Check out Mini-memeorandum for simple mobiles or memeorandum Mobile for modern smartphones.
8:40 AM ET, February 20, 2026

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
As Trump Weighs Iran Strikes, He Declines to Make Clear Case for Why, or Why Now  —  Rarely in modern times has the United States prepared to conduct a major act of war with so little explanation or public debate.  —  When President George W. Bush began preparing the country for the invasion of Iraq …
RELATED:
Alexander Ward / Wall Street Journal:
Trump Weighs Initial Limited Strike to Force Iran Into Nuclear Deal  —  President considers a range of military options but has said he still prefers diplomacy  —  WASHINGTON—President Trump is weighing an initial limited military strike on Iran to force it to meet his demands for a nuclear deal …
Michelle Goldberg / New York Times:
This Is How an Autocrat Goes to War  —  I never imagined I'd miss being lied to by George W. Bush and his henchmen.  —  When the Bush administration wanted to go to war with Iraq, it undertook a full-court press to propagandize the American people.  Administration officials leaked false information …
Washington Post:
Trump appears ready to attack Iran as U.S. strike force takes shape  —  Although the United States and ally Israel have a decisive military advantage over Iranian forces, there are ways for Tehran to make any attack painful, officials said.  —  The Trump administration appears ready to launch …
Vali Nasr / Financial Times:
Why Iran is betting on war
New York Times:
Labor Secretary's Husband Barred From the Department After Sexual Assault Reports  —  At least two female staff members said Dr. Shawn DeRemer had touched them inappropriately at the agency in Washington.  —  The husband of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer has been barred …
RELATED:
Nick Niedzwiadek / Politico:
Chavez-DeRemer's husband barred from DOL headquarters
Discussion: Wall Street Journal
NBC News:
Large banner of Trump unfurled at Justice Department headquarters  —  The DOJ has traditionally operated with a degree of separation from the White House to prevent the department's powers from being abused for political purposes.  —  Listen to this article with a free account
RELATED:
Alanna Durkin Richer / Associated Press:
Large banner featuring Trump's face is displayed on Justice Department headquarters
Ashley Ahn / New York Times:
New Trump Banner Hung on Justice Department Headquarters
Discussion: NewsMax.com and The Hill
Julia Carrie Wong / The Guardian:
Revealed: Epstein cultivated relationship with CBP officer, causing US investigation  —  Guardian review of US justice department files reveals Epstein interacted with six CBP officers.  The officer investigated denied any knowledge of trafficking underage girls  —  Prefer the Guardian on Google
Discussion: New York Times and Wired
Raquel Coronell Uribe / NBC News:
Trump says he is directing the Pentagon to release files related to UFOs and aliens  —  Trump's comments came hours after he claimed that former President Barack Obama shared ‘classified information’ when he told a podcaster recently that he believed aliens were real.  —  Listen to this article with a free account
RELATED:
Greg Wehner / Fox News:
Trump calls Obama's alien comments a ‘big mistake’ after alleging classified information podcast revelation
Akhil Reed Amar / New York Times:
Soil, Not Blood, Determines U.S. Citizenship  —  America's Constitution proudly proclaims that all people born on American soil and under the American flag are Americans — equal birthright citizens — regardless of their parentage.  Constitutionally, it does not matter if you are born Black or white, male or female, in wedlock or out.
Discussion: SCOTUSblog
Sanya Burgess / The i Paper:
Tommy Robinson was barred from the US.  Trump's border force has now let him in  —  Tommy Robinson has travelled to America - despite a reported travel ban and tough border controls on travellers with criminal convictions.  —  In a series of videos and posts on X, Robinson …
Wall Street Journal:
The Embarrassing Truth About Tariffs  —  Why is Trump so upset about Federal Reserve economic research into his trade policies?  —  The White House this week opened a new front in its war on the Federal Reserve: a fight about Fed research on the consequences of President Trump's tariffs.
Drew Harwell / Washington Post:
A fake ICE tip line reveals neighbors reporting neighbors  —  A Nashville comedian's deportation hotline, set up as a joke, has gone viral among viewers who say it shows the “banality of evil personified.”  —  Ben Palmer, a stand-up comic in Nashville, has built a following online …
Jonathan Allen / NBC News:
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger to deliver the Democratic response to Trump's State of the Union  —  Spanberger won election in Virginia in November, in a strong showing for Democrats on a message of affordability.  — ADD NBC NEWS TO GOOGLE  —  Listen to this article with a free account
New York Times:
MAHA Moms Turn Against Trump: ‘Women Feel Like They Were Lied To’  —  President Trump's executive order aimed at spurring production of a pesticide has infuriated leaders of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s MAHA movement.  —  The MAHA Moms have turned on President Trump.
Tom Schaller / Public Notice:
How MAGA learned to love Christian persecution  —  This special Saturday edition of PN is made possible by paid subscribers.  Become one👇  —  🧠 Subscribe to PN 🧠  —  It's a familiar cri de coeur howled by conservative talking heads and Republican politicians: Christians in America are under siege.
Benjy Sarlin / Vox:
Trump's dream is a giant slush fund Congress can't touch  —  After President Donald Trump launched a military operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, he announced that America planned to take control of its oil revenue.  More specifically, one American.
Jessica Priest / The Texas Tribune:
University of Texas regents approve limits on teaching “unnecessary controversial subjects”  —  Opponents warned the policy's vagueness could push professors to self-censor and leave students less prepared for the workplace.  —  TAKE OUR CONTENT — PLEASE!
Malek Fouda / Euronews:
Poland prepares to mine Russian border after exit from Ottawa treaty  —  Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has unveiled the Bluszcz weapons system, saying Warsaw could lay mines along its eastern border with Russia within 48 hours.  —  Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk says Warsaw will soon …
Discussion: Reuters
Faris Tanyos / CBS News:
U.S. fighter jets intercept Russian warplanes off Alaskan coast  —  Add CBS News on Google  —  U.S. fighter jets were scrambled Thursday to intercept multiple Russian bombers, fighter jets and a spy plane that were spotted flying off the coast of Alaska, U.S. authorities said.
Rebecca Picciotto / Wall Street Journal:
White House Offers New Details on Its Push to Ban Housing Investors  —  President Trump wants to prohibit investors that own more than 100 homes from buying more, potentially banning hundreds of investment firms  —  The White House is ratcheting up pressure on Congress to enact President Trump's proposed ban …
Washington Post:
D.C. protesters say they were attacked by guards of Azerbaijani president  —  Azerbaijan's Ilham Aliyev is in town for a meeting of Trump's Board of Peace.  Police said an incident that “involved Azerbaijan security guards” had been referred to the State Department.
Fritz Farrow / ABC News:
Fine arts panel approves Trump's White House East Wing ballroom plans  —  The commission, newly filled with Trump appointees, did so near unanimously.  —  A 31-page report on the White House ballroom submitted to the panels reviewing the project show the proposed addition to the White House …
Politico:
California bill would block immigration agents near polling sites … “Our state is facing serious threats from the Trump administration, and we will not treat them as idle or hypothetical,” Umberg said in a prepared statement.  “California has both the constitutional right and responsibility …
Susan Montoya Bryan / Associated Press:
New Mexico reopens investigation into alleged illegal activity at Epstein's former Zorro Ranch  —  New Mexico's attorney general has reopened an investigation into allegations of illegal activity at Jeffrey Epstein 's former Zorro Ranch.  Attorney General Raúl Torrez's office …
NBC News:
Trump vows $10 billion from U.S. for his ‘Board of Peace,’ as he leans into global role  —  President Donald Trump expressed optimism for Gaza during Thursday's first meeting of the Board of Peace, which focused on the next steps in the fragile ceasefire.  — ADD NBC NEWS TO GOOGLE
Washington Post:
DOJ struggles as White House presses on voter fraud  —  Justice and Homeland Security officials are meeting to pursue prosecutions for noncitizen voting, which has never been found at scale.  —  The Justice Department has struggled to meet White House demands to prosecute noncitizen voters …
Discussion: Alternet.org and Votebeat
Kimberly Ross / Washington Examiner:
Women don't want to just be ‘girlbosses’ or ‘tradwives’  —  In recent years, the notion that motherhood is binary has gained significant traction.  As a quick glance at social media will confirm, there are seemingly two competing forces at play: that of the “girlboss” and the “tradwife.”
David Masciotra / Washington Monthly:
Remembering Jesse Jackson's Poetic Synthesis  —  I wrote a book about him, and we became friends.  The cynics didn't understand how he fused moral simplicity and political profundity.  —  Never miss an article!  —  Email (required) *  —  Reverend Jesse Jackson surprised me during a trip to his home state of South Carolina.
Discussion: CounterPunch
Ceylan Yeğinsu / New York Times:
Why the United States Is Seeing an Ongoing Tourism Slump  —  Last year, the U.S. was the only major destination to see a decline in international travelers.  With increased scrutiny at the border, ICE violence and unpredictable policies, the new year isn't looking better.
Henry J. Gomez / NBC News:
The Epstein saga engulfs Les Wexner — and the Ohio he helped build  —  The retail mogul's ties to Jeffrey Epstein have upended his legacy and put the state's political leaders under scrutiny.  —  Listen to this article with a free account  —  NEW ALBANY, Ohio — Around …
Politico:
Republicans are ignoring Trump and holding out hope for a second megabill … Those Republicans are largely brushing off Trump's comments, refusing to take them as a death knell for their efforts.  —  “One day he's okay with it, and the next day he's not,” said Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) …
Discussion: The Message Box
 
 
 Archived Page Info: 
This is a snapshot of memeorandum at 8:40 AM ET, February 20, 2026.

View the current page or another snapshot:


 
 Who's Hiring in Media? 
 
 See Also: 
memeorandum: site main
memeorandum River: reverse chronological memeorandum
memeorandum Mobile: for phones
memeorandum Leaderboard: memeorandum's top sources
 
 Subscribe: 
memeorandum RSS feed
memeorandum on Mastodon
 
 
 More Items: 
Theodoric Meyer / Washington Post:
Democrat wants DHS to examine potential bias in Minneapolis investigations
Matt Troutman / New York Post:
Legendary director Steven Spielberg is latest billionaire to flee California in another blow to state
Victor Nava / New York Post:
Les Wexner's attorney caught on hot mic saying he'll ‘f-king kill’ ex-Victoria's Secret CEO during Jeffrey Epstein probe deposition
Jon Michael Raasch / Daily Mail:
Scandalous marriage secrets of Florida governor frontrunner: Ex-wife's pregnancy bombshell
Discussion: Raw Story
Dylan Lovan / Associated Press:
Kentucky Supreme Court rules that charter schools law is unconstitutional
Discussion: NKyTribune and Tampa Free Press
Reuters:
Exclusive: A palace in Marrakesh: How Schwab moved $27.7 million in payments for Epstein days before his arrest
 Earlier Items: 
Wall Street Journal:
MAGA Voters Back Trump's Interventions
Anastasia Tsioulcas / NPR:
Internal memo details cosmetic changes and facility repairs to Kennedy Center
Discussion: Raw Story
Alex Isenstadt / Axios:
Epstein revelations spur calls to scrape Lutnick's name from college library
Discussion: NewsMax.com
Associated Press:
As political pressure prompts exodus of Minnesota prosecutors, some defendants catch a break
New York Times:
In 2025, Trade Deficit in Goods Reached Record High
 

 
From Techmeme:

Rafe Rosner-Uddin / Financial Times:
Sources: Amazon's AI tools have caused at least two AWS outages, including a 13-hour disruption in December after Kiro AI deleted and recreated an environment

Alex Heath / Sources:
Scott Myers, the SVP of Snap's AR glasses unit Specs, leaves after six years; sources say Myers left after a “blow-up” with Evan Spiegel over Snap's strategy

Robert Burnson / Bloomberg:
A US grand jury indicted two former Google engineers and one of their husbands for allegedly stealing trade secrets relating to the Tensor chip for Pixel phones

 
Sister Sites:

Techmeme
 Top news and commentary for technology's leaders, from all around the web
Mediagazer
 Top news and commentary for media professionals from all around the web
WeSmirch
 The top celebrity news from all around the web on a single page