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After Ayers Turns Down Chief of Staff Job, Trump Is Left Without a Plan B — WASHINGTON — President Trump has often bragged about having his pick of only the best people to serve in his administration. — Being publicly rejected by his first choice for chief of staff …
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CNN Poll: Approval ratings for Trump, Mueller fall — WASHINGTON (CNN)As Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election inches closer to the President, approval of Donald Trump's handling of the investigation has fallen, matching its all-time low in CNN polling.
Discussion:
Feeds


Trump allies becoming increasingly aware of his legal and political jeopardy — Last week's stunning court filings detonated what one official calls a “reality tremor” that has White House officials and key allies increasingly aware of President Trump's rising legal and political vulnerability.
Discussion:
Washington Post, Raw Story, New York Times, Associated Press and The Gateway Pundit


Some Trump allies starting to worry about investigations — WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's intensifying legal troubles are unnerving some of his fellow Republicans. Despite his brash stance, they believe the turmoil has left him increasingly vulnerable as he gears up for what is sure to be a nasty fight for re-election.
Discussion:
Shareblue Media


You've hired me before, Mr President, so hire me again. I'm the one person whose reputation can't be tarnished by becoming your Chief of Staff and I'm perfectly qualified for the job! — I wish to formally apply to be your new Chief of Staff. — You might not immediately recognize …


Trump concerned about being impeached, sees it as a ‘real possibility,’ source says


Smart Republicans are already abandoning Trump. But they're still culpable.
Discussion:
The Atlantic and Raw Story

“It Got Back to Trump That Kelly Was Bad-Mouthing Him”: After Firing John Kelly on Impulse …
Discussion:
Baltimore Sun, Shareblue Media, New York Times and The Daily Beast

‘There was no Plan B’: Trump scrambles to find chief of staff after top candidate turns him down

Amid chief of staff search, Trump increasingly anxious over political future
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, Mediaite, NorthJersey.com, Townhall, ABC News and Political Wire


We are former senators. The Senate has long stood in defense of democracy — and must again. — By 44 Former U.S. Senators — As former members of the U.S. Senate, Democrats and Republicans, it is our shared view that we are entering a dangerous period, and we feel an obligation to speak …
Discussion:
Mediaite, POLITICUSUSA, Conservative News Today, Axios, HuffPost, Joe.My.God., Politico and CNN


Time's 2018 ‘Person of the Year’ is killed and imprisoned journalists — Time magazine is spotlighting a handful of journalists who have one thing in common: They were targeted for their work. — “The Guardians.” — That's what Time magazine is calling the journalists behind 2018's …
Discussion:
Townhall, Breitbart and twitchy.com, more at Mediagazer »
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TIME's 2018 Person of the Year: ‘The Guardians and the War on Truth’ — Four journalists and one newspaper “are representative of a broader fight by countless others around the world.” — A group of journalists whose work has landed them in jail — or cost them their lives — have been named TIME's Person of the Year for 2018.
Discussion:
The Gateway Pundit, Joe.My.God. and The Daily Caller


Time Person of the Year: ‘The Guardians and the War on Truth’ — (CNN)Time magazine has chosen “The Guardians,” a group of journalists who have been targeted for their work, as Person of the Year. — A series of four black-and-white covers highlights what the magazine calls “the War on Truth.”
Discussion:
Axios, Mother Jones, New York Times and Patterico's Pontifications


Maria Butina, accused Russian agent, reaches plea deal with prosecutors that includes cooperation — Maria Butina, a 30-year-old Russian gun rights activist who stands accused developing a covert influence operation in the United States, has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy and cooperate with federal …
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Maria Butina Agrees to Cooperate With U.S.
Discussion:
News Agency UNIAN, ABC News and Talking Points Memo

Dan Bongino Out at NRATV
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Mediaite, Joe.My.God., twitchy.com and Talking Points Memo

Maria Butina, Accused Of Being Russian Agent, Reaches Plea Deal With Feds
Discussion:
Just Security, New York Times and Bangor Daily News


How Michael Cohen could help the feds get the Trump Organization — Feds: Cohen broke the law at Trump's direction — New York (CNN)In most respects, Michael Cohen was a frustrating witness for New York investigators. — He toyed with, but wouldn't commit to, “full cooperation” with prosecutors, according to court filings.
Discussion:
Raw Story
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Orrin Hatch and the GOP's contortions to defend Trump
Discussion:
ThinkProgress, CNN and IJR

Sudden shift in get-Trump talk; now it's campaign finance, not Russia
Discussion:
Instapundit and Hit & Run


How the IRS Was Gutted — An eight-year campaign to slash the agency's budget has left it understaffed, hamstrung and operating with archaic equipment. The result: billions less to fund the government. That's good news for corporations and the wealthy. — In the summer of 2008 …


Trump Prepares to Unveil a Vast Reworking of Clean Water Protections — The proposed new rule would chip away at wetlands safeguards put in place during the administration of President George H.W. Bush. — TRUMP ADMINISTRATION — As Trump Turns to Sanctions, One Group Earns Big Paydays: Lobbyists
Discussion:
New Republic, Raw Story and Axios


You don't bring a novice to a knife fight. That's why Democrats need Nancy Pelosi. — Everything that happens next year in the House amounts to a Democratic audition — and platform — for the 2020 presidential, Senate and House elections. — CONNECT — Nancy Pelosi is running …
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Military will build border wall if Pelosi, Schumer don't agree to pay for it: Trump
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Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg

Pelosi, Schumer to meet with Trump, offer $1.3 billion for border as shutdown looms
Discussion:
Townhall, Associated Press, Roll Call, Common Dreams, POLITICUSUSA and Splinter


Accused of rape, former Baylor fraternity president gets no jail time after plea deal — A former Baylor University fraternity president who was accused of rape will not serve any jail time or be forced to register as a sex offender after a judge accepted a plea deal he had been offered by Texas prosecutors, according to news reports.
Discussion:
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Waco Tribune-Herald and Law & Crime
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In an email to Tablet the Women's March wrote: … But whatever concerns were popping up were ultimately no match for the steamroller of the event's progress. And when the day came, the reality far exceeded expectations. Estimates for the March on Washington range between half a million …
Discussion:
RedState, Daily Wire, Washington Free Beacon, Front Page Magazine and twitchy.com


How Theresa May blew Brexit — Shakespeare famously wrote of the “sceptered isle” of Britain acting as a moat “against the envy of less happier lands.” Lately, the less happier lands are winning in a rout. — Britain is suffering a political meltdown as it struggles to make good on a historic vote …

Thousands of mailed ballots in Florida were not counted — TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida officials say thousands of mailed ballots were not counted because they were delivered too late to state election offices. — The Department of State late last week informed a federal judge …
Discussion:
Florida Politics, Splinter, Tampa Bay Times and Seymour Tribune


Constitution rules out a sitting president's immunity from criminal prosecution — Only President Trump seems not to have noticed — or at least refuses to acknowledge — that the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, in his Dec. 7 memo regarding Michael Cohen's sentencing …
Discussion:
Raw Story


Mayor Garcetti's speech at USC shut down by protesters — Mayor Eric Garcetti was forced to halt a speech Monday at USC after demonstrators began shouting at him and criticizing his approach to the city's homelessness crisis, the Los Angeles Police Department's use of force and other issues.
Discussion:
Breitbart


9-year-old kills self after racist taunts from class: family … A black 9-year-old girl in Alabama allegedly took her own life after facing relentless bullying and racism in class, according to reports. — McKenzie Adams' relatives said she hanged herself Dec. 3 in her home in Linden …


How a powerful Russian propaganda machine chips away at Western notions of truth — The initial plan was a Cold War classic — brutal yet simple. Two Russian agents would slip onto the property of a turncoat spy in Britain and daub his front door with a rare military-grade poison designed …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast and Mother Jones


‘Supergirl’ now has a transgender character just to be ‘woke’ — Television has introduced the first transgender superhero in the fourth season of CW's “Supergirl.” The character, Nia Nal, is played by Nicole Maines, who is an actress and activist. She is also transgender in real life as well.


Evelyn Berezin, 93, Dies; Built the First True Word Processor — Evelyn Berezin, a computer pioneer who emancipated many a frazzled secretary from the shackles of the typewriter nearly a half-century ago by building and marketing the first computerized word processor, died on Saturday in Manhattan.