Top Items:
New York Times:
White House Ukraine Expert Sought to Correct Transcript of Trump Call — Lt. Col. Alexander S. Vindman, who heard President Trump's July phone call with Ukraine's president and was alarmed, testified that he tried and failed to add key details to the rough transcript.
Discussion:
Washington Post, NBC News, emptywheel, New York Magazine, Talking Points Memo, Bloomberg, BuzzFeed News, National Review, CNN, Politico, VICE, New York Post, Breaking News USA, Outside the Beltway, Wall Street Journal, Shareblue Media, The Hill, KTLA, Washington Times, HuffPost, Suffolk University, NPR, Althouse, CANNONFIRE, The Dispatch, The Gateway Pundit, Patterico's Pontifications, POLITICUSUSA, Axios, Mediaite, Daily Kos, Mother Jones, Alternet.org, Contemptor, Raw Story, Foreign Policy and The Guardian
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Kate Brannen / Just Security:
Exclusive: White House Ignored Pentagon Warning on Ukraine Funding — As the summer wore on, and President Donald Trump would not budge on his decision to withhold almost $400 million in military aid for Ukraine, the Pentagon warned the White House: If its portion of the money wasn't released quickly …
Discussion:
NPR
Washington Post:
Firsthand account of Trump's Ukraine call puts GOP in bind, emboldens Democrats — A top National Security Council official on Tuesday delivered a firsthand account of President Trump pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rivals, putting congressional Republicans in a bind …
Discussion:
HuffPost, Slate, The Week, Patterico's Pontifications, BizPac Review, CNN, Just Security, US News, New York Daily News, ABC News, Daily Kos, Raw Story, Salon, The Hill, Axios, Hot Air, Redstate, Disrn, New York Post and VICE
Jamelle Bouie / New York Times:
Impeachment Is Not a Coup — And no matter what Trump thinks, the president does not embody the will of the people. — In his letter denouncing the impeachment investigation, Pat Cipollone accused Democrats of waging an “illegitimate” effort to “overturn the results of the 2016 election …
Discussion:
Alternet.org, Fox News, American Greatness, BuzzFeed News, CNN, Bloomberg, Occupy Democrats, Washington Post and Hot Air
Nancy Cook / Politico:
Trump aides start soaking high-priced D.C. lawyers in new business — Welcome to the legal quicksand stage of working in the Trump White House. — As the broadening impeachment investigation encroaches on the West Wing, more White House aides are grappling with the prospect …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Darragh Roche / Contemptor:
Donald Trump Jr.: Lt. Colonel Alexander Vindman Is ‘A Leftist Veteran’ — President Donald Trump's eldest son, Don Jr., has claimed without evidence that Lt. Colonel Alexander Vindman is a ‘leftist’ who is being used to discredit the President. Trump Jr. spoke to Fox & Friends on Wednesday …
Julia Ioffe / GQ:
Alexander Vindman and the Questioning of an American Jew's Patriotism — Julia Ioffe on the making of a decorated U.S. military officer, and the immigrant experience of Soviet Jews in America and abroad. — One June evening in 2013, Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency …
Discussion:
Washington Post, CNN, Task & Purpose, The Week, The Intercept, The Hill, Politico, Alternet.org, Mediaite, ABC News and Inquirer.com
Quint Forgey / Politico:
GOP lawmaker confirms Vindman's testimony on Ukraine call omissions
GOP lawmaker confirms Vindman's testimony on Ukraine call omissions
Discussion:
NBC News, New York Times and CNN
Michael Calderone / Politico:
CNN defends new contributor Sean Duffy while anchors decry his ‘anti-immigrant bigotry’
CNN defends new contributor Sean Duffy while anchors decry his ‘anti-immigrant bigotry’
Discussion:
The Bulwark, Washington Post, The Week, The Daily Beast, The Wrap, The Hill, CNN and Raw Story
NBC News:
Internal White House debate stifles release of Pence-Zelenskiy call
Internal White House debate stifles release of Pence-Zelenskiy call
Discussion:
Associated Press, Daily Kos and Breitbart
CNN:
Shouting match erupts in Vindman deposition as Democrats accuse Republicans of trying to out whistleblower
Shouting match erupts in Vindman deposition as Democrats accuse Republicans of trying to out whistleblower
Discussion:
Washington Press, Breitbart, The Week, Mediaite and New York Times
John Podhoretz / Commentary:
Vindman is a Jew, Not a Ukrainian, Mr. Duffy
Vindman is a Jew, Not a Ukrainian, Mr. Duffy
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Talking Points Memo, BizPac Review and Don Surber
Brandon Carter / NPR:
READ: Ukraine Specialist Catherine Croft's Written Testimony In Impeachment Inquiry — Catherine Croft, a State Department employee who previously worked on Ukraine issues for the National Security Council, is testifying in the House impeachment inquiry on Wednesday.
Discussion:
Raw Story and Alternet.org
RELATED:
CNN:
State Department official to testify that John Bolton warned about influence of Rudy Giuliani on Ukraine — WH weighs responses to impeachment as House vote nears — (CNN)Former national security adviser John Bolton cautioned about the influence Rudy Giuliani had on US-Ukraine policymaking during …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Politico, Daily Kos, The Guardian, The Hill, The Week and Political Wire
New York Times:
Former G.O.P. Lawmaker Pressed for Ambassador's Ouster, Diplomat Will Say — Robert Livingston, the former congressman turned lobbyist, repeatedly contacted a White House official to criticize Marie L. Yovanovitch. — WASHINGTON — Robert Livingston, the former Republican congressman turned lobbyist …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
Greg Miller / Washington Post:
Two volatile meetings at the White House have become central to the impeachment inquiry — The Ukrainian officials arrived at the White House on July 10 hoping to cement their country's relationship with the United States, solidifying support the Trump administration seemed reluctant to extend for reasons they didn't fully understand.
Discussion:
Political Wire
Kyle Cheney / Politico:
State Dept. officials to offer new details about Trump's shadow diplomacy with Ukraine
Azi Paybarah / New York Times:
Jeffrey Epstein's Autopsy ‘Points to Homicide,’ Not Suicide, Pathologist Claims — The pathologist hired by Mr. Epstein's brother said evidence suggested strangulation. The authorities disputed the claim. — A forensic pathologist hired by Jeffrey Epstein's brother claimed on Wednesday …
Discussion:
The Week
RELATED:
Melissa Leon / Fox News:
Jeffrey Epstein's autopsy more consistent with homicidal strangulation than suicide, Dr. Michael Baden reveals — The body of disgraced money man and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who was found dead in his Manhattan federal prison cell in August, bore telltale signs of homicide despite …
Discussion:
National Review, The Hill, VICE, Gothamist, Political Wire, The Daily Caller, Disrn and Sara A. Carter
NBC News:
Mulvaney was left in the dark on al-Baghdadi operation — President Trump's acting chief of staff first learned of the raid when it was already underway, raising questions about his status in the White House. — WASHINGTON — Acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney first learned …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, Alternet.org and The Week
RELATED:
Zolan Kanno-Youngs / New York Times:
White House Finds Loophole in Search for Homeland Security Secretary — Officials who lead agencies in the department and echo the president's language on immigration were initially thought to be ineligible under a federal law. — WASHINGTON — The White House has found a way to bypass …
Discussion:
Politico, CNN, The Hill, HuffPost and Political Wire
New York Times:
Rising Seas Will Erase More Cities by 2050, New Research Shows — Rising seas could affect three times more people by 2050 than previously thought, according to new research, threatening to all but erase some of the world's great coastal cities. — The authors of a paper published Tuesday developed …
Discussion:
Alternet.org, The Resurgent and Al Jazeera
RELATED:
Benjamin H. Strauss / Nature:
New elevation data triple estimates of global vulnerability to sea-level rise and coastal flooding
New elevation data triple estimates of global vulnerability to sea-level rise and coastal flooding
Discussion:
Big Think and Rolling Stone
Colin Moynihan / New York Times:
The Far-Right Group Said They Were the Victims. The Videos Showed Something Different. — The Proud Boys claimed self-defense last year when a video showed them kicking and punching black-clad protesters. But I saw footage that showed a clear aggressor — and eventually, so did jurors.
New York Times:
How the New Syria Took Shape — Russia, Turkey and Bashar al-Assad carved up northern Syria as the Americans retreated. — In just a few weeks, the American withdrawal from northern Syria dramatically reordered power in the country after eight years of civil war.
RELATED:
Anneken Tappe / CNN:
The US economy is slowing — New York (CNN Business)The US economy grew at an annualized rate of 1.9% in the third quarter, the Commerce Department announced Wednesday. — This is the preliminary reading of US gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the American economy.
RELATED:
U.S. Department of the Treasury:
Terrorist Financing Targeting Center Jointly Designates Network of Corporations, Banks, and Individuals Supporting IRGC and Hizballah — Coordinated action represents largest-ever tranche of targets designated by the United States and Gulf countries as part of the Terrorist Financing Targeting …
Asawin Suebsaeng / The Daily Beast:
Trump Wants You to Know He's Smart and Capable Enough to ‘Do Quid Pro Quo’ — Everyone should just stop saying he's too dumb or incompetent to commit crimes—he could totally pull them off if he wanted to, Trump has been complaining privately. — As Donald Trump gets dragged deeper …
Discussion:
Hullabaloo, Raw Story, The Hill and Breitbart
Associated Press:
Protests in Iraq and Lebanon pose a challenge to Iran — BAGHDAD (AP) — The day after anti-government protests erupted in Iraq, Iranian Gen. Qassim Soleimani flew into Baghdad late at night and took a helicopter to the heavily fortified Green Zone, where he surprised a group of top security officials …
Discussion:
Politico and Press Herald
New York Times:
Russia Tests New Disinformation Tactics in Africa to Expand Influence — Facebook said it removed three Russian-backed influence networks aimed at African countries. The activity by the networks suggested Russia's approach was evolving. — Russia has been testing new disinformation tactics …
Discussion:
Facebook, more at Techmeme »
Tulsi Gabbard / Wall Street Journal:
I Can Defeat Trump and the Clinton Doctrine — The U.S. will stop trying to overthrow governments and police the world. — Hillary Clinton emerged recently to claim, with no basis in fact, that I am being “groomed” by the Russian government to undermine America.
Discussion:
Washington Times, Breitbart and Althouse
Ronald Radosh / The Daily Beast:
Steve Bannon Has Become the One Thing We Never Thought He'd Be: Boring — The alt-right acid-flinger is back on the radio, trying to help re-elect the man who fired him. He thinks he's being a wit. He's half-right. — BEAST INSIDE — Steve Bannon, Donald Trump's chief strategist …
Robert P. Baird / New Yorker:
The Circus Comes to the House Impeachment Inquiry — The bipartisan hearings have become a test of how far some Republicans in Congress will go to defend Donald Trump. — Around two o'clock in the afternoon last Tuesday, Representative Matt Gaetz, the Florida Republican …
The Daily Beast:
Trump Sides With Indicted Oligarch Over His Own Diplomat — The President of the United States amplified a tweet calling one of his diplomats a liar—and, by implication, absolving a Ukrainian gas mogul of any mob ties. — President Donald Trump boosted a tweet Monday promoting …
Discussion:
NBC News
Jeff Greenfield / Politico:
When JFK Was Trump — Have we ever had a president before this one who so disdains the advice and policies of those who have spent their lives working for the government he leads? Have we ever had a chief executive who is so skeptical of the judgments of career diplomats and military leaders …