Daily Update | October 2, 2018
Zak Lutz // 10/2/18 //
Confusion over the limits of the FBI investigation into Brett Kavanaugh has stoked only more fighting among Judiciary Committee members. The FBI interviewed Mark Judge. Former FBI Director James Comey said he’d be willing to testify before Congress, but only if the testimony is public. DOJ officials said they would sue to prevent California’s net neutrality law. Immigration case quotas went into effect yesterday, requiring each immigration judge to process at least 700 cases per year. Self-driving taxis will exist this year, but in the absence of any significant government regulation. The Federal Banking Agencies issued a regulation that reduced identification requirements for high-quality loans.
TRUMP: INVESTIGATIONS AND LITIGATION
Confusion over the limits of the FBI investigation into Brett Kavanaugh has stoked only more fighting among Judiciary Committee members (NYer, WaPo).
- President Trump voiced support for an extensive investigation, “within reason” (NYT).
- President Trump also criticized the Democrats on the Judiciary Committee (NYT). Find the video here.
- The FBI investigated Kavanaugh accuser Deborah Ramirez (AP, CNN).
- The FBI can do a lot in one week, argues former FBI Director James Comey in The New York Times.
- The limits on the investigation have not changed (NBC).
- The Republican-appointed prosecutor said she would not have brought criminal charges against Brett Kavanaugh (WaPo).
- Mitch McConnell is scheduling the vote before he reads the final report from the FBI (WSJ).
- The Kavanaugh nomination reflects a failure in the Trump Administration’s vetting, argues Harsh Vorgunati in The Vetting Room.
- The FBI interviewed Mark Judge (Politico).
Former FBI Director James Comey said he’d be willing to testify before Congress, but only if the testimony is public (WaPo).
IMMIGRATION
The proposed DHS regulations are not just about a hard line on immigration -- they are also about limiting the welfare state, argues Bryce Covert in The New York Times.
Jeff Sessions is attacking immigrants and undermining due process through his asylum and immigration judge policies, argues Derek Hausman at the ACLU.
- Immigration case quotas went into effect yesterday, requiring each immigration judge to process at least 700 cases per year (ImmigrationProf).
A DHS Inspector General report leaked, describing widespread failures in implementing the “zero tolerance” immigration policy (WaPo).
CIVIL RIGHTS
The Trump Administration has continued moving migrants to tent cities and detention centers (NYT, NYT).
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
The Trump Administration’s conflicts of interest are continuing and growing (Global Anticorruption Blog).
REGULATION
Experts worry that telecommunications regulations will lead to 5G rollout only in more affluent communities (The Hill).
DOJ officials said they would sue to prevent California’s net neutrality law (ArsTechnica, The Hill).
- The Administration argues the law will cause “irreparable harm” to the United States (ArsTechnica).
Progressive visions for environmental justice need to consider both distributive justice and divisive politics, argues Michael P. Vandenberg in The Regulatory Review.
Self-driving taxis will exist this year, but in the absence of any significant government regulation (ArsTechnica).
The Federal Banking Agencies issued a regulation that reduced identification requirements for high-quality loans (ConsumerFinanceMonitor).
Baptist Churches joined a lawsuit claiming that CFPB regulations went through insufficient procedures (ConsumerFinanceMonitor).
The EPA’s proposed rules to limit the automobile emissions rule will likely not survive legal challenge, argues Michael Lemov in The Hill.
The Trump Administration is changing rule-making procedures to make human health a less important factor in order to make it easier to release chemicals into the air (WaPo).
RULE OF LAW
The veto power is not absolute, but one among equals, argue Aditi Juneja & Sonya Petri in Take Care.
CHECKS & BALANCE
The Supreme Court is potentially facing a legitimacy crisis (FiveThirtyEight, Sacramento Bee).
REMOVAL FROM OFFICE
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s removal from office would represent a challenge to the rule of law in America, argues Ulysses Smith in The Hill.
RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE
China’s threat to American democracy is real but more nuanced than what President Trump portrayed at the UN, argues Rush Doshi and Robert Williams in Lawfare.
Tags:
Immigration Rule of Law Conflicts Checks & Balances Regulation Civil Rights Removal from Office Russian Interference