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Freedom Caucus Wants to Cancel August Recess

June 7, 2017 at 7:15 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Politico: “The House Freedom Caucus on Tuesday night called on Republican leadership to cancel the August recess to continue work on tax reform and other GOP priorities. The group of several dozen conservative hardliners during their weekly meeting took the official position to work through the break, which is quickly drawing near as Republicans scramble to pass President Donald Trump’s agenda.”

Said Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows (R-NC): “We need to work through August recess to get everything done. We believe that we need to stay through August to get through tax reform… and get our appropriations done.”

Democratic Lawmaker Pushes Impeachment

June 7, 2017 at 7:12 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Rep. Al Green (D-TX) “is drafting articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, saying the president should be forced from office for firing FBI Director James Comey in the middle of the bureau’s ongoing Russia investigation,” Politico reports.

“The articles of impeachment, which Green will officially announce Wednesday, follow increasing calls from some rank-and-file Democrats for Trump to be booted from office.”

Mueller Has Been Briefed on Comey’s Testimony

June 7, 2017 at 7:10 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Former FBI Director Jim Comey’s testimony Thursday is one of the most highly anticipated hearings in recent memory — but his words are unlikely to surprise special counsel Robert Mueller, whose team has been in contact with Comey,” Politico reports.

“Friends of Comey say they expect the testimony to largely stick to his conversations with President Trump and is unlikely to break ground on the investigation into potential collusion with Russia and any of Trump’s associates. That is not surprising, legal experts say, because of the ongoing investigation that Mueller took over last month.”

Trump Asked Coats to Intervene In Flynn Investigation

June 7, 2017 at 7:07 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Dan Coats, the nation’s top intelligence official, told associates in March that President Trump asked him if he could intervene with then-FBI Director James B. Comey to get the bureau to back off its focus on former national security adviser Michael Flynn in its Russia probe, the Washington Post reports.

“Trump asked everyone to leave the room except for Coats and CIA Director Mike Pompeo… The president then started complaining about the FBI investigation and Comey’s handling of it… After the encounter, Coats discussed the conversation with other officials and decided that intervening with Comey as Trump had suggested would be inappropriate.”

The Fix: “But here’s why the latest news is particularly bad for Trump: It erases any idea that the Comey request was just a one-off. We have now learned that Comey isn’t the only top official whom Trump approached in an effort to free Flynn from his investigation.”

Gomez Wins House Seat In California

June 7, 2017 at 6:44 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

California assemblyman Jimmy Gomez (D) defeated his challenger in the race to replace former Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA), the Los Angeles Times reports.

Sessions Suggested He Could Resign

June 6, 2017 at 6:29 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

As the White House braces for former FBI Director James Comey’s testimony Thursday, sources tell ABC News the relationship between President Trump and Attorney General Jeff Sessions has become so tense that Sessions at one point recently even suggested he could resign.

“Trump’s anger over the recusal has not diminished with time. Two sources close to the president say he lashed out repeatedly at the attorney general in private meetings, blaming the recusal for the expansion of the Russian investigation, now overseen by Special Counsel and former FBI Director Robert Mueller.”

Intelligence Chiefs Refuse to Discuss Trump Conversations

June 6, 2017 at 5:17 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“Two of the nation’s top intelligence officials said in a hearing Wednesday they would not discuss specifics of private conversations with President Trump, declining to say whether they had been asked to push back against an FBI probe into possible coordination between his campaign and the Russian government,” the Washington Post reports.

“Testifying before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats refused to say whether it was true… that Trump asked Coats if he could reach out to then-FBI Director James B. Comey and dissuade him from pursuing the Michael Flynn matter.”

Said Coats: “I don’t believe it’s appropriate for me to address that in a public session.”

British Election Is Now a Dead Heat

June 6, 2017 at 5:13 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A new Survation poll in Britain has the Tories barely in the lead over Labour, 41.5% to 40.4%, which is 16 points lower than the party’s position four weeks ago.

Trump Dining with Two Intelligence Committee Members

June 6, 2017 at 4:51 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Senate Intelligence Committee members Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) are scheduled to dine with the president Tuesday night — two days before their committee questions ousted FBI Director James Comey, the Washington Examiner reports.

White House Won’t Say If Trump Has Confidence In AG

June 6, 2017 at 4:39 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

White House press secretary Sean Spicer declined to say whether President Donald Trump has confidence in Attorney General Jeff Sessions, CNN reports.

Said Spicer: “I have not had a discussion with him about that.”

“The press secretary’s striking refusal to reaffirm the President’s confidence in his attorney general came as reports surfaced about the President’s lingering frustrations with his attorney general’s recusal and a day after Trump took to Twitter to critique his own Justice Department, which is led by Sessions.”

Pro-Trump Group Slams Comey In New Ad

June 6, 2017 at 3:08 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

A nonprofit issues group is labeling James Comey a political “showboat” in a television ad set to air Thursday, the day the former FBI director testifies on Capitol Hill, the AP reports.

Comey “put politics over protecting America,” a narrator says in the 30-second spot, titled “Showboat,” which was shared with The Associated Press. It accuses him of being “consumed with election meddling” even as “terror attacks were on the rise.”

How Trump Businesses Took Cancer Charity Money

June 6, 2017 at 2:59 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Forbes: “In reviewing filings from the Eric Trump Foundation and other charities, it’s clear that the course wasn’t free–that the Trump Organization received payments for its use, part of more than $1.2 million that has no documented recipients past the Trump Organization. Golf charity experts say the listed expenses defy any reasonable cost justification for a one-day golf tournament.”

“Additionally, the Donald J. Trump Foundation, which has come under previous scrutiny for self-dealing and advancing the interests of its namesake rather than those of charity, apparently used the Eric Trump Foundation to funnel $100,000 in donations into revenue for the Trump Organization.”

“And while donors to the Eric Trump Foundation were told their money was going to help sick kids, more than $500,000 was re-donated to other charities, many of which were connected to Trump family members or interests, including at least four groups that subsequently paid to hold golf tournaments at Trump courses.”

Comey Will Not Accuse Trump of Obstructing Justice

June 6, 2017 at 2:54 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“There will be much in former FBI Director James Comey’s upcoming congressional testimony that will make the White House uncomfortable, but he will stop short of saying the president interfered with the agency’s probe into former national security adviser Michael Flynn,” a source familiar with Comey’s thinking told ABC News.

“Although Comey has told associates he will not accuse the President of obstructing justice, he will dispute the president’s contention that Comey told him three times he is not under investigation.”

Trump May Live Tweet Comey’s Testimony

June 6, 2017 at 1:48 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Roberta Costa of the Washington Post told MSNBC that President Donald Trump might take to Twitter on Thursday in reaction to the planned congressional testimony of former FBI Director James Comey.

Said Costa: “The President is expected to be tweeting on Thursday in response to Comey — not to stay quiet during the testimony — because he himself wants to be the one driving the process.”

For members: Comey’s Testimony Will Be a National Event

Russian Attacks on Election Were Much Broader

June 6, 2017 at 1:19 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) told USA Today that Russian attacks on election systems were broader and targeted more states than those detailed in an explosive intelligence report leaked to the website The Intercept.

Said Warner: “I don’t believe they got into changing actual voting outcomes. But the extent of the attacks is much broader than has been reported so far.”

He added that he was pushing intelligence agencies to declassify the names of those states hit to help put electoral systems on notice before the midterm voting in 2018.

Trump Doesn’t Care About the Travel Ban

June 6, 2017 at 12:10 pm EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

James Hohmann: “The conventional wisdom around Washington is that Trump is being impulsive as he disregards the counsel of his lawyers, who are correctly warning him that the travel ban may not survive a Supreme Court review if he continues to talk about it the way he does.”

“If Trump truly cared about the underlying ban and wanted it to be in place for the country’s security, as he claims, he would not be speaking so freely. The billionaire businessman has been mired in litigation off and on for decades and has demonstrated an ability – when his own money was at stake – to be self-disciplined.”

“The only explanation, then, is that he cares less about winning the case than reassuring his base. The number of posts reflects the degree to which Trump thinks the travel ban is a political winner. He is trying to signal for his 24 million Facebook fans and 31.7 million Twitter followers that he’s fighting for them, regardless of what the judges, the media and the Democrats say.”

Why People Pay for News

June 6, 2017 at 10:17 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

An AP/NORC poll finds 53% of Americans pay for news, including subscribing to newspapers or magazines, paying for news apps, or donating to public media.

“While there are a host of reasons people subscribe, the No. 1 cited (by more than 4 in 10 subscribers) was that the publication they pay for excels at covering certain topics about which they particularly care. More than 4 in 10 also cite the fact that friends and family subscribe to the same product.”

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Voters Head to the Polls Today in Los Angeles

June 6, 2017 at 10:00 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

Los Angeles Times: “With a handful of competitive special elections underway across the country, the race to replace Xavier Becerra in the 34th Congressional District has gotten far less attention since the April primary winnowed a field of two dozen candidates to two.”

“But the runoff between Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez and attorney Robert Lee Ahn, both Democrats, will either continue a decades-old tradition of Latino representation or hand a political milestone to the district’s Korean American minority. If elected, Ahn would become the first Korean American Democrat elected to Congress and only the second ever.”