Top Items:
Michael S. Schmidt / New York Times:
Comey Is Said to Have Become Unsettled by Interactions With Trump — WASHINGTON — President Trump called the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, weeks after he took office and asked him when federal authorities were going to put out word that Mr. Trump was not personally under investigation, according to two people briefed on the call.
Discussion:
Politico, Hot Air, Mediaite, Politicus USA, Balloon Juice, The Week, Raw Story, Infowars, SOOPERMEXICAN, Betsy's Page and Fox News Insider
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Bwittes / Lawfare:
What James Comey Told Me About Donald Trump — The New York Times is reporting tonight: … I did not know this particular fact, but it doesn't surprise me at all. The principal source for the rest of this story is, well, me—specifically a long interview I gave to reporter Michael Schmidt …
Discussion:
Politico, Axios, CNN, Washington Post, Politicus USA, AOL, Booman Tribune, Mashable, Just Security, PRI, Talking Points Memo, Infowars and New York Post
New York Times:
Advisers Urge Trump to Hire Outside Lawyer in Russia Inquiry — WASHINGTON — Several White House advisers and personal associates of President Trump have urged him to hire an experienced outside lawyer to help him deal with issues arising from a surging controversy over whether his campaign …
Discussion:
CNBC, Raw Story, RedState, Hot Air, Daily Kos, Politicus USA, The Week, JustOneMinute, The Daily Caller, Political Wire and The Federalist
Devlin Barrett / Washington Post:
Comey prepared extensively for his conversations with Trump
Discussion:
Political Wire
Billy House / Bloomberg:
House May Be Forced to Vote Again on GOP's Obamacare Repeal Bill — Two weeks after passage, measure still not sent to Senate — CBO report could force Ryan, other party leaders into redo — House Republicans barely managed to pass their Obamacare repeal bill earlier this month …
Discussion:
Vox, ACASignups.net, Washington Monthly, Politico, Daily Kos, NBC News, Hot Air, ThinkProgress, Politicus USA, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Political Wire
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Jonathan Swan / Axios:
House leaders worry more meetings secretly recorded — House Republican leadership is agitated after the Washington Post published a transcript from a secret recording of one of the inner-sanctum conversations in the office of Speaker Paul Ryan. — The transcript shows House Majority …
Discussion:
Breitbart, Washington Post, RedState, Shareblue, The Daily Caller, Hullabaloo, Salon, ThinkProgress, Balloon Juice, Media Matters for America, New York Magazine, twitchy.com and AOL
Elizabeth Landers / CNN:
Pence is a loyal solider, but news cycle is wearing on him — What did Mike Pence know about Flynn? — Story highlights — Washington (CNN)After a fast and furious news cycle at the White House this week, the last few days may have worn on Vice President Mike Pence.
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Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
That Didn't Go Great — Let me share a few thoughts on the press conference President Trump just held with the President of Colombia. In the nature of the moment, I'll just focus on the questions President Trump fielded on the investigations. — First, on question one …
Discussion:
Mother Jones
Olivia Beavers / The Hill:
Senate Dems: Deputy AG knew Comey was being removed before writing memo
Discussion:
Politico and Political Wire
Michael Kranish / Washington Post:
Trump needs private attorney to navigate complex probe, his ex-lawyer says
Discussion:
Power Line and Wall Street Journal
The Daily Beast:
Donald Trump Talked Michael Flynn Into White House Job … President Donald Trump pressured a “reluctant” Michael Flynn into accepting a job as the White House's top national security official even after Flynn warned the president that he was under investigation over undisclosed lobbying …
Discussion:
Hot Air, USA Today, Washington Post, CNBC, Mediaite, Raw Story, Townhall.com, Talking Points Memo, Mother Jones, ThinkProgress, Axios, The Guardian, Politico, The Week, RedState, IJR, New York Magazine, Politicus USA, Hullabaloo, HuffPost, The Daily Caller, TheBlaze, Shareblue, Outside the Beltway, National Review, Shakesville and Media Matters for America
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Josh Dawsey / Politico:
Trump meets with lawyers at the White House — President Donald Trump convened his legal team on Thursday to discuss the escalating investigation into whether his campaign colluded with Russia during the 2016 election. — The huddle, according to four people briefed …
Discussion:
The Hill, Axios, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, RedState, The Times of Israel, New York Times, AOL and Raw Story
Reuters:
Exclusive: Trump campaign had at least 18 undisclosed contacts with Russians: sources
Discussion:
Lawfare, HuffPost, Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Rush Limbaugh Show, The Gateway Pundit, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, New York Magazine, Vox, The Mahablog, The Guardian, Axios, Talking Points Memo, The Times of Israel, The Daily Caller, MichelleMalkin.com, AOL, NBC News, The Week, Washington Monthly, BillMoyers.com, Balloon Juice, Shakesville, Hullabaloo and twitchy.com
Matthew Yglesias / Vox:
Joe Lieberman might be FBI director. Really. — The perfect choice for America's troll-in-chief. — Joe Lieberman, the former Democratic senator from Connecticut with a complicated history with his political party, has emerged as the frontrunner to replace the now-fired James Comey as FBI director …
Discussion:
Newsweek, The Atlantic, Daily Kos, Political Wire and Hot Air
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Seung Min Kim / Politico:
Senate Democrats reject Lieberman for FBI director — President Donald Trump may be dramatically miscalculating how much support Sen. Joe Lieberman would have among his former Democratic colleagues if nominated to become FBI director. — Some Senate Democrats hold a grudge against Lieberman …
Discussion:
Raw Story and Washington Post
Jason Chaffetz / Chaffetz:
Chaffetz Letter to Utah's 3rd Congressional District — f t # e — Dear 3rd District Constituents: — Serving you in the U.S. House of Representatives for nearly nine years has been a rare honor and privilege. When I first ran for Congress in 2008 I promised I would get in, serve, and get out.
Discussion:
The Atlantic, The Gateway Pundit, NPR, Hot Air, twitchy.com, Shareblue, Vox, Washington Post, The Daily Caller and TheBlaze
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Rachael Bade / Politico:
Chaffetz to announce early departure from Congress — Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) is expected to announce Thursday that he is resigning before the end of this congressional term, according to three sources familiar with his plans. — Chaffetz did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday evening or Thursday morning.
Rachael Bade / Politico:
Gowdy poised to replace Chaffetz as Oversight chief
Discussion:
New York Magazine, DCist, Axios, IJR and Washington Free Beacon
Jenna McLaughlin / Foreign Policy:
Trump Team Planning Possible Retaliation for Classified Leak Allegations — White House officials concoct “ludicrous” revenge plan targeting former Obama administration. — President Donald Trump's inner circle is war-gaming how best to respond to the Washington Post's bombshell report …
Discussion:
The Week, Fox News Insider, Common Dreams, ThinkProgress and Just Security
Bill O'Reilly / USA Today:
Roger Ailes had my back at Fox News — Roger experienced hatred, and it killed him. — CONNECT — To say that Roger Ailes led a full life is a massive understatement. A force of nature with an agenda, RA, as fellow executives called him, was a man on a mission.
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Noam N. Levey / Los Angeles Times:
Health insurers and state officials say Trump is undermining Obamacare, pushing up rates — President Trump meets in February with the heads of major health insurers. Many industry officials and state regulators now believe they cannot rely on Trump to effectively manage the country's insurance markets.
Discussion:
Axios, Talking Points Memo and New York Magazine
William Cummings / USA Today:
Special counsel vs. special prosecutor: What's the difference? — 1.4k Shares — On Wednesday, former FBI director Robert Mueller was appointed to be a special counsel to oversee the investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election and the possibility of collusion between Russia and President Trump's campaign.
Discussion:
Fox News, ThinkProgress, Daily Kos, neo-neocon, emptywheel and Reuters
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Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
Video Emerges Of Turkey's President Watching As His Goons Attack Protesters [VIDEO] — Video has emerged showing Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan calmly looking on as members of his security detail attack a group of Kurdish protesters outside of the Turkish embassy in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.
Discussion:
Voice of America and Mediaite
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Tom LoBianco / CNN:
First on CNN: House Russia investigators get access to Treasury data — (CNN)Investigators on the House intelligence committees have obtained access to valuable data from the Treasury Department, a development that will open their doors to investigate possible connections between President …
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Tom LoBianco / CNN:
First on CNN: Devin Nunes continues reviewing Russia intelligence, despite recusal
Discussion:
Politicus USA
Des Moines Register:
Planned Parenthood to close four Iowa clinics after legislative defunding — Planned Parenthood of the Heartland said Thursday it is closing four clinics in Iowa in response to state legislation passed by majority Republican lawmakers that blocks public money for family planning services to abortion providers.
Discussion:
LifeNews.com, The Daily Caller, Mother Jones and Iowa Starting Line
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Cynthia Littleton / Variety:
‘Mom’ Trades Emmy Campaign for $250K Donation to Planned Parenthood
Discussion:
Washington Times, The Daily Caller and Mashable
Morgan Chalfant / The Hill:
Russia tried to take over Pentagon Twitter accounts: report — Russia tried to gain access to the Twitter accounts of Defense Department officials using messages carrying malware, according to Time magazine. — Russia is said to have sent messages to over 10,000 Pentagon Twitter users …
Jack Moore / Newsweek:
TRUMP CANCELS VISIT TO ANCIENT MASADA SITE AFTER ISRAEL REFUSES HELICOPTER LANDING — WORLD ISRAEL TRUMP — President Donald Trump has canceled a planned visit and speech at the ancient mountain fortress of Masada in Israel after authorities told him that he could not land his helicopter on top of the UNESCO-listed site.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, The Hill, Mashable, Axios, The Week, Mother Jones, Common Dreams, Ynetnews and Haaretz
Sam J. / twitchy.com:
'Stop making sh*t up. " Guy Benson posts Comey footage, throws wrench into Trump memo conspiracy — From Comey's own mouth: … In his experience they have not been told to stop an FBI investigation for political reasons. — Guy Benson's tweetstorm about Comey, the footage and the need for further testimony is brilliant:
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