Daily Update | December 18, 2018
Jacob Miller // 12/18/18 //
Two business associates of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn were indicted for conspiring to serve as unregistered foreign agents of Turkey and lying to federal investigators. Congressional Republicans continue to attempt to convince President Trump not to shut down the government if there is no funding allocated for a border wall. Democrats in Michigan have turned to Governor Rick Snyder in hopes of blocking Republican legislation that would strip significant authority from the Democratic Secretary of State and Attorney General. An official statement from Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs sharply criticized the United States Senate for claiming that crown prince Mohammed bin Salman was at least partially responsible for the death of Jamal Khashoggi. The Senate Intelligence Committee released two reports on Russian social media activity during the 2016 election. Russian disinformation teams targeted special counsel Robert Mueller with claims that he was corrupt and had ties to extremist groups.
TRUMP: INVESTIGATIONS AND LITIGATION
Two business associates of former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn were indicted for conspiring to serve as unregistered foreign agents of Turkey and lying to federal investigators (Politico, NYT, WaPo, WSJ).
- The indictment is available here.
President Trump continuing to make money from his properties may be unconstitutional, as ongoing lawsuits have alleged, write Karen Yourish and Larry Buchanan for the New York Times.
Claims that President Trump’s involvement in illegal hush money payments during the 2016 campaign do not rise to the level of an impeachable offense are mistaken, contend Bob Bauer and Quinta Jurecic at Lawfare.
IMMIGRATION
Congressional Republicans continue to attempt to convince President Trump not to shut down the government if there is no funding allocated for a border wall (WaPo).
President Trump’s policies, especially the travel ban, have inhumane outcomes including a Yemeni mother being unable to visit her dying son in the United States, writes Dana Milbank for the Washington Post.
DEMOCRACY
Democrats in Michigan have turned to Governor Rick Snyder in hopes of blocking Republican legislation that would strip significant authority from the Democratic Secretary of State and Attorney General (NYT).
JUSTICE & SAFETY
An official statement from Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs sharply criticized the United States Senate for claiming that crown prince Mohammed bin Salman was at least partially responsible for the death of Jamal Khashoggi (NYT).
The next President after Trump will have to re-establish the legitimacy of American intelligence organizations through changes in how they function and how they are publicly discussed, writes Steve Slick for Lawfare.
REGULATION
Full rescission of the Affordable Care Act would jeopardize many seemingly unrelated programs and regulations, writes Abbe Gluck at Take Care.
The Department of Education intends to roll back Obama-era guidance that urged schools to avoid disparate impact on minority students in implementing disciplinary policies, report Erica Green and Katie Benner in the New York Times.
The Department of Agriculture will increase payments to farmers harmed by tariffs, reports Jacob Bunge in the Wall Street Journal.
RULE OF LAW
On Twitter, President Trump pressured the Federal Reserve to refrain from raising interest rates (WSJ).
While Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has resigned, he still faces ethics investigations and potential criminal prosecution for financial misconduct while in office, notes Julie Turkewitz in the New York Times.
CHECKS & BALANCES
The Supreme Court is likely to confront many Trump administration policies in 2019, including the administration’s ban on transgender military service and its restrictions on asylum seekers, writes Ariane de Vogue at CNN.
REMOVAL FROM OFFICE
President Trump could learn to love the impeachment process, especially the ratings associated with it, argues Hugh Hewitt for the Washington Post.
Arguments that the Constitution permits a sitting president to be indicted are dubious, argues Philip Bobbitt at Lawfare.
RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE
The Senate Intelligence Committee released two reports on Russian social media activity during the 2016 election (Lawfare).
Among other things, the reports suggest that Russian trolls solicited sexual information about Americans via social media to use as blackmail material, writes Quinta Jurecic at Lawfare.
Russian disinformation teams targeted special counsel Robert Mueller with claims that he was corrupt and had ties to extremist groups (WaPo).
Tags:
Immigration Rule of Law Checks & Balances Regulation Democracy Justice & Safety Removal from Office Russian Interference