Top Items:
Axios:
Behind the Curtain: Trump's shock and awe … - Trump named real estate developer Charles Kushner — father of Trump's son-in-law, Jared — as ambassador to France. … - Less than six hours later, Trump announced he picked Kash Patel, one of the hardest of his first-term hardliners, as FBI director.
Discussion:
Raw Story
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Carl Hulse / New York Times:
A Second Trump Term Poses a Crucial Test of the Senate's Independence — President-elect Donald J. Trump is threatening to challenge the institution's historic role, and the Constitution, with his prospective nominees and threats to push the boundaries of executive authority.
Discussion:
Alternet.org and USA Today
Tom Nichols / The Atlantic:
The Kash Patel Principle — Donald Trump has been releasing names of his nominees for the Cabinet and other senior posts in waves. He began with some relatively conventional choices, and then unloaded one bombshell after another, perhaps in an attempt to paralyze opposition in the Senate …
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Post, Breitbart, The Gateway Pundit and CBS News
Elena Schneider / Politico:
Playbook: Two big fights defining Washington right now — With help from Eli Okun, Garrett Ross and Bethany Irvine — DRIVING THE DAY — Over the last 16 or so hours, we've seen a dramatic escalation in two big fights that will define the near-term future of politics here in Washington.
Elizabeth Williamson / New York Times:
Five Things to Know About Kash Patel, Trump's Pick to Lead the F.B.I. — President-elect Donald J. Trump has long seen his bombastic national security operative as a political “enforcer.” But former colleagues question his fitness for the job. — Kash Patel, President-elect Donald J. Trump's choice …
Discussion:
USA Today, Rolling Stone, Breitbart, Raw Story, Alternet.org, The Hill, Twitchy, Fox News, RedState and Townhall
Nick Arama / RedState:
DELICIOUS: Andrew McCabe Throws a Fit on CNN Over Trump Nomination of Kash Patel
Discussion:
The Daily Caller, The Gateway Pundit, Twitchy, Raw Story, Townhall, Mediaite, The Hill, CNN and Breitbart
emptywheel:
How Trump Rolled Out this Kash Patel Pick Is Part of Spinning False Claims about Rule of Law
Discussion:
New York Times, Rolling Stone, CNN and Digby's Hullabaloo
Associated Press:
Trump taps Kash Patel for FBI director, an ally who would aid in his effort to upend law enforcement
New York Times:
Trump Says He Will Nominate Kash Patel to Run F.B.I.
Discussion:
The Hill, Axios, Forbes, Raw Story, The Daily Caller, Washington Examiner, Tampa Free Press, New York Post, Daily Mail, One America News Network, @amuse, RedState, Al Jazeera, Fox News, HuffPost, CBS News, Twitchy, Althouse, Crooks and Liars, The Moderate Voice, Townhall, Mediaite, The Daily Signal, The Gateway Pundit, Kevin Drum and Politico, more at Mediagazer »
NBC News:
Trump taps Kash Patel for FBI director
Discussion:
IJR, The Independent, PJ Media, Contemplating Life …, Al Jazeera, Raw Story, Twitchy, ABC News, USA Today, Bloomberg and The Post Millennial
Sadie Gurman / Wall Street Journal:
Trump Picks Kash Patel as FBI Director
Discussion:
Washington Post, Bloomberg, Washington Examiner, New York Post, ABC News, CBS News, The Hill, Washington Times, Forbes, Associated Press, CNN, Newsbusters, Mediaite, Power Line, Breitbart, NPR, Reuters, One America News Network and Axios
Rachel Scully / The Hill:
Cheryl Hines sells products with naked RFK Jr. showering behind her — Actress Cheryl Hines, the wife of former independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., posted a video promoting her beauty products featuring her husband showering half-naked in the background.
Discussion:
HuffPost, Page Six, Fox News, New York Post, The Gateway Pundit, The Hollywood Reporter and TMZ.com
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Alejandra O'Connell-Domenech / The Hill:
Trump's health team: RFK Jr. and 5 doctors tapped to lead ‘MAHA’
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times
Jonathan Nicholson / HuffPost:
Trump's Next Term Could See America's First True Oligarchs, Warns Democracy Activist Garry Kasparov — Elon Musk's DOGE plan could mix public and private interests in a way previously not seen in American politics, the former world chess champion said. — LOADING
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Reid J. Epstein / New York Times:
Wisconsin Democratic Chair Says He Is the One to Revive a Distressed Party — Ben Wikler, who has led the Wisconsin Democratic Party since 2019, announced a bid to be national party chair with a platform to “unite, fight, win.” — Ben Wikler, the Wisconsin Democratic chairman …
Discussion:
ABC News, Washington Examiner, The Guardian, Politico and Althouse
Associated Press:
Social democrats gain and incumbents are punished in Iceland's election — Voters in Iceland appeared to have rejected incumbent parties in a parliamentary election, partial results showed Sunday, with a center-left party leading the contest in the North Atlantic island nation.
Discussion:
Reuters, Politico, Associated Press and Al Jazeera
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Putin signs off record Russian defense spending as top EU officials visit Kyiv — Russian President Vladimir Putin approved budget plans, raising 2025 military spending to record levels as Moscow seeks to prevail in the war in Ukraine. Around 32.5% of the budget posted on a government website Sunday …
Discussion:
Agence France-Presse, The Kyiv Independent and Reuters
RELATED:
Claudia Chiappa / Politico:
Putin approves new budget with record defense spending
Discussion:
The Kyiv Independent and Reuters
Nancy Scola / Politico:
Democrats Face an Existential Crisis on X — Conversations with a dozen insiders point to a party that is unsure about whether to leave or engage with the increasingly MAGA platform. — Two days after the election, Patrick Dillon, a longtime Democratic strategist and current Biden administration official …
Rachel Scully / The Hill:
John Bolton compares Kash Patel to Soviet secret police leader — Former National Security Advisor John Bolton compared Kash Patel, President-elect Trump's nomination for head of FBI, to one of the USSR's most feared secret police chiefs, Lavrentiy Beria. — “Trump has nominated Kash Patel …
Discussion:
RedState, Tampa Free Press and The Independent
Rolling Stone:
Trump and His Team Are ‘Laughing’ at Biden's Commitment to Decorum — Biden called Trump a fascist. Now his White House is ensuring an orderly transfer of power — and staging photo ops with the president-elect — Donald Trump and his incoming administration officials think Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are suckers.
Discussion:
Raw Story and Associated Press
Ally Mutnick / Politico:
The congressional battlegrounds were set. Then Trump changed everything. — “There's definitely a realignment going on in American politics,” said Dan Conston, the president of the Congressional Leadership Fund. — Donald Trump's surge among Latino voters is upending the American political map.
Discussion:
RedState
Drew Harwell / Washington Post:
Trump and allies blur the lines between politician and influencer — The president-elect and some in his proposed Cabinet are adopting influencer tactics to hawk products, boost political points and promote their personal brands. — A few weeks before he was named to lead the Department …
Zach LaChance / Washington Examiner:
Former House Democrat lays into ‘toxic’ party, calls for ‘rebrand’ after election blowout — As assessments of what went wrong for Democrats in the 2024 election have poured in over the past few weeks and the party searches for its next leader, one former House member is calling for a “complete rebranding.”
RELATED:
Zachary Leeman / Mediaite:
Ex-Dem Rep Tim Ryan Warns On MSNBC His Own Party ‘Is Toxic’ To Voters: ‘What Are We Doing?’
Discussion:
Fox News, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit and Balloon Juice
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