Monday, May 22
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The
Trump administration, in an effort to block an ethics inquiry, asked the Office
of Government Ethics to withdraw its request for copies of waivers granted to
dozens of former lobbyists who now work for the agencies they lobbied. http://tinyurl.com/n5dwvup
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The
Washington Post reported President Donald TrumpÕs budget proposal will include
cuts to Medicaid of more than $800 billion over 10 years. http://tinyurl.com/lg5j98h
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The
Washington Post reported that TrumpÕs senior advisor and son-in-law Jared
Kushner may have conflicts of interest because he has kept most of his real
estate investments. http://tinyurl.com/lqssarj
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The
Supreme Court ruled that North CarolinaÕs Republican controlled legislature
unlawfully used race in defining two of the stateÕs congressional districts. http://tinyurl.com/nyzj3vx
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The
Associated Press reported that Michael Flynn will invoke his Fifth Amendment
protection and notified the Senate Intelligence committee that he will not
comply with a subpoena seeking documents. http://tinyurl.com/mhq67ju
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Rewire
reported that the Trump administration has been aggressively filling top
government positions with anti-choice activists who push right-wing myths about
reproductive health. http://tinyurl.com/n7adwoz
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TrumpÕs budget, assuming a 3 percent economic
growth rate, predicted a savings of $2 trillion over a decade. Analysts,
contradicting his assumption, claim it would be a major feat and forecast the
deficit will actually widen by $3.15 trillion. http://tinyurl.com/lor2yjy
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The Supreme Court ruled that patent lawsuits
should be tried where the defending company is based, rather than in a court of
the plaintiff's choosing. http://tinyurl.com/y89ljorj
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TrumpÕs
budget would open AlaskaÕs Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil drilling. http://tinyurl.com/y6w8pp4r
Tuesday, May 23
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The
Washington Post reported that Trump asked two of the nationÕs top
intelligence officials in March to discredit an FBI probe into collusion
between his campaign and Russia. http://tinyurl.com/mgeoecp
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The
Washington Post reported that Trump is moving to hire outside counsel to
advise him with the investigations into Russia election interference. http://tinyurl.com/kfft23b
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When Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross boasted to
CNBC that "there was not a single hint of a protesterÓ in Saudi Arabia
during TrumpÕs visit, the CNBC anchor told him that could be because protesting
isnÕt allowed in Saudi Arabia. http://tinyurl.com/l89zuw9
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Former CIA director John Brennan testified that last year the CIA alerted the FBI
to a troubling pattern of contacts between Russian officials and Trump campaign
associates and that he became increasingly concerned that Trump associates were
being manipulated by Russian intelligence services. http://tinyurl.com/kud8lob
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TrumpÕs
budget has proposed massive cuts in spending on scientific research,
medical research, disease prevention programs and health insurance for children
of the working poor. http://tinyurl.com/jvuowe9
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Senator Sheldon Whitehouse attacked TrumpÕs budget plan saying, ÒThese
senseless, irresponsible choices serve one purpose: to pave the way for tax
cuts for the very wealthiest. The good news is that this extremist proposal
will go nowhere in the Senate.Ó http://tinyurl.com/kjn963f
á
In
response to TrumpÕs attempt to stop the Office of Government Ethics inquiry
into lobbyists hired as Trump administration employees, the OGE said the
inquiry was well within its purvue. http://tinyurl.com/y8s59oqr
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A recent Bloomberg report said Trump selected
two anti-union lawyers for the National Labor Relations Board turning it into a
force for union busting. http://tinyurl.com/y8cnnnqc
á
Huffington
Post reported that education secretary Betsy DeVos accused critics of hindering
innovation, then called TrumpÕs budget, which would cut education 13 percent, a
Òhistoric investmentÓ in students. http://tinyurl.com/y7xmzmz8
á
Congressman
Al Green became the first congress member to call for TrumpÕs impeachment. http://tinyurl.com/y6ucc5ux
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The House
Committee on Natural Resources held a hearing on Congressman Jared HuffmanÕs
Public Lands Telecommunications Act, legislation to help connect rural
communities to high-speed internet. http://tinyurl.com/y8fgj9vt
Wednesday, May 24
á
Senate
investigators again subpoenaed Michael Flynn to turn over documents
pertaining to the investigation of Russian interference in the US election. http://tinyurl.com/yccn2734
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Trump
met with Pope Francis at the Vatican. http://tinyurl.com/ybne6gn2
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Pope
Francis gave Trump his 192-page work calling for a new partnership
between science and religion to combat human-driven climate change. http://tinyurl.com/y8k7dhty
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The pope gave Trump a large medallion in the
shape of an olive tree, a symbol of peace, to which Trump replied, ÒWe can use
peace.Ó http://tinyurl.com/y8k7dhty
á
The Congressional Budget Office said the new
Obamacare replacement bill would leave 23 million people uninsured over a
decade. http://tinyurl.com/ycextbr2
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The
Guardian UK reported that congressional Democrats urged Deutsche Bank to
audit private accounts held by Trump and his family to determine if they have
financial ties to Russia. http://tinyurl.com/y7ezd3hn
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The
Washington Post reported that TrumpÕs plans to cut food stamps hits his
supporters hardest. http://tinyurl.com/y9cznp53
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A new
report from Human Rights First charged that border agents have been illegally
been denying admission to asylum seekers. http://tinyurl.com/y7oomatb
Thursday, May 25
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Trump
addressed NATO allies saying NATO must focus on terrorism and that allies Òowe
massive amounts of moneyÓ on defense. http://tinyurl.com/y9rykyne
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The
Justice Department reported that Attorney General Jeff Sessions failed to disclose meetings he had with
Russian officials when he applied for his security clearance. http://tinyurl.com/y76rruka
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Congressional
Republicans introduced the Back the Blue Act of 2017 that shields police from
civil lawsuits and makes killing police officers a federal crime. http://tinyurl.com/y97fcfx5
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After
negotiating a $110 billion arms deal with Trump, the Saudis asked him to repeal
a 2016 law that allows relatives of 9/11 victims to sue the Saudi kingdom for
their deaths. http://tinyurl.com/y8g7s3yx
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EcoWatch
reported that taxpayers are charged $7 billion a year to subsidize fossil fuels
on public land. http://tinyurl.com/ybpel4nt
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Trump called
for a full investigation by U.S. agencies that could end with prosecutions
regarding leaks of sensitive Manchester bombing information. http://tinyurl.com/y9rykyne
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The
Washington Post reported that the secret Russian document claiming Hilary
Clinton intentionally revealed classified information through her use of a
private email server was unreliable and possibly fake. http://tinyurl.com/ycbltxca
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Montana congressional candidate Greg Gianforte
allegedly ÒbodyslammedÓ Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs and was charged with
misdemeanor assault. http://tinyurl.com/yae3dx2l
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The
Senate passed the Digital Coast Act that requires the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration NOAA to establish a constituent-driven Digital
Coast program. The program must: (1) provide an online resource that integrates
geospatial data, decision-support tools, training, and best practices to
address coastal management issues and needs, and to enhance resilient
communities, ecosystem values, and coastal economic growth and development; and
(2) provide for the documentation, dissemination, and archiving of the data. http://tinyurl.com/ya8eojc8
á
The
Senate passed the Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 that provides
greater whistleblower protections for Federal employees, increased awareness of
Federal whistleblower protections, and increased accountability and required
discipline for Federal supervisors who retaliate against whistleblowers. http://tinyurl.com/yap5qncq
Friday, May 26
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Jared Kushner, TrumpÕs son-in-law and White
House adviser, held meetings in December with Russian officials, which are now
part of the probe into Russia influence in the election. http://tinyurl.com/y83kpuva
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The
New York Times revealed that American spies collected information last summer
that senior Russian intelligence discussed how to exert influence over Trump
through his advisers. http://tinyurl.com/yd86j9tb
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TrumpÕs
revised travel ban executive order suffered another legal defeat when an
appeals court refused to overturn a lower court ruling. http://tinyurl.com/y8djybya
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Energy Transfer Partners, the oil company behind
the Dakota Access pipeline, faced fines and scrutiny from regulators over a
series of leaks, including a major spill now believed to be significantly
bigger than initially reported. http://tinyurl.com/yctthruf
á
Healy Baumgardner-Nardone, former Trump campaign
aide, was hired to lobby for a foreign client, the government of Malaysia. http://tinyurl.com/ybhpo9y8
á
During a meeting with European Union officials
in Brussels, Trump allegedly said, ÒThe Germans are bad, very bad. See the
millions of cars they are selling in the U.S.? Terrible. We will stop this.Ó http://tinyurl.com/ybu9284v
á
TrumpÕs economic adviser Gary Cohn suggested to
reporters aboard Air Force One that Trump might be open to lifting NATO
sanctions on Russia. http://tinyurl.com/ycldk7mw
á
International
Business Times reported that the Trump administrationÕs infrastructure plan
involves privatizing AmericaÕs assets and selling them to Goldman Sachs. http://tinyurl.com/yajljc68
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The U.S.
Army lost track of weapons worth $1 billion sent to Iraq and Kuwait. http://tinyurl.com/y6w6egxl
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A pending bill, Restoring Internet Freedom Act,
would gut net neutrality and allow ISPs to block, throttle, and favor websites
and apps in exchange for money. http://tinyurl.com/ycgvgg22
Saturday, May 27
á
The
Washington Post reported that Jared Kushner attempted
to persuade the Russian Ambassador to set up a secure, secret channel through
which communications could be established with officials in Moscow —
expressly to circumvent oversight by U.S. intelligence. http://tinyurl.com/yavra692
á
Reuters reported that Jared Kushner had at least
three previously undisclosed contacts with the Russian ambassador to the United
States during and after the 2016 presidential campaign. http://tinyurl.com/y7x547v9
á
Yahoo
News reported that a group of 22 Republican senators signed a letter
urging Trump to make a Òclean
breakÓ from the Paris Agreement on climate change. http://tinyurl.com/y9o2xjqf
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Trump's national security adviser, H.R.
McMaster, said he "would not be concerned" with KushnerÕs attempt to
have a secret back-channel
communications system with Russia. http://tinyurl.com/y77repwf
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The State
Department lifted restrictions on refugee entry to the U.S. despite Trump
administration efforts to limit admissions. http://tinyurl.com/ycuflrmx
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A U.S.
airstrike in Syria killed 106 civilians fleeing ISIS. http://tinyurl.com/y7blmwek
Sunday, May 28
á
Allies
expressed anger as Trump refused to affirm the U.S. commitment to implement the
Paris climate accords — an action that would open the US to punitive
tariffs, possible lawsuits, boycotts, and make it impossible for the world to
keep global warming to 3.6 degrees F. http://tinyurl.com/yar4yrqx
á
Former
intelligence officials described Jared Kushner's reported attempt to set
up a backchannel line of communication with Russia to bypass the U.S.Õ
intelligence apparatus as Òoff the map,Ó Òexplosive,Ó and Òextremely
dangerous.Ó http://tinyurl.com/yasqe287
á
Reuters
reported that the U.S. might ban laptops from
aircraft cabins on all flights into and out of the country. http://tinyurl.com/y9pzylto