memeorandum: House backs measures asserting congressional war powers As the Senate is immersed in impeachment … (Associated Press)

3:10 PM ET, January 30, 2020

Top Items:

New Audio Appears to Show Ex-Giuliani Pal Lev Parnas at Dinner With Trump — A second audio recording released by Lev Parnas's attorney purportedly shows the former Giuliani fixer socializing at a 2018 Republican fundraising event. — New audio obtained by The Daily Beast appears …

Discussion: Raw Story

Washington Post:

New recording shows access Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman had to Trump at Mar-a-Lago donor event — Ten days before Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman dined with President Trump at his Washington hotel, they were part of a small group of Republican Party donors who met with the president at Mar-a-Lago, his Florida estate, a new recording shows.

Discussion: The Week

Natasha Bertrand / Politico: New video shows indicted Giuliani associate with RNC chief Ronna McDaniel

NBC News:

Biden to pre-empt Trump rally with speech and ad on ‘character’ — DES MOINES, Iowa — Former Vice President Joe Biden is set to take on President Donald Trump ahead of the president's rally in Iowa Thursday, pointing out key differences between their leadership styles as he attempts …

Discussion: ABC News, Associated Press, New York Times, Washington Post, Breitbart, The Hill and The Cook Political Report

New York Times: Buttigieg Attacks Biden and Sanders by Name in Bid to Make Up Ground

David French / The Dispatch:
Don't Believe Anyone Who Says Bernie Sanders Can't Win

Discussion: Redstate, Breitbart and New York Post

Daniel Marans / HuffPost: New Bernie Sanders Ad Blasts Trump For Opening Door To Social Security Cuts

David Corn / Mother Jones: Is Bernie Sanders the Next George McGovern—or the Next Donald Trump?

Jonathan Tilove / Austin American-Statesman:
Lyceum poll: Bernie is Trump's toughest rival in Texas

Discussion: The Hill and Common Dreams

Associated Press:

AP Exclusive: Woman who says Trump raped her seeks his DNA — NEW YORK — Lawyers for a woman who accuses President Donald Trump of raping her in the 1990s are asking for a DNA sample, seeking to determine whether his genetic material is on a dress she says she wore during the encounter.

Discussion: The Daily Caller, Mediaite and VICE

Washington Post:

Document shows Bernie Sanders's team preparing dozens of potential executive orders — Rising in the polls ahead of the Iowa caucuses, the presidential candidate considers spelling out how he could go around Congress if elected president — Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) …

Discussion: CNN, The Atlantic, PJ Media Home and Common Dreams

Nihar Kabinittal / Associated Press:
Postal workers union with 200,000 members endorses Sanders

Discussion: American Postal Workers Union, Axios, The Hill and Washington Post

Zachary Evans / National Review: Sanders Plans to Sign Dozens of Executive Orders Upon Taking Office: ‘We Cannot Accept Delays from Congress’

Donald J Trump / YouTube:

Stronger, Safer, More Prosperous … With President Trump in office he is improving the lives of ALL Americans. Under President Trump, the economy is booming, historic tax cuts were passed, trade deals have been rengotiated, and African-American, Asian American, and Hispanic American unemployment are all at RECORD LOWS!

Discussion: ABC News, CNN, The Hill and USA Today

Mike Bloomberg / YouTube:

George … Mike Bloomberg 2020's ad airing during Super Bowl LIV highlights the urgent need to prevent gun violence in America and why Mike is the candidate to get it done. — As an entrepreneur, mayor, and problem-solving philanthropist, Mike has taken on the toughest challenges and gotten big things done.

Discussion: Politico, ABC News, Fox News, The Gateway Pundit, LifeNews.com, New York Post, Bloomberg, The Daily Caller and Axios

Nick Corasaniti / New York Times:
Bloomberg's $11 Million Super Bowl Ad: Gun Violence and a Grieving Mother

Discussion: ABC News, Axios and The Hill

ABC News:

New witnesses unlikely, Trump impeachment trial could end quickly: GOP sources — The Senate trial could be over by the weekend if Republicans have the votes. — LIVE NOW — Senators return at 1 p.m. Thursday for a second day of questions to House managers and President Donald Trump's legal team …

Discussion: Politico, HuffPost, The Gateway Pundit, Lawyers, Guns & Money, IJR, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, New York Times and CNN

Anita Kumar / Politico:
Trump allies see witness-swap scheme as impeachment messaging coup

Discussion: Washington Post and New York Times

Courier-Journal:
McConnell has received campaign donations from Trump's impeachment defense team

Discussion: The Smoke Eater, Raw Story and Daily Kos

Wall Street Journal:

The ‘Corrupt Motives’ Doctrine — Every President equates his re-election self-interest with the public interest. It isn't grounds for impeachment. — By The Editorial Board — The questions from Senators in the impeachment trial aren't plowing much new ground, but they have been useful …

Allan Smith / NBC News:
‘Nonsense...preposterous...absurd’: Critics lecture Prof. Dershowitz about trial remarks

Discussion: National Review, Talking Points Memo and Raw Story

Quint Forgey / Politico:
Dershowitz attempts to clarify controversial argument about presidential powers

Discussion: Mother Jones and The Hill

Allan Smith / NBC News:

Coronavirus could mean more U.S. jobs. Wilbur Ross goes there. — “I think it will help to accelerate the return of jobs to North America,” Trump's commerce secretary said. — Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Thursday that the coronavirus outbreak in China could lead businesses …

Discussion: Associated Press, Politico, ABC News, The Hill, The Guardian and New York Post

Rachel Siegel / Washington Post:
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says China's coronavirus ‘will help’ bring jobs back to U.S.

Discussion: Vox, The American Independent, Vanity Fair, The Week, New York Post, Mother Jones, Common Dreams, The Daily Caller and Raw Story

Greg Sargent / Washington Post:

GOP senators know Trump's defense is based on lies. Here's proof. — As President Trump's trial hurtles toward a vote on new witnesses, his lawyers have based his defense in part on the notion that Trump's demand that Ukraine investigate the Bidens was legitimate.

Politico:

How Trump's impeachment created two Democratic superstars — The House Democratic Caucus has long been dominated by a gaggle of also-rans: men and women who, while good enough for Congress, proved to be underwhelming on the larger stage of national politics. — That's changed.

Discussion: Breitbart

Politico:

Burr backs Trump lawyer claim on foreign dirt — Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) said on Thursday he has “no problem” with a White House lawyer's argument that American politicians can accept damaging information on their opponents from a foreign country — a proposal that shocked Democrats.

Kayla Tausche / CNBC:

Trump administration has yet to reveal details of Jared Kushner's secretive 2017 meeting in China — In late 2017, CNBC filed a Freedom of Information Act request for details about Jared Kushner's secretive meeting in China during President Trump's visit to the country.

Michael Balsamo / New Haven Register:

AP Exclusive: Barr names new U.S. attorney in DC — WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General William Barr on Thursday named Timothy Shea, one of his closest advisers, to be the next top prosecutor in the nation's capital. — Shea will lead the largest United States attorney's office in the country …

Fadel Allassan / Axios:

State attorneys general sue to demand certification of Equal Rights Amendment — Three Democratic state attorneys general filed a lawsuit against a federal government official on Thursday to certify the Equal Rights Amendment, which would ban sex-based discrimination, into the U.S. Constitution.

Discussion: Fox News, NBC News, oag.state.va.us, The Hill and courthousenews.com

Patricia Sullivan / Washington Post:
Herring, other state AGs file lawsuit demanding addition of ERA to Constitution

Discussion: Real Clear Politics

Lizzie Dearden / The Independent:

Katie Hopkins' Twitter account suspended — Move comes after Countdown host Rachel Riley and campaigners demand action from social network — Far-right commentator Katie Hopkins has been suspended from Twitter after calls for a “full review” by the social network.

Discussion: Axios

Quin Hillyer / Washington Examiner:

The longer GOP blocks Bolton, the more he will hurt them — Senate Republicans are digging their own political graves. — If Republicans do not allow at least a few witnesses into the Senate impeachment trial, they will pay a heavy political price if evidence emerges later proving deep corruption by President Trump.

Discussion: Raw Story and Washington Post

Willy Staley / New York Times:

‘High Maintenance’ and the New TV Fantasy of New York — It was probably during the fourth episode of the second season of HBO's “High Maintenance” when I finally noticed what it was up to. The show follows a weed dealer known only as The Guy while he bikes around Brooklyn …

Marshall Cohen / CNN:

In contrast with Trump legal team, Justice Department lawyer says House can impeach over defied subpoenas — Five memorable exchanges from Wednesday's trial — Washington (CNN)A Justice Department lawyer said Thursday in federal court that the House can impeach a president over ignored subpoenas …

Discussion: Daily Kos

Anthony Scaramucci / Washington Post:

Hey, John Bolton, welcome to life under the bus — Scaramucci gives Bolton advice on how to survive Trump's tweets. — President Trump's White House has launched another disinformation campaign against a former staffer. This time, John Bolton, the last national security adviser …

Discussion: CNN, Just Security, The Daily Beast, IJR and Raw Story

Andy Rose / CNN:

Portion of US border wall in California falls over in high winds and lands on Mexican side — (CNN)Newly installed panels from the US border wall fell over in high winds Wednesday, landing on trees on the Mexican side of the border. — The area is part of an ongoing construction project to improve existing sections of the wall.

Ryan Browne / CNN:

Trump administration expected to loosen restrictions on use of landmines — Washington (CNN)The Trump administration is expected to loosen restrictions on the US military's ability to use landmines in the coming days, weapons that have been banned by more than 160 countries due to their history …

Discussion: Raw Story and Task & Purpose

Pew Research Center:

As Voting Begins, Democrats Are Upbeat About the 2020 Field, Divided in Their Preferences — Democrats uncertain about prospects for defeating Trump — How we did this — Ahead of the first contests in the 2020 election, Democratic voters are highly engaged with the race for their party's nomination …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog and Algemeiner.com

Nate Silver / FiveThirtyEight:

The Iowa Caucuses Are In 4 Days. Almost Anything Could Still Happen. — As much as we try to remind you all about how uncertain elections can be — pleas that sometimes fall on deaf ears — it's important to keep in mind in advance of the Iowa caucuses. To begin with, primaries are much harder …

Discussion: Vanity Fair

Melanie Benson / Duke Today:

Former National Security Advisor John Bolton to Speak at Duke Feb. 17 — Tickets required for free public talk in Page Auditorium — Editor's Note: … DURHAM, N.C. — Former national security adviser John Bolton will speak at Duke University's Page Auditorium on Monday, Feb. 17.

Emily Saul / New York Post:

Hillary Clinton refuses to be served Tulsi Gabbard's defamation lawsuit — Hillary Clinton has now twice snubbed a process server attempting to deliver the defamation lawsuit filed against her by Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard, according to Gabbard's attorney.