memeorandum: Kochs find areas of agreement with Trump (Maggie Severns/Politico)

12:25 AM ET, January 29, 2018

Top Items:

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

White House perjury panic — I can't overstate the level of anxiety among sources close to Trump after the president told the NYT's Maggie Haberman last week he was willing and eager to submit himself to a live interview under oath with Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Discussion: CANNONFIRE, Raw Story, Politico and Joe.My.God.

New York Times:

Secret Memo Hints at a New Republican Target: Rod Rosenstein — WASHINGTON — A secret, highly contentious Republican memo reveals that Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein approved an application to extend surveillance of a former Trump campaign associate shortly after taking office last spring …

New York Times:
Republicans Show Little Urgency on Legislation to Protect Mueller

Discussion: USA Today, ABC News, Political Wire, Raw Story, Mediaite, Splinter and New York Magazine

Sean Sullivan / Washington Post: Republicans in Congress divided over protecting Mueller from being ousted by Trump

Eli Watkins / CNN:
Collins: 'Wouldn't hurt' for Congress to protect Mueller

Discussion: Politicus USA, Talking Points Memo, Vox, Politico, The Week and ThinkProgress

Patrick Temple-West / Politico:
GOP's Gowdy says he supports Mueller ‘100 percent’

Discussion: New York Times, The Gateway Pundit and IJR

Liz Sly / Washington Post:

U.S. soldiers are revealing sensitive and dangerous information by jogging — BEIRUT — An interactive map posted on the Internet that shows the whereabouts of people who use fitness devices such as Fitbit also reveals highly sensitive information about the location and activities of soldiers …

Discussion: The Daily Caller and New York Magazine

Alex Hern / The Guardian:

Fitness tracking app Strava gives away location of secret US army bases — Data about exercise routes shared online by soldiers can be used to pinpoint overseas facilities — Sensitive information about the location and staffing of military bases and spy outposts around the world has been revealed by a fitness tracking company.

Discussion: Mashable, The Verge, Engadget and nucleardiner.wordpress.com, more at Techmeme »

Helena Andrews-Dyer / Washington Post:

No, Ivanka Trump didn't stop José Andrés from getting into a party. Here's what really happened. — If there's a simple lesson in all of this, said Cafe Milano owner Franco Nuschese, it's talk before you tweet. — On Saturday night, Nuschese's fellow restaurateur José …

Discussion: Washingtonian, New York Times, The Gateway Pundit, ThinkProgress, Mediaite, Raw Story, New York Magazine, Shareblue Media and twitchy.com

The Daily Beast:
Celebrity Chef and Trump Foe Jose Andres Says Ivanka Trump Had Him Booted From Event

Discussion: Daily Kos, Politico and Joe.My.God.

Brian Porreca / Hollywood Reporter:

Omarosa Goes From White House to Cast of ‘Celebrity Big Brother’ — The former ‘Apprentice’ star, and adviser to President Trump, was the shock addition to the new season of CBS' reality show. — Omarosa Manigault, who left the White House under dramatic circumstances at the tail end of last year …

Discussion: Splinter, Raw Story and twitchy.com

Meg James / Los Angeles Times:

Jim Kirk to replace Lewis D'Vorkin as editor in chief of the Los Angeles Times — In another dramatic shake-up at the Los Angeles Times, Chicago journalist Jim Kirk will be named editor in chief of the newspaper, replacing Lewis D'Vorkin, who will move to another position within the parent company.

Discussion: L.A. Times Guild

Sydney Ember / New York Times:

Troubled Los Angeles Times Picking New Editor Amid Unrest — In an attempt to calm rising newsroom tensions at The Los Angeles Times, the paper was expected to name Jim Kirk, a veteran journalist and former editor and publisher of The Chicago Sun-Times, as its next editor in chief on Monday, according to two company officials.

more at Mediagazer »

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

Scoop: Trump team considers nationalizing 5G network — Trump national security officials are considering an unprecedented federal takeover of a portion of the nation's mobile network to guard against China, according to sensitive documents obtained by Axios.

Discussion: CNBC and Mashable, more at Techmeme »

Marlow Stern / The Daily Beast:

Hillary Clinton Roasts Trump at the Grammys by Narrating ‘Fire and Fury’ … Save the white roses artists wore in support of the Time's Up movement, a vague Kesha-introducing speech by Janelle Monae about the scourge of inequality women face (that somehow failed to mention the alleged cycle …

Discussion: Politico, Breitbart and One America News Network

Fox News:

Joy Villa turns heads with pro-life outfit at the Grammys — NEW YORK CITY - Joy Villa turned up at the 60th Grammy Awards in a dress meant to make a statement. The singer wore a white wedding dress that she hand-painted with the image of a fetus surrounded by a rainbow paired with a purse that read “choose life.”

Discussion: IJR, The Daily Caller, TheBlaze, Mediaite and AOL

Maggie Severns / Politico:

Kochs find areas of agreement with Trump — INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — The powerful political network helmed by brothers Charles and David Koch appears to be settling into a steady — if uneasy — working relationship with the Trump White House. — Koch officials were quick to praise …

James Hohmann / Washington Post: How the Koch network learned to thrive in the Trump era

Katie Glueck / McClatchy Washington Bureau:
Koch-aligned group already prepping for next Supreme Court fight

Discussion: The Daily Caller and The Liberty Review

Ros Krasny / Bloomberg:

Trump Says Ice Caps ‘Setting Records’ as He Mulls Climate Accord — Any return to Paris agreement has to be ‘a good deal’ for U.S. — President casts doubt on climate change in ITV interview — Donald Trump cast doubt on the science of climate change even while saying he'd be open …

Discussion: Politicus USA

Andrew MacAskill / Reuters:

I tweet from bed sometimes, Trump says — LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump, who has garnered a large following on social media with rambunctious postings, said he sometimes tweets from bed, though he occasionally allows others to post his words.

Discussion: The Week

Gregory Katz / Associated Press:
Trump: I would be ‘tougher’ in Brexit talks than UK's May

Discussion: The Daily Beast

David Nakamura / Washington Post:

Lawmakers call on Trump to drop bid for legal immigration cuts — Lawmakers in both parties said Sunday that the immigration debate should focus narrowly on efforts to legalize young immigrants known as “dreamers” and beef up border security, suggesting that President Trump's demands …

Reuters:
Democratic senator criticizes Pelosi's immigration comment

Discussion: TheBlaze

Franklin Foer / The Atlantic:

The Plot Against America — I. The Wisdom of Friends — The clinic permitted Paul Manafort one 10-minute call each day. And each day, he would use it to ring his wife from Arizona, his voice often soaked in tears. “Apparently he sobs daily,” his daughter Andrea, then 29, texted a friend.

Discussion: Politico and Lawyers, Guns & Money

Kira Davis / RedState:

Gonzo Street Artist Challenges Grammys Hypocrisy With Racy Posters — WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGES NSFW (images are censored but still contain material that may be offensive to some readers) — Conservative street artist Sabo is known for his gonzo artwork that typically takes aim at Hollywood hypocrisy.

Discussion: Hollywood Reporter, IJR and The Daily Caller

miamiherald:

Rubio fires chief of staff for improper relations with lower level employees — WASHINGTON — Senator Marco Rubio fired his chief of staff on Saturday night after determining his top staffer engaged in inappropriate behavior with subordinates. — Rubio said Clint Reed …

Discussion: Vox, U.S. Senator for Florida … and Politico

Julia Manchester / The Hill:

Kerry jokes he wants to see Trump's ‘girth certificate’ — joked that he wanted to see President Trump — 's “girth certificate,” a reference to the president's weight, during a speech at the annual Alfalfa Club dinner in Washington, D.C. — “Despite the pressure he's under …

Discussion: RedState, Axios, Breitbart, IJR and The Week

Albert R. Hunt / Bloomberg:

Republicans Aim to Stop a Democratic Wave Right Here — Western Pennsylvania was Trump country in 2016. A March special congressional election will test whether it still is. — Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, whose population peaked about the time native son Perry Como left in the 1930s, is Trump country.

Discussion: New York Magazine