The following article by James Rufus Koren was posted on the L.A. Times website February 3, 2017:
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act is named after former Democratic Sens. Christopher J. Dodd, left, and Barney Frank, shown in 2010. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)
An administration official told reporters that the law “in many respects was a piece of massive government overreach” and that some of the rules within the law, passed in the wake of last decade’s financial crisis, “may have even been unconstitutional.” Continue reading “Here’s what’s at stake as Trump moves to unravel Dodd-Frank”
The following article by Michelle Ye Hee Lee was posted on the Washington Post website February 3, 2017:
Welcome to the fourth installment of Fact Checker’s series highlighting what President Trump got wrong on Twitter in a given week. Last week, we fact-checked Trump’s tweets as a part of a larger round-up of inaccurate and exaggerated statements from his first week in office.
The following article by Franco Ordonez, Anita Kumar and Kevin G. Hall of the Tribune Content Agency was posted on the National Memo website February 3, 2017:
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the sidelines of Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, September 2, 2016. Sputnik/Kremlin/Alexei Druzhinin/via REUTERS
WASHINGTON — The Trump White House has loosened financial sanctions against Russia’s powerful security agency that the Obama administration had imposed as punishment for Russia’s meddling in November’s presidential election and for Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea.
The administration downplayed the importance of the action, but the decision drew fire from Democrats and raised eyebrows among Republicans who oppose lifting any sanctions against the Russians.
“U.S. intelligence agencies have thoroughly detailed the Russian security services’ brazen assault on American democracy in support of candidate Donald Trump,” said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. “Less than two weeks after walking into the White House, President Trump lifts sanctions on the Russian Security Service. Vladimir Putin’s thugs meddle with an American election, and President Trump gives them a thank you present.” Continue reading “Trump Administration Relaxes Sanctions Against Russia’s Security Agency”
The following article by John Wagner and Julie Zauzmer was posted on the Washington Post website February 2, 2017:
President Trump speaks during the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington on Thursday. (Win Mcnamee/Bloomberg News)
President Trump vowed Thursday to “totally destroy” a law passed more than 60 years ago that bans tax-exempt churches from supporting political candidates, a nod to the religious right that helped sweep him into office.
The following article by Meg Benner and Rebecca Ullrich was posted on the Center for American Progress website February 2, 2017:
Introduction and summary
There is something that supporters of school vouchers—such as Betsy DeVos, President Donald Trump’s nominee for education secretary—will not admit: Children with disabilities can and will be harmed under voucher programs.
Consider Trinity Fitzer: In the spring of 2012 when Trinity was a 6-year-old kindergartener, she was kicked out of the private school she attended using a voucher provided by the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program.1 Over the course of the year, Trinity’s mother had been called several times to pick her up early because of behavioral problems, with school officials calling Trinity “out of control.” According to the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, Trinity suffered from gastrointestinal problems and anxiety, which led to challenging behaviors that her private school was not prepared—or required—to manage. Continue reading “Betsy DeVos’ Threat to Children with Disabilities”
The following article by Chris Cilliza was posted on the Washington Post website February 2, 2017:
If the suspense building ahead of President Trump’s Supreme Court announcement seemed familiar, then you might be a fan of reality television.(Gillian Brockell/The Washington Post)
Here are a few leaks that have come out of the Trump administration in just the last 24 hours:
Axios’ Mike Allen and Jonathan Swan spoke to a source who worked on Trump’s campaign who reported that the president is very particular about what his staffers wear. This goes for both women and men.
“If you’re going to be a public person for him, whether it’s a lawyer or representing him in meetings, then you need to have a certain look,” one source told Axios. “That look ― at least for any male ― you have to be sharply dressed.”
