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5:00 PM ET, February 18, 2026

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Paul Krugman:
Billionaires Gone Wild  —  Understanding the oligarchs' power grab and the dire threat to American democracy  —  A few stories about centibillionaires — men whose net worth exceeds $100 billion — and their role in our society:  —  · In 2022 Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, purchased Twitter.
Discussion: Mock Paper Scissors
RELATED:
Carol Ryan / Wall Street Journal:
Billionaires' Low Taxes Are Becoming a Problem for the Economy  —  Tax avoidance by the superwealthy is an economic issue as well as a political one  —  California's plan to hit its richest residents with a one-off wealth tax is a long shot, and its design has problems.
Discussion: The Hill and The Guardian
Greg Sargent / New Republic:
Angry Trump Humiliated as Effort to Prosecute Dems Backfires Again  —  Let's start with some good news: Donald Trump's efforts to jail his Democratic enemies have thus far mostly been marked by ham-fisted, buffoonish failure.  The targeting of people like Senator Adam Schiff …
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New York Times:
A Case Against 6 Democrats Lacked Urgency.  Then Came a Swift Bid for an Indictment.  —  Prosecutors have been repeatedly caught between the president's insistence that they undertake weak or baseless cases and the necessity of having to go to court.  —  In mid-January, federal prosecutors contacted …
Discussion: Raw Story and Mediaite
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Trump moves closer to a major war with Iran  —  The Trump administration is closer to a major war in the Middle East than most Americans realize.  It could begin very soon. … - The sources noted it would likely be a joint U.S.-Israeli campaign that's much broader in scope …
RELATED:
Christian Paz / Vox:
The FCC (probably) didn't censor Stephen Colbert  —  For the 12 of us who woke up Tuesday morning wondering what we had missed on Monday's late-night shows, CBS greeted us with a concerning development.  —  Overnight, Stephen Colbert had laid into his network, dedicating time at the top …
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David Bauder / Associated Press:
Late-night host Stephen Colbert isn't backing down from public dispute with CBS bosses
Emily Peck / Axios:
Trump's economic adviser says authors of tariff study should be “disciplined”  —  White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said the authors of a New York Fed study that found that Americans pay for tariffs should be disciplined, in an interview with CNBC Wednesday morning.
Discussion: Bloomberg, CNBC, Fortune, MS NOW and Joe.My.God.
RELATED:
Lizzy Lawrence / STAT:
STAT+: FDA reverses course, agrees to review Moderna's flu vaccine  —  WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration reversed course and told Moderna it would review its application for a new flu vaccine, the company announced Wednesday.  —  The agency told Moderna earlier this month …
RELATED:
Derek Hunter / The Hill:
Something is very wrong at the FDA
Discussion: Raw Story and MedPage Today
Dareh Gregorian / NBC News:
Billionaire Les Wexner tells lawmakers that he was ‘conned’ by Jeffrey Epstein and did ‘nothing wrong’  —  The 88-year-old former Victoria's Secret CEO denied he was Epstein's “co-conspirator,” and said he “was duped by a world-class con man.”  —  Listen to this article with a free account
RELATED:
Hailey Fuchs / Politico:
Former Victoria Secret CEO denies connection to Jeffrey Epstein's crimes
Nature:
The political effects of X's feed algorithm  — Germain Gauthier orcid.org/0009-0000-4262-7483 1 na1, - Roland Hodler orcid.org/0000-0001-8402-8243 2 na1, - Philine Widmer 3 na1 & - - Ekaterina Zhuravskaya orcid.org/0000-0002-3496-2086 3,4 na1 Show authors  —  Abstract
Discussion: Gizmodo
Arthur Delaney / HuffPost:
GOP Lawmaker Reportedly Had Affair With Aide Who Died By Self-Immolation  —  Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) accused his primary opponent of using the story to smear his aide's memory.  —  WASHINGTON — A Republican lawmaker's apparent affair with an aide who later died by suicide has roiled a close primary election in Texas.
Janna Brancolini / The Daily Beast:
Manic Trump, 79, Unleashes Deranged Conspiracy Posting Rampage  —  SPIRALING  —  The president seems to be panicking about Republicans' chances in the midterms.  —  President Donald Trump has unleashed a bombardment of debunked election conspiracy theories as he pressures Senate Republicans …
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Keri Blakinger / ProPublica:
Amid Mass ICE Arrests, Trump Pardon Recipient Juan Orlando Hernández Given Special Treatment  —  After the former Honduran president was pardoned, ICE dropped its detainer on him, and he was whisked away to a luxury hotel in New York City.  —  Copy HTML
Sheryl Gay Stolberg / New York Times:
N.I.H. Director Will Temporarily Run C.D.C. in Leadership Shake-Up  —  Dr. Jay Bhattacharya will serve as acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention until President Trump appoints a permanent director.  —  The director of the National Institutes of Health …
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Chris Marquette / Politico:
Trump administration releases remaining Gateway funds — and then some … Over the course of three installments the Trump administration paid Gateway a total of $235 million.  That includes the $205 million the federal government was in arrears to Gateway, along with another $30 million stemming …
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Sam Levine / The Guardian:
Judge declares mistrial in Texas ‘antifa’ protest case over attorney's T-shirt  —  Lawyer for defendants accused of terrorism at ICE protest decried by Trump appointee over shirt's potential for ‘bias’  —  A federal judge in Texas declared a mistrial on Tuesday after a defense lawyer wore …
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Mike Lillis / The Hill:
Jeffries: Democrats ‘steadfast’ in demands for ICE reforms  —  House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) warned Wednesday that Democrats are “steadfast” in their demands for specific reforms to President Trump's immigration enforcement policies.  —  Those reforms are at the heart …
RELATED:
Elizabeth Elkind / Fox News:
Democrats' DHS shutdown halts ICE oversight they demanded
Mike Masnick / Techdirt:
The ‘Most Massive Attack On Free Speech’ Is Happening Right Now, And The Twitter Files Crew Is Mighty Quiet  —  For the last five years, we had to endure an endless, breathless parade of hyperbole regarding the so-called “censorship industrial complex.”  We were told, repeatedly and at high volume …
Annie Karni / New York Times:
Democrats Plan to Counter Trump's Speech to Congress With Rally  —  The House Democratic leader has asked rank-and-file members to sit quietly at the speech or skip it altogether, wary of creating a distraction.  —  Democrats knew in real time last year that they had bungled their response …
Stephanie Koithan / San Antonio Current:
Report: Staff at Dilley raiding cells to confiscate kids' letters and drawings detailing conditions inside  —  Staff at Dilley's South Texas Family Residential Center have begun raiding cells at the immigrant detention facility to confiscate letters from children detailing the conditions inside …
Hafiz Rashid / New Republic:
Pope Rejects Trump's “Board of Peace” Invite  —  The Vatican will not be joining Donald Trump's “Board of Peace,” announcing Tuesday that it was turning down a January invitation from the White House.  —  “For us, there are ... some critical issues that should be resolved,” …
Russell Contreras / Axios:
Where Christian nationalism is most dominant in the U.S.  —  Christian nationalism is now deeply entrenched inside today's Republican Party, according to a sweeping 50-state survey. … - The divide reflects a broader clash over whether America's future is pluralistic or rooted in a singular religious-national identity.
HotAir:
Democrats Just Humiliated Jasmine Crockett (And She Is PISSED)  —  There is major drama brewing in the Lone Star State, and the Democrats just got caught playing dirty.  In this episode, we spill the tea on why Stephen Colbert and CBS refused to air an interview with Democrat James Talarico.
Philip Bump / MS NOW:
The right's obsession with American ‘heritage’ is all about who gets to be seen as ‘white’  —  What Elon Musk was really getting at when he incorrectly claimed “American culture” is of “English-Scotts-Irish origin.” … At the outset, it's appropriate to recognize that the recent uptick …
Discussion: KVIA-TV
Laura Kelly / The Hill:
Trump has prepared speech on extraterrestrial life, Lara Trump says  —  President Trump is holding onto a speech detailing extraterrestrial life and spaceships, according to his daughter-in-law Lara Trump, who said the president is waiting for the right time to deliver it.
New York Times:
Colorado Democrats Push to Rip Up 2028 House Map for an Extra Edge  —  A proposed ballot measure to give Democrats more seats for the 2028 and 2030 elections signals that the nation's gerrymandering fight is likely to persist for years.  —  A group allied with Colorado Democrats is beginning …
Sophie Brams / The Hill:
RFK Jr., Kid Rock go shirtless in new HHS ad  —  Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has joined forces with singer Kid Rock in a new ad promoting the department's Make America Healthy Again initiative.  —  “I've teamed up with @KidRock to deliver two simple messages …
New Republic:
Minneapolis Mayor's Emotional Message to Trump: You Failed to Break Us … In today's episode, we talk to Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey about the latest developments in his city.  Donald Trump and border czar Tom Homan have said they're winding down ICE's occupation, and Frey tells us there are some positive signs in this regard.
Discussion: Raw Story
Reuters:
US EPA plans to loosen mercury rules for coal plants this week, NYT reports  —  The Trump administration plans to loosen restrictions on coal-burning power plants this week, allowing them to emit more hazardous pollutants including mercury, the New York Times reported on Wednesday.
Discussion: New York Times
 
 
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 More Items: 
Zack Beauchamp / Vox:
How one country stopped a Trump-style authoritarian in his tracks
Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:
Netanyahu Plays Trump and American Jews for Fools — Again
Discussion: Esquire
Timothy Pratt / The Guardian:
Conservative Georgia town pushes back against ICE detention center: ‘We are Americans after all’
Max Rego / The Hill:
Texas comptroller candidate who bought Epstein ranch plans to turn it into a Christian retreat
Chris Marquette / Politico:
DOT wants to block transit money to states that aid migrants
Discussion: NewsMax.com
 Earlier Items: 
Bloomberg:
Carney Poaches Third Conservative Defector, Chasing Majority
Discussion: Reuters, Juno News and Politico
Kyle Cheney / Politico:
DOJ acknowledges violating dozens of recent court orders in New Jersey
Rick Hasen / Election Law Blog:
National Review: “The SAVE Act's Virtuous Goals Are Not Worth the Cost”
Discussion: National Review
Ashifa Kassam / The Guardian:
Credit cards cancelled, Google accounts closed: ICC judges on life under Trump sanctions
Discussion: Euronews and The Register
Odette Yousef / NPR:
Extremist rhetoric is often found in government messaging. Who's the target?
Megan O'Matz / ProPublica:
Chlorine Dioxide, Raw Camel Milk: The FDA No Longer Warns Against These and Other Ineffective Autism Treatments
Discussion: New Republic and Joe.My.God.