10/2/19  //  Daily Update

DOJ is joining the president in suing the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office after DA Cyrus Vance subpoenaed the president’s tax returns. The New York AG and Brooklyn DA are suing ICE over courthouse arrests. A federal judge has issued a preliminary injunction blocking a California law requiring presidential candidates to release tax returns. The D.C. Circuit upheld most of the FCC's net neutrality repeal but ruled that the FCC cannot summarily preempt state net neutrality rules. The Inspector General of the Intelligence Community has issued a statement responding to allegations from President Trump that the whistleblower reporting form changed recently to remove a “first hand knowledge” requirement. Citizens for Responsible Ethics in Washington (CREW) has asked a judge for a TRO preventing the president from claiming records of communication with foreign leaders are privileged. The House Judiciary Committee has filed their reply brief asking a judge to release certain grand jury materials from the Mueller investigation, arguing they may be relevant to the Ukraine inquiry.

10/1/19  //  Daily Update

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo took part in the infamous July 25 call between President Trump and the president of Ukraine. In a recent phone call, President Trump asked the Australian prime minister to help AG Bill Barr with an investigation to counter the Mueller probe. The president is trying to identify the Ukraine whistleblower and accused Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) of treason. House Democrats subpoenaed Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani for records related to interactions with Ukraine. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that the Senate will conduct a trial if the House impeaches the president. A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit from four states over the cap on deductions for state and local taxes in President Trump’s tax law.

9/30/19  //  Daily Update

In 2017, the President told Russian officials he was unconcerned with Moscow’s election interference. The President called for the outing of the anonymous whistleblower in a speech on Sunday, later tweeting that he wanted to meet with them and threatening “Big Consequences!” while alluding to allegations of treason by Democratic lawmakers. FEC Chairwoman Ellen Weintraub took the unusual step of releasing a memo related to foreign election interference on Twitter after its publication in the agency’s digest was objected to by a Republican Commission member. U.S. District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson issued a preliminary injunction temporarily blocking the expedition of deportations that was challenged by civil rights groups including the ACLU.

9/27/19  //  Daily Update

The acting Director of National Security testified yesterday morning for three hours, defending his handling of the whistleblower’s report, which was publicly released. The administration has reached an asylum deal with Honduras that could result in immigrants being stuck in one of the world’s most violent countries.

9/26/19  //  Daily Update

The Trump administration released a rough transcript the President’s conversation with the president of Ukraine. The Senate has voted for a second time to overrule the national emergency Trump announced to allow building the border wall, but failed to get enough votes to defeat a veto. A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration has violated the law by delaying visas for Afghans and Iraqis who worked as translators for the military. A judge in New York has issued a one-day stay of a subpoena of Trump’s financial documents.

9/25/19  //  Daily Update

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi officially announced an impeachment inquiry against President Trump in light of the Ukraine scandal and whistleblower complaint. President Trump will release the fully declassified and unredacted transcript of his phone call with the Ukrainian President at the center of the recent whistleblower complaint. The House Ways and Means Committee urged a federal judge to deny President Trump’s motion to dismiss their lawsuit aimed at obtaining his tax returns. The House of Representatives passed a resolution reaffirming US commitment to addressing global refugee crises. The Department of Labor issued a rule extending overtime eligibility to 1.3 million workers, effective January of 2020.

9/24/19  //  Daily Update

President Trump directed the acting White House chief of staff to freeze millions of dollars in aid for Ukraine just days before the president was scheduled to speak with the Ukrainian president. In light of the Ukrainian revelations, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is again exploring the possibility of impeachment. New York prosecutors asked a federal judge to dismiss President Trump’s suit over their subpoenas of his tax returns from his accounting firm, Mazars USA. Beginning next week, nearly all immigration families who request asylum will be sent to Mexico to wait for a decision. A new study finds that 78 percent of top White House jobs have turned over at least once under President Trump.

9/23/19  //  Daily Update

A New York judge ordered President Trump to appear for a videotaped deposition in a civil suit between his security guards and protesters. Twenty-three states filed suit against the Trump Administration, arguing the Administration’s revocation of California’s authority to set its own vehicle emissions standards was unlawful. The United States and El Salvador have reached an agreement that may allow the US to send asylum seekers to El Salvador. In response to the recent attacks on Saudi oil facilities, President Trump has approved sanctions on Iran and the deployment of additional troops to Saudi Arabia.

9/17/19  //  Daily Update

The administration has dropped its effort to delay putting in place an Obama-era rule regarding special education placement after a ruling from a federal judge. Writers at the New York Times have uncovered a new allegation of sexual assault against Justice Brett Kavanaugh, new corroboration of existing allegations, and new evidence that the FBI was aware of allegations during the nomination and confirmation process, though these factual allegations remain contested. The acting director of national intelligence has until today to turn over a report regarding a whistleblower in response to a subpoena from a House Democrat Adam Schiff, who alleges that refusal to turn over the report potentially indicates improper interference from the White House. The House Judiciary Committee is seeking testimony from former Attorney General Jeff Sessions as a part of their impeachment probe.

9/16/19  //  Daily Update

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated an Emoluments Clause lawsuit against President Trump that had been dismissed for lack of Article III standing. The “Migrant Protection Protocols” policy has flooded courts along the southern border, as asylum seekers can no longer be detained or released elsewhere in the United States. The Treasury Department announced sanctions against three North Korean cyber groups for committing cyber-attacks. The DOJ argued the court should reject the House Judiciary Committee’s efforts to obtain grand jury material from the Mueller investigation because the committee is not involved in impeachment proceedings.

9/13/19  //  Daily Update

The House Judiciary Committee has taken a vote to continue investigating the possibility of bringing articles of impeachment against the President. The Justice Department has authorized prosecutors to indict Andrew McCabe on charges for lying to investigators. The EPA announced that it will shrink waterway protections.

9/12/19  //  Daily Update

The Supreme Court allowed the Trump Administration's sweeping restrictions on asylum to go into effect. Rep. Meadows and Sen. Cotton have introduced legislation to block district judges from issuing nation-wide injunctions of executive policy. Eugene Scalia has officially been nominated as Secretary of Labor.

9/11/19  //  Daily Update

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California reinstated the nationwide ban on the Administration’s third country asylum rule, but the Ninth Circuit immediately granted an administrative stay of that injunction. President Trump announced that he fired his National Security Adviser, John Bolton, because they disagreed strongly on many issues. President Trump issued an executive order, expanding the tools currently available to the Administration to go after terrorists and their supporters. Senate Democrats announced they will vote again to disapprove of President Trump’s national emergency declaration, forcing Republicans to formally support or condemn it.

9/10/19  //  Daily Update

The House Judiciary Committee announced a proposed set of procedures for its impeachment investigation, which the committee will take up on Thursday. The House Foreign Affairs, Intelligence, and Oversight Committees announced an investigation into the Trump administration’s potential misuse of foreign aid funds to pressure Ukraine. The president claimed he will release an “extremely complete” report of his financial record, offering no specifics and an uncertain timeline. A federal judge in California reinstated a national injunction against the Trump administration’s “safe third country” asylum rule. In a previously undisclosed mission in 2017, the CIA extracted a high-level spy from Russia in part because of concerns that President Trump and his administration mishandled intelligence and could expose the spy. Documents obtained from Scottish government agencies show that President Trump made arrangements between the Glasgow airport and his Turnberry resort prior to taking office. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross threatened to fire top employees at NOAA after the agency contradicted President Trump’s claims about Hurricane Dorian’s path.

9/9/19  //  Daily Update

The House Judiciary Committee released its Resolution for Investigative Procedures related to proposed impeachment investigation of the President. Last week on Versus Trump, Jason discussed the continuing illegal intransigence of the Department of Education, with Eileen Connor and Toby Merrill of Harvard's Project on Predatory Student Lending. The President appeared to be promoting campaign apparel during remarks about Hurricane Dorian from Camp David – with the merchandise later appearing on the reelection website. The U.S. Air Force has ordered a world-wide review of how it chooses overnight accommodations on long flights following revelations that air crews had occasionally stayed at President Donald Trump's Scotland resort while refueling at a small commercial airport nearby.