memeorandum: Pocan endorses Sanders, giving him a boost in Wisconsin (Scott Bauer/Associated Press)

8:35 AM ET, January 16, 2020

Top Items:

Lev Parnas, Key Player in Ukraine Affair, Completes Break With Trump and Giuliani — In an interview, he said the president knew everything about the effort to push Ukraine to investigate the Bidens and the 2016 election. — WASHINGTON — Lev Parnas, the Soviet-born businessman who played …

Discussion: Politico, MSNBC, The Daily Caller, Mother Jones and The Week

Politico:

Democrats release more Parnas evidence, including voicemails with Trump associates — House impeachment investigators released a new set of evidence that was obtained from Lev Parnas, an indicted former associate of President Donald Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani — including voicemails …

Discussion: The Dispatch, Talking Points Memo, Breitbart, The Hill, Letters from an American, The Daily Beast and Raw Story

Phil Helsel / NBC News:

Giuliani associate Parnas says Trump ‘knew exactly what was going on’ — The indicted associate of President Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani said in an interview that Trump “knew exactly what was going on.” — Lev Parnas tells Maddow ‘Trump knew exactly what was going on’

Discussion: Mediaite, The Week, Associated Press, The US Sun, HuffPost, CNN, Politico, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Foreign Policy and BuzzFeed News

Emily Singer / The American Independent:

Collins rejects new evidence in Trump trial after saying she'd welcome it — Collins said in December that seeing the evidence in the case was necessary to determine whether Trump should be removed from office. — Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) said on Wednesday she doesn't think newly released evidence …

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, Law & Crime, Raw Story and Mediaite

Washington Post:

GOP figure who said he tracked U.S. ambassador was previously involuntarily committed, records show — A Republican congressional candidate and former Marine who suggested last year that he was tracking a U.S. ambassador who had fallen out of favor with President Trump was once involuntarily committed …

Discussion: Politico, Vanity Fair, Slate, NBC News and Digby's Hullabaloo

Justin Baragona / The Daily Beast:

Devin Nunes Now Remembers Call With Lev Parnas — TOTAL RECALL — House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Devin Nunes (R-CA) told Fox News on Wednesday night that he now remembers speaking on the phone with Lev Parnas, an associate of Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani actively involved …

Discussion: The Daily Beast and The Week

MSNBC:

Lev Parnas tells Maddow ‘Trump knew exactly what was going on’ — Lev Parnas is breaking his silence in an exclusive interview with MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. He says, “President Trump knew exactly what was going on. He was aware of all my movements. I wouldn't do anything without the consent of Rudy Giuliani, or the President.

Discussion: National Review, Washington Examiner, Vanity Fair, UPI, ABC News and The Week

Reed Richardson / Mediaite:

Chris Cuomo, Kellyanne Conway Renew Rivalry in Epic Fight Over Impeachment: ‘You Want That Moment to Go Viral’ — CNN host Chris Cuomo and presidential spokesperson Kellyanne Conway reprised their ongoing, fractious on-air relationship in a long, rambling segment where almost no actual questions …

Discussion: Law & Crime

Justine Coleman / The Hill:

Five takeaways from Parnas's Maddow interview — Rudy Giuliani's associate Lev Parnas revealed new accusations against President Trump and his administration in an interview with MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Wednesday night. — A day after the House published evidence provided by Parnas …

Discussion: MSNBC

Christopher Miller / BuzzFeed News:

Ukraine Is Investigating Whether Marie Yovanovitch Was Under Surveillance By Rudy Giuliani's Associates — KYIV — Ukrainian authorities said Thursday they had opened a criminal investigation into whether the former US ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch was under surveillance by associates …

Rebecca Klar / The Hill:
Dem lawmaker says Nunes threatened to sue him over criticism

Discussion: Raw Story

Washington Post:
Parnas used access to Trump's world to help push shadow Ukraine effort, new documents show

Discussion: Talking Points Memo, Mother Jones and American Oversight

Lee Fang / The Intercept:
Trump Supporter Who Discussed Surveillance of Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch Has History of Stalking, Mental Health Issues

Discussion: Fox News, The CT Mirror, New York Times, Esquire, Daily Kos, East Bay Times, CNN, HillReporter.com, Raw Story and Washington Monthly

Talking Points Memo:
House Dems Release New Tranche Of Evidence From Giuliani Pal Lev Parnas

Discussion: The Hill, Raw Story and Digby's Hullabaloo

Melanie Zanona / Politico:
Republicans break with Robert Hyde, latest player in Ukraine drama

Discussion: Washington Post and Raw Story

CNN:

Exclusive: Warren accused Sanders in tense post-debate exchange of calling her a ‘liar’ on national TV — Sanders responded that it was Warren who called him a liar and said they should not talk about it right then. — When the CNN/Des Moines Register debate concluded …

Scott Bauer / Associated Press:

Pocan endorses Sanders, giving him a boost in Wisconsin — MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Rep. Mark Pocan, who didn't back anyone in Wisconsin's Democratic presidential primary in 2016, announced Thursday that this year he is endorsing Bernie Sanders, giving the Vermont senator a boost in the battleground state three months before its primary.

Associated Press:
Warren-Sanders rift has progressives nervous about fallout

Discussion: Politico, The Hill and Associated Press

Alex Seitz-Wald / NBC News:
Doomsday scenario on the left: Warren, Sanders destroy each other while Biden skates in

Discussion: Politico

Washington Post: Warren accused Sanders of calling ‘me a liar on national TV’ during tense exchange after Tuesday's presidential debate

CNN:
Bernie Sanders isn't facing enough scrutiny

Discussion: Fox News

New York Times:
Warren Told Sanders After Debate, ‘I Think You Called Me a Liar on National TV’

Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
If Sanders is lying, why doesn't Warren say so?

Discussion: One America News Network, Associated Press, The Hill and Twitchy

Burgess Everett / Politico:

Rand Paul threatens fellow Republicans with explosive witness votes — Sen. Rand Paul is waging a fierce campaign to prevent the Senate from hearing witnesses in Donald Trump's impeachment trial, vowing to force tough votes on his fellow Republicans if they break with the president or back Democrats' demands for new evidence.

Discussion: The Daily Beast

Politico:
‘Huge mistake’: Senators in both parties rip impeachment press access

Discussion: UPI, The Hill, Associated Press, The Verge, Roll Call, HuffPost, Raw Story, Washington Post and The American Independent

Dahlia Lithwick / Slate:
How Will the Senate Get Away With Its Sham Trial Now?

Discussion: Fox News and National Review

Jason Easley / POLITICUSUSA: Mitch McConnell Is Trying To Blackout Trump's Impeachment Trial

Miami Herald:
Pelosi impeachment manager is calling for McConnell's recusal from Trump Senate trial

Discussion: The Week and PJ Media Home

Aaron Feis / New York Post: Pelosi quotes ‘Irishman’ before signing impeachment articles against Trump

Stephen Ohlemacher / Associated Press:

AP Explains: New rules could muddle results of Iowa caucuses — WASHINGTON (AP) — For the first time, the Iowa Democratic Party will report three sets of results from the party's presidential caucuses. And there is no guarantee that all three will show the same winner.

Alexandra Jaffe / Associated Press: New Iowa caucus rules could spark clashing claims of victory

John Hinderaker / Power Line:

Landmark Trade Deal With China; New York Times Hardest Hit — President Trump signed the “Phase One” trade agreement with China today at the White House. The agreement is far-ranging; you can read its entire text here. Among other things, it includes “commitments from Beijing …

Discussion: New York Times and The Week

Doug Palmer / Politico:
Here's what's in the U.S.-China trade deal

Discussion: Washington Post, One America News Network and Associated Press

Martin Matishak / Politico:

Intel agencies push to close threats hearing after Trump outburst — The U.S. intelligence community is trying to persuade House and Senate lawmakers to drop the public portion of an annual briefing on the globe's greatest security threats — a move compelled by last year's session that provoked …

Discussion: The Week

Tess Owen / VICE:

Virginia Declares State of Emergency After Armed Militias Threaten to Storm the Capitol — In response to what he described as “credible intelligence” of threats of violence at an upcoming gun rights rally in Richmond, Virginia, Gov. Ralph Northam has declared a state of emergency …

Discussion: GEN, Big League Politics, NPR and Common Dreams

Timothy Johnson / Media Matters for America:
As Virginia gun rally approaches, Alex Jones and his Infowars outlet hype prospect of violence

Discussion: Breitbart, The Daily Beast, Talking Points Memo, Fox News and The Daily Caller

Ali Watkins / New York Times:

Lawsuit Claims Epstein Trafficked Girls in Caribbean Until 2018 — The attorney general of the Virgin Islands says Mr. Epstein and his associates used a database to track victims as young as 11 years old. — New evidence shows Jeffrey Epstein sexually abused and trafficked hundreds …

Discussion: CNBC, The Daily Caller, The Sun, Sputnik News, The Guardian, UPI and New York Post

Daniel Chang / Miami Herald: Virgin Islands allege Jeffrey Epstein trafficked girls as young as 11 as recently as 2018

Sarah Rankin / Associated Press:

Virginia moves to brink of becoming 38th state to ratify ERA — RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia on Wednesday moved to the brink of becoming the crucial 38th state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in what was seen as a momentous victory for the women's rights movement even though it is far …

Discussion: Fox News and Blue Virginia

Timothy Williams / New York Times:
Virginia Approves the E.R.A., Becoming the 38th State to Back It

Discussion: Reason, The Hill, Washington Post, The Atlantic, NPR and Raw Story

Rebecca Ingber / Washington Post:

If there was no ‘imminent’ attack from Iran, killing Soleimani was illegal — Soleimani's “horrible past,” as Trump put it, cannot justify the strike. — President Trump and officials in his administration have put forward shifting explanations to justify the strike on Iranian Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani …

Discussion: Raw Story

Lia Russell / New Republic:

The Silicon Valley Economy Is Here. And It's a Nightmare. — Vanessa Bain was less than a year into her gig as an Instacart shopper when the company announced it would no longer allow tipping on its app. Instacart instead began imposing a 10 percent “service fee” that replaced the previous default tip of 10 percent.