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Manhattan D.A. Eyes Criminal Charges Against Trump Organization — The Manhattan district attorney's office is considering pursuing criminal charges against the Trump Organization and two senior company officials in connection with Michael D. Cohen's hush money payment to an adult film actress …
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This Conspiracy Theory Should Worry Trump — When two or more people join together to break the law, as Michael Cohen says he and the president did, the penalties can be harsh. — Mr. Katyal was an acting solicitor general in the Obama administration. — President Trump needs a new defense.


AP: National Enquirer's safe held damaging Trump stories — NEW YORK (AP) — The National Enquirer kept a safe containing documents on hush money payments and other damaging stories it killed as part of its cozy relationship with Donald Trump leading up to 2016 presidential election …
Discussion:
Mediaite and twitchy.com, more at Mediagazer »
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A president who demands loyalty finds it fleeting in DC — WASHINGTON (AP) — Et tu, Michael Cohen? — Loyalty has long been a core value for President Donald Trump. But he's learning the hard way that in politics, it doesn't always last. — Cohen, the president's former personal attorney …

David Pecker Granted Immunity in Cohen Case
Discussion:
Washington Post, National Review, BuzzFeed News, New York Times, NPR, Media Matters for America, FiveThirtyEight, The Week, Vanity Fair, Daily Wire, Weekly Standard, CBS Los Angeles, Al Jazeera English, USA Today, news.avclub.com, CNBC, Mediaite, Talking Points Memo, Vox, Law & Crime, The Guardian, Hot Air, Common Dreams, POLITICUSUSA, Power Line, emptywheel, New Republic, Newsweek, TheBlaze, ThinkProgress, Shareblue Media, AOL, KTLA, Taylor Marsh, CNN, Boing Boing, WPIX 11 New York, FOX59, Joe.My.God., Politico, Political Wire and Daily Kos, more at Mediagazer »


The Conspiracy Memo Aimed at Obama Aides that Circulated in the Trump White House — The 2017 document, titled the “Echo Chamber,” accused former Obama officials of undermining the incoming Administration. — In early 2017, some of Donald Trump's advisers concluded that they faced …
Discussion:
New Republic, Politico, The Week, Contemptor, Raw Story, Mediaite and Balloon Juice


Trump's fantasy legal system — When President Trump told “Fox & Friends” that this “whole thing about flipping ... almost ought to be outlawed,” he was continuing a long habit of declaring what he thinks laws and the legal system should be, and ignoring what they are.
Discussion:
Political Wire, The Atlantic, The Week, Breitbart and Washington Post
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Trump responds to Jeff Sessions push-back: Look at 'corruption on the 'other side"
Discussion:
Breitbart and Political Wire

Republicans: Sessions gone after midterms
Discussion:
PennLive, Political Wire, Raw Story, Breitbart, New Republic, ABC News and Washington Post

Ben Sasse threatens to vote against any new AG if Trump fires Jeff Sessions
Discussion:
Townhall


I Was a Lawyer for Spiro Agnew. President Trump Should Consider Resigning — London is a retired partner for the law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison and the author of The Client Decides; he was a principal lawyer for Vice President Spiro Agnew.
Discussion:
Just Security and Raw Story
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How Russian bots used Mollie Tibbetts' death to distract from Michael Cohen and Paul Manafort
Discussion:
Conservative News Today, The Western Journal, babe and The Daily Signal

Mollie Tibbetts' Suspected Murderer Is an ‘All-American Boy’ with No Prior Record, Defense Argues
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, Daily Wire, Vox and twitchy.com


Chuck Grassley's Moment — The chairman of the Judiciary Committee is no longer Senator Bipartisan. — Senator Chuck Grassley seems out of place in Washington. He loves to eat at Perkins, the Midwest restaurant chain. But the nearest one from Washington is 60 miles away in Winchester, Virginia—too far for dinner.
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Fox News Poll: Voters split 45-46 percent on confirming Kavanaugh to supreme court
Discussion:
Raw Story and SCOTUSblog


Indicted Rep. Duncan Hunter: My wife handled my finances — (CNN)Rep. Duncan D. Hunter seemed to shift any blame onto his wife, Margaret, on Thursday for alleged campaign fund abuses, saying she was the one handling his finances. — “She was also the campaign manager …
Discussion:
MSNBC, Raw Story, Joe.My.God., Press Enterprise and KTLA
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Rep. Duncan Hunter calls indictment ‘pure politics,’ denies using campaign funds for personal expenses
Discussion:
USA Today, Splinter, CNN and Contemptor


A Lone Holdout Juror Actually Made It More Likely That Paul Manafort Will Go to Jail Even if Trump Pardons Him — On Thursday, the Washington Post reported that President Donald Trump had recently discussed with his lawyers the prospect of issuing a pardon for Paul Manafort.
Discussion:
New York Times, Washington Post, Fox News, Popular Information and Hot Air


‘Dangerous and poisoned’: Critics blast Trump for endorsing white nationalist conspiracy theory on South Africa — President Trump's promotion of a white nationalist conspiracy theory involving South Africa prompted fierce backlash there Thursday and fresh criticism in the United States …
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, USA Today, The Atlantic, One America News Network, Breitbart, HuffPost, NPR, Raw Story and The Gateway Pundit
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Trump sought his lawyers' advice weeks ago on possibility of pardoning Manafort but they counseled against it, Giuliani says — President Trump sought his lawyers' advice several weeks ago on the possibility of pardoning Manafort, Trump attorney Rudolph W. Giuliani said Thursday.
Discussion:
New Republic, Raw Story and Axios
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Second Fox News reporter leaves amid objections to network — In the Trump era, hard reporting is being crowded out by opinionated panels, current and former staffers say. — Another on-air reporter is leaving Fox News over frustrations with the direction and tone of the network …
Discussion:
TVNewser and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »


Russian trolls ‘spreading discord’ over vaccine safety online — Study discovered several accounts, now known to belong to the same Russian trolls who interfered in the US election, tweeting about vaccines — Bots and Russian trolls spread misinformation about vaccines on Twitter …
Discussion:
CNN, Washington Post, VICE News, Mashable and STAT
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Russian Trolls Used Vaccine Debate to Sow Discord, Study Finds
Discussion:
Engadget


Facebook censored my column — and I still can't find out why — At 7:55 a.m. Thursday morning, I posted a story I had written for The New York Post on both Facebook and Twitter. It was a reported piece on how people who voted for President Trump were feeling after both former Trump campaign …
Discussion:
Townhall, Washington Times, Breitbart, Power Line, NRL News Today, The Daily Caller, alicublog, No More Mister Nice Blog and twitchy.com
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Facebook Censors Articles From Salena Zito, Jenna Lynn Ellis, Saying They ‘Look Like Spam’
Discussion:
Tennessee Star and Instapundit


Tech Companies Are Gathering For A Secret Meeting To Prepare A 2018 Election Strategy — Representatives from a host of the biggest US tech companies, including Facebook and Twitter, have scheduled a private meeting for Friday to share their tactics in preparation for the 2018 midterm elections.
Discussion:
Engadget, more at Techmeme »


White House blocks bill that would protect elections — WASHINGTON — A bill that would have significantly bolstered the nation's defenses against electoral interference has been held up in the — Senate at the behest of the White House, which opposed the proposed legislation, according to congressional sources.
Discussion:
The Week, Roll Call, ThinkProgress, Vox, Axios, Shareblue Media, Shakesville, Booman Tribune, Washington Monthly and Reuters


Who Is Julia Salazar? Brooklyn State Senate Candidate's Complex Personal History and Views — It's impossible to walk around New York state Sen. Martin Dilan's north Brooklyn district without seeing his 27-year-old opponent peering out from the storefronts on Knickerbocker Avenue …
Discussion:
Jewish Telegraphic Agency


Conan O'Brien's Unrequited Fanboy Love for Robert Caro — WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Conan O'Brien, the longest tenured late-night TV host, has had them all in his 25 years on the air. Oscar winners. Hall of Famers. Bowie, Springsteen, McCartney. — But there's one person who keeps saying no …


One hates Trump. The other loves him. Two West Virginians wait for the president to come to town. — CHARLESTON, W.Va. — From the driver's seats of their county school buses, longtime friends Paul Black and Paul Cochran have an almost identical view of the struggling community where they have lived nearly all of their lives.
Discussion:
Raw Story


Two Cheers, If Not the Full Three, for Shame — Shame is an interesting and difficult topic. I touch on it at the outset of my Impromptus today. Earlier this week, four Japanese basketball players apologized for bringing “disgrace” on their country. What had they done?


Trump admin intentionally slowing FBI vetting of refugees, ex-officials say — Former officials, aid groups say the Trump admin has overloaded the FBI and other agencies with procedures that delay refugee admissions. — The FBI has dramatically slowed the pace of security reviews for refugees …