Top Items:
Oliver Darcy / CNN:
RT America ceases productions and lays off most of its staff — New York (CNN Business)The production company behind the American version of the Russian state-funded network RT laid off most of its staff on Thursday, according to a memo obtained by CNN. — Misha Solodovnikov …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, The Hill, Insider, Occupy Democrats, Mediaite, Variety and Hollywood Reporter, more at Mediagazer »
Nick Kostov / Wall Street Journal:
Russian Oligarch Igor Sechin's Yacht Seized by French Authorities, Who Say It Was Preparing to Depart — French authorities said they seized a yacht belonging to a company majority owned by Igor Sechin, the chief executive of Russian oil producer Rosneft. Mr. Sechin was among a group …
Discussion:
CNBC and The Guardian
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Bloomberg:
France Impounds Super Yacht Owned by Head of Russian State Oil Giant — Rosneft Chief Executive Officer Igor Sechin's superyacht was blocked by French customs officials on the Cote D'Azur, part of the European Union's sanctions against wealthy Russians with close ties to President Vladimir Putin.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
John Sexton / HotAir:
Another Russian yacht seized in France (plus two more that could be seized soon)
Another Russian yacht seized in France (plus two more that could be seized soon)
Discussion:
Politico, Washington Examiner, CNBC, Boston.com, Vanity Fair, NPR, Financial Times, Rolling Stone, Insider, New York Post, Al Jazeera, Majorca Daily Bulletin and Forbes
New York Times:
Over a Million Have Fled; 2 Sides Agree to Send Aid to Some Areas — Catch up on the latest news on Ukraine. — A day after gaining control of their first major Ukrainian city, Russian forces on Thursday laid siege to urban areas across the country in a grinding offensive that has deepened the conflict's humanitarian crisis.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Bloomberg, The Daily Dot, Associated Press, Mother Jones, Raw Story, Ground News and The Moderate Voice
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New York Times:
Russia Makes Gains in South as Humanitarian Crisis Grows — Russian forces make gains in southern Ukraine as a humanitarian crisis grows. — A day after gaining control of their first major Ukrainian city, Russian forces on Thursday laid siege to urban areas across the country …
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, amuse-bouche, Talking Points Memo and Just The News
Washington Post:
Russia-Ukraine live updates: Negotiators agree to temporary cease-fire in some areas for civilian evacuation — Over 1 million people have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.
Discussion:
Politico, Political Wire, Townhall, WKBN-TV, The Drive, UPI, Insider, Outside the Beltway and Wide World of News
William P. Barr / Wall Street Journal:
When I Confronted Trump About Election Fraud — In an excerpt from his new memoir, the former Attorney General recalls the explosive White House meeting where he rejected President Trump's claims about the 2020 election. — The first day of December 2020, almost a month after the presidential election, was gray and rainy.
Discussion:
Raw Story
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Dareh Gregorian / NBC News:
Former AG Barr said Trump became enraged after being told election fraud claims were nonsense — Barr claims Trump grew ‘very angry’ as he disproved election fraud theories — Former U.S. Attorney General William Barr said then-President Donald Trump became furious after Barr told …
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
The Justice Dept. and the Jan. 6 inquiry make moves to snare Trump — Those criticizing Attorney General Merrick Garland for not moving expeditiously against former president Donald Trump for an attempted coup should take heart. — On Wednesday, we saw a matter-of-fact announcement …
Discussion:
CNN, Metro.co.uk, The Mahablog, The Status Kuo, New York Times and Mother Jones
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Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Understanding the criminal allegations the Jan. 6 committee is constructing against Trump
Understanding the criminal allegations the Jan. 6 committee is constructing against Trump
Discussion:
CNN, Washington Examiner, NPR, VICE, Truthout, Talking Points Memo, The Guardian, emptywheel, Forbes, Raw Story, The Signorile Report, UPI, Twitchy, Morning Shots, CBS News, Newsy, Outside the Beltway, Lawyers, Guns & Money, CBS Los Angeles and Insider
Cheryl Teh / Insider:
A Russian businessman has put a $1 million bounty on Vladimir Putin's head, calling for military officers to arrest him as a war criminal — Russian businessman Alex Konanykhin has put a $1 million bounty on Vladimir Putin's head. — He has called on Russian military officers to go after Putin and arrest him as a war criminal.
Discussion:
IJR, New York Post and BizPac Review
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Graeme Wood / The Atlantic:
Absolute Power — Mohammed bin Salman, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, is 36 years old and has led his country for almost five years. His father, the 86-year-old King Salman, has rarely been seen in public since 2019, and even MBS—as he is universally known—has faced the world only a few times since the pandemic began.
Politico:
Weighing history, GOP senators wrestle over Supreme Court votes — Mitt Romney and Roy Blunt are torn over the same Supreme Court quandary: whether to shake off GOP pressure to oppose Ketanji Brown Jackson and vote for the first Black woman justice. — Though Jackson hasn't even had her …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Media Matters for America, Washington Examiner, UPI, SCOTUSblog, CBS News and The Hill
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Gregory Pratt / Chicago Tribune:
Mayor Lori Lightfoot blocked Columbus statue deal, berated lawyers with obscene remarks, lawsuit claims — Mayor Lori Lightfoot blocked a deal the Chicago Park District made with an Italian American group to allow a Christopher Columbus statue to be displayed in a parade and made obscene remarks aimed …
Courier-Journal:
Kentucky lawmaker apologizes for referencing Jewish women's sex life amid abortion debate — Kentucky Rep. Danny Bentley made comments about Jewish women and the Holocaust during a debate Wednesday over anti-abortion legislation, quickly drawing condemnation from several members …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Joel Shannon / USA Today:
‘It could happen tomorrow’: Experts know disaster upon disaster looms for West Coast — It's the elevators that worry earthquake engineering expert Keith Porter the most. — Scientists say a massive quake could strike the San Francisco Bay Area at any moment.
Kara Swisher / New York Times:
Jon Stewart on Why the Right Would ‘Rather Do a Deal With Putin Than Pelosi’ — (SINGING) When you walk in a room, do you have sway? — Oh, wait one second. I'm going to just turn off my heat. — Jon Stewart — Did you say turn off your heat? She's going to freeze to death if this goes on.
Discussion:
The Hill, POLITICUSUSA and Raw Story
Justin Schecker / WFLA-TV:
‘Stop bullying kids’: Students, parents respond to Gov. DeSantis telling students to take off their masks — TAMPA (WFLA) - In a video that has been viewed millions of times, Gov. Ron DeSantis asked a group of Hillsborough County High School students to remove their masks during his press conference …
Discussion:
We Love Trump, Occupy Democrats, Raw Story, Daily Kos, WKBN-TV, Mediaite and Rolling Stone
RELATED:
Andrew Atterbury / Politico:
DeSantis defends scolding students over masks — and fundraises off it
DeSantis defends scolding students over masks — and fundraises off it
Discussion:
HotAir, Bloomberg, RedState, Louder With Crowder and Florida Politics
Will Bunch / The Philadelphia Inquirer:
Here's the message that wins the midterms for Democrats, if they're not afraid — It hasn't aired yet, but I want to share with you the political ad that could win the 2022 midterm elections for the Democrats — even with all the doom and gloom about President Biden's approval rating and all the historical trends that favor the GOP.
Jennifer Hassan / Washington Post:
International Cat Federation bans Russian cats from competitions — The International Cat Federation says it has banned Russian cats from its international competitions in the latest rebuke to Russia since it invaded Ukraine last week. — The federation, which considers itself …
Discussion:
NPR, Twitchy, Commentary Magazine, Insider and Rolling Stone
The White House:
FACT SHEET: The United States Continues to Target Russian Oligarchs Enabling Putin's War of Choice — Today, the United States, in coordination with Allies and partners, is targeting additional Russian elites and family members who continue supporting President Putin despite his brutal invasion of Ukraine.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Dissent, One America News Network, National Review, The Ludic Log, Financial Times, Insider Paper, UPI and fontanka.ru
Arizona Republic:
‘I have the job I want’: Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey will not run for the U.S. Senate in 2022 — Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey will not run for the U.S. Senate this year, he told donors in a letter obtained by The Arizona Republic, finally putting to rest whether he held aspirations for elected office this cycle.
San Francisco Chronicle:
UC Berkeley must withhold thousands of acceptance letters after state Supreme Court ruling — UC Berkeley must cut enrollment by about 3,000 students for next fall after the California Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a lower court's order that the prestigious university freeze enrollment at 2020 levels.
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, The Hill, Berkeley News, Forbes, CBS San Francisco, ABC7 and Mercury News
Washington Post:
The gory online campaign Ukraine hopes will sow anti-Putin dissent probably violates the Geneva Conventions … A besieged Ukraine has adopted a gruesome tactic in hopes of stoking anti-government rage inside Russia: posting photos and videos of captured and killed Russian soldiers on the Web for anyone to see.
Discussion:
VICE
Reuters:
Fitch, Moody's slash Russia's sovereign rating to junk … Ratings agencies Fitch and Moody's downgraded Russia by six notches to “junk” status, saying Western sanctions threw into doubt its ability to service debt and would weaken the economy. — Russia's financial markets have been thrown …
ABC7:
Former IL House speaker Michael Madigan indicted on racketeering, bribery, more — Michael Madigan Illinois: Democrat once most powerful politician in state … Former IL Speaker Madigan indicted on racketeering, bribery, more — CHICAGO (WLS) — Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan …
Amie Parnes / The Hill:
White House discussing sending Harris to Warsaw, Bucharest — The White House is actively discussing sending Vice President Harris to Warsaw, Poland, and Bucharest, Romania, in the coming days to show solidarity with Ukraine as it faces an escalating Russian invasion, sources familiar with the conversations tell The Hill.
Discussion:
WGN-TV
Bradley Hope / Whale Hunting:
Follow the Mega Yachts — Welcome to the inaugural column of Yacht Watch (Tagline: “We're going to need a bigger boat") from Whale Hunting Contributor Alex Finley, a novelist and former CIA officer with the insight to explore who runs the world through the prism of super yachts. This will be a monthly feature.
Robert Sanchez / Sports Illustrated:
‘I Am Lia’: The Trans Swimmer Dividing America Tells Her Story — Lia Thomas has dominated women's college swimming this season—and has also become a lightning rod for controversy. Many—including some teammates—say she shouldn't be able to compete against other women.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, New York Post, Breitbart, Insider and PinkNews
Justice News:
TV Producer For Russian Oligarch Charged With Violating Crimea-Related Sanctions — Jack Hanick Worked for Konstantin Malofeyev in Violation of United States Sanctions and Made False Statements to FBI Agents to Conceal His Sanctions-Violating Conduct — Damian Williams, the United States Attorney …
Discussion:
Associated Press and Raw Story