Top Items:
Jeremy Diamond / CNN:
In major shift, White House privately backing earlier rollback of Medicaid expansion — Such a move, however, could blow up the already fragile efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act — Washington (CNN)The White House is privately lining up behind conservative calls to roll …
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CNN:
After grueling days on the Hill, Obamacare repeal a test for dealmaker-in-chief
After grueling days on the Hill, Obamacare repeal a test for dealmaker-in-chief
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, AOL, The Atlantic, IJR, Talking Points Memo, CNBC, Business Insider, Joe.My.God. and Politico
CNN:
Sources: FBI investigation continues into ‘odd’ computer link between Russian bank and Trump Organization — (CNN)Federal investigators and computer scientists continue to examine whether there was a computer server connection between the Trump Organization and a Russian bank, sources close to the investigation tell CNN.
Discussion:
Raw Story, The Hill, Axios, Hot Air and Political Wire
Paul Krugman / New York Times:
A Bill So Bad It's Awesome — It has long been obvious to anyone following health policy that Republicans would never devise a workable replacement for Obamacare. But the bill unveiled this week is worse than even the cynics expected; its awfulness is almost surreal.
Discussion:
Daily Kos and Washington Post
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Alan Rappeport / New York Times:
White House Casts Pre-emptive Doubt on Congressional Budget Office
White House Casts Pre-emptive Doubt on Congressional Budget Office
Discussion:
Politico, The Week and Political Wire
Ali Rogin / ABC News:
Inside the Senate GOP resistance to Trumpcare
Inside the Senate GOP resistance to Trumpcare
Discussion:
Politico, Breitbart and Washington Examiner
New York Times:
After Halting Start, Trump Plunges Into Effort to Repeal Health Law
After Halting Start, Trump Plunges Into Effort to Repeal Health Law
Discussion:
John Hawkins' Right Wing News, American Greatness, NPR, The Atlantic, Common Dreams, Hullabaloo and The Fiscal Times
Kyle Olson / The American Mirror:
Malik Obama shares photo of brother Barack's Kenya ‘certificate of birth’ — An Obama has joined the birther movement. — Malik Obama, Barack Obama's half-brother, tweeted image of what appears to be Barack's birth certificate. — Except it's not from Hawaii, but rather Kenya.
Discussion:
The Last Tradition
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Jim Hoft / The Gateway Pundit:
Breaking: Malik Obama Tweets Alleged Barack Obama Birth Certificate in Kenya — Malik Obama with a photo of his brother Barack during a trip to Africa. — Barack Obama's brother Malik Obama tweeted out a birth certificate on Thursday allegedly belonging to his brother Barack.
Discussion:
Little Green Footballs and John Hawkins' Right Wing News
New York Times:
Is Trump Being Investigated? ‘No Comment,’ Justice Dept. Says — WASHINGTON — President Trump's weekend Twitter message asserting that former President Barack Obama had tapped his phones forced the White House into ever more verbal contortions on Thursday as aides struggled to defend the president's charge.
Discussion:
The Week, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, Business Insider, Progress Pond, Political Wire and Rolling Stone
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David Edwards / Raw Story:
Sean Spicer tries to walk back wiretap claims by comically repeating 'I'm not aware' 10 times
Sean Spicer tries to walk back wiretap claims by comically repeating 'I'm not aware' 10 times
Discussion:
Joe.My.God.
Sarah Mimms / BuzzFeed:
Republican Chairman Says Sean Spicer Should Stay “In His Lane” On Health Care Bill
Republican Chairman Says Sean Spicer Should Stay “In His Lane” On Health Care Bill
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and The Huffington Post
Benjamin Mullin / Poynter:
Bureau chiefs ‘deeply concerned’ that Rex Tillerson is ditching the press on Asia trip — D.C. bureau chiefs from major news organizations, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, the wire services, Fox News and CNN sent a letter to the State Department earlier …
Discussion:
Media Matters for America, Mediaite, Mother Jones, TheBlaze, Hit & Run, TVNewser and BizPac Review, more at Mediagazer »
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Carol Giacomo / New York Times:
Why Is Mr. Tillerson in a Perpetual State of Duck and Cover?
Why Is Mr. Tillerson in a Perpetual State of Duck and Cover?
Discussion:
Bloomberg, New York Magazine, Just Security and Washington Post
Dave Itzkoff / New York Times:
Samantha Bee Show Apologizes to Writer for ‘Nazi Hair’ Mockery — The TBS comedy program “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee” apologized on Thursday for broadcasting a segment in which a writer who has talked about his cancer diagnosis was mocked for having what the program called “Nazi hair.”
Discussion:
OUTSET, The Week, Refinery29, The Gateway Pundit, RedState, Mediaite, BizPac Review, Washington Free Beacon and twitchy.com
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Jim Treacher / The Daily Caller:
Samantha Bee To Kid With Brain Cancer: You Have Nazi Hair
Samantha Bee To Kid With Brain Cancer: You Have Nazi Hair
Discussion:
Breitbart, IJR, Business Insider and Washington Post
Delia Gallagher / CNN:
Pope signals he's open to married Catholic men becoming priests — Rome (CNN)Pope Francis has said he is open to married men becoming priests to combat the Roman Catholic Church's shortage of clergy. — In an interview with German newspaper Die Zeit, Pope Francis said the lack of Catholic priests was an …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Eric Tucker / Associated Press:
AG SUGGESTS OPENNESS TO REVIEW OF PREDECESSORS' ACTIONS — WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Jeff Sessions suggested Thursday that he would be open to the appointment of an outside counsel to review actions taken by the Justice Department during the Obama administration.
Discussion:
Power Line
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Julia Edwards Ainsley / Reuters:
Trump administration sends judges to immigration detention centers: sources
Trump administration sends judges to immigration detention centers: sources
Discussion:
John Hawkins' Right Wing News
Ali Watkins / BuzzFeed:
Inside The Investigation To Get To The Bottom Of Russia's Role In The Election — The Senate Intelligence Committee has been given sweeping powers, unseen since the Watergate era, to investigate Russian meddling in the US election. As its scope grows to include suspected ties between …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Hot Air and Business Insider
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Lee Stranahan / Breitbart:
Fix Is In: House Committee on ‘Russian Hacking’ Includes Only DNC-Hired Tech Experts
Fix Is In: House Committee on ‘Russian Hacking’ Includes Only DNC-Hired Tech Experts
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit and Sputnik International
Choe Sang-Hun / New York Times:
South Korea Removes President Park Geun-hye — SEOUL, South Korea — A South Korean court ousted the president on Friday, a first in the nation's history, rattling the delicate balance of relationships across Asia at a particularly tense time. — Her removal capped months of turmoil …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Diplomat, The Week and Political Wire
Kimberly Dozier / The Daily Beast:
U.S. Spies Live in Fear of Trump's Next Tweet — As Friday evening draws to a close around Washington, D.C., the city's tight-knit and secretive national security clan goes to sleep with a new unease. It's not Syria or Iran or even North Korea they're most worried about.
Discussion:
The Guardian
Rick Maese / Washington Post:
NFL abuse of painkillers and other drugs described in court filings — National Football League teams violated federal laws governing prescription drugs, disregarded guidance from the Drug Enforcement Administration on how to store, track, transport and distribute controlled substances …
Discussion:
The Week and New York Times
Edward-Isaac Dovere / Politico:
Bill Clinton: Resurgent nationalism ‘taking us to the edge of our destruction’ — Don't buy what purports to be nationalism that's engulfed politics in America and all over the world, former President Bill Clinton said Thursday; what's actually at play, he argued, is more insidious and interconnected than that.
New York Times:
With Trump in White House, His Golf Properties Prosper — WASHINGTON — It is a golden age for golf — at least as far as the Trump Organization is concerned. — On Memorial Day weekend, the Senior P.G.A. Championship will be held at the Trump National Golf Club in suburban Washington.
Josh Harkinson / Mother Jones:
Meet Silicon Valley's Secretive Alt-Right Followers — Readers of The Right Stuff long knew that founder “Mike Enoch” had two main interests: technology and white supremacy. Posts on the neo-Nazi site have included discussion of “a new blogging platform built on node.js,” …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Carla Marinucci / Politico:
Schwarzenegger for Senate? — SAN FRANCISCO — Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger — the “Terminator” action hero who made “I'll be back” one of filmdom's most iconic phrases — may be mulling a political comeback, according to several GOP political insiders in California.
Discussion:
BizPac Review, RedState and The Daily Caller
Marc Fisher / Washington Post:
The political lexicon of a billionaire populist — From the start of his presidential campaign, Donald Trump pledged “total change,” delivering his promises with a scorched-earth political vocabulary — “Lyin' Ted,” “Crooked Hillary,” “drain the swamp,” “lock her up.”
Zeynep Tufekci / New York Times:
The Truth About the WikiLeaks C.I.A. Cache — On Tuesday morning, WikiLeaks released an enormous cache of documents that it claimed detailed “C.I.A. hacking tools.” Immediately afterward, it posted two startling tweets asserting that “C.I.A. hacker malware” posed a threat to journalists …
Discussion:
claytoonz, more at Mediagazer »
Jenny Jarvie / Los Angeles Times:
Number of immigrants caught at Mexican border plunges 40% under Trump — A U.S. Border Patrol agent searches a person suspected of crossing the Rio Grande to enter the United States illegally near Rio Grande City, Texas, on March 1. (Larry W. Smith / European Pressphoto Agency)
Lisa Baertlein / Yahoo:
Starbucks CEO's refugee comments sour customer views of chain - survey — Starbucks Corp's vow to hire thousands of refugees after President Donald Trump's first executive order that temporarily banned travel from seven mostly-Muslim nations appears to be hurting customer sentiment of the coffee chain.
Josh Dawsey / Politico:
Trump's in the White House bubble, and he loves it — President Donald Trump is sticking to his comfort zone. — Trump has spent each of the 48 nights of his presidency either at the White House or at his private Mar-a-Lago Club in Florida. He has dined out in the nation's capital just once …