Reading archive 2017-11-10

‘I don’t feel wealthy’: The upper middle class is worried about paying for the tax overhaul

‘Love Thy Neighbor?’: When a Muslim doctor arrived in a rural Midwestern town, “it felt right.” But that feeling began to change after the election of Donald Trump.

One of the busiest websites in the U.S. in 2016 regularly linked to Russia propaganda (ed. note: it's Drudge)

Trump judge nominee, 36, who has never tried a case, wins approval of Senate panel - "When Trump took office in January, there were more than 100 vacant seats on the federal courts, thanks to an unprecedented slowdown engineered by McConnell during the final two years of President Obama's term. The Senate under GOP control approved only 22 judges in that two-year period, the lowest total since 1951-52 in the last year of President Truman's term. By contrast, the Senate under Democratic control approved 68 judges in the last two years of George W. Bush's presidency."

Reading archive 2017-11-09

Democrats Win Phase One of the Redistricting Wars: In the critical state of Virginia, wins by the party in the governor’s mansion and the state legislature give it a foothold in the 2020 mapping game.

Woman says Roy Moore initiated sexual encounter when she was 14, he was 32

Mitch McConnell and chorus of Republican senators call on Roy Moore to step aside in Alabama Senate race

The GOP’s Roy Moore and Steve Bannon nightmare just came true

Which Team’s Decision to Not Sign Colin Kaepernick Is Least Defensible?: Kaepernick is bringing a lawsuit against the NFL claiming that franchises have colluded in not signing him. While that could be tough to prove in court, it’s easy to show just how hypocritical teams have been for arguing that their rationale revolves around “football reasons.”

Lockheed Martin gets ready to test a laser weapon on a fighter jet

Minority-owned firms report tougher time accessing credit than white firms

Graham: 'Financial contributions will stop' if GOP doesn't pass tax reform

Louis C.K. Crossed a Line Into Sexual Misconduct, 5 Women Say

Reading archive 2017-11-08

Johnstown Never Believed Trump Would Help. They Still Love Him Anyway.: In a depressed former steel town, the president’s promises don’t matter as much as they once did. (ed. note: holy shit)

His girlfriend’s televised slaying made him run for office. He won.

Senate GOP tax bill could delay corporate tax cut and make other major changes that break sharply with House plan

Why Northam’s Win in Virginia Was So Impressive

Hearing Both Sides of Taylor Swift: Since the 2016 election, she has been criticized for refusing to engage with national politics, or speaking out against the hate groups that celebrate her. Can a pop star afford to stay apolitical in our current climate?

Donna Brazile is walking back her claim that the Democratic primary was ‘rigged’

Barack Obama is building a library — and grappling again with Chicago politics

‘Canary in the coal mine’: Republicans fear Democratic wins mean more losses to come

‘The cracks in the foundation are there’: Bob Costas imagines a future without football

Reading archive 2017-11-07

ACLU scolds Taylor Swift for effort to protect reputation

How Anti-Terrorism Design Can Also Make Cities More Livable

CIA DIRECTOR MET ADVOCATE OF DISPUTED DNC HACK THEORY — AT TRUMP’S REQUEST - "The meeting raises questions about Pompeo’s willingness to act as an honest broker between the intelligence community and the White House, and his apparent refusal to push back against efforts by the president to bend the intelligence process to suit his political purposes. Instead of acting as a filter between Trump and the intelligence community, Pompeo’s decision to meet with Binney raises the possibility that right-wing theories aired on Fox News and in other conservative media can now move not just from conservative pundits to Trump, but also from Trump to Pompeo and into the bloodstream of the intelligence community.

"Some senior CIA officials have grown upset that Pompeo, a former Republican representative from Kansas, has become so close to Trump that the CIA director regularly expresses skepticism about intelligence that doesn’t line up with the president’s views. Pompeo has also alienated some CIA managers by growing belligerent toward them in meetings, according to an intelligence official familiar with the matter."

The Twitter thought experiment that exposes “pro-life” hypocrisy

The disturbing history behind an NFL owner’s explosive comments

Chilling tale of Harvey Weinstein’s spies shows Ronan Farrow’s reporting chops — and compassion

Trump just made a bad night for Republicans much worse for himself

Reading archive 2017-11-04 through 2017-11-06

Elizabeth Warren and Donna Brazile both now agree the 2016 Democratic primary was rigged - "The timeline here is also important. Many of those emails described above came after it was abundantly clear that Clinton would be the nominee, barring a massive and almost impossible shift in primary votes. It may have been in poor taste and contrary to protocol, but the outcome was largely decided long before Sanders ended his campaign. Brazile doesn't dwell too much on the timeline, so it's not clear exactly how in-the-bag Clinton had the nomination when the alleged takeover began. It's also not clear exactly what Clinton got for her alleged control.

"This is also somewhat self-serving for Brazile, given the DNC continued to struggle during and after her tenure, especially financially. The op-ed is excerpted from her forthcoming book, 'Hacks: The Inside Story of the Break-ins and Breakdowns That Put Donald Trump in the White House.' Losses like the one in 2016 will certainly lead to plenty of finger-pointing, and Brazile's book title and description allude to it containing plenty of that."

White House attacks legacies of both Bush presidents after reports that they refused to vote for Trump

Commerce Secretary’s Offshore Ties to Putin ‘Cronies’

Saudi Arabia Arrests 11 Princes, Including Billionaire Alwaleed bin Talal

Citigroup, Twitter, Lyft: Prince’s Arrest Touches Many

India turns to public shaming to get people to use its 52 million new toilets

They spent years planning to live with Alzheimer’s disease. The GOP tax bill threatens those plans.

In glyphosate review, WHO cancer agency edited out “non-carcinogenic” findings

A fake shooter and ‘false flag’ rumors at the hospital — how dark online hoaxes came to Texas

Brazile says she found ‘no evidence’ that Democratic primaries were rigged for Clinton

Reading archive 2017-11-02

Senate Democrats falsely claim GOP tax plan will raise taxes for most working-class families

I worked for Paul Manafort. He always lacked a moral compass.

Reading archive 2017-11-01

Jeff Flake, Bob Corker, and John McCain need to start acting like senators, not pundits: Find legislative leverage and use it. Do something.

The Islamic World Doesn't Need a Reformation: Why a Muslim John Locke would be much more useful than a Muslim Martin Luther

A Proposal for Islam

“YOU CAN’T GO ANY LOWER”: INSIDE THE WEST WING, TRUMP IS APOPLECTIC AS ALLIES FEAR IMPEACHMENT: After Monday’s indictments, the president blamed Jared Kushner in a call to Steve Bannon, while others are urging him to take off the gloves with Robert Mueller.