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As O’Reilly Loses at Least 60 Advertisers Fox News Announces Investigation Into Sexual Harassment Allegations

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Can O’Reilly Survive at Fox News?

When forced, Fox News investigated allegations of sexual harassment against its chairman and CEO Roger Ailes, ultimately parting ways with the man who created the network two decades earlier. Now, Fox News host Bill O’Reilly, the face of the network’s top show, is facing the possibility of a similar fate.

One week ago The New York Times reported Fox News, its parent company, and O’Reilly paid five women a total of $13 million to settle sexual harassment claims against the conservative political commentator. Immediately, advertisers began to pull out. Now, at least 60 sponsors have announced they will not support “The O’Reilly Factor,” according to CNN.

Also last week, in light of the New York Times article, several women steppe forward to say that they too were sexually harassed by Bill O’Reilly.

The network is not ignoring the allegations.

“I’m told that they are taking it seriously, and they are going to do the investigation that’s legally required of them,” attorney Lisa Bloom told CNN’s Brian Stelter on Sunday.

Fox News also told CNN it “investigates all complaints and we have asked the law firm Paul Weiss to continue assisting the company in these serious matters.”

Meanwhile, there’s an active campaign on social media targeting advertisers who remain with O’Reilly. Angie’s List initially had stated it would allow its customers to make decisions for themselves, but by week’s end they switched gears and pulled support from the show.

Think Progress editor Judd Legum has been among those at the forefront of documenting advertisers who stay or go.

The New York Times “Mediator” column Sunday noted “O’Reilly first rose at Fox by riding hard against the ethical lapses of former President Bill Clinton, who, he said at the time, couldn’t ‘adhere to a decent standard of behavior.'”

But now, it’s “O’Reilly who stands accused of showing poor values; of playing the victim, suggesting in a statement that his prominence has made him an easy mark for opportunistic women seeking a payday.”

For help, Mr. O’Reilly has turned to none other than a man who took a leading role in defending Mr. Clinton from the likes of Mr. O’Reilly in the 1990s, the former White House aide and Democratic strategist Mark Fabiani.

Will O’Reilly survive? 

Time will tell.

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News

‘Start the Kevin McCarthy Death-Clock’ After Biden Wins Debt Ceiling Battle: Rick Wilson

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Appearing late Saturday night on MSNBC after it was announced that President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) had reached an agreement “in principle’ on a budget deal, former GOP strategist Rick Wilson claimed this could be the beginning of the end for McCathy’s speakership.

Sitting in on a panel with guest host Michael Steele, Wilson suggested that McCarthy’s decision to compromise with the president to avoid a default that would spin the economy into chaos will not go over well with far-right members of his House caucus who could make a motion to “vacate the chair” to express their displeasure.

Asked by host Steel about what comes next, Wilson stated it was a win for the White House which will not make conservatives happy.

RELATED: ‘Crazy cuckoo MAGA people’ could sink debt ceiling deal: Dem strategist

“Great night for Joe Biden, great night for the White House even though I think their messaging has been kind of tentative the past few weeks” the Lincoln Project founder began. “I think though we are now going to start the Kevin McCarthy death-clock. He has certainly got a very angry part of his caucus tonight who probably burning up his phone no matter how good it is for the country not to default.”

“It’s not going to please the chaos caucus in the GOP,” he added.

Watch below or at the link:

 

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News

Debt Ceiling: McCarthy Faces ‘Lingering Anger’ and a Possible Revolt as Far-Right House Members Start Issuing Threats

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As House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) continues to negotiate a deal to avoid a debt crisis, members of the far-right Freedom Caucus are growing furious with him over broken promises he made to them.

According to MSNBC political analyst Steve Benen, with a slim GOP majority in the House, McCarthy is walking a tightrope to get a budget deal passed and may need help from House Democrats if members of his caucus refuse to go along with him.

As Benen points out, in order to win the speakership McCarthy agreed to an easier path for a motion to “vacate the chair” which could end his tenure as Speaker. That could come into play if the Freedom Caucus stages a revolt.

“… as the negotiations approach an apparent finish line, the House Republicans’ most radical faction is learning that it isn’t likely to get everything its members demanded — and for the Freedom Caucus, that’s not going to work,” he wrote in his MSNBC column.

ALSO IN THE NEWS: Trump in danger of heightened espionage charges after bombshell report: legal expert

Citing a Washington Times report that stated, “[Freedom Caucus members] want everything from the debt limit bill passed by the House last month plus several new concessions from the White House,” Benen suggested far-right House Republicans are now issuing veiled threats.

In an interview, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) stated, “I am going to have to go have some blunt conversations with my colleagues and the leadership team. I don’t like the direction they are headed.”

With Politico reporting, “The [House Freedom Caucus] was already unlikely to support a final bipartisan deal, but lingering anger with Kevin McCarthy could have lasting implications on his speakership,” Benen added, “If this is simply a matter of lingering ill-will from members who come to believe that GOP leaders ‘caved,’ the practical consequences might be limited. But let’s also not forget that McCarthy, while begging his own members for their support during his protracted fight for the speaker’s gavel, agreed to tweak the motion-to-vacate-the-chair rules, which at least in theory, would make it easier for angry House Republicans to try to oust McCarthy from his leadership position.”

Adding the caveat that he is not predicting an imminent McCarthy ouster he added, “But if the scope of the Freedom Caucus’ discontent reaches a fever pitch, a hypothetical deal clears thanks to significant Democratic support, don’t be surprised if we all start hearing the phrase ‘vacate the chair” a lot more frequently.”

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BREAKING NEWS

Prosecutors Tell Trump They Have a Recording of Him and a Witness: Report

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Prosecutors in Donald Trump’s Manhattan criminal trial have notified the ex-president’s attorneys they have a recording of him and a witness. The notification comes in the form of an automatic discovery form, CBS News reports, which “describes the nature of the charges against a defendant and a broad overview of the evidence that prosecutors will present at Trump’s preliminary hearing or at trial.”

CBS reports prosecutors have handed the recording over to Trump’s legal team.

It’s not known who the witness is, nor are any details known publicly about what the conversation entails, or even if it is just audio or if it includes video.

READ MORE: ‘Likely to Be Indicted Soon’: Trump Might Face Seven Different Felonies, Government Watchdog Says

According to the article’s author, CBS News’ Graham Kates, via Twitter, prosecutors say they also have recordings between two witnesses, a recording between a witness and a third party, and various recordings saved on a witness’s cell phones.

Trump is facing 34 felony counts in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case related to his allegedly unlawful attempt to hide hush money payoffs to a well-known porn star by falsifying business records to protect his 2016 presidential campaign.

See the discovery form above or at this link.

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