Tipsheet: Dems worry Mueller findings could expand executive power

View in your browser     Dems worry Mueller findings could expand executive power BY MIKE LILLIS Democrats are voicing growing concerns that Robert Mueller's decision to avoid judgment on whether President Trump obstructed justice could engender a long-term expansion of executive powers.   While the debate surrounding Mueller's investigation has focused almost exclusively on how the findings might affect Trump, Democrats are sounding alarm bells that inaction on the obstruction allegations could usher in a new era of executive impunity — a shift empowering future presidents to flout the law for years to come. Read the full story here     Questions mount over Mueller, Barr and obstruction BY MORGAN CHALFANT   Questions are mounting over special counsel Robert Mueller’s inquiry into whether President Trump obstructed justice as lawmakers on Capitol Hill await the release of his report. Read the full story here     The Memo: GOP frets as Trump squanders advantages BY NIALL STANAGE Republicans are more worried than ever about a lack of discipline from President Trump and his administration as the 2020 election looms larger on the horizon. Read the full story here     Trump's health overhaul efforts hit legal roadblocks BY NATHANIEL WEIXEL Key aspects of President Trump's health care agenda are struggling to overcome legal challenges in the courts. Read the full story here       US halting aid to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras BY RACHEL FRAZIN The United States will no longer provide foreign assistance to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.  Read the full story here     Dems hammer Nielsen over border crisis BY RAFAEL BERNAL Democrats and immigration activists are firing back at Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, blaming her for the humanitarian crisis on the southwest border as the government struggles to deal with a surge in asylum seekers. Read the full story here     O'Rourke puts immigration, Trump at center of kickoff rally BY TAL AXELROD Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) put President Trump’s immigration policies front and center at his formal presidential campaign launch Saturday, heaping praise on what he says are the advantages of welcoming migrants into the country. Read the full story here     Graham gets assist from Pence in reelection campaign kickoff BY TAL AXELROD Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is kicking off his Senate reelection campaign with Vice President Pence on Saturday as the White House gives an early boost to one of its most vocal supporters on Capitol Hill. Read the full story here     House panel to vote on subpoena over census question BY TAL AXELROD The chair of the House Oversight and Reform Committee has threatened to subpoena a slew of government officials for testimony and documents related to the administration’s proposal to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. Read the full story here     Tensions between the United States and Russia over Venezuela increase BY ELLEN MITCHELL Tensions between the United States and Russia over Venezuela are threatening to boil over. Read the full story here     Trump's noble moment: Waiving executive privilege on Mueller's report BY JONATHAN TURLEY Opinion | The waiver of executive privilege has gone with nary a mention in coverage, as has the impressive speed and scope of Barr’s disclosure in handling the report. Yet, for critics of executive privilege, this is a decision that is not only historic but good for our democracy. Read the full story here     Digital revolution or digital regression? BY JOHN M. DEMAGGIO Opinion | Should the "digital revolution" be termed the "digital regression?" As we become more and more dependent on digital technology, are we controlling this technology or are we allowing the technology to control us? Read the full story here     The Washington Post: For Trump’s ‘Party of Health Care,’ there is no health-care plan BY SEUNG MIN KIM AND JOSH DAWSEY Not only is there no such health-care overhaul in the works on Capitol Hill — there are no plans to make such a plan, and most Republicans hope the president will drop the idea of trying to come up with a replacement for the Affordable Care Act. Read the full story here     The Associated Press: US struggling with growing number of asylum seekers BY COLLEEN LONG Border officials are aiming to more than quadruple the number of asylum seekers sent back over the southern border each day, a major expansion of a top government effort to address the swelling number of Central Americans arriving in the country, a Trump administration official said Saturday. Read the full story here     Reuters: Frequent crossers of US-Mexico border fret over threatened shutdown BY JULIO-CESAR CHAVEZ Workers and students who frequently cross the U.S. border with Mexico worried over the weekend about the impact on their lives if President Donald Trump follows through on a threat to shut entry points used by hundreds of thousands of people every day. Read the full story here     The New York Times: Trump’s order to open Arctic waters to oil drilling was unlawful, federal judge finds BY CORAL DAVENPORT In a major legal blow to President Trump’s push to expand offshore oil and gas development, a federal judge ruled that an executive order by Mr. Trump that lifted an Obama-era ban on oil and gas drilling in the Arctic Ocean and parts of the North Atlantic coast was unlawful. Read the full story here     CNN: The 2020 campaign is already turning into a war on 'elites' BY ZACH WOLF President Donald Trump and his newest Democratic nemesis, freshman New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have very different ideas about the idea of "elites."  Read the full story here   Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up for The Hill Tipsheet       Forward this Tipsheet     You might like         Privacy Policy  |  Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe  |  Email to a friend  |  Sign Up for Other Newsletters   The Hill 1625 K Street, NW 9th Floor, Washington DC 20006 ©2016 Capitol Hill Publishing Corp., a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc.