| | | | The accomplishments Trump is trumpeting | | In a memo obtained first by CNN, the White House says it plans to highlight President Donald Trump's job creation efforts, regulation cuts and national security measures, among other actions. But not all the initiatives have been unqualified successes: Trump's travel ban, which is listed, is stalled in the court system.
Further, the bulk of Trump's accomplishments have been made through executive action or memorandum, something Republicans decried former President Barack Obama for doing during his second term. There are 37 points in this list, and 23 were accomplished by executive order or memorandum. Read the memo here.
The big story this week, though, is lawmakers' efforts to avoid a government shutdown -- and the White House's battle lines remain fuzzy, reports CNN's Jeremy Diamond. Trump's top aides sent mixed signals over the weekend about how far he would go to secure funding for his border wall, a potential poison pill for the spending fight. "They're feeling their way forward," said former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who is close to Trump and top White House aides. "One of the lessons they learned out of the health bill is to be cautious and not try and run straight into a wall." Trump himself muddied the waters by adding a return to health care reform to the legislative docket, and promised a "big announcement" on tax reform during the week leading up to the crucial budget deadline and, coincidentally, the 100-day marker of his presidency. | | Obama re-emerges after avoiding political spotlight | | Speaking in public for the first time since leaving the White House three months ago, former President Barack Obama avoided criticizing his successor, disappointing anyone who was hoping for a clash between the ex-president and President Donald Trump. In a nearly 90-minute forum, Obama laid out lessons he learned as a young community organizer in Chicago decades ago and vowed to help bring up the next generation of leaders. He did not once mention Trump's name.
"I'm spending a lot of time thinking about what is the most important thing I can do for my next job?" Obama said onstage at the University of Chicago, which hosted the event. "The single most important thing I can do is to help in any way I can prepare the next generation of leadership, to take up the baton, and to take their own crack at changing the word." While Obama did not intend to directly confront or take swipes at Trump, an adviser said he wanted to be forthcoming -- if asked -- about where he stands on specific policy matters, including areas where he and Trump clearly disagree, a source said. More from CNN's MJ Lee. | | | Matt Drudge -- quite possibly delivering a riff inspired by R.E.M.'s "It's the End of the World as We Know It" -- on Twitter today. | | 4 things you might have missed today | | | State Dept. blog promotes Trump's Mar-a-Lago, prompting ethics concerns: In a markedly promotional blog post from April 5 that could eventually benefit the President's bottom line, should it spur membership or foreign visits, the embassy writes that the property has "become well known as the President frequently travels there to work or host foreign leaders." More from CNN's Dan Merica. Trump postpones a dinner with Supreme Court justices: A Trump aide said the dinner, originally planned for Thursday, was put off due to scheduling conflicts. More from Politico's Josh Gerstein.
Bipartisan group wants clean spending bill to avoid shutdown: The Problem Solvers Caucus, a group of 40 congressional Democrats and Republicans, said they will support a spending bill to avoid a government shutdown if that budget comes without any partisan strings attached. More from CNN's Zachary Cohen.
Senate investigators chafe at pace of Russia investigation, grinding forward: A source with knowledge of private conversations told CNN that Sen. Mark Warner, the lead Democrat on the Senate investigation, is "very frustrated at the pace of the committee's investigation." More from CNN's Manu Raju, Jim Sciutto, Tom LoBianco and Jeremy Herb. | | | President Donald Trump can't stop talking (and talking) about the 2016 election. ... An Ohio congressman who attracted criticism for telling a mother that her grown son has the "opportunity to go earn" better health benefits is standing by his remarks. ... The US Commission on Civil Rights criticizes the Trump administration for the way it is arresting undocumented immigrants, saying it could be harmful to "access to justice." | | | We'd love to share our other newsletters with you. Check out Five Things for Your New Day, CNN's morning newsletter. Give us five minutes, and we'll brief you on all the news and buzz people will be talking about. | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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