White House condemns impeachment inquiry ahead of participation deadline

President Trump. Photo: Chip Somodevilla / Staff/ Getty Images

White House counsel Pat Cipollone called the impeachment process a "charade" on Friday in a letter to House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, ahead of the House deadline for President Trump and his legal counsel to announce their participation in the impeachment hearings.

What they're saying: The letter emphasized that Trump is calling for House Democrats to impeach him "fast" if they're going to, so there will be "a fair trial in the Senate."

  • "If the President has no good response to the allegations, then he would not want to appear before the Committee. Having declined this opportunity, he cannot claim that the process is unfair," Nadler responded in a statement on Friday.

The big picture: House Democrats have cited the White House's blanket refusal to cooperate with the impeachment inquiry as evidence of obstruction for a potential article of impeachment.

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Updated 14 mins ago - Science

Deadly Hurricane Zeta churns inland after lashing Louisiana

A satellite image of Hurricane Zeta. Photo: National Hurricane Center/NOAA

Hurricane Zeta has killed at least one person after a downed power line electrocuted a 55-year-old in Louisiana as the storm moved into Alabama overnight.

What's happening: After "battering southeastern Louisiana and southern Mississippi," it began lashing Alabama late Wednesday, per the National Hurricane Center.

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32 mins ago - World

Taiwan reaches a record 200 days with no local coronavirus cases

Catholics go through containment protocols including body-temperature measurement and hands-sanitisation before entering the Saint Christopher Parish Church, Taipei City, Taiwan, in July. Photo: Ceng Shou Yi/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Taiwan on Thursday marked no locally transmitted coronavirus cases for 200 days, as the island of 23 million people's total number of infections reported stands at 550 and the COVID-19 death toll at seven.

Why it matters: Nowhere else in the world has reached such a milestone. While COVID-19 cases surge across the U.S. and Europe, Taiwan's last locally transmitted case was on April 12. Experts credit tightly regulated travel, early border closure, "rigorous contact tracing, technology-enforced quarantine and universal mask wearing," along with the island state's previous experience with the SARS virus, per Bloomberg.

Go deeper: As Taiwan's profile rises, so does risk of conflict with China

Axios
Updated 58 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Politics: Biden ahead in Wisconsin, Michigan as cases surge in the Midwest.
  2. Health: Fauci says U.S. may not return to normal until 2022 — Trump's testing czar: Surge "is real" and not just caused by more tests — Some coronavirus survivors have "autoantibodies."
  3. Business: Consumer confidence sinking — Testing is a windfall.
  4. World: Europe faces "stronger and deadlier" wave — France imposes lockdown — Germany to close bars and restaurants for a month.
  5. Sports: Boston Marathon delayed — MLB to investigate Dodgers player who joined celebration after positive COVID test.
Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow