Top Items:
Washington Post:
‘Havana syndrome’ not caused by energy weapon or foreign adversary, intelligence review finds — After a years-long assessment, five U.S. intelligence agencies conclude it is ‘very unlikely’ an enemy wielding a secret weapon was behind the mysterious ailment
Discussion:
New York Magazine, Washington Examiner, Fox News, Politico, The Hill, Wall Street Journal, HotAir, NBC News, CNN, Chicago Tribune, The Daily Caller, abc7NY, Rolling Stone, CBS News and Semafor
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Nomaan Merchant / Associated Press:
Intel agencies: No sign adversaries behind ‘Havana syndrome’
Intel agencies: No sign adversaries behind ‘Havana syndrome’
Discussion:
New York Times, ABC News, UPI and WTOP News
Washington Post:
Showdown before the raid: FBI agents and prosecutors argued over Trump — An exclusive look at behind-the-scenes deliberations as both sides wrestled with a national security case that has potentially far-reaching political consequences — Months of disputes between Justice Department prosecutors …
Discussion:
HotAir, The Hill, The Independent, Raw Story, Washington Examiner, 19FortyFive, Hackwhackers, Alternet.org, Mediaite and emptywheel
Maggie Severns / Grid News:
Ron DeSantis is using a new breed of local right-wing media to make national news — These websites didn't exist five years ago. — The Florida Standard is a fledgling website, launching last July. It lists only five writers and editors on its site. But in January, it landed a blistering scoop …
Discussion:
The Nation
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Jonathan Chait / New York Magazine:
DeSantis Promises Florida Will Control Disney's Content … Last year, after Disney had the temerity to issue a statement opposing one of his prized legislative initiatives, Ron DeSantis punished the company by removing its self-governing status. (DeSantis justified the maneuver as a removal …
Discussion:
Reason, Law & Crime, Insider and Washington Post, more at Mediagazer »
Berkeley Lovelace Jr / NBC News:
Drugmaker Eli Lilly caps the cost of insulin at $35 a month, bringing relief for millions — Eli Lilly will cap the out-of-pocket cost of its insulin at $35 a month, the drugmaker said Wednesday. The move, experts say, could prompt other insulin makers in the U.S. to follow suit.
Discussion:
ACA Signups, CNN, Raw Story, ABC News, New York Daily News, Associated Press, Chop Wood, Carry Water, CNBC, Chicago Sun-Times, UPI, Fortune, Financial Times, NewsNation, Reuters, Washington Examiner, Washington Press, CBS News, Wall Street Journal, Plain Dealer, Washington Times, The Daily Caller, PoliticusUSA, The Hill, Just The News and New York Times
Scott Macfarlane / CBS News:
Senior McCarthy aide, House Oversight chairman each met with mother of Jan. 6 rioter Ashli Babbitt — A senior staffer to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy met this week with Micki Witthoeft, mother of Ashli Babbitt, the woman shot and killed by police as she breached a set of doors to the Speaker's Lobby on Jan. 6, 2021.
Discussion:
Raw Story and Political Wire
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The Hill:
McCarthy, GOP pump brakes on release of Jan. 6 footage to Tucker Carlson — House Republicans are pumping the brakes on the release of Jan. 6 surveillance footage they've offered to Fox News host Tucker Carlson and going on offense against Democrats who have spent the past week slamming the move.
Discussion:
Washington Post, New Republic, The Daily Beast, The Wrap, Talking Points Memo, Washington Examiner, Associated Press, ABC News, CBS News, CNN, Media Matters for America, Washington Press, The Gateway Pundit, Progress Pond, HuffPost, Breitbart, PBS NewsHour, Raw Story, Forbes, Reuters, Rolling Stone and Politico, more at Mediagazer »
Lillian Rizzo / CNBC:
Schumer, Jeffries pressure Murdoch, Fox News over Trump's false election fraud claims — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries are calling foul on Rupert Murdoch. — The top Democrats in Congress sent a letter to Murdoch, urging Fox News leadership …
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Molly Hensley-Clancy / Washington Post:
NBA star Ja Morant accused in police reports of punching teen, making threats — Ja Morant is among the brightest young stars in the NBA, with a new signature Nike shoe, a top-selling jersey and a team, the Memphis Grizzlies, poised for a deep postseason run.
Discussion:
New York Post
Andrew Solender / Axios:
Capitol Hill swarmed by performers in straightjackets — Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) turned heads on Capitol Hill this week by sending performance artists dressed in straitjackets and blue-and-red tinted glasses to the House offices. — Why it matters: It's part of a campaign Kinzinger …
Andrew E. Kramer / New York Times:
In an Epic Battle of Tanks, Russia Was Routed, Repeating Earlier Mistakes — A three-week fight in the town of Vuhledar in southern Ukraine produced what Ukrainian officials say was the biggest tank battle of the war so far, and a stinging setback for the Russians.
Discussion:
Euromaidan Press, Associated Press, NBC News, Morning Shots, StrategyPage, The Guardian and New York Times
Adam Edelman / NBC News:
Florida GOP lawmaker pitches bill to eliminate the Florida Democratic Party — A Republican in Florida's state Legislature has filed a bill that, if enacted, would eliminate the Florida Democratic Party. — “The Ultimate Cancel Act,” filed on Tuesday by state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia …
Jim Geraghty / National Review:
We Told You the Truth about Covid (and a Whole Lot More) — On the menu today: Day after day, week after week, unscrupulous actors in the world of politics pelt you with a hurricane of BS and try to get you to believe that two plus two equals five. A big part of the mission of National Review …
Discussion:
New York Post, The Daily Signal and ABC News
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Michael Levenson / New York Times:
Whiskey Fungus Fed by Jack Daniel's Encrusts a Tennessee Town — The dark growth, fed by alcohol vapors from barrels of aging Jack Daniel's whiskey, has coated homes, cars, patio furniture and road signs in a sooty crust, residents said. One woman is suing Lincoln County.
Yaron Steinbuch / New York Post:
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot blames election loss on racism, gender — Democratic Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot blamed racism and her gender for her landslide defeat in her re-election bid, as Chicagoans wary of the rising crime of her watch celebrated her fall from “political rock star to rock bottom.”
Discussion:
Daily Mail, Chicago Tribune, WGN-TV, Chicago Sun-Times, Alternet.org, ABC7, Breitbart, National Review, RedState, NBC Chicago, Twitchy, HotAir, Big League Politics, New York Times, PinkNews, Fox News, CBS News, IJR, Sputnik News, Financial Times, The Root, Associated Press, HuffPost, NBC News and WTOP News
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Scoop: Trump's former ambassador to Israel slams Bibi's judicial overhaul plan — Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman used a recent conservative conference in Tel Aviv to express concern and push back against the Netanyahu government's judicial overhaul plan, according to two people with direct knowledge of the issue.
Discussion:
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Politico:
GOP urges no ‘burdensome regulations’ on freight rail, after derailment — Republicans on Capitol Hill have spent two weeks torching the Biden administration for what they call a slow response to the Ohio rail disaster — but on Tuesday, some GOP lawmakers urged their colleagues not to rush …
Discussion:
New York Times, CBS News, Plain Dealer, CNN, Brotherhood … and E&E
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Heidi Przybyla / Politico:
Dark money and special deals: How Leonard Leo and his friends benefited from his judicial activism — A network of political non-profits formed by judicial activist Leonard Leo moved at least $43 million to a new firm he is leading, raising questions about how his conservative legal movement is funded.
Discussion:
Alternet.org, Digby's Hullabaloo and Talking Points Memo
Maria Cramer / New York Times:
New York Will Pay Millions to Protesters Violently Corralled by Police — The police boxed in racial justice demonstrators in 2020, an anti-protest practice known as “kettling,” then hit them with batons and pepper spray. Hundreds will receive $21,500 each.
Discussion:
ABC News, Washington Examiner, New York Magazine, New York Daily News, The Times of Israel, Al Jazeera, WTOP News, Rolling Stone and Gothamist
Annie Nova / CNBC:
Biden administration lawyer may have saved student loan forgiveness plan at Supreme Court — Experts who predicted the Supreme Court justices would rule against President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan changed their tune after oral arguments. — Those experts praised Solicitor …
Freddie deBoer:
The Left Has Never Stood for No Rules or Expectations on Personal Behavior — we've really gotten ourselves into a weird ass place — The woman whose account appears at the top of this picture started a Twitter storm, somehow, by publicly wishing that she could take her child onto …
Ron DeSantis / Wall Street Journal:
Why I Stood Up to Disney — On Monday, I signed the law ending the Walt Disney Co.'s self-governing status over 43 square miles in central Florida, an area almost as big as Miami. Disney no longer has its own government. It has to live under the same laws as Universal Studios …
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, Florida's Voice, Deadline and Washington Examiner
Thomas B. Edsall / New York Times:
This Is Trump's ‘Magic Trick’ — In his effort to outflank Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida — his most potent challenger-in-waiting for the Republican presidential nomination — Donald Trump goes only in one direction: hard right. — At the start of this year, Trump announced his education agenda …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Trump's enablers must face consequences, too — There's no doubt that Donald Trump was the instigator of the 2020 insurrection. But the former president's schemes never would have gotten far (or even off the ground) without the participation of right-wing media executives, lawyers and pliant state officials.
Discussion:
Balloon Juice and Alternet.org
Bryan Metzger / Insider:
GOP Sen. Mike Lee's ‘based’ personal Twitter account briefly suspended after he tweeted at Japanese prime minister — Twitter suspended “BasedMikeLee,” Utah GOP Sen. Mike Lee's personal account, on Wednesday. — It was unclear why the suspension occurred, and Lee said no explanation has been given.
Discussion:
Newsbusters, Fox News, RedState, The Federalist, Rolling Stone, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, Twitchy, KTVX-TV and Al Jazeera
Quinnipiac University Poll:
Homelessness And Affordable Housing, Top Of Mind As Most Urgent Issues In California, Quinnipiac University California Poll Finds; 7 In 10 Voters Don't Want Gov. Newsom To Run For President In 2024 — mail_outline — Asked to choose the most urgent issue facing California today …
ABC News:
Explosive found in checked luggage at Pennsylvania airport, man in custody — The passenger is now in FBI custody. — An explosive device was found in a checked piece of luggage at Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley International Airport on Monday, according to a criminal complaint.
Discussion:
ABC7
Martin Pengelly / The Guardian:
Ron DeSantis called a ‘tyrant’ as Trump supporters barred from book signing — Far-right activist Laura Loomer denounces Florida governor, who is expected to challenge ex-president for Republican nomination — Ron DeSantis is a “tyrant”, the far-right activist Laura Loomer said …
Discussion:
The Mahablog, Florida's Voice, Axios, Mediaite, Alternet.org, Digby's Hullabaloo, RADAR, The Daily Beast, Big League Politics, The Gateway Pundit and Raw Story
Katrina Manson / Bloomberg:
The Satellite Hack Everyone Is Finally Talking About … Andreas Wickberg loves snowmobiling to the house he built in the icy reaches of Lapland, north of the Arctic Circle. Each month come spring, he and his wife relocate for a week or so to a “very, very isolated” spot about 335 miles northwest …
Matthew Yglesias / Slow Boring:
Why are young liberals so depressed? — There's a neglected dimension beyond gender in America's troubled youth — Fresh episode of Bad Takes is out today, all about the war on fake license plates. — Earlier this month the CDC released the results of its Youth Risk Behavior Survey of American teenagers.
Discussion:
HotAir and Marginal REVOLUTION
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Hannity tries to help Marjorie Taylor Greene clean up her secession mess — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is not a person recognized for her nuance. This has never really been a problem for her; quite the opposite. Her political career is rooted in a Donald-Trump-like willingness …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Dispatches From A …, NBC News and The Wrap
Andriy Zagorodnyuk / Financial Times:
Pressure on Kyiv to open peace talks misreads Russia's deadly intentions — It would be suicidal for Ukrainians to stop fighting as long as Putin's war machine remains at full throttle — The writer is a former Ukraine defence minister — It is difficult to find a country that longs for peace more than Ukraine does.
Discussion:
New York Times, The Stand Up America … and Religion News Service
Breitbart:
11 Years: Andrew Breitbart's Indelible Legacy — Every year on this day, we honor and celebrate the life of Andrew Breitbart, the original happy warrior. He was a giant who inspired so many in the conservative movement to fight, to enjoy the fight, and to never ever give up in the face of adversity.