Top Items:
AT&T:
With Tax Reform, AT&T Plans to Increase U.S. Capital Spending $1 Billion and Provide $1,000 Special Bonus to more than 200,000 U.S. Employees — Today, Congress approved legislation representing the first comprehensive tax reform in a generation. The President is expected to sign the bill in the coming days.
Discussion:
RedState, ThinkProgress, Vox, Washington Post, Politico, Business Insider, Washington Free Beacon, Mother Jones, Project Republic, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, AOL and CNBC
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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 …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, The Daily Caller, IJR and TheBlaze
Anita Balakrishnan / CNBC:
AT&T is giving $1,000 bonuses to 200,000 employees after tax bill — AT&T was quick to respond to news of U.S. tax reform, announcing it would give some employees bonuses once the law is official. — The telecom giant said in a press release on Wednesday that it would give …
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Business Insider, twitchy.com, Speaker.gov and Reuters, more at Techmeme »
Wall Street Journal:
Over Golf and an Airport Chat, Trump and GOP Hashed Out a Historic Tax Plan — Defeat of health-care bill hung over the tax legislation efforts, shaping the strategy used to pass it and mobilizing Republicans eager to show they could govern — Over rounds of golf at President Donald Trump's club …
Discussion:
New York Magazine
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Seung Min Kim / Politico:
Tax victory may be fleeting for Ryan and McConnell — A beaming Speaker Paul Ryan high-fived and hugged his lieutenants after the House first passed the GOP tax bill Tuesday. As the Senate prepared to follow suit hours later, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was elated.
Melanie Schmitz / ThinkProgress:
Paul Ryan was asked if Trump's accusers are liars. His response was abysmal. — During an interview with TODAY's Savannah Guthrie on Wednesday, House Speaker Paul Ryan punted when asked about the official White House stance on President Trump's sexual harassment accusers.
Discussion:
The Hill, HuffPost, Washington Post and Business Insider
Bernie Becker / Politico:
Confusion and chaos ahead as new tax rules take immediate effect
Confusion and chaos ahead as new tax rules take immediate effect
Discussion:
Axios, Business Insider, Roll Call, The Mahablog and Daily Kos
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 …
United States Senator Lamar Alexander:
Alexander, Collins Statement on Bills to Lower Health Insurance Premiums — WASHINGTON, December 20, 2017—United States Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) today jointly released the following statement: — “Rather than considering a broad year-end funding agreement …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, New York Times, Talking Points Memo, Business Insider, Daily Kos and Politico
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Gideon Resnick / The Daily Beast:
States' Christmas Letter to Kids: No Health Care for You
States' Christmas Letter to Kids: No Health Care for You
Discussion:
Vox, Denver Post, Daily Kos and The Hill
Eric Levitz / New York Magazine:
Congress Will Not Renew the Children's Health Insurance Program This Year
Congress Will Not Renew the Children's Health Insurance Program This Year
Discussion:
Politico, Axios, Washington Post, Vox, Splinter and Business Insider
Center For Children and Families:
New Report on CHIP Funding Delay Shows Nearly 2 Million Kids May Lose Coverage in January
New Report on CHIP Funding Delay Shows Nearly 2 Million Kids May Lose Coverage in January
Discussion:
Shareblue Media, Politico, Kaiser Health News and NBC News
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
Collins lets McConnell slide on promise to shore up insurance markets in 2017
Collins lets McConnell slide on promise to shore up insurance markets in 2017
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money, Washington Post and Daily Kos
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:
Raw Story
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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, Business Insider, Talking Points Memo, Axios, Washington Post, Mediaite, AOL, NewsBusters, The Daily Caller, thecut, mikeallen, Instapundit and Shakesville, more at Mediagazer »
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CNN:
Democrats' 2018 advantage expands — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — WASHINGTON (CNN)Democrats' already wide advantage over Republicans in a hypothetical Congressional matchup has grown, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS. At the same time, enthusiasm about voting next year …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Shareblue Media, NBC News, New York Times, IJR, US News, No More Mister Nice Blog, Washington Post, Paste, The Daily Caller and Taylor Marsh
Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Hillary Clinton popularity hits all-time low, poll shows — Hillary Clinton's approval ratings have hit an all-time low, reflecting the sustained scrutiny the former secretary of state and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee continues to face even after her election loss.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Booman Tribune, CANNONFIRE, IJR, The Daily Caller, Scared Monkeys, Outside the Beltway, The Hill, RedState and Gallup
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Ryan Struyk / CNN:
Trump's approval rating just entered a league of its own
Trump's approval rating just entered a league of its own
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money and New York Times
Carrie Dann / NBC News:
Poll: Just 36% of Americans indicate they would vote for Trump in 2020
Poll: Just 36% of Americans indicate they would vote for Trump in 2020
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, AOL, No More Mister Nice Blog and Real Clear Politics
Fox News:
McCabe draws blank on Democrats' funding of Trump dossier, new subpoenas planned — EXCLUSIVE: Congressional investigators tell Fox News that Tuesday's seven-hour interrogation of Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe contained numerous conflicts with the testimony of previous witnesses …
Discussion:
IJR, The Daily Caller and The Gateway Pundit
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Matthew Chapman / Shareblue Media:
“Are Republicans dead inside?” GOP host slams her own party in disgust — Veteran Republican strategist and MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace cannot understand why Republicans are protecting a clearly lawless president. — As the investigation into Russia breaks new ground …
Emily Steel / New York Times:
2 Women Who Settled With O'Reilly Over Sexual Harassment Sue for Defamation — Two women who reached sexual harassment settlements with Bill O'Reilly joined a defamation lawsuit against Mr. O'Reilly and Fox News on Wednesday, asserting that statements that he and the network made depicted them as liars …
Discussion:
Politico, thecut and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
Josh Rogin / Washington Post:
Trump administration approves lethal arms sales to Ukraine — The Trump administration has approved the first ever U.S. commercial sale of lethal defensive weapons to Ukraine, in a clear break from the de facto U.S. ban on arms sales that dates back to the Obama administration.
Discussion:
The Hill
Heather Long / Washington Post:
The Republican tax bill was the easy part. The next debate could be much uglier. — The Republican overhaul of the tax code sets the stage for years of politically fraught debate over what the government should provide for its citizens and how much it should demand in taxes.
Discussion:
USA Today, The Atlantic, CNN, New York Times, Associated Press, Mother Jones, Axios, New York Magazine and The Stranger …
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Stephen Galloway / Hollywood Reporter:
Tom Hanks Wouldn't Screen ‘The Post’ at the White House, Decries Attacks on First Amendment — “We have to decide when we take to the ramparts,” the Oscar-winner tells THR, noting that he would not attend a screening of his new film at the White House if invited.
Discussion:
Axios, Paste, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and 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
Associated Press:
Author of online hit ‘Cat Person’ has 7-figure book deal — NEW YORK — The author of the online sensation “Cat Person” has a seven-figure book deal. — Scout Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Kristen Roupenian's debut story collection …
Discussion:
Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
Oliver Darcy / CNNMoney:
Breitbart went all out for Roy Moore. Now its top editor says he was a ‘weak candidate’ — Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow was in his home office last Tuesday night running the front page of the far-right website when he learned that Judge Roy Moore would not be elected as the next senator from Alabama.
Discussion:
Mediaite, Axios, The Daily Beast, Splinter and Washington Post
Caitlyn Hitt / New York Daily News:
Meryl Streep #SheKnew posters pop up in Los Angeles amid backlash over Harvey Weinstein comments — A street artist is calling Meryl Streep on her bluff. — Posters showing the “The Post” actress standing with disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein have been popping up across Los Angeles, Twitter posts indicate.
Gerry Smith / Bloomberg:
Cable TV's Password-Sharing Crackdown Is Coming — Using someone else's credentials to stream for free will soon be a $10 billion problem for pay-TV companies. — On Twitter, they are openly bartered, donated, even celebrated. — “Anyone have a Spectrum user ID & password I can trade for?” one Twitter user wrote last month.
Discussion:
The Verge, more at Mediagazer »
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:
Talking Points Memo
Hamed Aleaziz / San Francisco Chronicle:
A dream deported: Parents who built lives in U.S. separated from children — Maria Mendoza-Sanchez raised four children in Oakland, built a nursing career and bought a home. Then came the election — and the most agonizing decision of her life. — Maria Mendoza-Sanchez raised four children in Oakland …
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ImmigrationProf Blog
CNN:
Senior White House adviser at Homeland Security repeatedly promoted fringe conspiracy theories on the radio — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — (CNN)A White House senior adviser at the Department of Homeland promoted several far-right conspiracy theories in past radio appearances, a CNN KFile review has found.
Discussion:
Raw Story
EU Press Room:
Rule of Law: European Commission acts to defend judicial independence in Poland — Despite repeated efforts, for almost two years, to engage the Polish authorities in a constructive dialogue in the context of the Rule of Law Framework, the Commission has today concluded that there is a clear risk …
Discussion:
The Guardian, New York Times, NPR and Bloomberg