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Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing


*From:* Bulletin Intelligence <Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com>
*Sent:* Tuesday, August 7, 2018 7:51 AM
*To:* Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com
*Subject:* Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing for
Tuesday, August 7, 2018


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[image: Image removed by sender. Office of Vice President Biden
Intelligence Briefing]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=001-c50&t=c>

*To: Vice President Joe Biden*

*Tuesday, August 7, 2018 8:00 AM EDT*
Today's Table of Contents

*Biden in the News <#SECTION_1>*

• Biden Reportedly Cut Robocall For O’Connor Ahead Of Today’s OH12 Election.
<#S1>

• Breitbart Highlights Yesterday’s Story In The Hill On Biden, 2020 Race.
<#S2>

*Leading the News <#SECTION_2>*

• Media Analyses: Reinstatement Of Iran Sanctions Increases Pressure On
Tehran. <#S3>

*Foreign Policy <#SECTION_3>*

• North Korea Urges US To Drop Sanctions. <#S4>

• Graham Says He Supports Trump’s China Trade Policy. <#S5>

• Medvedev: Georgia NATO Admission Could Trigger “Terrible Conflict.” <#S6>

• Saudis Expel Canadian Ambassador In Dispute Over Imprisoned Women’s
Rights Activist. <#S7>

• WPost: Abadi’s Second Term Jeopardized By Protests. <#S8>

• NYTimes: Mossad May Be Behind Syrian Rocket Scientist’s Assassination.
<#S9>

• Maduro’s Claim Of Assassination Attempt Met With Skepticism. <#S10>

*Domestic Policy <#SECTION_4>*

• Media Analyses: Trump’s Explanation Of 2016 Trump Tower Meeting Shifting.
<#S11>

• GAO: Border Wall Could Waste Billions Of Dollars. <#S12>

• State Regulators Resisting Short-Term Medical Plans. <#S13>

• Mayor Calls For Witnesses To Come Forward After Deadly Weekend In Chicago.
<#S14>

• Trump: California Officials Diverting Water To Pacific As Wildfires Burn.
<#S15>

• New York Sues Labor Department Over PAID Program. <#S16>

• Trump Overrules Aides, Endorses Kobach In Today’s Kansas Gubernatorial
Primary. <#S17>

*Cancer Research <#SECTION_5>*

• FDA Grants Orphan Drug Status To Lurbinectedin For Small-Cell Lung Cancer.
<#S18>

• Regeneron To Invest $100 Million In Bluebird For Developing New CAR-T
Treatments. <#S19>

*Editorials/Op-Eds <#SECTION_6>*

• New York Times. <#S20>

• Washington Post. <#S21>
Biden in the News
Biden Reportedly Cut Robocall For O’Connor Ahead Of Today’s OH12 Election.

In an online report on today’s OH12 special election to succeed ex-Rep. Pat
Tiberi (R-OH) – in which state Sen. Troy Balderson (R-OH) is battling
Franklin County Recorder Danny O’Connor (D-OH) – WCMH-TV
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=002-e9f&t=c>
Columbus, OH (8/6, Aubry) said that President Trump “cut a robocall
for...Balderson that [was] set to begin dialing Monday evening. There are
claims that a robocall from former Vice President Joe Biden on behalf of
Danny O’Connor is already running in the district.” The OH12 has long been
a GOP stronghold, but polls have shown the special election to be close.

*Media Analyses: O’Connor “Within Striking Distance,” GOP Worried
About Losing Race. *While the OH12 has long been a GOP stronghold, polls
and media analyses have indicated the contest is close. Indeed, an Emerson
College poll
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=003-19d&t=c>
of 431 OH12 likely voters, taken Aug. 2-4 and released yesterday, shows
O’Connor leading Balderson 47 percent to 46 percent; 7 percent were
undecided. Emerson College said that its “poll was taken prior to President
Trump’s rally in the district on August 4.” In an online article, Fox News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=004-d2e&t=c>
(8/6, Re) reported that the results of the Emerson College poll “mirrored a
Monmouth University survey released last week showing no statistically
significant daylight between the candidates. Trump took the district by 11
points in 2016.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=005-9d9&t=c>
(8/6, Smyth, Welsh-Huggins) reports that O’Connor “is within striking
distance” of winning today’s contest in the OH12, which “has been reliably
Republican for more than three decades.” The AP says “both national parties
are focusing on the contest for clues to whether Democrats will retake the
US House” this fall. The AP adds that Trump and Vice President Pence have
campaigned in support of Balderson. The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=006-a2e&t=c>
(8/6, Phillips) says Republicans “are in panic mode about the prospect of
losing” the contest, and “some Democrats and independent analysts think
just getting this far is a strong signal that Democrats are well positioned
to take back control of the House” this fall. The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=007-bd4&t=c>
(8/6, Burns) describes “a multimillion-dollar Republican rescue operation”
in the OH12, which is “the latest in a series of once-secure seats, from
Pittsburgh to Phoenix, that the party has defended in special elections
since Mr. Trump’s inauguration.” The OH12 “is awash in money from
Republican outside groups,” blasting O’Connor “with ads connecting him to
Nancy Pelosi, the unpopular House minority leader, and branding him as a
vote for higher taxes and lax border security.” GOP “groups have poured
more than $3.7 million into advertising, outspending their Democratic
counterparts more than fivefold.”

On its website, TIME
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=008-00d&t=c>
(8/6, Vesoulis) reported, “Some experts suggest the results of the special
election could shed important light on how Republicans may fare in the
November midterms. ‘Even a narrow victory for Balderson will be a grim
portent for the Republican party. It will suggest that many high income,
suburban seats considered safe in the fall might be at risk,’ said Thomas
Wood, an assistant professor of political science at Ohio State University
and an expert in vote choice and elections.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=009-df5&t=c>
(8/7, Shepard, Schneider) reports that if O’Connor wins, “it will be a sign
that Democrats are poised to take back the House next year, despite an
avalanche of Republican outside money.” However, should Balderson emerge
victorious, “it will give Republicans hope that the House isn’t lost, and
that...Trump can still help the party get out the vote this fall.” The Wall
Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=00a-640&t=c>
(8/7, Epstein) headlines its report, “In Ohio, A Key Election Could Be
Bellwether For November.”

*In Tweet Today, Trump Urges Vote For Balderson, Says O’Connor
“Controlled By Nancy Pelosi.” *Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=00b-c16&t=c>
this morning, “Ohio, vote today for Troy Balderson for Congress. His
opponent, controlled by Nancy Pelosi, is weak on Crime, the Border,
Military, Vets, your 2nd Amendment – and will end your Tax Cuts. Troy will
be a great Congressman.”
Breitbart Highlights Yesterday’s Story In The Hill On Biden, 2020 Race.

Drawing from a report
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=00c-f6d&t=c>
by The Hill that was covered in yesterday’s briefing, Breitbart
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=00d-b0f&t=c>
(8/6, Huston) said, “Polling of the huge field of Democrat candidates
likely to run against President Donald Trump in 2020 still favors former
Vice President Joe Biden, but Biden’s former Senate colleagues are
skeptical of his candidacy. ... Some cite Biden’s advanced age – at 75, he
would be 77 if he were to win, making him the oldest president in U.S.
history – while others say his vote in favor of the Iraq war is a black
mark on his record.”
Leading the News
Media Analyses: Reinstatement Of Iran Sanctions Increases Pressure On
Tehran.

The Administration’s move Monday to reimpose sanctions on Iran is cast by
media outlets as stepping up pressure on Tehran to return to nuclear talks
while also creating a divide with Europe, which has resisted Administration
calls to also reimpose sanctions. NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=00e-44c&t=c>
(8/6, story 4, 0:20, Holt), for example, briefly said the US “is restoring
economic sanctions against Iran that were lifted under the 2015 nuclear
agreement,” but “allies like the UK, France and Germany remain committed.”
The CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=00f-a50&t=c>
(8/6, story 3, 2:00, Glor) similarly said the sanctions “will only add to
the pressure on the Iranian regime, which has faced weeks of protests as
the country’s economy worsens.” European allies “still part of the Iran
nuclear deal say the President is wrong, even taking measures to protect
businesses from the impact of sanctions, but a defiant Administration is
forging forward alone with more sanctions.”

President Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=010-881&t=c>
at 5:31 a.m. today, “The Iran sanctions have officially been cast. These
are the most biting sanctions ever imposed, and in November they ratchet up
to yet another level. Anyone doing business with Iran will NOT be doing
business with the United States. I am asking for WORLD PEACE, nothing
less!”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=011-d92&t=c>
(8/6, Miller) reports Trump “signed an executive order Monday reimposing
many sanctions on Iran, three months after pulling out of the Iran nuclear
deal,” saying the US policy is to levy “maximum economic pressure” on the
country. In a statement, Trump said the 2015 nuclear deal was a “horrible,
one-sided deal” that left the Iranian government flush with cash to use to
fuel conflict in the region. He also “warned that those who don’t wind down
their economic ties to Iranian ‘risk severe consequences’ under the
reimposed sanctions.” Calling them “one of the few major foreign policy
initiatives on which Mr. Trump and the rest of the administration and the
Republican Party broadly agree,” the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=012-57c&t=c>
(8/6, Harris) reports the sanctions go into effect at midnight, “ratcheting
up pressure on Tehran while worsening a divide with Europe.” European
officials “have said that the Iran nuclear agreement is crucial to their
national security,” but senior Administration officials told reporters
Monday that “they hoped to get more international support for their efforts
against Iran in the coming months.”

Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=013-a2a&t=c>
(8/6, Talev, Nasseri, Motevalli) reports that “while the penalties were
expected, they drew fresh condemnation from European allies who are
standing by the 2015 nuclear accord.” In a joint statement, the foreign
ministers of the UK, Germany, France and EU said, “We deeply regret the
re-imposition of sanctions by the US. ... Preserving the nuclear deal with
Iran is a matter of respecting international agreements and a matter of
international security.” Politico Europe
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=014-aea&t=c>
(8/6, Gerstein, Samuelsohn) reports that a news conference, “senior
European Commission officials bluntly accused the Trump administration of
violating international law,” while the AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=015-c24&t=c>
(8/6, Cook) reports the EU also “said that new measures are ready to take
effect to protect European businesses from the impact of US sanctions,” and
will take effect at the same time as the Administration’s sanctions on
Tehran.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=016-1c1&t=c>
(8/6, Morello) says that with Monday’s move, the Administration
“distanc[es] itself from every other country that signed the agreement and
putting the accord’s future in jeopardy.” Speaking to reports, “senior
administration officials said the goal was twofold: to prod Iran to
renegotiate the nuclear agreement...and also to change the government’s
behavior.” Said one senior Administration official, “The President has been
very clear. None of this needs to happen . ... The Iranian people should
not suffer because of their regime’s hegemonic ambitions.” According
to the Wall
Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=017-5fc&t=c>
(8/6, Gordon, Salama), the measure set to go into effect at 12:01 a.m. EST
Tuesday will prohibit Iran’s access to US dollars, sanction Iran’s trade in
gold and precious metals, outlaw the purchase of Iran’s sovereign debt, and
sanction Iran’s automotive sector. On Nov. 5, the US will also cut off
Iran’s oil exports and imposes sanctions on Iran’s shipping, among other
measures. The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=018-f6b&t=c>
(8/6, Kheel) says the second phase of sanctions that goes into effect in
November “will be the more significant one.”

The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=019-c6b&t=c>
(8/6, Wilkinson) reports Trump’s decision to reinstate sanctions “was
immediately criticized by countries and groups that support the deal,
particularly Iran.” President Hassan Rouhani appeared on national state
television Monday evening “to accuse Trump of sacrificing international
diplomacy and negotiation to domestic politics.” Rouhani said that Trump
“has not honored any international commitments, let alone the nuclear
deal,” and he rejected an offer from Trump for talks, saying, “When
somebody calls for negotiations, he must be honest.” ABC World News
Tonight[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=01a-ecd&t=c>
(8/6, story 7, 0:15, Muir) said that “Iran’s president [is] pushing back
tonight on the President’s offer to talk to Iranians, saying the US broke
its trust by backing out of its commitment to the nuclear deal,” and to the
AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=01b-c96&t=c>
(8/6, Karimi), Rouhani “struck a hard line,” saying that while he had “no
preconditions” for talks with the US, he “maintained that Iran can rely on
China and Russia to help its oil and banking sectors as the US ramps up
sanctions.”

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=01c-cbc&t=c>
(8/6, Wroughton, Hafezi) reports National Security Adviser Bolton on Monday
“urged Iran to take up an offer of talks with the United States or suffer
more pain from economic sanctions.” Bolton told Fox News[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=01d-1fd&t=c>
(8/6), “If the ayatollahs want to get out from under the squeeze, they
should come and sit down. The pressure will not relent while the
negotiations go on.” Bolton said on CNN’s The Lead[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=01e-a7c&t=c>
(8/6), “President Trump has been consistent since his days on the campaign
trail that he would sit down and negotiate with Kim Jong-un, with the
Ayatollahs in Tehran. That is his approach to diplomacy and he has been
consistent on it. So if the Iranians are really willing to come and talk
about all of their malign behavior in the region and the world, I think
they’ll find the President willing to do it.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=01f-cb1&t=c>
(8/6, Erdbrink), however, reports that on Monday, “with the sanctions hours
from kicking back in and Iran facing economic free-fall and social unrest,
it became clear that the Iranian government had been trying to prepare for
far longer.” In the months before the sanctions were reimposed, the
government began “hoarding foreign currency and cutting off unnecessary
imports.” Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=020-0f1&t=c>
(8/6, Nasseri, Motevalli, Shahla) reports Iran’s central bank on Monday
“scrapped most currency controls introduced this year in a bid to halt a
plunge in the rial.” The rial’s “slump to record lows has been at the heart
of an escalating crisis facing Iran’s economy” in recent months.

*Bolton: Administration Not Seeking Regime Change. *Bolton,
the Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=021-34f&t=c>
(8/6, Sonmez) reports, said the US is “very serious” about applying
pressure on Iran, but is not seeking regime change. Bolton told Fox News,
“Our policy is not regime change, but we want to put unprecedented pressure
on the government of Iran to change its behavior, and so far, they’ve shown
no indication they’re prepared to do that.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=022-1ec&t=c>
(8/6, Morin) says Fox News host Bill Hemmer “pressed Bolton on how the US
can argue it doesn’t want regime change when protesting Iranians have taken
to the streets to call for reforms.” Bolton replied that the protests
“reflect longstanding opposition inside Iran to the regime” and were “not
due to the reimposition of American sanctions. I think this regime is on
very shaky ground.”

*US Praises Bundesbank Action To Tighten Controls On Money
Laundering. *Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=023-7c2&t=c>
(8/6, Randow, Jennen) reports on Monday, the US Embassy in Germany praised
changes to the Bundesbank’s operating procedures to give it “more leeway to
review transactions to prevent money laundering and weapons purchases.” The
embassy said, “The recent decision of the German Bundesbank to tighten its
rules will thwart Iran’s troubling effort to move planeloads of cash out of
Germany.” The embassy added, “We are grateful to our German partners.”
Foreign Policy
North Korea Urges US To Drop Sanctions.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=024-eca&t=c>
(8/6, Shin) reports the Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper for North Korea’s
ruling Workers’ Party, published an editorial Monday accusing the US “of
‘acting opposite’ to its plan to improve ties” by keeping sanctions in
place, “despite goodwill gestures by Pyongyang, such as a moratorium on
nuclear and missile tests, the dismantling of a nuclear site, and the
return of the remains of US soldiers killed in the Korean War.” It also
accused the State Department of making “outrageous arguments” about keeping
the sanctions in place. The editorial, which Reuters calls “a fresh sign of
Pyongyang’s frustration over the slow-moving nuclear talks,” came “days
after a confidential United Nations report concluded that North Korea had
not halted nuclear and missile program, in breach of UN resolutions, and
continued illegal trade in oil, coal and other commodities.” South Korea
“is examining nine cases in which coal from North Korea disguised as
Russian products was possibly brought in, Seoul’s foreign ministry and
customs officials said.”

Meanwhile, in an appearance on [image: Image removed by sender.
Video]Fox News’ America’s Newsroom
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=025-878&t=c>
(8/6), National Security Adviser Bolton, asked about the level of
compliance with North Korea sanctions, said, “I won’t get into sensitive
intelligence matters. Our position is we still want strict enforcement of
all the sanctions. We continuously speak with all the countries in the
region about the importance of that. We’re not going to tolerate diminution
of the effect of the sanctions. We want the North Koreans to come forward
and denuclearize as they have committed to do and we’ll take the necessary
steps, including enforcement steps, to keep the sanctions tight.”

*Bloomberg News: North Korea’s Criticism Of US Increasingly
Centered On Pompeo. *Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=026-313&t=c>
(8/6, Faries) says in an analysis, “The widening gulf between Secretary of
State Michael Pompeo’s description of nuclear talks with North Korea and
Pyongyang’s criticism of his efforts is adding further confusion to the
status of negotiations intended to lead to the denuclearization of the
Korean peninsula.” Bloomberg explains that “Pompeo has increasingly become
a target of public disparagement from Pyongyang,” as North Korean officials
and state-run media outlets are increasingly rebutting his
“characterization of events and suggested the administration has a myopic
focus on denuclearization while ignoring issues such as bringing about a
final resolution of the Korean War.” Bloomberg says as “Pompeo’s public
descriptions of his work increasingly contradict North Korea’s, the
question is what it will take for the US to decide to close that door, and
whether the familiar tensions between the two sides will return or even
intensify.”
Graham Says He Supports Trump’s China Trade Policy.

CQ Roll Call
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=027-d15&t=c>
(8/6, Lesniewski) reports that after a golf outing with the President on
Sunday, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) “said he stands with the president on
getting tough on trade with China.” Graham told reporters “that he said the
best way to combat China’s trade practices like mandatory technology
transfers is through US deals with allies in North America and Europe.”
Graham said, “I’m with Trump. It is now time to stand up with China, but
the way to be effective is to get the NAFTA deal — a new NAFTA deal — and a
new deal with Europe, and all of us combined go to China. ... You’ll pay
more in the short-term. ... Pay now or pay later. They cheat us too much.”

*Senators Urge Administration To Block IMF Bailout Of Nations
Victimized By Chinese Loans. *The Washington Free Beacon
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=028-82a&t=c>
(8/6, Gertz) reports that a bipartisan group of 16 senators is calling on
the Administration to block the IMF “from bailing out several
underdeveloped nations victimized by predatory Chinese loans made through
the Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure development plan.” In a letter
sent last week to the secretaries of Treasury and State, the senators
wrote, “We write to express our concern over bailout requests to the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) by countries who have accepted predatory
Chinese infrastructure financing.” In that the Free Beacon describes as
“unusually blunt terms,” the senators “urged the administration to use its
influence within the IMF to end failing Belt and Road Initiative projects
and prevent future deals.”

*Alcoa Requests Exception From Aluminum Tariffs. *The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=029-3aa&t=c>
(8/6, Eavis, Tankersley) reports that on Monday, Alcoa – which imports much
of its aluminum from its facilities in Canada – asked the Administration
for an exemption from 10 percent tariffs on aluminum. Last month, the
company warned that the tariffs “were likely to add $100 million in costs
this year, a disclosure that contributed to a sharp decline in the
company’s stock.” Alcoa’s request, says the Times, “underscores the risk
the Trump administration faces as it tries to protect American firms by
erecting trade barriers.”

*Mexican Minister: US Studying Rules Of Origin Proposal For NAFTA. *
Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=02a-76e&t=c>
(8/6) reports that Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo said today
that the Mexican government “has put forward a proposal to update the North
American Free Trade Agreement’s contentious rules of origin, and that the
United States is studying it.” Guajardo “also said that Canada, which is
not participating in US-Mexico talks that began in Washington two weeks ago
after months of negotiations between the three trade partners, could join
next week,” according to Reuters.
Medvedev: Georgia NATO Admission Could Trigger “Terrible Conflict.”

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=02b-094&t=c>
(8/6, Osborn) reports, “Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on
Monday that any future NATO decision to admit Georgia to its ranks could
trigger ‘a terrible conflict’ and he questioned why the alliance was even
considering such a move.” Reuters says “Georgia’s NATO ambitions have been
a source of anger for Russia,” and Medvedev’s remarks come just “weeks
after President Vladimir Putin warned NATO against cultivating closer ties
with Ukraine and Georgia, saying such a policy was irresponsible and would
have unspecified consequences for the alliance.”
Saudis Expel Canadian Ambassador In Dispute Over Imprisoned Women’s Rights
Activist.

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=02c-efc&t=c>
(8/6, Gambrell) reports that Saudi Arabia “expelled the Canadian ambassador
on Monday and froze ‘all new business’ with Ottawa over its criticism of
the ultraconservative kingdom’s arrest of women’s rights activists.”
According to the AP, “The sudden and unexpected dispute bore the hallmarks
of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s 32-year-old future
leader, whose recent foreign policy exploits include the war in Yemen, the
boycott of Qatar and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s surprise
resignation broadcast during a visit to the kingdom.” Analysts contend that
“the dispute between Riyadh and Ottawa shows Saudi Arabia won’t accept any
outside criticism and will continue flexing its muscles abroad, especially
as the kingdom enjoys a closer relationship with President Donald Trump.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=02d-d37&t=c>
(8/6, Hubbard) reports that the Canadian Foreign Ministry “issued a
statement last week calling for the release of the activists, Samar Badawi,
a women’s rights activist who was arrested last week, and her brother, Raif
Badawi, a blogger who is serving a prison term for administering a website
that criticized the country’s religious establishment. ‘Canada stands
together with the Badawi family in this difficult time,’ Foreign Minister
Chrystia Freeland wrote on Twitter, ‘and we continue to strongly call for
the release of both Raif and Samar Badawi.’” The Times notes that Samar
Badawi “received the State Department’s Women of Courage Award in 2012 in a
ceremony with Hillary Rodham Clinton and Michelle Obama,” and “has a long
history of campaigning against the kingdom’s so-called guardianship laws,
which prevent women from traveling abroad or obtaining certain medical
procedures without the consent of a male relative.”

According to Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=02e-be3&t=c>
(8/5, El Yaakoubi, Ljunggren), “It was not immediately clear what effect,
if any, the ban on new trade would have on existing annual Saudi-Canadian
trade of nearly $4 billion and on a $13 billion defense contract.” Reuters
reports that “Saudi-Canadian trade consists largely of Saudi exports of
petrochemicals, plastics and other products.” However, Reuters notes that
in 2014, “the Canadian unit of US weapons maker General Dynamics Corp won a
contract worth up to $13 billion to build light-armored vehicles for Saudi
Arabia, in what Ottawa said was the largest advanced manufacturing export
win in Canadian history.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=02f-31a&t=c>
(8/6) reports that “a pro-government Saudi Twitter account shared – and
then deleted – a digitally altered image that appeared to show a plane
flying toward the skyline of Toronto,” and “was accompanied by a message in
English that contained the saying ‘He who interferes with what doesn’t
concern him finds what doesn’t please him.’” According to the Post, “The
image reminded many social media users of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks.”

In what the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=030-1f6&t=c>
(8/6, Coletta, Fahim) calls “a sign of possible further diplomatic
tensions,” a high-ranking “from the United Arab Emirates – a close Saudi
ally – said the country stands with Riyadh.” Emirati Minister of State for
Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash “expressed support for Saudi Arabia ‘in
defending its sovereignty,’ but did not indicate any moves by the UAE
against Canada.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=031-14d&t=c>
(8/6) editorializes that Saudi Arabia’s “retribution is unnecessarily
aggressive and clearly intended to intimidate critics into silence” – a
“kind of move that, in the past, would have immediately elicited a firm,
unified opposition from the West.” So far, however, “there’s hardly been
even a whimper of protest.” To the Times, the Administration’s “passive
response also represents a chilling abandonment of two activists whose
unjust treatment has been acknowledged by the United States itself.”

*AP: US Military Cooperating With Al Qaeda In Yemen. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=032-fe7&t=c>
(8/6, Michael, Wilson, Keath) reports that the “coalition” fighting a war
in Yemen that includes the United States and Saudi Arabia has “cut secret
deals with al-Qaida fighters, paying some to leave key cities and towns and
letting others retreat with weapons, equipment and wads of looted cash.” In
addition, “Hundreds more were recruited to join the coalition itself.” The
AP reports that “key participants...said the US was aware of the
arrangements.” In the civil war against the Houthis, al Qaeda is
“effectively on the same side as the Saudi-led coalition – and, by
extension, the United States.” Michael Horton of the Jamestown Foundation
told the AP, “Elements of the US military are clearly aware that much of
what the US is doing in Yemen is aiding AQAP [al Qaeda in the Arabian
Peninsula] and there is much angst about that.”
WPost: Abadi’s Second Term Jeopardized By Protests.

A Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=033-11d&t=c>
(8/5, El-Ghobashy, Salim) analysis says the sustained protests in the Iraqi
Shiite “heartland this summer have dimmed the prospects that the nation’s
staunchly pro-American” Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi “will wrest a second
term, with demonstrators channeling their frustrations over poor basic
services into a sweeping condemnation of his leadership.” While the
demonstrations “have morphed from chaotic and sometimes violent marches
into daily sit-ins,” they have “prompted powerful religious and political
figures” to blame Abadi for “Iraq’s many troubles.” The “mounting popular
discontent” has delivered the premier “an abrupt setback” and exposed a
weakness in the Administration’s strategy, which has “centered on
supporting Abadi in the hope that his message of anti-sectarian nationalism
would translate into a new era of Iraqi politics.”
NYTimes: Mossad May Be Behind Syrian Rocket Scientist’s Assassination.

In an analysis, the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=034-986&t=c>
(8/6, Halbfinger, Bergman) says Aziz Asbar, “one of Syria’s most important
rocket scientists,” was killed Saturday by a bomb “apparently planted by
Mossad, the Israeli spy agency.” The incident “quickly prompted finger
pointing at Israel by both Syria and Hezbollah,” and those accusations
“were well founded,” according to the Times. A Middle Eastern intelligence
official said the Mossad was tracking Asbar for some time, and an “official
from Syria and Iran’s alliance” said “he believed Israel had wanted to kill
Mr. Asbar because of the prominent role he played in Syria’s missile
program even before the current conflict broke out in 2011.” The Times says
while “Israel did not claim responsibility,” the Mossad “has a long history
of assassinating scientists developing weaponry seen as a threat.”
Maduro’s Claim Of Assassination Attempt Met With Skepticism.

ABC World News Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=035-12e&t=c>
(8/6, story 4, 2:55, Muir) reported Venezuelan authorities say they’ve
detained at least six suspects after the alleged assassination attempt on
President Nicolas Maduro, who “retweet[ed] this video suggesting it was the
drone that suspects used to try to kill him.” However, “there are major
questions about whether this was one of those drones.” ABC (Gutman) added,
“This as DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen posted this on Twitter, saying the
threat from drones is real and calling for Congress to do something about
it.” Steve Harrigan reported on Fox News’ Special Report[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=036-7b4&t=c>
(8/6) that “reports of the attack were met with some skepticism in
Venezuela” at a time when the country “faces shortages of food and medicine
with inflation at one million percent.” Brian Kilmeade said on Fox News’
Tucker Carlson Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=037-fda&t=c>
(8/6) that Maduro “has no short an of enemies. He is accused of rigging the
election last May. The attack gives him a convenient excuse for further
crackdowns on country dissidents.”

Charlie D’Agata reported on the CBS Evening News[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=038-a8e&t=c>
(8/6, story 6, 2:00, Glor) that the “US Administration is among many
casting doubt on the alleged assassination attempt on” Maduro, but “whether
staged or legit, the incident highlights growing concerns over the threat
of weaponized drones.” ISIS has used drones on the battlefields of Iraq and
Syria to drop bombs on US forces, and there “have already been worrying
security breaches involving unarmed drones. One pierced the close
protection bubble surrounding German Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2013. In
Japan, a drone landed on the roof of the Prime Minister’s residence,
carrying a small amount of radioactive sand. Another even slammed into the
White House lawn.”

NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=039-8a2&t=c>
(8/6, story 6, 2:00, Holt) similarly reported that what happened in
Venezuela is “still in dispute, but US officials say the threat from drones
is a very real one.” While the US military now uses commercially made
systems to disable ISIS drones, and while the Netherlands has taught birds
to grab drones in flight, the US government “says current law prevents even
testing counter-drone technology in the US.” DHS is “pressing Congress to
change laws that restrict interfering with aircraft, which is how drones
are classified, and the radio frequencies that control them.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=03a-230&t=c>
(8/6, Smith, Armario) reports some “analysts said the images broadcast live
on television when the attack struck during a Maduro speech Saturday
evening made him appear vulnerable.” While analysts “believe Maduro still
holds the military’s support,” they “also said the attack was an
embarrassment for a government that prides itself on control and
invincibility.” Likewise, the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=03b-0c3&t=c>
(8/6, Casey) says the “widely circulated videos” of the attack “seemed to
capture a presidency in free fall.” While the “portrait of vulnerability
comes as Venezuela faces the biggest economic crisis in its modern
history,” it is “this kind of uncertainty that Mr. Maduro seems best suited
at harnessing to his advantage, many argue.”
Domestic Policy
Media Analyses: Trump’s Explanation Of 2016 Trump Tower Meeting Shifting.

President Trump on Monday morning fired off a pair of tweets, attacking
Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s and alleging that Hillary Clinton and her
campaign colluded with Russia. Trump wrote
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=03c-b0a&t=c>,
“‘Collusion with Russia was very real. Hillary Clinton and her team 100%
colluded with the Russians, and so did Adam Schiff who is on tape trying to
collude with what he thought was Russians to obtain compromising material
on DJT. We also know that Hillary Clinton paid through..[continuing tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=03d-d97&t=c>]...a
law firm, eventually Kremlin connected sources, to gather info on Donald
Trump. Collusion is very real with Russia, but only with Hillary and the
Democrats, and we should demand a full investigation.’ Dan Bongino on
@foxandfriends. Looking forward to the new IG Report!”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=03e-f16&t=c>
(8/6, Blake) reports that “last week, President Trump and his lawyer,
Rudolph W. Giuliani, argued that collusion isn’t a crime. But on Monday,
Trump suggested that Hillary Clinton should be investigated for this
supposed non-crime.” Trump’s call to investigate Clinton’s alleged
collusion with Russia, the Post says, “would seem to belie his true opinion
about whether collusion is, in fact, a crime.”

The tweets came as media outlets continued to suggest that Trump’s
Sunday tweets contradicted his initial description of a 2016 Trump Tower
meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and a Russian lawyer. On ABC World News
Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=03f-e0e&t=c>
(8/6, story 2, 2:45, Muir), Jonathan Karl said, “As President Trump dials
up his attacks on Special Counsel Robert Mueller, he is now bluntly
acknowledging that a Trump Tower meeting central to the investigation was,
in fact, about getting dirt on Hillary Clinton from the Russians. ... That
explanation directly contradicts what Trump Jr. and the White House said
when the meeting was first revealed last year.” Karl added that while
“campaigns do gather opposition research all the time...they don’t gather
it from foreign governments, especially ones hostile to the United States.”
To NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=040-378&t=c>
(8/6, story 3, 2:00, Holt), Trump “made an about face over that much
discussed meeting between his son, Don Jr., and a Russian lawyer at Trump
Tower in June 2016.” Peter Alexander said, “The President’s stunning
reversal coming by tweet. ... The President’s new argument that effort was
totally legal and done all the time in politics, but it’s illegal for a
campaign to accept or solicit a gift of any value from a foreign person or
government.”

The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=041-98e&t=c>
(8/6, Fabian, Chalfant) says Trump’s apparent “reversal...has heightened
the dangers posed by special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia
investigation.” Trump’s Sunday tweet, The Hill adds, “provided the clearest
sign yet the president misled the public last year,” and is “likely to be
of interest to Mueller, especially given reports that the special counsel’s
team is looking at Trump’s tweets as it weighs an obstruction of justice
case.” According to the Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=042-b24&t=c>
(8/6, Morrongiello), Trump’s legal team “is expected to make a final
decision soon about a sit-down interview with...Mueller.” Rudy Giuliani
“told CNN on Monday that the president and his team are working on a
response, though he declined to say in which direction Trump was leaning.”

Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) said on CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=043-c1d&t=c>
(8/6), “The most interesting thing about all of this that I don’t think has
been emphasized enough is from the very beginning, the President, Donald
Trump Jr., the Attorney General, a whole series of people have consistently
lied about their interactions with Russians. They were asked about this
repeatedly before all of this stuff came out back in November and December
and they all said never happened. ... Why did they lie about it? Why did
they so consistently lie about their interactions that have now come to
light with a whole series of different people connected to the Russian
government?” Asked on CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image removed by sender.
Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=044-922&t=c>
(8/6) if he thought Trump Jr. would be indicted, Rep. David Cicilline
(D-RI) said, “I think there’s enough evidence there certainly to present
this information to a grand jury. Obviously, Mr. Mueller and the grand jury
will make that determination. But on it’s face, this is prima fascia
evidence of a conspiracy to violate campaign finance laws and with Mr.
Trump Jr.’s admissions of knowing the purpose of this meeting based on
those emails, I think he definitely has liability.”

Sean Hannity, however, said on Fox News’ Hannity[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=045-c88&t=c>
(8/6), “We all know that tweet from the President is not in any way shape,
matter or form anything different than what he said over a year ago. ...
Literally, we have known about the political nature of quote, ‘the Trump
Tower meeting’ for over a year. ... We know Donald Trump Jr. was told they
might have information on Hillary. In fact, President Trump tweeted as much
way back over a year ago, July 2017. If any of these sheep in the media
would ever do any work, they are lazy, they are overpaid. ... And in
September of 2017 the New York Times reported, quote, ‘Donald Trump Jr.
told Senate investigators that he set up a June 2016 meeting with a Russian
lawyer because he was intrigued that she might have damaging information
about Hillary Clinton.’ Sadly, in an effort to malign President Trump, your
friends – not really – in the mainstream media, they forgot even their own
reporting.”

Charles Hurt of the Washington Times said on Fox News’ Special
Report[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=046-b85&t=c>
(8/6), “You know that we have spent far too much time obsessing over
endless palace intrigue with very little new information when people start
forgetting what we already knew. And we already knew all of this and we’ve
known it for a year. Everybody has acknowledged that was involved in
that...meeting that it involved a promise that there was some information
about Hillary Clinton. But this is what happens when you have this many
reporters spending this amount of time doing nothing but chewing over the
exact same thing with absolutely no new information coming out. You wind up
with nonsense.”

Jason Riley of the Wall Street Journal, however, said on Fox News’
Special Report[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=047-009&t=c>
(8/6), “They can’t get their story straight. Everyone has been warning
Trump about his tweets for years now. We know why he tweets. He doesn’t
trust the media to get the story out so he wants to deal with voters
directly. I understand that. But it looks like this is a prime example of
how tweeting about ongoing investigations can come back to haunt you.”

*Trump Jr. Maintains Adoptions Were Focus Of Meeting’s Discussions.
*CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=048-a7f&t=c>
(8/6, Liptak), meanwhile, reports that Trump Jr. “downplayed” the 2016
Trump Tower meeting during an interview yesterday, saying it “ended up
being about essentially nothing that was relevant” to questions of
collusion. In the interview with The Laura Ingraham Show, “Trump Jr. said
the session lasted 20 minutes, and maintained the central focus was on
adoptions – even as he conceded the Clinton dirt was how the Russian
lawyers secured the meeting in the first place.” Said Trump Jr.,
“(Adoptions) was the primary thing that we had spoken about in the meeting.
You know that’s not the premise that got them in the room and then they
started it was essentially a bait and switch to talk about that, and
everyone has basically said that in testimony already.” The Washington
Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=049-865&t=c>
(8/6, Lim) says the interview “appeared to be interrupted by a well-timed
technological problem” when Ingraham asked Trump Jr. “about contradictory
reports regarding the controversial June 2016 Trump Tower meeting.” Asked
about the “contradictions,” Trump Jr. said, “Hello?”

*Bolton Disputes Claim Trump Has Not Condemned Russian
Interference. *National Security Adviser Bolton, asked on CNN’s The Lead[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=04a-200&t=c>
(8/6) why President Trump has not been willing to condemn Russian election
interference, said, “That’s simply inaccurate. The President has on
multiple occasions...said that he agrees that the Russians have meddled in
the elections in the past and that he’s worried about it in the future. And
I might say the very fact that I and the four of the heads of the operating
department and agencies charged with detecting and preventing Russian
meddling was due to his decision.” Asked about the President’s description
of Russian election interference as a “hoax,” Bolton replied, “The issue
for the President, I think, is the political argument made by his opponents
that somehow he conspired with the Russians and they helped him defeat
Hillary Clinton. That’s what he thinks is the hoax. That’s what I
understand it to be.”

*Judge Approves “Firewall” Counsel To Review Evidence In Case
Against Russians. *Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=04b-740&t=c>
(8/6, Larson) reports that the judge overseeing Mueller’s “criminal case
against Russians accused of interfering in the 2016 election agreed to
appoint an independent lawyer to review pretrial evidence for possible
national security issues before giving it to a Kremlin-linked defendant.”
US District Judge Dabney Friedrich on Monday “approved a request to appoint
a so-called firewall counsel envisioned as part of an earlier ruling on
Mueller’s concern about providing evidence to Yevgeny Prigozhin, a longtime
associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin.”

*Former “Manhattan Madam” To Appear Before Grand Jury In Russia
Investigation. *The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=04c-4b6&t=c>
(8/6, Feuer) reports that Kristin M. Davis, “a woman who once ran an
upscale New York City escort service,” will appear on Friday before a
federal grand jury that is hearing evidence “in the wide-ranging inquiry
into ties between Russia and President Trump’s 2016 election campaign,
according to a person familiar with the matter.” Davis was interviewed last
week by officials from Mueller’s office, but it “remains unclear what
interest Mr. Mueller and his prosecutors have in Ms. Davis.” According to
the Times, “one possible line of inquiry is Ms. Davis’s longstanding
connections” to Roger Stone.

*Paul Seeks To Boost US-Russian Ties During Visit To Moscow.
*The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=04d-12d&t=c>
(8/6, Ferris-Rotman) reports Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who it calls “one of
President Trump’s more eager defenders on Russia,” arrived in Moscow on
Monday “in a bid to increase engagement with the country.” In a meeting at
Russia’s upper house of parliament, Paul “invited Russian lawmakers to meet
with US Congress members, in Washington or elsewhere.” The Post, however,
notes that Paul’s visit to Moscow “was not part of official diplomacy” with
the US Embassy stating that he is “visiting Russia as part of a private
group.” Paul, Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=04e-6ff&t=c>
(8/6, Ostroukh, Balmforth) reports, “said he had traveled to the Russian
capital to encourage diplomacy amid tense relations between Moscow and
Washington.” The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=04f-234&t=c>
(8/6, Nechepurenko, Fandos) reports that “later in the day, in a meeting
with members of Russia’s lower house of parliament, Mr. Paul said he would
oppose the passage of new Russia sanctions proposed by his Senate
colleagues.” Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=050-088&t=c>
(8/6, Kravchenko) says Russian officials “have relished the recent
attention from US lawmakers, viewing it as a sign of normalization in
relations.”

*Gates Testifies He Committed Crimes With Manafort. *In its lead
story, ABC World News Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=051-bb2&t=c>
(8/6, lead story, 2:45, Muir) reported on what it called a “major
development in the special counsel investigation: the trial of Paul
Manafort.” ABC (Vega) added, “Today, Rick Gates took the stand in a
Virginia federal courthouse, playing the role of special counsel Robert
Mueller’s star witness. Coming face-to-face with his former business
partner, Paul Manafort, Gates testified that they committed crimes
together, including not reporting more than a dozen offshore accounts.” NBC
Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=052-aa0&t=c>’
(8/6, story 2, 1:00, Holt) Catie Beck said, “This was by far the most
explosive testimony we’ve heard in the trial so far. Gates essentially
telling the courtroom he and Manafort were partners in financial crime, and
they conspired to falsify tax returns and keep millions of dollars hidden
in foreign bank accounts from the IRS.”

The CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=053-b6f&t=c>
(8/6, lead story, 2:05, Glor), also in its lead story, said, “The
government’s star witness took to the stand today” in Manafort’s trial. CBS
(Reid) added, “Today, Richard Gates became first member of the Trump
campaign to admit to crimes on the witness stand. ... There was no mention
of President Trump or his campaign, but the trial is first big public test
for the special counsel.” The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=054-215&t=c>
(8/7, Day, Barakat) likewise says the case “has nothing to do with either
man’s work for the Trump campaign and there’s been no discussion during the
trial about whether the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=055-95f&t=c>
(8/6, Weiner, Zapotosky, Marimow, Barrett) reports that during “his first
hour on the witness stand, Gates catalogued years of illegal activity,
saying most of his wrongdoing was committed on behalf of...Manafort, while
other crimes were for his own benefit, including the theft of hundreds of
thousands of dollars.” According to USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=056-32a&t=c>
(8/6, Johnson), “Among his actions on behalf of Manafort, Gates said, he
characterized hundreds of thousands of dollars in income as loans to reduce
Manafort’s tax liability and pushed accountants to reclassify some loans as
income to qualify for loans or seek more favorable lending rates.” The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=057-fc2&t=c>
(8/6, Lafraniere, Cochrane) and Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=058-b9a&t=c>
(8/6, Layne, Lynch, Freifeld), among other sources, similarly report on
Monday’s testimony by Gates.

*Last Remaining Senate Russia Probe Likely To Extend Past Midterms.
*Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=059-210&t=c>
(8/6, Dennis) reports the Senate Intelligence Committee’s Russia
investigation is “increasingly likely to stretch past the midterm
elections, as the panel plans to interview more witnesses for a final
report detailing its findings, including on the actions of Donald Trump’s
2016 campaign.” Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr has said he hoped
to end the probe before the November elections, but in an interview
“acknowledged it could take longer.” Said Burr, “I can’t predict to you how
long it’s going to take to write the final reports.” When asked if he’d
like to finish by the end of the year, Burr said “it’s certainly my hope.”
Senate Intelligence Vice Chairman Mark Warner “said the probe still has a
ways to go, though he wouldn’t put a timetable on it.”

*Fund For Trump Aides Under Investigation Reaches $200,000.
*The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=05a-d32&t=c>
(8/6, Narayanswamy, Lee) reports that a fund set up “to help pay legal
expenses incurred by aides to President Trump drawn into the Russia
investigation raised about $200,000 in four months, with most of the money
coming from some of the president’s most prolific donors, according to
documents filed with the Internal Revenue Service.” The largest check came
from longtime Trump friend Geoffrey Palmer, “a California real estate
developer, who donated $100,000, according to the filing.” According to the
Post, the Patriot Legal Expense Fund Trust was set up in February “to
support key associates questioned but not indicted in the probes conducted
by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III and Congress to investigate
Russian efforts to interfere in US elections.”

*Report: UK To Seek Extradition Of Two Russians Blamed For
Nerve-Agent Poisonings. *Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=05b-628&t=c>
(8/6, James, MacAskill) says The Guardian
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=05c-647&t=c>
is reporting that the UK government “is ready to ask Russia to extradite
two men it suspects of carrying out a nerve agent attack on a Russian
former spy in the English city of Salisbury.” Reuters notes that in March,
Sergei Skripal, “a former colonel in Russian military intelligence who
betrayed dozens of agents to Britain’s MI6 foreign spy service, and his
daughter Yulia, were found unconscious on a public bench in Salisbury,” and
“Britain blamed Russia for the poisonings.” The extradition request,
however, “is likely to be rejected by Russia,” whose constitution “forbids
the extradition of Russian citizens to another state.”

*New Research Indicates “AllForUSA” Is Russian Troll Account.
*The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=05d-24f&t=c>
(8/6, Timberg) reports on the rise of Russian troll account “AllForUSA,”
which began posting “what appeared to be news articles celebrating
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and bashing his Democratic
rival Hillary Clinton,” as well as similar messages and links across forums
in the run up to the 2016 election, before “inexplicably changing subjects
to tweet about feminism – in Japanese.” According to the Post, “A clue to
the mystery of this multilingual burst of activity appeared in a February
indictment by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. It said the Russians
who operated fake social media accounts to manipulate American voters used
allforusa@yahoo.com to fraudulently access a PayPal account and to promote
a ‘March for Trump’ campaign rally in New York.” A Monday report from
cyberintelligence firm GroupSense indicates “the other ‘AllForUSA’ accounts
probably were operated in tandem with this email address and with each
other.”

*States Impose Online Ad Rules In Response To Russian
Meddling. *Bloomberg
News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=05e-20a&t=c>
(8/6, Nix) reports that US states are “tightening rules for online
political advertising ahead of the November midterm elections as prospects
dim that federal restrictions will be in place to prevent a repeat of the
Russian interference seen in 2016.” As campaigns “dump millions of
advertising dollars” into social media, “states including Maryland,
Washington and New York are putting more pressure on tech companies to keep
tabs.” On Monday, California state senators held a hearing “on a bill that
would require internet companies to offer the public more information about
the people or groups funding political ads for state and local candidates
there.”

*Former Deputy AG Ruckelshaus: Only Nixon “Has Ever Acted This
Desperate.” *Former Deputy Attorney General William D. Ruckelshaus writes
in the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=05f-a91&t=c>
(8/6) that Trump “is acting with a desperation I’ve seen only once before
in Washington: 45 years ago when President Richard M. Nixon ordered the
firing of special Watergate prosecutor Archibald Cox. Nixon was fixated on
ending the Watergate investigation, just as Trump wants to shut down the
Mueller investigation.” Ruckelshaus offers “a lesson for the president from
history: It turned out badly for Nixon. Not only could he not derail the
investigation, but also, 10 months later, he was forced to resign the
presidency.”
GAO: Border Wall Could Waste Billions Of Dollars.

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=060-492&t=c>
(8/6, Nixon) reports that according to a new GAO report, the Administration
“could potentially waste billions of dollars on a border wall because it
failed to fully account for factors like varying terrain and land ownership
along the Southwest border.” GAO found that Customs and Border Protection
“did not consider the cost of building along each segment of the border,
which can vary depending on factors such as topography and land ownership.”
In addition, the report found that CBP “selected locations for barriers
without fully assessing where they were needed to prevent illegal border
crossings.” The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=061-95e&t=c>
(8/6, Dinan) reports Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), the ranking Democrat
on the House Homeland Security Committee, who requested the report, said,
“To be blunt, this administration has no clue what it is doing and must be
held accountable.” According to Thompson, the money already being spent “is
just a gift to contractors and the president’s political base.”

*Trump: Democrats Would Abolish ICE. *In a tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=062-d1a&t=c>
Monday afternoon, President Trump hit Democrats on immigration, writing,
“Democrats want Open Borders and they want to abolish ICE, the brave men
and women that are protecting our Country from some of the most vicious and
dangerous people on earth! Sorry, we can’t let that happen! Also, change
the rules in the Senate and approve STRONG Border Security!”

*Sessions Indicates DOJ Will Appeal Ruling To Continue DACA. *In a
statement Monday, Attorney General Sessions signaled that the Justice
Department will appeal US District Court Judge John Bates’ ruling that the
Administration must continue the DACA program, the Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=063-56e&t=c>
(8/6, Yilek) reports. Sessions said in the statement, “The executive
branch’s authority to simply rescind a policy, established only by a letter
from the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, is clearly
established. The Department of Justice will take every lawful measure to
vindicate the Department of Homeland Security’s lawful rescission of DACA.”
Townhall
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=064-212&t=c>
(8/6, Pavlich) says Sessions “went on to make the case that the rescinding
of DACA is consistent with federal law and that the previous administration
was in violation when President Obama pushed through the program by
executive order.”

*DHS Reopens Asylum Applications For 87 Iranian Religious
Minorities. *The Washington Free Beacon
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018080701biden&r=email-a998&l=065-fc4&t=c>
(8/6, Crabtree) reports that DHS “has re-opened the asylum applications of
a group of 87 Iranian Christians and other religious minorities” who have
been in Aust