Top Items:


Trump: Muslim ban ‘just a suggestion’ — Washington (CNN)Donald Trump, who issued a December press release “calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,” said Wednesday such a ban “hasn't been called for yet” and it was “only a suggestion.”
Discussion:
JustOneMinute, Patterico's Pontifications, Outside the Beltway, Politicus USA, The Week and Gothamist
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Donald Trump Is Considering Newt Gingrich for Vice Presidential Role — Trump has sought advice from confidants about selecting the former House Speaker as a running mate. — Donald Trump has discussed in recent days the possibility of selecting former House Speaker Newt Gingrich …


Trump Heads Into Ryan Meeting With Little Reason to Compromise — House speaker has withheld endorsement of presumptive nominee — Both sides seem to have widely varying aims ahead of meeting — Donald Trump is coming to his meeting with House Speaker Paul Ryan Thursday to deliver …
Discussion:
Politico


Trump, Ryan signal unity — touted that they are “totally committed to working together” in a joint statement after their high-profile Thursday morning meeting, calling for “shared principles” and a “conservative agenda.” — The meeting between the two GOP heavy hitters …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Israpundit, Bloomberg.com and Political Wire

Obama: Republicans likely to correct course after 2016
Discussion:
Slate and National Review

George Zimmerman's gun up for auction — LAKE MARY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch captain who was acquitted in the shooting of Trayvon Martin in 2013, is selling his gun. — The 9mm pistol that Zimmerman said was used to shoot and kill Trayvon Martin on February 26 …
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George Zimmerman puts gun that killed Trayvon Martin up for auction
Discussion:
Hot Air, Scared Monkeys and twitchy.com

George Zimmerman AUCTIONS OFF the gun he used to kill Trayvon Martin: Acquitted killer describes pistol …
Discussion:
Washington Post, CBS Miami and The Atlantic


I Saw Trump's Tax Returns. You Should, Too. — In January, Donald Trump had this to say when he was asked about whether he would release his tax returns: “I have very big returns, as you know, and I have everything all approved and very beautiful and we'll be working that over in the next period of time.”
Discussion:
Washington Post, Vox, CANNONFIRE, USA Today, The Week, Politico, BizPac Review and Slate


Saudi officials were ‘supporting’ 9/11 hijackers, commission member says — First serious public split revealed among commissioners over the release of the secret ‘28 pages’ that detail Saudi ties to 2001 terrorist attacks — A former Republican member of the 9/11 commission …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Hit & Run, Raw Story, Boing Boing, Washington Post and Common Dreams
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Biden wanted Warren as his VP — Joe Biden took months to decide he wouldn't run for president — but he was sold on Elizabeth Warren as his running mate from the start, people familiar with the situation told POLITICO. — And he still thinks the Massachusetts firebrand …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Washington Monthly, The Week and ABC News


Judge rules for House GOP in ObamaCare suit — A federal judge on Thursday ruled in favor of House Republicans in their lawsuit against the Obama administration over ObamaCare. — In a major ruling, Judge Rosemary Collyer, an appointee of President George W. Bush, said the administration does …
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Caitlyn Jenner Experienced ‘Sex Change Regret,’ Might De-Transition, Biographer Says — “It hasn't been easy for Caitlyn, it's been very hard,” Ian Halperin recalls one source telling him — Caitlyn Jenner, who announced her transition from man to woman last year, has considered de-transitioning …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Refinery29, The Daily Caller, AOL, WNCN, Fox News, WCMH-TV, CBS Pittsburgh, CBS Detroit, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and Independent Journal …


‘Screw the next generation’: Anonymous congressman writes tell-all and slams ‘nation of naive, self-absorbed sheep’ as he admits he never reads bills he votes on — ‘My main job is to keep my job, to get reelected. It takes precedence over everything,’ an anonymous member of Congress writes in a new book
Discussion:
The Week


‘We could have been there’: Squadron member speaks out on stalled Benghazi response — His squadron got the alert: a “real world mission was going down.” — The team - at Aviano Air Base in northeastern Italy - raced to the field and was briefed, as planes were armed and prepared to launch.
Discussion:
RedState, BizPac Review, The Daily Caller and Scared Monkeys
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The Party Surrenders — With Marco Rubio's grudging, painful statement this week that he intends to support “the nominee” (for many Republicans, He Who Must Not Be Named), and with Paul Ryan possibly contemplating assimilation, it's a good time to take one last look back at what I got wrong …
Discussion:
bradford-delong.com and Washington Post

Donald Trump's secret for avoiding hard questions — Do your homework. Ask the follow-up. — The constant spotlight fixed on Donald Trump for the last year would have overwhelmed any other candidate, particularly one so evasive. But not him: Trump now campaigns as pro-life — but he was …
Discussion:
Media Matters for America and Crooks and Liars


The raging controversy over a profile of Ben Rhodes, explained — About a week ago, David Samuels published a profile in the New York Times magazine of Ben Rhodes, a second-tier but highly influential member of President Obama's national security team, that's set Washington ablaze.
Discussion:
Salon, Power Line, The Daily Signal, BarbWire.com and Washington Free Beacon


Francis to create commission to study female deacons in Catholic church — Pope Francis has announced he will create a commission to study the possibility of allowing women to serve as deacons in the Catholic church, signaling an historic openness to the possibility of ending the global institution's practice of an all-male clergy.
Discussion:
The Atlantic, Mother Jones, Catholic News Service, Washington Post, CBS San Francisco, Religion News Service and The Week


Artist organizing mass photo shoot of 100 nude women during Cleveland Republican National Convention — Volunteers—2754 people—pose nude on the E. 9th St. pier on Saturday, June 26, 2004 as part of a photo shoot organized by New York art photographer Spencer Tunick.
Discussion:
BizPac Review and The Daily Caller


Glenn Makes Wild Prediction About Trump — Donald Trump has faced consistent pressure and scrutiny from Glenn, so his prediction Wednesday on The Glenn Beck Program came as a surprise. — “I'm going to make a prediction about Donald Trump,” Glenn said. “I could say he's going to be the nominee of the Republican Party.
Discussion:
Pirate's Cove, Hot Air, The Hill, The Daily Caller, Independent Journal … and Fire Andrea Mitchell!


How scientists are harnessing the ice-making powers of bacteria — The first major debate over genetically modified organisms, in the late 1980s, was not over tomatoes, salmon, or corn, but instead a type of bacteria that can raise the freezing point of water.


Mike Lee on Donald Trump: ‘He scares me to death’ — Sen. Mike Lee said Wednesday that Donald Trump “scares me to death” and that he still has concerns about the presumptive Republican presidential nominee and isn't ready to endorse him. — The Utah Republican, who previously backed Texas …
Discussion:
The Hill, Talking Points Memo, RedState and Mediaite


Barber arrested for pulling gun on customer, says he 'doesn't cut black hair' — A Rock Hill barber is accused of telling a man he wouldn't cut his hair because he is black and then pulling out a gun during the incident. … ROCK HILL, S.C. — Denied service because of his race …

Bernie Sanders, the Zombie Candidate — When he first decided to run for president, Bernie Sanders had a goal in mind: to start a political revolution by getting big money out of politics. — If he wants to do it—if Sanders wants to build a lasting movement to fight money's outsize influence …


U.S. special forces wage secretive ‘small wars’ against terrorists — Washington (CNN)President Barack Obama is increasingly calling upon Special Operations forces to carry out so-called “small wars” across the Middle East and Africa to challenge both ISIS and al Qaeda in places …


EXCLUSIVE: Persian Gulf Sheikhs Gave Bill & Hillary $100 Million — A Daily Caller News Foundation investigation reveals that Bill and Hillary Clinton received at least $100 million from autocratic Persian Gulf states and their leaders, potentially undermining Democratic presidential candidate Hillary's claim …
Discussion:
Instapundit and Fire Andrea Mitchell!