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Richard L. Hasen / Slate:
Donald Trump Should Be Prosecuted for His Shakedown of Georgia's Brad Raffensperger — President Donald Trump likely broke both federal and state law in a Saturday phone call during which he encouraged Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to overturn the state's election results.
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Marc Caputo / Politico:
POLITICO Playbook: The backstory of Trump's Georgia call — DRIVING THE DAY — Good morning from Atlanta, Gateway to the South and the pulsing center of Tuesday's two U.S. Senate runoffs that will determine partisan control of the upper chamber and the success of Joe Biden's first term as president.
Discussion:
The Hill, Real Clear Politics, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, CNN, UPI, New York Times, Townhall, ABC News, Fox News, Law & Crime, NBC News, NPR, Raw Story, Towleroad Gay News, Los Angeles Times and Washington Post
David Frum / The Atlantic:
Trump Crosses a Bright-Red Line — In a bombshell conversation with Georgia's secretary of state yesterday, President Donald Trump made monkeys of every Republican official and every conservative talking head who professed to believe Trump's allegations of voter fraud.
Peter Baker / New York Times:
An Insurgency From Inside the Oval Office — President Trump's effort to overturn the election he lost has gone beyond mere venting of grievances at the risk of damaging the very American democracy he is charged with defending. — WASHINGTON — President Trump's relentless effort to overturn …
Discussion:
Fox News, Associated Press, The Cook Political Report, The Nation and TheBlaze
Nick Niedzwiadek / Politico:
‘Disgusting’: Perdue hammers Georgia secretary of state for recording Trump call — Sen. David Perdue tore into Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Monday for recording a phone call with President Donald Trump over the weekend, calling it “disgusting” to do so.
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Times, Raw Story, Breitbart and CNN
Eric Lipton / New York Times:
Trump Call to Georgia Official Might Violate State and Federal Law — The president's demand for action to overturn the result of the election in the state raised questions about whether he violated election fraud statutes, lawyers said, though a charge is unlikely.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Washington Post, Axios, CNN, New York Magazine, Liberty Unyielding, Daily Kos, Daily Maverick, The Wrap, IJR, The Daily Caller, The Intellectualist, The Guardian, Salon, HotAir, National Review, Common Dreams, Business Insider, Raw Story, HuffPost, Washington Monthly, Foreign Policy, The Week, Law & Crime, The Hill, The Daily Beast, The Sun, DNyuz, The Gateway Pundit, No More Mister Nice Blog, Al Jazeera and The Atlanta Voice
Quint Forgey / Politico:
Raffensperger: Trump could face investigation over election call — Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said Monday that it was unlikely his office would open an investigation into his weekend phone call with President Donald Trump, but suggested a criminal probe could still be launched by an Atlanta-area district attorney.
Chandelis Duster / CNN:
Georgia GOP lieutenant governor says Trump call with secretary of state ‘inappropriate’
Georgia GOP lieutenant governor says Trump call with secretary of state ‘inappropriate’
Washington Post:
All 10 living former defense secretaries: Involving the military in election disputes would cross into dangerous territory
All 10 living former defense secretaries: Involving the military in election disputes would cross into dangerous territory
Rebecca Shabad / NBC News:
Georgia's Raffensperger says he ‘never believed’ it appropriate to speak with Trump about election
Georgia's Raffensperger says he ‘never believed’ it appropriate to speak with Trump about election
Discussion:
CBS News, Bloomberg, Mediaite, Raw Story, The Daily Caller, POLITICUSUSA, Disrn, Washington Times, The Intellectualist, Business Insider, Towleroad Gay News and Mother Jones
NBC News:
Chaos, division, shakeups and shakedowns: Two months that sum up Trump's presidency
Chaos, division, shakeups and shakedowns: Two months that sum up Trump's presidency
Discussion:
Fox News, Raw Story, The Sun, The Hill and Just Security
NBC News:
Democrats ask FBI Director Wray to open criminal probe into Trump after leaked phone call
Democrats ask FBI Director Wray to open criminal probe into Trump after leaked phone call
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Times, TheGrio, UPI and NBC New York
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
The Senate's coup-staging ‘Dirty Dozen’ shouldn't be allowed to hold office
The Senate's coup-staging ‘Dirty Dozen’ shouldn't be allowed to hold office
Discussion:
Fox News, CNN and DCReport.org
Patricia Murphy / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Gov. Brian Kemp absent from GOP campaign trail in closing days
Gov. Brian Kemp absent from GOP campaign trail in closing days
Discussion:
Washington Post, The American Independent, Los Angeles Times, The Daily Beast, Mercury News and Politico
Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas:
Cotton Statement on Joint Session of Congress — FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — Contact: Caroline Tabler or James Arnold (202) 734-0430 — Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) released the following statement on the joint session of Congress later this week:
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Mike Allen / Axios:
The GOP battle lines drawn by Trump and McConnell will shape the next four years
The GOP battle lines drawn by Trump and McConnell will shape the next four years
Gerald F. Seib / Wall Street Journal:
In Trump's Final Days, Lines Are Drawn for a Republican Civil War
In Trump's Final Days, Lines Are Drawn for a Republican Civil War
Discussion:
Politico, Fox News, Boston Herald, The Guardian and Roll Call
Russell Berman / The Atlantic:
Mitch McConnell's Slipping Grip on the Republican Party
Mitch McConnell's Slipping Grip on the Republican Party
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Daily Kos, Common Dreams, Florida Politics, ABC News and Crooks and Liars
Peter Swindon / The Sunday Post:
Donald Trump could be planning Turnberry trip as Scots airport told to expect a high-flyer the day before Joe Biden's inauguration … © Robert Perry/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock — US President Donald Trump could be planning a trip to Scotland to avoid attending his successor Joe Biden's inauguration, according to aviation sources.
Discussion:
Towleroad Gay News, Mock Paper Scissors and Crooks and Liars
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Jamie Ross / The Daily Beast:
Plane Sightings Fuel Rumors Trump Planning Escape to Scotland on Day Before Biden Inauguration — GOLF WAR — Something strange is happening on the west coast of Scotland. According to a report from the Sunday Post, a lot of unusual U.S. military activity has been recorded at one airport …
Tom Nichols / The Atlantic:
Worse Than Treason — “We are what we pretend to be,” Kurt Vonnegut wrote in the opening of his 1962 novel, Mother Night, “and so we must be careful what we pretend to be.” Republicans in Congress are pretending to be seditionists—and so they have become, in fact, seditionists.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Crooks and Liars and Business Insider
Jessica Yun / Yahoo Finance:
Chinese billionaire Jack Ma suspected missing — Speculation has swirled around Chinese billionaire Jack Ma's whereabouts after reports surfaced that the high-profile businessman has not made a public appearance in more than two months. — The Alibaba founder also failed to appear …
Discussion:
Orange County Register, We Love Trump, New York Post and Reuters
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Kate Conger / New York Times:
Hundreds of Google Employees Unionize, Culminating Years of Activism — The creation of the union, a rarity in Silicon Valley, follows years of increasing outspokenness by Google workers. Executives have struggled to handle the change. — OAKLAND, Calif. — More than 225 Google engineers …
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Washington Post, The Hill, VICE, Breitbart, DNyuz, The Verge, The Week, The Daily Caller and UPI, more at Techmeme »
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Newsmax:
Trump Ga. Transcript Shows Case for Vote Fraud, President Acted Properly — The Washington Post on Sunday released audio of a Saturday phone call between President Donald Trump and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which the two can be heard discussing election results.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Daily Kos, Liberty Unyielding, IJR, The Week and Business Insider
Hans Nichols / Axios:
Rhode Island governor emerges as leading candidate for Commerce Department — Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo has emerged as a leading candidate to be President-elect Joe Biden's commerce secretary, according to people familiar with the matter. — Why it matters: Raimondo …
Marco Rubio / Fox News:
Georgia Senate runoffs — The fate of our nation is in Georgia's hands — If Georgians believe in our democracy and our nation's institutions, they will reject Warnock and Ossoff — Sen. Perdue says he and Sen. Loeffler are ‘last line of defense’ against socialist agenda
Discussion:
Florida Politics and DNyuz
Jonathan Rauch / Persuasion:
The Made-Up Conspiracy — A Republican bid to deny Biden's victory is another worrying Trumpist disinformation ploy — When Republican senators attempt to block congressional confirmation of Joe Biden's presidential victory this week, they will not succeed in reversing the outcome of the election.
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Business Insider, The Hill, Foreign Policy, Al Jazeera, HotAir, POLITICUSUSA and Election Law Blog
Laura Vozzella / Washington Post:
Terry McAuliffe raises a record $6.1 million in bid to reclaim Executive Mansion — RICHMOND — Democrat Terry McAuliffe announced Monday that he has raised more than $6 million for his comeback bid for Virginia governor, far surpassing what previous gubernatorial hopefuls have raised at similar points in their campaigns.
Discussion:
The Hill
Stuart Stevens / The Bulwark:
The Bravery of William Winter — Stuart Stevens remembers the Mississippi governor who changed his life. — I was only 14 but it was a scene I will never forget. In many ways, it changed my life. — It was 1967 on the Mississippi Gulf Coast and William Winter was running for the Democratic nomination for governor.
Yuval Levin / National Review:
Failures of Leadership in a Populist Age — For many years now, an important segment of the Republican electorate has been increasingly frustrated with the elites who lead our core institutions. The political outlook of these voters has come to be defined by that frustration …
Discussion:
Raw Story and American Greatness
Olivia Beavers / Politico:
117th Congress kicks off with GOP civil war, calls for impeachment and plexiglass — With assists from Melanie, Heather, Burgess, Andrew, and Kyle — It's less than 24 hours into the 117th Congress and we've already seen Republicans break out into a civil war, Democrats renew calls …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Fox News, Vox, Townhall, Bloomberg, National Review, New York Post, The National Interest, Crooks and Liars, The Week and abc7NY
Keith J. Kelly / New York Post:
DC media group buys NY publication City & State, plans expansion — A DC-based news agency for politicians and bureaucrats has acquired City & State, a media business covering New York state and local politics for elected officials and government workers. — Terms of the acquisition …
Lara Seligman / Politico:
Trump keeps carrier in Middle East, overruling his Pentagon chief — President Donald Trump was behind the abrupt decision announced on Sunday night to reverse course and keep the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz in the Middle East due to Iranian threats against top U.S. officials, according to two people familiar with conversations.
Discussion:
Business Insider, New York Times, ABC News, CNN, The Daily Caller and Wall Street Journal