memeorandum: Yes, Secretary Pompeo, Americans Should Care About Ukraine (William B. Taylor/New York Times)

12:45 AM ET, January 27, 2020

Top Items:

Trump Tied Ukraine Aid to Inquiries He Sought, Bolton Book Says — Drafts of the book outline the potential testimony of the former national security adviser if he were called as a witness in the president's impeachment trial. — WASHINGTON — President Trump told his national security adviser …

John Bolton / Amazon.com:

The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir — Kindle Edition — See the Best Books of the Month — Want to know our Editors' picks for the best books of the month? Browse Best Books of the Month, featuring our favorite new books in more than a dozen categories.

Jonathan Swan / Axios:

Bolton alleges in book that Trump tied Ukraine aid to investigations — President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton alleges in his forthcoming book that the president explicitly told him “he wanted to continue freezing $391 million in security assistance to Ukraine until officials …

Discussion: New York Times, CNN, The Hill, Twitchy, HuffPost, Mediaite and Daily Kos

Washington Post:

Democrats call for Bolton to testify in Trump impeachment trial after new report on aid to Ukraine — Congressional Democrats called for former national security adviser John Bolton to testify in President Trump's impeachment trial following a new report that the president told Bolton …

Discussion: The Week, Breitbart, NBC News, POLITICUSUSA, Mother Jones, Vox, Talking Points Memo, The Daily Caller, Mediaite and The Guardian

Politico:

Bolton account of Ukraine aid could reignite call for impeachment witnesses — A New York Times report says President Donald Trump told his national security adviser the release of the money was contingent on an investigation into opponents. — According to The New York Times, John Bolton …

John Bowden / The Hill:

Bolton book alleges Trump tied Ukraine aid freeze to Biden investigations: NYT — Former national security adviser John Bolton reportedly claims in his as-yet unpublished memoir that President Trump sought to tie hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Ukraine to his requests …

Discussion: Associated Press and Balloon Juice

Sarah K. Burris / Raw Story:

John Bolton's manuscript confirms Trump's bribery of Ukraine: report — Former national security adviser John Bolton revealed in his manuscript that President Donald Trump told him as early as August 2019 that he wanted to continue freezing the military and security assistance to Ukraine until …

Discussion: New York Times and Fox News

Associated Press:
Report: Bolton says Trump tied Ukraine funds to Biden probe

Discussion: The Hill and Raw Story

TMZ.com:

Kobe Bryant & Daughter Die in Helicopter Crash, Photos from Her Last Game — KOBE BRYANT, DAUGHTER GIGI DIE IN HELICOPTER CRASH ... Pics From Her Last Game — KOBE AND GIANNA — 5:55 PM PT — TMZ Sports has obtained some of the last photos taken of Kobe Bryant with his daughter, Gianna …

Los Angeles Times:

Kobe Bryant, daughter Gianna among 9 dead in helicopter crash in Calabasas — Kobe Bryant, 41, the legendary basketball star who spent 20 years with the Los Angeles Lakers, was killed when the helicopter he was traveling in crashed and burst into flames Sunday morning amid foggy conditions …

Discussion: NBC News, Washington Examiner, New York Post, Big League Politics, Fox News, Townhall, globalnews.ca, Slate, UPI, Vox, FOX 61, The Root, Consequence of Sound, The Week, The Spun, VICE, Redstate, Page Six and Vanity Fair

Rishika Dugyala / Politico:
Politicians hit pause after Kobe Bryant's death

Discussion: FOX 61, Breitbart, POLITICUSUSA and One America News Network

Associated Press:
Kobe Bryant and daughter among those killed in chopper crash

Discussion: KTLA, WFLA-TV, New York Times, HuffPost, FOX 61 and The Daily Beast

Nihar Kabinittal / ABC News:
Kobe Bryant, daughter among 9 dead in helicopter crash in Southern California

Discussion: Breitbart, UPI and ESPN

Alicia Victoria Lozano / NBC News: ‘Nothing to catch us:’ How California's homelessness crisis surged

William B. Taylor / New York Times:

Yes, Secretary Pompeo, Americans Should Care About Ukraine — A former ambassador tells the secretary of state just why. — Mr. Taylor is a former United States ambassador to Ukraine. — As Secretary of State Mike Pompeo prepares to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv later this week …

Discussion: HuffPost

Paul Farhi / Washington Post:

Emails support NPR host after Pompeo calls her a liar in setting up contentious interview — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says an NPR host lied in setting up an interview with him on Friday, but email records support the journalist's account of how the contentious exchange came to be.

Discussion: The Hill, Mother Jones, HuffPost, ABC News and Daily Kos, more at Mediagazer »

Susan Page / USA Today:

Poll: A week before the caucuses, Joe Biden leads an Iowa race that remains unsettled — One week before the opening Iowa caucuses, former Vice President Joe Biden leads a fluid Democratic field, a new Suffolk University/USA TODAY Network Poll of the state finds.

Discussion: FiveThirtyEight, Bloomberg, The Hill and Politico

Reid J. Epstein / New York Times:
A Klobuchar endorser switches to Buttigieg? Not quite.

Discussion: CNN, NBC News and Washington Times

CBS News:
CBS News Battleground Tracker: In Iowa, it's Sanders, Biden and a wild finish ahead

Discussion: The Hill and New York Times

Wall Street Journal: On Day Off From Impeachment Trial, Senators Campaign Frantically in Iowa

Washington Post:

Schiff ‘has not paid the price’ for impeachment, Trump says in what appears to be veiled threat — President Trump escalated his attacks on Rep. Adam B. Schiff on Sunday, issuing what appears to be a veiled threat against the California Democrat one day before Trump's team is expected …

Discussion: New York Times, Raw Story, The Hill, NBC News and Financial Times

Allan Smith / NBC News:
GOP senator: Impeachment should encourage Trump to be more ‘careful’ next time

Discussion: Politico, The Hill, Breitbart, The Daily Caller and Axios

Connor O'Brien / Politico:
‘We did’ give in to Trump stonewalling, House impeachment manager says

Discussion: Axios

Justin Wise / The Hill:
Fox News poll: Half of Americans say Trump should be convicted and removed

Discussion: Raw Story, New York Post and Breitbart

Ruby Cramer / BuzzFeed News:

“Things Are Gonna Get Crazy”: Bernie Sanders' Camp Is Warning Supporters About A Backlash — ANKENY, Iowa — Across the room, sheets of paper taped to the wall reminded volunteers to organize with respect: “When you are tempted to make a statement,” one read, “ask a question.”

Discussion: Washington Post and New York Times

Nihar Kabinittal / Associated Press:

Germany urged to fight anti-Semitism to avoid Jewish exodus — Germany's foreign minister is calling for strengthened efforts against anti-Semitism to ward off the possibility of many Jews deciding to leave the country — BERLIN — Germany's foreign minister is calling for strengthened efforts …

Discussion: One America News Network and Axios

NBC News: Bloomberg addresses anti-Semitic violence, throws shade at Sanders and Trump

SFGATE:

After Trump's spiritual adviser calls for ‘all satanic pregnancies to miscarry,’ she says it was a metaphor — A Florida pastor and longtime spiritual adviser to President Donald Trump says she was speaking in metaphor when she recently prayed in a sermon for all “satanic pregnancies” to end in miscarriage.

Discussion: DeadState and Balloon Juice

Marlene Lenthang / Daily Mail:

Jeff Bezos throws lavish party at his new $23million, 11-bedroom Washington DC mansion attended by Ivanka Trump, Bill Gates and Ben Stiller — Jeff Bezos threw a lavish party at his finally finished Washington DC mansion attended by Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, Microsoft founder Bill Gates and actor Ben Stiller on Saturday night

Ken Meyer / Mediaite:

Chris Wallace Grills Dershowitz About Flipping on Impeachment Stance: 'You Said It Doesn't Have to Be a Crime' — Harvard Law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz faced a bruising interview on Sunday when confronted with his abandoned position that a federal crime isn't necessary to form the legitimate basis to impeach the president.

Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:

Site That Ran Anti-Semitic Remarks Got Passes for Trump Trip — The White House granted TruNews, a right-wing Christian site, press credentials for the president's Davos trip after its founder's remarks calling impeachment a “Jew coup.” — To coordinate coverage of President Trump's trip …