memeorandum: Sotomayor praises Clarence Thomas: ‘He is a man who cares deeply about the court as an institution’ (Caroline Vakil/The Hill)

9:35 AM ET, June 17, 2022

Top Items:

When Pence finally drew the line with Trump, it wasn't pretty. — In the third hearing, the committee begins detailing the threats against Pence. — WASHINGTON — The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol laid out evidence on Thursday that former President Donald J. Trump …

George T. Conway III / Washington Post:

Jan. 6 hearings point up critical role of the 25th Amendment — The hearings of the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection have prompted a great deal of discussion about whether Donald Trump should be criminally charged for his attempted self-coup.

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, Unprecedented, Associated Press, KOIN-TV and UPI

The Economist:

The criminal case against Donald Trump — The January 6th committee is doing the Department of Justice's work for it — The house's January 6th committee has a few aims for its public hearings this month. Some of its nine members speak of leaving a historical record of Donald Trump's attempted election heist.

Discussion: NBC News and New York Magazine

Washington Post:

Ginni Thomas's emails with Trump lawyer add to tumult at Supreme Court — It's hard to imagine an uglier scenario for the justices of the Supreme Court as they move toward the conclusion of their remarkably controversial term. — A California man has been indicted on charges he planned to kill one of them.

Discussion: Insider, The Daily Caller, CNN, The Federalist, Washington Examiner, USA Today and The Hill

Caroline Vakil / The Hill:

Sotomayor praises Clarence Thomas: ‘He is a man who cares deeply about the court as an institution’ — Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor spoke highly of colleague Justice Clarence Thomas during an event on Thursday, saying, “He is a man who cares deeply about the court as an institution.”

Discussion: RedState, Outside the Beltway, New York Times, CNN and The Daily Caller

Susan B. Glasser / New Yorker:

What We Learned About Trump, Pence, and the January 6th Mob — The third hearing on the attack on the Capitol revealed that the Proud Boys would have killed the Vice-President “if given the chance.” — It's been hard, these last couple of weeks, to watch and rewatch the horrifying events of January 6, 2021.

Discussion: NPR, Washington Post, ABC News, Mercury News, HuffPost, Regular Order, Insider, New York Post, CNN, The Hill, The Guardian and Los Angeles Times

John Eastman:
OMG, Mrs. Thomas asked me to give an update about election litigation to her group. Stop the Presses!

Discussion: New York Times, CNN, Politico, The Daily Caller, Washington Post, Mother Jones, Balloon Juice and Axios

Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
4 takeaways from the Jan. 6 committee's hearing on Pence

Discussion: Politico, New Republic, Daily Kos, National Review, The Federalist, littlegreenfootballs.com, The Hill, Political Wire and Washington Times

New York Times:
For Mike Pence, Jan. 6 Began Like Many Days. It Ended Like No Other.

Discussion: Associated Press, Election Law Blog, The Guardian, T-shirts? Ice cream? …, Jonathan's Newsletter, CBS News and CNN

Washington Post:
John Eastman says Ginni Thomas invited him to speak on ‘election litigation’

Discussion: Washington Times, Truthout, PBS NewsHour, CNN, Talking Points Memo, Robert Reich and CNBC

Shelby Talcott / The Daily Caller:
January 6 Committee Sends Letter To Ginni Thomas Requesting Meeting In Early July

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, Breitbart and NPR

Tim Miller / The Bulwark:
Mike Pence Needs To Finish The Job And Testify Before The 1/6 Committee

Discussion: Raw Story, Overtime, PoliticusUSA, The Guardian and Los Angeles Times

Washington Post:
Trump aides told him that using Pence to overturn election was illegal

Discussion: CNN, The Editorial Board, The Times of Israel, HotAir, HuffPost, NBC News, Washington Times, Talking Points Memo, Digging In with Debra … and CBS News

John Nichols / The Nation:
Why the Hell Isn't Mike Pence Testifying at the January 6 Hearing?

Ryan Mac / New York Times:

SpaceX Said to Fire Employees Involved in Letter Rebuking Elon Musk — In an email, Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX's president, said the letter had made other employees “feel uncomfortable, intimidated and bullied.” — Give this article- - - Read in app — SpaceX, the private rocket company …

Discussion: Reuters, Washington Examiner, The Verge, Fortune, TechCrunch, Engadget, Protocol and Eschaton, more at Techmeme »

Mike Isaac / New York Times:

Elon Musk tells Twitter's employees he wants the service to ‘contribute to a better, long-lasting civilization.’ — In a video chat with Twitter employees, he fielded questions about free speech, layoffs and his plans for the company as his $44 billion acquisition moves ahead.

Loren Grush / The Verge:
SpaceX employees draft open letter to company executives denouncing Elon Musk's behavior

Discussion: Bloomberg, Vox, TechCrunch, The Register, Fortune, Washington Examiner and New York Post

Ryan Mac / New York Times:
SpaceX workers write letter to executives with concerns about Elon Musk's tweets.

Discussion: Protocol, Platformer, UPI, TechCrunch and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »

Zach Schonfeld / The Hill:

Walmart pulls MyPillow products from stores — Walmart said it pulled MyPillow products from its stores as the pillow company's founder and CEO Mike Lindell continues to falsely claim the 2020 presidential election was rigged against former President Trump.

Discussion: HuffPost, Axios, Breitbart, Mediaite and Washington Times

Zachary Petrizzo / The Daily Beast:
Walmart ‘Cancels’ Mike Lindell's MyPillow, Leaving Him Raging

Discussion: Raw Story

CNN:

Julian Assange's extradition to US approved by UK government — UK Home Secretary Priti Patel has signed an order to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States, where he faces espionage charges, in a decision Wikileaks said marked a “dark day for press freedom.”

Discussion: BBC, Freedom of the Press …, Associated Press, CBS News, CNBC, Politico, Insider, Bloomberg, New York Post, TechCrunch, Deadline, Metro.co.uk, Raw Story, ABC7 and Amnesty International

The Guardian:
Julian Assange's extradition from UK to US approved by home secretary

Discussion: The Daily Beast, UPI and Breitbart, more at Mediagazer »

Phil Helsel / NBC News:

1 dead, 2 injured in shooting at Alabama church, police say — One person is dead and two others were injured in a shooting at a church in the Birmingham, Alabama, area on Thursday, police said. — The suspect in the shooting at the St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Vestavia Hills is in custody, police said.

Discussion: New York Times, UPI, Insider, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth and RedState

WVTM:
Shooting at St. Stephens Episcopal Church in Vestavia Hills leaves 2 dead, 1 injured

Discussion: al.com, The Daily Beast, The Gateway Pundit, New York Post, WXIX-TV, Washington Examiner, The Daily Wire and KRON4

Washington Post:

Soaring gas prices lead White House aides back to brainstorming — Administration officials look at fuel rebates, emergency powers if diesel shortages materialize — Senior White House aides have in recent days explored new ideas for responding to high gas prices and looked again …

Discussion: CNN, HotAir and Bloomberg

Dan Diamond / Washington Post:
Congressional covid funding deal appears ‘dead’ after GOP criticism

Discussion: UPI, Wide World of News, Mitt Romney, New York Times and STAT

New York Times:

Live Updates: European Commission Recommends E.U. Candidacy for Ukraine — The Commission, the bloc's executive arm, announced its approval for the country to be granted candidate status, the first formal step in a process that normally takes over a decade.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Politico, Insider, Bloomberg, Associated Press, CNN and Washington Post

Jessica Parker / BBC:
Ukraine moves step closer to EU membership

Discussion: CNN, Bloomberg, The Guardian, Associated Press, Breitbart, UPI, Fortune, Al Jazeera and New York Times

Josh Boak / Associated Press:

The AP Interview: Biden says recession is ‘not inevitable’ — WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden told The Associated Press on Thursday that the American people are “really, really down” after a tumultuous two years with the coronavirus pandemic, volatility in the economy …

Discussion: The Hill and Political Wire

Associated Press:
Transcript of AP interview with President Joe Biden

Discussion: Washington Post, Power Line and CNN

Punchbowl News:

6/17/22 ☀️ Punchbowl News AM. — FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE NEGOTIATIONS BEGAN LAST WEEK IN THE WAKE OF SEVERAL HORRIFIC MASS SHOOTINGS, THERE ARE SERIOUS DOUBTS THAT A DEAL CAN BE REACHED BY SENS. CHRIS MURPHY (CONN.) AND JOHN CORNYN (TEXAS), THE LEAD DEMOCRATIC AND GOP NEGOTIATORS ON THE PACKAGE.

Discussion: New York Times and Wall Street Journal

Washington Post: A top GOP pollster's take on the gun debate

Karin Brulliard / Washington Post:

As Montana reels from floods, no one is sure where Gov. Gianforte is — Montana National Guard soldiers are deployed around the Yellowstone region, where they say they have rescued dozens of people from this week's severe floods and ushered travelers along ravaged roads.

Discussion: NBC News, KECI, Lawyers, Guns & Money, New York Post and Raw Story

Stephen M. Lepore / Daily Mail:
Outrage as Montana's Gov. Greg Gianforte vacations in TUSCANY as historic floods devastate his state and Yellowstone faces ‘indefinite’ closure

Discussion: Political Wire

Axios:

Scoop: Conservative backlash builds against Cornyn's gun talks — Frustration inside the Senate GOP conference is boiling among conservatives at the way Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) is handling the bipartisan gun reform negotiations — putting the man who aspires to succeed Mitch McConnell as Republican leader in a political jam.

Discussion: Reuters, Mediaite, Campaign Update, Raw Story and RedState

David Nakamura / Washington Post:

Justice Dept. secures first guilty plea for threats to election workers — Travis Ford, 42, of Lincoln, Neb., posted multiple hostile messages on an Instagram page associated with the official, authorities said — A Nebraska man pleaded guilty Thursday on charges that he threatened …

Discussion: U.S. Department of Justice, CBS Denver, Raw Story, Washington Examiner, NBC News and Denver Post

Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:

Belief in God in U.S. Dips to 81%, a New Low — 81% believe in God, down from 87% in 2017 — Four in 10 believe God can intervene on people's behalf — WASHINGTON, D.C. — The vast majority of U.S. adults believe in God, but the 81% who do so is down six percentage points from 2017 and is the lowest in Gallup's trend.

Discussion: The Hill