memeorandum: Biden signs debt ceiling bill, averting government default (Cleve R. Wootson Jr/Washington Post)

2:10 PM ET, June 3, 2023

Top Items:

Jim Tankersley / New York Times:

Biden's Debt-Deal Strategy: Win in the Fine Print — The president and his negotiators believe they worked out a deal that allowed Republicans to claim big spending cuts even as the reality was far more modest. — Reporting from Washington — Shalanda Young couldn't sleep.

Discussion: CNN, Outside the Beltway, The Daily Caller, GZERO, Los Angeles Times and USA Today

Cleve R. Wootson Jr / Washington Post:

Biden signs debt ceiling bill, averting government default — Two days before the Treasury Department estimated it would run out of money to pay the nation's debts, President Biden signed into law on Saturday a bill that suspends the debt ceiling, cuts federal spending and avoids …

Discussion: NBC News, New York Post, Associated Press, Reuters, Los Angeles Times, Washington Times, Just The News, East Bay Times, KXAN-TV, Washington Examiner, WGN-TV and New York Times

Dan Balz / Washington Post: Two cheers for bipartisanship, but debt ceiling is no way to govern

Alex Gangitano / The Hill:
Biden commends McCarthy for debt ceiling deal: ‘We were able to get along and get things done’

Discussion: Politico, Sputnik News, RedState, The Messenger, NBC News, CNN, FISM TV, Bloomberg and ABC7

NBC News:

Musk's response to an anti-trans video sparks 24 hours of chaos at Twitter — A conservative pressure movement built against Twitter's CEO, resulting in high-level departures from the company. — A week ago, Elon Musk's Twitter seemed to be taking shaky footsteps toward a new phase …

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Daily Wire, Althouse, Twitchy, Mediaite, RedState, Big League Politics, Just The News and CNN, more at Techmeme »

Prem Thakker / New Republic:

Elon Musk Calls to Imprison Therapists Helping Trans Kids — Elon Musk wants to criminalize gender-affirming care, and he supports imprisoning any therapists and medical professionals involved. — The Twitter CEO on Friday morning promoted a transphobic documentary produced by the petulant …

Discussion: TheBlaze

Prem Thakker / New Republic:
Elon Musk Personally Elevates Transphobic Video Originally Flagged as Hate Speech

Discussion: TheBlaze, RedState, PJ Media, Newsbusters, The Federalist, Twitchy, Trending Politics Conservative, Joe.My.God., Power Line, Mediaite, The Daily Wire, IJR and Quartz, more at Mediagazer »

Wall Street Journal:
Twitter Loses Second Safety Executive Within Days

Discussion: Associated Press, Quartz, HotAir, Twitchy, Ars Technica, Reuters, Trending Politics Conservative, Washington Examiner, Deadline, NBC 7 San Diego, Forbes, IJR and Bloomberg, more at Mediagazer »

Jon Levine / New York Post:

Donald Trump's campaign hit with blizzard of Twitter ‘community notes’ — Donald Trump's 2024 election campaign's claims are already being hit with Twitter's new “community notes,” which fact-check or offer context to dubious posts. — In May alone, Team Trump and their surrogates …

Nicholas Nehamas / New York Times:

5 Takeaways From Ron DeSantis's First Campaign Trip — He swung back at Donald Trump. He vowed to vanquish the “woke mob” and turn the country into mega-Florida. He had normal encounters with voters that didn't become memes. — After his unusual, buzzy and ill-fated presidential debut …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Reuters, Raw Story, American Greatness, CNN, Wall Street Journal, The Spectator World, MSN, Associated Press and HuffPost

Chris Geidner / Law Dork with Chris Geidner:

Breaking: Federal judge rules Tennessee drag restrictions unconstitutional after trial — A federal judge appointed by Donald Trump ruled late Friday night that Tennessee's Adult Entertainment Act (AEA), which would restrict drag performances in the state and threaten performers who violate …

Discussion: The Commercial Appeal, National Review and Joe.My.God.

Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing / Politico:

Federal judge rules Tennessee drag law unconstitutional — At least 26 bills have been introduced nationwide this year aiming to limit drag performances. — A federal judge ruled that a first-in-the-nation Tennessee law strictly limiting drag shows in public or in places where children could be present is unconstitutional.

Discussion: Tennessee Lookout, Associated Press, The Hill, Washington Post, Bloomberg, New York Daily News, WGN-TV, Rolling Stone and WFLA-TV

New York Times:

Trump Lawyer's Notes Could Be a Key in the Classified Documents Inquiry — M. Evan Corcoran recorded recollections of his legal work last year for Donald Trump. The recording is now in the hands of prosecutors, unnerving some aides to the former president.

Discussion: Mediaite, Raw Story, CBS News, Joe.My.God., CNN and MSNBC

Sam Metz / Associated Press:

Utah district bans Bible in elementary and middle schools ‘due to vulgarity or violence’ — The Good Book is being treated like a bad book in Utah after a parent frustrated by efforts to ban materials from schools convinced a suburban district that some Bible verses were too vulgar or violent for younger children.

Discussion: Fox News, Lawyers, Guns & Money, NPR, Joanne Jacobs, New York Daily News, East Bay Times, MyNorthwest.com and The Daily Caller

Courtney Tanner / Salt Lake Tribune:
The Bible is banned in these Utah elementary and middle schools now for ‘vulgarity or violence’

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, NBC News, Reason, The Daily Beast, KTVX-TV, TheBlaze, Breitbart and Political Wire

Logan Stefanich / KSL-TV:
Davis District pulls Bible from elementaries, junior highs ‘due to vulgarity or violence’

Discussion: KTVX-TV, New Republic, Washington Press, One America News Network, The Messenger and Insider

Wall Street Journal:

Ukraine's Zelensky: We Are Ready for Counteroffensive — Ukrainian president also discusses U.S. elections, NATO and China in wide-ranging interview — ODESA, Ukraine—Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was now ready to launch a long-awaited counteroffensive but tempered …

Discussion: Politico, Reuters, UPI, Fox News, Metro.co.uk, Voice of America, Ukrinform, Radio Free Europe/Radio …, The Guardian, Associated Press and pravda.com.ua

Associated Press:

More People Want To Live in Florida, Despite Bad Drivers — Exceptional citrus, abundant sunshine, beautiful beaches: there's a lot to love about Florida. In 2022, approximately 320,000 people packed their bags and flocked to the Sunshine State, boosting its population by nearly 2%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

CNN:

Secret Service implements tougher penalties after probe finds agents were on phones and missed intruder at national security adviser's home — The US Secret Service implemented tougher disciplinary measures after preliminary findings from an internal investigation found agents missed an intruder …

Discussion: Insider

New York Times:

More Than 260 Dead and 900 Injured in Train Crash in India — The rail disaster, in the eastern state of Odisha, was among the deadliest in a nation with a history of rail safety problems. — More than 260 people were killed and hundreds more injured when a passenger train derailed …

Lauren Feiner / CNBC:

California Democrat who opposed anti-tech bills is top contender for key role on antitrust subcommittee — A California Democrat who has opposed efforts to reform competition laws to crack down on the tech industry is the leading contender to become the highest ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust.

Andrea Salcedo / Washington Post:

Fort Bragg drops Confederate name to become Fort Liberty — Fort Bragg, one of the largest military bases in the United States, has officially been renamed Fort Liberty, following a ceremony Friday. The North Carolina post's new name is part of a congressionally mandated plan to rename military bases …

Discussion: Reuters, Mother Jones, Bloomberg, Associated Press, NBC 6 South Florida, New York Daily News, East Bay Times, The Pulse of NH, Fox News, The Post Millennial, MyNorthwest.com and Defense One

Daniel Trotta / Reuters:

Texas becomes largest state to ban transgender care for minors — Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Friday signed a bill that bans transgender healthcare including puberty blockers and hormone therapy for minors, making Texas the largest of the 20 states to have outlawed gender-affirming care.

Discussion: KXAN-TV, Breitbart, Just The News, The Hill, CNN, Raw Story and Sacramento Bee

Jared Gans / The Hill:

Hutchinson vows to meet ‘whatever is set’ as criteria for first GOP debate — Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, a GOP presidential candidate, vowed on Friday to meet “whatever is set” as the criteria for making the stage for the Republican debates starting at the end of the summer.

Discussion: Insider, National Review, The Ohio Star, Vanity Fair, USA Today, Politico and CBS News

Marc Caputo / The Messenger:
GOP Issues Debate Rules, But Will Trump Bother to Show Up?

Tyler O'Neil / The Daily Signal:

EXCLUSIVE: Children's Choir Director Responds After Capitol Police Claim They Did Not Stop Kids Singing the National Anthem — WASHINGTON, D.C.—Footage shows a Capitol Police officer directing someone to interrupt a children's choir singing the national anthem in the U.S. Capitol …

Discussion: IJR, New York Post, Twitchy, The Gateway Pundit, RedState, Trending Politics Conservative and Just The News

Block Club Chicago:

Man With Gun, Swastika Flag, Flamethrower Prompts SWAT Team Response In West Humboldt Park — Police said they'd closed off a portion of Chicago Avenue near Pulaski Road, but they didn't immediately provide other details. — Original Reporting — On the Ground — Sources Cited

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, NBC Chicago, ABC7, Joe.My.God., Chicago Sun Times and WGN-TV