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12:45 PM ET, December 20, 2018

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Wall Street Journal:
Trump's Attorney General Pick Criticized an Aspect of Mueller Probe in Memo to Justice Department  —  William Barr said obstruction of justice inquiry by special counsel is ‘fatally misconceived’  —  WASHINGTON—William Barr, President Trump's choice for attorney general …
RELATED:
Laura Jarrett / CNN:
Exclusive: Whitaker told he does not need to recuse himself from overseeing Mueller investigation  —  (CNN)Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker has consulted with ethics officials at the Justice Department and they have advised him he does not need to recuse himself from overseeing special …
Charlie Savage / New York Times:
Trump's Attorney General Nominee Criticized Russia Investigation
Discussion: Axios and Law & Crime
Michael Balsamo / Associated Press:   Whitaker doesn't need to recuse from Russia probe: Source
Tierney Sneed / Talking Points Memo:
READ: William Barr's Memo Bashing Robert Mueller's Obstruction Probe
Discussion: Raw Story
Andrew C. McCarthy / National Review:   The Barr Memo Is a Commendable Piece of Lawyering
Andrew E. Kramer / New York Times:
Vladimir Putin Welcomes U.S. Withdrawal From Syria  —  MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia on Thursday welcomed President Trump's announcement of a withdrawal of American troops from Syria, calling it “the right decision.”  —  Mr. Trump said on Wednesday that he was ordering …
RELATED:
Anton Troianovski / Washington Post:
Putin backs Trump's move to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, says Islamic State dealt ‘serious blows’  —  MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin praised President Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, describing the American presence there as illegitimate and the Islamic State as largely defeated on the ground.
Karen DeYoung / Washington Post:
Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria startles aides and allies  —  In April, President Trump repeated his campaign promise to end U.S. military involvement in Syria.  “I want to get out,” he said.  “I want to bring our troops back home.”  —  In September, senior administration aides …
Melissa Healy / Los Angeles Times:
More than 15% of childhood deaths in America are due to guns, study says  —  More than 3,000 children and adolescents died of a gunshot wound in the United States in 2016, a new tally of childhood deaths finds.  These episodes accounted for 15.4% of all Americans between the ages of 1 and 19 …
Washington Post:
Mattis, once one of ‘my generals,’ loses his influence with Trump
Caitlin Oprysko / Politico:
Trump defends surprise Syria withdrawal despite withering GOP criticism
Discussion: Washington Post and ABC News
Emily Cochrane / New York Times:
Conservative Revolt Endangers Deal to Avoid a Shutdown  —  WASHINGTON — A deal to avert a Christmastime government shutdown teetered on Thursday amid growing anger from President Trump and a conservative revolt in the House that could block a bill to keep funds flowing past midnight Friday.
RELATED:
John Bresnahan / Politico:
Chaos in House as battle over wall upends shutdown talks  —  The House Republican caucus was thrown into chaos Thursday as conservatives revolted against a funding bill that includes no new money for President Donald Trump's border wall.  —  On the brink of a Christmastime shutdown …
Washington Post:
Trump ‘at this moment’ opposes deal to avert shutdown, wants more border funding
Discussion: Vox, Wall Street Journal and Wonkette
Associated Press:
Democrats to Start Presidential Primary Debates in June 2019  —  (AP) — Democrats will hold at least a dozen presidential primary debates starting in June 2019 and running through April 2020, with party Chairman Tom Perez promising rules that will give everyone in a potentially large field a fair shot at voters' attention.
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Alex Thompson / Politico:
Perez nixes ‘undercard’ debates for 2020 primary  —  With the prospect of upwards of 20 Democrats running for president in 2020, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez announced on Thursday that the party would split up candidates by random selection and host debates on consecutive nights if there were too many candidates.
Gabriel Debenedetti / New York Magazine:
The Democratic Party Is Getting Ready for a Very Messy 2020 Primary Race
Discussion: POLITICUSUSA
Sam Stein / The Daily Beast:
Democrats Plan Two Night Debate Events For Massive 2020 Field
Discussion: Axios
Kim Tong-Hyung / Associated Press:
N. Korea says it won't denuclearize unless US removes threat  —  SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea said Thursday it will never unilaterally give up its nuclear weapons unless the United States removes its nuclear threat first, a statement that raises further doubts on whether leader Kim Jong Un …
RELATED:
Min Joo Kim / Washington Post:
North Korea rejects denuclearization unless U.S. ‘nuclear threat’ is eliminated
Discussion: Outside the Beltway
Michele Anderson:
Der Spiegel journalist messed with the wrong small town  —  In February 2017, my husband and I attended a concert at our local theater, and were sipping some wine in the lobby before the show started.  Several people came up to us at separate times excitedly, and asked, “did you meet the German guy yet?!”
RELATED:
Ullrich Fichtner / Spiegel Online:
DER SPIEGEL Reveals Internal Fraud
Anne Flaherty / ABC News:
DHS Secretary Nielsen says asylum seekers will be forced to wait in Mexico  —  The U.S. has reached a deal with the Mexican government to force asylum seekers at its southern border to remain in Mexico while they wait to bring their case before an American immigration judge, the Trump administration announced Thursday.
Discussion: Politico and Breitbart
RELATED:
Dara Lind / Vox:
Trump is officially turning back all asylum seekers who come to the US through Mexico
Discussion: Axios and Associated Press
HuffPost:
And What Can You Say About Paul Ryan?  —  How much time do you have?  —  WASHINGTON Paul Ryan was furious.  —  He'd been caught in a trap lured into an auditorium by the promise of a speech about fiscal responsibility.  Instead, President Barack Obama was lecturing the crowd …
RELATED:
Jonathan Bernstein / Bloomberg:
So Long Paul Ryan, You Won't Be Missed
New York Times:
Secret Experiment in Alabama Senate Race Imitated Russian Tactics  —  As Russia's online election machinations came to light last year, a group of Democratic tech experts decided to try out similarly deceptive tactics in the fiercely contested Alabama Senate race, according to people familiar with the effort and a report on its results.
Ben Schreckinger / Politico:
‘Oh, no’: The day Trump learned to tweet  —  The content of the tweet @RealDonaldTrump posted on the night of Feb. 5, 2013, was bland: a simple thank you to the actress Sherri Shepherd for flattering comments she'd made about Trump on television.  —  But its implications were historic.
Discussion: Splinter and Raw Story
Washington Post:
Trump administration aims to toughen work requirements for food stamp recipients  —  The Trump administration unveiled a plan Thursday to force hundreds of thousands more Americans to hold jobs if they want to keep receiving food stamps, pursuing through executive powers what it could not achieve in Congress.
Discussion: The Week, Hill Reporter and Axios
RELATED:
Tami Luhby / CNN:
Trump plans to make more people work for food stamps
Discussion: Raw Story
David Sirota / The Guardian:
Beto O'Rourke frequently voted for Republican legislation, analysis reveals  —  Review of his six-year record in Congress shows Democrat frequently opposed own party, and supported bills that boosted the fossil fuel industry and Trump's immigration policy  —  Beto O'Rourke's spirited run …
Discussion: KABE-LP
RELATED:
David Sirota / Capital & Main:   Beto vs. Democrats: Texas Lawmaker Frequently Voted to Help Trump and GOP
Jamelle Bouie / Slate:
Republican Leadership Is Slowly Backing Away From Trump  —  Trump's popularity with voters is only one part of the picture.  Leaders within the GOP are clearly hedging their bets as 2020 approaches.  —  “The Wall” began as just a slogan.  By the end of the 2016 presidential campaign …
CNN:
House Intelligence panel votes to send Roger Stone transcript to Mueller  —  Rep. Himes: Concerned about Stone's honesty  —  (CNN)The House Intelligence Committee voted Thursday to send the transcript of its 2017 interview with Roger Stone to special counsel Robert Mueller, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
RELATED:
Washington Post:
Mueller seeks Roger Stone's testimony to House intelligence panel, suggesting special counsel …
Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
It Is So Much Worse Than I Thought  —  How can a family that can't run a charity run a country?  —  I will be going on book leave soon — today is my last column for a while because of the holiday schedule — to write what I believe to be the most important thing that I've ever written.
 
 
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 More Items: 
Dino Grandoni / Washington Post:
The Energy 202: Ryan Zinke is gone. But this House Democrat still wants his testimony.
Keith J. Kelly / New York Post:
Tribune stock tumbles after McClatchy bid dies
Discussion: KXLF-TV
Wall Street Journal:
U.S. to Unseal Criminal Charges Against Chinese Intelligence Officers
Dylan Scott / Vox:
Elizabeth Warren wants the government to start manufacturing prescription drugs
Andrew Roth / The Guardian:
Putin tells May to ‘fulfil will of people’ on Brexit
Discussion: Politico
Pamela Colloff / ProPublica:
Bloodstain Analysis Convinced a Jury She Stabbed Her 10-Year-Old Son.  Now, Even Freedom Can't Give Her Back Her Life.
 Earlier Items: 
Paul Sonne / Washington Post:
They tested positive for HIV. Then the military kicked them out.
Discussion: ThinkProgress and PinkNews
Salt Lake Tribune:
Tribune editorial: Chaffetz has made his choice
Page Six:
Rudy Giuliani spotted chuckling about Mueller investigation
Discussion: Raw Story
Carrie Levine / Center for Public Integrity:
Wilbur Ross said he divested a stock holding — but he didn't
Discussion: Politico, Splinter and The Week
Anna Massoglia / OpenSecrets.org:
Trump 2020 campaign used a shell company to pay ad buyers at the center of alleged illegal coordination scheme with NRA
Discussion: Splinter