Top Items:
New York Times:
Ivanka Trump, Shifting Plans, Will Become a Federal Employee — Ivanka Trump, the elder daughter of President Trump, is becoming an official government employee, joining her husband in serving as an unpaid adviser to her father in the White House. — Ms. Trump already has an office in the West Wing …
RELATED:
Jordain Carney / The Hill:
Dem senators press ethics office over Ivanka Trump's role
Dem senators press ethics office over Ivanka Trump's role
Discussion:
John Hawkins' Right Wing News and The Lid
Frank Bruni / New York Times:
Devin Nunes Is Dangerous — Representative Devin Nunes obviously fancies himself Jason Bourne. To sneak onto the White House grounds for that rendezvous with an unnamed source last week, he switched cars and ditched aides, vanishing into the night. — But Senator Lindsey Graham looks at him and sees a different character.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Daily Kos, Just Security, The Hill and The Daily Beast
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Matthew Nussbaum / Politico:
Sean Spicer's kiss of death: ‘Phenomenal’ — The health care debacle, the travel ban setback, difficulties with Mexico, a slew of empty positions across the government — all are symptoms or causes of President Donald Trump's rocky first few weeks in office.
Nolan D. McCaskill / Politico:
Nunes tries to blame Democrats for troubled Russia probe — House Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes on Wednesday tried to blame Democrats for the troubles plaguing the panel's investigation into Russia's apparent meddling in the election, as a prominent moderate Republican cast doubt on the future of the House probe.
Discussion:
RedState, Axios, Towleroad, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, Hot Air, Progress Pond, Joe.My.God., New York Magazine, Raw Story and Washington Times
Fox News:
Former Obama official discloses rush to get intelligence on Trump team — A former top Obama administration official has acknowledged efforts by her colleagues to gather intelligence on Trump team ties to Russia before Donald Trump took office and to conceal the sources of that intelligence from the incoming administration.
Discussion:
Townhall.com, Power Line, The Last Refuge, twitchy.com, YouTube and SARAH PALIN
Tom LoBianco / CNN:
Senate intelligence leaders: 20 people to be questioned, first hearing Thursday
Senate intelligence leaders: 20 people to be questioned, first hearing Thursday
Discussion:
The Atlantic, New York Times, CNBC, Towleroad, Joe.My.God. and The Week
Kristina Wong / Breitbart:
Democrats Target Nunes After He Reveals Trump Transition Team Was Surveilled
Democrats Target Nunes After He Reveals Trump Transition Team Was Surveilled
Discussion:
RedState
Steven Shepard / Politico:
Poll: Health care debacle takes toll on Trump — Voter perceptions of President Donald Trump's job performance have eroded following the failure of a long-promised health care bill through Congress, according to a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll. — Trump's approval rating dropped …
Discussion:
Morning Consult, CBS News, The Week, Politicus USA, Business Insider, Mediaite, TheBlaze, Washington Times and Axios
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Damon Linker / The Week:
The futility of filibustering Neil Gorsuch
The futility of filibustering Neil Gorsuch
Discussion:
Politico, NPR, Hot Air, Online Library …, Townhall.com, Power Line and Instapundit
Kaili Joy Gray / Shareblue:
Red state Dems say no to Gorsuch, refuse to surrender stolen Supreme Court seat without a fight
Red state Dems say no to Gorsuch, refuse to surrender stolen Supreme Court seat without a fight
Discussion:
Politico
Sean Sullivan / Washington Post:
Trump's agenda is now squarely in Mitch McConnell's, and the Senate's, hands
Trump's agenda is now squarely in Mitch McConnell's, and the Senate's, hands
Discussion:
Political Wire
David Daleiden / The Center for Medical Progress:
PLANNED PARENTHOOD'S POLITICAL CRONIES FILE DISCREDITED CHARGES AGAINST DAVID DALEIDEN — The bogus charges from Planned Parenthood's political cronies are fake news. They tried the same collusion with corrupt officials in Houston, TX and failed: both the charges and the DA were thrown out.
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Matt Hamilton / Los Angeles Times:
Antiabortion activists face 15 felony charges over undercover videos that targeted Planned Parenthood
Antiabortion activists face 15 felony charges over undercover videos that targeted Planned Parenthood
Discussion:
Breitbart, Fox News, Mother Jones, Rewire, Refinery29, ThinkProgress, The Lid, Faithwire, IJR, New York Magazine and KTLA
Andrew Dalton / USA Today:
Felony charges for 2 who secretly filmed Planned Parenthood
Felony charges for 2 who secretly filmed Planned Parenthood
Discussion:
Shareblue, Associated Press, IJR and The Slot
U.S. Department of Justice:
State Department Employee Arrested and Charged With Concealing Extensive Contacts With Foreign Agents — A federal complaint was unsealed today charging Candace Marie Claiborne, 60, of Washington, D.C., and an employee of the U.S. Department of State, with obstructing an official proceeding …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, NPR and Daily Wire
RELATED:
Houston Chronicle:
Beto O'Rourke to challenge Ted Cruz in Texas' 2018 Senate race — WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke, a Democrat and ex-punk rocker who pulled a stunning upset to win his House seat six years ago, plans to declare his candidacy on Friday for the Senate seat held by Ted Cruz, according to Democratic sources in Texas.
Discussion:
Occupy Democrats, Townhall.com, The Daily Caller and Washington Times
Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Interior secretary hints border wall could be on Mexican land — Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke on Tuesday said America can't give away the Rio Grande to Mexico in the process of building President Trump's signature border wall, implying the structure could wind up standing partially on Mexican land.
Discussion:
E&E News, BBC, Salon, WTVR-TV, The Mahablog, FOX6Now.com, RedState, FOX31 Denver, The FADER, Occupy Democrats, Outside the Beltway, CNN and Talking Points Memo
RELATED:
Corbin Hiar / E&E News:
Zinke looks West for deputies and priorities, rejected VA job
Zinke looks West for deputies and priorities, rejected VA job
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Washington Monthly, Washington Post, Raw Story, ThinkProgress, Daily Kos, Politico and Dallas Morning News
T.C. Sottek / The Verge:
The 265 members of Congress who sold you out to ISPs, and how much it cost to buy them — They betrayed you for chump change — Republicans in Congress just voted to reverse a landmark FCC privacy rule that opens the door for ISPs to sell customer data. Lawmakers provided no credible reason …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, more at Mediagazer »
Ramin Setoodeh / Variety:
Chelsea Clinton: ‘I Am Not Running for Public Office’ (EXCLUSIVE) … Since the election, there's been endless chatter that Chelsea Clinton might follow in her parents' footsteps. But in an interview with Variety, she quashed those rumors. — “I am not running for public office,” Clinton said.
Discussion:
Fox News Insider, KTLA, Political Wire, Washington Post, Washington Free Beacon, New York Magazine, The Daily Caller, Hot Air, Politico, The Slot, AOL and Althouse
Josh Kraushaar / National Journal:
Dems Could Take House in 2018 — GOP majority looks shaky with Trump deeply unpopular, Democrats highly energized, and vulnerable Republicans facing tough votes. — The defeat of the Republicans' health care overhaul was a painful reminder …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly and Liberal Values
RELATED:
The Hill:
How North Korea could kill 90 percent of Americans — The mainstream media, and some officials who should know better, continue to allege North Korea does not yet have capability to deliver on its repeated threats to strike the U.S. with nuclear weapons. False reassurance is given …
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money and Clayton Cramer
RELATED:
Ryan Pickrell / The Daily Caller:
North Korea Flips Out After McCain Calls Kim Jong-Un A ‘Crazy Fat Kid’
North Korea Flips Out After McCain Calls Kim Jong-Un A ‘Crazy Fat Kid’
Discussion:
Mediaite, Fox News Insider and TheBlaze
Robert Lafranco / Bloomberg:
Jeff Bezos Is Now the World's Second Richest Person — Amazon's founder adds $10.2 billion to his net worth this year — Warren Buffett falls $4.7 billion from peak during Trump rally — Jeff Bezos has leapt past Amancio Ortega and Warren Buffett to become the world's second-richest person.
Discussion:
Axios
Bloomberg:
House GOP Weighing Another Try on Obamacare Vote Next Week — Two Republicans say leaders discussing new vote after setback — Trump and Ryan pulled the bill last week, citing lack of votes — House Republicans are considering making another run next week at passing the health-care bill …
Discussion:
Business Insider and Political Wire
Alyson Shontell / Business Insider:
How to lose friends and ‘exfoliate’ people — Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is caught between 2 worlds, and his friends are cutting ties — Signing up to carry out Donald Trump's vision of America has come at a cost to many of the president's closest allies.
Neil Munro / Breitbart:
Poll: Paul Ryan's Support Slides after Ryancare Crash — House Speaker Paul Ryan's poll rating have slid nationwide after many GOP members rejected his draft Ryancare law. — Ryan has a nationwide “favorable” rating of just 39 percent, down from the post-election peak of 46 percent in December …
Discussion:
SARAH PALIN
RELATED:
Craig Gilbert / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Paul Ryan's standing in GOP tied more than ever to Donald Trump
Paul Ryan's standing in GOP tied more than ever to Donald Trump
Discussion:
Washington Post
German Lopez / Vox:
One of the few bright spots in Trump's budget blueprint was bogus — Trump's budget claimed to add $500 million to fight the opioid epidemic. It turns out it doesn't. — One of the silver linings in President Donald Trump's first budget blueprint was the supposed addition of $500 million …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, New York Magazine, STAT, Common Dreams, PRI and YouTube
RELATED:
Sarah Karlin-Smith / Politico:
After pledging to solve opioid crisis, Trump's strategy underwhelms
After pledging to solve opioid crisis, Trump's strategy underwhelms
Discussion:
New York Magazine and Vox
Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Trump not concerned about Mar-a-lago costs, criticism — President Trump isn't concerned about the rising costs associated with his regular trips to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., the White House press secretary said Wednesday. — Sean Spicer addressed the topic during his briefing …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, RedState and Joe.My.God.
Eric Wolff / Politico:
Energy Department climate office bans use of phrase ‘climate change’ — A supervisor at the Energy Department's international climate office told staff this week not to use the phrases “climate change,” “emissions reduction” or “Paris Agreement” in written memos, briefings or other written communication, sources have told POLITICO.
Discussion:
Axios and New York Magazine
Matea Gold / Washington Post:
A former Trump administration appointee who left without signing ethics pledge is now a lobbyist — He is the second known Trump appointee who left the administration without signing a pledge to limit his lobbying activities.
Chris Johnson / Washington Blade:
Trump's U.S. Census proposes, immediately cuts LGBT survey questions — The inclusion of LGBT categories in the Planned Subjects for the 2020 Census Report unveiled on Tuesday must have been music to the ears of LGBT advocates seeking to include sexual orientation and gender identity in federal surveys.
Discussion:
Vox, RedState, National LGBTQ Task Force, The Huffington Post, Snopes.com, Daily Kos, BizPac Review, Towleroad, Hot Air, AOL and Out Magazine
Media Matters for America:
Trump Ally Alex Jones: “The Head Of The Jewish Mafia Is George Soros” — CALLER: I've noticed since the very beginning that the two main guys out there at the forefront of all of this are Senator John McCain and Lindsey Graham, saying everybody's a Russian agent, trying to derail the Trump presidency.
Discussion:
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Michelle Krupa / CNN:
Russian dressing is actually from Nashua, New Hampshire — (CNN)The White House press secretary tried to twist a cap on reporters' questions Tuesday about the Trump team's alleged ties to the Kremlin. — “If the President puts Russian salad dressing on his salad tonight, somehow that's a Russia connection,” Sean Spicer said.
Discussion:
Breitbart
Boston Herald:
Lawmaker's post warning of raids in Brockton roils ICE officials — Federal immigration officials are blasting a Brockton lawmaker for inciting “panic” after she took to Facebook to warn illegal immigrants about a rumored ICE sweep — a brazen move one fellow lawmaker said could put “lives in danger.”
Discussion:
Fox News Insider, CBS Boston, IJR, Washington Free Beacon and Washington Times