memeorandum: The Case Against Trump: The Charges and the Facts Behind Them (Kimberly Wehle/The Bulwark)

9:50 AM ET, April 5, 2023

Top Items:

Charlie Savage / New York Times:

A Surprise Accusation Bolsters a Risky Case Against Trump — The unsealed case against Donald J. Trump accuses him of falsifying records in part to lay the groundwork for planned lies to tax authorities. — WASHINGTON — The unsealed indictment against former President Donald J. Trump …

Discussion: Raw Story, WFLA-TV and abc7NY

New York Times:

We Finally Know the Case Against Trump, and It Is Strong — Ms. Agnifilo is a former Manhattan chief assistant district attorney. Mr. Eisen is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. — For weeks, Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, has come under heavy fire for pursuing a case against Donald Trump.

Discussion: Politico, Louder With Crowder, The Nation, New York Post, National Review, The Hill, HuffPost, Talking Points Memo and The Post Millennial

Ian Millhiser / Vox:

The dubious legal theory at the heart of the Trump indictment, explained — No one knows if Donald Trump can be prosecuted for the hush money payment to Stormy Daniels. — There is something painfully anticlimactic about Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's indictment of former President Trump.

Ruth Marcus / Washington Post:

The Trump indictment is a dangerous leap on the highest of wires — As a presidential candidate in 2016, frantic to keep evidence of his extramarital affairs secret, Donald Trump made extensive efforts to buy the silence of the women involved. There's never been much doubt about that.

Discussion: National Review, Just The News, New York Magazine, Palm Beach Post and New York Daily News

Richard L. Hasen / Slate:

Donald Trump Probably Should Not Have Been Charged With (This) Felony — Based on what I have seen so far, the decision to charge Donald Trump with felonies in New York state is a mistake both legally and politically. — First, the legal problems. — Back in 2018, I wrote at Slate …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Daily Beast, New York Times, Law Dork with Chris Geidner, One America News Network and Rolling Stone

The City:

Most New Yorkers Don't Get the Trump Treatment at Arraignment — The 31,000 people arraigned for felonies in New York each year have very different experiences in court than the former president. — This article was published in partnership with The Marshall Project …

Discussion: New York Times

Wall Street Journal:

What's Missing in the Trump Indictment — For the charges to be felonies, Alvin Bragg needs a second crime. What is it? — The public can now read Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's indictment against former President Trump, as well as his more voluble “statement of facts,” …

Discussion: New Republic, Rolling Stone, Reuters, Washington Examiner, Raw Story, Reason, Breitbart, Boston Herald, NBC News, National Review, Slate, New York Times, Insider, Mediaite, Bloomberg, Metro.co.uk, Slay News, RedState, Just The News and The Daily Signal

Dan Balz / Washington Post:
Donald Trump, a tawdry case and a nation still mired in his chaos

Discussion: The Federalist, CBS News, New York Times, Associated Press, Politico, The Daily Beast, Insider, Washington Examiner and Fox 8 Cleveland WJW

Charlie Sykes / Morning Shots:
The Non-Trivial Crimes of Donald J. Trump

Discussion: Lawfare and CNBC, more at Mediagazer »

Kimberly Wehle / The Bulwark:
The Case Against Trump: The Charges and the Facts Behind Them

Discussion: Mediaite, Bulwark+ and PIX11

Manhattan District Attorney's Office:
District Attorney Bragg Announces 34-Count Felony Indictment of Former President Donald J. Trump

Politico:
With an ‘arraignment party,’ Trump jolts his campaign

Discussion: Washington Post, New York Magazine, Alternet.org, Insider and New York Daily News

Semafor:
Whistles and rage: The scenes from Donald Trump's arraignment day

Discussion: MSNBC, New York Times and Mediaite

Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Five takeaways from the Trump indictment in New York

Gregg Jarrett / Fox News:
After Donald Trump's indictment wave goodbye to our justice system, say hello to this

Discussion: Breitbart

Max Greenwood / The Hill:
Trump rails against charges in post-arraignment speech at Mar-a-Lago

Discussion: Bloomberg, Los Angeles Times, NBC News, Mother Jones, USA Today, PJ Media, ABC News, The Guardian, Washington Examiner, New York Daily News, The Post Millennial, The Daily Caller and Raw Story

Justin Baragona / The Daily Beast:
MSNBC Skips Trump's Post-Arrest Speech Because It's Not ‘Newsworthy’

Discussion: PoliticusUSA, Deadline, Media Matters for America, TVNewser and Mediaite

Ken White / Rolling Stone:
Alvin Bragg's Case Against Trump Is Still a Mystery

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, American Greatness, Just The News, The Daily Signal, National Review and Washington Examiner

Sarah K. Burris / Raw Story:
How Trump's long history of other people fixing his problems ended today

Discussion: New York Post, The Daily Beast, The Intercept and TIME

Politico:
Playbook: Trump's criminal reckoning begins

Discussion: Vogue, Wall Street Journal and Political Wire

Brett Bachman / The Daily Beast:
Trump Literally Lists All His Grievances in Post-Arraignment Speech

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Rolling Stone, Raw Story, Alternet.org, RedState and Talking Points Memo

Shruti Rajkumar / HuffPost:
Donald Trump Tries To Explain The ‘Only Crime’ He's Committed In Post-Arraignment Remarks

Discussion: Breitbart, Baltimore Sun, American Action News, RedState, Financial Times, Politico, Metro.co.uk, Insider and Right Side Broadcasting …

Washington Post:
Judge asks Trump not to incite violence amid volley of online attacks

Discussion: Bloomberg, Insider and HuffPost

Reid J. Epstein / New York Times:

Wisconsin Supreme Court Election: Protasiewicz Wins With Abortion Message — Janet Protasiewicz prevailed in the state's highly consequential contest for the Supreme Court, which will now be likely to reverse the state's abortion ban and end the use of gerrymandered legislative maps.

Adam Edelman / NBC News:

Liberals gain control of the Wisconsin state Supreme Court for the first time in 15 years — The victory of Janet Protasiewicz over conservative Dan Kelly will allow the court's new liberal majority to determine the future of key issues like abortion rights.

Discussion: NBC News, CNN, The Guardian, USA Today, NPR, PoliticusUSA, Mother Jones, New York Post, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit and TheBlaze

Patrick Marley / Washington Post:

Liberals win control of Wisconsin Supreme Court ahead of abortion case — MILWAUKEE — Liberals claimed control of Wisconsin's high court in an election Tuesday, giving them a one-vote majority on a body that in the coming years will likely consider the state's abortion ban …

Discussion: New York Times, NPR, NBC News, PJ Media, National Review, WisPolitics, Reuters, Reuters, Fox News, Baltimore Sun, Mediaite, Talking Points Memo, WisPolitics, Balloon Juice, Semafor, Just The News, National Review and The Daily Caller

The Guardian:
Liberal judge wins Wisconsin supreme court election, flipping ideological balance

Discussion: Bolts, Politico, HuffPost, Journal Sentinel, NewsNation, Al Jazeera, WisPolitics, The Hill, Talking Points Memo and USA Today

Daniel Marans / HuffPost:

Brandon Johnson, Progressive Union Organizer, Elected Mayor Of Chicago — Johnson's victory over centrist Paul Vallas is a major achievement for the activist left. — Overcoming a major fundraising gap, accusations that he would “defund” the police and public polling that predicted his defeat …

Natasha Korecki / NBC News:
Progressive Brandon Johnson wins Chicago mayor's race

Discussion: Semafor and FOX 2

Kim Bellware / Washington Post:
Brandon Johnson projected to win Chicago mayoral election

Brandon Gage / Raw Story:

‘This is sickening’: The Trumps face furious backlash after targeting Manhattan judge's daughter — Hours ahead of former President Donald Trump's Tuesday arraignment on thirty-four felony charges filed by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the right-wing outlet Breitbart published …

Discussion: New York Post, New Republic, Daily Mail, Townhall, Breitbart, HuffPost, Media Matters for America, RADAR, The Daily Dot, The Daily Caller, Twitchy and Breitbart

Calder McHugh / Politico:
Trump Is Not Ready For His Closeup

Discussion: PJ Media

Julia Davis / The Daily Beast: Team Putin Brutally Mocks Their Beloved Trump in Arrest Skit

Caroline Vakil / The Hill:

Rosen announces she's running for reelection in Nevada Senate race — Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) announced on Wednesday that she's officially running for reelection in the Nevada Senate race as Democrats in the upper chamber face a challenging map in 2024. — “I've worked with both parties …

Ken Ritter / Associated Press:
Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada running for reelection

Discussion: Washington Examiner

Casey Newton / Platformer:

Why journalists can't quit Twitter — The media should be building alternatives. Instead, some are doubling down — Today, Donald Trump was charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with a series of hush-money payments related to the 2016 US presidential campaign.

more at Mediagazer »

New York Times:

Biden Has the Oval Office. But Trump Has Center Stage. — The White House hopes the chaos of Donald Trump's legal challenges will reinforce the reasons voters turned to President Biden in 2020. — WASHINGTON — The president of the United States spent four minutes on Tuesday talking …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Hill, The Daily Caller, USA Today, Fox News and Metro.co.uk

Matt Novak / Forbes:

Twitter Adds ‘State-Affiliated Media’ Label To NPR Account Putting It On Par With Russia Today — Twitter added a warning to NPR's Twitter account on Tuesday, declaring it as “state-affiliated media,” a label that's typically been reserved for foreign media outlets that represent the official views …

Discussion: Louder With Crowder, Fox News and The Post Millennial, more at Mediagazer »

Washington Post:

Several injured after Israeli forces raid al-Aqsa mosque — At least half a dozen people were injured after Israeli police raided the compound of the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem's old city early Wednesday, in an operation described by law enforcement as a response to rioting. — Are you on Telegram?

Discussion: Jerusalem Post, Financial Times, Al-Monitor, New York Times, CBS News and The Daily Caller

CBS News:

Silvio Berlusconi, controversial former prime minister of Italy, reportedly in intensive care — Rome — Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was in a Milan hospital's intensive care ward Wednesday after suffering heart problems, European news agencies said, citing unnamed sources close to the 86-year-old former politician.