memeorandum: Former congressman William Jefferson goes free, thanks to Supreme Court ruling in McDonnell case (Rachel Weiner/Washington Post)

6:00 PM ET, December 1, 2017

Top Items:

Eli Lake / Bloomberg:

Kushner Is Said to Have Ordered Flynn to Contact Russia — Now that the retired general has pleaded guilty, the president's son-in-law could be one of the next dominoes to fall. — Former national security adviser Michael Flynn's guilty plea Friday for lying to the FBI is alarming news for Donald Trump.

Brian Ross / ABC News:

Flynn has promised special counsel ‘full cooperation’ in Russia probe: Source — Retired Lt. Gen Michael Flynn has promised “full cooperation” in the special counsel's Russia investigation and, according to a confidant, is prepared to testify that Donald Trump directed him to make contact with the Russians …

New York Times:

Flynn to Plead Guilty to Lying to the F.B.I. — WASHINGTON — President Trump's former national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, will plead guilty on Friday to lying to the F.B.I. about a conversation with the Russian ambassador last December. — The plea was the latest indication …

Nancy Cook / Politico:

Trump White House caught off guard by Flynn plea — No one in the White House was prepared. — Friday began with the now-routine flurry of tweets from President Donald Trump — two about the acquittal of an undocumented immigrant accused of a 2015 killing in San Francisco, one about his tax legislation.

Discussion: ABC News, Political Wire, bizpacreview.com, Vox and The Daily Beast

Andrew C. McCarthy / National Review:

What the Flynn Plea Means — There's less to the news than meets the eye. — Former Trump-administration national-security adviser Michael Flynn is expected to plead guilty today to lying to the FBI regarding his conversations with Russia's ambassador to the United States.

Discussion: Vox, Power Line, The Rush Limbaugh Show, Indianapolis Star, Washington Times, The Last Refuge, The Nation, No More Mister Nice Blog, ThinkProgress, New York Magazine, New York Times and Politico

BuzzFeed:

It Was Kushner Who Told Flynn To Make Calls About Israel UN Vote, Source Says — The president's son-in-law prompted the Dec. 22 call to Russia's ambassador that is the focus of Flynn's guilty plea Friday. — Reporting From Washington, DC — WASHINGTON - Jared Kushner …

Discussion: New York Magazine, Washington Post, CNBC and Common Dreams

Joel B. Pollak / Breitbart:

‘Over By Thanksgiving’: White House Lawyer Ty Cobb Was Disastrously Wrong — Ty Cobb, the Beltway lawyer brought to the White House to handle the Russia investigation, predicted in August that Special Counsel Robert Mueller would be done with his work by Thanksgiving: “I'd be embarrassed …

Discussion: Raw Story

Allegra Kirkland / Talking Points Memo:

Former Prosecutors Break Down What Mike Flynn's Plea Deal Really Means — The explosive news that ousted national security advisor Michael Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russian officials was delivered in a brief, tidy package: a one-and-a-half-page document laying out the single count against him.

Discussion: Washington Post and The Guardian

Noah Feldman / Bloomberg:

How the Flynn Charges Box In Trump — Keeping the focus on advisers' Russia contacts helps Mueller keep his job. — The news that Michael Flynn pleaded guilty Friday to Russia-related offenses is striking, for several reasons. The lies he told the FBI were about asking the Russian ambassador …

Discussion: The Daily Caller, National Review, BloombergQuint, Mashable and Politico

Josh Dawsey / Washington Post:

Michael Flynn charged with making false statement to the FBI — Former national security adviser Michael Flynn was charged Friday with making a false statement to the FBI about his contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak, marking another monumental development in the wide-ranging probe of Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III.

Discussion: NBC News, The Atlantic, New Republic, ABC News, The Hill, Media Matters for America, CNBC and ThinkProgress

Lachlan Markay / The Daily Beast:

Donald Trump Suspected for Weeks That Mike Flynn Would Flip … On Friday morning, President Donald Trump learned that his former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn had been charged with lying to the FBI by reportedly seeing news reports. — It was a shock but not necessarily a surprise.

Discussion: Politico, Raw Story, Politicus USA, Shareblue Media and ABC News

The Daily Beast:

‘Very Senior’ Trump Official Authorized Flynn's Russia Outreach … Everything President Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn discussed last December with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. — everything that led to his dramatic guilty plea and cooperation agreement Friday …

Discussion: The Atlantic, CNBC, Mother Jones, Talking Points Memo, New York Times, Washington Post, Raw Story, NBC News, Business Insider and Roll Call

CNN:

Sources: Kushner was the ‘very senior’ transition member mentioned in court filing — (CNN)Jared Kushner is the “very senior member” of President Donald Trump's transition team who directed incoming national security adviser Michael Flynn to contact the Russian ambassador to the United States …

Discussion: ThinkProgress, emptywheel and Talking Points Memo

Associated Press:
The Latest: WH cancels Trump media event after Flynn plea

Discussion: CNBC, AOL, Business Insider, Raw Story and Axios

Josh Delk / The Hill:
Flynn to testify Trump ‘directed him to make contact with the Russians’: report

Discussion: Politico, Washington Post, ABC News, Vox, Talking Points Memo, ThinkProgress, bizpacreview.com, The Week, Business Insider, Politicus USA, Shareblue Media and Axios

David French / National Review:
The Michael Flynn Charge: Monstrous Injustice or Prelude to Bigger Things?

Discussion: New York Times, Washington Monthly, Vox, Shareblue Media, Patterico's Pontifications and Mashable

Jeremy Herb / CNN:
Flynn charged with one count of making false statement

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Hill, BuzzFeed, The Atlantic, ThinkProgress, FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV, myfox8.com, New Republic, WTVR-TV, Common Dreams, IJR, KTLA, New York's PIX11, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Hit & Run

SHennessey / Lawfare:
The Flynn Plea: A Quick and Dirty Analysis

Discussion: RedState, Washington Post and New York Times

Sarah Westwood / Washington Examiner: Trump lawyer: ‘Nothing’ in Michael Flynn's guilty plea implicates Trump or White House

CNBC:
Stocks fall sharply on report that Michael Flynn was directed by Trump to talk to Russians

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit

Reuters: Exclusive: Mideast nuclear plan backers bragged of support of top Trump aide Flynn

Jeff Poor / Breitbart: Limbaugh: Timing of Flynn Charges ‘May Not Be Coincidental’ — ‘Look at All the News It Has Swept Off the Front Pages’

Matt Egan / CNNMoney:
Wall Street rocked by Michael Flynn, tax debate

Discussion: CNN and myfox8.com

Rachael Bade / Politico:

Lawmaker behind secret $84K sexual harassment settlement unmasked — Rep. Blake Farenthold used taxpayer money to settle a sexual harassment claim brought by his former spokesman — the only known sitting member of Congress to have used a little-known congressional account to pay an accuser …

Jordain Carney / The Hill:

Corker to vote no on GOP tax bill — (R-Tenn.) said on Friday that he will oppose the GOP tax plan, making him the only GOP senator currently expected to vote no. — Corker has long said he could vote against the bill if it hiked the deficit, and he reconfirmed to those concerns in his statement.

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
Flake to back tax bill, giving GOP 50 votes

Discussion: RedState, Fox News and IJR

Jordain Carney / The Hill:
Top GOP senators say they have the votes to pass tax bill

Discussion: Axios, National Review and The Daily Caller

Alice Ollstein / Talking Points Memo:
GOP Leaders Claim They've Sewn Up 50 Votes For Tax Bill

Discussion: ThinkProgress and Slate

Bloomberg:
Senate GOP Working to Address Deficit Concerns (8:14 a.m.)

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, CNN, BloombergQuint, Axios and Joe.My.God.

Emily Smith / Page Six:

The ‘Today’ show was a ‘total boys’ club' during Lauer's tenure — Top NBC News execs received complaints about Matt Lauer's alleged sexual misconduct long before he was fired for harassment — but chose to protect him, current and former staffers told The Post on Thursday.

Discussion: Vox, CNN, NBC News, IJR, TMZ.com, Washington Post, bizpacreview.com, USA Today, The Daily Caller and TVNewser, more at Mediagazer »

John Bowden / The Hill:
Clinton on Matt Lauer: ‘Every day I believe more in karma’

Discussion: Washington Free Beacon and The Daily Caller

Claire Spellberg / Decider:
Meredith Vieira Found A “Huge Bag Of Sex Toys” In Matt Lauer's Office

Discussion: Mediaite and TMZ.com

Josh Dawsey / Washington Post:

'He's not leaving': Trump tweets that Tillerson isn't on the outs with him — President Trump moved to quash speculation about the rumored departure of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Friday, after widespread reporting that plans were in place to replace him with CIA Director Mike Pompeo.

Discussion: Politico, New York Magazine and CNBC

Gardiner Harris / New York Times:
Trump Says Tillerson Is Staying as Tillerson Calls Reports of Ouster ‘Laughable’

Discussion: Politico, The Daily Caller, Political Wire, Washington Free Beacon, Business Insider and Washington Post

Michael C. Bender / Wall Street Journal:
Trump White House Faces Prospect of More Senior Departures

Discussion: The Week

Jeff Stein / Washington Post:

GOP eyes post-tax-cut changes to welfare, Medicare and Social Security — High-ranking Republicans are hinting that, after their tax overhaul, the party intends to look at cutting spending on welfare, entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare, and other parts of the social safety net.

Sarah Ferris / Politico:
Tax bill could trigger historic spending cuts

Discussion: New York Times, Axios, ThinkProgress, Common Dreams, Washington Post, Grist, New York Magazine, Splinter, The Daily Caller, Shakesville, Daily Kos and Talking Points Memo

New York Times:

Former N.S.A. Employee Pleads Guilty to Taking Classified Information — BALTIMORE — A former National Security Agency employee admitted on Friday that he had illegally taken from the agency classified documents believed to have subsequently been stolen from his home computer by hackers working for Russian intelligence.

Discussion: The Week

Elise Viebeck / Washington Post:

Gowdy, Benghazi panel settled wrongful firing suit with $150,000 in public funds — Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C. (Alex Brandon/AP) — As chairman of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) used $150,000 in taxpayer dollars to settle with a former aide who alleged …

Sarah Rumpf / RedState:

Have We Been Lied to About the Kate Steinle Case? — The illegal immigrant who killed Kate Steinle in 2015 was found not guilty of her murder by a San Francisco jury today. Outrageous, right? — Before the killing, Garcia Zarate had been released from a San Francisco jail despite a standing federal deportation order.