memeorandum: ‘Why? Why our community?’: Laguna Woods shattered by mass shooting at church (Los Angeles Times)

10:55 PM ET, May 15, 2022

Top Items:

Marianna Sotomayor / Washington Post:

Stefanik echoed racist theory allegedly espoused by Buffalo suspect — The No. 3 House Republican, who ran Facebook ads parroting the “great replacement” conspiracy theory, illustrates the radical turn taken by an increasing number of Republicans. — Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) …

Discussion: The Hill, Albany Times Union, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Raw Story and The Gateway Pundit

New York Times:

A Fringe Conspiracy Theory, Fostered Online, Is Refashioned by the G.O.P. — Replacement theory, espoused by the suspect in the Buffalo massacre, has been embraced by some right-wing politicians and commentators. — Inside a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018, a white man with a history …

Discussion: Du Mez CONNECTIONS

Talia Lavin / Rolling Stone:

The Buffalo Shooter Isn't a ‘Lone Wolf.’ He's a Mainstream Republican — The shooter is just the latest to act on it — There's no such thing as a lone wolf — an appellation often given, in error, to terrorists who act alone, particularly those of the white supremacist variety.

Discussion: Daily Kos, Fox News, The Atlantic and UPI

New York Times:

Classmates recall the suspect as ‘quiet’ and reclusive. — Grief and anger sweep through Buffalo a day after a racist attack. — BUFFALO — A day after one of the deadliest racist massacres in recent American history, law enforcement officials in New York descended on the home …

Discussion: New York Post, UPI, The Daily Beast, The Guardian, Law & Crime, The Hill, The Daily Caller, The White House, al.com, WIVB-TV and KRON4

Isaac Chotiner / New Yorker:

Making Sense of the Racist Mass Shooting in Buffalo — An expert on the white-power movement and the “great replacement” theory puts the act of terror in context. — On Saturday, a gunman murdered ten people and wounded three others at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York.

Discussion: CNN, Talking Points Memo, WCDC-TV and WIVB-TV

Erie County (New York) Government:

Broome County Teen Arraigned for Killing Ten, Injuring Three in Shooting at Buffalo Grocery Store — Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn announces that 18-year-old Payton S. Gendron of Conklin, New York was arraigned this evening before Buffalo City Court Judge Craig D. Hannah …

Discussion: Washington Post, CNN, Breitbart, The Guardian, Democrat and Chronicle, The Gateway Pundit, Law & Crime, Fox News, Twitchy, National Review, The Hill, The Western Journal and Washington Examiner, more at Techmeme »

Associated Press:
Buffalo shooter targeted Black neighborhood, officials say

Discussion: USA Today, Associated Press, NBC Los Angeles, NewsNation, New York Times, The Hill, NBC News, RAPPLER, KRON4, NBC10 Philadelphia, NBC New York, UPI, NBC Chicago and New York Times

Anushka Patil / New York Times:
Gunman Targeted Black Neighborhood Shaped by Decades of Segregation

Discussion: The Daily Beast, WIVB-TV, NewsOne and Washington Post

Arpan Rai / The Independent:
Gun used in Buffalo supermarket shooting was bought legally but modified, governor says

Discussion: CNN, ABC News, WIVB-TV and Breitbart

NBC News:
The Buffalo supermarket shooting suspect posted an apparent manifesto repeatedly citing ‘Great Replacement’ theory

Discussion: Rolling Stone, CNN, Footnotes, Mediaite, The Hill, Washington Post, T-Paine's Newsletter, Talking Points Memo, TheGrio, Global Community Weekly, Insider, The Daily Beast, Buffalo News, ProFootballTalk, Mock Paper Scissors, robertspencer.org, Haaretz and Anti-Defamation League

Paul Farhi / Washington Post:
Conservative media is familiar with Buffalo suspect's alleged ‘theory’

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Lawyers, Guns & Money and WIVB-TV

Max Boot / Washington Post:
Opinion The Buffalo shooter's views are mainstream on the right

Discussion: HuffPost, Raw Story, The Hill and The Full Belmonte

Washington Post:
Suspect in Buffalo shooting was investigated last year over threatening statements

Discussion: Fox News, USA Today, Associated Press, Insider, CBS News and Talking Points Memo

Washington Post:
Buffalo suspect allegedly inspired by racist theory fueling global carnage

Discussion: Mediaite

WIVB-TV:
Buffalo mass shooter's alleged manifesto leaves no doubt attack was white supremacist terrorism

Discussion: Mother Jones, Breitbart, CBS News, WKBW-TV, KRON4, Althouse and Law & Crime

Cathy Young / Morning Shots:
The Replacement Theory — And Terrorist Practice

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Can We Still Govern? and Raw Story

Los Angeles Times:

Churchgoers subdued, hog-tied gunman after deadly Laguna Woods church shooting — A gunman attacked a lunch banquet at a Taiwanese church in Laguna Woods, killing one person and wounding five others Sunday before congregants hogtied him with an extension cord and disarmed him of two weapons, authorities said.

Discussion: Associated Press, NBC News, Orange County Register, Los Angeles Times, RedState, Insider, The Daily Wire, The Daily Beast, CBS News, KLFY-TV, Townhall, Associated Press, Deseret News, GOSPILLED, Twitchy, Mediaite, BNO News and UPI

Los Angeles Times:

‘Why? Why our community?’: Laguna Woods shattered by mass shooting at church — Cindy Frazier was running errands Sunday afternoon when she heard the overwhelming sound of police and fire engine sirens as they raced to Geneva Presbyterian Church. — It was an unusual scene …

Discussion: Insider

Jonathan Lemire / Politico:

Biden's new recipe for the midterms: Less honey, more vinegar — The fever didn't break. And for the Biden White House, efforts at bipartisanship have finally taken a backseat. — To the frustration of many Democrats and some of his closest advisers, President Joe Biden has steadfastly spent …

Discussion: Fox News, Axios, Yahoo News and Newsbusters

Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:

Democracy is at stake in the midterms. The media must convey that. — We journalists have to try harder and find new ways to convey to voters how badly things could turn out. — I was mesmerized this past week by two astonishing videos, watching them both multiple times.

Discussion: The Hill

Mark Murray / NBC News:
Support for abortion rights hits new high as midterm outlook stays mostly unchanged

Discussion: New York Post, The Gateway Pundit, The Hill, The Guardian and The Daily Wire

New York Times:

Growing evidence of a military disaster on the Donets pierces a pro-Russian bubble. — The destruction wreaked on a Russian battalion as it tried to cross a river in northeastern Ukraine last week is emerging as among the deadliest engagements of the war, with estimates based …

Discussion: The Guardian

Azi Paybarah / New York Times:

Kathy Barnette Says She 'Can't Provide a Lot of Context' for Her Anti-Islamic Tweets — Her sudden rise in the Pennsylvania Senate primary has some Republicans worried about her prospects in November. — Kathy Barnette, a Republican Senate candidate in Pennsylvania who has climbed …

Discussion: The Daily Wire, Big League Politics and Fox News

Salena Zito / Washington Examiner:
As Barnette raises doubts in PA Senate race, some voters move back toward McCormick

Discussion: Breitbart

Associated Press:

Finland, Sweden inch closer to seeking NATO membership — BERLIN (AP) — Finland's government declared a “new era” is underway as it inches closer to seeking NATO membership, hours before Sweden's governing party on Sunday backed a plan to join the trans-Atlantic alliance amid Russia's war in Ukraine.

Dan Merica / CNN:

Pennsylvania US Senate candidate Fetterman suffers stroke but says he's ‘well on my way to a full recovery’ — John Fetterman, Pennsylvania lieutenant governor and Democratic US Senate candidate, announced Sunday that he had a stroke and went to the hospital on Friday, but said in a statement …

New York Times:

After Buffalo Shooting Video Spreads, Social Platforms Face Questions — Gunmen say they are influenced by online screeds and broadcasts of past shootings. Do social media sites have a responsibility to rein in hateful and violent content? — In March 2019, before a gunman murdered 51 people …

Discussion: Fox News, Bloomberg and New York Post

Mike Baker / New York Times:

A Fracture in Idaho's G.O.P. as the Far Right Seeks Control — Ahead of a primary vote, traditional Republicans are raising alarm about the future of the party, warning about the growing strength of militia members, racists and the John Birch Society. — BONNERS FERRY, Idaho …

Discussion: Raw Story and The Right Eye of Idaho

David Cohen / Politico:

Oklahoma's new abortion law could be undermined, governor admits — Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on Sunday acknowledged concerns that his state's strict new law on abortion could be circumvented on tribal lands within the state. — “That's something that a lot of Oklahomans …

Discussion: The Hill, RedState and The Daily Wire

Ronn Blitzer / Fox News:
Oklahoma Gov. defends strict abortion law, addresses whether ‘super liberal’ tribal clinics may use loophole

Discussion: Townhall

Devan Cole / CNN:

Nebraska GOP governor says he will call a special session to pass total abortion ban if Roe is overturned — Washington (CNN)Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska said Sunday that he will call a special session of his state's legislature to pass a total ban on abortion if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade this term.

Discussion: TheBlaze, The Hill and Mother Jones