memeorandum: Defiant Iran protesters steal Revolutionary Guard's trousers even as death toll mounts (Raf Sanchez/Telegraph)

9:55 AM ET, January 2, 2018

Top Items:

Eli Lake / Bloomberg:

The West Can Help Iranians Take Back Their Country — The perfect man for the job: Barack Obama. — In case anyone was wondering, Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and the rest of America's political class are with the protesters in Iran. Statements have been issued. Tweets have been tweeted.

Discussion: National Review, NBC News, AOL, peacefare.net, Common Dreams, Breitbart, IJR and CNN

Ben Shapiro / National Review:

Trump Reverses the Obama Doctrine on Iran — Obama extolled the virtues of American global leadership while abdicating our global responsibilities. Trump has done the opposite. — Last week, former Obama national security advisor Susan Rice — she of the infamously shifting Benghazi explanations …

CNN:

Key developments — Nine people were killed on Monday, including seven protesters, state media reports, taking the toll to 21. — 450 people have been arrested in the past three days. — Iranian President Rouhani slammed US President Donald Trump for tweeting his support for protesters.

Discussion: Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, BBC, Jihad Watch, Just Security and Washington Free Beacon

Raf Sanchez / Telegraph:

Defiant Iran protesters steal Revolutionary Guard's trousers even as death toll mounts — The Basij militiaman, a paramilitary storm trooper of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, was reportedly swinging an electric shock baton when the crowd of angry protesters closed in around him.

Discussion: Washington Post, RedState, The Last Refuge, Common Dreams, TheBlaze, CNBC, The Gateway Pundit, Breitbart, Fox News and KTLA

Washington Post:
The West should support the protesters in Iran

Discussion: New York Post, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, israpundit.org, The Moderate Voice, IJR, National Review, NBC News and CNN

Michael Georgy / Reuters:
Iranian protesters attack police stations, raise stakes in unrest

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Weekly Standard, The Times of Israel and John Hawkins' Right Wing News

Erin Cunningham / Washington Post:
Iran protests and death toll grow as tension rises

Discussion: Althouse

Thomas Erdbrink / New York Times:
Iranians Protest Across Country, Defying a Crackdown

Discussion: RedState

Eun Kyung Kim / TODAY.com:

Hoda Kotb joins Savannah Guthrie as co-anchor of TODAY — Hoda Kotb has been named the co-anchor of TODAY, making her official debut Tuesday just after an announcement by NBC News Chairman Andy Lack. — Kotb, 53, will join Savannah Guthrie at the anchor desk during the first two hours of the morning news program.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, AOL and TheBlaze, more at Mediagazer »

Brian Stelter / CNNMoney:

Hoda Kotb named permanent co-host of NBC's ‘Today’ — Hoda Kotb, who has filled in on NBC's “Today” show since Matt Lauer was fired in November, is now officially replacing him. — The promotion means that Kotb and Savannah Guthrie will co-host the famed morning show.

Discussion: People.com, The Root, theGrio, TVNewser, Mediaite, The Week, thecut and Mashable

Luke Rosiak / The Daily Caller:

Abedin Forwarded State Passwords To Yahoo Before It Was Hacked By Foreign Agents — Huma Abedin forwarded sensitive State Department emails, including passwords to government systems, to her personal Yahoo email account before every single Yahoo account was hacked, a Daily Caller News Foundation analysis …

Discussion: RedState, Washington Post, Talking Points Memo, Axios, Roll Call, New York Times, Scared Monkeys, IJR, Mediaite, Raw Story, Washington Times and The Gateway Pundit

Louis Nelson / Politico:
Trump suggests Huma Abedin be jailed after State Department email release

Discussion: Associated Press

Asawin Suebsaeng / The Daily Beast:

Anthony Scaramucci Is Telling Pals That Donald Trump Wants Him Back … Losing your job in a fit of self-immolation after a mere ten days may seem like the type of professional stumble that doesn't lend itself to a comeback. But Anthony Scaramucci, a.k.a. the Mooch, appears to be positioning himself to give politics another go.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Mediaite, Raw Story, New York Magazine, Hullabaloo and Axios

Andrew Restuccia / Politico:
White House aides already anxious about 2018

Discussion: New York Magazine, Daily Kos and The Week

Jake Sherman / Politico:
AND WE'RE BACK: Washington kicks into gear for bruising January ... ADVANTAGE DEMOCRATS?

Discussion: Wall Street Journal

Susan B. Glasser / Politico:

Donald Trump's Year of Living Dangerously — When President Donald Trump sat down for dinner on September 18 in New York with leaders of four Latin American countries on the sidelines of the annual United Nations General Assembly, anxieties were already running high.

Discussion: Raw Story

Edward-Isaac Dovere / Politico:

John Dean: Nixon 'Might Have Survived If There'd Been a Fox News' — John Dean, the former Nixon White House counsel, has a stark warning for White House lawyer Ty Cobb and the rest of President Donald Trump's defenders as they enter 2018: Believing the investigation and prosecutions will be over any time soon is “wishful thinking.”

Ronald Brownstein / CNN:

The one question likely to decide 2018 elections — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — (CNN)As the 2018 election year begins, one question above all is likely to shape its outcome: Will Americans vote to constrain President Donald Trump by electing a Democrat-led Congress that will challenge and resist him …

David Weigel / Washington Post:

Iowa went big for Trump, but there are signs its voters are souring on the president — DES MOINES — As Republicans celebrated their tax bill passing Congress late last month, Iowa Democrats raised a toast of their own. Candidates for Congress and governor, gathered at the annual Progress …

Discussion: Politico and No More Mister Nice Blog

Associated Press:

Records show no black armed Confederates — COLUMBIA — Two South Carolina lawmakers want to build a monument at the Statehouse to honor black Confederate veterans, but pension records show the state never recognized armed African-American soldiers during the Civil War.

Discussion: Talking Points Memo

Travis Gettys / Raw Story: GOP lawmakers surprised to learn no black soldiers served under Confederacy in South Carolina

Theodoric Meyer / Politico:

Tax overhaul means years of paydays for K Street — President Donald Trump just signed into law the biggest tax overhaul in a generation, but that means more work — not less — for Washington's tax lobbyists. — Rather than streamlining the tax code, Republicans have made it more complicated …

Andrew C. McCarthy / National Review:

As the Dossier Scandal Looms, the New York Times Struggles to Save Its Collusion Tale — The totality of the evidence undermines the Times' collusion narrative. — rump Adviser's Visit to Moscow Got the F.B.I.'s Attention. " That was the page-one headline the New York Times ran on April 20 …

Discussion: Power Line, RedState, Business Insider, emptywheel and Axios

Robin Pogrebin / New York Times:

Peter Martins Retires From New York City Ballet After Misconduct Allegations — After accusations of sexual harassment and physical and verbal abuse, Peter Martins, the powerful leader of New York City Ballet who shaped the company for more than three decades, has decided to retire.

Discussion: thecut, The Week and NPR

Bwittes / Lawfare:

Why Trump's War on the Deep State Is Failing—So Far — In May of 2016, when Donald Trump was still a long-shot candidate for president, I warned with some specificity about what he would try to do to the U.S. Department of Justice and the law enforcement apparatus of the United States:

Discussion: CANNONFIRE

A. G. Sulzberger / New York Times:

A Note From Our New Publisher — IN 1896 my great-great-grandfather left his hometown, Chattanooga, and traveled north to purchase a small, fading newspaper in New York. — The moment was not unlike our own. Technological, economic and social turmoil were upending the traditions of the country.

Alex Daugherty / miamiherald:

Republicans can't generate buzz for Ros-Lehtinen's seat, and some say it's unwinnable — WASHINGTON — The GOP's inability to find top-shelf candidates to run for Ileana Ros-Lehtinen's U.S. House seat has some Republicans ready to write off the race and shift money and attention to more winnable contests.

Discussion: Roll Call

Gabriel Debenedetti / Politico:

Warren positions herself for potential 2020 run — Elizabeth Warren has spent the past year making a series of below-the-radar moves that would put her in prime position to run for president in 2020 if she decides to. — The liberal icon and Republican bete noire has amassed more money …

Discussion: The Daily Caller and Political Wire