WTF Just Happened Today

Tuesday, June 4, 2019

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1/ The White House directed Hope Hicks not to cooperate with a House Judiciary Committee subpoena for documents related to her White House service. The White House also instructed Annie Donaldson, the former deputy White House counsel, not to turn over the documents. Rep. Jerrold Nadler said the documents are no longer covered by executive privilege "if they ever were" and that the White House's move was "part of President Trump's continued obstruction of Congress." Hicks, however, said she will hand over documents related to Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. (CNN / Washington Post / CNBC / NBC News / Politico)

2/ The Justice Department agreed to reopen negotiations with the House Judiciary Committee for Robert Mueller's full, unredacted report if the House removes its threat to hold Attorney General Bill Barr in contempt next week. In a letter to committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, the Department said it would only "resume negotiations" if the committee reversed its previous recommendation that Barr be held in contempt. The committee subpoenaed for Mueller's report and the underlying material in April. When Barr didn't comply, they held a committee contempt vote. (Talking Points Memo / Axios / Washington Post)

3/ Trump vowed to move forward with imposing tariffs on Mexican imports next week, warning Republican senators they would be "foolish" to try and stop him. Any vote to disapprove the tariffs would likely face a presidential veto. The 5% tariffs on all Mexican goods, rising to 25% over time, are intended to force Mexico to stop the Central American migrants from seeking entry into the U.S. (New York Times)

• Trump's tariffs on China, Mexico, Europe and other governments would nullify the gains from his $1.5 trillion tax cut for low- and middle-income earners, according to two new analyses. (New York Times)

4/ Republican senators warned Trump that they were prepared to block his effort to impose tariffs on Mexican imports. Senators told the White House and Justice Department there could be a disapproval vote if Trump moves forward and they may have enough support to override a veto. After a closed-door meeting with White House officials, Mitch McConnell told reporters that "there is not much support in my conference for tariffs, that's for sure." Republican senators are worried that the tariffs on all imported goods from Mexico will impact the economy and their home states. (