5: MUELLER SAYS FLYNN SHOULD AVOID JAIL AFTER 19 INTERVIEWS WITH INVESTIGATORS
Special Counsel Robert Mueller believes President Trump’s former national security adviser Michael Flynn should serve little to no jail time thanks to his “substantial” assistance with the Russia probe, according to sentencing memo released Tuesday night
Flynn sat for 19 interviews with Mueller’s investigators and other officials from the Department of Justice over the course of his cooperation, the special counsel’s office said in the memo.
Vice News
4: US senators: ‘Zero chance’ MBS not involved in Khashoggi killing
After a closed-door briefing by CIA Director Gina Haspel on Tuesday, top US senators said there is “zero chance” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) wasn’t involved in the murder of Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi.
“The views that I had before have only solidified,” said Senator Bob Menendez, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who has called for a strong US reaction to Khashoggi’s death and backs legislation to end all US support for the Saudi coalition waging war in Yemen.
Republican Senator Lindsey Graham told reporters, “You have to be willfully blind not to come to the conclusion that this was orchestrated and organised by people under the command of MBS.”
Aljazeera
3: OCASIO-CORTEZ GUNNING FOR POWERFUL COMMITTEE, SETTING UP SHOWDOWN WITH LONG ISLAND DEMOCRAT
ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ is making a push for a seat on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, according to people familiar with her decision. It’s a panel whose jurisdiction over taxes and revenue puts most of the economy within its mandate.
For that reason, freshmen are almost never given spots on the panel, but the midterm elections upset the balance of power in the House. Sixty-three new representatives have joined the Democratic caucus, and some 43 Republicans either lost their seats or retired — so there is an unusually large number of vacancies to fill.
By custom, New York City effectively has at least one reserved seat on Ways and Means, and Ocasio-Cortez is looking to claim it. Its former occupant was Rep. Joe Crowley, whom Ocasio-Cortez beat in a primary election.
Any major piece of legislation — whether it’s “Medicare for All,” a “Green New Deal,” or free public college — would involve some level of revenue, putting it squarely in the domain of Ways and Means, which makes it a key spot for a legislator looking to have an impact. Ocasio-Cortez is routinely asked how she plans to pay for her aggressive economic agenda, and the first answer begins with securing a spot on the House’s key tax-writing committee.
The Intercept
2: Greg Grandin: George H.W. Bush’s 1989 Invasion of Panama Set the Stage for U.S. Wars to Come
The death of George H.W. Bush has dominated the U.S. news for days, but little attention has been paid to the defining event of Bush’s first year in office: the invasion of Panama. On December 19, 1989, Bush Sr. sent tens of thousands of troops into Panama, ostensibly to execute an arrest warrant against its leader, Manuel Noriega, on charges of drug trafficking. General Noriega was once a close ally to Washington and on the CIApayroll. In a nationally televised address, Bush claimed the invasion was needed to defend democracy in Panama. During the attack, the U.S. unleashed a force of 24,000 troops equipped with highly sophisticated weaponry and aircraft against a country with an army smaller than the New York City Police Department. An estimated 3,000 Panamanians died in the attack. We speak with historian Greg Grandin, prize-winning author and professor of Latin American history at New York University, on the lasting impact of the Panama invasion.
Democracy Now
1: Theresa May staggers on after three Brexit defeats in single day
