memeorandum: New York Magazine reviewing work of writer facing plagiarism allegations (Bobby Allyn/NPR)

1:10 AM ET, May 18, 2026

Top Items:

Trump-backed prayer festival on National Mall draws thousands: ‘We welcome Jesus!’ — Critics of Sunday's “Rededicate 250” event said it portrayed the United States inaccurately as a Christian nation and sought to erase the line between church and state. — Summary

Erkki Forster / The Daily Beast:

Trump Snubs His Big Faith Event to Go Golfing — PUTTING FIRST — The president was apparently busy answering a different Sunday calling. — President Donald Trump skipped his own White House-backed event “rededicating” the nation to God to spend the day at his preferred place of worship: the golf course.

Discussion: Al Jazeera

New York Times:

Trump Administration Pushes Narrative of Christian Founding at Rally — The nine-hour prayer event features speakers from President Trump's cabinet and a program that connects the nation's founding with Christianity. — Thousands of people gathered on the National Mall on Sunday …

Discussion: RNS and Wall Street Journal

Associated Press:

Four crew members ejected safely after two Navy jets crash during air show in Idaho — All four crew members ejected safely after two Navy jets collided and crashed on Sunday during an air show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in western Idaho, officials said.

Discussion: Breitbart, Associated Press, Airshow News, KTFT, CBS News, Stars & Stripes, WTTG-TV, U.S. Home, Townhall, The Gateway Pundit, Straight Arrow, TMZ.com, UPI, NewsMax.com, The Post Millennial, Reuters, Washington Examiner and Al Jazeera

KTFT:

4 crew members safely ejected following Idaho jet crash — The Associated Press has reported that all four crew members involved in the jet collision ejected safely. — MOUNTAIN HOME AIR FORCE BASE, Idaho — Four crew members were able to safely eject from their aircraft …

Discussion: Fox News, Daily Caller News Foundation, WFAA-TV, Task & Purpose, twitchy.com, KTLA, New York Post, NPR and Mediaite

NBC News:

Midair jet collision forces lockdown at Idaho Air Force base show — All four aviators involved in the Sunday crash at the Gunfighter Skies Air Show successfully ejected and are being evaluated by medical personnel, a Navy official said. … A local air show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base …

Discussion: New York Times, CBS News, RedState and The Daily Wire

New York Times:

How a Democratic Governor Came to Release an Election Denier From Prison — Gov. Jared Polis's decision to commute the sentence of Tina Peters came after months of tense discussions, including one with President Trump. — President Trump had a blunt message for Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado …

Jeremy Schulman / Mother Jones:
Jared Polis Did the Right Thing

Discussion: Raw Story, The Colorado Sun, Common Cause Colorado, Los Angeles Times and New York Sun

Jenna Monnin / NOTUS:

Lindsey Graham Says U.S. Negotiations With Iran Have ‘Hit a Wall’ — He also called on the president to follow through with his threats to destroy the country's energy infrastructure. — Copy — Sen. Lindsey Graham expressed doubt Sunday that U.S. negotiations with Iran would prove fruitful …

Discussion: Washington Examiner and NBC News

Barak Ravid / Axios:
Trump tells Axios “clock is ticking” for Iran and warns of more massive U.S. military attack

Discussion: CNN, Breitbart, Straight Arrow, NewsMax.com, Reuters, Human Events and WTTG-TV

Cheyanne M. Daniels / Politico: Graham calls for strikes on Iran's energy infrastructure

Alexandra Marquez / NBC News:
Sen. Lindsey Graham says status quo in the Strait of Hormuz is ‘hurting us all’

Discussion: Raw Story, The Independent, HuffPost and NewsMax.com

Lisa Kashinsky / Politico:

Massie's primary is the most expensive in history. Pro-Israel groups have played a huge part. … And unlike in recent Democratic primaries where United Democracy Project has used shell PACs to shield its involvement, the powerful pro-Israel group's political arm is investing directly in taking Massie out.

Discussion: NewsMax.com, Washington Times, Washington Examiner, ABC News, Mediaite and The Hill

Wall Street Journal: The Trump-Jeffries Social-Media War Is Heating Up Ahead of the Midterms

David Cohen / Politico:
Thomas Massie unfazed by Bill Cassidy's defeat in Louisiana

Discussion: Townhall, Breitbart, U.S. Home, The Hill, The Post Millennial, Washington Examiner, UPI, The Independent, Mediaite, Newsweek, The American Conservative, New York Post, The Daily Wire, MS NOW and CNN

Tim Balk / New York Times:
Trump Tightens Grasp on G.O.P. as Cassidy Loss Shows Cost of Defiance

Siobhan Hughes / Wall Street Journal:
Thomas Massie's Lonely and Expensive Fight Against Trump

Discussion: The Daily Caller, The Guardian, One America News Network, NewsMax.com, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Hill, Raw Story and Al Jazeera

Jennifer Bowers Bahney / Mediaite:

60 Minutes Reveals Insider Trading on US Military Conflicts Is Exploding: 'Luck Alone Can't Explain The Numbers' — Prediction markets analysts told 60 Minutes Sunday that insider trading on U.S. military conflicts is exploding, and that the soldier accused of trading on the U.S. invasion …

Discussion: CBS News

Wall Street Journal:
Suspicious Betting in Washington Is on the Rise—and Authorities Are Playing Catch-Up

Discussion: CBS News and NewsMax.com, more at Techmeme »

Axios:

Khanna and AOC battle is “Old Bernie” vs. “New Bernie” — Veterans of Bernie Sanders' two presidential campaigns are splitting their allegiances between a pair of Democrats vying to inherit his progressive movement: New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and California Rep. Ro Khanna.

The White House:

Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Secures Historic Deals with China, Delivering for American Workers, Farmers, and Industry — CONTRIBUTING TO PEACE AND PROSPERITY: This week, during the first visit of a U.S. President to the People's Republic of China since 2017, President Donald J …

Discussion: Associated Press, WTTG-TV and The Hill

Anthony Salvanto / CBS News:

Stress, uncertainty as economy views decline; many voice frustration with Trump's economic approach, CBS News poll finds — Add CBS News on Google — Big numbers of Americans are concerned and stressed about finances, and feelings of being secure and content about them are down from this time last year.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, New York Post, Raw Story and NewsMax.com

New York Times:
For Trump, Soaring Prices Test Voters' Finances and Patience

Discussion: Bloomberg and Semafor

Erica L. Green / New York Times:
To Critics, Trump Remarks Reveal a Billionaire Out of Touch

Discussion: Raw Story

Will Bunch / The Philadelphia Inquirer:

The E-Trade presidency: Trump trades stocks while America burns — Last month was a nerve-racking time for investors in the massive military-tech contractor Palantir. They'd expected big returns on the Miami-based firm's close ties with Donald Trump's warfighting regime …

Discussion: The Hill

Bobby Allyn / NPR:

New York Magazine reviewing work of writer facing plagiarism allegations — New York magazine is examining the past work of one of its writers who has been accused of plagiarism after publishing at least three stories with striking similarities to other published work.

Discussion: The Daily Wire and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Carl Hulse / New York Times:

Lamar Alexander Wants Republicans to Stand Up to Trump … Lamar Alexander played a crucial role in short-circuiting the first impeachment trial of President Trump when, as an influential Republican senator from Tennessee, he opposed calling witnesses and said the president's attempts …

Discussion: NBC News

Chinedu Asadu / Associated Press:

WHO declares global health emergency over Ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda — The World Health Organization declared the Ebola disease outbreak caused by a rare virus in Congo and neighboring Uganda a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday, after more than 300 suspected cases and 88 deaths.