Top Items:
Philip Rucker / Washington Post:
'It's a hard problem': Inside Trump's decision to send more troops to Afghanistan — President Trump was frustrated and fuming. Again and again, in the windowless Situation Room at the White House, he lashed out at his national security team over the Afghanistan war, and the paucity of appealing options gnawed at him.
Discussion:
Politico, Mother Jones, CANNONFIRE, The Week and Business Insider
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New York Times:
Trump Sets U.S. Strategy but No ‘Blank Check’ for Afghan War — WASHINGTON — President Trump put forward on Monday a long-awaited strategy for resolving the nearly 16-year-old conflict in Afghanistan, but he declined to specify either the number of troops that would be committed …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Wall Street Journal, CNN, Breitbart, Just Security, The Guardian, The Week, Al Jazeera English, Washington Post, Taylor Marsh, FiveThirtyEight and Splinter
New York Times:
Angry Trump Grilled His Generals About Troop Increase, Then Gave In — WASHINGTON — President Trump's skepticism about America's involvement in Afghanistan was no secret to his staff. But his top national security officials were still taken aback at a meeting in the Situation Room on July 19 …
Discussion:
CNN, Breitbart, The American Conservative, The Atlantic, Politico, Washington Post, Business Insider and CNBC
Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
Trump's Afghanistan flip-flop — This post has been updated with The Post's reporting. — President Trump is expected to announce a limited troop increase as a part of his new strategy in Afghanistan. And as many were quick to point out, that's a big flip-flop for a man who for years called for withdrawal from that war.
Discussion:
HuffPost, The Atlantic, NPR, Breitbart, Townhall.com, ABC News, The Daily Caller, Media Matters for America, New York Magazine, VICE News, Power Line, Axios, Politicus USA and IJR
Kristina Wong / Breitbart:
Trump Debuts Afghanistan Strategy: ‘We Are Not Nation-Building Again, We Are Killing Terrorists’
Discussion:
The Hill
Ford Springer / The Daily Caller:
It's High Time Barron Trump Starts Dressing Like He's In the White House — I've been on the Barron Trump train from the start, but it's about time the president's son starts dressing the part. — Barron is the youngest son of Donald Trump and the only child the president shares with Melania Trump.
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Jason Silverstein / New York Daily News:
President Trump stares straight into solar eclipse without glasses — We could have had the blind leading the country. — President Trump, deciding to challenge the sun itself, stared straight into the solar eclipse Monday afternoon without protective glasses — showing the entire nation exactly what not to do.
Discussion:
The Hill, The Week, Washington Post, GeekWire, Q13 FOX News, Washington Monthly, Mashable and VICE News
Amy B Wang / Washington Post:
‘20 seconds of burning’: Friends partly blinded after watching solar eclipse warn of dangers
Chris Cillizza / CNN:
Yes, Donald Trump really did look into the sky during the solar eclipse
Discussion:
New York Times, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and The Guardian
Damian Paletta / Washington Post:
Treasury secretary's wife boasts of travel on government plane, touts Hermes and Valentino fashion — U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's wife, Louise Linton, boasted of flying on a government plane with her husband to Kentucky on Monday and then named the numerous fashion brands she wore …
Discussion:
Mashable, Mediaite, Splinter, Business Insider and The Week
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New York Times:
Louise Linton's Couture Draws Ire on Instagram, and She Lashes Back — WASHINGTON — The wife of the Treasury secretary on Monday night took a page from President Trump's social media playbook for punching down. — Louise Linton, the labels-loving wife of Steven Mnuchin …
Discussion:
Politico and Conservative News Today
massincpolling:
Virginia voters divided on blame for Charlottesville violence — About half see at least equal blame for violence at the Charlottesville white nationalist rally. Many Virginia voters (47 percent) believe the counter protesters in Charlottesville deserve at least equal blame for the violence at last week's white nationalist rally.
Discussion:
Political Wire and Business Insider
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Gary Langer / ABC News:
Only 28% approve of Trump's response to Charlottesville (POLL) — President Donald Trump moves out of his difficult Charlottesville week and into his national address on Afghanistan policy tonight with a poor but stable job performance rating and still-weaker grades for his handling …
Discussion:
Business Insider, Axios, The Week and Mediaite
Associated Press:
The Latest: Ryan defends tax breaks for Taiwan company — The Latest on House Speaker Paul Ryan town hall (all times local): — House Speaker Paul Ryan says Foxconn Technology Group's plan to construct a factory in his southeastern Wisconsin congressional district that could employ thousands is a …
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Lauren Fox / CNN:
Paul Ryan: Trump ‘messed up’ Charlottesville response
Discussion:
Conservative News Today, The Week and The Daily Caller
Dave Lawler / Axios:
Paul Ryan: tax reform “far easier” than health care
Discussion:
Washington Post, Political Wire and The Week
Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
GOP on eggshells as Trump storms into Phoenix — PHOENIX — President Donald Trump faces a decision on Tuesday evening with profound implications for his already strained relationship with the GOP: whether to attack a vulnerable Republican senator on his home turf.
Discussion:
YouTube
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Kurtis Lee / Los Angeles Times:
On eve of Trump's Arizona rally, GOP Sen. Jeff Flake — a vocal critic — isn't worried about blowback
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Political Wire
Ayesha Rascoe / Reuters:
Big protests expected as Trump plans Phoenix rally
Discussion:
ImmigrationProf Blog
Arizona Republic:
Phoenix Trump rally … Gov. Doug Ducey will greet President Donald Trump on the tarmac after Air Force One touches down Tuesday afternoon for his first presidential visit to the Grand Canyon state. — But the Republican governor, who like many in the GOP has diplomatically sidestepped Trump …
Discussion:
ABC News, The Hill, Weekly Standard, Shareblue and Talking Points Memo
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Greg Stanton / Washington Post:
Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton: Now is not the time for Trump to visit my city
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Real Clear Politics and Politico
Joseph Flaherty / Phoenix New Times:
Antifas, Bikers for Trump, and Other Groups Planning to Protest Trump's Phoenix Rally
Discussion:
New York Times and Latino Rebels
Anita Kumar / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Trump aides plot a big immigration deal — that breaks a campaign promise — Donald Trump's top aides are pushing him to protect young people brought into the country illegally as children — and then use the issue as a bargaining chip for a larger immigration deal — despite the president's campaign vow to deport so-called Dreamers.
Discussion:
Political Wire
Gabriel Debenedetti / Politico:
Dems prep for Trump primary challengers in 2020 — The Democratic National Committee is conducting full-scale opposition research on multiple Republicans it believes could challenge President Donald Trump for reelection — or are likely to run if he does not.
Discussion:
The Week, Raw Story, New York Magazine and Shareblue
Jim DeRogatis / BuzzFeed:
A Woman Who Says She Had Underage Sex With R. Kelly Is Finally Telling Her Story — Jerhonda Pace was just 15 when she met her musical idol, R. Kelly, outside his child pornography trial. The alleged underage sexual relationship with him that followed and subsequent payouts mirror decades of allegations against the star.
Jim Salter / Associated Press:
Attorneys for condemned Missouri man seek halt to execution — https://apnews.com/a699de56c6b74590b905 50f96b4aaf06 — Link copied! — ST. LOUIS (AP) — Attorneys for a condemned Missouri inmate warn that the state is preparing to execute a potentially innocent man.
Discussion:
The Root
Annie Karni / Politico:
Kushner in Middle East for peace talks — While everyone was busy gazing into the solar eclipse on Monday, White House adviser Jared Kushner quietly snuck away to the Middle East for a trip that will take him to the Persian Gulf and Israel. — Accompanying Kushner on Monday in the Gulf states …
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