Top Items:
Axios:
House GOP health care peacemaking deteriorates — There was an effort yesterday to get House GOP conservatives — the House Freedom Caucus and Republican Study Committee — to meet with GOP moderates — the Tuesday Group — to talk about a path forward after last week's failed health care effort.
RELATED:
Rich Lowry / Politico:
The Crisis of Trumpism — Trumpism is in crisis. — This isn't a function of poll numbers, or the Russia controversy, or any other melodrama of the past three months, but something more fundamental: No officeholder in Washington seems to understand President Donald Trump's populism …
Philip Rucker / Washington Post:
Trump says ‘We must fight’ hard-line conservative Freedom Caucus in 2018 midterm elections
Trump says ‘We must fight’ hard-line conservative Freedom Caucus in 2018 midterm elections
Discussion:
New York Times, ABC News, Vox, Talking Points Memo, Political Wire and The American Conservative
Bloomberg:
House GOP Weighing Another Try on Obamacare Vote Next Week
House GOP Weighing Another Try on Obamacare Vote Next Week
Discussion:
Politico, Vox, Hit & Run, Daily Kos, Business Insider, Joe.My.God., Reuters, Axios, The Daily Caller, Hot Air and Political Wire
Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:
Can the White House drive the tax reform train? History says no
Can the White House drive the tax reform train? History says no
Discussion:
Political Wire
Kelsey Snell / Washington Post:
Hill Republicans trying to avert a shutdown need Democrats — and Trump
Hill Republicans trying to avert a shutdown need Democrats — and Trump
Discussion:
BostonGlobe.com, Balloon Juice, BuzzFeed and Political Wire
Newsweek:
FBI Director James Comey tried to reveal Russian tampering months before election — U.S. JAMES COMEY FBI RUSSIA 2016 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION — FBI Director James Comey attempted to go public as early as the summer of 2016 with information on Russia's campaign to influence …
RELATED:
CNBC:
Putin says claims that Russia interfered in US elections are ‘lies’ — Accusations that Russia interfered in last year's U.S. elections are “lies” used for “domestic American politics,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday. — “We said on numerous occasions and I reiterate …
Discussion:
CNN, Talking Points Memo, Washington Times, Raw Story, The Week, Mediaite, Joe.My.God. and Towleroad
Jordain Carney / The Hill:
Dem senator: Intel panel should probe financial ties between Trump, Russia
Dem senator: Intel panel should probe financial ties between Trump, Russia
Discussion:
Politico, The Daily Beast, New York Times and Al Jazeera English
Adam Kelsey / ABC News:
How the House, Senate Russia probes are headed down different paths
How the House, Senate Russia probes are headed down different paths
Discussion:
Politico
Paul Wood / BBC:
Trump Russia dossier key claim ‘verified’ — The BBC has learned that US officials “verified” a key claim in a report about Kremlin involvement in Donald Trump's election - that a Russian diplomat in Washington was in fact a spy. — So far, no single piece of evidence has been made public proving …
Discussion:
Business Insider, Political Wire, Raw Story, Balloon Juice, The Week, CANNONFIRE and Occupy Democrats
RELATED:
Rosalind S. Helderman / Washington Post:
Who is ‘Source D’? The man said to be behind the Trump-Russia dossier's most salacious claim.
Who is ‘Source D’? The man said to be behind the Trump-Russia dossier's most salacious claim.
Discussion:
Naked Politics
Yashar Ali / New York Magazine:
What George W. Bush Really Thought of Donald Trump's Inauguration — The inauguration of Donald Trump was a surreal experience for pretty much everyone who witnessed it, whether or not they were at the event and regardless of who they supported in the election.
Discussion:
Raw Story, Mediaite, Daily Mail, Mother Jones, Talking Points Memo, Occupy Democrats, AOL, twitchy.com, Althouse, The Slot, The Last Tradition, The Daily Caller, Mashable and Political Wire
Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
Why Trump's unpopularity is historically unique — President Trump is not the first president to see his approval rating drop to 35 percent, as it did in Gallup's most recent tracking poll. — But he is the first president on record to go that low without it owing to one of three things: war, Watergate or economic strife.
Discussion:
Business Insider, The Week, The Hill, Eschaton, Political Wire, RedState, AOL, Talking Points Memo and Politicus USA
RELATED:
CBS News:
Paul Ryan on Russia probe, health care bill “growing pain” — Despite mounting calls for House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes to recuse himself from the investigation into the Trump campaign's ties to Russia, House Speaker Paul Ryan has thus far stood by the chairman.
Discussion:
Breitbart, Talking Points Memo, Hot Air and Raw Story
Tom Jensen / Public Policy Polling:
Trump, Ryan Both Hit Record Low Approval — PPP's newest national poll finds Donald Trump's approval rating falling to its lowest level yet in our polling. Only 40% of voters approve of the job he's doing, to 53% who disapprove. — Health Care: — The upshot of last week's health care debate …
Tommy Christopher / Shareblue:
Watch real climate scientist shoot down climate “skeptic” at GOP's sham “science” hearing — Donald Trump's presidency continues to be a disaster for the environment. The Energy Department's Climate Office banned use of the phrase “climate change,” and Trump recently signed an executive order …
Discussion:
Little Green Footballs, ABC News and Climate Depot
RELATED:
Brooke Seipel / The Hill:
Energy Department tells staff not to use phrase ‘climate change’: report
Energy Department tells staff not to use phrase ‘climate change’: report
Discussion:
Geller Report
Eric Wolff / Politico:
Energy Department climate office bans use of phrase ‘climate change’
Energy Department climate office bans use of phrase ‘climate change’
Discussion:
Common Dreams, Occupy Democrats, New York Magazine, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, The Week, Axios and AOL
Christopher Flavelle / Bloomberg:
Apple, Wal-Mart Stick With Climate Pledges Despite Trump's Pivot
Apple, Wal-Mart Stick With Climate Pledges Despite Trump's Pivot
Discussion:
The Week
Raleigh News & Observer:
Lawmakers vote Thursday on deal to repeal HB2 — RALEIGH — North Carolina lawmakers could repeal House Bill 2 on Thursday under a deal struck late Wednesday night by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and Republican legislative leaders. — Senate leader Phil Berger announced the deal shortly …
RELATED:
Richard Fausset / New York Times:
North Carolina Strikes a Deal to Repeal Restrictive Bathroom Law — ATLANTA — North Carolina's Republican-controlled legislature and its Democratic governor announced late Wednesday that they had reached an agreement to repeal the controversial state law that curbs legal protections for lesbian …
Decision Desk HQ:
Creating a National Precinct Map … In January 2011, I sent an email to the Washington State Democratic Party asking about precinct results from the 2008 presidential caucus race. State party chairman Jaxon Ravens replied simply with the question, “Why would you want them?”
Discussion:
Political Wire
Nan Aron / USA Today:
Don't torpedo Senate rules for Gorsuch: Nan Aron — If a nominee for a lifetime job on our highest court can't get 60 votes, don't go ‘nuclear.’ Change the nominee. — For four days this month, court-watchers were glued to C-SPAN or the web for the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch.
Discussion:
Politico, Daily Kos and Campaign for America's Future
RELATED:
Seung Min Kim / Politico:
Gorsuch battle brings Senate to brink of a new low
Wall Street Journal:
Trump Administration Signals It Would Seek Mostly Modest Changes to Nafta — One change would be in government-procurement section of deal that could open up door for ‘Buy American’ policies — WASHINGTON—The Trump administration is signaling to Congress it would seek mostly modest changes …
Discussion:
Axios
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 …
Discussion:
RedState, The Guardian, PRI, CNN, BizPac Review, Hot Air, Politico, The Hill, The Slot, Mediaite, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, The Daily Caller, Business Insider, Refinery29, Towleroad, KTLA, CNBC, Mother Jones, New York Magazine, The Federalist, The Atlantic, NBC News, AOL, The Week, Political Wire and Talking Points Memo
New York Times:
U.S. War Footprint Grows in Middle East, With No Endgame in Sight — BEIRUT, Lebanon — The United States launched more airstrikes in Yemen this month than during all of last year. In Syria, it has airlifted local forces to front-line positions and has been accused of killing civilians in airstrikes.
Discussion:
Politico, The American Conservative, No More Mister Nice Blog, Just Security and rubber hose
Tom James / Reuters:
Seattle sues Trump administration over threat to ‘sanctuary’ cities — The city of Seattle sued U.S. President Donald Trump's administration on Wednesday over its executive order seeking to withhold federal funds from “sanctuary cities,” arguing it amounted to unconstitutional federal coercion.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, John Hawkins' Right Wing News and ImmigrationProf Blog
Ryan Beene / Bloomberg:
Volkswagen Says It Has EPA Approval to Sell Repaired Diesels — Sales of 2015 model diesels can begin after software update — Diesel still unlikely to play major future role in U.S. for VW — Volkswagen AG will soon do what's been impossible since its emissions crisis began: sell diesel-powered cars in the U.S.
Discussion:
Engadget
Daniel Miller / Los Angeles Times:
Dustin Hoffman and son invested $3 million in now-bankrupt real estate venture of Paul Manafort's son-in-law — Businessman Jeffrey Yohai, left, and actor Jacob Hoffman, center, at nightspot Baby's All Right in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Jan. 20, 2015. Hoffman and his father, “The Graduate” …
Timothy Cama / The Hill:
House votes to restrict EPA's use of science — The House voted Wednesday to restrict the kind of scientific studies and data that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can use to justify new regulations. — The Honest and Open New EPA Science Treatment Act, or HONEST Act, passed 228-194.
Discussion:
Politicus USA and Joe.My.God.
New York Times:
Trump Leaves Science Jobs Vacant, Troubling Critics — WASHINGTON — On the fourth floor of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, the staff of the White House chief technology officer has been virtually deleted, down from 24 members before the election to, by Friday, only one.
Discussion:
Mother Jones
Brent Scher / Washington Free Beacon:
It Took Three People Two Months to Create Hillary Clinton's Campaign Logo — Hillary Clinton's infamous campaign logo was created by a three-person team of designers who were invited to work on the “secret” design project four months before the official campaign launch in April 2015 …
Nicholas Rizzi / DNAinfo New York:
Trash Cans Will Return to Subway Stations After Failed Bid To Stop Litter — NEW YORK CITY — The MTA will end its counter-intuitive program in which it removed garbage bins from subway stations in a bid to reduce trash — after the experiment only resulted in more litter, officials said.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller