At Attorney General Bill Barr's request, President Trump asked Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison in a recent phone call to help with a Justice Department investigation looking into the origins of the FBI's Russia investigation, the New York Times first reported and NBC News later confirmed.
Context: In May 2016, Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos told Australian diplomat Alexander Downer over drinks that he had been informed Russia had political dirt on Hillary Clinton. After hacked emails from the Democratic National Committee surfaced a few months later, Downer alerted the FBI about his conversation with Papadopoulos, setting off an investigation into possible coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Asked whether he knew the identity of the Ukraine whistleblower, President Trump told reporters in the Oval Office Monday that "we're trying to find out" before again arguing that his July telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was "perfect."
Republican Sens. Ron Johnson (Wis.) and Chuck Grassley (Iowa) asked the Justice Department Monday to look into links between the Ukrainian government and Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign.
The state of play: As President Trump is facing an impeachment threat over his own Ukraine controversy, Senate Republicans are attempting to turn the tables on Democrats in order to change the narrative.
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on CNBC Monday that the Senate would have "no choice" but to put President Trump on trial if the House votes to pass articles of impeachment.
Why it matters: Republicans hope to reclaim the House in 2020, but early retirements could complicate that task. Thornberry's retirement means that more than a quarter of Texas' 23 House Republicans will leave at the end of this term, further complicating the party's status in a state that is becoming increasingly competitive for Democrats.
John Bolton made clear Monday just how deeply he disagrees with President Trump's North Korea policy — just 20 days after he was ousted as the president's national security adviser.
Why it matters: Bolton said he was glad to be able to give his views "in unvarnished terms." If he continues to do so on a broader range of topics, Bolton could be one of Trump's most damaging foreign policy critics.
Presidential hopeful Beto O'Rourke tweeted Monday that President Donald Trump is threatening a civil war. "This is a constitutional crisis," the former Texas congressman wrote.
Driving the news: Trump fired off a lengthy tweet thread Sunday of a quote by pastor and radio host Robert Jeffress on Fox News, which ended with a prediction that removing Trump from office will cause a "civil war-like fracture" the country will never heal from.
Sen. Cory Booker said Monday his campaign has crossed its self-imposed existential $1.7 million fundraising goal, keeping him in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Why it matters: Booker said on Twitter meeting the goal can keep him competitive in the race and provide a "viable path forward." His campaign manager had warned the campaign would have no legitimate avenue if it did not meet the threshold.
Former Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake penned a Washington Post op-ed Monday, telling fellow Republicans that "it is time to risk your careers in favor of your principles" and calling upon them not to support President Trump in the 2020 presidential election.
"Our country will have more presidents. But principles, well, we get just one crack at those. For those who want to put America first, it is critically important at this moment in the life of our country that we all, here and now, do just that. Trust me when I say that you can go elsewhere for a job. But you cannot go elsewhere for a soul."
President Trump falsely accused House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) of treason and suggested he be arrested in a Monday tweet.
"Rep. Adam Schiff illegally made up a FAKE & terrible statement, pretended it to be mine as the most important part of my call to the Ukrainian President, and read it aloud to Congress and the American people. It bore NO relationship to what I said on the call. Arrest for Treason?"
The big picture: Trump's suggestion of Schiff's arrest came just hours after he first declared that he wanted Schiff investigated for treason and quoted a pastor who said that there would be a "civil war like fracture" in the United States if he is impeached.
"The Fake Whistleblower complaint is not holding up. It is mostly about the call to the Ukrainian President which, in the name of transparency, I immediately released to Congress & the public. The Whistleblower knew almost nothing, its 2ND HAND description of the call is a fraud!"
Jay Sekulow, a private lawyer for President Trump, tells me that the White House doesn't plan a "war room"-like structure of legal and communications rapid response like President Bill Clinton deployed during the last impeachment fight.
Invoking the Mueller investigation, Sekulow said: "We have just handled a major investigation that was multifaceted and multi-jurisdictional. There was no war room. We responded as appropriate. We won that battle."
Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) denounced President Trump in a tweet Sunday for quoting Pastor Robert Jeffress' comments soon after his appearance on Fox News that if Democrats were to remove him from office, it would cause a "civil war."
Why it matters: It is rare for a Republican to publicly criticize the president, who's maintained near-90% approval ratings among his own party throughout his presidency. Kinzinger is speaking as someone who previously served in the Air Force, and he's an Iraq War veteran.
The intelligence whistleblower whose complaint on the Trump administration's dealings with Ukraine triggered an impeachment inquiry into the president fears for their safety, letters released Sunday night show.
Why it matters: One letter from the whistleblower's lawyer first obtained by CBS News' "60 Minutes" outlined concerns that the whistleblower may be identified. The lawyer specifically cites President Trump's demand to know who gave the whistleblower the information and states that a $50,000 bounty has been issued for anyone with information relating to his client's identity.
