Denver Riggleman, Amb. John Bolton, API’s Robin Rorick, Rep. Mike Rogers, Hans Von Spakovsky and guest host Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer joined WMAL on Wednesday!
Mornings on the Mall
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Hosts: Brian Wilson and Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer
Executive Producer: Heather Hunter
5am – A/B/C Comey Staying on as FBI Director. WASHINGTON — (CNN) President Donald Trump has asked FBI Director James Comey to stay on the job, a law enforcement source said Tuesday. Comey had no intention of resigning, law enforcement officials had previously told CNN after Trump’s election. Unlike Cabinet officials, Comey was not expected to depart at the end of former President Barack Obama’s tenure. FBI directors have 10-year terms, and Comey’s is set to run through 2023. But Comey’s unusually public role in the election-season investigation into Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information on her private email server has made him a target of criticism from Democrats, many of whom believe he cost Clinton the election.
5am – D TRUMP / CONGRESS NEWS:
SENATE NEWS:
- Trump to address a joint session of Congress on Feb. 28. President Trump plans to address a joint session of Congress on Feb. 28, his press secretary said Tuesday. Newly inaugurated presidents often deliver this type of speech instead of a formal State of the Union address, giving them a full year instead of a few weeks to fully assess the state of the country. House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) said Tuesday morning that he had invited Trump to address a joint session.
- HALEY / Senate confirms Nikki Haley as Trump’s UN ambassador. (The Hill) — South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s nomination to serve as U.N. ambassador easily cleared the Senate on Tuesday. The final vote was 96-4, with Democratic Sens. Chris Coons (Del.), Martin Heinrich (N.M.), Tom Udall (N.M.) and Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) voting against her. The Senate vote came hours after the Foreign Relations Committee approved the pick, 19-2. Coons and Udall were the only committee votes against her.
- Senate committee approves Ben Carson, President Donald Trump’s nominee for housing secretary. (The Hill) –The Senate cleared the way on Tuesday for Ben Carson to take the helm of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Senate Banking Committee approved Carson’s nomination, sending it to the floor for final confirmation. President Trump’s Cabinet picks need only a simple majority to clear the Senate, which means Carson can be confirmed with only Republican support and Democrats cannot filibuster.
- Senate committee approves nomination of Elaine Chao to head transportation department. President Donald Trump’s pick to run the U.S. Department of Transportation was approved by a Senate committee on Tuesday. Trump’s choice of former U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, 63, to lead the transportation department in his administration was approved by the U.S. Senate’s Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on a voice vote. Chao’s nomination will now go to the full Senate for approval. A GOP Senate aide said a final vote on her confirmation could come as early as today or tomorrow.
- Senate committee approves nomination of billionaire investor Wilbur Ross to head Commerce Department. Full Senate to vote on confirmation of billionaire investor Wilbur Ross. WASHINGTON—Wilbur Ross, President Donald Trump’s choice to run the Commerce Department, cleared a key test Tuesday when a Senate panel approved his nomination. HHS Price Hearing / Democrats fail to draw blood from Price. (Politico) – President Donald Trump’s point man on repealing and replacing Obamacare provided no new clues about how the administration intends to reshape the health system during an at times testy confirmation hearing Tuesday. Rep. Tom Price’s four-hour appearance before the Senate Finance Committee exasperated Democrats, coming just days after Trump issued a sweeping directive authorizing federal agencies to begin gutting the law. The nominee to head HHS wouldn’t say if he would use the directive to scrap Obamacare’s unpopular requirement that most Americans get health coverage or pay a fine. Price also dodged questions about whether he backs converting Medicaid into block grants, despite supporting the idea as House Budget Committee chairman. And he gave vague assurances he wouldn’t “abandon” people with pre-existing conditions who can no longer be denied coverage under Obamacare while disputing a 2012 report that quoted him criticizing the law’s requirement that insurers cover that population.
- MULVANEY hearing: Trump’s pick for budget chief answers questions about his tax lapse. (LA Times) — Rep. Mick Mulvaney, picked to be President Trump’s budget chief, came under expected fire for failing to pay more than $15,000 in taxes for his children’s nanny, but it didn’t appear that would torpedo his nomination, as has happened with past Cabinet selections. At a Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday, most of the discussion instead focused on the South Carolina Republican’s views on the nation’s deficits and budget, particularly his past statements indicating the need to “end Medicare as we know it” and to fix Social Security, which Mulvaney at one time called a Ponzi scheme.
- SESSIONS / Democrats block vote on Sessions nomination for AG / Senate Judiciary Cmte sets cmte vote on Sessions to be AG on January 31 // (The Hill) — Senate Democrats are delaying a vote on Sen. Jeff Sessions’s nomination to be President Trump’s attorney general, arguing they want more time to review the pick. “As we have done for most nominees … I’m asking that the vote for Sen. Sessions be held over until next week,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, said Tuesday. The Senate Judiciary Committee was scheduled to vote on the Alabama Republican’s nomination during a Tuesday morning meeting. The committee’s approval is a first step to being scheduled for a full Senate vote.
- MCMAHON / Trump pick to head SBA, wrestling’s McMahon, receives warm Senate reception. (Washington Examiner) — Linda McMahon, co-founder of World Wrestling Entertainment and President Trump’s pick to head the Small Business Administration, received a reception so warm before the Senate Small Business Committee on her nomination that she was introduced by two of her opponents in past Connecticut Senate races, Democrats Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal. Both praised her as an excellent pick to head the agency, and the others on the committee seemed to largely agree, indicating that McMahon would likely get an easy confirmation before the full Senate. “She would be an excellent fit for this agency based on her experience and expertise as a business leader,” said Blumenthal, who faced off against McMahon in his 2010 Senate race. “She is a tireless leader and a tenacious fighter.”
- Manchin to support Tillerson for State Department post. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va) is throwing his support behind Rex Tillerson’s nomination to be secretary of State, making him the first Democrat to support the President Trump nominee. Manchin noted that he has known Tillerson “for years” and pointed to his executive experience leading Exxon Mobil Corp. as “critical.”
HOUSE:
- ABORTION BILL / House votes to permanently ban taxpayer funds for abortion. (The Hill) — The House passed legislation on Tuesday that would permanently codify existing law banning the use of federal funds for abortion services. Lawmakers approved the measure largely along party lines, with three Democrats joining Republicans in the 238-183 vote. The legislation, written by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), would also permanently prohibit the District of Columbia from using its local funds approved by Congress for abortion services. “That’s what we should be all about. Life affirming and the saving of human life,” said Smith. It does allow exceptions for cases of rape, incest or if the mother’s life in danger. The three Democrats who voted for the legislation were Reps. Henry Cuellar (Texas), Daniel Lipinski (Ill.) and Collin Peterson (Minn.). Passage came one day after President Trump issued an executive action prohibiting the use of taxpayer funds for nongovernmental organizations that provide abortion services or support abortion rights. It also falls three days before the annual March for Life to protest the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, which had its 44th anniversary over the weekend.
- GOP RETREAT: Republican Senators and representatives will meet in Philadelphia on Wednesday through Friday to map out an aggressive policy agenda.
- Peyton Manning to speak at GOP retreat: report (The Hill) — Legendary NFL quarterback Peyton Manning will speak to Republican lawmakers at a GOP retreat in Philadelphia this week, Politico reported Tuesday. Manning, a Republican, was a major donor to former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential bid. He never officially endorsed a candidate in the general election.
- Trump to visit Philadelphia for GOP retreat Thursday. WASHINGTON — Philadelphia will get some time in the international spotlight this week, as President Trump makes the city what is likely to be his first major stop outside Washington since his inauguration. The president is scheduled to address congressional Republicans, who will be gathering at the Loews hotel Wednesday through Friday as they try to map out an aggressive agenda for their newfound power in Washington
- Democrats Incensed at U.K. Prime Minister’s ‘Partisan’ Visit to GOP Retreat. Trump won’t be the only world leader in the city: British Prime Minister Theresa May is also expected to speak at the retreat.
EXECUTIVE ORDERS:
- List of Trump’s executive orders on Tuesday. (Fox News) — Since taking office, President Trump has looked to fulfill some of his campaign promises by using executive orders. Here are the orders he has signed so far:
- An order imposing a hiring freeze for some federal government workers as a way to shrink the size of government. This excludes the military, as Trump noted at the signing.
- He signed a notice that the U.S. will begin withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. Trump called the order “a great thing for the American worker.”
- An order to reinstate the so-called “Mexico City Policy” – a ban on federal funds to international groups that perform abortions or lobby to legalize or promote abortion. The policy was instituted in 1984 by President Reagan, but has gone into and out of effect depending on the party in power in the White House.
- Two orders reviving the Keystone XL pipeline and Dakota Access piplines. He also signed three other related orders that would: expedite the environmental permitting process for infrastructure projects related to the pipelines; direct the Commerce Department to streamline the manufacturing permitting process; and give the Commerce Department 180 days to maximize the use of U.S. steel in the pipeline.
- Trump expected to issue orders on border wall, refugee ban Wednesday. President Donald Trump plans to issue several executive actions on immigration Wednesday, including one on a border wall with Mexico, according to a senior administration official. One of the actions expected to be taken will be an executive order to direct the use of federal funds toward the construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border designed to prevent illegal immigration. A second one, initially reported by Reuters, will specify a temporary ban on most refugees and a suspension of visas for people from Syria and six other Middle East countries. The president is also set to order a crackdown on sanctuary cities for undocumented immigrants. The measures are expected to be signed during a visit to the Department of Homeland Security, now under the leadership of John Kelly, who was confirmed last week.
5am – E Trump bans EPA employees from giving social media updates. President Trump has banned employees of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from giving social media updates and speaking with reporters, according to The Associated Press. The EPA ban comes amid other reports of agency staff being restricted from interacting the members of the Congress or the general public. BuzzFeed reported Tuesday that the Department of Agriculture instituted a similar ban, telling its employees not to distribute information about research papers or to post on Twitter under the agency’s name. A Tuesday report in the Huffington Post said agency employees under the Department of Health and Human Services were told not to speak to public officials. White House spokesman Sean Spicer declined to comment on the reports, saying that he wasn’t familiar yet with the specific reported bans. But Spicer said it was natural for a new administration to reconsider agency operations. “I don’t think it’s anything surprise that when there’s an administration turnover, that we’re going to review the policy,” Spicer said. The social media ban is part of a series of new restrictions at the EPA under the Trump administration. The Huffington Post reported Monday that EPA grants had been frozen, with agency employees barred from speaking of the matter. President Trump has banned employees of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from giving social media updates and speaking with reporters, according to The Associated Press. The EPA ban comes amid other reports of agency staff being restricted from interacting the members of the Congress or the general public. BuzzFeed reported Tuesday that the Department of Agriculture instituted a similar ban, telling its employees not to distribute information about research papers or to post on Twitter under the agency’s name. A Tuesday report in the Huffington Post said agency employees under the Department of Health and Human Services were told not to speak to public officials.
Official blames rogue Badlands National Park tweets on rogue former employee. On Tuesday, the official Twitter account for Badlands National Park in South Dakota briefly became the unlikely face of resistance to President Trump’s apparent clampdown on public comments from federal agencies that study climate change. The series of tweets stating facts about carbon dioxide concentration in the atmosphere and rise in oceanic acidity were removed later Tuesday, but an unidentified official told Reuters, BuzzFeed News, and other media organizations that Trump did not order the removal, blaming the errant tweets on a rogue former employee. “Several tweets posted on the Badlands National Park’s Twitter account today were posted by a former employee who was not currently authorized to use the park’s account,” a National Parks official said. “The park was not told to remove the tweets but chose to do so when they realized that their account had been compromised.” Badlands park superintendent Michael Pflaum told Quartz he had been unaware of the tweets since the park’s “got the full on-scale blizzard going” and “we’ve been working on digging out, plowing roads.” The woman who handles social media was working from home, he added.
6am – A/B/C TRUMP EXEC ORDERS ON IMMIGRATION:
- Trump expected to issue orders on border wall, refugee ban Wednesday. President Donald Trump plans to issue several executive actions on immigration Wednesday, including one on a border wall with Mexico, according to a senior administration official. One of the actions expected to be taken will be an executive order to direct the use of federal funds toward the construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border designed to prevent illegal immigration. A second one, initially reported by Reuters, will specify a temporary ban on most refugees and a suspension of visas for people from Syria and six other Middle East countries. The president is also set to order a crackdown on sanctuary cities for undocumented immigrants. The measures are expected to be signed during a visit to the Department of Homeland Security, now under the leadership of John Kelly, who was confirmed last week.
- Immigration hard-liners angered by Trump’s softer tone on ‘Dreamers.’ They worry he’s backtracking on a central campaign promise to reverse Barack Obama’s policy. (Politico) — Donald Trump promised during the campaign that he’d “immediately” kill Barack Obama’s unilateral actions to shield hundreds of thousands of young undocumented immigrants from deportation. Now, just four days into the new administration, immigration hardliners are demanding that the new president follow through. And they’re increasingly frustrated at the shift in tone from top White House officials signaling a more compassionate approach for so-called Dreamers. Influential groups advocating for more immigration restrictions have already launched a campaign aimed at pressuring Trump to cancel the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, the Obama-era directive that allowed Dreamers to obtain work permits and protection from deportation. On Tuesday, NumbersUSA urged its 2 million-plus members, as well as 6 million followers on Facebook, to tweet at Trump urging him to rescind DACA, and even the Trump-friendly news outlet Breitbart ripped the administration for its DACA inaction. That irritation from Trump’s base is quickly spreading to conservatives on Capitol Hill. Asked whether he was disappointed Trump hadn’t yet ended DACA, Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) barely let a reporter finish the question before he responded: “Yes.” For the hard-liners, rescinding the DACA program should be the easiest of Trump’s immigration promises to fulfill: a simple memo ordering federal officials to stop accepting DACA applications that have steadily arrived since Obama first announced the initiative in 2012. But U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is still taking DACA requests, a spokesman confirmed Tuesday. That means the agency is greenlighting an average of 140 initial applications and 690 renewals, according to the most recent publicly available data. Advocates pushing for more restrictions on immigration see each approval as an affront to Trump’s core campaign pledge.
6am – D INTERVIEW – DENVER RIGGLEMAN – running for Virginia Governor / is a former Air Force intelligence officer and owner of a craft distillery outside Charlottesville
- He’s the 4th GOP contender to jump into the Virginia gubernatorial race
- Denver Riggleman is an Air Force Veteran, former Air Force Intelligence Officer, former owner of Analyst Warehouse, a successful DOD contracting firm, and is currently the owner of Silverback Distillery in Nelson County Virginia. Riggleman is currently running for the Republican nomination for governor in Virginia.
- Washington Post: The first-time candidate is positioning himself as an outsider businessman unhappy with taxes and government regulation that he says have stifled the two-year-old spirits business he runs with his wife. Riggleman said he takes inspiration from the unorthodox candidacies of Dave Brat (R-Va.), who ousted then-House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in 2014, and Donald Trump, because they ran without prior political experience and galvanized supporters outside typical political circles.
- VA GOVERNOR RACE: The other candidates for the GOP nomination are political strategist Ed Gillespie; Corey Stewart, chairman of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors; and state Sen. Frank Wagner (R-Virginia Beach). Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam is the only Democrat running. Riggleman’s entry into the race could draw voters away from Stewart, who chaired Trump’s Virginia campaign for 10 months and has relied on his connection to the now-president-elect.
6am – E Secret Service looking at agent who suggested she wouldn’t defend Trump from bullet. Washington (CNN) The Secret Service said Tuesday it is taking “appropriate action” after one of its agents suggested on Facebook that she would not defend President Donald Trump should someone try to shoot him. Kerry O’Grady, a senior agent in the Denver field office, made a series of now-deleted postings on Facebook during the campaign saying that she supported Democrat Hillary Clinton and that she would not honor a federal law that prevents agents like her from airing their political beliefs publicly. O’Grady deleted the posts shortly after The Washington Examiner reported them on Tuesday. “As a public servant for nearly 23 years, I struggle not to violate the Hatch Act. So I keep quiet and skirt the median,” she wrote in one Facebook post, as reported by the Examiner. “To do otherwise can be a criminal offense for those in my position. Despite the fact that I am expected to take a bullet for both sides.” “But this world has changed and I have changed. And I would take jail time over a bullet or an endorsement for what I believe to be disaster to this country and the strong and amazing women and minorities who reside here. Hatch Act be damned. I am with Her,” she wrote. The Secret Service said in a statement Tuesday that it could not comment on a specific personnel matter but that it was “aware of the postings and the agency is taking quick and appropriate action.”
6am – F Silver Spring High School Principal Apologizes After Calling Cheerleaders “Ghetto.” SILVER SPRING — (WMAL) The principal at Springbrook High School in Silver Spring is apologizing to students and parents after he told the school’s athletic director the cheerleading routine was getting “a little too ghetto” at a recent game, according to the school newspaper. The Blueprint’s editor-in-chief Akayla Gardner, speaking with WMAL, said cheerleaders were offended and hurt upon hearing the statement, and have since been sitting out of games in protest. “The cheerleaders weren’t doing anything different,” Gardner said. “Mostly just cheers, stomping, clapping their hands, things like that.” Springbrook’s student population is 91 percent nonwhite, according to figures from the 2015-2016 school year. Gardner said cheerleaders told her their routines are inspired by those at historically black colleges and universities, and are similar to routines found at other nearby high schools. “Our cheers are short phrases. They also do stunts,” she said. There is nothing age-inappropriate and no music used, she said. Principal Art Williams, who is African-American, apologized on Twitter, calling his comment “inappropriate” and not reflective of school values. Many of the cheerleaders, Gardner said, were not satisfied with the online apology.
7am – A INTERVIEW – AMB. JOHN BOLTON – former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and a Senior Fellow for the American Enterprise Institute
- HALEY / Senate confirms Nikki Haley as Trump’s UN ambassador. (The Hill) — South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s nomination to serve as U.N. ambassador easily cleared the Senate on Tuesday. The final vote was 96-4, with Democratic Sens. Chris Coons (Del.), Martin Heinrich (N.M.), Tom Udall (N.M.) and Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) voting against her. The Senate vote came hours after the Foreign Relations Committee approved the pick, 19-2. Coons and Udall were the only committee votes against her.
- Britain’s Prime Minister May to visit Trump in Washington. London (CNN) British Prime Minister Theresa May is set to visit US President Donald Trump in Washington on Friday, making her the first foreign leader to meet with the newly inaugurated president. Speaking in a televised interview with the BBC’s Andrew Marr, May said she would discuss the countries’ future trade relations, the importance of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Syrian conflict.
- Trump signed a notice that the U.S. will begin withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. Trump called the order “a great thing for the American worker.”
- Trump expected to issue orders on border wall, refugee ban Wednesday. President Donald Trump plans to issue several executive actions on immigration Wednesday, including one on a border wall with Mexico, according to a senior administration official. One of the actions expected to be taken will be an executive order to direct the use of federal funds toward the construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border designed to prevent illegal immigration. A second one, initially reported by Reuters, will specify a temporary ban on most refugees and a suspension of visas for people from Syria and six other Middle East countries.
- Mexico’s president to meet Trump on Jan 31. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and U.S. President Donald Trump will meet at the end of this month to discuss trade, immigration and security issues, as the Latin American leader faces increased populist pressure at home. Trump’s spokesman Sean Spicer told a news conference on Saturday that the two leaders will meet on Jan 31, the week after senior officials of both administrations hold bilateral talks in Washington. Trump is committed to renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and would move to withdraw if no “fair deal” is forthcoming, according to the White House website. Pena Nieto, whose popularity has plummeted due to corruption scandals and rising inflation, has been criticized for lacking a clear strategy to counter Trump’s threats to crimp trade and deport illegal immigrants.
- Mexico is ready to discuss NAFTA with the US but warns that it’s willing to scrap the deal. MEXICO CITY, Jan 24 (Reuters) — Under pressure from President Donald Trump, Mexico is preparing to discuss changes to trade rules about a product’s country of origin to try to avoid a disruptive fight with the United States over commerce. As he two countries begin a difficult new relationship, Mexico sees possible common ground with Trump on the “rules of origin” of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that binds the two countries and Canada, several sources said. Rules of origin are regulations setting out where trade products are sourced from.
7am – B/C INTERVIEW – ROBIN RORICK – director of Midstream and Industry Operations at the American Petroleum Institute
- Trump signs order to move controversial oil pipelines forward. Trump clears way for controversial oil pipelines. U.S. President Donald Trump signed orders on Tuesday smoothing the path for the controversial Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines in a move to expand energy infrastructure and roll back key Obama administration environmental actions. Oil producers in Canada and North Dakota are expected to benefit from a quicker route for crude oil to U.S. Gulf Coast refiners. But going ahead with the pipelines would mark a bitter defeat for Native American tribes and climate activists, who successfully blocked the projects earlier and vowed to fight the decisions through legal action. Trump campaigned on promises to increase domestic energy production. Before taking office he said the Dakota pipeline should be completed and that he would revive the C$8 billion ($6.1 billion) Keystone XL project, which was rejected in 2015 by then-President Barack Obama.
7am – D INTERVIEW – REP. MIKE ROGERS – Former House Intelligence Chairman and former FBI Special Agent – discussed FBI Director Comey staying on and new CIA chief Pompeo confirmed this week.
7am – E Hillary News:
- Clinton donor says Hillary told him she’s still ’50-50′ on whether to run for New York Mayor. Don’t count her out yet! Top Clinton donor says Hillary told him she’s still ’50-50′ on whether to run for New York Mayor. (Daily Mail) – Hillary Clinton is ’50-50′ on deciding whether or not she will run for New York mayor, a city political insider claims. Supermarket magnate John Catsimatidis said he’s convinced that Clinton might challenge current Mayor Bill de Blasio with a campaign this year. Catsimatidis, a billionaire who was a Clinton donor during the 2016 presidential campaign, said he will hold off his own decision to run for mayor until the former secretary of state decides what she will do. ‘I spoke to her about it, but she didn’t indicate or signal to me [whether she would run]. She didn’t say never, she didn’t say no. In my personal opinion, it’s 50-50,’ he told The Real Deal real-estate blog on Monday. ‘If Hillary runs, I won’t.’
- In the November election, Trump was trounced by Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in California — losing to her by more than 4.2 million votes.
- Support for California secession is up, one poll says. (LA Times) – Californians’ support for a breakaway California republic has increased, one poll has found. One-third of state residents support peacefully seceding from the United States, up from 20% since Californians were last asked the same question in 2014, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll. The poll’s margin of error for the California answers was plus or minus 5 percentage points. Still, half of Californians opposed the idea of succession, though Democrats were more inclined to support it than Republicans.
- Trump is a hot topic in California’s race for governor, but not in a good way. One of the most talked about politicians in California’s 2018 governor’s campaign isn’t even running. (LA Times) – Rarely does a day go by when Republican President Donald Trump isn’t used as a political piñata by one of the top Democrats in the race. When Antonio Villaraigosa announced his bid for governor right after the general election, the former Los Angeles mayor was sure to include a dig at Trump. “I’m running because I think the answer to the divisiveness we see in the country right now is unity, and the answer to fear is hope,” he said. In speeches, in fundraising emails, in tweets and Facebook posts, the Democrats have liberally excoriated Trump while largely avoiding lobbing any criticism at one another. It’s a safe and easy tactic that appeals to a sizeable majority of voters in left-leaning California. For any Republican to have a legitimate shot in the governor’s race, or any statewide election, the more distance they put between themselves and Trump the better, said GOP political consultant Rob Stutzman. “It’s important that you’re not on the record gushing about Trump,” Stutzman said.
8am – A INTERVIEW – HANS VON SPAKOVSKY- former counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights in the Justice Department, former commissioner for the Federal Election Commission from 2006 to 2007 and senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation – discussed Trump’s claims about voter fraud.
- President Trump Still Believes Millions Voted Illegally: White House. After being repeatedly pressed about President Donald Trump’s unsubstantiated claims that “millions” of people voted illegally in the presidential election, White House press secretary Sean Spicer left the door open to a possible investigation into the claims during a press briefing Tuesday. On Monday, Trump said during a meeting with congressional leaders in the White House that “3 to 5 million illegals” voted, according to two Democratic aides who spoke on condition of anonymity. Spicer told reporters Tuesday “maybe we will” launch an investigation into Trump’s claims. “Anything’s possible, I think, at some point,” he added. “There is no investigation. I said it was possible. Anything is possible. It was a hypothetical question.” Trump has made repeated claims about voter fraud after losing the popular vote in the election in November, though thus far, no evidence has been presented that backs up his allegations. “He continues to maintain that belief based on studies and evidence people have presented to him,” Spicer said Tuesday.
- Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump 39m39 minutes ago: I will be asking for a major investigation into VOTER FRAUD, including those registered to vote in two states, those who are illegal and….
- Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump 37m37 minutes ago: even, those registered to vote who are dead (and many for a long time). Depending on results, we will strengthen up voting procedures!
8am – B TRUMP / CONGRESS RECAP:
SENATE NEWS:
- Trump to address a joint session of Congress on Feb. 28.
- Senate confirms Nikki Haley as Trump’s UN ambassador.
- Senate committee approves Ben Carson, President Donald Trump’s nominee for housing secretary.
- Senate committee approves nomination of Elaine Chao to head transportation department.
- Senate committee approves nomination of billionaire investor Wilbur Ross to head Commerce Department.
- HHS Price Hearing / Democrats fail to draw blood from Price.
- MULVANEY hearing: Trump’s pick for budget chief answers questions about his tax lapse.
- SESSIONS / Democrats block vote on Sessions nomination for AG / Senate Judiciary Cmte sets cmte vote on Sessions to be AG on January 31
- MCMAHON / Trump pick to head SBA, wrestling’s McMahon, receives warm Senate reception.
- Manchin to support Tillerson for State Department post. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va) is throwing his support behind Rex Tillerson’s nomination to be secretary of State, making him the first Democrat to support the President Trump nominee.
HOUSE NEWS:
- House votes to permanently ban taxpayer funds for abortion. (The Hill) — The House passed legislation on Tuesday that would permanently codify existing law banning the use of federal funds for abortion services. Lawmakers approved the measure largely along party lines, with three Democrats joining Republicans in the 238-183 vote.
- GOP RETREAT: Republican Senators and representatives will meet in Philadelphia on Wednesday through Friday to map out an aggressive policy agenda.
- Peyton Manning to speak at GOP retreat: report (The Hill) — Legendary NFL quarterback Peyton Manning will speak to Republican lawmakers at a GOP retreat in Philadelphia this week, Politico reported Tuesday. Manning, a Republican, was a major donor to former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential bid. He never officially endorsed a candidate in the general election.
- Trump to visit Philadelphia for GOP retreat Thursday. WASHINGTON —Philadelphia will get some time in the international spotlight this week, as President Trump makes the city what is likely to be his first major stop outside Washington since his inauguration. The president is scheduled to address congressional Republicans, who will be gathering at the Loews hotel Wednesday through Friday as they try to map out an aggressive agenda for their newfound power in Washington
- Democrats Incensed at U.K. Prime Minister’s ‘Partisan’ Visit to GOP Retreat. Trump won’t be the only world leader in the city: British Prime Minister Theresa May is also expected to speak at the retreat.
EXECUTIVE ORDERS:
- List of Trump’s executive orders on Tuesday. (Fox News) — Since taking office, President Trump has looked to fulfill some of his campaign promises by using executive orders. Here are the orders he has signed so far:
- An order imposing a hiring freeze for some federal government workers as a way to shrink the size of government. This excludes the military, as Trump noted at the signing.
- He signed a notice that the U.S. will begin withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. Trump called the order “a great thing for the American worker.”
- An order to reinstate the so-called “Mexico City Policy” – a ban on federal funds to international groups that perform abortions or lobby to legalize or promote abortion. The policy was instituted in 1984 by President Reagan, but has gone into and out of effect depending on the party in power in the White House.
- Two orders reviving the Keystone XL pipeline and Dakota Access piplines. He also signed three other related orders that would: expedite the environmental permitting process for infrastructure projects related to the pipelines; direct the Commerce Department to streamline the manufacturing permitting process; and give the Commerce Department 180 days to maximize the use of U.S. steel in the pipeline.
- Trump expected to issue orders on border wall, refugee ban Wednesday. President Donald Trump plans to issue several executive actions on immigration Wednesday, including one on a border wall with Mexico, according to a senior administration official. One of the actions expected to be taken will be an executive order to direct the use of federal funds toward the construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border designed to prevent illegal immigration. A second one, initially reported by Reuters, will specify a temporary ban on most refugees and a suspension of visas for people from Syria and six other Middle East countries. The president is also set to order a crackdown on sanctuary cities for undocumented immigrants. The measures are expected to be signed during a visit to the Department of Homeland Security, now under the leadership of John Kelly, who was confirmed last week.
SCOTUS UPDATE: Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump 37m37 minutes ago: I will be making my Supreme Court pick on Thursday of next week.Thank you!
8am – C Chelsea Manning says she will move to Md. after release from prison. Former Army soldier and government document leaker Chelsea Manning revealed her plans to move to Maryland after she is released from prison later this year. Just days before he left office, President Obama commuted Manning’s 35-year prison sentence — she will now be released on May 17 from Fort Leavenworth military prison in Kansas. “Decision: I plan on moving back to Maryland this summer. (Takoma Park? Bethesda?),” she tweeted. “Can’t wait to go home.”
8am – D/E Immigration hard-liners angered by Trump’s softer tone on ‘Dreamers.’ They worry he’s backtracking on a central campaign promise to reverse Barack Obama’s policy. (Politico) — Donald Trump promised during the campaign that he’d “immediately” kill Barack Obama’s unilateral actions to shield hundreds of thousands of young undocumented immigrants from deportation. Now, just four days into the new administration, immigration hardliners are demanding that the new president follow through. And they’re increasingly frustrated at the shift in tone from top White House officials signaling a more compassionate approach for so-called Dreamers. Influential groups advocating for more immigration restrictions have already launched a campaign aimed at pressuring Trump to cancel the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, the Obama-era directive that allowed Dreamers to obtain work permits and protection from deportation. On Tuesday, NumbersUSA urged its 2 million-plus members, as well as 6 million followers on Facebook, to tweet at Trump urging him to rescind DACA, and even the Trump-friendly news outlet Breitbart ripped the administration for its DACA inaction. That irritation from Trump’s base is quickly spreading to conservatives on Capitol Hill. Asked whether he was disappointed Trump hadn’t yet ended DACA, Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Ala.) barely let a reporter finish the question before he responded: “Yes.”
