Top Items:
Philip Allen Lacovara / Washington Post:
I helped prosecute Watergate. Comey's statement is sufficient evidence for an obstruction of justice case. — Philip Allen Lacovara, a former U.S. deputy solicitor general in the Justice Department, served as counsel to Watergate special prosecutors Archibald Cox and Leon Jaworski.
Discussion:
The Intercept, The Week, The Guardian, Lawfare, Vox, The Federalist, Just Security, CNBC, Townhall.com, Blazing Cat Fur, ACS Blog and Political Wire
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Bwittes / Lawfare:
Initial Comments on James Comey's Written Testimony — James Comey's seven-page written statement, released by the Senate Intelligence Committee this afternoon in connection with Comey's impending testimony tomorrow, draws no conclusions, makes no allegations, and indeed, expresses no opinions.
Discussion:
New York Magazine, Daily Wire, NPR, Vox, The Federalist, Business Insider, Axios, Mashable, Mother Jones, The Week, ThinkProgress and Balloon Juice
Wall Street Journal:
RNC to Lead Trump's Offensive Against Comey — President Donald Trump is outsourcing much of the response to ex-FBI Director James Comey's testimony on Thursday to the Republican National Committee.
Discussion:
The Week
David French / National Review:
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: James Comey's Prepared Testimony, Explained — There's evidence Donald Trump abused his power, but it's not yet clear that he obstructed justice. — Earlier this afternoon the Senate Intelligence Committee released the text of former FBI director James …
Discussion:
Lawfare
Dan McLaughlin / National Review:
Jim Comey Backs Up Trump's Story, But It's Not All Good News for Trump — You don't have to wait for tomorrow's blockbuster hearing: the Senate Intelligence Committee has posted on its website the opening statement by fired FBI Director Jim Comey, detailing five meetings and conversations …
Discussion:
The Federalist, Hot Air, Power Line and Instapundit
Rich Lowry / Politico:
Comey's fizzle — James Comey has an expectations problem. — By any reasonable standard, his testimony about his service under President Donald Trump and his cashiering would be damaging perhaps to the point of debilitating. But his account has been billed as Watergate …
Discussion:
ABC News, Axios, Political Wire and New York Magazine
John Hinderaker / Power Line:
James Comey, Novelist — James Comey has a story to tell, and in his account, there is no doubt about who is the hero. Comey, by reputation, has a monumental ego. His prepared testimony for the Senate Intelligence Committee, which you can read here, is consistent with that image.
Discussion:
IJR, AMERICAblog NewsAMERICAblog … and Washington Post
David Ferguson / Raw Story:
CNN legal analyst on Comey testimony: 'If that's not obstruction of justice, I don't know what is'
CNN legal analyst on Comey testimony: 'If that's not obstruction of justice, I don't know what is'
Discussion:
Mediaite, CBS News, Media Matters for America, ThinkProgress, Talking Points Memo and AOL
Tara Palmeri / Politico:
West Wing aides fearful of directly attacking Comey
West Wing aides fearful of directly attacking Comey
Discussion:
New York Magazine, The Week, Political Wire, ABC News and Axios
Jake Gibson / Fox News:
Comey testimony ‘closely coordinated’ with special counsel, source says
Comey testimony ‘closely coordinated’ with special counsel, source says
Discussion:
IJR
New York Times:
Comey Says Trump Pressured Him to ‘Lift the Cloud’ of Inquiry
Comey Says Trump Pressured Him to ‘Lift the Cloud’ of Inquiry
Discussion:
Fox News, The Hill, FiveThirtyEight, Washington Post, The Stranger … and Outside the Beltway
Mallory Shelbourne / The Hill:
Christie: Trump's exchanges with Comey and other officials ‘normal New York City conversation’
Christie: Trump's exchanges with Comey and other officials ‘normal New York City conversation’
Ed O'Keefe / Washington Post:
Comey's testimony could turn congressional probes toward question of obstruction
Comey's testimony could turn congressional probes toward question of obstruction
Discussion:
Vox, The Atlantic, The Week, ThinkProgress, CNBC, Just Security, Gizmodo and Hit & Run
Allan Smith / Business Insider:
Comey told Trump 3 times that he wasn't under investigation, but his refusal to publicly say so infuriated Trump
Comey told Trump 3 times that he wasn't under investigation, but his refusal to publicly say so infuriated Trump
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, AOL and NPR
Jasmine Lee / CNN:
How to watch the James Comey testimony
How to watch the James Comey testimony
Discussion:
NPR, Common Dreams and Reuters
Mollie Hemingway / The Federalist:
Comey Confirms He Thrice Told President Trump He Was Not Being Investigated
Comey Confirms He Thrice Told President Trump He Was Not Being Investigated
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon, Washington Post, The Guardian, The Atlantic, New York Magazine and The Daily Caller
Hanna Choi / WTOP:
DC bars to open early for Comey hearing watch parties
DC bars to open early for Comey hearing watch parties
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Daily Wire, Gizmodo, Breitbart and Talking Points Memo
Julia Carrie Wong / The Guardian:
Gianforte pays $50,000 to press group to settle assault of Guardian reporter — Congressman-elect issues lengthy apology to Ben Jacobs over ‘unprofessional, unacceptable, and unlawful’ actions … Greg Gianforte, the Montana Republican who assaulted a Guardian journalist on the eve …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Raw Story, NPR, KTLA, New York Magazine, Washington Post and Washington Times, more at Mediagazer »
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Hadas Gold / Politico:
Gianforte to give $50,000 to press freedom group after assaulting reporter — Greg Gianforte, who was recently elected to fill a vacant Montana congressional seat, has agreed to donate $50,000 to the Committee to Protect Journalists as and issued a formal apology as part of a civil settlement with Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs.
Discussion:
ABC News, The Daily Caller, Washington Free Beacon and Axios
Tresa Baldas / Detroit Free Press:
Feds drop bombshell: Up to 100 girls may have had their genitals cut in Michigan — A federal prosecutor dropped a bombshell in court Wednesday, telling a federal judge that the government estimates that as many as 100 girls may have had their genitals cut at the hands of a local doctor and her cohorts.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and The Gateway Pundit
John Diedrich / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Jury awards $6.7M to inmate raped by guard in Milwaukee County Jail, shackled during childbirth — A federal jury Wednesday awarded $6.7 million to a woman who was raped repeatedly by a guard when she was being held in the Milwaukee County Jail four years ago.
Annie Karni / Politico:
Melania Trump set to make her D.C. move next week — President Donald Trump's White House residence — where an increasingly isolated figure under siege conducts his late-night phone klatches and early morning tweetstorms — is about to get a little less lonely.
Discussion:
New York Magazine and Political Wire
Andrew Restuccia / Politico:
White-collar lawyers see opportunity in Trump scandals — More than a dozen attorneys and crisis communications specialists have started working for Trump associates touched by the unfolding Russia probes, according to a POLITICO tally. — The Russia investigations are bad news for President Donald Trump …
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Strong approval of Trump is fading across a number of demographics — FiveThirtyEight's Nate Silver noticed something interesting in approval-rating polling for President Trump. While support for Trump has remained consistently high among Republicans and Trump's base of non-college-educated white voters …
Discussion:
Shareblue, Politicus USA, Informed Comment, AOL, Hullabaloo, Business Insider, The Week and Political Wire
Carol Rosenberg / miamiherald:
Trump's pick for FBI director was alerted early to detainee abuse — President Donald Trump's choice for FBI director was notified months before the public knew about the death of a detainee at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq in 2004, and was at the very least on the fringes of discussions …
Discussion:
Raw Story, The Daily Caller, Daily Wire and Business Insider
New York Times:
‘Must-See TV’: Free Drinks and Canceled Meetings for Comey's Testimony — The schedule has been cleared and the popcorn readied at Evergreen Partners, a strategic communications firm in central New Jersey, where the rule for employees on Thursday morning is simple: No client talk while James B. Comey is speaking.
Dave Boyer / Washington Times:
Trump nominates new slate of federal judges — President Trump announced a new round of 11 judicial nominations Wednesday, including three nominees for high-profile federal appeals courts. — One of the nominees, Colorado Supreme Court Justice Allison H. Eid, is being tapped by the president …
Discussion:
Hot Air, Washington Post, New York Times, Above the Law, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Daily Caller and RedState