Silicon Valley investor and early Trump supporter Peter Thiel has walked back his support of the president in private conversations, reportedly telling friends that Trump's administration is "incompetent" and that there's "a 50% chance this whole thing ends in a disaster," Buzzfeed News reports.
Thiel gave a well-received speech at the Republican National Convention last year and served on the Trump transition team as a science and technology adviser.
Thiel's statement in response, which doesn't include a denial: "The night he won the election, I said President Trump would face an awesomely difficult task. Today it's clear that resistance to change in Washington, D.C. has been ever fiercer than I anticipated. We still need change. I support President Trump in his ongoing fight to achieve it."
Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley has accelerated his committee's Russia investigation — threatening to subpoena Donald Trump Jr. and former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort — leading to both cheers and jeers within the GOP, per Bloomberg.
The argument for: Some, like Sen. Lindsey Graham, think Grassley is just doing his job by addressing issues that fall under the purview of his committee, like obstruction of justice and possible campaign finance violations.
The argument against: Others feel the Senate Intel Committee's investigation, along with Robert Mueller's probe, are sufficient, especially as Judiciary doesn't have access to classified documents.
Grassley on Grassley: "This is what Chuck Grassley does... I think I've got a pretty good reputation for being what I call an equal-opportunity overseer."
