memeorandum: Kamala Harris kicks off 2020 campaign with rally in hometown of Oakland (CBS News)

8:45 PM ET, January 27, 2019

Top Items:

Maggie Haberman / New York Times:

Trump Thought Firing Flynn Would End ‘Russia Thing,’ Chris Christie Writes in Book — President Trump and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, believed that the “Russia thing” would end as a side effect from the firing of the national security adviser, retired Lt. Gen. Michael T. Flynn …

Discussion: Mediaite and Booman Tribune

Barbara McQuade / USA Today:

Stone indictment: Serious Russia investigation charges hint Mueller has more coming — The FBI arrested Roger Stone, longtime campaign associate of President Donald Trump. Stone is indicted for lying about the Russian investigation in the 2016 election. — Mueller clues show possibility …

Discussion: Hullabaloo

Washington Post: Trump advisers lied over and over again, Mueller says. The question is, why?

Ali Dukakis / ABC News:
Roger Stone, ahead of arraignment, won't categorically rule out cooperation agreement with special counsel

Discussion: Mother Jones, Washington Press, Raw Story, Joe.My.God., Talking Points Memo, Breitbart, Law & Crime, Bloomberg, US Liberty Wire and Mediaite

Maggie Haberman / New York Times:
Roger Stone Says Text Exchanges Cited in Indictment Were Mischaracterized

Discussion: Contemptor and AOL

Peter Zeidenberg / The Daily Beast:
No Escape for Roger Stone: Mueller's Case Is a Slam Dunk and He's Too Slimy to Get Flipped

Discussion: Daily Kos, POLITICUSUSA, Politico, ABC News, Washington Post, Raw Story, Breitbart and Hullabaloo

Dara Lind / Vox:

Trump claimed women were gagged with tape. Then Border Patrol tried to find some evidence. — An internal email, sent 2 weeks after Trump started making the claim, asked agents for “any information” about what Trump was describing. — It's become a staple of President Donald Trump's riffs …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Splinter

Molly O'Toole / Los Angeles Times:

Trump ordered 15,000 new border and immigration officers — but got thousands of vacancies instead … Two years after President Trump signed orders to hire 15,000 new border agents and immigration officers, the administration has spent tens of millions of dollars in the effort — but has thousands more vacancies than when it began.

Discussion: Mother Jones and Splinter

Anna Giaritelli / Washington Examiner:
Border Patrol struggles with flood of sick migrants

Discussion: IJR

Michael Scherer / Washington Post:

Former Starbucks chief Howard Schultz confirms interest in independent 2020 bid, as Democratic worries rise — Former Starbucks chief executive Howard Schultz said Sunday that he is preparing to launch an independent campaign for president, rebuffing growing Democratic concern that such a move would help reelect President Trump.

Discussion: Politico

Ben Geldon / CNN:
Hillary Clinton tells friends she's leaving 2020 door open

Discussion: Washington Post, The Daily Caller, Daily Wire and US Liberty Wire

Washington Post:
Run, Howard, run!

Discussion: Townhall, Daily Wire, GeekWire and The Guardian

Michael Burke / The Hill:
Clinton not ruling out running in 2020: report

Discussion: The Gateway Pundit and abc7chicago.com

BuzzFeed News Staff Council:

We demand BuzzFeed pay out earned paid time off to its recently laid-off employees. — To Jonah Peretti, Lenke Taylor, and Ben Smith: — We are the BuzzFeed News Staff Council, a group of employees appointed to open up the lines of communication between News employees and company management.

more at Mediagazer »

Wall Street Journal:

Lawmakers to Debate Border, Immigration as Next Shutdown Threat Looms — The president in an interview says he doubts lawmakers will find a resolution in coming weeks — WASHINGTON—President Trump said Sunday he doesn't believe congressional negotiators will strike a deal over border-wall funding …

CNN: Axelrod: Trump has boxed himself into a corner

Brent D. Griffiths / Politico:
Mulvaney says Trump didn't lose shutdown battle

Discussion: Axios, Breitbart and Jezebel

Kenneth P. Vogel / New York Times:

Treasury Dept. Lifts Sanctions on Russian Oligarch's Companies — The Trump administration on Sunday lifted sanctions against the business empire of Oleg V. Deripaska, one of Russia's most influential oligarchs. — Congressional Democrats had tried to block the move this month …

Discussion: Raw Story

Saleha Mohsin / Bloomberg: Trump Lifts Rusal, EN+ Sanctions as Glencore Shuffles Stake

CBS News:

Kamala Harris kicks off 2020 campaign with rally in hometown of Oakland — Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris kicked off her campaign for the presidency on Sunday with an energetic rally of thousands of supporters in her hometown of Oakland, California, framing her candidacy as an effort …

Politico:

Harris kicks off campaign by laying into Trump — The California senator tells an Oakland crowd: ‘I will lead with integrity and I will speak the truth.’ — OAKLAND, Calif. — Sen. Kamala Harris, formally launching her presidential campaign against Donald Trump with a call to end the politics of division …

Discussion: Washington Post and The Daily Beast

John Harwood / CNBC:

Americans fault Trump for chaotic government shutdown, as more believe US is ‘on the wrong track’: NBC-WSJ poll — An NBC-Wall Street Journal poll showed that by 63 percent to 28 percent , a margin greater than two to one, Americans believe the country is “off on the wrong track” rather than “headed in the right direction.”

Michael C. Bender / Wall Street Journal:
Trump's Approval Rating Steady Despite Shutdown, WSJ/NBC News Poll Says

Discussion: Law & Crime, Vox, TheStreet and New York Times

Mark Murray / NBC News:
‘Wrong track’: Public sours on nation's direction after shutdown

Discussion: Daily Wire

Eli Watkins / CNN:

Pence, Ivanka, Kushner no-show as Mattis gets standing ovation at elite DC dinner — Trump blasts Mattis: What's he done for me? — Washington (CNN)Former Defense Secretary James Mattis received a standing ovation Saturday at the annual black-tie Alfalfa Club dinner after delivering …

Discussion: Political Wire, Axios and Politico

Nabih Bulos / Los Angeles Times:

Baghdad is reemerging from 15 blood-soaked years, but the city now barely functions … For weeks now, Capt. Ghassan Ghani and his team of workers, cranes and long-bed trucks have stripped away what has been a fixture of this city since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion: the 12-foot concrete barriers …

Caleb Howe / Mediaite:

On Meet the Press, Tom Brokaw Says ‘The Hispanics Should Work Harder at Assimilation’ — On Meet the Press, venerable news anchor Tom Brokaw made what may seem a surprising statement about immigration Sunday when he argued “the Hispanics” should “work harder” at assimilation.

Karoli Kuns / Crooks and Liars:

Ginni Thomas Storms The Oval Office, Bullies Trump Because She Can — Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, is unafraid to throw her weight around, especially when it comes to crony appointments and spewing hatred. — The right-wing influence group “Groundswell” is alive, well, and thriving.

Discussion: NB Blog, Hullabaloo and The New Civil Rights Movement

Eric Morath / Wall Street Journal:

America's Hidden Workforce Returns — Disabled workers join job market at highest level in years amid low unemployment and stricter rules for claiming benefits — WYOMING, Mich.—Like many adults with disabilities, Nathan Mort has often struggled to find and hold a job.

Discussion: The Daily Caller

Washington Post:

Mixed attitudes toward investigations of Trump — Poll Questions — Q: Special Counsel Robert Mueller has been investigating possible collusion between Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and Russia, among other issues. How much confidence do you have Mueller's final report will be fair and even-handed?

Discussion: Mother Jones and Politico

Jay Reeves / Associated Press:

End Of Shutdown Still Leaves Contract Workers Hanging — BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Federal employees are turning on office lights and computers and reopening national parks and museums for the first time in weeks, but others employed by government contractors face still more uncertainty …