A new Media Research Center/McLaughlin & Associates poll finds that 65% of “self-described conservatives” believe that social media companies like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are purposely censoring conservatives and conservative ideas from their sites.
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News of McGahn’s Departure Was Surprise to McGahn
President Trump’s announcement of White House counsel Donald McGahn’s departure this fall “came as a surprise, including to McGahn,” the Washington Post reports.
Said one person close to McGahn: “He was surprised.”
“While it had been an open secret inside the White House that McGahn planned to leave after Kavanaugh’s confirmation process concludes, he had not discussed his plans directly with Trump.”
Flynn Tapes May Implicate Trump
Murray Waas: “In early February 2017, a senior White House attorney, John Eisenberg, reviewed highly classified intelligence intercepts of telephone conversations between then-National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn and Russia’s ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak, which incontrovertibly demonstrated that Flynn had misled the FBI about those conversations… It was after this information was relayed to President Trump that the president fired Flynn, and the following day allegedly pressured then-FBI Director James Comey to shut down a federal criminal investigation into whether Flynn had lied to the FBI.”
“These new disclosures … constitute the strongest evidence to date that President Trump may have obstructed justice… The president’s legal team has claimed that Trump did nothing wrong because he did not understand that Flynn was in criminal jeopardy when, according to the former FBI director’s testimony, he asked Comey to go easy on Flynn. The new information that Trump and others in the White House were aware that the intercepts revealed that Flynn had lied to the FBI directly contradicts those claims.”
Grassley Warns Trump to Keep McGahn
“In a rare warning from a leading Republican lawmaker, Senate Judiciary Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA) told President Trump to keep Don McGahn as the top White House lawyer,” Roll Call reports.
“Trump announced Wednesday that McGahn would leave his White House post this fall, but after the expected confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Grassley reacted to the announcement with his own tweet, expressing concern with the coming departure of an attorney who has urged the president to fully cooperate with Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller’s Russia election meddling probe.”
NATO May Name Headquarters After McCain
“NATO, the world’s most powerful military alliance, is considering naming its new, billion-dollar headquarters in Brussels in honor of late Sen. John McCain,” CNBC reports.
“The move to name the NATO headquarters comes on the heels of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s proposal to rename the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington after McCain. However, Schumer’s resolution was not immediately embraced by some Republicans.”
DeSantis Warns Florida Voters Not to ‘Monkey This Up’
Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) said that voters would “monkey this up” if they elect his opponent for Florida governor, Andrew Gillum (D), who would be the state’s first African American governor, the Washington Post reports.
Said DeSantis: “The last thing we need to do is to monkey this up by trying to embrace a socialist agenda with huge tax increases and bankrupting the state. That is not going to work. That’s not going to be good for Florida.”
He also called Gillum “articulate.”
Second Trump Employee Discussed Immunity Deal
“A second Trump Organization employee discussed a potential immunity deal with the federal prosecutors who charged Michael Cohen,” CNN reports.
“That employee ultimately did not receive immunity after prosecutors in the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York decided against granting such protection. The person was not called to testify before the grand jury.”
Suspicious Russian Embassy Transactions Flagged
New documents show that American bank examiners delved deeper into the Russian embassy’s financial activity “than was previously known — and reveal why they flagged two of the transactions as suspicious,” BuzzFeed News reports.
“The first, made just 10 days after the US presidential election in 2016, was a $120,000 lump-sum check to then-ambassador Sergey Kislyak that was twice as large as any payment he’d received in the previous two years.”
“The second, just five days after President Trump’s inauguration, was a blocked attempt to withdraw $150,000 in cash that a bank official feared was meant for Russians the US had just expelled from the country.”
Giuliani Was Paid to Lobby Romanian President
President Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani “was being paid by a global consulting firm when he sent a letter to the president of Romania last week that contradicted the U.S. government’s official position,” Politico reports.
Mother of Slain Student Wins Seat on School Board
“The mother of a student murdered at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High on Feb. 14 has been elected to the Broward County School Board in a landslide,” the Miami Herald reports.
Said Lori Alhadeff: “I am so excited. I am elated. I can’t wait to start making change and start making an impact on the school board.”
Slight Majority of Millennials Plan to Vote
A new NBC News/GenForward survey finds 55% of millennials say they definitely or probably will vote in the midterm elections. while 25% are unsure and 19% say they probably or definitely will not vote.
Meanwhile, 59% of millennials would prefer a midterm outcome that leads to Democrats controlling Congress and just 17% of millennials approved of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president.
Also interesting: 60% of millennials have an unfavorable view of the Republican Party and 42% of millennials have a unfavorable view of the Democratic Party.
Collins Turned Down Plea Deal on Insider Trading Charges
“Federal prosecutors offered Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) a plea deal before indicting him on felony insider trading charges earlier this month, but the Republican from Clarence rejected it,” the Buffalo News reports.
“Criminal lawyers who are not involved in the case said, though, that they were not surprised that prosecutors sought to get Collins to settle the charges against him. They said they wouldn’t be surprised, either, if Collins and the other defendants in the case eventually plead guilty before the case goes to trial.”
Hunter Now Says ‘Leave My Wife Out of It’
After blaming his wife for illegal use of campaign funds last week, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA) changed his tune in an interview with KGTV.
Said Hunter: “Leave my wife out of it, leave my family out of it. It’s me they’re after anyway. They’re not after my wife; they want to take me down, that’s what they’re up to. So let’s get this in the arena and have this settled.”
Trump Claims Clinton’s Email Was Hacked by China
“President Trump asserted early Wednesday, without citing evidence, that Hillary Clinton’s emails were hacked by China, and he said the Justice Department and FBI risked losing their credibility if they did not look into the matter,” the Washington Post reports.
“A spokeswoman for the Justice Department declined to comment.”
Exchange of the Day
President Trump tweets: “Martha McSally, running in the Arizona Primary for U.S. Senate, was endorsed by rejected Senator Jeff Flake….and turned it down – a first! Now Martha, a great U.S. Military fighter jet pilot and highly respected member of Congress, WINS BIG. Congratulations, and on to November!”
Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) responds: “Sorry, @realDonaldTrump. I made no endorsement in this race. I think the last endorsement I made was in the Alabama race.”
Washington Post: “Flake’s tweet included a photo of a $100 check that he and his wife wrote to Doug Jones, the Democrat who prevailed in the Alabama special election, over Republican Roy Moore. Moore, who was backed by Trump, faced accusations of pursuing teenage girls when he was in his 30s. The memo line in Flake’s check to Jones read: ‘Country over Party.'”
Why Do Republicans Put Up with Trump?
Walter Shapiro: “Any generic Republican president (say, Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio) would have slashed taxes, rolled back regulations and appointed conservative judges. But no honorable man or woman in public life would have … hang on, it’s a long list: Ridiculed a Vietnam POW. Lied compulsively about everything. Trusted felons like Paul Manafort, Michael Flynn and Michael Cohen. Viciously and repeatedly attacked the integrity of the FBI, the Justice Department and the national security establishment.”
“Declared war on a free press. Cozied up to authoritarian leaders like Vladimir Putin. Kept secret what happened at the Helsinki summit. And continually treated Canada (yes, Canada) like a major enemy.”
“The list is far from comprehensive and skips pre-presidential actions like approving hush money for a porn star. But, to steal a line from Bob Dole’s 1996 presidential campaign, ‘Where’s the outrage?'”
Trump’s Cable News Cabinet
Washington Post: “After watching Sean Hannity on Fox News, President Trump tweeted at Attorney General Jeff Sessions to investigate former rival Hillary Clinton. After listening to Tucker Carlson, he directed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to launch a study on bogus reports of murdered white farmers in South Africa.”
“And after Fox Business Network’s Lou Dobbs highlighted a questionable claim about Google search results, Trump took to Twitter early Tuesday to complain — prompting his top economic adviser to promise an investigation.”
“Cable television news hosts and commentators are among the first voices that Trump hears in the morning and the last he listens to at night. Now he is increasingly relying on those voices in making decisions — often running afoul of his actual advisers in the process.”
GOP Hopes for Another Shot at Obamacare Repeal
“Senate Republicans say they would like Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) to appoint a successor to late Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) who, unlike McCain, would support GOP legislation to repeal Obamacare,” The Hill reports.
“GOP lawmakers say they won’t have time to hold another vote to repeal the law in 2018 but vow to try again next year if they manage to keep their Senate and House majorities.”
