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Kushner's overseas contacts raise concerns as foreign officials seek leverage … Officials in at least four countries have privately discussed ways they can manipulate Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law and senior adviser, by taking advantage of his complex business arrangements …
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Kushner loses access to top-secret intelligence — Presidential son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner has had his security clearance downgraded — a move that will prevent him from viewing many of the sensitive documents to which he once had unfettered access. — Kushner is not alone.
Discussion:
Axios, The Daily Beast, Vox, Washington Post, ABC News, RedState, Mother Jones, Talking Points Memo, Associated Press, The Guardian, New York Magazine, Raw Story, IJR, CNN, Political Wire, KTLA, Gizmodo, CNBC, Washington Press, emptywheel, Mediaite, Washington Free Beacon, Shareblue Media, Politicus USA, VICE News, FOX31 Denver, Breitbart, FOX2now.com, WGN-TV, Daily Kos and Washington Times


Scoop: Josh Raffel leaving White House — Senior communications official Josh Raffel is leaving the White House, Axios has learned. — Why it matters: Raffel, a former Hollywood PR executive, was originally brought in early last year to run communications for the Office of American Innovation …
Discussion:
Washington Post and One America News Network


Kushner security clearance is downgraded — Sources: 30-40 WH officials lack full security clearance — (CNN)Interim security clearances for White House aides, including Jared Kushner, were downgraded last week after chief of staff John Kelly stipulated new changes to how officials access …
Discussion:
Axios, ABC News, Raw Story, Washington Press and Mediaite


Scaramucci says White House morale very low, Kelly should resign
Discussion:
The Atlantic, ABC News, Politico, Raw Story and New York Times


Ben Carson's HUD, Planning Cuts, Spends $31,000 on Dining Set for His Office — WASHINGTON — Department of Housing and Urban Development officials spent $31,000 on a new dining room set for Secretary Ben Carson's office in late 2017 — just as the White House circulated its plans …
Discussion:
Joe.My.God. and Political Wire
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US official: I was demoted for rejecting Ben Carson's costly office revamp — Exclusive: Senior housing officer says she was replaced by a Trump appointee and told ‘$5,000 will not even buy a decent chair’ … A senior career official in the US Department of Housing and Urban Development …
Discussion:
Shareblue Media, Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, New York Magazine, VICE News, Raw Story and Politico


‘$5,000 will not even buy a decent chair’: HUD staffer files complaint over Ben Carson office redecoration — Washington (CNN)The former chief administrative officer for the Department of Housing and Urban Development says she was demoted in part for refusing to spend more than was legally allowed …


The Professor At The Center Of The Russia-Trump Probe Boasted To His Girlfriend In Ukraine That He Was Friends With Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov — A Ukrainian woman named Anna says Joseph Mifsud asked her to marry him in a restaurant overlooking the Kremlin.
Discussion:
Raw Story


Roger Stone's Secret Messages with WikiLeaks — On March 17, 2017, WikiLeaks tweeted that it had never communicated with Roger Stone, a longtime confidante and informal adviser to President Donald Trump. In his interview with the House Intelligence Committee last September, Stone …
Discussion:
Political Wire, Raw Story, Joe.My.God. and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
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DCCC Advised Candidates Not To Discuss Gun Control Policy Right After Vegas Shooting — The campaign organization said Democrats should focus on offering thoughts and prayers. — The morning after the Oct. 1 mass shooting in Las Vegas, a member of the Democratic Congressional Campaign …
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, Washington Free Beacon, Politico, Daily Wire and The Daily Caller
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DCCC Internal Polling Presented to Members of Congress Panned Single Payer Health Care
Discussion:
ThinkProgress


U.S. intel: Russia compromised seven states prior to 2016 election — The U.S. intelligence community developed substantial evidence that state websites or voter registration systems in seven states were compromised by Russian-backed covert operatives prior to the 2016 election …
Discussion:
Raw Story


NSA chief says Trump hasn't told him to confront Russian cyber threat — NSA chief: Need authority to stop Russian cyber threat — Washington (CNN)US Cyber Command chief Adm. Mike Rogers told lawmakers on Tuesday that he has not been granted the authority by President Donald Trump …
Discussion:
Shareblue Media, Washington Monthly, IJR, The Guardian, Political Wire, Mediaite and Talking Points Memo


Infowars one strike away from YouTube ban — Conspiracy theory outlet Infowars is one strike away from being banned from YouTube. — The channel said it received an alert from YouTube on Tuesday morning, saying Infowars received a second strike on a video about the Parkland, Fla. …
Discussion:
RedState, Axios, Gizmodo, Jezebel, Washington Press and Joe.My.God.
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David Hogg Is Fair Game for Critics
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, ThinkProgress, The Resurgent and Washington Times


Supreme Court Ruling Means Immigrants Could Continue To Be Detained Indefinitely — The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that immigrants, even those with permanent legal status and asylum seekers, do not have the right to periodic bond hearings. — It's a profound loss for those immigrants appealing …
Discussion:
New York Times, Reuters, Jezebel, New York Magazine, Washington Press, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Rewire and Shakesville
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We All Must Live With Mitch McConnell's Proudest Moment
Discussion:
KQED News, Outside the Beltway, SCOTUSblog, NBC News, The Daily Signal, New York Magazine, ThinkProgress and The Daily Caller


Sources: Carnage Could Have Been Far Worse In Florida School Massacre — PARKLAND - CBS4 News has obtained new information in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre which left 17 people dead. — An official briefed on the shooting investigation tells CBS4 News that the carnage could have been far worse.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller
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How Trump's 2020 campaign manager is connected to the Russia scandal — Parscale is linked to Cambridge Analytica, a data firm that has become a focus of the Trump-Russia investigation. — President Donald Trump has named Brad Parscale to be his 2020 campaign manager.
Discussion:
CNBC, Daily Kos, The Root, USA Today, Axios, Talking Points Memo and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
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Trump taps Brad Parscale to run his 2020 re-election campaign
Discussion:
San Antonio Current, FOX6Now.com, Media Matters for America and Washington Free Beacon

President Trump Announces 2020 Campaign Manager
Discussion:
The Last Refuge, Vox, IJR and VICE News


Shooting survivor's father admits email changes in CNN spat — Colton Haab's father acknowledges omitting some words from the email but says he didn't do it on purpose. — Last week's televised town hall on guns and school safety has led to finger-pointing by the father of a Florida school shooting survivor and CNN.
Discussion:
Raw Story and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »


A self-described sex expert says she will spill information on Trump and Russia to get out of a Thai jail … MOSCOW — A self-described sex expert whose videos highlighted the ties between one of Russia's richest men and the Kremlin has been jailed in Thailand and is calling for U.S. help …
Discussion:
New York Times

Schools are safer than they were in the 90s, and school shootings are not more common than they used to be, researchers say — The deadly school shooting this month in Parkland, Florida, has ignited national outrage and calls for action on gun reform. But while certain policies …
Discussion:
Washington Times, The Daily Signal, The Resurgent, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and Daily Wire


Texas Democrats' early voting totals should ‘shock every conservative to their core,’ Abbott email says — AUSTIN — Early voting for the March primary is more than half over, and Democrats have outpaced Republicans at the polls on each day. — Through Sunday in the 15 Texas counties …
Discussion:
Daily Kos
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How Republicans Can Win the Midterms
Discussion:
ABC News, Washington Post, National Security Action and Political Wire


Mueller moves to dismiss charges against Gates — Special Counsel Robert Mueller and his legal team has moved to drop charges that were brought last week in an expansive superseding indictment against Rick Gates. The 32-count indictment issued in the Eastern District of Virginia accused Gates of tax and bank fraud.
Discussion:
CNBC, RedState, Washington Post, Political Wire and Joe.My.God.


Far-Right Troll Chuck Johnson Tried Out for ‘Survivor.’ Here's His Audition Tape. — CBS' mistake is the world's loss. — The 36th season of “Survivor,” the reality TV show that ushered America into an era of turbo-capitalized narcissism and celebrity worship that helped get Donald Trump elected president, will premiere Wednesday.
Discussion:
thecut and Joe.My.God.


Aliens Exist … In no particular order, here is a list of things Tom DeLonge has consistently claimed to believe: UFOs are real, aliens are real and they visit us episodically, the U.S. government has known about alien life for decades, the U.S. government has been actively experimenting …


Man armed with AR-15 stops attack by neighbor in Oswego — Share Update: … OSWEGO, Ill. — A man armed with an AR-15 rifle stopped an attack by one of his neighbors and held him until police arrived. — It happened Monday at an apartment building on Harbor Drive in Oswego Township.
Discussion:
Daily Wire, Chicago Tribune, IJR, Breitbart, Washington Free Beacon, The Daily Caller and FOX2now.com


The New York Times Fired My Doppelgänger — The day before Valentine's Day, social media created a bizarro-world version of me. I have seen strange ideas about me online before, but this doppelgänger was so far from resembling me that I told friends and loved ones I didn't want to even try to rebut it.
Discussion:
Mediaite and emptywheel, more at Mediagazer »


Jennifer Lawrence, a New Light … It is nearing dinnertime as I wind through the streets of Beverly Hills, passing the storied haunts Craig's and Tower Bar on my way to the home of Jennifer Lawrence. She has offered to host, and who would turn down an invitation to hang out with this supernova?
Discussion:
Fox News, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, Washington Times, IJR and Variety


Leak: How NYT Editor James Bennet Justifies The Op-Ed Page To His Own Paper — “The world needs this from us right now.” — In December, New York Times editorial page editor James Bennet met with a group of Times employees to answer questions about his much-questioned opinion section.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Daily Wire and Vanity Fair, more at Mediagazer »

Corker decides against reelection bid, sticks with retirement — Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) will not run for reelection after reconsidering his decision last fall to retire, his chief of staff said Tuesday. — After listening to some Tennessee Republicans and GOP senators who were privately urging …


Trump's Tax Cuts in Hand, Companies Spend More on Themselves Than on Wages — President Trump promised that his tax cut would encourage companies to invest in factories, workers and wages, setting off a spending spree that would reinvigorate the American economy. — Companies have announced plans for some of those investments.
Discussion:
National Review, Mother Jones, Washington Post, The Mahablog, Daily Kos and Axios


Warriors have their plans in place for skipping White House visit — The Warriors head to Washington on Tuesday but will not visit the White House. Instead, they will take a side trip to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. President Trump uninvited them to the White House …
Discussion:
CNN, Politico, Washington Press, CBS San Francisco and KTLA