New York plans to sue the federal government over the Department of Homeland Security's decision to ban New Yorkers from enrolling in Global Entry and other Trusted Traveler Programs because of a state law preventing federal immigration officials from accessing vehicle records without a court order.
What he's saying: Cuomo on Friday called the plan a "ham-handed political tactic" by the Trump administration that "hurts New Yorkers," as part of his announcement that the state plans to sue.
Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a key national security official who testified during the House impeachment inquiry, has been "escorted" from the White House, according to a statement from his lawyer.
Why it matters: Vindman testified before the House Intelligence Committee that President Trump's July 25 call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — which he listened in on — was "improper."
The Trump administration is using private data to monitor immigration and the border, thanks to a massive database of cellphone records it purchased from private vendors.
Why it matters: Experts are concerned about the scale and use of the data, even if it appears to be on firm legal footing, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The Trump campaign, borrowing tactics from dictators and demagogues abroad, is poised to spend $1 billion on "what could be the most extensive disinformation campaign in U.S. history" to sway the 2020 election, McKay Coppins writes in the Atlantic.
Why it matters: Coppins offers the prospect of an election "shaped by coordinated bot attacks, Potemkin local-news sites, micro-targeted fearmongering, and anonymous mass texting."
Sen. Bernie Sanders disparaged former Mayor Pete Buttigieg for courting billionaire donors at Saint Anslem College on Friday, then doubled down on his remarks on Twitter.
Driving the news: Sanders and Buttigieg both claimed wins in the Iowa caucuses — a major test of 2020 candidates' voter appeal — on Thursday, despite evidence of inaccurate and error-riddled results reported by AP and the New York Times.
President Trump retweeted a statement from Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) calling for the firing of Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman on Friday as part of a larger tweetstorm against the National Security Council's top Ukraine expert.
Why it matters: With the retweet, the president is publicly endorsing the idea of removing a key national security official that testified during the House impeachment inquiry — a move that he has privately pushed for in recent days, per the Washington Post.
President Trump tweeted on Friday that "Iowa and New Hampshire will not be moved from the Primary Schedule as long as I am President," a decision he does not actually have direct control over.
Why it matters: Critics have argued Iowa and New Hampshire are not demographically representative of the entire nation, and some have called for a change to the primary order. February's presidential primaries and caucuses in four small states contribute 155 pledged delegates of the 3,979 Democratic total, giving early voting states "an outsized role in the narratives that can determine the eventual nominee," the Washington Post notes.
A federal appeals court dismissed Friday a lawsuit from 215 congressional Democrats against President Trump alleging that the Trump Organization is in breach of the Constitution's emoluments clause.
Virginia's House of Delegates voted Thursday to eliminate a state holiday that honors two Confederate generals and replace it with Election Day instead.
Why it matters: The bill is among a slate of sweeping legislation passed by the state's General Assembly, which Democrats gained full control of last November.
Why it matters: Spencer is the first Trump political appointee to break with the president and support one of his challengers in the forthcoming presidential election.
The editors in chief of law journals at the top 16 law schools in the U.S. are women for the first time in history, the Washington Post reports.
The state of play: At an event honoring the 100th anniversary of women getting the right to vote that brought all of the editors together, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said, "It's such a contrast to the ancient days when I was in law school. There really is no better time for women to enter the legal profession."
Editor's Note: Walshdropped outof the race on Feb. 7, 2020. Below is our original article on his candidacy. He is the second Republican to drop his challenge.
Former Illinois Rep. Joe Walsh, who claimed he "helped create Trump" while announcing his candidacy in late August, is 1 of 3 long-shot Republicans running against the president for 2020. Walsh is pro-impeachment, but his previous support for Trump could complicate his popularity among "Never Trump" Republicans.
Former Illinois Rep. Joe Walsh announced he is ending his longshot campaign to beat President Trump in the 2020 Republican primaries during an interview with CNN on Friday morning.
What Walsh is saying: "I am ending my candidacy for President of the United States. Look, I got into this because I thought it was really important that there was a Republican, a Republican out there every day calling out this president for how unfit he is. I want to stop Trump. I believe he is a threat to the county. He can't be stopped within the Republican party...It's not a party. It's a cult."
President Trump's impeachment gurus, Tony Sayegh and Pam Bondi, are leaving the White House after his acquittal in the Senate.
What we're hearing: Sayegh and Bondi were hired to run an anti-impeachment war room in the midst of the House impeachment investigation, but now that the president has been acquitted, the two plan to return to their former jobs.
Apple will co-host its first-ever political debate Friday in an effort to show off its growing investment in news.
Why it matters: Apple's role in tonight's Democratic debate in New Hampshire comes as two of the biggest tech giants, Facebook and Google, are noticeably absent from the debates this season.
