The Homeland Security Purge
On Monday, Kristjen Nielson resigned as secretary of Homeland Security. The face of the Trump administrations tough views on immigration, she will probably be most remembered for her defense of separating migrant children from their parents. According to CNN, Nielson argued that closing the border with Mexico would only bring an end to illegal trade and travel, but migrants would simply go between ports. Trump’s response was simply, “I don’t care.”
The next day, Secret Service Director Randolph “Tex” Alles was also removed. Most believe Trump is removing those he believes aren’t tough enough on the immigration issue.
Last week at Trump’s meeting with border agents in Calexico, California, he told them to no longer allow migrants in. After he left, the agents were told to disregard this order because doing so would be highly illegal. So while Trump clearly takes the hardest stance possible on the issue, others are thankfully still obeying the law.
College Admissions Scandal
The admissions scandal is still going strong in court. Thirteen parents and a coach will now plead guilty to bribery and fraud charges. Federal prosecutors want the defendants to serve at least some time in prison. It has been recommended that actress Felicity Huffman get a sentence on the “low end” on the 20 year potential prison range.
It was later revealed that sixteen parents, including Lori Loughlin, were indicted on money laundering charges in addition to the conspiracy to commit fraud charges they already faced.
House Hearings
Multiple Trump officials have been on Capitol Hill this week facing off against House Democrats. Attorney General William Barr has faced the most backlash. Barr claimed he would release a redacted version of Robert Mueller’s report within a week and Chairman Jeremy Nadler promised to subpoena more. Democrats were also upset that Barr would not say whether the White House had been briefed on the report. Additionally, Barr stated that “spying did occur” on the Trump campaign during the 2016 election.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin was also questioned. Mnuchin said his agency’s lawyers discussed releasing Trump’s tax returns with the White House. He claimed that it should not be considered interference because his lawyers were not directed by the administration. Democrats did not like that explanation.
Then, the House Judiciary had a hearing on hate crimes and white nationalism on social media. YouTube ultimately had to disable comments on the livestream because they were filled with anti-Semitic and racist remarks. Representative Ted Lieu angered some by playing a clip of Candace Owens claiming that Adolf Hitler’s motive “to make Germany great” was “fine”. Yes, that is the same Candace Owens that spoke at UConn on Tuesday night.
Louisiana Fires
Three historically black churches in Louisiana have been burned down recently. A suspect, 21-year-old Holden Matthews, was arrested on Wednesday. Matthews is the son of a law enforcement official and may have been influenced by “black metal” and its “history with church burnings.” He has been charged with three counts of simple arson on a religious building, which could lead to up to 45 years in prison. The exact motive is still unknown.
Measles
Officials in New York City declared a public health emergency on Tuesday after almost 300 cases of measles were reported. Fines of $1,000 are now in place for those who do not obey the mandatory vaccination order. The health commissioner has warned of parents holding “measles parties” in order to infect their children and thus potentially naturally immunize them. Measles was declared to be eliminated in the United States in 2000.
Data now shows that four other states — Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts and Nevada — have all recorded their first measles cases for 2019.