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Jack Smith: “Our case was built on, frankly, Republicans who put their allegiance to the country before the party.” Trump also had a “pattern” of rejecting information that didn’t fit his false narrative.

⚡️Russia launches New Year’s Day drone attacks across Ukraine. Russia attacked several Ukrainian regions with drones overnight on Jan. 1, striking energy infrastructure in southern Odesa Oblast.

For the past 15 years, the fact-checkers at PolitiFact have sorted through hundreds of statements by politicians to name the "Lie of the Year." This year, the editors dubbed 2025 the "Year of the Lies." https://to.pbs.org/4jhVQRk

My latest for NPR www.npr.org/2025/12/31/n...

Public service journalism:

Border czar Tom Homan didn't receive a normal background check for his role while his bribery probe was still ongoing: Justice officials felt sure Homan would not be able to obtain a security clearance based on the evidence gathered. It remains unclear how Homan was eventually granted clearance.

Can a school district fire an assistant principal for ranting on Facebook about "demtards"? cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/op... (Answer: yes, though the fact he falsely claimed he was hacked, plus his other intemperate statements, surely also contributed)

"Both the city and the province where the cemetery is located have demanded the panels be returned." apnews.com/article/neth...

Judge Blocks Detention of British Researcher Who Scrutinizes Online Hate www.nytimes.com/2025/12/25/u...

Christmas Eve Drop: Fed. judge quashes yet another attempt by Trump's DOJ to get the personal data of trans patients and former patients, and does so in sarcastic and angry fashion calling out the administration's ill-intent and lack of good faith. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Kilmar Abrego Garcia to remain free from immigration custody for now -- @ashleymurray.bsky.social & @fischler.bsky.social for @statesnewsroom.com DC www.newsfromthestates.com/article/kilm...

Judge Aileen Cannon rejects motions from @knightcolumbia.org and @weareoversight.bsky.social asserting statutory, common law, and constitutional rights of access to Jack Smith's report about Trump's hoarding of classified docs at Mar-a-Lago. knightcolumbia.org/documents/r1...

Great thread on the 60 MINUTES segment that Bari Weiss spiked

Judge James Boasberg said the U.S. denied due process to the Venezuelan men it deported to a prison in El Salvador after President Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act. n.pr/3YaVn9X

With months-long consulate and embassy delays being reported, the two tech companies say staying put in the U.S. right now could prevent workers from getting stranded in their home countries. n.pr/4pIAKxS

Respected, ethical editors protect their journalism and journalists from political or corporate interference and retribution.

“When it fails to air without a credible explanation, the public will correctly identify this as corporate censorship. We are trading 50 years of ‘gold standard’ reputation for a single week of political quiet.” www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/b...

This editorial interference will result in significantly more interest in the original 60 Minutes story.

"In the email, Alfonsi said the sources in the segment 'risked their live to speak with us.' She added: 'We have a moral and professional obligation to the sources who entrusted us with their stories.'”

"Sharyn Alfonsi said in a Sunday email to fellow correspondents... that she learned Saturday that new CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss 'spiked our story.' Alfonsi said the last-minute change was, in her view, a political decision, rather than an editorial call." www.wsj.com/business/med...

A last minute, extraordinary decision like this deserves a fuller explanation. The brevity leads to speculation and skepticism, which is already rampant on social platforms. Report on your own back story, CBS. Others soon will.

This is the trailer Bari Weiss' CBS has apparently scrubbed from the internet.

apnews.com/article/rele... least 16 files have disappeared from the DOJ webpage for documents related to Jeffrey Epstein

‘This year nearly broke me as a scientist’ – US researchers reflect on how 2025’s science cuts have changed their lives theconversation.com/this-year-ne...

Essential reading on a very important threat. Data manipulation and destruction has dangerous consequences. wapo.st/4aniPbn

LUHAN: Is the FCC an independent agency? CARR: I think th--- L: Yes or no C: There's a test for this in the la--- L: It's yes or no, Brendan! On your website, it simply says, man, 'the FCC is independent.' This isn't a trick question C: The FCC is not L: So is your website lying? C: Possibly

This award recognizes extraordinary journalism done in the face of ethical challenges. We know how often such challenges arise while doing important work. Enter yours!

DePaul University announced dozens of staff layoffs it says were caused by “financial headwinds” due largely to a “significant” drop in the number of international graduate students enrolling.

Police in Rhode Island released new video Monday afternoon of a person of interest walking away from Brown University shortly after two people were killed in a mass shooting Saturday.

Merriam-Webster’s human editors have chosen ‘slop’ as the 2025 Word of the Year.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — At least 2 people have been killed and several others injured in shooting at Brown University, AP source says.

Fraudster’s Victims Are Seething After Trump Commuted His Sentence www.nytimes.com/2025/12/12/n...

BREAKING: At 7am ET, in response to the emergency overnight filing, Judge Xinis issued a TRO barring the Trump administration from re-detaining Abrego Garcia. www.courtlistener.com/docket/71191...

Trump objects to reports about his obvious aging, saying “it’s seditious, perhaps even treasonous, for The New York Times, and others, to consistently do FAKE reports in order to libel and demean ‘THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.’“ It isn’t. And the reports aren’t fake.

Honduran Authorities Issue Arrest Warrant for Ex-President Pardoned by Trump www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/w...

apnews.com/article/trum... judge throws out Trump order blocking development of wind energy

JUST IN: A federal magistrate judge has turned down Tina Peters' habeas petition, saying it must work its way through state courts before federal courts get involved. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

JUST IN: 1st Circuit grants administrative stay blocking judge's order halting Trump budget bill's ban on Planned Parenthood funding. Ban to remain in effect for now. Judges Barron (Obama) Gelpi & Montecalvo (Biden) Doc: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26... Earlier: www.politico.com/news/2025/12...

“Today is a defining moment for our country,” Michael Osterholm, a public health expert at the University of Minnesota, said. “We can no longer trust federal health authorities when it comes to vaccines.” www.nytimes.com/2025/12/05/h...

My constituent, Wilmer, was mauled by an ICE attack dog despite the fact that, as he has consistently explained, he was not resisting arrest or trying to flee—his wife and young children, all U.S. citizens, were forced to watch helplessly as Wilmer was violently attacked and dragged away.

JUST IN: Comey friend/lawyer/adviser Dan Richman files for temporary restraining order barring further govt use of electronic data he shared w/feds. They got warrants for some but not all info & may have pored through all in bid to charge Comey. Doc: www.documentcloud.org/documents/26...

New- Exclusive: Boat at center of double-tap strike controversy was meeting vessel headed to Suriname, admiral told lawmakers www.cnn.com/2025/12/05/p...

That’s … not headed to us then … that’s going to South America.

New York Times Sues Pentagon Over First Amendment Rights www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/b...