memeorandum: As COVID Hits Florida's Children, DeSantis Stands Firm, Says ‘Deal With’ It (Tony Pipitone/NBC 6 South Florida)

11:00 AM ET, August 13, 2021

Top Items:

Taliban sweep across Afghanistan's south; take 4 more cities — KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban completed their sweep of the country's south on Friday as they took four more provincial capitals in a lightning offensive that is gradually encircling Kabul, just weeks before the U.S. is set to officially end its two-decade war.

Gideon Rachman / Financial Times:

Joe Biden's credibility has been shredded in Afghanistan — But the fall of the country to the Taliban would also create a dilemma for China — If Donald Trump were presiding over the debacle in Afghanistan, the US foreign policy establishment would be loudly condemning the irresponsibility and immorality of American strategy.

Discussion: Fox News, Task & Purpose, Daily Mail, BizPac Review, Metro.co.uk, New York Times, Military.com, New York Magazine and Townhall

Susan B. Glasser / New Yorker:

“Not Our Tragedy”: the Taliban Are Coming Back, and America Is Still Leaving — President Biden made it very clear this week that we're out of Afghanistan, no matter what. — At least Joe Biden is owning it. “I do not regret my decision,” the President said this week …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, CNN, New York Post, NBC News, Althouse and New York Times

Sharif Hassan / New York Times:

An Afghan warlord who steadfastly resisted the Taliban surrendered. Others may follow his lead. — A prominent Afghan warlord and former governor, who had resisted Taliban attacks in western Afghanistan for weeks and rallied many to his cause to push back the insurgent offensive, surrendered on Friday, officials said.

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

Behind the scenes of the Biden administration as the U.S. ditches Kabul — Many in the U.S. military see the race out of Afghanistan as a dishonorable withdrawal, and some State Department officials fear the U.S. may have to close the embassy in Kabul. — Driving the news …

Discussion: Associated Press, Balloon Juice and The Daily Caller

Shay Khatiri / The Bulwark:

Blame Biden for Afghanistan's Return to the Dark Ages — Executions, sex slavery, ethnic cleansing—and yet the president says “I do not regret my decision.” — The Joe Biden who promised to put human rights at the center of his foreign policy is the same Joe Biden now stubbornly paving …

Discussion: Washington Post, Financial Times and National Review

Spencer Ackerman / Forever Wars:
Everything That Will Follow A Taliban Victory Is Still A Part of America's War

Discussion: Zandar Versus The Stupid, The National Interest and The Federalist

New York Post:
US reportedly negotiating with Taliban to avoid embassy attack in Kabul

Discussion: Washington Examiner, U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan, UPI, Washington Post and Associated Press

Matthew Loh / Insider:

4 teachers died of COVID within 24 hours in Broward County, Florida. Schools there are defying Gov. DeSantis' ban on mask mandates. — Four teachers from Broward County, Florida died from COVID-19 on Tuesday and Wednesday. — One was a high school teacher while another taught elementary school.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, CBS Miami, Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller, Raw Story and Joe.My.God.

Tony Pipitone / NBC 6 South Florida:

As COVID Hits Florida's Children, DeSantis Stands Firm, Says ‘Deal With’ It — The delta variant of COVID-19 is different, more contagious, and it is fueling a record-high wave of virus in Florida that is rapidly impacting its children. — Florida's plight was a top item on Thursday's agenda of the White House COVID Response Team.

Discussion: Vox, NPR, Florida Politics and Insider

Michael Putney / WPLG-TV:

DeSantis sets plan for Regeneron monoclonal antibodies to fight COVID-19 — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis rolled out a new state treatment plan to help fight COVID-19, announcing Thursday that the state will start dispensing Regeneron monoclonal antibodies through mobile clinics.

Discussion: Sun-Sentinel, Joe.My.God., Liberty Tree, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Balloon Juice

Ana Ceballos / Miami Herald:
DeSantis moderates school board salary threats

Discussion: The Hill, POLITICUSUSA, NBC 6 South Florida, Tallahassee Democrat, Politico, Florida Politics, PolitiFact and Raw Story

Renzo Downey / Florida Politics: Tallahassee hospital confirms first childhood COVID-19 death amid push for masks in schools

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:

Moderates Threaten Stalemate Over Budget Vote and Infrastructure — The letter from nine Democrats, enough to block passage, threatens their party's two-track plan to pass both a $3.5 trillion social policy budget blueprint and an infrastructure bill. — WASHINGTON — Nine moderate House …

Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:

9 Moderate Democrats Threaten to Tank Entire Biden Presidency The party has managed to work together, until now. — Joe Biden's success to date has owed itself to many factors, the largest of which is the willingness of congressional Democrats to compromise with each other.

Burgess Everett / Politico:
Four Senate Republicans wait on reelection bids as majority hangs in balance

Discussion: Raw Story and The Daily Poster

Steve Contorno / Tampa Bay Times:

Inside Fox News, DeSantis is ‘the future of the party.’ And he's taking advantage. — Emails show the Florida governor is in high demand on the network — and gets his way. — Updated Just now — Early in Florida's vaccine rollout, during a period marked by confusion and images of seniors …

Discussion: Insider, Crooks and Liars, Breitbart and Raw Story

CNN:

New intel reports indicate fresh efforts by Russia to interfere in 2022 election — Washington (CNN)The Biden administration is receiving regular intelligence reports indicating Russian efforts to interfere in US elections are evolving and ongoing, current and former officials say, and in fact …

Discussion: Lenta.ru and Raw Story

Wall Street Journal:

Durham Probe of What Sparked Russia Investigation Examines FBI Tipsters — The special counsel is expected to submit a final report in the coming months — WASHINGTON—Special Counsel John Durham, appointed during the Trump administration to examine the origins of the FBI's 2016 Russia probe …

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

The Supreme Court won't block Indiana University's vaccine mandate. — WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court allowed Indiana University on Thursday to require students to be vaccinated against the coronavirus. — Eight students had sued the university, saying the requirement violated …

Discussion: NBC News, CNN, Washington Examiner, New York Times, Washington Post, Townhall, HuffPost, UPI, UPROXX, HotAir and Daring Fireball

Zeke Miller / Associated Press:

Biden eyes tougher vaccine rules without provoking backlash — WASHINGTON (AP) — When the pace of vaccinations in the U.S. first began to slow, President Joe Biden backed incentives like million-dollar cash lotteries if that's what it took to get shots in arms.

Discussion: Louder With Crowder and Florida Politics

Jeremy B. White / Politico:
Biden comes to Newsom's recall defense as White House mulls larger role

Discussion: HotAir, KRON4, Washington Examiner, HuffPost, Los Angeles Times, Breitbart, San Francisco Chronicle, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit, BizPac Review, Fox News, Washington Times, Townhall, The Daily Caller, Fox Business and Los Angeles Times

Kim Bellware / Washington Post:

Colorado Republican official accused after voting system passwords are leaked to right-wing site — A bizarre security breach of a rural Colorado county's voting system has in a matter of days escalated into a criminal probe of the clerk's office, a ban on the county's existing election equipment …

Discussion: CBS Denver, Colorado Public Radio, CNN, Joe.My.God., The Colorado Sun, Raw Story, Denver Post, Colorado Newsline and NPR

Washington Post:

Census data shows Maryland is now the East Coast's most diverse state, while D.C. is Whiter — Maryland, one of the two states in the country to flip from majority White to majority non-White over the last decade, is now the most diverse state on the East Coast, according to new data from the 2020 Census.

Discussion: The Progressive Pulse, Outside the Beltway, Alaska Public Media, The United States … and The Hill

US Census / The United States Census Bureau:
2020 Census Statistics Highlight Local Population Changes and Nation's Racial and Ethnic Diversity

Discussion: CBS News, CNN, New York Times, ABC News, Florida Times Union, Daily Kos, Sputnik News, Washington Post, Poynter, New York Post, The Hill, USA Today, Census.gov, ABC13, KRON4, New York Magazine, The Daily Caller, The Guardian, Bloomberg, Insider and Reason

Arnold Schwarzenegger / The Atlantic:

Don't Be a Schmuck. Put on a Mask. — Generations of Americans made incredible sacrifices, and we're going to throw fits about putting a mask over our mouth and nose? — Earlier this week, I delivered a simple message: There is a virus here. It kills people.

Discussion: Fox News

New York Times:

Can We Ever Look at Titian's Paintings the Same Way Again? — Great is what this art is, yet it raises doubts about whether any art, however “great,” can be considered exempt from moral scrutiny. — BOSTON — With its small supernova of a show, “Titian: Women, Myth & Power,” …

HuffPost:

Democrats Might Create A Tax Break For Union Membership In Budget Bill — The tax deduction they're considering would be more useful to union members than the one Republicans repealed in 2017. — Union members could benefit from a tax break that Democrats are considering as part of their new $3.5 trillion budget plan.

Discussion: Washington Examiner

Clay Risen / New York Times:

Leon Litwack, 91, Dies; Changed How Scholars Portray Black History — One of Berkeley's most popular professors, he brought passion and nuance — and a love for blues music — to his award-winning study of the marginalized and the oppressed. — Leon Litwack, a leather-jacket-wearing …

Discussion: Berkeley News

Erin Durkin / Politico:

NYPD releases Adams' disciplinary records — The NYPD reversed course and released some disciplinary records for Democratic mayoral nominee Eric Adams, detailing an incident in which the former police captain was penalized 15 vacation days for a TV appearance.

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Supreme Court Blocks Part of New York's Eviction Moratorium — The order applies only to a part of the law that bars the eviction of tenants who file a form saying they have suffered economic setbacks as result of the pandemic. — WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday blocked part …

Discussion: HotAir, Politico, Washington Post, HuffPost, Power Line, SCOTUSblog, THE CITY, National Review and Townhall

Reese Oxner / The Texas Tribune:

Texas children and children's hospitals are under siege from two viruses: RSV and COVID-19 — More children are being treated in Texas hospitals for COVID-19 than ever before, and an unseasonable outbreak of respiratory syncytial virus is adding to the stress on children's hospitals. — Copy link

Discussion: Fox News, Science-Based Medicine, RedState, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, Twitchy and Instapundit

Ashton Pittman / Mississippi Free Press:

Pearl River High School Quarantines 40% Of Students In First Week, District Going Virtual — An entire Mississippi school district is going virtual after Pearl River Central High School ordered 40% of its student body to quarantine after just one week of school.

Jamelle Bouie / New York Times:

If You Skip the Vaccine, It Is My ‘Damn Business’ — When asked if he had gotten a Covid-19 vaccine, Lamar Jackson, a quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens, declined to answer. “I feel it's a personal decision,” he said. “I'm just going to keep my feelings to my family and myself.”

Michael Daly / The Daily Beast:

This Tennessee Republican Nearly Died From COVID. Now He's Fighting Masks. — State Rep. David Byrd needed a liver transplant after 55 days on a ventilator. Now he's thanking the medical professionals who saved his life by battling mask and vaccine mandates.

Discussion: Raw Story

Jordan Williams / The Hill:

Greene waves off concerns of hospital overcrowding: 'We can't live forever' — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) on Thursday waved off concerns over hospitals exceeding capacity due to COVID-19, saying “we can't live forever.” — During an interview with right-wing network “Real America's Voice …

Discussion: WJCL, Insider and Mock Paper Scissors

MSNBC:

Dean: Covid-19 will end mini-Trump's Florida career like it ended Trump's presidency — As Florida's Covid-19 caseload breaks the state's own all-time records, doctor and former governor Howard Dean appraises the troubled record of Florida Governor DeSantis, giving him an ‘F’ on substance.

Michael Luciano / Mediaite:

Tucker Carlson Mocks AOC's Fears of Sexual Assault During 1/6 Riot: ‘Get a Therapist, Honey’ — Earlier this week, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) told CNN's Dana Bash that she not only feared for her life during the January 6 Capitol insurrection, she thought some of the violence would be carried out in a “sexualizing” way.

Discussion: The Hill, The Daily Beast and HuffPost

Harrison Smith / Washington Post:

John Rizzo, CIA lawyer who approved torture program, dies at 73 — John Rizzo, a self-described “company man” who worked as a CIA lawyer for more than three decades, laying the legal groundwork for proxy wars, drone strikes and the “enhanced interrogation” program, in which suspected terrorists …

Discussion: New York Times

Sally Satel / Persuasion:

When Therapists Become Activists — Mental health professionals are replacing evidence-driven therapeutics with political ideology. — Until roughly five years ago, people seeking mental health care could expect their therapists to keep politics out of the office.

New York Times:

The F.D.A. authorized a third dose of Covid vaccines for immunocompromised people. — The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday authorized third doses of Pfizer-BioNTech's and Moderna's coronavirus vaccines for some people with weakened immune systems, giving physicians more leeway …