memeorandum: Climate Change Drove Western Heat Wave's Extreme Records, Analysis Finds (Henry Fountain/New York Times)

10:15 AM ET, July 8, 2021

Top Items:

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

Scoop: Tucker Carlson sought Putin interview at time of spying claim — Tucker Carlson was talking to U.S.-based Kremlin intermediaries about setting up an interview with Vladimir Putin shortly before the Fox News host accused the National Security Agency of spying on him, sources familiar with the conversations tell Axios.

Jordan Davidson / The Federalist:
Check Out All The Blue Check Morons Who Swore The Corrupt Intel Community Would Never Spy On Tucker Carlson

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, Gizmodo, Raw Story, RedState, Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller and Power Line, more at Mediagazer »

David Harsanyi / National Review:
Was Tucker Carlson Spied On?

Discussion: Breitbart, Fox News, Raw Story and The Hill, more at Mediagazer »

Paul Sperry / RealClearInvestigations:

Naming the Capitol Police Officer Who Killed Unarmed Jan. 6 Rioter Ashli Babbitt — At top, pistol drawn in the House chamber, a plainclothes black officer who fits the description of Michael L. Byrd. His name was apparently divulged at a hearing as the cop who shot Ashli Babbitt.

Discussion: Townhall, Insider, The Gateway Pundit and BizPac Review

Wajahat Ali / The Daily Beast:
Why Trump Is Anointing Ashli Babbitt as MAGA's First Martyr

Discussion: BizPac Review, TheBlaze, Raw Story, Washington Post and Gizmodo

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
The Chilling Message of Trump's Embrace of Ashli Babbitt Martyrdom January 6 is now a heroic uprising for the movement.

Discussion: Washington Post and Raw Story

Tessa Weinberg / Missouri Independent:

‘Surge response team’ arrives in Missouri amid COVID spike caused by Delta variant — As federal officials land in Missouri at the request of the state to assist with combatting a wave of new COVID cases spurred by the Delta variant, Gov. Mike Parson publicly rebuffed outreach strategies President Joe Biden touted.

Discussion: Alabama Political Reporter, New York Times and ABC17NEWS

Politico:

Delta variant said to be far more widespread than federal estimates — The more-transmissible Delta coronavirus variant is believed to be significantly more widespread than the current federal projections, according to two senior Biden administration health officials with knowledge of the situation.

Discussion: The White House

David Wenner / PennLive:
COVID-19 vaccine rollout fast enough to save nearly 300,000, study says

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA and The Guardian

Ashish K. Jha / The Boston Globe:
Masking indoors in the age of the Delta variant

Discussion: Outside the Beltway, Iowa Capital Dispatch and Los Angeles Times

Commonwealth Fund: Deaths and Hospitalizations Averted by Rapid U.S. Vaccination Rollout

Zoe Tillman / BuzzFeed News:

Trump's Social Media Lawsuits Are Full Of Arguments Courts Have Repeatedly Rejected — WASHINGTON — Former president Donald Trump's latest attempt at getting back on mainstream social media platforms came in the form of lawsuits on Wednesday against Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube …

Discussion: The Atlantic, Reason, NBC News, Raw Story, Crooks and Liars, WSVN-TV and Washington Post, more at Mediagazer »

Paul Waldman / Washington Post:

Trump's latest ridiculous lawsuit shows how small he has become — For someone who filed thousands of lawsuits during his career in business, former president Donald Trump has been rather quiet on the legal front since he left office — particularly if you don't count the criminal charges …

Discussion: Vox, One America News Network, New York Times, Vanity Fair, The Register, Mother Jones, Newsbusters, Raw Story, Fox News and YouTube

CNN:
Trump's meritless lawsuits don't stand a chance

Discussion: Insider, Media Matters for America and The Western Journal

HuffPost:
Trump's ‘Big Tech’ Lawsuits Could Make Him Testify Under Oath About Jan. 6

Discussion: Raw Story

Molly Ball / TIME:

Breakfast with J.D. Vance, Anti-Trump Author Turned Pro-Trump Candidate — “I'm not just a flip-flopper, I'm a flip-flop-flipper on Trump,” J.D. Vance says with a laugh, slicing into a half-stack of breakfast pancakes. The Hillbilly Elegy author and newly minted Republican Senate candidate …

Discussion: Insider and NBC News

Mike Allen / Axios:

2022's one race to watch — Culture wars, Big Tech and economic populism — including inflation, gas prices, immigration and jobs to China. For a preview of many of the themes that'll drive American politics in next year's midterms and even beyond, watch J.D. Vance, the “Hillbilly Elegy” author who's running for U.S. Senate in Ohio.

Discussion: Raw Story and Cincinnati.com

New York Times:

Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg's Partnership Did Not Survive Trump — The company they built is wildly successful. But her Washington wisdom didn't hold up, and neither did their close working relationship. — Sheryl Sandberg knew she'd be asked about the attacks on the Capitol.

more at Techmeme »

Emily Singer / The American Independent:

Virginia GOP gubernatorial nominee admits to hiding extreme abortion views to win election — Glenn Youngkin said he won't talk publicly about some of his more severe positions on abortion because that 'won't win my independent votes that I have to get.' — Virginia's Republican nominee …

Discussion: HuffPost, Political Wire and Blue Virginia

Maggie Fox / CNN:

Coronavirus almost certainly came from an animal, not a lab leak, top scientists argue — US intelligence working on report about Covid-19 origins — (CNN)The coronavirus pandemic almost certainly originated from an animal, probably at a wildlife market in China, and not from a laboratory leak …

Discussion: Bloomberg, Zenodo and National Review

Washington Post:

Conservative groups mount opposition to increase in IRS budget, threatening White House infrastructure plan — The new funding is supposed to be a cornerstone of a bipartisan deal negotiated by the White House and moderate senators — Conservative political groups are mobilizing …

Discussion: New York Magazine, Alternet.org and Balloon Juice

David Fahrenthold / Washington Post:

Trump charged Secret Service nearly $10,200 in May for agents' rooms — Former president Donald Trump's golf club in Bedminster, N.J., charged the Secret Service nearly $10,200 for guest rooms used by his protective detail during Trump's first month at the club this summer, newly released spending records show.

Discussion: Insider, POLITICUSUSA and Raw Story

Yvonne Wingett Sanchez / Arizona Republic:

Secretary of State Katie Hobbs asks Attorney General Mark Brnovich to investigate possible election interference by Donald Trump, allies — Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs on Wednesday asked Attorney General Mark Brnovich to open a criminal investigation into possible efforts …

Discussion: The Hill, Raw Story, Joe.My.God. and Insider

Matt Viser / Washington Post:

Deal of the art: White House grapples with ethics of Hunter Biden's pricey paintings — White House officials have helped craft an agreement under which purchases of Hunter Biden's artwork — which could be listed at prices as high as $500,000 — will be kept confidential from even the artist himself …

Discussion: The Hill

Alexis Nowicki / Slate:

I've Always Suspected “Cat Person” Was Based on My Life. Now I Know It Was.  — Kristen Roupenian's viral story draws specific details from my own life. I've spent the years since it published wondering: How did she know? — One night in December of 2017, I saw Call Me by Your Name …

BBC:

Afghan forces say Taliban being driven out of western city — Afghan troops have recaptured government buildings in a western city which was attacked by the Taliban, officials say. — On Wednesday, the Taliban entered Qala-e-Naw, the first direct assault on a provincial capital since the US began pulling out its last troops.

Discussion: BBC and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion

Lara Seligman / Politico:
Sources: U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan complete ‘for all intents and purposes’

Discussion: Washington Post and Task & Purpose

Simon Shuster / TIME:

Exclusive: Documents Reveal Erik Prince's $10 Billion Plan to Make Weapons and Create a Private Army in Ukraine — On the second night of his visit to Kyiv, Erik Prince had a dinner date on his agenda. A few of his Ukrainian associates had arranged to meet the American billionaire at the Vodka Grill that evening, Feb. 23, 2020.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Joe.My.God. and Insider

Ari Berman / Mother Jones:

Texas Is the Hardest State to Vote In. It Could Soon Get Much Harder. — Let our journalists help you make sense of the noise: Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily newsletter and get a recap of news that matters. — Beto O'Rourke is once again crisscrossing the state of Texas …

Discussion: CNN, Houston Chronicle, CBS News and The Western Journal

Jenni Fink / Newsweek:

Marjorie Taylor Greene Shuts Down Idea That Trump Will be Reinstated in August, ‘Not True’ — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is still a staunch ally of former President Donald Trump but she's not in the camp of people who believe he'll return to office before fall.

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA and Mediaite

Nicole Gaudiano / Insider:
A key fundraising group for Republican women is shunning Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert, calling them ‘carnival barkers’

Discussion: Raw Story

Washington Examiner:

Biden's global corporate tax gambit — The corporate tax has always been a Rube Goldberg machine, trying to accomplish some simple tasks through unnecessarily complex machinations. So, it's fitting, in a perverse way, that the Biden administration would try to jury-rig a patch for this complex machine.

PRRI:

The 2020 Census of American Religion — THE AMERICAN RELIGIOUS LANDSCAPE IN 2020 — The American Religious Landscape in 2020 — According to PRRI's 2020 American Values Atlas, seven in ten Americans (70%) identify as Christian, including more than four in ten who identify as white Christian …

Discussion: Blue Virginia

Patrick Svitek / The Texas Tribune:

Allen West's final days as state GOP chair filled with intraparty drama — With only days before he steps down from the helm of the state GOP, West is embroiled in a fight with his vice chair and under attack by county GOP chairs. — Copy link — Allen West's final days as Texas GOP chairman …

Discussion: Joe.My.God. and Outside the Beltway

Henry Fountain / New York Times:

Climate Change Drove Western Heat Wave's Extreme Records, Analysis Finds — A rapid analysis of last week's record-breaking heat found that it would have been virtually impossible without the influence of human-caused climate change. — The extraordinary heat wave that scorched …

Discussion: Breitbart and Kevin Drum

Adam Klasfeld / Law & Crime:

Michigan Judge Refuses to Allow Sidney Powell, Lin Wood, and Other ‘Kraken’ Attorneys to Skip Sanctions Hearing — Mere hours after lawyers for the so-called “Kraken” litigation to overturn the 2020 presidential election asked to skip attending an upcoming sanctions hearing …

Discussion: Raw Story

Alexander Ward / Politico:

Biden's new Cold War with China will result in climate collapse, progressives warn — As a new Cold War takes shape between the U.S. and China, progressives fear the result will be a dramatically warming planet. — Over 40 progressive groups sent a letter to President Joe Biden and lawmakers …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, New York Post, RedState and Fox News

Mona Charen / The Bulwark: What We Lost When We Won the Cold War

Eric Morath / Wall Street Journal:

U.S. Jobless Claims Edged Up to 373,000 Last Week — Initial claims rose 2,000 as many states are ending participation early in pandemic-related jobless assistance programs — Jobless claims held nearly steady last week, interrupting a downward trend and showing the labor market's recovery remains uneven …

Discussion: UPI and The Daily Caller

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:

In Michigan, Pro-Impeachment Republicans Face Voters' Wrath — Representative Peter Meijer, a Republican who voted to impeach Donald J. Trump, seeks “decency and humility” in Western Michigan, but has found anger, fear and misinformation. — GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Representative Peter …

Discussion: Raw Story and Forbes

Josh Kraushaar / National Journal:

Republicans suppressing their own voters in Arizona and Georgia — To win back the Senate majority, Republicans likely need to win seats in the two GOP-leaning battlegrounds. But the Trump-fueled obsession over voter fraud is hurting their own cause. — See more stories about...

Discussion: Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Hill and VICE