Daily Update | July 18, 2019
Karen Kadish // 7/18/19 //
The House of Representatives held Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in contempt for their refusal to turn over documents relating to the Trump Administration’s attempt to add a citizenship question to the census. The House of Representatives passed a third bill attempting to undo the arms deal that President Trump made with Saudi Arabia, which will likely lead to another presidential veto of the bill. The investigation into Michael Cohen’s campaign-finance infractions has been concluded. Multiple lawsuits have now been filed challenging the new asylum regulation that denies asylum to individuals who did not request asylum in the first country they reached after leaving their country of origin.
TRUMP: INVESTIGATION AND LITIGATION
The investigation into Michael Cohen’s campaign-finance infractions has been concluded, reports Matt Zapotosky at The Washington Post.
IMMIGRATION
Multiple lawsuits have now been filed challenging the new asylum regulation, implemented starting July 16, which denies asylum to individuals who did not request asylum in the first country they reached after leaving their country of origin. (Lawfare)
The pentagon has sent 2,100 additional troops to the U.S.-Mexico border to help with security. (WaPo; NYT)
Only 10% of people crossing the United States’ southern border are referred for asylum interviews, writes David Bier at Cato.
“Metering” asylum seekers at the southern border (restricting the number of individuals who can enter U.S. soil to request asylum each day) leaves asylum seekers in dangerous circumstances for weeks, with no clear sense of when they might be allowed to apply for asylum, writes Stephanie Leutert at Lawfare.
CIVIL RIGHTS
The Second Circuit’s ruling the the First Amendment prevents President Trump from blocking Twitter followers applies to President Trump because he is a government official, but does not apply to all uses of Twitter or social media, writes Joshua Geltzer at Take Care Blog.
The House of Representatives held Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in contempt for their refusal to turn over documents relating to the Trump Administration’s attempt to add a citizenship question to the census, reports Nicholas Fandos at The New York Times.
JUSTICE & SAFETY
The House of Representatives passed a third bill attempting to undo the arms deal that President Trump made with Saudi Arabia, which will likely lead to another presidential veto of the bill. (WaPo; NYT)
The confirmation hearings for Mark Esper, nominated for defense secretary, shed light on his views of the United States’ foreign commitments and conflicts, and evinced a commitment to U.S. allies that seems at odds with the views of President Trump, write Edwin Djabatey and Kate Brannen at Just Security.
The White House has decided that Turkey may no longer buy the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter under NATO agreements because of Turkey’s decision to continue to buy missile systems from Russia. (ArsTechnica)
The United States has sanctioned several Myanmar generals over the mass killings of Rohingya Muslims. (WaPo)
REGULATION
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has suggested weakening or reducing safety inspections to nuclear plans. (NYT)
The Gundy decision about Congress’s delegation of power could impact many executive actions – including the imposition of tariffs, writes Harlan Grant Cohen at Just Security.