Top Items:
NOTUS:
Bill Cassidy Breaks With RFK Jr. After CDC Leadership Exodus — Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, a physician and leading voice on public health in the chamber, called for a key government vaccine panel to postpone its upcoming meeting after the stunning exodus of top leaders Wednesday at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Discussion:
STAT, MedPage Today, The Hill, Politico and Raw Story
RELATED:
Dan Diamond / Washington Post:
White House taps top RFK Jr. deputy as acting CDC director — The selection of Jim O'Neill reflects Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s influence as he seeks to remake federal vaccine policy. — Just now — The White House on Thursday selected a top deputy of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr …
Discussion:
STAT, NBC News, New York Post, The Hill, The Guardian, Axios, ABC News, UPI, WXIA-TV, Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Raw Story, Newsweek and CBS News
New York Times:
CVS Holds Off on Offering Covid Vaccines in 16 States — The country's largest pharmacy chain said it needed a C.D.C. panel to recommend the shots before it could offer them nationwide. — CVS, the country's largest pharmacy chain, is currently not offering Covid vaccines in 16 states …
Discussion:
Senate Committee on Health …
Washington Post:
CDC leaders who resigned said RFK Jr. undermined vaccine science, risking lives — As the CDC reels from the firing of its director, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. told Fox News the agency is “in trouble and we need to fix it.” — As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reeled …
Discussion:
STAT, Reuters, Fox News, CNBC, Senator Bernie Sanders, New York Magazine, VTDigger, The Hill, Washington Examiner, The National Pulse, Roll Call, Raw Story, The Guardian, Daily Kos and Deseret News
Jeremy Faust / Inside Medicine:
Breaking News: Read three top CDC officials' resignation emails. — The end of an era. … UPDATE: I've added a second, longer letter from Dr. Daskalakis, posted on X/Twitter. … Moments ago, Inside Medicine broke news that three top career CDC officials have resigned from the agency …
Discussion:
The Atlantic, STAT, The Hill, Advocate, Breaking the News, Raw Story, Gay City News, Los Angeles Blade, MedPage Today, The Gateway Pundit, Fox News, Bloomberg, New Republic and Washingtonian
Brandy Zadrozny / MSNBC:
‘People will die because of this’: How RFK Jr. drove out the CDC's senior leaders
Discussion:
Axios, CNN, Politico, The Hill, The Guardian, Bloomberg, One America News Network and Futurism
New York Times:
Kennedy Sought to Fire C.D.C. Director Over Vaccine Policy
Kennedy Sought to Fire C.D.C. Director Over Vaccine Policy
Discussion:
Axios, The Hill, Politico, MedPage Today, The Guardian, STAT, MSNBC, RedState, Washington Examiner, CBS News, NewsNation, Press Herald, NBC News, Steady, Bloomberg, Al Jazeera, Blaze Media, AZ Public Health Association, Newsweek, The Forward, The Daily Caller, New Jersey Online, The Left Hook with Wajahat Ali, Raw Story, The Gateway Pundit, Zeteo, New Republic, Esquire, Fox News, Talking Points Memo and American Greatness
Associated Press:
CDC gets new acting director as leadership turmoil leaves agency reeling
CDC gets new acting director as leadership turmoil leaves agency reeling
Discussion:
NOTUS, WSVN-TV, The Guardian, Raw Story, Al Jazeera, Associated Press, NextDraft, WTOP News, CT Mirror, Reason and The Hill
Josephine Walker / Axios:
RFK Jr. renews attack on antidepressants after church shooting
RFK Jr. renews attack on antidepressants after church shooting
Discussion:
NBC News, Salon, The Independent, Newsweek, LGBTQ Nation, The Hill and New Republic
Dylan Scott / Vox:
The bigger story behind the mass exodus of CDC leadership
The bigger story behind the mass exodus of CDC leadership
Discussion:
New Republic, Forbes, MedPage Today, STAT, The Hill, Politico, Washington Post and Salon
Brandy Zadrozny / MSNBC:
CDC employees walk out to rally in support of ousted leaders
CDC employees walk out to rally in support of ousted leaders
Discussion:
Politico, The Hill, Lawyers, Guns & Money, Washington Examiner, CBS News, Raw Story, New York Sun and NewsMax.com
Elizabeth Cooney / STAT:
Crisis within CDC is spilling into real world, experts say
Adriel Bettelheim / Axios:
RFK Jr. shakes up COVID vaccine policy
RFK Jr. shakes up COVID vaccine policy
Discussion:
Bloomberg, STAT, The National Pulse and New Republic
Wall Street Journal:
Inside the Trump Administration's Vaccine Politics
Inside the Trump Administration's Vaccine Politics
Discussion:
CNN, Washington Examiner, Raw Story, Media Matters for America, Advocate and Daily Kos
Jeneen Interlandi / New York Times:
Kennedy Ousted the C.D.C. Director. If Only That Were the End of It.
Kennedy Ousted the C.D.C. Director. If Only That Were the End of It.
Discussion:
STAT, The Contrarian, The Independent, twitchy.com, The Hill and The Equation
Victoria Albert / Wall Street Journal:
ICE Eyes Naval Base Outside Chicago as Operations Center — Border czar Tom Homan says to expect a ramp up of enforcement in sanctuary cities — The Trump administration is weighing the use of a naval base north of Chicago as an ICE operations center, border czar Tom Homan said Thursday.
RELATED:
New Republic:
Transcript: Trump Erupts in Rage as Dem Gov's Harsh Takedown Hits Home — The following is a lightly edited transcript of the August 28 episode of the — Daily Blast podcast. Listen to it here. — Greg Sargent: This is The Daily Blast from The New Republic, produced and presented by the DSR network.
Apoorva Mandavilli / New York Times:
Trump Administration Live Updates: White House Plans Chicago Immigration Crackdown Launched From Naval Base
Discussion:
HotAir, Associated Press, CBS News, New York Daily News, Scripps News, Bloomberg, NewsMax.com, Daily Mail, WTOP News and Davis Vanguard
Rep. Delia Ramirez / MSNBC:
I represent part of Chicago in Congress. Trump wants us scared and silent.
NBC News:
Jan. 6 rioter Ashli Babbitt offered full military funeral, Air Force confirms — Babbitt, 35, was an Air Force veteran who was fatally shot by Capitol police while protesting Donald Trump's defeat in the 2020 presidential election. — The Air Force has offered full military funeral honors …
Discussion:
KOKI-TV, Politico, Judicial Watch, Advocate, Raw Story, The Daily Caller, The Guardian and Townhall
RELATED:
Brandi Buchman / HuffPost:
Jan. 6 Rioter Killed As She Stormed Capitol Will Receive Military Funeral Honors — The Babbitt family also received a settlement of $5 million earlier this year. — Despite the fact that Ashli Babbitt attempted to climb through a shattered glass door inside the U.S. Capitol as lawmakers fled …
Discussion:
Politico, New York Post, KSTP-TV, MSNBC, The Independent, Fox News, Task & Purpose, Military and Veteran …, Times of San Diego and Washington Examiner
Brett Samuels / The Hill:
FBI investigating Minnesota school shooting as hate crime against Catholics — The FBI is investigating Wednesday's shooting in Minnesota as an act of domestic terrorism and a hate crime targeting Catholics, Director Kash Patel said. — Patel confirmed the suspected shooter was identified …
RELATED:
Jonathan V. Last / The Bulwark:
The CDC. The Fed. The FBI. The National Guard. Do you get it now?
Discussion:
New York Times, The Hill and CBS News
Filip Timotija / The Hill:
Melania Trump: Minnesota school shooting ‘illuminates’ need for ‘pre-emptive intervention’
Melania Trump: Minnesota school shooting ‘illuminates’ need for ‘pre-emptive intervention’
Discussion:
HuffPost, Breitbart, Good Morning America, IJR, Fox News and New York Post
New York Post:
Minneapolis school shooter Robin Westman confessed he was ‘tired of being trans’: ‘I wish I never brain-washed myself’ — Transgender mass shooter Robin Westman confessed that he “was tired of being trans” and wished he “never brain-washed” himself in a manifesto posted online before he slaughtered …
RELATED:
Margaret Hartmann / New York Magazine:
Army Parade ‘Disappointed’ Trump, So Navy Will Do One Too — Donald Trump fulfilled his yearslong dream of holding a military parade in Washington, D.C., this past June. Miraculously, both the president and his opponents mostly got what they wanted out of the event.
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and The Independent
RELATED:
Katie Robertson / New York Times:
Atlanta Journal-Constitution to Quit Print Cold Turkey — The publication says the time is right to pour all of its resources into its online news operation and get its journalism “in front of the most people.” — When Andrew Morse joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution as its president …
Discussion:
WXIA-TV, VINnews, Washington Times and The Wrap, more at Mediagazer »
RELATED:
J. Scott Trubey / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
AJC to move to fully digital publication, phase out print Dec. 31
AJC to move to fully digital publication, phase out print Dec. 31
Discussion:
UPI, NewsMax.com, Fox Business and WXIA-TV
James Bickerton / Newsweek:
Ron DeSantis Wasted $250 Million on Alligator Alcatraz as It Faces Closure — The state of Florida is committed to $245 million toward the construction of “Alligator Alcatraz,” the Everglades immigration detention facility which is due to close in days. — An email obtained …
Discussion:
Associated Press, ABC News and Raw Story
RELATED:
Greg Allen / NPR:
Florida's ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ detention facility to be empty ‘within a few days’
Florida's ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ detention facility to be empty ‘within a few days’
Discussion:
WSVN-TV, Mediaite and Sun-Sentinel
Wall Street Journal:
Fed Governor Lisa Cook Sues to Stop Trump From Firing Her — The lawsuit tees up a high-stakes court battle over the president's authority to remove members of the central bank's board — Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook sued President Trump on Thursday, seeking to block his move to fire …
Nicole Silverio / The Daily Caller:
Jen Psaki Tells Christians She's Had ‘Enough’ With Their Prayers After Catholic School Shooting — Former White House press secretary Jen Psaki shamed Christians on Wednesday who were praying for those afflicted in the Annunciation Catholic School shooting.
Discussion:
Newsbusters, The Gateway Pundit, Breitbart, San Diego Jewish World, Fox News, Evie Magazine, IJR, Deseret News, One America News Network, The Daily Register, RedState, The Daily Signal, Newsweek, Townhall, Raw Story, The Wrap, The Hill, The Post Millennial, Reason, Plain Dealer, Hartford Courant, NewsNation, NewsMax.com, The Independent, The Federalist, Mediaite, Archdiocese of Saint Paul …, Daily Kos, Washington Examiner and New Republic
Shane Goldmacher / New York Times:
Trump and Democrats Float Unusual Midterm Conventions — Both parties appear to be weighing gatherings that would gin up excitement for candidates in 2026 — and give a major platform for ambitious politicians hoping to lead the parties in 2028. — President Trump suggested on Thursday …
Discussion:
Politico, Washington Post, Ace of Spades HQ, Raw Story, New Jersey Online, Blaze Media, New York Daily News, Mediaite, The Hill and American Greatness
RELATED:
Stephen Neukam / Axios:
Exclusive: Senate Dems launch “budget-buster” site targeting GOP costs
Exclusive: Senate Dems launch “budget-buster” site targeting GOP costs
Discussion:
NewsMax.com
Don Moynihan / Can We Still Govern?:
The authoritarian checklist — There is so much happening that occasionally pausing to take stock is necessary. So where are we? In deep trouble. America may not be fully authoritarian, but by no means can we consider it to be a functioning democracy.
Discussion:
The New Republic
Jason Koebler / 404 Media:
Trump Tariffs Cause Chaos on Ebay as Every Hobby Becomes Logistical Minefield — The Trump administration is throwing various hobbies enjoyed by Americans into chaos and is harming small businesses domestically and abroad with its ever-changing tariff structure that is turning the United States into a hermit kingdom.
Nina Agrawal / New York Times:
Pediatric Brain Cancer Trial Group to Be Phased Out — A network of hospitals and cancer centers dedicated to early phase trials of novel treatments will no longer receive federal funding. — A respected network of hospitals and cancer centers is halting enrollment in clinical trials …
Susan B. Glasser / New Yorker:
The Sycophancy Must Be Televised — Notes from the longest, cringiest Trump Cabinet meeting yet. — When Donald Trump began to speak on Tuesday, during what would become the longest televised Cabinet meeting ever, he did not exactly advertise his plans to make history.
Daniel Ziblatt / Foreign Affairs:
Warnings From Weimar — Why Bargaining With Authoritarians Fails — On March 23, 1933, inside a dimly lit chamber filled with the stale scent of cigar smoke, Ludwig Kaas tried to convince himself he was making the right decision. A Catholic priest and the leader of Germany's establishment Center Party, he stood at a crossroads.
Mother Jones:
The “Mini-Trump” Attacking Lisa Cook Had Paperwork Problems of His Own — Bill Pulte has weaponized his office to attack Trump's political enemies. — Donald Trump is attempting to seize control of the historically independent Federal Reserve by firing one of its leaders.
Discussion:
Raw Story, NPR and Washington Examiner

