memeorandum: House Democrats will release coronavirus legislation Tuesday (Marisa Schultz/Fox News)

1:50 PM ET, May 12, 2020

Top Items:

Frank Figliuzzi / NBC News:

Trump's ‘Obamagate’ comments and Barr's Flynn meddling suggest troubling new pivot — Trump can't pull off this ruse by himself, of course, but he has a partner. Barr is riding shotgun during this scorched-earth joyride against justice. — In my 25 years as an FBI special agent and …

Discussion: Fox News

Tim Miller / The Bulwark:

Taking #Obamagate Seriously — President Trump's bonkers theory, explained. — It is easy to overlook some of the everyday corruptions that President Trump has inflicted on the body politic. After all, his unique blend of logorrhea, mendacity, and clownishness creates an atmosphere …

Discussion: Vox, CNSNews, The Gateway Pundit, Law & Crime and Deadline

Politico:

Senate Republicans break with Trump over ‘Obamagate’ — President Donald Trump's aggressive campaign to encourage sweeping investigations of his predecessor Barack Obama met a unanimous response from Senate Republicans: No thanks. — Trump's Senate allies on Monday stopped short …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Fox News, PBS NewsHour, Gregg Jarrett, Hotair, Raw Story, Letters from an American, American Greatness and Redstate

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

Byron York's Daily Memo: The big thing we still don't know about the Michael Flynn Case — Welcome to Byron York's Daily Memo newsletter. — Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here to receive the newsletter. — THE BIG THING WE STILL DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE MICHAEL FLYNN CASE: It's really pretty simple.

Washington Post:
The Flynn case isn't over until the judge says it's over

Discussion: Patterico's Pontifications

New York Post:
It looks like President Obama ordered up phony RussiaGate scandal

Discussion: American Thinker and The Federalist

Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Biden says he was ‘aware’ of Michael Flynn probe during transition

Discussion: Redstate, The Daily Caller and Twitchy

ABC News:
Biden pushes back on Trump's testing claims, labels coronavirus response ‘incompetent’

Discussion: Townhall and American Greatness

Kristina Wong / Breitbart: Sally Yates Hid from Congress that Obama Told Her about Flynn-Kislyak Calls But Confirmed It to Mueller

Associated Press:

Giroir says US could do 40M to 50M tests per month by Sept. — WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee hearing on the coronavirus pandemic (all times local): — Trump administration “testing czar” Adm. Brett Giroir tells the Senate …

Discussion: Fox News

Fadel Allassan / Axios:
Fauci: “Of course” there will be more deaths if U.S. does not have adequate testing by fall

Discussion: BuzzFeed News, Talking Points Memo and The Wrap

New York Times:
Coronavirus Live Updates: Fauci to Warn Senate of ‘Needless Suffering and Death’

Discussion: Washington Post, The Bulwark, New York Post, VICE, Washington Times, Daily Kos, The Hill, Mother Jones and Mediaite

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:
Fauci Plans to Use Hearing to Warn of ‘Needless Suffering and Death’

Discussion: Fox News, Talking Points Memo, Gothamist, Deadline and Rolling Stone

Associated Press:
Fauci warns of serious consequences if US reopens too soon

Discussion: Associated Press

New York Times:
Watch Live: Fauci Testimony Before Senate Hearing on Coronavirus

Discussion: ABC News, The Hill, NBC News, Big League Politics, Raw Story, wabe.org, NPR and Political Wire

Nick Visser / HuffPost:
Fauci Reportedly To Warn Senate Of ‘Needless Suffering And Death’ If U.S. Reopens Too Soon

Discussion: NBC News, Politico, New York Times and Mediaite

CNN:

CNN Poll: Negative ratings for government handling of coronavirus persist — Three members of coronavirus task force in quarantine — (CNN)Most Americans (54%) continue to say the US government is doing a poor job preventing the spread of Covid-19, according to a new CNN Poll conducted by SSRS.

Discussion: Washington Post, POLITICUSUSA, The Week, Twitchy and The Guardian

Washington Post:

Many governors win bipartisan support for handling of pandemic, but some Republicans face blowback over reopening efforts — Governors collectively have been winning widespread praise from the public for their handling of the coronavirus outbreak, often with the kind of bipartisan approval that has eluded President Trump.

Discussion: Breitbart, Mediaite, Raw Story and The Week

Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
Two big warning signs for Trump in the new coronavirus poll — signs he doesn't seem to want to see

Discussion: Daily Kos and Raw Story

NBC News:

Unreleased White House report shows coronavirus rates spiking in heartland communities — President Trump's claim that cases are falling everywhere is contradicted by his own task force's report, obtained by NBC News, showing the virus spreading far from the coasts.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, Newsweek, The Hill, The American Independent, CityBeat Cincinnati, ABC News and Raw Story

Politico: Forced to govern, a fierce partisan warrior gets pragmatic

CNN:
Video shows food executives removing masks ahead of Pence event

Discussion: Washington Post, Daily Kos and WHOTV

David Siders / Politico:

Trump is getting trounced among a crucial constituency: The haters — President Donald Trump is losing a critical constituency: voters who see two choices on the ballot — and hate them both. — Unlike in 2016, when a large group of voters who disliked both Trump and Hillary Clinton broke sharply …

Discussion: Althouse and Raw Story

Peter Nicholas / The Atlantic: How Trump Plans to Weaponize COVID-19 Against Biden

Greenville News:

Why I endorse challenger Harrison over Sen. Lindsey Graham — Some of you have seen in news reports that I have endorsed Jaime Harrison for the U.S. Senate seat in South Carolina against Lindsey Graham. — Reactions have varied from support (by far the most people) to threats to never buy Michelin tires.

Discussion: The Hill, Political Wire and Raw Story

Devan Cole / CNN:

Former Lindsey Graham donor backs his Democratic challenger after questioning Graham's principles — (CNN)A prominent donor to Sen. Lindsey Graham said this week he broke with the South Carolina Republican to support his Democratic challenger after he started to question Graham's principles.

Barbie Latza Nadeau / The Daily Beast:

American Travelers Are About to Be Pariahs in This New World — SEAT'S TAKEN — As tourist-centric countries begin testing travel corridors and reciprocal quarantine regulations, American travelers might find themselves locked out of the post-pandemic world.

Mark Sherman / Associated Press:

Supreme Court to hear clash over Trump tax, bank records — WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is taking up President Donald Trump's bid to keep his tax, bank and financial records private, a major clash over presidential accountability that could affect the 2020 presidential campaign.

Discussion: Politico and One America News Network

Josh Feldman / Mediaite: After Latest Briefing, Maddow Says ‘Something Is Wrong’ With Trump: ‘Not Able to Keep It Together’

John Kruzel / The Hill:
Supreme Court to hear blockbuster case on Trump financial records

Discussion: New York Times and NBC News

David Frum / The Atlantic:

Trump Has Lost the Plot — A couple of years ago, BuzzFeed asked a former White House official to explain the logic behind some bizarre Trump action. The official responded with one of the master quotes of the Trump era. — President Trump, the official said, is not playing …

Discussion: Washington Post and Power Line

Quint Forgey / Politico:

Trump promotes conspiracy theory accusing MSNBC's Joe Scarborough of murder — Donald Trump on Tuesday explicitly suggested MSNBC's Joe Scarborough had committed murder, prompting the morning cable news host to urge the president in real time to stop watching his program “for the sake of America.”

Discussion: Vox, Washington Post, Raw Story, POLITICUSUSA and The Week

Ken Meyer / Mediaite:
Trump Ragetweets Morning Joe, Demands Murder Investigation of ‘Total Nut Job’ Scarborough

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA and New York Post

Alex Kantrowitz / BuzzFeed News:

Twitter Will Allow Employees To Work At Home Forever — Some Twitter employees will never return to their office. — Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey emailed employees on Tuesday telling them that they'd be allowed to work from home permanently, even after the coronavirus pandemic lockdown passes.

Discussion: NBC News and The Wrap, more at Techmeme »

Washington Post:

Trump wanted a coronavirus victory event. It ended when he stalked off after clashing with two female reporters. — As President Trump flashed a quick tight-lipped smile from the steps of the White House overlooking the Rose Garden on Monday, it looked like a victory lap of sorts was underway.

Discussion: Mother Jones, The Federalist and Talking Points Memo

Marisa Schultz / Fox News:

House Democrats will release coronavirus legislation Tuesday — The House leadership later Tuesday will release a massive coronavirus relief legislation that includes more direct payments to Americans, expanded unemployment insurance and aid to state and local governments.

Discussion: Politico, Axios and The Hill

Thomas Franck / CNBC:

US grocery costs jump the most in 46 years, led by rising prices for meat and eggs — The Labor Department reported Tuesday that prices U.S. consumers paid for groceries jumped 2.6% in April, the largest one-month pop since February 1974. — The price of the meats, poultry …

Rebecca Shabad / NBC News:

‘Should have kept his mouth shut’: McConnell slams Obama for criticizing Trump admin — The Senate Majority leader said the former president broke with tradition by maligning his successor. — WASHINGTON — Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., on Monday evening slammed former President Barack Obama …

Discussion: CNN, Slate, POLITICUSUSA and MSNBC

Robert Frank / CNBC:

Elon Musk could save billions in taxes if Tesla moves its headquarters to Nevada or Texas — Elon Musk tweeted threats over the weekend that he would move Tesla's headquarters to Nevada or Texas. — Musk has been wanting to restart Tesla's operations despite still-rising cases of the coronavirus.

Discussion: Florida Politics and Louder With Crowder

Anna Fifield / Washington Post:

After six new cases, Wuhan plans to test all 11 million residents for coronavirus — Authorities in the Chinese city of Wuhan plan to test all 11 million residents for the novel coronavirus by the end of next week in a massive push to extinguish any remnants of the virus from the original epicenter of the global pandemic.