Monday, April 16

· The Government Accountability Office general counsel wrote to Congress saying the EPA failed to notify legislators before it installed a $43,000 soundproof phone booth in Administrator Scott Pruitt’s office in violation of a regulation that requires notification for office improvements over $5,000. The general counsel also said the EPA violated the federal Antideficiency Act because it “obligated appropriated funds in a manner specifically prohibited by law.” .” https://wapo.st/2qBoG6h

· McClatchy reported that President Donald Trump’s businesses have made at least $15 million in revenue from political groups and federal agencies since 2015. About 90 percent of that was by the campaign itself. http://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/white-house/article208855534.html

· Trump walked back a Sunday announcement of further sanctions on Russa made by Nikki Haley, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Haley had said sanctions would be imposed on Russian companies behind the equipment used in alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria. Administration officials said Monday new sanctions were unlikely. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-puts-the-brake-on-new-russian-sanctions-reversing-haleys-announcement/2018/04/16/ac3ad4f8-417f-11e8-8569-26fda6b404c7_story.html?utm_term=.9afd965c9a4c&wpisrc=al_news__alert-world--alert-national&wpmk=1

Tuesday, April 17

· Pennsylvania Rep. Charlie Dent, who had already announced he will not run for re-election, announced he will leave Congress in May. https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/17/politics/charlie-dent-resigning-congress-house/index.html

· CNN reported that Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke has, at least 40 times in public settings including many under oath before Congress, has said he is or was a geologist, despite the fact he has never had a job as a geologist. https://cnn.it/2HLyEtb

· The Daily Beast reported that Rep. Chris Collins (R-NY) has sponsored several bills that would have benefited a drug company in which he is the majority shareholder. Although he denies any conflict of interest, he is already accused by the independent Office of Congressional Ethics of violating House ethics rules and U.S. securities law for his dealings with the drug company. https://thebea.st/2HGt62X

· Barbara Bush, wife of the 41st president and mother of the 43rd, died at the age of 92.

Wednesday, April 18

· The Washington Post reported that Mike Pompeo, CIA head and nominee for Secretary of State, made a secret visit to North Korea over Easter weekend to meet with Kim Jong Un. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/us-china-trade-dispute-looms-over-trump-summit-with-japans-abe/2018/04/17/2c94cb02-424f-11e8-bba2-0976a82b05a2_story.html?utm_term=.e6c1e2bf1ac2&wpisrc=al_news__alert-world--alert-national&wpmk=1

· White House budget director Mick Mulvaney told a House Appropriations subpanel he would probe EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt's spending, especially his procurement of a $43,000 privacy booth. https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/18/mulvaney-will-investigate-pruitts-spending-532521

· Trump appointed Camilo Sandoval as VA information officer, despite accusations in a recent lawsuit that Sandoval sexually harassed a fellow employee on Trump’s campaign team. https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/18/va-information-officer-camilo-sandova-accusations-491957

Thursday, April 19

· The Senate narrowly confirmed Jim Bridenstine as NASA adminisrator in spite of concerns about his lack of a science background. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/senate-confirms-trump-pick-as-nasa-administrator-over-democratic-objections/2018/04/19/58692c6a-43f2-11e8-baaf-8b3c5a3da888_story.html?utm_term=.ce9a64f9effb

· Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani said he is joining Trump’s legal team dealing with the ongoing special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 campaign. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/ex-new-york-city-mayor-rudy-giuliani-has-joined-the-legal-team-defending-president-donald-trump-in-the-russia-probe/2018/04/19/726eaa8e-4417-11e8-b2dc-b0a403e4720a_story.html?utm_term=.e6b43cea394b

· The Justice Department released redacted versions of memos that former FBI director James Comey wrote about his interactions with Trump. Comey said he wrote the memos because he was troubled by the conversations and worried that Trump might lie about them. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/19/us/politics/comey-memos-trump-justice-department.html

· The Washington Post reported that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Office of the Controller of the Currency, have reached a deal in which Wells Fargo bank will be fined about $1 billion for its misdeeds in its auto and mortgage markets. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/regulators-planning-to-slap-wells-fargo-with-1-billion-fine/2018/04/19/ec1f58c6-4415-11e8-ad8f-27a8c409298b_story.html?utm_term=.d7bcbfd4c3d7

Friday, April 20

· North Korea announced it will halt nuclear and missile tests beginning Saturday and close its nuclear testing site.

· The Washington Post reported that Attorney General Jeff Sessions told White House Counsel Donald McGahn that he might resign in protest if Trump fires his deputy, Rod Rosenstein. https://wapo.st/2F5AsKl

· The Democratic National Committee filed a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the Russian government, the Trump campaign and WikiLeaks alleging that they engaged in a coordinated effort to damage Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. https://politi.co/2vyKHHL

· Sen. Chuck Schumer announced a plan to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level, stating that more than half of all drug arrests in the U.S. are marijuana arrests. https://www.npr.org/2018/04/20/604136116/on-4-20-chuck-schumer-to-introduce-bill-to-decriminalize-marijuana

Saturday, April 21

· Former First Lady Barbara Bush was buried after a funeral in Houston with more than 1,000 guests including four former presidents and three former First Ladies, plus the current First Lady, Melania Trump. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2018/04/21/barbara-bush-to-be-honored-by-friends-and-family-at-private-funeral-in-houston/?utm_term=.bb91e649cb3b&wpisrc=al_news__alert-politics--alert-national&wpmk=1

Sunday, April 22

· Rep. Jim Clyburn, 77, said at his annual fish fry that if the Democrats cannot take back the House this fall, “all of us have got to go,” referring to the almost universally older leadership in the party. https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/21/jim-clyburn-house-leadership-2018-544900

· The New York Times reported that the Air Force is working to complete a $110 million drone air base in Niger that will be used to strike extremists in West and North Africa. https://nyti.ms/2HiD3CM