memeorandum: Crazy Is as Crazy Does (Maureen Dowd/New York Times)

11:05 AM ET, May 26, 2019

Top Items:

Sarah Sanders defends Trump siding with Kim Jong-un on Joe Biden — Speaking from Tokyo in her first “Meet the Press” interview ever, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told NBC's Chuck Todd that President Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un “agree in their assessment” …

Discussion: NBC News, Talking Points Memo, Politico, The Guardian, Raw Story and NB Blog

Quinn Scanlan / ABC News:

Cheney won't respond to tweet about Biden, says she supports Trump's N. Korea policy — Rep. Liz Cheney, the chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, refused to directly respond to President Donald Trump's Saturday night tweet praising North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's criticism …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Washington Post, Outside the Beltway and Al Jazeera

Washington Post:

Trump appears to contradict Bolton on North Korea, expresses ‘confidence’ in Kim — TOKYO — President Trump appeared to contradict his national security adviser on foreign soil in an early morning tweet Sunday, noting that while some in his administration were “disturbed” …

Discussion: Politico, The Week, USA Today, The Guardian, CNN and Quartz

Daniel Politi / Slate:
Trump Implies He Trusts North Korea's Kim More Than His Own People

Discussion: New York Times, Bipartisan Report and Mediaite

Adam Shaw / Fox News:
Trump, in Japan, says Tokyo has ‘substantial’ trade advantage over US

Discussion: Vox, Politico, Breitbart, One America News Network and Associated Press

Maureen Dowd / New York Times:

Crazy Is as Crazy Does — WASHINGTON — Sometimes, as the light comes in my bedroom window and I start to wake up, my mind drifts to other things. — I think about how talented Phoebe Waller-Bridge is, with her two mordant shows, “Killing Eve” and “Fleabag.”

more at Mediagazer »

Kevin Robillard / HuffPost:

John McCain Recited Names Of Dictators During Trump Inaugural, Senator Says — Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, sat next to McCain during Trump's January 2017 speech. — DES MOINES, Iowa - Sen. John McCain repeatedly compared President Donald Trump …

Discussion: Mediaite

Agence France-Presse:

Jews in Germany warned of risks of wearing kippah cap in public — Government commissioner says lifting of inhibitions and rise of uncouthness are factors behind rising incidence of antisemitism — Germany's government commissioner on antisemitism has warned Jews about the potential dangers …

Benjamin Weinthal / Jerusalem Post: U.S. AMBASSADOR URGES JEWS IN GERMANY TO WEAR KIPPOT AND NOT CONCEAL IDENTITY

Jonathan Allen / NBC News:

Trump turns the full force of the government on perceived political enemies — Analysis: The president is wielding power in ways not seen in the United States in generations — if ever. — WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump found four former federal officials guilty of “treason” …

Alexandra Hutzler / Newsweek: Donald Trump Gives William Barr Power to Declassify Intelligence Information in 'a Corrupt Act …

New York Times:
Trump's Targeting of Intelligence Agencies Gains a Harder Edge

Discussion: themarketswork

Roger Kimball / American Greatness:

Let's Call the Russian Collusion ‘Hoax’ What it Really Is — During the Japanese bombardment of Shanghai in 1932, the Austrian essayist Karl Kraus was anguishing over the placement of commas in a column. It might seem futile at such a moment, he told a friend, but “if those who are obliged …

Mark DeCambre / MarketWatch:

The richest 10% of households now represent 70% of all U.S. wealth — The rich are getting richer. It is a refrain that has certainly been uttered before, and likely will again, as Deutsche Bank Securities' chief economist points out that the gap between the haves and have-nots in the U.S. is, indeed, widening.

Melanie Zanona / Politico:

‘Ghosted’: GOP abandons female House hopeful despite talk of electing women — Before Leigh Brown ran for a vacant House seat in North Carolina earlier this year, she got plenty of encouragement from Republicans in Washington eager to grow the ranks of GOP women in Congress.

Discussion: Hullabaloo and Raw Story

Gerry Shih / Washington Post:

‘If I disappear’: Chinese students make farewell messages amid crackdowns over labor activism — BEIJING — The video opens with the 21-year-old sociology student facing the camera. His voice quivers as he recounts his interrogation — his humiliation — for days at the hands of Beijing police.

Maggie Severns / Politico:

Buttigieg pushes for massive fundraising haul to cement top-tier status — Pete Buttigieg is aiming to shake the Democratic presidential race with a massive fundraising total this quarter, staking his claim in the top tier of the primary and demonstrating staying power after rocketing to prominence two months ago.

Cristina Alesci / CNN:

Trump lawyers, House committees reach agreement to hold off on enforcing Deutsche Bank, Capital One subpoenas — (CNN)Lawyers for President Donald Trump have reached an agreement with the House Intelligence and Financial Services committees to hold off for now on enforcing the subpoenas …

Discussion: USA Today, CANNONFIRE and The Daily Caller

New York Times:

In Baltimore and Beyond, a Stolen N.S.A. Tool Wreaks Havoc — For nearly three weeks, Baltimore has struggled with a cyberattack by digital extortionists that has frozen thousands of computers, shut down email and disrupted real estate sales, water bills, health alerts and many other services.

Discussion: Baltimore Sun, Task & Purpose, The Verge and Daily Kos, more at Techmeme »

Washington Post:

Trump's allies insist he is winning in feud with Pelosi. Her backers say she showed up the president. — To many Democrats, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi scored a political victory over President Trump this week, making him so incensed that he hurled insults at her and blew up negotiations …

Discussion: Axios and Raw Story