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:
The Intercept, The Independent, New York Times, Mediaite, Washington Post, Daily Caller News Foundation and The Sun
RELATED:
Politico:
Johnson: Ethics shouldn't release Gaetz report — Speaker Mike Johnson said he does not think the House Ethics report into Matt Gaetz should be released, as the former representative faces a Senate confirmation for attorney general. “I'm going to strongly request that the Ethics Committee …
Discussion:
USA Today, UPI, New York Post, Vanity Fair, WHEC.com, Florida Politics, The Dispatch, Daily Kos, Washington Times, The Independent, Talking Points Memo, New York Times, Forbes, Roll Call, Axios, ABC News, The Guardian, Washington Examiner, NBC News, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story, New Republic, CBS News and E&E News
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:
Politico, Washington Post, Rolling Stone, Vox, Daily Caller News Foundation, Talking Points Memo, The Independent, Lawyers, Guns & Money, STAT, The Bulwark, New York Times, The Daily Caller, CNN, emptywheel, WVEC, Roll Call, Daily Kos, TPR, Associated Press, Deadline, Forbes, Fox News, Hollywood Life, USA Today and The Guardian
Olivia Beavers / Politico:
House Ethics chair says meeting on Gaetz report has been postponed, not canceled
House Ethics chair says meeting on Gaetz report has been postponed, not canceled
Discussion:
Raw Story, Mock Paper Scissors, The Hill, The Independent, Mediaite and Townhall
ABC News:
Mike Johnson says he doesn't think House Ethics Committee should release Gaetz report
Mike Johnson says he doesn't think House Ethics Committee should release Gaetz report
Discussion:
Diane Ravitch's blog, Axios, NOTUS, The Japan Times, Raw Story and New York Daily News
CNN:
Speaker Johnson says he's going to request Ethics Committee not release Gaetz report
Speaker Johnson says he's going to request Ethics Committee not release Gaetz report
Discussion:
Raw Story, Fox News, HuffPost, Associated Press, NOTUS, New York Magazine, Bloomberg, Washington Times, Washington Post, Semafor, Politico, CBS News, Mediaite, Forbes, The Independent, Lawyers, Guns & Money, The Guardian, New York Daily News, Reuters, NBC News, Daily Mail, The Hill and USA Today
Filip Timotija / The Hill:
Jordan: Gaetz ethics report 'shouldn't go public'
Jordan: Gaetz ethics report 'shouldn't go public'
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, New Republic, The Transom, IJR, Trending Politics … and Mediaite
Associated Press:
Trump Pentagon pick had been flagged by fellow service member as possible ‘Insider Threat’ — Pete Hegseth, the Army National Guard veteran and Fox News host nominated by Donald Trump to lead the Department of Defense, was flagged as a possible “Insider Threat” by a fellow service member due …
Discussion:
Raw Story and USA Today, more at Mediagazer »
Hans Nichols / Axios:
Scoop: House Dems sick of Pelosi … - “She needs to take a seat,” said one senior Democratic lawmaker. — “Making scattershot comments is not just unhelpful, it's damaging,” said the lawmaker. … - Both lawmakers insisted on anonymity. — Pelosi still instills fear in the members she led for two decades.
Discussion:
freebeacon.com, Daily Mail, Frontpage Mag, RedState, Mediaite, Townhall, The San Francisco Standard and Washington Examiner
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 …
Discussion:
Doomsday Scenario, Raw Story and Off Message
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Alex Roarty / NOTUS:
Republicans Are Starting to Ask a New Question: Do They Need to Be More Like Trump to Win?
Republicans Are Starting to Ask a New Question: Do They Need to Be More Like Trump to Win?
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, ABC News, Raw Story, CBS News and Wall Street Journal
Andrea Shalal / Reuters:
Muslims who voted for Trump upset by his pro-Israel cabinet picks — U.S. Muslim leaders who supported Republican Donald Trump to protest against the Biden administration's support for Israel's war on Gaza and attacks on Lebanon have been deeply disappointed by his Cabinet picks, they tell Reuters.
Discussion:
New York Times
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:
Raw Story, Washington Examiner, The Independent, The Guardian, New Republic, Crooks and Liars and Axios
Wall Street Journal:
Trump Considers Fox Business Host Larry Kudlow for Top Economic Jobs — Former National Economic Council director had met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago this week — Donald Trump appeared to be nearing a decision on his nominee to lead the Treasury Department, as he was meeting Friday …
Discussion:
Fox News, Washington Examiner, Washington Post, Forbes, New York Post, Daily Mail, Mediaite, Bloomberg, Semafor and The Gateway Pundit
Amanda Marcotte / Salon:
Trump trolls GOP with Cabinet picks: The point is to bring Republicans to heel — but it may backfire — Trump believes in rule by fear, but that stokes resentment and possibly even resistance — In these dark times, it's more important than ever to nurse tendrils of joy.
Discussion:
Raw Story, Mediaite, New Republic, abc7NY and Fox News
Juliegrace Brufke / Axios:
Scoop: McCaul's exit from Foreign Affairs leadership sets up succession race … - “Out of respect for [conference] rules and a desire to see future leaders rise from our conference, I have decided not to pursue another term as chairman,” McCaul told Axios in a statement.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner
Liam Archacki / The Daily Beast:
Dem Rep. Says Tulsi Gabbard Is ‘Likely a Russian Asset’ — DOUBLE AGENT? — The Florida Democrat slammed Trump's pick for director of national intelligence, whose comments about Russia have raised concerns. — Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said that Tulsi Gabbard …
Discussion:
The Hill, Robert Reich, Washington Post, Diane Ravitch's blog, Fox News and The Bulwark
Timothy Snyder / Thinking about:
Decapitation Strike — Each of Trump's proposed appointments is a surprise. It is comforting to think that he is simply a vengeful old man, lashing out this way and that. This is unlikely. He and Musk and Putin have been talking for years. And the whole idea of his campaign was that this time he had a plan.
Noah Hurowitz / The Intercept:
House GOP Moves to Ram Through Bill That Gives Trump Unilateral Power to Kill Nonprofits — A controversial “nonprofit killer” bill is back on track after it was blocked earlier this week. — A majority of Democrats in the House of Representatives rejected the bill on Tuesday out of fear …
Discussion:
New Republic, Ways and Means, Mother Jones, The Daily Caller, CAIR and Nevada Current
Allan Smith / NBC News:
John Fetterman says Democrats need to stop ‘freaking out’ over everything Trump does — The Pennsylvania senator spoke to NBC News about what went wrong for his party in 2024 and how it should approach the future Trump administration. — In the closing weeks of the presidential campaign …
Discussion:
The Hill, New York Post and Politico
Paul Rosenzweig / The Bulwark:
It's Time for Outgoing Democrats to Play Hardball — IN THIS CRUCIAL PERIOD between the election and the inauguration, opponents of the president-elect need to use every feasible lever of power to defeat Trump's movement, lest the country fail. — In this, they would be correcting a past mistake.
Clara Hendrickson / Detroit Free Press:
Right-wing provocateur uses racist language testifying against gun legislation — A right-wing provocateur testifying against legislation expanding a firearms ban to lawmakers' offices used a racial slur during a Senate committee hearing Thursday as he falsely accused lawmakers of attacking …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Politico:
Trump to tap campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung as communications director — A veteran of all three campaigns, he's known for his slashing statements on Trump's behalf. — Steven Cheung, who served as Donald Trump's principal spokesperson on his 2024 campaign and also served on his 2020 …
Discussion:
Washington Times, Fox News, Forbes, Washington Examiner, NPR, Townhall, Axios and The Hill, more at Mediagazer »
Donald Trump / The Guardian:
The boys in our liberal school are different now that Trump has won — Anonymous — Subtle high-fives were exchanged and remarks about the impending success of the next four years were whispered around — When we walked into school on the morning of 6 November, we exchanged quick glances …
Maya Yang / The Guardian:
Musk asks ‘high-IQ revolutionaries’ to work for no pay on new Trump project — World's richest man solicits applications for ‘tedious work’ in newly formed Department of Government Efficiency — Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are asking Americans who are “high-IQ small-government revolutionaries” …
Natasha Korecki / NBC News:
Democrats are already looking to revamp their early state primary calendar for 2028 — Some caution that putting South Carolina to the back of the line-up could alienate Black voters. — It took months for Democrats to settle on their primary presidential calendar, an extended battle …
Discussion:
The Independent
Clara Jeffery / Mother Jones:
Of Misogyny, Musk, and Men — In the days before the election, when too many stories about deadlocked polls and undecided voters and the MAGAfication of young men began to wear on my soul, I turned to TikTok to see what women were thinking. Soon enough I was swimming in a sea of female excitement and angst.
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 …
Discussion:
Slate, Raw Story and freebeacon.com
David Brooks / New York Times:
Why We Got It So Wrong — Let me ask you a few questions: — If the Democrats nominated a woman to run for president, would you expect her to do better among female voters than the guy who ran in her place four years before? — If the Democrats nominated a Black woman to run for president …
Discussion:
The Federalist and Althouse
NBC News:
The parts of Joe Biden's legacy that are most — and least — in danger under Trump — President Biden's executive actions on immigration, student loans and LGBTQ rights could be first on the chopping block once President-elect Donald Trump takes office. — WASHINGTON — When President …
Eric Schmeltzer / New Republic:
The Democrats' Refusal to Break With a Broken System Cost Them Dearly — It's become something of a glum tradition in the Democratic Party. After an electoral beating, opinion makers and political elites—along with everyone with a social media account—offer their takes as to why Democrats blew it.
Miranda Nazzaro / The Hill:
Democratic senators call for federal probe into Musk's contact with Russia — A pair of Democratic senators called for a federal investigation into Elon Musk's involvement in SpaceX's federal contracts following reports the tech billionaire has been in regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Discussion:
Bloomberg, CBS News and Los Angeles Times
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.
Discussion:
HotAir and Frontpage Mag