Top Items:
New York Times:
Barr Installs Outside Prosecutor to Review Case Against Michael Flynn, Ex-Trump Adviser — Amid turmoil in the U.S. attorney's office in Washington, the attorney general has also sent outside prosecutors to review other politically sensitive cases. — WASHINGTON — Attorney General William P. Barr …
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Washington Monthly, CNN, Talking Points Memo, Axios, National Review, ABC News, The Week, Mediaite, Common Dreams, emptywheel, The Gateway Pundit, Balloon Juice, Joe.My.God., POLITICUSUSA, Law & Crime, The Hill, Mother Jones, Political Wire, Daily Kos, The Guardian, Vox and Washington Post
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Washington Post:
Justice Dept. won't charge Andrew McCabe, the former FBI official who authorized the investigation of President Trump — The Justice Department will not bring charges against former acting FBI director Andrew McCabe for lying to investigators about a media disclosure, according to people familiar …
Discussion:
Redstate, Talking Points Memo, CNN, Law & Crime, UPI and Raw Story
Adam Goldman / New York Times:
Andrew McCabe, Ex-F.B.I. Official, Will Not Be Charged in Lying Case — The decision to decline charges appears to be a move to distance the Justice Department from President Trump, who has long attacked Mr. McCabe. — WASHINGTON — Andrew G. McCabe, the former deputy F.B.I. director …
Discussion:
The Week, Raw Story and Columbia Journalism Review, more at Mediagazer »
Carol E. Lee / NBC News:
Justice Department opens inquiry into FBI interview at heart of Flynn's guilty plea — AG Barr has asked a U.S. attorney to lead the inquiry. Flynn pleaded guilty to making false statements during the interview, but wants to withdraw plea. — WASHINGTON — The Justice Department recently opened …
Discussion:
Redstate, CNBC, Law & Crime and Vanity Fair
Alexandra Petri / Washington Post:
Please stop tweeting, Mr. President. It's making it much more difficult for me to do your bidding! — The president had better look out! Because I don't like this tweeting of his one bit, no sirree! If he thinks I, the attorney general of the United States, am going to be bullied …
Lee Moran / HuffPost:
People Aren't Buying William Barr's Rebuke Of Donald Trump — Lawmakers, legal experts and cable news hosts highly doubt the attorney general's interview appearing to stand up to the president. — Attorney General William Barr on Thursday appeared to stand up to Donald Trump when he complained …
Discussion:
Raw Story, NB Blog, CNN, New York Times, Fox News and No More Mister Nice Blog
Associated Press:
US closes case against ex-FBI boss McCabe with no charges — WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors have declined to charge former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, closing an investigation into whether he lied to federal officials about his involvement in a news media disclosure, McCabe's legal team said Friday.
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IJR
Washington Post:
Justice Department has directed outside prosecutors to review Michael T. Flynn's case …
Justice Department has directed outside prosecutors to review Michael T. Flynn's case …
Discussion:
The American Independent, Fox News, National Review, Power Line, The Hill, Bloomberg, The Daily Beast and Joe.My.God.
Associated Press:
Trump ignores AG Barr's request to stop tweeting about DOJ
Trump ignores AG Barr's request to stop tweeting about DOJ
Discussion:
Politico, Associated Press and ABC News
Franklin Foer / The Atlantic:
Now We Know What Kind of Authoritarian Trump Aspires to Be
Now We Know What Kind of Authoritarian Trump Aspires to Be
Discussion:
Raw Story
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Barr's ABC News interview is deeply damning. Here's what must come next.
Barr's ABC News interview is deeply damning. Here's what must come next.
Discussion:
Reason, New York Times, Common Dreams, ABC News, The Guardian and Raw Story
Andrew C. McCarthy / The Hill:
Roger Stone's sentence: How the judge will really decide to ‘lock him up’
Roger Stone's sentence: How the judge will really decide to ‘lock him up’
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Bulwark and Townhall
Elizabeth Vaughn / Redstate:
AG Barr Conducts Damage Control After Trump's Reckless Tweets Nearly Spark Impeachment 2.0
AG Barr Conducts Damage Control After Trump's Reckless Tweets Nearly Spark Impeachment 2.0
Discussion:
Slate, Washington Post and Mediaite
Ross Ramsey / The Texas Tribune:
Bernie Sanders leaps to first among Texas Democrats in latest UT/TT Poll — Sanders now leads the Democratic presidential candidates among Texas voters, but Donald Trump maintains a slight lead over each of the top Democrats in the race, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll.
Discussion:
JONATHAN TURLEY, The Hill, Joe.My.God., Common Dreams and Morning Consult
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Andrew Romano / Yahoo News:
New Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows Sanders's strength going head-to-head with rivals — A new Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows that Sen. Bernie Sanders would defeat each of the other Democratic presidential candidates in a one-on-one race — in many instances by double-digit margins.
Discussion:
The Dispatch and Power Line
Dylan Scott / Vox:
Bernie Sanders is leading the 2 most important states on Super Tuesday
Bernie Sanders is leading the 2 most important states on Super Tuesday
Discussion:
Associated Press and The Daily Beast
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
There is another service to the country Biden may need to perform
There is another service to the country Biden may need to perform
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and The Hill
Ryan Nicol / Florida Politics:
New front-runner? Mike Bloomberg edges out Joe Biden in new Florida survey
New front-runner? Mike Bloomberg edges out Joe Biden in new Florida survey
Discussion:
The Hill, The Guardian, New York Post, Raw Story, Mediaite and Joe.My.God.
Washington Post:
She pushed Trump to exit the Paris climate agreement and roll back environmental rules. And she's returning to EPA as chief of staff. — One of EPA's first Trump appointees, Mandy Gunasekara has run a ‘pro-Trump nonprofit’ since leaving the agency a year ago.
Discussion:
The Week
Dan Mangan / CNBC:
Disgraced lawyer Michael Avenatti found guilty in Nike extortion trial — Disgraced lawyer Michael Avenatti was convicted of all three charges related to his efforts to extort up to $25 million from athletic apparel giant Nike. — The verdict in Manhattan federal court came two years …
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Betsy Swan / The Daily Beast:
U.S. Readied Sanctions on Russian Oligarch's Associates—Then Mysteriously Backed Off — “Somebody overruled [Treasury], essentially,” one sanctions expert said. “That's the most likely scenario.” — Something strange happened in mid-December involving Oleg Deripaska, the Russian oligarch.
Discussion:
Raw Story
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Henry Foy / Financial Times:
US cites reports Oleg Deripaska helped Vladimir Putin launder cash
US cites reports Oleg Deripaska helped Vladimir Putin launder cash
Discussion:
РБК
Rory Appleton / Las Vegas Review-Journal:
Sanders holds lead heading into Nevada's Democratic caucuses, poll finds — Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders leads the presidential field by a solid margin among likely Democratic caucusgoers heading into Nevada's four-day early voting period, but all six of the candidates actively campaigning …
Discussion:
Fox News, The Hill, The Nevada Independent and Politico
Adam Bienkov / Business Insider:
Boris Johnson has cancelled his planned trip to the White House after Trump slammed the phone down on him in a moment of ‘apoplectic’ fury — UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has cancelled his planned trip to meet Donald Trump next month after a furious row between the two men.
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money and Raw Story
Julia Ioffe / Washington Post:
Democrats are wasting time fighting over policies the Senate will never pass — It was a sight to behold: a former vice president, two senators and a former mayor on a stage in New Hampshire a week ago, arguing over the impossible. Would Sen. Bernie Sanders deliver Medicare-for-all immediately, as he promised to do?
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Ryan Goodman / Just Security:
White House ‘1264 Notice’ and Novel Legal Claims for Military Action Against Iran — To its credit, the Trump administration has submitted a newly released notice to Congress, describing the legal and policy basis for the Jan. 2 airstrike against Qassem Soleimani, Iran's top military commander.
Discussion:
CNBC, New York Times and Virginia Mercury
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New York Times:
Border Patrol Will Deploy Elite Tactical Agents to Sanctuary Cities — Agents from a special tactical team that normally confronts smugglers on the border are being sent to sanctuary cities across the country. — The Trump administration is deploying law enforcement tactical units …
Discussion:
Axios and Joe.My.God.
Megan Messerly / The Nevada Independent:
Culinary Union officials face profanity-laced attacks after scorecard says Sanders would ‘end’ their health care — Geoconda Arguello-Kline, left, secretary-treasurer for the Culinary Union announced that the culinary will not endorse a Democratic presidential candidate in the primary.
Discussion:
Redstate, Raw Story, PBS NewsHour, Vox, Washington Post and The Daily Beast
Jacqueline Feldscher / Politico:
Army won't investigate Vindman over impeachment testimony, top leader says — The Army will not investigate Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the former National Security Council staffer who testified in the president's impeachment investigation, the service's top civilian said Friday.
Discussion:
Joe.My.God.
Jonathan Bernstein / Bloomberg:
An Unrestrained Trump May End Up Trapping Himself — The Senate pushes back on war powers and a Fed nominee, while a White House purge might undercut the president's clout. — I'm not sure what the conventional wisdom is about the current health of Donald Trump's presidency …
Discussion:
Raw Story and New York Times
Rick Wilson / The Daily Beast:
General John Kelly, Trump Stooge, Is No Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman, Patriot — Vindman saw something, and said something. Kelly saw plenty, and kept it to himself for more than two years. — BEAST INSIDE — John Kelly's half-assed, just-the-tip critique of Donald Trump …
Discussion:
One America News Network and Raw Story
New York Times:
We Checked the Iowa Caucus Math. Here's Where It Didn't Add Up. — Caucus volunteers tally the final round votes. Then they divide the county delegates among the viable candidates based on their vote shares. — They must round down or up to the nearest whole number to award the delegates.
Associated Press:
Facebook reverses on paid political messages that aren't ads — SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook decided Friday to allow a type of paid political message that had sidestepped many of the social network's rules governing political ads, in a reversal that highlights difficulties tech companies …
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