| | | | Court deals Trump a dramatic loss on travel ban | | Less than three weeks into his presidency, President Donald Trump is suddenly encountering the limits of executive power.
A federal appeals court ruled that Trump's ban on travel from seven majority Muslim nations to the United States will remain on hold -- issuing a unanimous repudiation of Trump in a highly anticipated decision.
The checks-and-balances line, with the 9th Circuit Court rejecting the government's argument that Trump's national security decisions aren't subject to review: "There is no precedent to support this claimed unreviewability, which runs contrary to fundamental structure of constitutional democracy."
Another crucial line, on the merits of the travel ban: "The government has pointed to no evidence that any alien from any of the countries named in the order has perpetrated a terrorist attack in the United States."
Joan Biskupic, CNN legal analyst and Supreme Court biographer, offers these thoughts: "The decision is straightforward, reasoned and well-documented, and I see nothing in it that would invite Supreme Court intervention at this point."
Trump, however, has other ideas: | | | Early Democratic reaction: | | | More headaches in store for Trump: Democratic attorneys general view the travel ban as just the first battle in a yearslong war against the White House. Here's Eric's look at how they're preparing for future fights. | | "Go buy Ivanka's stuff. ... I'm going to give a free commercial here: Go buy it today, everybody. You can find it online." -- Top White House adviser Kellyanne Conway on "Fox & Friends" when an interviewer raised the subject of Ivanka Trump. It led to an onslaught of ethics complaints, with White House press secretary Sean Spicer later saying Conway had been "counseled" over her comments' inappropriateness. | | | This was President Donald Trump's response after Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut told reporters on Wednesday that Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch told him that he felt Trump's comments about the judiciary branch were "demoralizing" and "disheartening."
But Gorsuch's words to Blumenthal had already been confirmed by Ron Bonjean, who was tapped by the White House to head communications for Gorsuch.
What was really going on here? | | The anti-Trump protest movement digs in -- but can it win? | | CNN's Greg Krieg emails about the reckoning up ahead for the anti-Trump protest movement:
Before Election Day, progressives and Berniecrats had modest plans for 2017. They were going to nudge President Hillary Clinton to the left, angling for a seat at the table in a White House they knew would need their support in 2018 and 2020. But with Trump on the job, establishment Democrats reeling, and millions of Americans protesting almost daily, the stakes got real high, real fast.
Now they're trying to turn liberal outrage into a cohesive, focused political movement -- while ceding little ground to the moderates they blame for fumbling power to Trump. First up: winning over the kids.
"The reality is heroes aren't made, they're cornered," National Nurses United Executive Director RoseAnn DeMoro, a leading Sanders supporter, told CNN. "The millennials are increasing in number and frustration. They're the group that has not much to look forward to. They're going to continue to protest because they don't have anything to lose."
Activists are as excited by the size and frequency of the protests as the new faces they're seeing in the streets. The usual suspects are getting a boost from young urbanites more accustomed to spending their weekend afternoons at boozy brunches. "I've been through Occupy, I've been in Black Lives Matter (events), and it seems that for regular, normal, everyday people, activism is becoming part of their routine. … A part of their lifestyle," said Rafael Shimunov, from the Working Families Party.
So, can it last -- and can it grow? Political movements are, to paraphrase Woody Allen, like sharks: They have to move constantly forward, or die. That will be up to the new Democratic National Committee chairman, set to be elected later this month, and the coalition of organizers on the ground now. Here's a closer look at an anxious, exciting moment for the left. | | Our favorite thing we read today | | After Alabama's lumbering Luther Strange was confirmed as Jeff Sessions' replacement in the Senate, Roll Call's Simone Pathé called former Wyoming Sen. Alan Simpson -- who previously had been the chamber's tallest member in the modern era. Here's how her story begins:
Former Sen. Alan Simpson was surprised to hear that he'd lost his title as the tallest senator in modern history.
"What son of a bitch did that?" he asked when reached by phone Thursday afternoon.
But upon learning that Luther Strange, Alabama's newly appointed senator, had claimed the honor, the Wyoming Republican was happy to step aside.
"Oh, that's quite a name right there," Simpson said. "How tall is he?" | | | #TBT to former Democratic Rep. Shirley Chisholm's 1972 presidential campaign. Chisholm was the first African-American woman elected to Congress -- a milestone worth noting during Black History Month -- and the first to run for president. She ran the same year the Democratic Party nominated George McGovern as its nominee. More from CNN's Brenna Williams. | | 3 things you might have missed today | | Bipartisan praise for Hatch: Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch, the president pro tempore of the body, was praised by both GOP leader Mitch McConnell and Democratic leader Chuck Schumer in a pair of floor speeches for being the longest-serving Republican senator in history. More from CNN's Theodore Schleifer.
More executive orders: President Donald Trump signed three new executive orders that he said are "designed to restore safety in America." One launches a new anti-crime task force. One orders federal prosecution of those who harm law enforcement officers and one orders a ramped-up battle against drug cartels. More from CNN's Laura Jarrett.
Apprehensions at the southern border decreased sharply in January, according to statistics obtained first by CNN -- a drop in line with yearly seasonal trends but that could give Trump an early talking point in his efforts to ramp up border security. CNN's Tal Kopan had the scoop. | | President Donald Trump's staffers are changing local businesses in Washington. (Hint: Bullfeathers and the Old Ebbitt Grill are the places to be, and Fireball whiskey is their drink of choice.) ... The Office of Government Ethics website broke after Kellyanne Conway promoted Ivanka Trump's brand. ... Syria's President Bashar al-Assad says some refugees are "definitely" terrorists.
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