Top Items:
Jennifer Rubin / The Contrarian:
War Crime...or Murder? — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who makes up in false bravado what he lacks in judgment and expertise, appears to have committed an inexcusable, unjustified violation of black-letter international and domestic law, according to a stunning Washington Post story released last Friday.
Discussion:
Just Security
RELATED:
Avery Lotz / Axios:
Trump backs Hegseth as Congress plans boat strike review — President Trump said he believes Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's denial of a report alleging he ordered military forces to leave no survivors in a strike on a suspected drug trafficking boat from Venezuela.
Washington Post:
Trump says Hegseth denied issuing order to kill boat crew
Trump says Hegseth denied issuing order to kill boat crew
Discussion:
New York Magazine, The Guardian, The Hill, Raw Story, Fox News, Wonkette, Bloomberg, Washington Examiner and Semafor
Joyce Vance / Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance:
The Week Ahead — The news gods didn't give us Thanksgiving week off, and there's no reason …
The Week Ahead — The news gods didn't give us Thanksgiving week off, and there's no reason …
CNN:
Trump to hold Venezuela Oval Office meeting, sources say
Trump to hold Venezuela Oval Office meeting, sources say
Discussion:
The Daily Signal, NewsMax.com, Mediaite, Metro.co.uk, Fox News and Washington Times
Marcie Jones / Wonkette:
The Man Comes Around: Tabs, Mon., Dec. 1, 2025
New York Times:
Appeals Court Says Alina Habba Is Unlawful U.S. Attorney — The judges wrote that the Trump Administration appeared to have become frustrated by legal and political barriers that have prevented its preferred U.S. attorneys from leading federal prosecutors' offices.
Discussion:
The Independent and Townhall
RELATED:
Mike Catalini / Associated Press:
Former Trump lawyer Alina Habba disqualified as New Jersey prosecutor, US appeals court rules — The Trump administration's maneuvers to keep the president's former lawyer Alina Habba in place as New Jersey's top federal prosecutor were illegal and she is disqualified, a federal appeals court said Monday.
Kara Scannell / CNN:
Former Trump personal lawyer Alina Habba is unlawfully serving as the US attorney for New Jersey, appeals court says
Discussion:
Straight Arrow News, Raw Story and The Gateway Pundit
April Rubin / Axios:
Appeals court disqualifies Alina Habba as U.S. attorney for New Jersey
Appeals court disqualifies Alina Habba as U.S. attorney for New Jersey
Discussion:
Fox News, MeidasTouch News, The Post Millennial, Reason and The Daily Caller
Jonathan Lemire / The Atlantic:
The Bubble-Wrapped President — For a decade, Donald Trump's rallies were intertwined with his political identity. His big crowds were how he first got the media and the Republican Party to take him seriously, and they provided real-time feedback. Those who followed him closely could watch …
Discussion:
The Independent, Mediaite, The Parnas Perspective and Raw Story
Calen Razor / Politico:
Capitol agenda: Health deal hinges on Trump — Congress is back. Welcome to the December of Hellth. Lawmakers now have a mere 30 days to address expiring Obamacare tax credits and prevent health insurance hikes for millions of Americans. Republicans and Democrats agree success hangs on one question …
RELATED:
Jordain Carney / Politico:
‘Time is not our friend’: Health care scramble begins amid mixed signals from Trump … In his only comments on the matter, Trump injected more uncertainty last week, saying he doesn't want to extend the subsidies but understands it might be necessary. — The mixed signals have left …
Discussion:
Washington Post and NewsMax.com
Alexander Bolton / The Hill:
GOP lawmakers lack confidence in Trump's plans to tackle costs
GOP lawmakers lack confidence in Trump's plans to tackle costs
Discussion:
Raw Story
Paul Krugman:
Trump: Pro-crypto or Pro-crime? — Or are they the same thing? — On one side, the Trump administration is sinking small boats that it claims, without evidence, are smuggling drugs — and according to the Washington Post, Pete Hegseth, the self-styled Secretary of War …
Discussion:
New York Times
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Trump says he'll release MRI results; he doesn't know what part of his body was scanned — President Donald Trump said Sunday that he would release the results of his MRI test that he received in October. “If you want to have it released, I'll release it,” the president said during an exchange …
Discussion:
New York Times, Straight Arrow News, Axios, TMZ.com, The Guardian, Salon, No More Mister Nice Blog, Fox News, New Republic, Washington Examiner, Reuters, New Jersey Online, Raw Story, MS NOW, The National Pulse, The Borowitz Report, New York Post, New York Daily News, The Independent, Newsweek, Mediaite, The Hill, HuffPost and NewsMax.com, more at Mediagazer »
Natalie Armour / Oklahoma Daily:
OU puts graduate instructor on leave after student claims discrimination on Bible-based essay grade — OU placed a graduate student instructor on leave after a student publicly contested a grade and filed an illegal discrimination claim after she received a failing grade on an essay that cited the Bible.
Discussion:
New York Post
Noah Berlatsky / Public Notice:
Trump's ugly Thanksgiving meltdown — 💥 🚀 PN CYBER MONDAY SPECIAL 💥 🚀 Click the button below to sign up for an annual paid subscription for the special price of $40 ⬇️ — ⚡️⚡️ PN Cyber Monday Special ⚡️⚡️
Tom Phillips / The Guardian:
Trump reportedly gave Maduro ultimatum to relinquish power in Venezuela — US president sent a ‘blunt message’ to his South American counterpart, sources say — Donald Trump reportedly gave Nicolás Maduro an ultimatum to relinquish power immediately during their recent call …
Discussion:
The Hill, NewsMax.com and The Gateway Pundit
RELATED:
Emma Bussey / Fox News:
Trump gave Maduro ultimatum to flee Venezuela as land operations loom: report
Trump gave Maduro ultimatum to flee Venezuela as land operations loom: report
Discussion:
Straight Arrow News, CNN, RedState, The Post Millennial, Bloomberg, The Independent, IJR, New York Post and The Daily Caller
The Downballot:
Morning Digest: A major election year is unfolding in D.C. as the city is besieged by Trump — A high-profile race for mayor could pit democratic socialists against the establishment — Leading Off — Washington, D.C. Mayor — Councilmember Janeese Lewis George announced Monday morning …
Discussion:
Washington Post
RELATED:
Rebecca Shabad / NBC News:
Trump commutes 7-year prison sentence of former private equity CEO David Gentile — Gentile, who was the CEO and co-founder of GPB Capital Holdings, was convicted of wire and security fraud charges brought by the Department of Justice under the Biden administration.
Discussion:
The Independent, HuffPost, Reuters and New York Times
Tim Ross / Politico:
EU tells Trump: You can't pardon Putin for war crimes in Ukraine — Donald Trump's drive to secure peace in Ukraine must not let Vladimir Putin off the hook for war crimes committed by Russian forces, a top EU official has warned, effectively setting a new red line for a deal.
Discussion:
New York Post, Semafor and Raw Story
New York Times:
Despite Supreme Court Wins, Elite D.O.J. Unit Has Seen Mass Turnover — Even with an exodus of lawyers, the Office of the Solicitor General has had remarkable success. But fiery rhetoric and close White House ties have raised concerns. — On a spring evening earlier this year …
Discussion:
Reason, The Hill, Althouse and Chicago Tribune
Politico:
Indiana House releases draft congressional map that could net Republicans 2 seats … State House Speaker Todd Huston has consistently said his caucus could pass the new map, and Speaker Mike Johnson huddled with lawmakers this weekend in what was described by one person briefed on the call as very “rah rah” ahead of them convening.
Discussion:
Democracy Docket, The Hill, Associated Press, New York Sun and Fox News
Kevin Maurer / Rolling Stone:
Fellow Unit Member Says Alleged D.C. Shooter Felt Abandoned by CIA — The Afghan who served in a U.S.-backed Zero Unit struggled with apparent mental health issues after migrating to America in 2021 — The alleged shooter of two National Guard members, Rahmanullah Lakanwal …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, MS NOW and New York Post
Max Hudson / BBC:
WW1 toxic compound sprayed on Georgian protesters, BBC evidence suggests — Georgia's authorities used a World War One-era chemical weapon to quell anti-government protesters last year, evidence gathered by the BBC suggests. — “You could feel [the water] burning,” one of the protesters …
Emily Mae / CBS News:
F-16s scrambled, flares deployed to intercept plane near Mar-a-Lago — U.S. military jets on Saturday intercepted a civilian aircraft that flew through temporarily restricted airspace over Palm Beach, Florida, where President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate is located, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command.


