Aug 1, 2018

Trump to Jeff Sessions: End the Mueller investigation "right now"

Zachary Basu

President Trump called on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to put a stop to the Mueller investigation in a tweet Wednesday morning.

'This is a terrible situation and Attorney General Jeff Sessions should stop this Rigged Witch Hunt right now, before it continues to stain our country any further. Bob Mueller is totally conflicted, and his 17 Angry Democrats that are doing his dirty work are a disgrace to USA!"

Between the lines, from Axios' Jonathan Swan: This isn't a directive to Sessions, based on my last conversation with Rudy Giuliani. If Trump wanted to end the Mueller investigation, he could. He knows Congress would rise up against him. 

More likely, this is just part of the broader effort to beat up on Mueller, trying to smear him and erode his credibility and use Trump’s superpowers over his base to move them against the probe.

Why it matters: Trump has repeatedly pressured Sessions to end the investigation on at least four occasions, Swan reported in May. The NYTimes reported last week that Mueller is scrutinizing the president's tweets as part of a wide-ranging obstruction of justice inquiry.

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Trump administration backs Oracle in Google fight

Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photo via The Washington Post.

The Trump administration is siding with Oracle in the database giant's dispute with Google before the Supreme Court — a move that comes as Oracle's founder hosts a high-dollar fundraiser for the president.

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Established VCs turn to "super angels" to grow their network

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Why it matters: Just like the boom in scout programs a number of years ago, it’s all about the deal flow.

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Scoop: Top NSC official reassigned to Energy Department amid "Anonymous" fallout

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Deputy national security adviser Victoria Coates will be reassigned as a senior adviser to Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette, the National Security Council said Thursday — and a senior White House official said that the administration "rejects" the rumors that she is "Anonymous."

Why it matters: Coates has battled claims that she is the still-unknown Trump administration official that penned a New York Times op-ed and book critical of President Trump.

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