Top Items:
New York Times:
Trump Ordered Mueller Fired, but Backed Off When White House Counsel Threatened to Quit — WASHINGTON — President Trump ordered the firing last June of Robert S. Mueller III, the special counsel overseeing the Russia investigation, according to four people told of the matter …
Discussion:
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Washington Post:
Trump moved to fire special counsel Mueller in June, bringing the White House's top lawyer to the brink of quitting — President Trump sought the firing of Robert S. Mueller III last June, shortly after the special counsel took over the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election …
Discussion:
Politico, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Beast, Just Security, The Week, The Atlantic, Raw Story and Business Insider
Renato Mariotti / Politico:
It's Now Likely Mueller Thinks Trump Obstructed Justice — Thursday's explosive New York Times story that President Donald Trump ordered the firing of special counsel Robert Mueller last June renewed the public's focus on the obstruction of justice investigation against Trump, which will soon culminate in Trump's interview by Mueller.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Raw Story, Shareblue Media, Washington Post, Media Matters for America, Mediaite and Mother Jones
Timothy L. O'Brien / Bloomberg:
Trump Will Try to Fire Mueller. Again. — The president clearly believes he can do whatever he wants. Including obstruct justice. — Last summer, the president of the United States, who is the nation's chief law-enforcement officer, tried to fire the federal appointee overseeing …
Ed Henry / Fox News:
Trump was talked out of firing Mueller last June, source says — President Trump told top officials this past June that he wanted to fire special counsel Robert Mueller, but was talked out of doing so by White House counsel Don McGahn and other aides, a source close to the White House told Fox News late Thursday.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Washington Post, New York Times, Media Matters for America, The Week, IJR, Politico, Mediaite, Splinter, The Daily Beast, New Republic, Common Dreams, Palmer Report, Mother Jones, Vox, The Gateway Pundit, RedState, Raw Story, Business Insider, Politicus USA, Washington Press, The Daily Caller and bizpacreview.com
Rick Klein / ABC News:
The Note: Mueller controls the clock as revelations come at a dizzying pace — The war on and over Robert Mueller just got very real. And Mueller has tools to fight with, too. — The revelation, as reported by The New York Times, that President Donald Trump tried to fire the special counsel …
Discussion:
Politico, Washington Post, Breitbart, Axios and One America News Network
SHennessey / Lawfare:
Trump's Effort to Fire Mueller: Reactions to the New York Times Report
Trump's Effort to Fire Mueller: Reactions to the New York Times Report
Discussion:
Political Wire, Raw Story, Politico, The Week, Business Insider and Washington Press
Lloyd Grove / The Daily Beast:
Chris Ruddy: I Was Right About Trump Wanting to Fire Mueller
Chris Ruddy: I Was Right About Trump Wanting to Fire Mueller
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money, Washington Post, Vox and Roll Call
Mike Allen / Axios:
Trump's ultimate unforced error keeps coming back to bite him
Trump's ultimate unforced error keeps coming back to bite him
Discussion:
USA Today and Washington Post
Maggie Haberman / New York Times:
Trump's Impromptu News Conference: An Unplanned Drop-By or a Deliberate Dig?
Julian E. Zelizer / The Atlantic:
Out of Control — The news that President Trump tried …
Eliana Johnson / Politico:
An affair with Trump? Nikki Haley on ‘disgusting’ rumors and her rise to a top foreign policy role — NEW YORK — Nikki Haley became a trusted member of Donald Trump's inner circle over the past year, but she's recently re-familiarized herself with a downside of professional success …
Discussion:
Towleroad, Washington Free Beacon and Mediaite
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
The White House's immigration proposal is dead on arrival — The White House framework on immigration reform that leaked yesterday — then was released early — is a non-starter those on the left, having spoken to progressive immigration leaders in close touch with top Democrats.
Discussion:
RedState, Los Angeles Times, The Week, Washington Examiner, ThinkProgress, twitchy.com and Breitbart
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Mark Krikorian / National Review:
The Art of the Choke — The White House immigration outline …
The Art of the Choke — The White House immigration outline …
Discussion:
The Mahablog, bizpacreview.com, Mother Jones, Power Line and Daily Wire
The ITV Hub:
Donald Trump says sorry to Britain — Piers Morgan has frequently spoken about his friendship with Donald Trump - and now Piers has finally interviewed the US President in what was his first international interview since taking office. — This unmissable interview took place in Davos …
Discussion:
Joe.My.God., Breitbart, NBC News, Coffee House, The Guardian, NPR and The Week
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Kimberley A. Strassel / Wall Street Journal:
Operation Sabotage the Memo — What are Adam Schiff, the Justice Department and the FBI trying to hide? — Rep. Adam Schiff has many talents, though few compare to his ability to function as a human barometer of Democratic panic. The greater the level of Schiff hot, pressured air, the more trouble the party knows it's in.
Discussion:
Power Line
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Sharyl Attkisson / The Hill:
As walls close in on FBI, the bureau lashes out at its antagonists
As walls close in on FBI, the bureau lashes out at its antagonists
Discussion:
Power Line, American Greatness and Breitbart
BostonGlobe.com:
Joe Kennedy to deliver Democratic response to State of the Union address — WASHINGTON - Representative Joseph P. Kennedy III, one of the Democratic Party's rising political stars, has been tapped by top party leaders to deliver the official Democratic response to President Trump's State of the Union address next week.
Discussion:
Splinter, Chicago Tribune and Roll Call
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Richard Deitsch / SI.com:
Jemele Hill is Leaving SC6 for The Undefeated — ESPN's SportsCenter will need a new co-host as Jemele Hill is expected to leave the show for a position with The Undefeated. — ESPN SportsCenter anchor Jemele Hill is leaving the 6:00 p.m. SC6 edition of SportsCenter to join the staff of The Undefeated …
Discussion:
Decider, NESN.com, Awful Announcing, The Daily Caller and The Big Lead, more at Mediagazer »
Jonathan Tamari / Philly.com:
Rep. Pat Meehan will not seek reelection after sexual harassment furor — Rep. Pat Meehan will not seek reelection amid a furor over his use of taxpayer dollars to settle a sexual harassment claim against an aide, and the national response to his describing the woman as his “soul mate.”
Discussion:
Shareblue Media, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, ABC News, American Thinker, NPR, Washington Times, Roll Call, The Week, Splinter and Axios
Washington Post:
Trump wins over global elites at Davos. All it took was a $1.5 trillion tax cut. — DAVOS, Switzerland — Donald Trump may have finally gained entry into the exclusive global club of the corporate elites he has long scorned — and which has scorned him. All it took was a $1.5 trillion tax cut …
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Jeff Cox / CNBC:
Soros: Trump has US ‘set on a course towards nuclear war’
Soros: Trump has US ‘set on a course towards nuclear war’
Discussion:
The Guardian, bizpacreview.com, BuzzFeed and Washington Press
Chris Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:
James Franco Was Scrubbed From Vanity Fair Hollywood Issue Cover — “We made a decision not to include James Franco on the Hollywood cover once we learned of the misconduct allegations against him,” a Vanity Fair spokesperson says. — Vanity Fair debuted its anticipated Hollywood Portfolio today …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Breitbart, VICE, The A.V. Club, AOL, The Guardian, New York Magazine, IndieWire, Mashable, Jezebel, Sky News and Pakistan Today
Washington Post:
U.S. economic growth slowed in 2017's fourth quarter, missing Trump's targets — The U.S. gross domestic product, a broad measure of the economy, increased by 2.3 percent in 2017. GDP growth slowed in the year's fourth quarter to an annualized rate of 2.6, breaking a two-quarter streak of growth of more than 3 percent.
Discussion:
ThinkProgress and New York Times
Huib Modderkolk / De Volkskrant:
Dutch agencies provide crucial intel about Russia's interference in US-elections — Hackers from the Dutch intelligence service AIVD have provided the FBI with crucial information about Russian interference with the American elections. For years, AIVD had access to the infamous Russian hacker group Cozy Bear.
Discussion:
Mother Jones and Washington Press
Paul Schwartzman / Washington Post:
The Trumps asked to borrow a Van Gogh for the White House. The Guggenheim offered an 18K gold toilet instead. — The emailed response from the Guggenheim's chief curator to the White House was polite but firm: the museum could not accommodate a request to “borrow” a painting by Vincent Van Gogh …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Conservative Tribune, Common Dreams, CBS New York, Breitbart, Arkansas Blog, Arkansas Times, Vox, Washington Press, CNN, Jezebel, The Express Tribune, New York Times, bizpacreview.com, Politico, The Week, The A.V. Club, Geller Report, Addicting Info, AOL, IJR, Boing Boing, Splinter, KTLA, VICE, thecut, The Daily Caller and Raw Story
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Deep in Clinton country, voters stand by their candidate — The pilings of long-gone piers still jut out of the murky Hudson River in New York County, N.Y., reminders of a shipping industry that's all-but-vanished from the region. There's almost no manufacturing left in the towering buildings …
Amy Chozick / New York Times:
Cecile Richards on Her Life After Planned Parenthood — According to Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood for over a decade, protesters who wave anti-abortion signs outside one of the organization's clinics will sometimes return — a week, a month or a year later — for an annual medical exam.
New York Times:
Scientists Rebel Over a Trump Ally at the Natural History Museum — Rebekah Mercer, a supporter of President Trump and an influential donor to conservative causes — including groups that deny climate science — is under renewed pressure to step down from the board of New York City's …
Discussion:
The Natural History Museum, BuzzFeed and The Guardian
Edward-Isaac Dovere / Politico:
Ellison exploring Minnesota AG run — Keith Ellison, the progressive congressman and deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee, is exploring a run for Minnesota attorney general, according to four people he's discussed the possibility with. — Lori Swanson, the current attorney general …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Political Wire
Emily Tamkin / Foreign Policy:
Enemy of the State — Bill Browder helped craft U.S. policy toward Russia. Was it for the better? — On June 6, 2016, Bill Browder, a London-based billionaire, sent an email to Kyle Parker, a congressional staffer, with the subject line “Veselnitskaya house.”