Top Items:
New York Times:
Republican Senators Recommend Charges Against Author of Trump Dossier — WASHINGTON — More than a year after Republican leaders promised to investigate Russian interference in the presidential election, two influential Republicans on Friday made the first known congressional criminal referral …
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Washington Post:
The FBI is investigating the Clinton Foundation … The FBI has been quietly investigating the Clinton Foundation for months, reviving a probe that was dialed back during the 2016 election amid tensions between Justice Department prosecutors and FBI agents about the politically charged case, according to people familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
theGrio, Mediaite, TheBlaze, FOX2now.com, twitchy.com and Pacific Standard
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Senate Republicans become Trump accomplices in manipulating the system — The Post reports: … This is an outrageous political stunt, one with no legal ramifications and obviously designed to take the heat off the White House as damning reports bolstering an obstruction-of-justice claim …
Washington Post:
Senior Republican refers Trump-Russia dossier author for possible charges … The Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee recommended Friday that the Justice Department investigate for possible criminal charges the author of the now-famous “dossier” alleging the Trump campaign coordinated …
Discussion:
Politico, Little Green Footballs, HuffPost, Vox and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
Natasha Bertrand / Business Insider:
Senate Judiciary Republicans refer dossier author Chris Steele to DOJ for criminal investigation — Republican Sens. Chuck Grassley and Lindsey Graham on Friday sent a criminal referral to the Justice Department about Christopher Steele, the author of the so-called Trump-Russia dossier.
Discussion:
RedState, TheBlaze, New York Post and The Week
Timothy L. O'Brien / Bloomberg:
GOP Senators Hand Trump Defenders Some Talking Points
GOP Senators Hand Trump Defenders Some Talking Points
Discussion:
Washington Press
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Schiff: The case that Trump obstructed justice just got stronger
Schiff: The case that Trump obstructed justice just got stronger
Discussion:
The Hill, ThinkProgress, Daily Kos, Politico, IJR and Power Line
Jordain Carney / The Hill:
GOP senators request criminal investigation of Trump dossier author
GOP senators request criminal investigation of Trump dossier author
Discussion:
Chuck Grassley, Power Line, Weekly Standard and The Gateway Pundit
Anna Claire Vollers / al.com:
Roy Moore accuser's Gadsden home burns; arson investigation underway — Roy Moore accuser Tina Johnson lost her home Tuesday in a fire that is now under investigation by the Etowah County Arson Task Force. — Tina Johnson, who first came to public notice for accusing Senate candidate Roy Moore …
Discussion:
Politico, ThinkProgress, Talking Points Memo, Axios, IJR, TheBlaze, The Gateway Pundit, NBC News, Splinter, Washington Press, thecut, The Daily Caller, Political Wire, Raw Story, Mediaite and The Stranger …
Mike Allen / Axios:
The Wolff lines on Trump that ring unambiguously true — There are definitely parts of Michael Wolff's “Fire and Fury” that are wrong, sloppy, or betray off-the-record confidence. But there are two things he gets absolutely right, even in the eyes of White House officials …
Discussion:
Hit & Run, Breitbart, New York Magazine, Shareblue Media, Washington Press, Hullabaloo, New York Times, Mediaite, RedState and Politicus USA, more at Mediagazer »
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Pamela McClintock / Hollywood Reporter:
Trump White House Asks to Screen Steven Spielberg's ‘The Post’ (Exclusive) — The period drama about ‘The Washington Post’ stars two of Trump's Hollywood critics, Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks. — This weekend, filmmaker Steven Spielberg's The Post expands into additional theaters — including the White House.
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Washington Post, Breitbart, New York Times, Business Insider, Daily Wire, Mashable and The Guardian
Eun Kyung Kim / TODAY.com:
Michael Wolff says he ‘absolutely’ spoke to President Trump for his tell-all book
Michael Wolff says he ‘absolutely’ spoke to President Trump for his tell-all book
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Examiner, Washington Post, USA Today, Townhall.com, Breitbart, Washington Press, Vox, ABC News, IJR, TheBlaze and Axios, more at Mediagazer »
Kimberly Leonard / Washington Examiner:
Michael Wolff: Trump had little interest in repealing Obamacare, floated ‘Medicare for All’
Michael Wolff: Trump had little interest in repealing Obamacare, floated ‘Medicare for All’
Discussion:
NewsBusters, The Week and Common Dreams
Kieran Corcoran / Business Insider:
The author of the explosive new Trump book says he can't be sure if parts of it are true
The author of the explosive new Trump book says he can't be sure if parts of it are true
Discussion:
The Root, The Stream, NPR, The Rush Limbaugh Show, Bloomberg, CBS News, New Republic, CNNMoney, AOL, RedState, Daily Wire, IJR, New York Times and Right Wing Watch
Adam Edelman / NBC News:
‘Fire and Fury’ author Wolff calls Trump least credible person who has ever walked on earth
‘Fire and Fury’ author Wolff calls Trump least credible person who has ever walked on earth
Discussion:
Washington Post, Roll Call, Vox, RedState, The Guardian, IJR, CBS Baltimore, TODAY.com, BBC, The Nation, ABC News, Breitbart, France 24, KOIN-TV, Talking Points Memo, bizpacreview.com, Fox News Insider, fox8.com, The Big Lead and CNBC
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Steve Bannon was warned — Friends and allies of Steve Bannon had been warning him for weeks to lay off Jared Kushner — telling him that President Trump would turn against him if he kept publicly attacking the son-in-law. — What we're hearing: Tommy Hicks, a Trump campaign fundraiser …
Discussion:
RedState, Business Insider, The Gateway Pundit, Occidental Dissent and Breitbart
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Natasha Bertrand / Business Insider:
Trump campaign digital director: ‘Not one person made a decision’ without Kushner and Eric Trump's ‘approval’ — The digital director of the Trump campaign on Friday painted Jared Kushner and Eric Trump as “joint deputy campaign managers.” — Brad Parscale's statement came amid …
Discussion:
Washington Press
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Steve Bannon's strange “obsession” with Andrew Weissmann
Steve Bannon's strange “obsession” with Andrew Weissmann
Discussion:
Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
Matt Flegenheimer / New York Times:
Band of the Insulted: The Nicknames of Trump's Adversaries
Band of the Insulted: The Nicknames of Trump's Adversaries
Discussion:
Daily Wire and Washington Press
Jgoldsmith / Lawfare:
Why Hasn't Rod Rosenstein Recused Himself from the Mueller Investigation? — One puzzle that deepens with Mike Schmidt's New York Times story on “Trump's Struggle to Keep [a] Grip on [the] Russia Investigation” is why Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has not recused himself from overseeing the Mueller investigation.
Discussion:
Instapundit, Politico, Just Security, ACS Blog, Washington Post, Washington Monthly, New Republic, Talking Points Memo and Shareblue Media
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Andrew Restuccia / Politico:
EPA chief Pruitt is said to be eyeing attorney general job
EPA chief Pruitt is said to be eyeing attorney general job
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Monthly, Axios, New York Magazine, Breitbart, RedState, Salon, Hullabaloo, Mother Jones, CNN, fox13now.com, Media Matters for America and TheBlaze
Max Greenwood / The Hill:
GOP lawmaker: Sessions ‘betrayed’ Trump
GOP lawmaker: Sessions ‘betrayed’ Trump
Discussion:
Shareblue Media, RedState, ABC News and The Root
Kevin Johnson / USA Today:
FBI documents: Andrew McCabe had no conflict in Hillary Clinton email probe — WASHINGTON — FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, whom President Trump has blamed for influencing the decision not to criminally charge Hillary Clinton for her use of private email server, did not oversee that inquiry …
Discussion:
The Week
Twitter:
World Leaders on Twitter — There's been a lot of discussion about political figures and world leaders on Twitter, and we want to share our stance. — Twitter is here to serve and help advance the global, public conversation. Elected world leaders play a critical role in that conversation …
CNN:
Exclusive: Top Pence aides quietly depart in new year — STORY HIGHLIGHTS — (CNN)Vice President Mike Pence's chief lawyer and domestic policy director are leaving his office at the beginning of the New Year, according to four sources familiar with the staff turnover.
David Remnick / New Yorker:
The Increasing Unfitness of Donald Trump — The West Wing has come to resemble the dankest realms of Twitter, in which everyone is racked with paranoia and everyone despises everyone else. — What made the Emperor Nero tick, Suetonius writes in “Lives of the Caesars,” was …
Scott Wartman / Cincinnati.com:
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Josh Mandel drops out of U.S. Senate race — Republican U.S. Senate candidate Josh Mandel quit the race Friday, citing his wife's health. — He hoping to unseat U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat. The Enquirer will update this story.
Discussion:
Shareblue Media
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Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Top GOP candidate drops out of Ohio Senate race
Top GOP candidate drops out of Ohio Senate race
Discussion:
Politico and The Federalist
Matthew Gertz / Politico:
I've Studied the Trump-Fox Feedback Loop for Months. It's Crazier Than You Think. — On Tuesday night, I, along with many Americans, was shocked when President Donald Trump tweeted that his “Nuclear Button” is “much bigger & more powerful” than North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un's.
ESPN:
For Kraft, Brady and Belichick, is this the beginning of the end? — THE PROBLEM WITH living your life under the spotlight is that the camera captures only the public eruption, not the months of silent anger. On Dec. 3, when the New England Patriots played the Buffalo Bills …
Discussion:
Awful Announcing and AOL
Josh Dawsey / Washington Post:
Trump cools to idea of taking on welfare programs, seeing little chance of success in Congress — President Trump has begun telling advisers that it will likely be impossible to advance legislation this year reducing welfare spending and enrollment — a priority he has previously embraced …
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Associated Press:
4 women accuse filmmaker Paul Haggis of sexual misconduct — LOS ANGELES (AP) — A civil lawsuit charging Oscar-winning filmmaker Paul Haggis with raping a publicist has prompted three additional women to come forward with their own sexual misconduct accusations, including another publicist …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Deadline, The Guardian, The Week and thecut
Amanda Terkel / HuffPost:
Wisconsin Is Quietly Becoming The Top Senate Race Of 2018 — Sen. Tammy Baldwin is battling more outside spending by conservative groups than all of her Democratic colleagues. Combined. — Ask a Democrat what Senate races worries them this year, and Missouri, Indiana, West Virginia and North Dakota will likely be near the top.
Discussion:
The Atlantic, Daily Kos, madison.com, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Axios and Washington Free Beacon