Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Big story out of New York: “Attorneys for Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance argued Monday that President Donald Trump should be forced to comply with a subpoena for his tax documents — and suggested that his company was under investigation for alleged insurance and bank fraud. The disclosure in a federal court filing adds a new dimension to the battle over the president’s financial records.”
* Giroir said it’s time to “move on,” and he’s right: “Dr. Brett Giroir, who coordinates the Trump administration’s coronavirus testing response, said Sunday that there is no evidence that hydroxychloroquine is an ‘effective’ treatment for COVID-19, despite President Donald Trump’s repeated boosting of the drug over objections from experts.”
* On a related note: “With schools, universities and businesses pinning their hopes for reopening on rapid coronavirus testing, the Trump administration’s testing czar told Congress on Friday that getting test results within two to three days ‘is not a possible benchmark we can achieve today.’”
* Paycheck Protection Program: “President Trump has blamed China for the coronavirus pandemic and the ensuing economic crisis, but as the White House looks to stabilize small businesses in the United States, the rescue effort has had an unintended beneficiary: Chinese companies.”
* Sentences like these are not reassuring: “[A] senior administration official refused to promise that any emergency approval of a vaccine would be vetted through the Food and Drug Administration’s outside advisory panel of experts.”
* DHS: “The Department of Homeland Security is removing its top intelligence official from his post amid criticism of his office’s role in the civil unrest in Portland, Oregon.”
* That’s a lot of money: “Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner earned at least $36.2 million as they served in the White House last year, reporting a boost in income from some companies they own that hold residential and commercial properties, new disclosures released Friday show.” * Ventilators: “[I]nternal emails and documents obtained by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee suggest that the Trump administration failed to enforce an existing contract with a major medical manufacturer, delayed negotiations for more than a month and subsequently overpaid as much as $500 million for tens of thousands of the devices — a costly error at a time when officials from some of the biggest states were warning of shortages.” * And speaking of allegations of misspending: “Rep. Sanford D. Bishop Jr. may have used thousands in campaign funds for personal expenses on gas fill-ups for him and his family, greens fees at country clubs, luxurious trips and school tuition. Further, the Georgia Democrat also may have spent more than $16,000 in taxpayer money for joint Christmas parties — featuring a saxophonist and DJ equipment — with his congressional staff and his wife’s employees, according to an Office of Congressional Ethics report released Friday.” See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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