memeorandum: Was the Steele Dossier Used to Obtain a FISA Warrant Against Trump's Campaign? (Andrew C. McCarthy/National Review)

10:50 PM ET, December 16, 2017

Top Items:

Mike Allen / Axios:

Scoop: Mueller obtains “tens of thousands” of Trump transition emails — Special Counsel Robert Mueller has obtained “many tens of thousands” of Trump transition emails, including sensitive emails of Jared Kushner, transition team sources tell Axios. — Trump officials discovered Mueller …

Discussion: Politico, Raw Story, Business Insider, The Gateway Pundit, The Right Scoop, Daily Kos, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Splinter, Shareblue Media and Mediaite

Fox News:

Trump lawyer: Mueller improperly obtained transition documents in Russia probe — A lawyer for the Trump presidential transition team is accusing Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office of inappropriately obtaining transition documents as part of its Russia probe, including confidential …

Discussion: RedState, The Daily Caller, The Right Scoop, The Gateway Pundit and TheBlaze

Brian Stelter / CNNMoney:

How Fox News and President Trump create an anti-Mueller ‘feedback loop’ — Bernstein: Fox hosts are abetting a cover-up — An anti-Robert Mueller, anti-FBI fervor is intensifying among Trump supporters — partly thanks to a campaign by Fox News and other conservative media sources.

Discussion: Fox News and Mediaite

Steve Holland / Reuters:

Trump allies say Mueller unlawfully obtained thousands of emails — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An organization established for U.S. President Donald Trump's transition to the White House a year ago said on Saturday that the special counsel investigating allegations of Russian meddling …

Josh Delk / The Hill:

Democrat: Rumor is Trump could fire Mueller before Christmas — (D-Calif.) said Friday that “rumors” on Capitol Hill suggest President Trump — could fire special counsel Robert Mueller before Christmas, after Congress leaves Washington for the winter recess.

Discussion: IJR and Hullabaloo

Adam Schiff / KQED News:

White House Lawyer Denies ‘Rumor on the Hill’ of Trump Plan to Fire Mueller — Congresswoman Jackie Speier (D-San Mateo) told KQED Newsroom on Friday that she believes Republicans are trying to shut down the House Intelligence Committee's probe into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 elections.

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, CANNONFIRE, Politicus USA, Mediaite, RedState and Campaign Legal Center

Caroline Orr / Shareblue Media:
Watch: Intel Dem warns of Trump plot to fire Mueller on Christmas weekend

Discussion: Washington Times, bizpacreview.com, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Nation and Washington Monthly

John Bowden / The Hill:
Trump lawyer denies rumors of Mueller's impending firing

Discussion: RedState

New York Times:

Glowing Auras and ‘Black Money’: The Pentagon's Mysterious U.F.O. Program — WASHINGTON — In the $600 billion annual Defense Department budgets, the $22 million spent on the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program was almost impossible to find. — Which was how the Pentagon wanted it.

Discussion: Reuters, Townhall.com, TheBlaze, Vox, Mashable, Instapundit, Business Insider, twitchy.com, Balloon Juice and Gizmodo

Bryan Bender / Politico:

The Pentagon's Secret Search for UFOs — The Pentagon, at the direction of Congress, a decade ago quietly set up a multi-million dollar program to investigate what are popularly known as unidentified flying objects—UFOs. — The “unidentified aerial phenomena” claimed to have been seen …

Discussion: RedState, Washington Examiner, New York Magazine, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and Axios

New York Times:

2 Navy Airmen and an Object That 'Accelerated Like Nothing I've Ever Seen' — The following recounts an incident in 2004 that advocates of research into U.F.O.s have said is the kind of event worthy of more investigation, and that was studied by a Pentagon program that investigated U.F.O.s.

Discussion: RedState, Business Insider and Raw Story

Gary Martin / Las Vegas Review-Journal:

Kihuen, accused of sexual harassment, says he won't seek re-election — Rep. Ruben Kihuen, D-Nev., speaks during a DACA anniversary event at the Consulate of Mexico in Las Vegas on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2017. Bridget Bennett Las Vegas Review-Journal @bridgetkbennett

Discussion: The Nevada Independent, Political Wire, Washington Free Beacon, IJR, KTLA and Mediaite

Elena Schneider / Politico:
Kihuen will not seek reelection

Discussion: Axios, ABC News, The Right Scoop and The Nevada Independent

Michelle Rindels / The Nevada Independent:
Woman in D.C. says Congressman Kihuen made unwanted overtures toward her this fall

Discussion: Washington Post, Roll Call, NPR, New York Times, The Guardian, Polipace Insider …, BuzzFeed, Business Insider, Washington Free Beacon, RedState and Politico

Amber Athey / The Daily Caller:

NBC Made Payment To Staffer After Sexual Harassment Claim Against Chris Matthews — An NBC spokesman confirmed Saturday the company made a separation-related payment to one of Chris Matthews employees after the woman complained about sexual harassment. — Two sources familiar …

Josh Keefe / International Business Times:

Senator Bob Corker Said He Hasn't Read The Tax Bill, Denies Changing His Vote In Exchange For Personal Tax Breaks — In an exclusive interview with International Business Times, U.S. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn, denied knowing about a controversial last-minute provision slipped …

Discussion: Political Wire, IJR, Business Insider, The Daily Caller, RedState and Daily Kos

David Sirota / International Business Times:
Donald Trump And GOP Leaders Could Be Enriched By Last Minute Tax Break Inserted Into Final Bill

Discussion: ThinkProgress, Raw Story and Outside the Beltway

Caroline Orr / Shareblue Media:

So much losing: Trump is least popular first year president ever, down 49 points from Obama — Donald Trump's plunging approval rating has officially made him the most unpopular first-year president in the history of presidential polling, according to the latest figures from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Discussion: The Moderate Voice and Kennebec Journal & …

Dan Balz / Washington Post:
On the eve of the tax vote, Republicans place a big bet for 2018

Discussion: Politico

Associated Press:
AP-NORC Poll: 52 percent say country worse off under Trump

Discussion: Shareblue Media

Washington Post:

After Alabama loss, Trump has ambitious plans to campaign in 2018 midterms — President Trump is not on the ballot in 2018, but the White House is planning a full-throttle campaign to plunge the president into the midterm elections, according to senior officials and advisers familiar with the planning.

Discussion: Political Wire, New York Magazine, Mediaite and RedState

New York Times:

World's Most Expensive Home? Another Bauble for a Saudi Prince — A $300 million chateau is one of a string of extravagant purchases for a prince who is cracking down on ill-gotten wealth and preaching fiscal austerity. — LOUVECIENNES, France — When the Chateau Louis XIV sold …

New York Times:

Uproar Over Purported Ban at C.D.C. of Words Like ‘Fetus’ — WASHINGTON — The Department of Health and Human Services tried to play down on Saturday a report that officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had been barred from using seven words or phrases, including …

Discussion: Business Insider and Raw Story

Jessica Ravitz / CNN:
Word ban at CDC includes ‘vulnerable,’ ‘fetus,’ ‘transgender’

New York Times:

‘Trump, Trump, Trump!’ How a President's Name Became a Racial Jeer — For more coverage of race, sign up here to have our Race/Related newsletter delivered weekly to your inbox. — The high school basketball squad from Eagle Grove, population 3,700, had traveled 60 miles up Highway 69 …

Discussion: The Hill and Politicus USA

Perry Stein / Washington Post:

The owner of Steve Bannon's D.C. rowhouse wants a 3-foot security fence. D.C. government is not having it. — (Evelyn Hockstein/For The Washington Post) — While the Breitbart News operation pushes an anti-establishment message across the country, it is also steeped in a municipal battle in the nation's capital.

Discussion: The Hill

Vivian Wang / New York Times:

Lincoln Plaza Cinema, Renowned Art House Theater, to Close — Much that has been written about the Lincoln Plaza Cinema on the Upper West Side of Manhattan includes the words “legendary,” “renowned” or “celebrated.” — Soon, another adjective may need to be added: closed.

Discussion: Deadline and IndieWire

Ellen McCarthy / Washington Post:

Anita Hill chosen to lead Hollywood sexual harassment commission — Anita Hill has been picked to lead a newly formed commission on sexual harassment in the entertainment industry. — As announced late Friday by the commission — an initiative spearheaded by producer Kathleen Kennedy …

more at Mediagazer »

Clark Kauffman / Des Moines Register:

Iowa Supreme Court justice blocks Register's use of court records — Newspaper says Wiggins' order violates the First Amendment — An Iowa Supreme Court justice has issued a highly unusual order prohibiting the Des Moines Register from publishing information gleaned from court records.

more at Mediagazer »