memeorandum: READ HERE: Criminal complaint outlines Michigan militia group's plot to kidnap Gov. Whitmer (Kiran Saini/WXYZ-TV)

2:38 PM ET, October 8, 2020

Top Items:

Feds say they thwarted militia plot to kidnap Whitmer — The FBI thwarted what they described as a plot to violently overthrow the government and kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and federal prosecutors are expected to discuss the alleged conspiracy later Thursday.

Discussion: CNN, National Review, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, Forbes, Mediaite, TheGrio, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Vox, The Hill, Daily Kos and New York Post

New York Times:

F.B.I. Says Michigan Militia Plotted to Kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer — Six men had been discussing taking Ms. Whitmer, a Democrat, hostage since at least the summer, the F.B.I. said. — Six men were arrested and accused of plotting with a militia group to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan …

Discussion: Detroit Free Press, The Daily Caller, Political Wire and Raw Story

Grant Stern / Occupy Democrats:
FBI indicts twelve white right-wing extremists for plot to kidnap Michigan's Democratic governor

Discussion: Conservative News Today, COURIER and Raw Story

NBC News:
Six men charged in alleged plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

Discussion: Washington Post and UPI

Kiran Saini / WXYZ-TV:
READ HERE: Criminal complaint outlines Michigan militia group's plot to kidnap Gov. Whitmer

Discussion: Raw Story

Matt Zapotosky / Washington Post:
FBI charges six who it says plotted to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

Discussion: The American Independent and Law & Crime

Kyle Cheney / Politico:
FBI reveals elaborate plot by Michigan militia members to kidnap Whitmer

Discussion: Axios, NPR, The Irish Times, CBS Chicago and Associated Press

Pilar Melendez / The Daily Beast:
Feds Bust Militia Plot to Kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Overthrow Government: Affidavit

Discussion: Reuters, Mediaite and One America News Network

Quint Forgey / Politico:

Trump says Gold Star families could have given him Covid-19 — President Donald Trump suggested Thursday that he might have contracted Covid-19 from Gold Star family members who were too close to him when telling stories of their loved ones who died in the line of duty.

Discussion: NBC News, Task & Purpose, Talking Points Memo, CNN, IJR, New York Post, POLITICUSUSA, The American Independent, Political Wire and Raw Story

NBC News:

Trump asked Walter Reed doctors to sign non-disclosure agreements in 2019 — WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump required personnel at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to sign non-disclosure agreements last year before they could be involved with treating him, according to four people familiar with the process.

Gabby Orr / Politico:

What caused Mike Pence's bloody eye — Vice President Mike Pence ignited speculation about his health when he arrived at the only vice presidential debate Wednesday night with a bloody left eye, but a senior administration official on Thursday said there's no reason to be concerned.

Discussion: Political Wire, Axios, ABC News and The Guardian

Ashraf Khalil / Associated Press:

DC faults White House over Rose Garden event, urges testing — WASHINGTON (AP) — In an extraordinary step, the Washington, D.C., Department of Health has released an open letter appealing to all White House staff and anyone who attended a Sept. 26 event in the Rose Garden to seek medical advice and take a COVID-19 test.

Discussion: Politico

ABC News:
34 people connected to White House, more than previously known, infected by coronavirus: Internal FEMA memo

Kevin Liptak / CNN:
Trump calls in for rambling and ugly post-hospital interview

Discussion: New Republic and Balloon Juice, more at Mediagazer »

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
McConnell says he hasn't visited White House in two months due to coronavirus

Discussion: Axios, Bloomberg, The Daily Caller and The Wrap

Molly Ball / TIME: Donald Trump's COVID-19 Diagnosis Is Forcing Him to Face His Personal—and Political—Vulnerability

Washington Post: Walter Reed staff were required to sign nondisclosure agreements during Trump's November 2019 medical visit

Quint Forgey / Politico:

Sparring between Biden, Trump teams puts debate schedule in doubt — Donald Trump's and Joe Biden's campaigns made dueling demands on Thursday to redraw the schedule of remaining presidential debates after the commission that oversees the forums abruptly announced that next week's event would be conducted virtually.

Discussion: Donald J. Trump for President, Associated Press, The Hill, Daily Kos, Raw Story, IJR, The Week, TheGrio, Breitbart, Reuters, Duluth News Tribune, Al Jazeera and Bloomberg, more at Mediagazer »

Alayna Treene / Axios:

Second Trump-Biden debate will be remote — The Commission on Presidential Debates announced Thursday that President Trump and Joe Biden will appear at next week's second presidential debate from “separate remote locations.” — The state of play: The decision comes as Trump continues …

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Post, Duluth News Tribune, NPR and The Hill

Susan Page / USA Today:

Read the full transcript of vice presidential debate between Mike Pence and Kamala Harris … This is a transcript of the 90-minute debate between Vice President Mike Pence and vice presidential nominee Sen. Kamala Harris. It was moderated by USA TODAY's Susan Page.

Discussion: Rev, NBC News, Fox News, Washington Post, Newsweek and Raw Story

Bonchie / Redstate:
Mike Pence Destroyed Kamala Harris, and the Media Settle on a Pathetic Excuse

Discussion: Townhall, Breitbart, Queerty and Twitchy

FiveThirtyEight:
Who Won The Vice Presidential Debate?

Discussion: Political Wire and Vox

Jonathan Easley / The Hill:
Trump campaign asks for next debate to be delayed after refusing virtual event

Discussion: Reuters, Associated Press, Mediaite and Washington Times

CNN:
Post-debate CNN poll: Harris seen as winner in a contest that matched expectations

Commission on Presidential Debates:
CPD ANNOUNCES SECOND PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE WILL BE VIRTUAL

Discussion: ABC News, Axios, Fox News, National Review, Fox Business, Brookings, Reason, BuzzFeed News, The Week, UPI, NPR, POLITICUSUSA, Slate, WOWK-TV, Boing Boing, Daily Kos and The Hill

Michael Goodwin / New York Post:
Pence effectively went after Harris — and a very biased moderator

Discussion: TheBlaze, The Atlantic, CNN, Politico, Fox News, Washington Post, NPR, Conservative News Today, The American Conservative, National Review, The Week and Mediaite

Mollie Hemingway / The Federalist:
7 Quick Takeaways On The 2020 Vice Presidential Debate

Discussion: Townhall, TIME, Breitbart, Macleans.ca, Al Jazeera, CNBC, Spectator USA, Wisconsin Examiner, New York Times, The Irish Times, Fox News, Politico and Duluth News Tribune

New York Times:
Trump's Objection to Virtual Plan Puts Next Debate in Jeopardy

Discussion: Fox News, TVLine, The Post Millennial, Washington Times, New York Post, Breitbart, Deseret News and Joe Biden for President

Amber Athey / Spectator USA:
Pence takes Harris to the cleaners in VP debate

Discussion: Townhall, The Moderate Voice, ABC News, New Yorker, Washington Free Beacon, Washington Post, The Daily Caller, Vanity Fair, TheBlaze, Scroll.in, Daily Kos, Louder With Crowder, Mediaite, New York Times, BuzzFeed News and The Post Millennial

CNN:
Trump's rejection of virtual format puts future of debates in question

Discussion: Fox News, Associated Press, Deadline, Talking Points Memo, Washington Times, Mashable, Bloomberg, Scroll.in, OutKick, Lawyers, Guns & Money and TheBlaze

Frank Bruni / New York Times:
Mike Pence's Debate Performance Bugged Me Out

Discussion: Al Jazeera, DNyuz, Fox News, American Prospect, Informed Comment, Japan Times, The Guardian, Reuters and Politico

Patricia Murphy / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Top White House aide hosted lavish Atlanta wedding in May despite virus restrictions — At time, state banned gatherings of more than 10 people — White House chief of staff Mark Meadows hosted a lavish wedding for his daughter in Atlanta this May, despite a statewide order and city …

Discussion: Associated Press, Axios, Vanity Fair, The Hill, Mediaite, Raw Story, POLITICUSUSA and The Week

Axios:

Pelosi rules out standalone airline bill without comprehensive relief package — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday she would not agree to a standalone bill to assist the airline industry without a broader relief package that addresses public health, unemployment, and aid for state and local governments.

Discussion: Reuters, Breitbart, The Hill, One America News Network and UPI

Audrey Conklin / Fox News:
Biden unhappy with Trump's move to call off coronavirus relief talks

Discussion: The Hill, One America News Network and Fox Business

Tal Axelrod / The Hill:
Pelosi: 'We're going to be talking about the 25th Amendment'

Discussion: Breitbart, New York Post, Washington Times and Political Wire

Washington Post:
Trump says stimulus talks, $1,200 checks are back in play

Discussion: New York Times, ABC News, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Forbes and Bloomberg

Dan Diamond / Politico:

Health officials scrambling to produce Trump's ‘last-minute’ drug cards by Election Day — Caught by surprise by President Donald Trump's promise to deliver drug-discount cards to seniors, health officials are scrambling to get the nearly $8 billion plan done by Election Day …

Discussion: Political Wire and Raw Story

Bloomberg:

Ex-Fundraiser for Trump, RNC Charged Over Foreign Lobbying — U.S. says Broidy was paid millions to squelch 1MDB probe — Broidy charged in document that often precedes guilty plea — Elliott Broidy, a former top political fundraiser for President Donald Trump and the Republican Party …

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

Republican Senator Blurts Out That He Hates Democracy — Last night, livetweeting his thoughts on the 2020 vice-presidential debate, Republican senator Mike Lee decided it was an opportune moment to share one of his edgier political beliefs: Democracy is bad.

Isaac Stanley-Becker / Washington Post:

Facebook bans marketing firm running ‘troll farm’ for pro-Trump youth group — A Washington Post investigation found that teenagers had been recruited to pepper social media with conservative messages — Facebook said Thursday it will permanently ban from its platform …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Axios, NBC News, Politico, New York Post and The Verge

Elizabeth Meyer / Iowa Starting Line:

Greenfield Shatters Fundraising Records With $28.7M Haul — Theresa Greenfield raised more money in the last three months than any Iowan running for U.S. Senate had raised in an entire election cycle. — In the third fundraising quarter of 2020, spanning July through September …

Discussion: The Hill, Political Wire and DNyuz

Robert D. McFadden / New York Times:

Jim Dwyer, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Journalist, Dies at 63 — Working for New York Newsday, The Daily News and The Times, he covered the human stories of New York in dramatic prose and crusaded against injustice. — Jim Dwyer, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, columnist …

David Wasserman / The Cook Political Report:

What is The Cook Political Report? — The Cook Political Report is an independent, non-partisan newsletter that analyzes elections and campaigns for the US House of Representatives, US Senate, Governors and President as well as American political trends.