Britany Riley ,  //  6/21/17  //  Daily Update

The New York Times reported that former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn was present during highly sensitive briefings despite concerns among career CIA staff that he was at risk of blackmail over his contacts with the Russians. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a new crime-fighting partnership between the Department of Justice and a dozen cities across the country. Meanwhile, Sessions has hired personal counsel to advise him during the Government's investigation into Russian interference with the presidential election last year. And the Trump administration has issued disputed cost-sharing payments to health insurers for the month of July, eliminating for at least a month the prospect of an imminent collapse of the Affordable Care Act's insurance marketplaces.

IMMIGRATION

In a recent Supreme Court filing, Hawaii argues that the Trump Administration’s request for time to review visa-issuances processes are undercut by the major delays incurred litigating the revised entry ban.(Law News)

Sanctuary cities around the country are vowing to protect immigrants from overzealous ICE enforcement.(Marshall Project)

• Their efforts are working, argues George Joseph at Slate.

CIVIL RIGHTS

Many disability advocacy groups have turned nearly all of their attention to fighting the American Healthcare Act's proposed cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, which they argue would devastate people with disabilities (Disability Scoop).

DEMOCRACY

The geography of Maryland and D.C. creates a unique relationship to the federal government, a fact that strengthens arguments for standing in recently filed Emoluments Clause suits, argues David Fontana at Take Care.

Ben Freeman at Lawfarehighlightsthree pieces of legislation that would allow Congress to effectively combat foreign interference in American elections.

• The FEC will revisit rules on donations and may be able avoid the partisan deadlocks that have plagued the Commission on other issues,arguesRobert Lenhard (Covington & Burlington).

JUSTICE & SAFETY

The Administration’s still-transitioning national security team lacks the personnel and policy framework to handle a crisis (Politico).  

• President Trump’s policies and temperament put the country in imminent danger of being drawn into foreign conflict, argues Sen. Ben Cardin (MD).

Otto Warmbier’s imprisonment in North Korea and recent death underscore the need for a consistent and strong human rights policy, arguesJennifer Rubin (WaPo).

Attorney General Jeff Sessions return to the harsh sentencing policies of the War on Drugs is misguided, reasons Radley Balko, responding to an earlier opinion piece by AG Sessions (WaPo).

• The Session opinion can be found here.
• The effects will be disastrous for communities around the country, claims Don Winslow at Time.

The Trump Administration’s Budget includes major cuts to FEMA, which will severely hamper first responders’ ability to protect and serve communities, claims Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.)

The United States is increasingly active in the Middle East, amidst significant intervention in Syria, rising tension with Qatar, and resuming arms sales to Saudi Arabia, notes J. Dana Stuster on Lawfare.

RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE

Michael Flynn sat in the Oval Office and listened to the new C.I.A. director brief President Trump on sensitive intelligence, raising concerns about blackmail (NYT).

Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who has been under fire in recent months for his contact with Russian officials, has retained his own personal counsel, reports Sari Horowitz for the Washington Post.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller met with House Intelligence Committee members Tuesday to ensure that their parallel investigations do not conflict with one another, writes Kyle Cheney for Politico.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer said Tuesday that he has not spoken with President Trump about whether or not Russia meddled in the US Presidential election last year (Politico).

REGULATION

President Trump has filled two vacant seats on the NLRB, which will likely undo Obama-era policies on labor (NYT).

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke and Energy Secretary Rick Perry went to Capitol Hill on Tuesday to defend President Trump's proposals to slash their departments' budgets (The Hill).

A draft order on drug prices proposes easing regulations on the pharmaceutical industry (NYT).

The House quickly passed a bill extending a nuclear energy tax credit (The Hill).

The Trump Administration has made cost-sharing payments, which are the subject of ongoing litigation, to health insurers for the month of June, temporarily ending the prospect of an immediate and abrupt collapse of the Affordable Care Act (WSJ).

RULE OF LAW

The Justice Department will form partnerships with a dozen cities across the country to help them fight gun crime, drug trafficking, and gang violence, Attorney General Sessions announced Tuesday (NYT).

The Trump Administration unveiled new sanctions against Russia over the country’s incursion in Ukraine (NYT).

And that's our update today!  Thanks for reading.  We cover a lot of ground, so our updates are inevitably a partial selection of relevant legal commentary.  

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