Top Items:
John Bresnahan / Politico:
House Republicans quietly investigate perceived corruption at DOJ, FBI — A group of House Republicans has gathered secretly for weeks in the Capitol in an effort to build a case that senior leaders of the Justice Department and FBI improperly — and perhaps criminally …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Hullabaloo, Shareblue Media, The Week, ABC News, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, Politicus USA and Business Insider
RELATED:
CNN:
Warner: Firing Mueller would be ‘gross abuse of power’ — Warner warns of threats against Mueller — Washington (CNN)Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Wednesday that the firing of Justice Department special counsel Robert Mueller would be a …
Discussion:
Just Security and Axios
Matthew Chapman / Shareblue Media:
“Are Republicans dead inside?” GOP host slams her own party in disgust
Fox News:
McCabe draws blank on Democrats' funding of Trump dossier, new subpoenas planned
McCabe draws blank on Democrats' funding of Trump dossier, new subpoenas planned
Discussion:
Power Line, Hullabaloo, Instapundit, RedState, IJR, The Gateway Pundit and The Daily Caller
John Bowden / The Hill:
Group of House Republicans have been quietly investigating the DOJ and FBI for weeks
Group of House Republicans have been quietly investigating the DOJ and FBI for weeks
Discussion:
RedState
Avery Anapol / The Hill:
Trump praises ‘Fox & Friends’ for being named ‘most influential’ because he watches it — on Thursday praised “Fox & Friends” after a media website named it the “most influential” because he watches it. — “Was @foxandfriends just named the most influential show in news?” Trump tweeted.
RELATED:
Mediaite:
Most Influential in Media 2017 — 5. Rachel Maddow — When it comes to MSNBC prime time, there is Maddow. . and then everyone else. The 9 PM MSNBC break out star has successfully positioned herself as a leading voice (and perhaps the leading voice) of “The Resistance” …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Washington Post:
Court tosses out one-vote victory in recount that had briefly ended a Republican majority in Virginia — A three- judge panel declined to certify the recount of a key House race today, saying that a questionable ballot should be counted in favor of the Republican and tying a race that Democrats …
Discussion:
FiveThirtyEight, Raw Story, Outside the Beltway, Reason, Washington Free Beacon, Hullabaloo, Shareblue Media, CNN and New York Times
RELATED:
Jordan Pascale / Virginian-Pilot:
Republican awarded 1 more vote, causing a tie in House race that will decide balance of power
Republican awarded 1 more vote, causing a tie in House race that will decide balance of power
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Splinter, New York Times, Business Insider, NPR, AOL, Axios, The Atlantic, Paste, Blue Virginia and Washington Post
Graham Moomaw / Richmond Times-Dispatch:
“They put two names in, somebody shakes it up, and they pull it,” …
“They put two names in, somebody shakes it up, and they pull it,” …
Discussion:
Business Insider and NBC News
NBC News:
Prosecutors ask FBI agents for info on Uranium One deal — On the orders of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Justice Department prosecutors have begun asking FBI agents to explain the evidence they found in a now dormant criminal investigation into a controversial uranium deal that critics …
Discussion:
The Hill, bizpacreview.com, Law & Crime, The Daily Caller, The Week and Mediaite
Mitch Smith / New York Times:
President Commutes Sentence of Iowa Meatpacking Executive — President Trump on Wednesday commuted the prison sentence of Sholom Rubashkin, whose Iowa meatpacking plant was the target of a huge immigration raid in 2008, and whose 27-year prison sentence angered many Orthodox Jews.
Discussion:
The White House, Fox News, ImmigrationProf Blog and Business Insider
RELATED:
Luke Nozicka / Des Moines Register:
President Trump commutes sentence of Sholom Rubashkin, ex-Iowa slaughterhouse executive — President Donald Trump on Wednesday commuted the prison sentence of former Iowa slaughterhouse executive Sholom Rubashkin, who was sentenced to 27 years for bank fraud and money laundering, the White House said.
Discussion:
The Week
Erik Wasson / Bloomberg:
Trump Plans Tax Signing on Jan. 3 Due to Technical Issue — President Donald Trump plans to sign the tax bill on Jan. 3 to ensure automatic spending cuts to Medicare and other programs don't take effect, according to a House Republican aide familiar with the plans.
Discussion:
Political Wire
RELATED:
Rick Klein / ABC News:
The Note: Superlatives and doom and gloom, Republicans, Democrats fall back on old tropes in describing tax plan
The Note: Superlatives and doom and gloom, Republicans, Democrats fall back on old tropes in describing tax plan
Discussion:
Politico and Associated Press
Eliana Johnson / Politico:
Republicans finally get what they wanted out of Trump
Republicans finally get what they wanted out of Trump
Discussion:
Axios, The Daily Beast, Political Wire, ABC News and Raw Story
Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
Wall Street Journal Killed Editorial on Trump's Mob Ties — In a short period of time, five staffers have departed The Wall Street Journal editorial page. The general cause of their departures, willing and otherwise, is known: the Journal editorial line has increasingly conformed …
Discussion:
Salon, Esquire, Mediaite, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Raw Story
New York Times:
Facebook Job Ads Raise Concerns About Age Discrimination — This article was written through collaboration between The New York Times and ProPublica, the independent, nonprofit investigative journalism organization. — A few weeks ago, Verizon placed an ad on Facebook to recruit applicants …
Discussion:
Daily Mail, The Verge and Mashable, more at Techmeme »
The Commercial Appeal:
Memphis removing Confederate statues from Downtown parks — Yalonda M. James/The Commercial Appeal — The city of Memphis sold two public parks containing Confederate monuments to a nonprofit Wednesday in a massive, months-in-the-planning operation to take the statues down overnight.
Discussion:
Associated Press, WREG-TV, WHNT-TV and Raw Story
RELATED:
Murray Waas / Foreign Policy:
White House Counsel Knew in January Flynn Probably Violated the Law — Don McGahn was looking at whether the national security advisor violated federal laws just days after Trump moved into the White House. — The White House turned over records this fall to special counsel Robert Mueller revealing …
Discussion:
Political Wire and Talking Points Memo
Paul Kane / Washington Post:
Forget what they say — House Democrats are readying for impeachment — To fill their top spot on the House Judiciary Committee, Democrats had a choice between experts in two critical policy arenas: a constitutional law ace with firsthand experience battling President Trump, and an architect of sweeping immigration legislation.
Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
In Cabinet meeting, Pence praises Trump once every 12 seconds for three minutes straight — Back in June, President Trump allowed almost his entire Cabinet to speak, one by one, in praise of him. And praise him they did, with each being more effusive than the last.
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit and CNN
RELATED:
Chris Cillizza / CNN:
All 11 over-the-top speeches praising Donald Trump at Wednesday's tax celebration, ranked
All 11 over-the-top speeches praising Donald Trump at Wednesday's tax celebration, ranked
Discussion:
Daily Kos and The Atlantic
Lorraine Woellert / Politico:
Puerto Rico governor vows midterm revenge for tax bill — Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rosselló says he plans to mobilize 5.3 million Puerto Ricans living on the mainland to shake up the midterm elections in states ranging from Florida to California. — Rosselló …
Discussion:
Washington Post
RELATED:
Travis Gettys / Raw Story:
Ridiculous video emerges of wealthy Koch heir — and the internet is dying of laughter — The billionaire heir of conservative industrialist Bill Koch stands to benefit mightily from the newly passed Republican tax overhaul. — Wyatt Ingraham Koch is president and CEO of the Wyatt Ingraham clothing brand …
Discussion:
SPIN, The Stranger …, thecut, Balloon Juice and Page Six
Bill Ervolino / USA Today:
Dec. 21 will be the worst day of 2017, astrologers say … The winter solstice — also known as Yule, Midwinter, the Shortest Day of the Year and the Longest Night — occurs at 11:28 a.m. ET Thursday. — But this short, little day with the great many names also may be the worst day of the year, according to astrologers.
Yahoo:
Trump threatens to cut aid to U.N. members over Jerusalem vote — U.S. President Donald Trump holds a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington — WASHINGTON/UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to cut off financial aid to countries that vote …
Discussion:
twitchy.com, The Gateway Pundit, Lawfare, Project Republic, IJR, Jihad Watch and ThinkProgress
Yascha Mounk / New York Times:
The Real Coup Plot Is Trump's — When Donald Trump's campaign was accused of spreading “fake news,” he quickly appropriated the term for himself. The true purveyors of fake news, he claimed, were television networks like CNN and newspapers like this one. — Now, as Mr. Trump and his allies seem …
Charles M. Blow / New York Times:
The Great American Tax Heist — With their tax bill, Donald Trump and the Republicans are raiding the Treasury in plain sight, throwing crumbs to the masses as the millionaires and billionaires make off with the cake. — America should be aghast not only at the looting but also at the brazenness of its execution.
RELATED:
Sydney Ember / New York Times:
Glenn Thrush, Suspended Times Reporter, to Resume Work but Won't Cover White House — The New York Times said on Wednesday that Glenn Thrush, one of the paper's most prominent political reporters, would remain suspended until late January and then be removed from the team covering the White House …
Discussion:
Politico, Vox, Business Insider, The Gateway Pundit, Mediaite, Splinter, Washington Post, AOL, NewsBusters, Talking Points Memo, bizpacreview.com, thecut, mikeallen, Axios, Instapundit and Shakesville, more at Mediagazer »
Fox Business:
Money Talks: Blackstone, Carlyle, KKR dial up donations to key GOP lawmakers as tax bill protects carried interest loophole — If you want to know how one of Wall Street's biggest players managed to keep a massive and controversial loophole in the GOP tax bill, just follow the money.
Discussion:
Washington Post
Dean L. Winslow / Washington Post:
I spoke my mind on guns. Then my Senate confirmation was put on hold. — Dean L. Winslow, a retired Air Force colonel and flight surgeon, is a professor of medicine at Stanford University. — Last week, I withdrew my name from consideration to be assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.
Discussion:
Raw Story
Matthew Panzarino / TechCrunch:
Apple addresses why people are saying their iPhones with older batteries are running ‘slower’ — Because of a Reddit post and the loose interpretation of subsequent benchmark tests posted by Primate Labs' John Poole, the “Apple throttles old iPhones” meme has reared its ugly head again.
Discussion:
NPR, KFOR-TV, The Guardian, The Verge, AOL, New York Magazine, TheBlaze, Mashable and Motherboard, more at Techmeme »
James Piereson / American Greatness:
Good Riddance to the Blue State Model — A few years ago, Walter Russell Mead published an insightful article titled, “The Once and Future Liberalism” in which he described two models of governance in the American states. First is the blue state model—found in states like New York …
Liz Moyer / CNBC:
Wells Fargo, Fifth Third Bancorp unveil minimum wage hikes after tax bill passage — Fifth Third and AT&T are paying employees special bonuses after getting tax cuts under the Republican tax plan. — Wells Fargo said Wednesday that it would boost minimum wages for employees to $15 an hour …