memeorandum: Joe Biden says the pandemic response is an opportunity for structural change (Katelyn Burns/Vox)

6:25 PM ET, April 8, 2020

Top Items:

Joe Biden / Medium:

Statement From Vice President Biden — Today, Senator Sanders announced he was suspending his campaign. Bernie has put his heart and soul into not only running for President, but for the causes and issues he has been dedicated to his whole life. So, I know how hard a decision this was for him to make …

Amie Parnes / The Hill:

Democrats salivate over Obama coming off sidelines — The decision by Bernie Sanders to suspend his campaign means former President Obama is about to get back into the political spotlight. — Sources close to Obama and Biden say the two men have spoken “quite frequently,” as one put it …

Discussion: NBC News, Associated Press, Breitbart and Washington Post

Ruby Cramer / BuzzFeed News:

Former Clinton Staffers Invited To “Bye, Bye Bernard” Zoom Call (It's Now Canceled) — The 2020 primary has ended, but the 2016 primary never will. “He's finally gone (again!)” — Less than an hour after Bernie Sanders told supporters he was ending his presidential campaign …

Discussion: Twitchy

NBC News:

Bernie Sanders drops out of presidential race — Bernie Sanders is ending his presidential campaign, he announced on Wednesday. — The Vermont independent senator's 2020 bid started off strong. He narrowly missed first place in Iowa before picking up wins in New Hampshire and Nevada.

Discussion: Politico, Fox News, Associated Press, The Moderate Voice, The Hill, Washington Post, Breitbart, MSNBC, ITV, The Daily Beast, Axios, The Root, The American Spectator and Power Line

Tim Miller / The Bulwark: Bernie Sanders Dropped Out Because His Campaign Believed Its Own BS

Dan Merica / CNN:
Sanders had multiple conversations with Obama ahead of decision to end campaign

Discussion: National Review and Talking Points Memo

Thomas B. Edsall / New York Times:
Bernie Sanders Only Had Eyes for One Wing of the Democratic Party

Discussion: National Review and Detroit Metro Times

Myah Ward / Politico:
Poll: Obama would be better amid coronavirus, but Trump bests Biden

Discussion: Washington Post, Townhall, The Hill, The Daily Caller, Breitbart, POLITICUSUSA and National Review

Elizabeth Bruenig / New York Times:
Bernie Sanders Never Lied

Discussion: The Mahablog, VICE and Common Dreams

Bill Barrow / Associated Press: VP talk could intensify with Harris-DNC fundraising deal

CNN:
Bernie Sanders drops out of the 2020 race, clearing Joe Biden's path to the Democratic nomination

Discussion: Washington Post, Breitbart, TalkLeft, The Nation, New York Times, The Daily Caller, Queerty and The Week

Katelyn Burns / Vox:
Joe Biden says the pandemic response is an opportunity for structural change

Discussion: Washington Post, CNN, New York Post and Fox News

Matthew Yglesias / Vox:
Joe Biden will have a very hard time winning over the Berniesphere

Discussion: Washington Post and The Week

Daily Mail:

EXCLUSIVE: Linda Tripp, the Clinton sex scandal whisteblower who secretly recorded private phone calls with Monica Lewinksy, dies at age 70 ‘after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer less than a week ago’ — Linda Tripp died on Wednesday morning and a close friend told DailyMail.com that ‘she died with a smile on her face’

Discussion: The Daily Caller and The US Sun

New York Post:

Linda Tripp, whistleblower in Clinton-Lewinsky sex scandal, dead at 70 — Linda Tripp, whose secret conversations with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky led to the impeachment of President Bill Clinton in 1998, died on Wednesday, according to a report. She was 70.

Discussion: Breitbart, Fox News, The Wrap, Rolling Stone, Sputnik News and The Guardian

Washington Post:

Linda Tripp, whose tapes of Monica Lewinsky led to Bill Clinton's impeachment, dies at 70 — Tripp was a civil servant at the Pentagon when she surreptitiously recorded Monica Lewinsky talking about her relationship with President Bill Clinton. The tapes were shared with independent counsel Kenneth Starr …

Discussion: Mediaite

TMZ.com:
Clinton-Lewinsky Whistleblower Linda Tripp Dead at 70

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

J. David Goodman / New York Times:

How Delays and Unheeded Warnings Hindered New York's Virus Fight — The federal response was chaotic. Even so, the state's and city's own initial efforts failed to keep pace with the outbreak, The Times found. — A 39-year-old woman took Flight 701 from Doha, Qatar …

Discussion: IJR, courthousenews.com, Mediaite, The Hill and National Review

New York Post:

De Blasio heckled at Bronx hospital by bystanders demanding tests, treatment — Three livid bystanders heckled Mayor Bill de Blasio — demanding coronavirus tests and better healthcare — as he tried to speak to medical personnel outside Lincoln Hospital in The Bronx Wednesday.

Discussion: Gothamist

Gwynne Hogan / Gothamist:

Death Count Expected To Soar As NYC Says It Will Begin Reporting Probable COVID Deaths In Addition To Confirmed Ones — New York City officials will begin to count suspected COVID-19 deaths of people who die at home following a WNYC/Gothamist report revealing a staggering number of such deaths …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Twitchy

The Daily Beast:
NYC Is Taking Hundreds of Body Bags Out of Houses—and Soon They Will Be Counted

Discussion: New York Daily News, Gothamist, Talking Points Memo and WCMH-TV

CNBC:

Sen. Kelly Loeffler and her CEO husband will liquidate individual stock shares after coronavirus trade furor — Sen. Kelly Loeffler of Georgia and CEO husband Jeff Sprecher plan to liquidate their individual stock share positions and related options after weeks of criticism of the couple …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Raw Story, The Week and The American Independent

Kelly Loeffler / Wall Street Journal:

I Never Traded on Confidential Coronavirus Information — But to end the distraction, my family will divest from individual stocks. — While the American people are enduring the impact of Covid-19, I have become a top target of baseless attacks from political adversaries and the media.

Discussion: National Review, CNN, Washington Post, Politico, Fox News, Roll Call, Townhall, New York Post, The US Sun, The Hill, Axios, The Daily Caller, The Week and Mediaite

New York Times:

Coronavirus Was Slow to Spread to Rural America. Not Anymore. — Feb. 20This map shows every rural county in America, areas where the coronavirus outbreak initially was slow to spread. Humboldt County in Northern California was the first rural county to report a case, on Feb. 20, a month after the virus first reached the U.S.

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Washington Post

QU Poll:

Release Detail — April 8, 2020 - Fauci, Governors Get Highest Marks For Response To Coronavirus, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Majority Say Trump's Response Not Aggressive Enough — As the number of coronavirus cases spreads throughout the country, Dr. Anthony Fauci …

Discussion: New York Post and The Hill

Vicky Prodeline / Polls:
Fed Govt Not Helping States Enough; Trump Rating, Public Confidence Down

Discussion: CNN, Political Wire, Bloomberg, courthousenews.com and POLITICUSUSA

Amber Phillips / Washington Post:

Why exactly is President Trump lashing out at the World Health Organization? — And do his criticisms have any merit? — President Trump is slamming the World Health Organization for its coronavirus response, threatening to cut off funding for it during a global pandemic. — So why is it his new target?

Discussion: Politico, The Hill and New York Times

Ian Millhiser / Vox:
Trump claims that his daughter created 10 percent of all the jobs in the United States

Discussion: Vanity Fair, Axios and POLITICUSUSA

CNBC:
‘Now is not the time’: WHO responds to Trump's threat to cut funding

Discussion: The Root and Politico

ABC News:

Intelligence report warned of coronavirus crisis as early as November: Sources — “Analysts concluded it could be a cataclysmic event,” a source says. — As far back as late November, U.S. intelligence officials were warning that a contagion was sweeping through China's Wuhan region …

Discussion: USA Today, The Daily Beast, National Review, Sputnik News, GovExec.com, VICE, РБК, Daily Kos, Kaiser Health News, CNN and Raw Story

Jonathan Allen / NBC News:

Lawmakers demand answers on Kushner supply chain influence — Chairs of two key House panels sent a letter to FEMA demanding information in a week on efforts by the president's senior adviser and son-in-law. — Two Democratic House committee leaders are demanding answers from the Trump administration …

Discussion: The Hill, Axios and POLITICUSUSA

Adam Cancryn / Politico:
Kushner's team seeks national coronavirus surveillance system

Discussion: National Review, Raw Story, Input and New York Post, more at Techmeme »

Francisco Alvarado / The Daily Beast:

This South Florida City Is a Looming Coronavirus Hot Spot You Haven't Heard About — In one of the most Hispanic cities in America, “the potential for terrible things to happen is unimaginable,” one expert said. — Since early March, Paula Gomez has taken several precautions to ward off the coronavirus.

Discussion: Raw Story

Aaron Rupar / Vox:

Trump isn't even trying to hide his self-interested reasons for opposing mail-in voting — A mask-clad Wisconsin resident waits in line to vote on April 7, 2020. Scott Olson/Getty Images — “For whatever reason, [it] doesn't work out well for Republicans.”

Discussion: Task & Purpose, New York Times and Townhall

Brian Beutler / Crooked Media:
Democrats Can Change History or Doom Us To Repeat It

Discussion: The Atlantic, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Tangle, Raw Story, SCOTUSblog and The Week

John Gramlich / Pew Research Center:

5 facts about Fox News — Fox News, the influential cable network launched by Rupert Murdoch in 1996, holds a unique place in the American media landscape, particularly for those on the ideological right. While Democrats in the United States turn to and place their trust in a variety …

Washington Post:

The coronavirus crisis is devastating the news industry. Many newspapers won't survive it. — Two months ago, Cleveland Plain Dealer reporter Brie Zeltner became consumed by one topic: the coronavirus crisis that would soon sweep into her state. — The veteran health-care journalist chronicled …

Discussion: Scene and Heard, Poynter and Talking Points Memo, more at Mediagazer »

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:

Hannity's latest propaganda actually exposes Trump's epic failures — Sean Hannity's latest effort to portray President Trump as a heroic and decisive leader throughout the coronavirus crisis belongs in a time capsule. It will aid future study of one of the most monumental …

Discussion: Raw Story

Associated Press:

Prize-Winning Reporter Writes Book on Melania Trump — NEW YORK (AP) — A Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for The Washington Post has written an unauthorized biography of first lady Melania Trump. Mary Jordan's “The Art of Her Deal,” which draws upon more than 100 interviews, comes out June 16.

Discussion: The Hill

Sharon Begley / STAT:

With ventilators running out, doctors say the machines are overused for Covid-19 — Even as hospitals and governors raise the alarm about a shortage of ventilators, some critical care physicians are questioning the widespread use of the breathing machines for Covid-19 patients …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, New York Post, PJ Media Home, The Week and Medscape

Marlow Stern / The Daily Beast:

Dennis Quaid Believes Trump Is ‘Doing a Good Job’ Handling Coronavirus — IN CONVERSATION — In a wide-ranging talk, the renowned actor opens up to Marlow Stern about the pandemic, his new podcast “The Dennissance,” and the cocaine frenzy that was 1980s Hollywood.

Discussion: Breitbart, IJR, NB Blog, The Federalist, The Daily Caller and The Wrap

Jeremy Barr / Hollywood Reporter:

How Hollywood Works Now: MSNBC's Chris Hayes Was “Made For This Moment” — A darling of the progressive left has refashioned his nightly political show into an hourlong coronavirus education hour, even as he works from a remote home studio. — Shortly after 5 p.m. on Thursday, March 12 …

Washington Post:

Big banks took “free money' in 2008. They're turning their back now on small businesses, SBA official says — “What they are saying is 'I don't give ... a hoot about the small businesses,' ” one SBA district director said in a candid call with business owners.

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Olivia Messer / The Daily Beast:

The Terrifying Story of an Unwitting Potential ‘Super-Spreader’ in Chicago — Before social distancing set in, a funeral, birthday party, and some hugs helped kick off a disastrous cluster, according to a new federal report. — The night before a funeral in February …

Andrew Romano / Yahoo News:

New Yahoo News/YouGov coronavirus poll shows Americans turning against Trump — With more than 400,000 confirmed coronavirus cases and 14,000 deaths in the United States, a new Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows that Americans are souring on President Trump's leadership during the pandemic.

Bloomberg:

Trump's New Chief of Staff Rattles White House in Crisis Mode — Grisham replacement, other staff moves have raised tensions — Meadows called Republican holdouts on ‘stay-at-home’ orders — President Donald Trump's new chief of staff, Mark Meadows, has escalated tensions …

Nathaniel Weixel / The Hill:

Federal stockpile of emergency medical equipment depleted, House panel says — The federal government's emergency stockpile of personal protective equipment (PPE) is depleted, and states will not be receiving any more shipments, administration staff told a House panel.