memeorandum: Reagan's daughter says he'd be ‘heartbroken’ over state of the country and GOP (Rebecca Corey/Yahoo)

9:00 AM ET, March 20, 2019

Top Items:

Katelyn Polantz / CNN:

In court filing, Robert Mueller's team says it's very busy this week — Washington (CNN)Robert Mueller's prosecutors dropped yet another head-scratching signal in their latest court filing Tuesday that the special counsel investigation may be wrapping up — or maybe it's not. — Either way, they're very busy.

Discussion: The Week and myfox8.com

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Mueller's old boss delays departure as probe wraps up

Discussion: Fox News, Just Security, NBC News and New York Times

Washington Post:
Mueller team cites ‘press of other work’ in seeking delay until April 1 over request to open Manafort records

Discussion: The Week

Andrew Prokop / Vox:
Robert Mueller's team says it will be very busy in the coming days

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, Raw Story and Breitbart

Wall Street Journal:

Joe Biden Tells Supporters He Plans 2020 Bid — Former Vice President Joe Biden reached out to at least a half dozen supporters Tuesday to tell them he intends to run for president and to ask for their help in lining up contributions from major donors to quickly raise several million dollars …

Discussion: Washington Post, The Week, Bloomberg, Balloon Juice, Breitbart, Boston Herald, CNBC, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Daily Caller, Fox News, New York Post and The Guardian

Daniel Lippman / Politico:

World leaders tell Biden: We need you — When Joe Biden attended the annual Munich Security Conference last month, the wonky foreign policy confab promised an escape from the nonstop speculation back home about the former vice president's political plans. — Instead, Biden's 2020 intentions were the talk of the conference.

Adam Behsudi / Politico:

Trump faces failing strategy on auto jobs as he heads to Ohio — President Donald Trump heads to Ohio Wednesday embroiled in a fight with General Motors and the United Auto Workers over the closing of GM's Lordstown plant. But his attempts to save manufacturing jobs have battered …

Discussion: Political Wire, Detroit Free Press, Breitbart, CNN and Washington Press

Washington Post:
‘A total loser!’: Trump lashes out at George Conway, who has been questioning his mental health

Andrew Restuccia / Politico:
Trump's ever-expanding list of grievances

Discussion: USA Today, Raw Story, Washington Post and The Week

Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:

Beto, Biden and Bernie: The B-Boys and the media's dangerous, self-fulfilling prophecy — As amorous embraces go, few could be more ardent than the one Beto O'Rourke got this month from Vanity Fair magazine. — The perfectly timed cover treatment was the full monty: Rugged-glam photo …

NBC News: California con man set up bogus websites for Bernie Sanders, Beto O'Rourke to defraud donors, prosecutors say

Kelly Weill / The Daily Beast:
Baristas to Beto O'Rourke: Come On Man, Get Off Our Counters

Discussion: The Cut

Bloomberg:

Pilot Who Hitched a Ride Saved Lion Air 737 Day Before Deadly Crash — Jumpseat rider played critical role in Indonesian cockpit — Pilot actions show multiple errors required to crash 737 Max — As the Lion Air crew fought to control their diving Boeing Co. 737 Max 8 …

Discussion: CNBC, The Week, The Atlantic, Quartz and New York Post

Washington Post:

The real reason the Trump administration is constantly losing in court — Federal judges have ruled against the Trump administration at least 63 times over the past two years, an extraordinary record of legal defeat that has stymied large parts of the president's agenda on the environment, immigration and other matters.

Discussion: Shareblue Media, Hullabaloo, POLITICUSUSA and Raw Story

Mike Memoli / NBC News:

Rep. Clyburn calls Trump family ‘greatest threats to democracy in my lifetime’ — The House majority whip said congressional investigations can set the table for impeachment if “deserved.” — COLUMBIA, S.C. — The third-ranking Democrat in the House on Tuesday called President Donald Trump and his family …

Discussion: Politico, USA Today, Raw Story and Political Wire

Washington Post:

Is Trump changing his tune on Fox News? — Fox News, normally the object of presidential praise on Twitter, was subjected to an unusual tweet-lashing over the weekend when the president went after three of its anchors. He called out Leland Vittert and Arthel Neville, lesser-known faces …

Discussion: Raw Story

Gabriel Sherman / Vanity Fair:
“Everyone Thinks They're Going to Sell”: Hellfire at Fox as Hannity Mulls Leaving and Lachlan …

Discussion: The Week, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Media Matters for America and Washington Post, more at Mediagazer »

A.B. Stoddard / The Bulwark:

EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Johnny Isakson Stands Up for McCain; Unloads on Trump — Georgia's senior senator gives the president a “whipping.” — Later today Sen. Johnny Isakson will call out President Trump for his continued disparagement of John McCain. The chairman of the Senate Veteran Affairs Committee …

Discussion: Raw Story, Conservative News Today, Mediaite, The Week, CNN, The Gateway Pundit, Breitbart and The Hill

Catie Edmondson / New York Times:

Asked Whether White Societies Are Superior, Steve King Demurs — ALGONA, Iowa — It was the kind of question that a politician should have been able to handle with ease, but Representative Steve King is not any politician. — “Do you think a white society is superior to a nonwhite society?”

Discussion: Talking Points Memo and Splinter

Amy Spiro / Jerusalem Post:

Kushner's peace plan ‘includes land swaps with Saudi Arabia,’ book claims — A draft of the plan included an oil pipeline from Saudi Arabia to Gaza, according to newly released ‘Kushner, Inc.’ — White House senior adviser Jared Kushner's Middle East peace plan at one point included Jordan giving land …

Discussion: Politico

Tim Elfrink / Washington Post:

Trump retweets QAnon conspiracy theorist, via Larry the Cable Guy, to slam the TSA — From a QAnon conspiracy theorist to actor James Woods to comedian Larry the Cable Guy to the leader of the free world. Thus travels information in the age of Twitter and President Trump …

Edward-Isaac Dovere / The Atlantic:

Bernie Sanders Just Hired His Twitter Attack Dog — Shortly before he gave speeches launching his 2020 campaign earlier this month, Bernie Sanders emailed his supporters, urging them to “do our very best to engage respectfully with our Democratic opponents—talking about the issues we are fighting for …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Other McCain, Daily Kos, Townhall, Fox News, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Contemptor, Washington Free Beacon, Washington Post, twitchy.com, The Week and Refinery29, more at Mediagazer »

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:

How Democrats can defeat Trump and his ugly ideas, according to Pete Buttigieg — In this strange and unsettled political moment, one of the most unlikely Democratic presidential candidates of all is Pete Buttigieg. He's the mayor of a midsize city — South Bend, Ind. — checks in at a ripe 37 years of age, and is also openly gay.

Discussion: The American Conservative, Rolling Stone, Vox and The Week

Li Zhou / Vox:
How the US could actually get rid of the Electoral College

Discussion: Washington Post, Joe.My.God., Big League Politics, CNN and Breitbart

Associated Press:

Shifting hopes as Republicans, Democrats wait for Mueller — WASHINGTON (AP) — It's a witch hunt, a vendetta, the worst presidential harassment in history. — That's what President Donald Trump has shouted for two years about the special counsel's Russia probe.

Discussion: Raw Story

Joe Pompeo / Vanity Fair:

“It's Such a Hyped-Up Moment”: How the Mueller Press Corps Is Bracing for the Big One — At the Post, Times, Journal, and other outlets, journalists are reading tea leaves, stalking the Justice Department, and writing stories anticipating many possible outcomes. But what if Mueller's bomb is a dud?

Julie K. Brown / miamiherald:

She was the victim in Jeffrey Epstein's secret plea deal. She didn't even know it — The lawyer for the 16-year-old girl who state prosecutors now say was the victim attached to the mysterious plea deal given to multimillionaire Jeffrey Epstein says neither he nor his client was ever informed …

Andrew Beaton / Wall Street Journal:

Florida Prosecutors Offer to Drop Charges Against Patriots Owner Robert Kraft — Florida prosecutors have offered to drop charges against New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and a number of other men charged with soliciting prostitution.

Discussion: Sports Illustrated, USA Today, The Gateway Pundit, Vanity Fair, Daily Wire, The Week, Bloomberg, Law & Crime, UPROXX, Raw Story, Talking Points Memo, New York Post, TMZ.com, ProFootballTalk, FOX31 Denver, Fox News and ABC7

Elijah E. Cummings / Washington Post:

The White House hasn't turned over a single piece of paper to my committee — Elijah E. Cummings, a Democrat, represents Maryland's 7th Congressional District in the House, where he is the chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform. — In November, the American people voted overwhelmingly …

Discussion: CNN and The Week

Gary Fineout / Politico:

Gillum to launch Florida voter-registration campaign to trip up Trump — TALLAHASSEE — Andrew Gillum has launched a Florida voter registration group dedicated to defeating President Donald Trump's re-election chances in the nation's largest swing state. — The former Tallahassee mayor …

Discussion: NBC News, POLITICUSUSA, Raw Story and Florida Politics

Robin Marty / Politico:

I Am an Abortion Rights Activist. I Hope the Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade. — On January 22, 1973, the United States Supreme Court ruled 7 to 2 that the ability to terminate a pregnancy was a constitutional right. Now, less than five decades later, with a number …

CNN:

Her son died. And then anti-vaxers attacked her — (CNN)Not long ago, a 4-year-old boy died of the flu. His mother, under doctor's orders, watched his two little brothers like a hawk, terrified they might get sick and die, too. — Grieving and frightened, just days after her son's death …

Discussion: Daily Wire and Raw Story

Mark Scott / Politico:

Europe fines Google €1.49B in third antitrust case — Margrethe Vestager says the fine was calculated based on online giant's advertising revenue in Europe. — The European Commission fined Google €1.49 billion on Wednesday for unfairly favoring some of its online advertising services …

Discussion: EU Press Room, One America News Network and The Verge, more at Mediagazer »

Ken Dilanian / NBC News:

Schiff: Real question is if Trump is under the influence of a foreign power — Whether Mueller will answer that question is unclear. But House Intel Chair Adam Schiff said he is steering his probe in a new direction to focus on it. — WASHINGTON — Nearly two years into his investigation …

Discussion: Washington Post and Hullabaloo

Rebecca Corey / Yahoo:

Reagan's daughter says he'd be ‘heartbroken’ over state of the country and GOP — “Through Her Eyes” is a weekly half-hour show hosted by human rights activist Zainab Salbi that explores contemporary issues from a female perspective. You can watch the full episode of “Through Her Eyes” …

Daniel Allott / Washington Examiner:

‘Damn socialism, why are you chasing me?’ Chinese-Americans see ghost of communism in Democrats' leftward turn — IRVINE, Calif.— When Saga Zhou first moved to the United States from China in 2009, she steered clear of politics. The Communist Party rules supreme in China …

Laura Barrón-López / Politico:

DCCC raises record sum in February — The $11.6 million haul is the most House Democrats' campaign arm has brought in any February, even in election years. — The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee raised a record $11.6 million last month, more than the House Democrats' campaign arm …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

John Walcott / TIME:

President Trump Just Sidelined His Own Top Negotiator on North Korea — President Donald Trump has taken increased control of negotiations over North Korea's nuclear weapons program, sidelining his own top negotiator and dismissing the warnings of top intelligence and foreign policy advisors …

Seth Augenstein / Forensic Magazine:

Exclusive: The FBI Had Already Accessed Family Tree DNA's Database Before Cooperation — Family Tree DNA, a commercial gene testing company, chose to cooperate with the FBI after discovering that the Bureau was already using its database, CEO Bennett Greenspan told Forensic Magazine this week.

Discussion: Slate

Jim Tankersley / New York Times:

Trump's Tax Cut Won't Power the Growth He Predicts, Officials Concede — WASHINGTON — The Trump administration pushed a $1.5 trillion tax cut through Congress in 2017 on the promise that it would spark sustained economic growth. While the tax cuts have goosed the economy in the short term …