memeorandum: Battle Over Electric Vehicles Is Central to Auto Strike (Jack Ewing/New York Times)

4:45 PM ET, September 16, 2023

Top Items:

Jane C. Timm / NBC News:

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton acquitted in impeachment trial — Paxton was impeached for allegedly taking bribes, but ultimately members of his party chose not to vote for his conviction and removal from office. — Impeached Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was acquitted …

Josh Fiallo / The Daily Beast:

Texas AG Ken Paxton Survives Fiery Impeachment Trial — Ken Paxton was accused of using his job as the state's top prosecutor to dish out favors to a big-donor friend. — The embattled Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton avoided an impeachment conviction on Saturday with Texas' Republican …

Discussion: Associated Press

Martin Pengelly / The Guardian:

Trump lawyer Jenna Ellis turns on ‘malignant narcissist’ ex-president — Ellis, one of 18 Trump associates charged in Georgia election subversion case, says she 'simply can't support him' again — Jenna Ellis - the Donald Trump lawyer who like the former president faces criminal charges …

Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo and Political Wire

Steven Shepard / Politico:

Trump's become a runaway train in the GOP primary. Here's why. — A POLITICO analysis shows Trump's supporters are more conservative and more assured in their candidate than voters backing other Republican candidates. — They're more conservative than other Republicans. More likely to be men.

Discussion: Insider, Washington Examiner, Washington Post, Lucianne, RedState, New York Times, Associated Press, HuffPost and Florida Politics

Kate Sullivan / CNN:

Trump's indictments — and mug shot — are deepening his supporters' anger and revving up their support — Phil Jensen wore a bright red T-shirt with Donald Trump's mug shot and “NEVER SURRENDER!” printed on it to the former president's rally in Rapid City, South Dakota, last week.

Discussion: Fox News, Raw Story, Political Wire and USA Today

Politico:
Florida Republicans reject DeSantis for Trump in loyalty pledge fight

Discussion: Raw Story, Washington Examiner, USA Today, The Messenger, Orlando Sentinel, New York Post, The Hill, NBC News, Twitchy and Political Wire

Marc Caputo / The Messenger:
Trump Beats DeSantis as Florida GOP Scraps ‘Loyalty Oath’ for Primary

Discussion: CNN, The Floridian, Breitbart, Florida Politics and Raw Story

The Sunday Times:

Russell Brand accused of rape, sexual assaults and abuse — Four women, including one who was just 16, make allegations after an investigation by The Sunday Times, The Times and Channel 4 Dispatches — The comedian and actor Russell Brand has been accused of rape, sexual assaults …

Discussion: HotAir, NBC News, The Daily Beast, Reuters, Metro, Washington Post, New York Daily News, Breitbart, GB News, NPR, TMZ.com, The Sun, StyleCaster, ET Canada, inews.co.uk, Page Six, IndieWire, Rolling Stone, Variety, The Daily Caller, The Hollywood Reporter, UPROXX, Raw Story, Us Weekly, New York Post, Deadline and Althouse

NBC News:

'It was a very nice note: Trump says he left Biden a message when he departed the White House — Former President Trump talks about his views on a potential vice president, the note he left for President Biden and whether age should be an issue for voters.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, The Hill, Political Wire, Washington Post, Lucianne and PJ Media

Inyoung Choi / NBC News:
Trump says he likes ‘the concept’ of a female VP pick

Discussion: The Hill, Politico, UPROXX, Washington Examiner, PoliticusUSA, Mediaite, The Guardian, Raw Story, Bloomberg, PennLive, Variety, Talking Points Memo, TODAY.com, Palmer Report, NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth, The Daily Beast and HuffPost

Nick Robertson / The Hill:

Obama on UAW strike: Time to ‘do right’ by workers that keep companies ‘on their feet’ — Former President Obama backed the United Auto Workers strike on Saturday, telling automakers that it's time to “do right” by workers. — “Fourteen years ago, when the big three automakers were struggling …

Jack Ewing / New York Times:
Battle Over Electric Vehicles Is Central to Auto Strike

Giselle Ruhiyyih Ewing / Politico:

Boebert, caught on video, apologizes for inappropriate behavior at ‘Beetlejuice’ show — The congressmember had denied acting inappropriately until surveillance video surfaced showing her disrupting the performance. — Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert apologized after she and a male companion …

Discussion: Advocate, Erick Erickson's Show Notes, Jezebel, NBC Chicago and The Hill

Zachary Petrizzo / The Daily Beast:
Lauren Boebert Now Admits She Vaped in Theater: 'I'm Truly Sorry'

Discussion: UPROXX, KUSA-TV, Daily Kos, Raw Story, Associated Press, New Republic, Insider and Talking Points Memo

Politico:

California goes on offense against Big Oil — California is one of the country's top oil and gas producers, and Chevron, one of the defendants, is headquartered in the state. — Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced a lawsuit Saturday against five major oil companies and their subsidiaries …

Discussion: New York Times, The Messenger, California Governor, Sacramento Bee and DeSmog

Lauren Irwin / The Hill:

GOP senators ask Biden to provide Ukraine with missiles needed to win war — A group of Republican senators on Saturday sent a letter to President Biden urging him to “immediately” provide the missiles Ukraine needs to win its war against Russia. — Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) …

Discussion: The Atlantic

Selcan Hacaoglu / Bloomberg:

Erdogan to Attend UN General Assembly Amid Tensions With US — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is traveling to New York to attend the UN General Assembly amid heightened tensions with Washington over Syria and Russia. — Erdogan is expected to arrive in New York on Sunday …

Discussion: Reuters and Fortune

Myah Ward / Politico:

Ramaswamy wants to end the H-1B visa program he used 29 times — The GOP candidate pledges to get rid of a the system he calls “indentured servitude.” — GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has vowed to “gut” the system for H-1B temporary worker visas if he wins the White House.

Jose Pagliery / The Daily Beast:

Inside Trump's Gambit to Get Rid of a Judge by Suing Him — Trump is attempting to at least slam the brakes on the New York AG case against him by taking on the judge. It's extremely unlikely to work for a number of good reasons. … For nearly a year, Donald Trump has been forcefully trying …

Discussion: Raw Story and Daily Kos

ABC News:

Special counsel seeks ‘narrowly tailored’ gag order against Trump, citing ‘disparaging and inflammatory attacks’ — The court filing accuses Trump of engaging in a campaign of disinformation. — Special counsel Jack Smith and his team have requested a federal judge in Washington, D.C. …