Top Items:
CNN:
CNN/ORC Poll: Confidence drops in Trump transition — Washington (CNN)Donald Trump will become president Friday with an approval rating of just 40%, according to a new CNN/ORC Poll, the lowest of any recent president and 44 points below that of President Barack Obama, the 44th president.
Discussion:
The Hill, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, Mediaite, NBC News and Washington Times
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Gary Langer / ABC News:
Trump Remains Unpopular, With the Presidency in Hand (POLL) — Donald Trump enters office as the most unpopular of at least the last seven newly elected presidents, a new ABC News/Washington Post poll finds, with ratings for handling the transition that are also vastly below those of his predecessors.
Elliot Smilowitz / The Hill:
Trump: Approval polls are rigged against me
Trump: Approval polls are rigged against me
Discussion:
RedState, Washington Post and Political Wire
Gary Langer / ABC News:
Public Splits on Trump's Ethics Compliance; Three-Quarters Want Tax Returns Released (POLL)
Public Splits on Trump's Ethics Compliance; Three-Quarters Want Tax Returns Released (POLL)
Discussion:
Washington Post, Politico, The Hill, The Week, Hullabaloo, Common Dreams and Mediaite
Scott Clement / Washington Post:
A majority of Americans feel like Trump has done enough on his conflicts of interest
A majority of Americans feel like Trump has done enough on his conflicts of interest
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Politicus USA and Political Wire
Manu Raju / CNN:
First on CNN: Trump's cabinet pick invested in company, then introduced a bill to help it — Tom Price in 60 seconds Story highlights — Washington (CNN)Rep. Tom Price last year purchased shares in a medical device manufacturer days before introducing legislation that would have directly benefited …
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MJ Lee / CNN:
Trump's HHS pick doesn't want to flaunt his own Obamacare bill at confirmation hearing
Trump's HHS pick doesn't want to flaunt his own Obamacare bill at confirmation hearing
Discussion:
New York Magazine
Jennifer Haberkorn / Politico:
Trump, Price and Hill GOP at odds on Obamacare
Trump, Price and Hill GOP at odds on Obamacare
Discussion:
Vox, RedState, ACASignups.net and Washington Post
Margaret Hartmann / New York Magazine:
More Than 40 Democratic Lawmakers Are Boycotting Trump's Inauguration — The number of Democratic lawmakers refusing to attend Donald Trump's inauguration jumped significantly on Monday, with 42 House Democrats now planning to boycott Friday's ceremony, according to the Washington Post.
Discussion:
Politico, Raw Story, BizPac Review, Mediaite, Washington Post, ThinkProgress, CBS Baltimore and The Gateway Pundit
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David Leonhardt / New York Times:
The Most Successful Democrat Since F.D.R. — When Barack Obama ran for president in 2008, he understood, without quite saying it, that there had been no highly successful Democratic president in decades. — Bill Clinton made the country a better place, but his biggest legislative plans failed and he was beset by scandal.
Discussion:
Politico
Scott Johnson / Power Line:
Return of the leftover left — The leftover left that materialized during the Bush administration is returning in force as of January 20. Whatever they do to disrupt events related to the inauguration of Donald Trump as president, it is a preview of coming attractions.
Discussion:
#DisruptJ20, Project Veritas and National Review
Nicole Lopez-Alvar / WSVN-TV:
8 shot at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park in Miami on MLK Day; 2 detained — Police and fire rescue crews are on the scene after eight people were shot during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park. — According to Miami-Dade Fire Rescue …
Discussion:
twitchy.com, The Gateway Pundit and The Last Refuge
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Curtis Houck / NewsBusters:
Reporters Plead with MLK III to Attack Trump; Did Lewis Tweets Shake You ‘To Your Core?’
Reporters Plead with MLK III to Attack Trump; Did Lewis Tweets Shake You ‘To Your Core?’
Discussion:
Power Line and Mediaite
Rachel Stoltzfoos / The Daily Caller:
Martin Luther King's Niece Voted For Trump
Martin Luther King's Niece Voted For Trump
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, The Last Tradition and Washington Free Beacon
Matt Lewis / The Daily Beast:
Obama Loves Martin Luther King's Great Quote—But He Uses It Incorrectly
Obama Loves Martin Luther King's Great Quote—But He Uses It Incorrectly
Discussion:
TheBlaze
Shane Harris / Wall Street Journal:
CIA Director John Brennan Rejects Donald Trump's Criticism — Outgoing CIA Director John Brennan rejected Donald Trump's suggestions that he may have leaked an unsubstantiated dossier on the president-elect while defending the U.S. intelligence community more broadly.
Discussion:
Politico, Raw Story, The Federalist, emptywheel, The Daily Caller, The Last Tradition, Fox News Insider, The Gateway Pundit and Politicus USA
Adam Edelman / New York Daily News:
Scalpers taking losses on tickets to Trump inauguration, as secondary market interest on the mogul's swear-in wanes — Donald Trump will take office as one of the most unpopular President-elects in recent history — and even scalpers are feeling the pain. — Some flippers …
Ronald Brownstein / The Atlantic:
The Trumpcare Conundrum — As congressional Republicans race to repeal and replace President Obama's Affordable Care Act, one of their principal challenges is finding an alternative that does not expose older and less affluent white voters at the core of Donald Trump's electoral coalition to greater costs and financial risk.
John King / CNN:
Sources: Trump labor pick Andrew Puzder has voiced second thoughts about nomination — Washington (CNN)President-elect Donald Trump's choice to be labor secretary has voiced second thoughts in recent days, because of a relentless barrage of criticism from Democrats, labor unions and other liberal groups …
Discussion:
Political Wire, New York Magazine, Politicus USA, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and New York Times
David Nakamura / Washington Post:
‘Never Trump’ national-security Republicans fear they have been blacklisted — They are some of the biggest names in the Republican national security firmament, veterans of past GOP administrations who say, if called upon by President-elect Donald Trump, they stand ready to serve their country again.
Discussion:
RedState, Scared Monkeys, The Daily Caller, Power Line, Balloon Juice and Instapundit
McKay Coppins / The Atlantic:
‘He Is Going to Test Our Democracy as It Has Never Been Tested’ — Sometime early last fall, John Dean says he began having nightmares about a Trump presidency. He would wake in the middle of the night, agitated and alarmed, struggling to calm his nerves.
Discussion:
Political Wire and Raw Story
Dana Milbank / Washington Post:
Trump has earned no respect for being the ultimate sore winner — Kellyanne Conway is walking a Dangerfield line. — “We got no forbearance. We got nothing. We got no respect,” the Trump strategist told CNN's Anderson Cooper last week, complaining about media coverage of her boss.
Discussion:
Hot Air and John Hawkins' Right Wing News
Wall Street Journal:
Trump Warns on House Republican Tax Plan — Donald Trump criticized a cornerstone of House Republicans' corporate-tax plan, which they had pitched as an alternative to his proposed import tariffs, creating another point of contention between the incoming president and congressional allies.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Last Tradition and Marginal REVOLUTION