Top Items:
Fareed Zakaria / Washington Post:
Zelensky planned to announce Trump's ‘quo’ on my show. Here's what happened. — The phrase “quid pro quo” is usually translated as “something for something.” In the case of President Trump's communications with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, it appears that the “quo” …
Discussion:
Daily Kos, Talking Points Memo and Slate
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Washington Post:
Besieged on all sides, Gordon Sondland clings to power — When confronted with the whiff of scandal, American diplomats are often advised to resign if they believe they can no longer be effective in the job. — But for Gordon Sondland, the embattled U.S. ambassador to the European Union, quitting is not in the cards.
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Axios, Raw Story, Reuters and Mediaite
Daniel Lippman / Politico:
‘He does nothing without a quid pro quo’ — President Donald Trump has always viewed life through the prism of his next real estate deal, betting he can just bulldoze opponents into giving him what he wants. But Washington doesn't work that way. — Now, as he battles an impeachment inquiry …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Washington Post and Raw Story
CNN:
Russian spies likely intercepted ambassador's cell phone call with Trump
Russian spies likely intercepted ambassador's cell phone call with Trump
Discussion:
Fort Smith/Fayetteville News, fox13now.com, The Mahablog, The Guardian and Hot Air
Anne Gearan / Washington Post:
State Department official who overheard Trump phone call on Ukraine has experience speaking his mind
State Department official who overheard Trump phone call on Ukraine has experience speaking his mind
Discussion:
Occupy Democrats and Shareblue Media
Elise Viebeck / Washington Post:
For Trump, Yovanovitch's testimony brings moment of reckoning on gender
For Trump, Yovanovitch's testimony brings moment of reckoning on gender
Discussion:
Redstate, Townhall, CNN, Associated Press, Outside the Beltway and The Week
Bloomberg:
Giuliani Faces U.S. Probe on Campaign Finance, Lobbying Breaches — Probe of lawyer presents a threat to Trump's presidency — Giuliani has become a central figure in impeachment inquiry — Rudy Giuliani, President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, is being investigated …
Discussion:
The Guardian, The Week, Raw Story, The Hill, Sara A. Carter, HuffPost, Mediaite, New York Post, Shareblue Media, Law & Crime, Hullabaloo, Talking Points Memo and Political Wire
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The Daily Beast:
Exclusive: Giuliani Ally Pete Sessions Was Eyed for Top Slot in Ukraine — Pete Sessions received millions from Giuliani's indicted cronies. He joined Rudy in speaking out against the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. He was even considered as her replacement.
Kyle Cheney / Politico:
Yovanovitch: Trump-backed ‘campaign of disinformation’ weakened national security
Yovanovitch: Trump-backed ‘campaign of disinformation’ weakened national security
Discussion:
NBC News, CNN, Washington Post, Shareblue Media, New York Times and New York Magazine
Justin Baragona / The Daily Beast:
Hannity Predicts Marie Yovanovitch Will Cry ‘on Cue’ at Hearing
Hannity Predicts Marie Yovanovitch Will Cry ‘on Cue’ at Hearing
Discussion:
Politico, CNN and Contemptor
Nicole Gaouette / CNN:
Trump hikes price tag for US forces in Korea almost 500% as Seoul questions alliance — Washington (CNN)Secretary of Defense Mark Esper landed in South Korea on Thursday to navigate renewed threats from an “enraged” North Korea and newly heightened strain in the alliance with Seoul that congressional aides …
Discussion:
Mother Jones
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Kim Tong-hyung / Associated Press:
N. Korea calls Biden a ‘rabid dog’ for insulting its dignity
N. Korea calls Biden a ‘rabid dog’ for insulting its dignity
Discussion:
KCNA Watch, Washington Post, Axios, ABC News and One America News Network
Jack Kim / Reuters:
North Korea calls U.S. candidate Biden a ‘rabid dog’ nearing death
North Korea calls U.S. candidate Biden a ‘rabid dog’ nearing death
Discussion:
Political Wire, The Hill and Contemptor
Erica Werner / Washington Post:
Career White House budget official expected to break ranks, testify in impeachment inquiry — Mark Sandy would be the first Office of Management and Budget official to appear after a series of political appointees defied congressional subpoenas — A longtime career employee at the White House Office …
Discussion:
Politico, NBC News, Balloon Juice, The Hill, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, CNN, The Week and Axios
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CNN:
Trump talks Russia probe audit with attorney general and White House counsel in Oval Office meeting — (CNN)President Donald Trump met with Attorney General William Barr and White House counsel Pat Cipollone in an Oval Office meeting Thursday afternoon in which the so-called Horowitz report came …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and The Week
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Washington Post:
Justice Dept. watchdog won't let witnesses give written feedback on report about FBI's Russia probe, sparking fears of inaccuracy — The Justice Department Inspector General's office has told witnesses who are set to review draft sections of its long-awaited report on the FBI investigation …
Discussion:
Redstate, The Gateway Pundit and The Last Refuge
The Daily Beast:
The Conspiracy Theory So Far Out There Even Trump's Biggest Defenders Are Walking Away From It — When President Donald Trump brought up the word “Crowdstrike” on his now-infamous July 25 phone call with Ukraine's president, he caused some head-scratching in Kyiv.
Wall Street Journal:
How Google Interferes With Its Search Algorithms and Changes Your Results — The internet giant uses blacklists, algorithm tweaks and an army of contractors to shape what you see — Every minute, an estimated 3.8 million queries are typed into Google, prompting its algorithms to spit …
Discussion:
Twitchy
Washington Post:
Trump's Washington hotel has fallen behind competitors, with rooms running nearly half empty, marketing materials show — President Trump's Washington hotel has fallen well behind competing properties despite continuing to charge among the highest rates in the city, according …
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Shane Goldmacher / New York Times:
Bloomberg Will Spend $100 Million on Anti-Trump Online Ad Blitz — Ahead of a possible 2020 bid of his own, the billionaire and former mayor of New York City is dipping into his fortune to target President Trump with digital ads. — Michael R. Bloomberg still has not declared whether he is running for president in 2020.
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Steve Peoples / Associated Press:
Bloomberg pouring $100M in anti-Trump ad campaign
Bloomberg pouring $100M in anti-Trump ad campaign
Discussion:
Washington Post
Chris Kahn / Reuters:
Reuters/Ipsos poll: 3% support Bloomberg for Democratic nomination
Reuters/Ipsos poll: 3% support Bloomberg for Democratic nomination
Discussion:
The Hill
Jamelle Bouie / New York Times:
Stephen Miller's Sinister Syllabus — Leaked emails from 2015 and 2016 show one of Trump's top advisers trying to teach Breitbart editors a thing or two about white nationalism. — Somewhat lost in the frenzy over impeachment this week was a report from the Southern Poverty Law Center on Stephen Miller …
Discussion:
HuffPost, Washington Monthly and Washington Post
RELATED:
Katie Rogers / New York Times:
Emails Outline Anti-Immigration Group's Connection to Stephen Miller
Emails Outline Anti-Immigration Group's Connection to Stephen Miller
Discussion:
Inquirer.com, National Review and Daily Kos
Laurel Wamsley / NPR:
3 Indiana Judges Suspended After White Castle Brawl That Left 2 Of Them Wounded — Back in May, three Indiana judges got into a fight. It was the crescendo of an incident brimming with colorful details: a gaggle of judges drinking the night before a judicial conference …
Ian Mohr / Page Six:
Donald Trump Jr.'s book sales may have been boosted by bulk buys — Donald Trump Jr.'s new book hit No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list this week — “but with a big caveat,” book insiders noted. — The tome, “Triggered: How the Left Thrives on Hate and Wants To Silence Us,” shot to the top of the Times' nonfiction list.
Discussion:
The Guardian, Boing Boing and Raw Story
Ryan Grim / The Intercept:
Pete Buttigieg Touted 3 Major Supporters of his Douglass Plan for Black America. They Were “Alarmed” When They Saw It. — Pete Buttigieg has showed remarkable staying power in the Democratic presidential primary, with the most recent Monmouth University poll coming out of Iowa showing …
Discussion:
National Review, The Miscellanies, Slate, Politico, Eschaton and CNN
Molly O'Toole / Los Angeles Times:
Asylum officers rebel against Trump policies they say are immoral and illegal — It only took Doug Stephens two days to decide: He wasn't going to implement President Trump's latest policy to restrict immigration, known as Remain in Mexico. The asylum officer wouldn't interview …
Discussion:
BORDER/LINES
RealClearInvestigations:
The Brennan Dossier: All About a Prime Mover of Russiagate — In the waning days of the Obama administration, the U.S. intelligence community produced a report saying Russian President Vladimir Putin had tried to swing the 2016 election to Donald Trump. — The January 2017 report …
Gabriel Sherman / Vanity Fair:
“George Gets All His Power From You”: Kellyanne Caught in West Wing Cross Fire as George Goes Full Resistance — Trump complains, and Jared wants her out, as George Conway fires fierce salvos at the president and parties with Kathy Griffin and Paul Krugman. But he still loves Kellyanne, sources say.
Discussion:
Townhall, Mediaite, Axios and George Conway discusses …
Reed Richardson / Mediaite:
House Ethics Committee Releases Emails Showing Rep. Rashida Tlaib Soliciting Campaign Funds for Personal Use — The House Committee on Ethics Investigation released large batch of emails as part of its ongoing probe of Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) into whether she misused campaign funds to personal purposes.
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Wall Street Journal:
Deval Patrick Launches Campaign Without Once-Strong Obama Ties — Due to late entry into the presidential race, many potential donors and advisers have already committed to other candidates — WASHINGTON—Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick was seen as a natural pick …
Matthew Brown / Associated Press:
Court rules Trump EPA unlawfully ignored dangerous chemicals — BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The Trump administration unlawfully excluded millions of tons of some of the most dangerous materials in public use from a safety review, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.
Discussion:
The Hill
Washington Post:
White House and Pentagon prepare for Trump to issue pardons in war-crimes cases, officials say — President Trump is expected to intervene in three military justice cases involving service members charged with war crimes any day, issuing pardons or otherwise clearing them of wrongdoing …
Washington Post:
The Policies — BLAME GAME: President Trump has so far failed to follow through on his vow to secure tougher gun laws in the wake of this summer's mass shootings that killed dozens. The latest rationale from Republicans: The House's impeachment inquiry makes it impossible.
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Judge slams feds over murky stance on McCabe — A federal judge excoriated Justice Department officials Thursday for their handling of potential criminal charges against former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, saying the continued uncertainty over the prosecution was unfair to McCabe and the public.
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit