memeorandum: Trump and DeSantis choose politics over science as mask wars roar back to life (Stephen Collinson/CNN)

10:25 AM ET, July 28, 2021

Top Items:

Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:

Our democracy is under attack. Washington journalists must stop covering it like politics as usual. — Back in the dark ages of 2012, two think-tank scholars, Norman Ornstein and Thomas Mann, wrote a book called “It's Even Worse Than It Looks” about the rise of Republican Party extremism and its dire effect on American democracy.

Discussion: Bloomberg, more at Mediagazer »

Annie Grayer / CNN:
House Republicans pull out of another key select committee in a sign of 1/6 panel fallout

Discussion: UPI, The Hill and The Federalist

Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
As Jan. 6 hearings begin, Republicans side with the terrorists

Discussion: The Bulwark, NPR, The Hill, The Moderate Voice and BizPac Review

Jonathan Allen / NBC News:
What will Republicans defend if not themselves, the Constitution and Capitol?

Discussion: Insider, Washington Post, The Hill, The Western Journal, Associated Press and Forbes

New York Times:
‘A hit man sent them.’ Police at the Capitol recount the horrors of Jan. 6 as the inquiry begins.

Discussion: New York Daily News, NBC News, CNN, Fox News, NPR, HuffPost, Washington Post, The Bulwark, Forbes, Bloomberg, Raw Story, Politico, WOWK-TV and CNBC

Jill Colvin / Associated Press:
Capitol police testimony blunts GOP's law-and-order message

Discussion: CNN, Newsy, Washington Post, Media Matters for America and Political Wire

Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:
The heroes of Jan. 6 expose the lies that Republicans keep telling us

Discussion: New York Times, The Atlantic, Associated Press, Greensburg Tribune-Review, HuffPost, Yahoo News and Insider

Andrea Widburg / American Thinker: America had its first show trial on Tuesday and it was loathsome

Jeremy Herb / CNN:
Five takeaways from gripping officer testimony at the first January 6 hearing

Discussion: Washington Post, Crooks and Liars, HuffPost, The Western Journal, Insider, Breitbart and Bloomberg

Ben Jacobs / New York Magazine:

Donald Trump's Low-Energy Night in Texas — Donald Trump had a bad day on Tuesday. It wasn't the emotional and gut wrenching testimony from the police officers who defended the Capitol from the MAGA mob on January 6 — that was priced in. Instead, Trump backed the wrong candidate …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Conservative Brief, National Review, The Intercept, Associated Press, Raw Story, CBS Dallas / Fort Worth and FiveThirtyEight

Ally Mutnick / Politico:

Trump-backed candidate loses in Texas special election — Voters in North Texas delivered an upset Tuesday, picking GOP state Rep. Jake Ellzey to fill a vacant House seat over a candidate endorsed by former President Donald Trump. — Ellzey beat fellow Republican Susan Wright …

Discussion: HotAir, Associated Press, UPI, Bloomberg, Raw Story, No More Mister Nice Blog, Roll Call, The Daily Caller, Bangor Daily News and Fox News

Andrew Miller / Fox News:
Jake Ellzey wins Texas special election over Trump-backed Susan Wright

Discussion: New York Times and CNN

Caitlin Owens / Axios:

CDC asks the vaccinated to help save the unvaccinated from themselves — The “pandemic of the unvaccinated” has become a big problem for the rest of the country.

David Leonhardt / New York Times:

A Confusing Message — The C.D.C. recommends indoor masking for the vaccinated, but only in some places. — The C.D.C. has both a polarization problem and a communication problem. — Let's start with the polarization problem: The parts of the country that would benefit most from a new crackdown …

Discussion: NBC New York, Liberty Nation, Bloomberg, IJR, Reason and NPR

Aaron E. Carroll / New York Times:
Vaccination Helps Avoid the Delta Variant and Breakthroughs

Discussion: Mediaite, CNN, Washington Post, Reason, MSNBC, Off the Kuff, Los Angeles Times, MIT Technology Review, HotAir and White Plains Daily Voice

Elizabeth Bruenig / The Atlantic:

The New Moral Code of America's Elite — Every striver who ever slipped the rank of their birth to ascend to a higher order has shared the capacity to ingratiate themselves with their betters. What the truly exceptional ones have in common is the ability to connect not only with their superiors …

Jeffrey Tucker / RealClearMarkets:

The CDC's Hysterical Delta Flip-Flop Might Be Its Final Undoing — The crazy, convoluted, mixed up messaging from the CDC - it's been this way from the beginning of the pandemic until now - has taken yet another turn. Now the CDC is recommending masks not just for the unvaccinated but for the vaccinated too.

Discussion: NPR, naked capitalism and Morning Consult

Tyler Olson / Fox News:
House brings back mask mandate, threat of fines after CDC guidance changes

Discussion: Politico and The Daily Caller

Stephen Collinson / CNN:
Trump and DeSantis choose politics over science as mask wars roar back to life

Discussion: New York Times, NPR, The Daily Beast, New York Post, National Review and Iowa Capital Dispatch

Justin Baragona / The Daily Beast:

Tucker Scoffs at D.C. Cop Scarred by Capitol Riot From Safety of His Studio — The Fox News host smirked and snickered at officer Michael Fanone describing the PTSD that followed a brutal beating on Jan. 6. — Fox News host Tucker Carlson took his overt downplaying of the Capitol insurrection …

Discussion: Raw Story, HuffPost, Mediaite, The Daily Beast and USA Today

Jerry Dunleavy / Washington Examiner:
Debunked claims Officer Sicknick died from Capitol riot injuries reemerge at Day One hearing

Discussion: C-SPAN.org, BizPac Review, The Western Journal, RedState, Twitchy, Breitbart and IJR

Jordan Davidson / The Federalist:
Teary Capitol Police Officer Who Testified About January 6 Previously Defended Violent George Floyd Riots In Kenosha

Discussion: RedState, Insider, Salon, BizPac Review, Townhall, Raw Story, The Western Journal and NPR

Margaret Talev / Axios:

Least persuadable unvaccinated Americans are largely white and Republican — Parents are heavily resistant to the vaccine.

spectatorworld.com:

Simone Biles is a quitter — Even with her many mistakes during the qualifying round, Biles still posted the highest score in the competition — Just a few days before the Tokyo Olympics opening ceremony, my mom and I watched the gymnastics comedy Stick It.

Discussion: CNN, The Daily Beast, Columbia Journalism Review, Washington Post, NBC News, POLITICUSUSA and HotAir

Hannah Yoest / The Bulwark:

Simone Biles Isn't Fearless. That's A Good Thing. — By demanding robotic perfection, Biles's detractors are denying her humanity. — Simone Biles pulled out of the Tokyo Olympic gymnastics finals for the women's artistic team all-around on Tuesday morning, citing mental health concerns.

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Times, USA Today and Morning Shots

John Daniel Davidson / The Federalist:
Sorry, Simone Biles, The Olympics Isn't About You, It's About Winning For America

Discussion: New York Daily News, New York Times, The Hill, Vox, The Guardian, RedState, The American Spectator, Reuters, ABC News, UPI and Slate

David Morgan / Reuters:

McConnell aims to boost U.S. Republican vaccination rate by countering ‘bad advice’ — U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell blamed misinformation for the low rates of COVID-19 vaccination among Americans, which are fueling a rise in coronavirus cases, particularly in Republican-dominated states.

Michael Kruse / Politico:

'He's a Great Guy': Trump's Favored Aide Has Troubled Past — “Max Miller,” said Donald Trump. — “You know Max?” — The former president stood behind the microphone at the lectern at one of the most recent of his trademark rallies late last month at the county fairgrounds here and told …

Discussion: Raw Story and Talking Points Memo

David Siders / Politico:

‘America is not racist’ becomes a GOP 2024 mantra — Democrats made structural racism a centerpiece of the 2020 presidential primary. — Now the Republican rebuttal is emerging as an early plank of the 2024 GOP contest: America is not a racist country. — The mantra, used by nearly …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Raw Story

John Wagner / Washington Post:

GOP Rep. Clyde stands by comparison of Jan. 6 mob to ‘tourists’ when pressed by Democratic Rep. Raskin — Rep. Andrew S. Clyde (R-Ga.), who infamously compared the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol to “a normal tourist visit,” steadfastly stood by his contention Tuesday night during …

Miriam Berger / Washington Post:

Israel appears to have committed war crimes in May conflict with Hamas, Human Rights Watch says — According to a leading human rights group, Israel violated international law during the 11 days of fighting with Hamas militants in the densely packed Gaza Strip in May, in what “apparently amount to war crimes.”

Discussion: World Israel News, Human Rights Watch, Informed Comment, Algemeiner.com and UPI

Brian Stelter / CNN:

How right-wing networks covered the January 6 hearing after months of soft-pedaling the Capitol attack — New York (CNN Business)While viewers of other TV channels heard House Democrats denouncing the “whitewashing” of the January 6 attack, One America News viewers witnessed the whitewashing first-hand.

Discussion: Outside the Beltway and Raw Story

German Lopez / Vox:

Mandate the vaccine, not masks — Vaccines are the solution to Covid-19. Let's make the most of them. — All of a sudden, it looks like masks may have to be put back on. — With the rise of the delta variant and a rapid increase in Covid-19 cases, the US Centers for Disease Control …

Discussion: New York Times, Nevada Current, Guardian Gazette and BizPac Review

Damon Linker / The Week:

The intellectual right contemplates an ‘American Caesar’ — Jan. 6 was a badly planned rehearsal for the real deal — How does ideological change happen? Why do certain political ideas and possibilities that appear outrageous and even unthinkable at one moment in history come to be considered options worth taking seriously?

Andrew Seidman / The Philadelphia Inquirer:

An anti-Trump Pa. Republican is warning against ‘MAGA extremists’ in new Senate campaign — Next year's race to represent Pennsylvania in the U.S. Senate will help shape the direction of the Republican Party. And Craig Snyder thinks there's still time to take a sharp turn away …

Matthew Smith / YouGov:

The most and least popular US presidents, according to Americans — YouGov ranks all US presidents according to how the US public feels about them — The respective excellence of US presidents is always being debated. Many academics have put together rankings over the years to demonstrate …

Discussion: Raw Story and Mediaite

Fox News:

Gov. Newsom pulls son from summer camp after maskless photos surface — California announced earlier this month that all students will wear masks when they return to the classroom — Fox News Flash top headlines for July 27 — Gov. Gavin Newsom removed his children from a summer camp …

Discussion: HotAir, Sacramento Bee, RedState, The Daily Caller and Washington Examiner

Kathleen Ronayne / Associated Press:
Newsom pulls kids from summer camp with no mask requirement

Discussion: Townhall, Politico, Twitchy, RedState, CBS Sacramento and New York Post

Kevin Johnson / USA Today:

DOJ: Ala. Rep Brooks should not be dismissed from Capitol riot lawsuit; actions not ‘within scope’ of duties — The Justice Department concluded late Tuesday that Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Ala., did not warrant exclusion from a Capitol riot lawsuit that claims that the congressman …

Discussion: NPR, Washington Examiner, CNN, LAW.com, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, New York Times, The Hill, WHNT-TV, NBC News, UPI, HuffPost, Bloomberg, New York Post, Insider, Politico, One America News Network, BuzzFeed News, Political Wire and BizPac Review

Casey Martin / KUOW:

Seattle Mayor Durkan calls for more officers after string of deadly shootings — After multiple fatal shootings around Seattle that left at least five people dead, Mayor Jenny Durkan said the city must support its police officers to keep up with the pace of crime.