Top Items:
Mike Allen / Axios:
White House communications director resigns — more moves expected — Mike Dubke, President Trump's communications director, is leaving the White House — the start of a wave of changes as the West Wing struggles to cope with burgeoning scandals and a stalled agenda.
Discussion:
Daily Wire, RedState, CNN, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, CNBC, Common Dreams, The Atlantic, Hot Air, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, Taylor Marsh, The Right Scoop, IJR, The Week and The Resurgent, more at Mediagazer »
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Philip Rucker / Washington Post:
Dubke resigns as White House communications director — Mike Dubke has resigned as White House communications director in the first of what could be a series of changes to President Trump's senior staff amid the growing Russia scandal. — Dubke, who served in the post for three months, tendered his resignation May 18.
Discussion:
Media Matters for America, New York Magazine and Joe.My.God.
Callum Borchers / Washington Post:
This White House statement on Trump's ‘positive energy’ reads like a parody
This White House statement on Trump's ‘positive energy’ reads like a parody
Matthew Nussbaum / Politico:
Six things to watch as Trump faces his new reality
Six things to watch as Trump faces his new reality
Discussion:
War in Context and ABC
Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
Trump's communications director is out as larger shakeup looms
Trump's communications director is out as larger shakeup looms
Discussion:
Vox and Washington Free Beacon
CNN:
Sources: Russians discussed potentially ‘derogatory’ information about Trump and associates during campaign — Sources: Russians talked potentially ‘derogatory’ info — (CNN)Russian government officials discussed having potentially “derogatory” information about then-presidential candidate Donald …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Financial Times, Talking Points Memo, RedState, BillMoyers.com, Daily Kos, IJR, theGrio, Mediaite, Raw Story, Business Insider, Politicus USA, AOL, War in Context, Political Wire and twitchy.com
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Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
Russians Think Trump Might Be a Russian Asset, and They Might Be Right — Over the last several days, the Russia scandal has taken a darker turn. Friday night, the Washington Post reported that Jared Kushner tried during the presidential transition period to set up a secret communications channel with Moscow.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress, The Root, Raw Story and New York Times
Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:
Trump retweets report based on anonymous source after blasting anonymous sources — President Trump on Tuesday retweeted a Fox News report citing an anonymous source that pushes back on another report that White House aide Jared Kushner tried to establish backchannel communications with Moscow.
Discussion:
RedState, Washington Post, Mediaite, Joe.My.God., The Gateway Pundit and The Last Tradition
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Jim Geraghty / National Review:
God Save America From Naive Princelings — Just a point to add to Andy McCarthy's raking Jared Kushner over the coals for the “galactically stupid” idea... I get why someone who voted for Donald Trump would defend the president. Trump descended that escalator and went about the process of winning over your vote.
Discussion:
Fox News, The Daily Caller, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Politico
Fox News:
Jared Kushner didn't suggest Russian communications channel in meeting, source says — A December meeting between Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law and one of the senior advisers in the Trump administration, and Russian ambassador Sergei Kislyak at Trump Tower focused on Syria …
Philip Rucker / Washington Post:
How President Trump consumes — or does not consume — top-secret intelligence
How President Trump consumes — or does not consume — top-secret intelligence
Discussion:
Business Insider, theGrio, New York Magazine, The Week, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story and Mother Jones
Louis Nelson / Politico:
Kellyanne Conway calls Kushner's backchannels ‘regular course of business’
Kellyanne Conway calls Kushner's backchannels ‘regular course of business’
Discussion:
The Week
Veronica Stracqualursi / ABC News:
The Note: The White House staff shakeup begins
The Note: The White House staff shakeup begins
Discussion:
Politico, Associated Press, The Week and TheBlaze
Brian Ross / ABC News:
Russia investigation expands to include Donald Trump's personal attorney — One of President Donald Trump's closest confidants, his personal lawyer Michael Cohen, has now become a focus of the expanding Congressional investigation into Russian efforts to influence the 2016 campaign.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Axios, Political Wire, Business Insider, Mediaite, Raw Story, Daily Kos and The Week
New York Post:
Pissed off artist adds statue of urinating dog next to ‘Fearless Girl’ — Artist Alex Gardega put his own Pissing Pug next to Wall Street's Fearless Girl. — Gabriella Bass — Gee whiz, artists are so sensitive! — City sculptor Alex Gardega — seething over the Fearless Girl statue …
Isaac Chotiner / Slate:
Putin's Defender — An American Russia scholar on why he doesn't believe the New York Times, doesn't think the DNC was hacked, and just wants the U.S. and Russia to get along. — Stephen F. Cohen has long been one of the leading scholars of Russia and the Soviet Union.
Discussion:
Raw Story
Derek Hawkins / Washington Post:
Portland mayor asks feds to bar free-speech and anti-sharia rallies after stabbings — The mayor of Portland, Ore., is calling on federal authorities to cancel a pair of upcoming rallies organized by conservative groups, saying the city was still “in shock” after two men were fatally stabbed …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, USA Today, KOIN-TV, The Stranger …, Patterico's Pontifications, TheBlaze, Washington Free Beacon, twitchy.com and Althouse
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Kevin D. Williamson / National Review:
Schmucks Like Us — Before you laugh at Tiger Woods . . . Before you get too distracted mocking Tiger Woods and his problems, ask yourself: Would you pass the Iverson test? — I don't think I would. — I was for some years professionally obliged to follow the career and life of Allen Iverson …
Kara Fox / CNN:
Gay son of Indian immigrant likely to be Ireland's next leader — (CNN)He was 22 when he entered Irish politics. At 27, he was elected to parliament. At 36, he publicly came out as gay. And now, at 38, Leo Varadkar, the son of an Indian immigrant father and an Irish mother …
Sarah D / Los Angeles Times:
Rep. Devin Nunes says Democrats are using Russia investigation to justify Clinton's loss — House Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes speaks at the Tulare County Lincoln Dinner. — Embattled House Select Intelligence Committee Chairman Devin Nunes told hundreds of local Republicans …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, Business Insider, Daily Kos, New York Times, The Daily Caller and Political Wire
Mallory Shelbourne / The Hill:
GOP rep avoids saying whether every American is entitled to eat — Rep. Adrian Smith (R-Neb.) on Saturday avoiding directly answering a question on whether all Americans are entitled to eat. — During an interview with NPR's “Weekend Edition Saturday,” Smith discussed farm subsidies and cutting food stamps with host Scott Simon.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Daily Wire, Raw Story and The Week
William D. Cohan / Vanity Fair:
How Stephen Miller Rode White Rage from Duke's Campus to Trump's West Wing — At the young age of 31, Stephen Miller has his own office in the West Wing and the President's ear. He also has held a shocking worldview since he was a teenager. From his writings on the 2006 Duke lacrosse-team rape scandal …
Discussion:
The Week
Richard Johnson / Page Six:
Melania Trump's ‘revenge’ on designers who won't dress her — MORE FROM: … Melania Trump is proving to the fashion designers who said they wouldn't help her that dressing well is the best revenge. — The first lady's trip to Saudi Arabia, the Vatican, Belgium and Sicily …
Discussion:
AOL and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
Pence to make campaign push amid GOP concerns over Trump — Vice President Mike Pence is embarking on a cross-country summer campaign tour amid rising fears that the GOP, reeling from a barrage of Trump-fueled controversies, is headed for a midterm election disaster.
Discussion:
New York Times, Political Insider blog, Raw Story, The Week and Political Wire
Sheri Linden / Hollywood Reporter:
‘Wonder Woman’: Film Review — YOUTUBE — The first standalone feature for the ageless princess of the Amazons places her in the midst of World War I, with Gal Gadot in the title role and Chris Pine as American spy Steve Trevor. — As the world's most well-adjusted superhero, Wonder Woman breaks the genre mold.
Discussion:
USA Today, The Guardian and The Times of Israel
Rachael Bade / Politico:
Debt fight blindsides Congress — President Donald Trump's top economic aides are urging Capitol Hill leaders to raise the debt ceiling by the end of July. And Congress is totally unprepared to do so. — Lawmakers in both parties thought they'd have until the fall to act …
Business Insider:
Democrats are pushing an unlikely source — Jerry Springer — to run for governor in Ohio — Influential Ohio Democrats are pushing former Cincinnati mayor and daytime-TV host Jerry Springer to run for Ohio governor in 2018, more than half a dozen Democrats familiar with the race told Business Insider.
Discussion:
Political Wire, The Daily Caller and TheBlaze
Associated Press:
Nighttime, early morning bombings in Baghdad kill 31 — A massive bombing by the Islamic State group outside a popular ice cream shop in central Baghdad and a rush hour car bomb in another downtown area killed at least 31 people on Tuesday, Iraqi officials said.
Discussion:
CNN, IJR, Fox News, FDD's Long War Journal and Al Jazeera English
Joe Uchill / The Hill:
NSA leakers begin sign-ups for monthly leak subscription service — A group of suspected National Security Agency (NSA) leakers known as the ShadowBrokers on Tuesday announced more details of their monthly subscription service to provide remaining documents from their NSA cache.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller
Wall Street Journal:
The Fourth Circuit Joins the ‘Resistance’ — Taking a stand against Trump, the judges are also defying Supreme Court precedent.
Discussion:
Power Line, Fox News and Instapundit