Ground stood
The Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupiers’ leader Ammon Bundy was arrested. Their spokesman Lavoy Finicum, who said he’d rather die than be arrested, was gunned down. The refuge has been shut down to traffic and contained. Though they’re uncertain who’s giving the orders, the militants are not backing down. Via The Washington Post.
Trump’s out
The Trump-Fox feud is now officially serious. The Donald says he will definitely skip the Fox News debate Thursday night – and not only because of Megyn Kelly. Fox put out what Trump called a “wise-guy” press release mocking the Donald and that was the end – or at least that’s how Trump explains it. It may be only coincidental that his plan to skip the debate denies Ted Cruz and everyone else one last chance to take him on directly before the Iowa caucuses.
Hatin’ Cruz
Molly Ball takes on the question of why everyone in Washington hates Ted Cruz? A better question might be: Why wouldn’t they? Just ask Mike Lee, his best (only) friend in the Senate. Via The Atlantic.
Strong center?
David Brooks believes the center will hold, and that, in the end, Trump, Cruz and Sanders will not be nominated. It’s a theory. Via The New York Times.
Legacy move
Why is Obama embracing Hillary Clinton now? John Cassidy writes in The New Yorker that it’s all about his legacy.
Can’t win
Why should Democrats nominate Clinton? Dana Milbank says the answer is easy – that they would be insane to nominate lovable, but unwinnable, Bernie Sanders. Via The Washington Post.
Bloomberg’s deal
Bloomberg’s message to Clinton: He’ll get into the race if she can’t put Sanders away early. Via The Wall Street Journal.
Another loss
The Houston indictment against the anti-abortion activists represents one more lost battle in the GOP’s war against Planned Parenthood. Via The New York Times.
Bad shot
This happened: A man who feared a mass shooting brought a gun to a movie theater and accidentally shot someone. Yes, it did. Via The Washington Post.
Super Bowl 50
Let’s get started in the lead-up to the hype fest that is Super Bowl 50: CBS Sports offers up its eight storylines to watch. The strange thing, at least for a Broncos fan, is that some of them are actually about the Panthers.
Photo credit: USFWS – Pacific Region, Creative Commons, Flickr.
