Top Items:
Kaitlan Collins / CNN:
Giuliani told to preserve all records as lawyers for Dominion warn legal action is ‘imminent’ — (CNN)A defamation law firm representing Dominion Voting Systems has sent letters to White House counsel Pat Cipollone and President Donald Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani instructing …
Discussion:
CNBC, Bloomberg, Forbes, Raw Story, The Week, Political Wire and Colorado Public Radio
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New York Times:
A President Unhappy, Unleashed and Unpredictable — President Trump remains the most powerful man in the world, but powerless to achieve what he most wants: to avoid leaving office as a loser. — With four weeks left in President Trump's term, he is at perhaps his most unleashed — and …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Digby's Hullabaloo, The Daily Caller, Raw Story, Reuters, Business Insider, The Guardian, Washington Monthly, TheBlaze, Washington Post and HotAir
Veronica Stracqualursi / CNN:
Voting machine company executive sues Trump allies for defamation — Dominion CEO debunks ‘bizarre allegations’ pushed by Trump team — Washington (CNN)An executive for a voting machine company that has been the target of conspiracy theories in the aftermath of Donald Trump's 2020 election loss …
Discussion:
Law & Crime, NPR, Forbes, the way of improvement … and Summit News, more at Mediagazer »
Stephen Battaglio / Los Angeles Times:
What happened to Maria Bartiromo? The Trump election fraud story has the TV news biz asking — When a public company makes news, a chief executive can expect a text or call from Maria Bartiromo. — The veteran business journalist, now an anchor at Fox News, made her bones by getting sit-downs …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Washington Post and Raw Story, more at Mediagazer »
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Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
Fox News management failures invited legal threat from Smartmatic
Fox News management failures invited legal threat from Smartmatic
Discussion:
Media Matters for America and Crooks and Liars
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Trump detonates a truth bomb in the Georgia Senate races — President Trump might not realize it, but he just handed Democrats a big weapon to wield against the two Republican senators running in the Georgia runoffs. — By abruptly calling for $2,000 stimulus checks on Tuesday night …
Discussion:
Associated Press, Vox, Fox News, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Intellectualist, POLITICUSUSA, Forbes, New Yorker and Raw Story
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Washington Post:
Trump calls on Congress to approve $2,000 stimulus checks, hinting that he might not sign economic relief bill into law without changes — The president has still not signed the measure even though it passed Monday night. He called the measure “a disgrace.”
Discussion:
Fox News, Washington Examiner, National Review, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Mediaite, Slate, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Rush Limbaugh Show, Rev, littlegreenfootballs.com, CBS News, New York Times, The Root, Breitbart, The Wrap, Reason, Crooks and Liars, The Week, OutKick, CBS Baltimore, American Military News, CBS New York, Sara A. Carter, Gothamist, Conservative News Today, Digby's Hullabaloo, The Gateway Pundit, The Federalist, Business Insider, Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, USA Today, Vanity Fair, Bangor Daily News, WISC-TV, Deadline, Newsy, The Daily Beast, Bark Bark Woof Woof and Hackwhackers
Susan Ferrechio / Washington Examiner:
Democrats dare GOP to block $2,000 stimulus checks in Christmas Eve vote
Democrats dare GOP to block $2,000 stimulus checks in Christmas Eve vote
Discussion:
Politico and BuzzFeed News
Kadia Goba / Axios:
Scoop: Pistol-packing freshmen prompt Congress gun review — Several incoming House freshmen have inquired about carrying guns into the Capitol, leading a board overseeing congressional security to rethink a regulation banning members from packing heat under the dome, a House aide with direct knowledge of the board review told Axios.
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Politico:
POLITICO Playbook PM: No one knows how this ends — SO HOW DOES THIS END? That's a damn good question. — NO ONE KNOWS. Some say President DONALD TRUMP is in burn-it-down mode and is more than willing to veto the Covid relief/funding package, ending his presidency in a lengthy shutdown, with bluster and crisis.
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Examiner, Detroit News, NPR, Conservative News Today, Business Insider, HotAir, Roll Call, COURIER and The Signorile Report
Business Insider:
EXCLUSIVE: A deputy to Eric Trump helped build a campaign shell company to protect the president from grift. But the secretive operation morphed into a mystery — even for top Trump campaign staffers. … - One of Eric Trump's top deputies played an important role overseeing …
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Business Insider:
Democratic lawmaker says Trump campaign shell company was a campaign committee, likely broke law by not reporting or filing with the FEC … - Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan is asking the Justice Department and Federal Election Commission to investigate the Trump campaign's shell company.
Roger Sollenberger / Salon:
Jared Kushner signed off on secret payments to top campaign officials, source says
Jared Kushner signed off on secret payments to top campaign officials, source says
Discussion:
The Intellectualist
New York Times:
Trump Pardons Two Russia Inquiry Figures and Blackwater Guards — The pre-Christmas wave of 20 pardons and commutations are not likely to be the last before Mr. Trump leaves office on Jan. 20. — In an audacious pre-Christmas round of pardons, President Trump granted clemency on Tuesday …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Vox, The Bulwark, Washington Post, Mediaite, The Nation, Defense One, Vanity Fair, The Week, IJR, Outside the Beltway, Florida Politics, Mother Jones, POLITICUSUSA, The American Independent, USA Today, The Gateway Pundit, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Digby's Hullabaloo, The Daily Caller and Law & Crime
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Washington Post:
In Iraq, Trump's Blackwater pardons meet with cynicism, fatigue
In Iraq, Trump's Blackwater pardons meet with cynicism, fatigue
Discussion:
Roll Call
Ali Harb in / Middle East Eye:
‘No humanity’: Trump pardons Blackwater war criminals who massacred Iraqis
The White House:
Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Executive Grants of Clemency
Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Executive Grants of Clemency
Discussion:
CBS News, Business Insider, WPXI-TV, Mediaite, Raw Story, Wall Street Journal, IJR, The Week, Breitbart, Associated Press, Salt Lake Tribune, The Last Refuge, The Guardian, TheBlaze, Reason, CNN, Houston Public Media, UPI, Politico, American Military News, Greensburg Tribune-Review and HotAir
Tom Knowles / The Times:
Octopuses are ocean thugs that punch fish — Despite its extraordinary intelligence, the life of an octopus is a solitary one. So perhaps it is no wonder that the mighty brained cephalopod engages in a little thuggery to relieve the boredom. — Scientists have discovered that, on occasions …
Politico:
Trump White House staffers receive conflicting messages about their departure — Conflicting internal memos created confusion inside the White House on Wednesday about when staffers in the Executive Office of the President should begin preparing to leave work ahead of the transition next month.
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Talking Points Memo, HotAir, Forbes, POLITICUSUSA, Raw Story, The Week, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Associated Press
Anand Giridharadas / The.Ink:
$600 checks are a “crime,” says the pope's favorite economist — A conversation with economist Mariana Mazzucato on the case against Scroogenomics … I watched “The Muppet Christmas Carol” with my family last night, and whenever Michael Caine's Ebenezer Scrooge character came onscreen …
Zach Abolverdi / USA Today:
Florida's Keyontae Johnson diagnosed with heart inflammation that has been associated with COVID-19 — GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida forward Keyontae Johnson, who collapsed on the court during a game Dec. 12 at Florida State, has been diagnosed with a heart inflammation that may be related to an earlier infection for COVID-19.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller
Marc Ambinder / The Daily Beast:
Sources: Secret Service Has No Plan if Trump Refuses to Go — But they do have procedures for handling trespassers. — If there are any checklists or plans, procedures or guidelines for the Secret Service to follow in the event of an autogolpe—a Latin American-style crisis …
Discussion:
National Review, Vanity Fair, Alternet.org, Raw Story, Hackwhackers and Business Insider
Patrick Lohmann / Syracuse Post-Standard:
Brindisi-Tenney race narrows even more: 3 to 5 votes separate candidates — OSWEGO, N.Y. — The incredibly close race for the 22nd Congressional District got even closer Tuesday, as about 90 new votes from a bundle of about 2,500 affidavit ballots from Oneida County were counted.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, HotAir and Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion
Josh Kraushaar / National Journal:
The case for a Chris Christie comeback — The former New Jersey governor has the perfect political résumé to bridge the party's divides in a post-Trump world. — Talk to enough mainstream Republican operatives , who are already brainstorming for the type of presidential nominee …
Will Sommer / The Daily Beast:
A Massive Purge Is Underway at Alex Jones' Infowars — Layoffs! Dissent! A Michael Flynn snub! Things are not well in the house that brain pills built. — At a pro-Trump rally in Washington D.C. earlier this month, conspiracy theory magnate Alex Jones came face-to-face with a star …
Maura Forrest / Politico:
How 2020 changed Justin Trudeau, and didn't — PROGRAMMING NOTE: Corridors will not publish from Thursday, Dec. 24 to Friday, Jan. 1. We'll be back on our normal schedule on Wednesday, Jan. 6. — At the very beginning of this interminable year, Justin Trudeau grew a beard.
Discussion:
Twitchy
David Tarrant / Dallas Morning News:
Fort Worth pastor who urged ‘faith over fear’ in the pandemic mourns parents who died of COVID complications — The pastor of 2nd Mile Church in north Fort Worth, where his parents were members, said he was surprised by the sudden surge in COVID cases in recent weeks in Tarrant County.
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Scoop: Israel tries to use Milley as conduit to Biden on Iran — Israel used the recent visit by Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to pass on several messages to the incoming Biden administration regarding Iran and other regional developments, senior Israeli officials tell me.
The Daily Beast:
White Supremacists Discussed Shooting Up Power Grids, Forming ‘Fascist Society’: FBI — Federal agents were tracking a group earlier this year that discussed a violent mission to “wreak havoc” if Trump lost the election, according to mistakenly unsealed court docs.
Discussion:
The Sun and New York Post
Taylor Lorenz / New York Times:
Clubhouse Makes Way for Influencers — Tech investors have warmed to the idea that being a content creator is a legitimate form of business. — Nearly every social media platform has turned its top users into stars: YouTubers, Viners, Dubsmashers, TikTokers, even LinkedIn influencers.
Cornel West / Jewish Currents:
The Radical Heschel — ABRAHAM JOSHUA HESCHEL, who died on this day 48 years ago, was the greatest exemplar of the prophetic legacy of Jerusalem in the most anti-Jewish century of recorded time. He drew inspiration from the biblical prophets, whom he wrote about in great depth …
Washington Post:
Despite Trump's intense hunt for voter fraud, officials in key states have so far identified just a small number of possible cases — In Pittsburgh, the local police department this year received 10 complaints of possible fraudulent voting in the November election.
Discussion:
The Bulwark, Front Page Magazine, RedState, Conservative News Today, Raw Story and Election Law Blog
Gustavo Arellano / Los Angeles Times:
Column: The bittersweet victory of Alex Padilla, California's first Latino U.S. senator — Well, Gavin Newsom took two-thirds of my advice. — In November, I wrote that he should pick a Latino from the San Fernando Valley to replace Kamala Harris as a California U.S. senator.
Danielle E. Gaines / Maryland Matters:
Miller, President Emeritus, Resigns After 45 Years in Md. Senate — State Sen. Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert), the longest-serving Senate president in Maryland history — believed to hold the record for service of any state Senate president in U.S. history — resigned from the seat he's held for 45 years on Wednesday morning.
Discussion:
The Hill and Baltimore Sun
Josh Barro / Business Insider:
Stop lying about the relief bill … - There is a lot of nonsense being spouted about the latest COVID relief package. — People are trying to argue that the only thing average Americans get is the $600 check, but that is not true. The package includes an array of programs that will help people most in need.
Discussion:
TIME