MILITARY/SYRIA/TERRORISM: “US-led coalition aircraft bombed pro-Syrian regime forces Thursday [5-18-17] that ‘were advancing well inside an established de-confliction zone,’ according to a statement issued by Operation Inherent Resolve, the official name for the coalition fighting ISIS. The statement said the pro-regime militias ‘posed a threat to US and partner forces at At Tanf,’ a remote […]
5/18/2017
LEGAL/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Several White House advisers and personal associates of President Trump have urged him to hire an experienced outside lawyer to help him deal with issues arising from a surging controversy over whether his campaign had ties to Russia, according to several people briefed on the conversations. The recommendations came even before a […]
5/18/2017
NAFTA/TRADE DEALS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Trump administration informed U.S. lawmakers that it intends to launch formal negotiations on overhauling the North American Free Trade Agreement, a big bet by President Donald Trump that he can win concessions from Canada and Mexico, and push a deal through Congress. Mr. Trump, who called the trade deal a […]
5/18/2017
ATTORNEY GENERAL/CRIME/DRUGS/TRUMP PEOPLE/JEFF SESSIONS: “Louisiana has the nation’s highest incarceration rate. But this week, Gov. John Bel Edwards struck a deal to reduce sentences and the prison population, saving millions annually. If lawmakers approve the changes, Louisiana will be following more than 30 states, including Georgia, Texas and South Carolina, that have already limited sentences, […]
5/18/2017
HEALTHCARE/OBAMACARE(ACA)/POLITICS: “In defending their efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Republican leaders in Congress argue that the insurance marketplaces created by the law are failing. They aren’t completely wrong… The Republican plan to replace Obamacare would do little to stabilize the exchanges. But there is a better way to provide insurance to the 11 […]
5/18/2017
TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: ” ‘President Donald J. Trump Proclaims 5/14/2017 through 5/20/2017 as #PoliceWeek’ Proclamation➡️http://45.wh.gov/sLr2xt #ThankACop #LESM” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 18, 2017 09:03pm […]
5/18/2017
BUDGET/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump’s budget proposal next week will include a new benefit for America’s working parents, one Democrats have long championed and Republicans have long opposed: paid family leave. The president’s first detailed budget request on Tuesday [5-16-17] will seek funds for the creation of a program to grant mothers and fathers six […]
5/18/2017
2016 ELECTION/INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA/TRUMP PEOPLE: “The Justice Department appointed a special counsel Wednesday [5-17-17] to investigate possible coordination between President Trump’s associates and Russian officials — a clear signal to the White House that federal investigators will aggressively pursue the matter despite the president’s insistence that there was no ‘collusion’ with the Kremlin. Robert S. Mueller III, […]
5/18/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/SAUDI ARABIA/TRUMP FAMILY/JARED KUSHNER: “On the afternoon of May 1, President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, welcomed a high-level delegation of Saudis to a gilded reception room next door to the White House and delivered a brisk pep talk: ‘Let’s get this done today.’ Mr. Kushner was referring to a $100 billion-plus arms deal that […]
5/18/2017
FBI/JAMES COMEY/LEGAL/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump called the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, weeks after he took office and asked him when federal authorities were going to put out word that Mr. Trump was not personally under investigation, according to two people briefed on the call. Mr. Comey told the president that if he wanted […]
5/18/2017
BUDGET/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump next week will propose the U.S. can balance the federal budget over 10 years with substantial cuts to safety-net programs such as food stamps and other anti-poverty efforts, combined with a tax and regulatory overhaul that speeds up the nation’s economic growth rate, a senior White House budget official […]
5/18/2017
POLITICS: “Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz, the Republican leading the House committee responsible for conducting oversight and investigations of the White House, plans to step down from Congress at the end of June. Mr. Chaffetz, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, on Thursday [5-18-17] posted a letter to his website saying that […]
5/17/2017
MIKE PENCE/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Not since the release of the Access Hollywood tape, in which Donald Trump bragged about groping women by the genitals, have some conservatives thought so seriously, if a bit wistfully, about two words: President Pence. The scandals clouding Trump’s presidency — including, most recently, his firing of FBI Director James Comey, […]
5/18/2017
COLOMBIA/FOREIGN POLICY: “A great honor to welcome President Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia to the White House today!???? Joint Press Conf➡️http://45.wh.gov/C7xivQ” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 18, 2017 05:45pm […]
5/18/2017
EPA/POLITICS: “A Senate committee Thursday [5-18-17] approved a measure that would set a single national standard for ballast water discharges from maritime vessels, pre-empting states from enacting stricter standards and, critics say, exposing the Great Lakes to greater danger from invasive species. Thursday’s voice vote by the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee represented a […]
5/18/2017
POLITICS: “The chairman of the House oversight and government reform committee, Jason Chaffetz, is leaving Congress on June 30, the Utah Republican announced Thursday [5-18-17]. ‘As you know, after careful consideration and long discussion with my wife, Julie, we agree the time has come for us to move on from this part of our life,’ […]
5/18/2017
CONFLICT OF INTERESTS/TRUMP BUSINESS/TRUMP FAMILY/DONALD JR: “Donald Trump Jr. , held a meeting earlier this week in Dubai with a billionaire longtime business partner of Trump Organization, who said the two men had discussed ‘new ideas.’ ‘It was great having my dear friend and business partner Donald Trump Jr. over for lunch,’ developer Hussain Sajwani […]
5/18/2017
CONFLICT OF INTERESTS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP BUSINESS: “Senate Democrats called Thursday [5-18-17] for President Donald Trump’s company to disclose significant more details about how it’s been operating since its owner became president. In a letter to the Trump Organization’s new leadership, including the president’s adult sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, Sen. Patrick Leahy and […]
5/18/2017
HEALTHCARE/OBAMACARE(ACA)/POLITICS: “More than a dozen Democratic attorneys general on Thursday [5-18-17] sought to intervene to defend a key part of the Obamacare healthcare law — subsidy payments to insurance companies — which is under threat in a court case. The 16 attorneys general, led by California Attorney General Xavier Becerra and New York Attorney General […]
5/18/2017
CABINET/TREASURY/TRUMP PEOPLE/STEVEN MNUCHIN: “U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin on Thursday [5-18-17] pledged to treat ‘very seriously’ any business dealings President Donald Trump or his family might have with foreign companies flagged by officials as national security risks. Mnuchin did not say any such cases existed. A senior Democrat pressed Mnuchin, in an appearance before senators, […]
5/18/2017
LEGAL/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICHAEL FLYNN: “Retired Gen. Michael Flynn will not cooperate with the Senate intelligence committee’s subpoena request for documents regarding the former national security adviser’s interactions with Russian officials. ‘Gen. Flynn’s lawyers said he would not honor the subpoena, and that’s not a surprise to the committee, but we’ll figure out on Gen. Flynn what […]
5/18/2017
BANKING/CABINET/TREASURY/TRUMP PEOPLE/STEVEN MNUCHIN: “In 2008, as the financial crisis swirled, the federal government rushed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship. The two giant mortgage-finance companies became wards of the state under a new regulator that would manage their affairs until they were healthy enough to stand on their own. Nearly nine years later, they’re […]
5/18/2017
BUDGET/POLITICS/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICK MULVANEY: “To advance a tax overhaul this year, congressional Republicans first must clear a tricky hurdle: They need to agree on a budget. In many years, budget resolutions are superfluous or impossible because the House and Senate are controlled by different parties. In fact, in eight of the past 15 years, Congress didn’t […]
5/18/2017
2016 ELECTION/CAMPAIGN/RUSSIA/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICHAEL FLYNN: “Michael Flynn and other advisers to Donald Trump’s campaign were in contact with Russian officials and others with Kremlin ties in at least 18 calls and emails during the last seven months of the 2016 presidential race, current and former U.S. officials familiar with the exchanges told Reuters. The previously undisclosed […]
5/18/2017
INTELLIGENCE/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump, in a remarkable move for a sitting president, lashed out Thursday [5-18-17] at the appointment of a special counsel — made by his own Justice Department — to oversee the federal investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and possible collusion with his campaign. Trump, casting himself as […]
5/18/2017
CABINET/TREASURY/TRUMP PEOPLE/STEVEN MNUCHIN: “Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will tell lawmakers Thursday [5-18-17] the administration’s goal of achieving sustainable economic growth of 3% or higher is reachable ‘if we make historic reforms to both taxes and regulation.’ In brief prepared testimony to be delivered to the Senate Banking Committee, Mr. Mnuchin also reiterated the Trump administration’s […]
5/18/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/SAUDI ARABIA/YEMEN: “The mostly Gulf Arab coalition, led by Saudi Arabia and backed by U.S. arms and intelligence, has waged a nearly two-year-old campaign on behalf of Yemen’s internationally recognized government, which the Houthi movement – allied with Saudi’s arch-foe Iran – is battling to dislodge. Trump has signaled a tough new line on […]
5/18/2017
TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE/SEAN SPICER: “President Donald Trump is considering scaling back White House press secretary Sean Spicer’s public role, according to several officials familiar with the president’s thinking, as Trump also weighs a broader shakeup of his communications shop in the wake of several scandals. The press secretary, who has turned into a household […]
5/18/2017
INTELLIGENCE/MEDIA: “Senate Republicans and Democrats are split over whether they can tell the press and public what they learn from deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein at a highly-anticipated briefing Thursday afternoon on how and why former FBI Director James Comey and was fired. Republicans insist the briefing, which will be held in a secure room […]
5/18/2017
FCC/NET NEUTRALITY: “Regulators began dismantling Obama-era net neutrality rules with a vote on Thursday [5-18-17], opening the way to fewer restrictions on broadband providers and raising web companies’ fears they’ll face barriers to reaching customers. The Federal Communications Commission in a 2-1 Republican-led vote gave preliminary approval to Chairman Ajit Pai’s plan to replace rules […]
5/18/2017
LEGAL/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “With all of the illegal acts that took place in the Clinton campaign & Obama Administration, there was never a special counsel appointed!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 18, 2017 09:07am […]
5/18/2017
DONALD ON DONALD/LEGAL: “This is the single greatest witch hunt of a politician in American history!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 18, 2017 06:52am […]
5/18/2017
LEGAL/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “With all of the illegal acts that took place in the Clinton campaign & Obama Administration, there was never a special councel appointed!” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 18, 2017 06:39am […]
5/17/2017
ENERGY/TRUMP MEMORANDA: “Presidential Memorandum for the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Treasury, and the Secretary of Energy Presidential Determination Pursuant to Section 1245(d)(4)(B) and (C) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, after […]
5/17/2017
POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Did you hear the one about the Russians paying off the future president of the United States? It seems House Republicans have. Their two highest-ranking members on Wednesday walked into a firestorm of their own making, negotiating the latest Republican headache after The Washington Post reported that Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, […]
5/17/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump leaves on Friday [5-19-71] for a nine-day, five-city foreign excursion, his first trip outside the United States as the country’s leader and top diplomat. He doesn’t really want to go. In recent days, Mr. Trump has groused to several friends that he is not looking forward to leaving his […]
5/17/2017
POLITICS/RUSSIA: “A month before Donald Trump clinched the Republican nomination, one of his closest allies in Congress — House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy — made a politically explosive assertion in a private conversation on Capitol Hill with his fellow GOP leaders: that Trump could be the beneficiary of payments from Russian President Vladimir Putin. ‘There’s […]
5/17/2017
FBI/JAMES COMEY: “The revelation that James B. Comey documented his interactions with President Trump — describing in detail how the president urged him to quash the federal investigation into Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser — provided the clearest evidence yet that Mr. Trump tried to influence the government’s inquiry into possible links […]
5/17/2017
INTELLIGENCE/LEAKS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The classified information that President Donald Trump shared last week with Russian officials had been gathered by Israeli intelligence, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter, a disclosure that could have far-reaching consequences for U.S. national security. The intelligence—concerning terrorist threats against airliners—was meant for U.S. eyes only and was provided […]
5/17/2017
FBI/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday [5-17-17] will interview four candidates for the position of director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters. Spicer, who was aboard Air Force One with Trump, said the president would meet with acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe, former Oklahoma Governor […]
5/17/2017
ECONOMY: “U.S. stocks and the dollar sold off and bond prices rallied on Wednesday [5-17-17] as investors fled risky assets amid uncertainty about U.S. President Donald Trump’s ability to deliver on tax and regulatory reform. Reports that Trump asked then-FBI Director James Comey to end a probe into the former national security adviser have raised […]
5/17/2017
JAMES COMEY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICHAEL FLYNN: “President Donald Trump loves to talk. To tweet. To be quoted. To sound off. To make news. Which makes the fact that he hasn’t tweeted in more than 20 hours — despite blockbuster reports that he asked then FBI Director James Comey to end the investigation into former national […]
5/17/2017
CONFLICT OF INTERESTS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Republican Sen. Susan Collins said Wednesday [5-17-17] morning that President Donald Trump needs to ‘right the ship’ and get his ‘house in order’ after reports emerged that Trump asked former FBI Director James Comey to end his investigation into former national security adviser Michael Flynn. ‘Clearly, the administration needs to […]
5/17/2017
POLITICS: “Around the U.S., cross-party battles between governors and attorneys general are heating up in what some observers see as another sign of increasingly divisive national politics seeping into state offices. Maine’s Republican Gov. Paul LePage sued state Democratic Attorney General Janet Mills earlier this month, accusing Ms. Mills of refusing to legally represent the […]
5/17/2017
FBI/INTELLIGENCE/JAMES COMEY/RUSSIA/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICHAEL FLYNN: “After a New York Times report revealed that former FBI Director James Comey kept memos detailing the president’s attempt to derail the FBI’s Russia investigation, a former White House adviser for multiple presidents says Trump is ‘in impeachment territory.’ The Times report highlighted one particular note from a February meeting between […]
5/17/2017
TRUMP FAMILY/IVANKA: “Ivanka Trump, amid building controversy and chaos in the West Wing, hosted an anti-human trafficking roundtable discussion at the White House Wednesday [5-17-17]. Trump previously organized a listening session on the topic that she attended with her father, President Donald Trump, in late February. The meeting came as questions surrounding Trump’s treatment of […]
5/17/2017
TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump, amid his own swirling controversies, advised United States Coast Guard Academy graduates that while things aren’t always fair, ‘you have to put your head down and fight, fight, fight.’ ‘Never, never, never give up. Things will work out just fine,’ he said in New London, Connecticut, Wednesday. The comment […]
5/17/2017
CRIME/IMMIGRATION: “In the 100 days since President Trump signed an executive order to enhance immigration enforcement, the arrests of undocumented immigrants is up 38% from the same time period in 2016, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement data released Wednesday. ICE Acting Director Thomas Homan said his agency is focusing on undocumented immigrants with criminal […]
5/17/2017
2016 ELECTION/POLITICS/RUSSIA: “Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives said on Wednesday [5-17-17] they would try to force a vote on an independent commission to investigate Russia and the 2016 U.S. election, and whether there was collusion between President Donald Trump’s associates and Moscow. They said two Republicans, Representatives Walter Jones and Justin Amash, […]
5/17/2017
POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “After a week of tumult and negative news, the protective Republican wall around President Donald Trump is starting to crack. Leading Republican politicians are becoming more vocal in their complaints, while networks are struggling to find Republicans willing to go on-air to defend the president… ‘We’ve seen this movie before,’ Sen. John […]
5/17/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/LEAKS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday [5-17-17] he would be willing to provide the U.S. Congress a record of President Trump’s meeting with top Russian envoys, bringing scoffs on Capitol Hill that the Kremlin could help shed light on the disclosures of reportedly highly classified intelligence. The provocative offer for the […]
5/17/2017
JAMES COMEY/POLITICS/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICHAEL FLYNN: “A growing chorus of congressional Republicans are calling for former FBI Director James Comey to testify before Congress about his interactions President Donald Trump — including whether Trump tried to obstruct the criminal probe into ex-National Security Advisor Michael Flynn. And more Republicans appeared open to appointing a special prosecutor or […]
5/17/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/TURKEY: “Washington police used batons to break up a bloody clash Tuesday [5-16-17] between supporters and opponents of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after his White House meeting with President Donald Trump, casting a cloud over the Turkish leader’s visit to the U.S. Two people were arrested for assault and nine others injured outside […]
5/17/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/INTELLIGENCE/ISRAEL/POLITICS/RUSSIA: “As politicians in Israel raced to alleviate concerns over US President Donald Trump’s alleged disclosure of classified Israeli information to the Russians, the country’s former top spy has warned of the damage the episode could do to US-Israeli intelligence sharing and to Israel’s ability to gather information on ISIS. Israeli intelligence was a […]
5/17/2017
LEAKS/POLITICS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday [5-16-17] that U.S. President Donald Trump had not divulged any secrets during a meeting in Washington with Russian officials and offered to prove it by supplying Congress with a transcript. But a leading U.S. Republican politician said he would have little faith in any notes Putin might […]
5/17/2017
RUSSIA/TRUMP BUSINESS: “VEB, a Russian state-run bank under scrutiny by U.S. investigators, financed a deal involving Donald Trump’s onetime partner in a Toronto hotel tower at a key moment for the project, according to people familiar with the transaction. Alexander Shnaider, a Russian-Canadian developer who built the 65-story Trump International Hotel and Tower, put money […]
5/17/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/SUDAN/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Sudan’s controversial President Omar al-Bashir is due to attend a summit in Saudi Arabia that will bring together US President Donald Trump and leaders of Muslim majority nations, a senior Sudanese lawmaker said Wednesday [5-17-17]. Bashir, who’s led his country for almost three decades, has been charged with crimes against humanity, […]
5/17/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/ISRAEL: “A senior source in Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s office told ABC News that President Trump spoke with Netanyahu yesterday [5-16-17]. The call, first reported by the Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, lasted about 20 minutes and focused only on the president’s visit to Israel next week. The call was not listed on the Prime Minister’s […]
5/17/2017
LEGAL/POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The elephant in the room whenever talking about Donald Trump and the Russia investigation is the big ‘I’ word — impeachment. The word had been in the not-so-far reaches of liberal conspiracy talk since Trump was elected. There’s a web site with more than 976,000 signed onto a petition encouraging Congress to […]
5/16/2017
IRAQ/TRUMP MEMORANDA: “Notice Regarding the Continuation of the National Emergency with Respect to the Stabilization of Iraq On May 22, 2003, by Executive Order 13303, the President declared a national emergency pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701-1706) to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and […]
5/16/2017
FBI/JAMES COMEY/NATIONAL SECURITY/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICHAEL FLYNN: “President Trump asked the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, to shut down the federal investigation into Mr. Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael T. Flynn, in an Oval Office meeting in February, according to a memo Mr. Comey wrote shortly after the meeting. “I hope you can let this go,” […]
5/16/2017
POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “For months, President Trump’s senior advisers had planned his first foreign trip with hopes of investing it with historic grandeur: a tour of the world’s three great monotheistic religions, capped by an address to the Muslim world in Saudi Arabia that will serve as Mr. Trump’s answer to the speech former President […]
5/16/2017
FBI/JAMES COMEY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE/MICHAEL FLYNN: “Members of Congress from both parties escalated calls on Tuesday [5-16-17] for former F.B.I. director James B. Comey to appear before them after reports that President Trump had asked him to drop an investigation into Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser. Democrats were aggressive in seeking new […]
5/16/2017
TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Some of President Trump’s advisers and staff are afraid to leave him alone in meetings with foreign leaders for fear he might say something untoward, The New York Times reported on Tuesday [5-16-17]. The Times’ report comes as Trump’s administration grapples with its latest controversy, in which it emerged that Trump disclosed […]
5/16/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TURKEY: “President Donald Trump, in hosting Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House Tuesday [5-16-17], extended his latest warm welcome to an authoritarian-style leader who had a strained relationship with the previous US administration. ‘We’ve had a great relationship and we will make it even better,’ Trump said in the […]
5/16/2017
NATIONAL SECURITY/RUSSIA/TRUMP PEOPLE/MCMASTER: “As a U.S. Army general, H.R. McMaster has faced down Iraqi tank divisions, Al Qaeda terrorists and Taliban insurgents. But as President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, McMaster is navigating the strange environment of Washington politics and media, putting his truth-telling reputation on the line to defend Trump against claims he disclosed […]
5/16/2017
FOREIGN POLICY/TURKEY: “It was a great honor to welcome the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to the @WhiteHouse today! https://t.co/4BWjOCgnNv” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 16, 2017 02:38pm […]
5/16/2017
TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE/MCMASTER: “National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster faced the press Tuesday afternoon in hopes of quieting the storm caused by a Washington Post report that the president had shared classified information with two top Russian officials during a visit to the Oval Office last week. He might have made things worse. Asked a […]
5/16/2017
TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE/MCMASTER: “H.R. McMaster, national security adviser to President Donald Trump, declined to say Tuesday [whether the Western Wall is in Israel, furthering a controversy over the site ahead of Trump’s visit to the country next week. McMaster, speaking to reporters to preview Trump’s first foreign swing, said questions about the location of […]
5/16/2017
FBI/JOHN CORNYN/POLITICS: “Sen. John Cornyn, the second ranking Republican in the Senate, has asked to be removed from consideration to be the next FBI director, the Texan said in a statement. ‘Now more than ever the country needs a well-credentialed, independent FBI Director,’ Cornyn said. ‘I’ve informed the Administration that I’m committed to helping them […]
5/16/2017
LEAKS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump and his aides shifted their damage control strategy on Tuesday [5-16-17], defending Trump’s conversation with Russian officials about allegedly classified information as ‘wholly appropriate’ and instead blaming leakers for wreaking havoc. Tuesday’s tone marked a shift from the tack taken Monday evening by the Trump administration, with multiple aides […]
5/16/2017
CYBERWAR/FBI/NORTH KOREA: “The ransomware assault infecting computers in more than 100 countries bears some of the hallmarks of previous attacks by North Korea, according to some in the cybersecurity industry, offering a reminder of the secretive nation’s cyberwarfare capabilities. North Korea enlists a core of 1,700 hackers and 5,000 more supporting members, according to South […]
5/16/2017
INTELLIGENCE/LEAKS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Tuesday [5-16-17] morning to defend himself over reports he shared counterterrorism intelligence obtained from a U.S. ally at an Oval Office meeting with senior Russian officials last week. ‘I have the absolute right’ as president to share ‘facts pertaining to terrorism and airline safety,’ Mr. […]
5/16/2017
LEAKS/NATIONAL SECURITY/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump’s national security adviser again asserted that Trump didn’t jeopardize U.S. national security by sharing intelligence with Russian diplomats, and said the conversation in the Oval Office last week was ‘wholly appropriate.’ ‘I stand by my statement that I made yesterday,’ National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster told reporters at […]
5/16/2017
LEAKS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Republicans in Congress barely had time to get their footing Monday [5-15-17], as another wild development, this time reports that President Donald Trump had revealed sensitive intelligence to Russia’s foreign minister and US ambassador, swept the Capitol. Senators mulled over the latest stunning news, first reported by The Washington Post, as they […]
5/16/2017
FBI/JAMES COMEY/LEAKS: “I have been asking Director Comey & others, from the beginning of my administration, to find the LEAKERS in the intelligence community…” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 16, 2017 07:10am […]
5/16/2017
LEAKS/RUSSIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “As President I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled W.H. meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining… to terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against ISIS & terrorism.” -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 16, 2017 […]
5/16/2017
GUNS/POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “A convergence of state and federal legislation could ease restrictions on carrying concealed firearms nationwide, a long-sought goal of gun-rights activists that their opponents say would threaten public safety. More states are giving their residents the right to carry a concealed handgun without permission from authorities—including two this year, bringing the total […]
5/15/2017
SUPREME COURT/VOTING: “The Supreme Court on Monday [5-15-17] announced that it would stay out of a fight over a restrictive North Carolina voting law. The move left in place a federal appeals court ruling that struck down key parts of the law as an unconstitutional effort to ‘target African Americans with almost surgical precision.’ As […]
5/15/2017
MISC: “Today, I delivered remarks at the 36th Annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service. #NationalPoliceWeek Watch: http://45.wh.gov/bLxeyb “ -Donald Trump, Twitter.com, May 15, 2017 02:54pm […]
5/15/2017
LEGAL/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Defense attorney and constitutional law scholar Alan Dershowitz said Monday [5-15-17] that President Donald Trump is now facing ‘the most serious charge ever made against a sitting president’ after reports that he shared highly classified information with Russia’s foreign minister and ambassador during a White House visit last week. Trump described details […]
5/15/2017
EPA/TRUMP PEOPLE/SCOTT PRUITT: “Some of the most compelling evidence linking a widely used pesticide to developmental problems in children stems from what scientists call a ‘natural’ experiment. Though in this case, there was nothing natural about it. Chlorpyrifos (pronounced klor-PYE-ruh-fahs) had been used to control bugs in homes and fields for decades when researchers at […]
5/15/2017
BUDGET/HEALTHCARE/OBAMACARE(ACA)/POLITICS/PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS: “Senate negotiators, meeting stiff resistance to the House’s plans to sharply reduce the scope and reach of Medicaid, are discussing a compromise that would maintain the program’s expansion under the Affordable Care Act but subject that larger version of Medicaid to new spending limits. With 62 senators, including 20 Republicans, coming from states […]
5/15/2017
INTELLIGENCE/LEAKS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Trump boasted about highly classified intelligence in a meeting with the Russian foreign minister and ambassador last week, providing details that could expose the source of the information and the manner in which it was collected, a current and a former American government official said Monday [5-15-17]. The intelligence disclosed by […]
5/15/2017
ABORTION/HEALTHCARE/PLANNED PARENTHOOD: “Four years after Texas gave up millions of dollars in federal Medicaid funds so it could ban Planned Parenthood from participating in a family planning program for low-income women, the state is asking the Trump administration for the money back. The request presents an important early test for the administration of President Trump, […]
5/15/2017
ABORTION/BUDGET/FOREIGN POLICY: “The Trump administration said on Monday [5-15-17] it would ban funding to foreign groups that fight AIDS and malaria in a vast expansion of the so-called global gag rule that withholds American aid from health organizations worldwide that provide or even discuss abortion in family planning. The new policy potentially will disrupt hundreds […]
5/15/2017
POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “As President Donald Trump grapples with the fallout from his firing of Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey, a House election here will test whether it is politically safer for Republicans to be with Mr. Trump than against him. Greg Gianforte, the GOP businessman running to fill Montana’s only House seat, […]
5/14/2017
CABINET/STATE/TRUMP PEOPLE/REX TILLERSON: “Secretary of State Rex Tillerson defended himself Sunday [5-14-17] from criticism leveled at him by Sen. John McCain. The Republican senator wrote in a New York Times op-ed earlier this month that Tillerson’s warning against ‘conditioning our foreign policy too heavily on values’ told oppressed people the world over that the US […]
5/15/2017
ATTORNEY GENERAL/CRIME/DRUGS/TRUMP PEOPLE/JEFF SESSIONS: “The attorney general on Friday [5-12-17] made an unfortunate announcement that will impact the lives of millions of Americans: he issued new instructions for prosecutors to charge suspects with the most serious provable offenses, ‘those that carry the most substantial guidelines sentence, including mandatory minimum sentences.’ Mandatory minimum sentences have unfairly […]
5/15/2017
HEALTHCARE/OBAMACARE(ACA)/POLITICS: “Republican senators are grappling this week with how they can find consensus between their moderate and conservative factions on health care while still managing to get the 50 votes they need to gut the Affordable Care Act. It’s tough math and although it is early in the process, so far the GOP’s health care […]
5/15/2017
FBI/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “U.S. lawmakers on Sunday [5-14-17] called on President Donald Trump to turn over any tapes of conversations with fired FBI chief James Comey, potentially setting up a showdown with the White House as Democrats considered a boycott of the vote on Comey’s replacement. In a highly unusual move, Trump last week appeared […]
5/15/2017
NATIONAL SECURITY/NORTH KOREA: “North Korea’s successful missile test-launch signals major advances in developing an intercontinental ballistic missile, such as mastery of re-entry technology and better engine performance key to targeting the United States, experts say. The isolated country has been developing a long-range missile capable of striking the mainland United States mounted with a nuclear […]
5/15/2017
IMMIGRATION/LABOR/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump said he would seek to keep his tough immigration enforcement policies from harming the U.S. farm industry and its largely immigrant workforce, according to farmers and officials who met with him. At a roundtable on farm labor at the White House last month, Trump said he did not want […]
5/15/2017
JAMES CLAPPER/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said Sunday that he thinks US institutions are under assault from President Donald Trump. ‘I think in many ways our institutions are under assault both externally — and that’s the big news here is the Russian interference in our election system — and I […]
5/15/2017
POLITICS: “GOP Rep. Mo Brooks announced Monday [5-15-17] morning that he will run in Alabama’s special Senate election later this year. Brooks confirmed his campaign in an interview with Dale Jackson on WVNN, a radio station in Huntsville. His entry adds another challenger to the field against Sen. Luther Strange, a Republican who was appointed […]
5/14/2017
HEALTHCARE/POLITICS/PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS: “Conservative Senate Republicans are weighing faster and steeper cuts to Medicaid that could drop millions of people from coverage and mark the biggest changes to the program in its 52-year history. The plan being pushed by lawmakers such as Mike Lee (R., Utah) is likely to face resistance from centrist GOP senators who […]
5/15/2017
IMMIGRATION/LEGAL/TRAVEL BAN/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “For the second time in President Donald Trump’s young administration, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals will listen to lawyers battle over the legality of his executive order temporarily blocking foreigners from traveling to the US. Two months ago, a federal judge in Hawaii halted the core portions of Trump’s […]
5/15/2017
TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE/REINCE PRIEBUS: “White House chief of staff Reince Priebus issued a stern warning at a recent senior staff meeting: Quit trying to secretly slip stuff to President Donald Trump. Just days earlier, K.T. McFarland, the deputy national security adviser, had given Trump a printout of two Time magazine covers. One, supposedly from […]
5/14/2017
FBI/POLITICS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Senate Republicans, increasingly unnerved by President Trump’s volatility and unpopularity, are starting to show signs of breaking away from him as they try to forge a more traditional Republican agenda and protect their political fortunes. Several Republicans have openly questioned Mr. Trump’s decision to fire the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, and […]
5/14/2017
FBI/JAMES COMEY/POLITICS: “President Trump’s abrupt dismissal last week of the F.B.I. director, James B. Comey, and his subsequent allusion to taped conversations with Mr. Comey continued to roil Washington on Sunday [5-14-17]. In televised appearances, lawmakers in both parties said that the recordings could or should come to light if they exist, while a former […]