Top Items:
New York Times:
‘Learning Curve’ as Rick Perry Pursues a Job He Initially Misunderstood — WASHINGTON — When President-elect Donald J. Trump offered Rick Perry the job of energy secretary five weeks ago, Mr. Perry gladly accepted, believing he was taking on a role as a global ambassador for the American oil …
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Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
Trump to announce Sonny Perdue for Agriculture — President-elect Donald Trump plans to nominate former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue to be the next Agriculture secretary, transition officials have informed POLITICO, making a pick that's likely to please farm groups while angering those who have called for more diversity in his Cabinet.
Discussion:
ABC News, The Week, Joe.My.God., The Daily Caller, New York Magazine, Mother Jones and Washington Post
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Drew Angerer / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Breaking: Donald Trump taps Sonny Perdue as his agriculture chief
Breaking: Donald Trump taps Sonny Perdue as his agriculture chief
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon, Political Wire, Political Insider blog and GeorgiaPol
Richard Johnson / Page Six:
Caitlyn Jenner is attending the inauguration
Donald Trump / Dallas Morning News:
Trump Cabinet will be the first in decades without a Hispanic member
Trump Cabinet will be the first in decades without a Hispanic member
Discussion:
The Week, Politicus USA and ABC News
McClatchy Washington Bureau:
FBI, 5 other agencies probe possible covert Kremlin aid to Trump — WASHINGTON — The FBI and five other law enforcement and intelligence agencies have collaborated for months in an investigation into Russian attempts to influence the November election, including whether money …
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Mark Hensch / The Hill:
FBI, other agencies probing possible Russian aid for Trump: report
FBI, other agencies probing possible Russian aid for Trump: report
Discussion:
alan.com
Madison Malone Kircher / New York Magazine:
Is Donald Trump Writing His Inaugural Address from a Mar-a-Lago Receptionist's Desk? An Investigation … As tends to be the case with the president-elect's social-media statements, there is much to discuss. First, there's the fact that Trump seems to be drafting his first speech as POTUS with a ... Sharpie.
Discussion:
The Week, CBS New York, Politico, Mashable, WFLA-TV, Occupy Democrats, CBS Miami, American Power, Sputnik International, Gothamist, Mediaite, Joe.My.God. and TheBlaze, more at Mediagazer »
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Louis Nelson / Politico:
Obama tells nation: 'I think we're going to be OK'
Obama tells nation: 'I think we're going to be OK'
Discussion:
ABC News and Washington Post
Scott Shane / New York Times:
From Headline to Photograph, a Fake News Masterpiece — ANNAPOLIS, Md. — It was early fall, and Donald J. Trump, behind in the polls, seemed to be preparing a rationale in case a winner like him somehow managed to lose. “I'm afraid the election is going to be rigged, I have to be honest …
Discussion:
Washington Post and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »
Maggie Haberman / New York Times:
At Dinner Honoring Mike Pence, Donald Trump Touches Many Bases — WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald J. Trump, in a free-flowing speech Wednesday evening at a dinner honoring his running mate, Mike Pence, jabbed at his new Republican allies and his critics alike, questioned the ethics of …
Karen Tumulty / Washington Post:
Trump Cabinet nominees meet growing ethical questions — Three of Donald Trump's Cabinet picks came under growing fire Wednesday on ethical issues, potentially jeopardizing their nominations. — The most serious concerns surround personal investments by Trump's health and human services nominee …
Discussion:
Politico and Joe.My.God.
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Jennifer Steinhauer / New York Times:
Trump Budget Nominee Did Not Pay Taxes for Employee
Trump Budget Nominee Did Not Pay Taxes for Employee
Discussion:
Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, RedState, The Slot, Washington Times and Political Wire
Nikita Vladimirov / The Hill:
Trump aide: Dems are trying to humiliate Cabinet nominees
Trump aide: Dems are trying to humiliate Cabinet nominees
Discussion:
Politico and Political Wire
Theodore Schleifer / CNN:
Corker: Full Senate to decide on Tillerson even if panel votes ‘no’ — (CNN)In an unusual move, Republicans plan on bringing Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of state before the full Senate for a vote even if he does not earn the support of the foreign relations panel.
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Burgess Everett / Politico:
McCain still ‘very concerned’ about Tillerson
McCain still ‘very concerned’ about Tillerson
Discussion:
Political Wire
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Comey ‘enthusiastic’ about Bill Clinton probe in 2001, FBI memo says — FBI Director James Comey—blamed by many Democrats for costing Hillary Clinton the presidential election last year—was excited about pursuing a criminal investigation into President Bill Clinton's most controversial pardons …
Discussion:
Politicus USA
Jonathan Turley / USA Today:
Trump is our president: Jonathan Turley — In the end, the protests are not about legitimacy. — It is inaugural week and Washington is again the rallying point for hundreds of thousands of people. Indeed, my house in McLean, Virginia is hosting roughly a dozen people from Illinois and Florida.
Andrew C. McCarthy / National Review:
The Damage Done to America by Manning ... and Obama — RESPONSE TO... DISGRACE: OBAMA COMMUTES BRADLEY MANNING'S ... I emphatically agree with every word of David's post on the disgrace that is Obama's commutation of Bradley Manning's richly deserved 35-year (a sentence that is in fact lenient under …
Discussion:
USA Today, Washington Post, Scared Monkeys, RedState, Daily Wire, The Atlantic and Instapundit
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Joe Uchill / The Hill:
Assange lawyer: Manning commutation doesn't meet extradition offer's conditions
Assange lawyer: Manning commutation doesn't meet extradition offer's conditions
Discussion:
Politico, The Guardian, NBC News, Reuters, The Gateway Pundit, Above the Law, The Verge, Patterico's Pontifications, ABC News, Gizmodo, Washington Monthly, Talking Points Memo, Sputnik International, The Daily Caller, TheBlaze, Hot Air, Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon, Towleroad, USA Today, twitchy.com, Raw Story, Associated Press, RedState, Joe.My.God., Daily Wire, KTLA and emptywheel
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Trump pays out $25 million to settle Trump University litigation — Days before President-elect Donald Trump is set to take the oath to uphold the Constitution, he has followed through on a more painful obligation: coughing up $25 million to settle litigation over his defunct Trump University real estate seminar program.
Discussion:
Washington Post
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Esme Cribb / Talking Points Memo:
Trump Makes $25M Payment To Settle Trump University Fraud Lawsuits
Trump Makes $25M Payment To Settle Trump University Fraud Lawsuits
Discussion:
CNNMoney
Edward-Isaac Dovere / Politico:
Democrats in the Wilderness — Standing with some 30,000 people in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia the night before the election watching Hillary Clinton speak, exhausted aides were already worrying about what would come next. They expected her to win, of course …
John Kerry / New York Times:
What We Got Right — With a new administration taking office this week, it is natural to assess the inheritance it will receive from the old. — There are some who see nightmares wherever they look and insist that the entire global system is unraveling and that America's position as world leader is in precipitous decline.
Discussion:
Politico
Pew Research Center:
Trump, Clinton Voters Divided in Their Main Source for Election News — Fox News was the main source for 40% of Trump voters — In the coming days, Americans will follow a single event across a variety of media channels: the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Business Insider, The Verge, Mashable and Washington Post, more at Mediagazer »
Bob McManus / New York Post:
Why liberals just love to set terrorists free — What is it about progressives like President Obama — and even pretend progressives like Gov. Cuomo — that makes them so forgiving of terrorists? — Obama, on his way out the door, Tuesday commuted the effective life sentence …
Taegan Goddard / Political Wire:
An Empty Trump Administration — Jonathan Bernstein: “We're two days away from having a new president. But we're apparently a lot longer than that from having a Trump administration with even a minimally functional ability to govern.” — “Overall, out of 690 positions requiring Senate …
Discussion:
Washington Post and Bloomberg
F.H. Buckley / New York Post:
Trump's threat to the liberal ‘deep state’ — One of the best books on American history, Arthur Schlesinger's “The Age of Jackson,” began with Jackson's inauguration, when the rowdy backwoodsmen who came to celebrate their hero's triumph frightened the horses and shocked the locals.
Michael Crowley / Politico:
Trump's nuclear wake-up call — By the time he is sworn in tomorrow, Donald Trump will have undergone a haunting rite of passage: the classified briefing given to every incoming president that explains how he can order a nuclear attack. — While neither U.S. nor Trump officials would confirm …
Discussion:
The Week