The Walls Closing In
House Dems sent more than 80 letters last Monday to Donald Jr and Eric Trump, as well as the CFO of the Trump Organization (specifically cited by Michael Cohen under excellent questioning by Alexandria Ocasio Cortez as the person who would have info on Donald’s tax returns and other financial interests) seeking documents and other information about the Very Stable Genius’s business, political, and White House operations.
Also in the wake of Michael Cohen’s revealing testimony, New York state regulators subpoenaed documents from the Trump Organization’s insurance broker.
House Democrats introduced a bill to protect White House whistleblowers subject to nondisclosure agreements by the Commander of Cheese.
On the heels of last week’s item about Donald pressuring for security clearances for Jared Kushner despite security concerns, Donald also pressured John Kelly and White House counsel Don McGahn to grant clearance for Ivanka against their recommendations.
Robert Mueller’s legal team notified a federal judge about Roger Stone’s Instagram post that could be a violation of the judge’s gag order.
Republicans Against the Law
A federal judge ruled in favor of the ACLU that all migrant families separated at the border should be part of a class-action lawsuit against the current administration.
A federal judge ruled that Wilbur’s Ross’s proposed citizenship question for the 2020 census violates the Constitution.
A ruling by a federal appeals court on Thursday broadened constitutional protections for undocumented immigrants at the border, opening a potential new legal gateway for some to stay in the country.
California became the first of 21 subsequent states to file suit against the federal government for Donald’s executive-order “gag rule”denying federal funds to organizations that offer information on abortions.
Social and Civil Rights Advances
After the Methodist church disavowed the LGBTQ community, Northhaven United Methodist Church in Dallas covered the “United Methodist” part of its sign with the Pride flag. Many in the congregation in the first service after the church’s decision, including the reverend, wore rainbow stoles in support of the LQBTQ community. <3
More than 50 years after her significant and largely unknown (until the 2016 Oscar-winning movie Hidden Figures based on her life), mathematician Katherine Johnson contributions to NASA’s space program are being honored with a NASA building named for her in her home state of West Virginia.
In the wake of a meticulously reported expose in the New York Times about the close ties between the FOX network and the Mentally Deranged Dotard that suggests the network is propaganda for Donald, the Democratic National Convention rejected FOX News as a host for presidential debates, stating that the network was not “in a position to host a fair and neutral debate for our candidates.”
Republicans Reconsidering
Former White House chief of staff John Kelly is happily contradicting Donald all over the place, stating that the border wall is a “waste of money” because the immigrants coming in at the southern border are “overwhelmingly not criminals.”
Ty Cobb—Donald’s short-lived White House lawyer, not the baseball player—called Robert Mueller “an American hero” and “a class act,” disagreeing with his former boss that his investigation is a baseless “witch-hunt.”
In what should make for superfun questions during presidential debates (on both sides), donor records reveal that Donald and Ivanka have donated to six of the declared or potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidates, including Kamala Harris, Cory Booker, and Kirsten Gillibrand.
Republican lawmakers once again kept it classy with this appalling display.
Your Feel-good Stories of the Week
Not necessarily a feel-good, unless rampant corruption floats your boat (but no, you aren’t Trump fans or you wouldn’t be here), but read this and see if it sounds familiar. Keep an eye on what happens with Netanyahu’s case—as Brexit revealed the first rumblings of a global far-right wave, this might presage the end of it at the hands of a divisive criminal misusing his office and cozying up to world despots.
This headline and picture alone…! But the story is even better. ?