memeorandum: You Cannot Be Too Cynical About the Republican Tax Bill (Thomas B. Edsall/New York Times)

5:40 PM ET, December 21, 2017

Top Items:

Gabriel Sherman / Vanity Fair:

“I Have Power”: Is Steve Bannon Running for President? — On a whirlwind tour around the globe, Trump's former aide and alter ego reveals what really went down in the White House, his unfettered thoughts on Javanka, his complicated relationship with his erstwhile boss—and his own political ambitions.

Discussion: New Republic, Axios, Business Insider, Mediaite, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Raw Story, The Week and Lawyers, Guns & Money

New York Times:

Rebuking Trump, U.N. General Assembly Condemns U.S. Decision on Jerusalem — UNITED NATIONS — A majority of the world's nations delivered a stinging rebuke to the United States on Thursday, denouncing its decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital and ignoring President Trump's threats …

Discussion: National Review

Eli Lake / Bloomberg:

Nikki Haley Confronts the U.N.'s ‘Jackals’ — The U.S. ambassador, like the president, knows that the organization is irrelevant without its richest member. — When U.N. member states vote Thursday on a resolution condemning America's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, Ambassador Nikki Haley will be watching.

Discussion: RedState, IJR, New York Times, bizpacreview.com, Instapundit, TheBlaze, Townhall.com, New York Magazine, Betsy's Page, CNN, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, ABC News, ThinkProgress, Raw Story, American Greatness, The Daily Caller, The Guardian and Haaretz

Washington Post:
U.N. resoundingly rejects U.S. decision on Jerusalem in pointed rebuke

Discussion: Washington Monthly and Just Security

Peter Beaumont / The Guardian:
UN votes resoundingly to reject Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as capital

Discussion: Lawfare and IJR

ABC News:
Nikki Haley addresses UN in wake of ‘taking names’ warning

Discussion: Politico

Colin Dwyer / NPR:
U.N. Votes Overwhelmingly To Condemn U.S. Decision On Jerusalem

Discussion: Eschaton and TheBlaze

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.

Discussion: IJR, Washington Times, Raw Story, Deadline, Washington Free Beacon, RedState, Mediaite and Reuters

Mediaite:
Most Influential in Media 2017 — 5. Rachel Maddow

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Media Matters for America, Raw Story and IJR

Louis Nelson / Politico:
Corker on media: ‘I had a newfound empathy’ for Trump

Discussion: The Hill, The Week and ThinkProgress

cms.gov:

Weekly Enrollment Snapshot: Week Seven … In the last week of Open Enrollment for 2018, 4,143,968 people selected plans using the HealthCare.gov platform or were automatically re-enrolled in a plan. As in past years, enrollment weeks are measured Sunday through Saturday.

Discussion: ACA Signups, NBC News, xpostfactoid, Balloon Juice and Daily Kos

Kelsey Snell / NPR:
McConnell Wants Bipartisanship In 2018 On Entitlements, Immigration And More

Discussion: Washington Post, Politico, Axios and Balloon Juice

Paul Demko / Politico:
Obamacare sign ups surge, despite Trump's declaration on ‘repeal’

Discussion: ACA Signups and Balloon Juice

Dylan Scott / Vox:
8.8 million people signed up for Obamacare coverage despite Trump's sabotage

Discussion: New York Times, Talking Points Memo, Axios, ThinkProgress and Mother Jones

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 …

Ryan J. Reilly / HuffPost:

All 6 Defendants Not Guilty In Key Felony Trial Of Trump Inauguration Protesters — The case could determine the fate of many of the nearly 200 people arrested during the inauguration. — All six defendants in a crucial trial involving demonstrators arrested during President Donald Trump's inauguration …

Discussion: New York Magazine and The Stranger …, more at Mediagazer »

Zoe Tillman / BuzzFeed:
Inauguration Protesters Found Not Guilty On All Charges In Jury Trial

Discussion: Little Green Footballs

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: Washington Post, Associated Press, The Daily Caller, The Week and Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Lindsey McPherson / Roll Call:
Pelosi to GOP: You're on Your Own With CR

Discussion: The Hill, ThinkProgress, Politicus USA, Daily Kos and IJR

Bloomberg:

Mueller Is Looking Into a U.S. Foundation Backed by Russian Money — Foundation got $500,000 in undisclosed Russian donations — Representatives attended meeting with Trump campaign officials — Sara Peterson flew to Moscow in 2012 to take home two Russian orphans just as the Kremlin …

Discussion: Mother Jones, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, U.S. Department … and Towleroad

Ryan Struyk / CNN:

Most Americans doubt Trump on Russia probe, while Mueller approval tilts positive — Berman: Trump wrong to claim collusion ‘disproven’ — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — 56% of Americans think Trump's public statements on the Russia probe have been mostly or completely false

Cora Lewis / BuzzFeed:

Five Women Are Accusing A Top Left-Leaning Media Executive Of Sexually Harassing Them — Don Hazen, the executive editor of AlterNet, was placed on “indefinite leave” after BuzzFeed News asked his oversight board about accusations that he inappropriately touched employees, sent lewd emails, and showed them explicit photographs.

Discussion: The Daily Caller and NewsBusters, more at Mediagazer »

Jenna Johnson / Washington Post:

Pence visits troops in Afghanistan in first trip to a war zone — KABUL, Afghanistan — Vice President Pence arrived in Afghanistan on Thursday for an unannounced holiday visit with U.S. troops who are serving in a war that has lasted more than 16 years. — The trip marks the first time Pence …

Discussion: ABC News, Politico and Informed Comment

Jeremy Diamond / CNN:
Pence makes surprise trip to Afghanistan

Discussion: The Daily Caller

mypalmbeachpost:

EXCLUSIVE: Trump's Mar-a-Lago tax deal veiled from IRS review — PALM BEACH POST INVESTIGATION … Donald Trump stands in the living room at Mar-a-Lago, 1992. Photo by Katie Deits / Zuma Press — PALM BEACH — Donald Trump's deal with the town of Palm Beach to turn Mar-a-Lago …

Discussion: Mother Jones and Raw Story

Jordan Pascale / Virginian-Pilot:

Virginia officials will randomly pick winner of tied House of Delegates race on Dec. 27 — Politicos, mark your calendars for Wednesday Dec. 27. — That's the day the Virginia Board of Elections will randomly pick the winner of the high stakes and tied 94th House District race. — The impact?

Discussion: Vox, NBC News, Business Insider, Refinery29, Shakesville, NPR, The Atlantic and Washington Post

John Judis / Talking Points Memo:

The Politics of the Republican Tax Bill: A Dissenting View — I am not a fan of the new tax bill that the Republican Congress passed. It will widen the gap between the wealthy and everyone else and increase the likelihood over a decade or so of another crash.

Discussion: JustOneMinute, Washington Monthly, No More Mister Nice Blog, Booman Tribune and Mother Jones

The Hill:

Court denies Trump attempt to halt transgender military enlistment — A three-judge panel on a federal appeals court ruled Thursday against the Trump administration's efforts to delay accepting transgender recruits into the military. — A two-paragraph order said Judges Diana Gribbon Motz …

Discussion: Politico and IJR

Andrew Chung / Reuters:
U.S. court rejects Trump bid to stop transgender military recruits on

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Zack Ford / ThinkProgress:

Sore loser Roy Moore lashes out at Doug Jones' gay son — He's blaming everyone but himself. — Republican Roy Moore has still not conceded his loss in the Alabama Senate race, and in recent days, has seemed to pin the blame at minority groups he is known for despising.

Discussion: Washington Examiner, Newsroom, New York Daily News and The Montgomery Advertiser

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: GovTrack Insider, Business Insider, Refinery29, IJR and CNN

Christina Wilkie / CNBC:
Congress races to fund the government and avert a shutdown

Discussion: Hot Air, National Review, The Daily Caller, New York Times and Washington Free Beacon

Thomas B. Edsall / New York Times:

You Cannot Be Too Cynical About the Republican Tax Bill — The rush to enact the tax bill was designed to mask — as a break for the middle class — what is in fact a $1.4 trillion package of benefits for key donors and lobbyists, the richest members of Congress, President Trump, his family and other families like his.

Discussion: Rewire, Balkinization, Bloomberg, MarketWatch, IJR, Althouse, Wall Street Journal, New York Magazine and Mother Jones

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 …

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Manohla Dargis / New York Times:

Review: In ‘The Post,’ Democracy Survives the Darkness — THE POST - NYT Critic's Pick - Directed by Steven Spielberg - Biography, Drama, History, Thriller - PG-13 - 1h 55m — Steven Spielberg's exhilarating drama “The Post” is about a subject that's dear to the heart of journalists: themselves!

Discussion: Splinter

Bloomberg:

Mueller Avoids Pitfalls by Giving Trump the Silent Treatment — Some Republicans are escalating attacks on Russia probe — Special counsel aims to convey credibility, officials says — Through all the controversy, threats and noise surrounding the Trump-Russia investigation …

Ben Riley-Smith / Telegraph:

Exclusive: US making plans for ‘bloody nose’ military attack on North Korea — America is drawing up plans for a “bloody nose” military attack on North Korea to stop its nuclear weapons programme, The Telegraph understands. — The White House has “dramatically” stepped up preparation …

Discussion: Shakesville, New York Post, Washington Post, USA Today, Business Insider, AOL, IJR and Bloomberg

Washington Post:

Fueled by drug crisis, U.S. life expectancy declines for a second straight year … American life expectancy at birth declined for the second consecutive year in 2016, fueled by a staggering 21 percent rise in the death rate from drug overdoses, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.

Discussion: CNN, The Daily Caller, The Atlantic, The Verge, Washington Free Beacon and ThinkProgress