The Point: A Monumental Week in Trumpworld

View this email in your browser June 15, 2018  | by Chris Cillizza and Brenna Williams A Monumental Week in Trumpworld This week is one we will look back on in a month, six months, a year or even four years and analyze how what happened this week set the course for much of what was to come in Donald Trump's presidency. Consider: Trump traveled to Singapore for a first-of-its-kind summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un Family separations -- as a result of the Trump administration's hard-line immigration policies -- leapt into the public consciousness The Department of Justice's inspector general released a more than 500-page report detailing missteps by then-FBI Director James Comey -- among others -- during the 2016 investigation into Hillary Clinton's private email server Paul Manafort, Trump's onetime campaign chairman, is incarcerated after repeatedly trying, prosecutors allege, to tamper with potential witnesses in his upcoming trial Longtime Trump lawyer Michael Cohen is apparently willing to cooperate with federal officials in hopes of lessening the charges against him. That's a LOT of balls up in the air, with the potential to fundamentally reshape the arc of Trump's presidency when they all land. Immigration. North Korea. The special counsel. The FBI.  It's enough news for a month in most past administrations. In Trumpworld, it's a week -- composing 32 (!) major headlines. -- Chris Monday: Jeff Sessions primed to overhaul asylum law US unveils new Russia sanctions over cyberattacks Ex-WH aide says he was tasked with taping together Trump's torn-up papers Trump's North Korean gamble ends with 'special bond' with Kim Tuesday: Trump says Kim 'trusts me, and I trust him' Trump says accused human rights abuser Kim Jong Un 'loves his people' Trump on Kim: Without exchange of insults 'we wouldn't have been here' Trump and Kim agree to recovery of US military remains from Korean War George Conway -- Kellyanne Conway's husband -- defends Mueller's investigation Wednesday: Trump seemingly justifies brutal actions by Kim and says he's 'very smart' Trump admin expected to suspend August US-S.Korea drill as Pentagon scrambles Trump declares North Korea 'no longer a nuclear threat' Trump's personal attorney splits with his own legal team WaPo: Pruitt enlisted EPA aide, donors to find his wife a job Court documents inadvertently reveal witnesses in Paul Manafort case Thursday: Sessions cites Bible to defend immigration policies resulting in family separations Trump returns salute of North Korean general at summit, state media footage reveals Comey's actions 'extraordinary and insubordinate,' report says US warns of North Korea cyber campaign, days after historic summit Trump pick for South Korea ambassador says North Korea remains a nuclear threat Trump approves tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods New York attorney general sues Trump Foundation Top White House communications aide has history of rhetoric strongly critical of Trump Sessions takes responsibility for keeping Rosenstein in charge of Russia investigation Friday: Judge sends Paul Manafort to jail, pending trial Trump says he wants 'my people' to 'sit up at attention' like North Koreans, later says he's 'kidding' Trump pounces on Justice Department report findings Trump rejects immigration compromise Michael Cohen seeks restraining order to stop Stormy Daniels' lawyer from speaking to the press Judge: No immediate restraining order against Avenatti White House legislative affairs director tells staff he's leaving Cohen signals openness to cooperating with federal investigators QUOTE OF THE DAY "I have the bikers, I have the construction workers, I have them all." -President Donald Trump on his supporters. Read 48 other wild quotes from his bananas interview with "Fox & Friends" this morning. VOTE YOUR CONSCIENCE? 🤔 Ten Democratic senators are up for re-election in states that voted for Trump in 2016. For them, the road to November 6 has so far been paved with varying levels of political compromise.  CNN's Annie Grayer and Joyce Tseng break down how these vulnerable incumbents voted on items such as CIA Director Gina Haspel's nomination, tax cuts and health care.  BRENNA'S GOOD READS WaPo's Carlos Lozada (Notre Dame's finest) read six books on Trump and Russia. What he says they're missing might surprise you. A record number of LGBTQ candidates are running for office. CNN's Maegan Vazquez explains why.  Politico read the ad-buy tea leaves to figure out the state of play in the battle for the Senate. ICYMI (NPR didn't): The Czech President burned a giant pair of boxers. News for fans of the "S-Town" podcast. Is it good? Is it bad? Up to you.  MUSICAL INTERLUDE Brenna's going on vacation to France next week. You know who is French and also makes music? Former French first lady Carla Bruni. Her song "Quelqu'un m'a dit" is lovely, even if you don't speak French.  INSTA POINT Today's topic? Chris' question of the week -- "Was Barack Obama talking about Joe Biden when he said Dems' problems are caused by 'old men'?" Watch the full answer on CNN Politics' Instagram story today. Keep the questions coming, Chris will answer another one next week! PROGRESS ON IMMIGRATION? NOT SO FAST.  Congressional Republicans have been struggling for weeks to come together on an immigration plan that everyone could compromise on. It seemed like things were coming together. Enter President Trump.  "Republican aides and members involved in the discussions were taken aback by the President's impromptu interview with Fox News on the White House lawn where Trump insinuated he wouldn't support a bill that had been negotiated with his administration's involvement." As you can imagine, moderate and conservative GOPers had different responses to this latest shakeup. CNN's Lauren Fox, Tal Kopan and Ashley Killough have those (and so much more!) here. SCOUT'S HONOR CNN's Cassie Spodak has this story -- the final installment of her Bridging the Divide series -- about a Boy Scout troop in Colorado. "The boys of Troop 1532 are newcomers to America, almost all political refugees; they moved to America from camps in countries like Tanzania, Malaysia and Nepal. The troop was born out of troop leader PJ Parmar's family medical practice in the suburbs outside Denver, where he focuses on treating refugee families. He hopes the troop can help these boys in the same way Boy Scouts helped him. Parmar's parents moved from India to Canada just before he was born. When he was a year old, they moved to Chicago, where Parmar says he struggled to find his place growing up in America." NORTH AMERICA SCOOOOOOORES. TRUMP WITH THE ASSIST(?) In increasingly frequent sports and politics news, North America is hosting the World Cup in 2026. And President Trump is taking credit for it.  "Thank you for all of the compliments on getting the World Cup to come to the U.S.A., Mexico and Canada. I worked hard on this, along with a Great Team of talented people. We never fail, and it will be a great World Cup! A special thanks to Bob Kraft for excellent advice," Trump tweeted. Want to know more? CNN's DJ Judd's got it for you here.  YOUR DAILY GIF H/T Brenna From Brenna: "President Trump surprised (sort of) the crew over at 'Fox & Friends' by showing up for an impromptu interview. But they were broadcasting from his lawn, so was it really a surprise? To get there, he had to make it through a scrum of other press. I wish I had the power to part crowds like the Red Sea." TGIF. Tell people you know to subscribe to The Point. We'd love to share our other newsletters with you. Follow this link for daily coverage of the world's top stories, savvy market insights, an insider's look into the media and more. Our authors for The Point are Chris Cillizza and Saba Hamedy. Send your tips and thoughts via email to Chris or Saba. Follow on Twitter: Chris and Saba. Share Tweet Forward Subscribe to The Point Copyright © 2018 Cable News Network, LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved., All rights reserved. You are receiving this message because you subscribed to CNN's The Point with Chris Cillizza newsletter. Our mailing address is: Cable News Network, LP, LLLP. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. 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