Russia Stuff
Ryan Lizza of The New Yorker has been covering the Devin Nunes scandal. In what may be the last chapter of the story sparked by Trump’s false wiretapping claim, we learn that to justify or distract from Trump’s tweet:
- the White House dug into national security records to find examples of times when right-wing boogey-woman Susan Rice requested names of Americans unmasked in intelligence reports, which by the way is a routine and perfectly innocuous part of the national security advisor’s job.
- then the White House called Nunes to the White House to give him these documents
- then asked Nunes to return the next day and brief the President, allowing Trump to say he was justified in what he tweeted.
Reuters reported this week that a Russian think tank drew up plans on how the Kremlin could interfere with the 2016 American election. The documents focus on social media propaganda, not the hacking and weaponization of stolen emails.
Foreign Affairs
Week 13 began with the North Koreans causing trouble, a missile launch and a massive military parade.
Also, Trump made a shocking move by officially congratulating the president of Turkey on winning enough votes to weaken democratic institutions in Turkey, increasing his autocratic powers. At the State Department, Tillerson put out a very different, more negative message than Trump. Another case of different parts of the Trump Administration being off message from one another is Russia, where Trump speaks in rosy terms but national security aides are more critical of Russia.
Here is another WaPo story about the Trump Administration sowing confusion with mixed signals on foreign affairs.
Conflicts of Interest
The New York Times reported on how Trump is staffing his administration with former lobbyists and already breaking his own ethics rules.
Here is a profile of how Ivanka Trump traveling all over the world as both a White House employee and head of her private company. This paragraph is telling: “…she has kept her financial interest in the company and retains the ability to approve or veto certain deals through her trust arrangement. Ms. Trump also maintains a stake in the Trump International Hotel in Washington, just down the street from the White House.”
Politico headline: Trump’s billionaire advisor stand to gain from policies he helped shape. This is about China policy being shaped by Blackstone CEO who has major investments in China.
Immigration
The Washington Post reported that ICE immigration arrests of noncriminals have dubbed under Trump.
Congressional Action
In Week 13, Trump’s refusal to release his taxes was becoming a Democratic justification for blocking a GOP tax reform bill.
The American Health Care Act was revived this week and the White House and the GOP are making another push to pass the Obamacare replacement. Here is a great explainer by Vox on why the GOP are stuck in a vicious cycle on health care that will push them to keep trying to pass a health care bill but will not allow them to actually ever pass one. And here is another take by the Upshot: they report on how allowing states to repeal protections for people with pre-existing conditions would return to the old days of massive questionnaires about your health history and the likelihood of being denied or charged more based on how these questions are answered. It’s the best reminder I have read about what life was like before Obamacare.