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12:55 PM ET, May 12, 2025

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
New York Times:
U.S. and China Agree to Temporarily Slash Tariffs in Bid to Defuse Trade War  —  The 145 percent U.S. tariff on Chinese goods will come down to 30 percent for 90 days, while the two sides continue talks aimed at resolving their differences.  —  The United States and China said Monday …
RELATED:
Sam Meredith / CNBC:
U.S. and China agree to slash tariffs for 90 days in major trade breakthrough … WATCH NOW  —  The U.S. and China on Monday agreed to temporarily suspend most tariffs on each other's goods in a move that shows a major thawing of trade tensions between the world's two largest economies.
Landon Mion / Fox Business:
US, China announce reduced tariffs for 90 days after trade talks
President Donald J. Trump / The White House:
Joint Statement on U.S.-China Economic and Trade Meeting in Geneva
William Kristol / The Bulwark:
A Garish, Outlandish, Stunningly Corrupt Act
Discussion: Washington Examiner
Heather Stewart / The Guardian:
Trump might claim China tariff victory - but this is Capitulation Day
David Goldman / CNN:
Dow soars 1,000 points after Trump team and China dramatically lower tariffs
Discussion: CNBC and Fortune
Lisa Mascaro / Associated Press:
House Republicans unveil Medicaid cuts that Democrats warn will leave millions without care  —  House Republicans unveiled the cost-saving centerpiece of President Donald Trump's “ big, beautiful bill ” late Sunday, at least $880 billion in cuts largely to Medicaid to help cover the cost of $4.5 trillion in tax breaks.
RELATED:
Brett Guthrie / Wall Street Journal:
A Common Sense Budget Reconciliation Bill  —  My committee's legislation supports U.S. innovation, strengthens Medicaid, and ends Green New Deal-style waste.  —  When President Trump took the podium for his Second Inaugural Address, he promised a “revolution of common sense” …
Josh Hawley / New York Times:
Don't Cut Medicaid  —  Polls show Democrats down in the dumps at their lowest approval level in decades, but we Republicans are having an identity crisis of our own, and you can see it in the tug of war over President Trump's “one big, beautiful bill.”  The nub of the conflict …
Sahil Kapur / NBC News:
Fight over Medicaid cuts heats up as House Republicans release bill  —  The legislation includes work requirements, stricter eligibility checks, citizenship verification and new limits on federal funding for Medicaid to states.  It met swift Democratic opposition.
Discussion: Washington Examiner and NOTUS
Axios:
Trump naming his former defense attorney as acting Librarian of Congress  —  President Trump will name deputy attorney general Todd Blanche to be the acting Librarian of Congress, a Justice Department official confirmed to Axios.  —  Why it matters: Blanche, who represented Trump in his hush money trial …
RELATED:
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Todd Blanche, DOJ No. 2, is now acting Library of Congress chief  —  The Justice Department's No. 2 official now has a second job: running the Library of Congress.  President Donald Trump has appointed Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche as the acting librarian, a DOJ official said Monday.
Discussion: Associated Press
New York Times:
Trump Administration Live Updates: President Asks Companies to Lower Drug Prices  —  Where Things Stand  — Drug prices: President Trump signed an executive order that asks pharmaceutical companies to voluntarily lower drug prices.  But it was not clear what legal authority Mr. Trump would invoke …
RELATED:
Alex Gangitano / The Hill:
Trump: I'd be a ‘stupid person’ saying no to Qatari plane  —  President Trump on Monday called it “stupid” for him to turn down the gift of a luxury Boeing jet from Qatar, praising the free present from the Arab nation as a “great gesture.”  —  Boeing has had a contract with the U.S. government …
Kaitlan Collins / CNN:
Trump to accept luxury jet from Qatar to use as Air Force One
Jack Jenkins / RNS:
Episcopal Church refuses to resettle white Afrikaners, ends partnership with US government  —  (RNS) — In a striking move that ends a nearly four-decades-old relationship between the federal government and the Episcopal Church, the denomination announced on Monday (May 12) …
RELATED:
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Hamas to release Israeli-American hostage as gesture to Trump  —  Hamas said Sunday it will release Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, who has been held for over 550 days, as part of an effort to reach a ceasefire deal and resume humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.
RELATED:
New York Times:
Trump Heads to the Middle East Focused on Business Deals, Not Diplomacy  —  President Trump has always viewed the presidency as a worldwide hunt for deals.  And there is no better place for that than the Gulf, where a few men wield absolute authority over vast wealth.
New York Times:
Auction to Dine With Trump Creates Foreign Influence Opportunity … The sale of face-to-face access to President Trump using the Trump family's own cryptocurrency has done more than benefit him financially, though it has certainly done that.  —  Mr. Trump announced last month that leading buyers …
Discussion: Defector and Daily Kos
Shawn Hubler / New York Times:
Newsom Asks Cities to Ban Homeless Encampments, Escalating Crackdown  —  “There are no more excuses,” the California governor said in pushing for municipalities to address one of the most visible byproducts of homelessness.  —  Gov. Gavin Newsom escalated California's push …
RELATED:
Taragallegos / Governor of California:
Governor Newsom releases state model for cities and counties to immediately address encampments with urgency and dignity
Punchbowl News:
SLF poll shows Cornyn getting creamed by Paxton … SLF is supporting Cornyn. … The survey, which was conducted from April 27 to May 1 by The Tarrance Group, also tested a general election contest between each potential Republican candidate and former Democratic Rep. Colin Allred (D-Texas), who is mulling another Senate run.
Discussion: The Hill, IJR and The Daily Caller
RELATED:
Punchbowl News:
5/12/25 ☀️ AM:
Ian Millhiser / Vox:
The Federalist Society is surprisingly ambivalent about Trump  —  Few organizations have profited as handsomely off of President Donald Trump's rise to power as the Federalist Society, a kind of bar association for right-wing lawyers.  —  “We're going to have great judges, conservative …
Politico:
Tech companies have a big remote worker problem: North Korean operatives  —  Cybersecurity firms say that the intricate scam to amass funding for North Korea's weapons program is happening “on a scale we haven't seen before.”  —  A growing number of the nation's top tech firms …
Bethany McLean / Business Insider:
‘A flashing red light’: how Donald Trump Jr. is cashing in on his dad's presidency  —  Last November, only six days after his father was elected president, Donald Trump Jr. made a career move that, on the surface at least, seemed a bit odd.  He became a partner in a small investment startup …
Noah Berlatsky / Public Notice:
The new pope is latest sign that the world rejects Trumpism  —  🌊 With corporate outlets obeying in advance, supporting independent political media is more important right now than ever.  PN is possible thanks to paid subscribers.  If you aren't one already, please click the button below and become one to support our work.
Discussion: New York Post
Richard Steigmann-Gall / Society for US …:
“The Wolves Came”: Richard Steigmann-Gall on Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins's *Did it Happen Here?  Perspectives on Fascism and America*  —  Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins has edited a book which he hoped would finally put to bed the hotly contested Fascism Debate that arose from Trump's 2016 candidacy …
New York Times:
Here Is Everything That Has Changed Since Congestion Pricing Started in New York  —  Fewer cars.  Faster travel.  Less honking.  And some questions we still can't answer.  —  The reporters sought information from everyone they could think of, including the M.T.A., the Fire Department …
Discussion: New Jersey Online
 
 
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 More Items: 
Reuters:
UK police investigating fire at PM Starmer's house
Discussion: Politico, Metro.co.uk and Human Events
Carrie Johnson / NPR:
Race to lead D.C. lawyers' association grows heated amid attacks on law firms
Discussion: Axios
Adam Kinzinger:
Silencing America's Voice
Steve Benen / MSNBC:
Trump reportedly shrugs off intelligence briefings he needs, but doesn't want
David Lim / Politico:
Trump promises to slash drug costs, tying U.S. prices to those paid abroad
Courtney Kube / NBC News:
Pentagon spent at least $21 million on flights to Guantanamo, which currently holds 32 migrants
Discussion: CBS News and The Independent
 Earlier Items: 
G. Elliott Morris / Strength In Numbers:
Building a new home for data-driven political journalism
Thibault Spirlet / Business Insider:
Elon Musk says the US is running a ‘quiet trial’ of Trump's $5 million gold card for the ultrawealthy
Discussion: Newsweek, LewRockwell and Fortune
Victor Davis Hanson / American Greatness:
The Decivilizing of America … Secure borders and stationary populations were considered …
Discussion: Twitchy
Nicholas Bagley / Divided Argument:
Defanging NEPA  —  Can you buy your way out of judicial review?  —  The House Natural …
Giovanna Coi / Politico:
US popularity collapses worldwide in wake of Trump's return
Discussion: Reuters
Walter Olson:
Will we allow ICE to behave as a secret police?
Discussion: The Daily Wire
Troy Closson / New York Times:
Flights Could Be Disrupted Across U.S., Transportation Secretary Warns
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Bloomberg:
Sources: WBD begins exclusive talks with Netflix to sell its film and TV studios and HBO Max; Netflix is offering a $5B breakup fee if the deal isn't approved

The Guardian:
Ireland, Spain, Slovenia, and the Netherlands exit Eurovision after Israel received an all-clear to compete; the BBC and Germany's SWR plan to participate

James Faris / Business Insider:
Kalshi strikes a deal with CNBC that will integrate Kalshi's prediction data into CNBC's channel, site, and app starting in 2026, days after striking a CNN deal
 
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