memeorandum: MAGA Network Investigating Whether Hosts Were Duped by Fake Trump (The Daily Beast)

12:50 PM ET, September 1, 2023

Top Items:

Benjamin Mueller / New York Times:

Mitch McConnell May Be Experiencing Small Seizures, Doctors Suggest — Two episodes, where the Republican senator froze and did not respond to some questions, may be symptoms of a serious illness, according to neurologists not involved in his medical care. — A four-line letter …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Insider, NewsNation and Breitbart

Kelby Vera / HuffPost:
Nikki Haley Calls Senate A ‘Privileged Nursing Home’ After McConnell Freezes

Discussion: USA Today, The American Spectator, Mediaite, Los Angeles Times, RedState, Washington Examiner, The Messenger, The Hill, The Daily Caller, One America News Network, Breitbart, Raw Story, Fox News, The Daily Beast, CNN and Twitchy

Timothy Nerozzi / Fox News:
Nikki Haley calls Senate ‘most privileged nursing home in the country,’ says McConnell freeze-up was ‘sad’

Discussion: Washington Examiner, HuffPost, Washington Times, The Guardian, IJR, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, DC Enquirer, PBS NewsHour, CBS News and CNN

Jack Shafer / Politico:
Why Is Nobody Doing Anything About Mitch McConnell?

Discussion: New Republic, Bloomberg Government, Outside the Beltway, Washington Examiner, Florida Phoenix, Forbes, HuffPost, The Hill, IJR, Raw Story, CBS News, CNN and Axios

Washington Post:
McConnell ‘medically clear’ to do job, says attending physician to Congress

Politico:
Playbook: Mitch McConnell's untenable silence

Discussion: Punchbowl News, The Daily Beast and Vanity Fair

Caroline Kitchener / Washington Post:

Highways are the next antiabortion target. One Texas town is resisting. — A new ordinance, passed in several jurisdictions and under consideration elsewhere, aims to stop people from using local roads to drive someone out of state for an abortion — LLANO, Tex. — No one could remember …

Discussion: Jezebel and Eschaton

Holly Otterbein / Politico:

Pennsylvania is key for Biden. Democrats there say the party is in shambles. — It's not just the presidential race at stake. A major state Supreme Court race is this year. — PHILADELPHIA — In anticipation of a major gathering of rural activists a few weeks ago …

Discussion: The Messenger, Washington Examiner and The Daily Caller

Politico:
Playbook: How Chuck Schumer sees September

Discussion: Washington Examiner, The Hill, Forbes and The Messenger

New York Times:
DeSantis Super PAC's Urgent Plea to Donors: ‘We Need 50 Million Bucks’

Discussion: Yahoo News, New York Post, ABC News, Nevada Globe, Raw Story, The Post Millennial and NBC News

CNN:
DeSantis-aligned super PAC asked for $50 million from donors on day of first GOP primary debate, leaked audio shows

Discussion: HotAir, Florida Politics, Daily Mail, Twitchy, The Messenger and DC Enquirer

Tom Jackman / Washington Post:

Proud Boys leader, Capitol window smasher set to be sentenced — Prosecutors are seeking 30 years for Ethan Nordean and 20 years for Dominic Pezzola, but judge gave shorter terms to two Proud Boys on Thursday — Two of the most visible members of the Proud Boys, one who helped lead …

Brett Bachman / The Daily Beast:

Trump Aide Outed as Jan. 6 Rioter Who Threatened Cops — SHOWING HIS TRUE COLORS — A powerful campaign official with former President Donald Trump's New Hampshire operation was outed Thursday as one of the rioters who confronted police outside the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021, telling one officer: “go hang yourself.”

NBC News:
Trump campaign aide told police officers to ‘go hang yourself’ at Jan. 6 riot

Discussion: HuffPost, The Hill, Raw Story, NH Journal and Associated Press

Mother Jones:

A New Rudy Scandal: FBI Agent Says Giuliani Was Co-opted by Russian Intelligence — The whistleblower says his probe of Giuliani's ties to suspected Russian operatives was thwarted. — It was big news when Rudy Giuliani, once hailed as America's Mayor, was indicted last month …

CNN:

'Trump isn't funding any of us': Co-defendants in Georgia case are struggling with mounting legal bills — Some of Donald Trump's co-defendants in the sprawling election subversion case in Georgia are trying all sorts of ways to fund their mounting legal bills - yet the costs …

Discussion: NewsNation, UPROXX and PoliticusUSA

Graham Kates / CBS News:
Giuliani to enter not guilty plea in Fulton County case, waive arraignment

NBC News:

White House ramps up war room to battle expected GOP impeachment inquiry — President Biden's aides studied the Clinton White House's 1998 response to impeachment as a model for a vigorous defense and making Republicans pay a political price. — WASHINGTON — The White House has stood …

Discussion: HuffPost, Politico, Raw Story, Twitchy, PoliticusUSA, The Daily Caller, Washington Times, The Texas Tribune, Washington Post, IJR, Breitbart, The Messenger and The Hill

Joey Garrison / USA Today:
White House blasts Marjorie Taylor Greene for threatening government shutdown over Biden impeachment inquiry

Discussion: Insider, UPI, The Messenger, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, The Guardian, Washington Examiner, The Hill and PoliticusUSA

Davidrlurie / Public Notice:

Vivek Ramaswamy's “cold, cultural civil war” — His embrace of right-wing extremism is transparently phony. But it's working. … Events are proceeding according to plan for Vivek Ramaswamy. He's using a destined-to-fail run for the presidency as a vehicle for becoming …

Chris Geidner / Law Dork with Chris Geidner:

Judge doubles down on Southwest “religious-liberty training” sanctions order — Judge Starr refused to put the sanctions on hold while the airline appeals, called questions about requiring the training from a far-right group a “gripe.” — U.S. District Judge Brantley Starr stood by his …

ABC News:

State election officials prepare for efforts to disqualify Trump under 14th Amendment — New Hampshire, Michigan and Arizona are bracing for lawsuits. — Efforts to keep former President Donald Trump off the 2024 ballot under the 14th Amendment are gaining momentum as election officials …

Discussion: The Hill, One America News Network, The Bulwark and CNN

The Daily Beast:

MAGA Network Investigating Whether Hosts Were Duped by Fake Trump — While the owner of Real America's Voice believes an impersonator fooled the channel, pro-Trump journalist John Solomon insists that it was “definitely” Trump on the line. — The owner of fringe-right channel Real America's Voice …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Raw Story, The Messenger, New York Post and Mediaite

Matt Seyler / ABC News:

Daring helicopter rescue earns Vietnam veteran Medal of Honor 55 years later — President Joe Biden will make the award Sept. 5, the White House said Friday. — Army attack helicopter pilot Larry Taylor scrambled to rescue a small patrol of soldiers surrounded by enemies on the ground in Vietnam …

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Times and The White House

ProPublica:

Clarence Thomas Acknowledges Undisclosed Real Estate Deal With Harlan Crow and Discloses Private Jet Flights — The new filing comes after ProPublica's reporting on the Supreme Court justice's beneficial relationship with the billionaire GOP megadonor. Thomas also reported three private jet trips provided by Crow.

Tyler Kingkade / NBC News:

California's Democratic leaders escalate fights with conservative school boards — Top Democratic officials have intervened in school board politics more than in any other blue state. Conservatives hope it'll drive more support to their side. — Democratic state officials in California …

Discussion: Al Jazeera

Associated Press:

Election workers have gotten death threats and warnings they will be lynched, the US government says — More than a dozen people nationally have been charged with threatening election workers by a Justice Department unit trying to stem the tide of violent and graphic threats against people who count and secure the vote.

Discussion: Metro.co.uk, Raw Story and New York Daily News