memeorandum: Special counsel urges judge to deny Trump's Jan. 6 claim of immunity (Spencer S. Hsu/Washington Post)

12:10 AM ET, October 20, 2023

Top Items:

Jordan won't seek third speaker vote, allowing House to empower interim speaker — Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) will not seek an additional speaker vote Thursday, and he will back a plan to give Rep. Patrick T. McHenry (R-N.C.), the temporary speaker, additional powers, according to multiple people …

Discussion: The Hill, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Breitbart, Slate, The Nevada Independent, TIME, New York Daily News, New Republic, Outside the Beltway and The Guardian

Politico:

House GOP abandons plan to empower temp speaker — Jim Jordan, who earlier on Thursday indicated that he would pause speaker balloting and back the idea, now could reverse course and go to the floor again.

Discussion: New Jersey Globe and Mock Paper Scissors

NBC News:

In the latest sign of House chaos, the temporary speaker is threatening to quit — Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., is resisting a push to get him to move legislation without an explicit vote to expand his powers. — WASHINGTON — In a closed-door meeting Thursday, Rep. Patrick McHenry …

Discussion: Mock Paper Scissors, PJ Media, Agri-Pulse Communications …, Political Wire and New York Times

Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:

The Inside Story of How Jim Jordan Broke the Model, Didn't Become Speaker and Decided That was Fine — There's an aspect of the Jim Jordan Speaker Drama that hasn't gotten enough attention. It's really the central element of the story. Over the years I've argued that the post-2010 GOP caucus operates …

Politico:

House GOP drowning as crisis reaches breaking point — It seems that every day without a speaker brings a new release of pent-up anger from Republicans who see no way out of their self-inflicted pain. — When Matt Gaetz stepped to the microphones during Thursday's three-hour private House GOP meeting …

Discussion: Axios, Raw Story, New York Post, New Republic, Big League Politics and UPI

Tara Suter / The Hill: Jim Jordan to hold press conference amid Speaker vote chaos

New York Times:
Jordan Is Said to Endorse Temporary Speaker Plan, Holding Off on Third Vote

Discussion: CNN, Raw Story, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Insider and Vanity Fair

The Daily Beast:
Speaker Saga: House GOP Can't Even Agree on Not Agreeing

Discussion: Washington Examiner, NBC10 Philadelphia, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Insider, Semafor, Deadline, NewsNation, Florida Politics and Political Wire

Madison Hall / Insider:
2 GOP members of Congress said they received death threats after voting against Jim Jordan as speaker

Punchbowl News:
Jordan's off-ramp — It seems as if reality is finally beginning to creep into Rep. Jim Jordan's (R-Ohio) orbit.

Discussion: Axios, Washington Times, National Review, Balloon Juice, Pennsylvania Capital-Star, Semafor, Roll Call, The American Conservative, Fox News, Politico, Sean Hannity, The Hill, RedState, The National Pulse+, The American Independent, Raw Story, Media Matters for America and Daily Kos

NBC News:
Jim Jordan will back empowering interim speaker Patrick McHenry temporarily

Sarah Fortinsky / The Hill:
Rep. Bacon says his wife slept with loaded gun after ‘ugly phone calls’ over his Speaker vote

Discussion: HuffPost

Steve Reilly / The Messenger:

Jack Smith Slams Trump's Bid to Dismiss Jan. 6 Charges: ‘The Defendant Is Not Above The Law’ — Donald Trump should not be exempt from prosecution on ‘presidential immunity’ grounds, prosecutors in the special counsel's office argued in a court filing Thursday night

Discussion: Politico

Kayla Gallagher / The Messenger:

Texas City Settles Lawsuit With Biden Bus Passenger Who Says Police Ignored Calls About Trump Supporters — The lawsuit was filed by former Democratic Texas state Sen. Wendy Davis, who was on the Biden campaign bus … A Texas city on Wednesday agreed to pay a $175,000 settlement …

Discussion: Associated Press and Daily Kos

Spencer S. Hsu / Washington Post:

Special counsel urges judge to deny Trump's Jan. 6 claim of immunity — ‘The defendant is not above the law,’ prosecutors say in opposing former president's bid to toss out federal 2020 election subversion prosecution — U.S. prosecutors urged a federal judge Thursday …

Discussion: HuffPost, NPR, The Hill and Sun-Sentinel

Alan Feuer / New York Times:
Federal Prosecutors Reject Trump's Immunity Claims in Election Case

Discussion: Washington Examiner and PoliticusUSA

Marshall Cohen / CNN:

Trump attorney Sidney Powell pleads guilty in Georgia election subversion case — Former Donald Trump attorney Sidney Powell has pleaded guilty in the Georgia election subversion case, one day before her trial was set to start. — As part of her guilty plea, Powell is admitting her role …

Joyce Vance / MSNBC:
The Fulton County question that should keep Trump up at night

Discussion: ABC News, Associated Press, CBS News and Raw Story

Josh Kovensky / Talking Points Memo:
BREAKING: SIDNEY POWELL PLEADS GUILTY IN GEORGIA CASE

Discussion: Raw Story, Mother Jones, Insider, National Review, NBC4 Washington, IJR, Michigan Advance, The Daily Caller, Associated Press, The Messenger, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Outside the Beltway, Law & Crime and Zandar Versus The Stupid

Nick Robertson / The Hill:

Bidens speak with family of Palestinian-American boy killed in hate crime — President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden have spoken with the family of a Palestinian-American boy killed in a hate crime outside of Chicago this week, the White House said, amid rising anti-Muslim tensions due …

Discussion: Washington Post

Akbar Shahid Ahmed / HuffPost:
Exclusive: ‘Mutiny Brewing’ Inside State Department Over Israel-Palestine Policy

Discussion: Politico, PBS NewsHour, One America News Network, NPR and HuffPost

Ellen Mitchell / The Hill:
Biden to make prime-time case to skeptical public on Ukraine, Israel

Discussion: Reuters, The Messenger, Associated Press, The Times of Israel, The Guardian, ABC News, RedState, Al-Monitor, Atlantic Council, The New Arab, Semafor, WSAV-TV, CBS News, New York Post, HuffPost, PoliticusUSA, New York Times and Deadline

NBC News:
Biden to argue for American support of Israel and Ukraine in Oval Office address

Shawn Hubler / New York Times:

Laphonza Butler Will Not Run for Senate in 2024 — Ms. Butler, who was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom just weeks ago to fill Dianne Feinstein's seat, said she had realized that “this is not the greatest use of my voice.” — Laphonza Butler, who was appointed 18 days ago to fill …

travel.state.gov:

Worldwide Caution — Due to increased tensions in various locations around the world, the potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests, the Department of State advises U.S. citizens overseas to exercise increased caution. U.S. citizens should:

Politico:

Dean Phillips has told lawmakers he's running against Joe Biden — But one person who talked to the representative said he was still being coy. — Rep. Dean Phillips has begun signaling to fellow House members that he plans to launch a challenge to President Joe Biden.

Discussion: Washington Examiner and The Messenger

Phil Stewart / Reuters:

Exclusive: US Army charges Private Travis King with desertion over dash into North Korea — The U.S. Army has charged Private Travis King with crimes ranging from desertion for running into North Korea in July to assault against fellow soldiers and solicitation of child pornography, according to documents obtained by Reuters.

Discussion: CBS News, Fox News, Los Angeles Times, The Sun, KVUE-TV and The Daily Caller

CNN:

First on CNN: US Navy warship near Yemen intercepts multiple missiles, US officials say — A US Navy warship operating in the Middle East intercepted multiple projectiles near the coast of Yemen on Thursday, two US officials told CNN. — One of the officials said the missiles were fired …

Matthew Chapman / Raw Story:

Eric Trump hounded appraiser to inflate valuation of property on golf course: report — Former President Donald Trump's son Eric pressured a real estate executive to inflate the value of an as-yet-unbuilt 71-unit residential development at the Trump National Golf Club in Westchester County, New York, ABC News reported on Thursday.

Discussion: Associated Press, New York Post, BizPac Review and Daily Kos

Rowaida Abdelaziz / HuffPost:

More Than 400 Capitol Hill Staffers Call For Cease-Fire In Gaza — The staffers signed a letter as bloodshed escalates ― and as elected members of Congress are largely in lockstep behind the Biden administration's approach to the conflict. — Muslim and Jewish congressional staffers signed …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller, Politico and Twitchy

Tara Suter / The Hill:

Hutchinson calls Trump an ‘isolationist’ — Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) called former President Trump an “isolationist” during a Thursday forum at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, S.C. — “Donald Trump fundamentally believes in a ring around the United States,” …

Elizabeth Williamson / New York Times:

Judge Won't Let Alex Jones Use Bankruptcy to Avoid Sandy Hook Damages — A Texas court ruling means the Infowars broadcaster must pay most of the $1.4 billion he owes Sandy Hook families, regardless of whether his business survives. — The judge in Alex Jones's bankruptcy case ruled …

Zachary Warmbrodt / Politico:

Who is Patrick McHenry? A crash course on the temporary speaker — The 18-year House veteran is seen as the “adult in the room” compared to other GOP hard-liners. But it wasn't always that way. — He has “the greatest name in politics,” according to former President Donald Trump.

Discussion: USA Today, Digby's Hullabaloo, Vox, The Message Box and CBS News