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Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing


*From:* Bulletin Intelligence <Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com>
*Sent:* Wednesday, May 2, 2018 7:57 AM
*To:* Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com
*Subject:* Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing for
Wednesday, May 2, 2018


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<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=000-220&t=c>
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[image: Image removed by sender. Office of Vice President Biden
Intelligence Briefing]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=001-d38&t=c>

*To: Vice President Joe Biden*

*Wednesday, May 2, 2018 8:00 AM EDT*
Today's Table of Contents

*Leading the News <#SECTION_1>*

• Trump Bemoans “Russia Witch Hunt,” “Disgraceful” Leak Of Mueller
Questions. <#S1>

*Foreign Policy <#SECTION_2>*

• Netanyahu: Israel Trusts Trump Will “Do The Right Thing” With Iran
Nuclear Deal. <#S2>

• SIGAR: Afghan Security Forces Declining In Number. <#S3>

• White House Declines To Release Report On Civilian Casualties In
Counterterror Strikes. <#S4>

• At Least 27 Killed In Northeast Nigeria Mosque Bombings. <#S5>

• Administration Amends Russia Sanctions, Paving Way For Likely Rusal
Exemption. <#S6>

• Ahead Of Trade Talks With China, Trump Accuses Past Administrations Of
Inaction. <#S7>

• Trump: Date, Location Of Meeting With Kim Jong-Un Coming Soon. <#S8>

*Domestic Policy <#SECTION_3>*

• White House: Claiming Of Trump’s Medical Records “Standard Operating
Procedure.” <#S9>

• Seventeen States, DC Sue EPA Over Proposed Auto Emissions Rules Rollback.
<#S10>

• Price: Individual Mandate Repeal Will Cause Marketplace Premiums To Rise.
<#S11>

• Pompeo Vows To Help State Department Get Its “Swagger Back.” <#S12>

• Two Of Pruitt’s Top Aides Resign. <#S13>

• White House: Trump “Very Happy” With Kelly, Not Considering Him For VA
Secretary. <#S14>

• Trump “Seriously Thinking” About Creating Space Force. <#S15>

*Cancer Research <#SECTION_4>*

• FDA Approves Novartis’ Kymriah In Relapsed, Refractory Large B-Cell
Lymphoma. <#S16>

• FDA Approves Adjuvant Combination Treatment For Certain Melanoma Cases.
<#S17>

*Editorials/Op-Eds <#SECTION_5>*

• New York Times. <#S18>

• Washington Post. <#S19>

*Biden in the News <#SECTION_6>*

• Media Continue To Highlight Signing Of Beau Biden Gun Violence Prevention
Act. <#S20>

• New UNMC System To Report Complex Test Results In Understandable Form.
<#S21>

• Today In Texas, Jill Biden To Help Celebrate Dallas ISD Students Headed
To College. <#S22>

• Study: 48% Of Delaware Children Experience Trauma, Stress. <#S23>
Leading the News
Trump Bemoans “Russia Witch Hunt,” “Disgraceful” Leak Of Mueller Questions.

President Trump took to Twitter on Tuesday morning to denounce the leak
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=002-6f9&t=c>
of a set of questions Special Counsel Robert Mueller reportedly wants him
to answer. Trump wrote
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=003-284&t=c>,
“So disgraceful that the questions concerning the Russian Witch Hunt were
‘leaked’ to the media. No questions on Collusion. Oh, I see...you have a
made up, phony crime, Collusion, that never existed, and an investigation
begun with illegally leaked classified information. Nice!” Trump added in a
later tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=004-4cb&t=c>,
“It would seem very hard to obstruct justice for a crime that never
happened! Witch Hunt!” Several media reports contend that Trump was wrong
to say that there were “no questions on Collusion,” and point to a handful
of queries touching on Trump’s knowledge of Paul Manafort’s activities.
Even so, most outlets agree that the majority of the questions focus on
possible obstruction of justice, rather than the underlying allegations
Mueller was originally tasked with pursuing. Most media analyses also
conclude that the questions signal Trump could be putting himself in
jeopardy if he agreed to talk to Mueller.

Reports cast Trump as reacting angrily to the NYTimes story.
The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=005-ecc&t=c>
(5/1, Wagner) and Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=006-151&t=c>
(5/1, Wagner) say he “lashed out,” USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=007-d59&t=c>
(5/1, Jackson) that he “protested” the news report, [image: Image removed
by sender. Video]NBC Nightly News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=008-92c&t=c>
(5/1, story 2, 2:20, Jackson) that “the cloud of the Russia investigation
has the President stewing,” and the [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CBS
Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=009-0db&t=c>
(5/1, story 3, 2:40, Pegues) that “with 19 indictments, including some of
the President’s former top adviser, the Russia investigation is racing
toward a showdown between...Mueller and Mr. Trump.”

[image: Image removed by sender. Video]ABC World News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=00a-149&t=c>
(5/1, lead story, 3:10, Bruce), meanwhile, reported that “Trump insists
Mueller’s list has no questions on collusion, but that’s not true,” though
“much of Mueller’s list centers on possible obstruction of justice.”
Similarly, the Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=00b-11f&t=c>
(5/1, Wagner) and Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=00c-e1e&t=c>
(5/1, Wagner) report Trump “falsely” asserted there were no collusion
questions, the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=00d-7b8&t=c>
(5/1, Sullivan) that he “incorrectly noted that there were no questions
about collusion,” and Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=00e-941&t=c>
(5/1) that “the list of questions do not” include “the term ‘collusion,’”
but they touch on “what the president knew about Russian hacking, the use
of social media and ‘other acts aimed at the campaign.’” Likewise, the AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=00f-d48&t=c>
(5/1, Superville, Jalonick) reports that “the questions do appear to
indicate that Mueller is looking into possible collusion.” However, the AP
adds that “many of the questions...center on the obstruction issue.” Along
similar lines, the Daily Beast
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=010-6fc&t=c>
(5/1, Tomasky) said that while “it appears that Mueller is for now mostly
interested in whether Trump obstructed justice,” but “there are 13
questions about collusion and coordination with Russia.”

Appearing on [image: Image removed by sender. Video]MSNBC’s Morning
Joe
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=011-b08&t=c>
(5/1), reporter Michael Schmidt, who wrote the NYTimes article
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=012-c8a&t=c>
on the “at least four dozen” questions Mueller’s team wants to ask, said
the “big takeaway” is that the questions are “about actions the President
took since he came into office, including some things that happened as
recently as January. So an investigation that started focused on Russia’s
efforts to influence the election, ties between Trump’s campaign and
Russia, is now predominantly focused on obstruction, the questions of his
efforts to interfere with the investigation.” However, Schmidt did note
that one of the questions involves “whether the president knew of efforts
by [Jared] Kushner to create a back-channel to Russia. to communicate
through Russia [in] a way that...the CIA would not be able to hear.” Joe
Scarborough said that after Schmidt’s article was published, “quite a few
former US attorneys” said “this is bad for Jared Kushner, in particular,”
because “Mueller’s questions seem to assume Jared’s guilt.”

On [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CBS This Morning
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=013-c5f&t=c>
(5/1, 7:03 a.m. EDT, Hill), Jeff Pegues reported, “Mueller’s team has
informed the President’s attorneys that he’s not a target of the Russia
investigation, but questions suggest that they are interested in the
President’s actions.” Newsweek
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=014-3ea&t=c>
(5/1, Silva) also said that “Mueller’s team has indicated that the
president is not considered a target in his Russia investigation,” but
“investigators are still interested in whether Trump’s actions in
connection with the probe constitute an obstruction of justice.” The Wall
Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=015-ca6&t=c>
(5/1, Ballhaus) also reports that the questions do touch on matters
regarding collusion, while Chris Cillizza writes in a piece for CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=016-3be&t=c>
(5/1) that “it’s now clear that not only has the scope of Mueller’s
investigation widened significantly but also that Trump, at least in
Mueller’s mind, has a lot to explain about his own role in all of it.”

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=017-a96&t=c>
(5/1, Nelson, Samuelsohn) reports White House Deputy Press Secretary Raj
Shah told [image: Image removed by sender. Video]Fox News’ America’s
Newsroom
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=018-339&t=c>
“that the questions show Mueller’s probe has strayed from its original
purpose.” Said Shah, “The overwhelming majority of those questions don’t
focus on the underlying premise of this special counsel, which was to focus
on this issue of collusion with the Russian government.” The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=019-045&t=c>
(5/1, Fabian) indicates, meanwhile, that White House Press Secretary Sarah
Sanders “repeatedly deflected questions about the leak of...Mueller’s
questions,” saying, “As with all questions of this nature, I’d refer you to
the president’s outside personal attorneys, Jay Sekulow and Rudy Giuliani.”
Asked about whether Mueller was seeking to ask the President about
collusion, White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley similarly
responded on [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CNN’s The Lead
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=01a-6ef&t=c>
(5/1), “Out of respect for the special counsel I have to turn you back over
to the President’s attorneys, Jay Sekulow and Rudy Giuliani.”

*In Tweet Today, Trump Blasts Collusion “Hoax,” Touts North Korea,
Trade Negotiations. *Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=01b-b7e&t=c>
this morning, “There was no Collusion (it is a Hoax) and there is no
Obstruction of Justice (that is a setup & trap). What there is is
Negotiations going on with North Korea over Nuclear War, Negotiations going
on with China over Trade Deficits, Negotiations on NAFTA, and much more.
Witch Hunt!”

*Media Consensus: Leak Came From Trump Camp, Not Mueller’s Team. *The
Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=01c-979&t=c>
(5/1, Persons) says that the Mueller “investigation has had a problem with
leaks in the nearly yearlong process so far, including the indictments of
former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former National Security
Adviser Michael Flynn.” However, the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=01d-ceb&t=c>
(5/1, Wagner) reports that “it appears that the leak did not come from
Mueller’s office,” and on [image: Image removed by sender. Video]ABC’s Good
Morning America
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=01e-5bb&t=c>
(5/1), George Stephanopoulos said Tuesday morning “the leaks came almost
certainly from Trump’s legal team.” Legal analyst Dan Abrams agreed,
saying, “There is no question that these leaks did not come from Mueller’s
team, but did come from Trump’s team. ... How do we know that? Because in
the New York Times article, they make it very clear this came from a list
of questions that Mueller’s team read to them. And so Trump’s team created
this list that was then leaked by someone outside of Trump’s defense team.”

Newsweek
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=01f-0c7&t=c>
(5/1, Price) also concluded “Trump’s own team appears to be responsible for
the leaking of questions the special counsel has prepared for the
commander-in-chief in connection with the Russian election meddling probe,”
and the Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=020-b52&t=c>
(5/1, Persons) notes “CNN analyst Michael Zeldin said Tuesday that the
grammatical errors in a leaked list of questions from special counsel
Robert Mueller indicate the list may have been released by the White
House.” Zeldin told [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CNN’s New Day
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=021-384&t=c>
(5/1), “I think these are notes taken by the recipients of a conversation
with Mueller’s office where he outlined broad topics and these guys wrote
down questions that they thought these topics may raise.” The Times adds
Zeldin “is a former assistant to Mr. Mueller and said that lawyers would
not write questions in the way that the New York Times report has them
listed.”

The [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CBS Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=022-85b&t=c>
(5/1, story 3, 2:40, Pegues) reported that “one line of thought...is that
that leak had but one target – and that is...Trump – and one purpose: to
show the scope of the Mueller investigation and the potential legal
pitfalls that the President could face.” But late Tuesday, “Deputy Attorney
General Rod Rosenstein said that the Justice Department had ruled that a
sitting President cannot be indicted, and so we still don’t know if...Trump
will actually answer Mueller’s questions.”

The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=023-4fd&t=c>
(5/1, Nelson) reports that “if Trump’s lawyers shared the document without
his permission, they could face a yearslong disciplinary process that
threatens their ability to practice law.” According to “experts on legal
ethics and rules of attorney conduct...the document would be a confidential
client record and that the lawyers could only share it with a third party
with Trump’s explicit or implied consent.”

*Media Analyses: Trump Would Be Courting Danger If He Agreed To
Answer Questions. *The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=024-b8f&t=c>
(5/1, Savage) says “the questions that Mr. Mueller wants to ask show why
the president’s lawyers have countered that an interview would be a
minefield for Mr. Trump.” This is not only because “the president has a
history of telling demonstrable falsehoods,” but also because the questions
“are so broad that Mr. Trump would need a detailed command of a range of
issues. And, complicating efforts to try to adequately prepare him for such
an encounter, the president’s lawyers do not know everything that the
special counsel has learned.” Michael Isikoff, writing for Yahoo! News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=025-d96&t=c>
(5/1), also said “the open-ended nature of the questions and the broad list
of topics signal the perils Trump would face in any interview with
Mueller.” Isikoff quotes “one former White House adviser to Trump” as
saying, “There are very few lawyers who would not consider it legal
malpractice to agree to an interview for the president. ... That is
especially true knowing the temperament of this particular client, who has
a tendency to say things that are contradicted by the facts.”

The [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CBS Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=026-f72&t=c>
(5/1, story 3, 2:40, Pegues) showed “Solomon Wisenberg, who questioned
President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s as Ken Starr’s deputy independent
counsel,” saying, “The questions are very dangerous for the President to
answer. ... It’s a minefield. Any normal white-collar client, his or her
attorney would be jumping up and down on the desk, insisting that they not
go in for an interview.” [image: Image removed by sender. Video]NBC Nightly
News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=027-cd5&t=c>
(5/1, story 2, 2:20, Jackson) showed Chuck Rosenberg, an “NBC News
contributor,” saying, “These are not softball topics. And what the Mueller
team wants to do is frame for the President’s lawyers the topics they want
to cover. But if there are surprise or difficult questions, I can assure
you that the Mueller investigative team will save [them] that for an actual
interview.”

On [image: Image removed by sender. Video]NBC’s Today Show
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=028-b6b&t=c>
(5/1, 7:02 a.m. EDT, Kotb), Peter Alexander reported that he spoke with
Alan Dershowitz, who “describes these questions as deliberate softballs
designed to lure the President into long and possibly incriminating
responses,” according to Alexander. Alexander added that Dershowitz told
him that “if he were advising...Trump, and he is not, he would encourage
him to skip an interview and answer the question in writing...or take the
list to court to narrow the scope of the investigation.” On [image: Image
removed by sender. Video]ABC’s Good Morning America
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=029-13f&t=c>
(5/1), legal analyst Dan Abrams said “there is simply no way the President
can sit down with...Mueller and answer all of these questions – because
he’s going to inevitably contradict himself at the very least.”

Hannity said in his monologue on [image: Image removed by sender.
Video]Fox News’ Hannity
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=02a-59a&t=c>
(5/1), “Mueller’s merry band of Trump-hating sycophants are completely are
totally desperate to find anything, something on...Trump.” If the questions
the New York Times released that allegedly...Mueller wants to ask Trump
“are true, be warned, Mueller is laying a huge perjury trap for the
President of the United States. Which means two things: one, he has
nothing. And two, it proves everything I have been saying about him and
Andrew Weissmann and company.” He added, “And even more frightening than
the contents of this inquiry. ... I have a question for...Mueller: when did
thinking your thoughts ever become a crime?” Hannity blasts the “insane,
juvenile ridiculous questions” and suggests that Trump demand “the Hillary
treatment for any interview with the FBI,” including it “be conducted not
under oath, not recorded, not be transcribed, and the exoneration written
months in advance.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=02b-600&t=c>
(5/1) editorializes that when the questions “were provided to Mr. Trump’s
legal team in March, John Dowd, the president’s lead personal lawyer at the
time, urged him to avoid sitting for an interview with Mr. Mueller. When
Mr. Trump said he intended to anyway, Mr. Dowd resigned. Reading through
the list, it’s clear why Mr. Dowd was so concerned.” The Times adds that
“federal investigators don’t like being lied to, and Mr. Trump has a marked
tendency to say things that aren’t true.”

Asked about Trump’s willingness to talk to Mueller, White House
Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said on [image: Image removed by
sender. Video]CNN’s The Lead
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=02c-881&t=c>
(5/1), “I was in the room when he made that claim and he turned around and
said to the group of reporters in Gen. Kelly’s office, ‘I’m willing to talk
to those folks. I’ll do it.’ And then he said, ‘But I’m going to have to
defer to my attorneys.’ So I think that the attorneys supersede any desire
of what we plan to do.”

*Hannity: NYTimes Story “Crap,” Questions Leaked By Special
Counsel’s Office. *Sean Hannity said on [image: Image removed by sender.
Video]Fox News’ Hannity
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=02d-6bf&t=c>
(4/30), “I’m told by my sources tonight that ‘the New York Times’ is full
of crap, a lot of those questions are not the questions that the Special
Counsel is asking. Clearly a leak by the Special Counsel’s office again
with anonymous sources.” Hannity also said in his monologue on [image:
Image removed by sender. Video]Fox News’ Hannity
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=02e-48f&t=c>
(5/1), “We know sadly in America we have a two-tier justice system, not
equal justice under the law. While the President is targeted in a totally
off-the-rails witch hunt, Hillary Clinton, James Comey, Andrew McCabe, all
of these other deep-state actors have never been charged with a crime.
Despite mountains of evidence that we have.” He added, “The deep state
hates who you chose to be your President. They are hell-bent on seeing
Donald Trump delegitimized and, hopefully on their side, removed from
office. That means that they do not want him to succeed. That would mean
even if Americans suffer in the process.”

*Dowd: Mueller Raised Prospect Of Grand Jury Subpoena For
Trump. *Trump’s
former attorney John Dowd told the AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=02f-87e&t=c>
(5/1) that “Mueller’s team raised the prospect of issuing a grand jury
subpoena to compel...Trump to testify as part of the Russia probe.”
The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=030-446&t=c>
(5/1, Leonnig, Costa) recounts that “Mueller’s warning...spurred a sharp
retort from John Dowd, then the president’s lead lawyer,” who “according to
two people with knowledge of his comments” said, “This isn’t some game. ...
You are screwing with the work of the president of the United States.”

*Business Insider, NPR: Mueller May Have Evidence To Warrant
Question About Manafort. *Business Insider
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=031-c93&t=c>
(5/1, Sheth) says “Mueller’s inclusion of a question about outreach from
the campaign’s side, specifically from [Paul] Manafort, to Russia suggests
he has information that would prompt such a question.” NPR
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=032-dc5&t=c>
(5/1, Ewing) also said that based on the questions, “Mueller may have
developed evidence that has not yet been made public about contacts
between...Trump’s campaign and the Russian government as it attacked the
2016 election.” Added NPR, “If, according to one common theory about
Mueller’s investigation, the presidential interview would be the last one
in the process, the questions for Trump are indicative about evidence the
special counsel already has – which investigators might wish to test with
Trump in person.” The Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=033-eee&t=c>
(5/1, Ross) reports, however, that according to Manafort’s attorneys, “the
special counsel’s office has told” them “it does not have evidence of any
contacts between the former Trump campaign chairman and Russian government
and intelligence officials.”

*Manafort Lawyers Want Investigation Of Mueller Leaks. *The Daily
Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=034-ff6&t=c>
(5/1, Ross) reports that Manafort’s “the lawyers say they want a hearing to
look into government officials’ leaks to the media regarding Manafort, a
longtime political consultant who has been indicted on money laundering and
bank fraud charges.” Wrote Manafort lawyers Kevin M. Downing and Thomas E.
Zehnle, “By their actions, it is self-evident that the objective of these
government sources was to create unfair prejudice against Mr. Manafort and
thereby deprive him of his Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights.”

*WPost Editorial Approves Of Leak To Force Trump “To Confront”
Mueller’s Questions. *The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=035-3b5&t=c>
(5/1) editorializes that “it is unclear who leaked” the questions, though
“one possibility is that someone is seeking to ensure that, whatever
happens to Mr. Mueller’s investigation, the president is forced to confront
them. If so, we are in agreement: Under oath or not, Mr. Trump owes the
country answers.”

*Some “Former White House Aides” Wondering Why Mueller Hasn’t
Spoken To Ivanka. *Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=036-60d&t=c>
(5/1, Karni) reports that Ivanka Trump, “the family member closest to the
president” and who “helped lobby her father to hire...Manafort...has yet to
be called in for questioning by...Mueller,” and “former White House aides
who themselves have sat down with prosecutors...are wondering why.” A
“former White House adviser who has previously clashed with the Trump
children” tells Politico, “She’s involved in everything. ... It’s odd.
Unless they consider her that ‘T’ word.” Politico adds that “so far, only
Ivanka Trump’s Washington enemies are actively floating the idea that she
might be a ‘target’ of Mueller’s investigation,” but “former prosecutors
and Justice Department lawyers said the fact that she has yet to be
tapped...says more about Mueller’s risk-averse process than it does about
her lack of involvement in the...the Russia inquiry.” Politico also reports
“the special counsel seems to be leaving the president’s children for
last.”

*Rosenstein Says His GOP Critics Lack “Courage,” DOJ Won’t Be
“Extorted.” *[image: Image removed by sender. Video]ABC World News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=037-578&t=c>
(5/1, story 3, 0:30, Muir) reported, “We rarely hear from...Rosenstein, who
is overseeing...Mueller’s investigation,” but “he is speaking out after
members of the House Freedom Caucus, Republicans,” have begun “drafting a
plan to impeach him.” Rosenstein “said the threat will not work.”
Rosenstein was shown saying, “The Department of Justice is not going to be
extorted. We’re going to do what’s required by the rule of law. And any
kind of threats that anybody makes are not going to effect the way we do
our job. We have a responsibility.” USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=038-979&t=c>
(5/1, Wolf) reports, “While sidestepping direct questions about...Mueller’s
probe...Rosenstein struck a note of defiant independence. Asked about an
effort by some House Republicans to draft articles of impeachment against
him, Rosenstein said it’s just one of many threats that have been made,
publicly and privately. In this case, he said, no one had the ‘courage’ to
associate themselves with the effort.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=039-c62&t=c>
(5/1, Benner, Fandos), Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=03a-f49&t=c>
(5/1, Mordock), Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=03b-485&t=c>
(5/1, Zapotosky) and Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=03c-7dd&t=c>
(5/1, Cohen), among other news outlets, run similar accounts of
Rosenstein’s comments.

*Daily Caller: “Notorious Clinton Fixer” Wrote His Own Trump
Dossier. *The Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=03d-5d2&t=c>
(5/1, Ross) reports that “Clinton operatives pushed a dossier” written by
“notorious Clinton fixer” Cody Shearer during the 2016 presidential
campaign “that appeared to be a classic ‘rope-a-dope’ scheme being peddled
by purported Russian spies, according to a person who was briefed on the
documents by one of the Clinton insiders” during the campaign. According to
the source, “Shearer claimed that members of Russia’s spy service, the FSB,
had video tape of [Donald] Trump engaged in sexually compromising acts.”

*Caputo To Senate Intelligence Committee: “God Damn You To Hell.” *The
Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=03e-3e0&t=c>
(5/1, Correll) reports “Republican consultant and former Trump campaign
aide Michael Caputo told the Senate Intelligence Committee Tuesday, ‘God
damn you to hell,’ during an interview as part of the panel’s Russia
investigation.” The Examiner adds that “in Caputo’s closing statement...he
said the panel’s investigation ‘forced’ his family out of their home and
‘crushed’ his children due to mounting legal costs associated with the
inquiry.” Caputo also “accused members of the Senate Intelligence Committee
of working together and contributing to the “swamp” – a term often used by
President Trump to describe the bureaucracy in Washington, DC.”

*Comey Claims Trump’s Criticism Of FBI Has Undermined Public
Safety. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=03f-c40&t=c>
(5/1, Tucker, Day) reports that on Tuesday, former FBI director James Comey
“said it was clear that the president’s blistering attacks on the FBI,
including his calls for scrutiny of his political opponents and his
suggestion that Comey should be jailed, affect public safety in ‘hundreds
and thousands of ways.’” Comey is quoted as saying: “To the extent there’s
been a marginal decrease in their credibility at that doorway, in that
courtroom and in thousands of other ways, their effectiveness is hit. So
it’s hard.”
Foreign Policy
Netanyahu: Israel Trusts Trump Will “Do The Right Thing” With Iran Nuclear
Deal.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=040-b1f&t=c>
(5/1) reports that in cable news interviews Tuesday morning – CNN’s
New Day[image:
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<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=041-082&t=c>
and Fox News’ Fox & Friends[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=042-5cb&t=c>
– Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “one day after unveiling what
he said was evidence of a secret Iranian nuclear weapons program,” said
Israel is “not seeking war with Iran” but does want President Trump to
withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal. Netanyahu said of Trump, “I trust his
judgment. He’ll do the right thing.” Reuters goes on to report that
Netanyahu “echoed” Trump’s book, “The Art of the Deal,” saying, “This
regime had a secret nuclear weapons program and they’re trying under a very
bad deal to get a nuclear arsenal. They shouldn’t get it. It really needs a
new deal.”

White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley said on CNN’s The
Lead[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=043-a99&t=c>
(5/1), “The new information that Prime Minister Netanyahu put forth was
that this Iran deal was so bad – and the President has been very clear
about that – but it is so bad that it created a pathway, quite frankly, to
a nuclear weapon. It didn’t prevent it at all.”

*Netanyahu’s Claims Receive Cool Reception In Europe. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=044-f5c&t=c>
(5/1, Federman) reports Netanyahu’s accusations about Iran’s past nuclear
activities “received a warm welcome in Washington but a far cooler
reception in Europe on Tuesday – deepening divisions” among allies ahead of
Trump’s decision on whether to withdraw from the nuclear deal later this
month. British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson said Netanyahu’s presentation
“underlines the importance” of keeping the deal in place. Responding to
Netanyahu’s speech, the IAEA issued a statement Tuesday reaffirming that
“the agency had no credible indications of activities in Iran relevant to
the development of a nuclear explosive device after 2009.” The New York
Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=045-444&t=c>
(5/1, Landler, Halbfinger, Sanger) reports that while the Administration
“embraced Israel’s claims,” there was a “stark divergence from its European
allies, who said the disclosures broke little new ground and reinforced,
rather than weakened, the case for the 2015 deal.”

*Commentators: Israeli Findings Old News, Not Relevant To Nuclear
Deal. *Max Boot, in his column for the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=046-1b9&t=c>
(5/1, Boot), says the documents smuggled out of Iran by Israeli
intelligence “are not quite as newsworthy as...Netanyahu claimed in a
made-for-American-TV presentation on Monday.” Boot adds that while
Netanyahu “claims that Iran has violated the JCPOA, a.k.a. the ‘Iran
nuclear deal,’” the “evidence is thin.” According to Boot, Netanyahu “is
clearly eager to torpedo the nuclear deal, and if he had compelling
evidence of Iranian violations he would have presented it – but he doesn’t
and didn’t.”

Steven Simon, the National Security Council’s senior director for
the Middle East and North Africa from 2011 to 2012, writes in the New York
Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=047-965&t=c>
(5/1) that “it quickly became obvious in Mr. Netanyahu’s
presentation...that these materials were already widely known and that they
covered a weapons program that was shut down in 2003.” It is also “widely
understood, not least by the American government, that Iran...is in
compliance with the nuclear agreement.” Simon writes that “if the president
can convince us that the Iran nuclear deal damages our national interest,
which encompasses the security of our allies, very well. But if he can’t,
then I’d prefer not to hear it from a foreign leader.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=048-b95&t=c>
(5/1) editorializes that Netanyahu’s presentation “simply reinforced what
the world has long known: Iran lied about its program and hid it for
years.” He also “did not provide any evidence that Iran had violated the
deal since it took effect in early 2016.” Still, the Times says Netanyahu
“remains intent on killing” the nuclear deal, and “no matter how
disingenuous it was, Mr. Netanyahu’s data dump created the illusion of
fresh incrimination.”

David Ignatius writes in his Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=049-fb4&t=c>
(5/1) that “Trump’s choice on May 12 is clearer now: If he scuttles the
deal, he risks isolating the United States, rather than Iran. If he instead
uses Israel’s intelligence windfall to fuel a global pressure campaign, he
may actually have a pathway for getting a better, longer-lasting and more
enforceable agreement. Thanks to Israeli intelligence, Trump just got lucky
on Iran. But will he be smart?”

*White House: Mistake In Press Release About Iran Was Due To
“Clerical Error.” *Under the headline, “White House Claims ‘Clerical Error’
Led To Drastic Change In Iran Statement,” CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=04a-0f4&t=c>
(5/1, Liptak, Collins) reports that “in the written statement sent to
reporters around 7:30 p.m. ET, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders
declared that newly unveiled Israeli intelligence proved ‘Iran has a
robust, clandestine nuclear weapons program.’” According to CNN, “The
declaration flew in the face of American intelligence determinations, which
found Tehran froze its program following the Obama-era agreement to lift
sanctions in exchange for curtailing its nuclear ambitions,” and “by 9:30
p.m. ET, the statement appeared differently online. ... ‘Iran had a robust,
clandestine nuclear weapons program,’ the online version read, reiterating
a long-established US position.” CNN says the White House “did not issue a
formal correction, but did offer an explanation,” calling it a “clerical
error.”

*Trump Says He May Visit Jerusalem For US Embassy Opening. *Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=04b-2ab&t=c>
(5/1) reports Trump on Tuesday “said he may go to Jerusalem” later this
month to attend the opening of the new US Embassy in the city on May 14.
Earlier Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “told Fox News
in an interview that he would ‘love’ to have the US president attend.”

*GOP House Members Ask Pompeo To End Palestinian Funding Over Aid
To Terrorists. *The Washington Free Beacon
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=04c-70c&t=c>
(5/1, Kredo) reports that a “delegation of leading Republican members of
Congress are urging newly installed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to cut
all US taxpayer funding to the Palestinian government over its continued
use of American dollars to pay the salaries of terrorists and their
families, according to communications between these lawmakers and the State
Department.” A group of 14 lawmakers “formally petitioned” Pompeo this week
to “immediately suspend all aid payments to the Palestinian Authority.”
SIGAR: Afghan Security Forces Declining In Number.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=04d-dbd&t=c>
(5/1, Constable) reports the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan
Reconstruction (SIGAR) released a report Tuesday that found “the number of
Afghan soldiers and police has declined sharply in the past year,” by about
11 percent. The report “did not specify the reasons for the dramatic
decline in Afghan force numbers, aside from some shifts of personnel
between security branches.” The Post notes the report was released “at a
time of intensified insurgent attacks,” and “as the US government has
committed more than 15,000 troops to Afghanistan in an effort to turn
around the stalemated war, with a focus on training more security personnel
and on expanding the size of the air force and the special operations
forces.” Defense Secretary Mattis said Tuesday that this expansion “is why
the enemy has been unable to take any district centers, provincial centers,
or make any advances there.”

Still, John Sopko wrote in the report, “Building up the Afghan
security forces is a key priority for the US and our allies, so it’s
concerning to see a drop in force strength,” the Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=04e-215&t=c>
reports on its front page. Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman Radmanish
denied any shortages in recruitment, and disputed the report’s claim that
the Taliban and other Islamist militant groups have increased their control
and influence across the country, arguing that the “districts that have
been invaded by the Taliban last year or this year were swiftly retaken by
our army and commandos.”

*US Military Identifies Service Member Killed In Operation In
Afghanistan. *The [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CBS Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=04f-c78&t=c>
(5/1, story 7, 0:15, Glor) briefly reported the US military identified Army
Specialist Gabriel Conde as the US soldier killed Monday by enemy fire in a
combat operation in eastern Afghanistan. The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=050-bb5&t=c>
(5/1, Lamothe) reports Conde “was an airborne-qualified infantryman with
the 25th Infantry Division’s 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, and was
killed in Kapisa province’s Tagab district, the Pentagon announced.” A
second US service member was wounded in the same operation. US military
officials did not clarify “Conde’s exact role while deployed, but he was
part of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel, in which the US military targets
terrorist groups in Afghanistan.” Conde is the second US service member to
die in combat “in Afghanistan this year.”

*US Grants Asylum To Afghanistan’s First Female Pilot. *The Wall
Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=051-e70&t=c>
(5/1, Stancati) reports former Afghan Air Force captain Niloofar Rahmani,
the first female pilot in the nation, was granted asylum in the US, where
she has been living since 2015. Since the US-led military coalition began
touting Rahmani as a symbol of how the Western-backed government in Kabul
advances women’s rights, she has received death threats from the Taliban
and members of her extended family, who view her pursuit of the profession
as shameful.
White House Declines To Release Report On Civilian Casualties In
Counterterror Strikes.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=052-738&t=c>
(5/1, Jaffe) reports the White House did not issue an “annual report on the
number of civilians and enemy fighters killed by American counterterrorism
strikes” by the May 1 deadline set by “former president Barack Obama in
2016 as part of a broader effort to lift the veil of secrecy surrounding
drone operations in places such as Yemen, Somalia and Libya.” The Post says
the decision reflects “a broader shift in US counterterrorism policy to
withhold more information about US drone strikes and the rules governing
them.” While the Administration has not “formally rescinded the Obama-era
executive order,” it “has chosen not to comply with some aspects of it.”
Separately, the Post says, it is also unclear whether the Pentagon will
meet a “federally mandated requirement” that requires it “to submit to
Congress by May 1 a list of all US military operations that caused civilian
deaths.”
At Least 27 Killed In Northeast Nigeria Mosque Bombings.

Two bombings “in and around a mosque” in the northeast Nigerian town of
Mubi on Tuesday killed at least 27 people and wounded more than 56, reports
Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=053-ce5&t=c>
(5/1), which calls the blasts “the latest in a spate of attacks by
militants in the region.” The bombings “bore the hallmarks of Islamist
militant group Boko Haram,” which “on Thursday carried out an attack in
Maiduguri, capital of neighboring Borno state, that killed four people.”
Administration Amends Russia Sanctions, Paving Way For Likely Rusal
Exemption.

The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=054-f24&t=c>
(5/1, Talley) reports the Administration on Tuesday amended its Russia
sanctions program, paving the way for United Co. Rusal to be excepted from
the blacklist. The company sought amnesty from the US Treasury late last
week by pledging that its majority shareholder and a primary target of the
US sanctions, Oleg Deripaska, would reduce his holdings and relinquish his
board seat.

*Pentagon: Russia “Unprofessional” In Intercept Of US Surveillance
Plane. *Ryan Browne reported on CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image removed
by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=055-6cc&t=c>
(5/1) that the Pentagon says that on Tuesday, a US Navy P-8 surveillance
plane was intercepted by a Russian fighter jet in international airspace
over the Baltic Sea in what Pentagon officials “originally described...as
being unprofessional but safe.” Browne said the US “is seeking to, quote
unquote, ‘desensitize’ Russia to these types of surveillance flights, so
they’re going to keep this activity up in the hopes Russia gets used to
it.” CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=056-0cf&t=c>
(5/1, Browne) reports on its website that the Russian jet came “within
about 20 feet of the US aircraft,” according to a defense official.

*WPost Editorial Criticizes Russia’s Blockage Of Telegram.
*The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=057-79c&t=c>
(5/1) editorializes that the Russian communications regulator,
Roskomnadzor, has been “frantically trying to block the Internet Protocol
addresses of Telegram after a Moscow court cleared the way because Telegram
refused to give the authorities access to its users’ messages.” The Post
argues that “what’s really at stake in the battle over Telegram” is “more
than just the future of one messenger service. If Russia, China and Iran
can successfully cordon off hundreds of millions of users, they diminish
freedom everywhere.”

*Ukraine Confirms Receipt Of Advanced US Missile System. *The
Washington
Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=058-d76&t=c>
(5/1, Muñoz) reports the Ukrainian army has received “the first tranche of
a large shipment of advanced US anti-tank missile systems under a weapons
pact inked between Washington and Kiev in March.” Ukrainian President Petro
Poroshenko said Tuesday, “The long-awaited weapons have arrived in the
Ukrainian army and significantly strengthened the powerful deterrent effect
of our combat capability and Euro-Atlantic security. We continue to work to
strengthen our defense potential to rebuff Russian aggression.”
Ahead Of Trade Talks With China, Trump Accuses Past Administrations Of
Inaction.

The President tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=059-2e2&t=c>
Tuesday morning, “Delegation heading to China to begin talks on the Massive
Trade Deficit that has been created with our Country. Very much like North
Korea, this should have been fixed years ago, not now. Same with other
countries and NAFTA...but it will all get done. Great Potential for USA!”
Breitbart
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=05a-b82&t=c>
(5/1, Moons) reports that a delegation of “top Trump administration
economic officials are headed to China in the second half of this week to
discuss trade contentions between the two nations.”

CNBC
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=05b-f2c&t=c>
(5/1) reports also reports that Commerce Secretary Ross, who is “part of a
US delegation of top economic officials heading to China this week for
trade discussions,” said it is “‘time for action’ on alleged trade abuses
by China,” but “did not say whether he wanted to come back with a deal in
hand.” Ross is quoted as saying, “I wouldn’t be going all the way over
there if I didn’t think there was some hope.” According to Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=05c-e4b&t=c>
(5/1), Ross, in an interview with CNBC
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=05d-aec&t=c>,
“said on Tuesday that the Trump administration was prepared to levy tariffs
on China if [the] American delegation heading to Beijing did not reach a
negotiated settlement to reduce trade imbalances.” The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=05e-4f8&t=c>
(5/1, Miller) also reports Ross’ comments.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=05f-598&t=c>
(5/1, Behsudi), meanwhile, reports that USTR Lighthizer, who will also be a
part of the delegation traveling to China this week, said Tuesday that
getting Beijing to change trade practices which are hurtful to US interests
would be “a big, big challenge” for the Administration. Speaking to the US
Chamber of Commerce, Lighthizer said, “Our list of things that are
troubling is very long. I’m always hoping but not always hopeful. It’s a
big, big challenge. There’s a very different system over there and a system
that, in all honesty, has worked very well for the Chinese.”

*Furman: US Should Increase National Savings To Prevent Trade
Deficit From Growing. *Former chairman of the White House Council of
Economic Advisers Jason Furman writes in the Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=060-d5d&t=c>
(5/1) that there is reason to be modestly concerned about the US trade
deficit. To prevent the trade deficit from growing, Furman argues that the
US should increase national savings by expanding retirement-savings options
for workers who do not have them. Another option, he says, is cutting the
federal budget deficit.

*Ross: US, EU Making Progress On Reducing Trade Tensions. *Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=061-958&t=c>
(5/1) reports that on Tuesday, Commerce Secretary Ross said the one-month
extension granted to the EU “was the result of promising discussions to
reduce trade tensions.” In an interview with CNBC
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=062-adf&t=c>,
Ross said, “We’re having some potentially fruitful discussions about an
overall reduction in trade tensions. ... I don’t think we have any
intention to grant protracted extensions, that defeats the whole purpose.”
Ross added, “If we’re going to impose it, we’re going to have to do it
pretty soon, or else people will start gaming the system.”

*EU Calls 30-Day US Tariff Delay “Bad For Business.” *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=063-7fe&t=c>
(5/1, Rugaber, Thomas) reports that in response to the Administration’s
announcement Monday night that it “will take another 30 days to decide
whether to impose tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum from the
European Union,” the bloc “slammed the decision as bad for business that
‘prolongs market uncertainty, which is already affecting business
decisions.’” In a statement Tuesday, the EU said, “As a longstanding
partner and friend of the US, we will not negotiate under threat.” The Wall
Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=064-0f4&t=c>
(5/1, Peker, Michaels) reports the EU also said Trade Commissioner Cecilia
Malmstrom “has been in contact with US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and
Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer over the past weeks, and these
discussions will continue.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=065-9f4&t=c>
(5/1, Ewing) says the Europeans “did not bother to conceal their annoyance
Tuesday with the Trump administration’s last-minute decision to delay
punitive aluminum and steel tariffs by a month, in their view leaving a
sword of Damocles hanging over the global economy.” In a statement Tuesday,
the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said, “The US decision
prolongs market uncertainty, which is already affecting business
decisions.” An AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=066-920&t=c>
(5/1, Wiseman) analysis says the White House’s “on-again, off-again tariffs
are heightening uncertainty for US companies that buy steel and aluminum
and the foreign companies that supply them. And major American allies, from
Europe to Canada and Mexico, are signaling increasing resentment.”

*WSJournal A1: Trump Trade Policy Raising Tensions On Multiple
Fronts. *The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=067-002&t=c>
(5/1, A1, Mauldin, Eisen) reports on its front page that the Administration
is likely to see heightened tension with US trading partners as officials
race to complete a series of high-stakes negotiations with China, Mexico,
Canada and Europe. A US trade delegation left Tuesday for China, while USTR
Lighthizer confirmed a mid-May deadline for the NAFTA renegotiations. Also
this week, the Administration set a new June 1 deadline to come to
agreement with European officials on steel and aluminum tariffs.

*US Dairy Farmers Seek Government Help Amid Low Milk Prices.
*The Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=068-ad9&t=c>
(5/1, Barrett) reports that last month, “more than 50 groups from across
the country – including the Wisconsin Farmers Union, Family Farm Defenders
and the National Family Farm Coalition — asked Congress for emergency
relief from the deepening troubles on small dairy farms.” Among other
things, they want the government “to set a minimum price that farmers would
get for their milk,” and establish “a milk supply management system to
stabilize volatile markets.”
Trump: Date, Location Of Meeting With Kim Jong-Un Coming Soon.

The CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=069-460&t=c>
(5/1, story 5, 0:30, Glor) reported President Trump on Tuesday said an
announcement on the date and location of his summit with Kim Jong-Un will
come in the next few days, “and all significant signs point to the
Demilitarized Zone that separates North and South Korea.” Seoul has
“endorsed that location,” and Trump “said that’s his preferred option as
well.” A source tells CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=06a-358&t=c>
(4/30, Ripley, Ellis) that South Korean President Moon Jae-In “has
convinced North Korean leader Kim Jong Un” to meet with Trump at the
Demilitarized Zone. There is a “strong possibility” the summit will be held
at the site, “with some events possibly scheduled on the northern side of
the military demarcation line separating the two countries, according to an
official.”

*Trump Thanks Moon For “Very Generous” Suggestion He Get Nobel
Peace Prize. *Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=06b-042&t=c>
(5/1, Lima) reports Trump on Tuesday called it “very generous” for Moon to
suggest he should receive the Nobel Peace Prize over his efforts to
denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. Said Trump, “I thought it was very
generous of President Moon of South Korea to make that statement and I
appreciate it but the main thing is to get it done.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=06c-2c1&t=c>
(4/30, Gearan, Parker) says that “nearly nine years after President Barack
Obama was awarded the prize, a growing chorus of Trump boosters argue that
the current president should receive it, as well — in his case, for efforts
to contain North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and woo him into diplomatic
talks. But even the prospect of a Nobel Prize for Trump has set off a
fierce partisan debate over whether such an honor is deserved so early in
negotiations — especially given North Korea’s long history of dangling
promises regarding its nuclear capability upon which it later fails to
deliver.”

*Hannity: Major Networks Ignoring Moon’s Suggestion Of Nobel Prize
For Trump. *Sean Hannity said in his monologue on Fox News’ Hannity[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=06d-361&t=c>
(5/1), “Even more examples to bring you from the abusively biased press in
this country and the age old tactic called bias by omission, and according
to a report from News Busters tonight, on Monday, the network news
broadcasts ABC, CBS, NBC, guess what? They completely failed to mention
South Korea President’s Moon suggested Donald Trump should win the Nobel
Peace Prize.”

*Japan To Host Chinese, South Korean Leaders Next Week. *The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=06e-e6a&t=c>
(5/1, Rich) reports that the “blistering pace of meetings to discuss the
prospects for peace on the Korean Peninsula will continue next week in
Tokyo, when Japan hosts a meeting with leaders from China and South Korea.”
The Times says the meetings will “put Japan back into the diplomatic fray
after it had looked increasingly isolated, with the primary discussions
about North Korea progressing without it.”

*DMZ Propaganda Loudspeakers Dismantled. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=06f-bbb&t=c>
(5/1, Kim) reports that on Tuesday, North and South Korea “dismantled huge
loudspeakers used to blare Cold War-style propaganda across their tense
border.” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=070-a4c&t=c>
(5/1) says the move “fulfill[s] a promise made at last week’s historic
summit” between the two Koreas. The moves, says Reuters, are “the first
practical, if small, steps toward reconciliation.”
Domestic Policy
White House: Claiming Of Trump’s Medical Records “Standard Operating
Procedure.”

NBC News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=071-2d1&t=c>
(5/1, Schecter) reported on its website that Dr. Harold Bornstein, who was
President Trump’s doctor “for more than 35 years,” claims that in February
2017, Keith Schiller, “a top White House aide who was Trump’s longtime
personal bodyguard, along with the top lawyer at the Trump Organization and
a third man, showed up at” his New York office “without notice and took all
the president’s medical records.” According to NBC News, “the incident,
which Dr. Harold Bornstein described as a ‘raid,’ took place two days after
Bornstein told a newspaper that he had prescribed a hair growth medicine
for the president for years. ... ‘They must have been here for 25 or 30
minutes. It created a lot of chaos,’ Bornstein said.” USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=072-8cf&t=c>
(5/1, Hayes) notes Bornstein also said “he felt ‘raped, frightened and
sad.’”

[image: Image removed by sender. Video]NBC Nightly News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=073-96b&t=c>
(5/1, lead story, 2:35, Alexander) led with the story last night, reporting
that “the incident happened two days after Bornstein provided private
medical information to the New York Times, revealing that for years he’d
prescribed Mr. Trump Propecia, a hair growth medication.” That disclosure
was “an apparent violation of medical privacy laws that Bornstein is still
defending.” Bornstein was shown saying, “It’s certainly not a breach of
medical trust to tell somebody they take Propecia to grow their hair.
What’s the matter with that?” NBC added that “the Trump Organization lawyer
declined to comment, and NBC News could not reach the President’s former
bodyguard, but we have confirmed that they took the original medical
records, leaving Dr. Bornstein without any copies.” The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=074-e98&t=c>
(5/1, Rogers, Altman) and New York Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=075-6fa&t=c>
(5/1, Fredericks), among other news outlets, run similar reports on
Bornstein’s comments to NBC.

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=076-d1b&t=c>
(5/1) reports the White House said “Trump’s former bodyguard did nothing
out of the ordinary when he took possession of the president’s medical
records.” Said Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, “As is standard operating
procedure for a new president, the White House Medical Unit took possession
of the president’s medical records.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=077-453&t=c>
(5/1, Forgey) indicates Sanders also “told reporters that Bornstein’s
characterization of the episode as a ‘raid’ was inaccurate, but did not
contradict the doctor’s account.”

The [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CBS Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=078-fb2&t=c>
(5/1, story 4, 1:05, Garrett) reported, “We should note, back in late 2015,
on behalf of the campaign, Bornstein said Mr. Trump would be the healthiest
person ever elected President of the United States.” [image: Image removed
by sender. Video]ABC World News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=079-e2d&t=c>
(5/1, story 4, 2:45, Llamas) said “this is now the second doctor connected
to the President who is making headlines.” The first was “White House
doctor Ronny Jackson, who once said this.” Jackson was shown saying, “Might
live to be 200 years, I don’t know. He has incredible genes.” Jackson,
added ABC, “was picked by the President to run the VA, but under heavy
scrutiny he withdrew amid reports of heavy drinking on the job and giving
out prescription sleep aids. Now, he will no longer be the President’s
personal physician.”
Seventeen States, DC Sue EPA Over Proposed Auto Emissions Rules Rollback.

[image: Image removed by sender. Video]ABC World News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018050201biden&r=email-7753&l=07a-d22&t=c>
(5/1, story 9, 0:25, Muir) reported “states are now suing