Top Items:
Del Quentin Wilber / Los Angeles Times:
FBI serves warrant on senator in investigation of stock sales linked to coronavirus — Federal agents seized a cellphone belonging to a prominent Republican senator on Wednesday night as part of the Justice Department's investigation into controversial stock trades he made as the coronavirus …
Discussion:
Mother Jones, Townhall, Talking Points Memo, Politico, Axios, Mediaite, Washington Post, BuzzFeed News, NBC News, Financial Times, The Daily Caller, Breitbart, Vanity Fair, Washington Times, The Gateway Pundit, The Daily Beast, emptywheel, Tangle, ABC7, Daily Kos, NPR, Law & Crime, Slate, 9to5Mac, National Review, MacRumors, Twitchy, VICE, Fox News, Raw Story and Just The News
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Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Sen. Burr steps aside as Intelligence Committee chairman amid stock sale investigation
Sen. Burr steps aside as Intelligence Committee chairman amid stock sale investigation
Discussion:
ABC News, The Hill and The Daily Caller
New York Times:
Richard Burr Steps Back From Senate Panel as Phone Seized in Stock Sales Inquiry
Richard Burr Steps Back From Senate Panel as Phone Seized in Stock Sales Inquiry
Discussion:
Politico, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller, IJR, Talking Points Memo, Breitbart and Raw Story
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
The 2016 nightmare is already repeating itself — The latest developments in the Michael Flynn case should prompt us to revisit one of the most glaring failures in political journalism, one that lends credibility to baseless narratives pushed for purely instrumental purposes, perversely rewarding bad-faith actors in the process.
Discussion:
New York Times, Mediaite, CNN, IJR, Spectator USA, Axios and emptywheel, more at Mediagazer »
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Brian Beutler / Crooked Media:
Trump Begins His Final Authoritarian Push — Under cover of awful darkness—85,000 dead Americans, nearly all of whom should be alive today, and a great depression of his own making—President Trump has accelerated his efforts to dismantle the rule of law in America.
Discussion:
Business Insider Nederland
New York Times:
Trump White House Rewrites History, This Time About Flynn
Trump White House Rewrites History, This Time About Flynn
Discussion:
National Review, Raw Story, NPR, Fox News, Breitbart and American Greatness
New York Times:
Ex-F.B.I. Official Is Said to Undercut Justice Dept. Effort to Drop Flynn Case
Ex-F.B.I. Official Is Said to Undercut Justice Dept. Effort to Drop Flynn Case
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Bulwark, Patterico's Pontifications, CBS News, Law & Crime, New York Magazine, emptywheel, Lawfare, Breitbart, Redstate, Politico, Raw Story, Vanity Fair, Power Line and Mother Jones
Julie Pace / Associated Press:
Obama emerges as central figure in 2020 presidential race
Obama emerges as central figure in 2020 presidential race
Discussion:
Breitbart
Washington Post:
GOP senators release list of Obama officials, including Biden, who ‘unmasked’ Michael Flynn
GOP senators release list of Obama officials, including Biden, who ‘unmasked’ Michael Flynn
Discussion:
Reason, Letters from an American, Talking Points Memo, Breitbart and The Daily Caller
Andrew Desiderio / Politico:
Graham shoots down Trump's call for Obama testimony on Russia probe origins
Graham shoots down Trump's call for Obama testimony on Russia probe origins
Discussion:
Townhall, Vox and Political Wire
Edward Luce / Financial Times:
Inside Trump's coronavirus meltdown — When the history is written of how America handled the global era's first real pandemic, March 6 will leap out of the timeline. That was the day Donald Trump visited the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Discussion:
Raw Story
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Jamie Ross / The Daily Beast:
Trump Feared Testing Too Many People for Virus Would Spook Stock Markets, Says Report — FAILURE TO ACT — President Trump was wary of making preparations for the coronavirus pandemic because he was concerned doing so would sent the stock market into a panic, the Financial Times reports.
Discussion:
Raw Story and POLITICUSUSA
Meagan Flynn / Washington Post:
After Wisconsin court ruling, crowds liberated and thirsty descend on bars. 'We're the Wild West,' Gov. Tony Evers says. — On Wednesday night in the heart of downtown Platteville, Wis., just hours after the Wisconsin Supreme Court threw out the state's stay-at-home order, Nick's on 2nd was packed wall to wall, standing room only.
Discussion:
VICE, New York Post, WQOW-TV, POLITICUSUSA, Fox News and Axios
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USA Today:
‘OPEN IMMEDIATELY!’: Wisconsinites head out to bars after state stay-at-home orders lifted — After the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the state's stay-at-home order, which immediately lifted restrictions on businesses and gatherings, some bars opened their doors (and taps) Wednesday night as patrons began trickling out.
Discussion:
jsonline, The Hill and Florida Politics
CBS News:
Trump's marks for handling COVID-19 outbreak decline - CBS News poll — Americans continue to say they trust medical professionals for virus information, but Republicans also rank President Trump about as highly among their trusted sources, even as others give him his lowest marks to date for handling the outbreak.
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Post and IJR
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Washington Post:
Postal Services launches review of package delivery fees as Trump influence grows — Deputy Postmaster General Ronald A. Stroman will leave before new agency head Louis DeJoy takes the helm — Weeks before a Republican donor and top White House ally becomes postmaster general …
Discussion:
Jacobin and Raw Story, more at Techmeme »
Politico:
Pentagon fires its point person for Defense Production Act — Jennifer Santos, the Pentagon's industrial policy chief who oversees efforts to ramp up production of masks and other equipment to help fight Covid-19, was fired from her job this week and will move to a position in the Navy, according to two people familiar with the matter.
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Dan Diamond / Politico:
Top Trump critic set to testify before close ally sparks tensions on Capitol Hill — President Donald Trump's ousted vaccine chief turned whistleblower will go public with his claims on Thursday in an unusually friendly setting — a hearing chaired by a close congressional ally whose district benefited from his decisions.
Discussion:
Vox, The Daily Beast, Breitbart, NB Blog, American Greatness, Energy and Commerce Committee and Vanity Fair
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Jonathan V. Last / The Bulwark:
The Curious Case of the People Who Want to “Reopen” America—But Not Wear Masks — The coronavirus, you may have heard, is a biological weapon engineered in a Chinese lab and unleashed—accidentally?— on America by the godless communists. At least, according to Alex Jones. — That's one theory, anyway.
Discussion:
Washington Monthly, VICE, The Guardian and ABC News
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Politico:
McConnell pines for Pompeo as Kansas chaos looms — Senate Republicans have a problem in Kansas. And they still think Mike Pompeo is the solution. — Staring at a messy primary, a credible Democratic challenger and a real battle for Senate control, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Associated Press, Raw Story, Breitbart, The Hill and NBC News
Robert Frank / CNBC:
Private jet company founded by Trump donor gets $27 million bailout — A private jet company founded by a donor to President Donald Trump received nearly $27 million in government funding under a program run by the Treasury Department, according to government filings.
Discussion:
Raw Story
Andrew O'Reilly / Fox News:
Whitmer's stay-at-home orders protested outside Michigan Captiol as scuffle breaks out — Despite driving rain and a heavy police presence, hundreds of protestors once again descended on the steps of the Michigan Capitol Thursday morning to protest Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's stay-at-home orders during the coronavirus pandemic.
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Washington Post:
Ex-detective charged in death of Ahmaud Arbery lost power to make arrests after skipping use-of-force training — Gregory McMichael's law enforcement certification was suspended in 2019 after repeated failures to complete required training, according to records acquired by The Washington Post.
Discussion:
The Leadership Conference …, The Daily Beast, VICE, New York Post and The Hill
Lisa Friedman / New York Times:
E.P.A. Opts Against Limits on Water Contaminant Tied to Fetal Damage — A new E.P.A. policy on perchlorate, which is used in rocket fuel, would revoke a 2011 finding that the chemical should be regulated. — WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will not impose any limits on perchlorate …
Alexandra Petri / Washington Post:
Obamagate was the worst crime ever committed and here is what it was — “What is the crime exactly that you're accusing him of?” — “You know what the crime is. The crime is very obvious to everybody. All you have to do is read the newspapers, except yours.”
Discussion:
The Moderate Voice, POLITICUSUSA and The Guardian
Tony Romm / Washington Post:
3 million Americans filed jobless claims last week, pushing eight-week total to 36.5 million — The White House and governors are debating different strategies for reopening local businesses, many of which have been devastated by coronavirus pandemic — Roughly 3 million people filed …
Discussion:
Business Insider Nederland, National Review and Big League Politics
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Jeff Cox / CNBC:
Weekly jobless claims total 2.981 million, bringing coronavirus tally to 36.5 million
Weekly jobless claims total 2.981 million, bringing coronavirus tally to 36.5 million
Discussion:
The Federalist and Mediaite
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Appeals court greenlights emoluments suit against Trump — A lawsuit accusing President Donald Trump of violating the Constitution by accepting foreign government money through his luxury Washington hotel can proceed to fact-gathering about Trump's profits, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.
Discussion:
Associated Press, The Hill, ABC News, Axios, One America News Network, POLITICUSUSA and JONATHAN TURLEY
Nicholas Johnston / Axios:
The pandemic broke America — Eight weeks into this nation's greatest crisis since World War II, we seem no closer to a national strategy to reopen the nation, rebuild the economy and defeat the coronavirus. — Why it matters: America's ongoing cultural wars over everything have weakened our ability to respond to this pandemic.
Ronald Brownstein / The Atlantic:
Trump Brings in the Infantry for His War on Blue America — Even during the shared national challenge of the coronavirus outbreak, President Donald Trump is escalating his attacks on the institutions of blue America. And a growing number of other Republicans are joining him.
Jeffrey Goldberg / The Atlantic:
The Conspiracy Theorists Are Winning — Friday prayers at the Mustafa Mahmoud Mosque, Cairo, September 21, 2001. Two thousand worshippers, some tense, some angry, some oblivious to the grim new reality. The preacher, Ahmed Youssef, vented his anger in two directions: at al-Qaeda ("gangsters …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Adrienne LaFrance / The Atlantic:
The Pro-Trump Conspiracy That's Becoming a Religion — If you were an adherent, no one would be able to tell. You would look like any other American. You could be a mother, picking leftovers off your toddler's plate. You could be the young man in headphones across the street.
CNN:
US can make voting safer during the pandemic. Don't let Republicans stop it — Trump and Democrats fight over mail-in voting — Alyssa Milano is an actress, producer, activist and hosts the podcast, “Alyssa Milano: Sorry Not Sorry.” Follow her on Twitter @Alyssa_Milano.
Discussion:
FiveThirtyEight
Erick-Woods Erickson / Erick Erickson's Confessions …:
Where Does Brian Kemp Go For an Apology? — On April 20, 2020, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp became one of the first governors in America to announce plans to reopen his state. He had been one of the last to impose a shelter-in-place order. Critics had blasted him for waiting so long.
Discussion:
Just The News, Instapundit and Twitchy
Nicholas Kristof / New York Times:
America's True Covid Toll Already Exceeds 100,000 — The reported numbers leave out thousands of deaths clearly resulting from the pandemic. — Many supporters of President Trump believe that the figures for coronavirus fatalities are inflated, and Trump himself shared a tweet doubting the accuracy of some virus figures.
Discussion:
Raw Story
Washington Post:
White House opens door to state aid despite opposition from conservative groups, some GOP lawmakers — Surge in unemployment and severe pressure on state budgets has White House officials looking for answers — White House officials have privately signaled that they are willing to provide tens …