DOJ Targeting Affirmative Action: ‘Big Red Flag’, Senate Blocks Trump Recess Appointments, Murkowski Stood Up To WH

August 4th, 2017 Top Stories --------------------------------------------------------------- [DOJ’s Move To Target Affirmative Action A ‘Big Red Flag’ For Politicized Staffing]( The Gist: Reports this week that the front office of the Civil Rights Division under Attorney General Jeff Sessions would be running a project to investigate universities whose affirmative action policies purportedly discriminate against white students brought a chill that was all too familiar for some former Justice Department officials. These former officials warned that a direct line could be drawn from the politicized hirings that got the division in trouble during the George W. Bush administration to a reported internal job posting that requested division attorneys interested in working on “investigations and possible litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions” submit their resumes by Aug. 9. [Senate Blocks Trump’s Ability To Make Recess Appointments This Month]( The Gist: Before the Senate left for its August recess on Thursday, lawmakers agreed to a series of pro forma sessions that ensures the Senate never officially goes on recess. The move effectively blocks President Donald Trump from making recess appointments while senators are away. [Murkowski: I Told Trump I Would Vote For Alaska, Not The Republican Party]( The Gist: During Republican senators' second visit to the White House to meet with the President about Obamacare repeal plans, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) stood up to President Donald Trump. “It was a very directed appeal, that we need to come together as Republicans. I made a statement to the President with my colleagues and with his team there that ‘I’m not voting for the Republican Party. I’m voting for the people of Alaska,’” she said. From The Reporter's Notebook --------------------------------------------------------------- The House Oversight Committee[wants to review]( any information that ousted national security adviser Michael Flynn’s former business partner may have about the retired lieutenant general’s foreign contacts, Allegra Kirkland reports. In a Thursday letter, the top Democrat on the committee requested that Bijan Kian turn over “all documents and communications” related to Flynn’s work-related “foreign person contacts,” “professional work relationships with foreign businesses” and foreign travel. Agree or Disagree? --------------------------------------------------------------- Josh Marshall: I guess we can say that the lesson of the day is that when [private conversations are released willy nilly to the public]( it can be damaging to the parties involved. The simple reality is that we speak differently in private and especially among trusted coworkers and friends than we do in public. Whether this is right or wrong is hardly the point. It is an ingrained part of the human experience. Indeed, it is probably a necessary part of the human experience. When we think someone is ugly or stupid, unless we want to hurt that person we generally will try to avoid telling them this. If we have to confront our beliefs with them and choose not to lie we will generally try to do so in the least hurtful and damaging way. Candor has its place. Total candor is sometimes critical to be fair and loving to someone we care about and want the best for. But as a general matter, being indifferent to these niceties doesn’t make you transparent. It makes you an asshole. Say What?! --------------------------------------------------------------- “If we don’t do our job we will depress turnout.” - Speaker of the House Paul Ryan [said Thursday]( that if his party doesn't pass some major legislation this year, they will risk losing their majority in Congress in 2018. BUZZING: Today in the Hive --------------------------------------------------------------- From a TPM Prime member: "All this nonsense about LGBTQ or transgender people being 'a disruption' (or the other myriad variations of such claims based on their mere existence and presence in the military) is just projection and an attempt at flipping it all upside down and inside out. No. The disruption is the professional soldier whose professionalism dies the minute he finds out he doesn't like what someone else is doing with their genitals." Related: [Poll: Majority Of Voters Say Transgender Individuals Should Be Allowed To Serve]( Have something to add? Become a [Prime]( member and join the discussion [here](. What We're Reading --------------------------------------------------------------- How the Trump Era Has Wreaked Havoc on Washington’s Plastic Surgery Schedules ([Vanity Fair]( Fired/Rehired: Police chiefs are often forced to put officers fired for misconduct back on the streets ([The Washington Post]( [unsubscribe from this list]( | [update subscription preferences]( | [view email in browser](