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11:30 AM ET, May 21, 2026

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Noah Shachtman / New York Times:
Trump Just Took Us Somewhere the Country Has Never Been Before  —  Donald Trump has been thinking a lot about his place in history.  That's one of the reasons, according to recent reporting by The Atlantic and The Times, why he's paying so little attention to his plummeting popularity …
Discussion: Los Angeles Times, MS NOW and Mediaite
RELATED:
Glenn Thrush / New York Times:
Trump's Fund Shows Blanche Choosing Loyalty Over Pushing Back  —  Once seen by some as the most conventional of President Trump's political appointees, Todd Blanche has taken off the gloves in his new role as acting attorney general.  —  Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general …
Discussion: CNN, The Independent and Raw Story
Jeffrey Toobin / New York Times:
Trump Just Pardoned Himself and His Family Forever  —  For decades there have been disagreements among constitutional scholars about whether a president can pardon himself.  But Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general, just gave President Trump something even better: pre-emptive exoneration …
Meryl Kornfield / Washington Post:
Trump's allies are already lining up to apply to his $1.8 billion fund  —  Jan. 6 rioters, George Santos, Mark McCloskey and Rod Blagojevich: A wide range of figures are eyeing the president's new settlement fund.  —  Summary  —  Mark McCloskey is eagerly waiting for details to emerge …
Peter Baker / New York Times:   Trump's Government Moves to Spare an Unhappy Taxpayer Named Trump
New York Times:
Trump's $1.8 Billion Slush Fund Will Benefit Criminals and the President Himself
Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff / Reuters:
'I'm not greedy': January 6 rioters and Trump allies eye $1.8 billion ‘weaponization’ fund
Punchbowl News:
5/21/26☀️ AM: … Senate Republicans are preparing to buck President Donald Trump on two of his long-running obsessions: the White House ballroom project and the “weaponization” of federal agencies against his allies. … But Republican leaders are making clear they'd rather risk …
RELATED:
Politico:   Dems' midterm attack plan
Jordain Carney / Politico:
Ballroom won't be funded after Senate GOP drops $1 billion Trump security request
Melody Schreiber / The Guardian:
US is ‘simply choosing not to stop’ Ebola outbreak after massive public health cuts, experts say  —  Hundreds of cases reported in the DRC after USAID has been dismantled and key scientific research canceled  —  A previously undetected outbreak of Ebola is coursing through parts of central Africa …
RELATED:
Washington Post:
Ebola responders say aid cuts by Western nations left them ill-equipped for outbreak  —  The sweeping aid cuts have left the Democratic Republic of Congo struggling to contain an Ebola outbreak despite its extensive experience with the disease.  —  Summary
Discussion: Wired
Politico:
What Ebola and hantavirus are revealing about America's public health system
Discussion: NPR and Gothamist
New York Times:
Democrats' Midterm Strength Masks Fierce Divides and Frustration, Poll Shows  —  Democratic voters are in a combative, anti-establishment mood, unhappy with their party and disagreeing about its best path forward, a New York Times/Siena poll found.  —  The Democratic Party is entering …
Discussion: The Hill
CNN:
Read the DNC's 2024 autopsy obtained by CNN  —  Democratic Natl Committee Democratic Natl Convention US elections  —  CNN is publishing a copy of a report into why Democrats lost the 2024 presidential election conducted at the request of Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin.
RELATED:
New York Times:
A $5 Million Donation From Big Tobacco Preceded F.D.A. Vape Decision  —  Reynolds American's contribution to MAGA Inc. came about one week before the Trump administration announced a new policy on e-cigarettes the company had sought.  —  The tobacco company Reynolds American donated $5 million …
Discussion: MS NOW and Raw Story
Steven Lee Myers / New York Times:
Bluesky Says Kremlin Is Hacking Its Platform to Spread Propaganda  —  The company said it was fighting Russian efforts to hijack real users' accounts to post fake content, an apparently novel tactic.  —  Ben Gilbert describes himself on Bluesky, the social media app, as an “economist …
Casey Wooten / NBC News:
Colorado Democrats censure Gov. Jared Polis for commuting election denier's sentence  —  Polis reduced Tina Peters' nine-year sentence Friday, saying her term was disproportionate to the crime.  —  Colorado Democrats voted Wednesday to censure Gov. Jared Polis, a fellow Democrat …
RELATED:
BBC:
Empty rooms and Fifa cancellations - US hotels fear World Cup washout  —  The World Cup was supposed to provide a tourism boom for the US, but now the fear is it may never materialise.  —  A report  —  produced by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) has found that bookings …
Discussion: WHYY, SFist and Raw Story
Holly Otterbein / Axios:
Scoop: Fetterman's chief of staff resigns  —  Sen. John Fetterman's chief of staff resigned Wednesday, a source familiar with the move told Axios. … She became his chief of staff in 2025.  — Her official last day will be in the coming weeks.  — Fetterman, who was once a darling …
Discussion: IJR and Mediaite
Joey Garrison / USA Today:15 minutes ago
Trump to roll back Biden-era refrigerant rules in push to lower grocery costs  —  WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is set to announce the overhaul of two Biden-era Environmental Protection Agency rules for refrigerants in a push to lower grocery costs for consumers, according to an administration official.
RELATED:
Grace Vance / KCRG-TV:
Iowa lawmakers move to mandate students take Center for Intellectual Freedom classes amid low enrollment  —  It comes after a report found the center must require courses to boost student participation  —  IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) - University of Iowa students could soon be required to take classes …
Alex Shultz / New York Magazine:
The Man Who Explains Israel to John Fetterman … Over the last three years, Democratic Party support for Israel has undergone a dramatic reversal.  In 2024, 18 Democratic senators backed a measure to block arms sales to the country.  In April of this year, it was 40.
Steve Vladeck / One First:
Bonus 228: The $1.776B Political Question  —  President Trump's $1.776B “Anti-Weaponization” slush fund is just the latest (and gravest) move that underscores the limits of judicial remedies, and the need to reinvigorate political ones.  —  ∙ Paid  —  Every so often a story comes along …
Discussion: PBS NewsHour
CNN:
Iran rebuilding military industrial base faster than expected, already producing drones, according to US intel  —  Iran has already restarted some of its drone production during the six-week ceasefire that began in early April, one sign it is rapidly rebuilding certain military capabilities degraded …
Camille Mumford / Emerson Polling:
New York City 2026 Congressional Polling: NY-07, NY-10, NY-12  —  Home Polls New York City 2026 Congressional Polling: NY-07, NY-10, NY-12  —  New Emerson College Polling/PIX 11 surveys measure key New York City Democratic congressional primaries in New York's 7th, 10th, and 12th districts.
Dan Diamond / Washington Post:
Trump officials say they can build 250-foot arch without Congress's okay  —  To build a triumphal arch near Arlington Cemetery, the administration hopes to rely on a 100-year-old authorization for a different project in the area.  —  Summary  —  The Trump administration does not plan …
Discussion: Associated Press, WUSA and Raw Story
Will Sommer / The Bulwark:15 minutes ago
A Truly Mind-Blowing Theory About Tom Massie's Sex Secrets Exposé  —  How a memestock cult exposed the Kentucky congressman's sex secrets.  —  BEFORE HIS DOUBLE-DIGIT PRIMARY DEFEAT on Tuesday, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) spent the final days of his campaign dogged by an ex-girlfriend's revelations about their sex life.
Discussion: Rumble
Lisa Needham / Public Notice:
How Hennepin County unwound an ICE agent's web of lies  —  PN is supported by paid subscribers.  Become one ⬇️  —  🧠 Subscribe to PN 🧠  —  During the Trump administration's siege of Minnesota, federal agents behaved with the sort of impunity that comes …
Discussion: BLCK Press and Chicago Sun Times
Mark Hertling / The Bulwark:
The Last Full Measure, Quietly Remembered  —  FOR ME, MEMORIAL DAY ALWAYS BRINGS with it a deep contradiction.  —  I watch as most of America marks the weekend as the unofficial beginning of summer: cookouts and baseball games, long weekends, beaches, family gatherings, flags fluttering from porches …
Zack Beauchamp / Vox:
There's more to Trump's corruption than stealing money  —  It's transforming the US government at a cellular level. … Donald Trump's self-dealing and profiteering from high office, a longtime subtheme of his presidency, has just become its defining story.
 
 
 New Item Finder: 
10 minutes ago
Zach Schonfeld / The Hill:
Supreme Court rules against cruise lines over Cuba voyages   Find
15 minutes ago
Will Sommer / The Bulwark:
A Truly Mind-Blowing Theory About Tom Massie's Sex Secrets Exposé   Find
 
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 More Items: 
Zach Schonfeld / The Hill:
Supreme Court rules against cruise lines over Cuba voyages10 minutes ago
Discussion: New York Times
Ella Lee / The Hill:
Supreme Court declines to weigh IQ standards in Alabama death row case10 minutes ago
Sam Levin / The Guardian:
Video shows ICE violently arresting Oregon farm workers and using facial recognition25 minutes ago
Jake Kleinman / Polygon.com:
Exclusive: Mayor Zohran Mamdani is going live on Twitch in new streaming series ‘Talk with the People’30 minutes ago
Jose Lev Alvarez / Washington Examiner:
America already has a narco-state inside its borders — it's called Puerto Rico30 minutes ago
Discussion: HotAir
Camilo Montoya-Galvez / CBS News:
Trump administration onboards largest-ever class of new immigration judges in bid to speed up deportation cases
Popular Information:
A lot of peanuts  —  As the Iran War drags on, President Trump has repeatedly belittled …
Discussion: HuffPost
 Earlier Items: 
Gabrielle M. Etzel / Washington Examiner:
Surgeon general advisory raises concern about screen time for children and teenagers
Sanne Wass / Bloomberg:
US Opens Greenland Consulate as Unease Grows Over Trump Push
Discussion: Politico, NewsMax.com and The Hill
ProPublica:
This Sheriff's Office Says Racial Profiling Reforms Are Too Costly. Auditors Found It Misused $163 Million.
Jose Pagliery / NOTUS:
Tom Kean's Neighbors Haven't Seen Him Either
Discussion: Raw Story and Mediaite
Matthew Cooper / Washington Monthly:
Be Thankful Barney Frank Wasn't Pushed Out in 1989
Discussion: WCVB and New York Times
Joyce Vance / Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance:
Shame and the Supreme Court
Discussion: Reuters
Ebony Davis / MS NOW:
Judge orders White House staff to comply with Presidential Records Act after DOJ calls it ‘unconstitutional’
Adora Brown / NOTUS:
Kari Lake Earned Tens of Thousands of Dollars From Media Side Hustles