Friday News Executive Summary

Above the Fold

Robert Mueller’s hound, a.k.a. top prosecutor Andrew Weissmann, “is headlining a virtual fundraiser for former vice president Joe Biden’s campaign in June,” according to National Review. Trump campaign communications director Tim Murtaugh acutely responded: “It’s no surprise that a guy who tried to take down the President through the sham impeachment would also help Joe Biden’s campaign. It doesn’t get any swampier than this: trying to stage a partisan coup against the President and then raising money for his political opponent.”
Citing Russian strongman Vladimir Putin’s recurrent infractions, “The United States announced its intention on Thursday to withdraw from the 35-nation Open Skies treaty allowing unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, the Trump administration’s latest move to pull the country out of a major global treaty,” Reuters reveals. The report adds, “Senior officials said the pullout will formally take place in six months, based on the treaty’s withdrawal terms.” This is hardly what we would describe as going “soft” on Russia.

Government & Politics

Curious timing: Trump to honor coronavirus victims by flying flags at half-staff … over Memorial Day weekend (Washington Examiner)
Strong, solid pick: Senate confirms John Ratcliffe as next director of national intelligence (Fox News)
“We’re not going to close the country; we’re going to put out the fires”: Trump says America won’t shut down afresh over second COVID-19 wave (The Hill)
U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia orders Michael Flynn judge to explain his roguishness (Politico)
Twenty-seven GOP senators ask Attorney General William Barr to investigate Planned Parenthood getting PPP funds (Fox News)

National Security

Trump administration approves arms sale to Taiwan — China denounces move (The Daily Caller)
FBI says Texas naval base shooting is “terrorism-related” (AP)

From the “Voter Fraud Isn’t Real” Department

A former Judge of Elections has been convicted for his role in accepting bribes to cast fraudulent ballots and certifying false voting results during the 2014, 2015, and 2016 primary elections in Philadelphia (Department of Justice)
South Carolina election ballots reportedly found in Maryland this week (Fox News

Culture & Heartland

The man who took video of the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery is arrested on felony murder charge (USA Today)
Phased reopenings in California and Minnesota discriminate against religious services (The Daily Signal)
“I believe the producers … befriended her and then betrayed her”: Norma McCorvey from Roe v. Wade didn’t reject the pro-life cause, former lawyer says (PJ Media)
Is this Trump’s fault too, Governor Cuomo? Minnesota nursing homes, already the site of 81% of COVID-19 deaths, continue taking in infected patients (StarTribune)
Peloton is problematic again, and this time the problem is “racism” (Hot Air)

Other Notables

2020 Atlantic hurricane season may be “extremely active,” NOAA says (Fox News)
China to impose sweeping national-security law in Hong Kong, bypassing city’s no-longer-autonomous legislature (The Washington Post)

Closing Arguments

Policy: COVID-19, regulatory recalibration, and learning for the long run (American Enterprise Institute)
Policy: Do lockdowns work? Mounting evidence says no (Mises Institute)
Humor: Florida ruled to be in violation of science for not having more people die (The Babylon Bee)

For more of today’s editors’ choice headlines, visit In Our Sights.

The Patriot Post is a certified ad-free news service, unlike third-party commercial news sites linked on this page, which may also require a paid subscription.