memeorandum: Statement of the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Ethics Regarding Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (House Committee on Ethics)

8:20 PM ET, December 27, 2023

Top Items:

Zach Schonfeld / The Hill:

Trump demands recusal of Maine secretary of state in 14th Amendment determination — Former President Trump on Wednesday demanded the Maine secretary of state recuse herself from her upcoming decision on the former president's ballot eligibility under the 14th Amendment, citing her past statements about the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

Discussion: RedState, Talking Points Memo, The Post Millennial, DNyuz, New York Post, Raw Story, The Daily Caller, The Maine Wire, Truthout and The Messenger

Daniel Barnes / NBC News:

Special counsel Jack Smith seeks to block Trump from making ‘political attacks’ during trial — Smith also asked the court to prohibit Trump from blaming law enforcement for the attack on Jan. 6, 2021. — WASHINGTON — Special counsel Jack Smith filed a motion Wednesday …

Discussion: Raw Story, Fox News, Wall Street Journal, HotAir, Deseret News and American Greatness

Jane Coaston / New York Times:
Tim Alberta on Why Evangelical Politics Was Ready for Trump

Discussion: Raw Story and Mediaite

Marshall Cohen / CNN:
Michigan Supreme Court rejects ‘insurrectionist ban’ case and keeps Trump on 2024 primary ballot

Danny Hakim / New York Times:
A Fake Trump Elector in Michigan Told Prosecutors of Regret, Anger

Discussion: The Hill, HuffPost, REALITYCHEX.COM, Raw Story, Political Wire and Election Law Blog

Axios:
Exclusive data: Trump lowers his own social media punch

Discussion: Metro.co.uk, Truthout, DNyuz, The Messenger, The Hill, Raw Story and The Daily Beast

Jose Pagliery / The Daily Beast:
Trump Is Testing the Bounds of Presidential Immunity—and Losing

Discussion: Salon, RedState, Raw Story, New York Daily News and Business Insider

Patrick Marley / Washington Post:
Michigan Supreme Court allows Trump to appear on 2024 primary ballot

Discussion: Townhall, California Globe, DNyuz, One America News Network, Raw Story, New York Daily News, CBS News, The Messenger, IJR, Washington Examiner and Grabien News

House Committee on Ethics:

Statement of the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Ethics Regarding Representative Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick — Pursuant to Committee Rule 7, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Ethics (Committee) determined to release the following statement:

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, Roll Call, Sun-Sentinel, Florida Politics, The Messenger and Political Wire

Kimberly Leonard / Politico:
House Ethics launches investigation into Florida Democrat

Discussion: USA Today, The Hill, Washington Examiner, New York Post, Daily Caller News Foundation, The Daily Beast, DNyuz and Mediaite

William Grimes / New York Times:

Tom Smothers, Comic Half of the Smothers Brothers, Dies at 86 — Though he played a naïve buffoon onstage, he was the driving force behind the folk-singing duo's groundbreaking TV show. — Tom Smothers, the older half of the comic folk duo the Smothers Brothers, whose skits and songs on …

Mike Barnes / The Hollywood Reporter:

Tom Smothers, Comedian, Musician and Scourge of CBS Censors, Dies at 86 — He and his brother, Dick, “turned television upside down” on ‘The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour’ before they were canned. — Tom Smothers, the countercultural comedy icon admired for the 1960s variety program …

Discussion: The Hill, TMZ.com, The Post Millennial, Billboard and UPI

Holly Otterbein / Politico:

John Fetterman isn't the politician you thought he'd be — and he doesn't care — John Fetterman's had a rollercoaster of a year. — In January, he was sworn into office as Pennsylvania's new Democratic senator despite suffering from a debilitating stroke on the campaign trail.

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Talking Points Memo, The National Pulse+, The Daily Caller, The Hill, Raw Story, UPROXX, Mediaite, Blaze Media, The Messenger, IJR, Fox News and Business Insider

Miranda Nazzaro / The Hill:

These states have the most LGBTQ residents: Research — California has the largest number of LGBTQ Americans, according to new research, while Washington, D.C., has the greatest percentage of LGBTQ residents and the South claims a larger share of LGBTQ adults than any other region.

Discussion: USA Today and The Daily Caller

Wills Robinson / Daily Mail:

One in five young Americans has a POSITIVE view of Osama Bin Laden: Disturbing Daily Mail poll results also reveal three in 10 Gen-Zers think the views of the 9/11 mastermind were a ‘force for good’ — Alarming poll results show some voters under 30 are sympathetic to Bin Laden

Discussion: Mediaite, The Post Millennial, Breitbart and Instapundit

David Strom / HotAir:
30% of Young Americans Think Osama bin Laden was “A Force for Good”

Discussion: Washington Times

Natalie Allison / Politico:

'You're asking me about risk of embarrassment?': Why Asa Hutchinson is still running for president — He is testing the limits of just how long an accomplished conservative can withstand rejection and rebuke from his own party's base. — Asa Hutchinson, left, greets customers …

Discussion: The Hill, The Messenger and National Review

Brooke Singman / Fox News:

Melania Trump spends Christmas with ailing mother, missing Mar-a-Lago celebration — It should be no surprise that she spent this Christmas with her ailing mother,' a source tells Fox News Digital — Read this article for free! — Plus get unlimited access to thousands of articles, videos and more with your free account!

Discussion: Page Six, Metro.co.uk, Us Weekly, Breitbart, Mercury News, DNyuz, Raw Story, The Daily Caller, The Daily Beast and The National Pulse+

USA Today:

Herb Kohl, former U.S. senator and Milwaukee Bucks owner, dies at age 88 — Amy Rabideau Silvers, Craig Gilbert and Bill GlauberUSA TODAY Network — Herb Kohl, the former U.S. senator, Milwaukee Bucks owner and retail shopping magnate, died Wednesday afternoon at the age of 88 after a brief illness.

Discussion: The Hill, The Daily Beast, Associated Press, TMJ4 News, New York Post, New York Times and DNyuz

New York Times:

In Bid to Slow Migrant Surge, Adams Restricts Bus Arrivals Into New York — In an executive order, Mayor Eric Adams required bus companies to provide advance notice of trips or face criminal charges. — Mayor Eric Adams placed limits for the first time on Wednesday on how migrants arrive in New York …

Discussion: Politico, The Messenger, Fox News, Associated Press, One America News Network, 77 WABC, New York Daily News, New York Post, Gothamist and abc7NY

Dan Ladden-Hall / The Daily Beast:

Trans Actress Accuses Delta Staff of ‘Human Rights Violation’ in Viral Row — Tommy Dorfman claimed one of the airline workers had “intentionally” referred to her with the wrong pronoun. — Transgender actress Tommy Dorfman accused Delta Air Lines workers of committing a “human rights violation” …

Discussion: RedState

Maura Zurick / Newsweek:
Viral Video of Trans Actress Being Misgendered by Delta Staff Sparks Debate

Discussion: RedState, acecomments.mu.nu, Page Six, TMZ.com, Louder With Crowder, Blaze Media, The Daily Caller, The Messenger, IJR, Washington Examiner, The Gateway Pundit and The Post Millennial

Michael Hirsh / Politico:

The Biden Administration Is Quietly Shifting Its Strategy in Ukraine — For two years, Biden and Zelenskyy have been focused on driving Russia from Ukraine. Now Washington is discussing a move to a more defensive posture. — President Joe Biden has shifted from promising the U.S. would back Ukraine for …

Discussion: Daily Kos, Daily Caller News Foundation, The Universe As A Causal Set and New York Post

Gabrielle M. Etzel / Washington Examiner:

What the House investigation into COVID-19 origins has turned up after one year — have made inroads into unraveling some of the mysteries surrounding the origins of COVID-19 three years after the pandemic swept the world. — The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic was tasked …

Discussion: Twitchy, Blaze Media, Balloon Juice and The Daily Caller

Rolling Stone:

Trump Demands MAGA Group Give Him ‘Millions.’ That's Not Legal, Experts Say — Trump wants a cut from a think tank raising money to support his agenda and staff his administration, sources tell Rolling Stone. … At least that's how former President Donald Trump sees it.

Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo and Raw Story

United States Capitol Police:

USCP Officers Arrest Man with Machete & Knife outside the U.S. Capitol — Yesterday afternoon, United States Capitol Police (USCP) officers arrested a man who was carrying a machete and a knife on the East Front of the U.S. Capitol. — “This is another example of the vigilance …

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, The Hill, Roll Call, New York Post and Daily Caller News Foundation

Washington Post:

After Sandy Hook, they voted no. Now these senators want new gun laws. — Reflecting on a decade of mass killings and surging AR-15 sales, four current and three former senators recant some or all of their 2013 positions on gun laws in emotional interviews with The Post

Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo, The Messenger, The Mahablog, Mediaite and The Hill

New York Times:

Trump Is Not the Only Reason to Fix This Uniquely Dangerous Law — The Insurrection Act is a dangerous centuries-old federal statute that authorizes the president, with few restraints, to deploy the U.S. military inside the United States to suppress threats the president perceives to the constitutional order.

Discussion: Raw Story

The Messenger:

House Republicans Demand to Know If President Biden Influenced Son's ‘Scheme’ to Defy Subpoena — Hunter Biden held a press conference blasting GOP lawmakers' efforts to impeach his father instead of giving his scheduled testimony — House Oversight Chair James Comer, R-Ky. …