memeorandum: Inside a Biden White House adrift (NBC News)

1:10 PM ET, May 31, 2022

Top Items:

Inside a Biden White House adrift — WASHINGTON — Faced with a worsening political predicament, President Joe Biden is pressing aides for a more compelling message and a sharper strategy while bristling at how they've tried to stifle the plain-speaking persona that has long been one of his most potent assets.

Daniel Lippman / Politico:

Biden sees exodus of Black staffers and some frustration among those who remain — At least 21 Black staffers have left the White House since late last year or are planning to leave soon. Some of those who remain say it's no wonder why: They describe a work environment with little support …

Discussion: HotAir, New York Post, The Daily Caller and Mediaite

Darlene Superville / Associated Press:

Jill Biden says she, president settle arguments by ‘fexting’ — WASHINGTON (AP) — When President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden disagree, they don't hash it out in front of other people. Instead, she says, they argue by text — “fexting” as they call it.

Discussion: CNN, Insider, Mediaite and Townhall

Mattie Kahn / Harper's BAZAAR:

A First Lady Undeterred — A pandemic. A war. A country at its breaking point. Dr. Jill Biden has faced it all with the grace and conviction that has guided her all her life—showing up for her students, her friends and family, the American people, her husband, and herself. — STORY BY

Discussion: Insider, The Hill, RedState, Mediaite, Althouse and New York Post

Matt Viser / Washington Post:
James Biden — presidential brother, family helper, political wild card

Discussion: Mediaite, Wide World of News, DonaldsHeroes's Newsletter and Power Line

Devlin Barrett / Washington Post:

Sussmann, who worked for Clinton, acquitted of lying to FBI in 2016 — The verdict is a defeat for Special Counsel John Durham, appointed three years ago by then-Attorney General William Barr. — A federal jury found Michael Sussmann, a lawyer for Democrats including the Hillary Clinton …

Discussion: Bloomberg, Balloon Juice, NOQ Report, Mediaite and The American Conservative

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

What Durham proved — WHAT DURHAM PROVED. The trial of Michael Sussmann is before a jury in Washington, D.C. Sussmann is the Democratic lawyer who, according to special counsel John Durham, lied to the FBI in 2016 when, working on behalf of the Hillary Clinton campaign, he tried to plant a derogatory story about Donald Trump.

Discussion: Townhall, Breitbart and Talking Points Memo

Eric Tucker / Associated Press:

Clinton campaign lawyer acquitted of lying to the FBI — WASHINGTON (AP) — A lawyer for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign was acquitted Tuesday of lying to the FBI when he pushed information meant to cast suspicions on Donald Trump and Russia in the run-up to the 2016 election.

Discussion: New York Post, Washington Examiner, Wall Street Journal, The Daily Beast, Bloomberg, The Gateway Pundit and NewsNation

Charlie Savage / New York Times:
Michael Sussmann Is Acquitted in Case Brought by Trump-Era Prosecutor

Discussion: NBC News and Washington Times

Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Sussmann acquitted on charge brought by special counsel Durham

Discussion: The Reactionary and Power Line

Marshall Cohen / CNN:
Michael Sussmann found not guilty of lying to FBI in Durham investigation

Discussion: Reuters, CBS News, NPR, The Daily Caller, Raw Story and The Daily Wire

Fox News:
Michael Sussmann found not guilty of charges brought by Special Prosecutor John Durham

Discussion: RedState

Margot Cleveland / The Federalist: Even Without The Jury Convicting Michael Sussmann, The Special Counsel Has Won

CNN:

Exclusive: Supreme Court leak investigation heats up as clerks are asked for phone records in unprecedented move — (CNN)Supreme Court officials are escalating their search for the source of the leaked draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade, taking steps to require law clerks …

New York Times:

We Clerked for Justices Scalia and Stevens. America Is Getting Heller Wrong. — Ms. Shaw is a professor of law at Cardozo Law School. Mr. Bash is an attorney in private practice in Austin, Texas. — In the summer of 2008, the Supreme Court decided District of Columbia v. Heller …

Discussion: National Review, Reason and Washington Monthly

Chantal Da Silva / NBC News:

Memorial Day weekend marked by more than a dozen mass shootings in the U.S. — 12 killed, 15 wounded in Philadelphia weekend shootings — Amid calls for gun control after last week's massacre at a Uvalde, Texas, elementary school, shots rang out across the country over the Memorial Day weekend …

Discussion: Raw Story, The Daily Wire, The Mahablog, Streams of Crunchiness, No News Letter, KFTC-TV and Denver Post

ABC News:
‘Full of victims’: Video appears to show Texas 911 dispatchers relaying information from children in classroom

Discussion: Mediaite

Jonathan Weisman / New York Times:
Gun Talks Put Senate's Tattered Credibility on the Line

Discussion: Vanity Fair, The Independent, Washington Examiner, The Hill, No More Mister Nice Blog, IJR, Raw Story, National Review and Axios

Axios:
Uvalde tragedy captures America's fleeting attention

Discussion: Daily Kos and New York Post

New York Post:
New video shows Texas school shooter Salvador Ramos holding bag of dead cats

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, RedState, Mediaite and The Daily Wire

Anayeli Ruiz / KHOU-TV:
11-year-old who survived Uvalde massacre struggles to deal in aftermath

Discussion: Insider and Fox News

Politico:

Former Trump aide Navarro says he has received a grand jury subpoena related to Jan. 6 — Peter Navarro, a former White House aide to Donald Trump, says he's been served a grand jury subpoena by federal prosecutors probing the Jan. 6 insurrection — and claims they have asked for records of …

Discussion: CBS News, Washington Post, Axios, Raw Story, USA Today, Rolling Stone, The Status Kuo, Daily Kos, Washington Times, New York Times, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, Insider, Alternet.org, KDFX-TV, The Hill, Washington Examiner and Just The News

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Opinion Garland's mushy speech to Harvard grads does not inspire confidence

Discussion: CNSNews, The Daily Caller and The Daily Wire

Edward Luce / Financial Times:

Is America heading for civil war? — A clutch of books makes an alarmingly persuasive case that the warning lights are flashing redder than at any point since 1861 — In the summer of 2015, America caught a glimpse of how its future could unfold. The US military conducted a routine exercise …

Thomas Lecaque / The Bulwark:

Doug Mastriano, Christian Nationalism, and the Cult of the AR-15 — The Republican nominee for Pennsylvania governor has ties to a gun-worshiping sect. But the real scandal is just how common many of their beliefs have become on the right. — The horrific mass shootings at Buffalo …

Discussion: Raw Story and Alternet.org

Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:

Economic Pessimism Growing in U.S. — WASHINGTON, D.C. — Gallup's Economic Confidence Index measured -45 in May, down from -39 in each of the previous two months. It is the lowest reading in Gallup's trend during the coronavirus pandemic, and likely the lowest confidence has been since …

Discussion: Breitbart

Politico:
POLITICO Playbook: Inside Biden's June pivot to the economy

Discussion: The Hill, National Review, Political Wire and ABC News

Amanda Carpenter / The Bulwark:

Kevin McCarthy's Jan. 6th Coverup is Underway — The man who wants to be speaker of the House refuses to cooperate with the Jan. 6th investigation. — Conditioned to accept the idea that most Republican officials are zombified “ultra MAGA” automatons for former President Trump …

Discussion: Raw Story and The Hill

Associated Press:

Some Democrats voting in GOP primaries to block Trump picks — WASHINGTON (AP) — Diane Murray struggled with her decision all the way up to Election Day. — But when the time came, the 54-year-old Georgia Democrat cast a ballot in last week's Republican primary for Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Discussion: Washington Post, Washington Examiner, HotAir, New York Magazine, The National, Al Jazeera, Raw Story and American Greatness

Alyssa Rosenberg / Washington Post:

Breastfeeding isn't ‘free.’ Here's what it cost me. — “TRY BREASTFEEEDING! It's free and available on demand.” “God literally designed mothers to feed their babies.” This is cruel to any parent who can't make the milk their child needs. And it's not true. — Even in the best-case scenario, breastfeeding isn't free.

Discussion: Self Space

Laurie Fiorenza / West Cook News:

OPRF to implement race-based grading system in 2022-23 school year — Oak Park and River Forest High School administrators will require teachers next school year to adjust their classroom grading scales to account for the skin color or ethnicity of its students.

Discussion: RedState, Breitbart and Twitchy