memeorandum: Biden warns Iran not to attack American troops as Israel-Hamas war continues (USA Today)

2:40 PM ET, October 25, 2023

Top Items:

Stephen Collinson / CNN:

Trump rages as former acolytes turn against him under legal heat — Donald Trump's wealth, power and fame acted like a magnet for new associates keen to enter his orbit. But now, key figures who sought a share of his reflected glory are turning against him to save themselves.

Charlie Sykes / The Bulwark:

A Coup on His Resume — A note for historians (and psychologists): … The Bulwark is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. — Trump reminded the GOP that he remains the apex predator in the party.

Discussion: Bloomberg, The Dispatch, Associated Press and Insider

Washington Post:

Live updates House expected to vote on Republican Mike Johnson as speaker — The House is expected to vote Wednesday on whether to install Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.) as its speaker. Late Tuesday, Johnson became the fourth Republican pick for the post since the ouster of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) three weeks ago.

Washington Post:

5 things to know about Mike Johnson, the GOP's latest House speaker nominee — Republicans in the House of Representatives picked Rep. Mike Johnson (La.), who serves as vice chairman of the House Republican Conference, as their fourth nominee for the speakership.

CNN:

Who is Rep. Mike Johnson, the House GOP's latest speaker nominee? — Rep. Mike Johnson, Republicans' latest nominee to be the next speaker of the House, has been a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump and was a key congressional figure in the failed efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

Bethany Irvine / Politico:

Playbook PM: The first MAGA speaker? — Here's one you probably didn't have on your 2023 bingo card: House Speaker MIKE JOHNSON. — After 22 days of speakerless chaos and division (as opposed to the normal chaos and division, which happens with a speaker), Johnson (R-La.) …

Discussion: Fox News, Mother Jones, Raw Story, Crooks and Liars, Mediaite and Political Wire

Rachael Bade / Politico:

Take four: Can Mike Johnson get 217? — The wonkish Louisiana conservative appears poised to break the House GOP's speaker stalemate. — Twenty-two days. Fourteen candidates. Four nominees. Three floor votes (and counting). — Could House Republicans finally be on the cusp of a breakthrough in their search for a speaker?

Discussion: Semafor, NBC News, The Hill, CBS News and Political Wire

Summer Concepcion / NBC News:

GOP speaker nominee Mike Johnson played a key role in efforts to overturn the 2020 election — Johnson, the latest Republican nominee for House speaker, led an amicus brief in support of a Texas lawsuit seeking to overturn Joe Biden's 2020 victory in four battleground states.

Discussion: New York Times, Mediaite, Media Matters for America, Insider, Vanity Fair, HuffPost, The Hill, New Republic, CNN, The Messenger, The Guardian, ABC News, IJR and Associated Press

NBC News:
Who is Mike Johnson? Five things to know about the Republican nominee for speaker

Discussion: Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Semafor, NBC4 Washington, Washington Examiner, Raw Story, Rolling Stone, Forbes, Newsweek, Talking Points Memo, Political Wire and The Messenger

Punchbowl News:
10/25/23 ☀️ Punchbowl News AM

Discussion: Semafor, Washington Examiner, The Messenger, RedState, Axios, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Beast, The Hill, BizPac Review, Mock Paper Scissors, Political Wire and CBS News

Carl Hulse / New York Times:
Another Day of G.O.P. Chaos Winds Up With Speaker Nominee No. 4

Discussion: Washington Post and The Messenger

The Hill:
House GOP gives Mike Johnson Speaker nod after whirlwind Emmer dropout

Phil Williams / WTVF-TV:

Voters soundly reject Gabrielle Hanson, other MAGA candidates in historic Franklin, Tennessee election — FRANKLIN, Tenn. (WTVF) — In perhaps the most bizarre race that this picturesque Middle Tennessee community has ever experienced, Franklin voters resoundingly rejected a candidate for mayor …

Discussion: Associated Press, The Messenger, Raw Story and The Daily Beast

Wall Street Journal:

Israel Agrees to Delay Invasion of Gaza So U.S. Can Rush Missile Defenses to Region — Israel has agreed, for now, to a request from the U.S. to get its air defenses in place to protect U.S. troops in the region ahead of an expected ground invasion of Gaza, U.S. and Israeli officials said.

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon, HotAir, inews.co.uk, TASS, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, BizPac Review, NewsNation and israelhayom.com

Politico:
Biden is worried about wider war in the Middle East. Here's how it could happen.

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Axios, Breitbart, Washington Post, Semafor, Reuters and The Hill

Philip Bump / Washington Post:

It's the culture war, stupid: How Republicans view the presidency — One of the central refrains of Donald Trump's campaign for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination — a refrain focused, justifiably, on a general election rematch against President Biden — is that the economy was more robust during his tenure in the White House.

PRRI:

Threats to American Democracy Ahead of an Unprecedented Presidential Election — Introduction — In this divided era of American politics, the nation turns its eyes toward an unprecedented presidential election, with two of the oldest leading candidates in history …

Discussion: Washington Post, Axios, Breitbart, Mock Paper Scissors, The Hill and WITF

The Hill:

Titanic Trump: Co-defendants flee sinking MAGA ship — The Titanic, then the world's largest ship, was considered unsinkable when it began its maiden voyage in 1912 — until it hit an iceberg and sank. Donald Trump's presidential campaign is considered unstoppable by many today …

Discussion: Politico and Media Matters for America

David French / New York Times:
Trump's Lawyers Are Going Down. Is He? — On Tuesday morning, Jenna Ellis became …

Discussion: Bloomberg, Raw Story, Reason, Vanity Fair, Semafor, JONATHAN TURLEY, Blaze Media, One America News Network, CBS News, The Daily Caller, Los Angeles Times and Associated Press

Jacob Shamsian / Insider:
Sidney Powell pushes claims that 2020 election was rigged and prosecutors ‘extorted’ her after she pleaded guilty to election interference

Discussion: Raw Story and Media Matters for America

USA Today:

Biden warns Iran not to attack American troops as Israel-Hamas war continues — Joey Garrison Francesca ChambersUSA TODAY — WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said he issued a stark warning to Iran's ayatollah that the U.S. would respond if his nation continues to move against U.S. troops in the region.

Discussion: Washington Examiner, ScheerPost.com, NBC News and TASS

Lara Seligman / Politico:
Several U.S. troops report brain injury from attacks in Iraq and Syria

Discussion: The Hill, CNN, Breitbart, FDD, New York Post, The Messenger and Washington Examiner

U.S. Department of Defense:
Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder Holds an On-Camera Press Briefing

Discussion: The White House, Washington Examiner and Informed Comment

Martin Pengelly / The Guardian:

Trump made crude Oval Office remark about fate of Kurds in Syria, book says — Ex-president interrupted briefing to ask why he should ‘give a fuck’ about Kurds amid US troop withdrawal, Adam Kinzinger writes — Donald Trump surprised his own national security adviser and a group …

Discussion: Raw Story and Political Wire

Chuck Todd / NBC News:

Mitt Romney sounds one last alarm on Trump — Ever since the rise of Donald Trump, many folks involved in politics have theorized about how we got here — and done a little introspection about whether anyone could have stopped him. — But my assumption is that there are three people alive today …

Discussion: Insider and BizPac Review

emptywheel:

Cautions on ABC's Huge Mark Meadows Scoop — For more than six months, access journalists in DC have been trying to confirm how much Mark Meadows cooperated with Jack Smith. — Today, ABC has a huge scoop reporting that Meadows testified at least three times, one time — before a grand jury — with immunity.

Discussion: Politico, Mediaite, Raw Story and HuffPost

ABC News:
Ex-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows granted immunity, tells special counsel he warned Trump about 2020 claims: Sources

David Moye / HuffPost:
Mark Meadows Flipped, And People Are Imagining How Trump Will React

Discussion: Mediaite, Raw Story, The Hill, CBS News, Talking Points Memo, CNN and The Messenger

Politico:

Republicans pray for an early voting reversal in Virginia — The Republican Party under President Donald Trump has abandoned the practice. Glenn Youngkin is betting Virginia Republicans can be convinced otherwise. — GLEN ALLEN, Va. — Gov. Glenn Youngkin is trying to get Republican voters …

Discussion: National Review, The Hill, Washington Examiner, The Messenger and Axios

Washington Post:
Youngkin bets 15-week abortion limit is winner in Virginia and beyond

Discussion: Rolling Stone, Fox News and The Messenger

Matthew Kassel / Jewish Insider:

North Carolina lt. governor quoted Hitler in newly unearthed social media posts — Mark Robinson, the leading GOP candidate for governor, also likened the toppling of a Confederate statue to Kristallnacht, among other incendiary remarks — Mark Robinson, the lieutenant governor of North Carolina …

Discussion: acecomments.mu.nu and Political Wire