Trump Administration

ABC News reports: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin warned of a coming tariff hike if China does not finalize the specifics of a newly negotiated partial trade deal announced by President Donald Trump last week. The tariffs on 15% of $160 billion worth of Chinese goods impacting consumer electronics– cellphones, laptops, toys–would go into effect by Dec. 15. It was previously …

The New York Times reports: A video depicting a macabre scene of a fake President Trump shooting, stabbing and brutally assaulting members of the news media and his political opponents was shown at a conference for his supporters at his Miami resort last week, according to footage obtained by The New York Times. Several of Mr. Trump’s top surrogates — …

Law & Crime reports: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gritted his teeth through a strained response when NBC Nashville reporter Nancy Amons grilled him on whether he had met with Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani during an overseas trip in February. Pompeo was hostile and evasive throughout the interview, at one point accusing Amons of “working at least in part for …

Mediaite reports: California Democratic Congressman Harley Rouda — who sits on the House Committee on Oversight and Reform — told SiriusXM host Dean Obeidallah that his committee should investigate the meeting between Trump Attorney General Bill Barr and Fox Chairman Rupert Murdoch, which was followed quickly by the resignation of anchor Shepard Smith. Rouda said, “What the hell is the …

From a story published earlier this week: Nearly six months after taking over the Department of Homeland Security as acting secretary, Kevin McAleenan has guided the United States out of a crisis at the southern border, but he also says he has lost command of the public messaging from his department and lacks some of the authority he was promised …

The Hill reports: The White House accidentally sent Democrats a list of talking points related to ex-Ukraine Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch’s Friday House deposition, two sources with knowledge of the email told The Hill, the second time in a month the administration has sent its Ukraine talking points to Democrats. The email included guidance for Republicans seeking to defend the president …

From the Hollywood Reporter: Shepard Smith is stepping away from his longtime role at Fox News and leaving the network, Fox News said on Friday. “Recently I asked the company to allow me to leave Fox News and begin a new chapter,” Smith said in a statement. “After requesting that I stay, they graciously obliged. The opportunities afforded this guy …

NBC News reports: President Donald Trump has given his administration broad authority to slap sanctions on Turkey, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Friday. Trump signed an executive order authorizing the powers, though the administration will not move yet to punish Turkish individuals or entities after the country’s offensive in northern Syria. Still, Mnuchin threatened devastating actions in the wake of …

The Hill reports: Retired Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who was ousted as President Trump’s national security adviser in 2018, said Thursday “it’s absolutely not” appropriate to solicit foreign interference in U.S. elections. “It just didn’t happen when I was there or in any conversation that I was privy to and part of, which was I think almost all the, really …

Axios reports: President Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton has decided to write a book about his time in the Trump administration, according to 2 people familiar with the matter. Bolton has agreed to be represented by Javelin’s Matt Latimer and Keith Urbahn. Why it matters: Given the fact that he wrote a book about his tenure in the …

The Indianapolis Star reports: Vice President Mike Pence said on Wednesday that he has no objection to the White House releasing transcripts of his conversations with the Ukrainian president, a move he said White House lawyers are considering even as the administration has refused to turn over other documents requested by House Democrats as part of their impeachment inquiry. “I’d …

Bloomberg reports: President Donald Trump pressed then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to help persuade the Justice Department to drop a criminal case against an Iranian-Turkish gold trader who was a client of Rudy Giuliani, according to three people familiar with the 2017 meeting in the Oval Office. Tillerson refused, arguing it would constitute interference in an ongoing investigation of the …

Trump’s rape of the environment proceeds unchecked: “The Trump administration is dedicated to enhancing the exploration and development of federal solid mineral resources in an environmentally conscious manner,” said Interior Secretary David Bernhardt in a statement. “By eliminating burdensome regulations, the U.S. will have a stronger foothold to compete globally in non-energy, solid, leasable commodities markets and increase job opportunities …

Bloomberg reports: Treasury Department officials are considering rolling back a tax rule aimed at preventing American companies from moving money offshore to avoid U.S. taxes, according to several people familiar with discussions. Treasury could narrow regulations aimed at preventing U.S. firms from lowering their U.S. tax bills by borrowing from an offshore branch of the company. The department is also …

The New York Times reports: The Trump administration directed a top American diplomat involved in its pressure campaign on Ukraine not to appear Tuesday morning for a scheduled deposition with House Democrats conducting an impeachment inquiry, according to two people briefed on the matter. The decision to block Gordon D. Sondland, the United States ambassador to the European Union, from …

NBC News reports: A dozen House Democrats are calling for President Donald Trump’s ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland, to resign in the wake of revelations about his key role in the unfolding Ukraine scandal. The calls for his ouster come as Sondland prepares to be deposed Tuesday by House committees as part of their impeachment inquiry into the …

Just in via press release: The Inspector General of the Department of Justice should investigate whether Attorney General William Barr violated federal ethics laws and principles by participating in matters related to allegations in the Ukraine whistleblower complaint, according to a letter sent today by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). While Attorney General Barr was directly implicated …

Politico reports: In her first 14 months as Transportation secretary, Elaine Chao met with officials from Kentucky, which her husband Mitch McConnell represents in the Senate, vastly more often than those from any other state. In all, 25 percent of Chao’s scheduled meetings with local officials of any state from January 2017 to March 2018 were with Kentuckians, who make …

The Associated Press reports: As Rudy Giuliani was pushing Ukrainian officials last spring to investigate one of Donald Trump’s main political rivals, a group of individuals with ties to the president and his personal lawyer were also active in the former Soviet republic. This circle of businessmen and Republican donors touted connections to Giuliani and Trump while trying to install …

From the editorial board of the Washington Post: Text messages among U.S. diplomats and a Ukrainian official released by House committees definitively show that not only did the Trump administration seek to extract Ukrainian promises of political probes in exchange for a summit meeting, but also they spent weeks negotiating the deal both before and after the Trump-Zelensky phone call. …