Top Items:
Washington Post:
As Jared Kushner's security clearance is delayed, White House hesitates to act on others with possible problems … White House Counsel Donald McGahn and other Trump administration officials have been so vexed by Jared Kushner's months-long inability to obtain a permanent security clearance …
Discussion:
Raw Story, Shareblue Media, Politico, Daily Kos and Mediaite
RELATED:
Elise Viebeck / Washington Post:
Second White House official departs amid abuse allegations, which he denies … A White House speechwriter resigned Friday after his former wife claimed that he was violent and emotionally abusive during their turbulent two-and-a-half-year marriage — allegations that he vehemently denied, saying she was the one who victimized him.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, New York Times, Politicus USA, bizpacreview.com, Boing Boing, The Guardian, Sputnik International, CNBC, Business Insider, ABC News, AOL, Mediaite, Mother Jones, The Root, thecut, VICE News, Axios, ThinkProgress and Vox
Washington Post:
A second White House aide has resigned amid past domestic abuse allegations, which he denies — The abrupt departure of speechwriter David Sorensen comes after his former wife claimed that he was violent and emotionally abusive during their turbulent two-and-a-half-year marriage — allegations that he vehemently denied.
Discussion:
CNN, Vox, Lawyers, Guns & Money, WPIX 11 New York, Roll Call, FOX40, Raw Story, Little Green Footballs and KTLA
CNN:
Dozens of Trump officials still lack full security clearance — Source: Kelly knew of abuse claims for months — Washington (CNN)Thirty to 40 White House officials and administration political appointees are still operating without full security clearances, including senior adviser …
Discussion:
Boing Boing
Katie Rogers / New York Times:
As Other Aides Face Trump's Ire Over Rob Porter's Departure, Hope Hicks Is Praised — WASHINGTON — In a White House populated by aides who have flamed out, lashed out or cashed out — some do all three in the same day — Hope Hicks, the administration's communications director …
Jonathan Karl / ABC News:
Sources: Chief of Staff John Kelly expressed to President Trump willingness to resign — President Donald Trump, furious over the handling of domestic abuse allegations involving one of his closest aides, has spoken to confidantes about the possibility of replacing embattled Chief of Staff John Kelly …
Discussion:
Axios, CNN, Outside the Beltway, Washington Post, Associated Press, The Root, New York Magazine, Breitbart, CNBC, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, Business Insider, Vox, BloombergQuint, Mediaite and Splinter
New York Times:
Trump Praises Top Adviser Accused of Abusing Ex-Wives — WASHINGTON — President Trump on Friday praised Rob Porter, the White House staff secretary who resigned on Wednesday amid spousal abuse allegations, saying it was a “tough time” for the disgraced former aide and noting that Mr. Porter had denied the accusations.
Washington Post:
‘Very turbulent’: Trump and White House consumed with turmoil amid abuse allegations
Discussion:
Raw Story, Politico, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, Jezebel, Vox, Splinter, VICE News, Mother Jones, Common Dreams, Balloon Juice, Daily Kos, Business Insider, Talking Points Memo and The Week
Jeremy Diamond / CNN:
Top White House official to leave West Wing to become drug czar
Discussion:
Raw Story
Thomas Gibbons-Neff / New York Times:
White House Chief of Staff Is a Longtime Defender of the Accused
Discussion:
Vox
Matthew Rosenberg / New York Times:
American Spies Paid $100,000 to Russian Who Wanted to Sell Material on Trump — BERLIN — After months of secret negotiations, a shadowy Russian bilked American spies out of $100,000 last year, promising to deliver stolen National Security Agency cyberweapons in a deal that he insisted …
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, bizpacreview.com, The Stream, Gizmodo, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, Mediaite and The Atlantic
RELATED:
James Risen / The Intercept:
U.S. Secretly Negotiated With Russians to Buy Stolen NSA Documents — and the Russians Offered Trump-Related Material, Too — The United States intelligence community has been conducting a top-secret operation to recover stolen classified U.S. government documents from Russian operatives, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
Balloon Juice
Nicholas Fandos / New York Times:
Trump Blocks Release of Memo Rebutting Republican Claims — WASHINGTON — President Trump blocked on Friday the release of a classified Democratic memo rebutting Republican claims that top federal law enforcement officials had abused their surveillance powers in spying on a former Trump campaign aide …
Discussion:
Just Security, Bloomberg, The Week, The Daily Beast, Dispatches From the …, The Hill and The Moderate Voice
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Philip Ewing / NPR:
The Russia Investigations: Democrats Try To Counterattack But Lose A Key Weapon — This week in the Russia investigations: Democrats defend Christopher Steele — for now — but lose Round 2 of memo mania; and the bosses of the spy agencies are due for a rare public appearance on Capitol Hill.
Discussion:
The Guardian
Karoun Demirjian / Washington Post:
Trump will not release Democrats' memo on FBI surveillance
Discussion:
The Week
Katie Benner / New York Times:
No. 3 Official at the Justice Department Is Stepping Down — WASHINGTON — Rachel L. Brand, the No. 3 official at the Justice Department, plans to step down after nine months on the job as the country's top law enforcement agency has been under attack by President Trump, according to two people briefed on her decision.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Raw Story, Fox News, news.walmart.com, The Capitolist, FOX40, Mother Jones, Breitbart, Vox, NPR, Mediaite, Washington Post, The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, Business Insider, New York Magazine, BuzzFeed, Above the Law, CNBC, twitchy.com, CNN, Talking Points Memo, Axios, Daily Kos, The Last Refuge, VICE News, Washington Times, Joe.My.God., The Atlantic and The Guardian
Bret Stephens / New York Times:
The Smearing of Woody Allen — Soon after Rolling Stone published a sensational — and, as it turned out, false — account of a gang rape at a University of Virginia fraternity, Richard Bradley, the editor of Worth magazine, suspected that something was amiss.
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway and Althouse
Associated Press:
Pence upstaged by 2 Koreas' efforts to warm ties — Vice President Mike Pence's efforts to keep North Korea from stealing the show at the Winter Olympics proved to be short-lived, quickly drowned out by the images of the two Koreas marching and competing together, as the South appeared …
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Oliver Darcy / CNNMoney:
Bannon: ‘Anti-patriarchy movement’ will ‘undo ten thousand years of recorded history’ — The ups and downs of the Bannon insurgency — Steve Bannon, the former White House chief strategist, is quoted in a new edition of the book “Devil's Bargain” as sharply criticizing what he terms the …
Discussion:
Political Wire and Mediaite
TMZ.com:
‘House of Cards’ Star Reg E. Cathey Dead From Cancer at 59 — ‘House of Cards’ Star — Reg E. Cathey Dead at 59 — EXCLUSIVE — Reginald E. Cathey, who had huge roles in “House of Cards” and “The Wire,” has died ... TMZ has learned. — The beloved actor passed away at his home in New York, surrounded by friends and family.
Discussion:
Variety, The Root, Q13 FOX News, FOX2now.com and Full Feed
Julian E. Zelizer / The Atlantic:
What Trump-Era Democrats Can Learn From LBJ — Last week, Robert Schenkkan's new play, The Great Society, opened at the Arena Stage in Washington. This riveting sequel to the Tony-award winning All the Way, about the Lyndon Johnson presidency, is a haunting piece of theater for liberals …
Roger Cohen / New York Times:
One Honorable American's Love of Trump — Syracuse — Shannon Kennedy, son of Jack, retired military officer, ex-stockbroker, voted twice for Barack Obama ("so poised, a really got-it-together guy") before his conversion to Donald Trump. Now he's a true believer, even if he thinks “Donald definitely needs to button it sometimes.”
Josh Feldman / Mediaite:
Fox News Host Questions Why Rubio's ‘Covering for’ Mark Warner: ‘How Deep Is the Deep State?’ — As Fox News' The Five discussed the Democratic rebuttal memo and Christopher Steele this afternoon, guest host Rachel Campos-Duffy questioned Marco Rubio's defense of a Democratic colleague.
Joel Rubin / Los Angeles Times:
L.A. federal judge rules that a key tool in Trump's immigration crackdown effort is illegal — A federal judge in Los Angeles has ruled that police departments violate the Constitution if they detain inmates at the request of immigration agents, marking the latest legal setback …
Discussion:
ImmigrationProf Blog
Laura M. Holson / New York Times:
How Joy Reid of MSNBC Became a Heroine of the Resistance — The daughter of immigrants, she spars fiercely with supporters of President Trump, both on the air and in the Twitter ether. — In early January, Joy-Ann Reid invited Pastor Mark Burns to be a guest on her MSNBC show …
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