memeorandum: As the Pandemic Swept America, Deaths in Prisons Rose Nearly 50 Percent (New York Times)

7:20 AM ET, February 20, 2023

Top Items:

Biden makes surprise trip to Ukraine ahead of Russian invasion anniversary — KYIV, Ukraine — President Biden made a dramatic, unannounced visit to Kyiv on Monday, in a display of strong American support for Ukraine just four days before the anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion.

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, CNN, USA Today, Associated Press, NBC News, New York Times, The Guardian, Bloomberg, The Daily Caller, Breitbart and Politico

Peter Nicholas / NBC News:

Biden makes surprise visit to Ukraine nearly one year after Russia's invasion — AMSTERDAM — President Joe Biden made a surprise and historic visit to war-torn Ukraine on Monday, a show of support and solidarity with a democratic nation battling for its survival after Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded nearly a year ago.

The White House:

Statement from President Joe Biden on Travel to Kyiv, Ukraine — As the world prepares to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia's brutal invasion of Ukraine, I am in Kyiv today to meet with President Zelenskyy and reaffirm our unwavering and unflagging commitment to Ukraine's democracy, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.

Discussion: New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Insider, CNBC, Politico, New York Post, Al Jazeera and Semafor

Financial Times:
Poland calls for Nato security guarantees to postwar Ukraine

Discussion: UnHerd and The Hill

Jeffrey S. Solochek / Tampa Bay Times:

4 things to know about Ron DeSantis' idea to slash AP courses in Florida — It started with a feud over one course. Now, tens of thousands of students could be affected. — Once upon a time, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was an Advanced Placement fan. — In his 2021 address to lawmakers …

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and Insider

Natasha Korecki / NBC News:

From the Midwest, progressive J.B. Pritzker launches anti-Ron DeSantis flares — CHICAGO — He's a governor who talks tough about Covid, has pleaded with to the College Board about an AP African American studies course and is outspoken on the issue of abortion.

Discussion: The Hill, The Last Refuge and The Gateway Pundit

Rolling Stone:

Charges Against Trump Lawyer ‘Very Likely,’ Colleagues Warn Donald — As the feds continue to probe the ex-president's handling of confidential documents, his legal team is urging him to distance himself from one of his top attorneys … Some of the former president's lawyers …

Discussion: Raw Story

Washington Post:

Putin, czar with no empire, needs military victory for his own survival — MOSCOW — President Vladimir Putin likes to portray himself as a new czar like Peter the Great or Ivan III, the 15th-century grand prince known as the “gatherer of the Russian lands.”

Discussion: Informed Comment, Al Jazeera, CBS News and JG's World

New York Times:
One Year Into War, Putin Is Crafting the Russia He Craves

Discussion: CBS News, Washington Post, Insider, Bloomberg, NPR, Daily Mail, Los Angeles Times and The Guardian

Laurence Norman / Wall Street Journal:

Near Weapons-Grade Enriched Uranium Detected in Iran — Diplomats say they had been informed Iran doesn't appear to be accumulating a stockpile of 84% material — United Nations atomic agency inspectors have detected uranium that has been enriched to near weapons-grade in Iran in recent weeks …

Discussion: Al Jazeera

Jonathan Tirone / Bloomberg:
Iran's Uranium Enrichment Hits a New High, Testing Diplomacy

Discussion: Reuters, Haaretz, The Dispatch, Al Jazeera, The Hill, Fox News, TASS and Japan Times

New York Times:

Biden Drawing Up a 2024 Playbook That Looks a Lot Like 2020's — President Biden's strategy is to frame the race as a contest between a seasoned leader and a conspiracy-minded opposition, while batting away concerns about his age. — WASHINGTON — Forget the Wilmington basement.

Discussion: The Hill, CNN and The Western Journal

Stephen Neukam / The Hill:
Sanders: Biden a more progressive president than he was as senator

Discussion: National Review

Ankit Panda / NK PRO:

North Korea's latest ICBM launch signals new phase of long-range missile drills — Military reportedly launched Hwasong-15 on short notice, as DPRK shifts focus from development to operational exercises — North Korea's first intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch of 2023 wasn't a test; it was an exercise.

Discussion: Bloomberg, KCNA Watch, WGN-TV, UPI, Associated Press, TASS, HotAir, Al Jazeera, Reuters, The Hill, Fox News, New York Times, Breitbart, Sputnik News and Japan Times

Lachlan Cartwright / The Daily Beast:

Don Lemon Benched on Monday Over Sexist Remark Scandal, Insiders Say — CNN sources told Confider that the network changed its Monday lineup to proceed without Lemon while “conversations about Don's future” are ongoing. … Don Lemon will not appear Monday on CNN This Morning as his future …

Discussion: The Wrap, New York Post, Deadline, Variety, RedState, TMZ.com, Mediaite, Fox News, The Hollywood Reporter and The Post Millennial, more at Mediagazer »

New York Times:

As the Pandemic Swept America, Deaths in Prisons Rose Nearly 50 Percent — The first comprehensive data on prison fatalities in the Covid era sheds new light on where and why prisoners were especially vulnerable. — Deaths in state and federal prisons across America rose nearly 50 percent during …

Chris Koseluk / The Hollywood Reporter:

Richard Belzer, Extraordinarily Smart-Ass as a Comic and a TV Cop, Dies at 78 — The stand-up legend and ‘Groove Tube’ actor played Det. John Munch on ‘Homicide: Life on the Street,’ ‘Law & Order: SVU’ and eight other shows. — Richard Belzer, the beloved comedian who began as an edgy stand …

Oliver Milman / The Guardian:

‘Not much time left’: Salt Lake City's mayor on the Great Lake drying up — Former environmental activist Erin Mendenhall leads a fast-growing city threatened by toxic dust from the lake's shrinking water levels — rin Mendenhall was once an environmental activist, campaigning for clean air.

Soleil Ho / San Francisco Chronicle:

The New York Times can't stop doubling down on its dangerous obsession with trans people — A specter is haunting the United States — the specter of transness. — If the New York Times' relentless recent coverage of the Trans Question would be believed, a shady movement of bad actors …

Discussion: The Guardian, more at Mediagazer »

Peter Wade / Rolling Stone:

Sanders Blasts Nikki Haley's ‘Absurd’ Proposal for Age-Based Competency Test for Politicians — “We are fighting racism, we're fighting sexism, we're fighting homophobia, I think we should also be fighting ageism,” the senator said … The former South Carolina governor floated the idea during …

Discussion: PoliticusUSA