Top Items:
Erica Orden / Politico:
Maurene Comey, daughter of James Comey and prosecutor of Jeffrey Epstein, is fired … In recent weeks, President Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi have faced a firestorm of criticism over their decision not to release additional files related to Epstein, the disgraced financier …
RELATED:
Josh Fiallo / The Daily Beast:
Elon Musk Blows Major Hole in Trump's Epstein ‘Hoax’ Theory — ‘WOW’ — Trump's former right-hand man is defiantly refusing to let the Jeffrey Epstein story go away. — Elon Musk went on a posting spree Wednesday afternoon to slam President Donald Trump's claim that the so-called “Epstein Files” are a lefty-created hoax.
Discussion:
Reuters, Politico, New Republic, Forbes, MeidasTouch News, Washington Examiner, The Message Box, Fox News, Raw Story, HuffPost, CBS News, Mediaite, New York Daily News, Daily Kos, ABC News, Bloomberg, The Gateway Pundit, TMZ.com, Rolling Stone, Grabien, Washington Times, USA Today and The Independent
New York Times:
Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired
Discussion:
New Jersey Online, KFTC-TV, emptywheel, Axios, Salon, Variety, RedState, Washington Examiner, CBS News and NBC News
Kara Scannell / CNN:
Maurene Comey, federal prosecutor in Epstein case, fired from SDNY
Maurene Comey, federal prosecutor in Epstein case, fired from SDNY
Discussion:
Associated Press and New York Sun
Drew Magary / SFGATE:
Jeez, I wonder why Trump won't release the Epstein files
Jeez, I wonder why Trump won't release the Epstein files
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money, New Republic, The Message Box, Fox News, Washington Examiner and Washington Times
Associated Press:
Justice Department fires Maurene Comey, prosecutor on Epstein case and daughter of ex-FBI director
Justice Department fires Maurene Comey, prosecutor on Epstein case and daughter of ex-FBI director
Washington Post:
DOJ fires Maurene Comey, prosecutor involved in Epstein, Diddy cases
DOJ fires Maurene Comey, prosecutor involved in Epstein, Diddy cases
Discussion:
Salon, Not the Bee, Associated Press, Patterico's Pontifications and The Hill
Avery Lotz / Axios:
Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell's family attempts appeal to Trump
Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell's family attempts appeal to Trump
Discussion:
GB News
William Kristol / The Bulwark:
A Crisis of MAGA Faith
A Crisis of MAGA Faith
Discussion:
The Editorial Board, Mediaite and Associated Press
Wall Street Journal:
Justice Department Fires Ghislaine Maxwell Prosecutor Maurene Comey
Justice Department Fires Ghislaine Maxwell Prosecutor Maurene Comey
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
Patrick Maguire / CBS News:
Mike Pence says “the time has come” to release the Epstein files
Mike Pence says “the time has come” to release the Epstein files
Discussion:
The Hill, New Jersey Online, NBC News, The Gateway Pundit, USA Today, TotalProSports, Mediaite, Alternet.org, The Independent, Forbes and NPR
Washington Post:
Senate approves Trump's bill to cut spending, sending it to the House — The legislation hands the Trump administration a victory in its ongoing power struggle with Congress over federal spending. The bill now heads to the House. — Summary170 — The Senate narrowly approved President …
Discussion:
Scripps News, Associated Press, Washington Times, Al Jazeera, Federal News Network, CBS News, Reuters, New York Times, Fox News and PBS NewsHour
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Catie Edmondson / New York Times:
Senate Approves Trump's Bid to Cancel Foreign Aid and Public Broadcast Funds — The bill to claw back $9 billion in congressionally approved spending passed over the objections of Republicans who said it abdicated the legislative branch's power of the purse.
Discussion:
MSNBC, The Wrap, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Reason and The Virginian-Pilot, more at Mediagazer »
Politico:
Senate votes to cut $9 billion from public broadcasting and foreign aid … “What we are talking about is one-tenth of one percent of all federal spending ... but it's a step in the right direction and it's the first time we have done anything like this in 35 years,” Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said early Thursday morning.
Discussion:
Fox News, The Hill, CBS News, RedState, USA Today, NBC News, Washington Post, WTOP News, Forbes, E&E News, Townhall, New York Sun, Straight Arrow News, NewsMax.com, The Gateway Pundit, New York Times, ABC News, UPI, Must Read Alaska, Axios, Bangor Daily News, Daily Caller News Foundation and Bloomberg
Jake Traylor / Politico:
White House has private discussions about Collins backup in Maine
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, Bangor Daily News, Raw Story and Alternet.org
Financial Times:
US Senate backs $9bn in cuts to public broadcasting and foreign aid
US Senate backs $9bn in cuts to public broadcasting and foreign aid
Discussion:
Reuters, ABC News, Fox News, TheGrio, The National Pulse, Deseret News, Breitbart, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, The Guardian, UPI, Todd Starnes, USA Today, New York Post, Bloomberg, Crooks and Liars, The Hill, Reason, Newsweek, New York Daily News and LAist
Ursula Perano / NOTUS:
Senate Passes Rescission Bill Less Than 48 Hours Before Deadline
Senate Passes Rescission Bill Less Than 48 Hours Before Deadline
Discussion:
HotAir, GovExec.com, Poynter and RedState
Wall Street Journal:
Don't Fire Jerome Powell, Mr. President — Whatever the Fed chief's errors, canning him early would be worse. — It's often hard to know when President Trump is serious about something, or merely creating a distraction. But in case he really meant it this week when he told Republican lawmakers …
Discussion:
The Hill, MeidasTouch News, The Daily Beast, NBC News, Daily Caller News Foundation, New Jersey Online, New Republic, Chicago Tribune, New York Times, CBS News, Raw Story, PBS NewsHour, Associated Press, NOTUS, NewsNation, Washington Examiner, Fingerlakes1.com, Salon, Newsweek, Fox Business, Axios and Bloomberg
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Mike Konczal / Rortybomb:
The Four Data Sleights‑of‑Hand Behind Trump's Assault on Powell — What looks like a monetary policy debate is really a cover to take control of the central bank. — It's a dangerous time for the Federal Reserve. Last week, President Trump's administration began building …
Discussion:
Axios, CBS News, Florida Politics, Bloomberg, Issues & Insights, Politico, Reuters, The Independent and The Japan Times
Perry Stein / Washington Post:
DOJ seeks one-day sentence for officer in raid that killed Breonna Taylor — In November, a federal jury found officer Brett Hankison guilty of violating Taylor's civil rights during a March 2020 police raid in which she was fatally shot. — Summary25 — The Justice Department requested …
RELATED:
CNN:
Justice Department says former officer convicted in Breonna Taylor raid should get one day in jail — The Justice Department is asking that a former police officer found guilty of violating the civil rights of Breonna Taylor in 2020 - when she was shot and killed by police in her Louisville home - be sentenced to one day in jail.
Jennifer Agiesta / CNN:
Democrats are far more motivated than Republicans for next year's midterms, CNN poll finds — Democrats are far more energized than Republicans about participating in next year's midterms, but deeply negative perceptions of the Democratic Party and its officeholders raise questions …
Discussion:
NewsMax.com, Daily Caller News Foundation, The National Pulse and Mediaite
RELATED:
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
When institutions crumble, strongmen step in — Trump wants to be the sole authority. With trust in institutions cratering, he sees his opportunity. — What would it take to put the swirling conspiracy theories about Jeffrey Epstein to bed? Nothing complicated; just an authoritative …
Discussion:
Gallup and Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion
Politico:
‘Crazy hill to die on’: Newsom jolts California with bid to throw out House maps … But it's also a longshot. And to many Democrats in Newsom's home state, it's a new obsession bordering on bizarre — or even anti-democratic. — “Trying to save democracy by destroying democracy is dangerous and foolish …
Discussion:
OutsideTheBeltway, CalMatters, Lawyers, Guns & Money, WFAA-TV, Raw Story, The Hill, The Week, New Jersey Online, Straight Arrow News and MSNBC
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Makena Kelly / Wired:
DOGE Put Free Tax Filing Tool on Chopping Block After One Meeting With Lobbyists — A key operative from DOGE initiated plans to potentially kill Direct File, the free tax filing tool developed by the IRS, after offering assurances it would be spared from cuts.
NBC News:
New U.S. assessment finds American strikes destroyed only one of three Iranian nuclear sites — President Donald Trump rejected a military plan for more comprehensive strikes on Iran's nuclear program that would have lasted weeks, NBC News has also learned.
Discussion:
israelhayom.com, NewsMax.com, Reuters, The Independent and Washington Times
Laya Neelakandan / CNBC:
Trump administration pulls $4 billion from California high-speed rail project … Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has formally terminated $4 billion in federal funding for the California High-Speed Rail Authority, weeks after putting the bullet train project on notice.
RELATED:
Paul Walsh / Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Watch: Senior Trump adviser dumps on Minneapolis, prompting retort from Mary Moriarty — Stephen Miller's comments are the latest in a recent string from Trump loyalists targeting Minneapolis. … White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller called Minneapolis an unsafe and violent city during …
Tessa Stuart / Rolling Stone:
Democratic Voters Who Skipped 2024 Election Want Candidates Like Bernie, AOC — “The conventional wisdom is really wrong on these voters,” says pollster Celinda Lake. “They want leaders who will fight for everyone” … But new research suggests the prevailing wisdom that has guided those efforts …
Discussion:
Semafor
Lisa Needham / Public Notice:
Goodbye, separation of church and state — 🗣️ Paid subscribers make Public Notice possible. If you appreciate our fiercely independent coverage of American politics, please sign up and support us. 👇 — The Trump administration last week handed a huge win …
Discussion:
Deseret News and Townhall
Matthew Goldstein / New York Times:
This Democrat Won't Let Go of the Jeffrey Epstein Case, Either — Senator Ron Wyden has found that four banks waited until Mr. Epstein's arrest on federal charges to flag $1.5 billion in suspicious transactions. Mr. Wyden wants the documents made public. — President Trump and his administration …
New York Times:
African Nation Says It Will Repatriate Migrants Deported by U.S. — The Trump administration sent five deportees to Eswatini, an African kingdom, saying that their own countries would not take them. But Eswatini says it will send them home. — The tiny African kingdom of Eswatini announced …
Discussion:
Associated Press, Newsweek, One America News Network, Al Jazeera, The National Pulse, The Intercept, Washington Post, USA Today, Scripps News, Townhall, WTOP News, Los Angeles Times, TheGrio, WUSA, Semafor, Fox News, National Review, Axios, The Guardian, Reuters, CBS News, Politico and NBC News
Nina Lakhani / The Guardian:
Trump's $1tn for Pentagon to add huge planet-heating emissions, study shows — Exclusive: 17% increase in military spending will add emissions equivalent to those of some entire countries — Donald Trump's huge spending boost for the Pentagon will produce an additional 26 megatons (Mt) …
Steve Benen / MSNBC:
Republicans shrug off laundry list of scandals, advance Emil Bove's judicial nomination — Bove is arguably the single-most controversial circuit court nominee in modern American history. Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee didn't care. — Senators have faced plenty …
Discussion:
NBC News, Democracy Docket, CBS News, USA Today, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, The Hill, ABC News and NewsMax.com
Popular Information:
A massive Trump scandal. Minuscule media attention. — Historically, financial entanglements with foreign nationals has been covered as a scandal. Times have changed. — For decades, any suggestion of financial entanglements between a U.S. president or presidential candidate and foreign nationals has been considered a scandal.
New York Times:
The Chaotic Early Days Inside Florida's ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Detention Center — Several immigrant detainees described high tension and anxiety at the remote, hastily constructed facility over a lack of information, recreation and access to medication. — The men at the new immigrant detention center …
Discussion:
Bloomberg, The Tributary, PolitiFact, Daily Kos, The Floridian, The Bulwark and The Moderate Voice
Olga R. Rodriguez / Associated Press:
Army veteran and US citizen arrested in California immigration raid warns it could happen to anyone — A U.S. Army veteran who was arrested during an immigration raid at a Southern California marijuana farm last week said Wednesday he was sprayed with tear gas and pepper spray before being dragged …
Discussion:
New Republic, Mediaite, Los Angeles Times and Reuters

