memeorandum: Two in three Americans want to see Trump's tax returns, Reuters/Ipsos poll shows (Chris Kahn/Reuters)

7:45 AM ET, July 15, 2020

Top Items:

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

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

Discussion: Reuters, Associated Press, The Hill, 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: The Guardian, The American Independent, Washington Post, Raw Story and The Hill

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

Stephen Collinson / CNN:
Trump offers denial and delusion as pandemic crisis overtakes his presidency

Discussion: Political Wire

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, Redstate, 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: City Journal, New York Post and The Week

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: One America News Network, The Hill and Hong Kong Free Press HKFP, 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: Quillette, Washington Free Beacon, Fox News, Vanity Fair, The Daily Signal, Townhall, Viking Pundit and Althouse, more at Mediagazer »

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

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: Associated Press, The Daily Caller, Roll Call and The Hill

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

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: Associated Press, Reuters, Mediaite, Washington Times and al.com

Emily Cochrane / New York Times:
Sara Gideon Wins Nomination to Challenge Susan Collins in Maine

Discussion: ABC News and Daily Kos

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

Discussion: NPR, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, The Daily Beast and Washington Post

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

Discussion: Associated Press, The Hill and Contemptor

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

Discussion: Mother Jones and Lawyers, Guns & Money

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

Discussion: Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality and FiveThirtyEight

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

New York Times:
Coronavirus Live Updates: Trump Administration Walks Back Rule That Would Have Stripped Some Foreign Student Visas

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

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

Marc Caputo / Politico:
Florida GOP doctors Trump tweet to solve mail-in voting problem

Discussion: New York Post, The American Independent and The Hill

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 …

Jim Waterson / The Guardian:

Guardian announces plans to cut 180 jobs — Revenues expected to be down by more than £25m as effects of pandemic hit media industry — The Guardian has announced plans to make job cuts in both editorial and commercial roles, as the economic shock caused by the coronavirus pandemic continues to impact the media industry.

more at Mediagazer »

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: The Week, Power Line and Instapundit, more at Mediagazer »

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, SCOTUSblog and Axios

CNN:
Ruth Bader Ginsburg hospitalized for possible infection

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

Allison McCann / New York Times:

64 Videos Show the N.Y.P.D. Meeting Protesters With Fists, Clubs and Body Slams — The videos below contain scenes of graphic violence. Scroll to watch or skip ahead. — Punches, tackles, beatings and shoves. — At the height of the recent Black Lives Matter marches in New York City …

Ben S. Bernanke / New York Times:

Give States Billions, and You Help the Entire Country — Congress must act decisively to avoid repeating mistakes of the recovery from the Great Recession. — Dr. Bernanke is a former chairman of the Federal Reserve. — The coronavirus pandemic has set loose a recession of shocking speed and severity.

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 …

Discussion: Rasmussen Reports, Breitbart and Washington Times

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

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Business Insider:

Russia used Trump's intelligence sharing to try to assassinate Chechen dissidents in Europe, sources say — Foto: Vladimir Putin. — Russia is using an information-sharing process with the US to target Chechen dissidents, sources told Insider. — The US and Russia have shared …

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

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.

Yahoo News:

Exclusive: Secret Trump order gives CIA more powers to launch cyberattacks — The Central Intelligence Agency has conducted a series of covert cyber operations against Iran and other targets since winning a secret victory in 2018 when President Trump signed what amounts to a sweeping authorization …

Discussion: Axios

Wall Street Journal:

Apple Wins Major Tax Battle Against EU — The bloc's second-highest court sided with the tech giant over allegedly unpaid taxes to Ireland — Apple Inc. won a major battle with the European Union, when the bloc's second-highest court on Wednesday sided with the U.S. company over a €13 billion …

more at Techmeme »

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.