Trump, House allies rally over special counsel probes |
Former President Trump on Tuesday decried investigations into him following a meeting between his lawyers and Justice Department officials Monday, which spurred talk of a decision around charges nearing.
Special Counsel Jack Smith is overseeing two investigations, one into whether anyone interfered with the transfer of power after the 2020 election or the electoral vote-counting on Jan. 6, 2021, and another into classified documents found at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home.
Trump, in one of several social media posts on the matter, wrote, “The Marxists and Fascists in the DOJ & FBI are going after me at a level and speed never seen before in our Country, and I did nothing wrong.” He also claimed the probes were an effort to sway the 2024 election.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) ramped up his efforts to scrutinize the investigations on Tuesday, asking Attorney General Merrick Garland to give the committee an “unredacted copy of the memorandum outlining the scope of Special Counsel Smith’s investigations pursuant to his appointment on November 18, 2022, and any other document describing, listing, or delineating the authority and jurisdiction of the special counsel as soon as possible.”
House Democratic leaders do not approve of Jordan’s efforts: “Congress is the legislative branch,” Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), vice chairman of the Democratic Caucus, said during a Tuesday press briefing. “We do not interfere in ongoing law enforcement investigations.”
As we’ve covered, Jordan has also asked the Justice Department for information on FBI personnel involved in the classified documents probe.
Read more on the investigations and reactions here |
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Welcome to Evening Report! I’m Amee LaTour, catching you up from the afternoon and what’s coming tomorrow. Not on the list? Subscribe here. |
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A federal judge has granted media organizations’ request to unseal the names of those who cosigned the $500,000 bond for Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) in his criminal fraud case.
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It’s the first-ever National Naloxone Awareness Day, instituted by a congressional resolution to highlight the opioid overdose reversal drug.
Merck is suing the Biden administration over a provision of the Inflation Reduction Act allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices.
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Christie jumps into 2024 presidential fray
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Former New Jersey Gov. and 2016 presidential candidate Chris Christie filed his paperwork for another White House bid and is set to announce his campaign during a town hall at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics in Manchester, N.H., tonight.
The then-governor suspended his last campaign in February 2016 after finishing sixth in the New Hampshire primary. The Hill’s Niall Stanage wrote, “Despite having been allied with Trump at times in the past — including endorsing him early in the 2016 race and being centrally involved in Trump’s debate preparation in 2020 — he [Christie] has become a harsh critic.” With several prominent candidates already in the race, and former Vice President Mike Pence and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum expected to announce campaigns Wednesday, the 2024 GOP primary is shaping up to be a crowded affair. Read more from Stanage on the various candidates’ lanes here. You can tune into Christie’s town hall at 6 p.m. here on C-SPAN. |
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Debt limit saga, continued
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The debt limit deal may have been signed, but the drama surrounding it isn’t quite over. Eleven House Republicans on Tuesday voted with Democrats against a rule to advance bills on regulatory reform and gas stoves. The final vote was 206-220.
From Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.): “We took a stand in January to end the era of the imperial Speakership, and we’re concerned that the fundamental commitments that allowed Kevin McCarthy to assume the Speakership have been violated as a consequence of the debt limit deal. And, you know, the answer for us is to reassert House conservatives as the appropriate coalition partner for our leadership instead of them making common cause with Democrats.” Read more on this story here |
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© Associated Press images |
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Top quotes from 2023 commencement addresses
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The Hill’s Lexi Lonas rounds up some of the best quotes from 2023’s commencement addresses, including from President Biden, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), Tom Hanks and Oprah Winfrey.
An excerpt from Jean-Pierre’s speech at Rice University: “The world is malleable and we are the ones with the power to transform it but only, but only, if we are willing to take the chance.” Read the full roundup here |
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Human Rights Campaign declares state of emergency for LGBTQ people
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The Human Rights Campaign declared a state of emergency in the U.S. for LGBTQ people, citing more than 75 new laws this year targeting the community.
From The Hill’s Brooke Migdon: “In addition to declaring a national state of emergency, the HRC released a downloadable guidebook for LGBTQ people that includes health and safety resources, a summary of state-by-state laws and ‘know your rights’ information for those traveling to or already living in states that have passed restrictive laws.” Read more here
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Apple ducking out of expletive autocorrects
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“How respect for civil discourse led to respect for marriage equality” — Timothy J. Shaffer, the SNF chair of civil discourse at the Biden School for Public Policy and Administration, and director of civic engagement and deliberative democracy with the National Institute for Civil Discourse at the University of Arizona. (Read here)
“Should the government censor social media for kids?” — Marc Siegel, MD, a professor of medicine and medical director of Doctor Radio at NYU Langone Health. He is a Fox News medical correspondent and author of the new book, “COVID; the Politics of Fear and the Power of Science.” (Read here) |
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518 days until the presidential election. |
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10 a.m.: The Committee on House Administration and Committee on Oversight and Accountability hold the joint hearing, “American Confidence in Elections: The Path to Election Integrity in the District of Columbia.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing to examine pending nominations. |
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There a story you think should be getting more attention? Something people should be talking about? Drop me a line: ALaTour@digital-stage.thehill.com |
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