New details from Kurt Volker's closed-door interview indicate Bill Taylor, the acting ambassador to Ukraine, was deeply conflicted about whether to take the job because of concerns about Rudy Giuliani's shadow involvement.
Why it matters: The testimony by Volker, the former special envoy to Ukraine, earlier this month may help the president in the sense that it paints Giuliani, not President Trump, as the mastermind behind a campaign to get foreign leaders to investigate the Biden family and Burisma, according to sources with direct knowledge of his testimony.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Wednesday that they walked out of a meeting with President Trump about Turkey's military invasion after he suggested that there was no plan to contain ISIS in Syria and attacked Pelosi in a "nasty diatribe."
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation on Wednesday allowing the state to prosecute people who have been pardoned by the president, a move viewed as a "direct shot at President Donald Trump," and the Trump Organization, NBC News writes.
Why it matters: The law — effective immediately — closes what proponents describe as a loophole. New York prosecutors can now pursue criminal charges against individuals associated with the president and pardoned for similar federal offenses. "Multiple ex-Trump aides or associates are imprisoned or facing legal scrutiny in New York," NBC notes.
The feud between Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and President Trump over reimbursement for last week's campaign rally made one thing clear: Heading into 2020, Democratic mayors are likely targets of presidential tweets.
Why it matters: Being on the receiving end of a Trump tweet suddenly raises their profile, as Frey learned last week when his Twitter following more than doubled overnight.
President Trump attempted to convince Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Oct. 9 to make a deal with the U.S. to end Turkey's military offensive into northern Syria, according to a letter first reported by Fox Business' Trish Regan.
The big picture: The letter, dated the same day as Erdoğan's formal announcement of Turkey's military operation, appears to be one of Trump's first diplomatic responses to a situation that has left U.S.-allied Kurdish forces vulnerable to attack and stoked fears that ISIS militants could escape Kurdish-run prisons. It came three days after the White House announced that the U.S. would withdraw troops from the area, a move that many have condemned as Trump giving Erdoğan a "green light" to launch an attack.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren will attend a closed-door meeting with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Bold PAC on Thursday evening in D.C., according to three sources familiar with the plan.
Why it matters: Warren is only the second 2020 Democrat to meet with the caucus' fundraising arm so far this cycle. These meetings — designed to be candid and intimate conversations — help inform the caucus who to endorse in the presidential election.
Between the lines: Over the past few months, Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan — who turned in his resignation last Friday and is currently in El Salvador — has signed asylum agreements with the threenations.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell told Republicans at a closed-door lunch on Wednesday that he expects the House to adopt articles of impeachment as soon as Thanksgiving, Politico reports.
Where it stands: With that timeline, McConnell reportedly estimated the Senate could conduct and conclude an impeachment trial by Christmas. On Wednesday, Senate Republicans asked McConnell "how they can force a vote to dismiss the trial and whether it’s possible to work on legislation in the mornings," per Politico.
Acting U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bill Taylor will return to Washington, D.C. for a deposition on Oct. 22 as part of the investigation into President Trump's reported misconduct involving Ukraine.
Why it matters: As the White House maintains a stance of blanket noncooperation, some officials are defiantly providing testimony to Congress. A collection of text messages released last week revealed Taylor was troubled by his impression that $400 million in military aid to Ukraine was used as leverage. Taylor also reportedly witnessed Trump's efforts to press the Ukrainian president for an investigation into Joe Biden's son, NBC News notes.
The House voted 354-60 on Wednesday on a resolution condemning President Trump's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from northern Syria, which paved the way for Turkey to lead a military offensive against Kurdish forces who allied with the U.S. in the fight against ISIS.
Why it matters: It's a significant bipartisan rebuke of Trump's decision, which he defended at a press conference earlier Wednesday where he said the Kurds are "not angels." The resolution calls on Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to cease his military operation and urges the White House to "present a clear and specific plan for the enduring defeat of ISIS," which could see a resurgence as the U.S. plans a total withdrawal from Syria.
President Trump responded to harsh criticism from Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) over the events unfolding in northern Syria, saying that Graham should focus on his work chairing the Senate Judiciary Committee, and accusing Graham of obsessing over war in the Middle East.
Senators Mitt Romney (R-Utah), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) have publicly suggested that President Trump revoke his invitation to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan next month after Turkey's offensive into Syria.
The big picture: Domestic pressure is mounting against Trump following his decision to withdraw troops from northern Syria, which gave Erdogan space to invade the area. Bipartisan opposition against Trump's has been building on this issue — even pushing House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to work with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to draft sanctions against Turkey's outrages in Syria and support Kurdish allies.
The parents of Harry Dunn, a teenager killed in an auto crash that British police say involved the wife of an American diplomat, met with President Trump on Tuesday, but they declined to meet with Anne Sacoolas, the American suspect in the crash.
Driving the news: Sacoolas returned to the U.S. after invoking diplomatic immunity amid police reports that her vehicle struck 19-year-old Dunn's motorcycle when she was driving on the wrong side of the road in the U.K on Aug. 27.
President Trump's re-election campaign and billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer reported the highest Q3 receipts, while Sen. Bernie Sanders is in third place across all candidates. 95.9% of Steyer's receipts came from his own personal funds, per FiveThirtyEight.
2020 candidates face around 550 websites that aim to "typosquat" — or provide unintended content via a misspelling — their campaigns, according to a new report from Digital Shadows.
How it works: Users who go to Tulsi2020.co rather than Tulsi2020.com would find themselves redirected to a political rival's page — in this case, Marianne Williamson's — but the tactic can be used for a wide variety of purposes.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Sky News Wednesday that he will not meet with Vice President Mike Pence, who is leading a delegation with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Turkey to discuss a ceasefire in northern Syria.
Later, however, Erdogan's communications director walked that refusal back, tweeting that the president "does plan to meet the U.S. delegation led by [Pence] tomorrow."
Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have stockpiled millions more than their rivals, including Joe Biden, the AP reports.
Why it matters: The campaign is entering a stretch where having cash on hand can allow candidates to scale up their operations and make a splash nationwide — especially because the first votes in Iowa and New Hampshire are now less than 4 months away.
The rest of the field clearly thinks that Elizabeth Warren has passed Joe Biden as the Democrats' 2020 frontrunner, and the attacks rained in on her at last night's 12-pack debate outside Columbus, Ohio.
The state of play: Even Biden piled on Warren, over Medicare for All. Every conversation about whether taxes would go up under Medicare for All, and every dodge, threatened to eat away at Warren's image as a truth-teller.
Key Democratic presidential hopefuls displayed their divisions and agreements over what to do about the power of Big Tech in a lengthy chunk of Tuesday night's debate.
What they're saying: Sen. Elizabeth Warren outlined the most comprehensive antitrust-enforcement approach.
While 12 Democratic candidates were debating in Ohio on Tuesday night, the Trump campaign had plenty to say about the field, but singled out only 2 frontrunners — former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
The big picture: In emails to supporters, President Trump's 2020 team attacked Biden's family and their business ties and Warren's answers on whether her Medicare for All plan will raise taxes on the middle class.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) will endorse Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) for president as she appears alongside him at a rally in New York City on Saturday, the Washington Post first reported.
Why it matters: It's a major coup to be endorsed by a members of the influential "Squad," especially as Sanders was starting to flag in the 2020 election polls.
The top 12 Democratic presidential candidates on Tuesday debated abortion, Big Tech, opioids from an Ohio stage for their fourth debate.
The big picture: Eyes have been on Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders for various reasons: Biden, coming to his son Hunter Biden's defense regarding Ukraine; Warren, carrying a target on her back as the lead candidate and Sanders on his energy level as he recovers from his heart attack.
Former Vice President Joe Biden reminded Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) during Tuesday night's debate that he wrangled the votes needed to create the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Warren's response: Thanks, Obama.
Biden: "I agreed with the great job she did, and I went on the floor and got you votes. I got votes for that bill. I convinced people to vote for it, so let's get those things straight too."
Warren: "I am deeply grateful to President Obama, who fought so hard to make sure that agency was passed into law, and I am deeply grateful to every single person who fought for it and who helped pass it into law."
Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julían Castro slammed President Trump during Tuesday night's debate for "caging kids on the border and effectively letting ISIS prisoners run free," following Trump's decision to pull U.S. troops from northern Syria.
"You asked the question about how we are going to get people to trust us again? The first thing is we got to boot Donald Trump out of the Oval Office so people will trust us again. The folks this week that saw those images of ISIS prisoners running free to think about how absurd it is that this president is caging kids on the border and effectively letting ISIS prisoners run free. He has made a tremendous mistake, a total disaster in Syria."
The Chinese government issued a statement on Tuesday threatening the U.S. with retaliatory action if Congress passes legislation that would lead to a mandatory annual review of Hong Kong's special trading status.
Why it matters: The House unanimously passed a bill earlier Tuesday condemning Chinese interference in Hong Kong's affairs and supporting the rights of pro-democracy protestors to demonstrate.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry statement warns if the bill is passed into law, it would harm relations between the 2 countries and China would take retaliatory measures.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said during Tuesday night's debate that "Turkey is not a U.S. ally" following its invasion into northern Syria.
"Turkey is not a U.S. ally when they invade another country and engage in mass slaughter. The crisis here, as I think Joe [Biden] said and Pete [Buttigieg] said, is when you begin to betray people, in terms of the Kurds, 11,000 of them died fighting ISIS, 20,000 were wounded."
Former Vice President Joe Biden backed son saying at Tuesday's debate that they did not do anything wrong in Ukraine during his vice presidency.
"My son did nothing wrong. I did nothing wrong. I carried out the policy of the United States in rooting out corruption in Ukraine. That's what we should be focusing on. What I wanted to make a point about, and my son's statement speaks for itself. What I think is, we focus on why it's so important to remove [President Trump] from office."
President Trump's re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee said they raised $125 million in the third quarter of 2019 on Tuesday, setting a new presidential fundraising record, with $158 million combined cash on hand.
Context: Former President Obama and the Democratic National Committee raised approximately $70 million for his re-election campaign in 2011's third quarter. "Trump is going to have more resources to deploy earlier and more aggressively than any candidate in history," Dan Pfeiffer, a former senior adviser to Obama, tweeted in response to the news on Oct. 1, when the campaign first announced the haul.
The Defense Department wrote on Tuesday that it is unable to cooperate "at this time" with House committees' subpoena for documents related to President Trump's efforts to push Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden, Politico's Jake Sherman reports.
The big picture: The department's refusal to hand over documents is based largely on the executive privilege argument invoked by the White House over the unredacted Mueller report and the controversial Census citizenship question. The DOD also argues that the House has not yet held a full, formal vote to authorize an impeachment inquiry against Trump.
