Subject: FW: Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing for Thursday, February 14, 2019
From: "Kathy Chung" <[email-masked]>
To: "Ashley Blazer Biden" <[email-masked]>, "Hunter Biden" <[email-masked]>, "Jill Tracy Biden" <[email-masked]>, "Jimmy Biden" <[email-masked]>, "Valerie Biden Owens" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2019 09:04:43 -0500

Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing

*From:* Bulletin Intelligence <[email-masked]>
*Sent:* Thursday, February 14, 2019 7:57 AM
*To:* [email-masked]
*Subject:* Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing for
Thursday, February 14, 2019

*Click to access
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=000-512&t=c>
mobile-optimized online version, including download options and an audio
reader.*

[image: Image removed by sender. Office of Vice President Biden
Intelligence Briefing]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=001-db3&t=c>

*To: Vice President Joe Biden*

*Thursday, February 14, 2019 8:00 AM EST*
Today's Table of Contents

*Biden in the News* <#SECTION_1>

• CNBC: Sources Say Biden Speaking With Democratic Donors About 2020 Bid.
<#S1>

• Media Analyses: Biden, Sanders Not Being Hurt By Holding Off On 2020
Decision. <#S2>

• Politico: Trump Camp Currently Focusing On Booker, Harris, Warren Bids.
<#S3>

• Writer Offers Harsh Assessment Of Biden’s “Gaffes.” <#S4>

• Some African-American Leaders Unenthused About Booker, Harris Bids. <#S5>

• Ex-Staff Members Continue To Hit Klobuchar With Allegations Of
Mistreatment. <#S6>

• Warren Chooses Lau As Her 2020 Campaign Manager. <#S7>

• Gillibrand Returning To New Hampshire This Weekend. <#S8>

• Congressional Hispanic Caucus Members Slow To Back Castro In Crowded
Democratic Race. <#S9>

• South Carolina Primary Looms Large In 2020 Democratic Nomination Fight.
<#S10>

• 2020 Democrats Hiring Diverse Campaign Staffs. <#S11>

*Leading the News* <#SECTION_2>

• Trump Hints At Executive Action To Build “A Big Wall” After He Signs
Spending Bill. <#S12>

*Foreign Policy* <#SECTION_3>

• Trump Again Cites Senate Intelligence Committee In Asserting “No
Collusion.” <#S13>

• In Wake Of Omar Comments, House Votes To Condemn Anti-Semitism. <#S14>

• Politico: Trump Confronted Coons About Abortion At White House Dinner.
<#S15>

• Nadler Wants Whitaker To Clarify “Inconsistent” Statements. <#S16>

• FEMA’s Long Resigns, Making His Deputy Acting Head Of Agency. <#S17>

• White House Security Specialist Files Whistleblower Complaint About
Kushner’s Clearance. <#S18>

• Senate GOP Moves Toward “Nuclear” Option To Speed Up Confirmations. <#S19>

*Domestic Policy* <#SECTION_4>

• US-Sponsored Security Summit Aimed At Pressuring Iran Opens In Poland.
<#S20>

• Pence, Officials Seek To Reassure NATO Allies Of US Commitment. <#S21>

• Trump Blasts Maduro For Rejecting Humanitarian Aid. <#S22>

• Trump, Mnuchin Say China Trade Talks Are Making Progress. <#S23>

• Pence Praises Polish Government For Protecting Against Huawei
Infiltration. <#S24>

• ISIS Releases New Propaganda Video As US-Backed Forces Close In. <#S25>

• Taliban: US Officials To Hold Talks With Taliban In Islamabad Next Week.
<#S26>

*Cancer Research* <#SECTION_5>

• NCI Pilots Early-Stage SBIR Grants For “High-Risk/High-Reward” Projects.
<#S27>

• Cancer Survivors, Advocates Recommend Long-Term Survival Plan. <#S28>

*Editorials/Op-Eds* <#SECTION_6>

• New York Times. <#S29>

• Washington Post. <#S30>
Biden in the News
CNBC: Sources Say Biden Speaking With Democratic Donors About 2020 Bid.

In an online article, CNBC
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=002-916&t=c>
(2/13, Schwartz) reported that former Vice President Joe Biden “has been
reaching out to top Democratic Party donors to discuss possibly running for
president in 2020,” according to sources. Biden “has recently signaled to
these donors he is leaning toward entering the race, but he had not made a
final decision,” the sources said. Biden “has indicated he is likely to
announce his plans in coming weeks, according to people who have been in
touch with him, including some of his confidants. Biden’s inner circle has
reached out to former staffers from President Barack Obama’s
administration, and his advisors have been holding conversations about
putting together a campaign, according to one person with direct knowledge
of the talks.”
Media Analyses: Biden, Sanders Not Being Hurt By Holding Off On 2020
Decision.

The Des Moines (IA) Register
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=003-2e1&t=c>
(2/13, Hardy, Pfannenstiel) reports that former Vice President Joe Biden,
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and ex-Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-TX) were atop a
hypothetical field of Democratic presidential contenders “in a December
Iowa Poll, but none has formally announced their intentions yet.” As they
bide their time, “a slew of other” 2020 Democratic hopefuls “have kept busy
hiring Iowa staffers and holding rallies in” the state. Woodbury County
Democratic Party chief Jeremy Dumkrieger “said Sanders and Biden both have
plenty of name recognition and support from previous Iowa caucus bids that
likely affords them more time to make a decision.” However, “time may be
running out on” O’Rourke “and any other lesser-known candidates who want to
compete in a very crowded field.”

        In a similar report, AFP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=004-9cb&t=c>
(2/14, Mathes) asks, “With nine prominent Democrats already declared as
2020 presidential hopefuls, and more than a dozen others mulling campaigns,
are heavyweights [Biden and Sanders] waiting too long to enter the fray?”
AFP adds that “observers say they are patiently waiting for the best
opportunity to jump in. ‘I think they both have time. They’re looking for
the right windows,’ Calista Lake, a veteran Democratic pollster,” said.
Biden and Sanders “would be among the best candidates in one crucial
quality, Lake said: the ability to defeat [President] Trump. ‘We have a lot
of good candidates, but in terms of who can beat Donald Trump,’ Biden and
Sanders ‘have an advantage,’ she said.”

        Striking a bit of a different tone, the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=005-b50&t=c>
(2/14, Viser, Scherer) reports that after months of deliberations, Biden
remains “on the fence, neither in nor out, in a lingering state of
political limbo. Some potential staffers have already defected, and some of
his supporters worry the prolonged indecision could begin to threaten his
chances.” But while the Post quotes what it describes as some “of Biden’s
close confidants and people familiar with his thinking” as saying he needs
to quickly decide whether to enter the race, the Post also quotes
Democratic pollster John Anzalone as saying, “The window is not closing.
... You are dealing with a guy who has 90 percent popularity among
Democratic voters. So why do people think that there has to be a rush?”
Politico: Trump Camp Currently Focusing On Booker, Harris, Warren Bids.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=006-e7c&t=c>
(2/14, Isenstadt) reports that President Trump’s “political advisers are
homing in on three declared Democratic candidates who they believe are the
most viable at this early stage of the campaign” --Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ,
Kamala Harris (D-CA), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). Trump’s “reelection
campaign has begun compiling opposition research on” the three “and is
eyeing opportunities to attack them. The effort began over the weekend when
the Trump campaign sent out a news release ahead of Warren’s launch
criticizing her past claims of Native American heritage.” Even so, Trump
“has told allies he” views former Vice President Joe Biden, “who remains
undecided on a 2020 bid, as the most formidable potential general election
rival.” But “among the president’s inner circle, there’s widespread doubt
that Biden could survive a primary.”
Writer Offers Harsh Assessment Of Biden’s “Gaffes.”

In a highly negative piece for the Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=007-f94&t=c>
(2/13), Victor Davis Hanson details what he says is former Vice President
Joe Biden’s history of “gaffes,” the concludes that the “gaffes are often
brushed off as examples of ‘Joe being Joe,’ but Mr. Biden has long
displayed the sort of sloppy, gross and politically incorrect behavior that
progressives routinely and ironically attribute to” President Trump.
Some African-American Leaders Unenthused About Booker, Harris Bids.

The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=008-561&t=c>
(2/13, Muñoz) reports, “Democrats have the highest-powered and most diverse
potential presidential field in history, including” African-American Sens.
Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Kamala Harris (D-CA), but “two black leaders say
none of them stands out so far.” Booker “doesn’t have a great reputation
with activists, said Hawk Newsome, president of Black Lives Matter in
greater New York,” while Harris “has a problematic background as a former
prosecutor, he said. ‘I hope black people can find a true champion,’ he
said.” The Times adds that Atlanta NAACP chapter President Richard Rose
“said support for candidates such as Ms. Harris and Mr. Booker will become
even more complicated as big-name Democrats such as former Vice President
Joseph R. Biden decide whether to run. Mr. Biden had 26 percent support
among black voters in a Politico/Morning Consult poll,” while Harris drew
“16 percent of black voters’ support” and Booker won the backing of “5
percent of black voters.”

        *Fact Checker: Harris’ Criticism Of Trump Tax Law “Nonsensical And
Misleading.” *In a “Fact Checker” piece for the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=009-725&t=c>
(2/13, Kessler) titled “Kamala Harris Leaps To Unwarranted Conclusions In
Tax Tweet,” Glenn Kessler says Harris has “attacked President Trump’s tax
law after the Internal Revenue Service reported that preliminary data shows
that the average tax refund check is down 8 percent ($170) this year
compared with last year.” Kessler writes of that attack, “Boy, talk about a
non sequitur that turns out to be nonsensical and misleading.” Kessler says
that “the size of a refund tells you nothing about a person’s tax bill,”
and he adds that “the tax law required the IRS to change tax withholding
tables.” Kessler says, “A person might end up giving less of their income
to the IRS – and still end up with a smaller tax refund.”
Ex-Staff Members Continue To Hit Klobuchar With Allegations Of Mistreatment.

The New York Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=00a-d18&t=c>
(2/13, Schultz) reports, “In the latest allegations of staff mistreatment
against Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a new report
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=00b-0a9&t=c>
says she tried to exact revenge on employees who sought new jobs by calling
their bosses to have their offers rescinded. Three former staffers and
another source told Yahoo News about the alleged employment practice, which
they saw as ‘vindictive, mystifying and counterproductive,’ the site said.”
The Post says, “The new claim comes after” articles by The Huffington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=00c-8c5&t=c>
and BuzzFeed News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=00d-4b3&t=c>
featured claims by ex-staff members detailing “hellish conditions working
for” Klobuchar. Former staff members “said they were subject to outbursts
over little matters and even office objects were thrown.”

        Drawing from the Yahoo! News story, the Daily Mail (UK)
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=00e-b15&t=c>
(2/13) reports that Klobuchar “would call her former staffers’ new
employers and try to get the employment offers rescinded. ... Staff told
tales of office harassment, including objects thrown, sometimes directly at
other people, along with outbursts of anger from the senator.”

        *Democratic Operative Palmieri Sees Sexism In Reports On
Klobuchar’s Treatment Of Staff. *In a piece for Politico Magazine
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=00f-982&t=c>
(2/13), veteran Democratic operative Jennifer Palmieri says that she sees
sexism in the coverage of Klobuchar’s alleged mistreatment of staff
members, saying, “I, like others, doubt that a male candidate with similar
staff complaints would have seen them become the lead narrative of his
presidential announcement.” Palmieri adds “that the reporting on such
behavior” by men “is presented in a dramatically different fashion than it
is in stories about female bosses in politics – as a badge of honor, not a
mark of shame.”

        *CNN To Host Town Hall Featuring Klobuchar On Monday In New
Hampshire. *The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=010-d07&t=c>
(2/13, Concha) reported that CNN will host a town hall event featuring
Klobuchar this coming Monday in New Hampshire. The event “will take place
Saint Anselm College in Manchester...and will air at 10 p.m. ET.”
Warren Chooses Lau As Her 2020 Campaign Manager.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=011-849&t=c>
(2/13, Korecki) reported that Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) “has tapped
Roger Lau to lead her 2020 presidential bid,” putting “a veteran staffer
with national campaign experience as well as deep knowledge of New
Hampshire in the role of campaign manager. Lau, who worked on election
efforts for Hillary Clinton and John Kerry,” managed Warren’s 2018
reelection campaign. The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=012-aac&t=c>
(2/13, Schor) reports, “The selection of Lau, an Asian-American,
underscores the emphasis Democrats are putting on diversity.”

        Bloomberg
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=013-f56&t=c>
(2/13, Kapur) reports, “Dan Geldon, a longtime Warren adviser who has run
her US Senate office, will be chief of staff to her 2020 campaign.” In an
online article, CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=014-dd8&t=c>
(2/13, Lee) reported that Warren’s “decision to put Lau and Geldon in two
such prominent roles reflect her reliance on a fiercely loyal and small
circle of aides she has come to trust over the years. The appointment is
also a historic one: Lau appears to be the first Asian-American campaign
manager for a major American presidential candidate – particularly notable
in an election that already features an unprecedentedly diverse field of
candidates.”

        *New Hampshire Journal Targets Warren With “Fauxcahontas” Ads Over
Casino Plan. *Meanwhile, the Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=015-ab1&t=c>
(2/13, Bedard) reported that Warren’s attempts “to make peace with her
history of claiming Native American heritage has run into a big hurdle in
New Hampshire where she is facing an ad campaign attacking her efforts to
help a tribe build a gambling casino. The ads, placed with the New
Hampshire Journal, show Warren in a Native American headdress beside the
phrase, ‘Fauxcahontas Casino.’” The spots, “put in the Journal’s daily
newsletter, demand, ‘Stop Elizabeth Warren’s Casino Plan.’” President Trump
has mocked Warren “as ‘Pocahontas’ for her claim to be of Native American
descent.”
Gillibrand Returning To New Hampshire This Weekend.

The Concord (NH) Monitor
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=016-c8f&t=c>
(2/13, DeWitt) reports that Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) “will kick off
her upcoming three-day swing through New Hampshire with a stop in Concord.”
Gillibrand “will take a walking tour of downtown Concord on Friday
morning,” before traveling “to Dover, where she’ll be guided on a tour of
downtown businesses by Democratic National Committee member Bill Shaheen.
Later in the afternoon, Gillibrand will meet with members of the LGBTQ
community in Somersworth.” Gillibrand is slated to visit Exeter, Keene, and
Hanover on Saturday. She also visited New Hampshire a couple of weeks ago.

        *Gillibrand Camp Hires More National, New Hampshire Staff. *Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=017-0e8&t=c>
(2/14, Schneider) reports that Gillibrand (D-NY) “has hired five additional
senior staffers to her presidential campaign, including a state director in
New Hampshire just before her second trip there.” Joining “Gillibrand’s
campaign are Semedrian Smith, national political director; Danielle Duffy,
chief operating officer; Gavrie Kullman, digital finance director; Pat
Devney, New Hampshire state director; and Shannon McLeod, New Hampshire
political director.” In an online article, WMUR-TV
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=018-214&t=c>
Manchester, NH (2/14, DiStaso) also reports on Gillibrand’s campaign hires
in New Hampshire.

        *Gillibrand Tweets Support For Denver Teacher Strike. *The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=019-675&t=c>
(2/13, Axelrod) reported that Gillibrand on Wednesday “endorsed Denver
teachers’ strike for better pay,” writing in a tweet, “We entrust our
children — our futures — to teachers, but we don’t come close to paying
them what they deserve. Teachers spend nights planning, go into their own
pockets for supplies and love our kids like their own. We need to pay them
a living wage. #DenverTeacherStrike.” The Hill added, “Hundreds of Denver
teachers took to the streets Monday to rally for increased pay.”
Congressional Hispanic Caucus Members Slow To Back Castro In Crowded
Democratic Race.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=01a-080&t=c>
(2/14, McCaskill) reports that ex-HUD Secretary Julián Castro (D) “is the
lone Latino candidate in the crowded 2020 Democratic primary field.” That,
asserts Politico, makes him “uniquely positioned to capture the support of
the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.” However, only “one of the 38-member
group has publicly endorsed Castro’s bid since” he announced his bid in
January – “his twin brother, Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), who chairs the
CHC and also serves as chairman of Julián’s campaign.” The hesitation “to
commit to Castro,” according to CHC members, “is largely due to home-state
loyalties or political caution in a race that’s still taking shape. Nearly
three-quarters of the CHC’s 38 members are concentrated in just four states
– California, New Jersey, New York and Texas. And each of those states
happens to have an announced or possible presidential contender.”
South Carolina Primary Looms Large In 2020 Democratic Nomination Fight.

The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=01b-e76&t=c>
(2/14, Greenwood) reports that in the battle for the Democratic
presidential nomination, South Carolina “is poised to be among the most
important early contests of 2020. Not only is the primary there the first
in the South, but the first where black voters will make up a majority of
the Democratic primary electorate, setting the state up as a proving ground
of the candidates’ ability to court a key voting bloc. Adding to the
crucial nature of” that primary “is California’s 2017 decision to push up
the date of its 2020 primaries from June to March 3, when voters in eight
other states will head to the polls for Super Tuesday.” Said ex-South
Carolina Democratic Party chief Jaime Harrison, “The person that wins South
Carolina takes a ton of momentum going into Super Tuesday.”
2020 Democrats Hiring Diverse Campaign Staffs.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=01c-972&t=c>
(2/13, Barrón-López, Thompson) reported, “In a departure from past
elections,” the 2020 field of Democrats running for president “are
methodically hiring people of color to oversee their operations.” Politico
said that ex-HUD Secretary Julian Castro and Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and
Kamala Harris (D-CA) “have all brought on black or Latino campaign
managers. Democratic candidates are well aware that an all-white and male
inner circle won’t be tolerated by the base anymore.” In addition, “Black
and Latino voters could sway primaries in critical early voting states like
South Carolina, Nevada and California. And as the base of the party grows
more diverse, Democratic operatives and pols say, 2020 candidates need
advisers who can communicate effectively with key voting blocs.”
Leading the News
Trump Hints At Executive Action To Build “A Big Wall” After He Signs
Spending Bill.

Media reports, including segments on all three major network newscasts,
indicate the President is expected to sign the compromise spending bill
crafted by Congressional negotiators. After that, Trump could move to
unilaterally build a border wall by redirecting previously appropriated
funds. ABC World News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=01d-79a&t=c>
(2/13, story 5, 2:35, Vega) showed Trump saying yesterday, “With the wall,
they want to be stingy. But we have options that most people don’t really
understand.” ABC reported that the President could declare “a national
emergency” and use “money already set aside for the Pentagon, Treasury
Department and disaster relief programs, moves that are sure to be
challenged in court.” The CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by sender.
Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=01e-548&t=c>
(2/13, story 3, 1:10, Cordes) also reported Trump “says that he’ll find the
money elsewhere, even if it means going around Congress,” and NBC Nightly
News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=01f-42c&t=c>
(2/13, story 4, 1:05, Alexander) that he is “hinting at plans to take
executive action, pledging to redirect other unspecified federal money to
pay for his border wall.”

        The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=020-a2d&t=c>
(2/13, Boyer) reports that in a speech “to law enforcement groups,” the
President yesterday “wowed to ‘finish the border wall,” adding, “As we
review the new proposal from Congress, I can promise you this – I will
never waver from my sacred duty to defend this nation and its people. ...
We will get the job done. It’s happening.” Trump “told police chiefs and
county sheriffs that the barrier will be ‘a big wall,’” adding, “It’s a
wall that people aren’t going through very easy. ... You’d have to be in
extremely good shape to get over this one. They would be able to climb
Mount Everest a lot easier, I think.”

        The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=021-c05&t=c>
(2/14, Colvin, Taylor, Fram, Lucey) reports Trump is “expected to
grudgingly accept” the agreement but “also signaled that he is preparing to
use executive action to try to secure additional funding for the wall by
shifting federal dollars without congressional sign-off.” Along those
lines, the Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=022-9d7&t=c>
(2/13, Enjeti) says in an “exclusive” report that according to “two sources
familiar with the situation” Trump “is leaning toward signing a
congressionally negotiated deal that provides funding for his proposed
barrier along the US southern border,” and that the White House “is
exploring ways to accept the compromised congressional solution and tap
other sources of funding available by executive order as a means to obtain
the full $5.7 billion they believe is necessary for a full barrier along
the border.”

        Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=023-be3&t=c>
(2/13, Oprysko) reports White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders “strongly
hinted” yesterday “that whatever Trump thought about the border security
package, he could ultimately act unilaterally to supplement the funding in
that deal by diverting money from elsewhere in the government.” Appearing
on Fox News’ Fox & Friends
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=024-cc0&t=c>
(2/13), Sanders said “the President said...he is not happy about” the
Congressional deal, “but it is okay because he will get the job done no
matter what. He has got alternative options, and he will keep those on the
table.” Sanders went on to say that the deal includes “some progress” in
that although House Speaker Pelosi “said she wasn’t going to give a dollar
for the wall, this has roughly $1.4 billion, that will go towards the wall,
that the whole country knows that we need, knows that the President is
going to make happen.”

        Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=025-19f&t=c>
(2/13, Cowan, Holland) reports Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) also said Trump
is “inclined to take the deal and move on.” Reuters says Graham also “told
reporters that Trump would then look elsewhere to find more money to build
a wall along the US southern border and was ‘very inclined’ to declare a
national emergency to secure the funds.”

        The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=026-8ee&t=c>
(2/13) reports “Trump could pull unspent Department of Defense construction
funds meant for family housing or infrastructure on military bases, or take
money appropriated to but not yet spent by the Army Corps of Engineers for
civil works projects meant to prevent future disasters like flood control
or dam restoration.” He could also “tap money allocated to help states
recover from hurricanes, fires and other natural disasters.” The President
“must issue an executive order declaring a national emergency. (No, he
cannot just tweet.),” saying “what he’s planning to do and under which
statute he plans to act.” The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=027-ec8&t=c>
(2/13, Fabian), Bloomberg
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=028-139&t=c>
(2/13, Wasson, Edgerton) and Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=029-a83&t=c>
(2/14, A1, Ballhaus, Peterson, Nicholas), among other news outlets, run
similar reports this morning.

        Sean Hannity said on Fox News’ Hannity[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=02a-bf5&t=c>
(2/13), “It’s not nearly enough money. Washington lawmakers, the swamp
creatures, they have once again let we, the people, the American people
down. This is a swamp compromise.” Mike Emanuel, however, reported on Fox
News Special Report
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=02b-89e&t=c>
(2/13), “Most sources do not expect the President to declare a national
emergency, recognizing that could get tied up in the courts.”

        House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC) said on Fox
News’ Hannity
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=02c-8dd&t=c>
(2/13), “This is a President who has performed over and over and over
again. He’s moved the embassy to Jerusalem. He’s brought back jobs from
China to America. The economy is roaring. We have got a number of people
that were hostages brought home. Every time they say he won’t do it, he
does do it. He’s going to do it this time. I’m confident of that. If he
passes this bill to make sure that the government stays open, so be it. But
I believe that he will take executive action to make sure he gets the
dollars that he needs to make sure that that wall gets built.”

        Charles Hurt of the Washington Times said on Fox News Special
Report[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=02d-1a1&t=c>
(2/13), “The big picture, I think, is this: We have known for a long time
Democrats and even a large number of Republicans are not in favor of doing
something like this on the border, in terms of a wall. The fact that Donald
Trump was able to get what he has gotten out of it, I think, it is a
positive thing.”

        Kaitlin Collins said on CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image removed
by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=02e-3f2&t=c>
(2/13), “You won’t see those White House aides go on the record to say that
the President is going to sign this because they know better than anyone in
Washington that the President can change his mind at the last minute.” Jake
Tapper said on CNN’s The Lead
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=02f-c06&t=c>
(2/13), “House and Senate Democrats are refraining notably from gloating
about the deal. Gloating about, for instance, the fact that the President
will get less in border security funding in this deal than in the deal he
turned down in December. Why are they being so mum? Hill sources tell me
congressional Democrats want the President to sign the deal and they are
afraid of doing anything that might push the President over the edge so
they are treading very carefully.”

        To the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=030-658&t=c>
(2/13, Baker, Haberman), the fight over the wall “was arguably the most
punishing defeat Mr. Trump has experienced as president, and it left the
White House scrounging for other ways to pay for a wall on the southwestern
border and rethinking its approach to a Congress now partly controlled by
Democrats.” The Times adds “Trump’s inability to reach a satisfying deal
despite the negotiating experience he regularly touted on the campaign
trail suggested that any aspirations of collaboration across party lines
may be even more elusive than he had imagined.”

        *Democrats Could Seek Joint Resolution To Rescind Trump Move, Force
Him To Veto It. *The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=031-962&t=c>
(2/13) reports that it Trump “decides to shuffle money in the federal
budget to build a wall at the southern border without Congress’ consent,
there are a few ways for Democrats to try to stop him.” Democrats “have a
bit of a secret weapon here, and it could be why Trump seems to have cooled
on the idea of a national emergency.” The Times adds, “Federal law gives
Congress power to rescind a presidential emergency declaration by passing a
joint resolution,” which “of course, Trump could veto the resolution. And
it would take two-thirds of Congress to override the veto, a high hurdle.”

        Breitbart
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=032-9b7&t=c>
(2/13, Key) reports that “Wednesday on CNN’s ‘At This Hour,’ Rep. John
Garamendi (D-CA) said
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=033-d4c&t=c>
if President Donald Trump attempts to use disaster relief funds to pay for
a wall on the US-Mexico border there will be ‘a heavy price.’” Said
Garamendi, “If the President goes over and overrides the appropriation
processes, overrides the authority of Congress by moving significant
amounts of money from one program to another, there is a thing called we’ll
see you tomorrow, Mr. President. You’re going to have to come back here for
all of your programs for everything. So the President needs to be careful
about that. He’s already learned what happens when you try to override the
authority of Congress, that was a 35-day shutdown. I would hope he doesn’t
want that again.”

        Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) was asked on CNN’s Anderson Cooper
360[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=034-da6&t=c>
(2/13) about the President’s claim that he has options most people do not
understand to get funding for the wall. Jeffries said, “It’s not clear.
What does seem to be the case is that this is more bluster and misdirection
from the President of the United States of America because he apparently is
concerned that despite his promise we were going to get sick of the
winning, all he does is lose, lose, lose no matter what.”

        Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) was asked on CNN’s Situation Room[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=035-daa&t=c>
(2/13) is congressional Democrats will challenge the President if he
declares a national emergency. Cardin said, “I don’t think this may be a
partisan challenge. I hope that Congress exercises its responsibility as an
independent branch of government. It is Congress that appropriates the
money not the President of the United States. The methods that he has
talked about using I think would violate the separation of branches and
really are responsibilities that only can be exercised by the legislative
branch of government.”

        *Conservative Lawmakers Want Short-Term CR To Give Both Sides Time
To Read Bill. *The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=036-23f&t=c>
(2/13, Dinan, Sherfinski) reports, meanwhile, that “House conservatives on
Wednesday demanded Congress slow the rush to approve the homeland security
spending bill, and suggested passing a short-term bill to keep the
government open while giving all sides more time to digest what’s in the
deal.” The House Freedom Caucus “said it was unfair to make lawmakers have
to digest a bill likely to run thousands of pages before a vote that could
come Thursday. The text of the bill hasn’t been released yet, with
negotiators saying they’re still writing final details.” The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=037-a5f&t=c>
(2/13, Brufke) points out “critics of the deal have also argued lawmakers
should be provided a sufficient amount of time to read the legislation,
which is slated to come to the floor Thursday evening.” The House “waived a
requirement preventing them from voting on any appropriations the same
day.”

        Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=038-124&t=c>
(2/13, Bresnahan, Ferris, Zanona) reports “House Democratic and GOP leaders
each briefed their rank-and-file members Wednesday on the still-unfinished
package, which appears to have broad support despite some grumbling on the
left and right – and amid cautious optimism that Trump will back it.” Said
Rep. Bill Flores (R-TX), “We should have a majority of the Republicans.”

        The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=039-82e&t=c>
(2/13, Cochrane, Edmondson) highlights, meanwhile, “remaining issues in the
spending package,” including “restrictions on where new fencing can be
built in the Rio Grande Valley and whether the legislation should include
back pay for federal contractors affected by the shutdown.” The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=03a-0cd&t=c>
(2/13, A1, Werner, Wagner, DeBonis) reports that the compromise legislation
“includes policy provisions specifying that members of Congress cannot be
barred from accessing any facility housing children, and contains language
aimed at making it easier for separated children to reunite with family
members in the US.”

        *Poll: Public Backs Border “Barrier” Funding 66%-21%. *A Fox News
poll
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=03b-355&t=c>
out yesterday found the public, by a 66 percent to 21 percent margin, would
prefer a Congressional spending compromise including funds for a border
“barrier.” On Fox News Special Report
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=03c-ad0&t=c>
(2/13), David Cantanese of US News & World Report said this is “huge
because it doesn’t say the word wall. This is where we are arguing about
semantics. The Democrats were putting out messaging points this week saying
there is no money for the wall.” Trump highlighted the numbers on Twitter
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=03d-005&t=c>.

        *Cruz’s “El Chapo Act” Would Use Money Seized From Drug Rings For
Border Wall. *The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=03e-622&t=c>
(2/13, Paul) reports that the EL CHAPO Act, proposed by Sen. Ted Cruz
(R-TX), “may be...Trump’s solution for funding his wall on the southern
border.” According to the Post, “The Ensuring Lawful Collection of Hidden
Assets to Provide Order (EL CHAPO) Act, first introduced by Cruz in April
2017 and reintroduced Tuesday, would divert billions in drug proceeds from
cartel leaders to border security.” The Post adds, “If passed, the
out-of-the-box bill would seize any money forfeited in the criminal
prosecution of Sinaloa cartel drug lord Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán and
reserve it for securing the border, including construction of the wall
along the US-Mexico border.”

        The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=03f-dc5&t=c>
(2/13, Feuer) reports that “American federal agents still have far to go in
their attempts to dismantle Mexico’s infamous cartels.” According to the
Times, “While Mr. Guzmán’s guilty verdict disrupted the relationships and
smuggling agreements the kingpin forged in his career, federal agents say
his empire remains intact and is now being run by his sons and his wily
longtime partner, Ismael Zambada García.”

        *WPost Says Congress Should Next Seek Deal On “Dreamers.” *The
Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=040-1dd&t=c>
(2/13) editorializes that the deal “delivers half a loaf or, as...Trump
sees it, less than a quarter of a wall,” but “with dysfunction having
become the Washington norm, it is practically a triumph that GOP lawmakers
summoned the will to break an impasse, forged an accord with Democrats
knowing it would displease Mr. Trump and plan to send it along to him to
sign or veto.” Adds the Post, “Good for Congress, and good for the Senate
majority leader...for schooling Mr. Trump on the art of the possible.” But
“even better...if...congressional leaders now take further steps to resolve
immigration disputes wrongly deemed irresolvable by conventional wisdom.
They should start by defusing the time bomb ticking for the more than 1
million young dreamers.”
Foreign Policy
Trump Again Cites Senate Intelligence Committee In Asserting “No Collusion.”

President Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=041-8eb&t=c>
at 5:58 a.m. Wednesday, “The Senate Intelligence Committee: THERE IS NO
EVIDENCE OF COLLUSION BETWEEN THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN AND RUSSIA!” The Washington
Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=042-67a&t=c>
(2/13, Wagner) reports that Trump has “continued...to highlight statements”
by Senate Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr “that its investigation has
found no collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign,” although Sen.
Mark Warner (D-VA), the panel’s vice chairman, has said he “‘respectfully’
disagrees with Burr.”

        *Judge Concludes Manafort Lied Repeatedly To Prosecutors. *USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=043-cbe&t=c>
(2/13, Jansen) reports US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson “concluded on
Wednesday that Paul Manafort had lied repeatedly to federal prosecutors
after having promised to cooperate in their investigation of Russian
interference in the 2016 election. The decision upends an agreement” that
Trump’s former campaign chairman “had struck with prosecutors before
pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy and obstruction of justice.”

        The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=044-ada&t=c>
(2/13, Lafraniere) reports the decision “may affect the severity of
punishment that awaits Mr. Manafort.” Jackson “is scheduled to sentence him
next month on two conspiracy counts, and he is also awaiting sentencing for
eight other fraud convictions in a related case.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=045-f30&t=c>
(2/13, Hsu) reports, “Jackson has said previously that she would consider
whether to order Manafort to serve penalties in the two cases
consecutively. Legal experts say Manafort faces a possible seven-to-10-year
sentence in his related Virginia federal case, which U.S. District Judge
T.S. Ellis III postponed this month to await Jackson’s ruling. Manafort
faces up to 10 years in his District case.”

        Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) said on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=046-cc0&t=c>
(2/13), “What it tells me is that the lies were about connections between
the Trump campaign and the Russians or between Manafort and [Russian
political consultant Konstantin] Kilimnik and the Russians, which were not
involved in the initial charges. In other words, he was charged initially
with money laundering, tax evasion, false statements. Now, there is
apparently proof of the connections between him and Kilimnik and the
so-called Ukraine peace plan, which was attractive to the Russians and
possibly offered to the Trump campaign.”

        Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) said on CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=047-b68&t=c>
(2/13), “I think Paul Manafort is protecting deep, deep secrets, that if he
told them would probably put himself and his family and the President – his
best chance at a pardon – at risk.”

        Jeff Zeleny said on CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=048-f5a&t=c>
(2/13), “It certainly leads one to believe, What is he hiding? Is he hiding
something else? Is he trying to protect the President? Is he still trying
to hold out for some type of a pardon or some type of a clemency or some
type of a something here?”

        *Stone Wants Judge To Make Mueller Team Prove It Did Not Tip Off
CNN About Arrest. *Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=049-be3&t=c>
(2/13, Choi, Samuelsohn) reports, “Roger Stone urged a federal judge
Wednesday to make special counsel Robert Mueller’s office explain why it
shouldn’t be held in contempt for violating the seal” on his indictment “by
allegedly leaking it to the press.” Stone’s lawyers argue that CNN
“presented it with a copy of the indictment without a time stamp from the
court records database, known as PACER, which it says is a sign the network
had the document ahead of time. ... However, the special counsel’s public
release announcing the indictment was sent out minutes before Stone’s
arrest, and it included a link to the same copy of the indictment without a
PACER time stamp.”

        *Prosecutors Probing Leak Of Confidential Reports On Cohen’s Bank
Records. *CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=04a-e1d&t=c>
(2/13, Scannell, Orden) reports on its website that prosecutors with the US
attorney’s office in the Northern District of California are “investigating
the leak last year of confidential reports about Michael Cohen’s personal
bank records which led to revelations” that Cohen “was profiting by selling
his access to the White House.” The bank transactions “became public last
May when lawyer Michael Avenatti posted a memo online outlining numerous
payments to Cohen from a company linked to a Russian oligarch,
pharmaceutical giant Novartis, AT&T...and others.”

        *Ex-Partner Alleges Avenatti Hid Money From Court During
Bankruptcy. *The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=04b-354&t=c>
(2/13, Finnegan) reports Avenatti “hid millions of dollars from the court
overseeing his law firm’s bankruptcy and used much of the money for
personal compensation,” a former partner at Eagan Avenatti alleges in court
records. Avenatti signed reports that did not disclose that he “opened six
bank accounts that received millions of dollars in legal fees during the
bankruptcy” under penalty of perjury.
In Wake Of Omar Comments, House Votes To Condemn Anti-Semitism.

The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=04c-eba&t=c>
(2/13, Dinan) reports that as part of its debate on a broader resolution on
the war in Yemen, the House yesterday “voted overwhelmingly...to condemn
anti-Semitism, in a vote Republicans orchestrated after” Rep. Ilhan Omar
(D-MN) “posted tweets over the weekend that were deemed anti-Semitic.”
Republicans “used a parliamentary tactic to force a vote on the language,”
known as a “motion to recommit,” that “orders a bill sent back to committee
and then usually reported right back with additional provisions.” The Times
adds “it’s a tactic granted to the minority, but it rarely succeeds.”
However, “Wednesday’s move...drew overwhelming support, with the chamber
voting 424-0.” Reps. Justin Amash (R-MI) and Thomas Massie (R-KY) voted
present. The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=04d-3f0&t=c>
(2/13, Stolberg) reports the two Republicans “said the measure should not
clutter a War Powers Resolution.”

        CQ Roll Call
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=04e-80a&t=c>
(2/13, McPherson) says Foreign Relations Chairman Eliot Engel “spoke in
favor of the GOP’s motion to recommit and Democrats followed suit in voting
for it, despite an earlier notice from the majority leader’s office urging
Democrats to vote against it.” The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=04f-072&t=c>
(2/13, Lim) said the resolution “does not mention Omar by name.”

        The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=050-283&t=c>
(2/13, Stolberg) casts the House as “adopting language put forth by
Republicans who have spent weeks trying to paint two freshman Democrats as
anti-Semites and dozens of other Democrats as their enablers.” The Times
adds “Democratic leaders are losing patience with a continuing campaign by
Republicans to smear Democrats as anti-Semitic when some of their own
leaders – including President Trump – have trafficked their own
anti-Semitic tropes and failed to renounce anti-Semitic followers.”

        To the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=051-479&t=c>
(2/13, Jaffe), “for now, the [Omar] episode seems to have demonstrated the
depth of support for Israel among most Democrats and the ongoing influence
of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC,” but “the
question for Democrats moving forward...is whether growing support for
Palestinians among the party’s liberal base will force 2020 hopefuls to
edge away from the party’s long tradition of unflinching support for the
Jewish state.”

        *Omar On Trump’s Call For Her To Resign: “You’ve Trafficked In Hate
Your Whole Life.” *The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=052-81d&t=c>
(2/13, Chasmar) reports “Omar fired back at President Trump Wednesday
after” he “said she should resign amid allegations of anti-Semitism.” Omar
tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=053-00f&t=c>,
“You have trafficked in hate your whole life – against Jews, Muslims,
Indigenous, immigrants, black people and more. I learned from people
impacted by my words. When will you?” USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=054-de2&t=c>
(2/13, Groppe) says “Omar’s election was seen in part as a rebuke to Trump
and his controversial order limiting travel into the United States from
several countries – most of them majority-Muslim.”

        The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=055-7fa&t=c>
(2/13, Debonis) reports, meanwhile, that “Omar, who has publicly
apologized, has been huddling with Jewish members of Congress to express
her regret, according to several Democrats.” The Post adds that
“prioritizing Jewish members of the freshman class, Omar is lining up
several face-to-face meetings with lawmakers whom she alienated as she
seeks to move past her comments.”

        *Pence: “At Minimum,” Omar Should Be Removed From Foreign Affairs
Committee Over Anti-Semitic Tweets. *The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=056-684&t=c>
(2/13, Axelrod) reported that Vice President Mike Pence on Wednesday
“doubled down on his criticism of [Omar’s] recent statements about Israel,”
telling MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell that the Democrat should be removed from
the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Appearing on MSNBC – Andrea Mitchell
Reports
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=057-c82&t=c>
(2/13), Pence said, “I think it was right for Democrat leaders to condemn
those remarks, but I think it’s important that people that articulate
anti-Semitic views are also held accountable. The Republican leadership was
right to condemn Steven King’s remarks and also to remove him from the
committee. ... There were consequences to what he said, and unless Rep.
Omar resigns from Congress, at minimum Democrat leaders should remove her
from the House Foreign Affairs Committee.”

        Breitbart
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=058-9c6&t=c>
(2/13, Key) quoted Pence as saying, “I served on that committee for more
than a decade. ... One of the things that always united that committee was
strong support for our relationship with Israel and a strong condemnation
of antisemitism. The truth is antisemitism is not just wrong. It’s
dangerous. And Polish Jews during the Nazi occupation experienced one of
the darkest chapters in human history. I’ll be at the Warsaw Ghetto
tomorrow, my wife and I will pay our respects at Auschwitz on Friday. It’s
important that the leaders in the Congress take a firm stand against
anti-Semitism. And I think it requires consequences in this case.”

        *Omar Clashes With CNN Reporter Over Fallout From Tweet. *The Daily
Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=059-f77&t=c>
(2/13, Hasson) reports “Omar on Wednesday snapped at a CNN reporter who
tried to ask her about the fallout over her recent comments blaming Jewish
political donors for Republicans’ support of Israel.” Omar “dodged
questions twice when asked about it by CNN’s Manu Raju,” who tweeted, “Omar
in no mood to talk about her controversies this week. First, she said: ‘No
thank you’ when asked to comment on Trump saying she should resign. Second
time I saw her, she yelled: ‘Are you serious?’ when I tried to question
her.” Raju added that she also asked him. “What’s wrong with you?”
Politico: Trump Confronted Coons About Abortion At White House Dinner.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=05a-abf&t=c>
(2/13, Orr) reports that during a White House dinner for religious leaders
and lawmakers the night before the National Prayer Breakfast, President
Trump “confronted” Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) “over the issue of abortion,
creating a tense scene in the White House’s Blue Room, according to three
sources.” Trump “laced into” Coons “over controversial moves to change
statewide policies on abortion that have roiled New York and Virginia
politics in recent weeks.” Said once source, “He saw a Democrat in the
room, a Democrat who’s known to be a person of faith, and he was like, ‘Why
aren’t you speaking out about this?’” The incident “underscored Trump’s
recent public focus on abortion, which has delighted his evangelical
Christian supporters.”

        However, the Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=05b-492&t=c>
(2/13, Morefield) reported that Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), in a Wednesday
tweet, disputed the “Politico story that reported a tense encounter between
[Trump and Coons] over abortion.” Responding to the story by Politico
reporter Gabby Orr, Lankford “took particular issue with her description of
the exchange: ‘I was in that dinner-POTUS did not ‘lace into Coons’ he was
not ‘in his face’ and POTUS was not ‘worked up.’ There was a conversation
about abortion but POTUS simply asked a question to understand Sen Coons
perspective- @ChrisCoons shared his thoughts and so [did]
@realDonaldTrump.”

        *Jeffress: “Never Trump” Evangelicals Are “Spineless Morons.”
*The Daily
Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=05c-0d1&t=c>
(2/13, Morefield) reports Robert Jeffress, senior pastor of First Baptist
Dallas, “one of the nation’s largest churches and a prominent evangelical
supporter of President Donald Trump, criticized so-called ‘Never Trump’
evangelicals as ‘spineless morons’ who ‘cannot admit that they were
wrong.’” During an appearance Wednesday on The Todd Starnes Radio Show,
Jeffress said, “Let me say this as charitably as I can. ... These ‘Never
Trump’ evangelicals are morons. They are absolutely spineless morons and
they cannot admit that they were wrong.”
Nadler Wants Whitaker To Clarify “Inconsistent” Statements.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=05d-598&t=c>
(2/13, Nakashima) reports House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler has
“summoned” Acting Attorney General Whitaker “back to the Hill to explain
what the chairman said were inconsistent statements made during an open
hearing last week.” Nadler said Wednesday that he wants Whitaker to clarify
“unsatisfactory, incomplete” answers in two areas concerning special
counsel Robert Mueller investigation. The first is “whether Whitaker
discussed his views on Mueller’s investigation with the White House before
he went to work for the Justice Department in 2017. The other is whether
President Trump or any White House official expressed displeasure with him”
following Michael Cohen’s guilty plea “to charges of lying to Congress
about a proposed Trump Tower project in Moscow.” In a letter to Whitaker,
Nadler wrote, “You repeatedly refused to offer clear responses regarding
your communications with the White House, and you were inconsistent in your
application of the department’s policy related to the discussion of ongoing
investigations.”
FEMA’s Long Resigns, Making His Deputy Acting Head Of Agency.

CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=05e-3f7&t=c>
(2/13, Sands, Vazquez) reports on its website that FEMA Administrator Long
announced yesterday that he is resigning. According to CNN, “Last fall,
Long was the subject of a Department of Homeland Security probe into
whether he was misusing government resources when he used government
vehicles and personnel for six-hour drives between his home in North
Carolina and FEMA headquarters in Washington.” The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=05f-133&t=c>
(2/13, Long) indicates Long’s “deputy, Pete Gaynor, will become acting head
of the agency.” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=060-461&t=c>
(2/13, Choi) reports “Wednesday’s resignation announcement” led one “FEMA
official” to say, “I’m shocked. ... This comes as a complete surprise.” The CBS
Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=061-e2f&t=c>
(2/13, story 4, 0:20, Glor) and NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=062-6c1&t=c>
(2/13, story 5, 0:10, Holt) ran brief reports last night on Long’s
departure, in which they highlighted the controversy over his use of
government vehicles.

        CQ Roll Call
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=063-ff0&t=c>
(2/13, Dechalus) notes Long said yesterday, “While this has been the
opportunity of the lifetime, it is time for me to go home to my family – my
beautiful wife and two incredible boys. ... As a career emergency
management professional, I could not be prouder to have worked alongside
the devoted, hardworking men and women of FEMA for the past two years.”

        According to the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=064-b26&t=c>
(2/13, Miroff), Long’s tenure was “marked by five major hurricanes,
multiple lethal wildfires and a tense relationship with his boss.” Long,
adds the Post, “clashed with” DHS Secretary Nielsen in September, “when
Nielsen appeared intent on forcing Long out of his job in the middle of
hurricane season,” and “the bitter feud intensified as an internal
investigation became public.” USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=065-733&t=c>
(2/13, King) says Long “drew praise and criticism for his agency’s response
to major disasters, including Hurricane Maria,” and notes Nielsen said in a
statement yesterday, “Over the last two years, Administrator Long has
admirably led the men and women of FEMA during very difficult, historic and
complex times.” Axios
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=066-12c&t=c>
(2/13, Axios), The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=067-726&t=c>
(2/13, Fabian), New York Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=068-ca1&t=c>
(2/13, Moore) and Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=069-e4d&t=c>
(2/13, Fordham), among other news outlets, also report the story.
White House Security Specialist Files Whistleblower Complaint About
Kushner’s Clearance.

NBC News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=06a-df1&t=c>
(2/13, Strickler) reported on its website that Tricia Newbold, “a White
House security specialist, “is “seeking official whistleblower protection
from the federal government after raising concerns about ‘unwarranted
security clearances’ for administration officials, including Jared
Kushner.” Newbold “filed the whistleblower complaint less than two weeks
after she was suspended without pay for defying her supervisor, Carl
Kline.” According to NBC News, the complaint “alleges Newbold raised
concerns with Kline about a security clearance for an individual as early
as July 2017.” NBC News says the complaint “does not identify the person,
but sources familiar with the situation told NBC News that it was Kushner,
the president’s son-in-law and adviser.”
Senate GOP Moves Toward “Nuclear” Option To Speed Up Confirmations.

The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=06b-1c2&t=c>
(2/13, Dinan) reports “Republicans took the first official step Wednesday
toward a rules change that would allow the Senate to speed up votes on some
of the president’s nominees – setting the stage for what’s likely to become
a ‘nuclear’ confrontation.” The Times adds that “while pleading for
bipartisanship, GOP senators made clear they’ll likely act no matter what
on a plan to cut the amount of debate time after filibusters to two hours
on most presidential nominees, down from the 30 hours currently allowed
under the rules.”

        Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=06c-f8b&t=c>
(2/13, Levine, Everett) says “the GOP-led Senate Rules Committee approved
procedural changes on a 10-9 party-line vote Wednesday that would limit
debate time for most nominees.” While “Republicans’ preference is to get 60
votes for the proposal, which would mean finding at least seven Democrats
to support the change,” if “Democrats resist, Republicans could still
change the rules via the nuclear option by a simple majority, which would
require 50 of the GOP’s 53 senators.”
Domestic Policy
US-Sponsored Security Summit Aimed At Pressuring Iran Opens In Poland.

The CBS Evening News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=06d-ee9&t=c>
(2/13, story 2, 0:50, Glor) reported Secretary of State Pompeo was in
Poland on Wednesday, where “countering Iran is the focus of a security
conference.” When asked what effect US sanctions on Iran are having, Pompeo
said, “Things are much worse for the Iranian people, and we’re convinced
that will lead the Iranian people to rise up and change the behavior of the
regime.” Pompeo added, “The sanctions are designed to deny them the wealth
and resources they need to continue to create havoc throughout the Middle
East, and, frankly, throughout the world.”

        NBC Nightly News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=06e-ba3&t=c>
(2/13, story 2, 1:15, Holt) reported the summit, which is being led by Vice
President Pence, is “largely aimed at pressuring Iran.” In an interview
with NBC, Pence said, “We begin work not just among Arab nations, but Arab
nations and Israel working together with the United States and our allies
to isolate Iran economically and diplomatically.”

        The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=06f-d33&t=c>
(2/13, Lee) reports Pence and Pompeo are in Warsaw for the conference, “but
France and Germany are not sending Cabinet-ranked officials, and European
Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini is staying away.” In what the
AP calls “a bid to encourage better participation, Pompeo and others sought
to broaden what was initially advertised as an Iran-centric meeting to
include the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the fight against the Islamic
State group, and the conflicts in Syria and Yemen.” However, the AP says
“Russia and China aren’t participating, and the Palestinians, who have
called for the meeting to be boycotted,” are also absent.

        Brian Hook, the State Department’s special representative for Iran,
told Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=070-024&t=c>
(2/13, Wroughton, Pawlak), “We’re trying to expand the number of nations
who are engaged and have a stake in the future of a peaceful and prosperous
Middle East.”

        *Netanyahu: Israel, Arab Countries Preparing For “War With Iran.” *NBC
Nightly News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=071-05b&t=c>
(2/13, story 2, 1:15, Holt) reported Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu “set off alarms” with a tweet stating that attendees were
attending the security conference “to advance the common interest of war
with Iran.” The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=072-0d2&t=c>
(2/13, Heller) similarly says that in Warsaw yesterday, Netanyahu “sent out
a belligerent rallying cry to his Arab partners at a US-backed Mideast
conference...saying he planned to focus on the ‘common interest’ of
confronting Iran.” While Netanyahu “has long used tough language against
Iran,” the AP says his latest comments, “which appeared to include a call
for war, went beyond his standard rhetoric.” Said Netanyahu, “I am going to
a meeting with 60 foreign ministers and envoys of countries from around the
world against Iran. ... What is important about this meeting...is that this
is an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries, that are
sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest
of war with Iran.” The AP says Netanyahu “used the Hebrew word ‘milchama,’
or war,” but his office “later issued a clarification, saying his remarks
had been mistranslated.”

        Under the headline “Netanyahu: Meetings In Warsaw Are In Pursuit Of
‘War With Iran,’” the Washington Free Beacon
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=073-657&t=c>
(2/13, Kredo) reports Netanyahu was speaking to reporters on the sidelines
of the Warsaw Middle East ministerial following a meeting with Omani
Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi. Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=074-7e6&t=c>
(2/13, Wroughton, Pawlak) notes that Oman “does not formally recognize
Israel. Nor do Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates, which also sent
envoys to Warsaw and which share Israel’s concerns about Iran’s nuclear
program and involvement in several regional flashpoints.” Reuters says
Netanyahu “has been trying to play up his diplomatic gains ahead of
Israel’s April election,” and “has frequently hinted at warmer ties with
Gulf Arab states.”

        The Times Of Israel
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=075-612&t=c>
(2/13, Ahren) reports that Netanyahu “said many Arab countries were
following Oman’s lead in moving toward more open interaction with Israel,
‘including at this conference.’”

        *Sunni Militants Take Credit For Suicide Bombing That Killed 27
Elite Iranian Soldiers. *Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=076-fe2&t=c>
(2/13, Dehghanpisheh) reports that “a suicide bomber killed 27 members of
Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards on Wednesday, state media said, in a
southeastern region where security forces are facing a rise in attacks by
militants from the country’s Sunni Muslim minority.” The Sunni group Jaish
al Adl claimed responsibility for the attack, the semi-official Fars news
agency reported.

        The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=077-9e2&t=c>
(2/13, Vahdat, Gambrell) reports that Iranian officials “immediately linked
the attack...to [the] ongoing US-led conference in Warsaw largely focused
on Iran, just two days after the nation marked the 40th anniversary of its
1979 Islamic Revolution.” The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=078-267&t=c>
(2/13, Erdbrink) also says Iranian officials “suggested it was more than
coincidental that it happened as the Trump administration was hosting an
anti-Iran-themed meeting in Poland that included delegations from Iran’s
regional adversaries, Israel and Saudi Arabia.”

        *NYTimes Report Links US Sabotage Campaign To Failed Iranian
Satellite Launches. *In a report titled “US Revives Secret Program To
Sabotage Iranian Missiles And Rockets,” the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=079-9f6&t=c>
(2/13, Sanger, Broad) reports the White House has “accelerated a secret
American program to sabotage Iran’s missiles and rockets...as part of an
expanding campaign by the United States to undercut Tehran’s military and
isolate its economy.” While it is “impossible to measure precisely the
success of the classified program, which has never been publicly
acknowledged...in the past month alone, two Iranian attempts to launch
satellites have failed within minutes.” Those two failures “were part of a
pattern over the past 11 years.” According to the Times, “In that time, 67
percent of Iranian orbital launches have failed, an astonishingly high
number compared to a 5 percent failure rate worldwide for similar space
launches.”

        *Giuliani Calls For Regime Change. *The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=07a-2f8&t=c>
(2/13, Sanger, Santora) reports Rudy Giuliani appeared at an event in
Warsaw Thursday and “call[ed] for regime change in Iran.” According to the
Times, Giuliani “contended he was there representing an Iranian opposition
group, not his ‘more famous client,’ President Trump.” Nevertheless, the
Times says Giuliani’s “unvarnished declaration that Iran’s leaders are
‘assassins, they are murderers and they should be out of power seemed to
set the tone for” the conference.

        Giuliani told NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender.
Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=07b-b61&t=c>
(2/13, story 2, 1:15, Holt) that speaking out against Iran at the same time
as the summit was “totally coincidental,” adding that it is “totally in
line” with his actions over the past 11 years.

        *Former USAF Counterintelligence Specialist Charged With Spying For
Iran. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=07c-471&t=c>
(2/13, Tucker) reports that Monica Elfriede Witt, “a former US Air Force
counterintelligence specialist who defected to Iran despite warnings from
the FBI, has been charged with revealing classified information to the
Tehran government, including the code name and secret mission of a Pentagon
program.” The Justice Department also accused Witt “of betraying former
colleagues in the US intelligence community by feeding details about their
personal and professional lives to Iran.”

        David Martin reported in the lead story for the CBS Evening News[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=07d-82e&t=c>
(2/13, lead story, 2:20, Glor) that Witt “first made contact with the
Iranians while attending an anti-American conference in Tehran.” Then,
“After Witt returned to the US, she started texting with a go-between, a
person holding dual US-Iranian citizenship, who was assessing her potential
as a spy. In one text, Witt told the go-between, she might ‘do like
Snowden,’ an apparent reference to Edward Snowden.”

        Pete Williams reported in the lead story for NBC Nightly News[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=07e-a96&t=c>
(2/13, lead story, 1:45, Holt) that “the FBI says agents warned her Iran
may try to recruit her as a spy, but that she said she’d never do that.”
Martha Raddatz reported on ABC World News Tonight[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=07f-9c2&t=c>
(2/13, story 4, 1:40, Muir) that “the FBI said her motive was
‘ideological,’ texting a contact, saying, ‘I am endeavoring to put the
training I received to good use instead of evil.’”

        The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=080-7eb&t=c>
(2/13, Goldman) reports that “as a counterintelligence officer,” she “had
access to ongoing counterintelligence operations and the true names of
intelligence assets and the identities of American officials involved in
their recruitment.”

        The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=081-cea&t=c>
(2/13, Zapotosky) reports the Justice Department “also charged four Iranian
nationals with attempting to commit computer intrusion and aggravated
identity theft in the case.”

        Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=082-ef2&t=c>
(2/13, Sullivan, Lambert) reports that Witt is accused of having “assembled
dossiers on eight US military intelligence agents she had worked with for
Iranian hackers, who then used Facebook and e-mail to try to install
spyware on their computers.” US officials say Witt “defected to Iran in
2013 and presumably still lives there.” Jay Tabb, the FBI’s executive
assistant director for national security, said, “Her primary motivation
appears to be ideological.”

        The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=083-08b&t=c>
(2/13, Mordock) reports Assistant Attorney General John Demers said, “It is
a sad day for America when one of its citizens betrays our country. It is
sadder still when this person, as a member of the American armed forces.”
The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=084-d2e&t=c>
(2/13, Viswanatha, Volz) reports the indictments are part of an effort by
the Administration to step up pressure on Tehran’s intelligence operations
against the US.

        *Trump Used Iranian Photographer’s Work On Twitter Without
Permission. *The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=085-819&t=c>
(2/13, O'Grady) reports to mark Monday’s 40th anniversary of the Islamic
Revolution in Iran, “President Trump tweeted a meme version of a protest
photo from Tehran.” He also tweeted a version in Persian. In an Instagram
post this week, “the journalist who took the photo, Yalda Moayeri, pushed
back against Trump’s use of her work,” saying that if the photo was used as
“a symbol of freedom everywhere in the world,” then it “would be a great
honor.” She added, “But having president Trump use it without my permission
in a tweet in Persian even is a great shame for me and causes me deep
sorrow,” adding that she took the photo in circumstances that were “very
difficult.”
Pence, Officials Seek To Reassure NATO Allies Of US Commitment.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=086-54a&t=c>
(2/13, Ryan) reports the Administration “reaffirmed its commitment to the
NATO alliance” on Wednesday, but “with a caveat that American interests
will always come first.” Vice President Pence, Secretary of State Pompeo
and Acting Defense Secretary Shanahan “were all in Europe expressing
solidarity” with the alliance “that President Trump has at times questioned
as obsolete and described as an undue burden on the United States.”
Following talks with Polish President Andrzej Duda, Pence said, “Under
President Trump, the United States will always put the security and
prosperity of America first. But as the President has made clear – and as
all of you prove every single day – America first does not mean America
alone.” Separately, Pompeo “visited US and Polish troops serving together
at a base some 44 miles from the Russian border,” and said, “We take
seriously those concerns that Russia may one day try to open a front along
the line right here.”

        Bloomberg
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=087-b4e&t=c>
(2/13, Carey, Krause-Jackson) says Pence “offered a full-throated defense
of the NATO alliance” and Pompeo “warned about Russia’s ‘grand designs’ on
Europe.” Said Pompeo, “Now, it is every ally’s responsibility to keep
Europe free. Russia has grand designs of dominating Europe and reasserting
its influence on the world stage. Vladimir Putin seeks to splinter the NATO
alliance, weaken the United States and disrupt Western democracies.”

        *Pompeo: US In Talks With Poland On Troop Increase. *Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=088-34d&t=c>
(2/13, Wroughton, Plucinska) reports US officials is in talks with Poland
“over Warsaw’s request for more American troops on its soil, but no
decision has been taken so far.” Pompeo told reporters, “We are taking a
look at it and I don’t know the ultimate decision we’ll make. But we will
make sure we have not only the right number of troops but the right mix of
folks out here to do the work that Europe needs and NATO needs and that
America needs.”
Trump Blasts Maduro For Rejecting Humanitarian Aid.

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=089-0f7&t=c>
(2/13, Superville) reports President Trump on Wednesday “called Venezuelan
President Nicolas Maduro’s refusal to accept humanitarian aid a ‘terrible
mistake’ and the decision an example of what can happen when the wrong
government holds power.” To the AP, Trump “seemed also to hint at future
action by the US and its allies against Maduro.” When asked “if he had a
backup plan should Maduro retain power, Trump said: ‘I always have Plan B.
And C and D and E and F. ... A lot of things are happening in Venezuela
that people don’t know about.’”

        The Washington Free Beacon
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=08a-36d&t=c>
(2/13, Crabtree) quotes Trump as saying, “We’re trying to get food to
people [who] are starving. You have people starving in Venezuela, and it
just shows what can happen with the wrong government. You have the wrong
government, bad things happen.”

        The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=08b-f93&t=c>
(2/13, Howell) reports the President’s comments came as he and First Lady
Melania Trump welcomed Colombian President Iván Duque and his wife to the
White House. Trump said Venezuela will be the main topic of the day. Asked
if he will consider using military might, Trump said he will “look at all
options.” For his part, “Duque urged the global community to step up
pressure, saying Mr. Maduro cannot hold out forever.”

        Duque told Fox News Special Report[image: Image removed by sender.
Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=08c-a08&t=c>
(2/13) that he and Trump “share the commitment that the dictatorship in
Venezuela must come to an end and that there has to be an opportunity for
the Venezuelan people to rebuild their institution.” Duque continued, “What
we have seen in the last month and a half is really unprecedented. We have
built a diplomatic blockade that has put the regime under pressure...and
this has isolated Maduro. And now you’re seeing members of the military
pledging loyalty to Juan Guaidó – I think this will generate a domino
effect. For me, this is the end.”

        The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=08d-4c1&t=c>
(2/13, Casey, Kurmanaev) says the “battle over the legitimate leadership of
Venezuela...is now focused on a single heavily guarded shipment of
humanitarian aid.” After the Maduro regime blocked the aid from crossing
the border with Colombia, Guaidó “heightened the stakes, telling supporters
that he would open a ‘humanitarian corridor’ to allow aid to flow into the
country by Feb. 23.” The Times says the pledge “increased tensions at the
border, raising expectations on both sides and setting a deadline to meet
them.”

        *Trump To Talk About Venezuela Monday During Florida Speech. *The Miami
Herald
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=08e-cf5&t=c>
(2/13, Smiley, Ordoñez) reports President Trump will travel to Miami on
Monday “to speak about the ongoing turmoil in Venezuela, a move that could
embolden [Guaidó] and put further pressure on Nicolás Maduro to flee the
country.” Trump is scheduled to speak at Florida International University,
“where he’ll reaffirm his support for Guaidó and, according to the White
House.” Trump, the Herald says, “is looking to increase pressure on Maduro
to leave Venezuela, while extending an opportunity to military leaders if
they will disobey the Venezuelan leader and allow aid into the country.” To
the Herald, the “timing is crucial as Trump and the administration seek to
keep momentum building against Maduro.” The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=08f-adc&t=c>
(2/13, Chaitin) likewise says that the speech is part of “an effort to put
more pressure on...Maduro to cede power.”

        *Guaidó Moves To Wrest State Oil Company From Maduro. *Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=090-3d4&t=c>
(2/13, Pons, Berwick) reports that the “opposition-controlled congress” in
Venezuela has “named new temporary boards of directors to state-oil firm
PDVSA...in an effort to wrest the OPEC nation’s oil revenue from” Maduro.
Reuters says that “although many Western countries have recognized [Guaidó]
as legitimate head of state, Maduro retains control of state institutions
and Guaidó needs funds if he is to assemble an interim government.
Controlling PDVSA’s US refiner Citgo Petroleum, Venezuela’s most valuable
foreign asset, would go some way to helping in that, though seizing the
reigns of PDVSA itself seems improbable while Maduro remains in power.”

        The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=091-d8a&t=c>
(2/13, Pérez-Peña, Dzhambazova), meanwhile, reports that “millions of
dollars have been siphoned from Venezuela’s state oil company into a small
bank almost 6,000 miles away, in Bulgaria, officials there said on
Wednesday as they disclosed an investigation into suspected money
laundering.” The Bulgarian government has frozen accounts at the bank, and
“is looking into accounts at other institutions as well,” but officials
said “much of the money...has already been transferred to accounts outside
of Bulgaria.”

        *Bloomberg Analysis: Cocaine Profits Limit Defections Of Military
Officers. *Under the headline “With Cocaine Flowing, the Push to Pry
Generals From Maduro Hits a Snag,” Bloomberg
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=092-46d&t=c>
(2/13, Bronner, Rosati) reports that in Venezuela, “a country with more
than 2,000 generals and admirals, only one top officer – who commands no
troops – has pledged allegiance to Guaidó” even though National Security
Adviser Bolton “recently offered to remove sanctions against military
chiefs who join Guaidó.” The DEA “recently estimated that 15 to 20 tons of
cocaine still move from Venezuela to the US each month,” and “much of the
illicit traffic is controlled by Venezuelan military officers and
government officials.”

        The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=093-076&t=c>
(2/13, Luhnow, Forero) reports that while many in Venezuela’s opposition
and the US thought Maduro’s regime would collapse quickly after the
Administration threw its support behind Guaidó, three weeks later it
remains in place. The Journal warns that the longer Maduro remains in
office, the greater chance of a prolonged stalemate.

        The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=094-4c5&t=c>
(2/13, A1, Puglie) likewise says that “hopes [are] fading for a quick and
bloodless resolution” to the crisis as Guaidó has “failed so far to win
over the military.” Maduro is now “resorting to a tried-and-tested strategy
of running out the clock on any challenge to his power.”

        *Omar Slams US Special Envoy Over Iran-Contra. *The Washington
Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=095-d9f&t=c>
(2/13, Kasperowicz) reports Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) on Wednesday “angered
Trump administration Special Envoy to Venezuela Elliott Abrams by saying
his role in the Iran-Contra scandal gives her no reason to think he can be
truthful before Congress.” Abrams “appeared at a House Foreign Affairs
Committee hearing to talk about Venezuela,” and Omar “started her portion
of the hearing by saying she doesn’t trust him.” Said Omar, “I fail to
understand why members of this committee of the American people should find
any testimony that you give today to be truthful.” Abrams “tried to reply,”
but “Omar said she hadn’t asked him a question,” remarking, “That was not a
question. ... Thank you for your participation.”
Trump, Mnuchin Say China Trade Talks Are Making Progress.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=096-94b&t=c>
(2/13, Blanchard, Wen) reports that President Trump said yesterday that
“trade talks with China were ‘going along very well’ as the world’s two
largest economies try to resolve their seven-month tariff war ahead of a
March 1 deadline for a deal.” According to Reuters, Trump’s comments
“echoed” those of Treasury Secretary Mnuchin, “who earlier told reporters
in Beijing: ‘So far, so good,’ when asked about the progress of talks.”
Reuters says Mnuchin and USTR Lighthizer will meet with Vice Premier Liu
He, “the top economic adviser to Chinese President Xi Jinping, on Thursday
and Friday,” and then “will meet with Xi on Friday.”
Pence Praises Polish Government For Protecting Against Huawei Infiltration.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=097-e4d&t=c>
(2/13) reports that in Warsaw on Wednesday, Vice President Pence “praised
Poland...for its commitment to ‘protecting the telecoms sector from China,’
as part of a concerted push by the United States to convince its allies to
exclude tech giant Huawei from telecoms projects.” According to Reuters,
“Fueled by concerns that Huawei products could be used by China for
espionage,” Pence and Secretary of State Pompeo “have stressed the dangers
of collaborating with the Chinese firm during appearances in Poland and
central European neighbors this week.” In January, “Poland arrested a
Chinese employee of Huawei and a former Polish security official on spying
allegations,” and the Polish government is “also considering excluding
Huawei equipment from its future 5G network.”

        The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=098-e4c&t=c>
(2/13, Chan, Gillies) reports that Huawei, “the world’s biggest telecom
gear producer and one of the top smartphone makers, has embarked on a
global push to win consumers and burnish its brand.” According to the AP,
“It sponsors Australian rugby, funds research at universities around the
world, and brings foreign students to China for technical training. It has
promoted classical music concerts in Europe and donated pianos to New
Zealand schools.”

        *White House Preparing Executive Order Banning Huawei From US
Networks. *The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=099-cdd&t=c>
(2/13, Cloud) reports that the White House is “preparing a sweeping
executive order that could bar Chinese companies from selling equipment for
use in future US telecommunications networks, claiming Beijing could
exploit the technology to carry out cyber intrusions and espionage.”
According to the Times, the “main target of the draft order, expected to be
released in days, is Huawei,” and “would not affect US consumer electronics
companies.” The order, however, “is certain to further inflame tensions
with Beijing.”
ISIS Releases New Propaganda Video As US-Backed Forces Close In.

ABC World News Tonight
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=09a-d88&t=c>
(2/13, story 7, 1:30, Muir) reported ISIS on Wednesday released a new
propaganda video of their assault on Kurdish forces in eastern Syria, where
the US-backed troops are closing in on the last bit of territory held by
the group. James Longman reported, “Their propaganda shows them hitting
their targets, but their celebrations sound desperate as they struggle to
hold onto the town of Baghouz, the last ISIS-held village in war-ravaged
Syria.” The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=09b-12f&t=c>
(2/13, El Deeb, Abdul-Zahra) reports that more than 200 ISIS militants,
“many of them foreigners, surrendered to US-backed fighters in eastern
Syria on Wednesday” as fighting continued.

        The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=09c-43b&t=c>
(2/13, Loveluck) reports that “hundreds of people have trudged out” of
Baghouz since Tuesday, “surrendering to US-backed forces before their final
assault to capture the only village still in the militants’ hands.” After
three days of fighting, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces “gave the
village’s remaining inhabitants a chance to flee or give themselves up.
More than 1,200 people had accepted the offer since Tuesday, American aid
workers said.”
Taliban: US Officials To Hold Talks With Taliban In Islamabad Next Week.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=09d-5c9&t=c>
(2/13, Sediqi) reports Taliban negotiators will meet their US counterparts
on Feb. 18 in Islamabad “as part of accelerating diplomacy to end more than
17 years of war in Afghanistan, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said
on Wednesday.” A “State Department representative,” however, said in a
statement that the US had “not received a formal invitation to any talks.”
Reuters notes the talks would come “a week ahead of previously scheduled
negotiations between the two sides in Qatar on Feb. 25.”
Cancer Research
NCI Pilots Early-Stage SBIR Grants For “High-Risk/High-Reward” Projects.

BioCentury
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=09e-2b4&t=c>
(2/13, Zipkin) reports that “the National Cancer Institute is developing a
$150,000 early stage Small Business Innovation Research concept grant to
help companies generate feasibility data that can propel them into Phase I
studies.” The NCI’s National Cancer Advisory Board recommended the pilot
program to grant as much as $150,000 “to each of 10 quickly vetted
‘high-risk/high-reward’ projects.” The advisory board also recommended
increasing Phase I awards to $400,000. The report adds, “On Twitter, NCI
Director Norman (Ned) Sharpless said he looked forward to implementing the
recommendations.”
Cancer Survivors, Advocates Recommend Long-Term Survival Plan.

USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=09f-472&t=c>
(2/13, Painter) reports on the need for people who have been treated for
cancer to draw up a long-term plan to survive the disease. Cancer survivors
and major advocacy organizations give generally the same advice – to create
“a survivorship care plan” that includes “a record of all the medications,
radiation doses, surgeries or other therapies you received so that you can
share them with other providers.” That time could be far in the future, as
more patients survive cancer for five years or more. Julia Rowland, who
formerly headed up the National Cancer Institute’s Office of Cancer
Survivorship and is currently a senior strategic adviser at the Smith
Center for Healing and the Arts in Washington, urged people who were
treated long ago to round up the details “because we get new information
every day about late-occurring outcomes.”

        In a separate report, USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=0a0-3b7&t=c>
(2/13) says that cancer patients who have completed treatment should leave
a healthcare provider with a plan for the future in hand, but too few
institutions are taking part in the process recommended by the
then-Institute of Medicine 13 years ago, when it described survivors as
“lost in transition.”
Editorials/Op-Eds
New York Times.

*“Flashing Yellow Light In France.”* In an editorial, the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=0a1-42e&t=c>
(2/13) asserts the “yellow vest” movement “could have consequences well
beyond France’s borders,” as “one of the major sources of discontent behind
the protests,” namely the “sense of alienation” between the common people
and “the urban, self-perpetuating elites running the country,” is also
“very much a part of the grass-roots discontent behind the vote for Brexit
in Britain and for President Trump in the United States, and the populist
movements pulling Europe apart.” As a result, French President Emmanuel
Macron’s “‘great debate’ with the Yellow Vests has thus become a great
debate on the future of Europe, with the May elections looming as a major
test. The 41-year-old president is right to stick to his reforms and his
vision of European unity, but if they are to survive, he must convince his
own heartland that he really feels its pain.”
Washington Post.

*“The Border Security Compromise Is A Good Start. Now Help The ‘Dreamers.’”*
The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=0a2-9d6&t=c>
(2/13) editorializes that the border deal “delivers half a loaf or, as
[President] Trump sees it, less than a quarter of a wall,” but “with
dysfunction having become the Washington norm, it is practically a triumph
that GOP lawmakers summoned the will to break an impasse, forged an accord
with Democrats knowing it would displease Mr. Trump and plan to send it
along to him to sign or veto.” Adds the Post, “Good for Congress, and good
for the Senate majority leader...for schooling Mr. Trump on the art of the
possible.” But “even better...if...congressional leaders now take further
steps to resolve immigration disputes wrongly deemed irresolvable by
conventional wisdom. They should start by defusing the time bomb ticking
for the more than 1 million young dreamers.”

        *“Egyptians Face Another 15 Grim Years Of Tyranny. Trump Has Yet To
Speak Up.” *A Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=0a3-2a1&t=c>
(2/13) editorial criticizes a move by the Egyptian parliament that could
let President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi remain in office past a constitutional
deadline, which it says will remove “all checks on his power and tenure,”
and the Administration, which “has had nothing to say about the changes,
including during a visit by Secretary of State Pompeo to Cairo last month.
As Egyptians grimly consider the prospect of 15 more years of tyranny, they
have the Trump administration, as well as Mr. Sissi, to thank.”

        *“A New Bill Would Shine A Light On Police Misconduct In Maryland.”
*In an editorial, the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=0a4-ff6&t=c>
(2/13) criticizes Maryland’s Public Information Act for the “secrecy that
shrouds investigations of police misconduct” in the state. The Post cites
the case of Teleta Dashiell, who allegedly overheard a Maryland State
Police sergeant refer to her by a racial slur in 2009, and her inability to
receive any confirmation from the state that the unnamed police officer
received adequate punishment following her complaint. The Post writes its
support for Maryland Delegate Erek Barron’s new legislation that “would put
Maryland among 27 other states that allow some public access to records of
police misconduct,” and it calls for Maryland’s police to accept new
oversight in exchange for the continuation of public trust.

*Copyright 2019 by Bulletin Intelligence LLC* Reproduction or
redistribution without permission prohibited. Content is drawn from
thousands of newspapers, national magazines, national and local television
programs, radio broadcasts, social-media platforms and additional forms of
open-source data. Sources for Bulletin Intelligence audience-size estimates
include Scarborough, GfK MRI, comScore, Nielsen, and the Audit Bureau of
Circulation. Data from and access to third party social media platforms,
including but not limited to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and others, is
subject to the respective platform’s terms of use. Services that include
Factiva content are governed by Factiva’s terms of use
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=0a5-b17&t=c>.
Services including embedded Tweets are also subject to Twitter for
Website's information and privacy policies
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2019021401biden&r=email-5004&l=0a6-004&t=c>.
The Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing is published five
days a week by Bulletin Intelligence, which creates custom briefings for
government and corporate leaders. We can be found on the Web at
BulletinIntelligence.com, or called at (703) 483-6100