memeorandum: UNITEDHEALTH 1Q PROFIT SOARS AS ACA BUSINESS SHRINKS (Tom Murphy/Associated Press)

3:30 PM ET, April 18, 2017

Top Items:

Aircraft Carrier Wasn't Sailing to Deter North Korea, as U.S. Suggested — WASHINGTON — As worries deepened last week about whether North Korea would conduct a missile test, the White House declared that ordering an American aircraft carrier into the Sea of Japan would send a powerful deterrent signal …

Discussion: The Moderate Voice, Little Green Footballs, Political Wire, Daily Kos, Raw Story, Politicus USA, New York Magazine and Axios

The Guardian:

US military considers shooting down North Korea missile tests, sources say — As Pentagon looks for strategies to pressure North Korea into denuclearization, US officials worry that intercepting missiles could escalate tensions and risk war … The US military is considering shooting …

Discussion: CNN, Daily Mail, New York Magazine, AOL, Axios, Gothamist and Eschaton

Christopher P. Cavas / Defense News:

Nothing to see here: US carrier still thousands of miles from Korea — WASHINGTON — For more than a week, media reports in the U.S. and around Asia routinely have mentioned the approach of the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson's carrier strike group, seemingly implying an attack on North Korea could be imminent.

Discussion: Fox News, The Diplomat and The National Interest

Mother Jones:
Mike Pence's Trip to Korean Border Featured Lots of Angry Staring

Discussion: RedState, CNN, Washington Post, Vanity Fair, Hot Air and TheBlaze

Washington Post:
Despite talk of a military strike, Trump's ‘armada’ actually sailed away from Korea

Discussion: Mother Jones and Politicus USA

Steven Ginsberg / Washington Post:

The night Clinton said what she never expected to say: ‘Congratulations, Donald’ — Steven Ginsberg is the senior politics editor for The Washington Post. — Around 7:45 on election night, when Hillary Clinton and her aides still thought they were headed to the White House, troubling news emerged from Florida.

Discussion: Breitbart, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Daily Caller, IJR, RedState, TheBlaze, Liberal Values, Washington Free Beacon, Shakesville and New York Times

Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:

Sanders on Clinton's 'I'm with her' slogan: 'It's so phony' — (I-Vt.) called former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton — 's “I'm with her” slogan “phony,” according to a new book. — In “Shattered: Inside Hillary Clinton's Doomed Campaign,” The Hill's Amie Parnes …

Discussion: IJR and Washington Free Beacon

Mike Allen / Axios:

Inside the Hillary Hindenburg — A new book by Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes, “ Shattered: Inside Hillary Clinton's Doomed Campaign ,” makes it clear that whatever you thought was happening in Brooklyn at Clinton's campaign headquarters, it was worse. One of the kickers: … More highlights from the book:

Discussion: Mediaite

Barton Swaim / Wall Street Journal:
How Hillary Lost the White House

Discussion: IJR, The Gateway Pundit and The Daily Caller

Ron Elving / NPR: ‘Shattered’ Picks Through The Broken Pieces Of Hillary Clinton's Dream

Gabriel Sherman / New York Magazine:

Sources: The Murdochs Are Turning Against Bill O'Reilly — With only six days remaining in Bill O'Reilly's vacation, the pressure on the Murdoch family to decide the embattled commentator's fate is intensifying. Three sources with knowledge of the discussions said that …

Discussion: Washington Post, TVNewser and Refinery29, more at Mediagazer »

Matthew Sheffield / Salon:

Roger Ailes' fake news empire: Former Fox News head presided over a panoply of phony “sock puppet” blogs — Former Fox News CEO paid for many deceptive sites, including leering blogs promoting female Fox personalities — Since a series of sexual harassment accusations led to the ouster …

more at Mediagazer »

Max Greenwood / The Hill:

Georgia Dem: No issue I don't live in district — Democrat Jon Ossoff dismissed concerns on Tuesday over the fact that he doesn't live in the Georgia congressional district in which he's running for a House seat. — “I grew up in this district; I grew up in this community - it's my home.

Discussion: Vox, Power Line, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Business Insider, Politicus USA and twitchy.com

FiveThirtyEight:
Everything You Need To Know About The Georgia 6 Special Election

Discussion: Zpolitics, Politico, Washington Monthly, Washington Post, Hot Air, News, Indy Week, Power Line, Political Wire, Axios and Political Insider blog

Nate Cohn / New York Times: Georgia Election: Expect the Early Vote Count to Be Misleading

Associated Press:

Kelly has simple message to critics: change law or shut up — Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly says members of Congress who don't like the Trump administration's aggressive approach to immigration enforcement should change the laws or “shut up.” — The tough-talking retired Marine general …

Discussion: Politico

John Kelly / BostonGlobe.com: A race against those who seek our destruction

Adam Kredo / Washington Free Beacon:
FBI Investigating Radical Terrorists in All 50 States as Threats Hit Peak

Discussion: Infowars

Elizabeth Elizalde / New York Daily News:

Oregon man dies thinking President Trump was impeached after being lied to by ex-wife — A man died peacefully in his Oregon home after his ex-wife lied to him that President Trump was impeached from office. — Michael Garland Elliott, 75, passed away on April 6 and was surrounded by his caregivers …

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, CNN, Daily Mail, Daily Wire, IJR, Sputnik International, The Root, TheBlaze, Daily Kos, AOL, twitchy.com, Mashable and Raw Story

Ross Cavitt / WSB-TV:

Equipment stolen days before special election; Sec. of State: ‘Unacceptable’ — Twtter — COBB COUNTY, Ga. - Channel 2 Action News has learned that critical voting machines were stolen just days before polls will open for a special election. — State officials are investigating …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Hot Air, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Washington Free Beacon, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, The Daily Caller and AOL

Christopher Mele / New York Times:

Man Wanted in Cleveland Facebook Murder Kills Himself, Police Say — man sought in the fatal shooting of a 74-year-old man in Cleveland, who then posted a video of it on Facebook, shot and killed himself on Tuesday after a brief pursuit in Erie County, Pa., a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania State Police said.

Discussion: Axios, Business Insider, WHNT-TV, KTLA, TheBlaze, fox8.com, KFOR-TV, The Daily Caller and Plain Dealer

Fox News:
Facebook killer Steve Stephens dead, police say

Discussion: Fox News Insider, The Gateway Pundit and Facebook, more at Mediagazer »

Associated Press:

Ivanka's biz prospers as politics mixes with business — SHANGHAI (AP) — On April 6, Ivanka Trump's company won provisional approval from the Chinese government for three new trademarks, giving it monopoly rights to sell Ivanka brand jewelry, bags and spa services in the world's second-largest economy.

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Monthly, Shakesville and The Root

Peter Baker / New York Times:

As Trump Drifts Away From Populism, His Supporters Grow Watchful — WASHINGTON — President Trump visited the Tennessee estate of Andrew Jackson last month to symbolically claim the mantle of the first genuinely populist president since the 1830s. Just like Jackson, Mr. Trump defeated …

Discussion: Daily Kos

CBS Sacramento:

Congressman Walks Off Stage During Oroville Town Hall — OROVILLE (CBS13) — The boos and shouts of displeasure started during the introduction of Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) at his town hall meeting in Oroville. — For nearly two hours, the crowd at the State Theater shouted down responses by the congressman.

Discussion: Chico Enterprise-Record, Talking Points Memo, Daily Wire, Los Angeles Times and Raw Story

Cristina Marcos / The Hill:

House Democrat introduces bill to amend presidential removal procedures — A House Democrat has introduced legislation to enhance the Constitution's presidential removal procedures in response to concerns about President Trump's behavior. — Rep. Earl Blumenauer

Discussion: RedState, Lawyers, Guns & Money and TheBlaze

Aidan Quigley / Politico:

Trump blames Obama for allowing MS-13 gang to form in America — President Donald Trump on Tuesday criticized his predecessor for being “weak” on illegal immigration and blamed him, without evidence, for allowing the violent MS-13 gang to form in America. — “The weak illegal immigration policies …

Discussion: Raw Story, Joe.My.God. and The Daily Caller

Ryan J. Reilly / The Huffington Post:

The Murder Rate Jumped Again In 2016. A Handful Of Cities Are Largely Responsible. — Baltimore, Chicago and Houston play a big role in the spike in murders, according to a new Brennan Center report. — WASHINGTON The national murder rate rose again last year, with much of the deadly spike concentrated …

Discussion: Vox, Daily Wire and Heat Street

Sean Higgins / Washington Examiner:

Hike in minimum wage prompts more closings of San Francisco restaurants — San Francisco's higher minimum wage is causing an increasing number of restaurants to go out of business even before it is fully phased in, a new study by the Harvard Business School found.

Discussion: Breitbart and Hot Air

Bloomberg:

Apple Readies iPhone Overhaul for Smartphone's 10th Anniversary — Apple is testing a revamped iPhone with an all-screen front, curved glass and a stainless steel frame alongside upgrades to the current models. — Ten years after Steve Jobs held up the original iPhone to a gushing San Francisco crowd …

Discussion: Tech Times, Refinery29, Mashable, The Verge and Daily Mail, more at Techmeme »

Mike Isaac / New York Times:

Mark Zuckerberg Sees Augmented Reality Ecosystem in Facebook — SAN JOSE, Calif. — Facebook's chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, has long rued the day that Apple and Google beat him to building smartphones, which now underpin many people's digital lives. Ever since, he has searched …

Discussion: The Atlantic, more at Techmeme »

Tom Murphy / Associated Press:

UNITEDHEALTH 1Q PROFIT SOARS AS ACA BUSINESS SHRINKS — UnitedHealth's first-quarter profit soared 35 percent as the nation's biggest health insurer slashed participation in Affordable Care Act exchanges but grew just about every other part of its business.

Discussion: The Daily Caller and Washington Free Beacon

NYC Mayor's / Medium:

Our 2016 Tax Returns — For us, tax time is a moment of gratitude. No one enjoys paying taxes, but we are grateful to live in this country, in New York City, and do our part. We are grateful to have a home—even if we don't live in it right now—and a steady source of income.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, CNBC, Fox News Insider and Washington Times

Fox News:

Russian bombers fly near Alaska; Air Force scrambles jets — A pair of Russian nuclear-capable bombers flew near Alaska Monday night, two U.S. officials told Fox News, coming as close as 100 miles from Kodiak Island — the first time since President Trump took office that Moscow has sent bombers so close to the U.S.

Discussion: Townhall.com and The Daily Caller

Brian Tashman / Right Wing Watch:

Alex Jones: I Am Not Fake! ‘I Am Completely Real And Everybody Knows It’ — In a rambling message filmed from his car this morning, Alex Jones repeatedly insisted that he is not an actor—a characterization of Jones made by his own lawyer during an ongoing custody battle.

Discussion: Raw Story

Lachlan Markay / The Daily Beast:

Georgia Is First Battle in the Civil War Between GOP Outside Groups — A heated special election in Georgia is turning into a proxy battle between Republican forces loyal to President Donald Trump and a conservative group that has long been a thorn in his side.

Discussion: New York Times