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4:15 PM ET, August 12, 2026

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
New York Times:
A Stunning Upset in Wisconsin Shows the Limits of the Left  —  Francesca Hong's defeat in the Democratic primary for governor defied expectations and may have shown the democratic socialist wave cannot reach beyond urban centers.  —  The Democratic establishment finally struck back at the surging populist left.
RELATED:
Scott Clement / Washington Post:
Wisconsin surprise raises big questions about polls and Democratic voters
Politico:
Even some progressives are happy about Hong's loss
Tim Balk / New York Times:
5 Things to Know About David Crowley, the Democratic Candidate for Wisconsin Governor
Politico:
Newsom's swing (and miss) state tour
Discussion: The Daily Wire
Jennifer Rubin / The Contrarian:
Hold Republicans Responsible for the Iran Disaster
Discussion: MS NOW and Fox News
Ashleigh Fields / The Hill:
Sabato's Crystal Ball shifts Wisconsin governor's race in Democrats favor after Crowley win
Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:
With Crowley atop their ticket, Wisconsin Democrats hope for a 2026 sweep
Washington Post:
Close aides, but no Cabinet officials, joined Trump in airport catering truck  —  The president was accompanied by the White House deputy chief of staff, his executive assistant and the director of Oval Office operations, according to a U.S. official.  —  Summary
RELATED:
Garrett Graff / Doomsday Scenario:
The Five Scandals Within the “Air Force One” Scandal  —  Donald Trump, a Catering Truck, and the Qatari “Air Force One” represent a Russian Nesting Doll of Scandal and Corruption … I sometimes believe that the Trump administration's parade of horribles has left me unable to be surprised any more …
Ewan Palmer / The Daily Beast:
Trump Chooses Blonde Aide Over Stephen Miller in Escape Plot  —  ESSENTIALS ONLY  —  Now we know who the president really cares about, and it doesn't make for pretty reading for a lot of his senior officials.  —  Donald Trump made sure he brought his favorite White House aide …
Politico:
Trump's cost-of-living crunch  —  BREAKING: “Former Southern Poverty Law Center CFO arrested on fraud charges,” by CNN's Hannah Rabinowitz and Holmes Lybrand: Heidi Beirich “has been arrested in California and for her alleged role in overseeing secret payments to informants inside of White supremacist groups …
Natalie Oliverio / Military Times:
Multiple USS Abraham Lincoln sailors have tried to go overboard amid extended deployment, families say  —  Annabelle Loma has spoken with her husband only a few times since he attempted to jump overboard from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln during his current deployment.
RELATED:
Ed Pilkington / The Guardian:
USS Abraham Lincoln sailors tried to jump overboard amid extended deployment - reports  —  Aircraft carrier's crew in ninth month at sea and has spent record 250 days consecutively without making land  —  Military families and Congress members are sounding the alarm about an intensifying …
Discussion: The Hill, 19FortyFive and New York Sun
Washington Post:
Trump administration set to spend at least $900 million on White House construction  —  The price tag is much larger than what has been previously reported, according to a Post review of confidential contracts, and taxpayers would cover most of it.  —  Summary … Fountain  —  Fountain
CNN:
Exclusive: Former employee at Southern Poverty Law Center arrested on fraud charges  —  A former employee of the Southern Poverty Law Center has been arrested in California on charges that she oversaw secret payments to informants inside of White supremacist groups, one of whom she was allegedly living …
RELATED:
Washington Post:   Former Southern Poverty Law Center official charged by DOJ in fraud case
Washington Post:
Pirro, in rare move, convenes special grand jury in Washington  —  Unlike typical grand juries, those designated special focus on a single case or related cases and can issue a report following their investigation.  —  The Justice Department has convened a special grand jury in Washington …
RELATED:
Aaron Parnas / MeidasTouch:
Pirro Quietly Convenes Rare Special Grand Jury in DC, Fueling Fears of a Trump Prosecution Weapon
Discussion: New York Sun
Sarah Davis / The Hill:
Lindell alleges voting irregularities, refuses to concede  —  My Pillow founder Mike Lindell is refusing to concede in Minnesota's Republican gubernatorial primary, alleging irregularities in the vote totals.  —  The businessman, who is backed by President Trump, lost to Minnesota House Speaker Lisa DeMuth …
RELATED:
Ramona Shelburne / ESPN:
Sources: Josh Kushner, Bob Iger to buy Lakers for $12.5B  —  The Los Angeles Lakers are being sold to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger for $12.5 billion, a record-breaking price, multiple sources told ESPN.  —  The businessmen were involved in the expansion process in Las Vegas, but in a stunning turn …
New York Times:
They Spoke English, Wore U.S. Flags and Attacked Fishermen.  Who Were They?  —  Ecuadorean crews plying the waters of the Pacific have been targeted by a mysterious outfit equipped with drones.  Some sailors appear to have lost their lives.  —  Far out in the Pacific Ocean …
Discussion: Talking Points Memo
Bloomberg:
White House Press Secretary Leavitt to Exit Role, Trump Says  —  White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt will depart her role later this month, President Donald Trump said, a move that will deprive him of his top spokesperson.  —  Trump made the announcement Wednesday in a social media post.
RELATED:
Helen Branswell / STAT:
WHO says Trump's latest vaccine policy order is misguided  —  Breaking up combined vaccines would leave children vulnerable, say Tedros and other leaders  —  Senior officials of the World Health Organization, including Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, criticized …
RELATED:
Nahal Toosi / Politico:
The Iran War is a Whole New Level of Quagmire for the US … No one seems to have a solid strategy to win the war in Iran.  —  The situation is reminiscent of the darkest days of the Iraq war, in the mid-2000s, when the U.S. seemed unable to pull that country back from insurgency and civil war.
Jonathan Reiner / New York Times:
I Was Dick Cheney's Cardiologist.  Trump Has Not Looked Well, and We Should Know Why.  —  Dick Cheney's heart problems were never a national secret.  —  I was Mr. Cheney's cardiologist for 27 years, including his two terms as vice president.  During his time in the White House …
Avery Lotz / Axios:
ICE to spend up to $20M on electric shock gloves  —  Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to begin using electric shock gloves designed to cause pain and disrupt a person's ability to react. … - The Associated Press was first to report the plan.  — The CTG-5 Generated Low Output …
Emily Mae / CBS News:
Fighter jets intercept civilian plane over Geneva, Ohio, where Trump attended teen athletic event  —  Add CBS News on Google  —  Fighter jets intercepted a civilian plane that was flying through restricted airspace Tuesday over Geneva, Ohio, where President Trump was attending a teen athletic event, military officials said.
Cuneyt Dil / Axios:
Scoop: Take a look at Trump's Kennedy Center renovation plans  —  President Trump's Kennedy Center renovation would polish its Carrara marble facade, remodel its grand halls and theaters, and likely send marquee events offsite over the next few years, according to 180 pages of plans first obtained by Axios.
Jesse Coburn / ProPublica:
Fiasco in the Factory: Taxpayers Funded a $533 Million Artillery Plant That Made Nothing  —  A robot was on fire.  Again.  —  It was the summer of 2024, and the cutting-edge robots inside General Dynamics' sweltering artillery factory near Dallas were catching fire with startling regularity, according to four former workers there.
Politico:
Capitol agenda: GOP mum on returning Miller's campaign cash  —  Rep. Max Miller gave more than $70,000 in campaign cash to over a dozen congressional Republicans in the cycle's most competitive races.  So far, most of those members aren't saying whether or not they will return it.
Matt Cohen / Democracy Docket:
Michigan judge tosses GOP lawsuit that aimed to make it easier to challenge voter eligibility  —  In a victory for voters, a Michigan judge dismissed a lawsuit brought by the Republican National Committee (RNC) that sought to make it easier for partisan poll challengers to dispute voter eligibility …
Annie Karni / New York Times:
With Big Choices Ahead, Ocasio-Cortez Navigates New Territory … Since she won her first election in 2018 at 28, becoming the youngest woman ever elected to Congress, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat of New York, has been a political obsession for fans to adore and critics to abhor.
Nicholas Casey / New York Times:
He Was Deported to a Country He'd Never Heard of.  He May Never Go Free. … Roberto Mosquera in detention in Eswatini.  —  As he stepped out of the American military cargo plane, Roberto Mosquera still couldn't tell where he was or why he had been taken there.
Discussion: NOTUS
NBC News:
Trump administration tells state officials it will offer some election security aid it slashed  —  But some Democratic secretaries of state said the belated outreach ahead of the midterms was “too little, too late.”  —  More than a year after gutting the main federal office tasked …
Discussion: The Contrarian
Madiba K. Dennie / Balls and Strikes:
Samuel Alito's Oil Money Reveals the Worthlessness of the Supreme Court Ethics Code  —  Justice Samuel Alito has been ruling on cases involving the oil and gas industry for years.  And all the while, fossil fuels have been making him filthy rich.  —  Back in 1990, when President George H …
Discussion: Mother Jones and The Guardian
 
 
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 More Items: 
Sharon LaFraniere / New York Times:
Prediction Firms Are Flagging Insider Traders. Many Will Not Face Charges.
Finya Swai / The Hill:
Thousands sign petition calling for expulsion of US ambassador to Canada
Discussion: Joe.My.God.
Finya Swai / The Hill:
FDA chief: Cyclospora ‘effectively removed from the market’
Wall Street Journal:
U.S. and Ukrainian Forces Went Head-to-Head in an Exercise. Ukraine's Drones Won.
Bianca Quilantan / Politico:
The student loan debt fight no one saw coming
Discussion: The Hill and Newsweek
 Earlier Items: 
Dan Mangan / CNBC:
Trump sued over Truth Social advance access sale
Jonathan V. Last / The Bulwark:
It's Black Voters, Stupid. And Thank God for That.
Zoe Tillman / Bloomberg:
Trump Seeks Immediate Halt to Judge's Penalties in IRS Case
Alec Hernandez / Politico:
Darline Graham faces an uphill battle in South Carolina Senate runoff
 

 
From Techmeme:

Ivan Mehta / TechCrunch:
Google unveils the $899+ Pixel 11, $1,099+ 11 Pro, and $1,299+ 11 Pro XL, with a Tensor G6, new Gemini features, Magic Capture to pick the best frames, and more

Jessica Conditt / Engadget:
Google unveils the $1,899+ Pixel 11 Pro Fold, with a stronger hinge, inner and outer displays that are 20% brighter, Tensor G6 chip, and an updated 48MP camera

xAI:
SpaceXAI releases Grok 4.6, saying it matches GPT-5.6 Sol on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index, and prices it at $2/1M input and $6/1M output tokens
 
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