memeorandum: He applied to be an assassin at RentAHitman.com, then got arrested, FBI says (Jonathan Edwards/Washington Post)

6:55 PM ET, April 15, 2023

Top Items:

Madison Darbyshire / Financial Times:

Top Republican donor sours on Florida governor's stance on social issues — Thomas Peterffy highlights actions of Ron DeSantis on abortion and book banning and warns against courting far-right — Top Republican donor Thomas Peterffy is halting plans to help finance the US presidential bid …

Discussion: Raw Story, Bloomberg and Political Wire

Lauren Gambino / The Guardian:

‘They created this’: are Republicans willing to lose elections to retain their abortion stance? — The right has, for decades, relied on abortion to rally their conservative base, but now their unified policy is flagging — emocrats have taken multiple actions in response to what they say is a …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, State of California, Digby's Hullabaloo and Los Angeles Times

Jared Gans / The Hill:
Baldwin says Texas judge was part of ‘extreme Republican’ effort to ban abortion

Discussion: Las Vegas Review-Journal and Common Dreams

Trip Gabriel / New York Times:
Virginia's Youngkin Pauses on Possible 2024 Campaign

Discussion: HotAir and National Review

David Smith / The Guardian: Popularity is optional as Republicans find ways to impose minority rule

Jake Lahut / The Daily Beast:
DeSantis' New Hampshire GOP Event Hits a Snag

Discussion: New York Post, Balloon Juice, The Hill, Politico, Washington Times, USA Today, Daily Mail, Breitbart, Fox News, Washington Examiner, TheBlaze, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and WFLA-TV

Washington Post:

The controversial article Matthew Kacsmaryk did not disclose to the Senate — The judge who delivered a high-stakes abortion pills ruling last week removed his name from a law review article during his judicial nomination process, emails show — As a lawyer for a conservative legal group …

Discussion: Joe.My.God., Forbes, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Mother Jones

Tom Boggioni / Raw Story:

Trump judge behind abortion pill ban accused of hiding information from Senate investigators — Prior to his Senate hearings after Donald Trump nominated him to a lifetime appointment to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, then-lawyer Matthew Kacsmaryk asked that his name …

Washington Post:

Taiwan highly vulnerable to Chinese air attack, leaked documents show — Troubling details raise questions about U.S. intelligence agencies' ability to detect a pending invasion and the island's capacity to defend itself — Taiwan is unlikely to thwart Chinese military air superiority …

Discussion: New York Post and The Hill

Wall Street Journal:
Airman, Arrested for Leaks, Chatted in Groups Fascinated by Weapons and War

Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo

Bernd Debusmann Jr / BBC:
Jack Teixeira's charges in full: ‘Top secret’ access, leak searches and the Espionage Act

Charlie Savage / New York Times:
What's Unusual About Jack Teixeira's Leaked Documents Case

Discussion: emptywheel and Raw Story

Washington Post:
Allies troubled by document leak, but need U.S. spying capabilities

Discussion: The Guardian, Fox News, CNN, New York Times, The Atlantic, RedState and Wall Street Journal

Hurubie Meko / New York Times:

Thousands of NYC Shoplifting Cases Committed by Just 327 People — Nearly a third of all shoplifting arrests in the city last year involved just 327 people, the police said. Businesses say they have little defense. — New York City's storefront businesses, already weathering inflation …

Discussion: Las Vegas Review-Journal

Washington Post:

A top Trump lawyer has recused himself from Mar-a-Lago documents case — Evan Corcoran is still representing Trump in other cases, including the probe into the former president's role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol — One of former president Donald Trump's top lawyers …

Discussion: CNN, Bloomberg, Washington Examiner, The Hill, Raw Story and Alternet.org

Natalie Allison / Politico:

Republican donor retreat suggests Donald Trump is far from a coronation — But a solution to stopping Trump has proved elusive. — NASHVILLE — Donald Trump still gets top billing at this weekend's exclusive gathering of Republican donors. — But for a full 24 hours before the former president …

Discussion: New York Times, CNN, Raw Story, Indiana Capital Chronicle, Alternet.org, Associated Press, Political Wire, Washington Post and Washington Examiner

Dennis Aftergut / Slate:
How Trump's Lawsuit Against Michael Cohen Could Backfire

Discussion: Washington Times, The Guardian, Raw Story, Wall Street Journal, Breitbart, Sean Hannity and The Wrap

Aria Jones / Dallas Morning News:

Complaint alleges North Texas lawmaker had sex with a Capitol intern, report says — The Texas Tribune reported that state Rep. Bryan Slaton, R-Royse City, is accused of having “sexual relations” with an intern. — A Texas Capitol staffer has alleged that state Rep. Bryan Slaton had …

Discussion: Political Wire, Off the Kuff and The Texas Tribune

Renzo Downey / The Texas Tribune:

Staffer alleged in complaint that state Rep. Bryan Slaton had sex with Capitol intern — The new details about the allegation stem from the complaint filed against Slaton to the House General Investigating Committee. — A Capitol staffer alleged in an internal complaint that state Rep. Bryan Slaton …

Discussion: UPI and Raw Story

Washington Post:

A year ago, Musk asked, ‘Is Twitter dying?’ He may have his answer. — Twitter has been dramatically transformed under Musk and few — even among some in the billionaire's corner — say the changes have been for the better — SAN FRANCISCO — A year ago this month …

Alexandra Marquez / NBC News:

Wealthy investors, PACs and big GOP donors fill Sinema's campaign — More than half of the Democratic-turned-independent senator's first-quarter fundraising came from contributors who gave donations of $3,300 or more. — Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's campaign raised over $2.1 million …

Discussion: Politico

Jessica Piper / Politico:
Sinema outraised by Gallego as reelection decision awaits

Discussion: Alternet.org, PoliticusUSA and Washington Examiner

Isaac Stanley-Becker / Washington Post:
Trump, staring down GOP rivals, raised $14.5 million in first quarter

Discussion: al.com

Zachary Petrizzo / The Daily Beast:

GOP Quietly Backs Off Attacking Bud Light—Its Own Major Donor — The NRCC put out and then swiftly deleted a direct attack on the beer company that donated nearly $500,000 to its candidates in the most recent campaign cycle. … The National Republican Congressional Committee quietly deleted …

Discussion: Joe.My.God., Alternet.org, Raw Story and The Daily Caller

David Weissman / Washington Press:

Tucker Carlson is a national security threat — The reach of Tucker Carlson and Fox's factless opinion lineup in America's military represents a unique and serious danger to the nation. — Indeed, it's a national security threat. I don't believe the show should ever appear in U.S. military installations.

Jonathan Edwards / Washington Post:

He applied to be an assassin at RentAHitman.com, then got arrested, FBI says — An expectant father needed to make money and prosecutors say he thought he had the skills to land a high-paying job. Military experience. Precision. Excitement. — While surfing the internet …

Discussion: US Department of Justice, Task & Purpose, Raw Story and CBS News

Skyler Swisher / Orlando Sentinel:

Reedy Creek finds ‘no records exist’ for Moody's probe into Disney agreements — Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody came up empty on a public records request that sought to gain insight into agreements the Reedy Creek Improvement District's board made with Disney ahead of a state takeover.

Politico:

Playbook: The GOP's abortion problems are only beginning — Presented by With help from Eli Okun and Garrett Ross — DRIVING THE DAY — TODAY — Suspected leaker JACK TEIXEIRA expected to appear in court in Boston ... DONALD TRUMP and MIKE PENCE speak at the NRA's summit in Indianapolis …