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Trump sues Bob Woodward for releasing interview recordings

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Former President Trump on Monday filed a lawsuit against journalist Bob Woodward for $49 million, alleging that recordings of interviews the pair did were released "without President Trump's permission."

The latest: Woodward and lawsuit co-defendant Simon & Schuster, publisher of his book "Rage," in a joint statement called Trump's suit "without merit" and vowed to "aggressively defend against it."

The big picture: The legal action is the latest in a number of suits filed by the former president against journalists and other news outlets. 

Trump in October sued CNN for alleged defamation and is seeking at least $475 million in damages.

Driving the news: "This case centers on Mr. Woodward’s systematic usurpation, manipulation, and exploitation of audio of President Trump gathered in connection with a series of interviews conducted by Mr. Woodward," the lawsuit says. 

Paramount Global is also named in the lawsuit, which claims that Trump consented to Woodward recording conversations "for the sole purpose of a book," but did not grant permission to use those recordings for an audiobook. 

The big picture: Woodward's book "Rage," published in 2020, included a series of reports on Trump, including that the former president purposefully played down the seriousness of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The journalist participated in more than a dozen interviews with Trump from 2019 through 2020, per the suit. 

Woodward released an audiobook of the recorded interviews, called "The Trump Tapes," in Oct. 2022. 

"Paramount, [Simon & Schuster] and Woodward proceeded with such publication despite knowing that President Trump had consented to being recorded only for the purposes of "the book," ... and never consented to release of any audio recording, inclusive of the Interview Sound Recordings," per the suit. 

What they're saying: "All these interviews were on the record and recorded with President Trump's knowledge and agreement," Woodward and Simon & Schuster said in their statement. 

"Moreover, it is in the public interest to have this historical record in Trump’s own words. We are confident that the facts and the law are in our favor," the statement added.

Go deeper: Bob Woodward's new book details letters between Trump and Kim Jong-un

Editor's note: This article has been updated with comment from journalist Bob Woodward and publisher Simon & Schuster.

The journalist participated in more than a dozen interviews with Trump from 2019 through 2020.

ormer U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to deliver remarks at the South Carolina State House on January 28, 2023 in Columbia, South Carolina. 

Former President Trump at the South Carolina State House on Jan. 28. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images 

Media

Memphis Police Department confirmed Monday it has relieved from duty seven officers who were involved in a traffic stop on Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man​ who died days after being beaten during the Jan. 7 incident.

Driving the news: The department said in a statement the officers were relieved from duty on Jan. 8, the day after Nichols was beaten by officers and hospitalized,   including the five who were each charged last week with second degree murder and other crimes.

The Memphis Police Department said Preston Hemphill, who is white, was among those fired in the aftermath because of his involvement the initial traffic stop, during which he fired a taser gun.

The department said Hemphill's involvements and actions were still under investigation, though no charges had been made against him.

A total of seven officers have been relieved, but the department has named only six. On Monday, it referred to the seventh officer only as the "other officer."

Background: Former officers Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr. and Justin Smith, who are all Black men, were each also charged with aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression.

Hemphill had been hired in 2018, according to department spokesperson Christopher Williams.

What they're saying: "There are numerous charges still developing that are impending," the department's statement reads.

"We expect the next phase of personnel actions in the coming days," it continues.

The big picture: The Department of Justice and the FBI Memphis Field Office are investigating whether Nichols' civil rights were violated by police.

While the Shelby County medical examiner's office has not released an official cause of death, attorneys representing Nichols' family said last week that preliminary findings from an independent autopsy revealed he "suffered extensive bleeding caused by a severe beating."

After the release of the video footage, the Memphis Police Department announced it had permanently disbanded the special unit Scorpion in the wake of the murder charges brought against five of its members.

Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis on Friday before the videos' release condemned the actions of the officers involved in Nichols' arrest, calling their behavior "unconscionable."

Zoom in: The Memphis Fire Department said in a statement on Monday that it fired two of its EMTs and a lieutenant following an internal investigation.

It found that the EMTs, Robert Long and JaMicheal Sandridge, and the lieutenant, Michelle Whitaker, "violated numerous" departmental policies and protocols. 

 The EMTs also "failed to conduct an adequate patient assessment" on Nichols when they found him handcuffed and leaning against a police car, the statement said.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional background.

The news comes days after the city of Memphis released harrowing footage of police officers fatally beating Nichols.

Protesters block traffic as they rally against the fatal police assault of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Tenn., on Friday

Protesters block traffic in Memphis, Tenn., on Friday as they protest Tyre Nichols' death after police beat him. Photo: Seth Herald/AFP via Getty Images

House Oversight Chair James Comer plans to project a factual, methodical face for official Washington — while thrilling the right-wing base with sideshows of outrage and conspiracy theories.

Why it matters: Comer, a top powerhouse of the new GOP majority, has been road-testing this strategy for months — with solemn appearances on Sunday shows, but more aggressive outings in conservative media. 

Comer's two-pronged strategy for communication reflects the tightrope top Republicans are walking as they pursue promised investigations into the Biden administration and federal agencies with a tenuous House majority. 

Recent polls indicate that independent voters are wary of Republicans' plans for aggressive probes, an incentive for Comer to present himself in certain settings as a sober investigator.

Driving the news: At an event at the National Press Club in Washington on Monday, Comer reminded the audience of his vote to certify President Biden's election — despite having called in December 2020 for an investigation of "outright fraud."

Comer conceded that the Trump administration had a "problem" with influence peddling, and at one point said of his panel's investigation into Hunter Biden's finances: "Maybe there's nothing there." 

On the issue of Biden and former President Trump's handling of classified documents, Comer told the audience he wants to work with Democrats to reform "the way that documents are boxed up" when presidents leave office — and stressed that everything he would send out on official letterhead would be rooted in fact.

"I believe I've demonstrated that I'll do what I think is right, what I think is best. ... That doesn't mean I'm going to be right 100% of the time," Comer said.

Yes, but: In appearances on Fox News, Newsmax and other conservative media outlets, Comer has been more than willing to endorse baseless claims about President Biden and his family.

This month, Comer implied on Fox, without evidence, that Hunter Biden was gifted a diamond by a Chinese businessman in exchange for classified documents. 

On Newsmax, Comer accepted the premise of a baseless question about a former Asian American staff assistant to then-Vice President Biden being a foreign agent working for the Chinese Communist Party.

"When you start tracing back, you see that there are people that had very suspicious ties to some of our adversaries that were involved in the moving process," Comer told the Newsmax host.

Comer has also suggested to Fox's Maria Bartiromo, without evidence, that Biden's energy policy is proof that he’s been "compromised" by China.

What we're watching: The split-screen nature of the House Oversight Committee's messaging is likely to intensify as the panel presents its work through public hearings and pursues enforcement of its oversight requests. 

The nuts and bolts of the investigations will be conducted by Comer's committee counsel, known across Washington for its meticulous work.

But the committee's far-right members and Comer himself will head up a political messaging war fought on the airwaves, where facts aren't always a priority.

What's next: The House Oversight Committee will hold its first public hearing on Wednesday, focused on pandemic spending. 

Comer's two-step messaging war

Comer is now one of the most powerful Republicans in Washington.

Photo illustration of two James Comers, one talking and the other one reacting skeptically. 

Photo illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios. Photo: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

House GOP investigations

Health Care Policy

The Biden administration plans to end the COVID-19 public health emergency and national health emergency designations on May 11, the White House announced Monday. 

The state of play: The move shifts the debate around GOP resolutions ending the two emergencies, which were set to be voted on in the House this week as a referendum on the incompatibility between President Biden’s statements on the pandemic and the administration’s policy.

Instead of acting as a check on sweeping emergency powers and the administration’s COVID posture, the votes are now a question of whether the emergencies should be ended immediately or several months from now — likely limiting the prospect of bipartisan support.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in its statement announcing the plan to end the two emergencies, argued they should be phased out with advanced warning rather than terminated suddenly.

“An abrupt end to the emergency declarations would create wide-ranging chaos and uncertainty throughout the health care system,” the OMB said.

Zoom in: The Biden administration is also accusing Republicans of contravening their party’s support for Title 42, a Trump-era policy facilitating the expedited expulsion of migrants that has been kept in place by the Supreme Court despite the administration’s attempts to end it.

Voting to terminate the public health emergency immediately, the OMB claimed, “would lift Title 42 immediately, and result in a substantial additional inflow of migrants at the Southwest border.”

Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), who introduced the bill ending the public health emergency, told Axios, "It absolutely does not end Title 42. That's just not accurate."

The other side: House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) told Axios the House will move forward with the votes.

“Why would you allow 47% of the government to stay home for another five months,” he said, adding, “The president said in September [the pandemic] was over.”

Guthrie said the House should still pass it so Congress can be prepared to push back "if for some reason [the White House's plans] don't come to fruition."

Where it stands: For health care providers, ending the public health emergency will bring big changes. 

They've had significant leeway on reporting requirements, physical environment standards, patients’ rights and other policies over the last three years due to the emergency. 

Congress extended telehealth flexibilities in December and laid out a plan for states to start removing ineligible people from Medicaid. But unless lawmakers or regulators act, plenty of other policies will expire with the emergency designation.

Go deeper: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services doesn’t have data on how many providers currently use the flexibilities, as providers don’t need to notify the agency to use them, a spokesperson told Axios last week. 

CMS is encouraging providers to begin preparing for the end of pandemic-era flexibilities as soon as possible, the spokesperson said prior to the White House’s announcement. 

COVID-19 health emergencies to end in May, White House says

The move shifts the debate around GOP resolutions ending the two emergencies, which were set to be voted on in the House this week.

President Joe Biden leaves Holy Trinity Catholic Church after attending Mass on March 27 in Washington, D.C. 

President Biden leaves Holy Trinity Catholic Church after attending Mass on March 27 in Washington, D.C. Photo: Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Coronavirus

A long-duration ice storm impacting portions of the Southern Plains and mid-South is expected to last until Wednesday, bringing the potential for tree damage, power outages and dangerous road conditions to several states.

The big picture: As of Monday night, about 3.3 million Americans are under an ice storm warning, with 14.5 million under a winter storm warning, according to the National Weather Service. Many more are under other types of winter weather alerts, such as wind chill advisories.

Frigid air in the Upper Midwest and Great Plains is headed South, where it's encountering moisture along a frontal boundary, and leading to this treacherous stretch of icy precipitation.

NOAA's Weather Prediction Center forecasted several rounds of wintry precipitation, including light freezing rain and sleet from Monday to Wednesday. Ice accumulations may be greater than a quarter of an inch, the prediction center said.

The ice “will lead to tree damage and power outages across the hardest-hit regions,” it added.

The dangerous weather had already led to hundreds of flight delays and cancelations by Monday afternoon.

Winter storm and ice storm warnings are in effect across several states, from Texas to Arkansas to Kentucky, according to the National Weather Service. 

“Travel could be nearly impossible in some areas,” the NWS said.

Sleet and freezing rain has been falling across Texas on Monday. Much of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area is under a winter storm warning until Wednesday morning.

Moderate to heavy sleet, possibly accompanied by thunder, is expected in both Arkansas and Oklahoma, according to the NWS' Tulsa office. 

Freezing rain and sleet are expected in Kentucky, too, making "travel treacherous" through Tuesday morning, per the NWS' Paducah, Kentucky, office.

An icy mix of precipitation is expected across at least 15 states from Monday to Wednesday, according to the NWS’s Weather Prediction Center.

More than one-quarter inch of ice accumulation is forecast in states such as Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Tennessee, the NWS said. 

Memphis is currently under an ice storm warning until noon on Wednesday with “significant icing expected" and ice accumulations predicted to reach one-quarter to one-half inch, according to the NWS Memphis office.

In western Kentucky, one- to two-tenths of ice accumulation is expected, according to the NWS' Paducah office.

Temperatures could hit 20 to 30 degrees below average throughout the Great Plains and Intermountain West to start the week, too, NOAA said. The Dakotas and Minnesota could see wind chill temperatures drop to minus-40°.

Temperatures were in the single digits Monday afternoon in South Dakota cities Sioux Falls, Rapid City and Aberdeen.

Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, had single-digit temperatures, too.

Details: By 9 p.m. on Monday, more than 5,100 flights into, within or out of the United States were delayed, with around 1,100 flights canceled, according to data from FlightAware.

Most of the flights were from Southwest Airlines and were out of Dallas-Fort Worth International and Dallas Love Field airports.

Southwest Airlines said travelers with flights to, from and through some cities in Texas, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and Oklahoma can rebook flights without additional charges. This applies to flights from Jan. 30 to Feb. 1.

American Airlines also issued a waiver for DFW airport that applies to flights from Jan. 29 to Feb. 2.

Axios' Andrew Freedman contributed to this report.

Dangerous ice storm underway as Arctic air surges south

As of Monday night, 3.3 million Americans are under an ice storm warning, with 14.5 million under a winter storm warning.

An image of the winter weather hitting the United States.

Satellite image shows the winter storm from Texas to the Mississippi River Valley. Source: NOAA

Weather

Climate change

A small but growing number of police departments are using a new AI system that analyzes officers' bodycam footage and flags problematic encounters — as well as commendable ones.

Why it matters: Police departments may be more likely to seek out such tools after five Memphis Police Department officers were charged with second-degree murder and other crimes in the death of Tyre Nichols. 

The platform, developed by a company called Truleo, is designed to identify behavior problems with individual officers as well as potentially troubling patterns within a department.

How it works: When police departments sign up with Truleo, audio recordings from all officers' bodycams are fed into its system daily for automatic transcription and analysis.

The platform reviews the recordings in seconds using natural language processing, highlights good and bad interactions, and sends reports to supervisors.

Officers who are polite and professional when a citizen refuses to obey a command get an email praising their performance — as does their sergeant.

If an officer uses profanity, racial slurs, insults or threats — or gets into an inappropriate physical altercation — their boss finds out within hours.

The system — developed by reviewing more than 50,000 "positive interactions" between police officers and non-compliant citizens — detects language use as well as actions such as violence, pursuits, arrests and requests for medical attention. 

Problematic phrases — like "I can't breathe" or "you're hurting me" — get flagged right away.

What they're saying: "It gives the sergeant a roadmap to explain to the officers how to be more professional," says Anthony Tassone, CEO of Chicago-based Truleo.

"The number one feature you want in an officer is someone who gives a lot of explanation relative to commands," Tassone tells Axios. 

But "we see a lot of officers, especially young officers, who give lots of commands with no explanation" — and such encounters are more likely to end badly.

In the Nichols case, officers gave 71 commands in 13 minutes — including "dozens of contradictory and unachievable orders," a New York Times analysis found.

Where it stands: Since its launch a year and a half ago, Truleo's system has been adopted by the Seattle Police Department — which just re-upped with a two-year contract — and about a dozen California departments.

Police in Aurora, Colorado — who are under a consent decree with the state's attorney general over racial bias and excessive use of force — are also about to start using the system.

"In order to effect cultural change, leaders need to understand the current status of the culture within the organization," Art Acevedo, a longtime police chief who just took over in Aurora, said in an interview posted on Truleo's website.

Truleo helps commanding officers "identify patterns of conduct early on — to provide counseling and training, and the opportunity to intervene far earlier than we’ve traditionally been able to," Acevedo said.

Case study: In Alameda, California, the police department's use of force dropped 36% after adopting Truleo, according to a report.

Unprofessional language used by officers fell by 30%, and civilian non-compliance was down 12%.

By the numbers: Truleo costs about $50 per officer a month, which can be offset through insurance reductions or grants to improve community policing.

Reality check: With or without AI's help, bodycam footage can only be used as an aid in the effort to help prevent police violence if officers keep their cameras rolling, and if chiefs, sergeants and other leaders immediately address problematic behavior.

"The number one problem I have is a chief who doesn't want to know what's on this video," Tassone says. "That breaks my heart."

Most bodycam footage lies untouched unless there's a civilian complaint or obvious problem — like Nichols' death. "The hardware itself doesn't improve policing," Tassone says. "You've got to analyze the data."

Backstory: "George Floyd is the reason we're in this industry now," says Tassone, whose AI platform previously analyzed sales and customer support calls for big Wall Street banks.

"Because we realized that there's hundreds of millions of hours of video sitting in the cloud that could solve this problem, but right now it's just locked away, totally unusable."

The bottom line: As the number of high-profile civilian deaths continues to mount, expect more police departments to seek out solutions that promise to improve accountability.

New AI tool instantly analyzes police bodycam footage

The tech is designed to identify troubling patterns before serious problems arise.

Illustration of sound waves in the shape of a police badge. 

Tel Aviv

Axios from Tel Aviv

Secretary of State Tony Blinken urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their meeting in Jerusalem on Monday to build a broad consensus around his judicial overhaul plan.

Why it matters: Blinken's comments are the most significant and strongest remarks the Biden administration has made about the Netanyahu government's plan to weaken Supreme Court and other democratic institutions. 

The plan has deepened political divisions in Israel and prompted mass demonstrations against Netanyahu's government. 

What they're saying: "Building a consensus around new proposals is the best way to make sure they are embraced and endure," Blinken told Netanyahu after their meeting.

Blinken stressed in televised remarks with Netanyahu that the U.S.-Israel relationship is strong because it is based on both shared interests and shared values — a point that was discussed during their meeting, according to U.S. ambassador to Israel Tom Nides. 

Blinken also stressed the importance of supporting democratic institutions and values, protecting human rights and rights of minorities, adhering to the rule of law, protecting freedom of the press and a strong civil society.

“We have seen lately how vibrant Israeli civil society is," Blinken said, apparently referring to the mass protests against the Netanyahu government’s judicial plan.

Netanyahu, who spoke before Blinken, also stressed the shared democratic values of both the U.S. and Israel. 

“We are two strong democracies and I promise you that we will stay two strong democracies," Netanyahu said.

Blinken and Israeli President Issac Herzog also discussed the judicial overhaul plan on Monday. 

“I saw your comments regarding the Israeli internal situation [and], of course, the constitutional argument that has ensued in the Israeli public, something that I am heavily devoted to trying to resolve or lead to a path of internal dialogue," Herzog told Blinken. 

"As you said correctly, this is an issue that requires wide consensus, and it is an issue many democracies debate. We are a vibrant democracy," he added.  "But at the end of the day, we have to resolve our issues amicably, internally, as societies and nations should do, and this is my main focus these very days." 

Blinken replied by saying he appreciated Herzog's leadership and his "voice when it comes to finding a good way forward that builds consensus on the question of judicial reform."

Behind the scenes: Initially, the new Israeli government's judicial plan wasn't at the top of the Biden administration's priorities related to its policy toward Israel, according to U.S. officials. Many inside the administration didn’t think the U.S. should weigh in on it, as Axios previously reported. 

But as the internal debate in Israel escalated, the White House realized that there was a need to make clear where it stood on the plan, U.S. officials said.

A U.S. official told Axios that after White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan raised the issue with Netanyahu in private during his visit to Jerusalem 10 days ago, the administration decided that Blinken would speak about it publicly during the visit. 

Catch up quick: Netanyahu's government, made up of the most right-wing and religious coalition in Israel's history, has been in power for about a month.

Its judicial overhaul plan, if implemented, would significantly limit the Supreme Court’s ability to review laws and strike them down.

The plan includes passing a law that would allow the governing coalition to override Supreme Court rulings by a simple majority of 61 votes in the 120-member Knesset.

It also seeks to end the Supreme Court's ability to revoke administrative decisions by the government on the grounds of "reasonability," significantly decreasing judicial oversight.

The plan envisions giving the government and the coalition in parliament absolute control over appointing judges.

Additionally, the plan includes changing the law so that ministers would be able to install political appointees as legal advisers in their ministries, something that is not under their authority today.

Legal experts have said the plan will eliminate the ability of the judicial branch to do the checks and balances against the executive and legislative branches, which are both controlled by the governing coalition, and it would negatively impact the Palestinians. 

The big picture: Blinken arrived in Israel on Monday afternoon after meeting with Egyptian President Fatah al-Sisi in Cairo. 

The two leaders "reaffirmed their strong commitment to the U.S.-Egypt strategic partnership and cooperation on a range of regional and international challenges," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Monday. 

Blinken on Monday also met with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen.

What to watch: Blinken is scheduled to meet with Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid on Tuesday before traveling to Ramallah for a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. 

Blinken on Monday stressed that both Israel and the Palestinians need to restore calm and de-escalate the situation after heightened violence over the last few days. 

Editor's note: This story has been updated with President Isaac Herzog's comments. 

Blinken urges Netanyahu to build broad consensus around judicial overhaul plan

It's the most significant statement the Biden administration has made about the Netanyahu's plan to weaken Supreme Court.

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