memeorandum: GOP Senator On Obamacare Replacement: 'There's Not Any Real Discussion Taking Place Right Now' (The Huffington Post)

12:50 PM ET, February 8, 2017

Top Items:

Republicans vote to rebuke Elizabeth Warren, saying she impugned Sessions's character — Senate Republicans passed a party-line rebuke Tuesday night of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) for a speech opposing attorney general nominee Jeff Sessions, striking down her words for impugning the Alabama senator's character.

Discussion: Washington Monthly, Bloomberg, Talking Points Memo, Hit & Run, The Week, MSNBC, Raw Story, No More Mister Nice Blog, Power Line, BuzzFeed, New York Magazine, Mediaite, NBC News, Mashable and Gothamist

Eric Bradner / CNN:

Silencing Elizabeth Warren backfires on Senate GOP — Washington (CNN)The Senate has silenced Elizabeth Warren. — And by doing so, majority Republicans just handed the liberal firebrand a megaphone — further elevating President Donald Trump's fiercest and most prominent critic in the Senate and turning her into a Democratic hero.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Occupy Democrats, The Hill, Politicus USA, Raw Story, New York Times, CBS New York, The Slot, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Washington Post, Vox, Political Insider blog, The Guardian, Mediaite and Joe.My.God.

Matt Flegenheimer / New York Times:

Republican Senators Vote to Formally Silence Elizabeth Warren — WASHINGTON — Republican senators voted on Tuesday to formally silence a Democratic colleague for impugning a peer, Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama, by condemning his nomination for attorney general while reading a letter from Coretta Scott King.

Discussion: Mediaite, Common Dreams, Taylor Marsh, twitchy.com, The American Mirror, Business Insider, The Week, The Last Tradition and Daily Wire

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren:

During the debate on whether to make Jeff Sessions the next Attorney General, I tried to read a letter from Coretta Scott King on the floor of the Senate. The letter, from 30 years ago, urged the Senate to reject the nomination of Jeff Sessions to a federal judgeship.

Discussion: CNN, Talking Points Memo, The Guardian, Hullabaloo, The Week and Mashable

Carl Hulse / New York Times:

Mitch McConnell Sees ‘High Level of Satisfaction’ With Trump Administration — WASHINGTON — Although there is plenty of anxiety in Washington about the shaky early performance of the Trump administration, don't count Senator Mitch McConnell among the hand wringers.

Discussion: Axios and Hot Air

Marc Caputo / Politico:
Alabama governor leaning toward ‘Big Luther’ Strange to replace Sessions

Discussion: TheBlaze, al.com, The Daily Caller and Political Wire

USA Today:
Why Elizabeth Warren was accused of ‘impugning’ Jeff Sessions

Discussion: Politico, Axios and Politicus USA

NBC News:
Warren Silenced For Reading Coretta Scott King Letter at Sessions Debate

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, AOL, NBC News, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, Fox News Insider, Econbrowser, Politicus USA, TheBlaze, The Moderate Voice, Informed Comment, Boing Boing, Washington Free Beacon, Jamie Dupree and IJR

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
McConnell: Warren's blistering Sessions speech broke Senate rules

Discussion: Politico, Vox, Raw Story, ABC News and alan.com

Derek Hawkins / Washington Post:
The silencing of Elizabeth Warren and an old Senate rule prompted by a fistfight

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress, The Nation, Washington Free Beacon, Refinery29, Mashable, The Week, TheBlaze, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Business Insider and Mediaite

Amy B Wang / Washington Post:
‘Nevertheless, she persisted’ becomes new battle cry after McConnell silences Elizabeth Warren

Discussion: CNN, Vox, The Daily Caller and Talking Points Memo

Eder Campuzano / Oregonian:
Jeff Merkley reads Coretta Scott King's letter about Jeff Sessions on Senate floor

Discussion: CNN, The Guardian, Raw Story and Vox

Adele M. Stan / American Prospect:
Warren Silenced: The Patriarchy Strikes Back

Discussion: Washington Post, The Atlantic, Talking Points Memo, Vox, NPR and Lawyers, Guns & Money

James Hohmann / Washington Post: The Daily 202: Mitch McConnell gives Elizabeth Warren's 2020 presidential campaign an in-kind contribution

YouTube:
Sen. McConnell Refuses to Let Sen. Warren Speak About Attorney General Nominee Sessions

Discussion: ThinkProgress, The Daily Caller, Willamette Week, Daily Wire, The Guardian, Hot Air, Mother Jones, BostonGlobe.com, New York Magazine, Politico, Mediaite, BizPac Review and Daily Kos

Christina Wilkie / The Huffington Post:

Leaks Suggest Trump's Own Team Is Alarmed By His Conduct — White House leaks are common, but leakers suggesting the president might be unfit for office are not. — S.V. Date — Senior White House Correspondent, The Huffington Post — White House reporter, The Huffington Post

Discussion: Washington Monthly, The Week, Washington Post, The Slot, Business Insider, New York Magazine, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Mother Jones, Boing Boing, rubber hose and Daily Kos

Patricia Murphy / The Daily Beast:

Sean Spicer Makes Up Atlanta Islamist Terror Attack — Kellyanne Conway's “Bowling Green massacre” isn't the only case of a White House aide pointing to a terror attack that didn't happen to make the case for President Donald Trump's controversial executive order limiting travel from seven majority-Muslim countries.

Discussion: Gothamist, CNN, Political Insider blog, Mediaite, The Week, Mashable, No More Mister Nice Blog, ThinkProgress, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Washington Post, more at Mediagazer »

Jim Acosta / CNN:
White House ramping up search for communications director after Spicer's rocky start

Discussion: RedState, Daily Kos, Raw Story, Mediaite, Hot Air, New York Magazine, Axios, Political Wire and TVNewser

Jordan Fabian / The Hill:

Trump attacks judges weighing travel ban — President Trump on Wednesday went after a panel of federal judges weighing whether a court order blocking his travel ban should be lifted. — Speaking to a gathering of law enforcement officials, Trump argued the judges should immediately reinstate …

Adam Liptak / New York Times:
Appeals Court Panel Appears Skeptical of Trump's Travel Ban

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, Daily Kos, Fox News Insider, Outside the Beltway, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, New York Magazine, Axios, alan.com, Althouse and Boing Boing

CNN: Trump to judges: Even a ‘bad high school student’ would rule in my favor

CBS News:

A note from Charlie Rose — Almost 15 years ago skilled surgeons replaced my aorta valve with a new replacement valve. It has served me well enabling me to live the vigorous, full, complete life you are all so familiar with. No one loves life more than I do.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Washington Post, WHNT-TV and Mediaite

Jake Sherman / Politico:

Poll: Democrats want leaders to block Trump — Democratic voters are sending a clear message to their elected officials in Washington: Stop Donald Trump at all costs. — A new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll of 2,070 registered voters, including 740 self-identified Democrats …

Discussion: Axios, Morning Consult, RedState, Associated Press, Hot Air, The Week, The Daily Beast, Talking Points Memo and Political Wire

Laura Litvan / Bloomberg: Schumer Says Gorsuch Avoided His Questions ‘Like the Plague’

New York Times:

Yemen Withdraws Permission for U.S. Antiterror Ground Missions — WASHINGTON — Angry at the civilian casualties incurred last month in the first commando raid authorized by President Trump, Yemen has withdrawn permission for the United States to run Special Operations ground missions …

Discussion: Washington Monthly, BuzzFeed, Associated Press, CNN, Defense One, Hot Air, alan.com, Washington Post, Political Wire, Daily Kos, New York Magazine, NBC News, Washington Free Beacon, Mother Jones, The Week and Balloon Juice

Ryan Browne / CNN:

First on CNN: US military to rent space in Trump Tower — Washington (CNN)The US military is looking to lease space in Trump Tower. — “In order to meet official mission requirements, the Department of Defense is working through appropriate channels and in accordance with all applicable legal requirements …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Gothamist, New York Times, The Week and Daily Kos

Drew Harwell / Washington Post:
Department of Defense looks to rent space in Trump Tower

Discussion: twitchy.com

The Huffington Post:

GOP Senator On Obamacare Replacement: 'There's Not Any Real Discussion Taking Place Right Now' — Republicans are finding it much harder to craft health care reform replacement than it was to campaign on repeal. — Washington bureau chief for The Huffington Post

Discussion: The Atlantic, TheBlaze, The Week, Politico and New York Times

Wall Street Journal: The ObamaCare Cleanup Begins

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

Tapper a GOP target after grilling Conway — A source with direct knowledge tells Axios that Republican operatives were urging at least one conservative-friendly website to write Jake Tapper hit pieces yesterday after his hard-hitting interview with Kellyanne Conway.

Discussion: Raw Story, Mediaite, BizPac Review, New York Magazine, Talking Points Memo, Mashable and RedState, more at Mediagazer »

Julian Zelizer / Washington Post:

Protests didn't hurt Reagan, and they're not going to stop Trump — Low approval ratings and public outcry can work in favor of outsider politicians. … Demonstrators march against President Trump's executive order fast-tracking the Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines.

David Edwards / Raw Story:

Rick Santorum: Trump can lie about the murder rate because he's not ‘bound by all the facts’ — DON'T MISS STORIES. FOLLOW RAW STORY! — Conservative CNN contributor Rick Santorum excused President Donald Trump for lying about the U.S. murder rate by arguing that the president's false statements come …

Discussion: NPR

Louis Nelson / Politico:

Trump offers his own oral argument defending travel ban — Unable to personally defend his controversial executive order on immigration in court, President Donald Trump offered his own oral argument in its defense Wednesday morning, telling an audience that the law backing his order “couldn't have been written any more precisely.”

Discussion: ABC News

Emily Shapiro / ABC News:
Trump Attacks Travel Ban Challengers, Says ‘Bad High School Student’ Would Know Ban Is Legal

Discussion: Axios and Associated Press

NEllingsen / Lawfare:

It's Not Foreigners Who are Plotting Here: What the Data Really Show — Former Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson meets with Minneapolis Muslim Community / Department of Homeland Security — A little more than a week ago, Benjamin Wittes posted a piece about the malevolence …

Rick Pearson / Chicago Tribune:

Chris Kennedy to run for Illinois governor, says ‘comprise is not surrender’ in dig at Rauner — Chris Kennedy Jr. listens during a University of Illinois Board of Trustees meeting in Urbana, Ill. on Sept. 11, 2014. — Chicago businessman Chris Kennedy will join the Democratic race for Illinois governor …