Jacob Miller, Ian Eppler  //  3/21/18  //  Daily Update

The Supreme Court heard arguments in a case challenging a California law which requires “crisis pregnancy centers” to give information about abortion. The Koch network urged President Trump to accept an offer from congressional Democrats, which would give a pathway to citizenship for young immigrants and $25 billion for a border wall. A New York state judge denied a motion to dismiss filed by President Trump in a lawsuit by a woman who accused President Trump of sexually assaulting her, concluding that President Trump does not have immunity from suit in cases not involving official acts. Cambridge Analytica suspended its CEO after reports that the data analytics firm improperly accessed private Facebook user data during its work on behalf of the Trump campaign.

IMMIGRATION

The Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office became the only one in New York to sign an agreement that enables corrections officers to act as ICE officers (NYT). 

The term “chain migration” has moved from an innocuous academic use to become a politically charged term infused with prejudice, writes Stephen Kearse for the New York Times Magazine.

The Koch network urged President Trump to accept an offer from congressional Democrats, which would give a pathway to citizenship for young immigrants and $25 billion for a border wall (Politico).

CIVIL RIGHTS 

U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves temporarily blocked a new Mississippi law from being in effect that would ban almost all abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy (NYT, AP).

The Supreme Court heard arguments challenging a California law which requires “crisis pregnancy centers” to give information about abortion in National Institute of Family and Life Advocates v. Becerra (NYT, WaPo, LATimes, SCOTUSBlog).

The ACLU of Kansas filed suit on behalf of an employee of Spirit Aerosystems against the company alleging religious discrimination after the employee’s membership at a recreational lake was suspended following a Ramadan party (Religion Clause).

JUSTICE & SAFETY

The United States and South Korea plan to resume joint military exercises in spite of President Trump’s to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un (NYT).

REGULATION

The Environmental Protection Agency plans to implement new restrictions on the types of scientific studies that it may use in crafting regulations (The Hill).

The EPA has proposed revisions to its oil refinery pollution rules (The Hill).

The Food and Drug Administration announced its initial plans to regulate flavored tobacco products (The Hill).  

RULE OF LAW

A New York state judge denied a motion to dismiss filed by President Trump in a lawsuit by a woman who accused President Trump of sexually assaulting her, concluding that President Trump does not have immunity from suit in cases not involving official acts (Lyle Denniston Law News, NYTimes, Politico, WaPo).

• The opinion is available here.

Another woman who claims to have been asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement after an affair with President Trump has filed suit, asking to be released from the agreement (NYTimes, Politico).

Cambridge Analytica suspended its CEO after reports that the data analytics firm improperly accessed private Facebook user data during its work on behalf of the Trump campaign (NYTimes, WaPo, WSJ).

• The Federal Trade Commission is investigating Facebook (Bloomberg, NYTimes, WaPo, WSJ).
• So are UK authorities (Reuters).
• A former employee of Cambridge Analytica will speak voluntarily with Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee (The Hill, WaPo).
• Facebook staff members will also brief members of Congress on the issue (Politico, The Hill).
• Andrew Keane Woods provides background on the legal issues at Lawfare, and Timothy Lee provides background on the technical issues at Ars Technica.
• The Trump campaign attempted to distance itself from Cambridge Analytica (Politico).

Theodore Olson, who served as Solicitor General under President George W. Bush, has declined to join President Trump’s legal defense team (WaPo).

Requiring White House staffers to sign non-disclosure agreements is illegal, contends Esha Bhandari at the ACLUblog.

A judge dismissed a lawsuit challenging White House staffers’ use of encrypted messaging apps to conduct official business (Politico).

REMOVAL FROM OFFICE

Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) suggested that impeachment would be the remedy if President Trump terminated the Special Counsel investigation (WaPo).  

RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE

During a recent phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Trump disregarded a briefing from his national security team instructing him not to congratulate Putin on his recent reelection and to condemn the recent murder of a former Russian spy on British soil, report Carol Leonnig, David Nakamura, and Josh Dawsey at the Washington Post.

The Senate Intelligence Committee released its first report on its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. The report covers election security measures (The Hill, WSJ).

• The report is available here.

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