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Trump’s Final Days Draw Scrutiny as Handling of Documents Investigated

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WASHINGTON—In the final weeks of the Trump administration, the West Wing started to empty out. White House trade adviser

Peter Navarro

was spotted carting away a framed photograph of the U.S. and Chinese presidents facing off. The chief of staff’s wife was seen packing a stuffed bird into her car.

President

Donald Trump

remained preoccupied with overturning his November 2020 election loss. He spent his last days meeting with lawyers, plotting how to settle scores with Republicans who voted to impeach him after the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol and negotiating over pardons with his advisers, former aides said.

At 12:50 a.m. on Jan. 20, 2021, his last day in office, he issued a list of 143 pardons and commutations, generating more presidential records required to be turned over to the National Archives.

Boxes outside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in the final days of the Trump administration.



Photo:

Erin Scott/Reuters

The result was a rushed and chaotic exit from the White House that is now at the center of a federal investigation into Mr. Trump’s handling of classified documents and other presidential material after leaving office.

“If you only start packing with two days left to go, you’re just running low on time,” a former aide said. “And if he’s the one just throwing things in boxes, who knows what could happen?”

Another former aide said uncertainty pervaded the West Wing in the final weeks as the president continued to contest the election. “It was a weird time,” the aide said. “It was like, are we doing this? Are we not doing this?”

Last Monday, FBI agents removed 11 sets of classified documents—including some marked as top secret and meant to be available only in special government facilities—from Mr. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort after a federal magistrate judge in Florida approved a search warrant. It couldn’t be determined when those records were stored at the resort, during his presidency or after it.

Much is still unknown about why the records ended up at Mar-a-Lago and what the motivations were for those who put them there. Officials have noted that since Mr. Trump left office, his team had at least two specific government requests to provide the material to the National Archives.

In January this year, 15 boxes were retrieved by the National Archives after its request. In the spring, the Justice Department subpoenaed additional records. Some documents were turned over in a June meeting between Trump lawyers and Justice Department officials, but investigators concluded that more documents remained, prompting the search.

Mr. Trump’s lawyers and representatives have said that they were in negotiations with the government when the FBI showed up and that they have complied with Justice Department requests.

Aides carrying boxes to the presidential helicopter as the Trump administration left the White House.



Photo:

Mandel Ngan/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Among the records taken by FBI agents is the December 2020 executive grant of clemency for the longtime Trump confidant

Roger Stone,

according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation inventory of the documents. In 2019, he was convicted in federal court of making false statements, witness tampering and trying to impede a congressional investigation into alleged Russian election interference in the 2016 presidential campaign.

Investigators, according to the search warrant released Friday, are seeking all records that could be evidence of violations of laws governing the gathering, transmission or maintenance of classified information; the removal of official government records; and the destruction of records in a federal investigation. The investigators have reached out to Trump aides who had knowledge of his records-management practices, according to people familiar with the matter.

Mr. Trump’s office said in a statement Saturday that the former president had declassified the documents present at Mar-a-Lago. While a president has the power to declassify documents, there are federal regulations that lay out a process for doing so. Neither Mr. Trump nor his lawyers have publicly provided any evidence that he formally declassified the documents.

Compounding the problem was Mr. Trump’s tendency to ignore strict presidential-records laws and those governing the handling of classified information, according to former aides.

When

John Kelly

was chief of staff, the handling of classified and sensitive information in the White House alarmed him to such an extent that he sought to institute new protocols for the organization of such documents and for who was allowed to access them, Mr. Kelly said in an interview Saturday.


“It needed to be tightened up,” he said, adding that there was a lack of “deep understanding of the processes and procedures of security clearances and handling highly classified material.”

During Mr. Trump’s four years in office, he disclosed classified and sensitive information in conversations with foreign officials, on Twitter and to journalists.

In 2019, for instance, he told the journalist Bob Woodward that he had built a nuclear-weapons system that “you haven’t even seen or heard about.” Also that year, Mr. Trump sent a tweet saying the U.S. hadn’t been involved in an accident at an Iranian space facility and attached a satellite image that came from a highly classified U.S. reconnaissance satellite known as USA 224.

“Well, I guess that’s not classified anymore,” a National Security Council official told The Wall Street Journal at the time. Often, when classified information is shared publicly, it may be considered declassified.

Mr. Trump said at the time that he had an “absolute right” to release the photo.

The National Archives staff typically collects boxes of records throughout the length of an administration, sending its vans to the White House for materials that are marked and cataloged as they come in. That didn’t happen during the Trump years, said

Gary Stern,

a career Archives official, at a January 2021 panel organized by the American Historical Association.

FBI agents who searched former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home removed 11 sets of classified documents, including some marked as top secret, according to a search warrant released by a Florida court Friday. Photo illustration: Adele Morgan

“We really could not start picking up until January, and we couldn’t get it all done even by Jan. 20,” when President Biden was sworn into office, he said. He said the transfer process was more strained than usual in the Trump administration in part because White House officials and the then-president didn’t expect to lose the election.

In recent days, some Trump allies have blamed the General Services Administration, which assists with the moving process, for sending sensitive documents to Mar-a-Lago. Kash Patel, former chief of staff to the acting defense secretary, said on Fox News on Friday that the GSA had “mistakenly packed some boxes and moved them to Mar-a-Lago. That’s not on the president.”

Christina Wilkes, the GSA press secretary, said in a statement that the agency doesn’t make such decisions. “The responsibility for making decisions about what materials are moved rests entirely with the outgoing president and their supporting staff,” she said. “Any questions about the contents of any items that were delivered, e.g., documents, are the responsibility of the former President and his supporting staff and should be directed to their office.”

Former advisers said that beyond the Oval Office, other West Wing offices, including the counsel’s and staff secretary’s offices, had begun packing up after the election was called for Mr. Biden. Members of their offices were designated as point persons. Aides put presidential records in boxes for the Archives and documents that didn’t need to be retained into “burn bags,” the contents of which would be incinerated.

Some former aides said they had substantial leeway in determining what went where.

“It was not a vigorous process where they have oversight and they’re checking to make sure you did it,” said one former White House official, who described the process as haphazard, even by the freewheeling standards of the administration. The document sorting, the former official said, was “kind of like the honor system.”

Some former aides say they had substantial leeway in determining which documents went where.



Photo:

Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Shutterstock

During Mr. Trump’s term, aides often received documents that had been collected from the Oval Office and the White House residence to find them torn up, and would need to determine which to reassemble with tape so they could be preserved, a former aide said.

It wasn’t uncommon to walk into the Oval Office and see several zippered bags—made specifically for transporting classified material because they can be locked—sitting on the Resolute desk with the key in the lock, one former aide said. When aides travel with the bags, they are instructed to keep the keys separate.

The rare hard-copy briefing papers Mr. Trump would be given were typically in the form of a small binder of information aimed at preparing him for phone calls with foreign leaders, which Mr. Trump would occasionally hold on to. French President

Emmanuel Macron

—whom Mr. Trump in conversations with his aides referred to as “Little Emmanuel”—spoke regularly with Mr. Trump, including on the U.S. president’s personal cellphone, straying from protocol.

Among the materials FBI agents removed in their search of Mar-a-Lago last Monday was information related to the “President of France,” according to a list of items removed from the property.

Officials regularly transported classified information with the president to Mar-a-Lago and other properties he visited, which on its own isn’t unusual, former aides said. Mr. Trump as president had access at Mar-a-Lago to what is known as a sensitive compartmented information facility, or SCIF, but didn’t always use it to view sensitive material, a former aide said.

Some aides grew concerned when the president would ask to hold on to a sensitive document while at his Florida resort because they didn’t always know where the document would end up, the aide said.

Mr. Trump took pride in the letters he received from foreign leaders, including those from North Korean leader

Kim Jong Un,

whose letters Mr. Trump used to read aloud to “anyone who walked into the Oval Office,” one of his top advisers recalled.

At least one of those letters was taken to Mar-a-Lago, and was among the 15 boxes of documents that the National Archives retrieved from the resort in January.

—Jess Bravin and Andrew Restuccia contributed to this article.

Write to Rebecca Ballhaus at Rebecca.Ballhaus@wsj.com, Vivian Salama at vivian.salama@wsj.com and Alex Leary at alex.leary@wsj.com

Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

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US

Primary election: Rep. Peter Meijer becomes second House Republican who voted for Trump impeachment to lose primary

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Trump’s picks will win the GOP gubernatorial nod in Michigan as well as the GOP nominations for US Senate, secretary of state and attorney general in Arizona, CNN projects. In Arizona, one significant loss was that of state House Speaker Rusty Bowers, who delivered emotional testimony before the House January 6 committee about his resolve in the face of enormous pressure to overturn the 2020 results. He’ll lose a GOP state Senate primary, CNN projected early Wednesday.

Trump’s loss in those battleground states two years ago seeded right-wing anger and turned Republican primary campaigns up and down the ballot into referendums on his election lies. Allies of the former President sought offices crucial to the balance of power in Washington and in state governments, where the GOP is hoping to gain control of the election apparatus ahead of the 2024 presidential contest.

With his loss to former Trump administration official John Gibbs, Meijer becomes the second of the so-called “impeachment 10” to lose reelection after South Carolina Rep. Tom Rice lost to a Trump-backed challenger in June.

Two others — Washington Reps. Jaime Herrera Beutler and Dan Newhouse — were also facing challengers from their own party on Tuesday, but CNN has not yet projected whether they’ll be advancing to the general election. (Under Washington’s primary system, the top two finishers regardless of party advance to November.)

Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, perhaps the most high-profile of the House Republicans to have voted for impeachment because of her role as vice chair of the House select committee investigating January 6, 2021, faces a Trump-backed opponent later this month.

One of the impeachment 10 — California Rep. David Valadao — survived earlier this year, advancing to the November election in the Golden State’s top two system, while four of the Republicans who voted for impeachment are not running for reelection.

Meijer’s primary in his western Michigan district had become a flashpoint in both parties’ national infighting because Gibbs was the beneficiary of Democratic meddling. The party’s House campaign arm, believing that Gibbs would be a less viable general election candidate, ran more than $300,000 in ads ostensibly attacking his alliance with Trump with the goal of boosting him in the primary. But that strategy angered some on the left who thought it undermined their broader messaging against political extremism in the GOP, while sparking fears the gamble could backfire if Gibbs makes it to Congress.
As CNN’s KFILE first reported in 2018, Gibbs has a history of conspiratorial and inflammatory tweets and defended a notorious anti-Semitic troll banned by Twitter.
In Michigan’s gubernatorial primary, Trump-backed Tudor Dixon had the support of former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and benefited from the disqualification of five would-be candidates after thousands of forged signatures were found on nominating petitions. A conservative commentator who had coalesced support from prominent Republicans in the state, Dixon beat back criticism that she was an establishment candidate who wasn’t “MAGA” enough.

Dixon will be taking on Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who is seeking a second term. Whitmer is a key piece of the Democratic bulwark against Republican power in Michigan, where the GOP controls both legislative chambers.

Tuesday also provided voters with their first chance to directly respond to the US Supreme Court’s striking down of federal abortion rights earlier this summer — an issue that national Democrats hope will energize their base in the fall. Kansas voters have decided to maintain the right to an abortion in their state’s constitution by voting “no” on a proposed constitutional amendment, CNN projects. The procedure is currently legal up to 22 weeks in Kansas, where people from Texas, Oklahoma and Missouri have traveled for services amid Republican-led efforts to roll back abortion rights.

Senate primaries will set crucial fall matchups

In Missouri, state Attorney General Eric Schmitt will win the GOP Senate nomination, CNN projects. His victory is a relief for national party leadership anxious that former Gov. Eric Greitens would win and then lose the general election in November. Greitens had resigned in 2018 amid a sex scandal and accusations of campaign misconduct and more recently faced allegations of abuse from his ex-wife, which he has denied.

Schmitt and Greitens shared an 11th-hour endorsement from Trump, who said on Monday he was backing “Eric” and leaving it up to voters to decide which one, although both candidates immediately tried to claim the endorsement for themselves.

Echoing a pledge from Greitens, Schmitt — who was endorsed by Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah — said last week that he would not support Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell for leader.

While Trump hedged his bets, the state’s junior senator, Josh Hawley, suffered a loss after backing Rep. Vicky Hartzler. One of two members of Congress seeking the nomination, she was critical of Trump in the aftermath of January 6, but still voted against certifying the presidential vote and touted her voting record with Trump on the trail.

In Arizona, Blake Masters, an acolyte of Silicon Valley billionaire Peter Thiel who was Trump’s pick in that race, won the Republicans’ nomination to take on Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly in November, CNN projects.

A proxy war between Trump and Pence

The race to succeed term-limited Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey split the party, with Ducey and former Vice President Mike Pence endorsing Karrin Taylor Robson and Trump backing former television reporter Kari Lake, whose campaign was fueled by the former President’s election lies.

Down the ballot in Arizona, Trump-backed election-denying state Rep. Mark Finchem, who attended the January 6, 2021, rally in Washington, will win the Republican nomination for Arizona Secretary of State, CNN projects. The Democratic primary for Arizona Secretary of State remains too early to call.

And in the attorney general’s race, Trump’s preferred candidate, election denier Abraham Hamadeh, won the Republican nomination, CNN projects.

Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs will win the Democratic nod for governor, CNN projects.

Moderate prevails in member vs. member primary

Besides the GOP drama in Michigan’s 3rd District, Meanwhile, in Michigan’s 11th Congressional District, Rep. Haley Stevens will defeat fellow Democratic Rep. Andy Levin, CNN projects, in a clash of incumbents that was the latest chapter of a proxy fight between moderates and progressives.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) had backed Stevens and its new super PAC, United Democracy Project, spent more than $4 million to boost her bid. UDP’s outlay, along with bundling by AIPAC, spurred another pro-Israel group, the liberal J Street, to jump in on Levin’s behalf, splashing $700,000 in a July ad buy for him.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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US

GOP impeachment backers wrestle with their own political survival after Tom Rice’s loss

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“I told him afterward, I said, ‘So much for the adage that members of Congress are more concerned about their next election than their job here,'” retiring Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan recalled telling Rice, in a nod to the fact that his impeachment vote is likely what cost him in last week’s Republican primary for South Carolina’s 7th Congressional District.

While Upton’s comments were meant to lift Rice’s spirits, they also serve as a reality check for the House’s remaining pro-impeachment Republicans fighting for survival in competitive primaries: supporting Trump’s impeachment — and continuing to forcefully and publicly rebuke the former President, like Rice did — is politically perilous in today’s GOP.

“You impeach the Ultra MAGA king, you get the boot,” said firebrand Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, a Trump ally and vocal supporter of the attempts to overturn the 2020 election.

The so-called impeachment 10 — who still keep in touch through a group chat and have offered each other advice and comfort amid a barrage of attacks from Trump and his allies — are wrestling with their own political survivals after watching their numbers dwindle. At least half of them won’t return to Congress next year, with Rice losing his primary to a Trump-backed challenger and four of them opting to retire instead of duke it out, although some of those decisions were influenced by redistricting.

Now, in hopes of stanching the bleeding, these remaining Republicans are trying to discern what, if any, lessons can be learned from Rice’s demoralizing — if not somewhat expected — loss.

There could be at least one bright spot for the group: California Rep. David Valadao, who voted to impeach Trump but has kept his head down since then, appears likely to have edged out a far-right challenger for a spot in the general election as counting from the state’s June 7 top-two primary continues. But Valadao did not have to compete against anyone endorsed by Trump, and his district is far less conservative than Rice’s deep-red seat in northeast South Carolina.

“We have totally different types of districts, we have totally different types of election processes,” Valadao said. “Everyone handles their situation differently.”

Upton expressed optimism Sunday when asked by CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union” if there would be any House Republicans left willing to stand up to Trump after the midterms.

“We’ll see when these primaries are over. But I think there’ll be some of the 10 that are standing,” he said.

Still, between Rice and Valadao, there’s a growing consensus that the key to survival after crossing Trump is to mute the public criticism and focus on hyperlocal issues.

“If I were (Rice), I would have discussed the issues,” said Rep. Joe Wilson, a fellow South Carolina Republican. “Him and Trump actually agreed on the issues. The best that could have been done is to emphasize the issues.”

The impeachment Republicans who are still staring down primary challenges later this summer seem to be heeding that exact advice, wary of centering their campaigns on an anti-Trump playbook.

Rep. Dan Newhouse, who represents Washington state, told CNN: “We’ve got a strategy in place focusing on the issues that matter most to my constituents.

Freshman Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan said he’s cognizant of the outcomes of other races but wouldn’t say how that’s affecting his own campaign strategy.

“Every district is different, every challenger is different. So I’m not going to get into campaign strategy. But we’re very mindful of what we’ve seen in other races,” he told CNN.

Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler, another Washington state lawmaker who voted to impeach Trump for inciting the January 6 insurrection, almost became a witness in the Senate trial after revealing what House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told her about his private conversation with Trump as a mob was storming the US Capitol. But since then, she’s mostly avoided the national limelight and any Trump talk, opting to return to her focus on local issues.

Asked whether she’s worried that Rice’s primary defeat is a warning sign for her own race, Herrera Beutler told CNN: “I feel good about it.”

Rice did not return a request for comment, and he was not in the Capitol following his primary defeat. He did, however, turn to a familiar face to serve as his proxy for floor votes: Meijer.

One notable exception to the keep-your-head-down strategy among the impeachment Republicans is Wyoming Rep. Liz. Cheney, who has pulled no punches since voting to impeach Trump last year. Her continued public criticism of Trump’s election lies cost Cheney her spot in House GOP leadership. And she has taken on a high-profile role on the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, serving as its vice chair alongside Chairman Bennie Thompson, a Democrat from Mississippi.

By contrast, most of the other impeachment 10 have kept the select committee at an arm’s length. Cheney and retiring Illinois Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who also serves on the panel, were the only Republicans who supported the creation of the select committee. And most of them have stayed relatively silent about the slew of damning revelations about Trump’s attempts to stay in power that have come out during the panel’s string of public hearings.

But notably, even Cheney’s first two campaign ads have been laser-focused on local issues — not her work on the January 6 committee or warnings about Trump being a threat to democracy. Cheney is considered to be the most vulnerable of the remaining impeachment Republicans, with Trump and his allies putting considerable energy into defeating her in her ruby-red Wyoming district. But powerful names in the GOP establishment have lined up to support Cheney, who has built a massive war chest and is pitching herself as a champion for Wyoming voters.

Still, Trump and his allies have seized on Rice’s primary defeat as a sign of momentum for the MAGA wing.

“Same thing’s going to happen in Wyoming to Virginia ‘resident’ Liz Cheney, that happened in South Carolina to Congressman ‘Impeach Master’ Tom Rice, who lost as an incumbent by 28 points!” Trump posted on social media last week.

Another recent example of walking the Trump tight rope is freshman Rep. Nancy Mace. In a bit of split screen from Rice, Mace, also a South Carolina Republican, beat back a Trump-endorsed primary opponent after drawing Trump’s ire for strongly condemning his role in the January 6 attack on the Capitol, though Mace did not vote for impeachment.

Throughout her campaign, Mace emphasized her conservative voting record, support for Trump’s policies and endorsements from other big-name Republicans such as former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. Mace even filmed a video outside Trump Tower in New York, calling herself one of “Trump’s earliest supporters.” While the other impeachment Republicans haven’t gone nearly as far, Mace has shown the political upsides to softening her Trump criticism in a competitive Republican primary.

However, lawmakers caution that every district and race is different. And, unlike Rice, GOP leadership has been looking for ways to boost Meijer and Herrera Beutler, who represent swing districts that could affect the GOP’s effort to recapture the House majority. Still, even with party leaders on their side, their victories are hardly guaranteed.

“You’ve got to work hard,” Upton said. “And the others, I mean, they’re working really hard.”

This story has been updated with additional reaction.

CNN’s Veronica Stracqualursi contributed to this report.

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US

Steve Bannon Hires Trump Impeachment Lawyer He Previously Mocked on His ‘War Room’ Podcast

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Former Trump strategist and election conspiracy theorist Steve Bannon has retained lawyer David Schoen to defend him against contempt of Congress charges—notably despite the fact that he openly mocked Schoen during former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial.

After being indicted by a federal grand jury last week, Bannon surrendered to federal authorities on Monday morning. The MAGA ally was charged after ignoring a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection. The one-time Breitbart chief is scheduled to first appear in front of a federal judge on Monday afternoon.

Schoen, meanwhile, notified the district court on Monday that he will represent Bannon. While Schoen has represented other Trump associates in the past, such as self-described “dirty trickster” Roger Stone, he is probably best known for defending the disgraced ex-president during his impeachment for inciting the Capitol riots.

During those Senate impeachment proceedings, however, Bannon did not seem to think much of Schoen’s legal or political acumen, comparing the attorney to an “absent-minded professor” and blasting him for not peddling debunked claims of election fraud.

On the Feb. 2 broadcast of his War Room podcast, first flagged at the time by liberal watchdog Media Matters, Bannon declared that Schoen’s argument on behalf of Trump “misses the mark” because it relied on “victimization.”

Complaining that Trump and his allies were “in a terrible situation” because his lawyers wouldn’t argue that the election was stolen from Trump, Bannon then took aim at both Schoen’s personal appearance and his unwillingness to push conspiracies.

“And then this guy shows up last night with the beard,” Bannon grumbled. “Hey, I don’t look great with a beard either, but hey, man, the beard’s got to come off. You can’t go in there like the absent-minded professor.”

He continued: “You’ve got to bring the heat. The Democrats are bringing heat. They’re coming in hot on this thing. And I’ve heard people say already, ‘Well, it’s not legally tight.’ It doesn’t have to be legally tight, this is not a legal process. They know they don’t have the votes.”

Fast-forward nine months: Bannon has now turned to Schoen for his own defense counsel.

The House committee is seeking testimony from Bannon, who was pardoned by Trump last year as he faced embezzlement charges, over his role in planning the D.C. rallies that preceded the violent Jan. 6 attack. Besides relentlessly promoting the “Stop the Steal” events on his podcast, Bannon reportedly met with Trump’s then-legal advisers and was linked to a mass of text messages that promoted the Jan. 6 rallies.

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US

Senate GOP campaign chief says he will help Murkowski against Trump-endorsed challenger

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Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), the chairman of the Senate GOP campaign arm, said on Sunday that he will help Sen. Lisa MurkowskiLisa Ann Murkowski’An earthquake’: GOP rides high after Democrats’ Tuesday shellacking Schumer hints at filibuster reform after GOP blocks voting rights bill Senate GOP blocks John Lewis voting rights bill MORE’s (R-Alaska) reelection efforts, even though former President TrumpDonald TrumpIsraeli officials say US should open consulate for Palestinians in West Bank Virginia loss lays bare Democrats’ struggle with rural voters Sunday shows preview: House passes bipartisan infrastructure bill; Democrats suffer election loss in Virginia MORE has already endorsed a challenger against her.

“You had said you’re going to support all incumbents. And I’m just curious, does that include Lisa Murkowski, where the former president has endorsed a primary challenger. And when you say you support, does that mean you will financially support Lisa Murkowski and actually help run a campaign against a primary opponent?” “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck ToddCharles (Chuck) David ToddOfficials, lawmakers express optimism on infrastructure, spending vote Raffensperger says he would ‘gladly participate’ in probe over Trump election pressuring Granholm on initiatives cut from spending package: ‘The fight is not over’ MORE asked Scott on NBC.

“Absolutely, … we support all of our incumbents,” Scott answered. “And fortunately for us, we’ve got great candidates running in our primaries. And fortunately for us, we’ve got Bernie SandersBernie SandersMcAuliffe’s loss exposes deepening Democratic rift Showdown: Pelosi dares liberals to sink infrastructure bill Former senior Sanders adviser says full repeal of SALT tax cap is ‘completely ridiculous’ MORE candidates on the other side in many primaries, and so we’re going to be in a great position in ‘22.”

Murkowksi was one of seven Republican senators to vote to impeach former President Trump earlier this year. 

In June, Trump announced that he would be endorsing a challenger to the Republican incumbent, saying he supported former Alaska Commissioner of Administration Kelly Tshibaka. 

“Murkowski has got to go!” Trump said in a statement issued through Save America PAC.

Murkowksi, for her part, appeared to remain undeterred by the challenge. 

“I know that former President Trump is skeptical about me and the job that I do for Alaska, but I really think that that’s for Alaskans to judge,” Murkowski said during an interview with Alaska Landmine Radio in July. 

 



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Entertainment

“Impeachment” Puts Monica Lewinsky Front And Center

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The streaming era has seen an explosion of content devoted to revisiting, and collectively reliving, sensational scandals that became national news events, from the O J. Simpson trial to the Menendez brothers.

The best of these productions, like HBO’s recent Allen v. Farrow, raise questions about the biases of the justice system and the media regarding the workings of power and gender. They also provide more nuanced portraits of the protagonists, especially women who became tabloid caricatures — routinely slut-shamed or framed as scorned lovers or femmes fatales.

The Clinton era would seem perfect for this kind of reconsideration as well. When Bill Clinton was impeached for perjury in 1998 after lying under oath about his affair with his intern Monica Lewinsky, it became a sensational soap opera that everyone remembers, at least in outline. Images and soundbites were etched into cultural memory, from prosecutor Ken Starr’s bespectacled zealotry to Bill Clinton’s smarmy-angry denunciation of “that woman” to headlines about “the dress” that defined Lewinsky and the misogynist jokes and coverage of her life.

Throughout it all, Lewinsky wasn’t allowed to speak due to her immunity agreement with prosecutors. But when her gag order was finally lifted, she started reclaiming her image and narrative, first with a 1999 Barbara Walters sitdown and a memoir, Monica’s Story, then with an HBO special in 2002. In the aughts, she framed herself as a survivor of public shaming in a popular TED Talk, and following the advent of #MeToo, she wrote op-eds and spoke out on Twitter about the lopsided way the scandal had been covered and remembered — down to the fact that the events were often referred to as the Lewinsky scandal rather than centering the president’s misconduct.

FX’s new limited series Impeachment: American Crime Story focuses largely on reframing Lewinsky’s story and revisits the impeachment mostly from her perspective. (Lewinsky is a producer on the show.) It also includes the stories of Linda Tripp, the fellow Pentagon employee and Lewinsky confidante who recorded their conversations, and Paul Jones, another of the president’s accusers. It tries to reframe the case as a story not about sex, cigars, and betrayal but about changing media mores and abuse of power.

But in the seven episodes made available to critics, Impeachment doesn’t really provide any more insight than existing documentaries, like A&E’s 2018 The Clinton Affair — which also included Lewinsky’s participation — have already done. The series tries to build on existing critiques of how the events played out, but its analysis mostly falls flat. Like other recent scripted attempts at capturing significant political moments through detailed portraits of women, like Mrs. America and Bombshell, it feeds into ready-made narratives about partisanship and misses the opportunity to add nuance to pop cultural understandings of gender and power.

Ryan Murphy’s relitigation of national scandals often tends toward simplistic narratives. The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story might as well have been titled The Maligning of Marcia Clark; it’s somehow remembered as an incisive analysis of racial bias in the justice system, but the series mostly worked as a sympathetic portrait of Clark. The follow-up installment of American Crime Story about Gianni Versace’s killer, Andrew Cunanan, didn’t quite come together as a cohesive show and struggled in the ratings, precisely because there wasn’t a ready-made narrative of women’s vulnerability and empowerment to apply to the story.

Impeachment follows a similar pattern as The People v. O. J. Simpson and mostly focuses on Lewinsky’s story and perspective. It begins with the moment when Lewinsky (Beanie Feldstein) gets cornered in a mall by intimidating FBI agents and Linda Tripp (Sarah Paulson), who has taped her admitting to an affair with the president even though the former intern has declared under oath that it hadn’t happened.

Impeachment’s Bill Clinton (Clive Owen) is the ultimate faux nice guy, making all his proclamations about hiring women even as loneliness and ego drive him to seek out Lewinsky. As the series moves back and forth in time, it recontextualizes their affair as part of the president’s pattern of inappropriate behavior, including the stories of other women like Kathleen Willey, whom Clinton allegedly groped in his office, and Paula Jones (Annaleigh Ashford), the show’s other big protagonist. Jones is thrust into the spotlight after her name is revealed in a magazine story about Clinton’s time as governor, and conservative activist Susan Carpenter McMillan (Judith Light) takes her up, seemingly as an emblem of conservative feminism. But beyond that, Jones’s story is not really fleshed out.

Instead, the series is most absorbing when it is humanizing Lewinsky and Tripp, especially as it unpacks the relationship between the two — Tripp, a single divorcée, and Lewinsky, a privileged young woman coming to terms with a lying “Big Creep” in her life who just happens to be the president.

The performances work, even if the writing is mostly one-note. For instance, we mostly see Lewinsky moping about the president; Feldstein captures her vulnerability, but we don’t get to see much of Lewinsky’s exuberant charisma. Tripp has largely been framed, in SNL skits and endless jokes, as a creepy betrayer of Lewinsky. Here, she’s shown as something of a sad bureaucrat who is acting out of self-protection but also self-interest, hoping for a book deal. One of the specificities the show does capture is Tripp’s sense that Lewinsky, a rich woman from Beverly Hills, would be taken care of in a way that she wouldn’t, and her decision to record their conversation is partly depicted as a way of protecting herself in case the story got out.

The show’s most glaring issue — something it shares with Bombshell and Mrs. America — is its inability to represent whiteness and class privilege as driving political motivations. From the start, it links the interpersonal drama with the political machinations and interests that would ultimately drive the impeachment. Behind the legal maneuvering are right-wing attorneys including George Conway and Ann Coulter, nicknamed “the elves,” who seize on Clinton’s indiscretions as an opportunity to bring him down. The show points out how they were instrumental in getting Clinton to testify under oath in the Jones lawsuit.

“The elves” are depicted as anti-Clintonites disgusted by his unethical behavior. Yet there is no mention of the fact that they were trained by and remained in the orbit of the Federalist Society. The group has been laundering racist ideas as federalism for decades, and corporate media has helped normalize its ideas, in part through Coulter’s lavish platforming. (In the show, she’s depicted as a witty conservative contrarian.)

As for its presentation of media and power, Impeachment does the bare minimum. In one minor scene, Michael Isikoff, the Newsweek reporter who breaks the Lewinsky story, takes issue when he’s described as being on the “sex beat”; he dutifully retorts that sex is about abuse of power. That’s true, but it’s hardly groundbreaking analysis with 20 years of hindsight. Similarly, the inclusion of Matt Drudge (played in an amazing Murphian stroke of casting by Billy Eichner), breaking the story before conventional media barely hints at how mainstream media struggled to catch up with emerging blogs. There’s no sense of the very real stakes of this shift on our present.

In an interview with the Today show when the scandal first broke, Hillary Clinton famously spoke of a “vast right-wing conspiracy” to take down her husband while implying that the president hadn’t had sex with Lewinsky and that Ken Starr’s team was making it up. But she was right for the wrong reasons; her husband might have lied, but there seemingly was a network of rich, white power brokers looking to maintain minority rule through deftly planned and well-executed anti-democratic means.

Clearly informed by Lewinsky’s memoir and perspective, Impeachment shows how devastating it was for her to be depicted as a stalker by the media and thrown under the bus not just by the president but also by every man who came out of the woodwork to sell random anecdotes about her to cable news.

Since the scandal first hit, the narrative around Lewinsky has changed, and in many ways Lewinsky herself has done that work. She’s almost too perfect a Murphy subject. A smarter, more confident show would have provided a different context for looking at the legacies of that era.

It’s been sobering, for instance, to see that even as the media claims to have developed a greater awareness of the workings of gender and power, this has not led to greater understanding of how power is wielded in terms of class and race.

Lewinsky endured a lot, and she has helped shift the conversation about sex, gender, and power while reclaiming her narrative. But aside from her story, Impeachment feels like it’s looking back without any new perspective, and it’s rife with too-obvious takeaways. As a drama about a young woman thrust into the political spotlight, the series isn’t half bad. But as cultural commentary, it’s a symptom of the current moment, not a critique of it. ●

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Entertainment

Hillary, Chelsea Clinton spotted in the Hamptons ahead of ‘American Crime Story: Impeachment’ premiere

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The Clinton family has been spotted out in the Hamptons. 

Chelsea Clinton, 41, and Hillary Clinton, 73, were both seen out and about Sunday. Chelsea was spotted on a brisk walk while Hillary was joined for lunch by her longtime aide Huma Abedin. 

Chelsea wore a white T-shirt and blue biker shorts. The children’s book author accessorized the outfit with a baseball cap.

Chelsea spent the walk dealing with something on her cellphone.

MONICA LEWINSKY ADVOCATED FOR ‘AMERICAN CRIME STORY: IMPEACHMENT’ TO INCLUDE A THONG-FLASHING SCENE

Hillary, Abedin and two others met for lunch and were photographed outside of Carissa’s The Bakery in East Hampton. The group enjoyed coffee and pastries.

TRAILERS DROP FOR FX’S ‘IMPEACHMENT’ SERIES ABOUT CLINTON-LEWINSKY AFFAIR

Hillary wore a long-sleeved sweater with trousers. The former First Lady accessorized her outfit with a white visor cap and sunglasses.

Chelsea, Hillary and Bill Clinton have been spending time in the Hamptons ahead of the release of the FX mini-series, “American Crime Story: Impeachment,” which focuses on Bill’s affair with Monica Lewinsky.

The series is reportedly based on Jeffrey Toobin’s book “A Vast Conspiracy: The Real Story of the Sex Scandal That Nearly Brought Down a President.”

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Lewinsky was also a producer on the show. Feldstein told Entertainment Weekly the anti-bullying activist was consulted on “every word” and “every script page.”

The show is set to premiere Sept. 7.

Fox News’ Brie Stimson contributed to this report.

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Republicans hit Biden over Afghanistan, with eye on midterms

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Republicans in Congress want President BidenJoe BidenUS tells Americans to leave Kabul airport ‘immediately,’ citing ‘credible’ threat Britain, France to propose Kabul safe zone for people trying to flee Afghanistan Pollsters confront tough survey landscape after 2020 flubs MORE out of office after 13 U.S. service members and at least 170 others were killed in a terrorist attack during the Afghanistan evacuation.

They’re calling for his resignation, impeachment and even for the 25th Amendment to be invoked to end his presidency.

Some of the GOP lawmakers pushing for Biden’s ouster are familiar Trump loyalists like Rep. Marjorie Taylor GreeneMarjorie Taylor GreeneGOP efforts to downplay danger of Capitol riot increase The Memo: What now for anti-Trump Republicans? Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene says she’s meeting with Trump ‘soon’ in Florida MORE (R-Ga.), who called for impeachment; Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.), who urged Biden’s Cabinet to remove him from office via the 25th Amendment; and Sen. Josh HawleyJoshua (Josh) David HawleyZeldin calls on Biden to resign in the wake of Afghanistan attack The Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – Afghanistan chaos now a deadly crisis as US troops perish The Memo: Horror in Kabul is political disaster for Biden MORE (R-Mo.), who demanded Biden resign.

But other Republicans are also calling for action.

Democrat-turned-Republican Rep. Jeff Van DrewJeff Van DrewGOP lawmaker called on Biden to ‘resign immediately’ after ‘botched withdrawal’ from Afghanistan We can’t let sand mining threaten storm-buffering, natural infrastructure Sunday shows preview: Biden administration grapples with border surge; US mourns Atlanta shooting victims MORE (N.J.) introduced a resolution with a dozen colleagues on Friday to censure Biden.

Rep. Tom RiceHugh (Tom) Thompson RiceBiden says deadly attack won’t alter US evacuation mission in Afghanistan SC state Rep. Russell Fry launches primary bid against Rice over impeachment vote Pro-impeachment Republicans outpace GOP rivals in second-quarter fundraising MORE (S.C.), one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump after Jan. 6, called on Biden to “resign and turn the job over to someone who can handle it.” So did Rep. Jackie WalorskiJacqueline (Jackie) R. WalorskiGOP’s Banks burnishes brand with Pelosi veto Stefanik shake-up jump-starts early jockeying for committee posts Loyalty trumps policy in Stefanik’s rise, Cheney’s fall MORE (Ind.), the top Republican on the Ethics Committee, who could run for a leadership post next year.

“As the president has said repeatedly, the buck stops with him – and I agree. The buck must stop here. President Biden has demonstrated that he is unfit to serve as commander-in-chief, and, therefore, must resign,” Walorski said in a statement.

Of course, Biden isn’t going anywhere. And there is zero chance that House Democrats, led by Speaker Nancy PelosiNancy PelosiEviction ruling puts new pressure on Congress On The Money: Powell signals Fed will soon cut stimulus Banks fights Jan. 6 committee effort to seek lawmaker records MORE (D-Calif.), would impeach the head of their party, especially at a time when they are trying to enact trillions of spending in domestic programs to expand the social safety net.

But in calling for impeachment and resignation, Republicans are trying to demonstrate to their base how they would provide a check on the Biden presidency if voters hand them the House and Senate in the 2022 midterm elections.

Indeed, many top Republicans see Biden’s botched, chaotic and now deadly handling of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan as a major military and political disaster that will propel the GOP back into power on Capitol Hill.

Republicans only need to flip a net of five seats to win back the House; they need to flip just one to take the Senate.

“There’s not a member of Congress on either side of the aisle who doesn’t think that Republicans will be back in the House majority,” Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Banks (Ind.), an Afghanistan war veteran and leadership ally, told The Hill. “But now the Senate is in play too as voters demand a check on the dangerous and reckless Biden administration.”

There are other signs that Republicans view the tough, sometimes over-the-top rhetoric as good politics, especially at a time of ever-growing partisan polarization when there’s less incentive for them to be voices of moderation.

Ambitious lawmakers angling for higher office are joining the chorus of GOP voices calling on Biden to resign. That list includes GOP Rep. Lee ZeldinLee ZeldinMcCarthy: ‘There will be a day of reckoning’ for Biden Zeldin calls on Biden to resign in the wake of Afghanistan attack Hochul seeks fresh start after Cuomo scandal MORE, who is running for governor of New York, as well as Reps. Vicky HartzlerVicky Jo HartzlerMcCarthy: ‘There will be a day of reckoning’ for Biden Missouri Rep. Billy Long enters Senate GOP primary Former Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon passes on Senate campaign MORE and Billy LongWilliam (Billy) H. LongThe Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – Cuomo defiant as Biden, Democrats urge resignation Missouri Rep. Billy Long enters Senate GOP primary GOP lawmakers demand answers on withheld restitution following Nassar revelation MORE, who are both vying for the GOP nomination for an open Senate seat in Missouri.

Biden “should resign immediately. His news conference should have been four words: ‘I resign effective immediately,’” Long told The Hill.

“He made the fatally flawed decision to ignore his military personnel, his intelligence people and the Intelligence Committee in the House when they all told him it would be an unrecoverable, unmitigated disaster to abandon Bagram Air Base before all embassy personnel, Americans that wanted to leave, and our Afghan allies were extracted safely before we pulled our troops out.”

However, the two top Republicans on Capitol Hill, Rep. Kevin McCarthyKevin McCarthySunday shows preview: Bombing in Kabul delivers blow to evacuation effort; US orders strikes on ISIS-K Photos of the Week: Afghanistan evacuees, Paralympics and the French fire McCarthy: ‘There will be a day of reckoning’ for Biden MORE of California and Sen. Mitch McConnellAddison (Mitch) Mitchell McConnellSunday shows preview: Bombing in Kabul delivers blow to evacuation effort; US orders strikes on ISIS-K Some governors are mismanaging COVID and misunderstanding Federalism The Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – Afghanistan chaos now a deadly crisis as US troops perish MORE of Kentucky, haven’t endorsed such severe measures. They’re laying the blame entirely at Biden’s feet but have opted for a more restrained message of how Republicans would provide a check on his presidency if they controlled Congress.

McCarthy is pressing Pelosi to bring the chamber back into session for more classified briefings and to vote on legislation that would delay the self-imposed Aug. 31 deadline for withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan until all Americans who want to leave are evacuated.

That bill, authored by Rep. Mike GallagherMichael (Mike) John GallagherMcCarthy: ‘There will be a day of reckoning’ for Biden Overnight Defense & National Security: Terror in Kabul as explosions kill and injure hundreds McCarthy calls for House to return and vote on delaying Afghanistan withdrawal MORE (R-Wis.), would prevent any troop reduction in Afghanistan until the president certifies that all U.S. citizens and permanent residents are evacuated. However, it would allow an exception if the Defense Secretary determines that U.S. forces are facing “imminent hostilities.”

Biden is insistent upon adhering to the Tuesday deadline — an extension of the original May 1 date the Trump administration negotiated with the Taliban last year — in part because of concerns that the security situation will deteriorate further and put more Americans at risk.

Yet McCarthy, ever-mindful of not wanting to alienate his party’s right wing in his ambitions for the Speaker’s gavel, did not shut down the GOP calls for Biden’s resignation or impeachment.

“There will be a day of reckoning,” McCarthy told reporters in the Capitol on Friday.

“Right now in the next five days, everyone’s responsibility should only be focused on getting the Americans,” McCarthy continued, referring to Tuesday’s deadline. “When that day passes, you can take up anything to hold accountable for the actions that have been taken, the lies that have been given, the mis-decisions that have put Americans in harm’s way, and a decision to leave Americans behind.”

By contrast, McConnell promptly dismissed Greene’s push for impeaching Biden.

“No,” McConnell told a Kentucky TV station when asked if he supported Greene’s calls for impeachment. “I don’t routinely react to those kinds of comments by members of the House.”

While many Democrats have been critical of Biden’s handling of the evacuations from Afghanistan, they’re largely still standing by his decision to withdraw U.S. troops from the country after 20 years of war.

A spokesman for Pelosi dismissed McCarthy’s call for bringing the House back from recess as counterproductive, arguing the proposal to prevent the further withdrawal of U.S. troops would “tie the Commander in Chief’s hands in the middle of the most dangerous days of the operation.”

Even so, some Democrats are trying to distance themselves from the chaotic evacuation effort. Rep. Susan WildSusan WildOvernight Defense & National Security: Outcry over Biden’s Afghanistan deadline Lawmakers from both parties push back at Biden’s Aug. 31 deadline Biden under growing pressure to extend Afghanistan deadline MORE (D-Pa.), one of the party’s most vulnerable members heading into the 2022 midterms, said after the Kabul attack that she would work to “secure answers from the Biden Administration about what went wrong.”

“It is clear to me that it was long past time to end the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan, and that we could not continue to put American servicemembers in danger for an unwinnable war. At the same time, it appears that the evacuation process has been egregiously mishandled,” Wild said in a statement.

But Democrats remain wholly dismissive of calls from the right to oust Biden.

Rep. Eric SwalwellEric Michael SwalwellBanks fights Jan. 6 committee effort to seek lawmaker records Press: Why is Mo Brooks still in the House? The FBI comes up empty-handed in its search for a Jan. 6 plot MORE (D-Calif.), who served as one of the House prosecutors during Trump’s impeachment trial after the Jan. 6 insurrection, had a terse response to a tweet from Hawley calling for Biden’s resignation.

“You raised your fist to signal approval to violent insurrectionists. Sit down,” Swalwell wrote.



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Ohio Rep. Bob Gibbs seeks articles of impeachment against Biden

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An Ohio congressman on Friday asked his GOP House colleagues to consider filing articles of impeachment against President Biden for an “unconstitutional” order to extend the eviction moratorium and for his “dereliction” of duty in securing the southern border. 

Rep. Bob Gibbs, R-Ohio, sent a letter to his fellow Republicans urging them to seek impeachment because Biden “continues to disregard his constitutional duties and boundaries,” he said.

MCCONNELL RIPS BIDEN ADMIN FOR BOWING TO ‘FAR LEFT’ WITH EVICTION MORATORIUM EXTENSION

Gibbs cites Biden bowing to progressive pressure this week to extend a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) eviction moratorium even after the president acknowledged it likely won’t pass constitutional muster. The White House previously said its hands were tied by a recent Supreme Court opinion and couldn’t extend the protections for renters unilaterally, but Biden reversed course after outrage from the left.

Representative Bob Gibbs, a Republican from Ohio, speaks during a hearing with Michael Cohen, former personal lawyer to U.S. President Donald Trump, not pictured, in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019. Gibbs is seeking articles of impeachment against President Biden. ” Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images
(Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Separately, Gibbs says Biden failed to uphold his constitutional duties by not securing the southern border and “worsening” the coronavirus pandemic by letting COVID-positive migrants into the country. 

IMAGES OF MIGRANT CENTER IN DONNA, TEXAS SHOW CRAMPED CONDITIONS AS BORDER NUMBERS SURGE

“The President is derelict in his duty, having repeatedly said he lacks the authority to extend the CDC’s eviction moratorium, then extending it anyway,” Gibbs said in a statement. “His actions on the border represent a negligence in keeping America secure.  We need to cut this off at the pass now and show we will not stand for clearly unconstitutional actions.”

Any GOP effort to impeach Biden is a long shot since Republicans don’t control the House or the Senate.

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But Gibbs isn’t the first House Republican to seek impeachment:. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., filed articles of impeachment against Biden the day after his inauguration.

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Cuomo facing impeachment votes from majority of NY Assembly if he doesn’t resign: report

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If New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo doesn’t resign following the state attorney general’s report this week that found the governor had sexually harassed 11 women, a majority of state Assembly members are reportedly prepared to start impeachment proceedings. 

At least 86 Assembly members – more than half the total of 150 – have either publicly said or told The Associated Press they would be in favor of taking that step to remove Cuomo in the wake of the latest bombshell against him. 

Attorney General Letitia James’ investigation began after several women came forward to accuse Cuomo of harassment earlier this year. 

As recently as last year, Cuomo was a prominent voice in the Democratic Party and lauded for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, but the tidal wave of allegations and accusations he downplayed the number of coronavirus nursing home deaths has left him with few supporters. 

TIME’S UP CO-FOUNDERS HELPED GOV. CUOMO IN DRAFTING LETTER ATTACKING ACCUSER LINDSEY BOYLAN: AG REPORT

State Assemblyman Ron Kim, a Democrat, called on the assembly to return to session “immediately” to begin impeachment proceedings.

“There is no measure left to hide the truth. The governor broke the law so we must hold him accountable,” Kim said in a statement. 

“There is no measure left to hide the truth. The governor broke the law so we must hold him accountable.”

— Ron Kim, New York state assemblyman

New York state Assemblyman Ron Kim, left, has been a vocal critic of embattled New Yorkl Gov. Andrew Cuomo (AP/ Reuters)

“When institutions fail to believe victims, allow predators to act with impunity, or fail to put policies of protection in place, it sends a strong signal that condones this type of unacceptable behavior. We cannot afford to ignore his transgressions any longer: doing so will erode the integrity of our legislative body and demonstrate complicity in sheltering a sexual predator.”

State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Democrat, said in a statement: “As I said, when these disturbing allegations first came to light, the governor must resign for the good of the state. Now that the investigation is complete and the allegations have been substantiated, it should be clear to everyone that he can no longer serve as governor.”

“It should be clear to everyone that he can no longer serve as governor.”

— Andrea Stewart-Cousins, New York state Senate majority leader 

New York state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins speaks in New York City, June 12, 2020. (Reuters)

Prominent Democrats at the national and state level, including President Biden, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and both of New York’s U.S. senators, have called for Cuomo to resign. The report found Cuomo engaged in “unwanted groping, kissing, and hugging,” made inappropriate remarks toward staffers and oversaw a workplace culture “rife with fear and intimidation.”

CUOMO SEXUALLY HARASSED MULTIPLE WOMEN IN VIOLATION OF STATE AND FEDERAL LAW, NY AG FINDS

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday, “The president believes Governor Cuomo should do the right thing, resign, and leave space for future leadership in New York,” Psaki said.

One of the governor’s closest allies, New York Democratic Party chairperson Jay Jacobs, declared that Cuomo “has lost his ability to govern, both practically and morally.” Jacobs told Spectrum News he had tried privately to persuade Cuomo to resign but “wasn’t making headway.”

Cuomo, in his third term, denied many of the allegations written in the report on Tuesday and claimed others were mischaracterized or misconstrued. He said “politics and bias” were interwoven throughout the report. 

Assembly Democrats, who lead the chamber, debated virtually for hours Tuesday about whether to impeach the governor now, wait to see whether he resigns, or give the Judiciary Committee time to wrap up its wide-ranging investigation into topics from sexual misconduct to the Cuomo administration’s months-long obfuscation of the total number of nursing home residents who died from COVID-19.

At least 40 Democrats back starting impeachment proceedings if Cuomo doesn’t leave on his own. The assembly includes 106 Democrats, 43 Republicans and one Independent.

It takes a simple majority to authorize an impeachment trial.

Assembly Republican Leader Will Barclay urged Democratic Speaker Carl Heastie this week to convene an emergency special session to vote to impeach Cuomo and Hestie said he wants to conclude the body’s investigation quickly.

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Deputy Majority Leader Mike Gianaris told The Associated Press the Assembly has been preparing for an impeachment trial for months that could start in the next few weeks. 

“We’ll be ready to go if and when the impeachment articles are sent over,” he said. “It could happen very quickly.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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