It was not clear why the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, issued a subpoena instead of simply asking for documents from the Trump Organization. Doug Mills/The New York TimesGood Friday morning,Here are some of the stories making news in Washington and politics today:
- Thespecial counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, has subpoenaed the Trump Organization to turn over documents, including some related to Russia. The order is the first known instance of Mr. Mueller demanding records directly related to President Trump’s businesses, bringing the investigation closer to the president.
- The Trump administration imposed sanctions on a series of Russian organizations and individuals in retaliation for election interference and other “malicious” cyberattacks. The sanctions targeted many of the same Russian organizations and operatives indicted by Mr. Mueller.
- The White House accused Russia of engineering a series of cyberattacks that targeted American and European nuclear power plants and water and electric systems, and could have sabotaged or shut power plants off at will.
- In the nine months since he gushed over his cabinet in its first full meeting, Mr. Trump has fired or forced out a half-dozen of the “incredible, talented” people in the room that day. And the purge at the top may not be over.
- Mr. Trump repeated his false assertion that the United States runs a trade deficit with Canada, the morning after telling Republican donors privately that he had deliberately insisted on that claim in a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada without knowing if it was true. Some Canadians remain baffled.
- Larry Kudlow, Mr. Trump’s pick to lead the National Economic Council, is a Wall Street economist, a polished television host and, most of all, an evangelist for supply-side economics, which espouses that cutting taxes on businesses and the rich will rain down benefits on everyone else in the country.
— The First Draft Team