Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Robert Mueller continued to contradict White House talking points this afternoon: “‘It is not a witch hunt,’ Mueller said after Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff, D-Calif., noted that the president had often condemned the probe as just that.”
* A discouraging win for the administration: “A federal judge denied a motion for a temporary restraining order Wednesday against the Trump administration’s latest attempt to widely restrict asylum for migrants at the southern border, according to the court record and statements from groups challenging the policy.”
* The governor hasn’t resigned yet: “The Puerto Rican Legislature is ready to initiate an impeachment process against embattled Gov. Ricardo Rossello.”
* If I were in their shoes, I’d seek clarification, too: “Afghanistan has demanded the United States clarify remarks made by President Donald Trump, who said the country ‘would be wiped off the face of the Earth’ if he wanted to win the war in Afghanistan.”
* Francisco Erwin Galicia: “A U.S.-born 18-year-old was released from immigration custody Tuesday after wrongfully being detained for more than three weeks. Francisco Erwin Galicia left a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Pearsall, Texas, on Tuesday. His lawyer, Claudia Galan, confirmed he had been released, less than a day after The Dallas Morning News’ reporting about his case drew national attention.”
* This news seemed to jolt the industry: “The Justice Department is opening a broad antitrust review into whether dominant technology firms are unlawfully stifling competition, adding a new Washington threat for companies such as Facebook Inc., Google, Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc.”
* Arkansas: “The sole surgical abortion clinic in Arkansas was granted a brief reprieve after a federal judge temporarily blocked three laws restricting abortion access minutes before they were slated to take effect, likely forcing the clinic to close its doors.”
* I look forward to the Washington Post winning many awards for its series of reports on opioids: “Newly unsealed documents in a landmark lawsuit Tuesday in Cleveland show the pressure within drug companies to sell opioids in the face of numerous red flags during the height of the epidemic.” * NRA: “The National Rifle Association is beating back a new round of criticism from some of its own board members. In a letter to NRA leadership Monday, four board members called for an ‘outside professional to conduct an independent, internal investigation and confidential audit into the allegations of financial misconduct.’” * The latest reporting on Education Secretary Betsy DeVos “pulling strings” for failing for-profit colleges is important, but unsurprising. * A fight the state never should’ve picked: “A federal judge in North Carolina approved a settlement on Tuesday that prohibits the state government from banning transgender people from using bathrooms in state buildings that match their gender identity, ending a yearslong legal battle that prompted a divisive cultural debate.” Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
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." Recommended
