“The government has nukes,” said Congressman Eric Swalwell on Twitter, charging that those who would not adhere to potentially stricter firearm legislation would basically be assassinated by the U.S. government.
President Trump Intended On Prosecuting James Comey And Hillary Clinton
It has come forth that when then-candidate Donald Trump was alluding to the possible prosecution of then-FBI Director James Comey and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton when he was running in the 2016 presidential election, he actually was not kidding about that. Reportedly, President Trump inquired with White House Counsel Don McGhan, who departed from the Trump Administration in October, about moving forward with legal proceedings for the two top political bureaucrats.
In the Spring, attorneys within the White House apparently warned the President about the political consequences associated with prosecuting Comey and Clinton, claiming that impeachment proceedings could be used to remove him from office, which has been the goal for congressional Democrats for the past two years. AP reports that McGahn told Trump that he had no authority to order such a prosecution, arguing that the commander-in-chief could, instead, request an official probe into wrongdoings on part of the two former government officials.
Regardless, any action into the situations could have led to accusations of abuse of the Office of the Presidency.
Nevertheless, President Trump is said to still be mulling the future of the two, including discussing with some close to him about appointing a new special counsel to investigate Comey for his handling of the investigation of private email servers from Clinton during her time at the State Department. Notably, just over a week after Trump took office in 2017, he sat down with the former FBI director, asking for “loyalty,” for what has been alleged to mean the future prosecution of Clinton.
Comey, however, was fired by Trump. FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe also resigned from the bureau following rising tension between the agency and the White House.
Last year, recently-ousted Attorney General Jeff Sessions directed senior federal prosecutors to investigate issues raised by House Republicans related to the Clinton Foundation and a Russian-based uranium mine transaction benefiting the foundation that was approved when Clinton was head of the State Department.
Have A Virginian, Not A Massachusettsian, Thanksgiving
In December 1619, 38 English settlers traveled up the James River through its many tributaries and landed at “Berkeley Hundred,” an 8,000-acre swath of farmland, ending the treacherous trip in remembrance and prayer, establishing the first Thanksgiving in Virginia.
Tax Windfall Discussed By State Lawmakers, With Governor Northam Reconsidering GOP Legislation
Governor Ralph Northam said recently that he wants to target “spiraling healthcare costs,” as Medicaid expansion went into effect earlier this year. Interestingly, he mentioned that Senate Bill 964, introduced by State Senator Glen Sturtevant (R-Richmond), a bill the governor vetoed in May, is “certainly something we can put on the table,” going against the Democratic agenda.
Dulles Toll Road Rates Will Increase In 2019 As Metro Silver Line Construction Continues
The rise in cost follows increases in previous years as additional revenue is needed to finance the construction of the second phase of the Metro rail system’s Silver Line that will extend to Ashburn, going through Dulles International Airport.
Vice President Mike Pence Stares Down Russian President Vladimir Putin
Vice President Mike Pence gave Russian President Vladimir Putin a nasty stare as they met to shake hands at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Singapore last week, reportedly telling the authoritarian leader not to interfere in U.S. elections. The meeting between the two comes just weeks before the G20 Summit at the end of November set in Buenos Aries, Argentina.
In late July, the most concise implication against the Russian government surfaced as the Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted 12 Russian military intelligence officers with hacking into the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in an attempt to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. The illegal hacking is said to have released tens of thousands of communications in a sweeping effort by a Moscow to meddle in the election.
As White Special Counsel Robert Mueller is set to wrap up the now-18-month-long investigation into Russian election interference, lawmakers in Washington are now up in arms about the presumed pick for head of Interpol Russian Police Major General Aleksandr Prokopchuk in a time when most of the world is weary of Putin’s Kremlin.
AP reports that Pence’s press secretary, Alyssa Farah, said in a statement that the two “touched on the issues that will be discussed when President Trump and President Putin are both in Argentina.”
Nevertheless, one issue that is to come up is President Donald Trump’s presumed departure from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty signed by former President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev that kickstarted the arms reduction in the latter years of the Cold War. The Russian president reiterated at the ASEAN Summit to Vice President Pence that Moscow and Washington need to discuss the future of the INF treaty and also the 2011 New START arms-reduction agreement which put central limits on strategic arms between the U.S. and the Russian Federation.
While the treaty eliminated all short and intermediate-range nuclear and conventional missiles, as well as their test launches, it did not regulate sea-launched missiles.
General Assembly To Consider Election Reforms In 2019 Session
The legislation that may be coming in 2019 follows a study created by a General Assembly subcommittee to investigate election laws and reform that could be made to make Virginia elections run more smoothly, add transparency, and maximize voter participation.
Virginia Statehouse To Examine Defining And Taxing Tobacco Products
With Altria Group quietly pushing language in the state budget to investigate the health effects of new technology for tobacco inhalation products, the 14-member bipartisan, bicameral panel is preparing to ask the General Assembly to form a “working group” to study new products in the tobacco industry as more adolescents buy items that use liquid tobacco or liquid nicotine for “vaping,” raising concerns about companies marketing towards youths.
As Opposition To Pelosi Speakership Grows, The Democratic Party Begins To Fracture
Although the moderate Democrat bulwark of less than two dozen lawmakers seems to be an easy hurdle to clear for Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, who has led the caucus for 16 years, the speaker-to-be needs 218 votes out of the the now 233-strong Democratic majority. Therefore, she can only afford to lose 15, placing the California Democrat’s bid to reclaim the congressional gavel in serious jeopardy.
Trump Interview Reveals 3-5 Cabinet Changes Coming, Won’t Interfere In Russia Investigation
During a Sunday exclusive with Fox News hot and journalist Chris Wallace, President Donald Trump said there will be anywhere from three to five Cabinet-level position changes coming soon following Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ forced resignation in the aftermath of the midterm elections. The commander-in-chief is also still unsure of the immediate future of Chief of Staff John Kelly, saying in the interview that, “There are a couple of things where it’s just not his strength. It’s not his fault. It’s not his strength.”
It has been reported that Vice President Mike Pence’s Chief of Staff Nick Ayers could replace the former four-star Marine General as senior aide to President Trump, with some within the administration saying it is a “done deal.” Ayers was one of the architects of Vice President Pence’s tour of vulnerable Republican districts before the midterm elections, including appearances in Virginia.
In the broad spectrum interview, covering topics from the inside of the Trump Administration to immigration, the President said that he was overall content with his White House Cabinet after shakeups over the last 18 months, but remarked that he is currently considering personnel changes in “three or four or five positions.”
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen is thought to be an inevitable departure after Trump’s criticism of her handling issues regarding immigration like the thousands-strong migrant caravan that has since fizzled out in Mexico. As well, Kelly has even threatened President Trump that he would resign if Nielsen is removed from her post. Regardless, Trump’s next pick is likely to be an immigration hawk that will uphold directives from the Oval Office that are in line with the President’s hardline immigration policies and efforts to better enforce border security.
Trump also spoke about the disagreement within the White House last week about clashes between the West Wing and the East Wing with First Lady Melania Trump. Mira Ricardel, a deputy national security adviser who was called to be removed by First Lady Trump after a critical statement, will be staying after the President said she is being moved to a different position in the White House, meanwhile downplaying claims that his wife holds power over the personnel decisions of the Oval Office.
“[The first lady’s team] wanted to go a little bit public because that’s the way they felt and I thought it was fine,” Trump said.
While speaking to Wallace he reiterated that his administration is not the “chaotic” picture the “mainstream media” likes to depict, saying the mood of the West Wing was “very light,” especially after the results of the midterm elections with Democrats taking back the House of Representatives.
Trump championed the two – barring current recounts – Senate seats Republicans picked up on November 7, saying the GOP had a “tremendous set of victories” on Election Day, while Wallace questioned the President about comments he made on the midterms being a “near perfect victory” for Republicans during a previous press conference. President Trump also shook off claims that he said before the election to act like he was “on the ballot,” dismissing his part in the loss of over 35 seats in the House from Republicans.
Following political uproar after former Iowa federal prosecutor and chief of staff to the ousted-AG Matt Whitaker was tapped to replace Sessions as the nation’s top law enforcement officer, Wallace asked the President what he plans to do with White House Special Counsel Robert Mueller‘s investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Trump said he “would not get involved” if his choice for acting attorney general decided to end the investigation. Whitaker was previously a fierce critic of the probe, with Democrats calling for him to recuse himself and hand the investigation back to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
Trump said that “It’s going to be up to him” and that “I really believe he’s going to do what’s right,” adding the “witch hunt” has gone on far too long. He also shut the door on any chance that he will sit down for an interview with the special counsel before the investigation is wrapped up.
Insofar has his rhetoric is concerned, Wallace asked the President about what he intends to do to quell divisiveness in the media. After Wallace interjected when the President called reporters the “enemy of the people,” Trump suggested that Wallace was no “angel,” and charged back when he said that the media was in “solidarity” against his comments demonizing journalists. Trump exclaimed, “I am calling fake news, fake reporting, is what’s tearing this country apart because people know, people like things that are happening and they’re not hearing about it.”
The comments come days after Federal Judge Timothy Kelly ruled that CNN reporter Jim Acosta would get his press pass back on Fifth Amendment grounds. After tempers were flaring between Trump and Acosta at the White House during a post-midterm election press conference, a fracas between the reporter and a White House staffer ensued, with Trump reprimanding Acosta in the process and suspending his press pass hours later. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee-Sanders said later the Trump Administration would be crafting “rules” for those in the press corps.