Top Items:
McKay Coppins / The Atlantic:
How Mitt Romney Decided Trump Is Guilty — Mitt Romney didn't want to go through with it. — “This has been the most difficult decision I have ever had to make in my life,” he told me yesterday afternoon in his Senate office. Roughly 24 hours later, Romney would deliver a speech announcing …
Discussion:
The Federalist, Redstate, Breitbart, HuffPost, National Review, Mother Jones, Reason, Washington Post, Vanity Fair, Big League Politics, Raw Story, The Hill and PJ Media Home
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Dan Balz / Washington Post:
Romney votes to convict Trump on charge of abuse of power, becoming the first Republican to break ranks — Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) sealed a place in history Wednesday when he voted to convict President Trump of abuse of power, becoming a rare lone voice in a Republican Party that otherwise …
Discussion:
Axios, Politico, Deseret News, Townhall and The Hill
Burgess Everett / Politico:
Romney denies Trump unanimous Republican support — Romney: President's actions 'most abusive and destructive violation of one's oath of office' — Mitt Romney brought a stunning twist to the end of President Donald Trump's impeachment trial: A bipartisan vote to convict the president on charges of abuse of power.
Discussion:
Just Security, Mother Jones, Washington Post, Townhall, Axios and Breitbart
Peter Wehner / The Atlantic:
A Profile in Courage — Mitt Romney is doing something nearly unheard …
A Profile in Courage — Mitt Romney is doing something nearly unheard …
Discussion:
The Federalist, Breitbart and HuffPost
Peter Baker / New York Times:
Senate Acquits Trump, Ending Historic Trial
Senate Acquits Trump, Ending Historic Trial
Discussion:
Reuters, Washington Post, BuzzFeed News, The Daily Beast, KFOR-TV, Daily Kos and Twitchy
Tyler Olson / Fox News:
Fox News Exclusive: Romney says he had to follow ‘conscience’ on vote to convict Trump, expects ‘enormous consequences’
Fox News Exclusive: Romney says he had to follow ‘conscience’ on vote to convict Trump, expects ‘enormous consequences’
Mark Leibovich / New York Times:
Romney, Breaking With Republicans, Will Vote to Convict Trump of Abuse of Power
Romney, Breaking With Republicans, Will Vote to Convict Trump of Abuse of Power
Discussion:
Townhall, The Mahablog and Task & Purpose
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
What's next — giving the Presidential Medal of Freedom to David Duke? — So that the right-wing, faux-outrage crowd does not have a meltdown, let me be clear: I am sorry to hear talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh has cancer. Any decent person should hope he has a full recovery.
Discussion:
CNN, Vox, COURIER, Raw Story, Twitchy, Outside the Beltway, NB Blog, The Guardian and The Daily Beast, more at Mediagazer »
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Politico:
Pelosi unloads on Trump in private meeting after SOTU standoff — Speaker Nancy Pelosi ripped into President Donald Trump in a private meeting with Democrats Wednesday, just hours after the two jousted in a silent sparring match during his State of the Union address.
Discussion:
Variety, Talking Points Memo, Breitbart, POLITICUSUSA, Vanity Fair and Daily Kos
Rick Wilson / The Daily Beast:
Trump's Speech Was a Bataan Death March of Bullsh*t — And it was a wakeup call for Democrats, who have acted as if 2016 was a fluke and Trump's personal sh*tshow, corruption, and idiocy all but ensure an easy win in November. — BEAST INSIDE — Donald's Trump State of the Union speech Tuesday night …
Discussion:
Raw Story
The Hill:
Pelosi trashes Trump address: ‘He shredded the truth, so I shredded his speech’ — Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Wednesday trashed President Trump's raucous State of the Union address while huddling with rank-and-file Democrats and explained why she dramatically ripped up his speech as he wrapped up his remarks.
Jonathan Turley / The Hill:
Nancy Pelosi should resign — The House has its share of infamies, great and small, real and symbolic, and has been the scene of personal infamies from brawls to canings. But the conduct of Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the State of the Union address this week will go down as a day of infamy for the chamber as an institution.
Discussion:
JONATHAN TURLEY, Townhall, Breitbart, Fox News and CBS News
Cganemccalla / NewsOne:
Rush Limbaugh's Most Racist Quotes: A Timeline Of Destructive Commentary
Rush Limbaugh's Most Racist Quotes: A Timeline Of Destructive Commentary
Discussion:
The Nation
Steve Benen / MSNBC:
Pompeo accidentally proves the wrong point with Simpsons reference
Pompeo accidentally proves the wrong point with Simpsons reference
Discussion:
The Hill, CNN and Vanity Fair
Matt Gertz / Media Matters for America:
Rush Limbaugh's bigotry set the stage for Trump's takeover of the Republican Party
Rush Limbaugh's bigotry set the stage for Trump's takeover of the Republican Party
Discussion:
IJR, The White House and FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV
Stephen Collinson / CNN:
Trump makes dazzling, divisive reelection pitch in State of the Union
Trump makes dazzling, divisive reelection pitch in State of the Union
Discussion:
Vox, Columbia Journalism Review, COURIER, Press Watch and alicublog
Yvonne Wingett Sanchez / Arizona Republic:
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema says she will vote to convict President Trump on impeachment charges — Citing her concern for the Constitution as well as the conduct of future presidents, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema will vote Wednesday to convict President Donald Trump on the impeachment charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
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jones.senate.gov:
Senator Doug Jones Statement on Impeachment Decision — “As this chapter of history draws to a close, one thing is clear: our country deserves better than this. We must find a way to come together, to set aside partisan differences, and to focus on what we have in common as Americans.”
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Mother Jones, The Gateway Pundit, IJR and Raw Story
Mike DeBonis / Washington Post:
Sen. Jones says he will vote to convict Trump, drawing criticism from GOP rivals
Sen. Jones says he will vote to convict Trump, drawing criticism from GOP rivals
Discussion:
The Hill
Politico:
First head rolls after Biden's weak Iowa finish — DES MOINES — Joe Biden's campaign has parted ways with its Iowa field director, two days after the former vice president came in an embarrassing fourth place in the primary caucus state. — Adrienne Bogen, who headed field operations for Biden …
Discussion:
Associated Press, Fox News, The Hill, Vanity Fair and ABC News
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Marc Caputo / Politico:
Biden concedes Iowa was ‘a gut punch’ — SOMERSWORTH, N.H. — Joe Biden is no longer denying his surprisingly weak performance in Iowa. — “I'm not going to sugarcoat it. We took a gut punch in Iowa,” Biden said Wednesday, before cracking a joke about Iowa's botched caucuses.
Discussion:
Associated Press and The Hill
New York Times:
What Went Wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa
What Went Wrong for Joe Biden in Iowa
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Breitbart and Political Wire
Bhaskar Sunkara / The Guardian:
The DNC can't steal the election from Bernie Sanders despite the Iowa chaos
William Saletan / Slate:
How Pete Won — Last week in Iowa, former Vice President Joe …
How Pete Won — Last week in Iowa, former Vice President Joe …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, IJR and New York Times
Cleve R. Wootson Jr / Washington Post:
Biden calls Iowa caucuses standing a ‘gut punch’
Biden calls Iowa caucuses standing a ‘gut punch’
Discussion:
The Hill
Rick Porter / Hollywood Reporter:
TV Ratings: State of the Union Falls in Early Broadcast Numbers — Preliminary figures show the annual address down by double digits versus 2019. — The State of the Union address drew a considerably smaller audience on the broadcast networks than it did a year ago, at least in the preliminary ratings from Tuesday.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and POLITICUSUSA
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Tony Maglio / The Wrap:
Donald Trump's 3rd State of the Union Address Tumbles in Broadcast TV Ratings — Donald Trump's State of the Union address was all anybody could talk about on Tuesday, but “Ellen's Game of Games” showed up for NBC too. — This third SOTU from the 45th president of the United States …
George Conway / Washington Post:
I believe the president, and in the president — George T. Conway III is a lawyer in New York and an adviser to the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump super PAC. — I believe the president, and in the president. — I believe the Senate is right to acquit the president.
Discussion:
Mediaite
Kenneth P. Vogel / New York Times:
Beyond the Partisan Fight, a Wealth of Evidence About Trump and Ukraine — Regardless of the Senate's verdict, the impeachment inquiry, President Trump's own words and other revelations yield a narrative establishing his involvement in the pressure campaign.
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice
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Christopher Miller / BuzzFeed News:
Evangelical Christians Also Wanted To Get Rid Of The US Ambassador To Ukraine
Evangelical Christians Also Wanted To Get Rid Of The US Ambassador To Ukraine
Discussion:
The Hill
Andrew Stiles / Washington Free Beacon:
Mike Bloomberg's Historically Diminutive Stature, In Context — U.S. hasn't elected a president shorter than five-foot-nine since 1896 — Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, the presumptive frontrunner to win the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, would make history if elected.
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Alex Griswold / Washington Free Beacon:
Bloomberg Used Box to Boost Height as NYC Mayor, Documents Show
Bloomberg Used Box to Boost Height as NYC Mayor, Documents Show
Discussion:
The Babylon Bee
BuzzFeed News:
She Shunned Islam And Was Embraced By Trump World. They Took Her Money, Then Turned On Her. — Rabia Kazan, a Turkish national who used to be a Trump fanatic, made a big donation to the president's campaign. But she's not a US citizen. — A former rising star in MAGA world recently renounced …
Vivian Salama / CNN:
Pentagon officials stunned by White House decision to block Ukraine aid, new emails show — Washington (CNN)Days before the July 2019 call between President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, US officials were still working to expedite the delivery of Javelin anti-tank missiles to the country …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Hollywood Reporter:
Brutally Honest Oscar Ballot: ‘Irishman’ “Was Boring,” Tarantino “Amazing,” “I Want an American Director to Win” — by Anonymous, as told to Scott Feinberg — As voting ends, a female member of the Academy's actors branch, granted anonymity to speak freely, shares which films earn her precious vote (and — gulp — why).
Discussion:
VICE
Rob Portman / New York Times:
Why I'm Voting to Acquit President Trump — Impeachment will end in the Senate. It's time to take up consensus issues. — Mr. Portman is a Republican senator from Ohio. — On Wednesday I will join a majority of my Senate colleagues in opposing the impeachment of President Trump brought by the House of Representatives.
Discussion:
The American Independent and Althouse
Alexa Ura / The Texas Tribune:
New Texas election process has Democrats expecting a delay in Super Tuesday delegate totals — More than half of Texas' Democratic presidential delegates in the March 3 primary will be determined by vote totals in state Senate districts. The Texas Secretary of State has told Democratic leaders …
Discussion:
National Review and The Hill