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There's another mystery in Santos' campaign expenditures — The Republican firm WinRed says it has asked Rep. George Santos' campaign to “ensure” it has reported fees accurately. — A Republican technology firm says it is asking Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., to correct yet another apparent error on his campaign spending records.
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Jeff Zients Is Named White House Chief of Staff — The White House formally announced that Mr. Zients, 56, would be taking over for Ron Klain, who has held the role since President Biden took office two years ago. — WASHINGTON — President Biden said on Friday that Jeffrey D. Zients …
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Washington Post, Associated Press, New York Post and Just The News
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The White House:
Statement from President Joe Biden on Personnel Announcement — I've known Ron Klain since he was a third-year law student. He came to work for me on the Senate Judiciary Committee, and I knew the moment he started that he was a once-in-a-generation talent with a fierce and brilliant intellect.
Discussion:
Politico, CBS News, The Hill, Washington Examiner, USA Today and National Review
Max Moran / American Prospect:
The Myth of Jeffrey Zients

RNC chair seeks to quell revolt, divisions ahead of tense Friday election — GOP leaders are voting on whether to reelect Ronna McDaniel amid demands for accountability for the party's string of electoral failures — DANA POINT, Calif. — A contentious battle over the future of the GOP …
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Politico, Washington Examiner, The Hill, Trending Politics Conservative, Washington Times, ABC News, Just The News, CNN, CBS News and Fox News
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US inflation and consumer spending cooled in December — The Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge eased further in December, and consumer spending fell — the latest evidence that the Fed's series of interest rate hikes are slowing the economy. Friday's report from the Commerce Department showed …
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Washington Examiner, New York Post, New York Times, Quartz and Associated Press

The Classified Document Scandal Is Even Dumber Than You Think — “It's a ridiculous system that's not fit for purpose anymore,” one State Department official told VICE News. — Cameron Joseph — WASHINGTON, US — It's hard to imagine a dumber way to protect our national intelligence.
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Los Angeles Times, New York Times, The Gateway Pundit, Craig's Newsletter, Convictions of a Sciolist and CNN
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Melissa Quinn / CBS News:
“That just cannot stand”: Warner and Rubio united in demanding access to Trump, Biden documents
“That just cannot stand”: Warner and Rubio united in demanding access to Trump, Biden documents
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The Bulwark, Breitbart, The Hill, HuffPost, ABC News, CNN and Associated Press

FDA to relax blood donation rules for gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships — Gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships will soon be able to donate blood without abstaining from sex under new federal guidelines, parting from a long-standing policy that barred men …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, The Hill, Washington Post, New York Post and STAT

Federal prosecutors discussed charging Trump in Stormy Daniels case when he left office, book says — Days before then-President Donald Trump left the White House, federal prosecutors in New York discussed whether to potentially charge Trump with campaign finance crimes once he was out of office …
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Examiner and Raw Story

Biden's Ukraine incompetence made war far bloodier. It's time to deliver what's needed to defeat Russia — Sending just 31 Abrams tanks to help Ukraine battle Russia is too little, too late — Sen. Tom Cotton: Ukraine Abrams tanks decision is ‘long overdue’

United States Obtains Temporary Restraining Order Against Firearm Companies Illegally Selling Machine Guns — Civil Action is Part of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York's Civil Initiative to Reduce Gun Violence — On January 19, 2023, the United States filed …
Discussion:
The Hill

Pro-DeSantis group to launch ‘opening salvo’ in New Hampshire at GOP meeting — A super PAC backing Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) for president in 2024 will have a presence at this weekend's New Hampshire GOP meeting, planting its flag in the state for the Florida governor and potentially setting …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, University of New …, 19FortyFive and Fox News

California Senate race sets up clash of titans — A Senate race pitting the man who spearheaded former President Donald Trump's first impeachment, Adam Schiff, against fundraising powerhouse and wonk superstar Katie Porter would guarantee fireworks and a price tag in the hundreds of millions of dollars.
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Jezebel, New York Times, KQED, CNN, Vox, Washington Times, Politico, Reason, Breitbart, New York Post, RedState, CNBC, PoliticusUSA, East Bay Times, Tennessee Star, Fox News, KTLA, Washington Examiner, HuffPost, ABC News, Axios and New York Magazine

Tucker Carlson Talks Nonsense About U.S. Invading Canada To Remove Trudeau — “Why should we let it become Cuba?” the Fox News host said after suggesting America launch an attack to “liberate” Canada. — Tucker Carlson on Thursday called for the U.S. to invade Canada and remove Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Discussion:
Mediaite and Media Matters for America

Paul Pelosi attack video and audio being released Friday — Video and audio recorded last year during the attack on Paul Pelosi will be released Friday, after a California court ruled the district attorney's office must make the materials public. — Audio from police interviews …
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Washington Examiner, HuffPost, Fox News, Rolling Stone, CBS News, NBC News, NBC Bay Area, The Gateway Pundit, Wall Street Journal, PJ Media, Sean Hannity, The Hill, USA Today, National Review, Breitbart, New York Times, BizPac Review, RedState, The Post Millennial, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, East Bay Times, Just The News and HotAir

Where will Democrats turn in 2024? — At least five stashes of classified materials have been found in President Joe Biden's possession, both at his Wilmington, Delaware, home and his China-aligned Washington think tank. Legacy media can no longer ignore the story, and even Democratic politicians …

Can Anything Be Done to Assuage Rural Rage? — Rural resentment has become a central fact of American politics — in particular, a pillar of support for the rise of right-wing extremism. As the Republican Party has moved ever further into MAGAland, it has lost votes among educated suburban voters …
Discussion:
Raw Story

Ambassador Olexandr Scherba's Undiplomatic Thoughts on Russia and Europe's Shocking Wake-Up Call — How Ukraine's desire for freedom disrupted the EU's vision for the future - until Europe had no choice but to act. … Olexander Scherba is a Ukrainian diplomat and author who served as Ambassador to Austria from 2014 to 2021.
Discussion:
The Atlantic

What Mike Pompeo Leaves Out — In a memoir clearly intended to prepare for a presidential run, the former secretary of state toots his own horn—but his silences are louder. — Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love — “My Mike” was the nickname that President Trump bestowed …
Discussion:
New Yorker, Washington Examiner, Al-Monitor and The Guardian

Michigan Senate OKs earlier presidential primary, to dismay of GOP — The Democratic majority in the Michigan Senate approved a measure Thursday that would move the state's presidential primary earlier in the year. — The 20-18 party-line vote to shift the primary from mid-March …
Discussion:
Michigan Advance, Fox News, The Hill and Iowa Capital Dispatch

Revealed: Trump secretly donated $1m to discredited Arizona election ‘audit’ — Funding for controversial review of state's vote count in 2020 election can be traced to former president's Pac — One of the enduring mysteries surrounding the chaotic attempts to overturn Donald Trump's defeat …
Discussion:
Raw Story and Washington Post

Barr Pressed Durham to Find Flaws in the Russia Investigation. It Didn't Go Well. — The review by John Durham at one point veered into a criminal investigation related to Donald Trump himself, even as it failed to find wrongdoing in the origins of the Russia inquiry.
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Rolling Stone, Vox, Raw Story, Talking Points Memo, Strangely Blogged, emptywheel, Mediaite, Insider, Forbes and PoliticusUSA

Biden Appointees Are Looking for New Jobs — And the Market Is Hot — There's good news for Biden appointees eyeing the exits: Unlike your predecessors from Donald Trump's chaotic administration, you're in demand in the private sector. — While the 46th president has presided …
Discussion:
Axios and Political Wire

Scoop: GOP considers copying powerful Dem donor tactic — Republican candidates might have to beef up grassroots fundraising operations to qualify for the first 2024 presidential primary debate, Axios has learned. … - Discussions are ongoing about the precise number of donors to require …

How Donald Trump's 2024 Campaign Bounced Back … Donald Trump spent the final months of 2022 reeling from electoral setbacks and media disasters. Many of his high-profile endorsements in the midterm elections flopped. His attacks on popular GOP governors in Florida, Virginia, Ohio …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, PoliticusUSA, National Review and Bloomberg

More than 100 Students Walk Out of Embattled Harvard Professor Comaroff's First Class of Semester — More than 100 students walked out of embattled Harvard professor John L. Comaroff's class Tuesday afternoon, protesting his continued presence on campus after he was placed on leave last year …
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, The Hill, BizPac Review, Washington Examiner, Breitbart, The Harvard Crimson and New York Post

Florida House ‘dress code’ asks women to cover their shoulders … Peter Schorsch is the President of Extensive Enterprises Media and is the publisher of FloridaPolitics.com, INFLUENCE Magazine, and Sunburn, the morning read of what's hot in Florida politics.
Discussion:
RedState

Kavanaugh touts ‘great relations’ among justices on divided Supreme Court — WASHINGTON — Conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh said the Supreme Court is not as divided as members of the public might think, praising his liberal colleagues and highlighting rulings in which the justices …
Discussion:
The Law School, CBS News, Associated Press, Reason and Bloomberg