Monday, May 1

á       Trump claimed that if his hero Andrew Jackson had been president, we might have avoided the Civil War. Jackson, however, was a prosperous, slave-owning planter, among his other careers.

á       Treasury Secretary Mnuchin said, ÒYou should all thank me for your bank stocks doing better,Ó referring to his efforts to deregulate the financial industry. Yet TrumpÕs campaign pledge was just the opposite -- to increase regulation of banks.

á       House bill HR2276 introduced to provide audiology services under the Medicare program.

á       Senate bill S991 introduced to prohibit drilling in the Arctic Ocean.

á       The U.S. Supreme Court let stand a California law barring gay Òconversion therapyÓ to prevent licensed health professionals from counseling patients under 18 to change their sexual orientation.

Tuesday, May 2

á       Trump lamented how his budget proposals were blocked in the budget deal passed by Congress on May 1 and tweeted, ÒOur country needs a good shutdown in September to fix [this] mess!Ó

á       Trump began removing aides used as his Ôeyes and earsÕ to monitor federal agencies because they were clashing with Cabinet secretaries and staff.

á       The House Intelligence Committee resumed its Trump-Russia probe.

á       The nonprofit United to Protect Democracy is suing the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services over alleged intimidation of civil servants.

á       The House passed a bill that allows private-sector employees to exchange overtime pay for compensatory time-off.

á       CNN refused to air an ad produced by TrumpÕs 2020 campaign committee for commercial TV that labels major TV networks Òfake news.Ó CNN claimed the ad is false.

á       House bill HR2284 introduced to replace the PresidentÕs power to create national monuments with Congressional and state approval.

Wednesday, May 3

á       FBI Director Comey testified before a Senate panel that he has no regrets but feels Òmildly nauseousÓ at the thought that his decisions to reveal the Clinton email probe might have affected the outcome of the election.

á       A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation that imposes new sanctions on Venezuela, provides $10 million as humanitarian aid, and promotes regime change.

á       A coalition of environmental groups sued the Trump administration over its efforts to expand offshore drilling.

á       Although Trump promised to bar people who worked on his presidential transition from lobbying for six months afterward, at least nine of those workers have registered as lobbyists.

á       House bill HR2344 introduced to make funds available for fisheries resource disaster assistance for the 2015-16 Dungeness crab and rock crab fisheries disaster.

Thursday, May 4

á       FBI Director Comey testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee that MoscowÕs danger to democracy is Òthe greatest threat of any nation on earth,Ó and that he expected to see them back in 2018 and 2020.

á       Trump signed an order to make it easier for churches to participate in politics by removing the financial threat imposed by the IRS on tax-exempt churches.

á       EPA head Scott Pruitt was accused of violating his own ethics agreement by asking the courts to delay consideration of lawsuits that he represented for the state of Oklahoma.

á       Trump praised AustraliaÕs universal health care system, telling Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull: ÒYou have better healthcare than we do.Ó

á       House bill HR1628 passed to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

Friday, May 5

á       A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers urged Defense Secretary James Mattis to reconsider his support of Saudi ArabiaÕs war on Yemen, a country on the brink of famine.

á       The recently passed budget earmarks $3 million for an FDA campaign, supported by agriculture and food industry groups, to promote the safety of GMOs.

á       The Senate GOP rejected the HouseÕs Obamacare repeal bill. Sen. Lamar Alexander said, ÒWeÕre writing a Senate bill and not passing the House bill.Ó

á       Because of criticism over anti-LGBTQ comments, Sen. Mark Green withdrew his name from consideration to become the next Secretary of the Army.

Saturday, May 6

á       A U.S. Central Command investigation uncovered that a March U.S. airstrike in northern Syria did in fact strike a building that was part of a mosque complex.

á       Jared KushnerÕs family, in a possible conflict of interest with his White House role, urged Chinese citizens at a presentation in China to invest $500,000 dollars in New Jersey real estate for a permanent US visa.

á       In the midst of an opioid addiction epidemic, the Trump administration is considering a plan to cut by 95 perecent the budget of a White House agency that directs the countryÕs drug prevention efforts.

Sunday, May 7

á       The Senate Intelligence Committee announced it is prepared to subpoena high-profile Trump campaign associates who refuse to hand over emails and other records of dealings with Russia.