The Hill’s Morning Report – Trump savors British teas, tiaras while armed with Twitter

 

 

 

Welcome to The Hill’s Morning Report. Happy Tuesday! Our newsletter gets you up to speed on the most important developments in politics and policy, plus trends to watch. Co-creators are Alexis Simendinger and Al Weaver (CLICK HERE to subscribe!). On Twitter, find us at @asimendinger and @alweaver22.

After 24 hours filled with tiaras, royal teas and Twitter tirades, President Trump today gets down to business in London with lame duck Prime Minister Theresa May, who is expected to encourage the president to deepen ties with the United Kingdom through a bilateral trade deal.

 

Trump barreled through the beginning of a state visit on Monday that included time spent with Queen Elizabeth II, a lavish banquet and the regal trappings signifying the “special relationship” between two allies that this week celebrate the 75^th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.

 

May, who is stepping down as prime minister on Friday after she failed to meet a deadline to achieve a Brexit plan with the European Union, meets with Trump under the strained circumstances of an awkward exit and knowledge that the president likes her rival, Boris Johnson.

 

“I think Boris would do a very good job,” Trump said during an Oval Office interview last week with British tabloid, The Sun. “I like him. I have always liked him. … I think he is a very good guy, a very talented person.”

 

Trump has said he may meet with Johnson this week (The Associated Press). And on Monday, the president urged the U.K. to throw off the “shackles” of the EU and hinted at a “big” trade deal with the United States (Bloomberg).

 

May, who today hosts a group of U.S. and British business representatives to discuss with Trump what she calls “free, fair and open” trade, is looking ahead to the U.K.’s eventual divorce from the EU and at the necessity in Great Britain for bilateral benefits with the United States.

 

“It is a great partnership, but one I believe we can make greater still,” she will say, according to a prepared text shared with Reuters.

 

The Hill: Pomp, protests mark Trump UK state visit.

 

The Independent: Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party, today addresses hundreds of thousands of protesters while Trump meets with May.

 

The president is alert to the crowds of U.K. detractors — and the media coverage they attract — but traveled on Monday primarily by helicopter rather than by motorcade. Despite a packed itinerary filled with historic venues, wardrobe changes, photo opportunities and leather-bound prepared remarks, Trump kept up a stream of domestically targeted tweets on Monday as Congress returned to Washington and the number of Democratic lawmakers endorsing a formal impeachment inquiry climbed.

 

“London part of trip going really well.”

 

“Tremendous crowds of well wishers and people that love our Country. Haven’t seen any protests yet but I’m sure the Fake News will be working hard to find them.”

 

“Russia has informed us that they have removed most of their people from Venezuela.”

 

“Mexico should immediately stop the flow of people and drugs through their country and to our Southern border.”  

 

 

 

LEADING THE DAY

CONGRESS & INVESTIGATIONS: As talk within Democratic circles continues to focus on impeachment, some House Democrats are looking to instead censure the president as an alternative course of action.

 

The move would be far less severe than impeachment given that it would serve as a public reprimand of the president, but some House Democrats believe it could be an important step, according to Mike Lillis. They argue that it would send a clear and immediate signal to voters that the conference is taking its duty seriously to serve as a check on alleged misconduct in the executive branch.

 

“We can hold the president accountable and say that his actions are unethical and he’s engaged in blatant misconduct and that there can be some accountability for future presidents,” said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), who began pushing for censure last week. “It’s a permanent mark on the president’s record.”

 

However, it doesn’t have nearly the teeth that impeachment would, which continues to grow in support among House Democrats. According to The Hill’s latest whip count, 52 House Democrats support opening an impeachment inquiry.

 

Among those opposed to censuring the president is Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who dismissed the idea in early May.

 

“Censuring to me is weak — it’s weak, it’s nothing. If you think he should be impeached, impeach him,” Pelosi said after Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) floated censure as a possible course of action. “These people have to pay a price, not get rejected by the House of Representatives and then get cleared by the Senate.”

 

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.), the chief vote counter for the Democratic conference, walked back comments he made Sunday asserting the president’s eventual impeachment by the House appeared inevitable. He retreated from his weekend remarks after a private leadership meeting Monday evening with the Speaker (Politico).

 

Additionally, the House will vote on June 11 on whether to hold Attorney General William Barr and former White House counsel Don McGahn in contempt over their failure to comply with subpoenas.

 

House Democrats are moving forward with their investigations into Trump and his associates. As part of subpoenas issued last month, the House Judiciary Committee asked former White House officials Hope Hicks and Annie Donaldson for documents that are due on Tuesday, in addition to their appearances at public hearings on June 19 and June 24, respectively. Democrats, however, expect that their request will be thwarted by Trump after his decision to direct McGahn to defy a subpoena.  

 

> The president’s ongoing trade war is intensifying without any resolution in sight and the stock market is dropping steadily as Morgan Stanley warns of a recession in three quarters if Trump stays on course, putting more pressure on Republicans to act.

 

As Alexander Bolton reports, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is working on legislation to restrain Trump’s trade powers, however it has yet to get an endorsement from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who needs Trump’s backing to win re-election.

 

If Morgan Stanley is right, the recession could strike in the middle of the election year.

 

The Washington Post: GOP lawmakers discuss vote to stop Trump’s tariffs on Mexico.

 

The Atlantic: Trump’s tariff plan fits a pattern.

 

> On its fourth attempt, the House passed $19.1 billion in disaster assistance on Monday evening, 354-58. All 58 who voted against the bill were Republicans. The bill includes funding for Puerto Rico toward recovery from Hurricane Maria in 2017, an extension of the national flood insurance program through Sept. 30, and $4.6 billion to help farmers and rural communities recover from severe flooding (The Hill).

 

The Hill: House to vote on $1 trillion package of spending measures next week.

 

The Associated Press: Congress launches Big Tech antitrust probe.

 

 

 

IN FOCUS/SHARP TAKES

POLITICS & CAMPAIGNS: Top Democrats are caught up in an intra-party war of words about socialism versus centrism and the best avenue to retake the White House in 2020.

 

The fight spilled out in public in recent days after a pair of 2020 Democratic hopefuls railed against socialism before progressive activists in California over the weekend. Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) and former Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.) were both booed heavily for their criticisms, which included Hickenlooper saying that socialism is “not the answer” and Delaney arguing that a “Medicare-for-All” system is “actually not good policy, nor good politics.”

 

Since then, some Democrats have taken sides. Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), a fellow 2020 candidate, agreed with Hickenlooper and described socialism as being outside the mainstream. Delaney, however, incurred the wrath of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who called for him to exit the 2020 race.

 

 

 

 

As Jonathan Easley reports, progressives are accusing the centrists of “red-baiting” and warn that the party has to go big to defeat Trump in 2020. The tension between the left and the centrists comes as liberals are increasingly taking shots at former Vice President Joe Biden, the front-runner, as the safe pick who will fail to energize the Democratic base in the general election.

 

The Washington Post: Delaney spars with Ocasio-Cortez on health care as he tries to boost his visibility.

 

> 2020 Democrats are making a last-ditch push to boost fundraising totals ahead the second-quarter Federal Election Commission reporting deadline at the end of the month.

 

As Amie Parnes reports, candidates are hoping to post eye-catching numbers that can give their candidacies a boost moving forward. For many candidates in the stacked field, it could be a do-or-die moment. The June 30 deadline comes days after the first debate of the 2020 cycle, another key moment for contenders.

 

A number of candidates, including Biden, former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), plan to travel to New York for fundraisers over the next month.

 

The New York Times: Biden’s first run for president was a calamity. Some missteps still resonate.

 

Gerald F. Seib: What Biden is revealing about Democrats.

 

The Hill: Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Al Franken resignation process: “I would not have applied that pressure” until we knew more.

 

Politico: Trump tries to upend the 2020 map.

The Morning Report is created by journalists Alexis Simendinger and Al Weaver. We want to hear from you! Email: asimendinger@digital-release.thehill.com and aweaver@digital-release.thehill.com. We invite you to share The Hill’s reporting and newsletters, and encourage others to SUBSCRIBE!

OPINION

Disaster funding politics — Why Americans hate Congress, by Michael Brown, opinion contributor, The Hill. https://bit.ly/2wxHjue

 

Protecting our elections must be a bipartisan priority for lawmakers, by Matthew Weil, opinion contributor, The Hill. https://bit.ly/2QKTZaC

WHERE AND WHEN

Hill.TV’s “Rising” program, starting at 8 a.m., features Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.) to discuss the Investigate the Investigators Act, Rep. Kim Schrier (D-Wash.) to talk about states limiting abortions and “Medicare-for-All,” and Delaney to discuss the rule change in the 2020 Democratic debates. http://digital-release.thehill.com/hilltv

 

The House meets at 10 a.m. to vote on a resolution marking the 30th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests in China. The House Oversight and Reform Committee at 10 a.m. will hold a hearing on facial recognition technology used by the government and related privacy concerns.

 

The Senate convenes at 10 a.m.

 

The president and first lady Melania Trump are in Great Britain and Ireland through Wednesday, then France on Thursday. Today, Trump and May host a business breakfast in London, a bilateral meeting at Downing Street, followed by a joint press conference. Trump hosts a formal dinner at the U.S. ambassador’s residence, and Prince Charles and his wife Camilla Parker Bowles (whose playful wink on Monday went viral) are expected to attend.

ELSEWHERE

➔ Supreme Court: Justices on Monday rejected the administration’s request to hasten its determination about whether the court will review Trump’s policy that rescinded the Department of Homeland Security’s Obama-era immigration program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (The Hill). …Also on Monday, the justices said they will hear arguments in the fall in a copyright case involving Blackbeard’s sunken pirate ship, the Queen Anne’s Revenge, discovered in 1996 off North Carolina’s coast. The dispute pits the state of North Carolina, which owns the ship, against a company that has documented the ship’s recovery (The Associated Press).

 

➔ Lobbying: U.S. trade disputes are roiling Washington and global markets and are proving to be a boon for K Street. Lobbyists who specialize in trade say there’s a frenzy of work as businesses and countries seek advice about navigating the Trump administration’s policy changes and repercussions (The Hill). … Joseph Vaughan, executive director of the new Corporate Diversity and Inclusion Forum, told The Hill in a recent interview that the lack of diversity among lobbying groups in the nation’s capital affects both practice and policy (The Hill).

 

➔ In the Know: Buttigieg, 37, a candidate skilled at navigating the news media, has an idea who should play him in a movie, Judy Kurtz writes.

 

 

 

THE CLOSER

And finally … James Holzhauer’s Jeopardy! winning streak came to an end on Monday but the professional sports bettor became a richer man and a ratings winner after 33 episodes on the popular TV game show.

 

Holzhauer won $2,462,216, including a $2,000 prize for finishing second in his final episode. His streak of victories fell $58,484 short of the all-time record held by Jeopardy champion Ken Jennings, who racked up $2,520,700 in 74 appearances in 2004 (The Action Network).

 

“It’s been a great ride,” Holzhauer said, adding on Twitter, “Knew I shouldn’t have invited @Drake to the @Jeopardy taping.”

 

One sobering truth for Holzhauer, who resides in Nevada: Combined federal and state taxes — California’s high rate applies because it’s where the show is taped — shrink his haul by an estimated 48 percent.