Top Items:
Lisa Needham / Public Notice:
Trump moves to burn down the rule of law — His cabinet nominations are obscene and augur dark days to come. … 🌎 — When the sordid history of the second Trump administration is written, should we all survive that long, it will be difficult to sort out which of his early cabinet picks were the most atrocious.
Discussion:
New York Times, Washington Post, The Daily Caller and The Sun
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Chris Geidner / Law Dork:
Trump wants his criminal lawyers at DOJ, RFK Jr. at HHS, and no one holding him back — Republican senators are going to have to think hard about their role. — It is becoming increasingly clear that, to the extent Donald Trump ever took the presidency seriously, he is not doing so this time around …
Discussion:
The Bulwark, Politico, Talking Points Memo, New York Times, The Daily Caller, Roll Call, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, TPR, Deadline, Forbes, Fox News, Hollywood Life and USA Today
Washington Post:
Trump is already testing Republicans, and some seem unwilling to defy him — “It's a given Trump's going to beat us into submission,” said one House Republican. — On the eve of their return to Congress this week, a group of House Republicans sat down with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) …
Filip Timotija / The Hill:
Jordan: Gaetz ethics report 'shouldn't go public' — House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said Thursday that the former Rep. Matt Gaetz's (R-Fla.) House Ethics Commitee report “shouldn't go public,” amid pressure to release it after he was tapped for a potential Trump administration role.
Discussion:
Trending Politics …
Rolling Stone:
Trump's Extreme Hires Are About Showing Republicans Who's Boss — One Trump transition team member says he wants to bend Republican senators to his will “until they snap in half” — Donald Trump has nominated a roster of highly controversial, and in some cases scandal-plagued …
Discussion:
The Hill, Mediaite, Raw Story and Business Insider
Marc A. Caputo / The Bulwark:
Gaetz Begins Lobbying Lawmakers, Hoping He Hasn't Burned All the Bridges
Gaetz Begins Lobbying Lawmakers, Hoping He Hasn't Burned All the Bridges
Colby Itkowitz / Washington Post:
Trump looks to bypass Senate for polarizing Cabinet picks
Trump looks to bypass Senate for polarizing Cabinet picks
Discussion:
Doomsday Scenario, CBS News, The Hill, Steady, Associated Press, Washington Examiner, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, New Republic, Townhall, The Guardian, Reason, The Dispatch, WVEC, The Moderate Voice, Raw Story, HuffPost, The Independent, Los Angeles Times, HotAir, USA Today, Digby's Hullabaloo, Must Read Alaska, Daily Mail, Forbes, Default, Sun-Sentinel, Axios, Tangle and Argus Leader
Will Steakin / ABC News:
Woman testified to House Ethics Committee that Gaetz had sex with her when she was 17: Sources
Woman testified to House Ethics Committee that Gaetz had sex with her when she was 17: Sources
Eric Beech / Reuters:
Trump picks ex-congressman Doug Collins for veterans affairs secretary
Trump picks ex-congressman Doug Collins for veterans affairs secretary
Discussion:
Politico, CNN, Breitbart, Washington Examiner, Washington Times, USA Today, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, New York Post, NPR, Townhall, RedState and Associated Press
Michael Schaffer / Politico:
The Resistance Is Not Coming to Save You. It's Tuning Out. — The first Trump administration sparked waves of public activism and aggressive media coverage. This time, not so much. — In the weeks before the 2024 election, no media platform had more catnip for Donald Trump's detractors than the Drudge Report.
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Politico:
Playbook: Trump floods the zone with new appointees
Playbook: Trump floods the zone with new appointees
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Examiner, Fox News and Political Wire
New York Post:
Putting RFK Jr. in charge of health breaks the first rule of medicine
Putting RFK Jr. in charge of health breaks the first rule of medicine
Discussion:
The Hill, New Jersey Online, Mediaite and Washington Post
Maya Yang / The Guardian:
RFK Jr condemned as ‘clear and present danger’ after Trump nomination
RFK Jr condemned as ‘clear and present danger’ after Trump nomination
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Axios, Forbes, LGBTQ Nation, NBC News, Newsbusters, Daily Mail, CBS News, The Intercept, Wired, The Hill, Politico, Daily Montanan, Florida Politics, The Times of Israel, ABC News, New York Daily News, Vanity Fair and New York Times
Benjamin Mazer / The Atlantic:
The Sanewashing of RFK Jr.
The Sanewashing of RFK Jr.
Discussion:
Scripps News, Associated Press, HotAir and PolitiFact
Denver Post:
Gov. Jared Polis cheers RFK Jr.'s nomination for health post despite anti-vaccine statements
Gov. Jared Polis cheers RFK Jr.'s nomination for health post despite anti-vaccine statements
Discussion:
Raw Story, Townhall, Quartz, Washington Examiner, The Colorado Sun, News18, Rolling Stone, Mediaite, New Jersey Online, HuffPost, USA Today, The Hill and CBS News
CNN:
Trump picks Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be his Department of Health and Human Services secretary
Trump picks Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to be his Department of Health and Human Services secretary
Discussion:
CBS News, Jill Filipovic, Senator Patty Murray, New Republic, New York Post, STAT, The Daily Caller, National Review, Reuters, New York Daily News, News18, Raw Story, CatholicVote org, Deadline, The DSR Network, Variety, The Hill, WHDH-TV, IJR, Al Jazeera, UPI, Axios, E&E News, Associated Press, Daily Caller News Foundation, One America News Network, New York Magazine, Roll Call, Politico, American Greatness, The 19th, Mediaite, The Gateway Pundit, Fox News, WSVN-TV, NewsNation, Florida Politics, The Independent, ABC News, NRDC, Washington Examiner, Breitbart, Business Insider, CNBC, Rolling Stone, Trending Politics …, Not the Bee, The National Pulse, The Japan Times and The American Conservative
Jeongyoon Han / NPR:
Trump picks RFK Jr. to oversee the Department of Health and Human Services
Trump picks RFK Jr. to oversee the Department of Health and Human Services
Discussion:
Townhall, Mediaite, Associated Press, New York Times, Washington Post, The Bulwark, The Dispatch, Fox News, Raw Story, Deadline, The Hill, Israpundit, ABC News, Forbes, Politico, Washington Examiner, STAT, CBS News, The Guardian, Must Read Alaska, WSVN-TV, Reason, HuffPost, E&E News, Patterico's Pontifications and Bloomberg
Olivia Beavers / Politico:
House Ethics chair says meeting on Gaetz report has been postponed, not canceled — Chair of the House Ethics Committee Michael Guest said Friday morning the group has only postponed, not canceled, a meeting to discuss the panel's report about Matt Gaetz. Guest (R-Miss.) declined to say whether …
Discussion:
The Independent, The Hill, Mediaite, Townhall and Washington Post
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Politico:
House ethics panel cancels meeting amid pressure to release Gaetz report — The House Ethics Committee won't be meeting after all on Friday as pressure builds to release the findings of its report on Rep. Matt Gaetz. Anticipation was high for the closed-door meeting after Donald Trump announced …
Discussion:
The Hill and Washington Examiner
New York Times:
Trump Transition Live Updates: Some in G.O.P. Balk at Choice of Gaetz for Attorney General
Trump Transition Live Updates: Some in G.O.P. Balk at Choice of Gaetz for Attorney General
Discussion:
Raw Story, Associated Press, New Republic, So What, The Independent, Talking Points Memo, NOTUS, Roll Call, Axios, The Transom, Forbes, The Atlantic, Mediaite, The Guardian, HuffPost, Washington Times, Florida Politics, Esquire, Time, NBC News, The Gateway Pundit, CBS News, ABC News and Power Line
NBC News:
Senators want details of Matt Gaetz ethics probe before his confirmation vote for attorney general
Senators want details of Matt Gaetz ethics probe before his confirmation vote for attorney general
Discussion:
Carolina Journal, Forbes, Electoral-vote.com, HuffPost, CNN, Reuters, Washington Post, The Guardian, ABC News, Mediaite, Washington Examiner, WHEC.com, Fox News, Raw Story, PoliticusUSA and New York Post
Washington Post:
Inside the Republican false-flag effort to turn off Kamala Harris voters — A multipronged dark money effort by advisers to Elon Musk targeted liberals, Jews, Muslims and Black voters with ads that were not quite what they seemed. — Muslims in Michigan began seeing pro-Israel ads …
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Stephen Neukam / Axios:
Scoop: Senate Democrats caught flat-footed by GOP anti-trans attacks
M. Gessen / New York Times:
This Is the Dark, Unspoken Promise of Trump's Return — For those bewildered by why so many Americans apparently voted against the values of liberal democracy, Balint Magyar has a useful formulation. “Liberal democracy,” he says, “offers moral constraints without problem-solving” …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Gabriel Sherman / Vanity Fair:
Trump's Defense Secretary Pick Pete Hegseth Said to Face Previous Sexual Misconduct Allegation — Sources say Donald Trump's transition team leadership met with the former Fox News host, who is a left-field pick to head the Department of Defense, about the claims on Thursday.
Discussion:
Rolling Stone, New York Times, CBS News, Forbes, New Jersey Online, Los Angeles Times, Daily Mail, New Republic, CNN, Twitchy, Mediaite, The Gateway Pundit, Washington Post, The Independent and Raw Story
CNN:
Trump's team skips FBI background checks for some Cabinet picks — President-elect Donald Trump's transition team is bypassing traditional FBI background checks for at least some of his Cabinet picks while using private companies to conduct vetting of potential candidates for administration jobs …
Discussion:
New Republic, Raw Story and Crooks and Liars
Farnaz Fassihi / New York Times:
Elon Musk Met With Iran's U.N. Ambassador, Iranian Officials Say — The tech billionaire, a top adviser to President-elect Donald J. Trump, was reported to have discussed ways to defuse tensions between Iran and the United States. — Elon Musk, a close adviser to President-elect Donald J. Trump …
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Washington Post:
Mar-a-Lago intrigue rises as Trump eyes treasury secretary pick — Hedge fund executive Scott Bessent is expected to meet with the president-elect on Friday. Transition co-chair Howard Lutnick is also seeking the post. — When Scott Bessent left President-elect Donald Trump's Mar …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner and Fox News
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Erin Lowry / Bloomberg:
Pay Close Attention to Your Credit Card Balance Under Trump 2.0 — Expect efforts to protect consumers from sky-high fees to fizzle under the new administration. — During Donald Trump's reelection campaign, he boasted of plans to overhaul the federal government, promising to gut or even eliminate entire federal departments.
Discussion:
Competitive Enterprise …
Lachlan Cartwright / Columbia Journalism Review:
Trump Threatens New York Times, Penguin Random House over Critical Coverage — Legal letter follows complaints aimed at CBS News, the Washington Post, and the Daily Beast. — The letter, addressed to lawyers at the New York Times and Penguin Random House, arrived a week before the election.
Discussion:
The Guardian and Trending Politics …, more at Mediagazer »
CNN:
Jared Kushner expected to be pivotal to Trump admin's Middle East efforts without taking a formal job — President-elect Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner is seen as being pivotal to the incoming administration's Middle East efforts, even though he is not likely to take a formal job within it …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Greg Sargent / New Republic:
Trump's New Oligarchy Is About to Unleash Unimaginable Corruption — Last spring, Donald Trump presided over a meeting with the country's top oil executives at his Mar-a-Lago resort. According to The Washington Post, Trump promised to fulfill a wish list of policies sought by their industry …
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