- President Trump is expected to sign that compromise border security bill this morning in the Rose Garden. Then, he’ll declare a national emergency on the border with Mexico and use executive action to cobble together $8 billion to build a border wall, White House officials say.
- So, as one crisis is averted (no partial government shutdown), another one begins. Democrats and some Republicans say this would be an unprecedented use of presidential power, and this constitutional dispute will likely get tied up in the courts. (Fun fact: Way back in 2014, Donald Trump said President Obama’s executive action on immigration was unconstitutional and possibly an impeachable offense.)
- Andrew McCabe, the former acting director of the FBI, confirmed previous reports that there were talks at the Justice Department about getting Cabinet members to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from office after he fired ex-FBI Director James Comey. The Justice Department continues to deny this happened.
- William Barr was confirmed yesterday as US attorney general by the Senate on a vote that pretty much fell along party lines. Barr, who also served as AG during President George H.W. Bush’s administration, will oversee the Russia investigation, which he once criticized.
(CNN)
