Nancy Pelosi is accusing Trump of a cover-up, but telling Democrats to hold off on impeachment for now
As the White House refuses to comply with several House committee investigations, there is a growing movement in the Democratic party calling for an impeachment inquiry into Donald Trump.
For the moment, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democrat leaders argued that House committee investigations need more time. Pelosi added that the party believes the president “is engaged in a cover-up,” which did not go down well with Trump, who stormed out of a meeting with Democrats over the comment.
The legal battles between Democratic committees investigating the White House and the administration over witnesses and documents have only made calls for impeachment grow louder among Democrats.
Pelosi and committee chairs made the case that Democrats should stay on course and continue fighting in the courts. Elijah Cummings, chair of the House Oversight Committee, said that an impeachment battle “might tear the country apart.”
What success looks like:
If Dem leadership is to succeed in subduing the calls for impeachment, they’ll need to point to successes of the committee investigations process. This week, they have a major example to point to: Trump lost again trying to stop Democrats from getting his financial records.
A federal judge denied Trump's request for an injunction blocking House subpoenas to Deutsche Bank and Capital One. Trump is expected to appeal the decision.
Narendra Modi has won another term as Indian prime minister in a landslide win
With around two-thirds of votes counted, Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has already won over 342 out of 545 seats, surpassing the majority it won in 2014.
Many believed Modi and his party would have to account for the failures of the last five years — under the BJP, unemployment, incidents of communal violence and lynchings are at an all-time high.
Instead, the party’s nomination of a terror-accused candidate (who comfortably won election) revealed a broader strategy for consolidating voters based on right-wing Hindu nationalism.
SNAPSHOTS
Unsealed documents show Robert Mueller knew Trump was writing secret checks to Michael Cohen in 2017. The court records show the special counsel knew the president was writing checks that year to his former lawyer totaling more than $280,000, months before FBI agents raided Cohen’s home and offices in April 2018.
Four more women have accused Tony Robbins of sexual misconduct. The women — three former followers and a personal assistant — said Robbins groped them, exposed himself, or made unwanted advances during the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s.
US authorities have confirmed a 10-year-old migrant girl died in custody last year. The unaccompanied girl from El Salvador had a history of congenital heart defects and fell into a coma after surgery, officials said. The previously unreported death brings the number of migrant children who have recently died in US custody to six.
Geoffrey Rush won $2.9 million AUD ($1.9m) in defamation damages. The actor was awarded damages for economic loss over defamatory news stories that painted the film star as a “pervert” and a “sexual predator.” The award is Australia’s highest ever defamation payout to a single person.
Elizabeth Warren followed through on giving a woman love advice. Ashley Nicole Black, a comedian and actor, tweeted “Do you think Elizabeth Warren has a plan for my love life?” Warren responded saying “let’s figure this out,” and well… they did, and it’s fun.
Guess who's crying and shaking and just talked to Elizabeth Warren on the phone?!?!? We have a plan to get my mom grandkids, it's very comprehensive, and it does involve raising taxes on billionaires.
Two Amazon stories you need to know
The first: After coming under criticism for aggressively pitching its powerful facial recognition technology to law enforcement agencies, Amazon is asking the public to report abuses of the technology in a simple web form.
Meanwhile, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez expressed concern that facial recognition is “tied to the political reality that there is a global rise in authoritarianism and fascism.”
The second: Amazon shareholders rejected an employee call to respond to climate change. Shareholders rejected a proposal backed by 7,700 employees to come up with a climate change plan, presumably because it’s merely the most significant existential threat to humanity or whatever.
Some people are finding themselves attracted to Seth Rogen and not sure what to do about it
Look, Seth Rogen, noted Canadian and owner of an excellent laugh, has never been known for sex appeal. Goofiness? Sure. Stoner comedies with a beautiful heart? Absolutely. Stone-cold-fox-ness? No.
As such, imagine the surprise of the internet as a new GQ photoshoot involving the actor made people real thirsty. People are having a real hard time coping. Here’s a sample, I hope it’s quenching.
