memeorandum: Supreme Court rejects lawyer Michael Avenatti's appeal in Nike fraud case (Lawrence Hurley/NBC News)

11:45 AM ET, May 28, 2024

Top Items:

Dems in full-blown ‘freakout’ over Biden — One adviser to major Democratic donors keeps a running list of reasons Biden could lose. — A pervasive sense of fear has settled in at the highest levels of the Democratic Party over President Joe Biden's reelection prospects …

Discussion: Washington Examiner, New York Post, KSNG-TV, New Jersey Online, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, IJR, RedState, Fox News and Wall Street Journal

Politico:

Trump trial ends, Biden alarm accelerates — With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine — DRIVING THE DAY — FULL-BLOWN ‘FREAKOUT’ — Chris Cadelago, Sally Goldenberg and Elena Schneider take the pulse of top Democratic strategists and elected officials and report that …

Discussion: New York Times, Outside the Beltway and Sun-Sentinel

New York Times:

Eyeing Trump, but on the Fence: How Tuned-Out Voters Could Decide 2024 — Politically disengaged Americans are increasingly Trump-curious, but President Biden has a shot at winning some of them back. Reaching them in a changed media environment will be his challenge.

Discussion: Business Insider

Jonathan Allen / NBC News:
The first Biden-Trump debate of 2024 features new fights between old rivals

Discussion: Washington Examiner

Frank LaRose / Wall Street Journal:

Don't Blame Me for Biden's Ballot Problem — It's my duty as Ohio's chief elections officer to uphold the law. — In Ohio we say that if you don't like the weather, wait five minutes. The same can be said lately of our politics. — The Democratic Party's antics after its failure …

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Examiner, Ohio Capital Journal, IJR and Twitchy

Harry Davies / The Guardian:

Revealed: Israeli spy chief ‘threatened’ ICC prosecutor over war crimes inquiry — Mossad director Yossi Cohen personally involved in secret plot to pressure Fatou Bensouda to drop Palestine investigation, sources say — The former head of the Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence agency …

Discussion: Middle East Monitor, Al Jazeera, The Times of Israel, Mediaite and The New Arab

Judd Legum / Popular Information:

EXCLUSIVE: Florida educators trained to teach students Christian nationalism — Training materials produced by the Florida Department of Education direct middle and high school teachers to indoctrinate students in the tenets of Christian nationalism, a right-wing effort to merge Christian and American identities.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Raw Story

New York Times:

Live Updates: Defense Urges Jurors Not to Believe ‘Lies’ in Trump's Criminal Trial — Closing arguments have begun in the trial of Donald J. Trump, who faces 34 felony counts in connection with a hush-money payment to a porn star before the 2016 election. The jury could have the case by Wednesday.

Discussion: The Bulwark, CBS News, Gizmodo, Forbes, New York Daily News, NBC News, Axios, The Guardian, The Mahablog and Political Wire

New York Times:

Trump Leans Into an Outlaw Image as His Criminal Trial Concludes — Preparing for a potential verdict in Manhattan, the former president has increasingly aligned himself with fellow defendants and people convicted of crimes. — Over the past week, Donald J. Trump rallied alongside …

Discussion: Raw Story, Slate and Punchbowl News

Lawrence Hurley / NBC News:

Supreme Court rejects lawyer Michael Avenatti's appeal in Nike fraud case — The jailed lawyer, who previously represented adult film star Stormy Daniels, was convicted of trying to extort Nike. — WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected disgraced lawyer Michael Avenatti's appeal …

Discussion: USA Today, Reuters, Raw Story, CBS News and Law & Crime

Nidal Al-Mughrabi / Reuters:

Israeli tanks advance into Rafah's centre despite global outcry — Israeli tanks advanced to the centre of Rafah for the first time on Tuesday, witnesses said, three weeks into a ground offensive in the southern Gaza city that has stirred global condemnation for its continued civilian toll.

Discussion: The Hill, The Daily Beast, The Guardian, The Times of Israel, Middle East Monitor, Al-Monitor, The National, New York Post, Semafor, Associated Press and New York Times

New York Times:

The Untold Story of the Network That Took Down Roe v. Wade … It happened almost by accident, over cocktails. Exactly the kind of accident that Leonard Leo intended to happen at his Federalist Society's annual conference — a three-day gathering of the conservative tribe and a strategy session …

Brittany Gibson / Politico:

Republicans irked that Herschel Walker is sitting on millions in unspent campaign funds — They say his money could go a long way to help the GOP. — Few are clamoring for Herschel Walker's return to politics since he flamed out in his Georgia Senate bid nearly two years ago.

Discussion: IJR

Melinda French Gates / New York Times:

Melinda French Gates's Philanthropy Will Include Abortion Rights — Many years ago, I received this piece of advice: “Set your own agenda, or someone else will set it for you.” I've carried those words with me ever since. — That's why, next week, I will leave the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation …

Discussion: CBS News, The Hill, Axios, LifeNews.com and The 19th

Robert Downen / The Texas Tribune:

At Texas GOP convention, Republicans call for spiritual warfare — At the three-day convention, delegates moved the needle further to the right, preaching Christian nationalism and approving rules that would give them unprecedented control of elections. — SAN ANTONIO — From his booth …

Discussion: Lawyers, Guns & Money