Political Wire

Archives for May 2017

Weiner Will Plead Guilty In Sexting Scandal

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Former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY), whose “sexting” scandals ended his political career and embroiled him in a tumultuous FBI investigation of Hillary Clinton before the election, is to appear in a federal courtroom to enter a guilty plea, the New York Times reports.

“Mr. Weiner will plead guilty to a single charge of transferring obscene material to a minor, pursuant to a plea agreement with the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan… Mr. Weiner surrendered to the F.B.I. early Friday morning.”

“A likely result of the plea is that Mr. Weiner would end up as a registered sex offender… The charge carries a potential sentence of between zero and 10 years in prison, meaning Mr. Weiner could avoid prison. The ultimate sentence would be determined by a judge.”

GOP Leaders Afraid of More Secret Recordings

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House GOP leadership is agitated after the Washington Post published a transcript from a secret recording of one of the inner-sanctum conversations in the office of Speaker Paul Ryan, reports Jonathan Swan.

“The most widespread theory in House leadership is that the secret recorder and the leaker was Evan McMullin, who as a former leadership aide participated in the June 15 conversation and confirmed the private conversation to the Washington Post. (I am told that the Post, in their back-and-forth with leadership over the story, privately said that the source wasn’t McMullin. There’s no evidence that he was the leaker and I’ve reached out to him for comment.)”

“Evidence or not, leadership sources are privately worried that McMullin had a tape on while he sat silently through all of their confidential meetings. They’re concerned about what leaks could come next.”

Tips for Foreign Leaders Meeting with Trump

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New York Times: “For foreign leaders trying to figure out the best way to approach an American president unlike any they have known, it is a time of experimentation. Embassies in Washington trade tips and ambassadors send cables to presidents and ministers back home suggesting how to handle a mercurial, strong-willed leader with no real experience on the world stage, a preference for personal diplomacy and a taste for glitz.”

“After four months of interactions between Mr. Trump and his counterparts, foreign officials and their Washington consultants say certain rules have emerged: Keep it short — no 30-minute monologue for a 30-second attention span. Do not assume he knows the history of the country or its major points of contention. Compliment him on his Electoral College victory. Contrast him favorably with President Barack Obama. Do not get hung up on whatever was said during the campaign. Stay in regular touch. Do not go in with a shopping list but bring some sort of deal he can call a victory.”

FBI Said Russia Was Recruiting GOP Lawmaker

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“The F.B.I. warned a Republican congressman in 2012 that Russian spies were trying to recruit him, officials said, an example of how aggressively Russian agents have tried to influence Washington politics,” the New York Times reports.

“The congressman, Dana Rohrabacher of California, has been known for years as one of Moscow’s biggest defenders in Washington and as a vocal opponent of American economic sanctions against Russia.”

Worldwide Effort to Keep Trump Happy on First Trip

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“When President Trump sits down for dinner in Saudi Arabia, caterers have ensured that his favorite meal — steak with a side of ketchup — will be offered alongside the traditional local cuisine,” the AP reports.

“At NATO and the Group of 7 summits, foreign delegations have gotten word that the new U.S. president prefers short presentations and lots of visual aids. And at all of Trump’s five stops on his first overseas trip, his team has spent weeks trying to build daily downtime into his otherwise jam-packed schedule.”

“It’s all part of a worldwide effort to accommodate America’s homebody president on a voyage with increasingly raised stakes given the ballooning controversy involving his campaign’s possible ties to Russia. For a former international businessman, Trump simply doesn’t have an affinity for much international.”

Comey Tried to Keep Distance from Trump

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New York Times:  “Mr. Comey described all of his contacts with the president and the White House — including the phone call from Mr. Trump — in detailed memos he wrote at the time and gave to his aides. Congressional investigators have requested copies of the memos, which, according to two people who have read them, provide snapshots of a fraught relationship between a president trying to win over and influence an F.B.I. director and someone who had built his reputation on asserting his independence, sometimes in a dramatic way.”

“Mr. Comey has spoken privately of his concerns that the contacts from Mr. Trump and his aides were inappropriate, and how he felt compelled to resist them.”

Must-read from Benjamin Wittes: What James Comey told me about Donald Trump.

Source Claims Pence Kept Out of the Loop

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Vice President Mike Pence has been kept in the dark about former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn’s alleged wrongdoing, according to a source close to the administration, who cited a potential “pattern” of not informing the vice president and calling it “malpractice or intentional, and either are unacceptable,” NBC News reports.

“The source close to the administration, who requested anonymity as the White House denies the story, is now saying that Pence and his team were not made aware of any investigation relating to Flynn’s work as a foreign agent for Turkey.”

CNN: Pence is a loyal soldier, but news cycle wearing on him.

Democrats Suggest Trump Is Violating the Constitution

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In a letter to the Trump Organization, Senate Democrats questioned whether the company remains “effectively a pass-through for income” that repeatedly puts the president in violation of the Constitution’s ban on accepting gifts or payments from foreign government officials or the U.S. government itself, Politico reports.

From the letter: “It defies common sense to believe that this type of arrangement resolves the President’s conflicts of interest. It also raises serious questions regarding how such an arrangement could credibly insulate the President from unending Emoluments Clause violations.”

Comey Prepared Extensively for Trump Meetings

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FBI Director James Comey “prepared extensively for his discussions with President Trump, out of concern that the president was unlikely to respect the legal and ethical boundaries governing their respective roles,” the Washington Post reports.

“The associates recounted how worried Comey was about meeting with Trump and recalled conversations in which they brainstormed how to handle moments in which the president asked for details of an investigation.”

House May Need to Vote Again on Health Care Bill

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“House Republicans barely managed to pass their Obamacare repeal bill earlier this month, and they now face the possibility of having to vote again on their controversial health measure,” Bloomberg reports.

“House Speaker Paul Ryan hasn’t yet sent the bill to the Senate because there’s a chance that parts of it may need to be redone, depending on how the Congressional Budget Office estimates its effects. House leaders want to make sure the bill conforms with Senate rules for reconciliation, a mechanism that allows Senate Republicans to pass the bill with a simple majority.”

Trump Denies Telling Comey to Back Off

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President Trump denied ever asking FBI Director James Comey to back off his agency’s investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, and the role played by former national security adviser Michael Flynn, the Washington Post reports.

Asked whether he urged Comey to ease up on the Flynn investigation, Trump said at a news conference, “No, no,” before ordering the media to move onto the “next question.”

He also reiterated his claim that the decision to appoint a special counsel was “a witch hunt,” saying he had never colluded with the Russians.

Rosenstein Knew Comey Would Be Fired Before Memo

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Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein told the full Senate he knew that former FBI Director James Comey would be fired before he wrote his controversial memo that the White House initially used as justification for the firing, the Washington Post reports.

Said Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL): “He learned the president’s decision to fire him and then he wrote his memo with his rationale.”

Trump Wants Michael Flynn Back

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“Trump doesn’t just hope that Flynn will beat the rap. Several sources close to Flynn and to the administration tell the Daily Beast that Trump has expressed his hopes that a resolution of the FBI’s investigation in Flynn’s favor might allow Flynn to rejoin the White House in some capacity—a scenario some of Trump’s closest advisers in and outside the West Wing have assured him absolutely should not happen.”

Member feature

Ending Press Briefings Would Be a Defeat for Trump

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This piece is only available to Political Wire members.

President Trump suggested last week that he may cancel the daily White House press briefing. But if he follows through, it’s important to know that it won’t be to punish the news media. It’s because they no longer worked to serve Trump’s interests.

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Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.

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