memeorandum: As Outcry Over Nursing Homes Grows, Cuomo Lashes Out at Critics (Jesse McKinley/New York Times)

10:40 AM ET, February 20, 2021

Top Items:

Declan Walsh / New York Times:

Erik Prince, Trump Ally, Violated Libya Arms Embargo, U.N. Report Says — Mr. Prince offered to supply weapons, drones and mercenaries to a Libyan militia commander seeking to overthrow the government, according to U.N. investigators. — NAIROBI, Kenya — Erik Prince …

Discussion: Raw Story, Al Jazeera, HuffPost and The Intellectualist

Reuters:

Exclusive: New York City tax agency subpoenaed in Trump criminal probe — (Reuters) - The Manhattan District Attorney's Office has subpoenaed a New York City property tax agency as part of a criminal investigation into Donald Trump's company, the agency confirmed on Friday …

Discussion: The Hill, Insider, The Daily Beast, Bloomberg, Raw Story and Political Wire

Elizabeth Elizalde / New York Post:

Ted Cruz's family seen soaking up the Cancun sun while Texas shivers — Here's what Ted Cruz is missing out on in Cancun. — The Texas senator's family was happily soaking up the Mexican sun Friday — without him — after leaving the Lone Star State, where millions experienced power outages …

Discussion: The Boston Globe, Page Six and Vanity Fair

Marc Caputo / Politico:

Cruz family's Cancun trip rattles their private school — Three weeks before Sen. Ted Cruz embarked on his ill-fated Cancun trip to escape the aftermath of Texas's devastating winter storm, the elite K-12 Houston private school attended by his two daughters emailed a Covid warning to parents about international travel.

Discussion: New York Times, Lead Stories, Salon, The Guardian, Vanity Fair and Raw Story

Amanda Carpenter / The Bulwark:
On Cancun and the Insurrection — What is the point of being a United States Senator anyway?

Discussion: New York Times, Daily Kos, CNN, USA Today, Salon, Bulwark+, Insider and UPROXX

Vanity Fair:
The “Absolute and Abject Failure” of the GOP: Democratic Stars Joe Neguse and Beto O'Rourke on Trump, Cruz, and Finding Hope

Discussion: ABC News and ABC13

Heather Golden / The Bulwark:

Failing Government, Freezing Texans — A cold and chaotic week in Galveston. — VOLUNTEERS HAND OUT CASES OF WATER BOTTLES TO GALVESTON RESIDENCE AT THE SCHLITTERBAHN WATERPARK PARKING LOT ON FEBRUARY 19, 2021 IN GALVESTON, TEXAS. - A FIERCE AND DEADLY WINTER STORM THAT WREAKED HAVOC …

Discussion: New Republic, The Week and Reason

Madlin Mekelburg / Austin American-Statesman:

ERCOT officials spent 40 seconds on winter storm preparedness at Feb. 9 meeting — During their last meeting ahead of the winter storm that left millions of Texans without electricity and potable water for days on end, top officials at the state electric grid operator spent less …

Discussion: KSAT-TV

Duncan Agnew / The Texas Tribune:
As Texans endured days in the dark, the state failed to deliver vital emergency information

Discussion: The Guardian, The Hill and Zandar Versus The Stupid

Shannon Najmabadi / The Texas Tribune:
Busted pipes, water damage, hotel bills: As power flickers on, costs loom for storm-weary Texans

Discussion: Mother Jones, Insider, PBS NewsHour, Vox and The Daily Beast

Amy Gardner / Washington Post:

State GOP lawmakers propose flurry of voting restrictions to placate Trump supporters, spurring fears of a backlash — GOP state lawmakers across the country have proposed a flurry of voting restrictions that they say are needed to restore confidence in U.S. elections, an effort intended …

Zachary B. Wolf / CNN:

The ‘big lie’ on voter fraud is still with us — A version of this story appeared in CNN's What Matters newsletter. To get it in your inbox, sign up for free here. — (CNN)There's a war over voting. — Set all these things aside: — the blatant hypocrisy of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's vacation after he criticized others

Discussion: Raw Story, Washington Post and Election Law Blog

Jane C. Timm / NBC News:
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis calls for restrictive new voting laws

Discussion: Associated Press, Daily Kos and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis

Washington Post:

U.S. investigating possible ties between Roger Stone, Alex Jones and Capitol rioters — The Justice Department and FBI are investigating whether high-profile right-wing figures — including Roger Stone and Alex Jones — may have played a role in the Jan. 6 Capitol breach as part of a broader look …

Discussion: emptywheel

U.S. Department of Justice:

WWII Nazi Concentration Camp Guard Removed to Germany — Man is the 70th Nazi Persecutor Removed from the United States — Today a Tennessee resident with German citizenship was removed to Germany for participating in Nazi-sponsored acts of persecution while serving as an armed guard at a Nazi concentration camp in 1945.

Discussion: ABC13 and WTOP

Bari Weiss / Common Sense with Bari Weiss:

Whistleblower at Smith College Resigns Over Racism — Jodi Shaw made less in a year than the cost of tuition. She was offered a settlement, but turned it down. Here's why. — We all know that something morally grotesque is swallowing liberal America. Almost no one wants to risk talking about it out loud.

Discussion: Disrn

William A. Jacobson / Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion:
Smith College Whistleblower Jodi Shaw Resigns Over “Racially Hostile Environment” Created By Critical Race Training

Discussion: National Review

Jack Dutton / Newsweek:

Mitt Romney Tears Into Donald Trump Again Amid GOP Civil War — Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) launched another scathing attack on former President Donald Trump, accusing him of dividing the United States into a “dark and dangerous place” by continuously claiming the November election results were fraudulent.

Discussion: Bangor Daily News

Bryan Schott / Salt Lake Tribune:
Lee says Romney shouldn't be punished for impeachment vote

Discussion: All Republicans …, IJR, The Daily Beast and The Hill

Johnny Diaz / New York Times:

Extreme Cold Killed Texans in Their Bedrooms, Vehicles and Backyards — At least 58 people died in storm-affected areas stretching to Ohio, victims of carbon monoxide poisoning, car crashes, drownings, house fires and hypothermia. — SAN ANTONIO — Carrol Anderson spent much of his life …

Discussion: Mother Jones and CBS News

U.S. Department of Justice:

Six Individuals Affiliated with the Oath Keepers Indicted by a Federal Grand Jury for Conspiracy to Obstruct Congress on Jan. 6, 2021 — WASHINGTON, D.C. -This week, six additional individuals associated with an organization known as the Oath Keepers, some of whose members were among …

Discussion: CBS News, Forbes, Washington Examiner, Insider, The Daily Caller, CNBC and Wall Street Journal

Washington Post:
U.S. alleges wider Oath Keepers conspiracy, adds more defendants in Jan. 6 Capitol riot

Discussion: Law & Crime, WTOP, HuffPost, UPI, New York Times, Reuters, Raw Story, Al Jazeera, USA Today, IJR, Politico, Talking Points Memo and The Daily Beast

Zoe Tillman / BuzzFeed News:
The Capitol Rioters Are Starting To Face Much More Serious Charges For The Insurrection

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money and Raw Story

Sky News Australia:

‘Never before’ has the leader of the free world been ‘so cognitively compromised’ — It is clear US President Joe Biden is not up to the task he has been “sworn in to do”, according to Sky News host Cory Bernardi. “Never before has the leader of the free world been so cognitively compromised …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Jeremy Wallace / Houston Chronicle:

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is Houston-bound with $2 million to help Texans after winter storm — New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was traveling to Houston on Friday with more than $2 million to help Texas recover from a week of catastrophic blackouts and water outages.

Discussion: Hackwhackers, HuffPost, Off the Kuff, New Republic, ABC13, New York Post, New York Times, CBS New York, Twitchy and KXAN-TV

Jesse McKinley / New York Times:
As Outcry Over Nursing Homes Grows, Cuomo Lashes Out at Critics

Discussion: The Guardian, Raw Story, Townhall and Washington Examiner

Leticia Miranda / NBC News:

As Texas deep freeze subsides, some households now face electricity bills as high as $10,000 — As the Texas power grid collapsed under a historic winter storm, Jose Del Rio of Haltom City, in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, saw the electricity bill on a vacant two-bedroom home he is trying to sell slowly creep up over the past two weeks.

Discussion: BizPac Review, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth, KXAN-TV, KHOU-TV and The Intellectualist

Jana Winter / Yahoo News:

Feds now say right-wing extremists responsible for majority of deadly terrorist attacks last year — The U.S. government is acknowledging for the first time that right-wing extremists were responsible for the majority of fatal domestic terrorist attacks last year, according …

GOV.UK:
Prime Minister's speech at the Munich Security Conference: 19 February 2021

Discussion: Breitbart and Telegraph

Robert Kuttner / American Prospect:

Tanden on the Ropes as OMB Director — Opposition from Sen. Joe Manchin in an evenly divided Senate could sink her nomination. On deck: Gene Sperling. — Neera Tanden, President Biden's nominee for director of the Office of Management and Budget, appears before the Senate Committee on the Budget …

Discussion: Insider, Wall Street Journal, TheBlaze, Daily News, Politico, The Hill, HuffPost, Breitbart, New York Times, Power Line, NPR, Washington Times, WTOP, CNBC, Washington Post, Bloomberg, HotAir, Forbes, Fox News and Political Wire

Brittany Bernstein / National Review:
Manchin Comes Out against Neera Tanden's Confirmation as OMB Director

Discussion: NBC News, New York Post, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and Instapundit

Jacqueline Thomsen / LAW.com:

Seeing ‘Political Grandstanding’ in Election Lawsuit, Judge Orders Attorney to Face Grievance Committee — “When any counsel seeks to target processes at the heart of our democracy, the committee may well conclude that they are required to act with far more diligence and good faith than existed here,” the judge said.

Jessica Lipscomb / Miami New Times:

Jack Daniel's-Swiggin' TikTok “Patriot” Arrested for Threatening FBI Agents — KEEP NEW TIMES FREE — I SUPPORT … SUPPORT THE INDEPENDENT VOICE OF MIAMI AND HELP KEEP THE FUTURE OF NEW TIMES FREE. — Palming a bottle of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Fire, Palm Beach County resident Suzanne …

Discussion: TheBlaze and Political Flare

Kerry Flynn / CNN:

‘Thank God for The Texas Tribune’: Power crisis shines light on local news — New York (CNN Business)For nearly a year, newsrooms have mostly sat empty because of the pandemic. Staffers have been working from home and not seeing many of their coworkers in person.

Discussion: Washington Post, The Texas Tribune, Salon and Media Matters for America

Hugo Gurdon / Washington Examiner:

Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion conjuring trick — Stage sets are sometimes moved into place in full view of theatergoers. On other occasions, such mechanics are meant to go unnoticed, but the audience can still hear scenery being dragged around in the darkness between acts.

Dan Diamond / Washington Post:

Biden's top doctor nominee made more than $2 million doing pandemic consulting, speeches — Tapped to be surgeon general, Vivek Murthy's financial entanglements draw scrutiny before his Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday — As Vivek H. Murthy advised Joe Biden on the pandemic during …

Nicholas Riccardi / Associated Press:

Inspector General Reviews Trump Admin's Last-Minute Decision To Relocate Space Command — The decision to relocate from Colorado to Alabama was made one week before Donald Trump left office. It has raised questions of political retaliation. — DENVER (AP) — The Department …

Discussion: Raw Story

Matt Vespa / Townhall:

We Have Another Fauci Reversal...This Time on the COVID Vaccine — I honestly don't know what to say anymore. It's like we've never seen viruses before COVID. How can news of a vaccine being effective against spreading a virus be...actual breaking news? Of course, vaccines do that.

Discussion: Twitchy

Joby Warrick / Washington Post:

Blueprint for a raid: Documents shed light on plan to buy U.S. helicopter gunships for assault on Tripoli — The commandos for hire who landed in Benghazi in June 2019 had arranged, at great expense, to procure every weapon and tool needed for an assault on Libya's government.