The Department of Housing and Urban Development has been "unreasonably" slow with the release of emails and other records the agency's watchdog requested as part of a probe into the administration's management of disaster grants and hurricane relief funding for Puerto Rico, reports the Washington Post.
Details: HUD's inspector general Rae Oliver Davis reportedly complained to HUD Secretary Ben Carson in a memo on Monday that the delay undercuts his oversight assignment. In the memo shared with House and Senate Appropriations Committee staff, Davis wrote: "The OIG has put the department on ample notice that responses to our requests are untimely, that such delays negatively affect our work, and that the delays in OIG access fail to comply with the law."
New York's attorney general has interviewed more than 2 dozen undocumented immigrants who claim they were underpaid or not paid at all while working extra hours at Trump National Golf Club Westchester in Briarcliff Manor, New York, the Washington Post reports.
Why it matters: Trump has made fighting illegal immigration a core part of his presidency and 2020 re-election campaign, but multiple reports over the past year have revealed that his businesses likely benefitted from cheap, undocumented labor. This latest revelation — which marks yet another probe into Trump's administration, campaign, foundation, inaugural committee or business — suggests that Trump Organization managers "systematically cheated" workers because they knew they were undocumented, per the Post.
Polls released Tuesday from CNN, Morning Consult and Quinnipiac suggest former Vice President Joe Biden received a significant bump among Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters after he officially jumped into the 2020 race last week.
Why it matters: Biden leads the crowded Democratic field with an average of 37.6%, solidifying his status as the race's current frontrunner.
A meeting between Democratic leadership and President Trump on Tuesday ended with high hopes that both parties will be able to pass a budget to overhaul infrastructure slated for $2 trillion.
What to watch: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer plan on meeting with the president again in 3 weeks along with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to discuss funding specifics. Both parties agreed broadband and clean energy will be included.
Oprah Winfrey isn't planning on endorsing a 2020 candidate anytime soon, but is reading up on South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, the Hollywood Reporter writes in a Q&A.
The big picture: Winfrey — who at one point considered a run for the White House and has been known to stump for Democratic candidates — said she's "quietly figuring out where I'm going to use my voice in support." She also has Kamala Harris' book and interviewed Beto O'Rourke in February. For now, Mayor Pete seems to have piqued Winfrey's interest: she's reading his book, Shortest Way, has discussed him with Hollywood director Steven Spielberg and believes his name — which she jokes and says "Buttabeep, Buttaboop" — could ultimately help him in the race.
Sen. Bernie Sanders used former Trump aides Paul Manafort and Michael Cohen, who were both sentenced to prison, as pointed examples for his 2020 initiative to give incarcerated people and felons the right to vote.
The backdrop: In a USA Today op-ed published Tuesday, Sanders argued that people of color are disproportionally affected by this voting restriction. He also said he would not make any apologies for his position, which garnered criticism after he said earlier this month that he supports voting rights for convicted terrorists and sex offenders.
Beto O'Rourke said plenty about climate yesterday, Joe Biden said almost nothing, and it's not too early (or only a little early) to explore what it all says about the packed Democratic 2020 fight.
Driving the news: O'Rourke released an aggressive plan that would set an "enforceable" standard of getting the U.S. to net-zero emissions by 2050 and calls for several trillion of dollars in investments over a decade.
Former Vice President Joe Biden told ABC's "Good Morning America" that Congress would have "no alternative" but impeachment should President Trump attempt to block congressional investigations to follow up on details in the Mueller report.
The big picture: Biden said last year that he hoped congressional Democrats didn't move to impeach Trump, though he made clear that decision would hinge on the ultimate outcome of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, per Politico.
Former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams won't run for the state's Senate seat in 2020, telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that her "responsibility is not simply to run because the job is available."
The intrigue: Abrams' decision to pass on a Senate run will heighten speculation that she could jump into the crowded field of Democrats running for president in 2020. She's also a hot contender for a vice presidential slot and had been considered by former Vice President Joe Biden's campaign as his out-of-the-gate running mate.
The Trump administration is working to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a foreign terrorist organization, the New York Times reports.
Driving the news: President Trump reportedly backed the idea after meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whose government faces opposition from the Islamist group, earlier this month.
President Trump, his elder children and his private businesses are suing Deutsche Bank and Capital One over congressional subpoenas issued to the organization, court papers filed Monday show.
Details: The lawsuit, first reported by the New York Times, was filed in the Southern District of New York. The move is in response to subpoenas from the House Financial Services Committee and the Intelligence Committee seeking to obtain Trump's financial records.
In a memorandum released Monday evening, President Trump directed Attorney General William Barr and acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan to issue new regulations within 90 days to help overhaul the asylum process — including charging fees on asylum applications.
Details: Trump wants immigration courts to adjudicate all asylum applications within 180 days of filing, a move the memo said would "safeguard our system against rampant abuse of our asylum process." The memo would also charge filing fees for asylum seekers applying for work permits while waiting for their cases to be heard, and prohibit those who entered the country illegally from being able to receive work permits while their asylum cases are pending.
House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) has scheduled a committee vote on Wednesday to allow staff lawyers to question Attorney General Bill Barr during his hearing this week.
Why it matters: Barr has threatened to cancel his appearance before the panel on Thursday over the proposed format, with the Justice Department arguing that Barr had agreed to appear before Congress — and therefore "members of Congress should be the ones doing the questioning." Nadler, who has pledged to subpoena Barr if he doesn't show up, told reporters Monday: "It’s not the business of a witness to try to dictate to a congressional committee what our procedures for questioning him are."
