Top Items:
Peter Baker / New York Times:
Obama Announces U.S. and Cuba Will Resume Relations — WASHINGTON — The United States will restore full diplomatic relations with Cuba and open an embassy in Havana for the first time in more than a half-century after the release of an American contractor held in prison for five years, President Obama announced on Wednesday.
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Katie Glueck / Politico:
Republicans livid over Cuba talks, call it appeasement — Republican reacted with outrage Wednesday over the Obama administration's move to normalize relations with Cuba, with some lawmakers casting it as appeasement and the product of extortion by the communist Castro government.
Discussion:
ABC News, NPR, The Hill, Guardian, Hot Air, Slantpoint, CNN, Washington Post, Outside the Beltway, New York Times, Religion Dispatches and Hinterland Gazette
Sahil Kapur / Talking Points Memo:
Marco Rubio Challenges The Pope On Obama's New Cuba Policy — Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (R) torched President Barack Obama's new policy aimed at normalizing U.S. diplomatic relations with Cuba on Wednesday, and addressed Pope Francis' support for the president's move.
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, Washington Monthly and Daily Kos
Facebook:
STATEMENT: Governor Jeb Bush on President Obama's Cuba Policy Announcement — The Obama Administration's decision to restore diplomatic ties with Cuba is the latest foreign policy misstep by this President, and another dramatic overreach of his executive authority.
Discussion:
Bloomberg Politics, OnPolitics and Hot Air
Reuters:
Florida's Cuban Americans rejoice at U.S. policy overhaul
Florida's Cuban Americans rejoice at U.S. policy overhaul
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Daily Kos
City Journal:
The Last Communist City — A visit to the dystopian Havana that tourists never see
The Last Communist City — A visit to the dystopian Havana that tourists never see
Discussion:
Slantpoint and Hot Air
Associated Press:
AP sources: US, Cuba seek to normalize relations
AP sources: US, Cuba seek to normalize relations
Discussion:
Associated Press, Fox News, Bloomberg, The Huffington Post, Caracas Chronicles, Jezebel, Mediaite, Slantpoint, emptywheel, Business Insider, The Gateway Pundit, BREITBART.COM, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, No More Mister Nice Blog, Firedoglake, Raw Story, Gawker, HardballTalk, Townhall.com and Shakesville
Evan McMurry / Mediaite:
Rubio Lays into Obama's Cuba Moves: ‘Worst Negotiator in Modern U.S. History’
Rubio Lays into Obama's Cuba Moves: ‘Worst Negotiator in Modern U.S. History’
Discussion:
BREITBART.COM, The Gateway Pundit and TheBlaze.com
Peter Sullivan / The Hill:
Jeb Bush: No talks with ‘repressive regime’
Jeb Bush: No talks with ‘repressive regime’
Discussion:
USA Today, Washington Post, The Huffington Post, Associated Press, Hot Air, Politico, Real Clear Politics, The Nation and Washington Monthly
Elise Labott / CNN:
American, Cuban spies freed
American, Cuban spies freed
Discussion:
National Journal, Vox, DCist, Hit & Run, Slantpoint, Pressure Points, Daily Kos, The Verge, TVNewser, Daily Signal, Towleroad News #gay, CNBC and The Dish
James Oliphant / National Journal:
Obama Goes Cowboy on Cuba
Rosie Gray / BuzzFeed:
Republicans Threaten To Block Future U.S. Embassy, Ambassador In Cuba
Republicans Threaten To Block Future U.S. Embassy, Ambassador In Cuba
Discussion:
Washington Post, Slantpoint, Hot Air and The World's Greatest …
Erica Werner / Associated Press:
AP Interview: McConnell wants to stop coal rules
AP Interview: McConnell wants to stop coal rules
Discussion:
The World's Greatest …
Evan McMorris-Santoro / BuzzFeed:
White House Credits Pope Francis For Facilitating Cuba Deal
White House Credits Pope Francis For Facilitating Cuba Deal
Discussion:
Bollettino Sala Stampa …, BREITBART.COM, Hot Air, The Daily Caller, Daily Kos and Slantpoint
The White House:
Statement by the President on Cuba Policy Changes
Statement by the President on Cuba Policy Changes
Discussion:
Washington Post, Slantpoint, The Daily Banter and Wall Street Journal
Washington Post:
Obama moves to normalize relations with Cuba as American is released by Havana
Obama moves to normalize relations with Cuba as American is released by Havana
Discussion:
rubio.senate.gov, Robert Menendez-US Senator …, Daily Signal, TVNewser and Bloomberg View
Erin Dooley / ABC News:
Marco Rubio: Alan Gross Release Put ‘A Price on the Head of Every American Abroad’
Marco Rubio: Alan Gross Release Put ‘A Price on the Head of Every American Abroad’
Discussion:
Associated Press, 6abc.com, abc11.com, Yahoo! News and Hot Air
New York Times:
U.S. Links North Korea to Sony Hacking — WASHINGTON — American intelligence officials have concluded that the North Korean government was “centrally involved” in the recent attacks on Sony Pictures's computers, a determination reached just as Sony on Wednesday canceled its release of the comedy …
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Gregg Kilday / Hollywood Reporter:
Top Five Theater Circuits Drop ‘The Interview’ After Sony Hack — The country's largest chains won't be showing the movie — The country's top five theater circuits have decided not to play Sony's The Interview, a knowledgeable source tells The Hollywood Reporter.
Kim Zetter / Wired:
The Evidence That North Korea Hacked Sony Is Flimsy — A poster for the movie “The Interview” is taken down by a worker after being pulled from a display case at a Carmike Cinemas movie theater, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014, in Atlanta. Georgia-based Carmike Cinemas has decided to cancel …
Discussion:
Power Line, CNNMoney.com, Mediaite, Vox, Raw Story, Outside the Beltway and ABC News
Brent Lang / Variety:
Sony Cancels Theatrical Release for ‘The Interview’ on Christmas — With theater chains defecting en masse, Sony Pictures Entertainment has pulled the planned Christmas Day release of “The Interview.” — In announcing the decision to cancel the holiday debut, Sony hit back at the hackers …
Discussion:
Hollywood Reporter, New York Times, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Post, The Verge and The PJ Tatler, more at Mediagazer »
William Boot / The Daily Beast:
Exclusive: Sony Emails Say State Department Blessed Kim Jong-Un Assassination in ‘The Interview’
Exclusive: Sony Emails Say State Department Blessed Kim Jong-Un Assassination in ‘The Interview’
Mike Fleming / Deadline:
North Korea-Based Thriller With Gore Verbinski And Steve Carell Canceled
North Korea-Based Thriller With Gore Verbinski And Steve Carell Canceled
Discussion:
Commentary Magazine, Mashable, Inside Movies, The Wrap, EW.com, Washington Post and Ed Driscoll
Sandra Sobieraj Westfall / People.com:
The Obamas: How We Deal with Our Own Racist Experiences — The Obamas open up about raising their daughters, the impact of stereotypes, and what's on the POTUS dance party playlist. Subscribe now for instant access to the exclusive PEOPLE interview! — The protective bubble that comes …
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Devin Dwyer / ABC News:
Obamas on Race: We've Been Treated Like the Help
Obamas on Race: We've Been Treated Like the Help
Discussion:
Power Line and The Huffington Post
Chris Davis / KCEN-TV:
Words Exchanged Before KCEN Employee Shot in Station Parking Lot — (KCEN) - Law enforcement officials have taken a man who was hold up inside of a house into custody. They are calling him a person of interest in the shooting of Patrick Crawford. But they are not saying whether or not he is the shooter.
New York Times:
Cuomo to Ban Fracking in New York State, Citing Health Risks — Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's administration announced on Wednesday that it would ban hydraulic fracturing in New York State because of concerns over health risks, ending years of uncertainty over the disputed method of natural gas extraction.
Lynette Rice / People.com:
Stephen Collins Confesses Sexual Abuse of Underage Girls to PEOPLE: ‘I Did Something Terribly Wrong’ — Embattled actor Stephen Collins has released a lengthy statement to PEOPLE in which he admits to inappropriate sexual contact with three female minors. — The 67-year-old …
Josh Israel / ThinkProgress:
Terri Schiavo's Husband Speaks Out On Jeb Bush's Presidential Bid — Then-Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL) discussing the Terri Schiavo case in March 2005 — In his announcement Tuesday that he would explore a 2016 presidential bid, former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL) promised to focus on …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Daily Beast, Liberaland, FOX News Radio and Balloon Juice
Katherine Timpf / National Review:
U Michigan Department Chair: We Should ‘Hate Republicans’ — A University of Michigan department chairwoman has published an article titled, “It's Okay To Hate Republicans,” which will probably make all of her conservative students feel really comfortable and totally certain that they're being graded fairly.
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway and The Daily Caller
Chris Smith Gonzalez / The Galveston County Daily News:
Texas City plumber's truck ends up in Syrian war — TEXAS CITY — A local plumber is being flooded with phone calls — and some threats — after a picture of one of his old company vehicles being used by Islamist militants in Syria was posted on Twitter. — The picture was posted online …
Discussion:
ABC News, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Raw Story
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Alice Barr / KHOU-TV:
Texas City truck seen on Islamic military group's Twitter feed
Texas City truck seen on Islamic military group's Twitter feed
Discussion:
USA Today, Guns.com and The Daily Caller
Phil / Uber Blog:
Our Commitment to Safety — Millions of people have come to rely on Uber for daily commutes, special nights out, and reliable transportation for their loved ones. Riders are served by the hundreds of thousands of Uber driver partners whose service reduces drunk and distracted driving …
Discussion:
PandoDaily, Raw Story, New York Times, Mashable and The Verge
Nick Anderson / Washington Post:
Johns Hopkins mistakenly says ‘yes’ to hundreds of rejected applicants — Sam Stephenson was steeling himself for another round of college applications after his first choice, Johns Hopkins University, turned him down. Then the 17-year-old from Culpeper County in Virginia received an e-mail …