memeorandum: Arizona audit divides wobbling state GOP (James Arkin/Politico)

10:15 AM ET, May 15, 2021

Top Items:

David M. Halbfinger / New York Times:

A Press Corps Deceived, and the Gaza Invasion That Wasn't — A spokesman led the international media to believe that Israeli forces had entered Gaza. They hadn't. But the army wanted Hamas to think they had. — The Israeli military abruptly announced after midnight on Friday …

Discussion: Associated Press, The Wrap, RedState, New York Post, Breitbart, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, The Daily Caller, The Times of Israel, Sean Hannity, The Guardian, Al-Monitor, The Right Scoop, Common Dreams, Townhall and Insider, more at Mediagazer »

Associated Press:

Israel strike in Gaza destroys building with AP, other media — GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — An Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building in Gaza City that housed offices of The Associated Press and other media outlets hours after another Israeli air raid on a densely populated refugee camp killed …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, The Hill, New York Times, The Week, Haaretz, Al Jazeera, CNN and وزا …

Associated Press:

Israeli airstrike in Gaza destroys building with AP bureau — GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — An Israeli airstrike has destroyed a high-rise building that housed The Associated Press' offices in the Gaza Strip. — The airstrike Saturday came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building.

Discussion: NBC Chicago and Informed Comment

Adam Taylor / Washington Post:

With strikes targeting rockets and tunnels, the Israeli tactic of ‘mowing the grass’ returns to Gaza — Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the date that Hamas won Palestinian elections and later seized control in Gaza. It has been corrected to show that these events took place in 2006 and 2007, respectively.

Discussion: Jerusalem Post, ABC News, Spin, strangeness, and charm and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Wall Street Journal:

Almost Nothing You've Heard About Evictions in Jerusalem Is True — Neutral application of property law becomes an international incident because a landlord is a Jew. — Hamas never needs a special occasion to bombard Israel with rockets. Yet the progressive narrative connects …

New York Times:

Tensions Among Democrats Grow Over Israel as the Left Defends Palestinians — Divisions within the party have burst into public view, with the party's ascendant left viewing the Mideast conflict as a searing racial justice issue that carries echoes of U.S. politics.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Politico, Religion News Service and Los Angeles Times

Martin Indyk / Foreign Affairs:
The U.S. Can Neither Ignore nor Solve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Discussion: Blue Virginia and CNN

Washington Post:
As Arab world rallies around Palestinians and bloodshed mounts, Trump-era peace deals fade from view

Discussion: The Times of Israel, New York Times and NPR

Conor Finnegan / ABC News:
Critics on left and right bash Biden's response to Israel-Gaza violence

Discussion: The Intercept, The Week, Politico and The US Sun

Justin Gray / WSB-TV:

Investigation: Marjorie Taylor Greene filed homestead exemptions on 2 homes, violating state law — ATLANTA — A Channel 2 Action News investigation has found that Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and her husband have two active homestead exemptions, which is against Georgia law …

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Insider, Crooks and Liars, HotAir, Raw Story and Washington Examiner

Kimberly Leonard / Insider:

How Marjorie Taylor Greene became the Voldemort of Congress. Few lawmakers even want to say her name. — House members say they are done answering questions about Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene. — Democrats told Insider they were relieved they didn't have to work with her on committees.

Discussion: The Hill and Raw Story

The Daily Beast:

Rep. Matt Gaetz Snorted Cocaine With Escort Who Had ‘No Show’ Gov't Job — GRAND OL' PARTY … Witnesses revealed the wild scene at an after-party for a GOP fundraiser in Orlando. — When Rep. Matt Gaetz attended a 2019 GOP fundraiser in Orlando, his date that night was someone he knew well …

Discussion: Raw Story, Daily Kos, The US Sun, Insider and Mediaite

Michael S. Schmidt / New York Times:
Former Gaetz Confidant Pleads Guilty and Agrees to Cooperate

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Mediaite, CNN, BuzzFeed News, Law & Crime, HuffPost, The US Sun, The Guardian, Associated Press, Joe.My.God., Washington Examiner, Vanity Fair, The Intellectualist, The Week, Political Wire and New York Post

Lisa Lerer / New York Times:

The G.O.P.'s Big Cancellation — The party's cancel mob runs wild on Capitol Hill. — Mr. Potato Head is under siege. — So are the Muppets, baseball and Coca-Cola. — Even a horse fell victim. “It was like a cancel culture kind of thing,” the trainer of Medina Spirit told Fox News …

Discussion: The Dispatch

Caroline Kelly / CNN:
Cheney says some GOP members voted against impeachment out of fear for their lives

Discussion: The Daily Gazette, The Hill, RedState, Bloomberg, East Bay Times, New York Times, One America News Network and KIFI-TV

CNN:
Biden administration gives House panel documents related to Trump hotel

Discussion: Raw Story

John Harwood / CNN:

Neera Tanden joins White House as a senior adviser after withdrawing Cabinet nomination — Neera Tanden releases statement on pulling her nomination — (CNN)Neera Tanden, the new administration's only Cabinet nominee rebuffed by the Senate, has become a senior adviser to President Joe Biden, a White House official told CNN.

Discussion: NBC News, Fox News, Townhall, TheBlaze, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Mediaite, The Hill, Bloomberg, Associated Press, New York Post, CNBC and Roll Call

Laura Vozzella / Washington Post:
In a shift, GOP nominee for Va. governor admits Biden ‘legitimately’ elected

Discussion: USA Today, WAMU, Politico, The Blue State Conservative, HuffPost, Bloomberg and Crooks and Liars

Natasha Korecki / Politico:
Neera Tanden lands in the White House, after all

Discussion: Washington Post and Washington Examiner

Apoorva Mandavilli / New York Times:

Why the CDC Changed Its Advice on Masks — Two scientific findings altered the calculus: Vaccinated people don't transmit the virus, and the shots are effective against variants. — Advice from federal health officials that fully vaccinated people could drop their masks in most settings came …

Discussion: HotAir

New York Times:
How The CDC Change on Mask Guidance Set Off Confusion in States and Cities

Discussion: Fox Business, HotAir, NPR and WOOD-TV

Yascha Mounk / Persuasion:
Take Off That Mask — If you are fully vaccinated, the time to resume normal life is now.

Discussion: HotAir, Balloon Juice, Outside the Beltway and New York Times

Julius Whigham II / Palm Beach Post:

Damon Weaver, kid reporter who interviewed President Obama, dies at age 23 — As an intrepid student reporter whose dreams carried him all the way to an interview in the White House with President Barack Obama, Damon Weaver found himself in the national spotlight at a young age.

Discussion: Associated Press, Insider, Outside the Beltway and The Hill

BuzzFeed News:

We Found Joe Biden's Secret Venmo. Here's Why That's A Privacy Nightmare For Everyone. — BuzzFeed News found President Joe Biden's Venmo account after less than 10 minutes of looking for it, revealing a network of his private social connections, a national security issue for the United States …

Discussion: The Guardian, The Stranger, Insider, NOQ Report, The Daily Caller, The US Sun, Mediaite, New York Post, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Examiner, The Verge and Raw Story, more at Techmeme »

James Arkin / Politico:

Arizona audit divides wobbling state GOP — Arizona Republicans have an opportunity in 2022 to claw back ground they've lost as the state shifted towards Democrats. But first, the fight over 2020 has to end. — Republicans in the state are still divided over the results of the last election …

Discussion: Arizona Mirror, The Hill, Raw Story and Steve Bannon's War Room

MSNBC:

‘Maximum pressure’: NY prosecutors work to flip Trump money man — New York prosecutors subpoenaed records from a Manhattan private school seeking information about tuition payments that Trump made on behalf of his key money man, the Trump Organization's CFO Allen Weisselberg.

Katelyn Fossett / Politico:

Six questions with Sally Buzbee, the Washington Post's new executive editor — On Tuesday, the Washington Post announced it has found a new editor to take the helm: Sally Buzbee, the 55-year-old executive editor of the AP, who will be the Post's first woman editor since the paper started publishing in 1877.

Discussion: HotAir

Paul Volpe / Politico:
‘These Blazing Stars ... Just Disappeared’: The Missing Generation of Women at the Washington Post

Discussion: HotAir, more at Mediagazer »

Jerry Dunleavy / Washington Examiner:

FBI quietly admits 2017 GOP baseball shooting was domestic terrorism after all — The FBI quietly admitted Friday that the 2017 Alexandria, Virginia, baseball field shooting that nearly killed Rep. Steve Scalise has been classified as “domestic terrorism” carried out by a “domestic violent extremist” …

Discussion: Federal Bureau …, TheBlaze and Talking Points Memo

Shefali Luthra / The 19th:

Parents are vaccinated, kids can't be. That complicates the new masks-off guidance. — 'He won't wear one if I don't wear one': Some parents may keep masking and taking precautions until a COVID-19 vaccine is approved for children under the age of 12. — The new federal guidance …

Discussion: USA Today, CNN and Los Angeles Times

Tim Elfrink / Washington Post:
Pelosi keeps mask mandate on House floor despite CDC change, sparking GOP backlash: 'It's about control'

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Breitbart, TheBlaze, Associated Press, IJR, Washington Examiner, The US Sun, Deseret News, Talking Points Memo and Insider

Jordan Williams / The Hill:
Trader Joe's will no longer require customers to wear masks

Discussion: Breitbart, Axios, who13.com and The Gateway Pundit

Glenn Kessler / Washington Post:

McCarthy leadership PAC made payments to Luntz firm — The Fact Checker … — House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), in an interview on “Fox & Friends,” May 4 — When House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was first asked about living in a luxury apartment owned by pollster Frank Luntz …

Discussion: Political Wire

Adam Korzeniewski / The American Mind:

Fictive Counting — Serious irregularities in the 2020 Census process must be addressed now. — On April 26, 2021, the U.S. Census Bureau announced the results of the 2020 Decennial Census. The Census, which is Constitutionally mandated, determines “Apportionment,” …

Tim Higgins / Wall Street Journal:

Former Apple Engineer Accuses Company of Defamatory Statements Over Dismissal — Author of controversial ‘Chaos Monkeys’ says tech giant was aware of his book's contents before hiring him — The prominent advertising-technology engineer let go by Apple Inc. this week amid an uproar …

Marc Caputo / Politico:

Stolen election myth rattles key GOP race — To get an idea of how deeply the myth of a stolen election has taken root within the GOP, one need only look to South Carolina. — In a key early voting state that plays an outsized role in presidential primaries, the contest to lead …

Discussion: Raw Story

Kristine Phillips / USA Today:

‘You left us’: Proud Boys leader Ethan Nordean slams Trump in expletive-laden message — WASHINGTON - Proud Boys leader Ethan Nordean lashed out at President Donald Trump, accusing him of misleading his supporters and then deserting them despite their unwavering loyalty. — “We are now and always have been on our own.

Discussion: HuffPost and Joe.My.God.