CNN has hired Sarah Isgur, a longtime Republican political operative and recent Justice Department spokeswoman, as a political editor helping to steer the network's 2020 campaign coverage. The hire, first reported by Politico, caught CNN's editorial staff by surprise, not just because her résumé is full of partisan advocacy but also because it contains no experience in journalism or managing a TV news operation. She has also publicly disparaged the news media, including CNN. "It's extremely demoralizing for everyone here," one CNN editorial staffer told The Daily Beast.
CNN officials said Isgur will be one of several editors directing coverage of the Democratic primary and President Trump's re-election campaign at the network, reporting to political director David Chalian, and she'll also occasionally offer analysis on air. She will apparently not be involved in coverage of the Justice Department. TV networks often hire political operatives and politicians as analysts and program hosts, but it is very rare to bring them on to direct political news coverage.
Before joining the Trump administration as the top spokeswoman for former Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Isgur served as a political adviser to Ted Cruz and Mitt Romney, was deputy communications director at the Republican National Committee, and served as deputy campaign manager for Carly Fiorina's presidential campaign. Thanks to comments she made about Trump while working for Fiorina, she had to personally pledge loyalty to Trump before he would allow Sessions to hire her, The Washington Post reported in April 2018. Peter Weber
After denying it for years, the federal government admitted that it shares the Terrorist Screening Database — better known as the terrorist watch list — with private entities, The Associated Press reports.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations filed a lawsuit on behalf of several Muslims who say that because their names are wrongfully on the list, they have had to deal with harassment at airports and scrutiny from law enforcement. In September, a government lawyer said during a pre-trial hearing that the Terrorist Screening Center "does not work with private partners" and the list is "considered law enforcement sensitive information and is not shared with the public."
Earlier this month, Terrorist Screening Center Deputy Director of Operations Timothy Groh admitted in a written statement that 1,441 private groups have been granted access to the watchlist. Groh said that in order to receive permission, an organization must be somehow connected to the criminal justice system, AP reports. The government will not reveal how many people are on the list, but has said there are hundreds of thousands of names added every year, and names are regularly removed.
While the list is supposed to only include the names of known or suspected terrorists, critics say people are routinely added that have no ties to terrorism, and this hurts them. A lawyer for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Gadeir Abbas, has asked that the government explain in court which groups have access to the list, and what they are doing with it. "We've always suspected that there was private-sector dissemination of the terror watchlist, but we had no idea the breadth of the dissemination would be so large," he told AP. Catherine Garcia
Don Newcombe, a star pitcher for the Dodgers, died Tuesday, following a long illness. He was 92.
Dodgers president Stan Kasten said in a statement that Newcombe's "presence and life established him as a role model for major leaguers across the country. He was a constant presence at Dodger Stadium and players always gravitated toward him for his endless advice and friendship." Sandy Koufax said Newcombe was "a mentor at first, a friend at the end. He will be missed by anyone who got to know him."
After getting his start in the Negro Leagues, Newcombe broke barriers as one of the first black pitchers in Major League Baseball. Newcombe played for 10 seasons, starting with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1949, and in 1956 he won the inaugural Cy Young Award and National League MVP. Following his retirement, Newcombe disclosed that he had a drinking problem, and after becoming sober in the 1960s, he raised awareness about alcohol abuse. He later worked with the Dodgers as director of community affairs and later special adviser to the team's chairman. Catherine Garcia
President Trump is nominating Jeffrey Rosen to replace Rod Rosenstein as deputy attorney general, the White House announced Tuesday night.
Rosen, the deputy transportation secretary, served in the George W. Bush administration. Last week, William Barr was confirmed by the Senate and sworn in as attorney general, and people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News that Barr picked Rosen; both worked at the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. In a statement, Barr said Rosen's "years of outstanding legal and management experience make him an excellent choice to succeed Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who has served the Department of Justice over many years with dedication and distinction."
Rosenstein is reportedly expected to leave the Justice Department in mid-March. After Trump fired former FBI Director James Comey and former Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 election, Rosenstein appointed Special Counsel Robert Mueller in May 2017. Catherine Garcia
After a model called Burberry out for showing a sweatshirt with a noose around the neckline during London Fashion Week, the luxury brand announced on Tuesday that the item has been removed from its latest collection.
The sweatshirt was part of Burberry's "Tempest" line, for autumn/winter 2019. Model Liz Kennedy saw the sweatshirt while getting ready to walk in Sunday's runway show, and was disturbed. "Suicide is not fashion," she wrote in an Instagram post. "It is not glamorous nor edgy. Let's not forget about the horrifying history of lynching either. There are hundreds of ways to tie a rope and they chose to tie it like a noose completely ignoring the fact that it was hanging around a neck."
Burberry CEO Marco Gobbetti and Chief Creative Officer Riccardo Tisci both apologized, and Gobbetti released a statement saying the company is "deeply sorry" for the "distress" caused by the sweatshirt. "Though the design was inspired by the marine theme that ran throughout the collection, it was insensitive and we made a mistake," he said. Catherine Garcia
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) got candid during an interview Tuesday with CBS News, saying President Trump is "pretty weak" going into the 2020 election, and other Republicans who will be on a ballot should take notice.
While Hogan thinks Trump will likely stave off any Republican primary challengers, because of his low poll numbers, the odds of Trump "losing a general election are pretty good. I'm not saying he couldn't win, but he's pretty weak in the general election." If he "weakens further," Hogan added, Republican elected officials will have to ask themselves if he is "going to take the rest of us down with him."
Hogan is the governor of a blue state, and was re-elected in November. Some anti-Trump Republicans have been trying to get him to take on Trump in 2020, but he thinks that would be "very difficult. Nobody has successfully challenged a sitting president in the same party in a primary since 1884." Catherine Garcia