A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
Ouch
MyPillow CEO and coup architect Mike Lindell revealed in interviews on Steve Bannon’s podcast and Insider on Monday that the Minnesota Bank and Trust has cut ties with him after telling the pillow tycoon, who’s been subpoenaed by the House Jan. 6 Committee and is being sued by Dominion Voting Systems for $1.3 billion, last month that he was a “reputation risk.”
- The bank told Lindell last Friday that his nine accounts would be closed by Feb. 18, according to letters obtained by Insider.
- None of the accounts are related to Lindell’s main MyPillow business, the pillow mogul told Insider. However, one of them is related to Frank Speech, his online “free speech” platform for conservatives.
- Lindell predictably accused the bank of “canceling” him in an act of “evil.” He claimed someone had “gotten to” the financial institution.
Trump Gets Dumped By His Longtime Accounting Firm
Mazars USA has ditched the ex-president and the Trump Organization amidst the ongoing investigations by New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) and the Manhattan district attorney. The accounting firm concluded there was an irreconcilable conflict of interest.
- The accounting firm told the Trump Organization in a letter on Feb. 9 that it no longer stands by the financial statements from 2011 to 2020. Trump had used those documents to obtain the loans that are now at the center of the investigations.
- Mazars asked the Trump Organization to withdraw the documents, which had been prepared based on the information the company had provided to Mazars.
- But the tax firm noted that it hadn’t found “material discrepancies” in the records “as a whole.”
Judge To Throw Out Palin’s NYT Lawsuit
Judge Jed S. Rakoff, the judge overseeing ex-GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s defamation suit against the New York Times, said on Monday that he plans on dismissing Palin’s case after the jury comes back with its verdict.
- Palin failed to prove that the Times had acted with “actual malice” with its editorial falsely tying the shooting of Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-AZ) to an electoral district map distributed by Palin’s super PAC, Rakoff said.
- However, the judge also slammed the Times’ “very unfortunate editorializing” and said he wasn’t happy to make his decision.
US Relocating Embassy In Ukraine
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on Monday that the Biden administration was temporarily shutting down the U.S. embassy in Kyiv and moving its diplomats to Lviv in western Ukraine.
- Blinken urged remaining American citizens in Ukraine to leave “immediately.” The U.S. had already ordered most of its embassy staff to evacuate on Saturday amid the growing threat of a Russian invasion.
- Russia is keeping everyone guessing over its endgame with Ukraine–and that’s the point, as TPM’s Josh Kovensky reports here.
Kentucky Mayoral Candidate Allegedly A Victim Of Attempted Assassination
Craig Greenberg, a Democrat running for Louisville mayor, was shot at in his campaign headquarters on Monday in what law enforcement described as an “assassination attempt.”
- Neither Greenberg nor his staff were hit by the bullets and no one was injured, though the candidate’s shirt was grazed.
- The suspect is in custody. Quintez Brown, 21, a civil rights activist who was also an editorial columnist for the Louisville Courier Journal, has been charged with attempted murder and four counts of wanton endangerment.
Hawley Hawks Insurrection Merch
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) is cashing in on the infamous moment when he fist-pumped the Trump supporters who were protesting Congress’ 2020 election certification before the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, and the accompanying email really isn’t subtle about the “to own the libs” selling point:
The Right-Wing Media Cesspit
After Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked rarely-used emergency powers to shut down the anti-government trucker blockade in Ottawa on Monday, Fox News host Sean Hannity responded with what’s starting to become a mainstream conservative endorsement of violence:
Birx Lands Book Deal
Dr. Deborah Birx, the former White House COVID-19 response coordinator and witness to Trump’s novel disinfectant vaccine theory, is coming out with a memoir on April 26 with an essay-length title: “Silent Invasion: The Untold Story of The Trump Administration, COVID-19, and Preventing the Next Pandemic Before It’s Too Late.”
Glitzy WH Correspondents’ Dinners Are Back
The White House Correspondents’ Association announced on Monday that the organization is holding its annual dinner this year on April 30 for the first time since 2019. “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah will be the featured comedian at the event.
NY Post Snags Major Snoop Scoop
Snoop Dogg was spotted smoking marijuana before his Super Bowl halftime performance that took place in a state where recreational weed is legal, a stunning development chronicled by the New York Post yesterday:
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