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Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing


*From:* Bulletin Intelligence <Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com>
*Sent:* Tuesday, April 10, 2018 7:54 AM
*To:* Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com
*Subject:* Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing for
Tuesday, April 10, 2018


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[image: Image removed by sender. Office of Vice President Biden
Intelligence Briefing]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=001-4b8&t=c>

*To: Vice President Joe Biden*

*Tuesday, April 10, 2018 8:00 AM EDT*
Today's Table of Contents

*Leading the News <#SECTION_1>*

• Media Analyses: Raid On Cohen’s Home, Office Could Lead To Mueller Firing.
<#S1>

*Foreign Policy <#SECTION_2>*

• US-Russia Tensions Reach New High In Wake Of Chemical Attack In Syria.
<#S2>

• ISIS Leader In Afghanistan Is Killed In US Airstrike. <#S3>

• Administration Approves Arms Sale To Qatar. <#S4>

• Hamas, Israel Exchange Blame Over Gaza Border Protests. <#S5>

• Rouhani Warns Trump Will Regret Withdrawing From Nuclear Deal. <#S6>

• Trump Sounds Hopeful Note About Potential Deal To Denuclearize North
Korea. <#S7>

• Trump Optimistic About Chances For Trade Deal With China. <#S8>

*Domestic Policy <#SECTION_3>*

• Lynch Defends Clinton Probe Decisions, Disputes Comey Claims. <#S9>

• Zuckerberg Meets With Lawmakers Ahead Of Testimony This Week. <#S10>

• CBO: Deficit, Debt To Increase Sharply Due To Tax Cuts, Spending Bill.
<#S11>

• Administration Moves To Speed Environmental Reviews Of Infrastructure
Projects. <#S12>

• Trump Blasts Democrats On Border Security. <#S13>

• Federal Ethics Office Calls For Investigation Of Pruitt. <#S14>

• Former Top Intelligence Officials Endorse Haspel As CIA Director. <#S15>

*Cancer Research <#SECTION_4>*

• Late-Stage Trial Suggests Merck’s Keytruda Can Help Extend Lung Cancer
Patients’ Lives. <#S16>

• Study: Unreliable Testing For Molecular Markers Impedes Use Of
Pembrolizumab. <#S17>

*Editorials/Op-Eds <#SECTION_5>*

• New York Times. <#S18>

• Washington Post. <#S19>

*Biden in the News <#SECTION_6>*

• Simon Discusses Work Of Biden Cancer Initiative, Costs Of Treatment.
<#S20>

• Biden Appears As Special Guest At Hoyer Fundraiser. <#S21>

• Nashville TV Stations Highlight Biden’s Scheduled Visit To City. <#S22>

• Biden To Visit Atlanta On June 8 As Part Of Book Tour. <#S23>
Leading the News
Media Analyses: Raid On Cohen’s Home, Office Could Lead To Mueller Firing.

An FBI raid Monday on the Manhattan office, home and hotel room of
President Trump’s personal attorney Michael Cohen generated heavy media
coverage, including the lead reports on all three network news broadcasts.
Much of the coverage focuses on Trump’s reaction, with many reports
describing him as “furious,” and “frustrated” over the raid – which he
called a “disgrace” – and questioning whether the move could prompt him to
fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

According to the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=002-3f9&t=c>
(4/9, Shear), the “aggressive move by federal officials against Mr.
Cohen...appeared to strike a particularly sensitive nerve,” while the Los
Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=003-d3d&t=c>
(4/9, Bierman) says Trump “lashed out,” and the AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=004-14b&t=c>
(4/10, Tucker, Day) that a “furious” Trump said it was a “disgrace” that
the FBI “broke into” Cohen’s office. The New York Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=005-c21&t=c>
(4/9, Whitehouse, Sheehy) reports that Trump claimed news of the raid “was
responsible for the drop in the stock market from a daily high of 24,373 to
just below 23,932, even though news of the feds’ raid broke around 4 p.m.,
just as the market was closing.” Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=006-ca5&t=c>
(4/9, Sink) says a “clearly frustrated” Trump “escalated his criticism” of
Mueller and Attorney General Sessions in the wake of the raid, calling
Mueller’s investigation “an attack on our country” and “a total witch
hunt,” and saying the raid represents “a whole new level of unfairness” in
the investigation. The Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=007-426&t=c>
(4/9, Enjeti) reports that Trump called Mueller’s team “the most conflicted
group of people I have ever seen,” and “lamented” that they are “not
looking at the other side,” in a reference to Hillary Clinton’s “legal
troubles.”

Breitbart
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=008-f8f&t=c>
(4/9, Spiering) says an apparently “furious” Trump “excoriated” Sessions,
while USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=009-c6b&t=c>
(4/9, Johnson, Schouten) reports that Trump continued his criticism of
Sessions, “reiterating that he never would have appointed the former
Alabama senator had he known that Sessions would recuse himself from the
Russia inquiry.” Said Trump, “The attorney general made a terrible
mistake.” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=00a-703&t=c>
(4/9) says Trump used “unusually harsh language” in reacting to the raid,
and to the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=00b-6a5&t=c>
(4/9, Apuzzo), Trump’s response was “extraordinarily angry” and a “tirade”
in which he “mused about the possibility that he might soon fire Mr.
Mueller.” Said Trump, “We’ll see what may happen. ... Many people have said
you should fire him.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=00c-262&t=c>
(4/9, Gerstein) says Trump “did not rule out the possibility that he might
fire Mueller.”

John Roberts said on Fox News’ Special Report[image: Image removed
by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=00d-a14&t=c>
(4/9), “I have heard him use some pretty stern terms in describing what’s
going on, but I have never heard them talk like this. If the President
wasn’t thinking about firing Mueller this morning, I think he is a little
closer to it tonight. Maybe [Deputy Attorney General Rod] Rosenstein too.”
Tom Bevan of Real Clear Politics said on Fox News’ Special Report[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=00e-9c9&t=c>
(4/9), “It seems like, if you were going to design a move that would enrage
the President and cross a line that would lead him to [fire Rosenstein and
Mueller], this would be one of those moves.” Sean Hannity said on Fox News’
Hannity[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=00f-cdf&t=c>
(4/9), “This is now officially an all-hands-on-deck effort to totally
malign and, if possible, impeach the President of the United States. Now,
Mueller and Rosenstein have declared what is a legal war on the President.
And a source close to President Trump tonight is telling Fox News that
Mueller’s investigation is way out of control. My message tonight to
Mueller is simple: If you have evidence of collusion, any at all, show it
to us or end this partisan investigation.”

Gloria Borger said on CNN’s The Lead[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=010-cd1&t=c>
(4/9) that “a source familiar” told her the raid was “about Stormy Daniels
and that the documents they were looking for were apparently about Stormy
Daniels. I asked the question whether that also might include other
payments to other women, and my source would not say anything else. But the
source wanted to wade me off the notion that I had been talking about
previously which is the sort of Trump Tower aspect of any of this, real
estate aspect of any of this. And that may answer the question about why
Mueller thought this was completely out of his purview because his purview
is not Stormy Daniels in any way, shape or form. And that is maybe a reason
he referred it.” On its website, CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=011-f80&t=c>
(4/9, Watkins) cites a “source familiar with the matter” who “said the
search warrant was very broad in terms of items sought, and another source
said the search included bank records.” Stephen Ryan, a lawyer for Cohen,
said in a statement, “I have been advised by federal prosecutors that the
New York action is, in part, a referral by the Office of Special Counsel,
Robert Mueller.”

Kristen Welker reported in the lead story for NBC Nightly News[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=012-6eb&t=c>
(4/9, lead story, 2:50, Holt) that Cohen’s attorney “lash[ed] out, calling
the move completely inappropriate and unnecessary, saying the FBI seized
privileged communications and arguing Cohen has cooperated completely with
all government entities.” In the lead story for ABC World News Tonight[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=013-847&t=c>
(4/9, lead story, 3:05, Muir), Pierre Thomas described the FBI’s move as
“highly unusual and aggressive,” adding that they “clearly wanted to catch
him off-guard. In cases like this, there is also typically a concern that
documents might get destroyed without an element of surprise.”

Paula Reid said on the CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=014-8c7&t=c>
(4/9, story 2, 1:50, Glor) that “Cohen’s attorney has objected to the fact
that investigators seized some information that included communications
between Mr. Cohen and the President. Mr. Cohen’s attorney says that should
be covered by attorney-client privilege.” However, according to former
Justice Department officials, “not all of that communication would be
privileged, and if the President wasn’t directly seeking legal advice, that
is something that could be fair-game, which signals that Mr. Cohen could
potentially cooperate with investigators and provide information on his
former clients or current client, the President.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=015-3c4&t=c>
(4/9, Leonnig, Hamburger) says the raids “point to escalating legal
jeopardy for a longtime Trump confidant who is deeply intertwined in the
president’s business and personal matters.”

In a front-page story, the Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=016-029&t=c>
(4/9, A1, Orden, Ballhaus, Rothfeld) casts the raid as an escalation in
investigators’ interest in Cohen. Similarly, the Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=017-eca&t=c>
(4/9, Miller, Mordock) calls the raid “a major escalation” in Mueller’s
investigation “as it took a giant step closer to the president.” Jeff
Pegues said in the lead story for the CBS Evening News[image: Image removed
by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=018-fd8&t=c>
(4/9, lead story, 2:10, Glor) that Cohen “has been one of the President’s
most trusted legal and business advisers. He doesn’t shy away from being
called a fixer. In dozens of conversations with Cohen, he has emphasized to
me repeatedly that he’s a loyal friend of President Trump and proud of it.”
Mike Allen of Axios said on Fox News’ Special Report[image: Image removed
by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=019-daa&t=c>
(4/9), “Michael Cohen is the Rosetta Stone to Trump Inc., broadly defined.
There is no one who knows more about what’s going on, what exists, what
records there might be. This will rattle the President, and Mueller well
knows that.”

A Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=01a-79f&t=c>
(4/9, Rucker, Dawsey, Costa) analysis says Monday’s raid “was a
particularly extraordinary move that opens a whole new front in the
converging legal battles ensnaring the administration.” The Post describes
Cohen as “Trump’s virtual vault – the keeper of his secrets, from his
business deals to his personal affairs – and the executor of his wishes,”
and quotes former US Attorney Joyce White Vance as saying, “This search
warrant is like dropping a bomb on Trump’s front porch.”

*In Tweets Today, Trump Says “Attorney-Client Privilege Is Dead,”
Blasts “Witch Hunt.” *Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=01b-809&t=c>
this morning, “Attorney–client privilege is dead!” He added in a second
tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=01c-abb&t=c>,
“A TOTAL WITCH HUNT!!!”

*Avenatti: Noose Is Tightening Around Cohen. *Daniels’ attorney
Michael Avenatti said on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=01d-c7f&t=c>
(4/9), “As I predicted last week, it appears that the noose is tightening
around Michael Cohen. I think the President has considerable reason to be
concerned. A lot of faith and confidence has been put in Michael Cohen. I
think the expectation was that he was going to be the fall guy. ... There
is no question that it stems from our case and the amount of attention that
our case has attracted over the last six weeks. But make no mistake about
it, there is going to be a lot of sleepless nights at the White House from
here on out.”

USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=01e-980&t=c>
(4/9, Schouten) reports the FBI raid of Cohen’s offices “rais[ed] the
specter that prosecutors are looking into a potential campaign-finance
violation or other issues unrelated to the ongoing Russia investigation.”
If Cohen’s $130,000 payment to Daniels came from Trump himself, it “would
not violate the law on contribution limits.” But “Trump’s campaign and
Cohen could be in legal jeopardy if Cohen, or another unnamed party, was
the source of the money.”

*Mueller Team Investigating Ukrainian’s Payment For Trump
Appearance. *The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=01f-c73&t=c>
(4/9, Schmidt, Haberman) reports that Mueller’s team is investigating a
$150,000 payment made to Trump’s foundation by Ukrainian steel magnate
Victor Pinchuk “for a talk during the campaign, according to three people
briefed on the matter, as part of a broader examination of streams of
foreign money to Mr. Trump and his associates in the years leading up to
the election.” Pinchuk made the donation to the Donald J. Trump Foundation
“in exchange for a 20-minute appearance by Mr. Trump that month through a
video link to a conference in Kiev.” The Times says that special counsel
investigators “subpoenaed the Trump Organization this year for an array of
records about business with foreign nationals” is “among signs in recent
months that” Mueller “is interested in interactions that Mr. Trump or his
associates had with countries beyond Russia, though it is not clear what
other payments he is scrutinizing.”
Foreign Policy
US-Russia Tensions Reach New High In Wake Of Chemical Attack In Syria.

Media coverage of the aftermath of the suspected chemical attack in Syria
reflects the growing tensions between the US and Russia – a key ally of
Bashar Assad’s regime. Even as President Trump and his top officials
signaled the US response could be much more significant than it was a year
ago, the US Ambassador to the UN had strong words for Russia. The [image:
Image removed by sender. Video]CBS Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=020-013&t=c>
(4/9, story 3, 2:50, Glor) showed Amb. Haley telling the Security Council,
“The Russian regime, whose hands are all covered in the blood of Syrian
children, cannot be ashamed by the pictures of its victims.” CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=021-8ac&t=c>
(4/9, Gaouette) reports Haley “excoriated Russia” and said “history will
record this as the moment when the Security Council either discharged its
duty or demonstrated its utter and complete failure to protect the people
of Syria. ... Either way, the United States will respond.” [image: Image
removed by sender. Video]NBC Nightly News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=022-f78&t=c>
(4/9, story 3, 1:05, Neely) showed Haley asking, “Who does this? Only a
monster does this. Russia could stop this senseless slaughter if they
wanted.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=023-0eb&t=c>
(4/9, Forgey) notes that Haley also said, “We must not overlook Russia and
Iran’s roles in enabling the Assad regime’s murderous destruction.”

Earlier yesterday, Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=024-117&t=c>
(4/9) reports, Trump “promised quick action” in response to the “barbaric”
attack, and told reporters “nothing is off the table.” ABC World News
Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=025-ce1&t=c>
(4/9, story 2, 3:00, Karl) showed Trump saying, “It was an atrocious
attack, it was horrible. This is about humanity, we’re talking about
humanity, and it can’t be allowed to happen.” Asked whether Russia’s
Vladimir Putin bears “responsibility” for the attack, the President
replied, “He may, yeah, he may. And if he does, it’s going to be very
tough. Very tough. ... Everybody is going to pay a price. He will,
everybody will.” ABC also reported that “the President said he would be
making, quote, ‘a major decision over the next 24 to 48 hours.’” The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=026-e08&t=c>
(4/9, Fabian) reports that in April 2017, Trump “launched a barrage of
cruise missiles at a Syrian air base after pro-Assad forces carried out a
chemical attack that killed more than 80 people.” This time around, says
the AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=027-36e&t=c>
(4/9, Burns, Lee, Lemire), “a Navy destroyer, the USS Donald Cook, was
underway in the eastern Mediterranean on Monday after completing a port
call at Larnaca, Cyprus.” The ship “is armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles,
the weapon of choice in a US attack one year ago.”

The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=028-814&t=c>
(4/9, McIntyre) notes “officials said the president could decide to choose
a more robust option this time.” One such “official familiar with the
planning” tells the Examiner, “While the process of drawing up and
presenting the options are similar to last year, I wouldn’t look at this
through a soda straw. ... It’s up to the president to decide how to
respond. It’s up to us to provide the options.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=029-761&t=c>
(4/9, Morin) also said “Trump took a much more hawkish tone” yesterday than
he did a year ago, and [image: Image removed by sender. Video]ABC World
News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=02a-5a1&t=c>
(4/9, story 3, 1:40, Raddatz) that “if Trump decides to launch missiles
again, it could be a broader and larger strike,” with “missiles launched
from US destroyers, submarines and possibly B-2 stealth bombers.”

BBC News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=02b-cf8&t=c>
(4/9) notes, meanwhile, that “Russian representative Vassily Nebenzia said
the incident in Douma was staged and that US military action in response
could have ‘grave repercussions,’” and the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=02c-038&t=c>
(4/9, Wagner, Gearan) reports “Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said
Monday that Russian aid workers had visited the area and found no evidence
that chemical weapons were used.”

Trump, notes the Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=02d-525&t=c>
(4/9, Boyer), told reporters that to him “there’s not much of a doubt” that
it was a chemical attack. Defense Secretary Mattis, meanwhile, said
yesterday, “The first thing we have to look at is why are chemical weapons
still being used at all when Russia was the framework guarantor of removing
all the chemical weapons. ... And so, working with our allies and partners
from NATO to Qatar and elsewhere, we are going to address this issue.” The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=02e-18d&t=c>
(4/9, Baker) notes that “asked if he would rule out airstrikes against Mr.
Assad’s government, Mr. Mattis said, ‘I don’t rule out anything right
now.’” The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=02f-6e4&t=c>
(4/9, Nissenbaum, Ballhaus) runs a similar report, and the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=030-9d0&t=c>
(4/9, Baker) says the White House was also “feeling pressure from France to
act, lest President Emmanuel Macron do so first, according to a Trump
administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe
sensitive international interactions.” Macron “spoke on Sunday with Mr.
Trump by telephone.” BuzzFeed
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=031-e80&t=c>
(4/9, Smith) notes “both Trump and...Macron...vowed to take strong action
in response to the suspected chemical attack.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=032-4d2&t=c>
(4/9, Karam, Mroue) reports British Prime Minister Theresa May also “said
Assad’s government and its backers, including Russia, ‘must be held to
account’ if it is found to have been responsible for the suspected poison
gas attack.” The European Union “also laid the blame squarely on Assad’s
government.”

Fred Pleitgen reported on [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CNN’s
Anderson Cooper 360
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=033-d45&t=c>
(4/9) that Assad’s regime “said they were pressing an offensive on the
area” of the alleged chemical attack “at the time” the attack occurred, but
the regime says the offensive “was moving forward so quickly they didn’t
need poison gas to move quicker.” The regime also reportedly said there
were pro-government prisoners in the area of the attack that the “regime
would have been scared to hit.” Pleitgen added that Russian troops are now
providing security on the ground in that area, “so the Russians really have
no reason to say that they don’t want an international investigation in
that area. They certainly have the means to allow international
investigators in there, if that’s something that they really want to do.”

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=034-9d9&t=c>
(4/9, Lima, Forgey) reports “a growing number of Republican officials are”
also “calling for stronger US action against...Assad.” Rep. William “Mac”
Thornberry, who chairs the House Armed Services Committee, “told Fox News
on Monday that the US should ‘absolutely’ consider a new round of
airstrikes against Syria to punish Assad for the attack in the Damascus
suburb.” Sen. Mike Lee, however, “called on Trump to seek approval from
Congress before any strike against Syria.” Rep. Ruben Gallego similarly
argued on [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CNN’s Situation Room
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=035-794&t=c>
(4/9) that Trump is incorrect to say all options are on the table, adding
that under the AUMF, Trump must “inform Congress what his plans are.”
Gallego continued, “I think this is going back to him not being a good
leader. Two days ago, he is talking about leaving Syria...and now he wants
to commit us more into Syria.” Gallego said the “inconsistency is the
problem. It creates this...leadership vacuum that allows actors such as
Syria and Russia to act in such an aggressive manner” and “destabilize that
area.”

Rep. Will Hurd said on [image: Image removed by sender. Video]CNN’s
Situation Room
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=036-ca0&t=c>
(4/9) that any response should be coordinated with the international
community, and added, “We should be working with the French” and “the
Israelis.” Meanwhile, Hurd said “we should also be putting pressure on the
Russians, because the fact that the Russian Ambassador to the UN is trying
to act as if this was something that was staged and that Russia had sent
people in to investigate and didn’t find any chemical weapons use” is
another example of Russian “information warfare...and this kind of activity
needs to stop.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=037-8c9&t=c>
(4/9, A1, Sly, Cunningham) reports on its front page that
“despite...Trump’s warning...analysts questioned whether US strikes would
influence the course of events on the battlefield and stem the seeming
inevitability of a Syrian government victory over its opponents.”

*Tucker Carlson Casts Doubt On Assad Regime’s Guilt. *Tucker
Carlson said in the lead story for [image: Image removed by sender. Video]Fox
News’ Tucker Carlson Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=038-48f&t=c>
(4/9) that “all the geniuses tell us that Assad killed those children, but
do they really know that? Of course they don’t really know that – they are
making it up. They have no real idea what happened.” Carlson said the US
launched strikes against Syria a year ago over a sarin gas attack, but that
months later, Defense Secretary Mattis “admitted that actually we still
have no proof that Assad used sarin gas.”

*Former Obama NSC Aide: Trump “Was Handed A Mess” In Syria.
*The Washington
Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=039-52d&t=c>
(4/9, Lim) reports “former President Barack Obama’s National Security
Council spokesman admitted President Trump ‘was handed a mess’ with Syria,
but added Trump still hasn’t curbed the brutality of...Assad’s regime.”
Tommy Vietor “tweeted in 2013 that ‘remarkable’ progress had been made
toward eliminating Syria’s chemical weapons.” In a new tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=03a-d63&t=c>,
Vietor “said Republicans were ‘resurfacing’ his tweet ‘like it’s a gotcha,’
but also admitted Obama didn’t leave Syria in a stable condition for
Trump.” Townhall
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=03b-39f&t=c>
(4/9, Benson) offers a similar analysis under the headline “Disaster:
Obama’s ‘Smart Power’ Syria Policy Was A Catastrophe, And Trump Is Trying
To Clean Up The Mess.” Townhall writes that “the wages of the Obama
administration’s shambolic foreign policy on Syria were felt again over the
weekend, as dozens of Syrians in a rebel-held city – including young
children – were gassed to death in a horrifying apparent chemical weapons
attack.”

*WPost, NYTimes Say Trump Yet To Develop An Overarching Strategy. *The
Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=03c-482&t=c>
(4/9) editorializes that “a few cruise missiles won’t change anything in
Syria. What’s really needed is a concerted strategy for protecting the
vital American interests wrapped up in the multi-sided Syrian war –
something Mr. Trump, despite the urging of many of his advisers, has failed
to develop.” To the Post, “there’s little point in one-off punitive raids
if there are to be no US military or diplomatic initiatives behind them.
Wars cannot be fought by impulse.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=03d-49b&t=c>
(4/9) similarly editorializes that Trump “should know by now that tough
talk without a coherent strategy or follow-through is dangerous.” Trump
“has tried to seem like a macho leader who would aggressively use American
power where...Obama wouldn’t, while talking about pulling out of the Middle
East and walking away from international commitments.” The Times adds that
“with such inconstancy, he will not be able to stop the violence in Syria,
and with no clear, unified plan with the Western allies, he will only
empower Mr. Assad.” The Times seemed encouraged, however, that “Trump
finally drew a line, saying in a tweet, ‘President Putin, Russia and Iran
are responsible for backing Animal Assad.’”

*White House Rejects McCain’s Comments As “Outrageous.” *The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=03e-96a&t=c>
(4/9, Fabian) reports, “The White House on Monday pushed back against Sen.
John McCain (R-Ariz.), who accused...Trump of emboldening...Assad by
signaling he wants to withdraw US troops from Syria.” Press Secretary Sarah
Sanders told reporters, “It is outrageous to say the president of the
United States green-lit something as atrocious as the [chemical
attack].” [image:
Image removed by sender. Video]NBC Nightly News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=03f-30f&t=c>
(4/9, story 2, 2:25, Holt) reported that “some, like...McCain, worry that”
Trump’s talk of removing US troops “emboldened Assad,” and “now, a
President reluctant to keep the US military involved perhaps perceives no
choice.”

*“US Official” Confirms Israel Carried Out Strike Against Syrian
Military Base. *The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=040-2eb&t=c>
(4/9, Cunningham, Eglash) reports that according to the Syrian and Russian
governments, “a missile strike on an air base in central Syria was carried
out by Israeli warplanes early Monday and caused multiple casualties.” The
Post adds “Israeli officials did not immediately comment on the reports,”
while Russia “called the Israeli raid a ‘dangerous development’ and said
reports of a chemical attack near Damascus were also a ‘provocation.’” [image:
Image removed by sender. Video]ABC World News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=041-a8e&t=c>
(4/9, story 4, 1:00, Longman) reported “a US official...confirms Israel was
behind the airstrikes.” The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=042-692&t=c>
(4/9, Hubbard) notes “the airstrikes...hit a Syrian military base known as
T4, in the central province of Homs, that has been used not only by Syrian
forces but also by the Iranian-backed militias that have flocked to the
country to help Mr. Assad’s war effort.”

The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=043-9b4&t=c>
(4/9, Zavis) reports Israel “has grown increasingly alarmed about the
presence of Iranian forces and allied militias in southern Syria, near the
Israeli-controlled portion of the Golan Heights.” The Times adds that “in
February, Israeli warplanes struck the same Syrian air base after an
Iranian drone entered Israeli airspace.” USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=044-a9b&t=c>
(4/9, Onyanga-Omara, Bacon) reports “Syrian state TV quoted an unnamed
military official as saying Israeli F-15 warplanes had fired several
missiles while flying over Lebanon.” Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the
Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group, “said
14 people were killed, most of them Iranians or members of Iran-backed
groups.”

*Turkey Urging Syrian Refugees To Go Home. *The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=045-8dd&t=c>
(4/4, Cunningham, Zakaria) reports that as the war in Syria escalated,
Turkey “opened its doors to Syrian refugees, granting them access to free
health care and promising citizenship to thousands. More than 3 million
Syrians accepted that welcome and put down roots.” Now, however, “Turkish
officials want them gone” as the public has “soured on their presence,
citing cultural differences and competition for jobs, and so in recent
weeks, officials have started urging refugees to go home.” The “abrupt
reversal is unsettling many Syrian refugees,” many of whom are “wary of
returning to a country wrecked by a war that is not yet even finished.”

*Syrian Defector: Government Forces Aimed To Kill Journalists. *The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=046-bc8&t=c>
(4/9, Barnard) reports that according to a Syrian defector, a Syrian
military intelligence officer ordered surveillance of American war reporter
Marie Colvin in 2012 and the subsequent shelling that killed Colvin. The
surveillance tapes and the defector’s account are “among a trove of
materials that lawyers for Ms. Colvin’s family have presented to a judge in
Washington in a wrongful-death suit they filed in 2016 against the Syrian
government and nine Syrian security officials.” Lawyers say that the
records “provide the strongest evidence to date that Syrian forces led by
President Bashar al-Assad targeted foreign journalists.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=047-fee&t=c>
(4/9, Riechmann) reports the Syrian government “has not responded to the
lawsuit, but Assad has denied that his forces targeted and killed Colvin in
2012 to silence her reporting on the conflict.” Syrian government
spokesman, Mohammed Ramez Turgeman, previously told the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=048-178&t=c>
(4/9, Priest) that the suit “is false by all standards and is certainly not
true.”
ISIS Leader In Afghanistan Is Killed In US Airstrike.

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=049-37d&t=c>
(4/9, Nordland, Ghazi) reports that a US airstrike killed the leader of
ISIS in northern Afghanistan, “the latest in a series of crippling
setbacks” for the group in the country, according to US and Afghan
officials. The US commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr.,
said in a statement that the strike in Faryab Province killed Qari
Hekmatullah and his bodyguard on Thursday. Gen. Nicholson described the
killing as “a joint operation between American Special Operations troops
and Afghan Special Security Forces, and said it was the latest in a series
of successful efforts to kill Islamic State leaders.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=04a-033&t=c>
(4/9, Lamothe) reports that “some Afghan officials have said that the
airstrike was carried out by the Afghan air force, but the US military
statement specifically said it was a US strike.”
Administration Approves Arms Sale To Qatar.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=04b-165&t=c>
(4/9, Deyoung) reports the Administration “warmly welcomed the visiting
emir of Qatar on Monday, approving a new arms sale to the Persian Gulf
state,” describing it as a “valued partner and longtime friend.” Defense
Secretary Mattis, who opened two days of talks with Emir Tamim bin Hamad
al-Thani at the Pentagon, praised Qatar’s “critical support” for operations
against ISIS. He added, “We don’t take this relationship for granted, and
we appreciate what you do.”

*Administration Under Pressure To Scold Qatari Emir During Talks
Tuesday. *The Washington Free Beacon
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=04c-e22&t=c>
(4/9, Kredo) reports that “Trump administration allies and national
security insiders have been voicing concerns” about a meeting Tuesday
between President Trump and the Emir of Qatar, according to “multiple
sources.” The meeting between Trump and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al
Thani “is meant to serve as an opportunity to address the regional crisis,”
but “administration insiders have been pressuring Trump’s team to address
what they describe as the elephant in the room: Qatar’s ongoing financing
of terror groups and its recent state-funded spy operation on pro-Israel
Jews in Washington, DC.”
Hamas, Israel Exchange Blame Over Gaza Border Protests.

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=04d-32f&t=c>
(4/9, Akram) reports Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh and Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu “staked out tough positions Monday, making de-escalation
on the Israel-Gaza border in the near future unlikely.” Haniyeh renewed a
pledge Monday during a “fiery speech at one of five protest camps set up
along the border” that the marches would “pave the way for a return of
Palestinian refugees,” but “stopped short of threatening a mass breach of
the border.” During a visit to Sderot near the Gaza border, Netanyahu
vowed, “We have one clear and simple rule and we seek to express it
constantly: If someone tries to attack you — rise up and attack him. We
will not allow, here on the Gaza border, them to hurt us. We will hurt
them.”

*Wikistrat Analyst: “Palestinian Narrative” A “Web Of Fiction And
Fallacies.” *Matthew Brodsky, a senior Middle East analyst at Wikistrat,
writes for The Federalist
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=04e-e91&t=c>
(4/6) that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict “is at its core a clash of
unbridgeable historical narratives, not just a dispute over land,
territory, and security.” He argues, however, that “large portions of the
Palestinian narrative are constructed on a web of fiction and fallacies
designed precisely to prevent any compromise and to avoid saying ‘yes’ to a
negotiated settlement of the conflict. That is why progress toward a
solution will remain a long way off.”
Rouhani Warns Trump Will Regret Withdrawing From Nuclear Deal.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=04f-ab3&t=c>
(4/9) reports Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Monday that President
Trump will regret it if he pulls out of the nuclear deal with Tehran. In an
address on live state television, Rouhani said, “The new US president – who
has big claims and many ups and downs in his words and actions – has been
trying for 15 months to break the JCPOA,” referring to the 2015 deal, “but
the structure of the JCPOA is so strong that it has not been shaken by such
quakes.” Rouhani added, “Iran will not violate the nuclear deal, but if the
United States withdraws from the deal, they will surely regret it. Our
response will be stronger than what they imagine and they would see that
within a week.”
Trump Sounds Hopeful Note About Potential Deal To Denuclearize North Korea.

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=050-c1c&t=c>
(4/9, Shear) reports President Trump on Monday said he will meet with North
Korean leader Kim Jong-un in May or early June for talks that he said will
be “very exciting for the world.” During a cabinet meeting at the White
House, Trump said, “We’ve been in touch with North Korea. Hopefully, we
will be able to make a deal on the de-nuking of North Korea. They’ve said
so. We’ve said so. Hopefully it will be a relationship that’s much
different than it’s been for many, many years.” The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=051-0bb&t=c>
(4/9, Boyer) quotes Trump as adding, “We have a meeting that it is being
set up with North Korea, so that’ll be very exciting for the world.” Noting
Trump’s comment that the talks would take place “in May or early June,”
Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=052-e38&t=c>
(4/9, Lima) reports that timeline “puts Trump largely on schedule with
initial plans put forth last month by South Korean officials” that the two
leaders “would meet by May.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=053-c39&t=c>
(4/9, Fifield) says that while the White House is preparing for talks with
Kim to discuss denuclearization, the issue means different things to both
nations. To some in Washington, the Post says “the denuclearization of the
Korean Peninsula” means Kim “handing over his nuclear weapons and missile
systems and allowing international inspectors.” To Pyongyang, however, it
“means something very, very different. It means mutual steps to get rid of
nuclear weapons,” including requiring the US to “take down the nuclear
umbrella it has put up over South Korea and Japan.”

*Kim Publicly Confirms Summit With US. *The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=054-7ad&t=c>
(4/9, Cheng) reports North Korean leader Kim Jong Un publicly acknowledged
for the first time on Monday the prospect of a “dialogue” with the US and a
planned summit meeting with South Korea’s president. Kim, speaking at a
meeting of the Politburo of the Workers’ Party of Korea, “made a profound
analysis and appraisal of the orientation of the development of the
north-south relations at present and the prospect of the DPRK-US dialogue,”
according to state-run media.
Trump Optimistic About Chances For Trade Deal With China.

Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=055-c3a&t=c>
(4/9, Jacobs) reports President Trump on Monday “expressed optimism the US
will be able to reach a deal with China that diffuses trade tensions.”
Trump said his Administration will “probably” come to an agreement with
China, but added that it wouldn’t be “nice” of Beijing to target American
agriculture in retaliation. “Our farmers are great patriots. They
understand they’re doing this for the country,” he told reporters at a
cabinet meeting. “We’ll make it up to them.” Earlier Monday, USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=056-299&t=c>
(4/9, Dorell) reports, Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=057-87d&t=c>
that US-China trade is “stupid trade.” Trump wrote, “When a car is sent to
the United States from China, there is a Tariff to be paid of 2 1/2%. When
a car is sent to China from the United States, there is a Tariff to be paid
of 25%. Does that sound like free or fair trade. No, it sounds like STUPID
TRADE – going on for years!”

National Economic Council Director Kudlow said on CNN’s Out
Front[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=058-c0b&t=c>
(4/9), “China has had unfair and illegal trading practices for two decades
or longer and particularly in the technology area – forced technology give
ups, unlawful transfers of intellectual power. And we can’t let that. You
can’t steal our intellectual authority. Something has to be done. When you
say tariffs, I don’t know if it will be tariffs, but the President is
correct. He has a backbone. Prior administrations would not do anything
with China. And Trump is out there saying, ‘Wait a minute. We are going to
unveil this and unmask this. If you negotiate with us, we may not need the
tariffs,’ but Trump may use tariffs and I want to make that clear. He is in
the right.”

*Trump Vows To “Make It Up” To Farmers Hit By Chinese Tariffs.
*Bloomberg
News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=059-6ae&t=c>
(4/9, Bjerga) reports China last week announced $50 billion worth of
tariffs on American products, including soybeans and pork, in retaliation
for Trump’s plan to impose duties on over 1,000 Chinese products. Bloomberg
says the “biggest potential impact will be in rural areas that long have
been part of the Republican base.” President Trump said Monday that China
“hit the farmers specifically because they think that hits me. I wouldn’t
say that’s nice, but I tell you our farmers are great patriots. They
understand that they’re doing this for the country. We’ll make it up to
them.” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=05a-c5b&t=c>
(4/9) reports Agriculture Secretary Perdue echoed Trump, saying, “We’re not
going to allow agricultural producers to bear the brunt of Chinese
retaliation as we defend our own interests.” However, he “declined to
provide details on how that would be achieved.”

Citing an Indiana family comprised of both farmers and steel
workers, the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=05b-be8&t=c>
(4/9, Lynch), meanwhile, reports that they show “how global commerce is
marbled through communities across the country. Local residents compete
with, sell to and work for foreign enterprises, a reminder that in trade
wars, it’s hard to shoot at the enemy without hitting a friend.”

*Xi: We Must Reject “Power Politics.” *The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=05c-f7d&t=c>
(4/9, Stevenson) reports in his first public remarks since the beginning of
an escalating trade dispute between the his country and the US, President
Xi Jinping “implicitly took aim at the Trump administration,” saying, “We
must refrain from seeking dominance” by rejecting “power politics.” He also
“pledged to rebuff efforts to impose barriers to world trade.”

*Bannon: China Tariffs Will Be “Ultimate Test Of Trump’s Beliefs.” *The
New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=05d-a68&t=c>
(4/9, Landler) reports that to former White House adviser Steve Bannon,
“the next few weeks will present his former client with the ultimate litmus
test.” If the President stands firm on $150 billion worth of tariffs he has
threatened to impose on China, “Bannon said, he will fulfill the promise of
his nationalist presidential campaign. If he retreats, because of either a
hemorrhaging stock market or a rebellious Republican Party, he will
demonstrate that the Trump movement was not much of a movement after all.”
In an interview Monday, Bannon said, “This is going to be a bumpy ride. I
don’t think he’ll back off because of a couple of bad days in the stock
market – and I do think he’ll have a couple of bad days.” However, Bannon
said he is worried about the lack of support among Republicans.

*Research Firm: China Has More To Lose In Trade War. *Axios
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=05e-eeb&t=c>
(4/9) reports that “domestic spending by Chinese consumers is not as strong
as the Chinese government says which makes the country more vulnerable to a
trade war with the US,” according to the research firm China Beige Book
International. CEO Leland Miller says investors “have been wowed by the
performance of Chinese super-firms like Alibaba and Tencent, but that elite
group is not a good proxy for China’s retail sector, or for Chinese
consumption more generally.” Retail, meanwhile, has “substantially
underperformed other sectors for two years.”

*NYTimes: Europe “Caught In The Middle” Of US-China Dispute. *The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=05f-378&t=c>
(4/9, Ewing) reports on the “dilemma confronting Europe as it watches the
escalating conflict between its two biggest trading partners, the United
States and China.” The US is Europe’s “biggest market for exports like cars
and other goods, not to mention a NATO ally. But China is big, too – and
getting ever bigger.” While European leaders were “largely silent” after
President Trump threatened to impose another $100 billion in tariffs on
Chinese goods, the Times says “watching from a safe distance as China and
the United States argue is not an option for Europe,” because “its economy
is too deeply entwined with both.”

*WPost: Taiwan Would Suffer Under US-China Trade War. *The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=060-df6&t=c>
(4/8, Denyer) reports that as “Trump battles it out with China over trade
and the mood in Washington sours toward Beijing, there is a growing fear
that Taiwan will end up suffering the consequences.” Taiwanese legislator
Jason Lin Chun-Hsien said, “When two elephants are dancing, we must take
care not to be stamped upon. Today you yell at each other but tomorrow
maybe you shake hands. We must try to avoid becoming a bargaining chip.”
The Post cautions that a US-China trade war “could seriously damage
Taiwan’s export-oriented economy.”
Domestic Policy
Lynch Defends Clinton Probe Decisions, Disputes Comey Claims.

In an interview which aired on NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=061-291&t=c>
(4/9, story 6, 4:00, Holt), former Attorney General Loretta Lynch was asked
if she ever considered recusing herself from the Hillary Clinton
investigation. Lynch said, “At the time, I knew it would raise questions in
people’s minds, so what you do is consult the legal experts. You always get
a legal answer whether or not recusal is required. Had it been, that’s what
I would have done.” Asked about former FBI Director Comey’s announcement
that “we cannot find a case that would support bringing criminal charges on
these facts,” Lynch said, “It certainly was an unusual move. It was a
different way to deliver a recommendation to the Attorney General. I have
not had any of my other law enforcement agencies deliver a recommendation
in a case to me in that way.”

The Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=062-a0d&t=c>
(4/9, Datoc) reports that in the NBC interview, Lynch “cast aspersions” on
Comey’s congressional testimony, in which he suggested she told him to
refer to the Clinton probe as a “matter, not an investigation.” Lynch said,
“This was a very sensitive investigation, as everyone knew. ... And the
issue when he and I sat down at that time, which I think was early in the
fall of 2015, was whether or not we were ready as an department to confirm
an investigation going on, when we typically do not confirm or deny
investigations into anything, with rare exceptions. I can tell you that it
was a meeting like any other that we had had, where we talked about the
issues.” Asked if Comey “questioned her ‘credibility’ with regard to the
Clinton investigation,” Lynch said, “We had a full and open discussion
about it. ... Concerns were not raised.” Townhall
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=063-5a8&t=c>
(4/9, Pavlich) also highlights Lynch’s comments about Comey under the
headline, “Loretta Lynch Implies James Comey Lied About Being Concerned
Over Calling Clinton Investigation A ‘Matter.’”

*Lausch Tapped To Speed DOJ’s Production Of Clinton Documents.
*The Chicago
Sun-Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=064-e92&t=c>
(4/9, Sweet, Seidel) reports that Attorney General Sessions has asked
Chicago US Attorney John Lausch “to help the Justice Department speed up
its delivery of documents related to the FBI’s handling of the Hillary
Clinton email investigation.” DOJ is facing “mounting Republican pressure
to fulfill a subpoena by the House Judiciary Committee for more than a
million documents as it examines the FBI’s 2016 investigation into
Clinton’s private email server.” The Sun Times says Lausch “may have been
enlisted for his new role because he’s an outsider who could lend
credibility to the process.”

The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=065-7d8&t=c>
(4/9, Ferrechio) reports that House Oversight Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy
questioned why a new appointment “is needed to oversee the production of
document that Congress requested months ago relating to Hillary Clinton’s
private email server.” Gowdy “said the department has said for months that
it’s working on various requests, and asked why a new person at the top
would matter.” Gowdy said in a statement, “I am confident US Attorney John
Lausch is a person of competence and character, however, I struggle to
understand what has been happening over the previous months since Congress
was assured DOJ and FBI were working on the document request. I also
struggle to understand US Attorney Lausch’s specific role.”
Zuckerberg Meets With Lawmakers Ahead Of Testimony This Week.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg met with lawmakers individually
Monday ahead of two days of congressional hearings during which he is “set
to answer questions about Facebook user data being improperly appropriated
by a political consultancy and the role the network played in the U.S. 2016
election,” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=066-c47&t=c>
(4/9, Volz) reports. In written testimony, Zuckerberg told Congress “that
the social media network should have done more to prevent itself and its
members’ data being misused.” In remarks released by the House Energy and
Commerce Committee, Zuckerberg said, “We didn’t take a broad enough view of
our responsibility, and that was a big mistake. ... It was my mistake, and
I’m sorry. I started Facebook, I run it, and I’m responsible for what
happens here.” Mary Bruce said on ABC World News Tonight[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=067-0f2&t=c>
(4/9, story 5, 2:05, Muir) that Zuckerberg was in “full-on damage control
mode.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=068-2b8&t=c>
(4/9, Hendel, Gold, Overly) says Zuckerberg “will strike a contrite tone
when he appears before Congress this week,” and the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=069-4e2&t=c>
(4/9, Timberg, Romm) says Zuckerberg “expressed contrition for allowing
third-party apps to grab the data of its users without their permission and
for being ‘too slow to spot and respond to Russian interference’” during
the election.

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=06a-bcc&t=c>
(4/9, Kang, Hsu, Frenkel) reports that Zuckerberg “tried to get ahead of a
week of intense scrutiny for him and his company by visiting several top
lawmakers in Washington on Monday.” Zuckerberg, “accompanied by an
entourage of aides, held several meetings with leaders of the Senate
Commerce and Judiciary Committees.” Sen. Bill Nelson, “who met with Mr.
Zuckerberg for an hour, said the chief executive was taking the situation
‘seriously.’” Said Nelson, “He knows regulation could be around the
corner.” The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=06b-65c&t=c>
(4/9, Persons) reports that Nelson told MSNBC[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=06c-761&t=c>
(4/9) Monday that while Zuckerberg promised changes, the company has not
done enough. Nelson said, “I accept what he said, but the purpose of my
conversation was to hear him, and then to clearly try to get him to
understand that if we don’t change things, none of us are going to have any
privacy anymore. ... Congress can pass the law and let the regular agencies
… the Federal Communications Commission, ought to be involved in this.”

The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=06d-b3a&t=c>
(4/9, Hughes) says Zuckerberg will testify Tuesday at a hearing hosted by
the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and the Judiciary
Committee, and on Wednesday before the House Energy and Commerce Committee. NBC
Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=06e-aa5&t=c>
(4/9, story 4, 2:00, Holt) predicted Zuckerberg will undergo “a public
grilling from lawmakers,” as did the CBS Evening News[image: Image removed
by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=06f-15f&t=c>
(4/9, story 4, 2:20, Glor), where Nancy Cordes called Capitol Hill “the
most important stop on Zuckerberg’s apology tour.”
CBO: Deficit, Debt To Increase Sharply Due To Tax Cuts, Spending Bill.

The latest CBO report on the federal government’s fiscal outlook generated
extensive media coverage, which was unanimous in highlighting that both the
budget deficit and national debt are expected to rise sharply during
President Trump’s tenure. The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=070-69a&t=c>
(4/9, Taylor) reports that CBO found “the combined effect of...Trump’s tax
cuts and last month’s budget-busting spending bill is sending the
government’s budget deficit toward the $1 trillion mark next year,”
and the Washington
Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=071-2b0&t=c>
(4/9, Dinan) says that “Trump has overseen a dramatic worsening of the
government’s finances in his first 14 months in office, sending deficits
soaring to more than $800 billion this year topping $1 trillion by 2020,
and staying there every year for the foreseeable future.” That “will
quickly push deficits back to the levels they were during the Obama
administration, when the government was recovering from the Great
Recession.” Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=072-782&t=c>
(4/9, Wasson, McGregor) says that “even before the latest fiscal measures,
the US budget gap was predicted to increase as an aging American population
puts pressure on health care and retirement programs,” but to the New York
Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=073-3c7&t=c>
(4/9, Kaplan) “the flurry of recent legislation is making it difficult for
Republicans to continue blaming President Barack Obama and Democrats for
the government’s fiscal condition.”

The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=074-661&t=c>
(4/9, Decker) reports that “the last CBO report issued during the Obama
administration said that after a $587-billion deficit in 2016, the
shortfall was expected to break the $1-trillion mark in 2023, rising to
$1.4 trillion in 2027.” The “total over the 10-year span beginning in 2017
was projected to be $9.4 trillion.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=075-d30&t=c>
(4/9, Stein) notes “CBO reported that from 2021 to 2028, deficits will
average 4.9 percent of the total American economy – higher than at any
point since World War II other than during the recession of 2008 and 2009.”
Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=076-b61&t=c>
(4/9) cautions that “swelling deficits could be a challenge for Trump and
fellow Republicans as they try to pay for other parts of their political
agenda, including a proposed infrastructure package and a wall that Trump
wants along the US-Mexican border that could cost as much as $70 billion.” The
Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=077-6b0&t=c>
(4/9, Elis) reports CBO warned that “higher deficits could lead to
ballooning debt interest payments, a drop in capital stock and
productivity, decreased fiscal flexibility in the event of a downturn and
higher chances for a fiscal crisis.”

*CBO Also Says GDP To Grow At 3.3% This Year, Unemployment To Hit
Post-WWII Low. *Much less noted in the coverage were the CBO findings about
the economy. The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=078-7f4&t=c>
(4/9, Dinan) indicates that the report found “GDP will grow 3.3 percent
this year, up substantially from the 2 percent projection of last year.”
Moreover, “unemployment rates will also fall deeper than their already low
levels, hitting a low of 3.3 percent next year,” which “would be a record
for the post-World War II era.” CQ Roll Call
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=079-e13&t=c>
(4/9, Krawzak) also notes CBO “said real GDP and real potential GDP, a
measure of economic capacity, ‘are now projected to be greater throughout
the coming decade than projected last June, in part because of the
significant recent changes in fiscal policy.’”

*Republicans Move To Reduce Spending After Facing Constituent
Criticism. *The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018041001biden&r=email-c991&l=07a-da8&t=c>
(4/9, Zanona) reports that Republicans who campaigned on fiscal
responsibility “say they are feeling the heat from constituents outraged
over government spending.” After facing “a barrage of criticism back home
for swelling the f