Fired U.S. Attorney Breaks His Silence; Says He Was Canned Because He Didn’t Return Trump’s Call
Stalker-in-chief. Former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said “there’s absolutely evidence” enough against Trump to begin an obstruction of justice case against him for firing FBI Director James Comey. Bharara, whom Trump fired after he refused to take Trump’s phone call. Bharara appeared Sunday on ABC News’ “This Week” in his first TV interview since Trump fired him in March. Bharara took two phone calls from Trump but decided against taking a third, two days after Trump’s inauguration. “The call came in. I got a message. We deliberated over it, thought it was inappropriate to return the call. And 22 hours later I was asked to resign along with 45 other people,” he said.
Corruption in the White House. Attorneys general for the District of Columbia and the state of Maryland say they will sue President Trump on Monday, The Washington Post reported. The suit says Trump has violated anti-corruption clauses in the Constitution by accepting millions in payments and benefits from foreign governments since moving into the White House. The lawsuit, the first of its kind brought by government entities, centers on the fact that Trump chose to retain ownership of his company when he became president.
Notes and Comments / Ryan Cooper @ The Week
Republicans are closer to killing ObamaCare than you think
“The American Health Care Act (a tax cut for rich people paid for with Medicaid cuts, disguised as a health-care reform bill) is quietly working its way through the Senate.
“It’s unclear exactly what changes Republicans in the Senate have made, because the process — just as in the House — is proceeding under a cloud of total secrecy. There have been no hearings, no committee markups, and no possibility for amendment, and there will be none.
“Negotiations are not settled yet, and the GOP majority in the Senate is quite small. All liberals would have to do is peel off three votes to stop the bill. Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), who is up for re-election in 2018, is probably the ripest target.
“The only thing that might stop the bill is constituents absolutely deluging their senators with calls, letters, and visits. Outside pressure isn’t guaranteed to work, but it’s opponents’ best hope. Conversely, if people lose interest and hope it simply won’t pass—or believe that the ultraconservatives in the House will balk during the conference committee—this thing is probably going through. It’s the Republican Party, always assume the absolute worst.”
Visit on ice. Trump has told British Prime Minister Theresa May he doesn’t want to visit Britain if his visit would lead to large protests. The Conservative Party lost its majority in Parliament in Thursday’s election. Former British Chancellor George Osborne has called May “a dead woman walking.” May’s office said that the Queen has invited Trump to visit “and there is no change to those plans.”
Advertising boycott. Breitbart News, the nationalist news site once run by Trump adviser Steve Bannon, has had advertisers flee since March. Twenty-six brands appeared on Breitbart in May compared to 242 in March. Sleeping Giants, a Twitter account started in November, has pressured advertisers to dump Breitbart. Senior editor Milo Yiannopoulos resigned in February. Writer Katie McHugh was fired after she made an Islamophobic tweet about the London terror attack.
Testimony. Attorney General Jeff Sessions may appear Tuesday before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Former FBI Director James Comey has said he knew details about Sessions that would make his involvement in the Russia investigation “problematic.” It is unclear if Sessions’ testimony would be public.
