Nicandro Iannacci // 4/26/19 //
House Democrats asked DHS for documents related to the recent series of firings and resignations at the department. A federal judge blocked a DHS “gag rule” that would strip Title X funding from health care providers that refer patients to an abortion provider. Advocacy groups sued the FEC for failing to act on alleged campaign finance violations by the NRA. House Democrats are considering various responses to the Trump administration’s refusal to cooperate with investigations. Russian agent Maria Butina will be sentenced in federal court on Friday. The Interior Department halted plans to expand offshore drilling to wait for the outcome of a legal case about similar drilling plans in the Arctic.
TRUMP: INVESTIGATIONS & LITIGATION
Coverage of the Mueller Report continues.
IMMIGRATION
DHS is considering a plan to expand the use of expedited removal to target immigrants who cannot prove they have been in the county for at least two years (Politico).
House Democrats asked DHS for documents related to the recent series of firings and resignations at the department (Politico).
The tacit alliance between Border Patrol and various militias is dangerous and should end, write Kristy Parker and Cameron Bills at The Washington Post.
CIVIL RIGHTS
A federal judge blocked a DHS “gag rule” that would strip Title X funding from health care providers that refer patients to an abortion provider (Politico).
DEMOCRACY
DOJ will not comply with a House subpoena for the testimony of Deputy Assistant AG John Gore about the inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 Census (WaPo).
Advocacy groups sued the FEC for failing to act on alleged campaign finance violations by the NRA (WaPo, The Hill).
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
IRS Commissioner Charles Retigg earns as much as $1 million in rental income from Trump-branded properties that he co-owns (CREW).
REGULATION
The Interior Department halted plans to expand offshore drilling to wait for the outcome of a legal case about similar drilling plans in the Arctic (NYT, WSJ, The Hill).
Of all the Trump administration’s changes to the regulatory process, only the extension of OIRA review to the IRS and independent agencies is likely to be preserved by future administrations, writes Stuart Shapiro at The Regulatory Review.
CHECKS & BALANCES
House Democrats are considering various responses to the Trump administration’s refusal to cooperate with investigations (WaPo).
REMOVAL FROM OFFICE
Refusal to impeach President Trump will set a bad precedent and undermine the constitutional role of impeachment, writes Elizabeth Drew in The New York Times.
The Mueller Report provides sufficient ground to open an impeachment inquiry, writes Jed Shugarman in The New York Times.
RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE
Russian agent Maria Butina will be sentenced in federal court on Friday (The Hill).