Political Wire

Members should sign in for the full experience.

Trump Plans Environmental Speech

July 7, 2019 at 6:48 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Two senior administration officials told Axios they were surprised when they first heard that President Trump would be giving a speech about his administration’s ‘environmental leadership.’ Both said the president probably won’t win a public debate on environmentalism, given he’s spent much of his time in office proudly repealing President Obama’s environmental regulations.”

Said one official: “I don’t know why we’d spend any time talking about their issue.”

“The other official described the speech as a ‘Javanka Special’ (a phrase some conservative administration officials use to describe liberal moves they blame on Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump).”

Biden Signals More Assertive Approach

July 7, 2019 at 6:46 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Jonathan Swan: “On Tuesday, Joe Biden told his advisers he wanted to give a speech in South Carolina to address, and preempt, the mounting attacks on his record concerning race and civil rights. Sources close to Biden told me he was still rewriting the draft on Saturday in the car en route to Sumter, South Carolina, where he gave the speech to a mostly black audience.”

“Advisers say Biden was ready for Sen. Bernie Sanders to attack him on the debate stage for being insufficiently progressive, as his camp hinted it would come. Biden anticipated that busing might come up in the debate, aides said, but they said he did not expect Harris to misleadingly imply that he opposed the local voluntary busing that took her to school as a child.”

Trump Ending In-Person Interpreters for Migrants

July 7, 2019 at 6:43 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration is preparing to replace in-court interpreters at initial immigration court hearings with videos informing asylum seekers and other immigrants facing deportation of their rights,” the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

“The administration portrays the change as a cost-saving measure for an immigration court system bogged down under a growing backlog. But advocates for immigrants are concerned the new procedure could jeopardize their due-process rights, add confusion and potentially make the system less efficient by causing more of them to go underground or appeal cases.”

Inside Kavanaugh’s Leaked Mock Hearing

July 7, 2019 at 6:33 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“A new book on Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation process discloses that the White House held a secret mock hearing for Kavanaugh after allegations of sexual assault against him broke — which leaked to the press before it was even finished,” Axios reports.

FBI and ICE Have Database of Driver’s License Photos

July 7, 2019 at 3:57 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Immigration and Customs Enforcement have turned state driver’s license databases into a facial-recognition gold mine, scanning through hundreds of millions of Americans’ photos without their knowledge or consent, newly released documents show,” the Washington Post reports.

“Neither Congress nor state legislatures have authorized the development of such a system, and growing numbers of Democratic and Republican lawmakers are criticizing the technology as a dangerous, pervasive and error-prone surveillance tool.”

Trump Grasps for Strategy After Iran Violates Deal

July 7, 2019 at 3:52 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The Trump administration on Sunday vowed to continue ‘maximum pressure’ on Iran after the nation announced that it would start enriching uranium beyond limits set under a 2015 deal, but the U.S. has few options when it comes to trying to curb Iran from producing a nuclear weapon,” Politico reports.

“After withdrawing from the international nuclear agreement in 2018, President Trump repeatedly said he wanted to negotiate a new deal with Iran, but he has continued to impose harsh sanctions and move troops to the region for possible military options.”

“Iran’s brazen move on Sunday threatens to put the U.S. and its allies back where they were before the deal — with no comprehensive restrictions on Iran’s nuclear ambitions.”

Crowd Chants ‘Fuck Trump’ After World Cup Win

July 7, 2019 at 3:32 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A crowd in a sports bar in France chanted “Fuck Trump” as Fox News reported the news of the U.S. Women’s national team winning their fourth FIFA Women’s World Cup on Sunday.

Trump Official Says ICE Ready to Deport One Million

July 7, 2019 at 3:28 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Ken Cuccinelli, the Trump administration’s top official at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, told CBS News that immigration authorities “are ready to identify, detain and eventually deport approximately one million undocumented immigrants with pending removal orders.

Said Cuccinelli: “They’re ready to just perform their mission, which is to go and find and detain and then deport the approximately one million people who have final removal orders.”

Tensions Flare Over Pelosi’s Comments

July 7, 2019 at 3:21 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) “faced sharp criticism Sunday from some liberal lawmakers and activists over her latest comments about a group of House Democratic women who opposed last month’s emergency border aid bill that was supported by the leadership,” the Washington Post reports.

“While Pelosi maintains that she is aggressively confronting Trump on immigration and other fronts, there is widespread anger among liberals about the president and growing calls for Pelosi to resist working with the administration and begin impeachment proceedings.”

The Guardian: “The progressive-moderate split is becoming more evident and bitter.”

Bonus Quote of the Day

July 7, 2019 at 3:18 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“When you break things, you get hurt, you bleed, you get cut. When I made the decision to run, I fully appreciated that it will not be easy. But I know if I’m not on the stage, there’s a certain voice that will not be present on that stage. Knowing that there is a perspective, there is a life experience, there is a vision that must be heard and seen and present on that stage, and that I have an ability to do that.”

— Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA), quoted by the Associated Press, on being the target of smears about her citizenship and ethnicity, including by one of President Trump’s sons.

Harris Unveils $100 Billion Plan for Black Homeownership

July 7, 2019 at 2:10 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Sen. Kamala Harris “unveiled a $100 billion plan to invest in black homeownership — a proposal the 2020 presidential candidate said that, if elected, would set in motion her broader plan to tackle the US racial wealth gap,” CNN reports.

Said Harris: “So we must right the wrong and — after generations of discrimination — give black families a real shot at homeownership — historically one of the most powerful drivers of wealth.”

Obamacare Faces Another Challenge

July 7, 2019 at 1:50 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

USA Today: “Pop quiz: The Affordable Care Act became law in 2010, was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2012 and 2015, and has survived dozens of repeal efforts in Congress. So is it finally safe?”

“Answer: Not yet.”

“The latest threat looms in New Orleans, where a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit will hear 90 minutes of oral argument Tuesday in a challenge that threatens the law’s key features – and possibly the entire 974-page statute.”

Trump On Pace to Pick 30% of Federal Judges

July 7, 2019 at 12:07 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Washington Examiner: “Legal experts said that over his first term, Trump is expected to name some 250 judges to the Supreme Court, district courts, courts of appeals, and the U.S. Court of International Trade. Overall, there are 870 federal judges.”

Facebook and Twitter Not Invited to Social Media Summit

July 7, 2019 at 12:02 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

The White House has not extended invitations to Facebook and Twitter to attend its social media summit on Thursday, CNN reports.

“The people, who spoke to CNN Business on the condition of anonymity, suggested it was not surprising. They said they believe the summit would amount to a right-wing grievance session and was not aimed at seriously discussing some of the issues facing large technology companies.”

Quote of the Day

July 7, 2019 at 11:18 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“No ethical framework or religious tradition that allows you to mistreat children in this fashion.”

— Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), in an NBC News interview, on the border crisis.

Mia Love Wants to Run Again

July 7, 2019 at 10:57 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Former Rep. Mia Love (R-UT) told the Deseret News said she’s ready to run again in Utah’s 4th Congressional District unless a Republican she deems strong enough to beat Rep. Ben McAdams (D-UT) enters the race.

Said Love: “There isn’t anyone that I believe can win right now.”

Amash Won’t Rule Out Presidential Bid

July 7, 2019 at 10:45 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI), a conservative critic of President Trump who recently left the Republican Party, would not rule out a 2020 presidential bid on Sunday, potentially complicating Trump’s path to reelection,” the Washington Post reports.

“The prospect of an Amash insurgency, which would face significant hurdles, has nonetheless unnerved some GOP strategists because it could pull libertarian and conservative support away from Trump, who won the 2016 election with razor-thin margins in six states, including Michigan.”

Said Amash: “I still wouldn’t rule anything like that out. I have to use my skills, my public influence, where it serves the country best.”

Amash Says GOP Officials Thank Him Privately

July 7, 2019 at 10:40 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rep. Justin Amash (I-MI) told CNN that high-level party Republican party officials have thanked him behind closed doors for his stance on impeachment proceedings against Trump.

Said Amash: “I get people sending me text messages, people calling me, saying ‘thank you for what you’re doing. They’re not saying it publicly. And I think that’s a problem for our country, it’s a problem for the Republican Party, it’s a problem for the Democratic Party when people aren’t allowed to speak out.”