Britany Riley , Sarah Mahmood  //  7/21/17  //  Daily Update

The Senate has confirmed John Bush to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. The ACLU has filed suit against the Trump administration to get details on plans to roll back civil rights in the name of religious freedom. Attorney General Jeff Sessions plans to remain in his position, despite criticism from President Trump about his recusal from the Russia investigation. Special Counsel Robert Mueller has expanded his investigation to include a range of business transactions involving the President and his associates. 

PODCAST

The latest episode of Versus Trump discusses the litigation against the newly-created Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity.

CIVIL RIGHTS

The Senate confirmed John Bush, President Trump’s nominee to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, despite concerns by civil rights advocates (WaPo, Politico, Buzzfeed News).

• Lambda Legal issued a press release stating that Judge Bush was strongly opposed by LGBT advocates.

DEMOCRACY 

The heavily criticized Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity is a misguided response to the President’s popular-vote loss, argues Heather Digby Parton at Salon.

• The Commission’s goal is to stoke fears and pave the way for harsh voter restrictions, argues Michael Waldman on the Daily Beast.
• Eliza Newlin Harley argues that the Commission’s actions reveal its true intent, regardless of lofty promises made by the President and his commissioners at The American Prospect.

The ACLU sued the Trump Administration for details on plans to roll back civil rights in the name of “religious freedom” (The Daily Beast).

• The complaint is available here.

JUSTICE & SAFETY

Despite sharp criticism from President Trump regarding his decision to recuse himself from investigations in Russian interference in the election, Attorney General Jeff Sessions plans to remain in his position (NYT, WaPo).

• The Attorney General should resign in the face the President’s blatant disregard for federal law enforcement, argues Benjamin Wittes at Lawfare.
• Jack Goldsmith disagrees at Lawfare.

U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley recently boasted about major cuts to the UN peacekeeping budget, but the pare down will have significant impacts on humanitarian operations, argue Sarah Knuckey, Anjli Parrin, AbdoulAziz Sali, Lewis Alexis Mbolinani andBaptiste Martin at Just Security.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson announced plans to shut down the Office for the Coordination of Cyber Issues, which some view as an attempt to deemphasize the Department’s role in international cyber-security policy (Ars Technica).

The Department of Homeland Security will end the ban on laptops in the cabins of international flights (LA Times).

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

The public must be vigilant and ready to oppose the ways in which President Trump receives domestic emoluments, writes Joshua Matz at Take Care.

Banking regulators are reviewing hundreds of millions of dollars in loans that President Trump received through Deutsche Bank  (NYT).

REGULATION

President Trump will own any failure of the Affordable Care Act, argues Michael Dorf at Take Care.

The Protect Democracy Project has sued the Office of Management and Budget for failing to release communications in connection to the Congressional Budget Office, which could reveal Trump Administration plans to discredit the agency (WaPo).

• The complaint can be found here.

The Environmental Protection Agency plans to repeal the Clean Power Act and Clean Water Rule, among other Obama administration rules (The Hill).

RULE OF LAW

Joel Clement, former director of the Office of Policy Analysis at the U.S. Department of the Interior, has filed a complaint against the Trump Administration arguing that he was unlawfully removed for speaking out about climate change (WaPo).

President Trump has little respect for the rule of law, based on his remarks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Special Counsel Robert Mueller, opines James Hohmann at the Washington Post.

• President Trump’s disparagement of the law enforcement apparatus reveals that he believes is above the law, concurs Greg Sargent at the Washington Post.
• Through his remarks in the New York Times, President Trump may have harmed his own legal defense against possible charges of obstruction of justice and improper campaign collusion with Russia, contends Bob Bauer at Lawfare.
• The interview may expose President Trump’s family members and associates to legal trouble as well, write Ryan Goodman and Andy Wright at Just Security.

REMOVAL FROM OFFICE

Congressmen who resist impeachment even when the president has proven himself unfit for office are abandoning their duties, argues Jane Chong at Lawfare.

RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE

Special Counsel Robert Mueller has expanded the Russia probe to investigate a broad range of business transactions involving the President and his business associates, including his senior advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner (Bloomberg, WaPo).

The Treasury Department has fined Exxon Mobil $2 million for breaching sanctions against Russia in 2014, while under the helm of then-CEO and now-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (NYT).

Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort’s legal representation by Reginald Brown, a partner at WilmerHale, where Special Counsel Robert Mueller was also partner, does not necessarily pose a conflict of interest, explains Diane Klein at Dorf on Law.