memeorandum: China says pace of Xinjiang ‘education’ will slow, but defends camps (Ben Blanchard/Reuters)

8:00 AM ET, January 7, 2019

Top Items:

EXCLUSIVE: Yorktown Elitist and Bronx Hoaxer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Went by “Sandy” Well into College at Boston U (VIDEO) — Congresswoman and Democrat-Socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez grew up and attended school in affluent Westchester, New York but likes to pretend like she grew up in the Bronx.

Anderson Cooper / CBS News:

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: The rookie congresswoman challenging the Democratic establishment — The youngest woman ever elected to Congress tells 60 Minutes she thinks President Trump is racist and responds to criticisms she could be pushing the Democratic Party too far to the left

Discussion: Althouse, Louder With Crowder, Mother Jones and Mashable

Eliza Relman / INSIDER:

THE TRUTH ABOUT ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ: The inside story of how, in just one year, Sandy the bartender became a lawmaker who triggers both parties — Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was a bartender when she pulled together a scrappy populist campaign for US Congress and stunned the political world …

Discussion: The Atlantic

Kolbe Nelson / CBS News:
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says “no question” Trump is a racist in 60 Minutes interview

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit, twitchy.com and The Daily Caller

Theresa Braine / New York Daily News: She went there — Ocasio-Cortez calls Trump a racist on ‘60 Minutes’

New York Times:

Biden Sees Himself as Democrats' Best Hope in 2020, Allies Say — WASHINGTON — Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. is in the final stages of deciding whether to run for president and has told allies he is skeptical the other Democrats eyeing the White House can defeat President Trump …

Discussion: The American Conservative and Axios

Politico:

POLITICO Playbook: Is this the dark before the light? — DRIVING THE DAY — SHUTDOWN ... DAY 17 ... The one positive element our sources took out of yesterday's meeting at the White House is that this government funding stalemate needs to get much worse before it gets solved, and that is what began happening yesterday.

Discussion: Political Wire and Associated Press

Washington Post:

As shutdown drags on, Trump officials make new demands, seek novel ways to cope with its impacts — Trump administration officials began taking extraordinary steps to contain the fallout from the partial federal government shutdown Sunday, as the budget impasse between the president …

Discussion: The Week

Juliet Eilperin / Washington Post:
Park Service takes ‘extraordinary step’ of dipping into entrance fees to bolster operations at popular sites

Discussion: Splinter, NPR, East Bay Times, Gizmodo, Talking Points Memo, Townhall, KTLA, CNN, Roll Call and Axios

Stephen Battaglio / Los Angeles Times:

Susan Zirinsky will replace David Rhodes as CBS News president, becoming first woman to lead division — Longtime producer Susan Zirinsky is replacing CBS News President David Rhodes in March, becoming the first woman to lead the storied division in the network's history.

Discussion: The Week and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »

Brian Steinberg / Variety: Susan Zirinsky Replaces David Rhodes as CBS News President

Patpicha Tanakasempipat / Reuters:

Saudi teen barricades herself in Thai hotel to stop being returned to family — Patpicha Tanakasempipat, Ghaida Ghantous — BANGKOK/DUBAI (Reuters) - An 18-year-old Saudi woman fleeing her family barricaded herself inside a Thai airport hotel on Monday, refusing to allow immigration officials …

Guy Faulconbridge / Reuters:

WikiLeaks tells reporters 140 things not to say about Julian Assange — LONDON (Reuters) - WikiLeaks on Sunday advised journalists not to report 140 different “false and defamatory” statements about its founder Julian Assange, who has been holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London since June 2012.

Rukmini Callimachi / New York Times:

American ISIS Member Caught on Syrian Battlefield, Militia Says — A 34-year-old man from Houston who is said to have sent a résumé and cover letter seeking a job with the Islamic State has been seized on a battlefield in Syria, an American-backed militia fighting the militants said Sunday.

Discussion: sdf-press.com/en, Splinter, Washington Post, Task & Purpose, NPR and Mediaite

New York Times:
Bolton Puts Conditions on Syria Withdrawal, Suggesting a Delay of Months or Years

Discussion: Raw Story, The American Conservative and Vox

Cleve R. Wootson Jr / Washington Post:

‘I been eatin like a boss’: Federal prisoners served steak by unpaid guards during shutdown — With the federal government shutdown solidly into its third week, there is no shortage of hypocritical or ironic or just plain sad moments to further enrage apoplectic taxpayers:

Discussion: NBC News

New York Times:

Posing as Prohibitionists, 2nd Effort Used Online Fakery in Alabama Race — The “Dry Alabama” Facebook page, illustrated with stark images of car wrecks and videos of families ruined by drink, had a blunt message: Alcohol is the devil's work, and the state should ban it entirely.

Discussion: Washington Post

Adam Cancryn / Politico:

House Democrats prepare fusillade of Trump investigations — Democrats want to investigate the Trump Hotel deal and President Donald Trump's taxes. They want to haul up conflicted Cabinet officials and dig into controversial changes to the census and food stamps.

Discussion: Raw Story

Charles Sykes / The Bulwark:

What Romney Exposed About Late-Stage Trumpism — For some reason, Trump supporters get angry when critics discuss the president's character. — Last week's op-ed from Mitt Romney was interesting not just for what it was, but for what the response to it revealed.

Discussion: Real Clear Politics, LewRockwell and USA Today

John F. Harris / Politico:

Jerry Brown's Midnight in America — SACRAMENTO—Nearly a half-century on the national stage surely entitles a leader to some valedictory words, and if Jerry Brown were a conventional politician one could easily imagine what those words might be: — Though the sun is setting …

Alex Isenstadt / Politico:

Trump campaign moves to stave off mayhem at 2020 convention — President Donald Trump is tightening his iron grip on the Republican Party, launching an elaborate effort to stamp out any vestiges of GOP opposition that might embarrass him at the 2020 Republican convention.

Byron York / Washington Examiner:

What, precisely, do Democrats want to impeach Trump for? — Newly sworn-in Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib electrified progressives with her passionate declaration that she and her colleagues will “ impeach the motherfucker” — the “motherfucker,” of course, being President Trump.

Karol Markowicz / New York Post:

No, it's not sexist to call Elizabeth Warren ‘unlikable’ — In 2020, all women will be likable. They have to be, since the charge of “unlikable” is now, yes, sexist. — A recent Politico article wondered whether Sen. Liz Warren's newly announced 2020 bid was going to remind people …

Discussion: Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, The Daily Caller and Daily Kos

Ian Sample / The Guardian:

‘Sonic attack’ on US embassy in Havana could have been crickets, say scientists — Noise which saw diplomats complaining of headaches and nausea could be song of Indies short-tailed cricket — The US embassy in Havana more than halved its staff in 2017 when diplomats complained of headaches …

Discussion: The Week and Gizmodo

Bloomberg:

When Mueller Issues Report, Trump May Try to Suppress Some of It — White House options include assertion of executive privilege — Democrats in Congress will demand public airing of the report — The White House may try to block portions of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's final report …

David Tweed / Bloomberg:

These Are the 10 Biggest Risks in the World, According to Eurasia Group — The global geopolitical environment is at its most dangerous in decades, according to Eurasia Group, the consultancy founded by Ian Bremmer. Here is a look at Eurasia's top predictions for risks that could impact the world in 2019.

Discussion: Axios and Raw Story

Carla Marinucci / Politico:

‘More aggressive and in your face’: Newsom takes power in California — SAN FRANCISCO — Gavin Newsom sweeps into the California governor's mansion Monday hinting that he'll take a more confrontational posture toward Donald Trump in Washington, but his biggest challenge may be dealing …

Brian Ellsworth / Reuters:

Former Venezuela Supreme Court judge flees to U.S., denounces Maduro — CARACAS (Reuters) - Former Venezuelan Supreme Court Justice Christian Zerpa has fled to the United States to protest President Nicolas Maduro's second term that will begin with his inauguration this week …

Deadline:

Golden Globes Security Ramped Up After European Terror Attacks — EXCLUSIVE: The sun is out for today's Golden Globes but so is the bomb squad and more security than ever before. — In the wake of last month's gunman attack at a Christmas market in Strasbourg, France and the New Year's Eve knifing rampage …

Discussion: Breitbart