memeorandum: Jury finds pastor Kenneth Adkins guilty of 8 charges in child molestation case (Eileen Kelley/Florida Times Union)

2:15 PM ET, April 11, 2017

Top Items:

Julie Hirschfeld Davis / New York Times:

White House Accuses Russia of Cover-up in Syria Chemical Attack — WASHINGTON — The White House on Tuesday accused the Russian government of engaging in a cover-up of the chemical weapons attack last week by Syrian forces that prompted American airstrikes, saying that United States intelligence …

Eli Lake / Bloomberg:

What Reset? White House to Call Out Russia's Fake News on Syria — President Donald Trump's Russian reset is in big trouble. — That's one message of a four-page dossier on the Syrian government's April 4 chemical weapons attack that killed up to 100 people and injured many more.

Discussion: Hot Air

Mark Hensch / The Hill:

Putin: US plans to fake chemical weapons in Syria — Russian President Vladimir Putin will reportedly press the United Nations to officially investigate last week's chemical attack in Syria, claiming, without evidence, that there are plans to fake the use of chemical weapons.

Discussion: Politico and Reuters

Washington Post:
Tillerson brings tough line to Moscow over Russia's backing for Syrian regime

Discussion: Mother Jones and IJR

RT:
Idlib ‘chemical attack’ was false flag to set Assad up, more may come - Putin

Discussion: Breitbart, RedState, New York Magazine, Politico and The Gateway Pundit

Justin Bachman / Bloomberg:

United Airlines Tumbles After Social-Media Storm Goes Global — Passenger's removal becomes trending item on Chinese platform — Carrier's CEO says man was ‘disruptive’ and ‘belligerent’ — United Continental Holdings Inc. tumbled early Tuesday as outrage on social media over the removal …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice

Matt Rosoff / CNBC:
United CEO doubles down in email to employees, says passenger was ‘disruptive and belligerent’

Discussion: New York Magazine, Power Line, USA Today, The Guardian, twitchy.com, IJR, Refinery29, The Atlantic and New York Times

CNBC:
United shares slide as PR nightmare catches up with investors

Discussion: twitchy.com, The Guardian and The Ring of Fire Network

CNN:
Man filmed being dragged off United flight causes outrage in China

Discussion: CNNMoney, The Guardian and The Daily Caller

New York Times:
Video of United Airlines Passenger Creates Furor in China, Too

Discussion: Vox, Washington Post, View from the Wing, The Stranger …, PinkNews, RedState, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, Townhall.com, FOX News Radio, CBS New York, Hit & Run, en.people.cn, IJR, Daily Wire, Joe.My.God., New York Magazine, KFOR-TV and twitchy.com

Matthew Yglesias / Vox:

Donald Trump and Paul Ryan are the problem — a staff shake-up won't fix anything — It's not Steve Bannon's fault the GOP's policy agenda is incoherent. — The Trump administration knows it hasn't gotten off to a very impressive start, with Shane Goldmacher reporting that officials …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Balloon Juice, ABC News and Hot Air, more at Mediagazer »

Eliza Collins / USA Today:

Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows pursues health care deal with Speaker Ryan — HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. — Rep. Mark Meadows intends to deliver an Obamacare repeal and replacement plan to House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., on Tuesday that would leave in place the existing law's mandates …

Discussion: Political Wire and Axios

Tom LoBianco / CNN:
House Freedom Caucus member Justin Amash suggests time for Ryan ouster, blasts Trump

Discussion: RedState, Talking Points Memo and rubber hose

Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:
Amash: We need ‘change in direction from this speaker’ or a new speaker

Discussion: Infowars, Talking Points Memo and Team Ryan

Simon Johnson / Telegraph:

Ivanka Trump encouraged my father to launch air strikes against Assad in Syria after chemical weapons attack, says Eric Trump — Eric Trump has said he is “sure” his sister Ivanka used her influence over their father to encourage the US president to launch military action against Bashar al-Assad in Syria.

Discussion: CNN, ThinkProgress, RedState, Washington Monthly, Washington Examiner, Washington Post, KTLA, New York Magazine, Infowars, Sputnik International, RT, The Daily Caller, CNBC, The Gateway Pundit, IJR, Political Wire, Balloon Juice and Axios

Matthew Rozsa / Salon:
Eric Trump: Donald Trump bombed Syria because Ivanka told him to

Discussion: Telegraph, Talking Points Memo, Joe.My.God., ABC News, Politico, Politicus USA, CNBC and The Daily Caller

Elizabeth Preza / Raw Story:
Eric Trump is ‘sure’ Ivanka encouraged their father to strike Syria: 'I think that's a great thing'

Discussion: Telegraph, ThinkProgress and Sputnik International

Jim O’Sullivan / BostonGlobe.com:

Remember Mitt Romney's ‘binders full of women?’ They're real. And we got them. — In the world of important political documents — from the Magna Carta to the Pentagon Papers — there are also those known for more pedestrian reasons. Count Mitt Romney's “binders full of women” in that category.

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, National Review, Axios, New York Magazine and The Daily Caller

Julie Hirschfeld Davis / New York Times:

The Latest Test for the White House? Pulling Off Its Easter Egg Roll — WASHINGTON — President Trump received an urgent warning in February, informing him of a crucial date he was about to miss. — “FYI manufacturing deadlines for the Easter eggs are near,” said a Twitter post directed at Mr. Trump …

Discussion: Progress Pond, Mother Jones, Heat Street, The Slot, Washington Post, Raw Story and twitchy.com

Ed O'Keefe / Washington Post:

Schumer: If Trump doesn't release his tax returns, 'it's going to make tax reform much harder' — Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) is warning that President Trump needs to release his personal tax returns if he hopes to achieve comprehensive tax reform in the coming months.

Discussion: ABC News, Daily Kos, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, FOX News Radio, The Daily Caller, RedState, RT and New York Times

Reuters:
Exclusive: North Korean ships head home after China orders coal returned

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Washington Times, FITSNews and Hot Air

Sue-Lin Wong / Reuters:
North Korea state media warns of nuclear strike if provoked

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Common Dreams, The Guardian, AOL and Instapundit

James Hohmann / Washington Post:

The Daily 202: Reflexive partisanship drives polling lurch on Syria strikes — THE BIG IDEA: More Americans than ever view the news through red-colored glasses. — In 2013, when Barack Obama was president, a Washington Post-ABC News poll found that only 22 percent of Republicans supported …

Discussion: Politico, New York Magazine, al.com, Friendly Atheist, The Gateway Pundit, Hot Air, Axios, Latest from Crooks and Liars and Salon

New York Times:
On Trump's Syria Strategy, One Voice Is Missing: Trump's

Discussion: The Atlantic, NPR, The Daily Caller, Vox, Washington Post, Infowars, Just Security, New York Magazine, Politicus USA and CBS News

Maya Lau / Los Angeles Times:
He was a pastor and a gentleman: ‘She thought she had a wonderful husband’

Discussion: Vox, ThinkProgress, RT, twitchy.com, KTLA, The Stranger …, Washington Post, Talking Points Memo and Daily Wire

Samuel Osborne / The Independent:

US election ‘hacking’: Russian man arrested in Spain at request of American authorities — Arrested man reportedly told wife he had created a computer virus 'linked to Trump's election win' — An alleged Russian hacker has been arrested in Spain at the request of American authorities.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Israpundit

Rich Lowry / New York Post: Turns out Obama was the real Russian stooge

Sean Trende / Real Clear Politics:

Does Kansas Special Election Signal Trouble for GOP? — Since the inauguration of Donald Trump, speculation has abounded as to whether his unpopularity could drag down the Republican House majority in 2018. We've seen massive protests in liberal enclaves, but we haven't had a whole lot …

Discussion: NPR, New York Magazine and Raw Story

Bryan Lowry / Kansas City Star:
Republicans sweat surprisingly close Kansas congressional race

Discussion: The Huffington Post, Associated Press, FiveThirtyEight, Talking Points Memo, NBC News, Washington Post, CNN, Vox, AOL, Wichita Eagle, Shareblue, The Cook Political Report, The Nation, Politicus USA and Balloon Juice

Aruna Viswanatha / Wall Street Journal:

Undocumented Immigrants Who Commit Crimes Face Tougher Policy — Attorney General Jeff Sessions wants to add 125 judges to address a backlog of immigration cases — Attorney General Jeff Sessions directed federal prosecutors to pursue harsher charges against undocumented immigrants who commit crimes …

Ashe Schow / Watchdog.org:

Texas student commits suicide after Title IX kangaroo court — If every other egregious example of a male student denied due process after being accused of sexual misconduct gets ignored - this one should not be. — A male student who was accused of sexual harassment committed suicide …

Discussion: The Other McCain, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Hot Air and Instapundit

Maya T. Prabhu / Post and Courier:

Attendees chant ‘you lie’ at U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson during Graniteville town hall … GRANITEVILLE — U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson received some protests Monday like other Republican congressmen nationwide during town halls this year, getting drowned out at times with loud boos and receiving 30 seconds of “You Lie” chants.

Discussion: Raw Story, Talking Points Memo and Balloon Juice

Rick Perlstein / New York Times:

I Thought I Understood the American Right. Trump Proved Me Wrong. — A historian of conservatism looks back at how he and his peers failed to anticipate the rise of the president. — Until Nov. 8, 2016, historians of American politics shared a rough consensus about the rise of modern American conservatism.

Scott Thistlestaff / Press Herald:

Sen. Collins says she may run for Maine governor in 2018 — The state's senior U.S. senator says she's looking at where she can do the most good for citizens. — U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said Tuesday she was seriously contemplating a run for Maine governor in 2018, her most definitive statement yet …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Political Wire

Heidi M Przybyla / USA Today:

Republicans avoid town halls after health care votes — WASHINGTON — Reps. Leonard Lance of New Jersey and Ryan Costello of Pennsylvania appear to be the only swing-district Republicans who voted for their party's bill to replace Obamacare who will directly face constituents over the April recess …

Discussion: Daily Kos, DCCC and The Nation

Variety:

Bill O'Reilly Sexual Harassment Scandal, Advertiser Defections a Test for Fox News' Future — Just as Fox News was moving forcefully into the post-Roger Ailes era with none other than Rupert Murdoch at the helm, a fresh crisis has erupted to underscore how hard it will be for the news organization …

Discussion: Washington Post and Mediaite

David Nakamura / Washington Post:

Trump administration suspends public disclosures of ‘sanctuary cities’ — The Trump administration has temporarily suspended the publication of weekly reports detailing cities and counties that fail to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement directives over concerns about the accuracy of those lists.

Discussion: Vox