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Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing


*From:* Bulletin Intelligence <Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com>
*Sent:* Friday, February 8, 2019 7:57 AM
*To:* Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com
*Subject:* Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing for Friday,
February 8, 2019


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[image: Image removed by sender. Office of Vice President Biden
Intelligence Briefing]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=001-cf1&t=c>

*To: Vice President Joe Biden*

*Friday, February 8, 2019 8:00 AM EST*
Today's Table of Contents

*Biden in the News* <#SECTION_1>

• Vanity Fair: Biden Would Start Democratic Race With “Immediate
Advantage,” But Also “Baggage.” <#S1>

• Washington Examiner Commentary Page Writers Largely See Biden As Trump’s
Biggest Threat. <#S2>

• Conservative Highlights Iowa Poll Showing Trump Leading All Democrats But
Biden. <#S3>

• The Hollywood Reporter: Biden Would Draw “Significant Hollywood Support”
In 2020 Run. <#S4>

• Meghan McCain Lauds Biden During Interview With Colbert. <#S5>

• Fellow Penn Professors Express Doubts About A 2020 Biden Candidacy. <#S6>

• Eyeing 2020 Bids, Centrist Democrats Under Attack By Liberal Activists.
<#S7>

• NYTimes’ Bouie Criticizes Biden For Practicing Politics Of
“Accommodation.” <#S8>

• In 1975, Biden Said, “The Democratic Party Could Stand A Liberal George
Wallace.” <#S9>

• Columnist: Biden, Bloomberg, Sanders “Too Old To Be President.” <#S10>

• Biden, Harris Bump Into Each Other On Amtrak Train. <#S11>

• Biden Pays Tribute To The Late John Dingell. <#S12>

• Ahead Of Campaign Launch, Warren Buffeted By Native American Heritage
Controversy. <#S13>

• Harris Secures Endorsements From 20 California State Senators. <#S14>

• Sanders Would Face Fierce Competition For Liberals’ Support In Crowded
2020 Race. <#S15>

• In Speech, Schultz Rips Trump. <#S16>

• Democratic Rep. Kennedy Says He Won’t Enter 2020 Presidential Race. <#S17>

• USA Today: Trump Plans To Use “Socialism” As A Cudgel To Hammer Democrats
In 2020. <#S18>

*Leading the News* <#SECTION_2>

• Negotiators Express Optimism About Border Security Compromise; Trump Says
“We’ll See What Happens.” <#S19>

*Foreign Policy* <#SECTION_3>

• Trump Says He Will Not Meet With Xi Before March 1 Trade Deadline. <#S20>

• Biegun In North Korea To Lay Groundwork For Second Trump-Kim Summit.
<#S21>

• Kushner To Visit Mideast For Talks On Peace Plan. <#S22>

• Venezuelan Military Blocks US Aid At Border With Colombia. <#S23>

• Satellite Images Indicate Iran Attempted Second Satellite Launch. <#S24>

• Russian Deputy FM: US Refusing To Negotiate Extension Of New Start Treaty.
<#S25>

• Bipartisan Group Of Senators Introduces Bill To Penalize Saudi Arabia For
Murder Of Khashoggi. <#S26>

*Domestic Policy* <#SECTION_4>

• Trump Accuses Schiff Of “Presidential Harassment” Despite “Zero Russian
Collusion.” <#S27>

• Trump’s Pledge To Oppose Abortion Wins Applause At National Prayer
Breakfast. <#S28>

• Senate Panel Approves Barr’s Nomination As Attorney General. <#S29>

• Bezos Accuses American Media Inc. Of “Extortion And Blackmail.” <#S30>

• Democrats Formally Unveil “Green New Deal” Resolution. <#S31>

• Trump Says He Is Open To Revisiting SALT Cap. <#S32>

• Democrats Seek To Limit Corporate Windfall From Trump Tax Cut. <#S33>

*Cancer Research* <#SECTION_5>

• FDA Warns Breast Implants Linked To Rare Form Of Cancer. <#S34>

• Lung-MAP Announces It Will Expand To Patients With All Non-Small-Cell
Lung Cancers. <#S35>

*Editorials/Op-Eds* <#SECTION_6>

• New York Times. <#S36>

• Washington Post. <#S37>
Biden in the News
Vanity Fair: Biden Would Start Democratic Race With “Immediate Advantage,”
But Also “Baggage.”

Writing for Vanity Fair
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=002-fa7&t=c>
(2/7), Eric Lutz says that if former Vice President Joe Biden launches a
2020 for the White House, he’d “have an immediate advantage, given his
stature within the party, his experience, and his popularity with voters.
But he would also come with his own baggage as an older establishment
figure in a party whose electorate appears to be jonesing for both fresh
faces and ideas.” In addition, “the 76-year-old – whose age could also be a
factor – has been in Washington long enough to accrue liabilities of his
own, including his controversial role in the Anita Hill hearing.” Lutz adds
that Biden “has reportedly told allies he believes he’s the party’s best
bet to defeat [President] Trump,” and polling “numbers back him up.”

*The Hill: For Biden, Iraq War Could Be An Albatross In 2020. *The
Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=003-82a&t=c>
(2/8, Parnes) reports this morning that Biden’s remarks and stances “on the
Iraq War could come back to haunt him if he enters the race for the White
House.” Biden supported “the resolution giving President George W. Bush the
authority to invade Iraq, and he also praised the president in a Senate
floor speech at the time for his handling of the case for war.” The Hill
said Biden “has since said he regrets his vote, though he has put much of
the blame on Bush for his handling of the war.” However, Biden’s “defense
of the Iraq war makes for an easy attack ad for opponents to argue that
despite” his “experience, he does not always make the right calls on
policy.” Biden “is likely to be the only Democratic candidate who was part
of the Iraq debate. As a result, it’s a political problem that may be
unique to Biden in 2020.”

*Politico: Brown Would Run “As Biden Without The Baggage.” *Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=004-db7&t=c>
(2/8, Strauss, Otterbein) reports this morning that in the 2020 race for
the Democratic presidential nomination, Biden and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
“are on an early collision course,” pursuing “the same potential
supporters, touting the same themes and even using some of the same
language to go after President Donald Trump. And Brown, kicking off a
pre-campaign tour of key presidential voting states last week, made
clear...he” would “run, essentially, as Biden without the baggage. Chris
Schwartz, a Black Hawk county supervisor who hosted an event for Brown in
Iowa, introduced him by ticking off a list of votes – including opposing
NAFTA, opposing the Defense of Marriage Act and voting against
authorization of the war in Iraq – that had featured Biden on the other
side. ‘All those things that I said that Sherrod Brown got right, Joe Biden
got every single one of those things wrong,’ Schwartz said.”

*Brown Touts Bill Aimed At Lowering Drug Costs. *In an online
report, CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=005-01e&t=c>
(2/7, Luhby) reported that Brown “isn’t getting on board with Democratic
‘Medicare-for-all’ proposals, but he wants to make it clear that he’s a
leader in the fight to lower drug prices.” Brown “joined House counterparts
Thursday to roll out legislation to reduce drug prices in Medicare.” The
legislation “embraces a long-standing Democratic position – allowing
Medicare to negotiate with drug makers. But it goes further by authorizing
the federal government to license competitors to make generic versions if
it can’t secure a reasonable price for a given medication. ‘Either the drug
companies play ball and negotiate or we have an alternative, it’s a free
market alternative,’ Brown said, slamming the Trump White House as a
retreat for pharmaceutical executives.”

*Vanity Fair: Biden, Bloomberg Eyeing Each Other Ahead Of 2020
Decisions. *Meanwhile, under the heading “Indecision 2020: Mike Bloomberg’s
Presidential Dream Springs Eternal. But in This Last-Chance Year, Is Biden
in His Old-White-Guy Lane?”, Chris Smith writes in a piece for Vanity Fair
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=006-5d4&t=c>
(2/7) that as ex-New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (D) mulls a 2020
presidential bid, a “significant factor is Joe Biden. ... Having two older,
white, male, moderate-ish contenders in the field would likely hurt them
both.” Consequently, the pair “have been doing a peculiar dance, keeping a
close eye on one another while acting as if they don’t care what the other
decides.” Smith adds “Bloomberg’s associates say they don’t have any inside
knowledge of what Biden will do. And they don’t believe the former mayor is
deferring to the former vice president, either intentionally or
subconsciously, even though Biden’s decision would provide another highly
valuable data point.”
Washington Examiner Commentary Page Writers Largely See Biden As Trump’s
Biggest Threat.

In his Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=007-2c0&t=c>
(2/7) column, Timothy Carney says he asked his “colleagues at the
Washington Examiner’s commentary page, ‘If you were Donald Trump, which
candidate would you most like to face? Which would you least like to
face?’” Of the 12 who answered the questions, five chose former Vice
President Joe Biden as the candidate they’d most fear, two chose Sen. Amy
Klobuchar (D-MN), one chose Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), one chose Sen.
Kamala Harris (D-CA), one chose ex-New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu (D-LA),
one chose ex-Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), and one chose Sen. Bernie Sanders
(I-VT). None of the respondents chose Biden as the candidate they’d most
like to face.
Conservative Highlights Iowa Poll Showing Trump Leading All Democrats But
Biden.

In a Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=008-d5e&t=c>
(2/7), conservative radio host and TV commentator Tim Constantine discusses
whether President Trump can win reelection in 2020, saying that despite a
raft of negative coverage about the President, a recent Emerson College
poll of Iowa voters showed Trump leading all contenders other than ex-Vice
President Joe Biden in a hypothetical field of 2020 Democratic White House
hopefuls. Constantine describes Biden as a “gaffe machine,” and says
“Trump’s ability to spew out quotable quotes and Mr. Biden’s reputation for
the verbal stumble, this the media’s dream match-up.”
The Hollywood Reporter: Biden Would Draw “Significant Hollywood Support” In
2020 Run.

The Hollywood Reporter
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=009-ef5&t=c>
(2/7, Kiefer) says that “Hollywood’s political class is actively vetting
2020 presidential hopefuls with an eye to toppling Donald Trump.” At the
moment, “there is no hotter candidate for Hollywood than California Sen.
Kamala Harris, who’s had top industry donors since her Senate campaign.”
The article, which says that Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Elizabeth Warren
(D-MA) also draw support from Hollywood heavyweights, adds that if former
Vice President Joe Biden runs, he’d “also pull significant Hollywood
support – in October, [Jeffrey] Katzenberg hosted a $5,000-a-plate
fundraiser for Biden at his WndrCo offices in Beverly Hills, at which
[Paramount’s Jim] Gianopulos was present along with Sony Pictures’ Tom
Rothman, producer Byron Allen, [ICM Partners’ Chris] Silbermann, venture
capitalist Chris Sacca, entrepreneur Jon Vein (Goldsmith-Vein’s husband)
and Meg Whitman.”
Meghan McCain Lauds Biden During Interview With Colbert.

In an online article, CBS News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=00a-60c&t=c>
(2/8) reports that during a Thursday appearance on “The Late Show with
Stephen Colbert,” Meghan McCain – daughter of the late Sen. John McCain
(R-AZ) – “said she is ‘very curious’ to see if former Vice President Joe
Biden, a close friend of her father’s, decides to run for president. ‘I
love him on a personal level,’ she said. ‘On a personal level, the
juxtaposition between my experience with cancer with the Trumps and my
experience with the Bidens has been the yin to the yang,’ she said. Biden
‘was incredibly there for me and my family, his son Beau died of the same
cancer that my father had, glioblastoma, so we have this really strange and
intense bond. And I love him dearly. If he becomes the nominee, I am going
to have to quit television because I can’t say anything bad about him.’”
Fellow Penn Professors Express Doubts About A 2020 Biden Candidacy.

The University of Pennsylvania’s Daily Pennsylvanian
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=00b-36a&t=c>
(2/8, Doo) reports that “Penn Presidential Professor of Practice” Joe
Biden’s colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania are expressing doubts
that he will run for president and skepticism about his chances of winning
the Democratic nomination. For example, “Penn writer-in-residence Dick
Polman said he would not be surprised if” Biden doesn’t enter the race,
“given his advanced age of almost 80 years old. ‘[Biden] knows what it
takes to run nonstop and how physically punishing it is,’ Polman said. ‘He
keeps second-guessing [his run]. The fact that he keeps talking about it,
ruminating about it openly, makes me think that he’s not 100 percent in the
game.’” Political scientist Marc Meredith “remains uncertain about Biden’s
potential candidacy due to his baggage,” citing “how Biden handled the 1991
Anita Hill hearing.” Polman referenced Biden’s “unsuccessful bids for
presidency in the past, and the 1987 accusations of speech plagiarism
against him.”
Eyeing 2020 Bids, Centrist Democrats Under Attack By Liberal Activists.

Writing for U.S. News & World Report
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=00c-a59&t=c>
(2/8), David Catanese says, “As the 2020 presidential campaign intensifies
with fresh Democratic candidacies almost every week, the prevailing
question bubbling inside the party is no longer if one can viably run as a
liberal,” but whether “there’s still room for a centrist to thrive. The
first four major Democratic presidential candidates to” launch 2020 bids
“have each embraced a slate of unabashedly liberal policies – from
‘Medicare-for-all’ to a so-called vague ‘Green New Deal.’” Meanwhile,
potential more-moderate candidates “have been besieged by the most vocal
progressive activists,” with former Vice President Joe Biden, for instance,
having “been forced to defend his friendship with Republicans, after a
report revealed he praised GOP Rep. Fred Upton.”

*Cook Political Report’s Walter: Democrats May Not Choose A
Far-Left Nominee. *However, writing for the Cook Political Report
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=00d-b49&t=c>
(2/7), Amy Walter said that many in the Democratic Party and GOP “are
coming to the conclusion that Democrats are going to nominate the most
left-leaning, liberal candidate for president,” providing President Trump
“his best (maybe only) opportunity to win in 2020.” However, citing polling
that indicates a wide swath of Democratic voters aren’t as far left as the
party’s activist base, and asserting that electability (the ability to
defeat Trump) is the most important consideration for many Democratic
voters, Walter said that for now, “the evidence and data suggest that the
most ideologically left candidate may not be the most likely nominee.”
NYTimes’ Bouie Criticizes Biden For Practicing Politics Of “Accommodation.”

Jamelle Bouie writes in his New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=00e-362&t=c>
(2/7) column that in a speech last year, former Vice President Joe Biden
“rejected the confrontational language of some other Democrats. ‘I love
Bernie, but I’m not Bernie Sanders,’ he said. ‘I don’t think 500
billionaires are the reason we’re in trouble. I get into a lot of trouble
with my party when I say that wealthy Americans are just as patriotic as
poor folks.’” Bouie takes issue with Biden’s approach, saying, “Struggle
against the powerful, not accommodation of their interests, is how
Americans produced the conditions for its greatest social accomplishments
like the creation of the welfare state and the toppling of Jim Crow. ... If
one of the central problems of the present is an elite economic class that
hoards resources and opportunity at the expense of the public as a whole,
then it’s naïve and ahistoric to believe the beneficiaries of that
arrangement will willingly relinquish their power and privilege.”
In 1975, Biden Said, “The Democratic Party Could Stand A Liberal George
Wallace.”

The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=00f-94a&t=c>
(2/7, Goodman) reported that former Vice President Joe Biden, “who has been
emphasizing his civil rights record as he considers a 2020 White House bid,
once praised notorious segregationist George Wallace and later claimed to
have received an award from him. ‘I think the Democratic Party could stand
a liberal George Wallace – someone who’s not afraid to stand up and offend
people, someone who wouldn’t pander but would say what the American people
know in their gut is right,’ Biden told the Philadelphia Enquirer on Oct.
12, 1975, referring to the racist then-Alabama governor.” The Examiner
added, “During 1987 fundraising trips across the South for his unsuccessful
1988 presidential bid,” Biden “ought to appeal to white voters, telling
audiences that he had received an award from Wallace in 1973 and that the
segregationist had lauded him as ‘one of the outstanding young politicians
of America.’” The Blaze
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=010-489&t=c>
(2/7, Cohen) highlighted the Examiner article.
Columnist: Biden, Bloomberg, Sanders “Too Old To Be President.”

In his syndicated column, which appears in the Chicago Sun-Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=011-8e3&t=c>
(2/7), Gene Lyons writes that “I’m too old to be president. ... [T]hat’s my
answer to a question recently posed by the Boston Globe’s Robert Weisman:
‘Question for Democrats: Are some candidates too old?’ Illustrated by
photos of Sen. Bernie Sanders (77), former New York City Mayor Michael
Bloomberg (76) and former Vice President Joe Biden (76), the article asks
if it’s ‘ageist’ to think the presidential train has left the station
without them.” Lyons adds, “Anybody in their mid-70s who tries to tell you
they don’t feel the transmission slipping as time’s winged chariot draws
nearer is definitely bluffing. Maybe your judgment’s sounder, but your
memory’s not what it was, solving complex problems is more difficult, and
new ideas are harder to absorb.”
Biden, Harris Bump Into Each Other On Amtrak Train.

In an online article, CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=012-3e0&t=c>
(2/7, Dezenski) reported, “Longtime noted Amtrak traveler Joe Biden ran
into a familiar 2020 contender on the train today: Sen. Kamala Harris of
California.” Their “chance encounter was captured – and promptly tweeted –
by members of Harris’ team. This isn’t the first time Biden and Harris have
had a chance encounter (which was also then captured for Twitter). The two
crossed paths – literally – in Washington, DC, in December.”
Biden Pays Tribute To The Late John Dingell.

The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=013-27c&t=c>
(2/7, Folley) reported that former Vice President Joe Biden “paid tribute
to former Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), who died Thursday. Biden said
Dingell ‘led with great moral courage and vision’ during his time in
Congress, shortly after Dingell’s death was confirmed. ‘John Dingell was
the Dean of the House. He earned that title – not just because he was there
the longest – but because he led with great moral courage and vision,’
Biden tweeted late Thursday. ‘He was a friend and I will miss him terribly.
Debbie is in my prayers,’ Biden said, referring to the late congressman’s
wife and successor, Rep. Deborah Dingell (D-Mich.).” In a piece
highlighting a number of politicians’ tributes to the late
congressman, the Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=014-9af&t=c>
(2/7, Brice-Saddler) reports that “Biden appreciated Dingell’s ‘great moral
courage and vision,’ and said he would ‘miss him terribly.’”
Ahead Of Campaign Launch, Warren Buffeted By Native American Heritage
Controversy.

The Concord (NH) Monitor
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=015-5e4&t=c>
(2/7, Andrews) reports that Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Saturday will visit
New Hampshire “hours after she’s expected to officially launch her campaign
for the White House.” However, “Warren’s much-anticipated announcement is
being upstaged a bit by the latest developments in the controversy over her
longstanding claims of Native American heritage. A Washington Post story on
Tuesday evening – that included the publication of a 1986 Texas bar
registration card showing her in her own handwriting identifying as
‘American Indian’ – gave new life to a story that Republicans and
especially President Donald Trump have long used to criticize her.” Leading
New Hampshire “Democrats worry the story could continue to upstage Warren
in the coming weeks.”

The Boston Herald
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=016-06f&t=c>
(2/7, Dwinell) reports that Warren “has signaled she still intends to jump
into the 2020 presidential race despite the furor over her Native American
heritage claims – releasing plans to tour seven states starting with New
Hampshire and Iowa after her big announcement Saturday in Lawrence.” The Los
Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=017-d7b&t=c>
(2/7, Bierman) reports that with Warren “again confronting controversy over
her tenuous claims to Native American heritage, activists in early-voting
states and national allies are nervously eyeing whether she can succeed in
getting past an issue that has shadowed her campaign. ... ‘She needs to get
everything out and hope that’s the end of it,’ said Judy Reardon, a New
Hampshire environmental activist, who is a former Democratic state
legislator and top staffer to Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and is generally
complimentary of Warren.”

Writing for Vanity Fair
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=018-655&t=c>
(2/7), Tina Nguyen says, “Perhaps Warren simply internalized some family
lore at an early age without ever questioning it. Still, that doesn’t
explain why Warren made her minuscule Native heritage such an outsize part
of her identity – or why she consistently described herself as such on
official forms. The possible existence of more documentary evidence
suggests a troubling pattern, and one that becomes increasingly difficult
to explain. More important, it promises to become a stubborn obstacle for
Warren as she embarks on her 2020 presidential campaign.”
Harris Secures Endorsements From 20 California State Senators.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=019-669&t=c>
(2/7, Marinucci) reported that Sen. Kamala Harris’ (D-CA) “presidential
campaign has scored endorsements from a major roster of legislators in
California in a bid to cement an early advantage in her delegate-rich home
state.” Harris was endorsed by “20 state Senate Democrats, including Senate
President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins.” The new support “follow[s] endorsements
of Harris from three California members of Congress: Reps. Ted Lieu,
Nanette Barragan and Katie Hill. Harris now has the support of 21 of the
state Senate’s 28 Democrats, 75 percent of the caucus.” Politico added,
“The new endorsements, two weeks after an estimated 22,000 people attended
Harris’ Oakland campaign launch, underscore the senator’s campaign strategy
of amassing widespread support in her home state in advance of next year’s
March 3 primary.”
Sanders Would Face Fierce Competition For Liberals’ Support In Crowded 2020
Race.

Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=01a-bfa&t=c>
(2/8, John) reports that Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) “army of fervent
progressives will be up for grabs in 2020 even if” he mounts “another bid
for the Democratic presidential nomination,” as the Vermont lawmaker “may
find himself a victim of his own success in driving the party to the left
with his 2016 run. The field of Democratic presidential hopefuls includes
at least a half-dozen candidates who’ve adopted in whole or in part the
platform that helped Sanders build a loyal following of young voters and
liberals: Medicare for all, a $15 an hour minimum wage and debt-free
college education.” Sanders also “would be competing with a younger and
diverse field of candidates at a time when the votes of women, minorities
and young people are driving Democratic politics.”
In Speech, Schultz Rips Trump.

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=01b-c77&t=c>
(2/7) reports that ex-Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz, mulling a 2020
independent bid for the White House, on Thursday blasted President Trump,
saying in a speech at Purdue University “that Trump ‘must not serve a
second term.’ Schultz said Trump’s presidency is ‘one of the most
significant security threats America faces in the post-World War II era,’”
blaming the President “for walking away from strategic alliances, starting
a trade war that has raised prices for US consumers and cut market access
for US farmers, and turning a blind eye to Russian interference in US
democracy. ‘He has unilaterally abdicated our historical role as a global
leader,’ Schultz said. ‘He has poisoned our culture and our values, giving
hate and hate speech and racism and bigotry license.’”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=01c-1c5&t=c>
(2/7, Scherer) reports, “Vowing to fight against” the President’s bid for a
second term “despite concerns that he would aid” Trump, Schultz unveiled
“the agenda for his potential independent presidential” run, “offering a
broad condemnation of the two-party political system but few new policy
specifics.” Schultz “made clear that his exploration of a campaign was
predicated on his fear that a ‘far-left’ Democratic 2020 nominee would
deliver reelection to Trump by pushing away many” moderate Americans. But
Schultz also vowed “to avoid forcing the same result by splitting the
anti-Trump vote, a concern of many Democratic political strategists.” Said
Schultz, “As I explore whether to run for office, I will do so with the
conviction that my final decision must not make his reelection a
possibility. I can assure you no one wants Donald Trump fired more than I.”

*Schultz Advocates Raising Taxes On The Wealthy. *Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=01d-734&t=c>
(2/7, Kapur) reports that in his speech, Schultz “said wealthy Americans
like him should pay higher taxes.” Said Schultz, “I myself should be paying
higher taxes – and all wealthy Americans should have to pay their fair
share. I think we can all agree on that.” In addition, Schultz “called for
an overhaul of the tax code that includes rate cuts for middle-income
people and small businesses, though he didn’t unveil any specifics.”
Bloomberg add that Schultz’s comments “are similar to what...Trump said as
a 2016 presidential candidate. In an August 2015 interview with Bloomberg,
Trump said he’d favor raising taxes on rich people like himself. In May
2016, he told ABC News, ‘I am willing to pay more, and you know what, the
wealthy are willing to pay more.’”
Democratic Rep. Kennedy Says He Won’t Enter 2020 Presidential Race.

In an online article, ABC News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=01e-700&t=c>
(2/7, Spitalniak) reported that Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA) “has ruled out
a 2020 presidential run, despite being the subject of speculation. ‘I’ve
got enough on my plate,’” Kennedy “said on ABC News’ ‘Powerhouse Politics’
podcast.”
USA Today: Trump Plans To Use “Socialism” As A Cudgel To Hammer Democrats
In 2020.

USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=01f-0cd&t=c>
(2/7, Groppe) reports that with his State of the Union address this week,
President Trump signaled “that he plans to run for re-election by attacking
socialism – including going after figures popular with the fired-up
Democratic base like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders.
After Trump warned about ‘new calls to adopt socialism in our country,’
Republicans circulated photos of Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders and other
stone-faced lawmakers who ‘refused to stand’ during parts of the speech.”
And during a Wednesday appearance on Fox News Radio, Trump adviser
Kellyanne Conway said that socialism is “creeping throughout the entire
[Democratic] party. It will be a theme in 2020.” USA Today says it’s
unclear in polling whether that line of attack will resonate.
Leading the News
Negotiators Express Optimism About Border Security Compromise; Trump Says
“We’ll See What Happens.”

Coverage of ongoing efforts by congressional negotiators to work out a
compromise on border security funding indicates some optimism among
legislators that an agreement will be reached, and that President Trump
will sign it, thereby avoiding another partial government shutdown in one
week. The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=020-1f0&t=c>
(2/7, Fram, Taylor) reports Trump “appears to be taking a more positive
view of Capitol Hill talks on border security, according to negotiators who
struck a distinctly optimistic tone after a White House meeting.” Senate
Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby “said Thursday’s session in the Oval
Office was ‘the most positive meeting I’ve had in a long time’ and that the
president was ‘very reasonable.’” Trump “had previously called the talks a
‘waste of time.’ ... But Shelby said Trump during their meeting ‘urged me
to get to yes’ on an agreement.” The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=021-82b&t=c>
(2/7, Andrews) reports Shelby said the President does not want to have to
declare a national emergency in order to fund a US-Mexico border wall.

Nancy Cordes said in a brief report on the CBS Evening News[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=022-2d1&t=c>
(2/7, story 5, 0:30, Glor), “They actually tell us that they are on a good
trajectory tonight, and that they have reached agreement on parts of this
border security package. And crucially, a key Democratic negotiator said
for the first time today that her party probably is going to have to accept
some border barrier funding as part of this deal. She didn’t say a ‘wall,’
but she did say a ‘barrier.’” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=023-bf4&t=c>
(2/7, Cowan) reports, “Negotiators have discussed a mix of tools, such as
more law enforcement agents, procuring more high-tech devices to repel
illegal drugs and undocumented immigrants” from entering the US. But Trump
“has continued to insist on a wall, although it was unclear what his
definition of that was.” The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=024-0bb&t=c>
(2/8, Ferrechio) reports any agreement will likely include “some kind of
fencing in certain areas along the southern border. There’s no mention of a
wall in the deal, per orders of Democratic leaders who vehemently oppose
it.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=025-75a&t=c>
(2/7, Werner, Paletta) reports, “Lawmakers of both parties voiced cautious
optimism,” as did the President. Trump told reporters, “We’ll see what
happens, but I certainly hear they’re working on something, and both sides
are moving along. We’ll see what happens. We need border security. We have
to have it. It’s not an option. Let’s see what happens.”

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=026-202&t=c>
(2/7, Johnson, Everett, Orr) reports, “Inside the White House, the Trump
team is increasingly aware that the president is trapped. Facing a
Republican Party unwilling to back another government shutdown or a
national emergency declaration to build his border wall,” the President “is
in an unfamiliar position, according to multiple White House officials and
lawmakers: prepared, potentially, to accept a compromise foisted on him by
Congress. ... He seemed warm to the idea of a bipartisan deal” after
meeting with Shelby.

Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=027-187&t=c>
(2/7) writes, “Trump has never really believed Congress would give him the
money,” and he “also knows, despite threats to the contrary, that there’s
no upside to another shutdown. Which is why Trump is going to sign whatever
lands on his desk. Going it alone on the wall was probably the end game all
along.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=028-2ae&t=c>
(2/7) editorializes, “Despite President Trump’s contempt for the niceties
of legislating...there are hopeful signs emerging from Capitol Hill.”
Senate Majority Leader McConnell and House Speaker Pelosi have both
suggested “that any agreement struck by negotiators would be brought up for
a floor vote.” The Post says “Americans, fed up with Washington
dysfunction, want no more shutdowns. The only way to resolve any facet of
the immigration debate is for both parties and other stakeholders to accept
part of a loaf.”

*WPost Analysis: Trump’s Claims About El Paso Crime “Simply False.”
*The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=029-314&t=c>
(2/7, Moore, Rucker, Johnson) reports Trump will visit the “bustling border
city” of El Paso, Texas on Monday “for his first campaign rally of the
year. ... Trump hopes spotlighting the story of El Paso – touting its
border fencing and relatively low rate of violent crime – will provide
evidence supporting his push for funding for part of a US-Mexico border
wall to avoid another shutdown, aides said.” But “the trouble for Trump is
that his claim about El Paso is simply false. His portrayal of this border
city as having been violent and lawless before the installation of fencing
has long been an irritant to local civic and business leaders.” The El Paso
(TX) Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=02a-a7a&t=c>
(2/7) reports, “City leaders have denounced Trump’s comments on El Paso,”
and “a number of protests are anticipated for Monday in response” to his
rally.

Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX) tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=02b-70c&t=c>,
“El Paso has great grassroots leadership that stands up for our community
and defends the vulnerable. Can’t wait to hear about what they’ve got
planned in the face of outright lies about us and cheap attempts to use our
community as a political prop.”

*Arizona City Threatens Legal Action Over Razor Wire On Border
Fence. *The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=02c-123&t=c>
(2/7, Rosenberg) reports Nogales, Arizona officials passed a resolution
this week condemning the installation of “lethal” razor wire on a border
fence in the city. Mayor Arturo Garino “said one of his constituents told
him about the razor wire on Saturday night,” and said that what he “saw
when he arrived at the fence surprised him: Row after row of razor wire had
been strung on the fence so that it covered nearly the entire surface in
parts.” Garino has threatened to sue the federal government over the razor
wire.

*AP Analysis: Border Barriers Require “Delicate Dance” For
Officials. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=02d-7af&t=c>
(2/7, Spagat) examines the “delicate dance” for the federal government “as
it charts a course to extend or replace barriers that blanket nearly
one-third of the border. The path of the San Diego replacement cuts through
a gated Tijuana subdivision of luxury homes,” while farther to the east, a
“treaty limits construction on the Rio Grande flood plain.”

*HHS Official Says He Warned About Trauma Of Family Separation. *The
AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=02e-c30&t=c>
(2/7, Long) reports US Public Health Service Commander Jonathan White, the
HHS official “responsible for helping to reunite families separated by the
Trump administration,” told a House subcommittee Thursday that he “had
warned colleagues that separating children from their parents would cause
lasting, serious psychological trauma.” White said, “Separating children
poses significant risk of traumatic psychological injury to the child.”
White went on to day that “neither he nor anyone he worked with ‘would ever
have supported such a policy.’”

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=02f-841&t=c>
(2/7, Diamond) reports Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO), chair of the House Energy
and Commerce Oversight Subcommittee, said, “There is no evidence that HHS
leaders ever tried to stop this abhorrent policy.” Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=030-01a&t=c>
(2/7, John, Epstein) also reports on White’s remarks.
Foreign Policy
Trump Says He Will Not Meet With Xi Before March 1 Trade Deadline.

Bloomberg
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=031-939&t=c>
(2/7, Sink, Jacobs, Leonard) reports President Trump said Thursday that “he
won’t meet Chinese President Xi Jinping before a March 1 deadline to avert
higher US tariffs on Chinese goods, intensifying fears the two won’t strike
a deal before the end of a 90-day truce.” When asked by reporters if he
would meet with Xi this month, Trump responded “No” and shook his head. He
added, “Unlikely.” A “senior administration official said the decision not
to go ahead with a meeting between Xi and Trump before March 1 should not
be read as a sign the talks were breaking down.”

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=032-67f&t=c>
(2/7, Mason, Holland) reports that when asked if there would be a meeting
“in the next month or so,” Trump said: “Not yet. Maybe.” Reuters says his
remarks “confirmed comments from administration officials who said the two
men were unlikely to meet before the deadline, dampening hopes of a quick
trade pact and sparking a drop in US stock markets.” The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=033-122&t=c>
(2/7, Rappeport) likewise says Trump’s comments are “raising new concerns
that the United States will not be able to complete a trade deal with China
before American tariffs increase on March 2.” The Times also says the
“decision not to meet ahead of the deadline was a reversal for Mr. Trump,
who said last week that he planned to meet with Mr. Xi to resolve any
‘final issues’ before a trade deal.”

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=034-9f8&t=c>
(2/7, Palmer) notes Trump tweeted last week that “no final deal will be
made until my friend President Xi, and I, meet in the near future to
discuss and agree on some of the long standing and more difficult points.”
The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=035-8aa&t=c>
(2/7) reports that while Trump does not plan to meet with Xi, Treasury
Secretary Mnuchin and USTR Lighthizer “are leading a team to Beijing next
week to continue talks.”

*Kudlow: Negotiators Have “Pretty Sizable Distance To Go.” *NEC
Director Kudlow said on Fox Business’ Varney & Co.[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=036-8e3&t=c>
(2/7), “The President has indicated that he’s optimistic with respect to a
potential China trade deal. But...we’ve got a pretty sizable distance to go
here. ... Mr. Mnuchin and Mr. Lighthizer are going to China next week to
continue the discussions that we had last week, and those discussions, as
I’ve said, had a good vibe to them and we covered a tremendous amount of
ground and all the major issues, the technology issues, the ownership
issues, especially...the evaluation issues. How do you confirm – how do we
judge whether the Chinese are playing by the rules? So all of those things
were on the table and discussed in some detail. I think those conversations
are going to continue.”

*Media Analyses: Administration Under Pressure To Reach Deal. *
Bloomberg
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=037-4c7&t=c>
(2/7, Niquette, Mayeda) reports that the Administration’s “duties on $250
billion of Chinese goods – with an increase in tariffs to come unless a
trade deal with Beijing is reached by March 1 – have affected US companies
big and small.” Bloomberg News says that “for companies caught in the trade
war, the options for mitigating exposure to tariffs range from a simple
change in paperwork to creative ‘tariff engineering’ and the overhaul of
supply chains often developed over decades.”

The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=038-c82&t=c>
(2/7, Davis) reports that among those pressuring the Administration to
reach a deal is Blackstone Group Chief Executive Stephen Schwarzman, who
has warned that failure to strike a deal will undermine the US economy and
stock markets.

*Trump Expected To Sign Executive Order Banning Chinese Telecom
Equipment Next Week. *Citing three unnamed sources, Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=039-22b&t=c>
(2/7, Geller) reports President Trump is “expected to sign an executive
order banning Chinese telecom equipment from U.S. wireless networks before
a major industry conference at the end of February.” The Administration
“plans to release the directive, part of its broader effort to protect the
US from cyber threats, before MWC Barcelona, formerly known as Mobile World
Congress, which takes place Feb. 25-28.” An unnamed “industry source” said,
“There’s a big push to get it out before MWC.” Politico says that by
“preempting MWC...the White House hopes to send a signal that future
contracts for cutting-edge technology must prioritize cybersecurity.”
Biegun In North Korea To Lay Groundwork For Second Trump-Kim Summit.

CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=03a-1d5&t=c>
(2/7, 6:58 p.m. EST) reported that “a US envoy is in North Korea laying
groundwork for the second summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un.”
US special envoy Steve Biegun traveled to Pyongyang on Wednesday “to hammer
out what he calls a set of concrete deliverables for the second summit in
Vietnam.” However, according to “a source familiar with the talks...even
the most basic details require extensive negotiations.”

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=03b-74e&t=c>
(2/7, Brunnstrom, Alexander), meanwhile, reports State Department spokesman
Robert Palladino said Thursday that the choice of Vietnam as the venue for
the summit “shows the possibility of moving beyond conflict and division
toward a thriving partnership.”
Kushner To Visit Mideast For Talks On Peace Plan.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=03c-423&t=c>
(2/7, Johnson) reports White House senior adviser Jared Kushner will
“crisscross the Middle East later this month seeking buy-in for his peace
plan from leaders throughout the region.” During the trip, Kushner will
“for the first time share significant details of the economic portion of
the Trump administration’s Middle East peace plan.” A “senior
Administration official” said Tuesday, “Jared is going to present the
economic plan to the region. The economic plan only works if the region
supports it. We understand that if the political aspect of it is not solid,
the economic aspect is meaningless. But at the same time the political
aspect will not succeed without a proper economic plan.” According to the Wall
Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=03d-95b&t=c>
(2/7, Salama), Kushner will be joined by special envoy Jason Greenblatt on
his trip to Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and
Qatar.
Venezuelan Military Blocks US Aid At Border With Colombia.

The CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=03e-0fb&t=c>
(2/7, story 6, 2:15, Glor) reported on what it called “a showdown” at the
border of Colombia and Venezuela, where the Venezuelan military is blocking
US aid from entering the country. Gabe Gutierrez reported for NBC Nightly
News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=03f-629&t=c>
(2/7, story 9, 1:20, Holt) that the US aid will be stored in a warehouse at
the border, but it remains unclear “when or if it will be allowed into that
country.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=040-7f5&t=c>
(2/8, Haberkorn, Armario) reports that “opposition leaders vowed to bring
[the US aid] into their troubled nation despite objections from embattled
President Nicolas Maduro.” While Maduro “denies a humanitarian crisis
exists,” interim President Juan Guaido, “who requested the international
assistance, said it is necessary in a country racked by shortages of food
and medicines.”

To the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=041-53f&t=c>
(2/7, A1, Faiola, Krygier), the “international effort to rush food and
medicine into this collapsing socialist state was rapidly transforming
Thursday into a high-stakes standoff between...Maduro and the US-backed
opposition, essentially holding hostage lifesaving shipments of
humanitarian aid at the border.” US special envoy Elliott Abrams “said at a
Thursday news conference that, while determined to deliver the aid to the
Venezuelan people, the United States and other opposition supporters would
not do so by ‘force.’” Said Abrams, “We will be moving aid to the border of
Venezuela in the hope that — and there is some aid there now — in the hope
that we will be able to get it in. I don’t think that we or the Colombians
or the Brazilians or anyone else is planning to try to force it in.”

The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=042-17a&t=c>
(2/7, Baddour) reports that seven cargo trucks that reached the Tienditas
bridge connecting Colombia to Ureña in Venezuela, but the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=043-22e&t=c>
(2/7, Pérez-Peña) reports the Venezuelan military has “blockaded a major
highway link with Colombia to prevent opponents of the government from
bringing food and medicine into Venezuela.” According to the Times, “Troops
positioned truck trailers and shipping containers to block the lanes of the
Tienditas Bridge,” but “it was not clear what effect the blockade, a show
of defiance by...Maduro, would have.”

*US Envoy Urges Maduro To Step Down. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=044-877&t=c>
(2/7) reports that US special envoy Elliot Abrams told reporters Thursday
that the US “wants to see Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro leave the
country as he cedes power to a transitional government.” Abrams said the US
“does not favor a specific country for Maduro to go to,” but noted that he
has “friends” in Cuba and Russia. The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=045-76c&t=c>
(2/7, Kasperowicz) quotes Abrams as saying, “I think it is better for the
transition to democracy in Venezuela that he be outside the country. And
there are a number of countries that I think would be willing to accept
him. He’s got friends in places like Cuba and Russia. And there are some
other countries, actually, that have come to us privately and said they’d
be willing to take members of the current illegitimate regime if it would
help the transition.”

*White House Video In Spanish Compares Maduro To Stalin, Mussolini.
*Breitbart
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=046-88e&t=c>
(2/7, Martel) reports that the White House shared “a Spanish-language video
message
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=047-d2d&t=c>
to the Venezuelan people on Thursday comparing socialist dictator Nicolás
Maduro to Josef Stalin, Muammar Qaddafi, Benito Mussolini, and other
tyrants who usurped power in their home countries, expressing solidarity
with the opposition.” The video, posted on Twitter, explains, “through a
timeline of actions by the Maduro regime, how the dictator systematically
made it impossible for opposition parties to compete politically, noting,
in particular, the use of violence to silence protesters.” It then “shows
images of, among others, Josef Stalin, Benito Mussolini, Saddam Hussein,
and Muammar Qaddafi,” when the text declares, “We have seen this before.”

*WSJournal A1 Analysis: Small Group Plotted To Seize Control Of
Venezuela From Maduro. *In a front-page story, the Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=048-6e0&t=c>
(2/7, A1, Luhnow, Forero, de Córdoba) examines how a small group of people
from Venezuela’s opposition worked to oust President Nicolás Maduro.
According to sources, some members of the opposition were unaware that Juan
Guaidó was preparing to declare himself interim president on Jan. 23,
including some that were standing alongside him on stage when he made the
announcement. The Journal reports that the plan was devised in only the
last few weeks by a group of just four opposition leaders.

*Zakaria: Left “Needs To Find Its Voice On Venezuela.” *Fareed
Zakaria writes in his Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=049-259&t=c>
(2/7) column that Venezuela “poses a challenge for the Democratic Party,”
questioning whether it can “find its voice on Venezuela, and foreign policy
more generally.” Zakaria says “there are worrying signs that the new
Democratic foreign policy could turn out to be a reflexive isolationism
that is not so different from President Trump’s own ‘America First’
instincts.”
Satellite Images Indicate Iran Attempted Second Satellite Launch.

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=04a-fcd&t=c>
(2/7, Gambrell) reports according to satellite images “released by the
Colorado-based company DigitalGlobe,” it appears that Iran has “attempted a
second satellite launch despite US criticism that its space program helps
it develop ballistic missiles.” The images “show a rocket at the Imam
Khomeini Space Center” on Tuesday, while on Wednesday, “the rocket was gone
with what appears to be burn marks on its launch pad.”

Asked by reporters to comment, Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=04b-69b&t=c>
(2/7, Alexander) reports State Department spokesman Robert Palladino said,
“I’ve seen the reports, and it failed, correct?” Palladino added, “We
continue to call upon the Iranian regime to cease immediately all
activities that are inconsistent with the United Nations Security Council
Resolution 2231, including space vehicle launches.”
Russian Deputy FM: US Refusing To Negotiate Extension Of New Start Treaty.

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=04c-b69&t=c>
(2/7, Isachenkov) reports according to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
Sergei Ryabkov, “the US refusal to negotiate an extension to the New Start
treaty signals Washington’s intention to let it expire in 2021.” The treaty
was signed in 2010 by President Obama and Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev. In response, Undersecretary of State Andrea Thompson said, “It is
a relatively simple treaty to extend, so we have time with that.”

*Ignatius: Cyber Command Has Launched Effort To Deter And Disrupt
Russian Interference With US Politics. *David Ignatius writes in his column
in the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=04d-961&t=c>
(2/7), that the US Cyber Command “has launched operations to deter and
disrupt Russians who have been interfering with the U.S. political system.”
Ignatius adds that “before the midterm elections, Cyber Command began
directly contacting Russians who were linked to operations,” in order to
“put people on notice that their covers had been blown.” Ignatius says that
the effort “was outlined by Gen. Paul Nakasone, the unit’s commander, in
the current issue of Joint Force Quarterly,” and his “new doctrine moves
the United States closer to Russia’s approach of treating cyberspace as
part of a continuum of warfare.”
Bipartisan Group Of Senators Introduces Bill To Penalize Saudi Arabia For
Murder Of Khashoggi.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=04e-c57&t=c>
(2/7, Zengerle) reports senators from both parties on Thursday “renewed
their push...to penalize Saudi Arabia for the murder of Saudi journalist
Jamal Khashoggi and address the humanitarian crisis in Yemen,” by
prohibiting “some arms sales” and imposing “sanctions on those responsible
for his death.” Democratic Sens. Bob Menendez, Jack Reed, Jeanne Shaheen
and Chris Murphy and Republican Sens. Todd Young, Lindsey Graham, and Susan
Collins introduced the “Saudi Arabia Accountability and Yemen Act of 2019.”
Bloomberg
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=04f-ea5&t=c>
(2/7, Flatley) reports the bill “faces an uncertain fate” in the Senate.

*NYTimes A1: US Intelligence Intercepted Crown Prince Threatening
“A Bullet” For Khashoggi. *In a front-page story, the New York Times
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(2/7, Mazzetti) cites “current and former American and foreign officials
with direct knowledge of intelligence reports” in reporting that “Crown
Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia told a top aide in a
conversation in 2017 that he would use ‘a bullet’ on Jamal Khashoggi...if
Mr. Khashoggi did not return to the kingdom and end his criticism of the
Saudi government.” The Times adds that US intelligence had intercepted the
conversation. The author of the New York Times report, Mark Mazzetti,
told CNN’s
Situation Room[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=051-3b8&t=c>
(2/7, 6:28 p.m. EST), “What this shows is that the Crown Prince made it
known he had every intent of killing Jamal Khashoggi if he did not come
back.”

*UN Inquiry Concludes Saudis “Planned And Perpetrated” Khashoggi’s
Murder. *Reuters
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(2/7, Nebehay) reports that “a United Nations-led inquiry into the murder
of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi said on Thursday that evidence pointed
to a brutal crime ‘planned and perpetrated’ by Saudi officials. ...
‘Evidence collected during my mission to Turkey shows prime facie case that
Mr. Khashoggi was the victim of a brutal and premeditated killing, planned
and perpetrated by officials of the State of Saudi Arabia,’ Agnes
Callamard, UN special rapporteur for extrajudicial summary or arbitrary
executions, said in statement issued in Geneva.” The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=053-88a&t=c>
(2/7) reports that “during its Jan. 28-Feb. 3 trip to Turkey, Callamard’s
four-member team met with the foreign and justice ministers, the country’s
intelligence chief and the prosecutor leading the case.”

The Washington Post
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(2/7, Fahim) reports Callamard said “that Saudi Arabia had ‘seriously
curtailed and undermined’ Turkey’s attempts to investigate Khashoggi’s
killing.” Callamard added, “Woefully inadequate time and access was granted
to Turkish investigators to conduct a professional and effective
crime-scene examination and search required by international standards for
investigation.”
Domestic Policy
Trump Accuses Schiff Of “Presidential Harassment” Despite “Zero Russian
Collusion.”

In a set of Thursday morning tweets, President Trump criticized House
Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff over planned investigations and for
hiring former Trump Administration officials to assist in them. Trump
tweeted
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at 6:13 a.m., “So now Congressman Adam Schiff announces, after having found
zero Russian Collusion, that he is going to be looking at every aspect of
my life, both financial and personal, even though there is no reason to be
doing so. Never happened before! Unlimited Presidential Harassment....” He
tweeted
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13 minutes later, “....The Dems and their committees are going ‘nuts.’ The
Republicans never did this to President Obama, there would be no time left
to run government. I hear other committee heads will do the same thing.
Even stealing people who work at White House! A continuation of Witch
Hunt!” About one hour later, Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=057-944&t=c>,
“PRESIDENTIAL HARASSMENT! It should never be allowed to happen again!”

ABC World News Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=058-f46&t=c>
(2/7, story 7, 1:20, Muir) reported, “President Trump tonight is lashing
out, as Democrats who now control the House have stepped up their
oversight.” ABC’s Mary Bruce: “Democrats in Congress are kicking their
investigations of the Trump presidency into high gear.” Bruce asked House
Speaker Pelosi, “Is there any concern that you’re in danger of appearing
like you’re overreaching?” Pelosi: “Whatever the President says about us,
he’s projecting his own unruliness. He’s a projector, and that’s what it’s
about.” Bruce: “The House Intelligence Committee is launching a sweeping
investigation into the President, his family, his finances and possible
Russia ties.”

The CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=059-e08&t=c>
(2/7, story 3, 2:00, Glor) reported, “When Democrats took back the House in
the midterm elections, they made it clear they intended to ramp up
investigations of President Trump and his Administration. Today, they
kicked it into a higher gear, and the President fired back.” CBS’ Nancy
Cordes: “Just one month into their new majority, House Democrats are
demanding sensitive documents that could shed light on how security
clearances were granted at the White House, how companies got contracts to
clean up after Hurricane Maria, and whether the President’s decisions have
been influenced by his foreign financial interests.” Schiff: “We’re going
to do our proper oversight.”

On NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=05a-f71&t=c>
(2/7, story 3, 0:50, Holt), Kristen Welker called Schiff’s moves “the
latest battle line as Democrats escalate their oversight of the President
and his Administration. ... Schiff has hired a former national security
council official. The President lashed out, accusing Democrats of stealing
people who work at the White House and of ‘presidential harassment.’”
Schiff: “What he calls ‘harassment’ is simply Congress doing its job. I can
understand why the idea of oversight terrifies him. So many of his close
associates and appointees have ended up in jail.” Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=05b-e8f&t=c>
(2/7, House, Talev, Jacobs) reports Schiff “has hired one former career
official at the National Security Council, Abigail Grace, who left the
White House last year. ... A second career employee detailed to the Trump
White House is also considering joining Schiff’s staff, according to people
familiar with the matter.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=05c-585&t=c>
(2/7, Wagner) says Trump “took fresh aim” at House Democrats, “claiming
they are going ‘nuts’ with unprecedented investigations into his
administration and businesses.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=05d-ab3&t=c>
(2/7, Oprysko) reports, “The investigation by Schiff’s committee is one of
a slew that the president will face in a newly divided government that is
now getting up to full steam after a monthlong government shutdown.” The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019020801biden&r=email-04b3&l=05e-d62&t=c>
(2/7, Haberman) says Thursday “offered an unusually stark comparison
between Mr. Trump’s unvarnished thoughts and his formal schedule