Tag: Trump thinks he’s above the law

Kellyanne Conway defies congressional subpoena at Trump’s direction

The Hill logoWhite House counselor Kellyanne Conway defied a congressional subpoena demanding her testimony Monday on instructions from President Trump, raising the likelihood the House Oversight and Reform Committee will soon vote to hold her in contempt. 

White House counsel Pat Cipollone notified the committee in a letter Monday that Trump had directed Conway to evade the appearance, arguing that she is immune from mandated congressional testimony about her work in the West Wing.

“The long-standing principle of immunity for senior advisers to the President is firmly rooted in the Constitution’s separation of powers and protects the core functions of the Presidency,” Cipollone wrote to Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) on Monday.

View the complete July 15 article by Morgan Chalfant on The Hill website here.

Spokesman Says The President Isn’t ‘Going To Be Beholden To Courts Anymore’

A White House spokesman let slip something in a Fox News interview on Friday he probably didn’t mean to say.

Discussing the defeat in the Commerce Department’s effort to put a citizenship question on the 2020 census, Principal Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley tried to argue — as President Donald Trump and Attorney General Bill Barr have said — that despite all appearances, the administration was actually vindicated by the Supreme Court.

“The Supreme Court even ruled this question could be on there, but it was impossible to get it on in time for printing,” Gidley said.

Of course, Gidley didn’t mention the fact that the reason it’s “impossible” to put the citizenship question on the Census in time is that the court found that the administration’s first attempt to include the question violated the law. Chief Justice John Roberts struck down the Commerce Department’s plans because it provided an apparently “contrived” justification for including the question. The impossibility only became a factor because the administration was so wildly inept and deceptive; it would have had to start all over again to add the question back to the Census because it is currently legally blocked from including it. And there just isn’t enough time for redo.

View the complete July 13 article by Cody Fenwick on the National Memo website here.

‘There’s no accountability’: Trump, White House aides signal a willingness to act with impunity in drive for reelection

Slumping in the polls and at war with his political rivals, President Trump has signaled a willingness to act with impunity in his drive for reelection, taking steps over the past week that demonstrate a disregard for legal boundaries meant to hold him accountable and protect the sanctity of American democracy.

Trump said in an interview that he would accept damaging information on his election opponents from foreign entities, defiantly unrepentant after spending 2½ years trying to fight off allegations that his 2016 campaign had colluded with Russia to help him win the White House.

The president declared he would not punish White House counselor Kellyanne Conway after a federal agency recommended she be fired for violating rules barring executive branch officials from engaging in political activities.

View the complete June 16 article by David Nakamura and Holly Bailey on The Washington Post website here.

Trump says he will not fire Kellyanne Conway for Hatch Act violations

President Trump said Friday he will not fire Kellyanne Conway as White House counselor for violating the Hatch Act, rebuking the recommendation of a top federal watchdog.

“No, I’m not going to fire her. I think she’s a terrific person,” Trump said during a call-in interview on “Fox & Friends.”

The president’s comments came one day after the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) publicly said Conway should be removed from office, calling her a “repeat offender” who has flouted the law barring federal employees from engaging in political activity in their official duties.

View the complete June 14 article by Jordan Fabian on The Hill website here.

Federal watchdog recommends Conway be removed from role for Hatch Act violations

A federal watchdog agency on Thursday urged President Trump to remove Kellyanne Conway as White House counselor over repeated violations of the Hatch Act, which bars federal employees from engaging in elections in their official capacity.

The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) sent a 17-page report to Trump accusing Conway of breaking the law on numerous occasions “by disparaging Democratic presidential candidates while speaking in her official capacity during television interviews and on social media” and calling on the president to oust her “immediately.”

“As a highly visible member of the administration, Ms. Conway’s violations, if left unpunished, would send a message to all federal employees that they need not abide by the Hatch Act’s restrictions,” special counsel Henry Kerner wrote to Trump. “Her actions thus erode the principal foundation of our democratic system — the rule of law.”

View the complete June 13 article by Jordan Fabian and Al Weaver on The Hill website here.

Trump says he would listen if foreigners offered dirt on political opponent

President Trump on Wednesday wouldn’t commit to calling the FBI if a foreign power offered damaging information on a political opponent.

The comments, in an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos, came after special counsel Robert Mueller‘s report, released earlier this year, detailed numerous efforts by Russia to interfere in the 2016 election.

“I think maybe you do both,” Trump said when asked whether he would call the FBI or listen if Russia, China or another foreign government reached out.

View the complete June 12 article by Brett Samuels on The Hill website here.

Treasury, IRS set to miss subpoena deadline on Trump tax returns

The Treasury Department and IRS are set to miss a Friday deadline to comply with subpoenas for Trump’s tax returns, setting up a prolonged legal battle.

Democrats are examining options for their next steps. But both sides agree the matter is headed to the courts.

“I think Friday is the turning point,” said Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.). “There’s no more letters to be written.”

View the complete May 17 article by Naomi Jagoda on The Hill website here.

Statement by Former Federal Prosecutors: Trump Behavior Would Have Resulted in Multiple Felony Charles for Obstruction

We are former federal prosecutors. We served under both Republican and Democratic administrations at different levels of the federal system: as line attorneys, supervisors, special prosecutors, United States Attorneys, and senior officials at the Department of Justice. The offices in which we served were small, medium, and large; urban, suburban, and rural; and located in all parts of our country.

Each of us believes that the conduct of President Trump described in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s report would, in the case of any other person not covered by the Office of Legal Counsel policy against indicting a sitting President, result in multiple felony charges for obstruction of justice.

The Mueller report describes several acts that satisfy all of the elements for an obstruction charge: conduct that obstructed or attempted to obstruct the truth-finding process, as to which the evidence of corrupt intent and connection to pending proceedings is overwhelming. These include:

View the complete May 6 post (which more former prosecutors have been adding their names to, as of this posting the number was 690) on the Medium website here.

Treasury misses second Dem deadline on Trump tax returns

The Treasury Department on Tuesday missed a second deadline from House Democrats to provide President Trump’s tax returns.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a letter that the department can’t act on the request “unless and until it is determined to be consistent with law.”

He said that he expects Treasury to provide the House Ways and Means Committee with a final decision by May 6 after receiving legal conclusions from the Department of Justice.

View the complete April 23 article by Naomi Jagoda on The Hill website he

Trump Ordered DHS Officials To Break Asylum Law

Trump told several officials to break federal law as part of an attempt to block immigrants from entering the United States.

CNN reports that first, Trump tried to order the port of El Paso closed, but officials objected and pointed out it would be dangerous and economically devastating to states like Texas. The network reports that chief of staff Mick Mulvaney talked Trump out of it.

So, he decided to try and break the law.

View the complete April 8 article by Cody Fenwick with AlterNet on the National Memo website here.