Caroline Cox, Ian Eppler  //  8/24/17  //  Daily Update

President Trump held a campaign rally in Phoenix during which he threatened a government shutdown if Congress does not fund a wall along the Mexican border. The Trump Administration announced that it will withhold almost $100 million in aid to Egypt in response to that country’s human-rights abuses and support for North Korea. And Congressional investigators have discovered an email in which a Trump campaign official discussed attempts to set up a meeting between the campaign and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

SYMPOSIUM

This week, Take Care is hosting a symposium on Congress's Constitution—an important new book by Josh Chafetz. Contributors will assess Congress's role in the separation of powers, with a focus on developments thus far under President Trump.

• A round-up of the posts is here.
• The constitutional structure creates incentives for individual members of Congress to oppose even the chief executive of their own party, writes Victoria Nourse. 
• Congress must take steps to engage with the public in order to match the power of the president’s bully pulpit, argues Kate Shaw.

IMMIGRATION

During his rally in Arizona, President Trump threatened a government shutdown if Congress does not finance the construction of a Mexican border wall (NY Times, WaPo, LA Times).

• The Arizona crowd’s reception of President Trump’s speech was lukewarm, reports Jenna Johnson at The Washington Post.
• President Trump’s challenge to Congress on border funding faces fierce opposition but may be necessary for the president to appease his base (NY Times).

CIVIL RIGHTS

President Trump’s minimization of the events in Charlottesville reflects the same sort of minimization of racism found in the Supreme Court’s recent opinions in cases such as Shelby County v. Holder, argue Leah Litman and Helen Klein Murillo in Take Care.

A body of UN experts condemned President Trump’s response to the events in Charlottesville (NY Times).

Lambda Legal is suing the Trump administration to release documents related to the reversal of the administrative guidance that permits transgender students to use the bathroom corresponding with their gender identity (The Hill).

DEMOCRACY

President Trump, in his Arizona rally, strongly criticized the press, alleging that it has distorted his words (NY Times).

President Trump’s attacks on the press threaten national security, argues Carrie Cordero at Law Fare.

JUSTICE & SAFETY

The newly announced strategy for the war in Afghanistan repeats historical mistakes and continues America’s “forever war,” writes Emma Ashford at Cato at Liberty.

President Trump remains a risk to national security, argues Benjamin Wittes at Lawfare.

The U.S. Navy removed from duty the commander of the Navy’s 7th Fleet, which has had several recent collisions in the Pacific (WSJ, WaPo).

National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster has coordinated greater involvement of the National Security Council in Jared Kushner’s Middle Eastern diplomacy projects, reports Annie Karni at Politico.

The United States has requested that the autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq delay an upcoming referendum on independence (NY Times).

International law is not a guiding force in President Trump’s new Afghanistan strategy, argues Gabriella Blum at Lawfare.

The Trump administration is denying Egypt almost $100 million in aid and delaying $195 million in military funding because of the country’s links to North Korea and its human-rights record (NY Times).

The White House will host Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak despite the leader’s recent billion-dollar corruption scandal (NY Times).

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

Justice Neil Gorsuch’s upcoming speech at the Trump Hotel does not pose ethical concerns, argues Jonathan Adler at Volokh Conspiracy.

After a lawsuit, the Secret Service has agreed not to delete White House visitor log data (Politico).

REGULATION

A federal judge has blocked an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission rule permitting employers to charge increased health insurance premiums to employees who do not participate in wellness programs, reports Nick Bagley in Take Care.

The Federal Trade Commission will not block a proposed merger between Whole Foods and Amazon (Ars Technica, WaPo).

An environmental organization has sued the Environmental Protection Agency over its failure to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request regarding its deregulatory task force (The Hill).

Several members of President Trump’s National Infrastructure Advisory Council resigned (The Hill).

CHECKS & BALANCES

President Trump’s threat to shut down the government by vetoing any budget bill that does not include border wall funding could disrupt delicate negotiations, report Mike DeBonis, Elise Viebeck, and Damian Paletta in the Washington Post.

FEDERALISM

A bipartisan group of 67 former state attorneys general criticized President Trump’s response to the events in Charlottesville (ACS Blog).

RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE

Congressional investigators have located an email from Trump campaign aide Rick Dearborn in which he referenced efforts to arrange a meeting between Trump campaign officials and Vladimir Putin (CNN).