Top Items:
Aram Roston / Reuters:
Exclusive: Trump fixer Cohen says he helped Falwell handle racy photos — WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Months before evangelical leader Jerry Falwell Jr.'s game-changing presidential endorsement of Donald Trump in 2016, Falwell asked Trump fixer Michael Cohen for a personal favor, Cohen said in a recorded conversation reviewed by Reuters.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Axios, The Week, Daily Kos, Washington Times, Raw Story, ABC News and Mediaite
New York Times:
Decade in the Red: Trump Tax Figures Show Over $1 Billion in Business Losses — Newly obtained tax information reveals that from 1985 to 1994, Donald J. Trump's businesses were in far bleaker condition than was previously known. — By the time his master-of-the-universe memoir “Trump …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Mediaite, The Guardian and Vox
Juliegrace Brufke / The Hill:
House Democrats threaten salaries of Trump officials who block interviews — House Democrats are threatening the salaries of Interior, Commerce and Justice Department staff if they block ongoing committee investigations. — House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings …
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Katherine Faulders / ABC News:
White House instructs former counsel Don McGahn not to comply with congressional subpoena — The White House has instructed former White House counsel Donald McGahn not to comply with a subpoena from House Democrats for documents related to the special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation …
Kyle Cheney / Politico:
Nadler moving forward with Barr contempt vote amid DOJ talks — House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said on Tuesday that the committee is “still scheduled” to vote to hold Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress on Wednesday, amid negotiations with the Justice Department …
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA and Daily Kos
Shannon Pettypiece / Bloomberg:
Pelosi Issues Impeachment Warning as White House Escalates Fight — White House tells former counsel McGahn not to answer subpoena — Ignoring subpoenas ‘could be’ impeachable, House speaker says — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warned that the Trump administration's defiance …
Discussion:
CNBC, Axios, Political Wire and The Week
Kyra Phillips / ABC News:
Exclusive: Sarah Sanders doubles down on White House stonewalling subpoenas from Congress …
Exclusive: Sarah Sanders doubles down on White House stonewalling subpoenas from Congress …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Shareblue Media, Talking Points Memo, Mediaite, POLITICUSUSA, Daily Kos, courthousenews.com, The Week and Associated Press
Alex Pappas / Fox News:
Pelosi: Trump ‘is goading us to impeach him’
Pelosi: Trump ‘is goading us to impeach him’
Discussion:
Althouse, Breitbart, The Daily Caller and Washington Free Beacon
Kevin R. Brock / The Hill:
James Comey is in trouble and he knows it — James Comey's planet is getting noticeably warmer. Attorney General William Barr's emissions are the suspected cause. — Barr has made plain that he intends to examine carefully how and why Comey, as FBI director, decided that the bureau …
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Katelyn Polantz / CNN:
Exclusive: Mueller fought release of Comey memos to prevent Trump and others from changing stories — (CNN)Special counsel Robert Mueller's prosecutors didn't want former FBI Director James Comey's memos released because they feared that President Donald Trump and other witnesses could change …
Paul Mirengoff / Power Line:
A letter to William Barr
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
The nightmare scenario for Democrats on Trump's corruption — The administration's categorical refusal to release President Trump's tax returns heightens the difficult question Democrats face, and raises the prospect of a nightmare scenario — both in political and substantive terms.
Discussion:
Raw Story and The Guardian
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Jesse McKinley / New York Times:
N.Y. Lawmakers Move Closer to Allowing Release of Trump's State Tax Returns — As a standoff builds in Washington over the president's federal tax returns, New York's Legislature is moving quickly to allow the release of Mr. Trump's state returns. — ALBANY — As the standoff …
Discussion:
Shareblue Media, POLITICUSUSA, Political Wire, RedState, Slate, The Daily Caller, Lawyers, Guns & Money and Althouse
David Montgomery / New York Times:
Sandra Bland, It Turns Out, Filmed Traffic Stop Confrontation Herself — AUSTIN, Tex. — As Trooper Brian Encinia angrily threatened her with a stun gun from just outside her car window, Sandra Bland recorded the encounter on her cellphone, shown in a newly-released, 39-second video …
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WFAA-TV:
Sandra Bland recorded her own arrest. Watch her cellphone video from the 2015 traffic stop — The family of Sandra Bland — who died in a Waller County jail cell — is calling for a re-opening of the criminal investigation into Bland's arrest and death after seeing footage for the first time.
Discussion:
Axios, Washington Post, Fortune, NPR, New York Post, Slate, theGrio, Reason, The Guardian, TheBlaze, Shakesville, The Root, Jezebel, VICE News, WREG-TV and The Daily Caller
Kevin Baron / Defense One:
How Not to Announce a Ship Deployment — A simple press conference could have avoided 36 hours of confusion and fears of war with Iran. — This all could have been avoided with one press conference. — Line up the defense secretary, the Joint Chiefs chairman, the appropriate generals and admirals …
Discussion:
Washington Post, FDD and Breaking Defense
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CNN:
Pompeo abruptly cancels trip to Germany
Pompeo abruptly cancels trip to Germany
Discussion:
Political Wire, Common Dreams, The Hill, Shareblue Media and Mediaite
Matthew Lee / Associated Press:
US Secretary of State Pompeo makes unannounced trip to Iraq
US Secretary of State Pompeo makes unannounced trip to Iraq
Discussion:
Washington Post and Axios
Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
Putin Accomplice Mitch McConnell Says Case Closed — During the 2016 election, CIA director John Brennan informed congressional leaders that Russian intelligence was interfering in the election in an effort to help Donald Trump win. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell dismissed the conclusion, and depicted it as a frame-up.
Discussion:
Vox and Washington Monthly
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Marianne LeVine / Politico:
Durbin: McConnell ignored election security because GOP benefited from Russians
Durbin: McConnell ignored election security because GOP benefited from Russians
Discussion:
Breitbart
Washington Post:
A day after blocking House demand for Trump's tax returns, Mnuchin addressed gathering of his top fundraisers — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin addressed a group of top donors backing President Trump's reelection Tuesday evening, making an unusual political appearance at a gathering …
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, The Week, Common Dreams, Townhall and Mother Jones
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Ian Millhiser / ThinkProgress:
Trump is literally asking courts to hold that the Constitution doesn't apply to liberals
Trump is literally asking courts to hold that the Constitution doesn't apply to liberals
Discussion:
New York Times, Washington Post and The Atlantic
Timothy L. O'Brien / Bloomberg:
Why Mnuchin Doesn't Want You to See Trump's Tax Returns
Dan Merica / CNN:
Pete Buttigieg: God doesn't belong to a political party, but 'I can't imagine' God would be a Republican — Washington (CNN)South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg has made clear throughout his upstart 2020 presidential bid that he believes Democrats should embrace religion and decry those who try …
Discussion:
Raw Story and Daily Wire
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Theodore Schleifer / Vox:
How Pete Buttigieg became the new toast of Silicon Valley's wealthiest donors
Burgess Everett / Politico:
Kushner briefs senators on immigration plan — Jared Kushner briefed senators Tuesday on an immigration proposal meant to boost border security and set up a new merit-based system that would keep the number of legal immigrants coming into the U.S. at current levels, according to administration officials and lawmakers.
Discussion:
Washington Post and National Review
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Asawin Suebsaeng / The Daily Beast:
Trump Furious With Ally David Bossie Over His Reported Self-Dealing — The president even instructed top officials on his campaign to retaliate against his former deputy campaign manager. But as of Tuesday, nothing had come. — On Monday morning, Donald Trump was incensed over a report …
Adam Edelman / NBC News:
FBI chief Wray says spying didn't occur on Trump campaign, refuting AG Barr — “I don't think I personally have any evidence of that sort,” Wray said when asked if illegal surveillance had occurred on the Trump campaign. — FBI Director Chris Wray said Tuesday that he would not describe …
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The Guardian:
CIA warns Arab activist of potential threat from Saudi Arabia — Pro-democracy campaigner Iyad el-Baghdadi has been vocal critic of Saudi crown prince — The CIA has warned Norway that a prominent Arab activist who is living in the country under asylum protection is facing a potential threat …
Discussion:
Al Jazeera, Shakesville and middleeastmonitor.com
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Axios:
U.S. removes climate change references at Arctic Council, says melting sea ice will open trade — The Arctic Council ministerial in Rovaniemi, Finland ended on Tuesday without a ministerial declaration, due to U.S. objections over referencing climate change and the Paris Climate Agreement.
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Associated Press, New York Times and One America News Network
Peter Hamby / Vanity Fair:
“This Is Do-or-Die”: Joe Biden's “Electability” Argument Is How Democrats Lose Elections — When Democrats play it safe and “fall in line,” the results are devastating—as Dukakis, Gore, and Kerry made plain. If Biden wins the nomination next year, it will be because Democrats went with their heads, not their bleeding hearts.
Scott Bixby / The Daily Beast:
State Department Continues Fight to Strip Gay Couple's Two-Year-Old Son of Birthright Citizenship — The State Department has demanded that one of the couple's twin sons have a DNA test to prove he's the biological son of a U.S. citizen. — Scott Bixby — Ever since twins Aiden …
Discussion:
Splinter
Justin Duckham / Mediaite:
Anti-Jacob Wohl Protest Tied to Jacob Wohl's Email Address — Conservative activist Jack Burkman tweeted Tuesday morning that he's expecting “hundreds of leftist protestors” to gather outside an upcoming press conference he'll be holding with fellow far-right troll Jacob Wohl.
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Talking Points Memo and twitchy.com
Josh Rogin / Washington Post:
U.S. ambassador to Ukraine is recalled after becoming a political target — The Trump administration has recalled the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine abruptly and ahead of her scheduled departure, after she became a target of political attacks by conservative media outlets and Donald Trump Jr. Democrats …
Discussion:
Axios, Contemptor, Daily Kos and Bloomberg
John Solomon / The Hill:
Steele's stunning pre-FISA confession: Informant needed to air Trump dirt before election — If ever there were an admission that taints the FBI's secret warrant to surveil Donald Trump's campaign, it sat buried for more than two-and-a-half years in the files of a high-ranking State Department official.
Discussion:
The Last Refuge
New York Times:
The Court Handling Trump's Lawsuit Must Move at Breakneck Speed — The president deserves his day in court. But the American people deserve that day to come quickly. — Mr. Eggleston was White House counsel from 2014 to 2017. Mr. Geltzer was deputy legal adviser at the National Security Council in 2015.
John Gage / Washington Examiner:
Twitter suspends AOC ‘Press Release’ parody account — Twitter suspended the Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Press Release (parody) account, which poked fun at Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. — Conservative and right-wing Twitter users pointed out the account, which had tens of thousands …
Discussion:
National Review, Hot Air, NB Blog, Daily Wire, Human Events, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit, Louder With Crowder, Big League Politics and IJR
Danielle Kurtzleben / NPR:
Jill Biden Says 'It's Time To Move On' From Anita Hill Controversy — Jill Biden is accomplished in her own right — she holds two master's degrees and a doctoral degree. But then, her husband is the former vice president and a top contender for the Democratic presidential nomination for 2020.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Fox News, Daily Wire, Splinter, Politico, Mediaite, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller and New York Times