memeorandum: New 9/11 Evidence Points to Deep Saudi Complicity (The Atlantic)

7:05 PM ET, May 20, 2024

Top Items:

Statement of ICC Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan KC: Applications for arrest warrants in the situation in the State of Palestine — Today I am filing applications for warrants of arrest before Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court in the Situation in the State of Palestine.

CNN:

EXCLUSIVE: ICC seeks arrest warrants against Sinwar and Netanyahu for war crimes over October 7 attack and Gaza war — The International Criminal Court is seeking arrest warrants for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes …

The White House:

Statement from President Joe Biden on the Warrant Applications by the International Criminal Court — The ICC prosecutor's application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is outrageous. And let me be clear: whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence — none — between Israel and Hamas.

Discussion: Breitbart, Mother Jones, New York Times, Washington Examiner, Reuters, IJR and Just Security

Aaron Boxerman / New York Times:
Former Trump Officials Meet in Israel With Netanyahu

Discussion: Associated Press, Washington Examiner, Fox News, Just Security, The Guardian, The Times of Israel, Middle East Monitor, Breitbart, Forbes, New York Post, Reuters, The Gateway Pundit, The American Conservative and IJR

Financial Times:
Why we support ICC prosecutions for crimes in Israel and Gaza

Discussion: New York Times, Bloomberg, Hartford Courant, Reuters, Breitbart, The Guardian, The Times of Israel, Mediaite, Al Jazeera, RTÉ, Odin's B-Log, Middle East Monitor, The Hollywood Reporter and Washington Examiner

Kara Kennedy / Washington Free Beacon:
ICC Seeks Arrest Warrants Against Israeli Leaders

Discussion: USA Today, Washington Examiner, Reuters, Al Jazeera, Politico, Exposing the role …, Just Security, The Times of Israel, TMZ.com, New York Post, The Guardian, New Republic, Associated Press and Washington Post

CNBC:

Trump trial: Judge clears press from courtroom to scold defense witness for rolling eyes, talking back … Judge Juan Merchan on Monday cleared members of the press from his courtroom to deliver a lesson in “proper decorum” after a witness called by Donald Trump's lawyers gave the judge an attitude on the stand.

New York Times:

Prosecution Rests Case in Trump Trial as Defense Targets Cohen Again — Michael D. Cohen, Donald J. Trump's former fixer, was the last witness called to the stand by prosecutors. He made the hush-money payment that underpins the case, and the defense called his one-time legal adviser.

Discussion: Axios, USA Today, NPR, NBC News, Forbes, Vanity Fair, HuffPost, Mediaite and Althouse

Bonchie / RedState:

Alvin Bragg's Case in Shambles After Michael Cohen Admits to Stealing From Trump and More — It's not quite time for closing arguments in the New York-based criminal case against Donald Trump, but the crescendo is building. — On Monday, disgraced felon Michael Cohen retook the stand …

Discussion: acecomments.mu.nu

Politico:
Trump claims he wants to testify at his trial. No one else thinks he should.

Discussion: New York Times, Reuters, Axios, Vanity Fair, Raw Story, New Jersey Online, Daily Kos, New Republic, IJR and Mediaite

Emma Colton / Fox News:
Cohen's bombshell admission could lead to hung jury, if not acquittal: expert

Discussion: Washington Post, The Daily Caller, Breitbart, PJ Media, Courthouse News Service, UPI, RTÉ, Raw Story, Forbes, Washington Examiner and WKBN-TV

New York Times:
Closing Arguments in Trump's Trial Will Likely Be Next Week, Judge Says

Discussion: Associated Press, Forbes, Washington Examiner and Raw Story

Politico:

The one thing US fears after Iranian president's death — Biden administration officials still fear Iran could blame the U.S. or Israel for the helicopter crash that killed Ebrahim Raisi. — The Biden administration is closely watching how Iran reacts to the sudden death of its president …

Discussion: New York Times, Associated Press, Daily Mail, Atlantic Council, Israpundit and The Times of Israel

Karen Townsend / HotAir:
Iranian Women Celebrate the Death of President Raisi

Discussion: Washington Examiner, TIME, Newsweek, RedState, Middle East Monitor, Middle East Forum, Al-Monitor, Reuters, Politico, The Times of Israel, Al Jazeera and Associated Press

Reuters:
Iranian President Raisi feared dead as helicopter wreckage found

United States Department of State:
On the Death of Iranian President Raisi and Others in a Helicopter Crash

Jon Gambrell / Associated Press:
Iran's president, foreign minister and others found dead at helicopter crash site, state media says

Wall Street Journal:

FDIC Chairman Martin Gruenberg to Resign Following Report Detailing Sexual Harassment at Agency — Gruenberg plans to stay until successor is confirmed, avoiding scenario that would leave a Republican as acting chairman — Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Martin Gruenberg bowed …

Discussion: Washington Post, CNN, NPR, Associated Press, NBC News, Washington Examiner, Bloomberg, RedState, CNBC, Reuters, Fox Business, UPI and Semafor

Victoria Guida / Politico:
Embattled FDIC chair to step down when a successor is confirmed

Discussion: Bloomberg, Forbes, New York Times, CNN, Associated Press, Washington Examiner and RedState

New York Times:

A Former Leader of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Gang Joins Trump in Court — Chuck Zito, who did time on drug conspiracy charges, has tried to recast his persona as a general-purpose tough guy around town. — An entourage of more than a dozen supporters who joined President Donald J. Trump …

Discussion: New Republic, Raw Story and Mediaite

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Trump's Social Media Company Posts Q1 Revenue of $770,500 and Net Loss of $327.6 Million — Trump Media and Technology Group, the company affiliated with former U.S. president Donald Trump that operates Truth Social, reported $770,500 in revenue for the first quarter of 2024 and a net loss of $327.6 million.

Discussion: CNBC, CBS News, New York Times and Associated Press, more at Mediagazer »

The Atlantic:

New 9/11 Evidence Points to Deep Saudi Complicity — Two decades of U.S. policy appear to be rooted in a mistaken understanding of what happened that day. — For more than two decades, through two wars and domestic upheaval, the idea that al-Qaeda acted alone on 9/11 has been the basis of U.S. policy.

Discussion: Hartford Courant

Kevin Breuninger / CNBC:

Supreme Court Justice Alito sold Bud Light stock, then bought Coors during boycott … Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito sold shares of beer giant Anheuser-Busch InBev as conservatives were ditching the Bud Light brewer over its partnership with a transgender social media influencer.

Discussion: National Review

Chris Geidner / Law Dork:
Exclusive: Justice Alito sold Bud Light stock amidst anti-trans boycott effort

Discussion: New Republic, Slate, The Daily Beast, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Twitchy, The Independent, New York Post, The Federalist and Althouse

ProPublica:

Toxic Gaslighting: How 3M Executives Convinced a Scientist the Forever Chemicals She Found in Human Blood Were Safe — Decades ago, Kris Hansen showed 3M that its PFAS chemicals were in people's bodies. Her bosses halted her work. As the EPA now forces the removal of the chemicals from drinking water …

Discussion: The Hill and New Yorker

Will Bunch / The Philadelphia Inquirer:

Scared about America losing democracy? Texas is already gone — “I might go to Dallas to murder looters,” a then-active duty U.S. Army sergeant named Daniel Perry texted a friend in the spring of 2020, as protest marches over the police murder of George Floyd swept across Texas and the nation.

Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo and NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

Rolling Stone:

Giuliani Was Tracked Down by Arizona AG Because He Couldn't Stop Posting — Rudy Giuliani was dodging being served his Arizona indictment. Agents found him in Florida based on “his nightly live video streams” … According to two people who talked to him about it …

Discussion: Vanity Fair, Slate, The Guardian, Raw Story, New Republic, The Mahablog and Business Insider

Gram Slattery / Reuters:

Exclusive: Donald Trump foreign policy advisers met Israeli PM Netanyahu, source says — Three former U.S. foreign policy officials in Donald Trump's administration met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other public figures in Israel on Monday, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.

Brad McElhinny / WV MetroNews:

Sources: Manchin is being encouraged to hop into governor's race against Morrisey — Sources close to Senator Joe Manchin, a mainstay of Democratic politics in West Virginia, say he is being encouraged to run for governor. — Two sources confirmed that the outreach comes from Republicans …

Discussion: Washington Examiner

Allysia Finley / Wall Street Journal:

Gavin Newsom's Battleground Gift to Donald Trump — The governor's war on gasoline will hike prices in California, but also Arizona and Nevada. — Is Gavin Newsom trying to help Donald Trump? You have to wonder from the California governor's plan to raise gasoline prices in Nevada and Arizona before the November election.

Discussion: New York Post

NBC News:

Nevada abortion rights groups submit signatures to advance ballot measure — An amendment that would enshrine abortion rights in the Nevada constitution is now one step closer to making the November ballot. — A proposed amendment to enshrine access to abortion in Nevada's constitution …

Discussion: USA Today, Associated Press and Off the Kuff