memeorandum: POLITICO Playbook: Where the Jan. 6 investigation heads next (Politico)

8:30 AM ET, October 13, 2022

Top Items:

Trump worker told FBI about moving Mar-a-Lago boxes on ex-president's orders — Key witness and security-camera footage offer evidence of Trump's actions after government subpoena, people familiar say — A Trump employee has told federal agents about moving boxes of documents at Mar-a-Lago …

Rolling Stone:

Trump Threatened to Out Confidential Sources From Russia Investigation — The former president is still itching to compromise the intelligence sources he blames for the investigation into Russia's role in the 2016 campaign — DONALD TRUMP IN the final days of his presidency repeatedly threatened …

Discussion: Raw Story

New York Times:

Trump Aide Was Seen on Security Footage Moving Boxes at Mar-a-Lago — The aide, Walt Nauta, moved the boxes from a storage room before and after the Justice Department issued a subpoena demanding the return of all classified documents held by the former president.

Discussion: CNN, Forbes, Wide World of News, Insider and The Hill

Pamela Brown / CNN:

Trump employee tells FBI that Trump directed boxes to be moved at Mar-a-Lago after subpoena served — A Trump employee has told the FBI about being directed by the former President to move boxes out of a basement storage room to his residence at Mar-a-Lago after Donald Trump's legal team received …

Discussion: emptywheel, Insider, Washington Examiner, Raw Story and Mediaite

Jacob Solis / The Nevada Independent:

Fourteen members of Laxalt family endorse Democratic rival, Cortez Masto, in Senate race — Fourteen members of Republican Senate candidate and former Attorney General Adam Laxalt's family announced Wednesday that they would collectively endorse his Democratic opponent …

Discussion: NBC News, Fox 5 Las Vegas, New York Times, Jezebel, Associated Press, Raw Story, The Hill, The Times of Israel, Washington Examiner and Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Politico:

POLITICO Playbook: Where the Jan. 6 investigation heads next — Presented by With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross — DRIVING THE DAY — Since the very first hearing of the House Jan. 6 committee, the panel has vowed to do three things:(1) correct the historical record of the aftermath …

Discussion: The Hill, ABC News, CBS News, New York Times, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Associated Press, Washington Post, Slate, NPR, Washington Examiner, Washington Free Beacon, UPI, Breitbart, Roll Call, Raw Story and Washington Times

Politico:

Why Jan. 6 is mostly absent from the midterms — The GOP lawmakers who backed Donald Trump-driven election challenges that metastasized into violence on Jan. 6, 2021, aren't taking much campaign-trail heat for it. — Democrats don't lack for material to slam Republicans as election-denying riot boosters …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Hill, ABC News, New York Times, Virginian-Pilot, CNN, The Bulwark, USA Today, Fox News and Digby's Hullabaloo

Henry Olsen / Washington Post:
Who has the edge in the midterms? Spending data suggest it's the GOP.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal and Sabato's Crystal Ball

Michael C. Bender / New York Times:
G.O.P. Candidates' Fervor for Trump Fluctuates on the Campaign Trail

Discussion: FOX8 WGHP

David Bauder / Associated Press:

NBC reporter's interview with Fetterman draws criticism — An NBC News correspondent who interviewed Pennsylvania Senate candidate John Fetterman said Wednesday that her reporting should not be seen as commentary on his fitness for office after he suffered a stroke.

The Philadelphia Inquirer:

We sat in on John Fetterman's endorsement interview. Here's what he said about Bob Casey, abortion, and inflation. — John Fetterman said he'd emulate Democratic Sen. Bob Casey if he's elected to the Senate, while distancing himself from both the left and right wings of his party during …

Discussion: CNN and IJR

NBC News:
Full Fetterman interview: 'I believe I'm going to be able to serve effectively' after stroke

Discussion: The Dispatch, Twitchy, BuzzFeed News, Mediaite, Breitbart, Fox News, RedState, Media Matters for America, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Times, HotAir, Daily Kos and Alternet.org

Elizabeth Williamson / New York Times:

Live Updates: Alex Jones Ordered to Pay Sandy Hook Victims' Families Nearly $1 Billion — A jury in Connecticut awarded damages to the families of eight victims killed in the 2012 shooting and an F.B.I. agent who responded to the scene. Jones had already been found liable for defamation …

Discussion: CBS News, NBC News, The A.V. Club, Daily Kos, RedState, Engadget, Common Dreams, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Jezebel, YourCentralValley.com, Deadline, Alternet.org, Raw Story, Bloomberg, The Hill, Fox News and Associated Press

Joanna Slater / Washington Post:

Alex Jones ordered to pay nearly $1 billion to Sandy Hook families — A Connecticut jury ordered Infowars founder Alex Jones to pay $965 million in damages to the families of eight victims of the Sandy Hook shooting for the suffering caused by years of lies that the massacre was a hoax.

Anna Merlan / VICE:
Connecticut Jury Orders Alex Jones and Infowars to Pay $965 Million to Sandy Hook Families

Discussion: Washington Post, The Post Millennial, New York Times, Dana Loesch's Chapter …, The Daily Beast, Raw Story, Variety, CNN, KTLA, National Review, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, The Gateway Pundit, Just The News, Mother Jones, CBS News and PBS NewsHour

Jennifer Agiesta / CNN:

CNN Poll: Voters tilt toward Republicans over Democrats in competitive districts — Americans are closely divided over which party's candidate they would support in their congressional districts, with preferences in competitive districts tilting toward Republicans, according to a new CNN Poll conducted by SSRS.

Discussion: Blue Virginia

Politico:
Down in polls, Mandela Barnes looks for big-name reinforcement in Wisconsin

Discussion: CNN, The Atlantic, madison.com, Wall Street Journal, Breitbart, MyNorthwest.com, The Daily Beast and Fox News

James Wigderson / Journal Sentinel:
I'm a lifelong Republican but sometimes party loyalty asks too much. I'm voting for Mandela Barnes and Tony Evers.

Discussion: Washington Examiner and Fox News

Charles Franklin / Marquette University Law School:
New Marquette Law School Poll survey of Wisconsin voters finds Johnson leading Barnes in Senate race, Evers and Michels in a gubernatorial toss-up

Discussion: Breitbart, Opinion Today, Politico, HotAir and The Hill

Camille Mumford / Emerson Polling:

Ohio 2022: Ryan and Vance in Dead Heat for Ohio Senate Seat; Gov. DeWine Maintains Double-Digit Lead Over Whaley — Home Polls Ohio 2022: Ryan and Vance in Dead Heat for Ohio Senate Seat; Gov. DeWine Maintains Double-Digit Lead Over Whaley — The latest Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey …

Discussion: The Hill, WCMH-TV, Erick Erickson Show Notes and RedState

Steven Nelson / New York Post:
Democrat Tim Ryan called to scrap ‘unfair’ bail system in US during presidential run

Discussion: Townhall, Alpha News, National Review and Fox News

ESPN:

Sources: Commanders boss Snyder claims ‘dirt’ on NFL owners, Goodell — DAN SNYDER DOES this thing when he feels cornered, say those who know him well. He paces in a hotel suite, or on his superyacht, or at River View, his $48 million Virginia estate. Cradling a drink in one hand …

Los Angeles Times:

Nury Martinez resigns from L.A. City Council in wake of audio leak scandal — Nury Martinez resigned her seat on the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday, days after the release of an explosive leaked audio of a racist, crude conversation. — “It is with a broken heart that I resign …

Discussion: Daily News, NBC News, USA Today, CBS News, RedState, Breitbart, The San Fernando Valley Sun, The Times of Israel, Courthouse News Service, Sacramento Bee, Daily Kos, ABC7, Politico, The Hill, Deadline, ABC30, NPR, LA Weekly, Insider and HuffPost

New York Times:
Los Angeles City Councilwoman Resigns Amid Uproar Over Racist Remarks

Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling / The Daily Beast:

Trump Must Face Grilling in E. Jean Carroll Defamation Suit, Judge Rules — FACE THE MUSIC — A U.S. District Court judge has ruled that Donald Trump will have to sit for a deposition next week, despite attempts by Trump's attorneys to delay the testimony.

Discussion: Associated Press, Law & Crime, CNN, ABC News, Bloomberg, Washington Post, Fox News, Occupy Democrats, UPI, New York Post, Forbes, VICE, CNBC, Insider, Rolling Stone, Raw Story, PoliticusUSA, Jezebel, Courthouse News Service, Politico, Just The News, FOX8 WGHP and Washington Examiner

Reuters:

‘Stop the steal’ supporters train thousands of U.S. poll observers — Inside the El Paso County clerk's office in Colorado, where officials had gathered in July to recount votes in a Republican nominating contest for this year's midterms, dozens of angry election watchers pounded on the windows …

Wall Street Journal:

Rare Beijing Protest Channels Covid Frustrations Before Communist Party Meeting — A banner unfurled from a highway overpass called for leader Xi Jinping to be deposed — BEIJING—Police rushed to a highway bridge in Beijing after a column of dark smoke appeared above protest banners …

Discussion: Bloomberg, MyNorthwest.com and Reuters

Christian Datoc / Washington Examiner:

Biden says late son Beau ‘lost his life in Iraq’ during monument ceremony — President Joe Biden invoked the memory of his late son Beau Biden Wednesday while declaring the Camp Hale Continental Divide a national monument but said the former Delaware attorney general and military reservist “lost his life in Iraq.”

Discussion: Fox News, Breitbart, RedState, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Wire, Wall Street Journal, TheBlaze and Twitchy

Mark Niesse / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

Thousands of Georgia voters' eligibility challenged before election — Republicans use Georgia election law to try to cancel registrations — While working for the U.S. Navy in California, Gamaliel Turner learned that his right to vote in Georgia had been challenged by the chairman of his home county's Republican Party.

Discussion: InsiderAdvantageGeorgia, The Moderate Voice, Alternet.org, CBS News and Raw Story

Financial Times:

Crisis-hit Sri Lanka snaps up cheap Russian oil — Emerging economies exploit price discounts forced on Moscow over invasion of Ukraine — Sri Lanka has begun importing large quantities of oil from Russia in a sharp supply shift that highlights how cash-strapped countries …

Discussion: Bloomberg

Politico:

The campaign elixir that wasn't — Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With help from Allie Bice and Daniel Lippman. — When President JOE BIDEN signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law on Aug. 16 …

Discussion: Washington Post and KFF

Jacob Gallagher / Wall Street Journal:

A Pair of 1880s Jeans Just Sold for $76,000. Their Pocket Reveals a Complicated Piece of Levi's History. — Inside the sale of a vintage pair of jeans, pulled from a dusty abandoned mineshaft, for nearly six figures to a Gen Z buyer — On Oct. 1, in a remote RV park in northern New Mexico …

Department of Homeland Security:

DHS Announces New Migration Enforcement Process for Venezuelans — Venezuelans who seek to enter the U.S. illegally will be returned to Mexico; New lawful pathway created for some Venezuelans — WASHINGTON - Today, as part of the Biden-Harris Administration's ongoing work to build a fair …

Discussion: CNSNews, The Hill, UPI, Washington Examiner, Daily Kos, Politico, HuffPost and Washington Times

Kenneth P. Vogel / New York Times:

Leonard Leo Pushed the Courts Right. Now He's Aiming at American Society. — After leading efforts to put conservatives on the bench, the activist has quietly built a sprawling network and raised huge sums of money to challenge liberal values. — Millions of dollars in television …

Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo

Tresa Baldas / Detroit Free Press:

Judge concerned that juror is flirting with defendant in Whitmer kidnap trial — A juror in the third Gretchen Whitmer kidnap trial is under scrutiny over concerns she is flirting with one of the defendants, smiling at him from the jury box and looking at him frequently …

Discussion: Associated Press, Raw Story and The Daily Beast

Chris D'Angelo / HuffPost:

Maine GOP Congressional Candidate Compares Lobster Regulations To Child Rape — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration “wants to rape you and your family,” Republican Ed Thelander told rally attendees Wednesday. — At a lobster industry rally Wednesday in Portland …

Discussion: Roll Call, Keep Maine Free, Bangor Daily News and Political Wire

Pamela Falk / CBS News:

U.N. members vote overwhelmingly to condemn Russia's annexation in Ukraine — United Nations — The United Nations General Assembly Wednesday voted overwhelmingly to condemn Russia's so-called annexation of a large swath of Ukraine, and demanded that Russia withdraw its troops from those areas.