Top Items:
War on the Rocks:
Open Letter on Donald Trump from GOP National Security Leaders — We the undersigned, members of the Republican national security community, represent a broad spectrum of opinion on America's role in the world and what is necessary to keep us safe and prosperous.
Discussion:
Mother Jones, CNN, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Washington Monthly, Washington Post, occupydemocrats.com, The Daily Caller, Taylor Marsh, Mediaite, Raw Story, Shadowproof, addictinginfo.org, CANNONFIRE, Telegraph, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, The Times of Israel, Vox, The Week, Financial Times, Slantpoint, Antiwar.com Original, Infowars, Politico, Weekly Standard and Salon
RELATED:
Nolan D. McCaskill / Politico:
Romney to Republicans: Never Trump — Mitt Romney opened a new front in the Republican Party's civil war on Thursday, going after Donald Trump in a salt-the-earth speech that eviscerated the Republican front-runner as lacking the temperament, business record and substantive policies to occupy the White House.
Discussion:
NBC News, Townhall.com, Hit & Run, ABC News, Breitbart, RealClearPolitics, Independent Journal Review, The Daily Caller, The Hill, Mashable, New York Times, Scared Monkeys, Hot Air, The Hayride, No More Mister Nice Blog, Florida Politics, Yahoo, Washington Examiner, The Week, Althouse, The Last Tradition, U.S. News, Daily Kos, Mediaite, The Last Refuge and Tampa Bay Times
Politico:
Full transcript: Mitt Romney's remarks on Donald Trump and the 2016 race — Below are Mitt Romney's full remarks on Donald Trump and the 2016 presidential race, as prepared for delivery. Romney delivered his remarks at the University of Utah. — I am not here to announce my candidacy for office.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, The Atlantic, American Spectator, No More Mister Nice Blog, ABC News, The Daily Caller, Mashable and Shakesville
TIME:
Read Mitt Romney's Speech About Donald Trump — Former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney made the case against Donald Trump in Utah Thursday. — Former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney made the case against Donald Trump in Utah Thursday.
Discussion:
Washington Post, New York Times, TheStreet.com, Outside the Beltway, Hot Air and Instapundit
Caitlin MacNeal / Talking Points Memo:
Mitt Romney Pulls No Punches In Major Speech Trashing Donald Trump — In what may be an unprecedented speech by a major American political figure, former presidential nominee Mitt Romney implored his fellow Republicans on Thursday not to nominate the frontrunner Donald Trump for president.
Discussion:
mccain.senate.gov and Balloon Juice
Washington Post:
Mitt Romney: ‘Trump is a phony, a fraud’ who is ‘playing the American public for suckers’ — How Trump threw out the GOP playbook on Planned Parenthood — SALT LAKE CITY — Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, plans to deliver a sharp broadside against Donald Trump today …
Discussion:
Politico, RedState, ABC News, CBS News, ThinkProgressPage Array, Mother Jones, Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times and Talking Points Memo
Associated Press:
Romney calling Trump ‘phony,’ urging Republicans to shun him — SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Former GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney is charging into the increasingly divisive White House race with a verbal lashing of Donald Trump and a plea for fellow Republicans to shun the front-runner for the good of country and party.
Geoff Earle / New York Post:
8 reasons we need to start preparing for President Trump — WASHINGTON — A few months ago, Hillary Clinton's campaign was salivating over the chance to take on Donald Trump — but the real-estate mogul is now positioned not only to win the GOP nomination, but also the White House.
Discussion:
Western Journalism
Nolan D. McCaskill / Politico:
Trump again threatens independent bid — Donald Trump said Thursday he is being treated unfairly by the Republican establishment and may run as an independent. — “I am watching television — and I am seeing ad, after ad, after ad put in by the establishment, knocking the hell out of me …
Discussion:
New York Magazine, RedState and Daily Kos
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Gushing Romney Accepts Trump Endorsement — In some ways Mitt Romney's emergence as Twitter elder snarksman of the Republican party is stranger than Donald Trump's emergence as frontrunner. His speech today is obviously meant to be a weightier affair, a graver denunciation of Trump and Trumpism.
Discussion:
The Week
Mitt Romney:
My remarks on the state of the 2016 presidential race — Full remarks on the state of the 2016 presidential at the Hinckley Institute of Politics at University of Utah. — I am not here to announce my candidacy for office. I am not going to endorse a candidate today.
Discussion:
Vox, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Atlantic, Hullabaloo and Guardian
Michelle Conlin / Reuters:
Exclusive: Koch brothers will not use funds to try to block Trump nomination — The Koch brothers, the most powerful conservative mega donors in the United States, will not use their $400 million political arsenal to try to block Republican front-runner Donald Trump's path to the presidential nomination …
Discussion:
Washington Post, New York Times, Political Wire and The Week
Olivier Knox / Yahoo Politics:
Mitt Romney tells Donald Trump voters they're ‘suckers’
Mitt Romney tells Donald Trump voters they're ‘suckers’
Discussion:
Politico and Hinckley Institute
Paul Watson / Infowars:
Mitt Romney's Niece to Stuff Republican Debate Audience With Anti-Trump Insiders?
Mitt Romney's Niece to Stuff Republican Debate Audience With Anti-Trump Insiders?
Discussion:
Detroit News, CNN, The Gateway Pundit and Western Journalism
Inae Oh / Mother Jones:
Watch Mitt Romney Attempt to Tear Down “Phony” Donald Trump
Watch Mitt Romney Attempt to Tear Down “Phony” Donald Trump
Discussion:
news9.com KWTV, Infowars, KFOR-TV, 12NewsNow.Com, Ordinary Times and Fusion
Alexandra Alper / Reuters:
Mexico says won't pay for Trump's ‘terrible’ border wall
Mexico says won't pay for Trump's ‘terrible’ border wall
Discussion:
Vox Popoli
Veronica Stracqualursi / ABC News:
Mitt Romney Slams Donald Trump's ‘Absurd 3rd-Grade Theatrics’
Mitt Romney Slams Donald Trump's ‘Absurd 3rd-Grade Theatrics’
Discussion:
Boing Boing
Matea Gold / Washington Post:
Pandemonium in the GOP: Some embrace Trump while others rush to stop him
Pandemonium in the GOP: Some embrace Trump while others rush to stop him
Discussion:
Politico, ABC News, TownhallReview.com, Towleroad, Moe Lane and Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times
Andrew Harnik / Los Angeles Times:
Editorial Donald Trump is not fit to be president of the United States
Editorial Donald Trump is not fit to be president of the United States
Discussion:
Washington Post, Algemeiner.com, The Week and Newsalert
Leigh Ann Caldwell / NBC News:
Romney Slams Trump: ‘A Business Genius He Is Not’
Romney Slams Trump: ‘A Business Genius He Is Not’
Discussion:
89.3 KPCC and Patterico's Pontifications
A.B. Stoddard / The Hill:
Too little, too late on Trump
Jonathan Stearns / Bloomberg Business:
Romney to Attack ‘Phony’ Trump in Utah Address
Romney to Attack ‘Phony’ Trump in Utah Address
Discussion:
Politico, Talking Points Memo, The Atlantic and NPR
Timothy Cama / The Hill:
Chief justice rejects plea to block air pollution rule — Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts rejected a plea Thursday to block a contentious air pollution rule for power plants, in a big victory for the Obama administration. — Roberts's order came despite his court's 5-4 decision …
Discussion:
Western Journalism, Hot Air and The Bob and Chez Show
RELATED:
Dahlia Lithwick / Slate:
The Women Take Over — In oral arguments for the Texas abortion case, the three female justices upend the Supreme Court's balance of power. — When the Supreme Court last heard oral arguments in a landmark abortion case, it was April 1992, the case was Planned Parenthood v Casey, and Sandra Day O'Connor was the lone female justice.
Discussion:
MSNBC, Jezebel, SCOTUSblog, Hullabaloo, Mother Jones, Shakesville and The Huffington Post
David French / National Review:
The Abortion Industry Survives by Endangering Women's Lives
The Abortion Industry Survives by Endangering Women's Lives
Discussion:
Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Houston Public Media, Mother Jones and Washington Post
Adam Liptak / New York Times:
Chief Justice Rejects Effort to Block E.P.A. Limit on Power Plants
Chief Justice Rejects Effort to Block E.P.A. Limit on Power Plants
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and ACS Blog
Skagit Valley Herald / Goskagit.com:
Man accidentally kills himself while taking photos with gun — A 43-year-old Concrete man died Sunday after accidentally shooting himself in the face with what he thought was an unloaded gun. — The man and his girlfriend were at a residence in the 46000 block of Baker Loop Road taking photos …
Discussion:
Death and TaxesDeath and Taxes, Raw Story, Associated Press, CBS New York, WGN-TV, Fox 59 and Q13 FOX News
Adam Goldman / Washington Post:
Justice Dept. grants immunity to staffer who set up Clinton email server — The Justice Department has granted immunity to the former State Department staffer who worked on Hillary Rodham Clinton's private email server, a sign the FBI investigation into possible criminal wrongdoing is progressing.
Discussion:
The Atlantic, Washington Monthly, The Daily Caller, CNN, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, Christian Science Monitor, New York Times, Fox News Insider, New York Post, Politico, JustOneMinute, Hot Air, New York Magazine, Infowars, Outside the Beltway, Washington Free Beacon, Power Line, Raw Story, Independent Journal Review, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Patterico's Pontifications, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Scared Monkeys, Truth Revolt, U.S. Uncut, Washington Times, Mediaite, MichelleMalkin.com, Instapundit, The Right Scoop, The Last Refuge, RedState, The Week, Doug Ross, twitchy.com and The Last Tradition
Matthew Boyle / Breitbart:
Exclusive Audio — Rubio Campaign Manager Plots Brokered Convention In Manhattan Donor Meeting To Take Nomination From Trump — Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) is plotting to take the Republican nomination away from Donald Trump using surreptitious tactics at a so-called “brokered convention,” …
Discussion:
Infowars, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Independent Journal Review
RELATED:
Sasha Issenberg / Bloomberg Business:
The Best-Laid Free Media Plan of Marco Rubio
New Jersey Online:
Chris Christie, resign for N.J.'s sake | Editorial — Star-Ledger Editorial Board By Star-Ledger Editorial Board — Gov. Chris Christie has made it abundantly clear that governing New Jersey is a distant second priority for him, far behind the demands of his personal ambition.
Discussion:
Raw Story, Washington Post, CBS New York and New Jersey News …
Oliver Darcy / TheBlaze.com:
Sean Hannity Goes Scorched Earth Against Marco Rubio — Sean Hannity repeatedly ripped into Marco Rubio on his Fox News program Wednesday night, attacking the Florida senator for recent attacks on Donald Trump and saying his rhetoric was “beyond the pale” of acceptance in a presidential primary.
Discussion:
rubber hose, Western Journalism and New York Magazine
Alyssa Bereznak / Yahoo Politics:
Tech and civil rights groups rally behind Apple in court filings — Tech industry groups, privacy advocates, and computer security experts filed briefs with a California court on Thursday, asking it to dismiss the FBI's order that would force Apple to help unlock the phone used by a San Bernardino shooter.
Kathryn Watson / The Daily Caller:
Here's Why It's All But Impossible To Fire A Fed — Federal workers are far more likely to be audited by the IRS or get arrested for drunk driving than they are to be fired from the civil service payroll for poor performance or misconduct. — The odds are one-in-175 for the IRS audit …
Discussion:
The Week and Instapundit