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.
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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, The Week, Raw Story, AOL, 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
Salena Zito / New York Post:
Why Trump's supporters won't care about Cohen and Manafort's convictions — ZANESVILLE, OH — Last week, a woman in her mid-40s who lives in a tidy suburban enclave just outside of Columbus, Ohio, summed up her continued support for President Donald Trump despite his morals …
Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Trump declares ‘market would crash’ if Democrats impeached him — President Trump, in an exclusive interview with Fox News' Ainsley Earhardt, warned that the “market would crash” if he's ever impeached while questioning why Democrats would even consider that course in the future.
Discussion:
Daily Kos, No More Mister Nice Blog and AOL
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, Deadline, The Ringer, The Western Journal, The Week, HuffPost, The Daily Banter, CNN, Daily Kos, VICE News, CNBC, Roll Call, The Daily Caller and Washington Times, more at Mediagazer »
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, Washington Post, Daily Wire and CNN
Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
Lanny Davis: Michael Cohen Never Went To Prague As Steele Dossier Claims
Lanny Davis: Michael Cohen Never Went To Prague As Steele Dossier Claims
Discussion:
The Last Refuge, The Gateway Pundit, ABC News and Vox
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:
Shareblue Media, Fox News Insider, TheBlaze and Joe.My.God.
Associated Press:
The Latest: Trump says impeachment would cause economic dive
The Latest: Trump says impeachment would cause economic dive
Discussion:
Washington Post
Gabriel Malor / Washington Examiner:
Here's are the actual campaign finance crimes Cohen admitted to, and just what it means for Trump legally
Here's are the actual campaign finance crimes Cohen admitted to, and just what it means for Trump legally
Discussion:
CNN
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:
Politico, Joe.My.God., Talking Points Memo and The Hill
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
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, CNBC, emptywheel and Reuters, more at Mediagazer »
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:
Reuters, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, Joe.My.God., VICE News, 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, MSNBC, The Hill and POLITICUSUSA
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, Raw Story and TheBlaze
Matt Zapotosky / Washington Post:
Lone holdout on Manafort jury blocked conviction on all counts, juror says
Lone holdout on Manafort jury blocked conviction on all counts, juror says
Discussion:
The Atlantic, Political Wire and The Week
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
Derek Hawkins / Washington Post:
The Cybersecurity 202: DNC says hack attempt on its voter database was a false alarm — THE KEY — The Democratic National Committee says the attempted hack on its voter database was actually a “simulated phishing test” — and not actually the work of bad actors trying to crack into its networks.
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Joe Uchill / Axios:
Feared DNC hack was actually a security test
Feared DNC hack was actually a security test
Discussion:
CNN, New York Times, twitchy.com and HuffPost
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, The Right Scoop, Joe.My.God., The Daily Beast, TVNewser, Raw Story, Daily Wire, Contemptor and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
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
John Sides / Washington Post:
A new poll shows 5 big challenges facing the Republicans in November — With the midterm election less than a month away, there is considerable agreement among forecasters on the Democrats' chances of regaining a House majority: 73 percent (538), 70 percent (The Economist), 67 percent …
Discussion:
Political Wire and FiveThirtyEight
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The Hill:
Impeachment debate moves to center of midterm fight — Impeachment has moved to the center of the midterm debate following the remarkable assertion from Michael Cohen that President Trump — orchestrated illegal hush-money payments through his former personal attorney to silence two women ahead of the 2016 elections.
Discussion:
Breitbart, National Review and Associated Press
RELATED:
Politico:
With House majority at stake, Dems don't want to talk about impeaching Trump
With House majority at stake, Dems don't want to talk about impeaching Trump
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Contemptor
Adam Liptak / New York Times:
When Is an Offense Impeachable? Look to the Framers for the Answer
When Is an Offense Impeachable? Look to the Framers for the Answer
Discussion:
Power Line, Washington Post, BloombergQuint, The Week and Salon
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:
Media Matters for America, New York Times, CNN, Vox, ABC News, The Daily Banter and Althouse
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
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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
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
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Alex Amend / Southern Poverty Law Center:
Suspect who fatally stabbed black man in Pennsylvania ‘liked’ nearly 50 racist alt-right Facebook pages — A 24-year-old man is charged with homicide in the early Sunday morning stabbing death of Dulane Cameron Jr. of Monaca, Pennsylvania. The suspect, Joden C. Rocco …
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, KWWL-TV, Washington Post, The Guardian, Associated Press, Reuters, NPR, BuzzFeed News, Axios, The Gateway Pundit, Vox, Hill Reporter, HuffPost, Fox News, Spectator USA, Law & Crime, USA Today, Splinter, New York Post, Politico, New Republic, Townhall, TheBlaze, twitchy.com, Balloon Juice, National Review, Althouse, The Gazette, CBS Baltimore, No More Mister Nice Blog, East Bay Times and Benny Arthur Johnson