Mick Mulvaney is expected to be named the acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — a body formed under President Obama — AP reports. The temporary role will be in addition to his duties as the White House budget director. Mulvaney once called the CFPB a "sick, sad joke."
The backdrop: Richard Cordray, an Obama holdover, announced his exit as director of the CPFB Wednesday, leaving President Trump the option of appointing a conservative head or dissolving the bureau entirely.
Just 6% of Trump voters say they find the sexual harassment and assault allegations against President Trump credible, compared to a 83% of Clinton voters, per a YouGov/HuffPost survey. When it comes to Bill Clinton, though, majorities from both sides find the allegations credible.
Why it matters: We're in the middle of a major societal shift on views toward sexual harassment. But whether its Trump, Clinton, Moore or Franken, tribalism colors how people view the allegations.
The Trump Administration's plan to use software to automate the "extreme vetting" of those looking to come to the U.S. has drawn widespread criticism from technologist and civil liberties groups who say it will invariably lead to discrimination.
Why it matters: While software has the potential to spot things that human investigation might not, it also holds the potential to simply automate discriminatory practices.
Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters Thursday that President Trump believes the allegations against Roy Moore "are very troubling, and takes them very seriously," but the people of Alabama should decide who they want to represent them in the Senate.
She reiterated: Trump "firmly believes" that if the allegations are true, "then he should step aside."
Presidents Obama and Trump had very different views toward private gun ownership, but gun manufacturers may be pining for the one who was much more critical of their industry:
Remington Outdoors, the country's largest gun-maker, has become unprofitable in 2017. The privately-held company reports a $60.5 million net loss through October 1 on $467 million in revenue, compared to a $19.1 million gain on $644 million in revenue for the first nine months of 2016. It also reported a whopping 78% drop in EBITDA between the third quarters of 2016 and 2017, causing downward pressure on its bond prices.
Sens. Mitch McConnell, Chuck Schumer, and Al Franken himself have said they want the Ethics Committee to examine Franken's conduct after journalist Leeann Tweeden said he groped her in 2006. A spokesman for the Chairman of the committee, Sen. Johnny Isakson, said he had no comment on whether the committee would move forward on this.
Why it matters: If the Franken case does go before the committee and makes it to a vote, it will reveal what each Senator on the committee — Chairman Johnny Isakson, Vice Chairman Chris Coons, and Sens. Jeanne Shaheen, Brian Shatz, Pat Roberts, and James Risch — thinks the standard is, or should be, for sexual misconduct on Capitol Hill at a time when tensions over this issue are high.
Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) has come under fire from his colleagues after journalist Leeann Tweeden said he groped and kissed her without her consent in 2006.
The consensus: Almost all of the Senate Dems who spoke out against Franken's actions called his behavior was unacceptable and said they supported Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's call for an Ethics investigation. Franken said he would "gladly cooperate."
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has called on eight Democrats running for House seats around the country to return campaign donations that they received from Sen. Al Franken. This comes after Franken was accused of sexually harassing a broadcaster during a 2006 USO tour.
Why it matters: This signals the Republican congressional establishment is trying to make any connections to Franken appear toxic, especially in crucial House races in swing states.
Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) released a statement Thursday saying he will cooperate in the Ethics Committee's investigation after a reporter said he kissed and groped her in 2006 without her consent.
Key quote: "I am asking that an ethics investigation be undertaken, and I will gladly cooperate."
A bipartisan group of senators has introduced a new bill cracking down on failures to comply with existing laws requiring background checks ahead of gun purchases.
The players: Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Tim Scott (R-SC), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Dean Heller (R-NV), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).
Key quote: "For years agencies and states haven't complied with the law, failing to upload these critical [criminal] records without consequence," said Cornyn, one of the leaders behind the legislation. "Just one record that's not properly reported can lead to tragedy, as the country saw last week in Sutherland Springs, Texas."
Americans will likely support it, according to a new Quinnipiac University Poll which reveals support for universal back ground checks have reached an all-time high. Key findings:
95% of American voters favor uniform background checks for gun purchases, including 94% of those who live in households with guns.
91% favor a ban on selling guns to people convicted of violent crime.
The Trump administration will now allow hunted elephant trophies from Zambia and Zimbabwe to be brought back to the U.S., as long as there is evidence that the hunting benefited conservation of that species, ABC News reports. This reverses an Obama-era ban, and elephants will still be included in the Endangered Species Act.
Why it matters: Over the past few years, there have been several celebrity hunters who have come under fire for posting photos of their trophy hunts — lions, zebras, giraffes, etc. While sport hunting is often viewed negatively, some hunters and conservationists argue that it can help the conservation of certain species when done responsibly.
Giving a 21-minute wrap-up on his Asia trip in the Diplomatic Room yesterday, "Trump pauses address to nation to take 2 big swigs of water," by AP's Ken Thomas:
"At first, he couldn't find any in his presidential lectern. 'They don't have water? That's OK,' he said. When he was informed it was sitting on a small table to his right, the president unscrewed the cap, took a drink [of the Fiji water] and then resumed his speech. He took another swig later in the speech. ... Trump's water break drew instant comparisons to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's 2013 speech after then-President Barack Obama's State of the Union."
President Trump yesterday declared his 12-day Asia swing "historic." A David Ignatius column says that may indeed prove true, but "probably not in the way he intends... It may signal a U.S. accommodation to rising Chinese power, plus a desire to mend fences with a belligerent Russia — with few evident security gains for the United States."
Ian Bremmer, president and founder of Eurasia Group, has a similar mega-trend interpretation — but says it was baked even before Trump's trip.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and other GOP Senate leaders are reportedly discussing the legality behind a new drastic option to save the up-for-grabs Alabama Senate seat contested by Roy Moore: they are considering having current Alabama Sen. Luther Strange resign in order to trigger a new special election, per Politico.
Why it matters: There's no guarantee that having Strange resign is actually a legal option under Alabama state law, but it shows just how far Republicans are willing to go to find a creative solution in order to save what should be a perfectly reliable GOP Senate seat.
President Trump's trip to China exemplifies what I call his "head of state" diplomacy: prioritizing personal relationships with his foreign counterparts.
Trump's style has been criticized, but it is starting to yield real results for U.S. business interests. The administration's announcement of $253 billion in trade deals marks a new record for a China trip and will make a significant dent in the trade deficit, which is running at $273 billion for the first nine months of 2017.
