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Abigail DeHart  //  4/13/18  //  Daily Update

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The Trump Administration has been sued for issuing an allegedly misleading report on terrorism which was used to justify the second travel ban. The D.C. Circuit questioned whether White House budget director Mick Mulvaney can legally run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau while simultaneously running the Office of Management and Budget. President Donald Trump’s nominee for EEOC general counsel, Sharon Fast Gustafson, refused to tell the Senate whether she believed that discrimination against LGBT workers is a form of unlawful sex bias. The National Rifle Association reported that it received more money from people with Russian ties than previously acknowledged.

 

IMMIGRATION

A federal judge in Los Angeles issued a national, permanent injunction forbidding the Justice Department from conditioning federal funds on a requirement that local police departments help immigration agents (NYT). 

A DOJ attorney told the Ninth Circuit not to consider President Trump’s public statements in evaluating the President’s executive order to withhold funding from sanctuary cities (Associated Press, The Hill).

The Trump Administration has been sued for issuing an allegedly misleading report on terrorism which was used to justify the second travel ban (The Hill).

 

CIVIL RIGHTS

President Donald Trump’s nominee for EEOC general counsel, Sharon Fast Gustafson, refused to tell the Senate whether she believed that discrimination against LGBT workers is a form of unlawful sex bias (Reuters).

 

DEMOCRACY

In response to lawsuit filed by Public Citizen, the Trump administration released a limited set of White House visitor logs (The Hill).

• The 19-page PDF release by the White House is available here.
• The White House claimed 543 exemptions.

A former member of President Trump’s voter fraud commission has been sued for voter intimidation and other illegal conduct (Mother Jones, Protect Democracy)

EPA’s Scott Pruitt continues to face criticism for his use of expensive security measures (NYT).

• A high-ranking EPA staffer says he faced retaliation for calling Pruitt’s spending into question (LA Times).

 

JUSTICE & SAFETY

President Trump’s morning tweet cast doubt on the likelihood of an imminent military strike on Syrian targets: “Could be very soon or not so soon at all!” (Reuters).

• The attack on Syria will be unlawful writes Kevin Jon Heller at Opinio Juris.
• These threats have raised the possibility of a U.S.-Russia military confrontation (WSJ).

 

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

CIA Director Mike Pompeo failed to disclose business ties with a company owned by the Chinese government (McClatchy).

The D.C. Circuit questioned whether White House budget director Mick Mulvaney can legally run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau while simultaneously running the Office of Management and Budget (NYT, LA Times, Buzzfeed, NPR).

REGULATION

Both parties in the Senate are concerned with the Justice Department’s role in the DEA’s efforts to slow research on medical marijuana (The Hill).

CHECKS & BALANCES

Census officials will appear at a public hearing before the House Oversight Committee next month to be questioned about their addition of a controversial citizenship question to the 2020 census form (NPR).

 

REMOVAL FROM OFFICE

Common Cause filed complaints with the DOJ and FEC against President Trump and American Media, Inc., alleging that a payoff for silence about a potentially damaging rumor was an improper campaign contribution (Bloomberg).

The National Enquirer has become the subject of an FBI investigation over President Trump’s lawyer’s efforts to head off potentially damaging stories during the election (NYT).

 

RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE 

The National Rifle Association reported that it received more money from people with Russian ties than previously acknowledged (Politico). 

 

Tags:

Immigration Conflicts Checks & Balances Regulation Democracy Civil Rights Justice & Safety Removal from Office Russian Interference

 

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