MORNING MESSAGE
As the Trump Train Derails, We Must Keep Up the Pressure
On
this second Tuesday of protests, we will make it manifestly clear the Trump
agenda is not normal and we will not let it be normalized. Many of these events
will focus on our demand that our cities and towns protect immigrants by
declaring themselves “sanctuary cities” and refusing to comply with Trump’s
executive orders that hurt our families and communities. We are calling on
governors in particular to “join the resistance” against the immigration
executive order.
#RESISTTRUMPTUESDAY
TODAY: Join one of the hundreds of local #ResistTrumpTuesdays protests across the country hosted by People’s Action, MoveOn.org and the Working Families Party. The resistance to Trump’s agenda is building momentum and it’s working! Come join us.
BREAKING: DEMS BOYCOTT CONFIRMATION VOTES
LAT’s
Jim Puzzanghera reports: “Dems on Senate Finance Committee are boycotting
votes today on Mnuchin and Price. It’s unclear if votes will happen later.”
Tillerson
cued up for confirmation. The Hill: “Senators voted 56-43 on a procedural
hurdle, with only a simple majority needed to move forward … Democratic Sens.
Joe Manchin (W.Va.), Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.) and Mark Warner (Va.), as well as
Independent Sen. Angus King (Maine) voted to move forward with Tillerson’s
nomination. Manchin, Heitkamp and King are up for reelection in 2018.”
TRUMP FIRES AG
Trump
fires acting AG after she resisted executive order. CNN: “President Donald
Trump fired acting Attorney General Sally Yates Monday night for ‘refusing to
enforce a legal order designed to protect the citizens of the United States,’ …
‘(Yates) has betrayed the Department of Justice,’ the White House statement
said. Dana Boente, US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, was sworn
in at 9 p.m. ET … Boente issued a statement rescinding Yates’ order, instructing
DOJ lawyers to ‘defend the lawful orders of our President.’ Trump didn’t call
Yates to dismiss her, she was informed by hand-delivered letter…”
Dems
march against travel ban. Roll Call: “House Democrats continued their
protests … marching down the East Front Capitol steps holding candles and
singing ‘This Land Is Your Land,’ heading to the Supreme Court to rally against
the executive action … The rally followed efforts by Democrats on Monday evening
to bring legislation to the House and Senate floors to prohibit federal funds
from being used to implement the executive order or to rescind the order
outright.”
Travel
ban backlash slows confirmation process. Roll Call: “On Monday afternoon,
Democrats objected to a request for committees to meet two hours after the
Senate convened, a routine unanimous request that typically sails through with
nary a whisper of dissent. Blocking the daily procedure showed Democrats were
stepping up their slowdown efforts … Democrats will be asking the remaining
Cabinet nominees about whether they were involved in, or if they have positions
on, Trump’s missive, according to a senior Democratic aide. Democrats are
expected to call for delays on confirmation votes until they get answers.”
Republicans
offer narrow complaints. The Atlantic: “More Republican lawmakers issued
statements critical of Trump’s action on Sunday evening and Monday, even as many
said they supported a temporary halt to the refugee program and restrictions on
travel from Muslim countries … Republicans were particularly angry that the
Trump administration did not initially exempt green-card holders, or those who
had served as military or diplomatic interpreters from the ban.”
Trump
voters happy. AP: “In their view, Trump is being Trump. They add that
Democrats and liberal snowflakes and soft-hearted do-gooders just need to calm
down.”
Immigrants
told to sign away their rights. NYT: “…immigration agents have wrongly told
some travelers arriving legally that they must sign documents forfeiting their
right to enter, according to immigration lawyers and migrants … lawyers who
flocked to a number of airports to represent migrants said United States Customs
and Border Protection agents there repeatedly resorted to coercion and deception
to deny entry.”
“Border-district
Republicans skeptical about Trump’s wall” reports The Hill: “Rep. Will Hurd
(R-Texas), who represents the largest region along the Mexican border of any
member of Congress, actively opposes the wall … And Reps. Martha McSally
(R-Ariz.) and Steve Pearce (R-N.M.) have both expressed skepticism about how
effective the wall would be … there isn’t a single border-area lawmaker who
vocally supports the construction of a wall in their district … Pearce’s
southern New Mexico district was the only one along the border that Trump won on
Nov. 8.”
“If
Trump Goes After ‘Dreamers,’ Republican Loyalty May Be Tested” reports NYT:
“Some Republicans have contemplated … potentially searing depictions and worry
they could provoke an outcry that would dwarf this weekend’s response to the new
restrictions … ‘After this weekend, if they go after Dreamers, they are going to
be going after the best-known, most popular and most beloved immigrants in
America,’ said Frank Sharry, executive director of America’s Voice…”
SCOTUS PICK TONIGHT
Progressives
sharpen knives for SCOTUS fight. Politico: “‘There is now an urgency to
oppose anyone who won’t be a powerful check on the Supreme Court against the
executive branch excesses and impulses,’ said Nan Aron, founder and president of
the Alliance for Justice … progressives are zeroing in on red-state Democrats
like West Virginia’s Joe Manchin and North Dakota’s Heidi Heitkamp. Among
Republicans, they’re looking at Arizona’s Jeff Flake and Nevada’s Dean Heller,
who are both up for reelection in 2018, and the moderate Susan Collins of
Maine…”
Sen.
Jeff Merkley plans filibuster. The Hill: “Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) turned
up the temperature on Monday, circulating a petition that argues his colleagues
should block any nominee from Trump given the Senate GOP’s decision to not grant
a vote or hearing to Merrick Garland…”
Other
Dems hesitate on filibuster. CNN: “…a number of Democrats are trying to
persuade liberal firebrands to essentially let Republicans confirm Trump’s pick
after a vigorous confirmation process [because] Republicans are considering
gutting the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees if Democrats stay largely
united and block Trump’s first pick.”
Left
plans broader legal assault. NYT: “…lawyers at liberal advocacy groups have
been putting aside institutional rivalries and organizing to work together on
litigation. Several leaders of the effort said their hope is that the judiciary
may serve as a strong check to a government controlled by Mr. Trump…”
REGULATORY ROLLBACK BEGINS
Congress
moves on loosening coal regs. The Hill: “Sen. McConnell introduced a
Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution blocking the Interior Department’s
Stream Protection Rule, days before the House is set to vote on a similar
measure … [The rule] protects waterways from the impacts of mountaintop removal
mining.”
Trump
aims at Dodd-Frank. NYT: “His allies in Congress began their legislative
assault on Dodd-Frank on Monday, introducing a measure to repeal a Securities
and Exchange Commission regulation that requires oil companies to publicly
disclose payments they make to governments when developing resources around the
world … House Republicans are also moving bolder legislation that would repeal
crucial provisions of Dodd-Frank, including the so-called Volcker rule … Wall
Street is hoping that with new leaders at the S.E.C. and the Commodity Futures
Trading Commission, regulators may allow some leeway for violations of the
Volcker rule and other regulations.”
BREAKFAST SIDES
Trump
trade aide accuses Germany of currency manipulation. FT: “Germany is using a
‘grossly undervalued’ euro to ‘exploit’ the US and its EU partners, Donald
Trump’s top trade adviser has said in comments that are likely to trigger alarm
in Europe’s largest economy … [Peter] Navarro also called Germany one of the
main hurdles to an American trade deal with the EU and declared talks with the
bloc over a US-EU agreement, known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment
Partnership, dead … Mr Navarro said one of the administration’s trade priorities
was unwinding and repatriating the international supply chains on which many US
multinational companies rely, taking aim at one of the pillars of the modern
global economy.”
Trump
doesn’t deserve credit for cutting cost of F-35s. W. Post: “…Lockheed
already had planned cost reductions. In a Dec. 19 briefing … the head of the
Defense Department’s F-35 Joint Program Office, Air Force Lt. Gen. Christopher
Bogdan, announced costs would come down ‘significantly.’ … The average price
unit price has been decreasing for years, and Bogdan repeatedly has announced
his intention to lower the cost of the jets…”
Mexicans
turn against NAFTA. Bloomberg: “…Eduardo Avila, on a break from his job as a
driver … dug into the pocket of his jeans jacket to show off the lapel pin and
ribbon he’d just bought, both emblazoned with a suddenly popular slogan: ‘United
For Mexico. Buy Mexican Goods.’ … Alejandro Sanchez, a vendor on the outskirts
of the Zocalo [said] ‘They can raise the tallest wall in the world, in fact they
should. They can keep their burgers and fast food, their junk
culture,’…”
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