Monday, May 7
á Vice President Mike Pence announced new sanctions on three Venezuelans and 20 companies with ties to socialist President Nicolas Maduro for narcotics trafficking. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-oas-pence-sanctions/pence-to-announce-new-venezuela-sanctions-in-speech-on-monday-aide-idUSKBN1I81S1
á Politico reported that Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, who is also the wife of Sen. Mitch McConnell, may have violated ethics rules by appearing in a series of Chinese-language television spots with her shipping magnate father in front of the official DOT seal. https://politi.co/2jBUAvq
Tuesday, May 8
á Fair-housing advocates filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and HUD Secretary Ben Carson for suspending an Obama-era rule requiring communities to examine and address barriers to racial integration. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/hud-secretary-ben-carson-to-be-sued-for-suspending-obama-era-fair-housing-rule/2018/05/07/ef72db8a-523c-11e8-a551-5b648abe29ef_story.html
á The Trump administration proposed $15.4 billion in spending cuts to monies already authorized by congress but not yet been paid out. Almost half the cuts, $6.98 billion, would be to the ChildrenÕs Health Insurance Program. https://www.politico.com/story/2018/05/08/whats-on-the-trump-administrations-15b-cost-cutting-list-521999
á President Donald Trump announced he is pulling the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal and instituting new sanctions against Iran. https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/08/politics/donald-trump-iran-deal-announcement-decision/index.html
á Jerusalem mayor Nir Barkat said a square near the proposed site of a new U.S. embassy there will be named in honor of President Trump. https://www.politico.eu/article/jerusalem-to-name-square-after-us-president-donald-trump/
Wednesday, May 9
á
CIA director nominee Gina Haspel told the Senate
Committee on Intelligence, ÒI donÕt believe torture works,Ó and promised not to
re-open the agencies enhanced interrogation program while refusing to condemn
the agencies previous interrogation methods. https://politi.co/2I9vVcn
á
Trump announced that Secretary of State Mike
Pompeo was on the way back from North Korea with three recently released
Americans who had been held there as Òprisoners of warÓ for espionage or
Òhostile actsÓ against the Kim Jong Un regime. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/pompeo-north-korea-can-haverichly-deserved-opportunities-in-return-for-peace/2018/05/09/b51febfa-51a4-11e8-b00a-17f9fda3859b_story.html?utm_term=.1727406891fe&wpisrc=al_news__alert-world--alert-national&w
á
Rep. Robert Pittenger (R-N.C.) became the first
incumbent member of Congress knocked out in a primary in 2018.
á
There were 20 open Democratic House primaries
with women on the ballot Tuesday night, and voters selected a female nominee in
17 of them. https://politi.co/2KOd3kD
á
Trump berated Homeland Security Secretary
Kirstjen Nielsen in a Cabinet meeting on immigration when told that the number
of people arrested for illegally crossing the Mexico border topped 50,000 for
the second consecutive month. The blowup lasted more than 30 minutes. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/trump-unloads-on-homeland-security-secretary-in-lengthy-immigration-tirade/2018/05/10/f0ded152-54a0-11e8-9c91-7dab596e8252_story.html?utm_term=.eb54f4511636&wpisrc=nl_most&wpmm=1
Thursday, May 10
á
The White House announced that Trump will meet with
Kim Jong Un on Tuesday, June 12, in Singapore.
á
Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee
released documents including more than 3,000 Facebook and Instagram ads
purchased by Russian ÒtrollsÓ to target Mexican-Americans. The apparent goal
was to spread chaos in U.S. politics, since the troll group posted ads on both
sides of political debates. https://cnnmon.ie/2G3NFDY
Friday, May 11
á
ABC news reported that special counsel Robert
Mueller is investigating donations with foreign connections — Russia, Saudi
Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar — to the Trump inauguration
committee. https://abcn.ws/2IbyBWB
á
NPR reported that Kremlin-linked Russian
politician Alexander Torshin has traveled frequently between Moscow and various
locations in the U.S. since 2009 seeking to build relationships with figures on
the American right. https://n.pr/2jSOHdb
á
Politico published an op-ed by Sen. Rand
Paul urging Gina Haspel, nominee to head the CIA to declassify documents
showing her involvement in Òextreme renditionÓ and torture-by-proxy, and saying
the Senate should reject her nomination if she does not. https://politi.co/2rzSd0j
Saturday,
May 12
á
Politico
reported on an April 30 Pentagon report heavily critical of a Jared
Kushner-backed health care software project for the Veterans Administration,
saying it is riddled with problems so severe they could have led to patient
deaths. https://politi.co/2jOZs0m
á
The
Wall Street Journal reported that special counsel Robert Mueller asked Ford
Motor Co. for records concerning Trump attorney Michael CohenÕs offer to
provide consulting services to the carmaker, touting his closeness to the
president. https://on.wsj.com/2wzRQYB
Sunday,
May 13
á The U.S. delegation to the opening of the U. S. embassy in Jerusalem arrived in Israel.
á CNN reported that former Trump campaign aide Bryan Lanza lobbied to help the Russian firm EN+ Group be freed from U.S. sanctions. https://cnn.it/2KWflhS
á Sen. Lindsey Graham, told Margaret Brennan on CBSÕ ÒFace the NationÓ that a callous comment by White House aide Kelly Sadler about Sen. John McCainÕs brain cancer was Òpretty disgustingÓ and that he wished the White House should disavow the comment.