Top Items:
McClatchy Washington Bureau:
FBI investigating whether Russian money went to NRA to help Trump — WASHINGTON — The FBI is investigating whether a top Russian banker with ties to the Kremlin illegally funneled money to the National Rifle Association to help Donald Trump win the presidency, two sources familiar with the matter have told McClatchy.
Discussion:
Political Wire
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Reuters:
Exclusive: Exercise? I get more than people think, Trump says — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Do not expect U.S. President Donald Trump to hit the gym, despite his doctor's orders. — He gets plenty of exercise on the golf course and at the White House complex, the president told Reuters on Wednesday.
Discussion:
thecut
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Inside the room: What Steve Bannon told Congress — Steve Bannon made one conspicuous slip up in his closed-door hearing on Tuesday with the House Intelligence Committee, according to four sources with direct knowledge of the confidential proceedings. Bannon admitted that he'd had conversations …
Discussion:
Breitbart, Business Insider, Talking Points Memo, Hullabaloo, RedState, CNBC, Politico, Washington Monthly, The Week, ACS Blog, TheBlaze, Washington Press, Raw Story, Politicus USA and Mediaite
Kyle Cheney / Politico:
House Republicans seethe at tight-lipped Bannon
House Republicans seethe at tight-lipped Bannon
Discussion:
Axios, Political Wire, Raw Story and Business Insider
Summer Meza / Newsweek:
Jared Kushner still doesn't have security clearance after a year at the White House
Jared Kushner still doesn't have security clearance after a year at the White House
Discussion:
Political Wire
Michael S. Schmidt / New York Times:
Bannon Agrees to Cooperate With Mueller Inquiry
Bannon Agrees to Cooperate With Mueller Inquiry
Discussion:
Townhall.com, The Week, The Daily Caller, Little Green Footballs, Taylor Marsh, CNN, The Resurgent and The Atlantic
James Oliphant / Reuters:
Exclusive: Trump vows to campaign intensively for Republicans, may avoid primaries
Exclusive: Trump vows to campaign intensively for Republicans, may avoid primaries
Discussion:
Roll Call
Donald J. Trump / GOP.com:
The Highly-Anticipated 2017 Fake News Awards — 2017 was a year of unrelenting bias, unfair news coverage, and even downright fake news. Studies have shown that over 90% of the media's coverage of President Trump is negative. — Below are the winners of the 2017 Fake News Awards.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Vox, Washington Times, Al Jazeera English, The Guardian, The Hill, New York Times, Washington Post, Breitbart, The Daily Signal, IJR, The College Fix, The Gateway Pundit, Deadline, BloombergQuint, New York Magazine, France 24, Business Insider, CNBC, CBS San Francisco, Jezebel, RedState, Reuters, NPR, Politico, TheBlaze, FOX 61, Politicus USA, Washington Free Beacon, Little Green Footballs, Axios, Mediaite and theGrio, more at Mediagazer »
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Brian Stelter / CNNMoney:
Trump averages a ‘fake’ insult every day. Really. We counted. — Donald Trump did not coin ‘fake news’ — President Trump has used the word “fake” more than 400 times since he was inaugurated. — More than once a day, on average, he has publicly assailed “fake news,” “fake polls,” “fake media,” and “fake stories.”
Discussion:
Medium, The Daily Caller, Trust, Media and Democracy, Hit & Run, USA Today and Poynter, more at Mediagazer »
Paulina Dedaj / Fox News:
President Trump reveals winners of his ‘Fake News’ awards
President Trump reveals winners of his ‘Fake News’ awards
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Gateway Pundit, White House Dossier, Althouse and Mediaite
Ed O'Keefe / Washington Post:
Kelly calls some of Trump's campaign pledges on immigration and wall ‘uninformed,’ meeting attendees say — White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly told Democratic lawmakers Wednesday that some of the hard-line immigration policies President Trump advocated during the campaign were “uninformed …
Discussion:
Politico, Talking Points Memo, ABC News, Washington Times and The Week
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New York Times:
Trump Was Not ‘Fully Informed’ in Campaign Vows on Wall, Chief of Staff Says — WASHINGTON — President Trump's chief of staff privately told a group of Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday that Mr. Trump had not been “fully informed” when promising voters a wall along the Mexican border last year …
Discussion:
Axios, Business Insider and Mother Jones
Ed O'Keefe / Washington Post:
Kelly calls some of Trump's campaign pledges on immigration, wall ‘uninformed,’ meeting attendees say — White House Chief of Staff John F. Kelly told Democratic lawmakers Wednesday that the United States will never construct a physical wall along the entire stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border …
Discussion:
New York Times, The Hill, Mediaite, New York Magazine, Raw Story, Axios and The Atlantic
Elana Schor / Politico:
DACA-shutdown talks still stalled after Kelly hits the Hill
DACA-shutdown talks still stalled after Kelly hits the Hill
Discussion:
Weekly Standard, CNN, Associated Press, Washingtonian, Breitbart and The Daily Caller
Sean Sullivan / Washington Post:
‘Pulling at his strings’: Lawmakers vie to sway Trump in immigration fight
CNN:
John Kelly told Democrats some of Trump's campaign stances ‘uninformed’
John Kelly told Democrats some of Trump's campaign stances ‘uninformed’
Discussion:
Raw Story, CBS Pittsburgh, FOX 61 and The Week
Brandon Carter / The Hill:
Kelly: Mexico won't pay for border wall ‘directly from their government’
Kelly: Mexico won't pay for border wall ‘directly from their government’
Discussion:
ABC News
New York Times:
‘Vision, Chutzpah and Some Testosterone’ — The Times editorial board has been sharply critical of the Trump presidency, on grounds of policy and personal conduct. Not all readers have been persuaded. In the spirit of open debate, and in hopes of helping readers who agree with us better understand …
Adam Ciralsky / Vanity Fair:
“Harvey's Concern Was Who Did Him In”: Inside Harvey Weinstein's Frantic Final Days — Before the story of his alleged abuses broke in October, Harvey Weinstein hunkered down in his Tribeca bunker—even as the producer refused to believe the end was near. — HOLLYWOOD 2018
Discussion:
Political Wire and Deadline
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Daniel Lippman / Politico:
The GOV'T shuts down Fri.: What we see happening …
The GOV'T shuts down Fri.: What we see happening …
Discussion:
Washington Post
Michael D. Shear / New York Times:
Trump's Physical Revealed Serious Heart Concerns, Outside Experts Say — WASHINGTON — Cardiologists not associated with the White House said Wednesday that President Trump's physical exam revealed serious heart concerns, including very high levels of so-called bad cholesterol …
Discussion:
CNN, The Daily Caller and Washington Free Beacon
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Julie Ray / Gallup:
World's Approval of U.S. Leadership Drops to New Low — WASHINGTON, D.C. — One year into Donald Trump's presidency, the image of U.S. leadership is weaker worldwide than it was under his two predecessors. Median approval of U.S. leadership across 134 countries and areas stands at a new low of 30%, according to a new Gallup report.
Discussion:
The Week and Mother Jones
Maxwell Tani / Business Insider:
Read the email the writer behind the Aziz Ansari sexual misconduct story wrote slamming an HLN anchor who criticized her — HLN anchor Ashleigh Banfield was one of the most prominent major television personalities to criticize a piece on Babe.net about an unpleasant sexual experience …
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Washington Post:
U.S. troops will stay in Syria to counter ‘strategic’ threat from Iran … BEIRUT — Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday committed the United States to an indefinite military presence in Syria, citing a range of policy goals that extend far beyond the defeat of the Islamic State as conditions for American troops to go home.
Discussion:
New York Times, Clarion Project, Just Security, Politico, The Week and Associated Press
RELATED:
New York Times:
With Trump's Visit to Pennsylvania, G.O.P. Scrambles to Save a House Seat — WASHINGTON — Republicans are scrambling to save a heavily conservative House seat in western Pennsylvania, dispatching President Trump to the district on Thursday while preparing a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign …
Hollywood Reporter:
Michael Wolff's ‘Fire and Fury’ to Become TV Series (Exclusive) — Endeavor Content has purchased rights to the best-selling exposé of the Trump White House and plans to adapt it for the small screen. — Michael Wolff's controversial Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House is coming to television.
Joshua Rhett Miller / New York Post:
Sorority sister speaks out on racist videos that got her booted from college — A student at the University of Alabama has been expelled from the school and kicked out of a sorority after she posted racist videos on social media in which she repeatedly used the n-word.
Discussion:
fox5sandiego.com, FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV, Washington Press, CBS Philly and The Daily Caller
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
Staffers at The Hill press management about the work of John Solomon — A group of newsroom staffers at The Hill have complained to management about stories written by John Solomon, the publication's executive vice president of digital video. The complaints were launched in December …
Gabriel Sherman / Vanity Fair:
Sources: Rupert Murdoch Was Hospitalized with Serious Back Injury — The accident, which happened on his son Lachlan's yacht, comes at a delicate time for the 86-year-old's empire. — Rupert Murdoch suffered a serious back injury while vacationing on his son Lachlan's yacht in the Caribbean earlier …
Discussion:
NBC News, Mediaite, Daily Wire and IJR, more at Mediagazer »
Christopher Buskirk / Washington Post:
Mr. President, don't betray your base — Christopher Buskirk is editor and publisher of the website American Greatness and co-author, with Seth Leibsohn, of “American Greatness: How Conservatism, Inc. Missed the 2016 Election & What the D.C. Establishment Needs to Learn.”
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
RELATED:
Ronald Brownstein / The Atlantic:
A Shaky Justification for Immigration Reform … President Trump and his Senate allies are now presenting their goal for immigration reform as increasing the number of high-skilled immigrants allowed into the United States. But the immigration legislation from Senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas …
David Byler / Weekly Standard:
As Goes Trump, So Goes the GOP — Historically, when voters are unhappy with a president, they take it out on his party during the midterm elections. — Donald Trump is historically unpopular. At the end of 2017, the three major polling aggregators—the HuffPost Pollster, Real Clear Politics …