Top Items:
Maggie Haberman / New York Times:
Meandering Performance by Defense Lawyers Enrages Trump — The former president was particularly angry at Bruce L. Castor Jr., one of his lawyers, for acknowledging the effectiveness of the House Democrats' presentation. — On the first day of his second impeachment trial …
Discussion:
HuffPost, Insider, Slate, Associated Press, CNN, Althouse, Raw Story, The Week, Washington Examiner, ABC News, The Guardian, Washington Times, New York Magazine, NPR and Bloomberg
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Jennifer Jacobs / Bloomberg:
McConnell Signals to GOP Trump Conviction Is a Conscience Vote — Minority leader suggests he hasn't decided on Trump guilt — Kentucky Republican voted to declare trial unconstitutional — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is signaling to fellow Republicans that the final vote …
Discussion:
National Review, Florida Politics, The Week, The Guardian, Raw Story, Mediaite, Proof and Political Wire
Politico:
Trump was quite displeased with his impeachment defense team — For former President Donald Trump, the opening day of his second impeachment trial did not go as planned or to his liking. — Cocooned at his Mar-a-Lago estate, Trump watched as his defense attorneys responded …
Discussion:
Washington Post, CBS News, The Week, The Dispatch, Washington Examiner, Newsweek, Vox, American Prospect, Snopes.com, Lawyers, Guns & Money, New Republic, The Guardian, Crooks and Liars, The Daily Caller, HotAir, The Moderate Voice, POLITICUSUSA, The Hill, The Intellectualist, Political Wire, NPR and YouGov
Politico:
POLITICO Playbook: Trump is furious, and McConnell might vote to convict — DRIVING THE DAY — ANOTHER ANTI-TRUMP LEAK FROM MCCONNELL WORLD — “McConnell Signals to GOP Trump Impeachment Is a Conscience Vote,” Bloomberg: “Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is signaling to fellow Republicans …
Discussion:
CBS News, NPR, CNN, The Hill, Real Clear Politics, Raw Story, Florida Politics, NBC 6 South Florida and Political Wire
The Philadelphia Inquirer:
More Philly lawyers are on Trump's impeachment defense team and one sued the president last year — As Donald Trump's Senate impeachment trial began Tuesday in Washington, his lawyer, former Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor, had two other big-name Philadelphia attorneys backing him up.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Insider, Raw Story and The American Independent
David Frum / The Atlantic:
Trump's Lawyers Lost the Day — “The mob was fed lies. They were provoked by the president and other powerful people, and they tried to use fear and violence to stop a specific proceeding of the first branch of the federal government which they did not like.”
Discussion:
Michael-In-Norfolk, Raw Story, The American Spectator and Los Angeles Times
Jonathan Allen / NBC News:
In impeachment trial, a clarifying moment for the GOP
In impeachment trial, a clarifying moment for the GOP
Discussion:
Roll Call, The Hill, Wall Street Journal, Townhall, Associated Press and Fox News
Axios:
House managers look to shift public opinion during Trump impeachment trial
House managers look to shift public opinion during Trump impeachment trial
Discussion:
Politico, CNN, The Philadelphia Inquirer, HuffPost, Louisiana Illuminator, The Week and Washington Post
Nina Totenberg / NPR:
‘I Said The Opposite’: Criticism Of Trump's Impeachment Defense Intensifies
‘I Said The Opposite’: Criticism Of Trump's Impeachment Defense Intensifies
Discussion:
Reason, Bloomberg, DCReport.org, Slate, The American Independent, Raw Story, Denver Post, The Dickinson Press, NBC News, TalkLeft, Mediaite, Political Wire and Washington Post
Washington Post:
In self-imposed exile, Trump watches with unhappiness as second impeachment trial unfolds
In self-imposed exile, Trump watches with unhappiness as second impeachment trial unfolds
Discussion:
Bloomberg, The Daily Caller, Washington Examiner, New York Times, The Week, UPI, CNN and HuffPost
Sam Brodey / The Daily Beast:
First Day of Impeachment Stuns, Baffles and Shocks—but GOP Is Unmoved
First Day of Impeachment Stuns, Baffles and Shocks—but GOP Is Unmoved
Discussion:
Insider, HotAir, HuffPost, The Hill, Fox News, Chicago Sun-Times and New York Times
Steve Neavling / News & Views, Detroit Metro Times:
Sen. Shirkey baselessly claims U.S. Capitol riot was ‘staged’ by Trump haters, recording shows — Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey. — Michigan state Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey suggested the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol was a “hoax” perpetuated by opponents of former President Donald Trump.
Discussion:
Michigan Advance, MLive.com, NPR, Crooks and Liars, Forbes, Insider, CNN, Mediaite, Big League Politics, The Hill, Washington Times, Associated Press, Detroit Metro Times, POLITICUSUSA, The Intellectualist, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Root, The American Independent, New York Times and Raw Story
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Daniel Victor / New York Times:
'I'm Not a Cat,' Says Lawyer Having Zoom Difficulties — The video was immediately shared widely and brought joy to many. The lawyer, Rod Ponton, said he was happy people got a much-needed laugh. — It was a civil forfeiture case hearing like any other hearing, except for the lawyer cat.
Discussion:
The Philadelphia Inquirer, CNN, Slate, Dallas Morning News, New York Post, Common Dreams, The Sun, Japan Times, The Daily Caller, Mashable, Fox News, Althouse and Twitchy
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David A. Graham / The Atlantic:
Why Jamie Raskin's Speech Resonated — The emotional high point of Donald Trump's second impeachment trial probably came in its first hours. — Closing out the opening presentation from the Democratic House managers, Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland offered a powerful speech …
Discussion:
New York Daily News, New York Times, The Stranger, Washington Post, MyNorthwest.com, IJR and Insider
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Politico:
Trump hid his calls with Putin. Now, Biden has access to them. — Few Trump-era mysteries are as intriguing as what the 45th president said to Vladimir Putin in at least a dozen rambling, off-the-cuff calls and meetings over four years. Understanding what was said between …
Todd Frankel / Washington Post:
A majority of the people arrested for Capitol riot had a history of financial trouble — Trail of bankruptcies, tax problems and bad debts raises questions for researchers trying to understand motivations for attack — Jenna Ryan seemed like an unlikely participant in the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
Discussion:
Raw Story and Political Wire
New York Times:
'There's Nothing Left': Why Thousands of Republicans Are Leaving the Party — Voting registration data indicates a stronger-than-usual flight from the G.O.P. since the Capitol riot, with an intensely fluid period in American politics now underway. — In the days after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol …
Simon Shuster / TIME:
Exclusive: Ukraine Releases ‘Shock’ Call With Giuliani As Trump's Second Impeachment Trial Begins — “Let these investigations go forward,” Rudy Giuliani told the presidential headquarters in Kyiv, Ukraine, his voice turning impatient. “Get someone to investigate this.”
Discussion:
CNN, The Intellectualist and Raw Story
Michael Gartland / New York Daily News:
Yang holds commanding lead in mayor's race: new poll — Andrew Yang commands a double-digit lead in the Democrat primary for mayor, with his closest rivals, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and Comptroller Scott Stringer, trailing by more than 10 percentage points each, a new poll released early Wednesday morning revealed.
Axios:
Dozens of states see new voter suppression proposals — There are at least 165 proposals under consideration in 33 states so far this year to restrict future voting access by limiting mail-in ballots, implementing new voter ID requirements and slashing registration options.
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, The American Independent and Popular Information
Scott Fontana / New York Post:
Mark Cuban's Mavericks won't play national anthem anymore — Haven't heard about any national anthem protests at Dallas Mavericks games? There's a good reason for that: The team isn't and won't be playing it anymore. — Mark Cuban told The Athletic it was his decision to eliminate …
Discussion:
The Athletic, ESPN, Twitchy, HuffPost and Townhall
Nikole Hannah-Jones / Rod Dreher:
At Times, Don McNeil Scandal Deepens — This business over The New York Times pushing out veteran science journalist Donald G. McNeil, Jr., is shaping up to be deeply symbolic of the way wokeness has corrupted a major American institution. Seriously, the rot goes all the way to the top.
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon, Fox News and RedState
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Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
What happened with New York Times reporter Donald McNeil?
What happened with New York Times reporter Donald McNeil?
Discussion:
Fox News, Instapundit, New York Post, Breitbart, Poynter and New Republic, more at Mediagazer »
Dexter Thomas / VICE:
Is This Beverly Hills Cop Playing Sublime's ‘Santeria’ to Avoid Being Live-streamed? — Police officers in Beverly Hills have been playing music while being filmed, seemingly in an effort to trigger Instagram's copyright filters. — DT — Last Friday, a man entered the Beverly Hills police department …
Discussion:
CBS Los Angeles and Boing Boing, more at Mediagazer »
Jeffrey M. Jones / Gallup:
GOP Image Slides Giving Democrats Strong Advantage — WASHINGTON, D.C. — Americans' opinions of the Republican Party have worsened in recent months, with 37% now saying they have a favorable view of the party, down from 43% in November. This decline, along with a slight increase …
Wall Street Journal:
TikTok Sale to Oracle, Walmart Is Shelved as Biden Reviews Security — Trump-driven deal had languished as video-sharing app's Chinese owner mounted successful legal challenges — WASHINGTON—A U.S. plan to force the sale of TikTok's American operations to a group including Oracle Corp …
PepsiCo:
Aunt Jemima Rebrands As Pearl Milling Company — PepsiCo, Inc., today announced the debut of Pearl Milling Company, the new name of the pancake mix and syrup varieties previously found under the Aunt Jemima brand. — Pearl Milling Company-branded pancake mixes, syrups, cornmeal, flour …
Mike Luckovich / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
2/10 Mike Luckovich: Where they came from — ByeDonThis was after Super Tuesday, and after Biden won South Carolina. It seemed at that point that he was gonna be the nominee. I woke up around 330 a.m. the next morning and started thinking, and something just hit me — “ByeDon.”
Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:
The Jan. 6 images were already disturbing. The impeachment-trial video makes them terrifying. — The pounding on the Capitol doors, the shouts of the mob, police officers screaming in pain, barricades toppled, windows shattered, the deadly gunshot. — Captured in fragments on cellphone videos …
Discussion:
Politico, CNN and Occupy Democrats
Erin Banco / The Daily Beast:
Biden Team Fears: No COVID Herd Immunity Until Thanksgiving — Dr. Fauci is still “cautiously optimistic” that life can return to normal by the beginning of the fall. But others worry that we may not get there until the early winter. — Top members of Biden's COVID response team …
Discussion:
Washington Post, HotAir and The Guardian
Politico:
Inside Republicans' plans for a House takeover — House Republicans surprised nearly everyone last November when they almost captured the majority. — Then they spent January roiled by the deadly attack on the Capitol, confronting a second impeachment of then-President Donald Trump …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, The Week and Raw Story
Caitlin Owens / Axios:
The biggest ACA overhaul in a decade is underway — Democrats' coronavirus relief proposal includes major changes to the Affordable Care Act, aiming to make health insurance more affordable for the millions of people who have lost their employer-based coverage during the pandemic.
Discussion:
NPR and Ways and Means Committee
Peter Baker / New York Times:
Why Trump's Second Impeachment Is a Visceral Reckoning — At issue will be many aspects that defined Donald Trump's presidency: his relentless assaults on truth, his fomenting of divisions, his shattering of norms and his undermining of an election. — This was no phone call transcript, no dry words on a page open to interpretation.