memeorandum: As Stakes Rise, State Supreme Courts Become Crucial Election Battlegrounds (Michael Wines/New York Times)

4:45 PM ET, November 2, 2022

Top Items:

Trump lawyers saw Justice Thomas as ‘only chance’ to stop 2020 election certification — Donald Trump's attorneys saw a direct appeal to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as their best hope of derailing Joe Biden's win in the 2020 presidential election, according to emails newly disclosed to congressional investigators.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, USA Today, The Hill, CNN, The Root, Mediaite, New York Post, Insider, Law & Crime, Raw Story, The Guardian and Washington Examiner

Washington Post:

Trump lawyers saw Clarence Thomas as key to stop Biden electoral count, emails show — Lawyers for President Donald Trump saw Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as the key to overturning the results of the 2020 election, according to a set of emails provided to congressional investigators.

Discussion: Raw Story and Talking Points Memo

NBC News:

Stewart Rhodes wrote message to Trump after Jan. 6 calling on him to ‘save the Republic,’ arrest members of Congress — WASHINGTON — Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes wrote a message intended for former President Donald Trump in the days after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol …

Discussion: CBS News, Associated Press, Washington Post, Bloomberg, Insider, USA Today, Raw Story, New York Times, Talking Points Memo and The Wrap

Luke Broadwater / New York Times:
Trump Lawyer Expressed Worry Over False Claims of Election Fraud

Discussion: Associated Press and Raw Story

Ed Pilkington / The Guardian:
‘The Trump playbook’: Republicans hint they will deny election results

Discussion: The Bulwark, The American Independent, Raw Story, Election Law Blog, The Moderate Voice, PolitiFact and Los Angeles Times

Richard L. Hasen / The Atlantic:
The Courts Are the Only Thing Holding Back Total Election Subversion

Discussion: Raw Story, Governing, ABC News, New Statesman, The American Independent, CNN, Al Jazeera, Bloomberg and The Bulwark

Josh Barro / Very Serious:

The Problem With ‘Pro-Democracy’ Rhetoric — You can't extol the importance of democracy while also pursuing no-choice politics. — Dear readers, — I have a rant. — Six days before the midterm elections, Joe Biden will give yet another speech about “democracy.” I don't care for this.

Discussion: CNN, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Daily Beast and Raw Story

CNN:

CNN Poll: Republicans, backed by enthusiasm and economic concerns, hold a narrow edge ahead of next week's congressional election — An enthusiastic Republican base and persistent concerns about the state of the economy place the GOP in a strong position with about a week to go in the race …

Discussion: NPR, Washington Post, The Hill, Gallup, HotAir, Ace of Spades HQ, Vanity Fair, Fox News, RedState, The Daily Caller, National Review, Althouse, Washington Times, Washington Examiner, Opinion Today, New York Magazine, Fox News and The Atlantic

Victoria Prodeline / Monmouth University …:

Senate Debate Shows Little Impact — Voters divided on Dem's ability to serve, but few reconsider support after debate — West Long Branch, NJ - John Fetterman's edge over Mehmet Oz on key issues in Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate contest has narrowed, although the Democrat continues to be seen …

Discussion: The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Hill, Fox News and Political Wire

Catherine Lucey / Wall Street Journal:

White Suburban Women Swing Toward Backing Republicans for Congress — New WSJ poll shows key group of midterm voters favors the GOP by 15 percentage points — WASHINGTON—White suburban women, a key group of midterm voters, have significantly shifted their support from Democrats to Republicans …

Quinnipiac University Poll:
Concerns About Inflation Rise Heading Into The Midterms, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Republicans Have Edge In Enthusiasm To Vote

Discussion: Fox News, HotAir, Washington Times, The Bulwark, PBS NewsHour, NewsNation and The Hill

George F. Will / Washington Post:

For the good of the country, Biden and Harris should bow out of the 2024 election — During this autumn's avalanche of political news, an enormous boulder bounced by, barely noticed. It demonstrated why Joe Biden should not seek another term. Democrats should promptly face that fact …

Discussion: Fox News, The Hill, Chicago Sun-Times, Associated Press, National Review, RedState, IJR, The Liberty Loft, Union-News and Washington Examiner

Ken Meyer / Mediaite:

George Will Begs Democrats Not to Run Biden-Harris 2024 and Risk America to Trump in Scorching Op-Ed — Right-leaning columnist George Will implored Democrats not to put President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris up for re-election in 2024, lest they risk Donald Trump becoming president again.

Discussion: Raw Story

Associated Press:

Biden to speak on ‘protecting our democracy’ as midterms enter final stretch — Biden will make the remarks near the U.S. Capitol. — President Joe Biden speaks about Social Security, Medicare, and prescription drug costs, Nov. 1, 2022, in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

Discussion: Axios, HotAir, Washington Post, NBC News, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, Associated Press, Algemeiner.com, The Hill, Washington Examiner, IJR, Florida Politics, USA Today, Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, The Daily Wire and RedState

Mike Masnick / Techdirt:

Bullshit Reporting: The Intercept's Story About Government Policing Disinfo Is Absolute Garbage — Do not believe everything you read. Even if it comes from more “respectable” publications. The Intercept had a big story this week that is making the rounds, suggesting that “leaked” …

Discussion: New York Times, Reason, Fox News, Ionosphere Capital Research, ProPublica, The Liberty Loft, The American Conservative and Washington Examiner

Mike Ozanian / Forbes:

Dan Snyder Hires Bank Of America To Sell Washington Commanders — Dan Snyder has retained BofA Securities to sell the Washington Commanders, sources tell Forbes. — According to a person familiar with the process, Snyder already has at least four calls from groups interested in buying the team.

Discussion: CNBC, ABC News, The Daily Wire, DNyuz, Sports Illustrated, 6abc, Associated Press, Union-News, New Jersey Online, New York Post, ProFootballTalk, Fox News, Blue Virginia and The Root

Jim Tankersley / New York Times:

Republicans, Eyeing Majority, Float Changes to Social Security and Medicare — Democrats have seized on Republican proposals to limit retirement benefits to galvanize voters ahead of the midterm elections. — WASHINGTON — Congressional Republicans, eyeing a midterm election victory …

Discussion: Fox News, The Daily Signal, The Federalist, Against the Grain, DNyuz, Sun-Sentinel, Washington Times, PoliticusUSA, Wall Street Journal, Media Matters for America, Washington Examiner, PolitiFact and Vox

Emily Crane / New York Post:
Hillary Clinton claims voters don't ‘really understand’ midterm stakes

Discussion: HotAir, Washington Examiner, DNyuz, Twitchy, Breitbart, The Liberty Loft and Fox News

New York Times:

Russian Military Leaders Discussed Use of Nuclear Weapons, US Officials Say — The conversations alarmed the Biden administration because they showed how frustrated Moscow had become over its battlefield setbacks in Ukraine. — WASHINGTON — Senior Russian military leaders recently …

Discussion: DNyuz, CNN, Washington Post, Insider, CBS News, The Times of Israel, The Hill and The Daily Wire

CNN:
US officials divided over new intelligence suggesting Russian military discussed scenarios for using nuclear weapons

Discussion: Washington Post and NDTV

Mark Moore / New York Post:

White House shamed into deleting Social Security boast after Twitter fact-check — MORE ON: — The Biden administration was forced to delete a Twitter post taking credit for a boost in retirees' Social Security checks Wednesday after social media users pointed out the increase was tied to decades-high inflation.

Discussion: The Hill, CNN, Reason, National Review, The Federalist, Politico, Patterico's Pontifications, RedState, Commentary Magazine, The Post Millennial, IJR, The Daily Caller, Twitchy, Louder With Crowder and Washington Times

Jason Lalljee / Insider:
The White House is touting a huge boost to Social Security checks. It's happening because inflation is sky high.

Discussion: USA Today, Washington Free Beacon, CNN, MarketWatch, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, IJR, The Western Journal, The Gateway Pundit, Twitchy and Power Line

Samantha Cole / VICE:

Members of Twitter's Trust and Safety Council Not Sure Elon Musk Knows They Exist — As hate speech surges and the future of the platform seems to be in the balance, the people who helped advise Twitter on user safety say they don't know what lies ahead. — Samantha Cole

Discussion: Politico, The Wrap, The Daily Caller, Washington Post and Adweek, more at Techmeme »

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Musk can trash his sandbox. The rest of us don't have to play there.

Discussion: ABC News, Politico, Rolling Stone, Mother Jones, TechCrunch, New York Post, NDTV, Union-News, Variety, The Hill, Washington Examiner, Vox, Althouse and Fortune, more at Mediagazer »

Steve Benen / MSNBC:

Trump insists the United States is ‘rigged, crooked and evil’ — A former American president described the United States as “evil.” This generated almost no attention whatsoever. Why is that? — As Donald Trump's legal troubles mount, the former president turned to his social media platform …

Jose Pagliery / The Daily Beast:

Trump Org Suddenly Settles With Protesters Beat Up by Its Security Guards — Defense lawyers made the last-minute decision after struggling to find Bronx jurors who didn't have strong feelings about Trump and his eponymous company. — Inundated with lawsuits and ongoing trials …

Discussion: ABC News, DNyuz and Raw Story

Shannon Augustus / lwv.org:

Federal Court Issues Order Barring Defendants From Confronting, Photographing, Doxing Voters, and Carrying Guns and Wearing Body Armor Near Drop Boxes — Phoenix, Arizona—Today, following a hearing in a suit brought by the League of Women Voters of Arizona (LWVAZ), a federal court issued …

Discussion: Media Matters for America, Bloomberg, NBC News, Washington Post, Arizona Mirror, The Root, The Federalist, New Republic, American Greatness, Courthouse News Service, FOX8 WGHP, Politico, Associated Press and CNN

Ken Bensinger / New York Times:
Judge Curbs Actions of Election-Monitoring Group in Arizona

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, CNN, Arizona Mirror, Axios, The Hill, Los Angeles Times, Arizona Republic, CNN, Civil Discourse …, The Hill, DNyuz, USA Today, Talking Points Memo, Vanity Fair, Election Law Blog and Raw Story

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System:

Federal Reserve issues FOMC statement — Recent indicators point to modest growth in spending and production. Job gains have been robust in recent months, and the unemployment rate has remained low. Inflation remains elevated, reflecting supply and demand imbalances related to the pandemic …

Discussion: Politico, Insider, CBS News, NPR, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit, Ashridge Macro Strategy, New Republic, The Daily Wire, The Daily Caller, Stay-At-Home Macro and TASS

Washington Post:

Capitol Police cameras caught break-in at Pelosi home, but no one was watching — The attack on Paul Pelosi has sparked an urgent conversation about lawmaker security amid increased threats — Inside the command center for the U.S. Capitol Police, a handful of officers were going through …

Reuters:
Capitol Police had cameras outside Pelosi home that weren't monitored at break-in: Sources

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, New York Post, CNN, Wall Street Journal, CBS News and Washington Examiner

Anshel Pfeffer / Haaretz:

Israel Election | If Netanyahu Wins a Majority, He Faces a Far Right Nightmare — The exit polls suggest that the Netanyahu bloc will have a narrow majority in the next Knesset, but the Likud leader will likely be beholden to the far-right and Haredi parties — Benjamin Netanyahu is the ultimate campaigner.

Discussion: Jerusalem Post, The Times of Israel, Algemeiner.com, The New Arab, Breitbart, The Forward and Al Jazeera

Ben Samuels / Haaretz:

U.S. Administration Fears Ben-Gvir Domino Effect, Considers a No-contact Policy — Whilst a significant shift in U.S. policy towards Israel remains unlikely, the administration finds itself in an unprecedented situation, having to contend with an Israeli government propelled to power by a supremacist and anti-democratic wing

Discussion: The Forward and The Daily Beast

CREW:

CREW sues over missing Jan. 6 texts — Multiple government agencies violated the Federal Records Act by failing to preserve text messages from January 2021 that are now missing, according to a new lawsuit filed today by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

Discussion: Raw Story and Law & Crime

Bill Glauber / Journal Sentinel:

Marquette poll shows toss-up races between Tim Michels and Tony Evers for governor, Ron Johnson and Mandela Barnes for Senate — Wisconsin's two big political races are toss-ups, according to Wednesday's Marquette University Law School Poll as the Nov. 8 election goes right to the wire.