Top Items:
Wall Street Journal:
Why Michael Cohen Agreed to Plead Guilty—And Implicate the President — Prosecutors had reams of evidence and a long list of counts, which also could have included the lawyer's wife — Michael Cohen had many reasons to play ball last weekend when his legal team sat down to talk to federal prosecutors.
Discussion:
Patterico's Pontifications, Just Security, Politico, MSNBC, electionlawblog.org, Common Dreams, Washington Free Beacon, Mediaite, The Week, Glamour and CNBC
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New York Times:
‘How Did We End Up Here?’ Trump Wonders as the White House Soldiers On — In the hours after two of President Trump's former advisers delivered his administration potentially grave legal setbacks, the mood inside the White House was grim, a return to a trench-warfare mentality borne out of muscle memory.
Discussion:
Business Insider, VICE News, Washington Post, AOL, The Week, Raw Story, KTLA, CNN and Mediaite
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Exclusive: Michael Cohen told Congress he doesn't know if Trump knew about Russia meeting — Michael Cohen told lawmakers last year, in sworn testimony, that he didn't know whether then-candidate Donald Trump had foreknowledge of the 2016 Trump Tower meeting with Russians, three sources with knowledge of Cohen's testimony tell Axios.
Discussion:
Political Wire and Raw Story
Christina Wilkie / CNBC:
Michael Cohen paid a mysterious tech company $50,000 ‘in connection with’ Trump's campaign — President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, made a previously unreported payment of $50,000 to a tech company in connection with Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.
Discussion:
USA Today, New York Post, Raw Story, Law & Crime, Mediaite and Talking Points Memo
Glenn Kessler / Washington Post:
Not just misleading. Not merely false. A lie. — The first denial that Donald Trump knew about hush-money payments to silence women came four days before he was elected president, when his spokeswoman Hope Hicks said, without hedging, “we have no knowledge of any of this.”
Discussion:
CNNMoney, TheBlaze, The Ringer, Deadline, The Western Journal, The Week, HuffPost, The Daily Banter, CNN, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, VICE News, CNBC and Roll Call, more at Mediagazer »
Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
Lanny Davis: Michael Cohen Never Went To Prague As Steele Dossier Claims — Michael Cohen's lawyer dropped a bombshell on Wednesday, saying that Cohen has not been to Prague — The Steele dossier alleges that Cohen traveled to Prague during the campaign to collude with Russians
Discussion:
The Last Refuge, The Gateway Pundit, ABC News and Vox
Michael Kruse / Politico:
'He's Unraveling': Why Cohen's Betrayal Terrifies Trump — Perhaps for the first time, an insider has bitten back—hard. — For 16 or so hours after Tuesday's double-barreled bombshell news, President Trump couldn't even publicly say Michael Cohen's name.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Commentary Magazine and Washington Post
Salena Zito / New York Post:
Why Trump's supporters won't care about Cohen and Manafort's convictions
Politico:
‘It is what it is’: Republicans shrug off Trump's legal meltdown
‘It is what it is’: Republicans shrug off Trump's legal meltdown
Discussion:
Washington Post, ABC News, The Daily Beast, Breitbart, Toronto Star, USA Today, Washington Free Beacon, ThinkProgress and Outside the Beltway
Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
Trump Tries to Deny His Crime With Cohen, Confesses by Mistake
Trump Tries to Deny His Crime With Cohen, Confesses by Mistake
Discussion:
Fox News Insider, Shareblue Media and Joe.My.God.
Gabriel Malor / Washington Examiner:
Here's are the actual campaign finance crimes Cohen admitted to, and just what it means for Trump legally
Michael Burke / The Hill:
Cohen's lawyer on Trump Tower meeting: Cohen was ‘present at a discussion with’ Trump and Trump Jr.
Cohen's lawyer on Trump Tower meeting: Cohen was ‘present at a discussion with’ Trump and Trump Jr.
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA and Washington Post
Sarah Ellison / Washington Post:
Trump campaign, tabloid publisher hatched plan to bury damaging stories, Cohen prosecutors allege
Trump campaign, tabloid publisher hatched plan to bury damaging stories, Cohen prosecutors allege
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA, CANNONFIRE, emptywheel and Reuters, more at Mediagazer »
Rick Klein / ABC News:
The Note: Words matter, even in the age of Trump
The Note: Words matter, even in the age of Trump
Discussion:
Joe.My.God. and Politico
Rosalind S. Helderman / Washington Post:
After fast turn against Trump, Michael Cohen threatens to leverage secrets against the president
After fast turn against Trump, Michael Cohen threatens to leverage secrets against the president
Discussion:
Politico, Washington Free Beacon, Axios and The Hill
David Klepper / Associated Press:
New York state subpoenas Cohen in Trump Foundation probe
New York state subpoenas Cohen in Trump Foundation probe
Discussion:
Conservative News Today, The Week, TheBlaze, CNBC, CBS Baltimore, CNN, Hill Reporter, Axios, France 24, The Daily Caller and Political Wire
Fox News:
Manafort juror reveals lone holdout prevented Mueller team from convicting on all counts — NORTHERN VIRGINIA - Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team was one holdout juror away from convicting Paul Manafort on all 18 counts of bank and tax fraud, juror Paula Duncan told Fox News in an exclusive interview Wednesday.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Joe.My.God., The Daily Caller, NewsWars, Breitbart and The Week
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Tal Axelrod / The Hill:
Manafort juror: One juror prevented jury from convicting Manafort on all 18 counts — A juror who sat on former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort — 's case said on Fox News Wednesday night that only one juror prevented a ruling on all 18 counts against Manafort
Discussion:
Politico, Shareblue Media, New York Times, JONATHAN TURLEY and BloombergQuint
Dana Blanton / Fox News:
Fox News Poll: Democrats maintain lead in race for House — Democrats are in a strong position for the midterms, according to the latest Fox News poll. — Several findings point to the potential for a blue map in November: — President Trump's job rating remains underwater.
Discussion:
Political Wire and POLITICUSUSA
Matt Zapotosky / Washington Post:
Lone holdout on Manafort jury blocked conviction on all counts, juror says — A juror in the trial of Paul Manafort said Wednesday that all but one of the jurors wanted to convict President Trump's former campaign chairman on every charge he faced — though she criticized special counsel prosecutors …
Discussion:
Political Wire, The Week and Fox News
Ken Dilanian / NBC News:
The nightmare is just beginning for Paul Manafort — Analysis: The next trial for Trump's former campaign chair will have more evidence, a longer possible sentence, and a less sympathetic judge. — WASHINGTON — Paul Manafort woke up Wednesday in a jail cell, just as he has each morning since …
Discussion:
CNN, The National Memo, MSNBC, Daily Wire and Raw Story
Eric Beech / Reuters:
Trump says he's considering pardon for Manafort: Fox News reporter
Trump says he's considering pardon for Manafort: Fox News reporter
Discussion:
Political Wire
Erica L. Green / New York Times:
Betsy DeVos Is Said to Weigh Letting School Districts Use Federal Funds to Buy Guns — WASHINGTON — Betsy DeVos, the education secretary, is considering whether to allow states to use federal funding intended to increase academic and enrichment opportunities in the country's poorest schools …
Discussion:
CNN, KTLA, Law & Crime, Guns.com, Splinter, Raw Story, Joe.My.God., The Week, New Republic, Jezebel and Chalkbeat
RealClearInvestigations:
Despite Comey Assurances, Vast Bulk of Weiner Laptop Emails Were Never Examined — When then-FBI Director James Comey announced he was closing the Hillary Clinton email investigation for a second time just days before the 2016 election, he certified to Congress that his agency had …
Discussion:
Real Clear Politics and Instapundit
Jason Clayworth / Des Moines Register:
Lawyer: Suspect in Mollie Tibbetts' slaying worked in Iowa legally. Not true, says employer — Defense lawyer accuses ‘sad and sorry Trump’ of poisoning potential jurors — A court document filed Wednesday morning states that the man accused of killing Mollie Tibbetts was working legally in Iowa …
Discussion:
Chicago Tribune, The Guardian, Associated Press, Reuters, NPR, Axios, Vox, The Gateway Pundit, Hill Reporter, HuffPost, Law & Crime, Fox News, Spectator USA, USA Today, New York Post, Townhall, Politico, New Republic, TheBlaze, twitchy.com, Balloon Juice, Althouse, The Gazette, CBS Baltimore, No More Mister Nice Blog, Splinter, East Bay Times, Washington Post and Benny Arthur Johnson
RELATED:
New York Times:
Killing of Mollie Tibbetts in Iowa Inflames Immigration Debate
Killing of Mollie Tibbetts in Iowa Inflames Immigration Debate
Discussion:
Townhall, BuzzFeed News, LifeZette, The Daily Beast and twitchy.com
Jalyn Souchek / KWWL-TV:
Aunt of Mollie Tibbetts makes statement
Aunt of Mollie Tibbetts makes statement
Discussion:
CNN, Washington Post, The National Memo, Media Matters for America, Splinter, Law & Crime, Vox, New York Times and AOL
Aaron C. Davis / Washington Post:
Trump called this White House defender ‘wonderful.’ He was fired from his previous job for alleged sexual harassment. — A conservative commentator who was lauded by President Trump this week as “wonderful” and who has argued that past sexual indiscretions should have no bearing on Trump's presidency …
Discussion:
CNNMoney, Joe.My.God., The Daily Beast, Raw Story, TVNewser, Daily Wire, Contemptor and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
Politico:
‘A new cherry put on top’: Trump scandal fallout hangs over midterms — 'Payoffs and porn stars and affairs and indictments and all this stuff doesn't Make America Great Again in the suburbs,' said one Republican consultant. — As both parties seek to make sense of the fallout …
Discussion:
Raw Story
RELATED:
Politico:
China slaps back at latest United States tariffs in trade war escalation — This story is being published for Pros as part of a content partnership with the South China Morning Post. It originally appeared on scmp.com on Aug. 23, 2018. — China slapped 25 percent tariffs …
Discussion:
One America News Network
RELATED:
Reuters:
U.S.-China trade war escalates as new tariffs kick in
U.S.-China trade war escalates as new tariffs kick in
Discussion:
Washington Post, New York Times and Bloomberg
Kinling Lo / Politico:
‘Thanks Mr Trump’: Chinese state media mocks the president
‘Thanks Mr Trump’: Chinese state media mocks the president
Discussion:
Breitbart, One America News Network, SupChina, Japan Times, South China Morning Post and Raw Story
Carrie Dann / NBC News:
Poll: Democrat O'Rourke trails Ted Cruz by just 4 percentage points in Texas — O'Rourke has 45 percent support among registered voters compared with Cruz's 49 percent; Abbott leads governor's contest by 19. — WASHINGTON — As Texas Democrats attempt to win a major statewide contest …
Discussion:
Hot Air, POLITICUSUSA, Splinter, Talking Points Memo, Axios and Political Wire
RELATED:
Steven Shepard / Politico:
Poll: Trump trails several Democratic prospects in 2020 match-up
Poll: Trump trails several Democratic prospects in 2020 match-up
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Morning Consult, Common Dreams, twitchy.com, The Week, AOL and Political Wire
Carl Hulse / New York Times:
As Bad News Piles Up, Republicans Hardly Flinch — WASHINGTON — For those wondering if the latest disclosures from the Trump legal file are finally weighty enough to cause top congressional Republicans to break from the president, the answer is no. — Twenty-four hours after President Trump …
Discussion:
The Week and No More Mister Nice Blog
Isaac Stanley-Becker / Washington Post:
Trump tweets the word ‘Africa’ for first time as president — in defense of whites in South Africa — President Trump on Wednesday night said he was directing Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to “closely study the South Africa land and farm seizures,” as well as the “killing of farmers.”
Discussion:
New York Times, Vox, ABC News, Media Matters for America, The Daily Banter and Althouse
Sara Fischer / Axios:
Teens are worried they're spending too much time on their phones — More than half (54%) of teens say they're worried that they're spending too much time with their devices, according to a new Pew Research Center report. — Why it matters: Americans, and young people in particular …
Discussion:
WTKR-TV, Engadget and Pew Research Center