Trump's DACA card is a bluff and here is why.

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After building their bench in 2018, Dems risk losing focus on state and local races

Democrats are giddy to start the presidential race but the group of party leaders who spent 2018 focusing on state and local office have an urgent request: Don’t forget about us.

These Democrats they are worried that the party risks overlooking important campaigns amid a presidential contest that’s almost certain to gobble up the left’s attention, enthusiasm, and, critically, dollars.

“It is not an existential crisis, but it can very quickly become an existential crisis,” said Amanda Litman, co-founder of Run for Something, a progressive start-up that encourages young men and women to run for office.

Run for Something didn’t even exist before Donald Trump’s election in 2016 but became an important group in part because of its funding from big donors, who supplied half of its budget, according to Litman.

But the group’s co-founder says she already senses more reluctance from donors since the midterms and she thinks that’s because interest has shifted to the presidential primary. She and others worry that fundraising won’t become any easier as the relatively small community of big-time donors are regularly hounded by multiple White House candidates.

“It’s already an uphill battle,” Litman said.

Losing focus non-presidential races was a significant problem for Democrats during Barack Obama’s presidency, when the party lost about a thousand state and federal offices. The defeats drove Democrats out of power in Congress and many state legislatures.



https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/politics-government/election/campaigns/article224624055.html#storylink=cpy

Treasury secretary flew on a private jet owned by jailed 'junk bond' king lobbying for pardon

WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin flew from Washington to Los Angeles this month on the private aircraft of Michael R. Milken, the billionaire “junk bond” king who pleaded guilty to securities fraud in 1990 and served two years in prison.

The flight, which was confirmed by the Treasury Department on Friday, was the latest example of Trump administration officials using luxury or government aircraft for personal reasons. Mr. Mnuchin, who was accompanied by Secret Service agents on Mr. Milken’s jet, travels frequently to California to visit his children who live there.

A Treasury Department spokesman said that Mr. Mnuchin and Mr. Milken have known each other for years and that after reviewing internally the secretary’s plans to take the flight, it was decided that he did not need an ethics waiver. Mr. Mnuchin has reimbursed Mr. Milken for the cost of the flight, the spokesman said, but did not disclose the amount.

Trump administration officials, including Mr. Mnuchin, had been encouraging President Trump last year to pardon Mr. Milken, who pleaded guilty to six criminal charges related to securities transactions undertaken in the 1980s. Mr. Milken, who had to pay $600 million in fines, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and released after two years.

A spokesman for Mr. Mnuchin said he did not know if the idea of a pardon for Mr. Milken came up during the flight. Other presidents had also considered pardoning Mr. Milken, including President Bill Clinton.



https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/18/us/politics/mnuchin-private-flight-michael-milken.html

AOC: Government shutdown is about Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump versus the rest of the country

45% of self-identified Republicans approve of @AOC's 70% top marginal tax rate

In response, some centrist pundits pronounced the Democratic Party dead by political suicide: National Journal reporter Josh Kraushaar argued that, while congresswoman Rashida Tlaib’s profane call for Trump’s impeachment was getting more attention, Ocasio-Cortez “calling for a 70 percent tax rate on the nation’s most-watched news show a whole lot more politically damaging for Ds.”

There was never much evidence for this assessment. In public opinion polls, raising taxes on the rich consistently ranks as one of the most popular ideas in American politics. Moreover, political-science research suggests that the American people’s resentment of the wealthy is bitter and deep — and, in the not-too-distant past, Democrats succeeded in leveraging such resentment for political gain.
There was never much evidence for this assessment. In public opinion polls, raising taxes on the rich consistently ranks as one of the most popular ideas in American politics. Moreover, political-science research suggests that the American people’s resentment of the wealthy is bitter and deep — and, in the not-too-distant past, Democrats succeeded in leveraging such resentment for political gain.

Meanwhile, as far as plans for class war go, Ocasio-Cortez’s was more “Jimmy Carter” than “Jacobin.” As recently as 1980, the U.S. taxed all incomes above $216,000 (or $658,213 in today’s dollars) at 70 percent rate. And recent research on optimal taxation has suggested that the ideal top marginal rate might be closer to 80 percent.

These facts led certain bloggers to describe the congresswoman’s idea as a “moderate policy.” And now, a new poll has confirmed that such bloggers are, in fact, profoundly wise.

Over the weekend, pollsters from the Hill–HarrisX asked voters, “Would you favor or oppose a tax proposal that would apply a 70% rate to the 10 millionth dollar and beyond for individuals making $10 million a year or more in reportable income?” — and 59 percent said yes.


The idea was “popular in all regions of the country.” Southerners backed it by a 57-to-43 percent margin, while 56 percent of voters in rural zip codes agreed that the socialist congresswoman was onto something. Even 45 percent of self-identified Republicans approved.



http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/01/poll-large-majority-backs-aocs-70-top-marginal-tax-rate.html?utm_source=tw&utm_campaign=nym&utm_medium=s1

Trump Administration lays out changes to ACA which would cut coverage for 2 million Americans

15 People Have Been Charged in the Flint Water Scandal

— Michael Prysby, Stephen Busch, Liane Shekter Smith, Adam Rosenthal, all from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

— Mike Glasgow and Daugherty "Duffy" Johnson, who both worked for the city of Flint.

— Corinne Miller of the state Department of Health and Human Services.


Charges are pending against eight people:

— Nick Lyon, former director of the state health department. Involuntary manslaughter, misconduct in office.

— Dr. Eden Wells, former Michigan chief medical executive. Involuntary manslaughter, obstructing justice, lying, misconduct in office.

— Nancy Peeler and Robert Scott of the state health department. Misconduct in office, conspiracy.

— Patrick Cook of the Department of Environmental Quality. Misconduct in office, conspiracy.

— Gerald Ambrose, former Flint emergency manager. Conspiracy, misconduct in office, false pretenses.

— Darnell Earley, former Flint emergency manager. Involuntary manslaughter, conspiracy, misconduct in office.

— Howard Croft, former director of Flint public works. Involuntary manslaughter, conspiracy.


https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-18/15-people-have-been-charged-in-the-flint-water-scandal

Russians attempted to hack DNC after 2018 election.

New York (CNN)The Democratic National Committee claims that in the days after the 2018 midterm elections it was likely targeted by a group of Russian intelligence hackers, according to court documents filed overnight.

The hackers posed as a State Department official in the attempted hack, a senior Democratic Party source with direct knowledge of the attempt told CNN.

Dozens of DNC email addresses received spear-phishing emails that were ostensibly sent from a State Department official, the source said. The emails contained a PDF attachment that, if opened, was designed to gain access to systems through the recipient's computer, the source explained.

The DNC said it did not believe the attempt was successful.

In a court filing that is part of an an ongoing civil lawsuit against the Russian government, President Donald Trump, WikiLeaks and others, the DNC explained it believed the spear-phishing campaign was likely orchestrated by a Russian hacking group known as "Cozy Bear." The DNC said the timing and contents of the emails shared characteristics with a suspected Cozy Bear campaign that had been identified by the cybersecurity firm FireEye.

The DNC added, "it is probable that Russian intelligence again attempted to unlawfully infiltrate DNC computers in November 2018."

Marcy Wheeler: Buzfeed source likely at SDNY, not SCO