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, Business Insider, Vox, ThinkProgress, Washington Free Beacon, Washington Post, Politico, The Daily Caller, Project Republic, The Gateway Pundit, AOL, Mother Jones 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:
Axios, 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 …
Discussion:
Power Line, Business Insider, twitchy.com, IJR, Speaker.gov and Reuters, more at Techmeme »
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:
Outside the Beltway, Raw Story, Reason, Washington Free Beacon, Shakesville, Hullabaloo, CNN, Shareblue Media, FiveThirtyEight, Mashable and New York Times
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Jordan Pascale / Virginian-Pilot:
Republican awarded 1 more vote, causing a tie in House race that will decide balance of power — Republican David Yancey talks with student Asia Shell, 18, during a “take your legislator to school day” November 28 at Heritage High School in Newport News, Va.
Discussion:
New York Times, Business Insider, NPR, NBC News, The Atlantic, Paste, Blue Virginia, AOL, Axios, WTKR-TV, Vox and Washington Post
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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Matthew Yglesias / Vox:
The tax cut expectations game — I was reading the Penn Wharton Budget Model's dynamic analysis (this is an outfit run by a George W. Bush-era Treasury tax guy) of the tax bill Monday night, and I saw something interesting in its modeling assumptions. It had to decide what to do with the fact …
Discussion:
Politico and Mother Jones
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 and Daily Kos
Matthew Chapman / Shareblue Media:
“Are Republicans dead inside?” GOP host slams her own party in disgust — As the investigation into Russia breaks new ground, Donald Trump and his allies are ramping up their baseless attacks on the FBI and senior Justice Department officials for allowing it to continue.
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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:
Raw Story
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:
RedState, IJR, The Daily Caller and The Gateway Pundit
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 …
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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 …
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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:
New York Times and Lawyers, Guns & Money
Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Hillary Clinton popularity hits all-time low, poll shows
Hillary Clinton popularity hits all-time low, poll shows
Discussion:
NBC News, Washington Monthly, CANNONFIRE, Booman Tribune, IJR, The Daily Caller, Scared Monkeys, Outside the Beltway, The Hill and Gallup
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:
Kaiser Health News, New York Times, ThinkProgress, Business Insider, Daily Kos, Talking Points Memo 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:
Washington Post, Denver Post, Daily Kos, Vox 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:
Center For Children …, Axios, Shareblue Media, Politico, NBC News, Splinter, Washington Post, Vox and Business Insider
Lukas Mikelionis / Fox News:
Deal on DACA program expected in January — White House officials and top senators are preparing an immigration bill for January aimed at resolving the legal status of so-called “Dreamers.” — The plan comes after President Donald Trump rescinded the Obama-era DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) program in September.
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, Vox, Crooked Media and Business Insider
RELATED:
Ted Hesson / Politico:
McConnell will allow immigration vote if senators strike a deal
McConnell will allow immigration vote if senators strike a deal
Discussion:
CNN, The Daily Caller, ImmigrationProf Blog and Breitbart
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:
IJR, Jihad Watch, Project Republic, ThinkProgress, middleeastmonitor.com, twitchy.com, Raw Story and RedState
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Max Greenwood / The Hill:
Trump suggests US will cut off aid for countries that vote for UN resolution
Trump suggests US will cut off aid for countries that vote for UN resolution
Discussion:
RedState
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.
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, mikeallen and Washington Post
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
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 »
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 bizpacreview.com
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.
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 »
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
Allison Martinez / KRQE-TV:
New Mexico mosque vandalized by ‘a real Christain’ — CLOVIS, N.M. (KRQE) - Vandals left their mark on a mosque in New Mexico and what they wrote on that mosque is raising eyebrows. — On the corner of Mitchell and Ninth street in Clovis sits the Golden Mosque. This past weekend, vandals paid a visit to the building.
Discussion:
Law & Crime
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
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.