| | | | | President Trump speaks during the 2019 White House Business Section with governors in the State Dining Room on Monday. Credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images | | What the White House is Talking About:
This morning, President Trump gave remarks to Republican governors. This afternoon, he leaves Washington for Hanoi, Vietnam, and his second summit with North Korea leader Kim Jong Un.
What the White House Press Corps is Talking About:
Most of the White House press corps is already on the ground in Hanoi, exploring the sights ahead of Trump's arrival.
A Summit with Low Expectation, High Pressure:
The President says his first summit with Kim Jong Un was a great success that has led to the stoppage of North Korea nuclear testing. Trump's critics say it was no more than a grip-and-grin photo op with a notorious dictator -- and no real concrete objectives to ending Kim's regime and nuclear objectives. So, this time, the pressure is on Trump to deliver a more precise and compelling discussion about the future of North Korea and its relationship with the United States. Can he do it? That's TBD.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appears to have a different belief than his boss about the threat North Korea imposes.
This is also a week, of course, that coincides with the expected testimony of former Trump "fixer" Michael Cohen on Capitol Hill -- which will make for a fascinating split screen of news.
Meanwhile, Mike Pence ... :
Vice President Mike Pence is on a trip to Colombia during a dicey time in the region. Pence plans to meet with Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido. Per our reporting: "The White House said Pence would 'voice the United States' unwavering support for interim President Juan Guaido and highlight the Venezuelan people's fight for democracy over dictatorship.' Guaido, who arrived in Bogota Sunday, is battling President Nicolas Maduro for control of Venezuela. He has called for other nations to send aid to the country in response to worsening food and medicine shortages. But Maduro -- who won re-election in a widely-criticized vote last year -- denies that a humanitarian crisis exists in Venezuela and suggests that aid efforts are part of a US plot to orchestrate a coup." Pence, also a hugger: | | Credit: @VPPressSec/Twitter
Also, The Fourth of July is Already a Thing:
Did you guys see Trump's tweet over the weekend about how we're going to celebrate America with a parade and fireworks on July 4th? That reminds me of ... July 4th.
"I Wish Everyday for George Bush Again":
Former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, ailing and retired in Las Vegas, spoke with Dana Bash over the weekend, and lamented, among other things, that George W. Bush was not president anymore. It's a great and wide-ranging interview, and Reid, whose famous acid-tongue is still in tact, does not hold back on his feelings about the state of politics in America.
Oscars So Dull:
I was bored. Sorry. I think the thing with the Oscars is that it's not really as special-feeling as it once was, and that's mostly because now we see celebrities all the time. With social media, we see them at every party, getting dressed for every event, going out to parties, with friends, on vacations ... so seeing them on a red carpet is simply not as much as a spectacle as it once was. At least, that's my theory. Also, the fashion was boring and every star should fire their stylist and start over. Disagree?
Or, they should have worn to the Oscars what they wore to the Vanity Fair Oscar Party because that red carpet was soooo much better. Case in point, JLo. I thought her Oscar dress -- a mirror-effect Tom Ford -- looked uncomfortable, frankly. It was interesting, sure, but it wasn't great. However, this sort of peacock-y Zuhair Murad worn to the after-party was so sexy and unique and Hollywood. Even her hair was better. | | Credit: Steve Granitz/WireImage, John Shearer/Getty Images
Save the Date: Easter Egg Roll 2019:
The first lady's office announced this morning the annual Easter Egg Roll will be held on April 22. Here's a link to the online ticket lottery, which opens on 2/28.
Dress Like the First Lady:
Last night, Melania Trump hosted the annual Governors' Ball at the White House, a black-tie event in the State Dining Room. She wore a very chic tuxedo-inspired look, IMHO, but you know I love a lady tux. The shirt was this Giorgio Armani sleeveless number, available here for $1,295. She paired it with a long Ralph Lauren Collection skirt, available here for $2,290, and added a cummerbund-style belt. | | | Credit: @FLOTUS/Twitter, giorgioarmani.com, ralphlauren.com: | | What Washington is Talking About:
The House Rules Committee is holding a hearing on President Trump's national emergency declaration; lawmakers face an impending debt limit deadline this Saturday; and it's finally Michael Cohen week, with Trump's former attorney scheduled to testify before multiple committees, including publicly before the House Oversight Committee on Wednesday.
What America is Talking About:
The Oscars, from Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper's rendition of "Shallow" to "Green Book" winning best picture; and R. Kelly, who was indicted Friday on 10 counts of aggravated sexual abuse and failed to make bail.
Most Americans Feel Good About US World Image:
Here's a poll you might find surprising. Gallup found 58% of Americans believe the US rates favorably in the world's eyes, the highest point since 2003. | | Credit: Gallup
That rise is driven by an increase among independents (Democrats and Republicans haven't changed their opinions since last year).
There's No Actual Border Crisis, Ex-Nat Sec Officials Say:
A letter signed by 58 former national security officials of both parties says there is "no factual basis" for Trump's national emergency. Signers include former Secretaries of State John Kerry and Madeline Albright and former defense secretary Chuck Hagel, and the document will be entered into the Congressional Record to support legal challenges to the declaration.
Backing a GND But Not the GND:
The Washington Post's editorial board wrote that its supports a Green New Deal that is "efficient, effective, focused and achievable" but said Sen. Edward Markey and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's plan "does not meet that test."
The board said it would lay out its own GND in a series of editorials this week it says will rely "both on smart government intervention -- and on transforming the relentless power of the market from an obstacle to a centerpiece of the solution."
How Facebook Moderates Content:
The Verge spoke with a dozen current and former employees of Cognizant, a firm that works for Facebook moderating things like hate speech and violent posts, about what it's like working there, and it does not at all sound like a fun job. You can read the full story here.
Wrote the Verge's Casey Newton, "The moderators told me it's a place where the conspiracy videos and memes that they see each day gradually lead them to embrace fringe views. One auditor walks the floor promoting the idea that the Earth is flat. A former employee told me he has begun to question certain aspects of the Holocaust. Another former employee, who told me he has mapped every escape route out of his house and sleeps with a gun at his side, said: 'I no longer believe 9/11 was a terrorist attack.'" Yeesh.
Warren Swears Off Big-Dollar Fundraisers:
In an email to supporters today, Sen. Elizabeth Warren said her 2020 campaign wouldn't involve "fancy receptions or big money fundraisers only with people who can write big checks." I wouldn't be surprised to hear Warren talk a lot about this on the campaign trail and during debates to criticize her Democratic opponents.
"For every time you see a presidential candidate talking with voters at a town hall, rally, or local diner, those same candidates are spending three or four or five times as long with wealthy donors -- on the phone, or in conference rooms at hedge fund offices, or at fancy receptions and intimate dinners -- all behind closed doors," Warren wrote in the email.
Street Art Sighting:
The Fundred Project is a participatory art project by Mel Chin that collects "Fundred" dollar bills that people draw on to bring attention to the lead crisis in America. The project is 10 years old and has collected about half a million bills in that time. Chin started it after Hurricane Katrina and he used bills because they symbolize value and he wanted the project to represent the value of people's lives who are ended or hurt because of lead poisoning.
The project is now on display at the Eaton hotel in downtown D.C. for the next six months and includes desks where visitors can draw their own bills to add to the project. They plan to use the project's latest D.C. residency to lobby lawmakers. You can see more photos from the exhibit here. | | Credit: Tam-anh Nguyen
Chin drew a mule on his bill to symbolize work and Melissa Mays, a mother and activist from Flint, Michigan, who was at Eaton's opening reception Saturday drew a poop emoji to symbolize "our current lead policy." Mays said the project lets her and other effected by lead poisoning "feel less invisible," important when advocating for a problem you can't see (lead isn't visible in water) and she's used bills drawn by children when meeting with lawmakers to push for policy changes. "I just push it across the table," she said.
It's been 1,767 days since Flint had clean water and 1.2 million children in America have elevated blood lead levels, per data published in Pediatrics in 2017.
Tag or DM me your political street art sightings @hunterschwarz on Twitter or Instagram, or email me at coverlinehunter@cnn.com. | | | | | | |
