Monday, July 24

á       Whistleblower Joel Clement, a scientist at the Department of the Interior, revealed that, due to climate change, many coastal Alaskan villages are becoming swamped by melting permafrost causing coastal erosion. He said he was demoted to a job collecting royalty checks from fossil fuel companies for speaking out. http://tinyurl.com/yalnuzwp

á       After being questioned in a closed-door Senate hearing, Jared Kushner, President Donald TrumpÕs son-in-law and adviser, said , ÒI did not collude with Russia, nor do I know of anyone else in the campaign who did so.Ó http://tinyurl.com/yapbqgdq

á       In an interview in the New Yorker, a veteran ICE agent spoke out about ÒrampantÓ contempt towards ÒaliensÓ by ICE enforcement officers that he hasnÕt seen under previous administrations. http://tinyurl.com/y9r92wpn

á       According to Guardian UK, Jared Kushner secured a multimillion dollar real estate deal with a Soviet-born oligarch whose company was cited in a major money laundering case. http://tinyurl.com/ycvko4t7

á       A federal judge ruled that TrumpÕs voting commission can collect voter data from 50 states and is exempt from federal privacy review requirements. http://tinyurl.com/ycjocbxh

á       According to the Washington Post, cooperation with Russia is becoming a central part of the Trump administrationÕs counter-Islamic State strategy in Syria. http://tinyurl.com/y7b5dh46

á       A report by the Union of Concerned Scientists called ÒSidelining Science Since Day One: How the Trump Administration Has Harmed Public Health and Safety in Its First Six Months,Ó analyzes how the Trump administration has undermined the vital role science plays in policy decisions. http://tinyurl.com/ybxx2kzc

á       The Nation reported how the US is failing native American students with punitive discipline, inadequate curriculum, and declining federal funding. http://tinyurl.com/y7xzmmwq

Tuesday, July 25

á       Trump launched a public assault on Attorney General (AG) Sessions questioning why Sessions has not done more to investigate alleged crimes by Hillary Clinton and information leakers. http://tinyurl.com/y82zls8a

á       Trump was harshly criticized for giving a campaign-like speech with political attacks on the media and Hilary Clinton to 40,000 Boy Scouts at the Scout Jamboree. http://tinyurl.com/ybll923s

á       Paul Manafort, TrumpÕs top campaign aide, testified to the Senate Intelligence Committee and provided notes he took during a meeting in the Trump Tower with a Russian lawyer. http://tinyurl.com/yczfdyqa

á       Anthony Scaramucci, the new White House communications director, threatened to fire his entire staff to stem leaks plaguing the Trump administration. http://tinyurl.com/y7e96ftf

á       The Washington Post reported that North Korea will be able to launch a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile as early as next year. http://tinyurl.com/ya62gxgd

á       In an effort to revive their struggling healthcare bill, Senate Republican leaders secured votes needed to begin debating new health-care legislation. http://tinyurl.com/ybu9mx3k

á       The Senate Judiciary Committee subpoenaed Paul Manafort, the former Trump campaign manager, saying that negotiations for him to testify voluntarily had broken down. http://tinyurl.com/y7uwjnoo

á       Trump and his advisers discussed the possibility of replacing AG Jeff Sessions. http://tinyurl.com/ycuc2qol

á       A federal judge blocked the potential deportation of more than 1,400 Iraqis, members of the Chaldean Christian minority and subject to persecution in Iraq. http://tinyurl.com/yaefznuh

á       Senator John McCain lectured to the Senate about why the Senate has become too partisan and is getting nothing done. http://tinyurl.com/y9ty6ago

á       Senior assistant press secretary Michael Short resigned after a report emerged in Politico hours earlier saying that he would be fired in Scaramucci's quest to uproot leakers. http://tinyurl.com/ybvawfsw

á       Senate Democrats warned they will block Trump from trying to bypass the confirmation process by firing AG Sessions and appointing a successor during the August recess. http://tinyurl.com/ybyqevhr

Wednesday, July 26

á       Senate Republicans forged ahead with proposals to revamp the Affordable Care Act that might garner support in the Senate and  the House. http://tinyurl.com/yblsy7l6

á       Massachusetts supreme court ruled that police cannot detain illegal immigrants solely to buy time for federal law enforcement officials to take them into custody. http://tinyurl.com/yd9mjfmr

á       Trump announced on Twitter that he will ban transgender people from serving in the military in any capacity. http://tinyurl.com/y88dao7p

á       Trump renewed his attacks on AG Sessions questioning on Twitter why Sessions had not replaced the acting FBI director. http://tinyurl.com/y8s6odb5

á       According to the Washington Post, Trump made 29 false or misleading claims over the past day. http://tinyurl.com/ya6yec2z

á       Two Russians prank-called Energy Secretary Rick Perry and made him believe he was talking to Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman about using pig manure as an energy source. http://tinyurl.com/y9lfkpne

á       According to the Washington Post, White House officials considered a strategy to pass a sharp, short-term tax cut if Trump's effort to pursue a broader overhaul of the tax code falters. http://tinyurl.com/ycubqmrv

á       According to the Guardian UK, Education Secretary DeVos stands accused of quietly privatizing schools, rescinding discrimination guidelines and neutering her own departmentÕs civil rights office. http://tinyurl.com/yaznp9hp

á       The Washington Post reported that a federal judge has upheld a $1,000 fine against Kris Kobach, the vice chair of TrumpÕs Election Integrity Commission, citing a ÒpatternÓ of Òmisleading the CourtÓ in voter-ID cases. The ruling represents another blow to the credibility of a commission plagued by lawsuits and controversy in its first months of existence. http://tinyurl.com/y9kcg4x2

á       Democrats have attempted to counter TrumpÕs EPA pro-pesticide actions and have pushed to ban chemicals harmful to children and bees through bills introduced in Congress. http://tinyurl.com/y8wvpalx

á       The Department of Justice argued in a legal brief that the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not protect LGBTQ people. http://tinyurl.com/yapxzdvu

Thursday, July 27

á       A new report detailed how US county sheriffs have joined with far-right hate groups that advocate tough anti-immigrant measures to expand mass deportation boundaries with little oversight. http://tinyurl.com/y7hagczf

á       The US Justice Department urged the federal appeals court in Manhattan to reject a lawsuit by a former skydiving instructor who claimed he was fired for being gay. http://tinyurl.com/y9fsjbyc

á       Santa Barbara became the first California city to pass a resolution against offshore oil and gas drilling. http://tinyurl.com/y9mf35er

á       According to the Washington Post, there is a growing GOP backlash to TrumpÕs transgender troop ban calling it a political miscalculation. http://tinyurl.com/y9uqh5fp

á       Senate Republicans warned the White House that getting rid on AG Sessions would be a terrible move -- that it would look as though Trump were making the move solely to shut down an investigation of his campaign and the White House. http://tinyurl.com/y7vghlu5

á       The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the ÒskinnyÓ Obamacare repeal may leave 16 million people uninsured. http://tinyurl.com/y82x8bq8

á       US defense chiefs said they will continue to permit transgender individuals to serve openly until Defense Secretary Mattis receives TrumpÕs direction to change policy. http://tinyurl.com/yc52ehdx

á       According to BuzzFlash, because Trump has employed cyberbullying as a key strategy in his presidency, Melania Trump has been unable to initiate her ÔFirst LadyÕ campaign to stop cyberbullying. http://tinyurl.com/y8f8qgnv

á       The Department of Energy nominated Mark Menezes as Under Secretary of Energy. Menezes worked on behalf of utility companies and fossil fuel interests. http://tinyurl.com/ybvdcdhu

Friday, July 28

á       Senate Republicans failed to overhaul the Affordable Care Act after Senator John McCain decided to vote with two other Republicans against the bill. http://tinyurl.com/y98v4dwu

á       New Yorker reporter Ryan Lizza described a conversation with TrumpÕs communications director Anthony Scaramucci that illustrates the anxiety, chaos and tension among White House staff. http://tinyurl.com/y9gr45p9

á       Congressman Raœl Grijalva called for a probe into political blackmail by TrumpÕs Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, who threatened Alaska senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan saying if they voted against the GOP healthcare bill, the Trump administration would not support key projects in Alaska. http://tinyurl.com/y9qsfmut

á       Trump replaced chief of staff Reince Priebus with General John Kelly, currently the secretary of homeland security. http://tinyurl.com/yb93lcfo

á       US-Russian tensions rose as Russia said the US must downsize its diplomatic staff in Russia and as Congress voted to tighten sanctions against Russia. http://tinyurl.com/y77sjany

á       Democracy Now! reported that the healthcare fight is really far from over: expect a proposal for $1.5 trillion in cuts to Medicaid and another almost $500 billion in cuts to Medicare in the Republican budget – along with a proposal to voucherize and privatize Medicare. http://tinyurl.com/y9gj4lpy

á       US Forward, a front group backed by the petrochemical billionaire Koch brothers, launched a series of misleading anti-electric vehicle videos. http://tinyurl.com/ydg33tkb

á       Trump addressed a group of law enforcement officials and said "please don't be too nice" to suspects who are arrested. US police chiefs later blasted Trump for endorsing police brutality. http://tinyurl.com/yap4m2ze

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Saturday, July 29

á       A federal judge blocked Arkansas from enforcing four new abortion restrictions, including a requirement for a partner's consent before a woman could get an abortion. http://tinyurl.com/yaupk55x

á       Trump selected Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, who has a history of opposition to LGBTQ rights and uses religious beliefs to justify discrimination, as ambassador at large for international religious freedom. http://tinyurl.com/y7up376h

á       According to former deputy AG Sally Yates, Trump has attempted to dismantle the rule of law, destroy the independence of the Justice Department, and undermine the career men and women in the Justice Department. http://tinyurl.com/ycwz3h67

á       Trump threatened to end payments to insurance companies made under Obamacare unless a repeal and replace bill passes. http://tinyurl.com/y799j9rf

á       A federal judge refused to drop a lawsuit against two psychologists who helped devise the CIAÕs interrogation-torture program after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, clearing the way for the case to proceed to a trial in September. http://tinyurl.com/ydfhogrf

Sunday, July 30

á       Putin ordered 755 US diplomats out of Russia in retaliation to a US bill passed by Congress that strengthened sanctions imposed on Russian officials. http://tinyurl.com/ydfhogrf

á       The Associated Press reported that because a US program was halted by a series of new refugee bans and travel limits, more than 100 refugee children matched with US foster families have been stranded. http://tinyurl.com/yadcfddj

á       Representative Bruce Westerman introduced legislation in Congress that would give the Forest Service and the BLM a blank check to start logging in places for no reason other than just cutting, guts the Endangered Species Act, guts the Equal Access to Justice Act – ad nauseum. http://tinyurl.com/yd4sfohq

á       Trump removed Anthony Scaramucci as White House communications director. http://tinyurl.com/yclyk9u2