled threat toward Schiff over classified briefing on Russian 2020 election interference

Discussion: Political Flare, Occupy Democrats and The Hill

Julia Ioffe / GQ:
Why Exactly Does Putin Love Bernie?

Discussion: The American Conservative, Fox News, Political Flare, Talking Points Memo and The Week

Anderson Cooper / CBS News:

Bernie Sanders on being the Democratic frontrunner and taking on Donald Trump — Coming off his win in the Nevada caucuses, Bernie Sanders talks about Michael Bloomberg, Donald Trump, Democratic socialism, and what he would do if elected president. — Bernie Sanders had an impressive win last night in the Nevada caucuses.

Discussion: Redstate, Fox News, Mediaite, New York Post and Twitchy

CBS News:
Bernie Sanders says he would intervene if China took military action against Taiwan

Discussion: New York Post

New York Times:

D.C. Prosecutors' Tensions With Justice Dept. Began Long Before Stone Sentencing — Months of strain date back to the investigation into the former F.B.I. official Andrew McCabe and growing fears of political interference. — WASHINGTON — In the days before they filed the sentencing recommendation …

Discussion: Raw Story

Washington Post:

Meet the anti-Greta: A young YouTuber campaigning against ‘climate alarmism’ — The German teen is the newest face of the Heartland Institute's effort to promote what it calls ‘global warming realism.’ — For climate skeptics, it's hard to compete with the youthful appeal of global phenomenon Greta Thunberg.

Joe Concha / The Hill:

Chris Matthews faces calls for resignation after comparing Sanders victory to Nazi invasion — MSNBC's Chris Matthews is under fire after comparing Sen. Bernie Sanders's (I-Vt.) decisive win in the Nevada caucuses to the Nazi invasion of France in 1940, with some on social media calling for the “Hardball” host to resign.

Discussion: Newsweek, Redstate, Townhall, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller, NB Blog, Mother Jones and Vanity Fair

Annie Grayer / CNN:
Marianne Williamson endorses Bernie Sanders for president

Discussion: The Week

Third Way: Stand up to Bernie or You - and We - All Lose

Kaitlan Collins / CNN:

Trump's chief of staff doesn't attend India trip because of cold, sources say — WH acting chief of staff calls this a ‘kangaroo process’ — Delhi (CNN)President Donald Trump's acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney did not travel with him to India as scheduled at the last minute …

Discussion: Raw Story

CNN:
‘I have never seen him eat a vegetable:’ Trump braces for a beef-free menu in India

Discussion: Raw Story and UPI

Katelyn Polantz / CNN:

Judge Amy Berman Jackson says no to Roger Stone's attempt to remove her from his case — (CNN)Federal Judge Amy Berman Jackson swiftly and scathingly told President Donald Trump's long-time friend Roger Stone there's no legal reason he should be able to remove her from his criminal case …

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Judge won't bow out of Roger Stone case

Discussion: The Week

John Bowden / The Hill:

Sanders won't attend AIPAC conference, accuses it of providing platform for ‘bigotry’ — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) blasted the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) on Sunday in a statement confirming that he would not attend the pro-Israel organization's annual conference.

Discussion: Mediaite

Washington Times:

Bloomberg postpones CNN town hall to focus on debate prep — WASHINGTON — Mike Bloomberg's campaign has delayed a scheduled CNN town hall so that he can spend more time preparing for Tuesday's debate. — Bloomberg was scheduled to appear on CNN on Monday.

New York Times:

How a Neighbors' Feud in Paradise Launched an International Rape Case — The fashion executive Peter Nygard has clashed for years with his neighbor in the Bahamas, the billionaire Louis Bacon. The latest development is a lawsuit saying Mr. Nygard sexually exploited teenage girls.

Discussion: Discourse.net

David Edwards / Raw Story:

Nevada GOP activist reveals how he ‘caucused for Bernie’ to help Trump win: ‘It would be a dream election’ — Conservative activist Chuck Muth said that he temporarily switched parties to vote for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders in the Nevada caucuses.

Discussion: Las Vegas Review-Journal

Will Bunch / The Philadelphia Inquirer:

Can we talk about the Trump-loving, QAnon-type who slaughtered 10 people in Germany? — The virus is spreading worldwide faster than our ability to contain it. — No, not that one. — I'm thinking about the tragic and shocking events that took place on Wednesday night nearly 4,000 miles away …

Washington Post:

Coronavirus cases spike in Italy, China says most new infections limited to Hubei, South Korea declares ‘red alert’ — The latest novel coronavirus figures from China suggest that the outbreak remains worst in locked-down Hubei province, where 630 new cases and 96 more deaths were reported Saturday evening.

New York Times:
Coronavirus Live Updates: Xi Acknowledges ‘Shortcomings’ in Fight Against Outbreak

Discussion: Vox, NPR, The Daily Beast and The Straits Times

Paul Farhi / Washington Post:

Wall Street Journal reporters protest ‘sick man’ headline in Wall Street Journal — The Wall Street Journal's China staff is urging the newspaper to apologize for a headline that prompted the Chinese government to expel three of its journalists this week. — The email from the Journal's China bureau …

Discussion: New York Times and The Daily Caller, more at Mediagazer »

Spencer Ackerman / The Daily Beast:

Bloomberg Killed the Best Chance at Justice for the 9/11 Attacks — Obama was set to try the Sept. 11 co-conspirators in Manhattan. Bloomberg backed it—until cops and real-estate developers turned closure for an atrocity into a NIMBY concern. — If it wasn't for Mike Bloomberg …