Trump compares US-Mexico border to Disneyland and calls end to family separations a disaster
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Donald Trump has said drug cartels are “in total control of the Mexico side of the Southern Border” as he orders sweeping reforms to the US's immigration system.
The plans introduced in a memo by attorney-general William Barr and acting homeland security secretary Kevin McAleenan would see impoverished asylum seekers required to pay a fee to have their applications and work permits processed and migrants who have attempted to enter the US illegally prevented from receiving employment authorisation before any relief or protection is granted.
The president is meanwhile suing Deutsche Bank and Capital One to prevent them complying with House subpoenas and handing over records of his financial dealings with them as former adviser Roger Stone appeared in court Tuesday.
Stone, a longtime confidant of Mr Trump, appeared for a brief status conference after being charged in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation with lying to Congress, obstruction and witness tampering.
His attorneys want to be able to view the full report as they prepare for trial. Material relating to Stone’s case was blacked out in the report.
The Democrat challengers to Trump in 2020
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Jonathan Kravis, an assistant US attorney, says the government has no obligation to provide the information Stone seeks. He says prosecutors have already given Stone significant information, including grand jury testimony and material that may be favourable to his defence.
The president also met with Democratic leaders Tuesday, with Chuck Schumer describing there being “good will” to work together.
Nancy Pelosi and congressional Democrats had asked for the meeting with Mr Trump to discuss launching an ambitious building program that’s a top priority for the party and has been a rare area of potential bipartisan accord with Republicans. Mr Trump, too, has long promised a big infrastructure plan.
The dozen Democratic lawmakers in the meeting with the president called it a constructive start. They said Mr Trump agreed that infrastructure investments should go beyond roads and bridges and include broadband, water systems, and enhancements to the electrical grid.
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Freshman Democrat Ilhan Omar has spoken out against Donald Trump’s new changes to the US asylum process, writing, “This decision—like the Muslim ban and family separation—will be remembered as a dark stain on our nation’s history.”
A new poll has found a vast majority of Americans oppose Donald Trump invoking a national emergency in order to build his long-promised wall along the US-Mexico border.
The ABC News/Washington Post poll says nearly 64 per cent of Americans say they reject the national emergency for a wall.
Donald Trump has hired his son’s girlfriend, Kimberly Guilfoyle, to officially serve on his 2020 re-election campaign.
The former Fox News host will act as a senior adviser for the campaign after joining Donald Trump Jr in his travels across the country during the 2018 midterm elections.
She previously worked at the pro-Trump super PAC America First Action as vice chairwoman shortly after leaving the network in July 2018.
California Democrat Ted Lieu has tweeted out a reminder about his own previous infrastructure bill that cost the same amount Donald Trump has now agreed to spend to fix the nation’s infrastructure.
In other news, a young man who accused Pete Buttigieg of sexual assault has fully rescinded the allegations, claiming he was swept up in a “despicable” setup coordinated by two of the most infamous right-wing trolls.
It all started when notorious conspiracy theorist Jacob Wohl reportedly approached several men in recent weeks to discuss a “‘task force’ set up by the Donald Trump administration’ to undermine the 2020 presidential hopeful’s candidacy. Mr Wohl was hoping to use the men and their identities in a series of false accusations against the Indiana mayor, according to Daily Beast.
Mr Buttigieg, who has been rising in national polls, was viewed by Mr Wohl as a “terminal threat” to Mr Trump’s presidency, one of the approached men told the outlet. That anonymous source provided an audio recording of his interactions to verify his account.
The White House has released a read out of the president’s meeting with Democratic leaders, which failed to include the price point Nancy Pelosi and other politicians mentioned during their quick talk with the press:
Just thought it might be worth mentioning here that Donald Trump could potentially face another challenger in the 2020 race after Stacey Abrams announced earlier today she would not be running for the US Senate vacancy in Georgia.
That means the rising Democratic star could become a vice president, or even launch her own bid ahead of the primaries.
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