memeorandum: CNN's Jeffrey Toobin: ‘I regret my role’ in Hillary Clinton false equivalence (Erik Wemple/Washington Post)

5:20 PM ET, January 29, 2018

Top Items:

Carol E. Lee / NBC News:

Trump's gripes against McCabe included wife's politics, Comey's ride home — WASHINGTON — The day after President Donald Trump fired James Comey, he became so furious watching television footage of the ousted FBI director boarding a government-funded plane from Los Angeles back to Washington …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Atlantic, Axios, Business Insider, Politicus USA, Hullabaloo, Raw Story, Daily Kos, Political Wire, Mediaite and Balloon Juice

NBC News:

FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe stepping down — WASHINGTON — FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe stepped down Monday, multiple sources familiar with the matter told NBC News. — McCabe will remain on the FBI payroll until he is eligible to retire with full benefits in mid-March, the sources said.

New York Times:

Andrew McCabe Steps Down as F.B.I. Deputy Director Under Pressure — WASHINGTON — Andrew G. McCabe abruptly stepped down on Monday as the F.B.I.'s deputy director after months of withering criticism from President Trump, telling friends he felt pressure from the head of the bureau to leave, according to two people close to Mr. McCabe.

Discussion: New Republic, Axios, RedState, CNBC, Political Wire and The Daily Caller

Mollie Hemingway / The Federalist:

New Book: McCabe Initiated White House Meeting That Led To Leak — The FBI's top brass initiated conversations with a White House official that were quickly leaked to CNN, according to a new book. — Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe asked to speak privately with White House chief …

Discussion: RedState, CNBC, The Daily Signal, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit and Conservative Review

CBS News:

Andrew McCabe steps down as deputy FBI director amid pressure — FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is retiring from the FBI, CBS News' Pat Milton has confirmed. According to Milton, a source familiar with the matter confirms that McCabe was urged to step down. He is currently on leave and will official retire in March.

Discussion: Mother Jones and Shakesville

Fox News:

FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe ‘removed’ from the bureau — Top FBI official Andrew McCabe has been “removed” from his post as deputy director, Fox News is told, leaving the bureau after months of conflict-of-interest complaints from Republicans including President Trump.

Discussion: USA Today, Shareblue Media, The Gateway Pundit, TheBlaze, Business Insider and twitchy.com

CNN:
FBI Deputy Director McCabe stepping down

Discussion: ThinkProgress, The Root, bizpacreview.com, KTLA, Washington Free Beacon and Florida Politics

Alayna Treene / Axios:
FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is stepping down, effective today …

Discussion: ABC News, Politico, IJR, New York Magazine, The Daily Caller, Little Green Footballs, Raw Story and THE WARREN (HENRY) REPORT

David Leonhardt / New York Times:
An Article of Impeachment Against Donald J. Trump

Discussion: The Week

Jennifer Jacobs / Bloomberg:

On Flight to Davos, Trump Erupted Over DOJ Role in Russia Probe — President is said to be angered by Justice Department warning — Kelly reproached officials in meetings, calls last week — President Donald Trump's frustrations with the Russia investigation boiled over on Air Force …

Discussion: Axios, Raw Story and Mediaite

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 …

Susan B. Glasser / Politico:

Mark Warner: 'We've Had New Information That Raises More Questions' — Congress late last year received “extraordinarily important new documents” in its investigation of President Donald Trump and his campaign's possible collusion with the 2016 Russian election hacking …

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, IJR, Hullabaloo, Raw Story and Political Wire

Jeremy Herb / CNN:
House Intel committee could vote on Nunes memo as soon as Monday

Discussion: Fox News, Right Wing Watch, Just Security, The Hill and TheBlaze

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
THE MORNING PLUM: — The Sunday shows confirmed an alarming …

Discussion: Raw Story, Daily Kos, The Week and The Daily Caller

Spencer Ackerman / The Daily Beast:
FBI Scrambling to Get More Info on Explosive Nunes Memo Ahead of Vote to Release It

Discussion: Politico, RedState, Talking Points Memo, The Gateway Pundit and New York Post

Nicole Lafond / Talking Points Memo:
NYT: GOP Memo Reveals Rosenstein Approved Surveillance Of Carter Page

Discussion: Washington Post, ThinkProgress, Booman Tribune, Shakesville, Balloon Juice and Politico

Erik Wemple / Washington Post:

CNN's Jeffrey Toobin: ‘I regret my role’ in Hillary Clinton false equivalence … So long as President Trump continues disgracing the Oval Office, thoughtful people will probe their own role in helping him get there. — Such appeared to be the motivation behind a mea culpa issued …

Discussion: Political Wire, Mediaite and Lawyers, Guns & Money, more at Mediagazer »

David Waldstein / New York Times:

Indians Will Abandon Chief Wahoo Logo Next Year — The Cleveland Indians will stop using the Chief Wahoo logo on their uniforms beginning in 2019, according to Major League Baseball, which said the popular symbol was no longer appropriate for use on the field.

Discussion: Weekly Standard, The Hill, RedState, Mother Jones, ThinkProgress, twitchy.com, NPR, IJR, Washington Free Beacon, ProFootballTalk, Vox, Washingtonian, NESN.com, Mashable, AOL, Mediaite, myfox8.com and The Week

Cristina Marcos / The Hill:

House GOP chairman in competitive district announces retirement — (R-N.J.), the chairman of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, announced Monday that he will not seek reelection in an increasingly competitive district. — “I have worked in a bipartisan manner …

Discussion: TheBlaze and Joe.My.God.

Herb Jackson / NorthJersey.com:
Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen announces retirement from House

Discussion: RedState and IJR

Paul Heintz / News + Opinion, Seven Days:

Sanders Backs Out of Interview After Failing to Dictate Conditions — Congressman Peter Welch and Sen. Bernie Sanders at a press conference Monday morning at Burlington International Airport — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) backed out of an interview with Seven Days Monday morning …

Discussion: Political Wire and Washington Free Beacon

Tom DiChristopher / CNBC:

Exxon Mobil to invest $50 billion in US over 5 years, citing tax reform — Exxon Mobil on Monday said it plans to invest $50 billion in the United States over the next five years, saying its decision is partly due to corporate tax cuts. — The investment will go towards increasing production …

Discussion: The Week

Darren Woods / Energy Factor:
Tax and regulatory reform's economic boon

Discussion: The Daily Caller and IJR

Mark Zuckerberg:

Our next update on our 2018 focus to make sure Facebook isn't just fun but also good for your well-being and for society... We're making a series of updates to show more high quality, trusted news. Last week we made an update to show more news from sources that are broadly trusted across our community.

Discussion: Politicus USA and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Facebook:
News Feed FYI: More Local News on Facebook

Discussion: Business Insider and The Verge

Stefanie Tuder / Eater NY:

Jared Kushner Played a Role in Guy Fieri's Restaurant Closure — His company was the landlord for the Times Square grill — Turns out President Trump son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner was Guy Fieri's landlord at the now-shuttered Guy's American Kitchen & Bar …

Wall Street Journal:

Melania Trump's Military Flights Before Her Move to Washington Cost More Than $675,000 — First lady flew 21 flights in three-month period while living in New York after President Donald Trump's inauguration — First lady Melania Trump took 21 flights in a three-month period on Air Force jets …

Discussion: AOL, Raw Story, The Week, Talking Points Memo and Politicus USA

Michael O'Connell / Hollywood Reporter:

TV Ratings: 2018 Grammys Tumble From Recent Years — The CBS telecast is down a steep 21 percent from 2017 in early numbers, potentially spelling an all-time low. — Sunday's Bruno Mars-loving Grammy Awards took a steep ratings spill by the first-available metrics.

Discussion: Variety, The Daily Caller, NewsBusters and Mediaite

Dominic Patten / Deadline:
Grammy Ratings Hit All-Time Demo Low; Draws 19.8M Viewers - Update

Discussion: RedState, Conservative Review, Breitbart, bizpacreview.com and Hit & Run

Reuters:

Few U.S. adults report bonuses, raises from Republican tax law — WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two percent of U.S. adults said they had gotten a raise, bonus or other additional benefits due to the Republican tax law enacted a month ago by President Donald Trump, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday.

Discussion: ThinkProgress, New York Magazine, AOL and Daily Kos

Heather Caygle / Politico:

Oops: House issues tickets for State of the ‘Uniom’ — President Donald Trump may declare the state of the union to be strong in his address to Congress on Tuesday night. But Trump would instead tout the state of the “uniom,” according to a picture of official tickets set to be distributed to House guests.

Discussion: The Daily Beast, Mashable, Washington Times and Joe.My.God.

Rachel Aviv / New Yorker:

What Does It Mean to Die? — When Jahi McMath was declared brain-dead by the hospital, her family disagreed. Her case challenges the very nature of existence. — Before having her tonsils removed, Jahi McMath, a thirteen-year-old African-American girl from Oakland, California …

Discussion: National Review

Washington Post:

'He's not God': In the wake of porn-star allegations, most evangelicals stand by Trump … When news first broke this month about President Trump's alleged affair with porn star Stormy Daniels, it seemed the kind of story that would devastate a group of voters once known as “The Moral Majority.”

Discussion: Raw Story

Emily Stewart / Vox:

The Trump administration's surprising idea to nationalize America's 5G network, explained — Nobody thinks it's a good idea, including the FCC. — National security officials are reportedly considering a plan to nationalize the United States' next-generation 5G wireless network in an effort …

Discussion: Politico, Recode, Wall Street Journal and WPIX 11 New York, more at Techmeme »

Katie Leslie / Dallas Morning News:

Beto O'Rourke outraises Cruz again, taking in $2.4M in latest quarter — Updated at 10:50 p.m. to include the latest fundraising figures from Sen. Ted Cruz. — WASHINGTON — The Texas Democrat hoping to oust Sen. Ted Cruz is posting his largest campaign fundraising haul yet: $2.4 million.

Discussion: IJR and Weekly Standard