memeorandum: In Iowa and elsewhere, bans on LGBTQ+ ‘conversion therapy’ become a conservative target (Hannah Fingerhut/Associated Press)

11:15 AM ET, August 26, 2023

Top Items:

Nick Robertson / The Hill:

GOP-backed groups fundraising off of Trump mug shot merchandise — Former President Trump and his allies are readily fundraising off of the former president's historic booking photo, taking advantage of the unprecedented image to bank capital for their causes.

Discussion: TechCrunch, Spectrum News 1 Ohio, Fox News, Washington Times, DC Enquirer, CBS News, Forbes, NBC News, The Guardian, HotAir, Associated Press and Newsbusters

Alex Gangitano / The Hill:

Biden chimes in on Trump mug shot: ‘Handsome guy’ — President Biden on Friday chimed in on former President Trump's mug shot, saying his top political rival is a “handsome guy” after he was booked in Fulton County, Ga. — When asked about the mug shot, Biden told reporters, “I did see it on television.

New York Times:

Michael Moritz, Reid Hoffman and Other Silicon Valley Titans Said to Be Behind Mysterious Land Deals — A mysterious company has spent $800 million in an effort to buy thousands of acres of San Francisco Bay Area land. The people behind the deals are said to be a who's who of the tech industry.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, ABC7, Bloomberg, NewsNation, The Daily Beast, The Messenger, SFist and The San Francisco Standard, more at Techmeme »

Natalie Allison / Politico:

CPAC vice chair resigns amid turmoil — Charlie Gerow is calling for investigations into the group's top leader and its financial practices. — The vice chair of the Conservative Political Action Coalition has resigned from his longtime position on the organization's board and is calling …

Discussion: Raw Story, Just The News and Political Wire

Caroline Vakil / The Hill:

Vice chair of CPAC steps down — Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) Vice Chair Charlie Gerow is stepping down from his role with the organization, both confirmed on Friday. — Gerow served as both a board member for the American Conservative Union (ACU) Foundation and as vice chair for ACU/CPAC.

Discussion: Washington Times and The National Pulse+

ABC News:

14th Amendment, Section 3: A new legal battle against Trump takes shape — Efforts to disqualify Trump from state ballots are starting to materialize. — Former President Donald Trump's legal battles are piling up: in Washington, Georgia, New York — the list goes on.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Progress Pond, BizPac Review, Sun-Sentinel, Palm Beach Post, HuffPost, The Federalist, The Hill, Political Wire, Election Law Blog and Politico

Thomas Catenacci / Fox News:

Former Ukraine prosecutor makes explosive claims against Joe and Hunter Biden in new interview — White House says Shokin not credible, was fired for being too soft on corruption — EXCLUSIVE: Former Ukrainian Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin told Fox News in an exclusive sit-down interview …

Discussion: Daily Mail, BizPac Review, Washington Examiner, Media Matters for America and acecomments.mu.nu

Kyle Cheney / Politico:

California judge shoots down Eastman bid to postpone disbarment proceedings — It's the latest setback for the attorney as he fights to preserve his law license while facing felony charges in Georgia. — Attorney John Eastman, an architect of Donald Trump's last-ditch bid to subvert the 2020 election …

Discussion: The Hill, RedState, Los Angeles Times and ABC News

Daniel Marans / HuffPost:

Vivek Ramaswamy Calls Rep. Ayanna Pressley And Ibram X. Kendi Part Of ‘Modern KKK’ — It is “racist” to suggest that Ramaswamy's conservative views make him a race traitor, the Indian-American GOP Republican presidential hopeful said. — PELLA, Iowa ― Vivek Ramaswamy …

Discussion: Raw Story, NBC News and The Messenger

Hannah Fingerhut / Associated Press:

In Iowa and elsewhere, bans on LGBTQ+ ‘conversion therapy’ become a conservative target — One of Iowa's largest cities repealed its ban on “conversion therapy” — the discredited practice of trying to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity through counseling …

Discussion: HotAir

Associated Press:

Biden and Harris will meet with King family on 60th anniversary of the March on Washington — The Oval Office meeting will be held six decades after President John F. Kennedy and King met at the White House on the morning of the march on Aug. 28, 1963. — WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden …

Discussion: Bloomberg, The Hill, Washington Post, Associated Press, CBS News, UPI, Washington Examiner, Los Angeles Times, Roll Call and The Messenger

CBS News:

Large blaze at Louisiana oil refinery forces evacuations — A large fire that broke out in the storage tank of an oil refinery in Garyville, Louisiana, on Friday forced nearby residents to temporarily evacuate their homes. There were no injuries in the fire and it did not spread outside the refinery.

Discussion: Sputnik News, WVUE-TV, The Daily Caller, UPI, Washington Post, The Messenger, Washington Examiner, ABC13, New York Daily News and WFLA-TV

Jason Lange / Reuters:

No DeSantis debate bounce, but some Republicans more open to him, Reuters/Ipsos poll shows — Donald Trump leads Ron DeSantis by nearly 40 percentage points in the race for the Republican presidential nomination even after declining to debate the Florida governor and other rivals …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Florida Politics, The Hill, Fox News, New Republic and Politico

Carol Rosenberg / New York Times:

Man Accused in 9/11 Plot Is Not Fit to Face Trial, Board Says — The question of Ramzi bin al-Shibh's sanity has shadowed the case since he first appeared at the Guantánamo court in 2008. A new medical panel report says he has a mental illness making him incompetent for trial.

Discussion: Political Wire