memeorandum: Trump sporting more natural gray hairdo amid the pandemic (Ebony Bowden/New York Post)

2:10 AM ET, July 15, 2020

Top Items:

Grace Segers / CBS News:

Asked why Black Americans are killed by police, Trump responds, “So are White people” — Watch more from Catherine Herridge's interview with President Trump on the “CBS Evening News” at 6:30 p.m. ET, and on “CBS This Morning” from 7 to 9 a.m. ET. — Washington — In an interview with CBS News …

Discussion: New York Times, Redstate, Breitbart, The Guardian, The Hill, Raw Story, Washington Post, NPR, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Beast, HillReporter.com, Rolling Stone, NBC News, The Daily Caller, Axios, Fox News, The Week, The Wrap, New York Post and Twitchy

Peter Baker / New York Times:

The White House Called a News Conference. Trump Turned It Into a Meandering Monologue. — The president spoke in the Rose Garden for 63 minutes. He spent only six of those minutes answering questions from reporters. — WASHINGTON — In theory, President Trump summoned television cameras …

Discussion: The Week and The Wrap

Charles Sykes / The Bulwark:

Elder Abuse at the White House — Tuesday's Rose Garden press conference was . . . something else. — What did we just see? And who thought this would be a good idea? — Donald Trump is sinking in the polls, failing spectacularly at the worst crisis of his presidency …

David Nakamura / Washington Post:

Trump uses Rose Garden event for extended campaign-like attack on Biden — President Trump on Tuesday held a Rose Garden event under the guise of punishing China over its crackdown on Hong Kong, delivering a lengthy diatribe against Democratic rival Joe Biden in a display that resembled a campaign speech at the White House.

Discussion: Associated Press, Reuters, Fox News and Breitbart

Jeff Mason / Reuters:
Trump uses Rose Garden as substitute rally venue in onslaught against Biden

Discussion: Breitbart

Rashaan Ayesh / Axios:
Trump deflects on why Black people are killed by police: “And so are white people”

Discussion: Raw Story, Washington Post, The Hill and The American Independent

Kerry Flynn / CNN:

Longtime columnist and blogger Andrew Sullivan resigns from New York magazine — New York (CNN Business)Columnist and blogger Andrew Sullivan is leaving New York magazine, his professional home since 2016, he announced Tuesday. — “This will be my last week at New York Magazine,” Sullivan tweeted.

Discussion: The Hill, Marginal REVOLUTION, Reason, New York Post and Instapundit, more at Mediagazer »

Jodi Rudoren / The Forward:

I don't recognize the NYT that Bari Weiss quit — I do not recognize the New York Times that Bari Weiss describes in her resignation letter, and it terrifies me. — This is not to say I do not believe Bari's description of her experience, nor that I did not see some of what she laments …

Discussion: Townhall, City Journal and New York Post, more at Mediagazer »

Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:

New York Times Will Move Part of Hong Kong Office to Seoul — A sweeping national security law passed by China in June has unsettled news organizations and created uncertainty about the city's prospects as a hub for journalism in Asia. — The New York Times said on Tuesday that it would relocate …

Discussion: Hong Kong Free Press HKFP, One America News Network and The Hill, more at Mediagazer »

Edmund Lee / New York Times:

Bari Weiss Resigns From New York Times Opinion Post — In a letter posted online Tuesday, she cites “bullying by colleagues” and an “illiberal environment.” — Bari Weiss, a writer and editor for the opinion department of The New York Times, has resigned from the paper, citing “bullying by colleagues” and an “illiberal environment.”

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, The Week, The Daily Signal, Fox News, Redstate and Althouse

Laura Wagner / VICE:
Bari Weiss Is Leaving the New York Times

Discussion: Vanity Fair, Mediaite, Just The News, Disrn, Instapundit, Twitchy, The Daily Caller, Patterico's Pontifications, Politico and Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Frida Ghitis / Washington Post: Can Taiwan survive a second Trump term?

Dominic Green / Spectator USA: Source: ‘Dozens of instances of bullying and harassment’ at New York Times

Tiffany Littler / KSNT-TV:

3 felony criminal charges filed against Steve Watkins — TOPEKA, Kan. (KSNT) - Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay announced Tuesday he's filed criminal charges against Kansas Rep. Steve Watkins. This follows an investigation by the Shawnee County Sheriff's Office.

Discussion: Breitbart, Daily Kos, Alternet.org, Axios and Raw Story

Melissa Brunner / WIBW-TV:

DA charges Watkins with voter fraud — TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - U.S. Rep. Steve Watkins faces criminal charges of voter fraud. — Shawnee Co. District Attorney Mike Kagay said Tuesday he filed four counts against Watkins: Interference with Law Enforcement, Providing False Information …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Roll Call and The Hill

Politico: Kansas Republican Rep. Steve Watkins charged with voter fraud

USA Today:

Anthony Fauci has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on: Peter Navarro — Dr. Anthony Fauci has a good bedside manner with the public, but he has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on. — In late January, when I was making the case on behalf …

Discussion: Mother Jones, The Hill, Mediaite and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »

Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:

Trump Administration Strips C.D.C. of Control of Coronavirus Data — Hospitals have been ordered to bypass the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and send all patient information to a central database in Washington, raising questions about transparency.

Discussion: Axios, The Week, Gizmodo, HillReporter.com, POLITICUSUSA, Alternet.org, Raw Story, Politico, Washington Post, WHDH-TV and Talking Points Memo

New York Times:

Coronavirus Live Updates: Trump Administration Walks Back Rule That Would Have Stripped Some Foreign Student Visas — Florida broke its record for most deaths in a single day, and Republicans are rethinking their convention there. People in England will be required to wear masks inside shops and supermarkets.

Discussion: Associated Press, HillReporter.com, The Daily Beast, Gothamist, Washington Post and NBC News

New York Times:
Coronavirus Live Updates: Florida Breaks Its Record for Most Deaths in a Day

Discussion: The Verge

Washington Post:

Sessions loses runoff in Alabama as Trump helps vanquish a key supporter he came to despise — They stood center stage before a cheering crowd of thousands five years ago, shaking hands in a half embrace that seemed to cement a political and ideological bond that would serve as the foundation for Donald Trump's presidency

Discussion: Reuters, Mediaite, Washington Times and al.com

Kadia Goba / BuzzFeed News:
Jeff Sessions Lost His Race To Get Back To The US Senate

Discussion: NPR, New York Times, Washington Post, The Gateway Pundit and Raw Story

Elaina Plott / New York Times:
For Sessions, No Amount of Campaigning Could Overcome Trump in Alabama

Discussion: Mother Jones and Lawyers, Guns & Money

New York Times: Sessions Pays the Price for Incurring Trump's Wrath, Losing Alabama Senate Race

Jane Coaston / Vox:
Tommy Tuberville wins the Alabama GOP Senate primary, defeating Jeff Sessions

Discussion: Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality and FiveThirtyEight

Virginia Kruta / The Daily Caller:

Rasmussen: Is Joe Biden Capable Of Debating Donald Trump? Only 54% Say Yes — Only 54% of likely voters believe former Vice President Joe Biden is up to the task of debating President Donald Trump. — A poll released Tuesday by Rasmussen Reports said that in a national survey of 1000 likely voters …

Kyle Olson / Breitbart:
Joe Biden Refuses to Take Questions from Reporters for 2nd Time in Under a Week

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Rasmussen Reports:
Only 54% Think Biden Capable of Debating Trump

Discussion: Breitbart and Washington Times

Robby Soave / Reason:

Museum Curator Resigns After He Is Accused of Racism for Saying He Would Still Collect Art From White Men — Until last week, Gary Garrels was senior curator of painting and sculpture at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA). He resigned his position after museum employees circulated …

Discussion: Power Line and Instapundit

Ebony Bowden / New York Post:

Trump sporting more natural gray hairdo amid the pandemic — WASHINGTON — As the rest of the nation endures missed appointments with their hairdressers and beauticians, President Trump has also started sporting a more natural look. — At a briefing in the Rose Garden on Tuesday …

NBC News:

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg hospitalized with infection — Supreme Court Justice Ruther Ginsburg was admitted to The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore on Tuesday for treatment of a possible infection. — Ginsburg was initially evaluated at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, D.C. …

Discussion: Politico and Axios

CNN:
Ruth Bader Ginsburg hospitalized for possible infection

Discussion: The Slot, The Week, Variety and Lawyers, Guns & Money

John M. Barry / New York Times:

The Pandemic Could Get Much, Much Worse. We Must Act Now. — A comprehensive shutdown may be required in much of the country. — Mr. Barry is the author of “The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History.” — When you mix science and politics, you get politics.

Mike Levine / ABC News:

A message for President Donald Trump from his niece: ‘Resign’ — In exclusive, Mary Trump said she saw “first hand” what shaped her uncle. — Speaking about her influential uncle for the first time since the publication of her explosive new book, Mary Trump — President Donald Trump's niece …

Discussion: The Week, Raw Story and The Hill

Christian Cooper / Washington Post:

Why I have chosen not to aid the investigation of Amy Cooper — Christian Cooper is a writer and editor and a board member of New York City Audubon. — On May 25, when I was birding in the Ramble section of New York's Central Park, I asked a woman whose dog was off his leash to please put him back on, as the area's rules require.

Discussion: Patterico's Pontifications

JAMA Network:

Universal Masking to Prevent SARS-CoV-2 Transmission—The Time Is Now — John T. Brooks, MD1; Jay C. Butler, MD1; Robert R. Redfield, MD1 — In this issue of JAMA, Wang et al present evidence that universal masking of health care workers (HCWs) and patients can help reduce transmission …

Discussion: Axios, Politico, Centers for Disease Control …, Breitbart, The Hill and STAT

Em Steck / CNN:

Senior Trump campaign lawyer critical of mail-in ballots voted by mail three times — (CNN)A top Trump campaign adviser and lawyer who has criticized voting-by-mail and warned without evidence that it could lead to election fraud previously voted by mail at least three times.

Discussion: The Hill

Russell E. Travers / Washington Post:

I'm a former civil servant. We are professionals, not a ‘deep state.’ — Russell E. Travers retired from the civil service this month after being removed as the acting director of the National Counterterrorism Center. — I retired from the federal civil service this month.

Emily Cochrane / New York Times:

Sara Gideon Wins Nomination to Challenge Susan Collins in Maine — Ms. Gideon, backed by the Senate Democratic campaign arm and outside political groups, had long been the favorite to challenge Senator Collins, the sole remaining New England Republican in Congress.

Discussion: ABC News and Daily Kos

Ben Jacobs / New York Magazine:

Kanye's Short-Lived Attempt to Get on the 2020 Ballot — On July 4, Kanye West tweeted that he was running for president. It was treated as one of his typical grandiloquent pronouncements. The tweet sparked a lot of opinion pieces, cable news segments, and even a question in an Oval Office interview with Donald Trump.

Discussion: Florida Politics, The Daily Caller, The Hill, Vulture and Breitbart

Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai / VICE:

Source: Spain is Customer of NSO Group — The Guardian and El Pais reported NSO Group's malware was used to target prominent politicians in Spain. Now a former employee says that Spain has been an NSO Group customer. — The cellphones of several politicians in Spain …

Discussion: The Guardian, more at Techmeme »

Reade Pickert / BloombergQuint:

America's Jobless Are About to Lose Their $600-a-Week Lifeline — (Bloomberg) — In about two weeks millions of Americans could lose a crucial economic lifeline of this pandemic: $600 a week in extra federal unemployment benefits. — Bloomberg — Missing BloombergQuint's WhatsApp service?

David Ignatius / Washington Post:

Trump's ‘law and order’ is a code for maintaining personal power — It's laughable, really, that President Trump is presenting himself as the candidate of “law and order” in the 2020 presidential campaign. His record in office has been one of illegality and disorder.

Paul Waldman / Washington Post:

If you aren't filled with rage at Trump, you aren't paying attention — Let me take you for a moment to a fantasy land. In this place, the coronavirus pandemic was bad for a couple of months but now it is largely under control. If you lived there you'd still be a little uncertain …