Bhinneka News Online: Monday Morning Briefing: Trump sues Deutsche Bank and Capital One to block House subpoenas

Tuesday, 30 April 2019

Monday Morning Briefing: Trump sues Deutsche Bank and Capital One to block House subpoenas

Politics

President Donald Trump, three of his children and seven of his companies filed a federal lawsuit Monday against Deutsche Bank and Capital One Financial to block the banks from complying with federal subpoenas investigating his financial dealings.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said that Attorney General William Barr must testify before his panel on Thursday, despite Barr’s reported objections to a more aggressive format for questions planned by Democrats. “He is supposed to show up on Thursday and we will take whatever action we have to take if he doesn’t,” Nadler told reporters.

Biden sets up battle with Trump over union vote. The former U.S. vice president made clear on Monday at his first event as a presidential candidate that he stands ready to battle President Trump for the support of the blue-collar workers who were key to Trump’s election in 2016. “I make no apologies. I am a union man,” Biden told a crowd that included members of the Teamsters, steelworkers, firefighters and teachers unions. “The country wasn’t built by Wall Street bankers, CEOs and hedge fund managers, it was built by you.”

Rod Rosenstein, U.S. deputy attorney general who appointed Mueller, submits resignation. Rosenstein’s departure, effective May 11, was not a surprise. He had been expected to step down in March. The White House had no immediate comment, but noted that Trump had already nominated Deputy Transportation Secretary Jeffrey Rosen to replace him.

Venezuela

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido said he had begun the “final phase” of his plan to oust President Nicolas Maduro, calling on Venezuelans and the military to back him to end Maduro’s “usurpation.” The government promptly dismissed any suggestion of a military insurrection. “We reject this coup movement, which aims to fill the country with violence,” said Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino.

Exclusive: Blackwater founder’s latest sales pitch - mercenaries for Venezuela. Erik Prince - the founder of the controversial private security firm Blackwater and a prominent supporter of Trump - has been pushing a plan to deploy a private army to help topple Venezuela’s socialist president, Nicholas Maduro, four sources with knowledge of the effort told Reuters.

World

Special Report: China's vast fleet is tipping the balance in the Pacific. China’s expanding naval power is altering the strategic balance in the Western Pacific where the United States, along with allies like Japan and Australia, have long ruled the waves. ‘We thought China would be a great pushover for way too long, and so we let them start the naval arms race while we dawdled,’ says a former U.S. navy officer.

Are you British? India government asks Modi's main election rival, Gandhi, to respond. India’s government has asked Rahul Gandhi, the president of the main opposition Congress party, to respond to a complaint by a lawmaker from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party accusing him of holding dual British citizenship against Indian law. Congress dismissed a notice sent to 48-year-old Gandhi, who has studied and worked in England, by the Ministry of Home Affairs on Monday as a “pathetic stunt that is not just frivolous but downright stupid”. Gandhi, the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty that has dominated Indian politics for much of its history since independence from Britain in 1947, is the main challenger to Modi in the 39-day general election that began on April 11. Results will be known on May 23.

Sri Lankan security forces maintained a high level of alert after the Easter Sunday bombings, officials said, amid intelligence reports that Islamist militants were planning fresh attacks before the start of the holy Islamic month of Ramadan. The United States believes members of the militant group blamed for Sri Lanka’s attacks may be at large and planning more assaults, the U.S. ambassador to Sri Lanka said on Tuesday.