“It is time for women to rise up, to be heard, to run for office. I mean all women.”
— Alabama state Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison (D), writing in Elle, after her colleagues passed a law outlawing abortion in the state.
Ukraine Sees No Evidence of Wrongdoing by Bidens
“Ukraine’s prosecutor general said in an interview that he had no evidence of wrongdoing by U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden or his son, despite a swirl of allegations by President Trump’s lawyer,” Bloomberg reports.
Trump’s Income Fell Last Year
“President Trump’s income from several of his most high-profile properties fell last year, including a nearly $2.5 million drop at his Florida resort Mar-Lago and a $1 million decline one of his Florida golf resorts, his new financial disclosure reveals,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“In total, the minimum value of Mr. Trump’s income fell 4% to $434.8 million in 2018, down from $452.5 million the previous year.”
States with Abortion Bans Have Few Female Lawmakers
“States passing restrictive abortion legislation have the lowest rates of women represented in politics,” The Hill reports.
“Alabama, which passed a measure this week that would ban almost all abortions, with exceptions only to save the life of the mother, has a female governor but only four female state senators, putting it in 47th place in a ranking of states by female representation.”
“In addition to Alabama, two other states that recently passed restrictive abortion laws ranked in the bottom 10 for representation of women in the state legislature: Mississippi, at 13.8%, and Kentucky, at 22.5%. Ohio, which recently passed a so-called heartbeat bill banning abortions after six weeks, is ranked 30th for representation. Just over a quarter, 26.2%, of the state legislature are women. Georgia, which also passed a heartbeat bill, is the only state in the top half of the rankings, at number 20 with 15 of 56 woman state senators and 57 of 180 woman House members.”
Axios: Where each state stands if Roe v. Wade is overturned.
Trump Tells Pentagon Chief No War With Iran
“President Trump has told his acting defense secretary, Patrick Shanahan, that he does not want to go to war with Iran… in a message to his hawkish aides that an intensifying American pressure campaign against the clerical-led government in Tehran must not escalate into open conflict,” the New York Times reports.
“No new information was presented to the president at the meeting that argued for further engagement with Iran, according to a person in the room. But Mr. Trump was firm in saying he did not want a military clash with the Iranians.”
McCarthy Says Alabama Abortion Law Is Too Extreme
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said that he opposes a new Alabama law that outlaws virtually all abortions, even in cases of rape and incest, arguing that it “goes further than I believe,” the Washington Post reports.
Said McCarthy: “I believe in exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother, and that’s what I’ve voted on.”
Watchdog Finds $124K of Improper Expenses by Pruitt
The EPA’s inspector general recommended recovering nearly $124,000 in improper travel expenses by former EPA chief Scott Pruitt, the Washington Post reports.
“The findings, issued nearly a year after Pruitt resigned amid controversy over his spending, travel and ties to lobbyists and outside groups, highlight the fiscal impact of his penchant for high-end travel and accommodations.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“This is a message for leaders of the Democratic Party. For over two years, this president has broken the law, and nothing happened. You told us to wait for the Mueller investigation. And when he showed obstruction of justice, nothing happened.”
— A new advertisement from Tom Steyer, quoted by the Washington Post.
Maine Moves Towards Joining Popular Vote Pact
“Maine’s lawmakers passed a bill that would give the state’s electoral votes to the presidential candidate who won the national popular vote, taking a step toward becoming the 15th state to enact such a law,” CNN reports.
“The Maine Senate voted 19-16 Tuesday to join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which would give all committed states’ electoral votes to the winning popular vote candidate should the group accrue the 270 votes necessary for a majority.”
“Maine is currently one of two states, along with Nebraska, that splits its electoral college votes instead of adhering to the winner-takes-all policy most states follow. Should the Maine House pass and Gov. Janet Mills sign the bill, Maine would contribute another four votes towards the 270.”
Gabbard Would Drop Charges Against Assange
Rep. Tusli Gabbard (D-HI) said she would drop criminal charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and whistleblower Edward Snowden if elected, Newsweek reports.
Why So Many Implausible Democrats Are Running
Jonathan Bernstein: “Not only was the stage opened to 20 candidates, but the qualifying standards were set extremely low: Candidates had to reach either a very low polling threshold or get 65,000 unique donors, metrics that are both objective and largely out of the hands of party actors. Usually, winnowing happens early on when candidates try and fail to win encouragement from party actors. This time, however, candidates can simply focus on reaching a qualifying goal rather than assessing the reaction they got from party officials or key politicians.”
“In fact, the new rules actually encouraged on-the-fence candidates to stick around for a while. After all, the DNC basically gave them a list-building challenge. Marginal candidates might well have decided that that alone was worth a formal run. Anyone who met or exceeded the donor threshold and then dropped out would’ve earned themselves a valuable resource in the meantime, not to mention increased national exposure, CNN Town Halls and a shot at a debate appearance. That’s a lot of rewards for what may turn out to be very little effort by some of the candidates.”
Washington Post: “So many Democrats are running for president that the chair of the National Governors Association, the mayor of America’s largest city and the senior senator from Colorado may not even qualify for the first debate — even though it allows for 20 candidates.”
Klobuchar Recounts Sexism In the Senate
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) told Elle about an incident in her early months as a U.S. Senator.
Said Klobuchar: “I was on the elevator with two of my staff members. The door opened, and a male senator was standing outside. He said, ‘Excuse me, this elevator is for senators only.’ My staff member said, ‘She is a senator.’ And then I looked at him and asked, ‘But who are you?’”
She added: “I knew exactly who he was. The elevator door closed, and he never got on. He’s no longer there.”
Quote of the Day
“As a party, we should be 100 percent pro-choice, and it should be nonnegotiable. We should not settle for less, and if our party cannot support women’s basic human rights, their fundamental freedoms to make decisions about their bodies and their futures, then we are not the party of women.”
— Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), quoted by the Washington Post.
Boris Johnson Will Stand for Prime Minister
Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson told the BBC that he plans to stand to replace British prime minister Theresa May once she fulfills her pledge to step down after a deal on Brexit is reached.
Said Johnson: “Of course I’m going to go for it.”
Axios: “Of course, May hasn’t stepped down — and her pledge to do so was contingent on her Brexit deal getting through Parliament. Some members of the Conservative Party are worried she may have gotten cold feet.”
Pennsylvania Counts Most of All
Jennifer Rubin: “Republicans and Democrats alike recognize how crucial Pennsylvania will be in determining the 2020 presidential election. Looking at the electoral map, if Pennsylvania returns to the Democratic column (where it was, twice each, for President Bill Clinton and President Barack Obama), President Trump could not lose Florida, for example, and retain the presidency.”
“Without Pennsylvania, he couldn’t win unless he won two out of three among Michigan, Wisconsin and North Carolina (all other states going as they did in 2016). In short, if Democrats can win Pennsylvania, their chances of booting out Trump improve substantially.”
Why Trump Can’t Spin a Trade War
Joshua Green: “Unlike immigration, the Chinese retaliatory tariffs were felt acutely by some of Trump’s most fervent supporters. Take farmers. As I documented last spring, the 30 congressional districts most reliant on soybeans for economic activity all voted for Trump in 2016. Since then, their pain has only intensified. This week, soybean prices fell to the lowest level in 12 years.”
“But if Trump follows through on his threat to impose a broad new round of tariffs, the number of Americans affected would grow dramatically. The initial wave of $250 billion focused on intermediate or capital goods: the sorts of materials businesses use to make finished products. The next round will focus on $300 billion of consumer goods, everything from iPhones to golf clubs to coffee makers to t-shirts and sweaters. As Bloomberg News put it on Monday, anyone who shops at a mall will become a victim of the trade war. One estimate puts the annual cost at $500 per U.S. family.”
The Very Political Pattern of Trump’s Pardons
Aaron Blake: “President Trump’s pardons were self-serving before, and they became even more so Wednesday night, after he pardoned two prominent conservatives who had already completed their sentences.”
“That these pardons went to two Trump allies who said things he likes, and whose pardons could send signals to other Trump allies, doesn’t seem like a coincidence. Trump has now pardoned 10 people in his two-plus years in office. Of the nine living ones, eight are either conservatives or further Trump’s political narrative in some way.”
Trump Calls De Blasio’s Candidacy a ‘Joke’
President Trump welcomed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio to the presidential race with a tweet.
Said Trump: “The Dems are getting another beauty to join their group. Bill de Blasio of NYC, considered the worst mayor in the U.S., will supposedly be making an announcement for president today. He is a JOKE, but if you like high taxes & crime, he’s your man. NYC HATES HIM!”
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