A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
There It Is
Trump, fully dug into his fake narrative about winning the 2020 election, told aides repeatedly in the days after the election that he was planting himself at the White House and absolutely wouldn’t surrender, according to CNN’s excerpt of an upcoming book by New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman.
- “We’re never leaving,” he reportedly told an aide in one instance. “How can you leave when you won an election?” (he didn’t win the election).
- But surprisingly enough, Trump apparently didn’t jump into his delusion about his defeat at first: The then-president had reportedly seemed to accept his loss in “the immediate aftermath” (in Haberman’s words) of the election, telling one adviser that “[w]e did our best.”
- Trump was reportedly so desperate for a solution after the election that he even asked the guy who brought him his Diet Cokes what to do, according to Haberman’s book.
Stephen Miller Subpoenaed By DOJ
The Justice Department subpoenaed ex-White House senior adviser Stephen Miller last week in its investigation into Trump’s fake elector scheme and his Save America PAC, the New York Times and CNN report.
- There haven’t been any indications so far that Miller played an active role in the elector plot. He did straight-up tell Fox in December 2020 that “an alternate slate of electors” in what he called “the contested states” was in the process of voting.
- The DOJ also subpoenaed Brian Jack, Trump’s ex-White House political director and current adviser to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), last week, according to the Times. He’s still working as one of Trump’s advisers.
- More than a dozen people who worked for the Trump White House or the Trump campaign were subpoenaed by the DOJ last week, per the Times. Those people reportedly included the Trump campaign’s chief financial officer and Ivanka Trump’s ex-chief of staff.
Russian Media Flails In Face Of Ukraine Invasion Fails
Julia Davis, a Russian media analyst at the Daily Beast, flagged this remarkable moment during a Russian state TV program in response to Ukraine’s new jaw-dropping offensive against Russian forces in the country’s northeastern region:
Must Read
“Amid Ukraine’s startling gains, liberated villages describe Russian troops dropping rifles and fleeing” – The Washington Post
MAGA = Making Attorneys Get Attorneys
I wish I could take credit for that joke, but apparently it’s a crack lawyers have been making lately as Trump’s attorneys get sucked into legal quandaries of their own, according this awesome New York Times piece.
- Former OAN anchor-turned-Trump attorney Christina Bobb has reportedly lawyered up, for example (and for good reasons).
- At least 11 Trump attorneys, including ex-White House counsel Pat Cipollone, have testified in front of the House Jan. 6 Committee.
- 17 lawyers who represented Trump when he tried to overturn the 2020 election through ridiculous lawsuits have been hit with ethics complaints, which means they could be disbarred or disciplined.
- Here’s Politico’s list of all of Trump’s current attorneys that we know of, helpfully sorted by the many cases the ex-president’s wrestling with.
Romney Urged Biden To Run In 2018, Book Says
On election night of the 2018 midterms, Biden had a call with Mitt Romney to congratulate him on winning his Utah Senate race, according to an upcoming book by New York Magazine correspondent Gabriel Debenedetti. Romney (who would later vote to convict Trump in both impeachment trials) reportedly implored Biden to launch a presidential bid against Trump during that conversation.
After the 2020 election, Romney publicly said he didn’t vote for Trump but kept mum about who he did vote for.
Bidens To Attend Queen Elizabeth’s Funeral
The White House announced on Sunday that the President and First Lady Jill Biden will travel to the U.K. on Saturday for Queen Elizabeth II’s Sept. 19 state funeral at Westminster Abbey. Buckingham Palace specifically invited the Bidens only, so the President won’t be going with a delegation, per CNN.
UK’s Period Of Mourning Sure Is Something
The U.K. is in the middle of its mourning period for Queen Elizabeth II, and I’m not here to tell anyone how pay their respects to a deceased monarch, but…
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where’s @teenlaqueefa?
Example #19,032 that we had a toddler running the place
What? No speculations on why a frumpled golf shoe wearing FPOTUS made an unscheduled flight to D.C. last night?
Just waiting for you to be first!
Hey, TPM, if you’re going to run something about FatAss, run about his mad dash from Bedminster to his DC course.
That’s what all the cool kids really want to hear about, not about FatAss wanting to splay his arms and legs to prevent being carried out of the White House.
Sheesh.
ETA: Looks like @kelaine beat me to it!