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Darren Samuelsohn

2 Dec, 9 tweets, 2 min read

@davelevinthal

NEW: Biden has telegraphed his eagerness to move beyond Trump & not hamstring his own ambitious policy plans w/ what would be a historic federal action to prosecute the soon-to-be-former president & allies. But then there's the DOJ. by @davelevinthal ($)
ow.ly/nxLv50CB5sg

Indeed, the US Department of Justice made clear by revelations in court filings Tuesday that a probe into an alleged presidential pardon "bribery conspiracy scheme" is very much scratching at the Trumpian wounds Biden seeks to mend.

It's a development that underscores the cold reality every president before Biden has faced: They sometimes can't control their own agenda.

Making matters even more complicated is the fact the Trump White House has spent the last 3-plus years meddling to considerable degree with DOJ's affairs.

That means if Biden truly wants to liberate fed investigators from his predecessor's frequent heavy-handedness and let DOJ do its job w/o presidential interference, Biden has little choice but to let the DOJ make its own decisions about Trump, former DOJ officials tell Insider.

Under Biden, "we should expect that the DOJ will operate on its own time & operate as it has historically ... independent and freed from political influence," said Mary McCord, who served as acting assistant attorney general for national security during the Obama administration.

"If they think there is sufficient evidence that a federal crime has been committed, they will go forward, and they should," said Ann Ravel, who served as a deputy assistant attorney general during the Obama administration, and later, as Federal Election Commission chairperson.

"Trump will face no peril at the federal level because Biden is not going to waste his important political capital and resources going after President Trump," said attorney Alan Dershowitz, who helped represent Trump during his Senate impeachment trial earlier this year.

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More from @dsamuelsohn

Darren Samuelsohn

@dsamuelsohn

3 Dec

@tomlobianco

SCOOP: Donald Trump Jr. and his tight-knit team have been pondering taking control of the NRA, Trump advisors told Insider. by @tomlobianco ($) @Politicsinsider ow.ly/lp4m50CBQl6

It's one of many ways President Trump and his family are looking to cement their hold on the Republican Party with a series of moves aimed at putting themselves in influential places inside conservative circles.

Jared Kushner has discussed developing a media outlet. Lara Trump is looking at running for Senate in North Carolina. And even Kimberly Guilfoyle could find a home at NewsMax, Trump advisors said.

Read 14 tweets

Darren Samuelsohn

@dsamuelsohn

19 Nov

@Politicsinsider

NEW: Biden has leaned a lot on former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy for his healthcare & coronavirus planning. Now the 43-year-old doctor is on the short list to lead HHS, 8 people close to the transition told @Politicsinsider ($) by @leonardkl ow.ly/l2LU50Cptmf

Three of those sources said they'd been surprised Biden's team is considering Murthy for the job, given his lack of experience crafting policy or overseeing a major organization.

Despite his soft-spoken nature, Murthy has tangled with political controversies over the last decade — including with the nation's most powerful gun lobby — that could come back to haunt him.

Read 10 tweets

Darren Samuelsohn

@dsamuelsohn

18 Nov

@davelevinthal

NEW: Several prominent members of Congress & government reform groups say a 9/11 Commission-style bipartisan probe of the Trump admin's failings - aka a "truth commission" - is essential to overcoming them. by @davelevinthal @leonardkl & @KaylaEpstein ($) ow.ly/WC4a50CowNZ

This Trump truth commission could probe the White House's COVID-19 response, the government separating immigrant children from their parents, and the blurring of lines among Trump's governmental, political, and business interests, among other matters.

With the backing of Congress and the president, the commission could compel witness testimony, produce a public report, and offer recommendations for improving national governance.

Read 20 tweets

Darren Samuelsohn

@dsamuelsohn

18 Nov

@KaylaEpstein

NEW: After Democrats helped drive a record number of female lawmakers to Capitol Hill in 2018, Republican women swung into action and won big in the 2020 elections. @KaylaEpstein with a deep-dive into how the GOP turned things around. ($) @Politicsinsider ow.ly/GGAF50CofNa

Republican women will grow their combined number of seats in the House and the Senate to at least 36, up from 22 in the 116th session. Come January, Congress will have 142 women, its most ever — the vast majority of them Democrats.

While down-ballot Republicans generally performed well this year, their gains in the House are largely due to a rogue effort by Republican women to pull more female candidates into the primary process and back successful contenders.

Read 8 tweets

Darren Samuelsohn

@dsamuelsohn

18 Nov

@tomlobianco

NEW: Mike & Karen Pence have been plotting out which advisers will keep jobs with their PAC and who will have to find other work. There's also talk of Pence running a conservative college like Liberty University or Hillsdale University. by @tomlobianco ($) businessinsider.com/pence-2024-pre…

It's part of a wider strategy that Pence knows well from past runs for office (successful and not so much). He needs to find ways to keep his name in the spotlight if he wants to win the Republican nomination for president in 2024, his friends and allies tell Insider.

Maintaining a public persona is a similar strategy to the one Pence used the last time he lost an election - 30 years ago.

Read 11 tweets

Darren Samuelsohn

@dsamuelsohn

17 Nov

@davelevinthal

NEW: The Senate Committee on Rules and Administration is scheduled on Wednesday to conduct a confirmation hearing for three FEC nominees who would give the commission its first quorum in months. by @davelevinthal ($) @Politicsinsider ow.ly/urKR50CmW3x

On the docket are Republicans Allen Dickerson and Sean J. Cooksey and Democrat Shana Broussard, who if confirmed would become the Federal Election Commission's first-ever Black commissioner.

A lack of commissioners has largely sidelined the Federal Election Commission during the 2020 elections. Even before that, the nation's civil campaign finance law enforcer had endured numerous troubles.

Read 6 tweets

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