Top Items:
NBC News:
Trump confides to friends he's concerned about impeachment — Despite public declarations that he's unconcerned, the president has told people close to him he's alarmed about the prospect of impeachment. — WASHINGTON — Despite President Donald Trump's public declaration that he isn't concerned …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Talking Points Memo, Political Wire, Raw Story and Mediaite
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Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:
A ‘loud gong’: National Enquirer's surprise deal could imperil Trump — The National Enquirer's parent company has agreed to tell prosecutors everything it knows about Donald Trump — and it might know a lot. — In a court document released Wednesday, the tabloid publisher, American Media Inc. …
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Atlantic, Hullabaloo, CNBC, Damian J. Penny, The Daily Beast, POLITICUSUSA and CNN, more at Mediagazer »
Bloomberg:
Cohen Will Talk After Mueller Probe Is Complete, Lawyer Says — Michael Cohen, the former lawyer and fixer for President Donald Trump, is willing to reveal publicly what he knows about his former client once Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation is complete and findings are released, Cohen's lawyer said Wednesday.
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA, Joe.My.God., Informed Comment, Washington Press, IJR, Reuters and New Republic
Cheyenne Haslett / ABC News:
Trump denies he ‘directed’ Michael Cohen to break the law as prosecutors contend
Trump denies he ‘directed’ Michael Cohen to break the law as prosecutors contend
New York Times:
‘His Dirty Deeds’ — Michael Cohen said President Trump led him into darkness.
‘His Dirty Deeds’ — Michael Cohen said President Trump led him into darkness.
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Daily Caller and Just Security
Hunter Walker / Yahoo News:
Rudy Giuliani says Trump's legal team wants Mueller to ‘wrap the damn thing up’
Rudy Giuliani says Trump's legal team wants Mueller to ‘wrap the damn thing up’
Discussion:
Mediaite, Mother Jones and Hit & Run
Renato Mariotti / Politico:
Did Trump Just Move a Step Closer to Unindicted Co-conspirator?
Did Trump Just Move a Step Closer to Unindicted Co-conspirator?
Discussion:
CNN, The Moderate Voice, Law & Crime, Mediaite, The Guardian, Hit & Run, Breitbart, Raw Story and The Atlantic
Howard Kurtz / Fox News:
Trump cancels White House Christmas party for the press — EXCLUSIVE - President Trump has canceled the White House holiday party for the media, making the decades-old tradition a victim of his increasingly contentious relationship with major news organizations.
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Mediaite, Dan Bongino, Joe.My.God., Sputnik International, twitchy.com, Raw Story, Political Wire and HuffPost
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Peter Nicholas / Wall Street Journal:
Mark Meadows Out of Running for White House Chief of Staff
Mark Meadows Out of Running for White House Chief of Staff
Discussion:
The Resurgent, Hot Air, Talking Points Memo, CNN and Washington Times
Erin Banco / The Daily Beast:
Get Ready for Mueller's Phase Two: The Middle East Connection — The ‘Russia investigation’ is set to go global. In court filings due to drop in 2019, prosecutors will unveil Middle Eastern countries' attempts to influence U.S. politics. — Over the past year, the indictments, convictions …
Discussion:
Raw Story
David Folkenflik / NPR:
Tribune, Tronc And Beyond: A Slur, A Secret Payout And A Looming Sale — Several months after taking control of the troubled Tribune Publishing Co. in 2016, Chicago investor Michael Ferro convened a session of corporate leaders from within his own news empire, including chief news executives …
Discussion:
Politico and Breitbart, more at Mediagazer »
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Brian Stelter / CNN:
Meet the reporters who started exposing Michael Cohen's payments two years ago
Meet the reporters who started exposing Michael Cohen's payments two years ago
Discussion:
New York Times, Mediaite and Vox
New York Times:
The Rise of Right-Wing Extremism, and How We Missed It … Listen and subscribe to our podcast from your mobile device: — Despite repeated warnings over the past two decades, federal law enforcement officials in the United States have ignored the threat of violence from far-right extremists.
CNN:
Key lawmakers seek to haul in Trump associates working with Mueller — (CNN)Now that President Donald Trump's former “fixer,” Michael Cohen, has been sentenced to prison, leaders of the House and Senate Intelligence committees are preparing to haul him back before Congress before he begins serving time.
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Veronica Stracqualursi / CNN:
Top Democrat: DOJ ‘needs to re-examine’ guidance that a sitting president shouldn't be indicted
Top Democrat: DOJ ‘needs to re-examine’ guidance that a sitting president shouldn't be indicted
Discussion:
Washington Times and Washington Free Beacon
Sam Levin / The Guardian:
'They don't care': Facebook fact-checking in disarray as journalists push to cut ties — Journalists paid to help fix Facebook's fake news problem say they have lost trust in the platform — Journalists working as fact-checkers for Facebook have pushed to end a controversial media partnership …
Discussion:
Real Clear Politics
Kyle Kondik / Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball:
Senate 2020: Republican exposure on paper, but not necessarily in practice — GOP defending a lot of turf, but much of it is dark red — KEY POINTS FROM THIS ARTICLE — Of the 34 Senate races on the ballot in 2020, Republicans already control 22 of them while Democrats hold only 12.
Courier-Journal:
Courier Journal and ProPublica to launch state government investigation — The Courier Journal and the national nonprofit news outlet ProPublica will partner in a yearlong investigation of a Kentucky state government program, the news organizations announced Wednesday.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Splinter, Mediaite, YouTube and ProPublica, more at Mediagazer »
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Lachlan Markay / The Daily Beast:
Sen. James Inhofe Bought Defense Stock Days After Pushing for Record Pentagon Spending—Then Dumped It When Asked About It — Ethics experts say the purchase underscores the moral hazard of lawmakers owning assets in areas of industry affected by legislation they are in positions to author.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, KXLF-TV, Splinter, Washington Press and Investor's Business Daily
Department of Homeland Security:
Walls Work — WE ARE BUILDING THE FIRST NEW BORDER WALL IN A DECADE. — DHS is committed to building wall and building wall quickly. We are not replacing short, outdated and ineffective wall with similar wall. Instead, under this President we are building a wall that is 30-feet high.
Marc Caputo / Politico:
‘He got screwed’: Gillum absent from indictment after DeSantis bashed him as corrupt — MIAMI — Federal authorities unveiled a 44-count, 66-page indictment Wednesday of a Tallahassee politician and a city official that involved six companies, five other players and a bank in a wide-ranging bribery …
Discussion:
Tallahassee Democrat, Washington Post, Washington Free Beacon and Florida Politics
Michael Grunwald / Politico:
Why Trump Can't Kill the Electric Car — The electric vehicle revolution, after years of hype that outpaced reality, finally seems to be taking off in the United States. The best five months for plug-in sales in American history have been the past five months.
Washington Post:
Trump and Democrats can reach a deal on the wall — if they have the spine to take it — PUT ASIDE Tuesday's Oval Office theatrics and remember this: There's a compromise within reach on the wall and immigration for President Trump and congressional Democrats — if each side has the spinal fortitude …
Chuck Ross / The Daily Caller:
Michael Flynn Judge Seeks Review Of Key FBI Notes Before Sentencing Decision — The judge presiding over the Michael Flynn case is ordering a review of key FBI documents before deciding on a sentence for the former national security adviser. — Judge Emmet Sullivan wants to review …
Discussion:
Power Line and Washington Examiner
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Wall Street Journal:
The Flynn Entrapment — A court filing shows the ugly tactics employed by James Comey's FBI.
Ben Boskovich / Esquire:
Damnit, Ted Cruz's Beard Looks Tolerable Now — His greatest political opponent has always been his face. A few weeks off the razor has changed that. — Clean-shaven, Ted Cruz might have the most upsetting face in politics. It was just about two years ago, that feels like two decades ago …
Globe and Mail:
Canadian Michael Spavor missing in China after detention of Kovrig — Michael Spavor, a Canadian whose company brings tourists and hockey players into North Korea, has gone missing in China, days after Beijing's detention of former diplomat Michael Kovrig, two sources say.
Discussion:
Yahoo News, VICE News, Toronto Star, Crisis Group and New York Times
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Dion Nissenbaum / Wall Street Journal:
U.S. to Declare Russia, China National Security Threats in Africa — Bolton speech seeks to woo continent's leaders after earlier administration stumbles — WASHINGTON—President Trump plans to reshape America's policy in Africa by challenging the continent's leaders to make a strategic choice …
Discussion:
The American Conservative
Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:
A top cardinal's sex-abuse conviction is huge news in Australia. But the media can't report it there. — The front page of Thursday's Herald Sun newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, is dominated by a single word in huge white type, all caps, on a black background: CENSORED.
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, NPR and Breitbart, more at Mediagazer »
Wall Street Journal:
Apple Plans Billion-Dollar Austin Campus in Wave of New Sites — iPhone maker says its planned Austin facility could create 15,000 jobs, would come alongside new offices in Seattle, San Diego and Culver City — Apple Inc. AAPL 0.28% plans to invest $1 billion building a new corporate campus in Austin …
Bret Stephens / New York Times:
When Anti-Zionism Tunnels Under Your House — For the people of northern Israel, anti-Zionism isn't some feckless sally in the world of ideas. — In 2002, Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary-general of Hezbollah, was said to have given a speech noting that the creation of the state of Israel …
Ceylan Yeginsu / New York Times:
Have You Experienced a Petty Crime in London? Tell Us Your Story — As the city's level of violent crime rises, help us understand how the London police are responding to minor property crimes. — A surge in violent crime in London has exacerbated a decade of service cuts under …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Spectator USA and Coffee House
Charles Dunst / The Atlantic:
Trump Moves to Deport Vietnam War Refugees — The Trump administration is resuming its efforts to deport certain protected Vietnamese immigrants who have lived in the United States for decades—many of them having fled the country during the Vietnam War. — This is the latest move …
Discussion:
New York Times, Common Dreams, POLITICUSUSA, Vox, Splinter, Lawyers, Guns & Money, National Review and Joe.My.God.
Lauren Theisen / The Concourse:
Conservative Gays Need To Shut The Fuck Up — On Tuesday, conservative rag The Federalist—a website perhaps best known for its endorsement of statutory rape and its former use of a “Black Crime” tag—published an opinion blog by a gay guy named Chad Felix Greene titled …
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, twitchy.com, Big League Politics and Out Magazine
#CelebrityNews:
President Trump's Son Says He's a Re-Gifter — Donald Trump Jr. and his girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle are getting into the holiday spirit. — “Extra” spoke to the couple at the Daily Mail TV and DailyMail.com holiday party in NYC, where they dished on their holiday plans.
Discussion:
New York Post