memeorandum: Articles of impeachment drawn up against Gov. Mike DeWine over coronavirus orders (Jeremy Pelzer/Plain Dealer)

8:20 PM ET, August 25, 2020

Top Items:

RNC Speaker Boosts QAnon Conspiracy Theory About Jewish Plot to Enslave the World — Mary Ann Mendoza, an “angel mom,” is set to speak on Tuesday night. Beforehand, she took to Twitter to encourage followers to read a thread about the Rothschilds. — Hours before she was set to speak …

Discussion: Raw Story

Carter Sherman / VICE:

An RNC Speaker Said Cops Would Be ‘Smart’ to Racially Profile Her Own Son — “Statistically, my brown son is more likely to commit a violent offense over my white sons,” anti-abortion activist Abby Johnson said in a YouTube video earlier this year. — CS

Discussion: TheBlaze, Daily Kos, POLITICUSUSA and Raw Story

Will Thorne / Variety:

Republican National Convention Night 1 Down on DNC in Early Numbers — The first night of the Republican National Convention was down a touch in total viewership on the first night of the Democratic National Convention, at least according to early numbers. — Across the three broadcast networks …

Discussion: Decider and New York Post

Jason Easley / POLITICUSUSA:

Trump's Convention Flops As Biden DNC Drew 3 Million More Viewers — Another troubling sign for Trump as night one of the Republican convention drew 3.2 million fewer viewers than night one of the DNC. — Via The LA Times: … Trump demanded a blockbuster convention after seeing …

Discussion: Politico, Los Angeles Times, Raw Story and New York Post

John Podhoretz / New York Post:

First night of RNC 2020 was very effective, to media's dismay — The first night of the Republican National Convention was, all in all, sensationally effective — and effective in ways that the mainstream media and its Twitter chatterers clearly found it impossible to understand.

Discussion: Washington Post, Washington Monthly and Progress Pond

Steve Benen / MSNBC:

If the case for Trump is strong, why isn't the truth good enough? — To hear Republicans tell it, the 2020 presidential election is effectively a no-brainer: Donald Trump has been a great success, the argument goes, and Joe Biden is a failure pushing ideas that would take the country backward.

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post, National Review, Los Angeles Times and Raw Story

CNN:
Fact check: First night of the Republican National Convention features more dishonesty than four nights of DNC

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, Washington Monthly, New York Times, The Week, Fox News, The Hill, Daily Kos, Associated Press and Washington Post, more at Mediagazer »

Kyle Balluck / The Hill:
First night of GOP convention delivers nearly six times more views than start of Democrats' event on C-SPAN livestream

Bridget Todd / We Are UltraViolet:
News Outlets: Don't help the GOP spread harmful disinformation. Tape delay the Republican National Convention

Discussion: Breitbart, The Hill, The US Sun, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, Axios and Washington Times, more at Mediagazer »

Brian Stelter / CNN:

Sean Hannity receives special White House access for Republican convention — New York (CNN Business)When representatives from all the major TV networks visited the White House's South Lawn on Monday, part of what's known as a “walkthrough” to prepare for President Trump's Thursday night speech there …

Discussion: Bloomberg, Deadline, Breitbart and Raw Story

Kate Bennett / CNN:

Melania Trump aims RNC speech at erasing memories of 2016 — (CNN)In 2016, first lady Melania Trump rejected at least two drafts of speeches provided by seasoned political speechwriters, opting instead to rely on a woman who worked in New York for the Trump Organization, also an occasional ghostwriter for some of Donald Trump's books.

Discussion: ABC7, The Guardian and WTOP

Brian Schwartz / CNBC: Hope Hicks landed lucrative gigs after her first stint at the Trump White House

USA Today: I never promised you a rose garden: Melania Trump's renovation of a national treasure

Washington Post:
White House role in Republican convention raises Hatch Act concerns

Discussion: Digital Chosunilbo, Los Angeles Times, NBC News and New Republic

ABC News:
Republicans bash Biden at Republican National Convention

Discussion: The Hill, Associated Press, Politico and Breitbart

Deb Riechmann / Associated Press:

FDA commissioner says he overstated effects of virus therapy — WASHINGTON (AP) — Responding to an outcry from medical experts, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Stephen Hahn on Tuesday apologized for overstating the life-saving benefits of treating COVID-19 patients with convalescent plasma.

Discussion: Axios, Gothamist, Wired, The Hill, The American Independent, WTOP, CBS Philly, Outside the Beltway, ABC News and New York Post

New York Times:
F.D.A. ‘Grossly Misrepresented’ Blood Plasma Data, Scientists Say

Discussion: Daily Kos, Vanity Fair, GovExec.com, WebMD Health, Raw Story, Politico, The Week, Washington Post and CNBC

Michael Hiltzik / Los Angeles Times:
Column: Thanks to Trump, the FDA just had the worst day in its history

Discussion: Washington Post, The Daily Signal, The Federalist, UPI, Slate and NPR

The Daily Beast:

Trump Administration Insider: President Wanted to ‘Maim’ Migrants — Miles Taylor, former DHS chief of staff, recalls the moment he said to himself “what the f*ck is happening” during a Trump meeting. Plus, the gang shits on night one of the RNC. — You thought what happened on-screen during …

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA and Raw Story

Carol Morello / Washington Post:

Pompeo stirs up outrage among some diplomats over speech to RNC — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will make history Tuesday night when he addresses the Republican National Convention, a move that critics say violates a long-standing State Department policy that draws a line between diplomacy and politics.

Discussion: Fox News, Roll Call, The Week and New York Post

Erin Banco / The Daily Beast:
House Panel Investigating Whether Pompeo's RNC Speech Violated Law, State Guidelines

Discussion: Politico, Axios, NBC News, Al Jazeera, Vox, The Hill, TheBlaze and The Daily Caller

Washington Post:
Republican convention live updates: Melania, Eric and Tiffany Trump, Mike Pompeo among tonight's speakers

Discussion: Political Flare and Raw Story

Michael Starr Hopkins / The Hill:

Why Democrats cannot bank on moderate Republicans this year — Democrats made a concerted effort to reach out to Republicans with the national convention last week. Conservatives and independents like John Kasich, Colin Powell, and Michael Bloomberg had popular speaking roles …

Discussion: Sean Hannity

Dan Pfeiffer / The Message Box:
Trump's “Shut It Down” Self-Own

Discussion: Associated Press, NBC News, New York Times, Washington Post, ABC News, Washington Times, Chicago Sun-Times and Just The News

John Daniel Davidson / The Federalist:
I Was Wrong About Trump. He Didn't Destroy the GOP, He Saved It

Discussion: Reuters, Los Angeles Times and Republican National Convention

Clare Proctor / Chicago Sun-Times:

Jacob Blake's father says son's paralyzed from waist down after police shooting in Kenosha — In this September 2019 selfie photo taken in Evanston, Ill., Adria-Joi Watkins poses with her second cousin Jacob Blake. He is recovering from being shot multiple times by Kenosha police on Aug. 23.

Dan Alexander / Forbes:

Trump Has Now Moved $2.3 Million Of Campaign-Donor Money Into His Private Business — Senior editor at Forbes, covering Donald Trump's business. — Donald Trump continued to shift money from his donors to his business last month, as his reelection campaign paid his private companies for rent …

Discussion: Raw Story

James Dawson / NPR:

Unmasked Protesters Push Past Police Into Idaho Lawmakers' Session — In Boise, the first day of Idaho's special legislative session erupted into chaos before it began. Dozens of unmasked protesters, some of them armed, shoved their way past state troopers to pack the gallery overlooking the state's House of Representatives.

Discussion: Raw Story, Associated Press and Daily Kos

Will Sommer / The Daily Beast:

Fox News Editor Thought Their Disastrous Seth Rich Story Would Be ‘Vindicated’ — A top editor was convinced their conspiracy theory item would be proven right, weeks after it blew up in the network's face. — As Fox News scrambled to contain the damage from its discredited reporting …

Discussion: Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »

Rob Eshman / The Forward:

The rabbi who is neighbor to Mark and Patricia McCloskey speaks out: ‘They are bullies’ — When Rabbi Susan Talve heard that Patricia and Mark McCloskey would be among the speakers addressing the Republican National Convention, she decided she could no longer stay quiet.

Discussion: Washington Post, Right Wing Watch, The Atlantic, BuzzFeed News, Slate, Spectator USA, Vox and New Republic

Kyle Hopkins / ProPublica:

Alaska's Attorney General on Unpaid Leave After Sending Hundreds of “Uncomfortable” Texts to a Young Colleague — Kevin Clarkson texted a much-younger state employee to come to his house at least 18 times, often using kiss emoji and commenting on her appearance.

Discussion: Anchorage Daily News, Fox News, The Week and The Hill

John Hudson / Washington Post:

Whip cracking, drinking and profanity-laced threats: Government office in charge of etiquette plagued by etiquette problems, watchdog finds — When the United States hosts foreign leaders and dignitaries, a little-known office at the State Department is in charge of sweating every detail …

Discussion: Political Wire

Jeremy Pelzer / Plain Dealer:

Articles of impeachment drawn up against Gov. Mike DeWine over coronavirus orders — COLUMBUS, Ohio—Three Ohio House Republicans have drafted articles of impeachment against Gov. Mike DeWine, claiming many of his administration's coronavirus orders are unconstitutional and violate Ohioans' civil liberties.

Discussion: Raw Story, The Columbus Dispatch, The Bulwark, The Daily Caller, The Hill and CBS Pittsburgh

Rick Wilson / The Daily Beast:

This Isn't a Convention—It's a Republican Funeral Pyre — His worshippers just occupied the party's temple, threw out its sacraments and put in a personal oath of loyalty. For good measure, he replaced the priests with his family members. — BEAST INSIDE

Discussion: Raw Story

KREX:

UPDATE* Machine thrown out at Grand Junction USPS annex was not new — GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — *UPDATE* We reported Monday that a local USPS annex employee said a brand new mail sorting machine was being thrown out. We got that information from a viewer who called in, but there is more to the story.

Discussion: Twitchy

Lauren Sarner / New York Post:

‘West Wing’ reunion starring original cast coming to HBO Max — President Josiah Bartlet will soon return to the small screen. — That's because “The West Wing” reunion special is in the works at HBO Max. No date has been announced yet, but according to the Hollywood Reporter, it will air in the fall.

Discussion: The Week

Lindsay Beyerstein / Slate:

Nobody Is Entitled to Be an Elected Official — On Aug. 4, 19-year-old Aaron Coleman eked out a surprise win in the Kansas Democratic primary against incumbent Stan Frownfelter, capturing his party's nomination to represent the 37th District in the state House of Representatives.

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Hill and The Atlantic

Matthew Choi / Politico:

Hillary Clinton to Biden: Don't concede if the election is close — Hillary Clinton is predicting Donald Trump's reelection effort will be a messy affair, and the former Democratic candidate has some advice for Joe Biden: If the race is close, don't concede.

Discussion: Townhall, Fox News, Power Line, Big League Politics, Mother Jones, The Hill and New York Post

Ryan J. Reilly / HuffPost:

A Black Vice Mayor In Virginia Urged A Police Chief's Firing. Now She Faces Charges. — A white Portsmouth resident filed the charges against Lisa Lucas-Burke, who called for the ouster of city Police Chief Angela Greene. — A mounting political and racial controversy stemming …

Discussion: Blue Virginia and The Root

Jason Rantz / MyNorthwest.com:

Rioters tried to burn Seattle police alive, sealed door during fire at East Precinct — Seattle rioters used a substance suspected to be quick-dry concrete to seal shut the door to the East Precinct, the Seattle Police Department has confirmed. At the same time, the rioter attempted to set fire to the building.

Discussion: SPD Blotter

Greg Myre / NPR:

Ex-Intel Chief: ‘I Wish We Had Taken More Action’ Against Russian Meddling — Toggle more options — In August 2016, during the run-up to the last presidential election, U.S. intelligence officials began briefing congressional leaders on what they described as unprecedented Russian interference efforts.

Discussion: Foreign Affairs and Axios, more at Techmeme »

New York Times:

Republican Convention: Best and Worst Moments From Night 1 — Our columnists and contributors give their rankings. — By The New York Times Opinion — Welcome to Opinion's commentary for Night 1 of the Republican National Convention. In this special feature, Times Opinion writers rank …

Discussion: The Atlantic and No More Mister Nice Blog