Raquel Dominguez , Sarah Mahmood  //  4/27/17  //  Daily Update

President Trump proposed drastic reductions in individual and corporate tax rates in a one-page tax plan.  President Trump also vowed on Twitter to appeal decisions enjoining both his travel ban and sanctuary cities executive orders and indicated a desire to break up the Ninth Circuit.  The Department of Homeland Security announced the launch of the Victims of Illegal Immigrant Crime Engagement Office.  The House Freedom Caucus announced its support of a new bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act.  And President Trump may sign an executive order to begin the process of withdrawing the U.S. from NAFTA.  

IMMIGRATION

Nikolas Bowie, writing for Take Care, argues that Judge Orrick’s decision enjoining President Trump’s executive order on sanctuary cities is important for at least four reasons: it declared that the President’s effort to withhold federal funding from sanctuary cities is unconstitutional; rejected the government’s procedural defense; relied on out-of-court public statements by members of the Trump Administration; and it introduced those out-of-court public statements into the record via judicial notice.

• Judge Orrick’s decision relies on federalist principles and the importance of separation of powers, explains Ilya Somin (WaPo).
• Garrett Epps argues in the Atlantic that, after alienating the judiciary, President Trump should not be surprised his unconstitutional and vague executive order was enjoined.
• Josh Blackman argues against Judge Orrick’s ruling and postulates that the executive order may ultimately succeed (Josh Blackman’s Blog).  

On Twitter, President Trump promised to appeal decisions on both the travel ban order and sanctuary city order to the Supreme Court (NYT).

The Department of Homeland Security announced the launch of a new office called the Victims of Illegal Immigrant Crime Engagement Office, but critics say immigrants do not have a disproportionally higher crime-rate than native-born citizens (NYT).

• A full report on immigrant crime rates by The Sentencing Project can be found here.

CIVIL RIGHTS

The Department of Justice asked the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to extend the stay in East Texas Baptist University v. Price to permit additional time for negotiations with religious groups regarding the birth control provisions of the Affordable Care Act (NBC).

DEMOCRACY

Joshua Matz, writing for Take Care, emphasizes the importance of taking President Trump at his word.

JUSTICE & SAFETY

Courts must be able to rely on facts offered by parties and amici curiae, and the Department of Justice has recently skirted its duty to properly present facts, argues Brianne Gorod, writing for Take Care.

Attorney General Sessions may roll back Department of Justice oversight of local law enforcement agencies by avoiding the issuance of consent decrees, writes Jason Harrow for Take Care.

President Trump’s stance on human rights, both as described and actualized, remains unclear (WaPo).

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

Jared Kushner’s business ties to one of the wealthiest families in Israel could potentially pose conflicts of interest, writes Jesse Drucker (NYT).

According to the Trump Administration, Ivanka Trump won’t be involved in raising money for an international fund to invest in women-owned businesses, contrary to earlier reports (WaPo).

REGULATION

President Trump proposed drastic reductions in individual and corporate tax rates (NYT,WaPo).

• Congressional Republicans are reportedly dissatisfied with the proposal (CNN).
• CNN assesses whether the proposal is likely to be passed in Congress.
• High-income earners and businesses will benefit from the plan, writes Neil Erwin (NYT).
• The plan is a betrayal of ordinary Americans, writes Nicholas Kristof (NYT).
• The New York Times lists the changes proposed in the tax plan.
• The Washington Post analyzes how the changes would impact different tax brackets.
• President Trump’s plan is detached from reality, argues former Director of the Congressional Budget Office Douglas Holtz-Eakin (WaPo).
• The tax plan could be a windfall for the Trump Organization, write Drew Harwell and Jonathan O’Connell (WaPo).

The House Freedom Caucus, which opposed President Trump’s plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act last month, now supports a new, more conservative version of the bill (NYT, WaPo).

• Politico analyzes President Trump’s efforts to quietly renew the bill.
• The centrist Tuesday Group voiced dissatisfaction with the changes (The Hill).

President Trump may sign an executive order formally withdrawing the U.S. from NAFTA (NYT, WaPo).

• The New York Times argues that President Trump’s trade policy lacks strategy and vision.
• Congressional Republicans have asked President Trump to delay the decision and carefully consider the consequences of withdrawal (Politico).

The Federal Communications Commission suggested a plan to drastically reduce government oversight of high-speed Internet providers, undercutting Obama Administration policy that prevented cable companies from blocking or slowing down online content (NYT, WaPo).

• Rolling back net neutrality rules could allow cable companies to provide the fastest Internet speeds for big companies but slower speeds to other consumers, argue Senators Ron Wyden and Al Franken, and former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler (WaPo).

President Trump is expected to sign an executive order that could expand access to offshore drilling in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans (NYT).

The Trump Administration has agreed to continue paying Affordable Care Act cost-sharing subsidies, potentially averting a government shutdown (Politico).

• Anthem, one of the largest health insurance companies in America, threatened to increase its rates or leave federal health care marketplaces if the cost-sharing subsidies are discontinued (NYT).

Congressional Republicans have introduced legislation to roll back the Dodd-Frank banking regulations (WaPo).

President Trump doesn’t intend to release his tax returns, according to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (WaPo).

Members of the Trump Administration will meet on Thursday to evaluate whether the U.S. should exit from the Paris climate agreement (WaPo).

President Trump signed an executive order requiring review of national monument designations from the past two decades (The Hill).

CHECKS & BALANCES

President Trump threatened to break up the Ninth Circuit Court after a disfavorable ruling against the revised travel ban (The Hill).

• Trump’s tirades against the judiciary are dangerous and attack the legitimacy of the courts, writes Kristine Phillips (WaPo).

FEDERALISM

President Trump signed an executive order requiring Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to conduct a review of whether the federal government exceeded its legal authority in K-12 schools (WaPo).

RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE

The House Intelligence Committee will continue its Russia investigation with new leadership and an updated witness list and plans for hearings (WaPo).

Senator Ben Cardin, the highest-ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, no longer feels that President Trump will undo sanctions against Russia (Politico).