memeorandum: Trump-inspired conspiracies about voter fraud have infiltrated the California recall. And they may cost supporters votes (Kaylee Fagan/San Francisco Chronicle)

12:35 PM ET, August 27, 2021

Top Items:

James Gordon Meek / ABC News:

US special operations vets carry out daring mission to save Afghan allies — At least 13 service members were killed in an attack in Kabul Thursday. — With the Taliban growing more violent and adding checkpoints near Kabul's airport, an all-volunteer group of American veterans …

Discussion: HotAir, TheBlaze, National Review, Morning Shots, Washington Post, Townhall, Political Wire and Forbes

The Dispatch:

A Defeat of Choice — It did not have to be this way. — The attacks Thursday at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, killed 13 U.S. troops, making it the deadliest single day of the war for Americans in more than a decade. More than 90 Afghans trying to escape …

Discussion: HotAir, Tangle, Washington Post, New York Times, Associated Press, Newsbusters, Washington Examiner, CNN and Liberty Nation

William Saletan / Slate:

The GOP's Phony Complaints About Afghanistan — On Thursday, suicide bombers killed scores of people outside the Kabul airport, including at least 12 American service members. Congressional Republicans snapped into action, demanding that President Joe Biden resign or be impeached.

Discussion: The Federalist, The US Sun, Insider, Instapundit, The Gateway Pundit, HuffPost, Conservative Brief, ME and HotAir

Kurt Schlichter / Townhall:

Resign — Rip those stars off your pathetic nostalgia costumes and resign. Quit. Tell that crusty Pinocchio in the White House and the faculty lounge Geppettos tugging his strings that you will have no more to do with his human centipede of failure in Kabul.

Discussion: National Review, Washington Examiner, RedState and The Daily Caller

New York Times:

Afghanistan Live Updates: Flights Resume at Kabul Airport After Deadly Attack — After a blast left scores dead, including 13 U.S. troops, evacuation flights have resumed. With four days remaining until an Aug. 31 deadline for the U.S. withdrawal, the window for airlifts is narrowing.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, FOX 5 San Diego and Reuters

Associated Press:

New urgency to airlift after Kabul blasts kill more than 100 — KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Evacuation flights from Afghanistan resumed with new urgency on Friday, a day after two suicide bombings targeted the thousands of desperate people fleeing the Taliban takeover and killed more than 100.

Discussion: Washington Examiner, New Republic, Forbes, Chicago Sun-Times, Defense One, Breitbart, The White House, Reuters, NPR, National Review, Axios, CNBC, ABC7, Raw Story, Honolulu Star-Advertiser and Insider

Politico:
POLITICO Playbook: ‘The worst day of your presidency’

Discussion: NBC News, CNN and Forbes

Fox News:
House Republicans introducing articles of impeachment for Secretary of State Blinken

Discussion: Washington Examiner and Townhall

Washington Examiner:
Biden must accept accountability for his Afghanistan debacle

Discussion: HotAir, New York Times, CDR Salamander, Reuters, The Carpentariat, Washington Post, CNBC, The Hugh Hewitt Show, The White House, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CNBC, New York Times, ABC News, Los Angeles Times, Cathy Young and C-SPAN.org

Politico:
U.S. officials provided Taliban with names of Americans, Afghan allies to evacuate

Discussion: Washington Examiner, HotAir, The Times, The Federalist, Townhall, The New Neo, Who the Hell Is Jim Treacher?, Center for Security Policy, Liberty Unyielding, John Kass, National Review, The Gateway Pundit, The Times of Israel, Reuters, Conservative Brief, Power Line, The US Sun, RedState, BizPac Review, Washington Times, Israpundit, The Stream, Al Jazeera, Summit News, Insider, CNN, The Moderate Voice, Breitbart, Mediaite, WPRI-TV, The American Spectator, New York Times, The Last Refuge, The Western Journal, The Daily Caller, New York Post, enVolve, TheBlaze, Louder With Crowder, Yahoo Lifestyle, Washington Free Beacon, HuffPost, Fox News, Trending Politics, ABC News, Becker News, NOQ Report, Ace of Spades HQ, Jihad Watch, Forbes, Page Array, Twitchy, Political Wire, Shot in the Dark, Raw Story, CNBC, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Reason, IJR and The Spectator World, more at Mediagazer »

Hunter Walker / New York Magazine:
‘A Total F*cking Disaster’: Inside Seth Moulton's Secret Trip to Kabul Officials condemned the mission as a reckless stunt. …

Discussion: Washington Post, The US Sun, USA Today, Washington Times, Breitbart, Insider and The Uprising

CBS News:
Race to evacuate as many as possible from Kabul after ISIS bombs kill at least 170

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Associated Press and IJR

Washington Post:
Biden struggles to address the most volatile crisis of his presidency

Discussion: CNN, The Guardian, NBC News, Outside the Beltway, NBC4 Washington, Breitbart, The US Sun, Reuters and Power Line

Robert Kagan / Washington Post:
It wasn't hubris that drove America into Afghanistan. It was fear.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Real Clear Politics, The Daily Caller, RedState, Breitbart, TheBlaze, Liberty Unyielding, The Federalist and Townhall

David Ignatius / Washington Post:
At a badly shaken White House, ‘sadness and horror’

Discussion: NPR, Boston.com, Responsible Statecraft, HotAir, Task & Purpose, Breitbart, The Daily Beast, Raw Story and Townhall

Tom Nichols / The Atlantic:
A Bungled Mess — For days, those defending President Joe Biden's pullout from Afghanistan repeated …

Discussion: HotAir, Washington Examiner, Raw Story, The US Sun and NBC Los Angeles

Adam Liptak / New York Times:

Justice Breyer on Retirement and the Role of Politics at the Supreme Court — In an interview prompted by his new book, the 83-year-old leader of the court's liberal wing said he is working on a decision about when to step down. — WASHINGTON — Justice Stephen G. Breyer says he is struggling …

Discussion: HotAir, Fox News, Insider, Washington Post, Politico, The Hill, The Economist, Reason, The Daily Caller, POLITICUSUSA, Gawker and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Josephine Harvey / Yahoo News:

Texas Anti-Mask ‘Freedom Rally’ Organizer Fighting For His Life With COVID-19 — A Texas man who helped organize protests against pandemic restrictions is fighting for his life after being hospitalized for nearly a month with COVID-19, the — San Angelo Standard-Times reported.

Discussion: Crooks and Liars and Raw Story

Kelsey Piper / Vox:

How a cheap antidepressant emerged as a promising Covid-19 treatment — Most Covid-19 drug treatments that have been included in trials haven't panned out. A large new study suggests fluvoxamine might be different. — This story is part of a group of stories called — Finding the best ways to do good.

Discussion: Marginal REVOLUTION and Florida Politics

Devoun Cetoute / Miami Herald:
Florida COVID update: case, death, vaccine count

Discussion: Sun-Sentinel, Twitchy, Bloomberg, Insider, New York Times, Florida Politics, Sacramento Bee and Raw Story

Caitlin Owens / Axios: Living with the coronavirus will likely never be risk-free

Orlando Sentinel: AdventHealth morgues reach capacity due to COVID-19 deaths

NBC News:

Officer who shot Ashli Babbitt during Capitol riot breaks silence: ‘I saved countless lives’ — In the chaotic minutes before he shot and killed Ashli Babbitt during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, Lt. Michael Byrd focused his attention on the glass doors leading into the lobby of the U.S. House of Representatives chamber.

María Paúl / Washington Post:

A school district opted out of a free meals program, saying students could ‘become spoiled’ — With two girls in elementary school and a mother who is a teacher, the Dringenburg household in a Milwaukee suburb had been joyous and excited about back-to-school season — until this year …

Kaylee Fagan / San Francisco Chronicle:

Trump-inspired conspiracies about voter fraud have infiltrated the California recall. And they may cost supporters votes — The campaign to recall California Gov. Gavin Newsom has a conspiracy theory problem, and it just might siphon off votes that could aid its cause.

Discussion: Raw Story

Edward-Isaac Dovere / The Atlantic:
What California's Recall Election Says About America

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Politico and The Federalist

Doug Richards / WXIA-TV:

Complaint: Herschel Walker violated campaign law — Georgia Democrats claim Walker functioned as a US Senate candidate before he filed this week. — ATLANTA — Democrats have filed a complaint against Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Herschel Walker. The complaint alleges Walker violated …

Dana Goldstein / New York Times:

In Britain, Young Children Don't Wear Masks in School — During the Delta surge, British schools emphasized other safety measures: quarantining and regular testing for the virus. — From late spring into early summer, Britain's elementary and secondary schools were open during an alarming wave of Delta infections.

Michael Kruse / Politico:

‘It Nearly Killed Me’: Michael Caputo's Life After Years Fighting for Trump — McALLEN, Texas — The purpose of the work was on the sign above the door: “Restoring Human Dignity.” — Inside the Humanitarian Respite Center, run by Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley …

Rep. Vicky Hartzler / Washington Examiner:

Joe Biden must resign — In March 1968, President Lyndon Johnson announced to a shocked nation that he would not seek reelection. The nation was reeling from Vietnam, a tumultuous year of protests, and an overwhelming feeling of discontent that reached down into the heart and soul of America.

Discussion: The Hill and UnHerd

Hugo Gurdon / Washington Examiner: Biden's first 200 days — Joe Biden, like most presidents, made much of supposed achievements in his first 100 days.

CNN:

CNN EXCLUSIVE ‘Something has to be done’: After decades of near-silence from the CDC, the agency's director is speaking up about gun violence — Watch CNN Films' “The Price of Freedom” on CNN TV without commercial interruption starting at 9 p.m. ET on Sunday, August 29.

Discussion: Insider, Twitchy, National Review and DCReport.org

Josh Kovensky / Talking Points Memo:

EXCLUSIVE: Newly Unsealed Transcript Reveals Crux Of Mueller's Collusion Case — Internal Trump campaign polling data from the 2016 election was sent to a person close to Russia's leader, according to recently unsealed statements by a prosecutor from Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office.

CNN:

Renewed fears of political violence grip Capitol Hill ahead of right-wing rally — (CNN)Lawmakers and law enforcement officials are growing concerned about the possibility of violence and unrest on Capitol Hill as two key dates approach next month: a right-wing rally in support …

Discussion: Raw Story

NBC News:

Clamoring for ivermectin, some turn to a pro-Trump telemedicine website — When users visit the telemedicine website SpeakWithAnMD.com, they are immediately hit with a warning: “Due to overwhelming demand, we are experiencing longer than usual wait times.” — The demand is for ivermectin …

Discussion: Insider and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Matthew Boyle / Breitbart:

Exclusive — Trump: Biden Afghanistan Failure Is ‘Single Most Embarrassing Moment in the History of Our Country’ — BEDMINSTER, New Jersey — Former President Donald Trump told Breitbart News exclusively that his successor President Joe Biden's botched withdrawal from Afghanistan is the …