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House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jamie Raskin, D-Md., warned in a letter to Trump this morning that his administration officials could face criminal and civil penalties if they violate court orders.
In the letter obtained by NBC News, Raskin told Trump he has “taken several illegal and unconstitutional actions to freeze congressionally appropriated funds, hobble the workforce of congressionally established agencies, remove the heads of federal agencies, and access sensitive government data systems.”
As a result of court challenges, federal judges have issued orders in more than 40 cases to block or limit the administration’s actions, Raskin said. The lawmaker referred to a case brought by states that resulted in a temporary restraining order blocking the administration from freezing congressionally appropriated funds. Raskin said that after states proved the administration had disobeyed the order and failed to disburse the funds, the federal judge required the government to “immediately restore frozen funding.”
“It may therefore behoove you to remind members of your Administration that violating court orders personally exposes them to potential criminal and civil penalties,” Raskin wrote.
“Through civil or criminal contempt proceedings, judges can impose monetary fines on government officials who violate court orders and can ensure that the fines are to be paid by the individual government official, rather than allowing such an individual to be indemnified by his or her employing federal agency,” Raskin wrote. “Judges can even impose terms of imprisonment or confinement.”
The letter notes that Trump may be unable to pardon a federal employee if found in contempt because such an offense may not qualify as an “offense against the United States.” The pardon authority also doesn’t apply to civil sanctions.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Reporting from Hong Kong
Advocates for the detained Hong Kong media tycoon and democracy activist Jimmy Lai are set to meet with Trump administration officials, his son said, in a case that has caused tension between the U.S. and China.
Sebastien Lai said that with Trump in office he was “a lot more hopeful” for the release of his father, 77, who has spent more than 1,500 days in solitary confinement in the Chinese territory amid a landmark national security trial.
“President Trump was the first president of the United States that mentioned my father by name,” Lai told reporters in Washington, Reuters reported.
He said advocates for his father would meet with officials from the White House National Security Council after meeting earlier this week with officials from the State Department.
Trump said in October that he would “100%” get Lai out of China, prompting Hong Kong’s leader to warn Trump not to interfere in the city’s internal affairs.
Lai, founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily, faces possible life in prison on charges of colluding with foreign forces and sedition, to which he has pleaded not guilty. He finished 52 days of testimony last week, with closing arguments set for July.
U.S. Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger announced he plans to retire on May 2, capping off his time as the head of the agency in the aftermath of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.
Manger took the reins of the department after the Jan. 6 attack.
“I am honored to have served with a team that is dedicated to this critical mission,” Manger said in a statement. “It is time for a new leader to continue the success that we started together.”
The Washington Post first reported Manger’s retirement.
Trump disavowed the Project 2025 policy blueprint during his campaign last year as Democrats attacked the document and its contents. Since then, Trump has invited some of the most prominent contributors to the conservative playbook into his administration.
The document, which outlined a vision for a future Republican presidency, generally foreshadowed Trump’s sweeping moves to slash government agencies and cut federal funding in his first weeks in office, though there are also areas of departure.
As the dust settles after a whirlwind of Cabinet nominations, confirmation hearings and early administration actions, here’s where some prominent authors and contributors involved in Project 2025 have landed in the Trump administration.
Read the full story.
All eyes were on Moscow on today after American and Ukrainian officials said they would be willing to enforce a 30-day ceasefire in the country’s three-year war — and made it clear the ball was in Russia’s court.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is yet to respond to the proposal hashed out by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Ukrainian counterparts in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. But some Russian officials and hardline commentators have poured cold water on a plan that, in theory at least, would halt its advances on the battlefield.
Read the full story.
Trump will have a bilateral meeting today with Micheál Martin, the Taoiseach of Ireland.
They will then attend a “Friends of Ireland” luncheon at the Capitol.
In the evening, Trump and Martin will participate in a St. Patrick’s Day celebration in the East Room of the White House.
Senate Democrats will meet at lunch today to discuss how they will proceed on the House-passed funding bill, with many still unable to decide whether to vote for the measure that keeps the government funded through Sept. 30 or risk a shutdown starting Saturday.
“We’re never convinced that the House is gonna do anything until they do it, so meeting tomorrow to assess the path forward,” said Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., last night.
Murphy said he would support a “clean” bill for 30 days “to keep negotiating,” but said the existing measure was “a Republican budget.”
While some Democrats have advocated for voting against the legislation, many are saying they disagree with the bill but are unable to say yet how they will vote, including Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., who said “Stay tuned,” and Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., who said she’s “undecided.”
The legislation needs 60 votes to advance in the Senate, and Sen Rand Paul, R-Ky., has said he will vote against it. That means eight Democrats would have to vote in favor of the measure if the remaining 52 Republicans support it.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, has said she will support the bill.
“I just don’t want us to go through the costs and problems that are created by a government shutdown. And for that reason I’m going to be a ‘yes’ vote,” she said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said the bill “shouldn’t fail.”
“I think we have a chance now the House has passed it if the Democrats will cooperate to fund the government through the end of the fiscal year and avoid a government shutdown,” Thune told reporters. “To me, it’s a pretty simple proposition.”
U.S. tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports hit 25% today as President Donald Trump and his administration dig in on trade policies that are roiling financial markets.
The new tariffs were briefly expected to go even higher for Canada. Trump said Tuesday they would jump to 50% in response to Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s threat to impose a 25% surcharge on electricity imports into the United States to match the initial U.S. hike.
Ford backed off his threat after he spoke with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, while Trump indicated a doubling of U.S. tariffs for Canada was no longer likely.
In a statement issued with Lutnick and posted on X, Ford said he and Lutnick would meet Thursday alongside the U.S. trade representative to discuss renewing the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade act before Trump’s self-imposed April 2 “reciprocal tariff deadline.”
Read the full story here.
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