Caroline Cox  //  11/15/17  //  Daily Update

President Trump’s most recent executive order increasing the vetting of refugees from 11 countries is being challenged in a Washington federal district court. Only 6 of 102 federal agencies met the Department of Homeland Security’s first deadline to uninstall compromised anti-virus software. American cities and states are fighting global warming even without the support of the federal government. Attorney General Jeff Session provided testimony to the House Judiciary Committee on his contacts with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign.

IMMIGRATION

President Trump’s most recent executive order increasing the vetting of refugees from 11 countries is being challenged in a Washington federal district court (Religion Clause).

• The complaint in Jewish Family Services of Seattle v. Trump is available here.

Congress must act quickly on the Dream Act despite President Trump’s assurance that DACA recipients have “nothing to worry about,” argues Lorella Praeli at the ACLU’s blog.  

CIVIL RIGHTS

A federal court granted a motion to allow the state of Washington to join Lambda Legal’s lawsuit challenging the transgender military service ban (Lambda Legal).

A novel argument that the civil rights law at issue in Masterpiece Cakeshop is not generally applicable has troubling implications, argues Jim Oleske at Take Care.

DEMOCRACY

Federal campaign finance law appears increasingly obsolete in light of the 2016 election (Election Law Blog).  

JUSTICE & SAFETY

Only 6 of 102 federal agencies met the Department of Homeland Security’s first deadline to uninstall compromised anti-virus software (The Hill). 

The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved the nomination of Kirstjen Nielsen to lead the Department of Homeland Security (The Hill).

President Trump’s tour of Asia may not have have left allies feeling reassured about America’s role in the region (NYT).

An FBI report shows a rise in reported hate crimes, a drop in disability-related hate crimes, and sharp increase in anti-Muslim incidents (Disability Scoop; Religion Clause). 

The Trump Administration’s approach to detainees may provide insight into its counterterrorism strategies (Just Security).

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

In the last year, Republicans and federal political committees have spent at least $1.27 million at Trump properties (WaPo).

REGULATION

American cities and states are fighting global warming even without the support of the federal government, write former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and California Governor Jerry Brown at the New York Times.

The tax plan being debated in the House of Representatives would likely undermine President Trump’s promise of $1 trillion in infrastructure spending (The Hill).

Conservative legal advocacy groups are urging the Trump Administration to change Obama-era policies related to transgender students, Title IX, and school discipline (Regulatory Review).

An upcoming FCC vote could eliminate consumer protections that require internet providers to show that replacement services have the same capabilities as the discontinued network (Ars Technica).

Gary Cohn, President Trump’s top economic adviser, appeared surprised to learn that few CEOs plan to invest more if the tax reform bill passes (WaPo).

The House tax reform bill includes language that would support efforts to undermine abortion rights, argues Brian Tashman at the ACLU.

A letter from congressional Democrats urges Secretary Betsy DeVos to make the Department of Education’s debate over policies on the borrower defense to repayment rule more transparent (The Hill).

RULE OF LAW

President Trump’s decision to push for an investigation into Hillary Clinton goes against norms of American elections (NYT).

1. The Washington Post considers how it could politicize the agency.
2. The New York Times explains the uranium deal that is a potential focus of the investigation.

President Trump’s nominations to the federal judiciary show that he is “exalting ideology and partisanship over professional credentials,” argues the Editorial Board of the Los Angeles Times.

CHECKS & BALANCES

Senators voiced concern that they have few legislative solutions to reduce President Trump’s ability to launch nuclear attacks (WaPo; WSJ).

FEDERALISM

Analysis of President Trump’s judicial nominees shows that they are the least diverse group since the President Reagan’s nominees (Roll Call).

President Trump’s nomination of Brett Talley to serve as a district judge in the Middle District of Alabama likely forced the President’s first black nominee to a different district (HuffPo).

RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE

Attorney General Jeff Session provided testimony to the House Judiciary Committee on his contacts with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign (WaPo; NYT).

• The Hill explores Attorney General Sessions’s statement that the Trump campaign was “a form of chaos every day.”
• Lawfare provides a live blog and video of the hearing.

Donald Trump Jr.’s private Twitter messages with WikiLeaks during the 2016 election do not provide clear evidence of a crime (The Atlantic).

• But The Washington Post’s timeline suggests coordination between the group and Donald Trump, Jr.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange publicly offered Donald Trump, Jr. the opportunity to serve as “ambassador” on behalf of whistleblowers (The Hill).  

The FBI is examining more than 60 Russian foreign ministry wire transfers that included a memo line that said “to finance election campaign of 2016” (The Hill).