Mediaboss Marketing

WASHINGTON (AP) House Republicans on Tuesday blocked an attempt by Democrats to use an obscure law to obtain President Donald Trumps tax returns from the IRS.

Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee tried to frame the issue as a matter of national security. They questioned whether Trump has any investments in Russia.

Trump has said he has no investments in Russia, and Democrats acknowledged that have no evidence otherwise. Thats why they want Trumps returns, said Rep. Joseph Crowley, R-N.Y.

The move came a day after Trumps national security adviser, Michael Flynn, was forced to resign over conversations he had with Russian officials before Trump took office.

People are concerned about Michael Flynn putting himself in a position to be blackmailed. What position is the president in? asked Crowley. Our national security is at risk.

The Ways and Means Committee has legal authority to obtain confidential tax records. The committee could then vote to make them public.

On Tuesday, committee Democrats tried to amend a routine annual oversight plan to insert a provision that called for obtaining Trumps tax returns. Republicans blocked it on a straight party-line vote, 23-15.

Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said the panel should only use its power to ensure that tax laws are being administered properly not to investigate the president.

As chairman of this committee I will not allow Washington to return to the bad old days when government officials used their powers to intimidate, harass and destroy their political enemies, Brady said. If Congress uses its power to rummage around the presidents tax returns for political purposes, whats prevents it from doing the same to average Americans?

Most famously, former President Richard Nixon was accused in his articles of impeachment of illegally obtaining tax records of his political enemies, and of ordering audits. Since then, federal law was changed so that neither the president nor the IRS commissioner can single out an individual for an audit.

Shunning decades of tradition, Trump has steadfastly refused to release his tax returns or to divest from his business. Instead, Trump said he has turned operation of his business over to his sons, while still retaining his stake.

Democrats tried to make Trumps taxes an issue during the presidential election, questioning his wealth and whether he generously donates to charity, as he claims. After the election, the head of the Office of Government Ethics scolded Trump for not divesting from his business, saying it is the only way to avoid conflicts of interest.

Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway has said people dont care about the presidents taxes.

Trumps tax returns would reveal a trove of information about his business dealings and his sources of income. They wouldnt show his overall net worth. But they would show his annual income and where it came from.

No one on this committee can say for sure that Trump doesnt have investments in Russia, said Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., D-N.J. We dont know.

Pascrell promised to raise the issue over and over and over again.

Im good at that, he said.

___

Follow Stephen Ohlemacher on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephenatap

Catch up with The Boston Globe for free.

Get The Globe's free newsletter, Today's Headlines, every morning.

Thanks for signing up!

View original post here:
Republicans block Democrats' effort to get Trump's tax returns - Boston.com

New York Times

Democrats' Quandary on Gorsuch: Appease the Base or Honor the Process New York Times But as the nominee, Judge Neil M. Gorsuch, goes through his paces on Capitol Hill, keeping a bipartisan schedule of Senate meetings, the process has laid bare the dilemma now facing Democrats at every turn, forcing the party into disparate factions ... McConnell: Democrats using double standard on GorsuchWashington Examiner all 143 news articles »

View original post here:
Democrats' Quandary on Gorsuch: Appease the Base or Honor the Process - New York Times

New York Times

For Democrats, Being Out of Power Has Its Perks New York Times House Democrats seemed jovial, occasionally even buoyant, last week as more than 140 members of their caucus gathered for a retreat in a hotel overlooking Baltimore's Inner Harbor, unencumbered by the raucous protests and heavy expectations that ... The Democrats Are Leading From BehindSlate Magazine Democrats Can't Move On From 2016 Presidential PrimaryDaily Caller Democrats consider their future and who to pick as party chairABC News Western Journalism -Philly.com -Baltimore Sun all 67 news articles »

Original post:
For Democrats, Being Out of Power Has Its Perks - New York Times

A major Democratic super PAC embarking on perhaps the party's only comprehensive public effort to assess what went wrong in 2016 released their first findings Monday, assessing missed opportunities among what it has determined are two key voting groups.

Priorities USA, which spent nearly $200 million supporting Hillary Clinton last year, commissioned two Democratic pollsters to the two blocs. The first is a group they've identified as "swing voters," who went from voting for President Obama to President Trump. The second is "turnout voters," who lean Democratic but stayed home on Election Day last year, such as millennials and African-Americans.

"Our initial research clearly shows that there are real opportunities to increase turnout and to reach swing voters who are already finding out that Donald Trump and the Republican Party will consistently turn their backs on the American people," said Priorities USA Chairman Guy Cecil.

The Democratic National Committee has so far not established any formal "autopsy" process, like the one the Republican National Committee famously created after their loss in the 2012 presidential election.

Some Democrats were frustrated by the lack of follow through on a similar postmortem report issued by the DNC in response to losses in the 2014 midterm elections. And after watching the RNC's 2012 report be used against Republicans who did not follow its recommendations, especially on immigration reform, they wonder if it's worth the trouble and money for Democrats to commission a public autopsy report now.

That decision will likely be made by whomever emerges as the new party chairman, set to be elected next week.

For now, Democrats can turn to Priorities USA, which as a super PAC depending on major donors, has a more pressing need to justify its existence than the official party apparatus.

Cecil will formally unveil findings of what they're calling "Project Blueprint" at a conference later this week. Later, he plans to travel the country to share the research with Democratic officials.

The research, based on surveys of Obama-Trump voters and three sets of focus groups in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Florida, argued swing voters are already having some buyer's remorse about Trump.

They were drawn to Trump by his businessman persona and the perception that he's not a typical politician, according to the group, so Priorities USA suggests Democrats work to undercut that image, especially among non-college educated women.

Related: In Race for DNC Chair, Tom Perez Pledges to Woo Back Red, Rural America

And their research found that congressional Republicans are far less popular than Trump with Obama-Trump voters, creating another potential avenue of attack.

Meanwhile, among "turnout voters," like African-Americans and millennials, disillusionment kept many of them home, but Trump may get them back out, according to the group.

"They were surprised about the 2016 outcome and are distraught about the prospect of four years under Trump," according to the Priorities USA memo, which was prepared in conjunction with the Global Strategy Group and Garin Hart Yang Research.

To target both sets of voters, the pollsters argue, Democrats should argue that Trump, despite his campaign rhetoric, is helping the rich at the expense of the middle class.

"Both groups are concerned about Trump and the Republicans putting the interests of wealthy Americans and corporate executives first," the memo continues.

It sees an opportunity for Democrats in defending Medicare, a perennial party messaging tactic, but also in sticking up for Obamacare.

"Democrats should not shy away from talking about the situation the Republicans have put themselves in regarding the Affordable Care Act: repeal with no replacement is a real concern," the memo states.

Follow this link:
The Two Key Voting Groups Democrats Need to Win Back After 2016: Report - NBCNews.com

Last Updated Feb 14, 2017 8:57 AM EST

After National Security Adviser Michael Flynn resigned Monday night, the reaction from Democrats was swift.

The ranking member of the House Permanent Subcommittee on Intelligence, Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said in a statement that Flynn had always been a poor choice to be national security adviser -- its not a job, he wrote, for someone who plays fast and loose with the truth.

Schiff went on to urge further investigation into contacts between members of Donald Trumps presidential campaign and the Kremlin, and he said that the Trump administration has yet to be forthcoming about who was aware of Flynns conversations with the (Russian) ambassador and whether he was acting on the instructions of the President or any other officials.

Connecticut Rep. Chris Murphy also tweeted soon after the news of Flynns resignation broke.

Rep. John Conyers, Jr., D-Mich., the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, D-Md, Ranking Member on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, issued a joint statement saying they were shocked and dismayed to learn that law enforcement officials had warned White House counsel Don McGahn that Flynn had given false information to the public about his communications with Russian officials, but the White House apparently did nothing about it -- neither to clarify the truth to the American public or to stop General Flynn from being an ongoing national security concern.

The two are demanding to know who had authority over Flynn and continued to let him have access to the countrys most sensitive national security information despite knowing these risks.

And Conyers and Cummings are also now calling for a full classified briefing by all the relevant agencies -- the Justice Department and the FBI.

Rep. Seth Moulton, of Massachusetts joked that Flynns departure could be the first thing the Trump administration has done that might actually improve our national security.

CBS News Walt Cronkite contributed to this report.

2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Here is the original post:
Flynn resigns, Democrats react - CBS News