Splinter News reports: The Trump brand is taking another hit as people on Yelp strike back over the president’s description of African nations, Haiti, and El Salvador as “shithole countries” this week. Trump hotels across the country are being targeted by Yelp users leaving one–star reviews and describing the facilities as shitholes. The effort caused the luxury Trump International Hotel …

The Associated Press reports: President Donald Trump, on the defensive in the wake of recent disparaging comments about Haiti and African nations that have revived questions about whether the leader of the world’s melting pot is a racist, declared Sunday that he is not one. “No, No. I am not a racist,” Trump told reporters who asked for his response …

“My phone rings from not one, but two, one former State Department source, another CIA, then my phone rings from someone who associated with Delta Force, then I get some more phone calls, and they are like, ‘Why aren’t you covering this?’ This is huge. This is gigantic, this is meant to embarrass Trump, this is meant to destabilize things, …

The Hill reports: A conservative columnist said President Trump called friends to brag after the meeting in which the president reportedly referred to Haiti, El Salvador and African nations as “shithole countries.” Citing a person who spoke with the president, The Associated Press reported that Trump doubled down on his reported comments from this week, defending the remark as not …

From the editorial board of the New York Times: It was the sort of nightmare that had only ever been real for most people’s parents or grandparents — the fear of an impending nuclear attack. “Ballistic missile threat inbound to Hawaii,” read the emergency alert that residents of the Aloha State received on Saturday morning. “Seek immediate shelter. This is …

Mediaite reports: It would appear that Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) would really appreciate it if people would stop painting the president as racist for calling Haiti, El Salvador and African nations “shithole countries” and asking why America can’t just bring in more immigrants from Norway. “You can’t have immigration compromise if everybody’s out there calling the president a racist,” Paul …

Axios reports: The one thing that could dramatically diminish President Trump’s chances of avoiding impeachment and chalking up legislative wins is Democrats winning the House. And, thanks to series of recent developments, Trump knows this no longer just seems plausible, but probable. Hill sources tell us that a House Democratic takeover is now likely. One strategist close to Republican leaders …

CNN reports: Republican Rep. Mia Love deplored President Donald Trump for reportedly criticizing immigrants coming to the United States from what he called “shithole countries.” “I can’t defend the indefensible. You have to understand that there are countries that struggle out there. But their people, their people are good people and they’re part of us. We’re Americans,” Love, the first …

“I don’t want to be flip about this, but I think there are a lot of people out there who are happy that this at least didn’t happen while President Trump was watching Fox & Friends and instead it happened when he was out on the golf course and he was informed about this by layers of advisers. Because we …

The Washington Examiner reports: Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., repeatedly said Sunday morning that reports President Trump referred to Haiti and various African countries as “shithole countries” during a meeting with senators this week on immigration was a “gross misrepresentation.” Perdue use the phrase “gross misrepresentation” several times during an interview with ABC’s “This Week.” Asked repeatedly if the president specifically …

The Washington Post reports: President Trump claimed Sunday that the Wall Street Journal deliberately misquoted him as saying he probably has a good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The White House is disputing the newspaper’s story from an interview last week in which Trump claimed some success in countering the nuclear threat from North Korea and said …

The Washington Examiner reports: Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., is stepping down from his role on the House Ethics Committee, citing a “challenging workload” as the reason for his departure. Gowdy informed House Speaker Paul Ryan of his decision in a letter on Jan. 10, the details of which were not made public until Saturday. The South Carolina Republican was tapped …

The Washington Post reports: Chelsea Manning, the transgender former Army private who was convicted of passing sensitive government documents to Wikileaks, has filed to run for the U.S. Senate in Maryland, according to federal election filings. Manning, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment, would be challenging Democrat Ben Cardin, who has served two terms in the …

The New York Times reports: An early-morning emergency alert mistakenly warning of an incoming ballistic missile attack was dispatched to cellphones across Hawaii early Saturday morning, setting off widespread panic in a state that was already on high emotional alert because of escalating tensions between the United States and North Korea. Officials recalled the alert about 40 minutes after it …

The Daily Beast reports: The Daily Beast was informed late Friday that porn star Jessica Drake is not allowed to discuss President Donald J. Trump on account of a non-disclosure agreement she signed barring her from any such talk. NDAs are often deployed as part of settlements to silence accusers. “Jessica’s NDA blankets any and every mention of Trump, so …

What would be the name of this planet? Former President Obama said in an interview that Fox News viewers and NPR listeners are living on different planets in terms of what news they consume. “If you watch Fox News, you are living on a different planet than you are if you, you know, listen to NPR,” Obama told David Letterman …

Sky News reports: Supporters of US President Donald Trump have disrupted a speech by Sadiq Khan, calling for the London Mayor to be arrested. Mr Khan was about to start speaking to the Fabian Society in London when he was disrupted by protesters from a group called the White Pendragons, who shouted pro-Trump and pro-Brexit slogans. It came after a …

How many Dems will join her? Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) said Friday she will not attend President Trump’s first State of the Union address following his vulgar remarks aimed at Haiti, El Salvador and African nations. “Why would I take my time to go and sit and listen to a liar?” Waters said on MSNBC’s “All In with Chris Hayes.” …

Mediaite reports: Joy Reid battled Pastor Mark Burns this morning on AM Joy over his defense of President Trump on immigration. Burns first disputed the accuracy of the “shithole” comments and claimed he knows that this didn’t happen. Reid pointed to statements from people like Lindsey Graham and asked him, “Were you in the room?” Towards the end of the …

Talking Points Memo reports: The White House physician on Friday declared President Donald Trump “in excellent health” after Trump received his first annual physical exam while in office. “The President’s physical exam today at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center went exceptionally well,” Dr. Ronny Jackson said in a statement. “The President is in excellent health and I look forward …