Axios

Michael Cohen's legal team has released a 12-page memo it provided to House Democrats Thursday. The memo outlines evidence of what his team describes as "Trump's involvement in a conspiracy to collude with Russian government intervention in his favor during the 2016 presidential campaign" and "other felony crimes committed by Trump before and after he became president."

The other side: Trump responded to the new allegations from Cohen, saying "he's old news. He lied numerous times during his last testimony. They've had that for many months."

Valerie Plame, a former CIA operative, said she is thinking about a 2020 run for an open congressional seat in New Mexico as a Democrat, AP reports.

Details: Plame is eyeing Rep. Ben Ray Luján's (D-N.M.) seat, which opened up after Luján announced he is running for the Senate. Plame's identity as a CIA operative was made public after a leak in 2003 under the George W. Bush administration to attack her ex-husband Joe Wilson, per AP.

President Trump says he isn't surprised to hear that the late Barbara Bush viewed him as a "symbol of greed," the Washington Times reports.

"I have heard that she was nasty to me, but she should be. ... Look, she's the mother of somebody that I competed against. Most people thought he [Jeb Bush] was going to win and he was quickly out."

Motel 6 provided Immigration and Customs Enforcement with 80,000 guest names, so now they have to pay $12 million to settle a lawsuit in Washington state, reports NPR.

Details: This is the second time Motel 6 has been reprimanded for this type of behavior in recent months, per NPR. In a statement, Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said that "Motel 6's actions tore families apart." ICE agents would allegedly "circle the names that looked Latino" before running them through a database, and would detain them randomly, per NPR.

In his latest dig at the Federal Reserve and hours after a strong jobs report, President Trump told reporters on Friday that the Fed should "drop interest rates and get rid of quantitative tightening."

Why it matters: Historically the Fed cuts interest rates to prop up a weakening economy, but Trump said "the country is doing unbelievably well, economically."

• Trump's comments echo what White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow told Axios last week. But it's the first time Trump himself, who has broken presidential norms of not commenting on monetary policy, has publicly called for a rate cut.
• The Fed has signaled it is done hiking rates for the rest of the year.

The quick rise of Chicago mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot, and Pete Buttigieg in the 2020 race, shows remarkable progress by gay and lesbian politicians, with their sexual orientation getting less play than other historic qualities.

Driving the news: Both Lightfoot and Buttigieg have talked comfortably about LGBT issues and their own same-sex marriages, AP's David Crary writes.

Chris Krueger of Cowen Washington Group has a stark reminder of one of the biggest 2020 issues not named Donald Trump: There are 13 House Republicans who are women (out of 197 — 7%), and 14 House Republicans named Greg or Mike.

Why it matters: "Perhaps the biggest variable in 2020 will be the suburbs," Krueger writes. "Particularly to win back the House, the GOP will have to staunch the bleeding in the suburbs."

President Trump said Thursday night that he will nominate U.S. Treasurer Jovita Carranza to replace outgoing leader Linda McMahon as the head of the Small Business Administration.

Details: McMahon is stepping down from her role and enter the private sector.

President Trump urged Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in early February to make the confirmation vote of Michael Desmond, his nominee for chief counsel of the Internal Revenue Service, a top legislative priority, according to a New York Times report on Thursday.

Details: The revelation came a day after House Democrats formally asked the IRS to release 6 years of Trump's personal and business tax returns. Per the Times, White House aides had long insisted that Desmond, whose nomination was confirmed on Feb. 27, was a top priority following the passage of the 2017 tax bill — even greater a consideration than that of William Barr for attorney general. Barr was confirmed 2 weeks prior.

Customs and Border Protection cancelled a recruitment contract with Accenture on Thursday and is on track to end the year with fewer border patrol agents than the start of the year, two senior DHS officials and an Accenture official told reporters on a call.

Why it matters: The news comes amid a surge of migrants attempting to cross the southern border and more than two years after President Trump signed an executive order calling for an additional 15,000 border agents to be hired.

Mark Calabria was confirmed by the Senate in a vote of 55-44 to serve as the new director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, wherein his primary task will be to overhaul the whole system, reports Politico.

Why it matters: Calabria, who has been the top economic adviser to Vice President Mike Pence, will oversee mortgage giants Frannie Mae and Freddie Mac, in his new role. The U.S. government seized these 2 companies during a bailout in 2008, and President Trump signed a memorandum Wednesday asking for the companies to be removed from government oversight.

The Trump administration is projected to fall short of its record-low cap on refugee arrivals this year, according to State Department data and projections by World Relief, a humanitarian organization that works to resettle and care for refugees.

Sen. Rand Paul on Thursday blocked a resolution calling for special counsel Robert Mueller's report to be released to Congress and the public.

The big picture: This is the 5th time that Republicans — led by Paul and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell — have blocked the resolution, which passed unanimously in the House last month. Paul has argued in favor of an amendment calling for the release of communications between Obama-era intelligence officials that he says could shed light on potential "misuse of power" leading up to the launch of the Trump-Russia investigation.

House leaders voted 3-2 Thursday to file a lawsuit against the Trump administration blocking President Trump’s national emergency to build a border wall, arguing that he is violating the Appropriations Clause of the U.S. Constitution by circumventing Congress.

"The House will once again defend our Democracy and our Constitution, this time in the courts. No one is above the law or the Constitution, not even the President."

President Trump announced Friday that the U.S. government would be cutting off foreign assistance to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, blaming them (without evidence) for "setting up" migrant caravans. The State Department confirmed the freeze over the weekend and noted that it could affect up to $700 million in funding.

Why it matters: The purpose of the U.S. foreign assistance targeted by Trump is to address the "root causes" of migration through governance reforms, security assistance and economic development. Cutting that funding would constitute an unforced error that could exacerbate conditions throughout the Northern Triangle and lead even more people to migrate north.

The House on Thursday passed a Senate resolution 247-175 directing President Trump to remove the U.S. military from Yemen within 30 days and to end U.S. support for the Saudi-led coalition in the war.

Why it matters: This marks the first time that a bill leaning on the War Powers Resolution of 1973 will go to the president's desk. Trump is expected to veto the resolution, which he threatened to do when it passed through the Senate for the first time in December last year.

Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), who unsuccessfully tried to knock House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi from her leadership post in 2016, announced his bid for a 2020 presidency online during an appearance on ABC's "The View. "

The backdrop: As a moderate, midwestern Democrat, Ryan has flipped on several high-pressure partisan issues. He switched from pro-life to pro-choice in 2015, and in 2017, decided to drop NRA funding in response to the organization's refusal to support universal background checks after the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary shooting.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers on Wednesday arrested 280 technology repair employees in Allen, Texas, in what authorities say is one of the largest ICE enforcement and worksite raid actions of its kind in 10 years, the AP reports.

Driving the news: ICE said that the CVE Technology employees were working in the country illegally, but "did not release details of who was detained." As of last month, ICE was reportedly holding more than 50,000 allegedly undocumented immigrants in prisons throughout the U.S. — an all-time high and an increase of 2,000 people since January.

Go deeper: ACLU says ICE uses license plate database to target immigrants

The cautious view among most Republican lawmakers and White House aides is that President Trump won’t follow through with his dramatic threat to close ports of entry at the border.

The big picture: A source who has been talking to Trump about the border situation throughout the past week said that the president remains skittish about doing anything to disrupt the markets. Trump is encouraged by what Mexico is doing to apprehend migrants on their journey to the U.S.

South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who launched an exploratory committee for president on Jan. 23, said on Twitter Thursday that he'll be making a "special announcement" in South Bend on April 14.

Why it matters: Online interest in Buttigieg — a 37-year-old gay veteran and Harvard graduate who speaks 8 languages — has skyrocketed since his CNN town hall, generating more engagement with his tweets (2.10 million interactions) during this period than any other candidate's main account except Beto O'Rourke — with half as many followers. Buttigieg's campaign raised $7 million in the first quarter of 2019.

Go deeper: Everything you need to know about 2020 candidate Pete Buttigieg

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), who's considering a 2020 presidential run, said Wednesday he was diagnosed with prostate cancer late last month.

Details: Bennet said in a Twitter post he was diagnosed early and his prognosis is good. He plans to have surgery during Senate recess and return to work afterward. "This unanticipated hurdle only reinforces how strongly I feel about contributing to the larger conversation about the future of our country," he said. The Colorado Independent reports Bennet is committed to running for president if he's cancer-free.

The House Intelligence Committee is seeking documents from and an interview with Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, a former adviser to first lady Melania Trump, about her role in organizing President Trump's inaugural parties, The Wall Street Journal first reported Wednesday.

Why it matters: The request is the latest development in investigations into allegations of financial mismanagement and foreign-influences surrounding Trump's inauguration. The details emerged in a letter to Trump’s inaugural committee sent by Wolkoff's attorney. It reveals she was subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan in early October.