Cabbage News Network Week #58

[kmusser]

Status of Puerto Rico infrastructure - it's been 163 days and the island is still 20% without power.

Saturday 2/24

• Dems release their rebuttal to Nunes memo (source).
  
• DJT endorses GOP effort to keep gerrymandered Pennsylvania map (source).

Monday 2/26

• Supreme Court rules that "dreamer" protections must continue as long as there is pending litigation (source).
  
• DJT begins backtracking on gun control measures (source, source).
  
• Labor Board reinstates rule holding companies responsible for their sub-contractors labor practices (source).
  
• EPA facing record number of lawsuits over FOIA requests (source).

Tuesday 2/27

• Kushner loses top secret security clearance as foreign officials seek to manipulate him (source).
  
• Hope Hicks interviewed by House investigation, admits to sometimes lying for DJT, refuses to answer most questions (source).
  
• Mother Jones has put together a nice summary of the horrible things that Scott Pruitt has done over at the EPA (source, oh, Onion).
  
• NSA has not been told to interrupt Russian cyberattacks against U.S. election systems (source).

Wednesday 2/28

• White House communications director Hope Hicks resigns (source).
  
• Kushner conducting private business out of the White House (source).
  

Thursday 3/1

• DJT increases tariffs on steel and aluminum (source).
  
• Everybody is pissed about the tariffs (source).
  
• Dems investigating money laundering allegations associated with Trump property in Panama (source).
  
• Russia announces new nuclear weapons (source).
  
• GOP rejects DJT's call for gun control legislation (source).
  
• Not just Kushner, over 30 White House aides have security clearances downgraded (source).
  
• Budget bills being considered by Congress have campaign finance riders, one lifting limits on political spending by churches and one allowing more secrecy in campaign contributions (source).
  
• ICE raid in California arrests 232, would've arrested more if it wasn't for Oakland's mayor (source).

Friday 3/2

• HHS following opioid commission's recommendations, opens up options for treating addiction (source).

In news elsewhere

• It was above freezing at the north pole (source).
  
• Two members of the band Pussy Riot are disappeared in Russia (source).

Map of the week

Winter storms hit most of Europe

Legislative action this week

• Legislation signed into law
  
  • Bill making the St. Louis Gateway Arch a National Park https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/s1438
  
  
• Legislation awaiting DJT's signature
  
  • 6 minor bills
  
  
• Legislation passed in the House, awaiting Senate - no new major bills
  
  • Bill penalizing websites whose users help sex trafficking https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr1865
    
  • Bill reducing capital risk pool requirements for banks https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr4296
    
  • Bill gutting the ADA https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr620
    
  • Sanctions against Hamas https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr3542
    
  • 433 pending bills
  
  
• Legislation passed in the Senate, awaiting House - no new major bills
  
  • 95 pending bills

Comments

Just a tiny quibble

[marahmarie]

I hate to be pedantic but technically, your item(s) on Trump backtracking on gun control are incorrect: they were posted by the WP on Feb. 26th but Trump's complete turnaround on gun control (in favor of it) was not until the 28th: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/28/us/politics/trump-gun-control.html - so we're all waiting, breath bated (seriously, I'm ready to take bets on my own DW because we all seem to think he'll walk his new round of gun-control-favoring back quickly enough) for him to backtrack off that (but I can't say if he did or not, since I've done nothing more than glance at current news in the last few days).

Re: Just a tiny quibble

[kmusser]

I stopped keeping track of his flip flops on the issue after the 4th one, he did make statements supportive of gun control on the day of the shooting as well, then backtracked, then forward-tracked per your link, since then he has backtracked again per https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/02/us/politics/after-brief-split-trump-and-nra-appear-to-reconcile.html - all of it I think kind of moot since the GOP in Congress haven't budged on the issue so I don't see anything actually happening on gun control unless GOP lose control in mid-terms (or states take it on on their own, which some have).

Re: Just a tiny quibble

[marahmarie]

Oh, that m*******ker! I didn't think he'd turn quite that fast...The first paragraph of that article just burns me right up. Yeah, I should've taken bets! Christ.

[selki]

I'd heard about Kushner but not the 30 aides. Thanks.