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House chaplain forced out by Ryan — House Chaplain Patrick Conroy's sudden resignation has sparked a furor on Capitol Hill, with sources in both parties saying he was pushed out by Speaker Paul Ryan — (R-Wis.). — Conroy's own resignation announcement stated that it was done at Ryan's request.
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House Chaplain Was Asked to Resign. He Still Doesn't Know Why. — The chaplain of the House said on Thursday that he was blindsided when Speaker Paul D. Ryan asked him to resign two weeks ago, a request that he complied with but was never given a reason for.
Discussion:
New York Magazine, The Week, TheBlaze and CNN


Speaker Paul Ryan forces out the House chaplain, angers lawmakers — WASHINGTON — House Speaker Paul Ryan has ousted the chaplain of the House of Representatives, according to his resignation letter — a move that's angered members of both parties who have come to the defense of the Jesuit priest.
Discussion:
AOL


Ryan dismisses House chaplain, leaving lawmakers demanding answers
Discussion:
Mother Jones and Talking Points Memo


Fox & Friends Hurriedly Shuts Down Interview as Trump Rants About Mueller — Anchors grew visibly uncomfortable as they listened to the president undermine his own legal defense. — In what is surely a first for a news network, the hosts of Donald Trump's favorite variety show, Fox & Friends …
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Here's Why Ben Sasse Voted Against the Mueller Protection Bill
Discussion:
Raw Story

In Warning to Trump, Senators Advance Bill to Protect Mueller
Discussion:
Star Tribune, POLITICUSUSA, Hot Air, Washington Monthly and Booman Tribune

Prosecutors use Trump's comments to claim Cohen docs ‘unlikely to contain’ much privileged info
Discussion:
JONATHAN TURLEY, RedState, Raw Story and HuffPost

Trump's unwieldy ‘Fox and Friends’ interview, annotated
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, Washington Press, No More Mister Nice Blog and The Mahablog

‘This thing needs to conclude’: Sessions says he understands frustrations with Mueller
Discussion:
Politico

U.S. Attorney General Sessions says Mueller probe has taken on ‘life of its own’
Discussion:
Washington Post and Political Wire

Senate Judiciary Committee passes bill to protect Mueller
Discussion:
MSNBC, AOL and Washington Post


Tom Brokaw Accused of Sexual Harassment By Former NBC Anchor (EXCLUSIVE VIDEO) — Linda Vester had a reputation for covering tough stories. As a war correspondent for NBC News in the '90s, she spent three tours of duty in the Middle East and took two assignments in Africa.
Discussion:
NBC News, Jezebel, TVNewser, IndieWire, NewsBusters, CBS Philly, Splinter, Daily Wire, Mediaite and Chicks On The Right
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NBC News faces skepticism in remedying in-house sexual harassment … NBC News Chairman Andy Lack had barely slept. Late the night before, he had walked from the art deco headquarters of NBC Universal in Midtown Manhattan to the Upper East Side to fire his most famous employee and longtime friend, “Today” show co-host Matt Lauer.
Discussion:
The Hill, RedState, The Daily Caller, AOL, Deadline, Mediaite, The Week, Mashable and twitchy.com, more at Mediagazer »


For Many, Life in Trump's Orbit Ends in a Crash Landing — WASHINGTON — Another day, another casualty. Or two. — By the time the sun set Thursday, Dr. Ronny L. Jackson was a failed cabinet nominee whose life had been picked apart for public consumption, and Michael D. Cohen was back in court facing criminal prosecution.
Discussion:
Hit & Run, Eschaton, Althouse, Common Dreams and Outside the Beltway
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Feds seized more than a dozen of Michael Cohen's phones — Manhattan federal prosecutors seized as many as 16 cell phones when the FBI raided the home, office and hotel room of President Trump's personal lawyer Michael Cohen. — Prosecutor Thomas McKay made the astonishing revelation …
Discussion:
The Root, Washington Press and Political Wire
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Attorney Michael Avenatti hints $1.6 million abortion payout was for Trump — not GOP donor — The lawyer for porn actress Stormy Daniels suggested that a $1.6 million hush money payoff to a Playboy model was actually made on behalf of President Donald Trump — and not a Republican donor.
Discussion:
Hullabaloo, Jezebel and The Root


Relative's DNA from genealogy websites cracked East Area Rapist case, DA's office says — Sacramento investigators tracked down East Area Rapist suspect Joseph James DeAngelo using genealogical websites that contained genetic information from a relative, the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office confirmed Thursday.
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How a Genealogy Site Led to the Front Door of the Golden State Killer Suspect
Discussion:
The American Conservative, Motherboard, Law & Crime and Sacramento Bee


F.B.I. Letter Casts Further Doubt on White House's Rob Porter Timeline — WASHINGTON — The F.B.I. first gave the White House counsel, Donald F. McGahn II, a file containing spousal abuse allegations against Rob Porter in March 2017, according to a detailed new timeline the bureau has given …
Discussion:
Splinter, Washington Post, AOL, The Week, Daily Kos, Talking Points Memo and Axios


Claims by Joy Reid's Cybersecurity Expert Fall Apart … MSNBC host Joy Reid claims that recently unearthed homophobic articles attributed to her are fakes. And she says a cybersecurity consultant has proof that her old blog has been hacked. — But that consultant, Jonathan Nichols, had trouble producing the promised evidence.
Discussion:
Mediaite, Contemptor, Washington Free Beacon, LGBTQ Nation, The Duran and Axios, more at Mediagazer »


Mattis Breaks With Trump, Says Iran Nuclear Deal Includes ‘Robust’ Verification — Without giving his opinion about whether the U.S. should stick with the agreement, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that after reading the deal three times he was struck by how tough it is
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‘Boss, I Miss You So Much’: The Awkward Exile of Michael Cohen — Donald Trump's self-described ‘fixer’ brooded about failing to get a White House post; now under criminal investigation, he has the president's attention — In the 15 months since Donald Trump shut him out of a White House job …
Discussion:
Jewish Telegraphic Agency, The Week, Washington Press, Splinter, Raw Story, CNBC, CNN, New York Magazine and Mediaite


Kim says he, Moon are on starting line of new Korean history — GOYANG, South Korea (AP) — With a single step over a weathered, cracked slab of concrete, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made history Friday by crossing over the world's most heavily armed border to greet South Korean President Moon Jae …
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Amid Trump's diplomatic thaw, Otto Warmbier's parents sue North Korea for having 'brutally tortured …
Discussion:
Politico, Law & Crime, New York Magazine, New York Times, The Daily Caller, One America News Network, TheBlaze, The Week, The Atlantic, Axios and HuffPost

The historic summit of the Koreas hangs on the North's nuclear intentions
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and VICE News


Cliff Huxtable Was Bill Cosby's Sickest Joke — If a sexual predator wanted to come up with a smoke screen for his ghastly conquests, he couldn't do better than Cliff Huxtable. — Cliff was affable, patient, wise, and where Mrs. Huxtable (Phylicia Rashad) was concerned, justly deferential.
Discussion:
Glamour
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A farewell to free journalism — Bloomberg, my former employer, is reportedly moving to a paywall. If that turns out to be true, I can't say I'll be surprised. — When I announced that I was leaving Bloomberg View for the Post Opinion section in February, many longtime readers gently reproached …


800,000 people are about to flee New York and California because of taxes, say economists — 800,000 people will leave New York and California over the next three years due to the new tax bill, conservative economists Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore said in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal.


Lawyer: Trump to aid raids' attorney-client privilege review — A lawyer for President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the president is ready to help recommend what materials seized from his personal attorney that relate to him should be withheld from federal investigators because of attorney-client privilege.
Discussion:
ThinkProgress and POLITICUSUSA


Bureau Of Indian Affairs Director Resigns After Just 6 Months On The Job — Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke appointed Bryan Rice to lead the bureau in October. — WASHINGTON — Bryan Rice has resigned just six months after Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke appointed him to lead the Bureau of Indian Affairs …


American Jews Have Abandoned Gaza — And The Truth — Join Peter Beinart for a Twitter conversation about this piece with the hashtag #ForwardIsraelChat on Tuesday at 5pm. — “In our time,” wrote George Orwell in 1946, “political speech and writing are largely the defense of the indefensible.”


Secretly Taped Audio Reveals Democratic Leadership Pressuring Progressive to Leave Race — Steny Hoyer, the No. 2 Democrat in the House of Representatives, has for years been a prolific campaigner on behalf of current and potential members of Congress. It was no surprise, then …
Discussion:
Vox, Breitbart, Washington Post, The Daily Caller, Townhall, Politico, Washington Free Beacon, Splinter and Common Dreams


Women Describe Invasive Strip Searches on Visits to City Jails — The practice is prohibited, but dozens of lawsuits allege a pattern of humiliating searches of women who consented only to a pat-down. — Jeannette Reynoso dreaded visiting her husband at the Rikers Island jail complex.


What Refugees Face on the World's Deadliest Migration Route — Stinging, salty waves crashed over the deck as frantic figures climbed on board. It was midnight in November, and we were 30 miles off the coast of Libya, where our small ship was quickly filling with scores of terrified …


When Misogynists Become Terrorists — Alek Minassian, who plowed a rental van through a busy Toronto sidewalk on Monday, left little doubt as to why he killed 10 people, most of them women. Minutes before his attack, he posted a message on Facebook lauding the mass murderer Elliot O. Rodger …
Discussion:
Toronto Star, Raw Story and Salon