memeorandum: U.S. strikes Iran-backed militias in Iraq after troops are wounded in drone attack (Washington Post)

6:55 AM ET, December 27, 2023

Top Items:

Eric Bazail-Eimil / Politico:

Trump shares cryptic ‘dictatorship’ word cloud on Truth Social — It's not the first time Trump has called himself a dictator, but it's the first time he's said it via word cloud. — Voters surveyed by the Daily Mail described former President Donald Trump's political goals as “corruption,” “revenge” and “dictatorship.”

Discussion: Axios, Daily Mail, Althouse and Twitchy

Rob Crilly / Daily Mail:

Voters describe their 2024 choice between a Trump second term and a Biden second term as a choice between REVENGE or NOTHING in Daily Mail poll — JL Partners asked 1000 voters for a word to sum up Biden and Trump's plans — The results suggest the nation has a bleak view of the 2024 candidates

Discussion: The Messenger, Raw Story, Mediaite, The Hill, Axios, The Daily Beast, Breitbart, Business Insider, New Republic, Washington Examiner and The Post Millennial

Alex Seitz-Wald / NBC News:
2024 wild card: A banner year for third-party candidates

Discussion: Breitbart and Vox

Anat Shenker-Osorio / New York Times:
A Trump Conviction Could Cost Him Enough Voters to Tip the Election

Discussion: Civil Discourse …, Raw Story, Mediaite, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Daily Caller, USA Today, The Japan Times, CNN and Digby's Hullabaloo

NBC News:

Vivek Ramaswamy's campaign stops all TV ad spending less than a month before Iowa and New Hampshire — A spokesperson for the GOP candidate's presidential campaign said it has “the ability to be nimble and hyper targeted” in ad spending going forward. — Vivek Ramaswamy's presidential campaign …

Discussion: The Messenger, DNyuz, Mediaite, New York Times, New York Post, Raw Story, The Hill, Axios, Blaze Media and Political Wire

Debra Kahn / Politico:

Ramaswamy campaign stops TV ad spending — The biotech entrepreneur's campaign for the Republican nomination has been sputtering in recent months. — Vivek Ramaswamy's presidential campaign has ceased spending on television advertising ahead of next month's Republican presidential contests, NBC News reported Tuesday.

Discussion: DNyuz, Mediaite and The Messenger

Danika Fears / The Daily Beast:

Melania Thinks It's Time to ‘Leave Her Mark on History’ — OUT OF THE SHADOWS — Melania Trump is reportedly ready for her moment in the spotlight. The former first lady, who's made only a handful of public appearances since Donald Trump left office, was reportedly encouraged by her …

Discussion: Balloon Juice, The Gateway Pundit, Metro.co.uk and Political Wire

Larry Neumeister / Associated Press:

1st Amendment claim struck down in Project Veritas case focused on diary of Biden's daughter — Criminal prosecutors may soon get to see over 900 documents pertaining to the alleged theft of a diary belonging to President Joe Biden's daughter after a judge rejected the conservative group Project Veritas' First Amendment claim.

Discussion: Axios, DNyuz, Vanity Fair, The Messenger and Press Herald, more at Mediagazer »

Bloomberg:

Schaeuble, German Minister and Fiscal Guardian, Dies at 81 — Schaeuble oversaw balanced budgets, helped in reunification — Merkel appointed him as German finance minister in 2009 — Wolfgang Schaeuble, who helped forge German reunification before being toppled from party leadership …

Discussion: Reuters and Associated Press

Wall Street Journal:

The DEI Rollback of 2023 — States start to limit programs that sow racial and political division. — The diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) bureaucracy on campus has proliferated in recent years, but there are signs it's finally meeting resistance. The latest good news is from Wisconsin …

Associated Press:

Prosecutors oppose Sen. Bob Menendez's effort to delay May bribery trial until July — NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors on Tuesday urged a judge to reject U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez's request to delay his bribery trial scheduled for next spring by two months, until July.

Discussion: DNyuz, New York Post, New Jersey Globe and The Messenger

New York Times:

After Nashville School Shooting, Parents Push for Gun Control Action — A group of parents reeling from a mass shooting at their children's private Christian school believed no one was in a better position to persuade the G.O.P. to enact limited gun control. — Mary Joyce told herself she would be kind, just as she always had been.

Discussion: Raw Story

Washington Post:

U.S. strikes Iran-backed militias in Iraq after troops are wounded in drone attack — U.S. forces launched retaliatory airstrikes against Iranian-backed militias in Iraq on Monday after a drone attack that injured three service members, the Pentagon said, the latest response to dozens …

Discussion: The Messenger, FDD, Breitbart, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Axios, Associated Press, Washington Examiner, Semafor, France 24, The Post Millennial, abc7NY, DNyuz, Reuters, KSDK-TV, IJR, USA Today and The White House

Jake Swearingen / Business Insider:

An avalanche of money is coming to kick Lauren Boebert out of Congress — Lauren Boebert was nearly unseated in 2022 by Adam Frisch, a Democrat who's running again in 2024. — He's raised more money than all but two members of Congress and the most of any nonincumbent.

Discussion: TIME, Mock Paper Scissors, The Messenger and Raw Story

Zach Schonfeld / The Hill:

Appeals court wipes conviction for ex-congressman — A federal appeals court panel wiped ex-Rep. Jeff Fortenberry's (R-Neb.) conviction of lying to the FBI about an illegal campaign contribution, ruling Tuesday that he was not tried in the proper venue. — Last year, a jury sitting …

Discussion: New York Times, UPI, Axios, USA Today, The Gateway Pundit, Politico, NBC News, New York Post, CBS News, Nebraska Examiner, Roll Call, Rolling Stone, Raw Story, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, The Daily Beast and DNyuz

Associated Press:

Israeli military says Gaza ground offensive has expanded into urban refugee camps — Gaza's more than 54,500 wounded include a growing number of amputees. Health officials say overwhelmed hospitals at times had to amputate limbs, which in normal times could have been saved.