DONALD JR/GOP/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA INVESTIGATION/SENATE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Donald Trump Jr.’s political allies launched an all-out war against the Republican-led Senate Intelligence Committee, turning several Republican senators Thursday [5-9-19] against the panel’s chairman amid news that he subpoenaed testimony from the president’s son. The broadsides included tweets targeting the Republican chairman, Senator Richard M. Burr of North Carolina, calls from people close to the president to at least one vulnerable Republican senator, and a Breitbart story aimed at senators including the majority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, according to multiple people involved in the effort. Even President Trump got involved on Thursday, telling reporters he was ‘pretty surprised’ his son — ‘a very good person’ — would be subpoenaed after Mr. Burr had said publicly he had found no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. The main target of the pressure campaign appeared to be Senator Thom Tillis, Republican of North Carolina, a close ally of Mr. Burr’s who is facing a conservative primary challenger next year. Some of Mr. Trump’s allies said they anticipated that the president would tweet support for Mr. Tillis’s primary opponent if the senator did not speak out.”
–Nicholas Fandos, Maggie Haberman and Alexander Burns, “Allies of Trump’s Son Declare War on G.O.P.-Led Senate Panel After Subpoena,” The New York Times online, May 9, 2019