memeorandum: Schumer says Senate will call witnesses for Trump's trial — if impeachment managers want them (Chris Sommerfeldt/New York Daily News)

10:52 AM ET, February 13, 2021

Top Items:

CNN:

New details about Trump-McCarthy shouting match show Trump refused to call off the rioters — Washington (CNN)In an expletive-laced phone call with House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy while the Capitol was under attack, then-President Donald Trump said the rioters cared more about the election results than McCarthy did.

Burgess Everett / Politico:

McConnell reveals he will vote to acquit Trump — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told GOP colleagues in a letter that he will vote to acquit Donald Trump in the former president's impeachment trial, according to sources familiar with the communication.

Discussion: CNN, NBC News, The Hill, NPR, Associated Press, Breitbart, HotAir, Lawyers, Guns & Money, New York Post, POLITICUSUSA, Washington Times, KTLA, Florida Politics, Deadline, TheGrio, Mother Jones, Daily Kos, Raw Story, KRON4 and WTOP

Politico:

Dems weigh witness question as new details about Trump's conduct revealed — House Democrats have decided to call a key Republican House member to testify about her awareness of a conversation that Donald Trump had with House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy during the Jan. 6 insurrection …

Discussion: CNBC, Common Dreams, Bloomberg, New York Post, Grand Forks Herald, New York Times, IJR, KTLA and NBC Chicago

Maureen Dowd / New York Times:

Trump's Taste for Blood — If Republicans won't convict, bring on the handcuffs. — WASHINGTON — Every scene in “Lawrence of Arabia” is perfect, but there's one I find especially haunting. — Peter O'Toole's Lawrence returns to Cairo after successfully leading the Arabs in battle …

Discussion: Insider, Daily Kos, Raw Story, The Intellectualist and Vox

New York Times:

For the Defense: Twisted Facts and Other Staples of the Trump Playbook — The lawyers representing the former president in his impeachment trial are the latest in a rotating cast that has always had trouble satisfying a mercurial and headstrong client. — Ever since Donald J. Trump began …

Discussion: CNN, Associated Press, The Moderate Voice, Breitbart, Political Wire, Talking Points Memo, The Guardian and Raw Story

Nicholas Fandos / New York Times:

Trump sided with the Capitol mob, Herrera Beutler says McCarthy told her. — On the eve of a verdict in Donald J. Trump's Senate trial, one of the 10 Republicans who voted to impeach him confirmed on Friday night that the top House Republican, Representative Kevin McCarthy …

Discussion: The Hill, CNN, Axios, Mock Paper Scissors, IJR, Mediaite, The Week, Common Dreams, Raw Story, Cyprus Mail, WTOP, The Times of Israel, Fox News, Political Wire and Bloomberg

Bob Brigham / Raw Story:

GOP super-lawyer Ted Olson cuts off donations to Republicans who refuse to convict Trump — One of the top GOP lawyers in America says he will no longer donate to Republicans who refuse to convict Donald Trump for inciting the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Discussion: LAW.com

New York Times:

Trump Is Guilty — There's no doubt who must be held responsible for attacking the Capitol and trying to overturn the results of the election. — The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed by expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values.

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Post, Daily Kos, Washington Times, Associated Press and The Times of Israel

Kyle Cheney / Politico:
House Republican pleads for Pence, Trump aides to speak out on Jan. 6 insurrection

Discussion: CBS News, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Reuters, Breitbart, Talking Points Memo, Cyprus Mail, CANNONFIRE, Insider and The Daily Signal

Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler:
Herrera Beutler Again Confirms Conversation with McCarthy Regarding January 6 U.S. Capitol Attack

Discussion: USA Today, Axios, The Hill and justoneminute.typepad.com

Susan Ferrechio / Washington Examiner:
Impeachment trial barrels toward Saturday acquittal of Trump

Discussion: littlegreenfootballs.com, Washington Post, Power Line, New York Times, HuffPost and CNN

Lachlan Markay / Axios:

Scoop: Lincoln Project co-founder resigns — Lincoln Project co-founder Steve Schmidt is resigning from the group's board amid a series of scandals that has rocked the high-dollar anti-Trump super PAC, Axios has learned. — Why it matters: Schmidt, a veteran Republican operative …

Discussion: RedState, Outside the Beltway, The Other McCain, Fox News, HuffPost, New York Post, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Free Beacon, Twitchy, Mock Paper Scissors and HotAir

Amanda Becker / The 19th:

Inside the Lincoln Project's ‘toxic’ workplace — Interviews with nearly two dozen people with knowledge of the group's workings reveal a culture of infighting, sexist language and disparate treatment. — The Lincoln Project's launch in late 2019 was designed to make a splash.

Discussion: The Guardian, Washington Post, Fox News, Washington Examiner, Twitchy, Occupy Democrats, Forbes, The National Pulse, New Republic, Washington Free Beacon, CNN, BizPac Review, Breitbart, The Daily Poster, The Daily Beast, TheBlaze, Associated Press and MyNorthwest.com

Marlow Stern / The Daily Beast:
Bill Maher Grills The Lincoln Project Co-Founder Steve Schmidt: ‘Where Did the Other Money Go?’

Discussion: BizPac Review, Washington Examiner, The Hill and TheBlaze

Glenn Greenwald:
The Lincoln Project, Facing Multiple Scandals, is Accused by its Own Co-Founder of Likely Criminality

Discussion: Washington Examiner, wgbh.org, Power Line, HuffPost, Washington Post, Fox News, Breitbart, RedState, The Daily Caller and Talking Points Memo

Brian Schwartz / CNBC:
Lincoln Project backers consider cutting off donations after misconduct allegations as co-founder Steve Schmidt quits board

Discussion: CBS News, Breitbart, Politico, Washington Examiner, Los Angeles Times, The Wrap, New York Times, Fox News, New York Magazine, Washington Post and The Daily Beast

Washington Post:

Graham's post-election call with Raffensperger will be scrutinized in Georgia probe, person familiar with inquiry says — An Atlanta-area prosecutor plans to scrutinize a post-Election Day phone call between Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger …

Discussion: HuffPost, CNN, The Hill and Raw Story

Marianne LeVine / Politico:

Graham to meet with Trump to talk future of GOP — Sen. Lindsey Graham said he'll be meeting with former President Donald Trump in the coming weeks to talk about the future of the Republican Party. — The South Carolina Republican told reporters Friday evening that he plans to encourage Trump …

Discussion: The Hill and Insider

Axios:
Historians say impact of expected Trump acquittal will be felt for years

Discussion: Washington Post and The Daily Caller

Greg Bluestein / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Fulton DA's probe will include Graham's call to Raffensperger

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Times and IJR

Benjamin Parker / The Bulwark:

The 10 Worst Moments from Trump's “Defense” — The former president got the impeachment defense he deserved. — Donald Trump's lawyers took only about three and a half hours to make their case in defense of the “45th president”—aka the former president. (More on that in a moment.)

Discussion: CNN, Crooks and Liars, New York Daily News, NBC News, New York Times and BuzzFeed News

David Frum / The Atlantic:

The Trump Crew's Incompetence Lasted to the End — If future generations of law professors want to teach a class in what never to do, the belligerent and self-indulgent performance of Michael van der Veen, one of Donald Trump's impeachment lawyers, could provide a lot of the video content.

Discussion: Raw Story

George Conway / Washington Post:
Trump's lawyers offered an attack on everything but the evidence

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, New York Times, ABC News and UPI

Derek Thompson / The Atlantic:

How to Beat the Pandemic by Summer — After nearly a year of social isolation and sacrifice in the long war on COVID-19, the end stage of the pandemic is finally in sight. Millions of Americans are being vaccinated each week, and the number of coronavirus-related hospitalizations …

Discussion: Quartz

Washington Post:

Postmaster general's new plan for USPS is said to include slower mail and higher prices — A key provision of the postmaster general's strategy includes banning air travel for all first-class mail at a time when delivery rates are at historic lows. — Postmaster General Louis DeJoy …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, CNN, Forbes and NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

NBC News:
Postmaster general's new plan could include slower mail and postage hike

Discussion: Insider

Marcia Coyle / LAW.com:

Ted Olson Backs Case for Trump Conviction at Impeachment Trial — What would a conviction take, the prominent Gibson Dunn partner said, “if it isn't encouraging, condoning and inciting an attempt at a violent overthrow of the government of the United States in the Capitol Building …

Marcia Coyle / LAW.com: Chuck Cooper's Test for Senate Republicans Weighing Trump Trial Verdict

Christopher Mathias / HuffPost:

57 GOP State And Local Officials Were At The Capitol Insurrection — And a month after the riot, few of the Republican political figures have been held to account. — At least 57 state and local Republican officials attended the Jan. 6 rally in Washington that turned into a deadly insurrection …

Discussion: CBS Dallas / Fort Worth

Politico:

Senate GOP gripped by conviction vote intrigue — Six GOP senators voted this week to move forward with President Donald Trump's impeachment trial. But Republicans believe several more of them may be considering conviction. — As the Trump defense made its argument on Friday …

Discussion: Fox News, DemCast, Raw Story, Insider, National Review, Associated Press, HotAir, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and CBS Philly

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
No. 2 GOP senator suggests he's open to censuring Trump

Discussion: Breitbart, The American Independent, Washington Times, HotAir and Daily Kos

Cade Metz / New York Times:

Silicon Valley's Safe Space — Slate Star Codex was a window into the psyche of many tech leaders building our collective future. Then it disappeared. — The website had a homely, almost slapdash design with a light blue banner and a strange name: Slate Star Codex.

CNN:

Senate passes legislation to award Officer Eugene Goodman Congressional Gold Medal — (CNN)The Senate on Friday approved legislation to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Capitol Police Officer Eugene Goodman, who became a national hero for his actions defending the Senate during the siege of the Capitol on January 6.